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Bedford Academy PROSPECTUS Welcome to Bedford Academy Welcome to Bedford Academy, part of HEART Academies Trust. I am hopeful that this prospectus provides you with enough information about what it means to be part of our school. We are first and foremost a community-minded school who put our students at the centre of everything we do. Bedford Academy provides a fantastic foundation for success. Our structured pastoral support for the next steps in your child’s education, programme enables the key focus during school whatever pathway they choose to follow. We hours to be on developing students’ love of recognise that every individual is unique and we learning. encourage individuality, challenging stereotypes and demonstrating a commitment to removing Our outstanding facilities and building create an barriers to learning, so that everyone has the environment where both staff and students can same life opportunities. thrive. We work together to ensure students are ready, respectful and safe - fully prepared to face We provide consistent support, guidance and every challenge that the modern world throws at challenge for your child, helping them to become them. Our outward facing approach has allowed well-rounded, thoughtful and responsible us to build a school that really is at the HEART of members of the local and wider community. We our local community. have high expectations and provide a firm but fair approach that helps to develop an individual’s Our curriculum pathways allows students to social intelligence. Our insistence on core establish a thirst for knowledge and an eagerness fundamentals such as a smart appearance, good to learn, whilst our committed and talented punctuality and attendance, and a willingness to staff are driven to achieve the highest possible always try your best creates a mindset to support outcomes for all the students they interact with students development in their journey as young on a daily basis. adults. This is a great time to study at Bedford Academy. We recognise the key role that parents and Welcome to our school! carers play in the development of student aspirations and understand the importance of Mr C Deller working relationships between home and school. Head Teacher Our partnership agreement supports this and identifies clearly what we must do together to ensure every child has the same opportunity 2 Our Sponsor Our Vision Our Values As a charity which works to help people in and HEART Academies Trust aims to create a family of schools who There are 6 key themes that make up our code of conduct or around Bedford, The Harpur Trust is proud to sponsor are at the heart of their community improving life chances for all shared values for the school. We call this ‘The BA Way’. This HEART Academies Trust. through challenge and support. provides all stakeholders with clarity and purpose about what we expect from everyone whilst they are in our school community. The Harpur Trust has existed in the town since 1566 when Sir William Harpur, and his wife Dame Alice, created an endowment COMMUNITY MINDED The 6 key themes are: to sustain a school in Bedford. The endowment also made • Attendance provision for the marriage of poor maids of the town, for THROUGH DRIVE • Lessons deprived children to be nourished and informed and for any • Conduct residue to be distributed to the poor of the town. AND ASPIRATION • Uniform • Rights and Responsibilities Today, the work of The Harpur Trust is still very much based DRIVEN • Environment on this legacy. Their aims are clear and simple; they are here to The passion to get better and better inspire and support people in the Borough of Bedford to improve For more information about The BA Way, visit the Bedford their lives by: at something that matters. Academy website. • providing and promoting education COMMUNITY MINDED • offering help and relief to anyone who is sick, in need, The will to do what we do in hardship or distress the service of something bigger • providing recreational facilities with a social welfare purpose than ourselves. Over 1,100 people in Bedford work for The Harpur Trust, either directly or in one of their schools, making it the town’s third ASPIRATIONAL largest local employer. The commitment to improve life chances. For more information visit www.harpurtrust.org.uk or call 01234 369500. These motivators underpin everything we do as a Trust. Through applying them on a daily basis Bedford Academy strives to: • Have a relentless focus on good relationships and high standards for all • Create engaged learners by ensuring all children and young people receive high quality teaching every lesson, every day through the delivery of our knowledge rich curriculum • Value and celebrate the success of ourselves and others, encouraging young people to learn from their mistakes and take ownership of their own decision making • Remain focused on providing the best possible education for the community we serve 3 Organisation Timings of the Academy Day Structure 8.30 Start of School Day for Students The Academy is organised into Learning Villages 8.30 - 9.00 Preparation Time in Tutor Groups based upon the following combinations of 9.00 - 10.00 Period 1 subjects: First Break 10.00 - 10.20 Year 7, 8 and Sixth Form • Communications (English and world 9.00 - 11.20 Period 2 languages) Second Break 11.00 - 11.20 Year 9, 10 and 11 • Maths and Computing 11.20 - 12.20 Period 3 • Humanities • Science and Technology (incorporating First Lunch 12.20 - 12.55 Year 7 and Year 8 Business) • Arts and Sport Period 4 Second Lunch 12.55 - 13.30 Year 9 and Year 10 Each Year Group is assigned to a Learning Village Third Lunch 13.30 - 14.00 and this will form their pastoral base for their Year 11 and Sixth Form time with us from Year 7 to 11. Each village has its own designated wing. Students move between 14.00 - 14.55 Period 5 the Learning Villages for their lessons to ensure 14.55 - 15.10 Reflection Time they get the specialist teaching they need. 15.10 End of the School Day If students require additional support, our Access To include: department provides SEN support, language 15.10 onwards Extended opening development, behaviour support, counselling and Enrichment, Meetings, CPD, Detentions alternative curriculum provision. Term Dates The Academy operates a similar term structure to Bedford Borough Council schools. From time to time training days may vary. TERM DATES 2020/2021 AUTUMN TERM 2020 SPRING TERM 2021 SUMMER TERM 2021 Staff Training Days Term Starts Term Starts Term Starts Thursday 3rd September Monday 7th September Tuesday 5th January Tuesday 13th April Friday 4th September Half Term Half Term Half Term Friday 11th December Monday 26th October - Friday 30th Monday 15th February - Friday 19th Monday 31st May - Friday 4th June Monday 4th January October February Term Ends Monday 12th April Term Ends Term Ends Thursday 22nd July Friday 18th December Friday 26th March 4 What Makes us Special? Bedford Academy is a state funded independent school for students aged 11-18. We use our independence to be innovative and to constantly improve. At Bedford Academy we do things differently; • We believe in spending extra time on Maths, • We provide a phone free environment that allows English and Science to ensure the highest students to focus on their education and social standards of literacy and numeracy. development. We do not tolerate the use of mobile phones anywhere in our school building. • Lessons are one hour in duration. We recognise that students build knowledge and understanding • Our ‘Access’ centre provides a student centred by building on prior learning. This means they approach to additional support. It acts as an need time to revisit/retrieve knowledge and Academy within the Academy for students that practise using it. We structure lessons carefully require more intensive support at any time. to make sure that there are a variety of activities, • Our in-house award-winning careers team learning is active and meets students’ needs. work hard to ensure students have the right • Students are encouraged to attend before and independent information, advice and guidance to after school enrichment activities, meaning that progress to their next life stage. the Academy is open from 7.30am until 4.10pm. • We offer a broad and balanced curriculum where • Excellent food facilities are available, with a range students are able to progress through their of tasty and nutritious dishes on offer, cooked on qualifications at a pace appropriate for them site by our own staff. rather than according to their age alone. • Our superb IT facilities provide enough computers for every student to use. • The Academy believes in promoting reading and the love of books and has an excellent Independent Learning Centre situated in the atrium right in the hub of the school. Students have several DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) sessions in prep time during the week where they have a focused slot developing reading. 5 The Bedford Academy Journey The BA Way is the foundation of our curriculum. At Bedford Academy we strive to ensure every student becomes a young person who is: COMMUNITY DRIVEN: ASPIRATIONAL: MINDED: a confident individual has high expectations of a responsible, thoughtful that achieves their full themselves and others, always and independent member of potential and works towards aiming to improve, succeed society that takes ownership success, without excuses or and excel of their own actions and compromise decisions The BA curriculum is broad, balanced and inclusive. Traditional academic Key Stage 4 is two years where students study a range of optional subjects subjects are allocated a significant proportion of curriculum time to reflect alongside their core offer (Year 10 and 11).