Wellbeing at Margaret Hendry School

School Values

Australian Student Wellbeing Framework

Promoting and providing a supportive learning environment in which all students can expect to feel safe is an essential function of all schools. Students have a fundamental right to learn in a safe, supportive environment and to be treated with respect.

The Australian Student Wellbeing Framework supports Australian schools to provide every student with the strongest foundation possible for them to reach their aspirations in learning and in life.

The vision of the Framework is that Australian schools are learning communities that promote student wellbeing, safety and positive relationships so that students can reach their full potential.

The Framework is based on evidence that demonstrates the strong association between safety, wellbeing and learning.

The Margaret Hendry Wellbeing procedures were created to meet the principles of the Australian Student Wellbeing Framework as well as sit alongside the ACT Education Directorate Safe and Supportive Schools Policy. The Safe and Supportive Schools Policy outlines that:

Canberra public schools are committed to providing positive and engaging environments where young people feel connected and respected, achieve success and are fully engaged in education. Student wellbeing impacts on student learning and is fundamental to a student’s successful engagement with education.

The Future of Education Strategy outlines the plan for education in the ACT for the next decade. It is based around four principles for implementation: equity, access, inclusion and agency. These principles are the corner stone of the well-being procedures at Margaret Hendry School, where students and their needs are placed at the centre of all plans and decisions.

RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITES

RESPONSIBILITES- a responsibility is something for which one is responsible-legally or morally obliged to take care of someone of something or to carry out a duty.

Students have a responsibility to:	Staff have a responsibility to:	Families and community have a responsibility to:
Respect the rights of fellow students, staff and members of the school. Behave in a positive manner that contributes to the learning of fellow students, does not disrupt the learning of students and enables teachers to teach in an atmosphere of cooperation Take responsibility of their learning and use the resources and teachers of the school to facilitate and support their learning Use ICT appropriately.	Use positive reinforcement and encouragement to build self-esteem Build positive relationships with students Know how students learn and how to teach them effectively. Know the content they teach Know their students Plan and assess for effective learning Create and maintain safe and challenging learning environments Implement the anti-bullying and harassment procedures Access specialist welfare and referral services where required Use a range of teaching strategies and resources to engage students in effective learning Regular monitoring of student progress, attendance, participation and welfare Treat all members of the community with respect, fairness and dignity Keep families informed on student progress and learning.	Promote positive educational outcomes for their children by taking an active interest in their child’s educational progress and modelling positive behaviours. Ensure their child’s regular attendance Engage in regular and constructive communication with school staff regarding their child’s learning. Support the school in maintaining a safe and respectful learning environment for all students Build positive relationships with all members of the school community Promote respectful relationships

Our Beliefs

At Margaret Hendry School diversity is not only accepted but welcomed, valued and celebrated.
Student behaviour is affected not only by their personal temperament, background, and age but also by the strength of the relationships they build, their physical environment and the quality of the teaching and learning programs they receive.
We believe that all stakeholders will model appropriate communication as well as care and respect for each other, always.
The partnership between school staff and families is crucial to the success of our students at Margaret Hendry School. Staff are always open to contact from families to support the wellbeing of our students.

Positive behaviour management

Schools should be considered as a micro-representation of the community as a whole. At times, adults in workplaces and in social situations, encounter other people who at times may act mean or rude. This is not different for our students. The biggest difference is that children do not yet have a fully functioning prefrontal cortex and therefore are more prone to making poor behaviour choices and therefore, incidents can sometimes occur more frequently and/or children may need more support following incidents via intervention.

Positive intervention management strategies can be universal, selected and targeted to support students. To achieve success in this space, everyone associated with the school must work towards creating and maintaining quality teaching practices, quality curriculum and quality relationships.

Individual strategies include: Links with external agencies such as the Salvation Army, Gungahlin Child and Family Centre and the Education Directorate’s Allied Health services. Restorative conversations, Individual Learning Plans, Positive Behaviour Support Plans, playground passports, reduced school hours.

Targeted strategies include: Intervention groups including: Bungee, Seasons for Growth, Big People Little Dreams, The Salvos school programs, URFAB program, Silence is Deadly run by Menslink.

Universal strategies: We implement programs and strategies to improve the children’s self esteem and resiliency, assertiveness, conflict resolution and problem solving, and to nurture and grow genuine and supportive relationships amongst the student body. These include: PBL behaviour for learning, Zones of Regulation, Circle Time, Student Parliament, Teaching of explicit social skills through resources such as “Friendly Kids Friendly Classrooms” , Trauma informed Practice, Everyone Everyday and Friendly Schools Plus.

What strategies do we use to assist children to improve and support student relationships?

We are committed to focusing on the learning, social and emotional needs of all children
We listen to children’s stories, perceptions and experiences of situations
We debrief with children
We help children commit to changing their behaviours and repairing relationships
We implement, where necessary, our sequence of responsible follow-up actions for inappropriate behaviour within a supportive framework
We communicate with each other and especially with parents and carers to develop productive partnerships, becoming a support team for the child
We work with children to analyse, understand and improve their relationships
We explicitly teach children socially appropriate ways of solving problems respectfully, managing relationships and attending to their own emotional regulation
We foster an engaging, inclusive and responsive curriculum and school environment.
We ask:
- Is there a problem?
- How big is it?
- What happened?
- What pillar was not being shown?
- Who has been affected?
- In what way?
- What needs to happen to make it right?
- If the same thing happens again what could be done differently?
- What support do you need?

Protective Action at Margaret Hendry School:

Risk of harm can never be eliminated, but where it can be reasonably foreseen, staff have a legal responsibility under the Work Health and Safety legislation and under common law to take action to reduce the risk of harm to an individual or group, at times this may necessitate protective action. At Margaret Hendry School, protective action may include non-physical interventions, such as relocating students to an alternative location away from potential harm. If your child’s class has been relocated, you will receive the following letter from the school:

Dear families,

I am writing to inform you of an incident that occurred at school today. Due to incidents beyond our control, the school needed to relocate your child/ren to an alternative location. Please be assured that this was carried out in a calm and considered way and all students were safe, supported and their learning continued in the alternative location.

We take incidents like this seriously, and our primary goal is to ensure the safety and well-being of all students while maintaining a respectful learning environment.

If you would like more information or have any concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly on 6142 2800.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. We are committed to creating a positive and supportive environment for all students.

Sincerely,
Kate Flynn.

What happens when my child is involved in behaviour incidents at school?

Students, from time to time, may exhibit behaviours that are not aligned with our pillars. These behaviours may disrupt their own or other student’s learning, cause harm to others and impact their relationships with other students or teachers.

We understand that behaviour occurs, consciously or unconsciously based on the student’s attempt to satisfy a particular basic need.

We understand that all children have differing needs and that each individual incident needs to be approached with a lens that is age appropriate and respects their individuality.

At Margaret Hendry School, we make sure that when consequences are needed, they are fair, as well as being age-appropriate and appropriate for the level of behaviour. They can range from rectifying the situation, to time off the playground, to in school and out of school suspensions. When we have incidents that involve physical contact, we aim to ensure that the parents are informed (for all involved).

While vigilant in responding, we are aware that how we as adults choose to respond in these situations can have a profound effect on the student’s future behaviour. We aim to respond to behaviour in a calm, positive, thoughtful and respectful manner.

We have a number of systems in place to deal with incidents and support those involved, including following the guidelines stepped out in our Behaviour Management table below which aligns to our PBL (Positive Behaviours for Learning) framework. Appropriate action is taken depending on the incident being of a major or minor level.

The Behaviour Management table below provide more information about the way in which all staff support students when they make an error in behaviour. Each incident is an opportunity to learn and grow from mistakes made by reteaching and correcting the behaviour. Minor behaviours are dealt with at a classroom teacher level, however all major behaviours are forwarded on to the leadership team to follow up.

MINOR Behaviours - Teacher follow up

Possible actions

MAJOR Behaviours – Leadership follow up

Possible actions

Inappropriate language

Physical Contact

Property misuse

Non compliance

Mild disruption

Late to class (frequent)

Fractional Truancy

Cheating/plagiarism

Miss out on break time

Family meeting

Playground passport

Change seats/seating plan

Restorative process

Buddy class

In school suspension

Abusive language

Physical Aggression

Property damage

Defiance

Disruption

Absconding

Harassment/ Bullying

Mutually agreed leave

Suspension & re-entry

In school suspension

Time off the playground

Restorative Process

Teacher identifies a minor incident and makes sure all students are safe.
Teacher speaks to those involved to find out how the incident occurred.
Teacher names the inappropriate behaviour based on our school values and re-teaches the correct response the student should have used.
Teacher implements an appropriate consequence e.g. restorative session/s, time off the playground, apology letter, playground passport, in school suspension. Teacher follows up with families if required, particularly if the behaviour is ongoing.
Records incident on SAS (central school database).

Teacher calls for leadership support (they may or may not have information to provide at the time, dependent on the incident).
Leadership ensures the safety of students.
Leadership employs de-escalation strategies, if required, until the student is calm.
Leadership speaks to all involved to unpack the cause of the incident.
Where possible, leadership conducts a restorative process.
An appropriate consequence is determined e.g. loss of privileges, time off the playground, time in alternate setting, suspension, playground passport.
Families notified of the incident and the consequences

What happens to my child when they are sick or injured at school.

In the unfortunate instance that your child is sick or injured at school, the following systems are in place to provide support.

The classroom teacher or duty teacher is informed of the illness or injury and completes a First Aid slip for the student to take to the front office. This provides details about what caused the injury or illness and any other useful information

⇩

The First Aid Officer assesses the student in a designated sick bay area

⇩

MINOR Injury or illness	MAJOR Injury or illness
The First Aid officer treats the injury and records the medical treatment given on SAS (school central database). The student is monitored for a 10-15 minute period before returning to class. If the student continues to present as unwell while being monitored, the front office staff will make contact with families for collection from school.	The first Aid officer assesses the situation and administers appropriate treatment/care. Families are notified by front office staff and emergency services are called, if required. The First Aid officer and support staff remain with the student until parents or emergency providers arrive. A record of the incident and medical treatment is recorded on SAS (school central database).

NOTE: All incidents involving the head require students to be monitored and families to be contacted.

Bullying and harassment at Margaret Hendry School

We have a no tolerance policy for bullying and harassment.

The Bullying No Way website https://bullyingnoway.gov.au/ is a source of inspiration for Margaret Hendry School. This website is designed to support Australian school communities with evidence-informed resources and activities for a proactive approach to bullying prevention and education.

In line with the ACT Education Directorate, Margaret Hendry School takes all reports of bullying and harassment seriously and teaches students pro-social skills to equip them to manage and report any incidents. We believe that it is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that bullying behaviours are quickly eradicated, and friendly behaviours and a safe and harmonious environment are promoted.

We strive to provide the most positive learning environment for all children and to ensure that our school is as safe and happy as possible and free from all forms of bullying and harassment. Margaret Hendry School is built on positive relationships between students, staff and community members.

We are committed to structures, policies and practices which are free from harassment, and which contribute positively to the culture of the school.

We are committed to educating staff and students about the unacceptable nature of various forms of harassment and bullying behaviours, including cyber-bullying.

Students, parents, and staff work in partnership to build a positive and supportive environment where everyone feels safe. When we have knowledge of any form of bullying, action is taken, and the bullying report is followed up in a timely manner by staff.

As a school that does not tolerate bullying, Margaret Hendry School:

Embraces and celebrates the diversity of the school community.
Accepts that everyone is an individual and understands differences.
Promotes respect of others and compassion.
Applauds the efforts and achievements of all individuals in the school community.
Clearly communicate that reporting of incidents will be listened to and something will be done.
Teachers and the school leadership work with students to ensure that all students are supported to solve each incident.

* Students are encouraged to ‘tell’ of incidents of bullying. ‘Telling’ is established as an acceptable and responsible behaviour that is valued in the school community.

Through prevention programs such as those listed below, we teach our students the skills which will build their self-esteem and empower them to take responsibility for themselves – and give them the opportunity to practice these skills

Social Emotional Learning Program: Friendly Schools Plus and Zones of Regulation
Protective Behaviours Program
Openly talk about bullying and harassment – what it is, how it affects us and what we can do about it?
Daily Check ins and regular class meetings are forums for discussion, which could include discussions on bullying, effects and how to report and recover

All staff clearly articulate the expectations and appropriate behaviours of all students.

What is Bullying?

Bullying - The national definition of bullying for Australian schools says:

Bullying is an ongoing and deliberate misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that intends to cause physical, social and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power, or perceived power, over one or more persons who feel unable to stop it from happening.

Bullying can happen in person or online, via various digital platforms and devices and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert). Bullying behaviour is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time (for example, through sharing of digital records).

Bullying of any form or for any reason can have immediate, medium and long-term effects on those involved, including bystanders. Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying.

Behaviours that do not constitute bullying include:

mutual arguments and disagreements (where there is no power imbalance)
not liking someone or a single act of social rejection
one-off acts of meanness or spite
isolated incidents of aggression, intimidation or violence.

However, these conflicts still need to be addressed and resolved.

Likewise, not all online issues are bullying. (Online bullying is sometimes referred to as cyberbullying and refers to bullying that is carried out through information and communication technologies.)

Bullying involves:

a desire to hurt
a hurtful action
a power imbalance
(typically) repetition
an unjust use of power
evident enjoyment by the aggressor
a sense of oppression on the part of the victim (Rigby, 1996)

According to the above definition, ‘one-off’ incidents involving social isolation, conflict, random acts of aggression/intimidation or meanness are not defined as bullying. Bullying can be physical, verbal, cyber, social and emotional.

It is important to be careful about the language we use to describe incidents that students are involved in, the table below clarifies what bullying is and is not. At Margaret Hendry School, we teach to our students and families what bullying is and isn’t.

LANGUAGE USE:

Conflict	Unkind	Mean	Bullying
Occasional	Occasional	Once or twice	Is repeated
Not planned, in the heat of the moment	Spontaneous, unintentional	Intentional	Is planned and done on purpose
All parties are upset	Can cause hurt feelings, upset	Can hurt others deeply	The target of the bullying is upset
All parties want to work things out	Based in thoughtlessness, poor manners or narcissism	Based in anger, impulsive cruelty	The bully is trying to gain control over the target
All parties will accept responsibility	Unkind person accepts responsibility	Behaviour often regretted	The bully blames the target
An effort is made by all parties to problem solve	The target wants to stop the bully’s behaviour. The bully does not.
Can be resolved through mediation	Social skill building could be of benefit.	Needs to be addressed. Should not be ignored.	Cannot be resolved through mediation.

Cyberbullying

Is when someone uses the internet to be mean to another person, so they feel bad or upset. No one deserves to be bullied online.

Bullying that happens online can harm the mental and physical health of the person targeted.
It can happen in any kind of online communication, including posts, comments, texts, messages, chats, livestreams, memes, images, videos or emails.
Often bullying content can be removed by the site, game or app used to send it, if you report it to them. But if they don’t help, eSafety may be able to investigate and ask them to delete it.
You can also download the cyberbullying quick guide, which has key safety information and is available in five languages.

Bullying: Responsibilities of all stakeholders.

Responsibilities of the Principal	Responsibilities of Staff	Responsibilities of Children	Responsibilities of Parents/Guardians
To ensure the expectations of staff, students and parents/guardians are clear. To monitor the implementation of school rules and values. To develop and maintain strong parent and community links. To effectively communicate and promote the school’s behaviour management documents. To ensure that all members of the school community are aware of and have access to the anti-bullying school documents. To respond to each incident of bullying in accordance with the procedures detailed in this document.	To model, educate and discuss appropriate behaviours. To watch for indicators of possible bullying. To ensure adequate supervision of children at all times. To respond to all reported and observed incidents of bullying, as detailed in this policy. To teach students the skills that will help build their self-esteem and empower them to feel confident to deal with bullying behaviours.	To have an understanding of bullying and bullying behaviours. To appropriately report incidents of bullying (occurring either to themselves or another child). To help someone who is being bullied by reporting incidents to staff or family members To not bully others	To support the School’s Student Anti-Bullying stance. To model, educate and discuss appropriate behaviours. To watch for indicators of possible bullying (including unwillingness to attend school or talk about school and activities, changes in personality, disturbed sleep, a pattern of headaches and stomach aches, loss of personal property). To encourage and support your child to inform you or a staff member if they are being bullied or witness bullying. To act appropriately if your child is found to be bullying others. To speak to your child’s teacher FIRST if you suspect or know that your child is experiencing bullying behaviour

Under no circumstance should parents/guardians contact other parents/guardians or children regarding an issue of bullying. All matters should be referred to your child’s teacher who will then respond according to this document.

How will the school respond to bullying?

Schools are aware of the potential harmful effects of bullying, including online bullying (cyberbullying) on young people and take reports of bullying seriously.

The primary aim of the school's response is to restore a positive learning environment for all students.

Positive responses are based on the understanding that children and young people are in the process of learning how to be a member of the school and wider community.

When a bullying incident is reported or observed, the following steps will be taken and the process may be accelerated according to the severity of the incident.

When a bullying incident is reported, the class teacher will use a ‘no blame’ and shared concern approach and process in the first instance.
The teacher will meet separately with the children involved to gain an understanding of what has occurred.
This information will be recorded and forwarded to the leadership team to be noted and discussed.
If the incident is deemed not to be bullying, the classroom teacher will monitor the relevant students according to the Wellbeing procedures.
If bullying is identified, the parents/guardians of both the child exhibiting the bullying behaviour, and the victim, will be requested to meet with a member of the leadership team and class teacher. They will be notified of the level and severity of the incident, and its consequences. Discussion of disciplinary procedures and expectations will also occur.
The matter may be further addressed via mediation, individual counselling or the development of a behaviour management plan.
Support through the SASSCO (Safe and Supportive Schools Contact Officer) and leadership team will be offered to both children and their families.
Record of the incident and its management will be kept on file on SAS (Student Administration System)
Continued bullying would result in an additional action plan being developed, often in conjunction with the SASSCO (Safe and Supportive Schools Contact Officer) and leadership team
Appropriate consequences would be delivered to the child exhibiting the bullying behaviour, and further dialogue with relevant parents/guardians would occur.
Additional incident reports would be kept on file as necessary
If bullying behaviour continues to occur, further meetings with families, the student and the teacher will occur.

Please note:

Alleged Criminal offences must be referred directly to Governance and Legal Liaison Section ph 58510 and/or the ACT Police ph 131 444
Families may also like to contact the ACT Human Rights Commission ph 6205 2222, the Principal, their immediate teacher, another member of staff or the Director of Schools

FLOW CHART -RESPONSE TO BULLYING:

Teacher or staff member are made aware of the incident

⇩

Teacher	Leadership
Investigates further information and refers the situation to the leadership team. Speak to all students involved with supports put in place for those involved, if required. Families of those involved are contacted and informed of next steps. Reports incident on SAS (schools central data). Update leadership team to discuss and implement appropriate consequences.	Appropriate consequences activated. This may involve time off the playground, playground passports to limit areas of play, time out of the classroom.

⇩

If the bullying/ harassment situation continues

⇩

Teacher	Leadership
Notifies school leadership	Next level of consequences activated. These may include an in school suspension or formal suspension. Families of those involved are contacted and informed of next steps. Outside agencies informed, if required

We support the victim in the following ways:

By offering them an immediate opportunity to talk about their experience with their class teacher, another teacher or a membership of the Leadership Team if they wish
Informing the victim’s parents
By offering continuing support when they feel they need it
By checking regularly to see how they are feeling
By taking necessary actions to prevent more bullying

We support the child exhibiting the bullying behaviour in the following ways:

By talking about what happened to understand why they became involved
By involving the child’s parents
By explaining to the child, the procedures at school, the consequences of their behaviour and the expectations for the future
By enforcing appropriate consequences that are directly linked to the child’s bullying behaviour and grounded in the principles of reconciliation, restitution and restorative justice
By implementing a behaviour monitoring program and continuing to monitor the child
Offering processes of repairing and rebuilding

Definitions

Bullying: an ongoing misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that causes physical and/or psychological harm. It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power over one or more persons. Bullying can happen in person or online, and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert). Bullying of any form or for any reason can have long-term effects on those involved including bystanders. Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying.

Bystander: is a person or group of people who witness or know about any type of bullying or harassing behaviour and are not directly involved. Any member of the school community can be a bystander and can act to prevent or stop bullying, harassment and violence.

Cyberbullying: Bullying that occurs through social media and/or telecommunications platforms

Discrimination: Discrimination occurs when people are treated less favourably than others because of their:

identity, race, culture or ethnic origin
religion
physical characteristics
gender
sexual orientation
marital, parenting or economic status
age
ability or disability.

Diversity: is about recognising the value of individual differences to school culture. Diversity can include sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, ethnicity, cultural background, age, religious belief, family makeup and family responsibilities. Diversity also refers to other ways in which people are different, such as educational level, life experience, work experience, socio-economic background, personality, marital status and abilities/disabilities. Diversity is more than merely accepting people from diverse backgrounds – it is about active support and celebration of difference.

Duty of care: the responsibility to exercise reasonable care to protect the safety of any students against injury that should reasonably have been foreseen. This duty exists whenever a student/teacher relationship exists, while students are on school premises during hours when the school is open and while on school-based activities taking place elsewhere.

Harassment: Harassment is behaviour that targets an individual or group due to their:

identity, race, culture or ethnic origin
religion
physical characteristics
gender
sexual orientation
marital, parenting or economic status
age
ability or disability.

It offends, humiliates, intimidates or creates a hostile environment. It may be:

an ongoing pattern of behaviour or a single act
directed randomly or towards the same person(s)
intentional or unintentional.

Protective Action: describes the interventions taken by staff to minimise the risk when a significant danger is present. This might include restrictive practices, non-physical interventions and changes to the immediate environment. The danger may be from the actions of a person or from hazards in the immediate environment.

Respectful relationships: are interpersonal interactions where all parties feel safe, are treated with fairness, are valued and feel accepted. This concept applies to all relationships, including friendships, student-student, student-teacher, teacher-family, family and partner relationships.

Restrictive Practice: a practice or intervention that has the effect of restricting the rights or freedom of movement of a person, with the primary purpose of protecting the person or others from harm. Restrictive practices must not be used to gain compliance in students and must never be used on their own, but should instead be employed within the context of an overall positive behaviour support plan. Refer to Safe and Supportive Schools Policy Guideline B.

School Communities: The term is used generally to include all stakeholders associated with a school. This may include, but is not limited to: students, staff, parents, families, volunteers and visitors.

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL): is the process through which students acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage their emotions, set and achieve positive goals, understand and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive respectful relationships, and make responsible decisions.

Student Wellbeing: is defined as a state of positive psychological functioning that allows students to thrive, flourish and engage positively with their school and other people.

Upstander: is someone who chooses to support a person who is being abused or harmed. There are ways you can be an upstander while keeping yourself safe.

In short:

Supporting someone who’s being bullied or abused, you’ve chosen to be an upstander.
Even privately supporting the person being targeted or reaching out to get help from someone else can make a big difference.

Violence: Violence is the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against another person(s) that results in psychological harm, injury or in some cases death. It may involve provoked or unprovoked acts and can be a single incident, a random act or can occur over time.