Wellbeing and the Home-coming curriculum

From June 2020, schools have been asked to reopen schools in a phased response. It is recognized that the majority of our pupils have been out of school since March 2020, this cannot be compared with the return after the Summer holidays. The pupils will each have been through their own experiences during this time and whether continue to work at home or return to school when they can there will each be processing their experience in their own ways. In particular mental health issues and well-being will need to be considered in all areas of school life. It has been stated that:

“Mental health issues can bring about changes in a child’s behaviour or emotional state which can be displayed in a range of different ways, all of which could be an indication of an underlying problem. This can include for example being fearful or withdrawn; aggressive or oppositional; or excessive clinginess.”

The Home-coming Inclusion team

We have a team of experienced staff members making up this team, who are on hand to support children's social and emotional needs across school. From September, staff have received training on key issues such as safeguarding and wellbeing, anxiety, self regulation, autism and OCD from Mrs J Speak (Headteacher, MA Achievement in City Schools and former SENDCo),  Miss R Robertshaw  (SENDCo and post graduate certification in SEND) and Miss Pierce (L3 Counselling, Well-being First Aid).  The extended Inclusion team offers targeted intervention and Tier 2 and 3 support (see below).

We are making the following additions/amendments:

Curriculum and timetable

• The curriculum will be referred to as the Home-coming curriculum

• Staff will create a timetable that is responsive and will be adjusted to the needs of their class to support the transition back to school life. 

• An increased amount of curriculum time will be devoted to focusing on revisiting the school’s GROW values, social and emotional literacy, PSHE and well-being. Staff will receive training and resources to support this focus throughout the Autumn term

This will include:

• Why we need to wash our hands and how                                                                       

• How and why we need to keep each other safe

• Creating a class charter about how to take care of each other

• Why we have to keep our distance from other groups

• How do we feel about what we have been through and what is happening

• Feelings and how to look after ourselves mentally to ensure wellbeing

• Compassion in relations to what we should not joke about (racism related to COVID 19, spreading the virus, for example)

The staff will continue to focus on English (reading and writing)  and mathematics but will also ensure the pupils continue to have broad curriculum experience 

Mental Health

Community is at the heart of Poplars Farm Primary, mental health for both staff and pupils is something we take extremely seriously in these unprecedented times. In addition to the areas above, the school will maintain the ‘check in’ on all pupils both at home and school. The Pupil engagement document tracks all pupils in school . Staff will consider milestones that occur in the school year that are important to the pupils and how we still support these. Each decision made will consider both pupils at home and school (in the case of self isolation/closing of class or phase bubbles).

Pastoral

We recognise that for some pupils the return to school will be exciting however there are others who will find the transition difficult. Support for our pupils  to come to school and separate from their parents will take patience and time. We will make use of our Team Merit Points as per Positive Behaviour Policy and staff will ensure communication with home about the school day and work with individual families to support any pupils who are really struggling. Flexibility will be the key.

We will also use our positive behaviour management policy approach to  praise and encouragement to help our pupils learn the new school routines and meet expectations set. We recognise they will make mistakes and will need gentle guidance, education and praise to help them to learn these new expectations. It is essential we do not pretend that everything is normal, time to listen, talk and reflect is critical in supporting our staff and pupils to return to school. If we manage the ‘new normal’ in a holistic and non-scary manner, we will be able build resilience and security for all those in our school community. 

G- giving

We will give priority to the safety of pupils, staff and the wider community. We will do this by minimising the risks brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, balancing them against our school’s vision whilst considering the short term and long-term benefits to pupils and community.

R-responsible

We will value the emotional well-being of staff, and of pupils and their families, as they return to school, recognising the present and past impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. We will ensure that pupils access the full curriculum and reignite their love and enjoyment of learning. We will seek a current understanding of each child, in order to adapt and deliver our curriculum, and provide targeted support based on each pupil’s social, health, emotional, physical and academic needs. We recognise that pupils’ experiences since March 2020, will have differed considerably.

O-openminded

We will look to minimise disruption, inconvenience and emotional distress caused by future lockdowns, local lockdowns, partial closures or absences of pupils and/or staff due to self-isolation and/or Covid-19 related illness. We will build on the innovative working practices and curriculum offer that we developed during lockdown. We will maintain our commitment to high quality learning and achievement be it at school or when delivering learning remotely.

W-welcoming

All pupils and staff will be warmly welcomed back to school. With a positive mindset, we will embrace ‘the new norm’ and look to ways to build school unity and a sense of belonging for each and everyone who attends Poplars Farm Primary School.

Currently, the guidance is clear that schools should remain open as usual for all pupils from September 2020. Schools should take extra precautions such as encouraging regular and thorough hand-washing throughout the day, etc. Please see Full Opening of School (September 2020) document for full details.

This plan will be put into action immediately if:

•   There's a local outbreak and we are asked to close temporarily for most pupils like during the initial school closures in March; or

•   Individuals or groups of pupils need to self-isolate, but the rest of the school is still open