Culture of Wellbeing Pastoral
Care at Thomas’s Kensington
4-5 Culture of Wellbeing
6-7 Wellbeing Programmes 8-9 Wellbeing Curriculum 12-13 Learning Enrichment 14-15 Counselling & Family Support 16-17 Wellbeing & Emotional Support 10-11 Outdoor Education •
Culture of Wellbeing
The mental health and wellbeing of our entire community is central to all we do at Thomas’s Kensington, and we strongly believe that children will thrive when they feel safe, valued and happy.
We have a multi-layered approach to pastoral care: all staff are Mental Health First Aid trained and our form teachers, senior pastoral team, and school counsellor work closely together, and also with agencies and other professionals to support our pupils and their parents.
Our overarching aim is to develop our pupils’ understanding of mental health and wellbeing, to provide them with a variety of strategies to support their own mental health and wellbeing, and for them to make a positive contribution to the world.
Wellbeing Programmes
Our whole school approach to emotional intelligence is an evidence based approach called RULER, developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Following staff training at Yale University in the USA, RULER was implemented across the school, and now, from a child’s very first year at Thomas’s Kensington through to Year 6, they are taught five skills of emotional intelligence, with this learning integrated throughout the curriculum.
By educating children to recognise, understand, label, express, and regulate emotions, both social and self-awareness is developed. The foundations are also provided for lifelong learning skills associated with enhanced wellbeing. Research also suggests the RULER programme aids attention, concentration, and an ability to make and maintain healthy relationships (Brackett & Rivers, 2013). RULER encourages family involvement, and the feedback we have received from parents has been overwhelmingly positive, particularly from those of children who might previously have been reluctant to talk about their feelings.
Our annual Parent Lecture Series is highly popular and well attended by parents. A host of renowned speakers have joined us, including Natasha Devon MBE, Tanya Byron, Linda Papadopoulos, Aric Sigman, and Noel Janis Norton, offering expert advice on a variety of topics including self-esteem, sibling rivalry, body image, and effective management of screen time.
Wellbeing Curriculum
Thomas’s Kensington has been recognised for excellence in its Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) Development of pupils, achieving the gold standard in the National SMSC Quality Mark. In addition to our Personal, Social, Health and Economic education programme, described in our most recent school inspection as ‘excellent’, pupils in Years 3 to 6 also have a dedicated Wellbeing and Personal Development lesson each week, designed to further support and nurture their social and emotional development.
Our ‘RULER feeling words curriculum’ enables pupils to gain a deep understanding of age-appropriate emotions and to develop a nuanced vocabulary when articulating how they feel. Within wellbeing lessons, pupils are taught a variety of selfregulation techniques to manage their emotions effectively.
Philosophy for Children (P4C) and mindfulness are other key elements of our wellbeing curriculum. Our evidencebased mindfulness programmes,
which incorporate elements of positive psychology, help to support student wellbeing and the development of social and emotional skills. P4C, a child-led approach to learning, is extremely popular with our pupils. It aims to develop selfawareness, resilience and the ability of pupils to share opinions, and is associated with both enhanced social skills as well as mental health and wellbeing. Lessons also explore the science of happiness, equipping our pupils with practical strategies to apply in their own lives to support their wellbeing.
We use two validated and reliable data collection methods to measure the wellbeing of our pupils. The Stirling Questionnaire provides an indication of the positive emotional state and positive outlook of pupils, whilst our use of AS Tracking, a social-emotional assessment, enables us to develop a greater understanding of our pupils’ thinking patterns. These measures, combined with other pastoral processes, help us to build a more rounded picture of each pupil’s social and emotional development and facilitate the provision of proactive pastoral support.
Outdoor Education
Our pupils’ outdoor education programme begins in Reception and runs through to Year 6. Pupils participate in regular, frequent and challenging tasks designed to develop their overall wellbeing, but in particular their self-esteem, confidence and resilience. The positive impact on every individual who takes part makes Thomas’s a happier and stronger community.
At Woodland Adventure, our younger pupils learn an appreciation of nature and solve problems which enhance their communication, collaboration and critical thinking skills. For our older pupils, bushcraft, climbing, sailing, water sports, and navigation are taught as they strengthen their understanding and respect for the outdoors.
In years 5 and 6 there is an unrivalled opportunity and experience available for our pupils at the magnificent Thomas’s Daheim resort in Austria. In an area of outstanding natural beauty, far away from technology and their everyday lives, the children are encouraged to develop key life skills, such as collaboratively working together to build an igloo, and have the opportunity to learn to ski, which we hope will stay with them for years to come. For many of our pupils, their happiest school memories are formed in Daheim.
Learning Enrichment
The Learning Support department at Thomas’s Kensington is dedicated to promoting an inclusive ethos across the school community, and we are highly committed to a differentiated provision and the achievement of all our learners. Our curriculum is broad, balanced and tailored to meet the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs, disabilities, and children who have English as an additional language.
Furthermore, we challenge high achieving, talented and gifted children. Teachers use a variety of strategies and a wide range of equipment and technology to support learning and to allow all children to access the curriculum. Daily observations and quality adult-child interaction allow our teachers to be highly aware of the needs of each pupil in their class, and our thorough assessment system also means that pupils’ needs are quickly identified and addressed accordingly.
There is a focus on early identification and intervention, with the aim to eliminate gaps in learning and to ensure that children are progressing at age-related expectations. Our Learning Support department has strong links with a number of external agencies, including the Dyslexia Teaching Centre. We also have many visiting specialists including Occupational Therapists and Speech and Language Therapists, who work with many pupils in our school.
Counselling & Family Support
Our school counsellor offers support for children at Thomas’s Kensington in many different forms, including play therapy, parent/child sessions, whole family support, and parent consultations. Individual parent support is systemic, child-centred and can occur either on a regular or ad-hoc basis. Thomas’s Kensington’s weekly news bulletins also feature regular mental health entries and resources, offering support to parents for issues that may be relevant to their children.
A number of small pupil support workshops for parents are led by our counsellor, in conjunction with parent talks on topics such as anxiety and transitions. For our pupils, in-class workshops take place in Years 4 to 6, covering a variety of topics including positive friendships, effective 11+ examination preparation, and transitions. Our Emotional Literacy Support Assistants are also trained to provide an additional level of social and emotional support to pupils of all ages.
Every member of staff has received Mental Health First Aid training and our teachers pride themselves on the close relationships they develop with each and every child. The result is that our response to emerging pastoral or mental health concerns is proactive as opposed to reactive.
Wellbeing & Emotional Support
Pastoral concern about pupil OR
Parent contacts form teacher with concerns
Teacher contacts parent with concerns
Effective communication between teachers and parents is essential to facilitate the provision of proactive pastoral care. To ensure the right support can be offered at the right time, parents are encouraged to engage in open dialogue with their child’s form teacher and to raise concerns at the earliest opportunity. Our pastoral support comes in many forms and following discussions with the senior pastoral team, form teachers or the Pastoral Deputy Head will work closely with parents to ensure the correct level of support is provided.
Form Teacher/staff member recommends next steps following consultation with Senior Pastoral Team
SEND
• Individual provision map & targets
• Individual & targetted approach
• In-class support
• Small interventions
• Referrals to Occupational Therapy, Speech & Language Therapy & Educational Psychologists
COUNSELLOR
• Parent
• Parent & Child
• Just child
• Teacher
• Play Therapy Approach
DEPUTY PASTORAL
• 1:1 check in
• Targetted interventions
• Peer mentoring
• Small group sessions
• Whole school approach
EMOTIONAL LITERACY SUPPORT ASSISTANT
• 1:1 support
• Group intervention
• Class support
Culture of Wellbeing Wellbeing Programmes Wellbeing Curriculum
Culture of Wellbeing
Pastoral Care at Thomas’s Kensington
Outdoor Education Learning Enrichment Counselling & Family Support