As at October 2004

Membership of SAHISA is available to a head and not a school. While SAHISA recognises the autonomy of each independent school, heads who join the Association undertake to abide by the following Code of Ethical Practice.

Should a head be found to have been in material breach of this Code, his/her membership of SAHISA shall come under review by the Executive Committee of SAHISA and may be suspended or terminated.

It should be noted that in the following document, the word "must" indicates an obligation on the member; the word "should" is a suggestion of good practice.

1. GENERAL

The head should

1.1. act honestly and fairly, with due respect for the rights of staff, learners, parents and members of the governing body;

1.2. provide educational leadership and promote the professional development of the staff in order to improve the quality of learning and teaching;

1.3. ensure that sound administrative, business and financial principles are applied in the running of the school;

1.4. exhibit moral leadership, and as such, promote the adoption and practice of a sound value system in the school;

1.5. encourage a learner-centred philosophy in order to develop

• each child to her/his full potential academically, emotionally, physically and spiritually,

• a community of learners who are self-disciplined and have a sound work ethic, and

• a code of conduct based on courtesy, mutual respect and acknowledgement of the rights of all groups in the school community;

1.6. foster good relations amongst all stakeholders and with neighbouring schools and the education authorities; Chair: Paul Channon SAHISA is a constituent member of the Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa

1.7. ensure that he/she implements fair admissions and employment practices;

1.8. promote good citizenship in the school and social responsibility programmes in the wider community; and

1.9. implement on-going quality assurance processes to maintain and improve the quality of education in the school.

2. ADMISSION OF LEARNERS

2.1. In all matters of admission and transfer, the head should act fairly and professionally towards other schools, and ensure good co-operation between schools.

2.2. A head must not initiate the transfer of a learner from another school.

2.3. Heads are encouraged to enter into local agreements with other heads of member schools to govern the admission of learners and should honour such agreements, provided they are not in conflict with ISASA policy.

2.4. Rules governing the publication of the results of common entrance examinations must be observed in dealing with primary schools.

2.5. Heads of schools operating in the same region and/or drawing from the same feeder schools should discuss mutual problems rather than announce changes at a time and in a manner which leaves other schools compromised.

2.6. Whenever a learner transfers from one independent school to another there should be consultation during which the receiving school must consult with the sending school to confirm that there are no fees, fees in lieu of notice or other financial liabilities outstanding or that an agreement has been reached for the repayment of such fees.

3. SCHOLARSHIPS, BURSARIES AND AWARDS

A head of a member school should ensure that relevant details regarding scholarships and other awards are available to the public, and should recognise the following:

3.1. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of merit.

3.2. Candidates do not need to have been registered for the school or schools at which they compete for a scholarship.

3.3. Bursaries are awarded on the basis of financial need.

3.4. While sports and other awards may be made, ISASA/SAHISA strongly disapproves of the practice of "shopping" for and poaching learners from other member schools.

4. STAFF

A head of a member school should observe the following code of conduct with regard to staff appointments:

4.1. In the interests of collegiality, it is not appropriate for him/her to make direct approaches concerning appointments to members of staff of other ISASA schools.

4.2. Where an applicant for a position, whether teaching, administrative or support staff, is already on the staff of another ISASA school, no appointment may be made until the applicant's present head has been informed.

4.3. Staff should be free to make inquiries about positions in other schools, without informing their own head, and without the need for consultation between the heads of the two schools.

4.4. Staff may ask for a reference and seek a position elsewhere without prejudicing their present position. 4.5. A head should recommend to his/her governing body that it should offer assistance to staff members for the education of their children at ISASA schools.

5. CORPORAL PUNISHHMENT

5.1. A head of a member school must not permit the practice of corporal punishment in his/her school.

6. ADVERTISING

6.1. A head of a member school must ensure that advertising and articles published by the school are governed by professional ethics and should in no way reflect adversely on any other school.

6.2. Any member of SAHISA has the right to use the SAHISA logo.