Standards for boarding schools

1.1 YAMP staff are particularly important as they are in a position to identify concerns early, provide help for children and prevent concerns from escalating. If staff members have any concerns about a child’s welfare, they should report the matter to our Principal.

If a child is in immediate danger or is at risk of harm, the Principal will refer to children’s social care and/or the police immediately.

Although the responsibility to refer to children’s social care lies with the Principal, anyone can make a referral. Where referrals are not made by a member of staff, the Principal should be informed as soon as possible.

1.2 Information for incoming Boarding staff

You will be a supervising adult presence in the boarding school and must be committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of our boarding students and assisting them in their daily lives.

1.3 Working Hours

Working hours are on Weekday hours when on duty are evenings and mornings, and each week shift contains a weekend on duty.

1.4 Accommodation

When on shift you will live in the accommodation provided for the better performance of your duties. You may choose to do so when not on shift.

1.5 Safeguarding – Exceptional Circumstances

It is normal policy for the Principal to be on site. In exceptional circumstances this may not be possible. If this is the case colleagues will be informed that the principal can be contacted by phone or email whilst working from home.

If the Deputy Principal, Student Management is not on site a named member of the senior team will coordinate safeguarding on site  Their responsibility will include liaising with the offsite staff and liaising with children’s social workers where they require access to children in need and/or to carry out statutory assessments at YAMP.

A suitable statement of the school’s boarding Principal (Currently Head of Boarding) and

practice is available to parents and staff, is made known to boarders, and is seen to work in practice. These are contained in the Boarding Handbook for students and parents, issued annually.

3.1 There is an appropriate process of induction and guidance for new boarders. (An Orientation focused on Boarding is held annually before the intensive courses begin)

3.2 Each boarder has a choice of staff to whom s/he can turn for personal guidance or for help with a personal problem. (Although the Boarding Team has specific responsibilities by year level, all are available to students and also through their Residence Committee)

3.3 The school identifies at least one person other than a parent, outside the staff, and those responsible for the leadership and governance of the school, who boarders may contact directly about personal problems or concerns at school. Boarders are informed who this person is, and how to contact them and they are easily accessible. Boarders are also provided with one or more appropriate helpline(s) or outside telephone numbers. (YAMP has a “Wall of Sharing”)

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is everyone’s responsibility. Everyone who comes into contact with children, their families and careers have a role to play in safeguarding children.

It is achieved by:

• creating a culture of safe recruitment by adopting procedures that help deter, reject or identify people which might pose a risk to children.

• educating students on how to keep safe and to recognize  behavior that is unacceptable.

• identifying and making provision for any child that has been subject to abuse.

• ensuring that members of the governing body, the Headteacher and staff members understand their responsibility, under the safeguarding guidance, to be alert to the signs of child abuse and to refer concerns to concern to the designated safeguarding lead.

• ensuring that the Headteacher and any new staff members and volunteers are only appointed when all the appropriate checks have been satisfied. 

Boarders’ health and wellbeing 

1. The school has, and implements effectively, appropriate policies for the care of boarders who are unwell and ensures that the physical and mental health, and emotional wellbeing of boarders is promoted. These include first aid, care of those with chronic conditions and disabilities, dealing with medical emergencies and the use of household remedies. (School subcontracts to a company who employs fully qualified nurses, who are on site 24/7)

2. Suitable accommodation, including toilet and washing facilities, is provided in order to cater for the needs of boarding pupils who are sick or injured. The accommodation is adequately staffed by appropriately qualified personnel, adequately separated from other boarders and provides separate accommodation for male and female boarders where this is necessary. (School sets aside Room 905 for isolation, with a room on 1st floor for holding students who need to go to hospital or home. Additional rooms can be made available at the Artist residency, if required)

3. In addition to any provision on site, boarders have access to local medical, dental, optometric, and other specialist services or provision as necessary. (These services are provided by Mahidol Medical Facilities and information is contained in the Boarding Handbook)

4. All medication is safely, and securely stored and proper records are kept of its administration. Prescribed medicines are given only to the boarders to whom they are prescribed. Boarders allowed to self-medicate are assessed as sufficiently responsible to do so.

If any boarder has chronic health conditions, and need personal medicine. Please inform in medical record and very necessary to inform boarding staff. YAMP will communicate an appropriate care plan to staff to ensure that we has plans that effectively carried-out and to ensure the pupil is being properly cared for and has access to the curriculum, pastoral care and all necessary facilities. (A series of Health Forms are issued to all parents for their students and maintained by the subcontracted nursing services)

5. The confidentiality and rights of boarders as patients are appropriately respected. This includes the right of a boarder.

5.1 At all times, the School Nurse will oversee medical emergencies, and emergency services will be called as necessary.

Mahidol University also our won emergency calls out system.  

School transport can be used to take a pupil to hospital if required; if none is available, an ambulance can be called.  

5.2 When a boarder is in the care of the boarding house, this responsibility passes to the duty head and staff members. Again, the emergency services will be called if a pupil needs to go to hospital. The boarding duty rota allows for the boarder to be accompanied to hospital by an adult (member of staff) (there is usually more than 1 adult in the boarding house overnight). Where there is just 1 adult overnight, the crisis calls staff (Headmaster) will be called to become the present adult so that the duty staff member can accompany the boarder to hospital. Alternatively, these may be reversed.

With all medical emergencies, the parents will be notified immediately by phone, and a brief overview of the problem and details of the hospital will be given. The nearest hospital is Golden Jubilee. https://www.gj.mahidol.ac.th/main/

1. If a boarder is considered too unwell to remain at school (e.g. in the case of a prolonged illness), parents/guardians may be called and arrangements made for the boarder to go home. School admin staff and the pupil’s form teacher will be informed.

2. If a boarder is too unwell to go to school, they will be taken to the School Nurse (or the School Nurse will be summoned) who will assess them and either contact parents/guardians to arrange collection (where practicable) or care for them in the first aid room or in one of our isolation rooms.

3. If a boarder is too unwell to go to school but cannot be collected to go home, and needs bed rest, they may use the treatment room (Nurses Office) and will be regularly checked-on by the School Nurse or other appropriate staff.

Contact with parents/cares

1. Boarders can contact their parents/cares and families in private and schools facilitate this where necessary. This does not prevent schools from operating proportionate systems to monitor and control the use of electronic communications in order to detect abuse, bullying or unsafe practice by boarders.

2. YAMP recognizes the importance of working together in partnership with parents and carers to ensure the welfare and safety of pupils. The school will:

- Make parents aware of the school’s statutory role in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, including the duty to refer pupils when necessary

- Make policies available on request.

- Involve parents and carers in the development of (school) (college) policies to ensure their views are taken into account.

- Will ensure a robust complaints procedure is in place to deal with issues raised by parents and carers. (Boarding Handbook)

Safety of boarders

1. The school ensures compliance with relevant health and safety laws by drawing up and effectively implementing a written health and safety policy.

2. The school premises, accommodation and facilities provided therein are maintained to a standard such that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of pupils are ensured.

3. The school ensures that the welfare of pupils at the school is safeguarded and promoted by the drawing up and effective implementation of a written risk assessment policy and appropriate action is taken to reduce risks that are identified.

(See Safeguarding policies contained in the Boarders Handbook)

7.1 Suitable sleeping accommodation is provided for boarders. It is well organized and managed with risk assessments undertaken and findings acted upon to reduce risk for all boarders. 

BAs will stay on boarding 24/7 as ROTA schedule to taking care student at night. (Daytime from 1pm) in case of student have any problem (after the gate was locked) during the night they can contact BAs by phone or BAs cell phone number (the information is beside the dorm gate in each floor). Boarding had provided comfy and cozy areas around on sleeping floor. 

BAs keep patrolling bedroom floor until lights out time but may random recheck again after that to prevent any issues occur. Also, BAs will random daytime bedroom inspect for student to tidy and clean their room proper.

7.2 Suitable living accommodation is provided for boarders for the purposes of organized and private study outside school hours and for social purposes.

BAs will support all student to ensure they understand how to manage their life skills as well. Boarding also had provided dried food shelves and refrigerator (for each level) to keep on. But they must have a plastic container to keep all the food properly to avoid nuisance animals. And will help each other to rearrange and clean area each month themselves (Clean schedule will create by Residents committee and reviewed by BAs).

7.3 Suitable toilet and washing facilities are provided for boarders, which are reasonably accessible from the sleeping accommodation. Separate toilet facilities are provided for boys and girls unless each toilet facility is provided in a separate room intended for use by one pupil at a time, the door to which is capable of being secured from inside. Toilet and washing facilities provide appropriate privacy for boarders.

7.4 Boarding houses and other accommodation provided for boarders is appropriately lit, heated, and ventilated, cleaned and maintained, and reasonable adjustments are made to provide adequate accessible accommodation for any boarders with restricted mobility.

7.5 Accommodation is suitably furnished and of sufficient size for the number, needs and ages of boarders accommodated, with appropriate protection and separation between genders, age groups and accommodation for adults. Bedding is clean and suitable and is sufficiently warm.

7.6 Boarding accommodation is reserved for the use of those children designated to use it and is protected from access by unauthorized persons. Any use of school facilities by individuals or groups does not allow members of the public (including members of organized groups using school facilities) substantial and unsupervised access to pupils, or to boarding accommodation while occupied by pupils.

7.7 Any use of surveillance equipment (e.g. CCTV cameras) or patrolling of school buildings or grounds for security purposes does not intrude unreasonably on boarders’ privacy. 

BAs would be able to swap the position to patrolling or CCTV monitor at lobby as they agree. You can see how to swap evening duty here.