Congratulations to Mrs Rebecca Francis for securing the post of Assistant Principal, Pupil Development & Well-being at the Senior School. For the past 15 years, she has been heavily involved in the pastoral care of the pupils at Surbiton High School, as Head of Year and Head of PSHE. Rebecca has also worked with pupils on the School Council and has been a passionate advocate for ensuring that the pupils have a voice, feel supported and flourish within our community.
Rebecca was previously Head of House at Woldingham School and was embedded in the pastoral life of the school, through her residency in the junior girls’ boarding house.
Rebecca is a mum of three and has a very sweet cockapoo to keep her busy. If she has any spare time, she really enjoys reading and going on long family walks with the dog!
What are the key pastoral challenges we are facing for young people today?
Young people today find managing their use of social media extremely difficult. The platforms that they frequent, expose them to content that they are not ready to process, and this creates a significant amount of anxiety which they then have to manage. Equally, the social pressure that is created from the speed of connectivity can feel overwhelming, and managing this is often difficult if you have not been given helpful guidance.
How do you ensure that the well-being of all pupils is prioritised within the School environment, particularly during challenging periods such as exam season?
The pupils are given significant support in preparation for challenging periods. They have a robust and informative spiral PSHE curriculum, alongside all our learning and teaching which allows pupils to build important life skills. Through strategies such as our evolving human intelligence programme and providing the opportunity to develop a growth mindset, pupils develop skills and character traits such as – self-management, passion and teamwork to prepare them for life at Surbiton High School and beyond.
We have an excellent system in place that enables us to triangulate any concerns between staff and the pastoral team and communicate openly with parents. Additionally, we have School Nurses, a Counselling Team, and our exceptional learning support provision to provide excellent care for a diverse range of needs. We are also lucky to have a well-established partnership with the organisation ‘Let’s all talk about Mental Health’ to provide on-line talks for parents and give professional and sound advice to the pastoral team.
What do you think makes the well-being programme at Surbiton High School stand out?
The foundation of our programme is set in the PERMA model and in the pupil-focused ‘Nourish to Flourish’ philosophy. This ethos, alongside our School values and collapsed curriculum days, called SCOPE – ‘Surbiton-Cope’, sets us apart. The staff at Surbiton High School fundamentally believe that we must ensure our pupils are happy, and feel cared for, for them to succeed. We are proud to have achieved, in 2024, the ‘Wellbeing Award for Schools’ by Optimus Education in partnership with the National Children’s Bureau which included a rigorous analysis of the well-being provision at Surbiton High School.
How do you measure the success of the School’s Well-being Programme, and what steps are taken to continually improve them?
We use pupil feedback and engagement to gain a qualitative measure of success, alongside quantitative data from the Warick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Survey. We regularly update our PSHE Programme, in line with the changing landscape that our young people face, as well as providing excellent talks and resources from professionals in their fields, to ensure we are always improving our provision and adapting to the needs of our pupils.
Categories: Senior School Staff Information