Quakers Hill Public School

Imagine-Believe-Create

Telephone02 9626 9655

Emailquakershil-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Student health and safety

We are committed to ensuring a safe and happy environment for your child.

As a school community, we are committed to providing a safe and secure environment promoting personal growth and excellence in all students by developing confidence and self-esteem. A learning environment where inappropriate behaviour such as bullying will not be accepted.

We support your child’s health and safety through a range of strategies including:

For more information, visit the student wellbeing section of the department’s website.

Like all NSW public schools, we promote the healthy development of students through:

  • school programs and practices that protect and promote health and safety
  • supporting individual students who need help with health issues
  • providing first aid and temporary care of students who become unwell or who have an accident at school.

Student wellbeing

Like all NSW public schools, we provide safe learning and teaching environments to encourage healthy, happy, successful and productive students.

The department is committed to creating quality learning opportunities for children and young people. These opportunities support wellbeing through positive and respectful relationships and fostering a sense of belonging to the school and community.

The Wellbeing Framework for Schools helps schools support the cognitive, physical, social, emotional and spiritual development of students and allows them to connect, succeed and thrive throughout their education.

Pastoral care policy 

Student Welfare is an essential component in ensuring that all the students at Quakers Public School are achieving their personal best in learning.

The Pastoral Care Policy incorporates the following;

  • DEC nine core values of public education
  • Western Sydney Region's Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) initiative
  • QHPS Safe and valued (Anti Bullying Policy)
  • Classroom management policy/procedures

At Quakers Hill Public School our students demonstrate the following nine values:

  • Integrity
  • Responsibility
  • Respect
  • Co-operation
  • Fairness
  • Care
  • Participation
  • Excellence
  • Democracy

These values govern the manner in which we as a school community deal with each other and relate to all members of the community, students, staff and parents.

Through our School Pastoral Care Policy, Quakers Hill Public School aims to:

  • Recognise, promote and reward positive student behaviour through a cumulative whole school process;
  • Recognise and reinforce student achievement; and
  • Recognise and manage inappropriate behaviour though guidelines that provide clear procedures and consequences.

 Pastoral Care Policy 

Anti-Bullying Policy 

Positive Behaviour for Learning

At our school, we use Positive Behaviour for Learning – a whole-school approach for creating a positive, safe and supportive school climate where students can learn and develop. Our whole school community works together to establish expected behaviours and teach them to all students.

Quakers Hill Primary School implements the Western Sydney Region's PBL initiative. As part of this initiative the school works at ensuring that consistency in the pastoral care and welfare/discipline of children exists.

In order to continually improve the manner in which the school operates, we have implemented a school wide expectations and consequences which are used in the classroom, in the playground and when representing the school. The school expectations and consequences are shown below as is the school's banner statement. These are displayed in every classroom, foyer and office. They clearly demonstrate what the school's expectations are for our students and school. Quakers Hill does not have rules, as these are often negative in nature. The school has moved on from this and we now talk about expectations as part of our school ethos.

Our banner statement defines our school, it is our reason for being. It is what sets us apart, what makes us unique. It encapsulates the essence of our school, our kiddies, staff and parents. The banner statement is made up of three very power and thought provoking words 'INNOVATION-EXCELLENCE-SUCCESS.' Innovation - Quakers Hill has always been at the forefront of education, implementing the very latest innovative programs and initiatives. Excellence – synonymous with our school. Our results and achievements in every facet of out student learning (academically, in the performing and creative arts, in the sporting arena, and in leadership) exemplifies this. Success- Quakers Hill has at its cornerstone, its very foundation a reputation built on years of wonderful successes.

Whole school PBL matrix (PDF 244KB)

PBL cirlces (PDF 1571KB)

DEC core values (PDF 285 KB)

What is PBL?

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) is a school-wide behaviour initiative currently in use at a number of western Sydney schools. PBL has been a part of our school since 2010.It employs a whole school systems approach to address problem behaviour and reduce its effects on student outcomes and on the school community as a whole. PBL encourages positive behaviour from students, which has been shown to improve their self-concept and motivation to learn.

The use of PBL has recently been evaluated through a collaborative study involving the Western Sydney Region (WSR) and researchers from the University of Western Sydney (UWS). The PBL process commenced at selected schools in 2005 and has been progressively introduced to other interested schools in a process that is set to continue. While take-up is voluntary, more than half the schools in the region have offered expressions of interest in the program.

Background Information

PBL has been adapted from the Positive Behaviour Interventions and Supports (PBIS) program developed in the USA. The Regional Director of WSR and the Regional Leadership Team, though impressed by the PBIS model, recognised that its focus on behaviour support needed to include overt emphasis on learning in order to appeal to WSR schools. This regard for learning builds on the NSW Department of Education's Quality Teaching framework (2003).

How does PBL operate in schools?

PBL operates as a systemic umbrella for a broad range of programs in schools, including values education, anti-bullying, learning support teams, and Priority Schools and Priority Action Schools programs. The elements of this model can be applied across all years of schooling, K–12, and all curriculum areas. The process employs coaches that provide a localised connection between the schools and the Region. The coaches help participant schools transfer learning experiences in training sessions into practice in the schools. Coaching is essential in the PBL process to increase transfer of learning in the areas of needs assessment, evaluation, systems development and action planning.

Source: Mary Mooney, Brenda Dobia, Katrina Barker et al (27 June 2008) ‘Positive behaviour for learning: investigating the transfer of a United States system into the NSW Department of Education and Training Western Sydney Region schools', Curriculum Leadership- an Electronic Journal for Leaders in Education, Volume 6 Issue 20 .

 

For more information on PBL, follow the link below for an extended version of this article:

http://www.curriculum.edu.au/leader/positive_behaviour_for_learning,24004.html?issueID=11469

Student Health 

Promoting health, supporting student health care needs and reducing health risks are important to everyone at our school.

Prescribed medication

If your child is being prescribed medication that needs to be taken during the day, please inform us so that arrangements can be made for the medication to be administered. Please read the important information about prescribed medications at school.

Allergies

If your child has been diagnosed with an allergy or allergies, it is important that you tell the principal as soon as you become aware of it, or if your child's allergy changes. If your child is diagnosed at risk of an anaphylactic reaction an individual health care plan is developed that includes strategies to minimise the risk of a severe allergic reaction.

Managing complex health needs

An individual health care plan is developed for each student with complex health needs. The plan supports students with severe asthma, type 1 diabetes, epilepsy, anaphylaxis and those at risk of an emergency or requiring the administration of specific health care procedures.

Infectious diseases

There are many infectious diseases that affect children and young people. Schools and parents should contact their local health network for advice regarding infectious diseases.

Immunisation 

Our school's immunisation program works in cooperation with our local health network of the NSW Department of Health who deliver the NSW adolescent school-based vaccination program to high school students.

Head lice

Head lice outbreaks sometimes occur at school. If your child has head lice please treat your child and inform us. Daily combing of dry hair with conditioner can get rid of head lice. You should continue to send your child to school. Head lice information in community languages.

Healthy eating at school

Healthy food keeps children alert and focused and gives them the nutrition they need each day. Our school canteen provides a healthy, nutritious canteen menu in line with the Fresh Tastes NSW Healthy School Canteen Strategy. If your child brings their own lunch to school you can help by packing food that is interesting and nutritious. See lunch box ideas.

Sun safety

Our school takes sun safety seriously. Children learn about how to protect themselves from the sun's damaging UV rays, and our school implements a range of sun protection strategies. Sun sense information in community languages.

Ear infections

Otitis media is a common middle ear infection which may cause fever or vomiting. If undetected, a child may suffer from hearing loss and their learning could be affected. Most ear infections respond readily to treatment.

Chicken Pox Note (pdf 711 KB)