Parents’ handbook

Welcome

A warm welcome to Kimbolton and what I hope is the start of a long and happy relationship with with our school, our pupils and our staff, as one school, one family.

Our Parents’ Handbook offers a comprehensive and detailed view of life at our school. It is primarily designed to help you, alongside your child, prepare for their first Kimbolton term and ease your navigation through the months, and years, which follow. Some of the advice has been contributed by current parents.

We know that the move to Senior School marks an important milestone in a child’s life. We value each individual and want Kimbolton pupils to develop into confident, caring, interesting and interested young people. Self-esteem is so important in this process and an important component of that has to be increasing independence. You will notice the theme that runs throughout this handbook: while School and parents will always provide support, pupils must also increasingly learn to do it for themselves. Underpinning this, though, is the triangular relationship between home, child and School. Like all important relationships, it must be nurtured by all of us so that your child’s education here is fulfilling and rewarding.

Your child’s tutor will invariably be your first point of contact with the School. I know they are looking forward to getting to know your child and you, and I hope you will enjoy that special relationship.

Thereafter, the First Form and Second Form Year Heads working under the Housemaster, Mr Ben Mills, oversee the pastoral concerns of Ingrams House. Pastoral care is woven into the fabric of everyday school life, and every member of our teaching and support staff plays a part in it through their involvement in Houses.

We also have a dedicated nursing and counselling team in the School Health Centre, a Chaplain to support the spiritual needs of pupils and staff, and an experienced safeguarding team under the Assistant Head, Pastoral, Mrs Laura Hadden, and Designated Safeguarding Lead, Mrs Vanessa Garratt. The aim of this system is to create a safety net through which no child can fall.

I will always welcome constructive feedback to improve how we support, stretch and enrich our pupils. Please do get in touch if you would like to. (And we always enjoy more parent tips for this handbook!)

I look forward to getting to know you, your child and your family over the coming years.

Will Chuter, Headmaster