Promoting Positive Behaviour and Attitudes

Promoting Positive Behaviour and Attitudes at Charlton Primary School follows the recommendations and guidance set out by the Department of Education and supports our overarching Trust policies.

Our Ethos

Our ethos is founded, like all things, on our school vision and ambition.

 

Our vision is to be an exceptional school where children flourish​.

This will be achieved through an ambitious and engaging curriculum in a happy, kind, inclusive environment facilitated by committed and caring staff. ​

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At Charlton Primary School, we believe that all children can achieve and flourish. We recognise that sometimes children might need different things and different approaches to achieve this. Positive and Responsible behaviour is nurtured through encouragement and guidance. We believe positive behaviour, efforts and achievements should be recognised, celebrated and rewarded. It is vital that children recognise that behaving well and making positive choices and being kind are the backbone of not only our school community, but of our wider community as well. 

Our Vision for Behaviour and Attitudes

At Charlton Primary School we strive to ensure that our pupils are confident, self-assured learners who have excellent attendance, are proud of their school and exude our school values - Happiness, Kindness, Responsibility. 

Their impeccable behaviour for learning and conduct reflects their own self-driven determination to take every advantage of the opportunities that become available to them each day both during the school day, in lessons and outside of the school day. Strong behaviour for learning also reflects our strategies to promote high standards and is a direct consequence of the broad, engaging and rich curriculum.

Our culture of kindness and inclusion, which seeks to embrace every member of our community, sees our pupils demonstrating genuine care for one another.  We aim for our pupils to regard the achievements and successes of others as highly as their own.

We strive to be a school where children are highly positive role models to create a school environment in which commonalities are identified and celebrated, difference is valued and nurtured, and bullying, harassment and violence are never tolerated.

 We demonstrate our commitment to achieving our vision by:

• Celebrating children’s effort and achievements, no matter how big or small.
• Promoting and celebrating individual and collaborative team effort and achievement.
• Promoting the importance of excellent attendance and punctuality.
• Dealing with bullying, racism and any other behaviour incidents swiftly and effectively.
• Creating a positive environment that promotes children’s health and well-being.
• Support pupils with praise, guidance and restorative approaches which will equip them with the skills to develop emotional regulation and self-control.
• Supporting our children who might be struggling with emotional regulation to succeed.
• Designing and implementing a curriculum that effectively teaches pupils about how to be healthy and stay safe and appreciate the value and richness of other cultures and faiths.

Rights Respecting Schools

At Charlton Primary School, we aim to support the right of all children, regardless of gender, race, religion, disability or special needs to learn and achieve and to feel happy and safe.  The UNICEF Rights Respecting Schools Award (RRSA) recognises a school’s achievement in putting the rights of the child at the heart of the school’s ethos.  Charlton is committed to providing a curriculum with a focus on discovery, responsibility, wonder and knowledge as its core purpose.  It is delivered through a happy and values-based learning community that is facilitated by committed and caring staff.

With the focus of the RRSA and a ‘rights-based approach’, Charlton will continue to improve highly effective school systems and structures. The RRSA encourages adults and children to collaborate in the education process; to always take action ‘in the best interests’ of others.

The way we do this:

Charlton is a Rights Respecting School and our approach is also characterised by three further key aspects: Developing Citizenship; Restorative Practice and the Pivotal approach to behaviour.

Developing Citizenship

Good ‘Citizenship’ (making good choices; being responsible; helping, supporting and leading others, and contributing positively to the community) is a core element of our whole school ethos and the curriculum at Charlton Primary School. We teach children to be good citizens inside and outside of school through our ‘Charlton values’ and support them to understand the importance of this.  Charlton values are given a high profile across the school; are celebrated in assemblies and newsletters and are displayed across classrooms and shared areas.

The strong belief in our values ensures very high expectations of the children in our care, and our members of staff. This supports children in understanding not only what unacceptable behaviours are, but also the impact of these on others. 

The Vale Academy Trust Citizenship Award allows all children to work towards achieving together as part of the wider community.  It gives every child the opportunity to develop the skills and attitudes to become active learners and model citizens of the future. It enables children to develop their courageous side and to be more responsible for themselves and others around them.

Restorative Practice:

Restorative Practice is all about relationships.  It is a pro-active approach for making, maintaining and, when necessary, repairing relationships.’  It is an approach that empowers children to express their underlying needs, and helps to navigate them through difficult situations and to be part of finding the solution.  It helps build understanding and strengthens relationships.

The five core beliefs of Restorative Practice are:

1. Everyone has a unique perspective and a valued contribution to make – we need to hear what people have to say.
2. Our thoughts influence our feelings and both influence what we do and say – we need to unpick what is going on behind behaviour.
3. Our actions and deeds impact on those around us – we need to consider the consequences of our actions.
4. All our actions are strategies we have chosen to meet our needs at the time – we need to be part of identifying what we need and identifying how our needs will be met.
5. The people who are affected by an issue or problem are those best placed to find ways forward in collaboration with each other – we need to be enabled and empowered to make positive and sustainable changes for ourselves.

 

We follow the Restorative Practice values and principles which places the highest priority on:

1. Really listening to people
2. Avoiding fixing things for them
3. Being non-judgemental
4. Remaining neutral
5. Respecting each person’s unique perspective on a situation

 Pivotal Approach

The Pivotal approach focuses on adults and the positive culture they create around school. We greet every child positively in the morning and set clear routines.

We follow the 5 pillars of the Pivotal Approach:

1. Consistent, calm, adult behaviour
2. First attention to best conduct
3. Relentless routines
4. Scripting difficult interventions
5. Restorative follow-up

This approach is used by all adults across Charlton Primary School and is revisited by staff at the start of every school year.

Everybody’s Responsibilities    

What children and parents/carers can expect from staff - staff will:

• Invest time in developing strong and nurturing relationships with children, parents and colleagues, being sensitive to individual circumstances and needs
• Model the school values: be happy, be kind and be responsible
• Be clear and consistent with their expectations and establish routines
• Use rewards and praise.
• Speak to all children with respect and in a positive way.
• Always address the behaviour/choices of the pupil rather than the pupil him/herself.
• Always take seriously any complaints of bullying or inappropriate behaviour; investigate and address swiftly in line with our policies.

Staff at Charlton Primary School are expected to be effective role models for the children. It is vital that adults always conduct themselves in a professional manner as they play a pivotal role in the personal and social development of the children.

All children at Charlton Primary School deserve to experience positive role-models in the form of predictable, reliable, consistent and caring adults.

Staff members will:

• Model to children, encouraging them to make appropriate choices.
• Put positive choices into action so that the children can see that doing the right thing has positive outcomes.
• Apologise when they have made a mistake and rectify it in an assertive, but sensitive manner.
• Demonstrate that self discipline is an important facet in life - children expect staff to do what they say they will do.
• Be respectful to property and to others.
• Be polite and use appropriate language at all times.
• Listen intently to children and each other.
• Dress appropriately.
• Treat each child as an individual.

What staff can expect from children - *Children will:

• Demonstrate and use their ‘Charlton values’ at all times
• Show respect to all adults within the school community
• Strive to be engaged and ontask, with a positive attitude to their learning
• Discuss and share their learning
• Model good citizenship in our school and local community

*Children with Special Educational Needs and Disability or other specific needs may require reasonable adjustments to the plan and expectations according to their personal circumstances.

What staff can expect from parents and carers - parents and carers will:

• Communicate openly and respectfully with all members of staff
• Build positive relationships with the school.
• Share and celebrate their child’s achievements and successes.
• Support and engage with their child’s learning and social and emotional development.
• Work in partnership with the school to help their child to achieve their full potential.

Celebrating Success

Charlton Primary School uses rewards and recognition to encourage the frequency of positive behaviours in order to increase self-esteem and instil behaviour that will improve children’s lifestyle and the wider community.    Staff congratulate and praise pupils to recognise their positive behaviour and achievements.  Rewards are open to all and are not exclusive; however, they must be earned and not used to appease children or situations. 

Although at times different provision can appear as a reward, the aim is to undertake activities and experiences that might help facilitate a change and/or promote personal development.

We have a number of strategies that staff can use to celebrate and reward children’s achievement, which may include:

• Praise, attention and recognition
• Class recognition
• Earning marbles
• Whole class rewards
• Stickers
• Postcards home
• Positive phone calls/chats with parents
• Individual and group recognition in assembly every Friday. Children who have stood out due to demonstrating one or more of our school values are celebrated.
• Wow certificates
• Star of the Day/Week
• Reception Happy Wall

 

Dealing with behaviour that harms or challenges         

Charlton Primary School uses positivity and praise to manage children’s behaviour to ensure we maintain a safe and positive learning environment for everyone. We aim to instil the importance of doing the right thing for the right reasons.  Encouraging children to consider the links between thoughts, feelings and actions encourages them to become more self-reflective and to process thoughts before acting. It also teaches children to become more self-regulating through recognising trigger feelings and thoughts

However, occasionally children do not get it right…we understand that ‘children are not their behaviour’ and that behaviour that harms or challenges is a form of communication of an unmet need.  Restorative approaches seek to better understand the thoughts and feelings that underlie the behaviour to better understand and address the challenging or harmful behaviour.

Restorative practice allows everyone’s voice to be heard.  It allows those who have been harmed to communicate the impact of the behaviour to those responsible and for those responsible to acknowledge this impact and to take steps to put it right.  This approach promotes empathy, care, consideration and respect.

Some of our children may require further interventions to help them to manage their behaviour and their emotions.  These interventions will be done on an individual basis and individual behaviour plans (IBP) will be put in place to support these children. 

Very poor or continued poor behaviours can lead to removal of privileges and at times, significant disciplinary measures (including fixed term suspension) may be required. Senior Leaders will manage these situations. We will always work with parents/carers to support our children.