INFORMATION PACK - Greek School of St. Nicholas Liverpool

INFORMATION PACK

Contents
o Welcome
o Introduction
o Administration & Teaching
o Accreditation & Partners
o Finances
o Registration
o 2020-2021 Term Dates
o Policies & Procedures
o General Rules
o Home-School Agreement
o Locations
o Contact Details

Welcome

  We welcome you all back to the Greek School of St. Nicholas Liverpool
 and we hope you all had a lovely, exciting and relaxing summer! We would
particularly like to welcome our new students and their families and all those
                   of you who return back to school this year.
 We wish you a lovely and prosperous new school year and promise that we
         will always be here to listen to you, support and assist you.

                 The Greek School Committee and teachers

Introduction
The aim of the Greek School of St. Nicholas is to strengthen the community
by bringing children and adults together to teach them the Greek language,
Greek history, traditions, customs and faith. Our students come from all areas
of Merseyside and North Wales.

The Greek school of St. Nicholas was established in the late 1960’s by parents
/ members of the Greek and Greek-Cypriot community of Merseyside and
North Wales as part of the group of schools of the Central Educational
Council of Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain. Their vision was to
establish an educational setting that will help their children to learn the Greek
language and maintain their heritage. Its name illustrates the fact that the
school is an integral part of the Greek Community of Liverpool, Merseyside
and North Wales.

The school changed various forms and locations and since November 2013 it
takes place on Saturdays during term time at Broadgreen International School,
Queens Drive, Liverpool, L13 5UQ which is our main location. Classes are
also available at Chester. In all our locations we hire classes and facilities from
third parties.

The school is officially member of the Liverpool supplementary schools
network and the National Resource Centre of Supplementary Education. It is
recognised and supported by the Greek and Cypriot Ministry of Education
that set the curriculum. This is tailored to the students that learn Greek in a
‘parikiako’(supplementary) school while they attend a full time English
school and it is not an exact match of the full-time educational system in
Greece or Cyprus.

It accepts school age children mainly of Greek and Greek Cypriot origin.
However children of any other background with an interest in Greek language
and culture, as well as adults are welcome to join.

We provide classes from Nursery to GCSE and A-level, for children from 5
to 18 years old, 2 adult’s Greek language classes and one traditional dances
adult class. We are proud to represent over 79 students and 14 adults that
currently attend the school.

Administration & Teaching
The school belongs to the Central Educational Council (Κεντρικό
Εκπαιδευτικό Συμβούλιο – ΚΕΣ) of Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great
Britain group of schools (http://www.kes.education/).

The school is a non-profit organisation and since April 2016 has been
registered with the UK Charity Commission as a Charitable Incorporated
Organisation.

It is managed by unpaid committee members (volunteers) as described by the
rules of school committees at the Central Educational Council website. Three
members are pupils’ parents elected by the pupils’ parents, while the rest are
members of the Greek Church of St. Nicholas committees and members of the
Greek Community with an interest in educational matters assigned by
ΚΕΣ. The head teacher and the local priest of the St. Nicholas church of
Liverpool are honorary members of the committee.

The main body of the committee is composed of the President, the Secretary
and the Treasurer. The above members are elected directly from the school
committee members.

The teaching staff currently consists of six teachers and two teaching
assistants. Most are paid directly by the Greek School mainly for the Saturday
classes while one staff member is sponsored and paid by the Cypriot Ministry
of Education and one by the Greek Ministry of Education. The Cypriot and
the Greek Ministry of Education and ΚΕΣ support the school with books and
educational material.

The current committee consist of:

President - Panagiotis Maropakis
Secretary – Anna Katsara
Treasurer – Olga Bakatsi-Cooke
ΚΕΣ Educational Liaison – Haris Neophytou
      (Representative of the church committee chairman)
Member – Theoulla Haralambous
      (Representative of the church benevolent committee)
Member – Father Stavros Kasinos
      (Priest of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church Liverpool)

Accreditation& Partners
Our school follows the laws, rules and guidelines as set by the UK
Government, the Local Educational Authority, ΚΕΣ and the Education
Ministries of Greece and Cyprus.

We are members of:

   • Central Educational Council of Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great
     Britain,

   • Liverpool City Council Supplementary Schools Network

   • National Resource Centre of Supplementary Schools

We also receive advice from the Safe Network and NSPCC on child protection
and safeguarding policies and procedures.

At the start of the 2015 academic year we achieved the Bronze Award of the
National Resource Centre Quality Framework scheme, while in April 2015
we succeeded in the Silver Award and in August 2017 the Gold Award. This
is a UK wide recognised accreditation and shows that in addition to the basic
policies and procedures, the supplementary school provides a well-organised
learning environment with straightforward teaching, record keeping and
resources that support children’s and young people’s achievement and raise
their self-esteem.

Finances
The school depends entirely from the contributions paid by pupil’s parents
and the support of their families, friends and the community of Liverpool for
our fundraising. Last year we have managed to cover all our expenses and
close our accounts with a small surplus.

The minimum contribution is currently set to £80 per pupil per term (3 terms
per school year) for the Saturday classes and £70 per pupil per term for the
weekday children classes, while the third child in each family pays 1/3 of the
fees.

Fees will need to be paid at the beginning of each term within the first
month. Alternatively, a monthly standing order will need to be set up. The
school account details are:

NatWest Bank
The Greek School of St. Nicholas
Sort code: 60 01 11
Account no: 43137687

Our long term dream is to obtain our own building / ’’Greek cultural centre’’
in Liverpool that will host all of our activities.

                               Registration
Students need to register online at our website – the link is:

https://www.liverpoolgreekschool.co.uk/registration/

2020-2021 Term Dates

Policies & Procedures
The school maintain and updates the following policies and procedures and
they are available on request:

   •   Description of supplementary school statement of aims
   •   List of Management Committee
   •   Home – School Agreement
   •   Equal opportunities statement
   •   List of staff and volunteers
   •   Staffing and volunteer policy
   •   Child protection policy
   •   Safeguarding policy statement
   •   DBS checks
   •   Health and safety policy
   •   Offsite procedure
   •   Complaints procedure
   •   Online registration form for children
   •   Registers of attendance
   •   Financial rules
   •   Certificate of Public and Employers Liability Insurance
   •   E-Safety
   •   Website terms of use
   •   Privacy policy

                          General Rules
   1. Students should attend school on time and with the required equipment and books.

   2. Homework must be completed to deadlines set. Parents should check that their
      children are prepared before school and will be responsible if their child falls behind
      due to continuously not completing their homework.

   3. Students should behave with respect at all times. Any actions to the contrary will
      result in the parents being asked to be present in school when their child attends.

4. All fees must be paid within the first 4 weeks of each term; failure to do so will
      result in a fine being issued for each fee outstanding. The above does not apply if
      the parent pays monthly with a direct debit/standing order arrangement after
      agreement with the treasurer.

   5. Mobile phones, I-pods etc are not allowed in the classroom or in the school
      premises. Anyone found using theirs in class will have them confiscated by the
      teacher.

   6. Damage of school property is not allowed. Parents will be responsible to pay for
      any damage cause by their children.

   7. No consumption of food or drink is permitted in the classrooms.

   8. Ball games are only permitted in the designated play areas

   9. For reasons of health & safety no running is permitted inside the school building

   10. Parents must inform the teacher and head teacher if students are not attending the
       class or need to leave early and should collect them from their classroom.

   11. Students should always be dropped off and picked up on time from their teacher
       from the classrooms. Νο child will be allowed to wait outside alone for safety
       reasons.

                   HOME - SCHOOL AGREEMENT

The school will:

• Ensure your child’s physical and social well-being at all times, and to
foster feelings of confidence, self-worth and belonging.

• Make sure that all children and families are treated with respect and
sensitivity.

• Deliver a carefully planned curriculum, which reflects the educational
programme set by the Cypriot and Greek Ministries of Education.

• Establish consistent approaches for addressing behaviour issues when
appropriate and ensure that parents and children are aware/familiar
with these.

• Ensure that parents are informed about the work planned for each

term/academic year.

• Ensure that homework tasks are given regularly and that these tasks
are checked and marked by the teacher.

• Keep the parents/carers informed of children’s progress and contact
them if there are concerns about the child’s work or behaviour.

• To actively welcome parents/carers into the life of the school and to
ensure that teachers are available, by mutual arrangement, to discuss
any concerns parents might have about their children.

• Ensure that parents are informed about all school activities/events and
meetings.

                 HOME - SCHOOL AGREEMENT
The parents/carers undertake:

• Ensure that my child attends school regularly and on time, and that if
my child is absent, to provide the school with a note of explanation.

• Ensure that my child is collected promptly at the end of the school
day. If alternative arrangements need to be made, I will notify the
school in writing, in advance.

• To work with the school to try and make sure that my child behaves
well.

• To support my child in his/her homework and make every effort to
support my child’s learning at home. This includes encouraging and
supporting my child to fully participate in school celebrations.

• To attend school events and meetings when possible.

• To ensure that my child has all the appropriate equipment for school

• Adheres to the school’s rules and the code of conduct

The pupil agrees:

• To attend school regularly and on time.

• To make sure that I take to school everything I need, such as books,
stationery.

• To complete my homework tasks to the best of my ability

• Work hard and listen carefully to instructions.

• Be polite and helpful to other children and adults (teachers, volunteers
and committee members).

• Take good care of the school environment

WE ARE OPERATING THE FOLLOWING CLASSES

                      LIVERPOOL
       Broadgreen International School, Queens Drive,
                     Liverpool L13 5UQ

        SATURDAY SCHOOL 09:30am-13:00pm
             (Start of Academic year: 12/09/2020)

MONDAY Evening Class for Children 16:30 – 18:30pm
             (Start of Academic year: 14/09/2020)

THURSDAY Evening Class for Adults 18:00 – 20:00pm

           Adults Greek Language for Beginners
           (Start on Thursday 17/09/20 @ 18:00pm)

        Adults Greek Language Intermediate Level
           (Start on Thursday 17/09/20 @ 18:00pm)

                        CHESTER
Bishops' Blue Coat High School, Vaughans Ln, Great Boughton,
                      Chester CH3 5XF

   WEDNESDAY Evening 17:00-19:00pm (Children)
             (Start of Academic year: 16/09/2020)

               For further information contact:
                   Mobile no: 07877 203647
         Email: liverpoolgreekschool@hotmail.co.uk

Locations
                         LIVERPOOL
Broadgreen International School, Queens Drive, Liverpool L13 5UQ
        (ENTRANCE FROM HELLIERS ROAD – L13 4DH)

Locations
                                CHESTER

Bishops' Blue Coat High School, Vaughans Ln, Great Boughton, Chester CH3 5XF

CONTACT INFORMATION

   Greek School Website – http://www.liverpoolgreekschool.co.uk/

    Greek School E-Mail Address – liverpoolgreekschool@hotmail.co.uk

Greek School Facebook account – Greek School of St. Nicholas Liverpool

       Greek School Twitter account – @LiverpoolGreekSchool

               Greek School Mobile Number – 07877 203647

                        Head Teacher:
                       Mr. Andreas Tofis

              President of the School Committee:
            Mr. Panagiotis Maropakis – 07877 203647

                Secretary – Mrs. Annita Katsara

              Treasurer – Mrs. Olga Bakatsi-Cooke

                  Education Liaison Officer:
            Mr Theocharis Neophytou – 07801 474657

        Church Representative - Father Stavros Kasinos
        Greek Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas Liverpool