Teachers’ Code of Conduct

This is the code every British Learning Centre teacher reads and signs before they teach their first lesson. We publish it so that parents can see the standards our teachers are held to — on safeguarding, on physical contact, on how a lesson is run, and on the rule that no teacher contacts a student privately. Everything below is the code itself, as approved.

The professional standards expected of every teacher who works with us.

1. Introduction and purpose

1. This Code of Conduct sets out the professional and personal standards required of all teachers at the British Learning Centre. It combines the UK Teachers’ Standards with the expectations in the Teacher Handbook, adapted for the British and Thai context.
2. It applies to all teachers at our Pattaya and Bangkok centres.
3. Every teacher must read, understand and comply with this document, and sign the declaration at the end before teaching their first lesson.
4. A breach may result in disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal. A breach of section 5 or section 6 will be treated as a safeguarding matter.

2. Professional standards and conduct

1. Make the education of students your first concern, and be accountable for their progress and outcomes.
2. Uphold trust in the profession by acting with honesty, integrity and professionalism at all times.
3. Treat students, parents, colleagues and others with dignity, fairness and respect.
4. Maintain high standards of attendance and punctuality. Arrive at least 30 minutes before your first lesson.
5. Uphold and promote British and Thai values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect, and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.
6. Avoid any action that could bring the school or the teaching profession into disrepute, inside or outside work, including on social media.

3. Teaching and learning

1. Set high expectations that inspire, motivate and challenge students.
2. Promote good progress and outcomes for all students, taking account of their prior knowledge and capabilities.
3. Demonstrate strong subject knowledge, and keep your skills and knowledge up to date.
4. Follow the planning you are given for group classes, and deliver well-structured lessons that engage and support students of all abilities. One-to-one lessons are planned around the individual student.
5. Adapt your teaching to the strengths and needs of all students, including those with SEND, disabilities and EAL, and extend the challenge for high-ability learners.
6. Use assessment to inform your teaching, and give students regular, constructive feedback.

4. Classroom and behaviour management

1. Establish clear rules and routines in line with the Behaviour Management Policy.
2. Use praise, sanctions and rewards consistently and fairly.
3. Never raise your voice in anger, or to humiliate a student. Raising your voice is acceptable only to prevent immediate danger.
4. Maintain positive relationships with students, exercising appropriate authority and acting decisively when necessary.
5. Record all yellow and red cards with reception. Reception reports them to the Founder.

5. Safeguarding and child protection

1. Safeguard the welfare of every student, in line with the school’s Safeguarding Policy.
2. Maintain an attitude of “it could happen here”.
3. Report any concern immediately, in person, to the Designated Safeguarding Lead — Mr Ashleigh Bignall — or, in his absence, to the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead, K. Chaveewan Khongwattanasakchai (Sherry), School Manager, on 081 561 6780. Record it on the Safeguarding Concern Form the same day.
4. Where a concern or allegation is about the Founder or Designated Safeguarding Lead, do not report it to him. Report it directly to the local police on 191. You do not need permission and you do not need to be certain. Tell the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead as well, so the school can take any immediate steps needed to keep the student safe — but the call to 191 comes first. No teacher will face any disciplinary consequence, or any effect on their employment, for reporting a concern about a senior member of staff in good faith.
5. It is not your job to investigate. Your job is to report.

Physical contact

6. There is no routine physical contact with students. Do not initiate physical contact of any kind. This includes picking a student up, sitting a student on the lap, hugging, an arm around the shoulder and a pat on the back.
7. The only exception is where a student is at risk of harm, or is placing another student at risk of harm. In those circumstances you may use reasonable force to restrain that student, to the minimum degree needed to prevent the harm.
8. Any use of reasonable force must be proportionate, must stop as soon as the danger has passed, must avoid the neck, head and any intimate area, and must take place in an open and visible location with another member of staff present wherever possible.
9. Report any physical contact to the Designated Safeguarding Lead in person the same day, and record it in writing before you leave the building. If you are unsure whether contact was necessary, report it anyway.
10. Where a student is injured or unwell, call for a member of the admin team — our first aiders — rather than acting alone where there is time to do so. In a medical emergency call 1669.
11. Maintain confidentiality in all safeguarding matters.

6. Professional boundaries and contact with students

1. Do not contact students directly by any means. All contact with a student takes place through the school: in the classroom, through the Hub and the school’s own systems, or through the student’s parent or carer using a school channel.

   This means you must not:

   • message a student on LINE, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Discord, email or any other private channel;
   • give a student your personal phone number, personal email address or social media account, or take theirs;
   • follow, connect with or accept a student on any personal social media account;
   • video call a student other than in a scheduled school lesson;
   • contact a student who has left the British Learning Centre.
2. Do not photograph or film students on a personal device. Photographs and video are taken on school equipment only, where the parent has consented, and only for a school purpose.
3. Do not give a student a lift in a private vehicle, arrange to meet a student outside school, or visit a student’s home.
4. Do not provide private tuition to any student with a connection to the British Learning Centre, or to any student at a local international school, whether paid or unpaid.
5. Do not accept gifts from students or parents.
6. Teach one-to-one lessons in a room with an unobscured window or with the door open, in a part of the building where other adults are present.
7. Where a student or parent tries to contact you through a personal channel, do not reply. Report it to the Founder the same day.
8. Every classroom is fitted with CCTV. It is there to protect students and teachers, particularly in one-to-one settings. Footage is held for approximately seven days and then overwritten. Access is restricted to the Founder.

7. Professional relationships and communication

1. Build effective working relationships with colleagues, based on respect and collaboration.
2. Communicate effectively with parents about students’ progress and wellbeing, through school channels.
3. Respond promptly to parental concerns, and escalate where necessary.
4. Use professional language at all times.
5. Maintain professionalism on social media. Do not share sensitive information, and do not post content that could undermine trust in the school or the profession.

8. Dress code and presentation

1. Dress professionally at all times, and set a positive example. Everyone must look smart.

Men

• Shirt and tie, dress trousers (no denim), smart shoes (no trainers or flip-flops).

Women

• Smart tops or shirts; skirts and dresses no shorter than just above the knee; smart trousers; professional footwear (no flip-flops).

2. Staff may choose not to wear shoes inside the school building.
3. Jewellery must not pose a safety risk, and should not be excessive.

9. Use of school resources

1. Treat all school property, resources and facilities with care.
2. Secure tablets and other school equipment at the end of each day.
3. Use the waste paper box next to the school printer where possible.
4. Any financial transaction or purchase must be authorised in advance by the Founder.

10. Professional development and wider responsibilities

1. Participate fully in staff meetings and all CPD sessions, including those outside contracted hours where they are arranged in advance.
2. Engage in self-reflection, and seek feedback to improve your practice.
3. Contribute positively to the wider life of the school.

11. Confidentiality and data protection

1. Respect the confidentiality of all student, staff and school matters.
2. Do not share sensitive information unless authorised, or required to by safeguarding procedures.
3. Follow all school policies on data protection and record keeping, and Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act B.E. 2562 (2019).

AI tools

4. Use the school’s own tools on the Hub. Do not put anything about a student into ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot or any other public AI tool.
5. Enter a student’s first name only. Never enter a full name, photograph, date of birth, address, contact details, or medical or SEND information into any AI tool, including ours.
6. Never put safeguarding information into any AI tool. Safeguarding concerns go on the Safeguarding Concern Form and to the Designated Safeguarding Lead. Nowhere else.
7. Anything a tool produces that a student or parent will see is your work once you send it. Read it, correct it, and make sure it is true of that child.