Each centre will have an emergency phone, the number of which must be shared with all students, group leaders and team members. They must all be briefed on the importance of the phone, and that it is for phone calls only, not for texting, and it does not have WhatsApp. 

The emergency phone must be held by the most senior team member on shift at all times, and rotated between managers at night. 

Under no circumstances must the emergency phone be left in the office overnight, or switched to silent or vibrate only modes. 

In most situations, all communication with students must be done in person. Never through WhatsApp or other online methods. Whenever possible, any welfare issues or discussions with a student must be conducted with their group leader present. 

This is not only for safeguarding, but to ensure that all parties involved are aware of any discussions. If this is not possible, another member of the LiA team must be present. Refer to the Safeguarding Policy in the Staff Handbook (available on the HR Portal) for dealing with sensitive situations or situations where you are a solo member of staff. 

Any conversations you have with the student must be documented at minimum in the Handover diary, and where necessary, in the Welfare documents found in the staff drive. 

The exception to this rule is in situations where individually booked students are participating in the summer programme, for which an Campus Leader will be assigned as a de-facto group leader. In this situation, the student, campus leader and welfare manager/Centre Manager should be in the same WhatsApp group, and the team member and student can communicate meeting times, plans, etc.

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Welfare Manager

The Welfare Manager role is held by the Centre Manager, and in centres with no centre manager, it is held by the Campus Coordinator. A key responsibility of the Welfare Manager is to present the Welcome Induction to all new students each arrivals day. This induction covers rules, health and safety, what to expect, emergency procedures and more. It is important that the Welfare Manager is confident, loud and clear in their presentation. Remember, the students are English language learners, so clear, slow speech that follows the presentation slides exactly is important in this meeting.

Your student welfare induction presentation will be available at your centre.

Additionally, on each arrival day, the Welfare Manager must hold a welfare meeting with all students that have stated allergies, medical conditions, or any other information that the Language in Action team, and facilities team should know. This includes special educational needs (e.g. dyslexia, autism spectrum disorder). This information must be then communicated to all relevant teams including the Catering Manager and the Academics team. 

This means you, the Centre Manager, Tour Coordinator and Campus Coordinator, and the academic management team. Effective communication is crucial. You must always complete the following tasks each day: 

Start of Day

First task of the day after opening up the office is to check the handover diary email. Aside from catching up on the activities from the day before, it could contain important information of changes to your day that you are unaware of. 

This email is also where you start building your to-do list for the day. Your to-do list should be written on a whiteboard in the office, not on a scrap of paper or a computer file that can be minimised or closed. It must be available for you to quickly look at whenever in the office.

End of Day Handover

At the end of every shift, the very last thing to do before locking up the office is to complete the handover diary. Be detailed and specific in your notes, as the next morning, the incoming manager might not be able to ask you what you mean. 

Leave a list of important tasks, and state any changes, problems, reminders, or new information.

This diary is to be emailed to the centre email address, and replied to at the end of each day so all the information is kept in one email thread.

You will need to liaise with the Director of Studies or Senior Teacher at several key stages throughout each turn regarding welfare concerns, sickness and absence reporting, leaving ceremony details and class lists. How and when you speak with this team will vary, but you must always ensure they are provided with enough time and information to fully complete their job.

Welfare concerns

Allergies, special educational needs, behavioural or emotional concerns, requirements or requests from group leaders or parents on behalf of the student, and any other concerns that are pertinent to the running of the academic department and classroom management.

Sickness and absences

You will likely be the first department to hear of sickness or absence, particularly for students studying in the afternoon. These must be communicated to the Senior Teacher or Director of Studies (you will need to find out who at your centre) immediately, and always before classes start. Failure to pass on this information can result in student’s being assumed missing, and can activate emergency protocols, affecting a large number of people within the organisation.  

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Every centre will have a WhatsApp group set up for Student Absences, which include all teachers, the ST or DoS, and the Welfare Manager. This is where you will report student sickness and absences so teachers are aware.  Likewise, teachers will report student absences in the group chat after taking class attendance.  Any students reported as absent from class must be investigated immediately by the Centre Manager or Welfare Manager.

Leaving Ceremony

You will need to liaise with the academic team to arrange the leaving ceremony for your students. In some of the larger schools, certificates may be handed out in class, however in the smaller schools it may be suitable to provide a lecture theatre or large space for a whole group graduation ceremony. As this is the student’s final day on the programme, you must say a few farewell words to each leaving group – this could be stopping in during the final class or speaking at the ceremony along with the Director of Studies or Senior Teacher.

Class lists

Typically, any last-minute changes to student arrivals, departures or numbers will be fed through you. You must relay any relevant information to the academic team as soon as possible.

Keeping an open dialogue with the academic team is important for all managers, and you must try to touch base with either the Senior Teacher or Director of Studies periodically throughout the turn. 

WhatsApp

One of your first tasks on the first day the Centre Manager must set up WhatsApp groups for the Tour team and the Campus team, then one final group for all team members. 

The last group in that list is to be called Lia Main. It is important that all team members are aware that this is solely for important information including management announcements, and emergency contact. Examples of use for this group include traffic alerts, management announcements, injuries, delays, departure and return notification. This group is not for requesting swapped shifts, complaining about the weather or for asking someone to grab something for you from the shop (if this happens, it is your job to control the group and remind people what it is for and why it is important to keep it uncluttered)

The division specific chats for Campus and Tour teams is for information shared between the coordinator and their team, typically involving information pertinent to their job only - such as discussing plans for the evening activity etc. This group is also for everyone to talk, discuss advice, plan time off, whatever they want. It is important that you participate in this group when appropriate, as building a cohesive working environment come from everyone feeling part of the same team, rather than separating team from managers. Remember, you are all in this together. 

You are encouraged to engage in this group so as to be considered part of the team rather than just a manager. This is a great place to praise team members, celebrate great days, and motivate the team after a tough day. 

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Each day, one of the first tasks for the office-opening manager to do is to send out a summary of the day ahead. This should include which manager is on shift and when, a short summary of activities, and any other news that activity leaders might find useful to start their day with. Everyone needs to be up-to-speed as quickly as possible each day.  Note: making this message too long will only result in people not reading it properly. Keep it concise, to the point, and positive and motivational. 

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Office

Your office is the hub of the operation at your centre. Here you need to make sure there is room for your team to gather, and that it is organised in such a way that information can be easily seen, found, or collected. The office is not a hangout spot for those who are not on an activity, as there may be someone (team, students, or group leader) who wants to speak to you but is uncomfortable asking in front of lots of people. 

Key information to have at hand in the office, clearly accessible for the team, include the rota, back up Tour Notes, client timetables, group leader names, Language in Action Organogram, facilities personnel names and the Emergency Plan of Action poster. 

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Meetings

You must hold a full team meeting once per week. For this meeting, an agenda must be created and shared with the team and Programme Manager at least 12 hours before the meeting. These meetings are an important part of creating a fully cohesive team that are all on the same page and working towards the same goal. 

The purpose of the meeting is twofold; discuss the plan for the week ahead, discuss how to improve on the week just finished. This will include any problems that occurred, and any notices, changes, or alerts for the coming week. It will also be the time to discuss student feedback from the previous week, and what plans you have to improve feedback for the following week. 

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In the event that a meeting cannot be held, all information must be passed along in the group’s WhatsApp group chat – this should not happen more than once before another in-person meeting.

There will be times when the team will begin to discuss gripes, annoyances etc from their week, which is important and worth noting, however as manager it is your role to keep the meeting on track and on time. Work through the agenda, then allocate time at the end for further questions. The meeting agenda template is found on the staff drive.

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At several points throughout the summer, it is important for the welfare manager to arrange one-to-one meetings with your team. These do not need to be long meetings, and act as more of a catch up. This is an opportunity to hear any concerns the team member may have, and for you to provide feedback on their current performance. If you have any concerns before going into a one-to-one meeting, please speak to your area manager who will provide advice and guidance for you to manage the situation effectively. 

The most important thing to note when dealing with the group leaders is that they represent both the students and the agencies that Language in Action work with around the world. This means not only do they experience everything the student does, but they also have direct contact with their home agencies. Careful management of group leaders is paramount to the growth and reputation of the business. 

Group leaders are often either not trained to Language in Action standards, or inexperienced in their role. As they come from around the world, there should be no expectation that they will be fluent in English. 

For larger groups, they may bring a large team of group leaders alongside a senior/experienced group leader. In these situations, it is important to maintain a good working relationship with the senior group leader, as they are the ones with the responsibility of their entire group. 

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Approach style

Depending on the size of the group, and the personality of the group leader, you will need to manage each situation on its own merit. This could mean altering meeting times, negotiating in a friendly manner, outlining policy in a firm but polite manner, or expressing respect in certain ways. Each group is different, and learning how to manage them will come with experience in the role. 

Remember, if you are ever unsure, speak to your Programme Manager. 

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WhatsApp

Once you have gathered the contact details of all the group leaders you will need to create group chats for each of the visiting groups, with both Language in Action managers and all relevant group leaders in one group. 

You MUST NOT add different client groups into the same WhatsApp group chats as they have different contracts, expectations, requirements and bookings. 

This group will be used to communicate all important information pertaining to group activities, ensuring all activity leaders and group leaders are on the same page. It is also where excursion sheets will be sent at the end of each daily group leader meeting. 

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Office

The office must have an open-door policy for group leader should they wish to discuss any matters in person. There should, wherever possible, be someone available in the office.   

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Meetings

You must allocate time in your day to meet with each group every day.  This meeting should be held towards the end of the day where possible and should focus on any problems or feedback from that day, and the plan for the following day. Wherever possible, this time should be set each day so that you can plan your day, and the group pleaders get into the routine of coming to see you. This meeting, although important, does not need to be long, as you will have lots of them to do. Be concise, plan ahead and avoid digressions. 

When discussing the following day’s activities, group leaders should be made aware of who their tour guide is scheduled to be (although changes may occur – in these situations, this can be communicated by WhatsApp), gathering and departure times, what the plan is, and must be sent a digital copy of the excursion sheet via WhatsApp.    

Changes: You may find, from time to time, that a group leader wishes to alter or rearrange plans that you discuss, or that based on feedback from activity leaders or previous groups, the activity requires amendments. 

Wherever possible, these changes will be accommodated, and it is your responsibility to ensure all the correct changes are made, and people are notified. Considerations include if it is safe and feasible to make the change, if it falls within budget, is it logistically possible to change at such short notice, are there any conflicts with other timetables, schedules, will it affect external groups including facilities teams, bookings or clients. 

If in doubt, contact you Programme manager. 

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It is important to spend individual time with each group each day like this to ensure that there are no problems left undiscussed, and to allow for planning and preparation for the following day. Different groups must not be combined for these daily meetings, as different groups have different arrangements, plans, and contracts in place. Student welfare issues should also be kept between only those who need to know, rather than all groups in the school. 

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Each Day 0 (Turnover/Arrivals Day), the Activity Manager must hold a full groups meeting, in which you share and discuss items including contact details, group leader declarations, rules, fire safety and Language in Action Policies, details of operations such as meal times, meeting points, office hours and who to contact for different situations. 

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Managers must also hold individual group meetings on Day 1 when the students are undertaking their Welcome Induction (Welfare Manager),  with each client to discuss the timetable for that week, and any other logistical and procedural details specific to each individual group including allergies, dietary and educational needs. Some meetings may be very short, but some of the larger groups may take a lot of time to get through everything. Plan accordingly.

A step-by-step guide to your daily tasks is available on the Staff Drive. The Arrivals Meeting Agenda document can also be found on the Staff Drive

WhatsApp

You Programme Manager will always be available on WhatsApp for you to contact with any queries. It is better to ask than not be sure and make a mistake, they are here to help you. 

Programme Managers are your first point of contact for all situations, however if for any reason you cannot contact them and it is an emergency, you can call or message the Operations team in Head Office.

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Email

During daily operations, WhatsApp is by far the fastest method of communication, however if the need arises, you can email any member of the management team. It is important to periodically check your emails, as tickets, bookings and communications may come through this channel. 

Your Programme Manager will provide you with a list of email addresses, and will give you login details for a Gmail account set up specifically for your centre 

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Meetings

Throughout the summer your Programme Manager will visit your centre to help with organisation, planning and to ensure that you are comfortable completing your tasks. They will schedule meetings to which the entire management team will need to attend, and during which an overview of recent events, and a breakdown of future events will be discussed. There may be times when the Programme manager attends your team meetings or group leader meetings, but these meetings are yours to run, and the Programme manager is there for support, to answer any questions or discuss additional agenda points. 

Responsible Manager: Centre Manager

Throughout the summer programme you will be required to meet, negotiate, and problem solve with a variety of external clients and facilities teams. This includes residential managers and staff, catering managers and staff, transport companies and drivers, group affiliates, visitors and more. 

You communication with our clients and contractors must remain professional at all times, and it is advised that email and face-to-face meetings are used to discuss and arrange things. Where there is an on-going situation, or a situation that risks the safety or experience of the students or groups, you must also include you Area Manager in any communications – don't try to manage everything on your own, you have a team of experienced Language in Action management to help you. 

Any meeting held in person should always be followed up with a confirmation email summarising what was discussed and agreed. This documentation of events is vital to ensuring a professional, accountable system is in place throughout the summer. 

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Here is a small example of the kinds of meetings or interactions you might have with people in this category;

• Meeting with the catering manager to confirm meal numbers for the following week

• Assigning a responsible adult (AL or Group Leader) to the catering team to organise packed lunches for weekend  activities

• Liaising with residential managers and/or maintenance teams to resolve room problems  

• Liaising with the residential manager / cleaning team about arrival times and numbers to ensure rooms are ready in chunks set by known arrival time

• Liaising with airport traffic marshals/airport staff for student transfers

• Speaking with external suppliers for tickets or bookings