Pastoral Care - Forres Sandle Manor

Pastoral Care

At FSM, the wellbeing of every child matters, and we take the responsibility of caring for them extremely seriously.

We work tirelessly to ensure there is a nurturing atmosphere in which each child feels secure and positively engaged. Our ultimate aim is to provide a physical, emotional and intellectual environment, in which every child can be happy and succeeds.

This nurturing approach is evident through close working relationships between tutors, subject teachers, boarding staff and parents. The Tutor System forms a vital link between the family and the school, with Class Teachers and Form Tutors often being the first point of contact. Should you need further assistance our Pastoral Care Team is here to help.

Our Pastoral Team

Mr Rob Tasker, DSL, Director of Operations
Mrs Lauren Marks, Assistant Head, Pastoral and Boarding
George Scott, Senior Houseparent & Head of Co-Curricular
Mrs Tracy Spottiswood, Head of Pre Prep
Mr William Peak, Deputy Head

Pupil-to-Pupil Mentoring

Each child in Year 8 is a mentor to 3 or 4 children in Years 3 to 6. It gives the younger children someone, other than a teacher or matron, to go to with any worries or concerns or even to celebrate their successes! Mentors and mentees have regular formal meetings but will also meet up informally during the course of the year.

Mentors have training with the Deputy Head (Pastoral) prior to taking on their role so they know when they can deal with very minor issues themselves or if they need to escalate the issue to an adult: they will always be there to support their mentee to do this if they feel unsure or nervous about taking “the next step”.

Mentees usually form very strong bonds with their mentors during the course of the year and it is wonderful to see the collaboration and co-operation that happens over the year groups.

Our Learning Centre

We all learn differently. In fact, if every adult in our community were to be put through the tests our children face, we would all have a pattern of strengths and weaknesses.

As adults, most of us have chosen a lifestyle that plays to our strengths and neatly circumnavigates the weaknesses. For our children with specific learning difficulties, they have to face these every day. At FSM, our approach is one the whole school embraces. We all learn best by using all our senses so teaching in every subject is active, engaging and multi-sensory.

Good teaching for dyslexic children is good teaching for all children. We feel passionately that all children should feel challenged yet successful. They are encouraged to set realistic goals and targets for themselves. Our children with identified learning differences such as dyslexia and dyspraxia are creative thinkers, talented sportsman, gifted musicians, capable artists and clever problem solvers.

We do not see their differences as barriers to learning just temporary stumbling blocks…but we are all here to help them over the bumps and scrapes along the way. Some children may struggle with basic skills in literacy and numeracy. We offer targeted, individual support to help the children develop as well as supporting them in the classroom so that they can take part in a full and rich curriculum. This support is very much geared to the needs of the child and the number of lessons each week is based on the level of support required.

The members of staff in the Learning Centre work closely with class teachers to ensure that the child’s needs are met both individually and within the context of the whole school. Our children aim high despite any challenges they may face with their learning. When looking at Senior Schools, we work closely with parents and the Director of Studies to help select the one that will best fit your child’s learning profile. They are ready for Senior School because they leave FSM with confidence and an enthusiasm for learning. They have a good understanding of their individual learning style and an awareness of how they learn best.