Health, Safety and Well-being

College Policies – SchoolDocs

Click here to access all College Policies.

Counsellors

Students can make an appointment to see any member of the counselling team by calling into their offices in MacGibbon House, or by using the Book a Counsellor tab in their Tutor group channel in their Year Group Microsoft Teams.

Parents can contact the counsellors directly at any time if they have a concern.

Head of Guidance – Tom Matthews
Psychologists – Kate Scott
Counsellor – Tarina Stephens and Tom Matthews

Cybersafety

To optimise navigation in digital and technological spaces, students are encouraged to familiarise themselves with our Cyber Safety information to gain awareness of potential risks and corresponding risk mitigation strategies.

Please see the links below for these resources:

Health and Life Skills

The College acknowledges the importance of parents and caregivers as the primary and most influential teachers of health and life skills.

We provide support by teaching and fostering mature and responsible attitudes towards drugs and alcohol, sexual behaviour, relationships, marriage, family and parenthood, personal identity, gender equity, biculturalism, multiculturalism and other similar issues.

We offer effective and appropriate Health and Life Skills programmes during the Senior College years.

Medical Matters

Student medical records are kept on the Community Portal. They must be updated, as the information is vital in the event of a medical emergency. Should a child’s medical circumstances change, please ensure that the College is notified. Any such information remains confidential.

Community Portal: stac.nz/StACPortal

Schools have obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 to ensure the health and safety of all its staff, children and the public.

Please do not send your child to school if they are clearly unwell and consider the other members of the school community when deciding whether they are well enough to return. For example, students should not return to school until there main symptoms of illness have gone and 48 hours after their last bout of vomiting or diarrhoea.

If a student becomes unwell or is injured during the day, they are referred to the College Registered Nurse. If the illness or injury is such that the student needs to go home or requires further medical attention, parents or the emergency contact will be notified.

The Health Centre is located in MacGibbon House. The College Registered Nurse is available from 8.30am–4.15pm for assessment and treatment of injuries / illnesses, nutritional advice, smoking cessation, contraceptive / sexual health advice, monitoring and support for chronic medical conditions such as asthma and diabetes. For all urgent matters students can ‘drop in’ or appointments can be made at stac.nz/BookTheNurse

A physiotherapist is also available in the Health Centre. Times are Monday, Wednesday and Friday 8.30am–5.00pm during term time. Bookings may be made through the College Registered Nurse.

Students may not leave the College for illness without the permission of the College Registered Nurse, who will notify the Middle School Office.

If illness prevents a student attending assessments or examinations, they must ensure that this is discussed with relevant teachers.

In the event of a pandemic day students, boarders and staff will take direct instruction form the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation.

Privacy

Students are not permitted to publish photos and video clips taken at the College or at College events without College permission. This includes publication on internet sites such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Full details of the College’s Privacy Policy can be found here.

Restricted and Prohibited Substances

St Andrew’s College has a zero tolerance to drugs at College. This means decisive action will be taken on any drug-related incident. Drugs are illegal and the College maintains a non-negotiable position on any illegal substances.

No student will consume, carry, store, or offer to another student any illegal substance at any time. Potentially harmful excesses, such as ‘herbal highs’ are prohibited at any function associated with the College and its activities. Full details of the College’s restricted and prohibited substances policy can be found under College Policies on SchoolDocs.

Smoking / Vaping
The entire College campus is a smoke-free zone, and the smoke-free lifestyle is promoted by the College.

It is against College rules to:

smoke / vape at College, in College uniform or at any College function or event;
be in possession of cigarettes or vapes at College;
supply other students with cigarettes or vapes.

If these rules are breached, the following consequences will apply (depending on the number of breaches): the student will be counselled, a ‘Stop’ programme recommended, their parents notified and community service or Saturday detention given. Full details of the College’s Smokefree and Vapefree Policy can be found here.

Alcohol, Drugs, and Other Harmful Substances
Students must not consume, be affected by, or be in possession of alcohol at College, in College uniform or at any College activity. If they do, they will be subject to disciplinary procedures. Full details of the College’s Alcohol, Drugs, and Other Harmful Substances Policy can be found here.

Safe@StAC Process

Any bullying behaviour will be viewed seriously. Such behaviour is unacceptable and will always be investigated.

Note: If the bullying is of a serious nature (significant physical harm) then the incident will be dealt with at the appropriate step.

Safe@StAC Policy

Step 1 – No Blame Meeting

first step is a no-blame meeting between all parties facilitated by the College Counsellor and/or Dean using the restorative justice model;
follow up over the next few weeks with students;
counsellor and/or Dean who led meeting will inform Deans/Head of Middle School/ Senior College of meeting and who attended;
help and support offered to all parties;
email/telephone call made to parents to explain the situation.

Step 2 – Dean investigates and handles the process and informs Head of Senior College

Dean investigates, informs Head of Senior College and where appropriate, the Boarding House;
meeting with Dean and parents and where appropriate, the Counsellor;
bullying policy explained;
explain concern and what happens next and possible consequence(s);
help and support offered to both parties;
letter sent to parents with minutes and process.

Step 3 – Head of Senior College handles process

Head of Senior College handles procedure;
meeting with Head of Senior College/Dean/Head of Secondary School;
parents involved in meeting;
stand down – in/out of school may be an option;
conditions of attendance negotiated with Head of Secondary School;
help and support offered to both parties;
information sent to Rector and, where appropriate, the Pastoral Care Committee and/or the Boarding House;
letter sent to parents with minutes and process.

Step 4 – Head of Secondary School handles the meeting

Head of Secondary School handles the process;
College Stand-down/Suspension/Exclusion Policy is adhered too;
help and support offered to both parties.

Below is a summarised version of our Student Social Media Guidelines. Please click here to read the guidelines in full.

Student Social Media Guidelines Summary

St Andrew's College recognises the significance of social media in modern society, offering opportunities for students to learn, engage, and communicate. The College aims to implement guidelines to safeguard students' and the College's reputation. The guidelines cover three main sections:

Approach to Social Media as a St Andrew's College Student:

students should exercise vigilance and common sense as social media posts can reach unintended audiences and may have lasting consequences;
only post content suitable for future employers or teachers, even in private accounts or groups;
always assume that comments made on social media can be traced back to the author and remain respectful, positive, and considerate;
avoid sharing private and personal information, being indecent or obscene, and making false allegations;
comply with the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015, avoiding harmful digital communication.

St Andrew's College Social Media Rules:

prohibits students from posting in school uniform or on the College campus on publicly viewable accounts or groups;
prohibits inappropriate content on any College-related accounts, public or private;
students are not allowed to create or manage accounts/groups using St Andrew's College Intellectual Property without explicit permission.

College-related Social Media Accounts/Groups Rules:

outlines the process for creating College-related accounts/groups, with different requirements for different group types;
accounts/groups must be private and only include family, friends, and supporters who personally know at least one group member.
to create a College-related social media account/group, students must seek permission from the Communications Department by submitting a proposal, specifying the purpose and content of the account/group;
each account/group must have one or more dedicated staff member(s) who agree to be responsible for its setup, management, and oversight;
specifies the different rules around student access, account/group privacy and posting based on whether the group/account is categorised as level 1 or level 2;
all account login details for all College-related accounts must be provided to the Communications Department to ensure constant access for monitoring and compliance with guidelines;
The Communications Department must have a current list of all users with access to the account to hold them accountable for their actions, if required.

Breaching Social Media Guidelines:

disciplinary actions, such as detention, suspension, expulsion, or removal of leadership position, may be taken for guideline breaches.

Students are expected to adhere to these guidelines, with disciplinary action for any breaches.

Hauora, Haumaru, Oranga