Both schools and businesses must adhere to government laws by implementing policies and procedures. These policies are crucial for ensuring the smooth operation of the school while protecting staff, students, and other stakeholders. Schools typically have a comprehensive set of policies that cover various areas including Child Protection, Health and Safety, Fire Safety, Confidentiality, Anti-Bullying, Teaching and Learning, Homework, among others.
The policies and procedures stated in this document are relevant to staff, students, and parents. It is crucial to periodically update and modify these policies to keep them current. The policies related to staff, such as pay policy, performance management, and grievance policy, aim to provide a sense of security while maintaining professionalism among staff members. Moreover, the school policies act as a mutual agreement between parents, staff, governors, and volunteers regarding compliance with the school’s established rules.
Educational policies and procedures need regular review to align with school and government legislation. Senior staff will hold a meeting to identify necessary changes. After that, a senior staff member will draft the new policy or procedure and submit it for approval by the governors. All existing policies can be found online, labeled with their effective date and next review date for governors’ reference.
An email reminder is sent to the clerk when the policy is up for review, prompting them to start the process. It is important to inform all staff members about new policies or changes to existing ones. Staff are informed through meetings and given training if needed for new policies. St Michaels holds regular meetings with their staff to update and train them as required. New and existing policies can be accessed by both staff and parents on the school website.
To ensure effective and compliant operation, it is crucial for the school to have policies in place. These policies offer reassurance to teachers, students, and parents regarding the secure and nurturing educational setting provided for their children. Moreover, they provide vital protection and support to teachers in areas such as wages, health and safety protocols, and prevention of discrimination. Furthermore, each morning all staff members receive an email.
The purpose of the email is to notify teachers about important events, task reminders, and meetings. It is crucial for teachers to regularly check their mailbox for communication from other staff members and the school’s head. The main objective of this step is to ensure that the working group remains well-informed regarding policy issues and stays aware of various approaches or options for developing and implementing the policy. To achieve this goal, you can: consult other schools with similar policies, contact experts and relevant school systems/government departments for background information and copies of applicable legislation or policies, as well as communicate with members of the school community. Additionally, a secondary aim is to inform the school community about the overall process involved in developing a policy and provide them with an opportunity to express their opinions and concerns. This will help identify any obstacles that may need addressing during the development of the new policy.
The policy development and implementation plan should be reviewed at the end of this step to ensure everyone affected has a chance to provide feedback. It is recommended to invite additional members of the school community to join the working group during this review and offer multiple avenues for feedback.
These avenues can include:
- Making copies of the policy available from the school administration and advertising in the school newsletter
- Distributing copies to all staff
- Presenting the policy at meetings of various groups like Parents and Friends’ Association, staff, student council, and school council
- Contacting school community members by phone for their input
- Attaching a survey to a copy of the policy and distributing it to different groups
All members of the school community should be encouraged to discuss the draft policy. It is important to consider everyone’s opinions, even if they may be hesitant or unsupportive.
The purpose of this step is to inform and prepare everyone in the school community for the implementation of a new policy. It is important to publicise the policy well in advance, allowing sufficient time for everyone to understand its impact on their role or school activities. The policy can be promoted through various methods, including a launch activity, distributing copies to staff, parents, and students, conducting meetings with staff and Parents and Friends’ Association (P&F), organizing form class meetings and year level assemblies. Newsletters, notices for students, staff, and parents as well as other print media like newspapers can also be used to share the policy.
Official school documents should include information about the policy for staff, parents, and students. Additionally, plans must be made to effectively communicate the policy to future newcomers such as new students, staff members or parents joining the school community. Regularly reviewing the policy is essential for its effectiveness; changes in population or opinions require periodic reviews to keep it up-to-date.
