As a school, we are totally committed to ensuring our school community is a safe place to learn and work in we take our responsibility to protect and safeguard your welfare extremely seriously. We will listen to and take your concerns seriously and have a number of specialist staff who work to support you. These include our Heads of House, Assistant Heads of House and members of the Behaviour Team. If you are worried about anything, you may feel more comfortable speaking to your tutor, or Head of House, but any member of staff is there to help. Both students’ physical and mental wellbeing are priorities for us as a school, and we are fortunate to have a wide range of expertise and experience amongst our staff working in Student Support.

We have a number of first aiders trained on site and a Student Welfare Officer who are available to offer both immediate medical care as well as working with families and the school to create medical and health support plans. All staff have training around first aid, diabetes and epi-pens and bespoke training and support is offered as required.

The following links and guides may help you with issues or concerns you may have:

• Staying Safe Online: Childine online safety
• Mental Health: Young Minds is a mental health charity that has a useful website to you understand mental health issues.
• Beat Exam Stress: Leaflet for children and young people on coping with examinations
• Brook: Sexual health and wellbeing for under 25s
• Off The Record: Mental health and wellbeing
• Hideout: Help with domestic abuse
• Kooth: Free, safe and anonymous online support for young people
• NSPCC: Child Protection
• Safer Internet: Guidance and support with E-safety
• Childline Sexting: Guidance on sexting
• Online Safety: Online guidance
• Report a Sexual Image Online: Report a Sexual Image Online to the Police
• Children at Risk of Exploitation: PACE: Children at Risk of Exploitation

Bullying

Bedminster Down School will not tolerate bullying. Every member of our school has the right to come to school without fear of being threatened, intimidated, mocked or abused. We all have a responsibility to make sure that bullying is not part of life at our school.

What bullying is (and isn’t!)

Bullying:

• Goes on for a while and happens regularly
• Is deliberate. the other person wants to hurt, humiliate or harm the target
• Involves someone (or several people) who are stronger then the person being bullied

All three things have to happen together to be called bullying.

Bullying is not:

• A one off fight or argument
• A friend sometimes being nasty
• An argument with a friend

If you are being bullied, talk to your Head of House or Assistant Head of House. Arrangements can be made for you to speak to a member of staff without making other students aware that this is being done. The sooner we know about a problem the quicker we are able to put in place appropriate intervention for all students involved and prevent bullying happening.

Report bullying behaviour

Extra-Curricular Clubs

Information about extra-curricular clubs in PE

The PE department run clubs in the following sports:

Netball, football, basketball, rugby, badminton, rounders, athletics, cricket, tennis, handball, table tennis, boxing, gymnastics and they also run a dance club and enter the Stages event that is run each year.

All clubs are well attended and there is an opportunity for students to represent school teams if they like the challenge of competitive sport against other schools in Bristol and South Gloucestershire.