At Dulwich Prep London pastoral care is the starting and end point of all we do, we recognise its importance, underpinning every element of your child’s education. Our years of experience working with boys up to 13 years old, ensure that we understand the unique physical, emotional and developmental challenges they face and we work with every child as an individual, giving them the skills and support necessary to equip them for their future.
Relationships
The expectations of our 21st century society can weigh heavy on children and their parents and the relationships we build with our families are integral to our success. The relationships between a child with his or her teachers and peers, as well as those between home and school, are crucial.
Communication
This is the key to our superb pastoral care structure and the vital link in school is a class teacher/form tutor. They spend time with your child every day and as such, they should be the first port of call to ensure that your child’s social and emotional, as well as academic, needs are being met.
Accessibility
At Dulwich Prep London we ensure that appropriate adults are easily accessible to our pupils whether they are looking for the support of a tutor, subject specialist, school counsellor, member of the medical team, or perhaps one of the external team of therapists that we invite into School to enhance our provision.
The Structure
From your child’s first steps into EY through to their final path in Year 8 we know that the class teacher/form tutor is the vital link in our pastoral support system. As the adult who will see and engage with your child every day, they are building a relationship that will provide support and stability throughout the year.
Heads of Year, HoY, teach PSHCE to their entire year group so that they know every child personally and they offer a further layer of pastoral support and experience to the children, parents, and staff. From Year 3 to Year 8 the HoYs oversee a term-time residential trip, ensuring that boys and staff are provided with time out of the classroom together in which to build and foster new relationships and strengthen existing friendships. We believe that these experiences, away from the classroom, provide a truly unique opportunity for children to learn and grow with the support of the teachers who travel with them.
The Head of Section, HoS, oversees the pastoral and academic progress of your son throughout his two years in Early Years, Pre-Prep, Lower, Middle and Upper School. Their wealth of experience can provide a reassuring overview and consistency to families as boys transition through school and they lead weekly assemblies gathering their section together to celebrate success and embrace the spiritual, moral, cultural, and social aspects of their education.
As boys progress into Middle and Upper School they embrace the full range of inspirational specialist teaching that Dulwich Prep London has to offer, however we believe the form tutor remains the crucial adult in your son’s daily life so they will have designated form time at the start of every single day. We know the value of that routine and we recognise that consistency is key to your son’s wellbeing in school.
The continuity of these relationships throughout the School from EY through to Year 8 is vital. Children will perform at their best, whatever that level may be, when they feel confident and safe. The trust of a child is not an automatic right, it is a child’s gift and a privilege that the staff at Dulwich Prep London respect.
Pupil voice
We recognise the importance of the boys’ own voice and Rate My Week is our bespoke app that we created for our boys so that they can communicate with their teachers; feedback on their weekly highs and lows and request personal support if desired. From Year 1 to Year 8 this private and meaningful link between staff and pupils builds a bond which the boys value and set great store by.
A preparatory school, by definition, is a vehicle for transition. An education with a view to the next phase in a child’s life. Our aim has always been to prepare children for their future and we believe at Dulwich Prep London we have the best pastoral systems in place to build that confidence and to inspire their trust.
