SCHOOL

POLICY
101
What is a
policy?
 It is a course or principle of certain
rules and guidelines adopted or
proposed by a specific group in
government, business, education and
work, to be followed to attain a certain
goal.
 What are the
importance of school
policies?
 Creating a policy within a school can be seen
by many as a bureaucratic and overbearing task.
To be honest it is but the real question is, is it
worth it? In reality, as everyone cannot be
everywhere all the time to ensure that people
carry out their tasks correctly and responsibly;
policies provide useful and necessary assistance to
ensure this. Guidelines and rules help to increase
the efficiency of work processes and a policy does
just that.
 Policies are important because they help a
school establish operating procedures and create
standards of quality for learning and teaching, as
well as set out expectations and accountability.
Without these, schools would lack the structure
and function necessary to provide the educational
needs of students. Therefore, policies are key for
the success of a school, and provide many other
privileges provided they are written well, to the
point and kept up to date.
 Many policies are just written and
never changed after that. Adherence to them
and making necessary changes to mirror the
changes that occur on a school level are
imperative as policies only stay valuable for
as long as they are properly implemented
and monitored.
Can there be such a
thing as too many
policies?
 There is always the risk of getting
carried away and having too many policies.
Having too many policies leads to
information overload for both staff and
pupils. When that happens, adherence to all
the policies is less likely to happen. This can
lead to frustration, causing tension between
between teachers and administrators.
Tips on how to write a
school policy:
1. Correct content
Cover what needs to be covered in
accordance with legal guidance and Ofsted
requirements. Include a rationale or
purpose statement at the beginning
explaining why the policy is being written
and referring to the appropriate guidance or
legalities.
2. Be accurate and succinct
Clarity and brevity are your friends
here: policies should be clear and easy to
understand. They’ll be read by a range of
audiences, including staff, governors and
parents so some terms may need to be
defined to clarify meaning.
3. Size is not important
Bigger isn’t always better! it’s the
quality of your policy that counts, not the
number of pages it takes up so keep your
document focused.
4. Get the flow right
This means having the right sections of
your policy in the right order. Your policies
should follow a standard format to ensure
consistency between them all.
5. Regular review
A policy is a working document which
is open to amendments. Implement a
review and evaluation cycle for your
policies to ensure they remain up-to-date.
6. Disseminate to all staff
Staff should know which policies are
available, where to find them, who to go to if
they have questions about the content and
when new policies have been created or
changes made to existing ones.
7. Train staff
Staffs are your most valuable asset so
make sure they receive regular training in
regards to school policies and procedures.
They will be implementing the processes set
out in a policy and there will need to be
consistency in how they go about doing this.
8. Critically assess
If you don’t find a policy document an
easy read, chances are your staff won’t
either. Make your policies digestible with
clear headings and easily editable when
needed.
9. Respond to a safeguarding incident
If a safeguarding issue has occurred, it’s
time for a review (which should be recorded).
Carry out a procedural review and ask the
following questions.
Did the policies work?
Could they have worked better?
What changes do we need to make?
Do we need to engage the LCPC or other
agencies?
Basic Parts of a Dep.
Ed Policy:
I. Scope
II. Rationale
III. Definition of Terms
IV. Policy Statement
V. Guidelines and Procedures
VI. Monitoring and Evaluation
VII. Transitory/Effectivity Provision
VIII.References
 HANDS ON ACTIVITY:

Scenario:
Every day, when breaktime comes, you were
bombarded with so much complaints
coming from the female learners of your
school, due to an unidentified peeping male
learner.
 TASK:
As a guidance advocate of the
school, think of a possible solution
by means of crafting a school policy
using the guidelines of the
Comprehensive Sexuality
Education.
https://savedyouaspot.com/2021/04/14/the-importance-of-policies-in-schools/

https://blog.optimus-education.com/how-write-school-policy-9-top-tips