Letter from the Headteacher (2024-25) 4

Our sensible uniform policy has many benefits, such as providing a sense of cohesion within the school by enabling young people of all backgrounds to share in a common identity. Parents and carers must make every effort to ensure that children come to school in uniform every day. This includes wearing shoes (leather, canvas or trainers) which are completely plain black. New uniform can be purchased at any time from the shop, next to main reception. You can read more here.

Nothing is more important to learning and progress than good school attendance. Young people should be in school on time and every day. On the rare occasion that a child cannot be in school, you must report the absence online here. It is our expectation that holidays are taken outside of term time and, in almost all cases, holidays will not be authorised. Parents and carers must make every effort to ensure that children come to school regularly (we aim for attendance above 95%). You can read more here.

School transport is procured and managed by Cardiff Council. St Teilo's does not oversee this service but we will always act to support the service and provide information to parents and carers as best as possible. You can read more about arrangements for school transport here and, if you have any queries, you can contact Cardiff Council's School Transport Team here. The school will help to enforce the Wales Travel Behaviour Code and our expectations for good conduct apply to school transport, just as in school.

The school operates a 'safe drop off' zone on site in the morning. This means that parents and carers can drive onto site before 8.30am, stopping briefly in the area indicated. The bus bays are not accessible to other vehicles. In the afternoon, parents and carers must not drive onto the school site at all. This helps us to maintain a high level of site safety - children's safety matters more to us than convenience. For the small number of parents who are authorised to collect on site, and for taxis, a one-way system is in place in the main car park. Please use this system and do not park elsewhere.

At secondary school age, we would like to encourage more young people to walk and cycle to school (or use public transport instead of the car). The school has ample storage for bicycles although a good bike lock will be required. Walking and cycling has obvious health benefits for growing children but there is also a social and emotional benefit - many young people tell us that active travel provides important 'catch up' time with peers. You can find active travel routes here and contact the local authority Active Travel Team here for advice and guidance.

The school provides a high quality and popular catering service. The focus is on health and wellbeing - especially for the most disadvantaged - so we do not offer snacks or bottled drinks during the day. Instead, our single tariff provides carefully designed, balanced, hearty and tasty meals. You can read more about catering here. In addition, the school funds free breakfasts every day for any child who has come to school feeling peckish. Breakfasts are funded through our school charity, Puffins. Parents and carers are responsible for ensuring there are adequate funds on children's accounts - there is no 'overdraft' facility at the school. You must do this at least 24 hours in advance using ParentPay. If a child does not have funds to purchase a meal, they simply need to present themselves to a duty member of staff who will arrange a meal with a deferred payment. No child should go without a meal during the day.

We encourage every family to check their eligibility for Free School Meals. Unlike at primary school, there is no universal free meal provision at secondary school. Pupils at St Teilo’s are entitled to free school meals if their family receives:

• Income Support
• Income Related Employment Support Allowance
• Income Based JobsSeeker’s Allowance
• Guarantee Element of State Pension Credit, or
• Child Tax Credit with an income less than £16,190
• Universal Credit if the net household earnings is less than £7400.

Parents and carers must apply for Free School Meals annually via Cardiff Council online here. If your child is Year 7, we especially encourage you to check that your are receiving all you are entitled to.

St Teilo's does not operate a 'behaviour management process' like most schools. Instead, our approach is relational and trauma-informed. This means that the school values connection before correction and believes that education is the best lever for changing behaviours. You can read more about relational approaches here. As far as possible, the school does not use punishment. An emphasis is placed on natural consequences (you throw your phone on the floor and now your phone is broken) and logical consequences (you misbehave at break time and now you must stay inside at break). In rare circumstances, sanctions such as Fixed Term Exclusions will be used to keep children safe or ensure the smooth running of the school. It is essential that parents and carers support the school in managing behaviour and do not seek to undermine the good work of the school.

For the same reasons that the school does not use punishment, St Teilo's does not operate a 'reward' system. Rewards (such as merits, points or tokens) reduce motivation and engagement over time. Instead, we prioritise recognition for good learning behaviours. Recognition can include 'Brilliant Learner Cards' given out daily in lessons - some children have collected hundreds of these! Weekly, 'Form Tutor Awards' and personalised 'recognition postcards' are given out. More rarely, 'missional' recognition cards for Wisdom, Hope, Community and Dignity are up for grabs. There are also coveted 'Head of Year' and 'Headteacher' recognition postcards and 'Golden Tickets' that provide access to the new Sixth Form café.

For Years 10, 11, 12 and 13, there are examinations and Non-Examined Assessments throughout the school year which count toward final grades. This is one reason why good school attendance is so important. The very personalised nature of scheduling all aspects of examinations means that no universal timetable can be produced. In February, each child receives a personal timetable for the summer examination series. Parent and cares can access global timetables here at any time. Examination rules and routines can be found here and revision tips here. You can read about the school's use of mock examinations and access online revision materials here.

As schools in Wales transition to the new 'Curriculum for Wales' and 'Made-for-Wales' qualifications, it can be difficult for parents and carers to understand how well their child is progressing. There are no longer National Curriculum Levels which can be reported. St Teilo's offers a series of assessments which, taken together, form an overall picture of learning and progress. Traditional written school reports set out strengths and areas for development with a predicted grade (in Years 10-13) and attainment quartiles (in Years 7-9). 'Checkpoints' are published every term and provide a snapshot of behaviour, effort, agency, teamwork and progress (you can read more about checkpoints here). There is a parents' evening held online and other published reports (such as cognitive assessments and personalised assessments). You can read about the arrangements by Year Group here.

Children are more likely to flourish when home and school work effectively in partnership with one another. St Teilo's believes strongly in the importance of family and we work hard to maintain positive and constructive relationships with parents and carers. Of course, the school serves are large and diverse community - so every individual cannot have their own way all of the time. We must continually strive to find a way of working together to the benefit of the whole student body (ours is a public service, not a customer service)! There is a contract in place for students, families and the school which sets out expectations. You can read the home-school agreement here. A small number of adults seek to abuse school staff and such behaviour will not be tolerated. As with other settings, poor adult behaviour can result in warnings and bans. You can read the adult behaviour policy here.

Mobile phones can have huge benefits but, for young people, they also represent a risk when used unwisely. One in three young people say that they live in fear of cyber-bullying and up to seventy percent of children admit to being abusive to another young person via their phone. Mobile phones can seriously affect young people’s wellbeing, with forty percent saying they feel bad if somebody does not ‘like’ their social media post. In school, mobile phones can interfere with the smooth running of lessons and are used to bully children. They also prevent young people from socialising effectively with one another.

In the school building, all phones must be switched off and kept securely where they cannot be seen. The school yard has been designated the ‘phone zone’ and is the only place in the school where phones are permitted. If a telephone is used inside the school building it will be calmly confiscated. Phones may be collected at the end of the day.

If a child refuses to hand in their phone when requested, the Headteacher may choose to exercise his lawful power to confiscate the telephone for a period of time deemed reasonable. The full support of parents and carers is expected. If children brings a phone to school, they do so at their own risk.

Evidence shows that the quality of homework set by a school is more important that the quantity. Indeed, it is likely that the impact of homework on learning and progress reduces as the amount of time young people spend on it increases. Sometimes, parents and carers ask the school for daily homework tasks to help keep children in good learning routines at home. Generally, we do not set these tasks however there is a wealth of digital and printed solutions available for parents and carers. These are available here.

The school's distinctive character as a Church in Wales (Anglican) community is foundational to our work. Our decision making finds its basis in the Bible and our processes and policies reflect our particular beliefs. Ours is a community for people of all faiths and no faith - but we ask that children and families respect the school's mission with appropriate reverence. You can read more about our beliefs here and more about the school's strategic mission here. The outcome of our recent Section 50 (religious) inspection might help you to understand the impact of our faith in action. You can find the report here.

It can be so much harder for parents and carers to feel in touch with a large secondary school. We will write to you regularly with updates (such as this one) and the school website is always up-to-date with the latest news. However, you are invited to email Heads of Year (who are your principal point of contact) at any time. You can expect a reply within 48 hours, although we will try to reply on the same day when possible. Likewise, you can reach out to the Headteacher directly. Reponses from the Headteacher may take a little longer or your request may be passed to another member of staff better placed to assist you. Please note that the school operates an appointment system and parents or carers who attend the school without an appointment will not be seen. This is essential as our staff are busy working with children - our most important calling.

• Year 7 - Mr R Evans (r.evans@stteilos.com)
• Year 8 - Mrs J Phillips (j.phillips@stteilos.com)
• Year 9 - Mr N Smith (n.smith@stteilos.com)
• Year 10 - Miss K Hallett (k.hallett@stteilos.com)
• Year 11 - Mrs R Pitt (r.pitt@stteilos.com)
• Years 12 and 13 - Mrs E Owen (e.owen@stteilos.com)
• Headteacher - Canon I Loynd (headteacher@stteilos.com)

Remember, key dates (such as term times and INSET days) can be found online here. The remaining term dates are:

• Spring 1: 6 January 2025 – 21 February 2025
• Spring 2: 3 March 2025 – 11 April 2025
• Summer 1: 28 April 2025 – 23 May 2025
• Summer 2: 2 June 2025 – 18 July 2025

The INSET days are:

• INSET 4: 6 January 2025
• INSET 5: 10 March 2025
• INSET 6: 21 July 2025

The summer examination series commences on 8 May 2025.