After school detentions are an essential part of the graduated sanctions, we use to reinforce high standards and help pupils learn from their mistakes.  

A pupil that has been awarded a detention is expected to remember to attend their detention. This will be on the same day to ensure a restorative conversation is held and the pupil can reintegrate into academy life quickly, having learned the appropriate lesson about the high standards expected. 

At 3.15pm pupils will walk quickly to the dining room and begin their detention. Detentions will be 15-minute same-day detentions or 30-minute same-day detentions as outlined above in this policy or a 45-minute Principal’s detention.

Justification for same-day after-school detentions

The Academy’s policy for same-day detentions is compliant with government guidelines which are as follows:

We subscribe to the view that the immediacy and certainty of the consequence is more important than the severity. As such, staff are able to issue same day detentions (15 or 30 minutes long) and the school will inform parents before the detention is to take place, via the Class Charts app.  

The academy recognises that its wide catchment area means that there may be exceptions when a pupil is unable to attend a same day detention at short notice. This will be discussed and agreed with parents/carers as a special consideration with the detention being scheduled for the next day instead. A detention takes priority over all other school activities (e.g. sporting or other extra-curricular events). The only circumstances that will cause a detention to be rearranged will be a pupil absence from school, prearranged medical appointments (the school will ask for evidence) or a very specific and evidenced safeguarding concern.  

It is Academy policy that any sanction issued must be served by the pupil. Further strict sanctions have to be applied when detentions have been avoided so that we can ensure pupils respect the system and work within it. Likewise, if a pupil demonstrates inappropriate behaviour during a detention, they will be withdrawn, and a further sanction will be applied. The usual escalation process is below but will depend on the child and the circumstances. 

 

Restorative conversations

Restorative conversations are intended to allow the pupil and the member of staff to have a reflective conversation so that they can repair and resolve the issue that led to the detention - helping both parties to move forward. The remainder of the detention will be used to restore some of the lost learning time. 

The following questions will be asked as part of a restorative conversation: 

1. What went wrong? What made you do that? 

2. Who did it impact? How? 

3. How will we (pupil and teacher) put it right together? 

To foster the development of positive relationships, teachers are responsible for leading their own restorative conversations in the first instance. Detentions, to allow restorative conversations to take place, are automatically issued following repeated disruption to learning in the classroom, which has been recorded as a D2 or a D3 in ClassCharts. A D2 detention will last for 15 minutes and a D3 detention will last for 30 minutes after school. Same Day after-school Detentions (SDDs). 

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