Co-op Academy Hamilton

Code of Conduct For Parents / Carers

Policy details

• Date created - Jan 2024
• Date reviewed - September 2024
• Date approved - September 2024
• Next review date - September 2026
• Policy owner - L Brandrick

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR PARENTS / CARERS 

NAME OF CHILD ………………………                        CLASS ………………….   

At Co-op Academy Hamilton, we are very fortunate to have supportive and friendly parents and carers, who want the best for their child/ren.   Children will make the best progress and be happiest when their parents / carers and the school work closely together.   We fully understand how busy modern lives are, but want to reassure you that we value all communication with parents / carers and want to work closely for the benefit of your child/ren.        

We welcome and encourage parents/carers to take part fully in the life of our academies.  

From time to time everyone will have questions about school life and if not shared quickly these can lead to unhappiness for parents and child/ren.  It is so important to communicate immediately with us, but also to remember to be polite and calm, so that we can work together to resolve any issues.   All school staff will conduct themselves in a professional manner, respecting all members of our community and we ask that you show the same respect to all school staff in return.  

Our expected standards of conduct are set out below:

Guidance  

As well as following the guidance set out in our Home-Academy Agreement, we expect parents, carers and visitors to:  

• Respect the caring ethos of our academies
• Understand that both teachers and parents / carers need to work together for the benefit of their child/ren.
• Demonstrate that all members of the academy community should be treated with respect and therefore set a good example in their own speech and behaviour.
• Clarify a child’s version of events with the academy’s view in order to bring about a peaceful solution to any issue (often children have not shared with the class teacher so the teacher is unaware of an issue).
• Correct their own child’s behaviour especially in public where it could otherwise lead to conflict, aggressive behaviour or unsafe behaviour.
• Approach the academy calmly to help resolve any issues of concern.
•  Avoid using staff as threats to improve child/ren’s behaviour.  

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

• Disruptive behaviour which interferes or threatens to interfere with the operation of a classroom, an employee’s office, office area or any other area of the academy grounds.
• Using loud or offensive language, swearing or displaying anger.
• Using racist language or behaviours.
• Spitting.
• Threatening to harm a member of academy staff, Governor, visitor, fellow parent/carer or pupil; regardless of whether or not the behaviour constitutes a criminal offence.
• Damaging or destroying academy property.  
• Abusive or threatening e-mails or text/voicemail/phone messages or other written communication including Class Dojo.
• Offensive or derogatory comments regarding the academy or any of the pupils/parent/staff, at the school on Facebook, Class Dojo or other social sites. (See Appendix 1). Any concerns you may have about the academy must be made through the appropriate channels by speaking to the class teacher in the first instance.
• The use of physical aggression towards another adult or child. This includes physical punishment against your own child on academy premises.

• Approaching someone else’s child or another parent in order to discuss or chastise them because of the actions of this child towards their own child. (Such an approach to a child may be seen to be an assault on that child and may have legal consequences).  

• Smoking and consumption of alcohol or other drugs whilst on academy property.
• Dogs being brought on to academy premises.
• Adults adhere to any school risk assessments/procedures in place.

Should any of the above behaviours occur on academy premises, the academy may feel it is necessary to ban the offending person from entering the academy grounds.  

We thank you for your continuing support of the academy.                  

Appendix 1  

Inappropriate use of Social Network Sites  

Social media websites are being used increasingly to fuel campaigns and complaints against academies, Principals, academy staff, and in some cases other parents/pupils.  The Trustees and Governing Body of Co-op Academies Trust consider the use of social media websites being used in this way as unacceptable and not in the best interests of the children or the whole academy community.  Any concerns you may have must be made through the appropriate channels by speaking to the class teacher in the first instance.

In the event that any pupil or parent/carer of a child/ren being educated at one of our academies is found to be posting defamatory comments on Facebook or other social network sites, they will be reported to the appropriate 'report abuse' section of the network site, or the police if necessary. All social network sites have clear rules about the content that can be posted on the site and they provide robust mechanisms to report contact or activity that breaches this.  The academy will also expect that any parent/carer or pupil remove such comments immediately.  

In serious cases, the academy will also consider its legal options to deal with any such misuse of social networking and other sites.  Additionally, and perhaps more importantly is the issue of cyberbullying and the use by one child or a parent to publicly humiliate another by inappropriate social network entry.  We will take and deal with this as a serious incident of school bullying.  Thankfully, such incidents are extremely rare.  

Please share this policy with all persons responsible for collecting child/ren.

Please sign and return this slip to the school office to acknowledge that you have read and understood the above policy.  

Parent/carer signature ………………………………          Date: ……………………………