Wellbeing and Pastoral Care

We will support and challenge all of our students at Honiton to enable them to “take their place as a learner”. We put a great emphasis on pastoral care to ensure that each student feels understood, respected and safe in our community. The college’s pastoral systems provide excellent care, guidance and support so that our students know who to turn to if they are experiencing any of life’s challenges. Our Pastoral team has a deservedly strong reputation and includes our Heads of Pastoral, our Pastoral Support Officers and our Safeguarding and Well-being Centre teams. Students are organised into tutor groups within their years and meet their tutor on a daily basis.

We ask every member of our community to contribute to upholding our three rights:

The Right to Learn
The Right to Respect and Fair Treatment
The Right to be Safe

In order to be successful at school all students need to develop secure relationships which enable them to feel safe, secure and good about who they are. For this to happen, relationships need to be at the heart of our college life. Our aim is to provide our students with as many positive relationships as possible; that way they feel supported to flourish as part of our community.

Pastoral Care, Mental Health and Well-being Support at HCC

The pastoral team at Honiton Community College comprise of both teaching and non-teaching staff. The team is comprised of Pastoral Heads for each year group and Pastoral Support Officers:

Pastoral Support Officers (PSOs): Nikki Venn and Sasha Thomas

The role of the pastoral team is to support and challenge our students to attain their very best. We offer a coordinated response to those students facing difficulties; supporting with a relational, attachment based approach and challenging through the judicious use of consequences and restorative conversations.

Our Well-being Centre Team

The college has a team of highly skilled, committed and caring Mental Health and Well-being practitioners who offer support for any of our community facing challenges to their well-being. Our practitioners offer a range of support; one to one sessions, group work and informal drop ins at the centre. They are also available to support any student who is dysregulated and temporarily unable to access lessons.

“Summit” Meetings

Our pastoral team – comprising of Heads of Pastoral, Safeguarding, Well-being and SEN practitioners – meet once a week to discuss appropriate interventions and support for any student who is facing difficulties in college. Our team works closely with external agencies, where appropriate, to ensure that the best possible support is made available for our students and families that need it.

EH4MH Champions

The college’s Early Help for Mental Health Champions meet regularly to discuss how the college can continue to raise awareness and help promote good mental health.