Pastoral Care
The non-academic support a school provides for pupils' wellbeing, behaviour and personal development.
Pastoral care is the non-academic support a school provides for its pupils’ wellbeing, behaviour and personal development.
In practice, pastoral care covers:
- A named tutor or form teacher who knows the child personally
- A clear behaviour policy and routine
- Anti-bullying systems
- Support for mental health, friendship issues and family changes
- Safeguarding (a statutory minimum)
- Transition support at key change points (Year 7 entry, Year 11 to Sixth Form, etc.)
Ofsted assesses behaviour and personal development directly. But the quality of pastoral care also depends on things that don’t show up cleanly in inspections: tutor group size, how often the tutor sees the class, the school’s readiness to involve parents, and the visibility of senior staff.
When visiting a school, ask:
- Who is my child’s first point of contact in this school?
- How will I find out if there’s a problem?
- What do you do if my child is being bullied?
A confident, specific answer to each is a good sign.
Related guides
More terms starting with P
Persistent Absence
A pupil missing 10% or more of possible school sessions in an academic year.
Progress 8
A measure of how much progress pupils make from the end of primary to the end of GCSE, expressed as a score around zero.
Pupil Premium
Additional funding paid to schools to support pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.