Parents Code of Conduct

Parent Code of Conduct

At Aston Tower Primary School we are very fortunate to have a supportive and friendly parent body. Our parents recognise that educating children is a process that involves partnership between parents and staff. As a partnership, our parents will understand the importance of a good working relationship to make this happen. For these reasons we continue to welcome and encourage parents/carers to participate fully in the life of our school. 

The purpose of this policy is to provide a reminder to all parents, carers and visitors to our school about the expected conduct. This is so that we can continue to flourish, progress and achieve in an atmosphere of mutual understanding.

Guidance

We expect parents, carers and visitors to:

• Respect the caring ethos of our school

• Understand that both staff and parents need to work together for the benefit of their children.

• Demonstrate that all members of the school community should be treated with respect and therefore set a good example in their own speech and behaviour.

• Seek to clarify a child’s version of events with the school’s view in order to bring about a peaceful solution to any issue.

• Correct own child’s behaviour especially in public where it could otherwise lead to conflict, aggressive behaviour or unsafe behaviour.

• Approach the school to help resolve any issues of concern.

• Avoid using staff as threats to influence children’s behaviour.

In order to support a peaceful and safe school environment the school cannot tolerate parents, carers and visitors exhibiting the following: 

• Disruptive behaviour which interferes or threatens to interfere with the operation of a classroom, a member of staff’s work, office area or any other area of the school grounds.

• Using loud/or offensive language, swearing, cursing, using profane language or displaying temper.

• Threatening actual bodily harm to a member of school staff, trustee, visitor, fellow parent/carer or pupil regardless of whether or not the behaviour constitutes a criminal offence.

• Damaging or destroying school property.

• Abusive or threatening e-mails or text/voicemail/phone messages or other written communication.

• Defamatory, offensive or derogatory comments regarding the school or any of the pupils/parent/staff, at the school on Facebook or other social sites. (See Appendix 1).  Any concerns you may have about the school must be made through the appropriate channels by speaking to the class teacher, the Headteacher or the Chair of Trustess, so they can be dealt with fairly, appropriately and effectively for all concerned.

• The use of physical aggression towards another adult or child. This includes physical punishment of your own child on school premises.

• Approaching someone else’s child in order to discuss the actions of that child towards their own child or to chastise them for those actions. Such an approach to a child may constitute an assault on that child and have legal consequences.

• Smoking and consumption of alcohol or other drugs whilst on school property.

• Dogs being brought on to school premises.

Should any of the above behaviour occur on school premises the school may feel it is necessary to contact the appropriate authorities and if necessary, even ban the offending adult from entering the school grounds.

We trust that parents and carers will assist our school with the implementation of this policy and we thank you for your continuing support of the school.

Agreed by Trustees April 2016

Appendix 1

Inappropriate use of Social Network Sites

Social media websites can sometimes be used to fuel campaigns and complaints against schools, Headteachers, school staff, and in some cases other parents/pupils.  The Trustees of Aston Tower School considers the use of social media websites in this way as unacceptable and not in the best interests of the children or the whole school community.  Any concerns you may have must be made through the appropriate channels by speaking to the class teacher, the Headteacher or the Chair of Trustees, so they can be dealt with fairly, appropriately and effectively for all concerned.

In the event that any pupil or parent/carer of a child/ren being educated in the Aston Tower school, is found to be posting libellous or defamatory comments on Facebook or other social network sites, they will be reported to the appropriate 'report abuse' section of the network site. This also applies to third parties, for instance individuals from the wider community. Social network sites have clear rules about the content which can be posted on the site and they provide robust mechanisms to report contact or activity which breaches this. The school will also expect that any parent/carer or pupil removes such comments immediately.

In serious cases the school will also consider taking advice as to its other options in dealing with any such misuse of social networking and other sites. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly is the issue of cyber bullying and the intention by one child to publicly humiliate another by inappropriate social network entry.  We will record and deal with this as a serious incident of school bullying.  Thankfully such incidents are extremely rare.

We would expect that parents would make all persons responsible for collecting children aware of this policy.