Caring for Students - Pastoral Care at SFC
Definition of Pastoral Care
A fundamental belief for all Catholic schools is that Jesus is God’s image and likeness in its human expression, and that Jesus’ values and teachings show all people ‘the way, the truth and the life’ (John 14:6). In accordance with this belief, values to be promoted within St Francis College, as we strive for understanding and practice of pastoral care, include love, respect, compassion, tolerance, forgiveness, repentance, reconciliation and justice. These are the values of our Gospel.
Pastoral care of students and the St Francis community, refers to action taken within the College by its leaders and community members to promote and enhance student wellbeing of a personal, social, physical, emotional, mental or spiritual nature.
Key elements of student wellbeing are:
- positive self-regard
- respect for others
- positive relationships
- responsible behaviours
- personal resilience.
Pastoral care of students is effected in many aspects of school life, and especially in the College’s vision and mission statements, policies, procedures, programs, teaching and learning curriculum, student activities, student support and wellbeing services, behaviour management processes, family engagement, community partnerships, and school climate.
The St Francis policy on Pastoral Care and related policies and procedures relates to areas such as special needs provision, student behaviour code, student behaviour management, safe school environment (anti-bullying), and critical incident management.
St Francis is a Resiliance Project School. We follow the GEM principles - Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness. SFC also embraces the principles of restorative justice in our interactions with each other.
At St Francis de Sales Regional College, our focus is on developing respectful and responsible learners in a nurturing and challenging learning environment.
Pastoral care at St Francis incorporates student faith formation in the Catholic tradition, placing a strong emphasis on academic achievement and high expectations and standards across all areas of school life.
Pastoral Care at SFC centres on three main outcomes:
- Increasing student academic achievement.
- Building positive relationships
- Supporting student wellbeing and resilience
Our formal pastoral program consisting of regular morning Pastoral & Academic Care (PAC), encourages and facilitates the development of student confidence, community and personal leadership skills.