Pastoral Care

Pastoral Care at NLCS Kobe

At NLCS Kobe, pastoral care is one of the three pillars of our education – alongside academic excellence and our wide-ranging extracurricular opportunities – and it underpins daily school life.

As an international school, we welcome students from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Our pastoral approach recognises the unique needs of children who may be new to Japan, new to international education, or navigating life between cultures. Through our thoughtful induction programme, buddy system, and careers advice and guidance at key transition points, we help students settle quickly and feel at home in the NLCS community.

What Pastoral Care Means

Pastoral care at NLCS Kobe supports your child’s wellbeing within the school environment and when in our care, to help them to:

• Develop confidence and a sense of belonging
• Build healthy relationships and emotional awareness
• Learn positive routines and respectful behaviour
• Navigate challenges with guidance and care

Pastoral care is delivered through:

• The way our staff build strong relationships with students – knowing each one as an individual
• The way we guide personal development – helping students navigate their academic and personal lives
• The way we work in partnership with families to support each child’s growth and wellbeing – a strong home/school partnership is key to academic and personal success.

When Pastoral Care Works Best

In our experience, pastoral care is at its strongest when school and families work together with trust and openness. We encourage both current and prospective parents to share insights about their child’s personality, routines, and worries, and to speak openly with us during the Admissions process about any learning, emotional, or behavioural needs. This helps ensure that NLCS Kobe is the right environment for your child and that we can meet their needs effectively. As an academically selective school with very high work and behaviour standards, we want to ensure that every child and family are happy with the demands of an NLCS education.

Keeping us informed about significant changes or challenges at home also allows us to respond with sensitivity and provide appropriate support. Likewise, working together when difficulties arise helps us guide students thoughtfully and consistently. If a child requires support beyond what we can reasonably offer, we will collaborate closely with families to help identify suitable next steps.

The Limits of Pastoral Care

To ensure clarity and fairness for all families and students, it is important that we are clear on what our pastoral care does not mean and cannot provide. 

Whether referring to a parent or student, Pastoral Care does not mean that we:

• Provide clinical, therapeutic, or highly specialised support
• Tolerate unsafe, harmful, or persistently disruptive behaviour
• Can accommodate needs that require expertise or resources beyond the school’s capacity.

If you are interested in NLCS Kobe but believe that your child needs additional or specialist support please speak to us at the earliest possible opportunity. Our default position is to try to accommodate your needs where we can, but if the  requirements are beyond what we can reasonably offer, we will tell you honestly and, as far as we are able, guide you in seeking alternative solutions. 

Our Commitment

We are committed to providing a caring, respectful, and inclusive environment where every student can thrive. By being clear about what pastoral care includes and by working in close partnership with families, we hope to ensure that each child receives the right support, in the right environment, at the right time.