IAPCE has been asked by a number of schools for assistance in the developing of a policy for Pastoral Care. Detailed work is on-going at present to provide both guidelines and a template. IAPCE will collaborate with the Marino policy website (www.marinopolicy.ie) to make available these resources in the near future. This website currently has a membership of 285 schools who have access to fifteen core policy templates. Below is outlined some of the work in progress. We invite you to contribute your ideas and in particular your own policy in this area so that we can assist others in this area.

Policy Statement
In the context of these guidelines around a pastoral care policy a clear understanding of the term is required. To this end the work of the Irish Association of Pastoral Care in Education is useful as it has worked in a very large number of Irish schools over the last ten years and its pastoral framework is embedded in the Irish experience.
 
A Pastoral Framework
School Pastoral Care is an approach to education which endeavors to value and develop each member of the school community. It promotes learning at every level of the student. 
A pastoral approach seeks to respect and nurture the quality of all relationships. It promotes effective and caring leadership and partnership in the school community. It influences all aspects of the life of the school, in particular policies, curriculum, roles and structures in order to sustain and enrich the educational experience of each student and consequently that of every person in relationship to the school. The Year Head, Monahan L., 1998 
The policy on pastoral care as with other key policies need to be put into the context of the ethos and characteristic spirit of the school. Reference needs to be made to the network of schools to which the school is attached – community school, congregational, diocesan, VEC. It is also vital that attention be given to the guidelines produced by the School Development Planning Initiative in the area of policy – visit www.sdpi.ie for details.

Policy Rationale 
The school recognises the importance of its pastoral approach as evidenced in its pastoral policies, structures, procedures and practices. This pastoral approach will be infused by the guiding ethos of the school. It is a core dimension in the life of the school as it is such a crucial expression of the characteristic spirit of the school. It will be a key aspect as parents and others assess the school. Such an important aspect of the school will require on going attention in the area of policy development, professional development, review of outcomes etc. In the past so much of the pastoral activity of the school was carried on in an unconscious manner. No longer is this sustainable as schools now face greater challenges to support students at every level, to provide appropriate training to staff, to put in place effective structures to address particular issues such as bereavement, special needs, crisis response, pastoral roles. Therefore a formal policy in the area of pastoral care is essential. 

School Development Planning (SDP) 
SDP is an ongoing collaborative process undertaken by the whole school community to provide direction to the work of the school. The focus of SDP is on ensuring that all students receive a quality education appropriate to their needs in a changing world. The SDP process is predicated on three key factors:
 (i) The quality of education provided at a school is the result of a complex interaction of factors that must be planned for in a coordinated way. 
(ii) Education is a partnership enterprise, which means that quality planning should involve input from all the partners in the school community – staff, students, parents, and board of management.
(iii) The quality of the school’s education provision is rooted in the expertise and commitment of the principal and teaching staff, which makes them key agents of the process and means that a key focus of the process is supporting and empowering them in their work.

These three factors should inform the shape and process of all policy development, including a formal policy on Pastoral Care.

Policy Goals 
A pastoral approach clearly involves a particular blend of values. This is not to suggest that all pastoral schools are clones of one another – each context will express their pastoral values in a unique fashion. The pastoral framework outlined above articulates basic values and goals that might benefit from further development and elaboration. There is no exhaustive or definitive list of such values and goals, but it is hoped that the following, drawn form many sources, will help explicitate the pastoral stance and provide the goals that need to animate the Pastoral Care Policy:

Pastoral Goals for the School
Personal attention to value and develop every student.
Acknowledgement of, and support for, each person’s role in the school community. Promoting an environment which meets students’ needs.
Priority given to the nurturing of teaching and learning relationships. 
Recognition of talents and abilities. 
Clear values that animate the school. 
Strong collaborative leadership.
Clarity of policies, roles, responsibilities and tasks. 
Support for an engaging curriculum – content & methodologies.
On-going monitoring of progress at every level for the student. 
Accountability, support and evaluation at every level. 
Involving all concerned in the life of the school. 

The Pastoral Care policy needs to take account of the above in its aims, objectives and implementation plan.

Policy Content 
There are a wide range of areas that potentially fit into the Pastoral Care policy of any school – each context will need to decide what is appropriate. Areas for consideration beginning with the core areas: 
Pastoral approach in our school 
Pastoral role: definitions and responsibilities Pastoral programmes
Pastoral procedures 
Linking with guidance counselling, home-school, chaplaincy, learning support. Linking with Social, Personal and Health Education. 

Policy Scope 
Following the descriptive elements of the policy it is then appropriate to outline the development implementation plan in relation to each relevant area for example: 
When will the definitions of Class Tutor, Year Head be agreed? 
When will consequent and ongoing professional development of these roles occur? Who will be members of the Pastoral Care team, when will they meet, to what purpose, will there be a pastoral care co-ordinator? 
How will the parents, Board, students, staff be involved in drawing up and reviewing this policy? 
What monitoring and evaluation procedures will be put in place?
What resources are required in each area?

Policy Criteria
The Marino Policy Website fully support the guidelines issued by the School Development Planning Initiative (SDPI) and highly recommend that schools follow their criteria in their policy development. In particular we bring the following criteria to your attention:

Policy Content 
State the provisions of the policy, indicating the school’s approach to this policy area. The policy content comprises general guidelines. It should be followed by a detailed implementation programme. In terms of this Pastoral Care Policy – what are the elements that need to be put in place to ensure its effectiveness, what steps need to be taken, what resources are in place, what resources are needed? 

Roles and Responsibilities 
What are the responsibilities of the various parties in the school community in the development, implementation and evaluation of this policy? 

Success Criteria 
What indicators will be used to gauge the effectiveness of the policy? 

Monitoring Procedures 
Who will do what, when, to see how the policy is working?

Review Procedures 
Who will do what, when, to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy and to ascertain what changes, if any, are necessary?

Timeframe
When will the completed policy be circulated, when will it come into force, when will it be subject to review?

Implementation Programme
What detailed procedures are necessary to implement the provisions of this policy? Who will devise the procedures? When? How will details be circulated to all concerned? Who will carry out the procedures when they have been devised?