The British School in Colombo has earned a well-deserved reputation for being a warm and caring community, where students can settle quickly and move forward to develop their individual strengths and abilities within a safe and supportive environment.
Equally, it is a challenging place with a positive atmosphere, in which everyone is encouraged both to enjoy their education and to give their best in all things. Our focus is not just academic but the development of students personally, socially and emotionally through the opportunities and support provided by the dedicated, caring and professional Primary Pastoral Team.
At the British School in Colombo, our values are built on mutual trust and respect for all.
The class teacher plays the main crucial role in the pastoral care of pupils in their class. Parents are encouraged to use the class teacher as the first link between home and school regarding any concern or question that they may have. The class teacher meets and greets the children either in the playground (Years 1 to 6) or in their classroom (Playgroup, Nursery and Reception) every morning and is responsible for registering the pupils and ensuring that they are fully prepared for the day’s activities and lessons.
The core lessons (English, maths and science) along with humanities (history and geography) are taught by the class teacher, with children going to specialist teachers and specialist classrooms for art, computing, dance, drama, library, music, language (Sinhala/Tamil plus French in Years 5 and 6), PE and swimming. The class teacher will have the best picture of a child’s individual progress and attainment and can best inform parents of the progress that their child is making and targets for further improvement, as well as pastoral matters. Each year group is led by a Year Leader, who meets with their respective class teachers at least once each week. In these meetings, pupils who are showing concern are discussed and agreed strategies to help support them are decided.
Our Year Leaders are supported by our Assistant Head (EYFS) and two Deputy Heads. The overall pastoral welfare of students across the Junior School comes under the guidance and leadership of our Pastoral Deputy Head. This well-structured system of pastoral care means that advice, experience, guidance and monitoring is always available to both pupils and their class teachers as and when needed.
The move from the Junior School's Year 6 to Year 7 in the Senior School is a natural progression for British School pupils. Senior School teachers visit Year 6 lessons each year, and Year 6 teachers visit Year 7 lessons. Transition meetings are held between the Junior and Senior School staff to make sure that records and individual information pertinent to good pastoral and academic care of the individual pupils are shared, prior to pupils entering Year 7. The heads of each school, along with deputies communicate with each other on a daily basis on a whole range of topics. Parents and children are also invited to transition meetings in Year 6.
On admission, a pupil is allocated into a class for the academic year and made a member of a school house (Centaur, Griffin, Hobbit or Unicorn) for the rest of their time at British School. British School students are renowned for being friendly and welcoming and with over 50 different nationalities represented in the Junior School, new pupils always quickly settle into their new routines and make new friends.
The curriculum that is provided in the Junior School is recognised around the world, making pupil transfer to and from the school easy. The Junior School curriculum provides an excellent foundation for pupils moving to KS3 following the English National Curriculum or for those who may transfer overseas to an IB or other national curriculum. The fluidity of immigration and emigration in Sri Lanka means that we are often preparing pupils to leave or arrive mid-term and we always aim to assist in making this process as smooth as possible for all pupils.
Being the best version of ourselves isn’t just about academics, it is developing the values, attitudes and attributes which serve us well throughout our lives. We strive to be confident, responsible, reflective, engaged and innovative learners who are kind and respectful friends to every member of our community. In Junior School we celebrate our pupils when they demonstrate these values through House Points, Star of the Week certificates and Cambridge Learner Attribute tokens or stickers.
