Starting at Scots College

Nau mai haere mai. We are delighted to welcome you and your child to the Scots College community. Please find below some helpful information ahead of starting at the College, should you have any questions please do get in touch with a member of our enrolment team.

• Acronyms & Abbreviations
• Calendars
• Catering (Tuck Shop and Dining Hall)
• Co-curricular Activities
• Communications
• Emergency Procedures
• Fees & Finance
• Handbooks
• Houses & Deans
• ICT & Devices
• Key Contacts
• Map
• Open Days & Experience Days
• Orientation Dates
• Parents’ Association
• Scholarships
• School Hours
• Stationery
• Subject Selection
• Timetable
• Transport
• Uniform
  

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Unsure what it means? See a full list of these on the College website here.

Calendars

The College’s key dates for the year ahead and term based calendar of events can be found on the website here
Termly calendar of events are issued in the final week of the term prior. These can be found on the same webpage.

In addition to the usual term holidays and public holidays there are some additional days to mark in the calendar when the College is closed. The below dates are a suggestion on a normal calendar year, these may change and are always listed in the ‘the list of key dates for the year’.

• Staff PD Day: Tuesday following Queen’s Birthday Weekend
• Term 2 Holiday Break: An additional week following the two week Term 2 holidays
• Founders Break: The Monday and Tuesday following the last weekend of August/first weekend of September

Catering

Tuck Shop
The tuck shop is open every day for breakfast, morning tea and lunch. In addition to the regular tuck shop menu we offer a specials menu that changes daily. Lunches can also be pre-ordered online using Kindo here.

Year 7 & 8 students are only permitted to buy breakfast directly from the tuck shop. For lunch parents can pre-order these online using Kindo.

Dining Hall
Chartres Hall is the dining area for students and boarders. Day students can opt in to receive lunch in Chartres Hall by filling in the registration form available here. If a student chooses to opt in for these lunches it is for the whole term and registration must be completed before the start of that term. All boarders and day students who use Chartres Hall must scan their student card on entering.

More information on all catering options is available on the website here

Both Chartres Hall and the tuck shop are committed to only offering fresh made meals that meet the Heart Foundation’s Fresh Made Healthy menu choices and support students in getting the best balanced diet that will help them not only in meeting their educational needs but their sporting needs also.

Co-curricular Activities

It is generally expected that students will play one summer and one winter sport. Registrations for these activities is sent out via email ahead of the new season starting. A list of sports and details on each is available on the website here.

A number of cultural activities are on offer and can be organised by contacting the teacher involved. A list of activities and the teacher in charge is available on the website here

The Junior School also offer a variety of sports and cultural activities for students to get involved in. Information on these is available on the website here.

Communications

There are a number of communications available for parents and caregivers:

• The Mailbox, a fortnightly e-newsletter sent to all parents and caregivers
• In addition regular emails are sent to parents and caregivers with relevant information
• The College website has a lot of information and regular updates available
• A Scots App is available on Android and Apple devices. The app provides instant updates and notices
• The College’s Facebook page
• The Quad Magazine is sent out following Terms 1, 2 and 3. This is posted to all families and alumni
• The Scot Yearbook is distributed each year in the Term 1 of the following year. This is distributed one per family and charged annually to your account. You can contact the accounts department should you wish to opt out.

More information on College communications is available on the College website here.

Emergency Procedures

To know what happens in an emergency and the role of parents and caregivers please read information on the College’s Emergency Procedures on the website here.

Fees and Finance

Tuition and boarding fees are invoiced and are payable at the start of each term. In addition, there are incidental charges such as sports, trips and compulsory stationery and curriculum charges that will be invoiced monthly.

Please refer to the College website for the latest fees and alternative payment options.

If you have any enquiries about your account, payment options or payment methods, please contact our Business Centre on P: (04) 388 0879 or E: finance@scotscollege.school.nz

All payments and contact with the Business Centre should include reference to the family code. This is printed on your invoices and is the first five letters of your surname followed by a two digit number.

Handbooks

In addition to all information on this page there are a variety of handbooks you may find useful on the College website here.

House & Deans

Middle and Senior School (Yrs 7-13)
Each student is assigned to a House and remain in that House for their time at the College. When there is a family connection then a student will be placed in that same House.

Each House has a Dean and a number of House Tutors. Students meet with their tutor and tutor group on a regular basis.

Students are advised of their House prior to their starting at the College.

Students entering Years 7 – 10 in a new year are invited to a welcome evening at the end of Term 4 where they are informed of their House and get an opportunity to meet their Dean.

Students commencing in the Middle and Senior Schools throughout the year are allocated a House and contact from the Dean will be made directly.

More information on the house system is available online here.

Junior School (Yrs 1-6)
Junior School students are assigned to one of four Houses and remain in the House during their time in the Junior School. When there is a family connection then a student will be placed in that same House. There is a Junior Syndicate Dean and Senior Syndicate Dean in the Junior School who assist your child’s classroom teaching in overseeing the pastoral care of students. Further information on the Junior School house system is available online here. 

ICT

Devices
As a BYOD (bring your own device) school, every student from Year 5 upwards is expected to have a device available to use in and for their learning at the College. We are also an Office 365 school, using the Windows network and Office suite of applications in our daily business around the College.

Information on required device specifications, security, user agreements and buying a device for your child is available here.

Once you have purchased a device for your child information on setting up required software is available here.

In Years 1 to 4 there are a range of devices available for our students to use. These devices, ipads and chromebooks, are used to enhance and integrate into the curriculum within the classroom.   

In Years 5 and 6 students need to have a device available to use in and for their learning at school. Scots College is an Office 365 school, in which a Windows network and the Office suite of applications is used around the College.  

PC Schools
PC Schools is our student management system. Families are assigned a login to PC Schools Spider which can be accessed on the menu at the top of the College Home Page under ‘Parent Portal’. You can access your child’s school reports and book parent teacher interviews. Instructions on accessing PC Schools can be found on the website here.

Families will be assigned a portal login two weeks prior to the commencement at the College and will be able to access the portal once the student has commenced.

Email and Login
Students are given an email address and username and password on their first day which will allow them to access the wifi and login to all school sites. Email and login names remain the same for the whole time a student remains at the College. Passwords are required to be changed every 42 days.

ICT Induction
There are opportunities at the start of the school year for new students with training on how to use the technologies used at the College. In addition a team of skilled students are on hand at lunchtimes to assist students with any ICT issues they may be having.

Students who commence throughout the year will need to schedule time with the IT Department to ensure they have the required access to all programmes.

Key Staff & Contacts

Junior School 
Middle School
Senior School

Map

A map of the College can be found on the website here.

Open Days and Experience Days

We hold a number of open days and experience days which you may find helpful to take a tour of the College, meet students and staff or in particular the experience days for your child to try out a day at Scots College before their formal start date and to meet others who may be in their class.

A full list of these dates and events is available on the College website here.

Orientation Dates

A welcome evening is held at the end of the school year for families entering the Middle School in the year following. An invitation will be emailed to you closer to the date. This welcome evening introduces you to your child’s Dean and key staff in the Middle School.

There is no placement testing held.

At the start of each new school year a House function is held for the Middle and Senior Schools, these are a great opportunity to meet other families and the staff in your child’s House.

Parents’ Association

The Scots College Parents’ Association (SCPA) is a group of parents with children in the College from Years 1-13. The SCPA has two key goals. The first is friend raising; organising events such as the biennial gala, speaker series and movie nights. The second is to raise funds for key school initiatives that benefit the students and the College. The SCPA is an excellent way to get to know other parents, have a chance to network, to engage with College staff, Headmaster and Principals, as well as having some fun along the way. Find out more on the SCPA on the College website here.

Scholarships

Middle and Senior School students are able to apply for scholarships once they are advertised on the College website. The information clearly states internal/external categories. Applications are advertised in the year prior for commencement the following year. These dates may change and all information regarding scholarships is available on the College website here.

School Hours

Middle & Senior (Years 7-13)
Years 7&8 report to their tutor rooms at 8.30am
Years 9-13 must be at school before 8.30am

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday are made up of five periods and four on Wednesdays with assembly and house sport. The final bell to end the school day is at 3.30pm.

Interval 10.45 – 11.15am

Lunch time
Lunch time differs slightly from day to day. You will always have time to eat your lunch and take time out. There is the addition of these activities on each of these following days:

Monday: House meetings
Tuesday: Tutor period
Wednesday: Assembly in the Chapel/Assembly Hall. House sport
Thursday: Tutor period at 2pm
Friday: Chapel service in the Chapel/Assembly Hall

Stationery

All students from Years 1-13 are able to order their stationery online through the OfficeMax MySchool website. Students are required to bring all stationery with them on the first day of Term 1.

The school year/class lists will be available online from early December. We encourage all students to place their order before the second week of January to ensure delivery to your nominated address prior to the new school year commencing.

For students starting throughout the year the Uniform Shop can assist with any required stationery.

Subject Selection

Subject selection forms are available on the website throughout the year using the links below for the relative year group.

View the curriculum book: Middle School, Senior School

Years 7-10 – https://www.scotscollege.school.nz/subject-selection-forms-middle-school-2021/

Years 11-13 – https://www.scotscollege.school.nz/subject-selection-forms-2021/

Timetable

Timetables run over two weeks – Week A and Week B.

For Junior School students the timetable for each class is shared with families once it is finalised at the beginning of the school year. Within each week, students participate in all subjects. Classes will also visit the library, attend Junior School assemblies, syndicate assemblies, House Meetings, Chapel and Choir.

For all Year Levels, as soon as a student’s timetable is created (based on subject selections) this will be accessible via the PC Schools Portal. The PC Schools Portal can be found via the ‘Parent Portal’ menu item sitting at the top of every page on the College website. 

Transport

The College uses public transport links and a range of other transport options which are exclusive to Scots College Students. Detailed information on Metlink bus routes to and from the College and all transport options are listed on the College website here.

Transport passes for exclusive Scots College transport options can be purchased on the College website and collected from the Uniform Shop. Students can also top up their Snapper card for public transport at the Uniform Shop.

For Junior School students the timetable for each class is shared with families once it is finalised at the beginning of the school year. Within each week, students participate in all subjects. Classes will also visit the library, attend Junior School assemblies, syndicate assemblies, House Meetings, Chapel and Choir.

Uniform

Information on uniforms and what students should wear each day is available on the website here.  Once your acceptance has been submitted the Uniform Shop will be notified and we advise you to make contact with them directly to arrange a fitting appointment at your earliest convenience uniform@scotscollege.school.nz or 380 8536.