Caring for and Supporting your Child

 

1. Supporting your child

On entry to Handsworth Grange Community Sports College all pupils are placed into a tutor group, pupils will usually stay in this group for the full five years. In order to support each pupil and to ensure the best opportunity to reach their full potential pupils are placed into ability groups. The tutor will see their tutees every morning and afternoon for registration. During this time, tutors will help pupils focus on the day ahead in order to start the day in the right frame of mind to achieve. Over the five years the personal tutor gets to know each pupil well and is responsible for keeping an eye pupil’s welfare, progress, attendance, punctuality and behaviour.

 

Each Key Stage is lead by a Key Stage Manager, who is supported by a Head of Year for each year group. The Head of Year ensures that pupils achieve and succeed in all aspect of their school life. Each Head of Year will stay with their year group though out their time at Handsworth Grange Community Sports College. This insures a smooth transition from KS3 to KS4.

 

The school has a good, experienced Special Educational Needs team, who supports pupils with Special Educational Needs to ensure they are fully catered and cared for. Further information can be found by contacting Mr Thomas (SENCO) or Miss Cox.

 

During a pupils time at Handsworth Grange Community Sports College, a pupil may experience many emotional, personal and possibly mental health issues. We are proud to have two dedicated and full-time Senior Learning Mentors who, with the Tutor, Head of Year and Key Stage Managers, help support pupils with a range of issues including friendships, relationships and giving pupils the tools to succeed in lessons.

 

At Handsworth Grange Community Sports College we do not condone bullying of any kind, and have a range of ways for pupils and parents to report alleged incidents. Alongside the traditional ways of reporting concerns, incidents can be texted or emailed to the bullyline.

If there any general issues or concerns parents should contact the personal tutor in the first instance. Any subject specific issues should be directed to the teacher or the head of department.  All staff attempt to ensure all messages are responded to with 48 hours.

 

All appointments with staff must be made before visiting the school, please do this by telephoning or visiting the school office to make an appointment.

 

2. Engagement and Rewards

Since September 2009, all Y7 and 8 pupils (from January 2010 all pupils) have the opportunity to gain a medal (Gold, Silver and Bronze) status each half term, with the potential of gaining the highest award (Platinum) at the end of the year. Points are gained or lost throughout a term for different behaviours, attendance, uniform and punctuality. All pupils start afresh each term to give all pupils the best chance of gaining the top awards.  

 

Alongside the medal system, is the schools house system. All pupils are allocated a house (Redgrave, Moore, Holmes and Ali); the points gained by each individual are collected together for each house. Pupils are able to increase their houses chance of winning at the end of the year by participating in House activities which are run throughout the year, including the annual sports day.

Pupils are encouraged to take a positive role in school life throughout their time at Handsworth Grange Community Sports College. Opportunities include pupil voice activities (school council, prefects), supporting (peer mentors, activity leaders), leadership (Subject Leaders, House and Sport Captains) and enrichment opportunities (extra curricula activates, PEEP, STEM).

 

 All pupils have the opportunity to be actively involved in school life throughout their time at Handsworth Grange Community Sports College.

 

3. Attendance and attainment

Good attendance is one of the most important steps to ensure that pupils have the best change of attaining their full potential. It is expected that parents inform the school at the earliest opportunity when their child is going to absent from school. Where prior contact has not been made, parents will receive a text message each morning and afternoon to inform them if their child has not registered, until a response has been received. 

At Handsworth Grange Community Sports College we work closely with the Attendance and Inclusion service, which is part of the Children and Young People Directorate, to work with and support pupils and their families to ensure that all pupils attend and achieve at school.

 

On a termly basis all parents will receive an update on how their child is progressing in all subject areas and their attitude to learning. The Pastoral Team analyses the data and puts into place interventions to support pupils who are not reaching their full potential either due to attitude to learning, attendance or other factors.

Parents are able to access their child’s attainment and attendance records via the learning gateway at anytime. For details on how to access this information contact Mr Davis.

 

Within the school rewards system, pupils are awarded a certificate for different levels of attendance above the school target within year group assemblies, as well as certificates from departments to celebrate effort and participation. A new addition to the school rewards in 2009 was the introduction of the Reward Afternoon. Where parents are invited to celebrate the highest achiever, best attitude to learning score and most improved achiever and attitude learning per year group.

 

4. Complaints

From time to time, in any school, there may be occasions when parents have a concern about their child's welfare or they feel dissatisfied with some aspect of the school's work. On these occasions we will do everything we can to put matters right. Minor complaints should be taken to the personal tutor, who will then decide if anyone else needs to be involved.

 

More serious complaints should be taken to the Head of Year. If the problem is not resolved in this way, either the year group manager or yourself may take the matter to the Key Stage Managers or the Headteacher.

 

If you are not happy with the outcome, you may take the matter further by contacting the Chair of Governors, the Parent Governors or any member of the governing body. Telephone numbers and addresses can be obtained from the school office, should you need them.

If the matter still cannot be sorted out, you have the right to approach the Local Education Authority. (Telephone 0114 273 5722)

 

If your child is absent from school, for any reason, please ring the Key Stage Admin Office on 0114 2694801 (extension 203)

as early in the morning as possible,  as the Schoolcomms system, automatically informs the person allocated as priority one contact, by text, if their child is absent from school.

 

Please let us know of any changes of address,

home, mobile or work telephone numbers.

The mobile telephone number of the person named as priority one contact, is used by our new Schoolcomms system to automatically inform the parent/carer, by text, if their child is absent from school.

The Schoolcomms system also allows the school to inform the priority one contact of any urgent messages, i.e. if the school has to be closed for any reason or to give other information on exams etc.

Ring the Key Stage Admin Office

on 0114 2694801 extension 203

with any changes.

It is important that we have up-to-date information to enable us to contact you in case of an emergency.