Pastoral Care
Pastoral care is an essential part of our school ethos. Every staff member has an active role to play in our pupils’ wellbeing.
A safe, happy place to learn and grow
We are committed to providing a happy and secure environment where children and staff work together in an atmosphere of trust and respect. It is only in this type of environment that we feel children can truly thrive and achieve their best, whilst also learning to be tolerant, courteous and caring to others.
Our highly experienced form teachers have day-to-day responsibility for overseeing all pupils’ academic and pastoral care. They are the first port of call for any child who has a problem or a question about school life. Form teachers take particular interest in the work and activities of the children both inside the classroom and away from school. The Deputy Head takes charge of pastoral care at Wellesley and almost daily staff meetings allow for discussion and the sharing of important information.
Wellbeing
Our Assistant Head, Wellbeing leads a highly experienced team including the SENCO, School Matron and our two Emotional Literacy Support Assistants (ELSA). Further staff offer drawing and Lego therapy. They meet weekly to discuss the best approach to support children and their families using proactive and reactive strategies. Peer listeners in Year 8 offer to support younger children every day in a designated safe place. The worry box sits in a discreet but accessible location and the friendship bench occupies a prominent position in the pre-prep playground. Workshops are available for parents in which we explore ways to ensure our children feel valued, listened to and “enough.”
A wide range of pursuits allows for children to take risks in their learning, fail without the fear of failure, and build resilience. We encourage service to others to build empathy and self-worth.
Personal, Social, Health and Economic education
Children learn the ways of good citizenship through our PSHEE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education) programme that runs throughout the school and during our regular assemblies. The school follows the “Jigsaw” programme which allows for consistency, clarity and embraces British Values. An hour of time is allocated to this, and we view PSHE as a core subject for all of our pupils.
High standards of appearance and presentation
We expect senior pupils to take pride in their appearance and demonstrate high standards of manners, courtesy and general conduct as they represent our school. A detailed list of uniform requirements can be found here.
Our Heads of School are also always on hand to provide support for pupils should the need arise.
Recognising outstanding achievement
We have four school Houses: Austen, Calthorpe, Nightingale and Brunel. From Year 3 onwards, each pupil is assigned to a House.
The House system encourages pupils to develop a sense of team work, build new friendships and help each other. Kindness and helping others, both within school and in the wider community, is an integral feature of school life. The interaction between younger and older children is nurtured during house meetings and house events, with senior pupils taking the lead in creating school initiatives.
House points are awarded to recognise academic and sporting achievements, contributions to school life and for showing kindness, empathy and respect to others. Celebration assemblies take place every Friday, where staff differentiate and then acknowledge those children who have achieved great things. Parents are invited in regularly to watch music recitals, poetry competitions and class assemblies. Children are encouraged to present their thoughts and opinions from the very start of their journey at Wellesley Prep.
Wellesley Prep School takes part in Operation Encompass, a nationally recognised safeguarding partnership between schools and the police. To find out more, please click here.
| “Pastoral care is second to none. These are very happy children. The matron, tutors and Head are always there—my child feels completely supported.”
Year 7 Parent |