Updates to Behaviour and Uniform systems
Dear Parent/Carer,
It has been great to welcome students back into Broadoak following the summer break. Your children have made a really positive start and we look forward to a very successful year ahead. Now that students have had a few days to settle in, I’d like to take this opportunity to provide some updates/reminders:
Behaviour Systems
We have made some slight adjustments to our behaviour systems for the start of the school year. The key points in summary:
- Students will now receive 2 ‘Rule Reminders’ for minor disruptive behaviour in lessons. They will be removed from the lesson should there be a 3rd disruptive incident. This change provides more clarity and consistency for students as well as giving them every opportunity to make the most of their learning.
- If students are removed from a lesson or fail to attend within 5 minutes of lesson start, they will remain in the ‘Workspace’ for the remainder of the 2 lesson ‘block’ plus 15 mins of social time/after school. e.g. if a student is removed from Period 1, they will remain in the ‘Workspace’ until 15 minutes into break. This provides an immediate consequence and acts as an extra deterrent from missing learning time
These changes reflect our commitment to students maximising their learning time as well as upholding high standards. They also form part of a wider update to our behaviour policy which has been reviewed over the summer. When finalised, we will share further details.
Uniform
We have also made some very minor adjustments to our uniform policy as part of this review. In summary:
- We have removed any reference to hair colour limitations
- We have removed limits on numbers of piercings, instead being clear that only studs (not hoops or ‘stretchers’) are allowed. These must be removed for practical subjects
- We have focused our policy on nails on safety. Nail design is permitted but must be of a length/shape which is suitable and safe for a school environment. This includes practical lesson activities.
Again, these changes reflect our commitment to focusing on what really matters – students’ learning and safety.
In the first few days, uniform standards have been good, with some areas for improvement:
- A reminder that trousers/skirts made of ‘stretchy’ material are not permitted as they are not practical for a school environment
- Jean style trousers or ‘joggers’ are not permitted
To support high standards of uniform, we will be reminding students of anything that needs to be corrected at the gates before entering the academy. The expectation will be that they do so, including borrowing items if necessary. If they do not comply, we will hold students whilst we contact parents/carers for support. Thank you in advance for your support with this.
The above changes allow us to promote the importance of learning above anything else whilst also maintaining the standards expected in schools. We want to allow a level of expression, alongside uniformity in our Academy identity. If you have any queries, please contact your child’s Head of Year in the first instance.
Many Thanks
Mr Ian Walsh
Principal
Broadoak Academy
