Our Aims
At Winchester School of English we aim to:
• provide effective English Language teaching which will help learners achieve positive outcomes
• treat the learners as individuals, help them identify and work towards their own realistic goals and help them develop the skills necessary for autonomous learning.
• foster a close-knit atmosphere within the school which creates a positive and supportive environment for staff and students, strengthening learners' confidence in their ability to use their English to communicate effectively.
• enhance learners' appreciation and understanding of British and international culture.
Health and Safety
Your health and safety is a priority for us and we are committed to providing a safe and comfortable environment for our staff and students. We carry out regular risk assessments as we aim to provide high standards of health and safety and we comply with the legislation. However we also expect that all people in the school, staff and students, to be aware of their own health and safety requirements and takes steps to protect themselves and others.
Our statement of general policy is
To provide adequate control of the health and safety risks arising from our work activities
To consult with our employees on matters affecting their health and safety
To provide and maintain safe plant and equipment
To ensure safe handling and use of substances
To provide information, instruction and supervision for employees and students
To ensure all employees are competent to do their tasks and to give them adequate training
To aim to prevent accidents and cases of work related ill- health
To maintain safe and healthy working conditions
To check, where possible, the provision of Health and Safety when staff and students are off site
(eg Social Activities)
To review and revise this policy as necessary at regular intervals
NB Neglect of safety and health requirements on the part of the employees and students will be regarded by us as seriously as any other disciplinary matter.
When students are involved in activities outside school:
Location for Activities: Sports Centre, Theatre, Cinema, Discovery Centre etc and transport companies have their own adequate policies in place
Airport Pick up: We check that all drivers and cars that they use have been licensed by Winchester City Council
Organisation
Overall responsibility for Health and Safety is that of Ugo and Ed Greevy.
Day to day responsibility for ensuring this policy is put into practice, for reviewing this policy, for risk assessment and for ensuring that required action is taken is that of the Principal.
All employees and students have to:
Co-operate on Health and Safety matters
Not interfere with anything provided to safeguard their health
Take reasonable care of their own health and safety
Report all health and safety concerns to the Principal.
FIRST AID
In the event of accident or injury:
Adam Smith and Jeremy Moore hold valid St John's Ambulance 'Appointed Persons' certificates and should be consulted. The First Aid Box is kept in the office.
Any treatment administered must be recorded in the Accident Book. Painkillers such as paracetemol, aspirins are not to be given to students. In the event of someone vomiting, or bleeding, there is a designated bowl and pair of gloves
FIRE
Our aim is to ensure that all measures are taken to protect against fire and that adequate provision is made to ensure safe evacuation of the building, should fire occur.
We regularly carry out assessments in and around the building, carry out staff and student training and ensure that equipment is maintained
SMOKING
There is a strict NO-SMOKING rule inside the building. Sand buckets are provided outside the front door and in the back yard for cigarette ends.
Behaviour
Students are expected to behave in a mature, responsible manner and the school reserves the right to dismiss anyone whose behaviour is considered to be unacceptable. In such a case, fees are not refundable
If a student arrives late for class and they have not notified us, we reserve the right to exclude them.
We reserve the right to see and in some cases to photocopy students' passports, in line with British Immigration requirements. We reserve the right to have the contact details of all our students (including the mobile telephone number they will be using while in UK) and those of their next of kin. It is the student's responsibility to ensure that the number and contact information we have on our records is up to date.
Bullying
The Winchester School of English is a friendly school and we are committed to fostering an atmosphere of co-operation and understanding where each individual is valued equally regardless of gender, age, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, religion etc. Any sort of bullying, abuse or harassment is unacceptable.
This is how you can expect us to deal with incidents of bullying
In School
Depending on nature/seriousness of abuse:
Low level - Discuss with both parties separately
If it is found that there has been low level bullying, the perpetrator will be warned that if this behaviour is repeated in any way, to any person, they will be asked to leave the school (as per our Terms and Conditions)
Make a written report of incident
More serious - Student asked to leave the school (as per our Terms and Conditions)
If criminal behaviour, inform Police.
Complaints
We hope you will be happy here at Winchester School of English. If you have any problems, please come and speak to us. Usually problems can be resolved by talking about them. However, if you are not happy with our response, this is our policy for dealing with complaints. Our aim is that all complaints should be resolved fairly and in a friendly, informal way and that confidentiality should be maintained throughout.
Procedure Listen > Talk > Resolve
If you have a complaint about the school (You may be accompanied by a friend, if you wish, during all or some of the discussions)
Step One: The Principal will listen to the complaint, talk to all parties involved and try to find a solution. (This may take several conversations)
Step Two: If you are not satisfied with the outcome you should make a written complaint. The Principal will respond within 24 hours and will have another meeting with you.
Step Three: If The Principal fails to deal with your complaint to your satisfaction, contact Colm O'Byrne or Ugo Greey of ATC Language and Travel Ireland or
Step Four: If no resolution can be found, we (school and student) shall seek impartial, outside advice for both parties from EnglishUK We will keep a record of complaint and action taken and if necessary, take steps to amend/improve
Information for Students:
In Student's Welcome Pack:
19. If you have a serious complaint to make about the school please speak to The Principal or Colm O'Byrne. If they do not deal with your complaint to your satisfaction please contact English UK at 219 John St., London, EC1V 4LY
Students with a disability
The Winchester School of English is a small school and as such we try to help all our students as much as possible. However we do not have the specialist training that may be required to help students with certain disbilities.
We recommend that, before enrolling, a student with a disability should contact us to explain the extent of the disability so that we can be sure that we can provide appropriate courses and service. However the limitations imposed by the nature of the school and homestay providers' houses may limit the range of disabilities we can accommodate.
Dyslexia - We do everything we can to help and support students with dyslexia, although we do not have specialist training. It would be helpful if a student could inform us if they are dyslexic before they arrive, particularly if the student wishes to take an exam, as we may be able to ask for extra time.
Mental Health
The Winchester School of English is a small school and as such we try to help and support all our students as much as possible. However, we do not have the training or knowledge to accept students with serious mental difficulties. We recommend that you contact us before enrolling to discuss whether the course will be suitable. If we become concerned about a particular student who is studying with us, we reserve the right to contact a member of their family or their agent to discuss the best way forward.
Policy on Student Admissions
• Are we the right school for this student?
• Can we provide what this student is looking for?
Considerations:
Level
We accept students who are Elementary / Pre-Intermediate to Advanced
The agents that work with us know us and we trust them to give us a fair assessment of their students' level of English.
If there is any doubt - either that a student will be too low or too high, we will send the student a test to do. If the student will not fit into one of our classes, we will advise them of this and suggest other schools that we know take beginners or very high level students. (We also suggest that they could do One-to-One with us but point out that this is not a cheap option!) Occasionally we get enquiries from people who have been studying in a British University for sometime, who want to improve their language skills and who want to enrol on a 6 month course. We are clearly not the right school for them and we do not accept this enrolment.
We sometimes have students who live locally who want to study with us*. If we are unsure about whether their level of English is suitable, we will have a trial period to see if the student can cope or is getting what they need from the course. If not, we will suggest another school or course of action.
Very occasionally a student might slip through the net. In that case, depending on staffing, we will try to provide a course for them. If that is not possible we will find another school for them.
Course Content
If we know that a student wishes to follow a course (eg English with tennis coaching) that we do not offer, we will advise them of this and either give contact details of a school that we know that does this kind of course or suggest they look on EnglishUK website.
Proficiency Exam Preparation. Very few people have a high enough level to attempt this exam. We occasionally get enquiries for preparation courses. In that case we suggest a few One-to-One lessons, or take their name and contact details and run a part-time mini group if we get another enrolment.
One-to-One
We ascertain what particular skill / area it is that the One-to-One student wishes to focus on. If it is a very specialised area and we do not feel that we have the experience/knowledge required to do the job properly, we will refuse the booking.
Visas
We ensure that all students* have a visa that entitles them to study with us for the length of course that they have enrolled on.
Age
18 is our minimum age.
Homestay availability
If there is not a suitable homestay available for the student we will refuse the booking and give contact details for other schools and the EnglishUK website
Full
If we are full we will refuse the booking and give contact details for other schools and the EnglishUK website
***If we are unable to offer a place to a student, we will endeavour to advise them as to their next step.
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