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Virtual Parent Handbook
Welcome to the community that is Kingsbury High School. You now join the hundreds of families who have had a long and positive working relationship with KHS. We sincerely hope that you too will forge strong links with us over the next five to seven years, working with us to maximise your child’s success.
Along with many other parents you will have concerns, questions and worries about your child joining such a large school. Fear not, this guide has been assembled to answer most of your questions and allay your anxieties. We would like to thank the parents and staff who have helped compile the questions and answers contained in this virtual Parents’ Handbook.
Please click on the expandable sections below to guide you through the handbook.
- Contact your child’s form tutor. Your child will see their Form Tutor each day.
- Contact the Year Leader by letter, phone or email: For any major issues you can contact them by phone from 8.30am through to 4.00pm. If they are not available, leave a voicemail with your phone number and they will try to contact you within 24 hours.
Please click HERE for contact details for Year Leaders.
- Even before your child joins the school, a number of activities have been arranged to make the transition easier.
- Most children have visited the school for a morning. They had a special lesson and, during a circle time session, an opportunity to ask questions that concerned them.
- Many of the children will have been involved in the Junior School Sporting Challenge run at Kingsbury, where they played team games against other pupils joining from other schools.
- One evening before the end of term, the year group come into school to meet their Form Tutors and their new form group. They get a chance to ask questions and see all the faces that they will meet on the first day.
- On the first day of term, they get a special timetable to work with their Form Tutor including finding their way around and understanding the timetable. They explore the dining hall system, have their first assembly and then go home a little early.
The pupils will be in Tutor Groups for registration and most of their subjects. These 12 mixed ability groups will come together most days with their Form Tutor and will remain together as they move up through the school. This allows continuity in the children’s time at the school so that, even if they change teaching set, they will still be in the same Tutor Group. The Form Tutor will act as a point of contact if you have any concerns or worries.
Letters will be sent home via email, so it is very important the school has your correct email address. Further information is available on the school website HERE. You can also use the SIMS Parent App to find out how your child is getting on in school, details about how to register for this will follow in September. In addition, homework will be set using Google Classroom and parents will be given login details for this in September.
Details about the Transition Stage curriculum can be found HERE.
On the first day of the school year, all pupils are provided with a paper copy of their timetable. We would encourage parents to ask for the paper copy once it has been copied.
There will be 5 lessons a day and Start the Day Right giving 25 hours of taught time a week. Two assemblies a week take place during Start the Day Right (form time), one with the Student Support team and one with a member of the Senior Leadership Team.
The current timing of the school day can be found HERE.
The site opens to pupils at 08.15am. Students should arrive no later than 08.30am. Students arriving late will sit a 20 minute detention the same day.
Unless pupils are involved in a supervised club or activity, they should be off the school site by 3.45pm. The school cannot be responsible for their supervision after that time.
A topic list for all subjects is available HERE.
See our Home Learning page on the website for more.
See our Student Attitudes page on the website for more.
Please click HERE to view the uniform and equipment expectations.
Kingsbury operates as a cashless school. Parents are provided with a ParentPay account and all payments for lunches and trips, etc. are paid from this account. Please click HERE for further details.
We have had very positive feedback from parents that they feel their children are safer not carrying cash and they feel happier knowing what their children are eating from the full details available from the online account.
Packed lunches should be provided in sealed containers and are eaten in the Year 7 dining hall. Pupils may supplement their lunch with purchases from the canteen. Pupils purchasing lunches from the canteen may buy food at break as well as lunchtime. A full range of food items are available including meal of the day, salads, sandwiches, baguettes, pizza and baked potatoes with fillings. A copy of the prices are available from the canteen and HERE.
Families entitled to Free School Meals must complete an online application form at:
www.brent.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals
Any queries should be addressed to Brent School Admissions on 020 8937 3110. Each pupil’s ParentPay account is credited with the cost of a main meal (not including snacks) each day which entitles them to the meal of the day or a selection of alternative meals. A meal must have protein and carbohydrate so pupils cannot just buy drinks. These daily funds are not carried through to the next day, parents are welcome to top up their child’s account so they can make small additional purchases.
It is absolutely essential that the school has the following information (which is kept confidential):
- Any medical condition your child has, e.g. asthma, epilepsy and severe allergies. The school is able to keep and provide the medication to the pupil as and when required. This is administered by a qualified First Aider.
- At least two accurate home, work and mobile telephone number and email address in order to contact you during the school day IN CASE OF EMERGENCIES.
Good Communication
The successful education of your child relies on a three way partnership between you, your child and the school. To be most effective good communication is vital.
The health and safety of your child
If your child has an accident in school, we will contact you or a family member immediately. Please make sure the school office is kept informed of all changes to home telephone numbers, work numbers and mobile numbers. Any changes not passed on to the school could mean us being
unable to contact you in an emergency.
If you have concerns do not let them build up.
Contact the school and let us help to sort the matter out with you.
Keep yourself informed
The school regularly sends home information/letters etc. by email. Most information relating to the whole school is also published on the school website. Calendars, curriculum information, etc. are all available 24 hours a day.
Please click HERE to view current and future Term Dates.
As with all valuable property, mobile phones should not be brought to school. The school will not be held responsible for lost or stolen phones/personal stereos. Staff will not take them for safe keeping. Phones and electronic equipment may not be used whilst students are at school. If you want your daughter/son to carry a mobile phone for use after school then it must be turned off before they come on site in the morning and only turned on when they are outside of the school at the end of the day.
The reasons they may not have it switched on include:
- It is not appropriate to make or receive calls or SMS texts during the day.
- Even if the phone is on silent, it can be used to take pictures or films and this is an invasion of other people’s privacy.
The unauthorised taking of pictures or films anywhere in school is strictly prohibited.
Students seen with a mobile phone switched on will have the incident logged and, if repeated, it will be confiscated until a parent comes to the school to collect it.
Pupils should not bring anything valuable to school. Hours can be wasted trying to find lost or stolen property or money. Money should never be left unattended in jacket pockets. In PE there are a number of small free lockers for storage of valuables. Pupils just need a good quality padlock to secure their valuables during lessons.
If you need a locker, these are available at a one off cost of £15.
If your child has an accident in school, we will contact you or a family member immediately. Please make sure the school office is kept informed of all changes to home telephone numbers, work numbers and mobile numbers. Any changes not passed on to the school could mean us being unable to contact you in an emergency.
See our Anti-Bullying page on the website for more.
Please click HERE for information on Attendance.
Please click HERE to view our Pupil Privacy Notice, Consent Declaration and Pupil Personal Data Consent Form.