Pastoral Care
Pastoral Care and House System
A key focus at Highfield is our pastoral care and House system. We consider the well-being and happiness of every pupil to be of paramount importance and pride ourselves on providing a secure, supportive and inclusive community for every pupil.
Every year group class has a Form Teacher responsible for the pastoral and academic needs of each pupil. Small class sizes, specialist teaching and a nurturing environment ensures that teachers really get to know all the pupils and their needs. This is key to our strong school community.
Form Teachers liaise with pupils and parents on all aspects of school life as well as acting as guides and mentors. We foster strong parent/teacher relationships, valuing impromptu chats as well as more formal Parent/Teacher Consultations held twice each year.
House Structure and Pods
The Highfield House system plays a fundamental role in our nurturing environment. On entry to Highfield, all pupils (and their siblings) are assigned a House – Hadfield, Tovey or Mason, named after previous Headteachers.
To further encourage a sense of belonging, each House contains pods of 3 to 4 pupils from across the school, led by a Year 6 pupil. This vertical House structure ensures that pupils have a vested interest in one another and a culture of kindliness pervades. The youngest look up to the eldest and the eldest look out for and support the youngest.
Led by the House Captains, we hold regular competitions, fundraising activities and give pupils the opportunity to discuss relevant pastoral issues. Being part of a House encourages positive team working, respect for others and a healthy competitive spirit. The camaraderie, solidarity and passion pupil develop for their House is second to none too.
House points are awarded by staff for good work, effort, or for putting the Highfield School Rules into practice.
Highfield Super Stars
All pupils to take part in ‘Highfield Super Stars’, a pastoral program of support to help establish and building lasting, positive relationships, as they progress through the school.
House Structure
At Highfield, we encourage the children to be themselves and support each other across the school. When they first enter, the children are assigned a House and if they have siblings, they are assigned the same House. Â
There are three houses at Highfield:Â Hadfield, Tovey and Mason all named after previous Headmistresses:
- Hadfield – Highfield’s first Head Mistress who introduced the principles of the PNEU which was founded by Charlotte Mason
- Mason – Charlotte Mason, the founder of the PNEU, the principles of which still guide us today
- Tovey – Miss Tovey was Highfield’s Head from 1944 – 1968
Being part of a House encourages positive team working and a healthy competitive spirit. The teams, led by their House Captain, take part in a whole host of events, including music and drama performances, sports events and House competitions, such as the festive netball competition as well as art and singing competitions.
Pods
To encourage a sense of belonging, and enable the children to get to know pupils across the school, each House contains pods led by a Year 6 girl. Each pupil is put into a pod which is made up of 3 to 4 children across the school. Through the Houses we hold regular competitions, fundraising activities and give the girls opportunities to discuss relevant pastoral issues. Â
We also have a group called the ‘Highfield Super Stars’, which supports the children establishing and building lasting, positive relationships. All the girls are given the opportunity to take part in this as they progress through the school
At Highfield we consider the health and happiness of our pupils to be of paramount importance. As they progress through the school the girls grow in self-confidence and enjoy lasting friendships when they leave.
In this section
“Exceptional academic and social education and encourages girls to be so confident, something I was discouraged to be at my own school. I love Highfield on the basis that it’s so different from my own experience. Thank you for giving my daughter this.”
Highfield Parent – Summer ’22
FROM OUR INSPECTION REPORT
”’Pupils develop strong social awareness through the many opportunities provided for teamwork, problem solving and collaboration across year groups. The tangible family ethos of the school contributes strongly to their social development.’
ISI, March 2022
