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Barrow Hedges Primary School

Lunchtime Consequences

In this section...

Lunchtimes at Barrow Hedges are an hour long for all children. While children obviously eat their meal during this time, at Barrow Hedges we also recognise this part of the day as being important for children’s personal development and wellbeing. Play keeps children fit and enables them to develop their ‘building learning powers’ and apply our values.

Positive Reinforcement and Awards 

As well as socialising with their peers, lunch breaks allow time for children to build familiarity with adults in school. We very much value the relationships children form with our Midday Assistants and the Teaching Assistants who supervise the playground during lunchtimes. Positive reinforcement and praise are integral in this. For this reason, Midday Assistants and Teaching Assistants can reward children with a Green Card to recognise where a child has displayed our values or ‘pro-social’ behaviours. 

Inappropriate Choices 

In order for lunchtimes to run safely and happily for all concerned, we have established rules that are applicable specifically to lunchtimes. We aim for any instances of inappropriate behaviour choices to be dealt with swiftly and effectively. Our Red Card System empowers the Midday Assistants and Teaching Assistants to provide an appropriate consequence in line with the misdemeanour and ensure children have time to reflect on their actions. Furthermore, this behaviour system allows for the involvement of senior leaders when this is necessary. 

Wherever they are at lunchtime, children are expected to adhere to the school’s values.

 Our specific lunchtime rules are: 

In the dining hall (or if eating in classrooms or other locations of the school) children must: 

  • Line up in an orderly fashion 

  • Say please and thank you and use good manners 

  • Stay in their seats for the duration of their meal 

  • Talk calmly to others, never shouting 

  • Be gentle and not hurt others 

  • Be kind and helpful and not hurt anyone’s feelings 

  • Work together to solve problems, using words to express and explain, rather than actions 

  • Clear away their own plates, cutlery and any waste, including from their lunchboxes 

  • Walk sensibly and never run 

  • Return their lunchboxes to the lunchbox trolley carefully and neatly 

In the playground, children must: 

  • Learn and know the rules for how to use our playground and adhere to them 

  • Be gentle and not hurt others 

  • Be kind and helpful and not hurt anyone’s feelings. Play together and look after each other 

  • Work together to solve problems, using words to express and explain rather than actions 

  • Take care of our equipment and use it properly 

  • Leave dirt and rocks on the ground 

  • Ask to use, and behave sensibly in, the toilets, only going if needed (this is not a place to play or remain for a chat) 

  • Tidy up after themselves 

  • Stop playing when the bell goes, stand still and listen silently 

  • Tell an adult if they are feeling sad and/or lonely 

  • Tell an adult if someone is not following the rules 

In the classroom at wet playtimes children must: 

  • Learn and know the rules given by the Class Teacher about how to use their own classroom 

  • Be gentle and not hurt others 

  • Be kind and helpful and not hurt anyone’s feelings 

  • Play together and look after each other 

  • Work together to solve problems, using words to express and explain rather than actions 

  • Take care of our equipment and use it properly 

  • Ask to use, and behave sensibly in, the toilets, only going if needed (this is not a place to play or remain for a chat) 

  • Walk sensibly and never run 

  • Tidy up after themselves 

  • Stop playing at the end of lunchtime, sit silently and be ready for registration 

  • Tell an adult if they are feeling sad and/or lonely 

  • Tell an adult if someone is not following the rules 

If a child is not adhering to the rules above, then the Reminder, Warning, Consequence system will be used in the same way as the classroom. However, at the point of a consequence (Script 3), they will be given a 5-minute consequence on a bench in the playground. A Yellow Card will be filled in at this stage and given to the office at the end of lunch.  

This 5 minute time out is given to children in order to calm down, provide time and space between children and for reflection. 

Examples of behaviour choices and actions that may result in a child receiving a Yellow Card

  • Deliberately disrupting other children’s play 

  • Showing disrespect towards a Midday Assistant or Teaching Assistant – this includes verbal (e.g. answering back) and non-verbal behaviours (e.g. rolling of eyes) 

  • Non-compliance 

  • Throwing food on the floor and/or behaving inappropriately with food 

  • Shouting and messing while eating, including being out of your seat 

  • Pushing in the line 

  • Entering the school building without permission 

  • Being silly and/or loitering in the toilets 

  • Unkind behaviour 

  • Being silly with equipment or items 

If a child is not adhering to the rules above, and the behaviour displayed is of a more serious nature, a Midday Assistant or Teaching Assistant can issue a Red Card.  

Examples of behaviour choices and actions that will result in the immediate issuing of a Red Card include: 

  • Physical assault 

  • Threatening/aggressive behaviour 

  • Derogatory/prejudice based language 

  • Defiance 

  • Swearing 

  • Wilful damage/destruction of property* 

  • Stealing 

  • Using equipment or items dangerously or to cause harm 

*See also Charges and Remissions policy as to how damage costs may be paid. 

In the event of a child’s behaviour continuing after a yellow card (consequence) in the playground, the child will be issued a red card and asked to miss 15 minutes of their lunchtime by spending time on the blue chairs or in the Head, Deputy or Assistant Heads’ office. 

  • If the adult is thinking of issuing a red card due to a serious incident rather than an escalation through the Reminder, Warning, Consequence system, the member of staff will ask the child to move away from the situation into an area of the playground or building which is quieter. The staff member will use neutral body language to avoid further aggravating the situation e.g., moving down to the level of the child and adopting open body language. Regardless of the child’s actions, the member of staff will remain calm and use a talking voice to speak to the child. Shouting is never acceptable. The member of staff will listen to the child and will not jump to conclusions.  

  • If the child is unable to respond to the adult, the adult will give the child a 5-minute cool down until they are ready to articulate what happened.  If a staff member needs to communicate with another member of staff to explain a situation, then they will do this in private without the child being able to hear them. As above, the adult will not use emotive language to describe what happened but facts.  

  • If after the conversation the situation is found to be serious, the lunchtime staff will issue a red card and involve SLT in resolving the situation. The child will be asked to miss 15 minutes of their lunchtime by spending time on the blue chairs or in the Head, Deputy or Assistant Heads’ office. Until they transition to Year 1, any Reception child who is given a Red Card will be separated from their peers but remain in the Reception area under the supervision of the Midday Assistants/EYFS staff. Any significant behaviour will be reported to the class teacher by SLT at the end of the lunchtime and logged by the admin team. In the event of a red card being issued, the investigating senior leader will contact parents as appropriate. 

Consequences from Yellow or Red cards at break or lunchtime may span across more than one lunch break, dependent on the time that the card was issued. If an incident occurs right at the end of playtime, then the whole ‘detention’ will be undertaken the following day. In all other respects, we treat a new day with a ‘fresh start’. Children will spend this time inside, with provision made for them to eat their lunch and have a comfort break. 

This time is given to children in order to: 

  • maintain the safety of all pupils and to restore calm following a high level of disruption. 

  • enable the child in question to regain calm in a safe space and be heard. 

  • receive a consequence for their inappropriate choice(s) of behaviour and consider how to move forward. 

The Midday Assistants and Teaching Assistants will make decisions about the issuing of Yellow and Red Cards in a fair and consistent manner and with the children’s best interests at heart. Therefore, as with all adults in school, children must treat our Midday Supervisors and Teaching Assistants with respect. 

At the end of each lunchtime, Yellow and Red Cards are delivered to the office. A record will be kept of this information to allow us to track trends in behaviour at different times of the day and to provide support for children who are finding it hard to follow the rules of our playground.