Behaviour and Relationships

"Love one another as I have loved you."
John 13:34

At Our Lady & St Joseph Catholic Primary School, we believe that positive behaviour is built through strong relationships, clear expectations and Gospel Values.

Guided by our mission statement, "With Christ at our centre we love, listen and learn," we strive to create a calm, safe and nurturing environment where every child feels valued, respected and able to flourish academically, socially, emotionally and spiritually.

Our approach to behaviour is rooted in dignity, respect, responsibility and restorative practice. We teach children how to make positive choices, build healthy relationships and contribute positively to our school community.

Our Behaviour Expectations

Our school expectations are centred around three simple principles:

Our Daily Routines

To help create a calm, orderly and positive learning environment, we teach and reinforce consistent routines across the school.

Rewards and Recognition

We believe that positive behaviour should be recognised and celebrated. Our rewards encourage children to make positive choices, demonstrate responsibility, show kindness and take pride in their learning.

Alongside our Star Badge, Cross Badge, Head of School Badge and House Points, pupils are celebrated through a range of rewards and recognition opportunities throughout the year. These include celebration assemblies, certificates, attendance awards, leadership responsibilities and special acknowledgements for demonstrating our Gospel Values in daily school life.

Termly Excellence Awards

Each term, we celebrate pupils through our Gospel Value Awards and Subject Excellence Awards.

These special awards recognise children who consistently demonstrate our school values, show exceptional character, make positive contributions to the school community and strive for excellence in their learning.

Our Gospel Value Awards celebrate pupils who live out our Catholic values through qualities such as faithfulness, compassion, humility, justice, forgiveness, service and peace. We also recognise pupils who demonstrate exceptional resilience, personal growth and commitment to our school community.

Our Subject Excellence Awards recognise pupils who demonstrate enthusiasm, effort, progress and achievement across the curriculum, including Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Science, Art, Music, Physical Education, Computing, Design and Technology, History, Geography, French and Philosophy for Children (P4C).

Award winners are celebrated during a special assembly and receive a certificate and prize in recognition of their achievements.

Staff regularly recognise pupils who show kindness, resilience, respect, responsibility and a commitment to learning. Children may also be celebrated for academic achievement, excellent effort, positive attitudes, improved attendance, acts of service and contributions to the wider school community.

Through praise, encouragement and celebration, we aim to build confidence, motivation and self-belief, helping every child to feel valued and inspired to achieve their full potential.

The Restorative Approach

At OLSJ, we use a restorative approach to help children understand the impact of their actions, take responsibility and repair relationships.

Restorative conversations encourage pupils to reflect on what has happened, consider how others may have been affected and identify positive ways to move forward.

Through this approach, children learn important life skills including empathy, accountability, forgiveness and conflict resolution.

To support restorative conversations, we use six key questions:

Inclusion and Support

We recognise that behaviour is a form of communication and that some pupils may need additional support to meet behavioural expectations.

Where appropriate, reasonable adjustments are made for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs and other individual circumstances.

We work closely with families and external agencies to ensure that support is personalised and effective.

Anti-Bullying

We are committed to ensuring that every child feels safe, respected and valued.

Bullying, discrimination, prejudice and harassment are not tolerated. Concerns are taken seriously and addressed promptly in line with our Behaviour Policy and Anti-Bullying procedures.

We encourage children to speak to a trusted adult if they are worried about themselves or someone else.

Working in Partnership with Families

We believe that positive behaviour is most successful when schools and families work together.

We ask parents and carers to:

Support the school's values and expectations
Encourage positive behaviour at home
Promote good attendance and punctuality
Communicate concerns promptly
Work in partnership with staff to support their child

Together, we can help every child develop the confidence, resilience and values needed to succeed.