Willowgarth High School Prospectus Text 2001 General Information
►Travel to and from School
►Lunchtime Arrangements
►Preparing for Transfer to Willowgarth
►Heads of Department
►The Head of Special Needs
►The Learning Support Unit Manager
►The Community Liaison Officer
►Caring for new pupils after transfer
►Effective co-operation between parents and school
►Medicines
►Infectious Diseases
►Medical Appointments
►Pupil Welfare
►The Willowgarth Befrienders
►Bullying
►Further Information
►Travel to and from School
You will be informed in due course of the times and pick-up points of the buses, which are specially provided by Yorkshire Traction to transport our pupils to and from school. The basic rules of road safety apply on the school drive, where pupils disembark. They must allow the bus to get well clear then use the zebra crossing to cross the drive safely.Parents who bring their children to school by car are respectfully asked to drop them off and pick them up outside the school gates in order to minimise the risk of accident. At all times of day visitors to the site are requested to drive dead slowly.
If a child misses his/her bus home for any reason, he/she must report to the main school office, so that arrangements can be made immediately to contact parents and make sure he/she gets home safely.
The school no longer has facilities for pupils' cycles. In any case, given the heavy traffic before morning school and at 3.00pm, cycling on the site would be dangerous. Back to top
►Lunchtime Arrangements
The Barnsley Local Education Authority operates a scheme of aid, which provides assistance with school meals. Applications should be made to the Scheme of Aid Office in the Education Department (Barnsley 773513).Willowgarth's school meals' service operates a flexible, customer-friendly cash cafeteria, serving a wide range of meals and drinks, for which pupils pay item by item. Although there is no fixed meal and no restriction on what pupils may purchase, "meal of the day" and "specials" ensure a nutritional balance.
Pupils entitled to free school lunches are issued with tokens on a daily basis. The tokens are exchanged at the tills for lunches to the value of £1.20. Should any child wish to purchase items costing more than £1.20, he/she may present the tokens and make up the difference in cash.
We strongly recommend that all pupils stay on site at lunchtime unless they are going to a place of safety for lunch. Parents are given the opportunity to apply for lunchtime passes if they wish their children to leave the site. A permanent lunchtime pass is valid for a full school year; a fixed-term lunchtime pass is valid only for the days specified.
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►Preparing for Transfer to Willowgarth
The Pastoral Coordinator and the Head of Year 7 meet Year 6 pupils on several occasions, paying particular attention to the usual anxieties - e.g., Will I get bullied? How will I find my way around? What if I miss the bus? They also oversee the transfer of academic records and gather personal/social information -e.g., pupils who do not work well together, pupils who are a little timid - which helps us to determine our pupil grouping arrangements and how we can best meet the needs of individual pupils. An open evening for incoming pupils and their parents takes place in the last half-term of Year 6. Back to top►Heads of Department
Heads of Department consult their colleagues in the feeder schools on curriculum continuity and organise 'taster' programmes for incoming pupils to experience during Year 6 visits to Willowgarth.Back to top
►The Head of Special Needs
The Head of Special Needs makes early contact with parents of pupils with statements of special educational need in Year 6. She arranges individual visits to Willowgarth and meetings with other professionals involved with the children to make transfer a positive and friendly experience for them. Back to top►The Learning Support Unit Manager
The Learning Support Unit Manager and the Year 7 Learning Mentor make early contact with parents of nonstatemented pupils who experience difficulty with schooling, or who are particularly anxious about transfer to secondary school, in order to prepare individual programmes that will ensure that transfer is a positive and friendly experience for them. Back to top►The Community Liaison Officer
The Community Liaison Officer represents the school in the wider community within various organisations. We would encourage greater community use of the school and anyone wishing to do so could discuss their ideas with him.Back to top
►Caring for new pupils after transfer
The Pastoral Coordinator, the Head of Year 7 and the form tutors ensure that our arrangements are achieving the intended outcome - a happy Year 7 with pupils confident in their ability to cope with what may at first seem like very complicated arrangements. The layout of the buildings is explained patiently over and over again and Year 7 children are trained and rehearsed in all the key features of the school organisation - one way systems, what to do if they arrive at school late, dining room and school bus procedures etc. Particular attention is paid to whether or not our pupil grouping arrangements are working out well. N.B.: they can be altered where to do so is clearly in the interests of any of the pupils. Back to top►Effective co-operation between parents and school
Effective co-operation between parents and school is always vital to children's educational success but is especially important when transfer from one school to another takes place. It is for this reason that we also offer you a personal interview with a senior member of staff beforehand. This provides an opportunity for you to ensure that your concerns about your child and are not overlooked. For the same reason, after the first few weeks of Year 7 we compile a simple 'settling-in' report on each child and invite parents to a meeting with their child's own form tutor to discuss it. Later in the year we compile a full progress report - academic and social followed by another parents'meeting. N.B.: at all stages - both before and after admission - we welcome all types of contact from parents, asking only that, if a meeting is required, we be given a little notice. Back to top►Medicines
The School cannot prescribe or administer medicines of any kind to pupils. Pupils should only bring medicines to school if they are prescribed and have to be taken during the school day. In such cases, school must be informed of this in writing by parents. With the exception of inhalers for asthma and other special cases, the medicines must be left in the safe care of the designated member of staff, who will then arrange times during the day when the pupil can report to take the appropriate dosage.Where a pupil has a long-term condition or unusual short-term medical requirements, parents must contact school in order to agree an appropriate care plan to ensure that their children's needs are met. The aim will always be to ensure that each pupil is able to take the fullest possible part in normal school life. Staff will be informed on a 'need-to-know' basis. Back to top
►Infectious Diseases
Infectious diseases must be notified to the Health Department immediately and to school as soon as possible. Under no circumstances should the child return to school without a certificate from his/her doctor confirming that he/she is fit to do so. Notifiable diseases include: chicken pox, shingles, some forms of diarrhoea and food poisoning, measles and German measles, glandular fever, hepatitis, meningitis, mumps and whooping cough. Back to top►Medical Appointments
At least 24 hours before keeping dental or medical appointments during school hours, pupils should bring their appointment cards, which should be shown to their Head of Year and form tutor. Alternatively they should obtain a treatment form from their form tutor and ensure that it is completed by parents and returned to school, also before the appointment. This will ensure that the child's absence is registered as 'authorised'. Back to top►Pupil Welfare
Form tutors, who register the children every morning, carry the main responsibility for pupil welfare. In Year 8 pupils pass on to another form tutor, who will, as far as possible, remain with them throughout the remainder of their school lives. In this way we ensure that each pupil is known very well by at least one teacher.At least one senior member of staff is available at any time during the school day to deal with problems - a child who is anxious or in distress is regarded as an emergency!
Trained professionals, including the School Nurse and the Young People's Health worker, offer drop-in sessions every lunchtime to answer questions or provide information about any problems - for example: health issues, loneliness, relationships. Back to top
►The Willowgarth Befrienders
The Willowgarth Befrienders, based in the library classroom, are pupils who have been trained by professionals to offer support to other pupils. Befrienders, who are easy to identify, as they wear red sweatshirts with a gold Willowgarth logo, help the Year 7 pupils to settle in. They provide leaflets, posters and information on various subjects and are available to talk about any problems.If pupils feel that they need to speak to an adult, but don't feel brave enough to ask, Befrienders will help to arrange the meeting. The Befriender project is managed by Paula Taylor-McCool. Back to top
►Bullying
The elimination of bullying is an absolute priority at Willowgarth. Every pupil has the right to be protected when he/she feels threatened by any form of unpleasantness. The aim of the School's Anti-Bullying Code is to make it clear to all pupils, parents and staff that any form of bullying is always unacceptable. We pride ourselves on having created a climate where everyone's individuality is respected.As we know that bullying thrives on secrecy, we encourage everyone - staff, parents and pupils - to be prompt in reporting suspected bullying. This is better for the victim and the bully. We involve the parents of both when dealing with cases. Back to top
►Further Information
If there is anything else that you would like to see, just contact the school at the number in the top border of the web site.Webmaster Back to top
