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Leading the way in Education since 1870
Health, Wellbeing and
Keeping Safe
In St. Dominic’s, pastoral care permeates all aspects of school life and all members of staff take responsibility for the health, wellbeing and safety of our students. St. Dominic’s provides a holistic education which combines academic excellence with the development of the whole person. Our aim is to develop students spiritually, academically, morally, emotionally, culturally and socially so that they are well-developed and well-equipped to face the many challenges of the modern world. Fundamental to our pastoral approach is the promotion of a caring ethos and good quality relationships throughout the entire school community.
For more information about the various aspects of our Health Wellbeing and Keeping Safe provision click the relevant link below.
The Pastoral Care Structure
While all staff contribute to the caring ethos of our school, there are a number of specialised roles within the Pastoral Care structure.
A Vice Principal co-ordinates the Pastoral Care system.
Each Class Tutor has daily contact with their class, delivers the Pastoral Care (Health and Wellbeing) programme and has an overview of each student's progress. They liaise regularly with subject teachers and monitor the students' progress, behaviour and well-being.
The Year Head has overall responsibility for the Pastoral Care of the pupils in the year group, working closely with Class Tutors and preparing a programme relevant to the needs of the pupils in that year.
In addition, a Senior Teacher oversees one section of the school as Head of School
Mrs Fitzsimons – Year 8&9
Miss Doherty – Year 10
Ms Braniff – Year 11&12
Dr Rainey – Year 13
Mr McArdle – Year 14
This role involves primarily support for Year Heads and Tutors within the section and general monitoring of attendance, punctuality, behaviour and academic progress.
Each class in Years 8 - 11 has Prefects who act as role models for younger pupils, provide another channel of communication between pupils and school staff. They are an invaluable asset in the care of the pupils and they give practical assistance throughout the school year.
7 Areas of Health and Wellbeing
The Health and Wellbeing programme has been designed through 7 different areas (below) to ensure they are ready for the step up into each year school, grow in their self-esteem and confidence, emotional wellbeing and resilience, and financial awareness, and be equipped to make healthy choices, build positive relationships and develop their metacognitive ability to recognise how they learn best. Each year group will follow their own route map through these 7 areas.
Our programme, as you can see, places personal development and the acquisition of skills for life at the heart of the curriculum. There is a dedicated 30 minute HWB class once a week as well as immersion days when students are taken off timetable for retreats, Love for Life workshops (which focus on sex education and healthy relationships) and workshops on resilience. Speakers and outside agencies also deliver workshops and talks to all year groups on important issues such as safe social networking, road safety, relationships, drugs and alcohol education, study skills and careers education.
We also have a plethora of extra-curricular clubs and opportunities for our students which have pastoral care and development at their heart.
We also work very closely with Tooled Up who use evidence-based research to equip our parents, students and staff with the best resources to help support our students with their emotional health, wellbeing and safety.
Supporting & Guiding
Prefects
Every Year 14 student is eligible to apply to become a prefect. This is a unique opportunity to develop leadership skills and personal capabilities in a number of different ways.
Pupils may apply to be a class prefect, a newcomer prefect, a wellbeing prefect or a subject prefect.
Class Prefects
Class prefects are in the privileged position of being mentors to younger pupils from Year 8 to Year 11. In a very special way they help Year 8 students settle in, advising them on how to organise themselves to cope with the move to secondary school and the variety of subjects they are faced with, as well as physically guiding them around the school until they become familiar with the geography of the building.
They work closely with the class tutor and year head, helping anyone who needs a word of encouragement or a bit of advice. They keep a special eye out for anyone who appears to be isolated and help to solve minor relationship problems.
With the older year groups their advice is often sought when making subject choices or on study and revision techniques at exam time.
Newcomer Prefects
With our growing number of newcomer children in school, our student voice indicated a need for some Newcomer Prefects to advocate for our newcomers. They also raise awareness about the variety of new cultures and traditions we have in St Dominic’s.
Wellbeing Prefects
We also have a team of Wellbeing Prefects who help our Being Well Doing Well coordinator, Mr Thomas, with a variety of initiatives to help student health and wellbeing.
Subject Prefects
Subject prefects help Heads of Department with the necessary administration and initiatives while developing their own skills and interests in these areas.
All prefects involve themselves in the day to day running of the school under the leadership of the Senior Prefect Team.
Senior Prefect Team
The Head Prefect and Deputy Head Prefect positions are highly prized by the senior pupils. Candidates apply for the position through application form and subsequent group interviews.
The Senior Prefect Team are the leaders of the prefects, their year group and the entire pupil community. They represent the school at various functions both inside and outside the school throughout the year. They liaise closely with the Principal and members of the senior staff and are an indispensable part of the pastoral structure within St Dominic's.
Mentoring
Our Tutors and Year Heads are given time to provide academic and pastoral mentoring to students in their classes throughout the year.
All our Year 8-11 classes are assigned three Year 14 prefects. The Year 8 prefects work very closely with their tutor groups throughout the year. At the beginning of Term 1, they attend registration with their assigned classes, lead PHSE lessons and assemblies, focusing on issues or challenges that are particular to Year 8. The senior students are also given the opportunity to mentor younger students. All Year 8 students are also assigned a Year 14 ‘Buddy’ to help with their transition to secondary school. This also provides all our Year 14 students with a leadership role working with young people to develop their social and interpersonal skills.
Professional Support
Students can also self-refer or be referred by staff or parents for professional counselling when appropriate. The self-referral box is located on the wall beside the Bursar’s Office.
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Make A Melody – two days a week – 6 sessions per day
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Jennifer Laverty (integrative counselling including CBT) – two days a week – 5 sessions per day
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EA Link Service for bespoke support.
Special Educational Needs
Every child has the right to achieve their full potential, and here in St Dominic’s we are committed to making that a reality for each learner. We recognise that every pupil is unique, with individual strengths, challenges, and aspirations. Our aim is to ensure that all students feel supported, valued, and equipped to succeed both academically and personally.
The school SENCo, Ms Kennedy, and Assistant SENCo, Ms Kelly, lead a dedicated and highly skilled team of Learning Support Assistants. Together with the wider staff, they work collaboratively to identify and respond to the needs of every pupil. Through high-quality classroom teaching, targeted interventions, and ongoing communication with parents and carers, we strive to remove barriers to learning and create an inclusive environment where all students can thrive.
When required, pupils can access additional literacy and numeracy support delivered by specialist teachers. We also ensure that appropriate access arrangements are in place for public examinations so that students can demonstrate their true ability under fair and supportive conditions.
Our state-of-the-art school building further enhances our provision. The modern facilities include lifts, ramp access, disability friendly toilets and changing spaces, as well as a medical room. We also offer two dedicated hub areas which are calm, comfortable space where pupils with additional needs can take time to decompress, regulate, or seek quiet support when needed. This nurturing environment helps promote wellbeing, confidence, and readiness to learn.
At St Dominic’s, inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. We are proud to offer a supportive, accessible, and compassionate learning community where every child is encouraged to reach for success.
Meet Our Learning Support Team
Ms Kennedy
Ms Kelly
Some of our wonderful Classroom Assistants
Safeguarding and Child Protection
St Dominic’s Grammar School has a safeguarding ethos; thus, it is recognised that, not only does the school have statutory responsibilities in relation to students’ learning, but it also carries pastoral responsibility towards all students in its care. The school accepts that all students in its charge have a fundamental right to be protected from harm and will seek to do whatever is reasonable to safeguard and promote the safety and well-being of its students.
Safeguarding is broader than child protection. Safeguarding begins with preventative education and activities within our Health and Wellbeing and Keeping Safe programme which enable children and young people to grow up safely and securely in circumstances where their development and wellbeing is promoted. It includes support to families and early intervention to meet the needs of children and continues through to child protection.