About Whitgift: Pastoral Care

Updated: Thu 14 Mar 2013  

School years are formative years. At Whitgift School, we are as fully committed to a pupil's personal and social development as we are to his academic progress: we are also concerned with the welfare of all members of the School community.

Below you will find an outline of the pastoral structure of the School and a list of who to contact regarding pastoral matters. For more detail, download the Pastoral Handbook at the bottom of the page. This document contains Whitgift's policies regarding Involvement in school activities, Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE), moral and spiritual framework, Child Protection, substance use and misuse, anti-bullying, school uniform, using the internet, equal opportunities and sanctions.

 

The Pastoral Structure at Whitgift School

Form Tutor

Boys remain with the same Form Tutor for their first year in the School (Lower First), a new Tutor for their second year (Upper First) and change Tutors thereafter every two years. The Form Tutor is responsible for the supervision, guidance and care of the pupils in his/her tutor group, meeting them every morning at registration at 8.30 a.m. and, at times, teaching them one of their subjects during the week. Form Tutors keep records of attendance and academic progress for each boy in the group and are also aware of individual circumstances and needs. Form Tutors, along with other Staff, are ready to advise boys and their parents in options, university applications and possible careers. First Form Tutors are assisted by Lower School Prefects who attend Tutor group meetings and assemblies on a regular basis and are available to offer help and advice to younger boys.

Head of Year

There are four separate Heads of Year:

• Mrs Carter for the First Year (Lower First and Upper First) fec@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2196
• Mr Cumberlege for the Third Year (Lower Third and Upper Third) jcc@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2104
• Mr Collinson for Fifth Year (acting) (Lower Fifth and Upper Fifth) wec@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2113
• Mr Norris for the Sixth Year (Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth) adn@whitgift.co.uk

Each Head of Year is supported by a number of Assistant Heads of Year.

Heads of Lower and Upper School

The Head of Lower School Mrs Kingsbury (ack@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2128) and the Head of Upper School, Mr Brown (mjb@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2702) oversee the pastoral and disciplinary aspects of school life in their respective sections, guiding Heads of Year and Form Tutors and monitoring boys' progress in both academic and co-curricular activities.

Senior staff involved in Pastoral Management

The Assistant Headmaster of Pastoral care, Mr Cook (sdc@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2205) oversees the Pastoral system and is the designated Child Protection Officer. He can offer confidential advice to parents and guardians on suitable external counsellors where appropriate.

The Assistant Head Proctor, Mr Elvin (dee@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2127) is responsible for Staff Duties, the Prefect body, boys' discipline, good conduct and for ensuring that Whitgift boys wear their school uniform properly at all times. He is assisted by the Assistant Proctor, Mr Martin (rfm@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2257) who also oversees cover and invigilation.

The Deputy Headmaster, Mr Yeo (pjy@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2170) is responsible for overall supervision of the curriculum, options schemes, timetable and staffing.

The Second Master, Mr Pitt (jdp@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2226) takes charge of the day-to-day running of the School.

The Headmaster, Dr Barnett, has overall responsibility for all members of the School community.

Other members of staff with relevant responsibilities

Heads of Department: responsible for his or her subject's curriculum and resources.

Head of Careers (Mrs Hooker, smh@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2208): responsible for university applications (in conjunction with the Head of Sixth Form), careers advice, destinations information, events and visits.

Head of Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) (Mrs Stedman, fms@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2115): responsible for co-ordinating the PSHE programme that operates throughout the School.

Housemasters: responsible for all House activities and the guidance of his House Captain and his group of House Prefects.

School Nurse (Mrs Petschi, extension 2271): responsible for first aid and general medical cover for pupils and staff.

Counsellor: there are times when emotional difficulties may impair a boy's academic progress and his general enjoyment of life. These difficulties may have their roots in a number of factors, including coming to terms with a new school environment, worries about relationships and self-image or anxieties about examinations. The Assistant Headmaster (Pastoral), Mr Cook (extension 2205), is involved with senior staff in helping boys who are experiencing difficulties affecting their life at School. In addition, he is able to refer boys, their parents and guardians to suitable external counsellors where appropriate.

The School's Chaplain, the Revd. Canon Colin Boswell, Vicar of Croydon and a member of the Court of Whitgift Governors, teaches part-time at the School and offers consultation and counselling to members of the School community. He is available in his study every day at 8.30am and most lunchtimes, as well as being contactable by email or by telephone (office 020 8688 8104 or home 020 8688 1387).

The School Medical Officer is available to provide advice on medical matters. He can be contacted via the School Nurse or the Assistant Head (Pastoral), Mr Cook (sdc@whitgift.co.uk, extension 2205).

Pastoral Matters - Contacting Staff

General concerns about day-to-day administration, work, co-curricular activities or morale should be addressed to the Form Tutor in the first instance. He/she will keep the Head of Year informed of any relevant issues.

The Head of Year or the Head of Lower/Upper School should be informed of any major change in family circumstances and should be approached if parents have concerns about the operation of the pastoral system.

Academic concerns can be addressed to the subject teacher, the Head of Department, the Head of Lower/Upper School, the Deputy Headmaster or the Headmaster. If in doubt, it may be best to ask the Head of Year for advice as to whom to contact first.

Requests for Leave of Absence from School should be addressed to the appropriate Head of Year. Term dates are published well in advance and, with such a generous provision for holidays at Whitgift, it is expected that parents do not request leave of absence for a holiday during term time.

Parents should ring the School Office on the first day of their son's absence through illness: on the boy's return to School, he must bring a note from his parents to his Form Tutor explaining his absence. After three days of absence parents should update the School about the situation and, if possible, indicate an anticipated return date.

Money and valuables should not be left in cloakrooms and changing rooms: rather, it is each boy's responsibility to keep money and valuables locked in his own personal locker. Boys should report any loss or damage to property to their Form Tutor and to the Head of Year. Boys' personal property should be marked with their name whenever possible; it is very hard to return unlabelled, lost property to its owner.

Boys can take any questions or problems to their Form Tutor. If they would prefer to speak directly to another member of Staff, that is perfectly acceptable and the outline of responsibilities above should prove helpful.