Pastoral Care | Lower School | Homefield Prep | Sutton

Boys in our Lower School receive excellent pastoral care. From our youngest boys in Nursery right through to the transition to our Upper School at the end of Year 2, the boys have significant and high-quality contact with pastoral staff. Our strong and supportive system of pastoral care is anchored by well-established horizontal and vertical structures.

Pupils are well supported by their Class Teacher and Teaching Assistant who are a consistently friendly face and check-in with boys regularly throughout the day; they are the boys’ first port of call. The Assistant Head (Head of Lower School) oversees pastoral provision in the Lower School, working closely with the Class Teachers and Teaching Assistants, as well as the Head of Inclusion and our Emotional Literacy Support Assistant, to ensure all boys’ wellbeing needs are met for them to flourish. The house system plays a crucial role at Homefield, and boys in Lower School are led by their Head of House, as well as their House Buddy in the Upper School, as they strive to earn House Points for their endeavours.

Celebration of success is paramount and when boys do well, in any aspect of school life, it is recognised. Our age-appropriate reward systems ensure boys are highly motivated, engaged and eager to succeed. In the Lower School, rewards include stickers, certificates, Courtesy Counters, House Points, Crests and enrichment time. Additionally, our weekly Homefield Hero award and monthly House Star of the Month award are presented in assembly, to celebrate those with particularly notable achievements. Age-appropriate sanctions allow boys to reflect on their mistakes, understand their impact and move forward restoratively with positive discussions.

Boys are given early opportunities to develop leadership skills through roles of responsibility in the Lower School, as they begin their Homefield leadership journey which could end with becoming a House Captain, Prefect or even Head Boy by the time they leave us at the end of Year 6. Additionally, throughout the year, all boys take part in a range of charitable fund-raising initiatives as we instil the importance of contributing to good causes locally, nationally and worldwide.

In our Lower School, boys follow a structured Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHE) curriculum. Topics such as staying safe, families and friendships, belonging to a community and physical and mental health are explored to broaden the boys’ education and add to the huge emphasis we place on character development.

Ultimately, our five Homefield values of Respect, Kindness, Integrity, Endeavour, and Resilience are more than words; they are integral to daily life at Homefield. Early introduction of these values at an age-appropriate level ensures our Lower School boys embody the Homefield spirit and grow not only academically, but also as caring, honest and hard-working boys with confidence to progress to our Upper School where they will continue to shine.