Pastoral Support
At St Thomas More, we are proud of our dedicated, caring pastoral team. Made up of teachers and non-teachers, the team work together to ensure all students are safe and that every student is given the very best opportunities to meet their potential and ultimately to succeed in the adult world. The pastoral team consists of form tutors, heads of year, learning mentors, behaviour leads and safeguarding leads. In some cases, the SENDCO is also part of the pastoral team for your child.
Our dedicated team believes that the pastoral care of each student is of paramount importance. Every student is valued as an individual. Their happiness, self-esteem and personal development are of the utmost importance.
The Form Tutor will be the first person a student will turn to for help and advice whom they see every morning and afternoon. Your child’s form tutor will monitor your child’s well-being, attendance, behaviour, punctuality and rewards in school to ensure they maintain a positive mental well-being and are happy at school. Similarly, in most cases, the first point of contact for parents/carers will be the Form Tutor.
Form tutors liaise with the Head of Year who will take overall responsibility for their year group. Heads of faculty and individual subject teachers will oversee the academic performance of students in each subject. Subject teachers will provide the information on academic performance which will appear on your child’s report and they will be available to speak to parents/carers at parents’ evenings.
Learning Mentors and School Counselling Service
In addition to our strong team of pastoral staff, we also have our support and advisory service provided by Learning Mentors and the Student Counselling Service. Students’ emotional wellbeing and concerns such as those listed below (examples) can be addressed by students or their parents/carers by speaking to pastoral staff for support and advice.
Some of the issues for which support is provided are as follows:
- Difficulties in school and at home
- Friendship and relationship concerns
- Bullying – bully and victim
- Managing anger
- Personal skills
- Family concerns
- Exam pressure and nerves
- Careers and post 16 advice
- Health and medical concerns
- Bereavement
- Stress and anxiety
To strengthen the Suppprt and Advisory Service we offer in school, we have qualified counsellors and mentors who will listen to both students and parents. Together with pastoral staff, they will also use their expertise to seek coordinated help for students, where appropriate, from external agencies or professionals.