MyTeacherToolsAs well as supporting a child’s academic progress to ensure they fulfil their maximum potential, pastoral care in schools is also important for monitoring the wellbeing of the students and promoting a sense of comradery and community spirit. I have teamed up with a Sixth Form in Cardiff to explore the importance of pastoral care in further detail.
In simple terms, pastoral care is all about ensuring the students at a school are happy and performing to the best of their ability. After all, academic success and health and well-being do go hand in hand. If a child is struggling with a particular subject, has fallen out with their peers, or seems to be suffering with another problem, the pastoral care team should be able to spot this and get to the route of the problem to ensure it is resolved. A form tutor, for example, will meet with a small group of students at least once a day and should therefore be in a good position to notice if any of them are struggling in some way. They will then be able to liaise with parents so that both parties can help the child in whatever way necessary.
Pastoral care also covers an health and safety procedures at the school, from injuries to maintenance issues, or even things like immunisation programmes. The caretaker, for example, would fall under the pastoral care umbrella and will have to monitor the school’s security.
The safety, security, wellbeing, and academic progress of all students at a school is absolutely crucial, especially as children are so vulnerable and complex. That’s why pastoral care provisions are of the utmost importance. All children face hurdles from time to time, so it’s vital that they have enough support to help them overcome such obstacles. For more information, don’t hesitate to contact your child’s teachers to find out more about the pastoral care department at the school.
