Student Services

Student ID cards

Student ID cards (Smart Cards) are issued upon enrollment. They are used for a variety of purposes that include the purchase of food, borrowing sports equipment and library resources, and to release materials from the school’s printers.

Food Services

WAB Food Services are managed by Chartwells (a Compass Group company), an international company highly regarded amongst its industry peers. WAB Food Services provide a wide range of international food options from various outlets within the school. The ECC food service is located in the Piazza and served family style. The Elementary School food service is located in the Atrium and has four serving counters: three hot-food counters and the salad/sandwich bar. All food is prepared fresh daily in WAB kitchens. Weekly menus are uploaded to the Parent Portal and the Compass APP every Friday.

Student meal offers include set menus, which are balanced meals, and custom-made sandwiches, salads, and snacks, which are served at morning break and lunchtime. Additional Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs] can be found online under the Food Services tab on the Parent Portal. Queries relating to your child’s food service account can be emailed to the Chartwell’s Unit Manager at chartwells@wab.edu. General food queries can be emailed to your school section Parent Link representative. They will collate and share your concern/comment at the monthly food committee meeting. More about this can be found on the Parent Portal.

 

Adding Money To Smart Cards

Recharging funds on your child’s smart card can easily be done using the Compass mobile APP or by using cash at the food counter. 

We recommend a minimum of RMB 200, which represents approximately five days of snacks and meals for most students. When the balance is below RMB 0 you will receive a reminder notice via the APP asking you to recharge the card. Should a card reach a negative balance, Chartwells will contact parents asking them to pay the minimum balance as soon as possible. 

You can check and top-up your child’s balance at any time by using the Chartwells WeChat mini program. If you have not already done so, please open the mini-program as it is the most convenient way of keeping track of your child’s account. Instructions for this are in the Whole School section of WAB Weekly. If you have any difficulty accessing the mini-program, please contact Chartwells at chartwells@wab.edu for assistance. When you first charge your child’s SmartCard, please take into account any negative balance your child may have already accrued. 

ES students use facial recognition technology rather than their smart card when purchasing food, so they do not need to carry their smart card with them during lunch. However, if a student loses their card they must report it to Elementary Reception, where they can order a new card. A new card will take approximately 24-hours to process and carries a replacement charge of 25 RMB.

Transportation

WAB provides a student bus service to and from school. This is known as the Regular Bus service. Buses arrive at school between 8:10am and 8:30am each day, although delays can occur due to traffic congestion. Afternoon buses depart at the following times:

Early Years Half Day
Monday-Friday: 12:00pm

Early Years Full Day
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 3:30pm
Wednesday: 12:00pm

JG1-Grade 5
Monday- Friday: 3:30pm

The ASA Bus service is available at 4:35pm to take students home from After-school Activities Monday to Thursday, from September to June. In addition, a Late Bus service for Middle and High School students runs daily at 5:45pm from the HUB carpark. This service can be made available for Grade 5 students if they have late activities. If your child does need to take this service, parents need to contact ES Reception, ES Administration and the Transportation Department first.

Any bus changes need to be communicated to the Transportation Manager through email, text message, or bus change slips, which are available at Elementary Reception. Please contact the Transportation Department before 10:00am to notify them of any changes to your child’s bus routines. If changes need to be made at the last minute, it is best to call the school to ensure the Transportation Department is aware of the change. Students will not be allowed to travel on an alternative bus without written consent from their parent.

Please do not email or text the homeroom teacher, as it may not be seen during the school day. The bus service is coordinated by the Transportation Manager who can be contacted through Elementary School Reception or transportation@wab.edu. School buses are supervised by Bus Supervisors (WAB Teacher Assistants) who are in mobile telephone contact with the school at all times.

Health Services

A Nurse Office staffed by two registered nurses is located in the Elementary School Building and available to all Elementary students. A log is kept of all treatment provided, and parents are notified in the event of any significant illness or injury.

Illness

Parents are asked to notify the school nurse of any infectious diseases or of any change in the health status of a student, e.g. a vaccination, illness, injury, or operation/doctors appointment. It is important for parents to keep students at home if they are unwell. Certain contagious diseases have specific exclusion periods set by the Beijing Center for Disease Control (CDC) and a “Fit to return-to-school certificate,” issued by HePing Hospital, is required to be sent to the WAB Nurse Office before returning. The school nurses will inform you of these if required. WAB maintains a “fever-free” environment and requires all students not to attend school if they have a temperature of over 37.3 degrees celsius. In addition, if students have diarrhea, are vomiting, have head lice or are suffering from any contagious diseases, they are required to stay at home. By following this protocol (for more details please see the WAB Health and Illness Policy and Procedure, located on the Health Service tab of the Parent Portal), we are able to maintain a healthy environment for all and minimize the spread of infections to others. Parents need to pick up their child from school if the school nurse calls to let the parent know that the student is too sick to be at school. Parents will be informed of any exclusion times due to the illness.

Parents should advise Elementary Reception of reasons for all absences from school including illness. Parents can use the Parent Portal to log their child’s absence. In the event of extended illness (student absent for a number of days), parents are requested to contact the clinic. Parents of all students absent with illness/unwell (even if only for half day), are requested to contact the Nurse Office. 

Injuries

In the event of an injury requiring the student to go home, the school nurse will call his/her parents. In the event of a serious injury or illness, the nurse will contact the parents/guardian and arrange for the student to be transported to the nearest medical center or hospital for further attention. If necessary, the nurse (or a designated person) will accompany the student to the hospital or medical center and meet the parent there. Parents will be notified of any head injury, and an information sheet will be given to every student.

Medication at School

All medication must be administered by the school nurse during school hours. All medication, other than Epi-pens and asthma inhalers, should be kept in the Nurse Office. Please complete  the “Permission to Administer Medicine form” (located on Health Serve tab of the Parent Portal) with the student’s name, reason to give medicine, dosage, date and time. All medicines must be in their original container, clearly labeled with the student’s name, class, and the dosage to be given.  For prescription medication, please provide a copy of your doctor’s prescription. A few over-the-counter medications (i.e. Panadol, Ibuprofen) are available in the Nurse Office and can be given if parental permission is on files, e.g., Students Medical Health Information or WAB Trip Medical Form.

Medical Records

It is very important that WAB nurses have complete, updated medical records of students at all times. Parents are asked to complete and return the annual WAB Medical Trip form. A copy of the form should be sent to the Nurse Office. Parents are asked to keep nurses updated of any new conditions or immunizations. Parents can also update above details online through PowerSchool. It is also important to keep the school informed of current parent/guardian work, home and mobile telephone numbers, and emergency contact information, as these details are very important to enable us to contact you in the event of an emergency. For specific illnesses the nurse may require further information and write up an individual health plan. Should this be required, the nurse will contact a parent/guardian accordingly.

Illnesses and Exclusion from School

WAB’s exclusion period for the following illnesses/conditions follow the guidelines from the Beijing Center for Disease Control (CDC):

  • Fever: WAB maintains a ‘fever free’ environment. Students with a temperature of 37.30C and above are excluded. Students are expected to be fever-free, without medication, for 48 hours before returning to school. They must also complete the WAB Health Questionnaire as soon as possible. According to your responses, the nurses will contact families with next steps, which could include a new COVID-19 test or a visit to doctor for a medical certificate. Full information on the health policy can be found on the Health Services page of the Parent Portal. Please note that requirements from authorities can change with little notice, so please always follow the guidance of your school section nurse when returning to school after an illness.
  • Diarrhea and Vomiting: Students who have diarrhea and/or are vomiting are excluded from school until they have had no symptoms for 72 hours.
  • Conjunctivitis (infected): Students can return to school once they have been on treatment for 24 hours.
  • Head lice: Students can return to school after their hair has been treated and they have been checked by the WAB school nurse.
  • Impetigo: Students can return to school when all sores are dry and scabbed. If they have had antibiotic treatment they can return after 48 hours.
  • Ringworm: No exclusion if the student is on antifungal medication.
  • Threadworms: No exclusion but recommended to see a doctor for treatment to commence.
  • Verrucas (foot wart): Flip-flops must be worn at all times in the pool area and in the changing room until the wart is gone. 

Students with the common contagious diseases listed below, or other government-required 

contagious diseases, must obtain a “Fit to return-to-school certificate” issued by Heping Hospital after completing the exclusion periods from school and take it to section Nurse Office before returning back to class.

  • Influenza: Students are expected to stay at home for 48 hours after they are fever-free and showing no other symptoms.
  • Chickenpox: Students are expected to stay at home until all herpes are scab-free, with no new rash, and no exudation;
  • Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) and herpangina: Students must be excluded and can not  return to school until 14 days from the onset of symptoms. Any who still has symptoms after the 14 days exclusion period should continue to be excluded from school until symptom-free for one week.
  • Scarlet fever (streptococcal infection): Students must be excluded and cannot return to school for at least 7 days after having treatment. 
  • Measles: Students are expected to stay at home for 4 days after the rash appeared. The onset day of the rash is regarded as the 0th day, but if complications have arisen then they are excluded for 14 days.
  • Mumps: Students are expected to stay at home at least 21 days after the parotid gland begins to be swollen;
  • Rubella (German Measles): Students are expected to stay at home for 4 days after rash first appeared. The onset day of the rash is regarded as the 0th day, but if a lung infection is diagnosed, then they are excluded for 10 days. 

Student Health Screenings

All students are screened by our school nurses for general vision, height, and weight, which gives a BMI percentile for their age and gender.  Senior Grade 1 students will also have a color vision screen, and Grade 5 girls will have a scoliosis screen during their swimming block. Parents are notified of the results of these tests only when there are unexpected results, although our nurses are always available for conversations about a student’s health issues.