Pastoral Support

Get in touch:

Mrs Rachel Procter – Pastoral Leader

rachel@garstang-st-thomas.lancs.sch.uk

GST PARENT CONNECT

Every Friday morning, we hold a parent/carer drop in for coffee/tea and a chat between 8:50am and 10am in Procter Suite (front room on our nursery building). It is an informal opportunity to pop in and have a chat about anything relating to your child/family including:

  • How school’s going
  • To ask questions about how things work at school or to provide feedback
  • Friendships
  • Mental health and wellbeing
  • Diet and/ or physical health
  • Special Educational Needs/ Medical
  • Support for your child or family – if you are struggling, please make sure you pop in (we can listen, we can signpost, we can make referrals, we can help…)

Although this takes place in the main meeting room, there is a separate private meeting space for when it is needed.

Pop in for a brew? ☕🍵 😊

Rachel Procter (Pastoral Leader)

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Pastoral Support at GST

At Garstang St Thomas, we believe that children learn best when they feel happy, safe and supported. Pastoral care is at the heart of everything we do and we aim to make sure every child knows they are valued and cared for in our school community. We want children to come into school each day with a smile, ready to learn and play. Our teaching and support staff know each child well and build strong, positive relationships with them, this means we can spot early if something is worrying a child and provide the right support as soon as possible.

Our aim is for every child to feel safe, cared for and confident to be themselves. With strong pastoral care and our whole school ethos, we help children grow not only as learners, but as kind, thoughtful and resilient individuals.

We work closely with parents and carers to provide support, advice and information endeavouring to keep communication open and honest. Any advice and support that we offer will always remain confidential, although any concerns relating to the safeguarding of children will always be dealt with in accordance with our school’s safeguarding and child protection policy.

What is Family Help?

Family Help is the support offered to children, young people and families as soon as a concern arises, rather than waiting for difficulties to become more serious. The aim is to provide the right help at the right time to improve outcomes for children and families.

Family Help is about working together with families to identify strengths, understand worries, and put support in place as early as possible.

Who is Family Help for?

Family Help is for children and families who may benefit from extra support at any stage. This could include support with:

  • Attendance or behaviour concerns
  • Emotional wellbeing or mental health
  • Family changes or challenges
  • Health, housing or financial difficulties
  • Parenting support
  • School readiness or learning concerns

Support can be short-term or longer-term, depending on need.

How does Family Help work in school?

Schools play an important role in identifying when Family Help may be beneficial. We work closely with parents, carers and other professionals to understand what is going well and what support might help.

This may involve:

  • Listening to concerns raised by parents, carers or pupils
  • Offering advice or support within school
  • Completing a Family Help assessment with family consent
  • Coordinating support from other services if appropriate

Family Help is voluntary and works best when families are actively involved.

Why is Family Help important?

Getting support early can:

  • Prevent problems from escalating
  • Improve attendance, wellbeing and achievement
  • Strengthen family relationships
  • Help children feel safe, supported and able to thrive

Confidentiality and consent

We will always discuss concerns openly with parents and carers and seek consent before involving other services, unless there is a safeguarding concern where we have a legal duty to act.

LINKS AND ADVICE

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