You will hear us refer to both the French and British grade names throughout your time at school, so here is a reminder of equivalencies to help you navigate this!
Section
Primary School / Primaire
EYFS / Maternelle
Nursery
Reception
Year 1
Petite Section (PS)
Moyenne Section (MS)
Grande Section (GS) Year 2
3
School / Collège
Upper School / Lycée Year 11 2nde Year 12 1ère
Year 13
Terminale
Note that the information contained in this booklet is correct at time of sending We will contact you to let you know if there are any significant changes to the information included here
Welcome from the Head
Bienvenue à l’Ecole Jeannine Manuel ! On behalf of the entire school community, it is my great pleasure to extend a warm welcome to your family as you embark on this exciting journey with us.
Our mission - to promote international understanding through the bilingual education of a multicultural community of students, and to foster pedagogical innovation by exploring best practices in an ever-changing global environment - is at the heart of every decision we make, guiding our curriculum, teaching methods, and community engagement In parallel to our mission, we are also guided by our motto: Think, Dare, Share & Care. Our faculty and staff are dedicated to providing your children with a supportive learning environment where they can thrive and reach their full potential, and I look forward to building on this vision with your children as they join our school
In the meantime, I hope that you will find this guidebook useful in getting to know our school, and I look forward to welcoming your children here soon!
Kind regards,
Pauline Prévot
Meet our team
Senior Leadership Team
Primary School Team
France Assistant Head Nursery - Y2
Brillet Assistant Head Y3 - Y6
Middle School Team
Louise Matharan-Brizard Assistant Head Y7 - Y8
Cogavin Assistant Head Y9 - Y10
Séverine Liger-Galopin mary
Jeanne Gonnet Head of Secondary
Thomas Prévot
Pauline Prévot Head of School
Lorna
Agathe
Peter
Priscilla Perreira Primary School Secretary
Florangeli Paredes Middle School Secretary
Upper School Team
Violaine Marsella Assistant Head Y11 - Y13
Ryan
Hinchey Director of Higher Education
Alexandra Taleghani
Upper School Secretary
Other useful contacts
Eleanor Jervis, PA to the Head
Atifa Yaqub, PA to the CFAO
Victory Bardon & Angie Copas, School Nurses
Danny Potts: Clubs
Claudine King-Dabbs: Buses
Jade Webster: Lunches
Please do not hesitate to ask the Admissions Office for contact details should you need to get in touch with any member of our team before the Back to School in September.
Our Buildings
Our school is housed in three beautiful buildings located in the heart of Bloomsbury, all within a few minutes walk from one another.
Primary School (Nursery - Year 6)
21-24 Russell Square, WC1B 5EA 0203 829 5975
Middle School (Year 7 - Year 10)
43-45 Bedford Square, WC1B 3DN 0203 829 5970
Upper School (Year 11 - Year 13)
52-53 Russell Square, WC1B 4HP 0203 687 2330
OPENING TIMES
Our doors open at 8.15 am across all three sites. We close our doors at 8.25 am to allow learning to start at 8.30 am prompt. Any students arriving after 8 25 am will be considered to be late, and they should present themselves at the school reception desk rather than the entrance door.
Students in Sixth Form whose lessons may start later are expected to be on time for the beginning of their first lesson
DISMISSAL
EYFS students are dismissed at 3 10 pm while the rest of primary is dismissed at 3.15 pm if they do not have a club, and 4 30 pm if they are registered for a school club (same for EYFS)
Middle School and Year 11 students are dismissed at 4.25 pm if they do not have a club, and 5 30 pm if they are registered for a school club.
Sixth Form students should consult their timetables for the end of day times.
Parents will be asked to confirm dismissal details, including pick-up authorisations, well before the start of the school year
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCES
Good teachers and the best curriculum are of little consequence if students do not attend school on a regular basis, and we consider that classroom attendance is an integral part of pupils’ course of study.
In case of unexpected absence, please contact the school secretary by email or telephone as soon as possible and no later than 8:30 am on the first day of absence:
Primary School: primary@jmanuel.uk.net
Middle School: middleschool@jmanuel.uk.net
Upper School: upperschool@jmanuel uk.net
We do not encourage children to miss school when it is avoidable As a school with a very international population, we do understand that the travel logistics involved in attending family events can be difficult. Exceptional absences can therefore be granted provided that the request has been made at least one week in advance to the relevant Head
Please see our Attendance Policy for further information
Practical Information
Parent Access
Much of the information contained in this booklet is also available on the Parents’ Access section of the website, for which you will receive a password in a separate communication
Parent Portal
Eduka is our student management platform. We use it to complete a range of administrative tasks, including contact information management, registration for clubs, lunches, and buses, and invoicing. You can log in using the email address that you provided during the admissions process
If you wish to download the Eduka app, you will need our school code to log in: 551925.
Pronote
In Secondary School, we use Pronote as a tool to communicate on homework, timetables, absences and late arrivals to school You and your children will receive login information at the start of the year.
Communication
We love welcoming our parent community within the school and there will be many events for you throughout the year In the first few weeks of school, there will be a class meeting led by your children’s teachers or heads which will provide you with the opportunity to meet the team and find out more about the year ahead. Dates for this will be advertised on our website during the summer.
School Calendar
The school calendar is available on our website, under “School Life” Note that the calendar for the following year is usually published there in the Spring.
2024-2025 calendar
EYFS Parent Mornings take place several times during the year
Canteen
Students in Primary and Middle School may sign up for school lunches. Our food is prepared fresh offsite and delivered to our school daily, where it is heated before being served to students
Primary School pupils are offered a two-week rotating menu, with starter, main and dessert every day. The menu changes at the end of every period. Students in Middle School may choose from six options daily, ranging from paninis to salads and pasta dishes.
Registration to school lunches is for the full year, and you will receive an email informing you when registration for the school canteen is open.
Students who do not register for the school lunch should bring in a lunchbox. Students in Primary and Middle School unfortunately cannot heat up their lunchboxes.
Students in Upper School can go out at lunch provided that their parents have provided authorisation at the start of the year. They also have access to microwaves in the common areas.
Transport to School
We encourage active modes of transport to school where possible, and are very proud to be recognised as a Gold Star School by Transport for London
Unfortunately we cannot store scooters or bicycles inside the Primary or Middle school buildings but there are bike racks are available near all our premises, and Upper School students may store their bikes in the dedicated bike storage area
Uniform
We expect all students to follow our Dress Code, which requires them to wear official school tops bearing the school logo. Pupils are free to choose their trousers or skirts as long as they conform to the Dress Code.
Bags must be our official school bags which are mandatory for all pupils.
From Year 5, all pupils are required to have a school sport uniform, complete with top and bottom. The sport uniform must be worn in P E class only
The School Uniform can be purchased from Lana Cotone
Clubs
We offer a brilliant selection of over 60 clubs for our students Registration is done per semester and we will email you when the club list is available to consult In the past, we have been able to offer a variety of clubs ranging from Model UN to Parkour, Journalism to Code Breaking and many more!
Model United Nations
Fencing
Art Club
Engineering Club
Medical Needs
If your child has specific medical needs, please ensure that you include this in the medical questionnaire completed at the beginning of the year You may also wish to speak with the Senior Management Team to discuss how to manage any needs they may have.
If your child has medication that needs to be kept in school (ventolin inhaler, allergy medication etc ) you will need to complete a form confirming how and when this is to be administered. Note that medication of any kind should under no circumstance be kept in school bags.
Staff are trained in the use of emergency medications on a regular basis, and our School Nurse Team will be on hand for any questions you might have
Special Needs
We always endeavour to do everything we can to accommodate our students’ special needs. Please contact the relevant Head or Assistant Head if there are any special needs or requirements that we should be aware of.
CARE Committee
We are very proud to have a superb CARE Committee, run by a group of students and staff, whose aim is to reinforce our culture of respect, empathy, openness and inclusion. We have a number of CARE
Ambassadors throughout the school who help raise awareness about well-being, anti-bullying and respecting others, all of which are themes that we take extremely seriously as a school
Mobile Phones
Mobile phones must be switched off and stored out of sight during the school day. From September 2024, we will be trialling a new “phone pouch” system in Middle School where students will be required to store their phones in locked pouches for the duration of their time at school.
More information concerning our rules about the use of technology in school can be found in our School Rules
Laptops
Only students in Sixth Form are authorised to use personal laptops in class, and then only if this is authorised by their teacher
For other year groups, we have laptops and iPads available in school that their teacher will use only if it is a useful learning tool for the topic they are covering
School Supplies
Lists of school supplies will be made available on the Parents’ Access section of our website during the summer.
Language Choices
In addition to French and English, our students can study Mandarin, Latin, Spanish and German.
Mandarin is mandatory for students from Year 4 - Year 6. In Year 7, students may choose between continuing Mandarin or starting Latin
In Year 8, students choose between Spanish or German.
If your child is learning another language outside of school or if you have any questions about our language provision, please contact the relevant Head or Assistant Head who will be able to help you
If relevant for your child, we will contact you in the Summer Term to confirm your language choices
Parents‘ Association
We have a brilliant Parents’ Association who run fantastic activities for our community throughout the year Look out for their email about buddies for new parents, as well as the Welcome Picnic which will take place before the Back to School
Joining is voluntary and you will be asked to confirm this upon induction. Any questions? Contact the admissions office, we are always happy to help!
