Cliffhanger | October 2015 | page 1

A newsletter for parents, students and the local community October 2015

. The outstanding curriculum ensures nearly all News from the Principal students gain at least eight relevant I am delighted to be able to qualifications. report that the year has started . There is an excellent system of support and very positively by all at the intervention, which means that disadvantaged academy. students, disabled students and those with special educational needs make much better This academic year will play a progress than similar students in other schools key role in the new Cliff Park nationally. Ormiston Academy. I hope that . The quality of teaching, learning and parents are delighted to see our assessment in regular lessons is good. standards are continuing to rise, . Behaviour in the academy is good. Students following the recent Ormiston Academies Trust have very positive attitudes: they try hard and review. take pride in all their work. It is noticeable that students’ attitudes and behaviour improve as The OAT Review confirmed sustained they move up the school, showing the impact of improvements making the judgement that the the academy’s strong systems for ensuring academy was ‘Good’ with the capacity for further students’ personal development and welfare. improvement. Three members of the OAT team, . The academy has a good programme of who were previously Ofsted inspectors praised personal, social and health education and it achievement and progress after they visited the gives appropriate attention to developing British academy to carry out a review in line with the values and countering extremism. revised September 2015 Ofsted framework. GCSE Results Reviewers observed 40 lessons with 18 being undertaken jointly with senior leaders in the This news follows a second successive year of academy. As well as observing, reviewers took the strong GCSE results. In August, 57% (up from a opportunity to look at students’ work from previous record high 54% under new accountability lessons and ask them questions about their work measures last year) of students achieved five or and their understanding of the lesson. During the more A* to C grades including English and maths. review, meetings were also held with senior leaders This is a significant achievement in light of the and groups of students, governors, middle leaders, national changes to grade boundaries and the teachers and learning support staff. revised, more rigorous examination system which saw many other local schools results fall.100% of Lead inspector Stephen Abbott, in his report students achieved at least one qualification, with published this week, judged the Academy to now be 99% achieving at least 5 A* to G grades well above ‘Good’ because:- the 91% national figure.

. The academy is very well led by its Principal and Students performed particularly well in English and senior team. Under the same Principal, the maths giving them a progression ticket for future predecessor school moved from inadequate to career aspirations. Progress figures in both subjects requiring improvement and after conversion to were again above national benchmarks with 74% an Ormiston academy, quickly established itself making expected progress in English and 73% in as a good school. The academy has a good maths, very few establishments have progress capacity for further improvement. figures in both subjects above 70%. 12 other . The achievement of students whose prior subjects achieved a significant improvement in the attainment is average or below average is percentage of pupils that achieved grade C or outstanding. The most able students achieve the above, notably in German, French, Chemistry, expected grade of at least B in most subjects, Additional Science Resistant Materials and Food and rarely fall below a C grade. Technology.

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As an academy we remain passionate about all Year 7 Focus Evening 26th November 2015 students achieving their best but, as importantly, Year 9 Focus Evening 4th February 2016 being equipped with the skills through their Year 8 Focus Evening 14th April 2016 qualifications to be able to progress and succeed in Year 10 Focus Evening 16th June 2016 their chosen post 16 courses.

These figures make it clear that all students have Parents’ Evenings with subject teachers this year been enabled to fulfil their potential at Cliff Park have been moved to the Spring term which provides Ormiston Academy. They also reflect the hard work a full evaluation to be made of progress so far in the of our 2015 cohort during their time at Cliff Park, year, along with the opportunity to act upon advice working in partnership with our teachers and given by teachers during the second half of the parents – well done! I wish them all every success school year as follows: in the future as many embark on higher education. Year 11 Thursday 28th January 2016 This provides a really positive start to the new Year 7 Thursday 11th February 2016 academic year. Year 10 Thursday 10th March 2016 rd Year 9 Thursday 23 March 2016 th New Year 7 Year 8 Thursday 28 April 2016

Our new Year 7 students have settled well and are being supported by an effective team of student Extra-curricular activities mentors and their Form Tutors. We have also had a I have been particularly impressed during the first large number of new students many from overseas few weeks of term by the wide range of join in Years 8, 9, 10 and 11; I welcome them and opportunities the students can access beyond the trust they will settle quickly and enjoy their time with curriculum. It is pleasing to note the number of us at Cliff Park. students making use of these opportunities not only Uniform in sport but in music, drama, dance and many other curricular areas. Miss Horton and Mr Hatton have I would like to thank all parents for their support with worked with a number of outside clubs/agencies to our new uniform which has ensured that our extend this offer further and these new opportunities students appear smart and has contributed to the are proving to be very popular with our students. positive work ethic around the academy – they look My thanks go to all the staff and in some cases terrific! As the weather gets colder, after half term, it students who give up the time to organise and run is expected that all students will continue to wear these activities for no remuneration. It shows a real their blazer as required, underneath any coat. commitment to our students.

School site And finally…… It is pleasing to note the site developments completed over the summer break. These include a As we look ahead, there are a number of major new fire alarm system and the replacement our national initiatives which we will have to respond to main corridor floor and parts of our flat roof. The during the next few months. These include the Sports Hall doors have also been replaced with revised (again!) Ofsted inspection framework which electrically operated doors improving site security. has been in place since September 2015 and curriculum developments relating to new school Reports and Parents’ Evening performance tables from 2016 which put a real emphasis on ensuring students achieve at least 6 All students in Years 9 and 10 received their first traditional GCSE’s supported by appropriate report on progress this week. This report includes vocational / BTEC qualifications where appropriate. predicted grades compared to estimates for all A new measure that parents will hear more about in students to aim for. the next few months will be students ‘Attainment 8’ Parents will continue to receive a report every eight and ‘Progress 8’ which puts an increased emphasis weeks for all year groups. Students in years 11 on not only achievement in maths and English but will receive their first report during the week includes science, humanities and languages beginning 9th November and Years 7 and 8 the coupled with achievement in other subjects making week beginning 16th November. use of GCSE's and vocational courses. A GCSE Information Evening is scheduled to take I look forward to working closely with students and place on Thursday 19th November for Year 11 parents over the next year. parents; this will be followed by a similar evening Mr Sherington for parents of students in other year groups as follows: Principal

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Year 6 Open Evening Year 11 Norwich Castle Trip

It was great to see so many Year 6 pupils and On 1st October around 40 students visited their parents attend our Open Evening on the 8th Norwich Castle as part of their GCSE History October. It is always a highlight of the first term course. The castle keep was built by the Normans as the academy opens its doors to many of the as a royal palace over 900 years ago and from pupils who will be with us next September. the 14th to 19th century was used as a county gaol until it was converted to a civic museum in 1894. It is now the county’s main museum and art gallery.

At the castle, students had a guided tour, learning how prisoners were treated both before, and after the 1823 Gaol Act. Next were the dungeons, where in order to feel what it was like in the 19th century as a prisoner held in the dark for hours on end, the lights were switched off and they were left in pitch black darkness for a few seconds. It was an eerie experience and certainly brought it home how conditions were back then. Students were able to spend time on their controlled assessment preparation, using the castle’s exhibitions to help them. Students were shown where public executions took place at the bottom of the castle bridge, the last of which was 1867.

Competition Winner!

Open Evening was a great success and we had Feedback from the evening, and during the plenty of interested visitors to the Library. One of subsequent open days has been very positive. our student leaders, Ami Everall, greeted the We hope that those who attended had all of their visitors and explained how important reading was questions answered on the night and would invite to all subjects, not just English. Visitors could any further questions that prospective students also enter the competition, which was to come up may have. with a Tweet or #hashtag to do with reading, books or the library. The winner was Ellen The atmosphere was great and we would like to Matthews who is currently a student at Edward thank our staff and students for their hard work Worlledge School. Well done Ellen and your throughout the evening. winning entry is #booksareawesome! Your prize will be with you soon!

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Cliff Park’s Got Talent Winners James Paget Project now on show at the Academy! Congratulations to all of the students who took part, especially ‘Fourth Acoustic’ who won September’s ‘Cliff Park’s Got Talent’.

It was fantastic to see the whole academy get behind the acts as they watched on.

Geography Field Trip

On 22nd and 24th September 2015, there was a Year 11 Geography field trip to Minsmere RSPB Centre, Dunwich and Southwold in order to complete GCSE coursework.

It’s hard to believe that a few months ago all we had was an idea on a piece of paper. After many days out and many workshops, we now have an amazing interactive exhibition! First of all it was on show to the public in Great Yarmouth Library, then to the Minister. Next to Ormiston Venture Academy and now finally in our At Minsmere we walked around the RSPB Centre school! with a guide in order to look at the different sea defences put in place. We completed field It is truly incredible that we have created this from sketches, completed our information packs and just a few students’ ideas, and the knowledge we took beach width and long shore drift have gained will be carried with us forever. measurements.

We then went to Dunwich where we visited the Museum to learn how Dunwich had changed since Roman times. At one time, Dunwich was one of the biggest ports in the country but, due to Year 10 Work Experience the rise in sea levels and a storm surge, much of the village is now under water. We also looked at the wildlife in the area and completed measurements and field sketches on the beach. Year 10 students have been given a Work Experience pack. Both groups visited Southwold to complete the Please encourage your son/daughter to self- field work. On Thursday the group was able to generate a work placement. complete beach width measurements and was lucky to have a talk about coastal defences from Forms must be returned by 15th January 2016. two members of the local council and the Environment Agency who were working on the seafront.

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An Inspiring Morning of Writing at The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award The Open in Norwich Scheme On Friday 2nd October, Cliff Park students had a “Doing my DofE is one of the best experiences blast at the Open in Norwich. A famous author, I’ve had in my life.”

Tim Bowler, was there and we were able to buy one of his amazing books, and get it signed. Tim Toni Ann Wood, Bronze, Silver and Gold Award holder. also showed Cliff Park and a bunch of other schools how to write a thrilling story that really Toni Ann knows first-hand how the paints a picture in the reader’s head. My story was DofE broadens horizons, skills and called ‘A Bet to Regret’ which is about a boy who friendships – now it’s your turn. is dared by a friend, to stay a night at an old abandoned museum, which then turns into a bet A fun and rewarding journey where you’ll grow in for fifty pounds and lots of trouble later happens. confidence and become more independent, The best part of the day, for me personally, was I achieving a DofE Award opens doors to got to read part of my story out and ask Tim education and employment opportunities for any questions, like how he became an author and how young person. Volunteer, get fit, learn, go on long does it take to write a book? I will rate this expeditions… it’s one amazing adventure after school trip five out of five because it is definitely another that you’ll never forget. What are you the best I’ve been on so far, and I hope that the waiting for? school can organise another trip like this very soon. We are currently recruiting students from Years 9 Harriet Robinson Year 7 NHE and 10 who are interested in completing their Bronze Award. Have a chat to Miss Gaines, Mr & Mrs Banham or Mr Ferguson if you would like to sign up.

There will be a series of expedition training sessions running after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays and these have to be attended before expeditions begin in April.

Thorpe Park trip On Saturday 12th September we took 44 Year 10 and 11 students to Thorpe Park. Students and staff all had a great day and enjoyed some of the extreme rides the park had to offer. The students did us proud and were impeccably behaved.

If you are interested in theme parks keep your eye out in school for future trips as part of the enrichment programme.

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After School Enrichment Activities The first week was claimed a great success by all the students who made their high skilled The first session of dissection club was a huge SwissRolls before filling them with fruit and success with ten upper school students learning decorating them with their own made chocolate first hand about the inner workings of an eye. We shapes and cream. only had one student who felt a little faint whilst the corneas were being cut into to release the Each session costs just £2.00 and includes all the pressure of the aqueous humour. Everyone was ingredients. able to see how well the lens can magnify small text. The black retina, blind spot, optic nerve, iris and muscles were also located. Next week we will be dissecting limbs to show how muscles, ligaments, tendons and joints function Caking and baking is running again this term offering 3 weeks of creative and fun cooking for all year groups from Wednesday 14th October. The 4th week sees the return of the popular “Big Cook, Little Self Defence Club kicked off on Friday and was Cook” when students are a big hit with the eight students who participated. encouraged to bring a Practical defences against common attacks were parent, grandparent or demonstrated by Mr Hatton and then carried out carer along to join in the by all the students. The improvements that made fun. in the first hour of the club were really impressive. This term students are There are a wide variety of extra-curricular making Swiss Roll filled with exotic fruits, Iced activities available to students throughout the Chelsea Buns, and Festive Goodies. The Big Cook year. Little Cook session will have the pairs making If you have not yet signed up for a club but would Profiteroles with chocolate dipping sauce and like to take part, please see Mr Hatton or Miss Fresh Cream filled Éclairs topped with coffee or Horton for an information leaflet. It would be orange flavoured icing. fantastic to see as many students as possible taking advantage of this excellent opportunities.

STEM NEWS

Computer Game Development Club

We are happy to confirm the dates for the Computer Gamed Development Club. The club will be on Thursdays from 3:40pm until 4:40pm and will run from 4th November until 16th December. It will be held at East Norfolk Sixth Form College. There will no charge for this exceptional offer because ENSFC and CPOA are subsidising the cost of gaming computer use and college level tuition.

This course is open to anyone in Years 9, 10 and 11 but you will need to sign up fast because the spaces are limited to only 15 places. Sign up with Mr Hatton, permission slips are on the enrichment wall outside the staff room.

Parent and child DT

Are you in Years 7 or 8? Would you like to work on a practical, engineering project with a parent? This club gives you the opportunity to do just that. Cliff Park is opening up design and technology for you and a parent for one night a week on a Tuesday from 5pm until 7pm.

Sign up with Mr Herridge.

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College Visits with some of Year 11 Macmillan Cake Sale students On Monday 28th September, there was a Macmillan Cake Sale held in the school’s staffroom. Members of staff made a good We took approximately 85 selection of cakes and biscuits and £102.05 was Year 11 students to East raised. Diane Kapoor was our star bake with her Norfolk Sixth Form College ‘Pigs in Mud’ Cake. Next year we hope to get (ENSFC) on Thursday 8th students involved as well to raise even more for October to have a look around this wonderful cause. the facilities and for the students to get a taste of college life. Students were greeted by Catherine Richards, ENSFC Principal who then gave a 10 minute talk. Students were then allowed to walk around the college and view their facilities.

Another selection of approximately 70 students went to Great Yarmouth College (GYC) on Friday 16th October, they were first given a 10 minute talk and then were taken to their chosen taster sessions (students had picked 2 taster sessions each to attend), lasting approximately 30 minutes each. They were then taken on a 20 minute tour of the college and finally met at the end of the day for refreshments and a goody bag!

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Trip to see Rambert Dance Science Trip at East Norfolk Company College On Thursday 8th October Miss Thomas and Miss Rigby arranged a trip to take dancers from Gifted On Wednesday 17th June 2015, 6 girls from Year and Talented and BTEC to the Theatre Royal, 9 Triple Science went on a trip to East Norfolk Norwich to watch three dances performed by the College. We were there all day completing a Rambert Dance Company. A culturally rich STEM activity day competition. experience was had by all. The show was separated into three main pieces. Frames, The 3 When we arrived, there were 12 college girls, us Dancers and Terra Incognita. We specifically and 6 Flegg High students split into 4 groups of 6. The groups got named as countries; Europe, wanted to see The Three Dances by Picasso which was the stimulus for this dance which is China, Russia and U.S.A and we each got a role with a number to it. There were 2 engineers, a being used in the BTEC dance. The students also had a chance to meet with a few of the dances for commander, an analyst, a biologist and a chemist. autographs and to ask questions about their We then started our challenges and first of all we journey to becoming a professional dancer. had to complete a micro chemistry experiment, to show us how the day would work, we heated copper oxide with hydrogen. We then did a small quiz on the experiment giving our answers through a small hand set that we had been given with our number on.

Next we did our main task which involved 3 different challenges based on surviving on Mars. One was to create a turbine that was to have an egg in the top and stand through strong winds; all eggs were substituting people in the experiments. Another was to make a buggy to keep an egg in and drive along the floor successfully. The final Cliff Park’s September Fair experiment was to create a parachute that could keep an egg in without it cracking at all. We had A huge thank-you to everyone who supported the to keep within a budget and spend as little as Friends of Cliff Park’s September Fair. possible on supplies. Russia won two challenges there and china won the other. With live music, bouncy castles, donkey rides and many stalls, there was fun to be had by all that Finally we did a blood group experiment. The attended. biologist was in charge. We had to do the experiment pretending that someone had an accident and needed a blood transfusion. We had to find a donor with the same blood group. We found the answers and gave them through the quiz handsets. We then did a big quiz on the whole day. After this they added up all the points and took away what we spent and traded. Overall Europe won, Russia came second, with China coming third and USA losing, but it was very close.

It was a great day for everyone who took part and There were some fantastic performances from we all had lots of fun as well as learning new skills local dance and majorette groups, along with and getting to see a bit of the college. I would Harbour Radio’s live broadcast from the event. definitely recommend that this trip carries on in Overall, the September Fair raised over £600. the future and give the experience to others.

By Charlie Woolsey

Cliffhanger | October 2015 | page 9

Update from the Children’s Coach The Never Ending Week

We are overwhelmed by the response World Politeness Week from the young people and those working with them from so many countries. Entries The Children’s Coach created and are still coming in and we do not want to launched the first ever World Politeness turn young people away so are being Week in October, aiming to celebrate how flexible on the term ‘week’! So, we polite our young people of the world are. welcome you to still enter! We have kept it We had an amazing response with entries very simple to give you flexibility and allow from children in our country, Ireland, Singapore, you to be part on whatever scale you choose. All Malaysia, Cyprus, Australia, Indonesia and we request is that the young people take part in a Japan! Young people independently entered, as politeness based activity, and share a copy with well as parents on behalf of their children, us on our facebook page ‘The Children’s Coach’ teachers, tutors, martial arts school, drama or through email [email protected] school, youth clubs and schools. We received We will then send you a World Politeness Week amazing poems, stories, talks, raps, posters, Certificate to celebrate your involvement. Anyone discussions, dances, drawings, quizzes, debates, young person can enter independently, or anyone cartoons, and a t shirt design. can enter their child/ students. We had entries from schools from all over the country including Chichester and Bognor Regis! Outstanding Ormiston Herman Academy Here’s a sample of what some of our amazing local schools did to take part:  Nursery children discussed manners and were rewarded for using good manners  Reception children read a range of stories about good manners  Year 1 learnt and recited poems about good manners  Year 2 read 'The day the crayons quit' and learnt about being nice to each other  Year 3 Read Goldilocks and discussed her manners and then wrote their own politeness story  Year 4 Studied Victorian Schools and the wrote rules for around our school, that would encourage polite behaviour Happy Hopton Primary  Year 5 and 6 Wrote and debated whether Britain should still be known as a polite The Happy Team decided that all classes would society. start the week with a politeness quiz (made by them), then throughout the week the children Schlorship to India nominated other children in their class that have been polite. At the end of the week the teachers Young Mentor Awesome picked 2 children to receive a special 'politeness Ashley has returned from her certificate' created and presented by the Happy three week scholarship to Schools team! India, after having a life changing experience. She has further developed her leadership skills, learnt about a new culture and helped to build a school. She is now heading our Jamuna Department, for the child that we support to go to school in India. Awesome Ashley is currently planning an event called Jamuna Night, where young people can enjoy and explore an evening of Indian culture and raise money to support

Jamuna.

Cliffhanger | October 2015 | page 10

Spreading Happiness Shortlisted for Community Award

Our Young Mentors created a new project to spread happiness to local children during difficult times. They created Happy Books, full of happy stories and poems which they wrote and games and quizzes they devised. They made up Happy Bags filled with happy toys and stickers and crayons. Special Shannon coordinated with the Play Specialists at James Paget Hospital and we visited the children’s ward and in A and E. It was such a success the hospital asked if we could come back, so we have now been twice and are aiming to do this on a regular basis as it not only spread happiness to the children, but to the staff Our team of Young Mentors have been shortlisted and our team too. buy the panel to the final three for the Bernard Mathews Youth Awards Community Award. It has been opened to a public vote. We will be attending the special awards ceremony in Norwich during half term, where young people from across Norfolk and Suffolk are set to be honoured and the winners announced. Thank you to everyone who has voted for us.

Facebook We have so many wonderful achievements happening all the time with the children in the local community. It would be fantastic if you liked our Facebook page The Children’s Coach so we can keep you updated on the fabulous achievements of our local young people. We have almost 2,000 people following us - come and support us too!

www.thechildrenscoach.co.uk Facebook: The Childrens Coach Twitter: @childrenscoach Email: [email protected]

A Growing Team

Nine young people were successful in their interview to become a Young Mentor, and now have entered their three month practical interview, where they will co teach with our team at an Excellence Academy Session each week. They are doing amazingly, and we look forward to sharing with you the successful applicants at the end of the year.

Cliffhanger | October 2015 | page 11

‘Can we have our library books back please?’ Football Fixtures and Results

Ms Blamey the librarian is asking for students and parents to have a good look for any library books that need to be returned to the school. There are easily identifiable with the ‘Cliff Park’ stamp inside and on the edges of the book. Ex-students who have left in the past couple of years have outstanding books as well and Ms Blamey says ‘it’s fine if you have forgotten to bring them back – please hand them in to Reception at the school, or ask a sibling to bring them in. It’s a shame when I have to say to a student that the book they want to read is missing or overdue’.

Key Dates for your calendar

Autumn Term

2nd November 2015 - 18th December 2015 (Half term: 23rd – 30th October)

Spring Term

5th January 2016 – 24th March 2016

(Half term: 15th – 19th February)

Teacher Training Days when students are not in the academy:

 23rd October 2015  4th January 2016

After half term we are on WEEK ONE of the timetable

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National Schools Netball proud of themselves. I am certainly proud to be Tournament their coach. U14 GIRLS U16 GIRLS

The U16 Girls played their area round at Ormiston This tournament took place at Lynn Grove on Venture on Tuesday 6th October. This consisted Tuesday 13th October. Three other schools of two matches of 7 minutes each way against attended, Lynn Grove, Caister, Flegg and Lynn Grove and Venture. The first game was Venture. The first game was against Flegg where against Lynn Grove our arch rivals. Lynn Grove we got off to a good start and won 9-3. The side wasn’t as strong as they have been in Second game was against Venture. This game previous years and Cliff Park won 15-1. The next was strongly contested and Cliff Park just won 9-8 game was against Ormiston Venture. Their scoring the last goal on the final whistle. We strength and skill surpassed the Venture side who played Caister next and struggled with our battled hard but Cliff Park won 14-2. The U16 shooting to lose 5-2. The final game was against team have all played netball together since they Lynn Grove where we regained our composure were in Year 7. Most of the girls in the Cliff Park and came out winners 6-1. Overall we came side play for a local netball club and a few of the second in the tournament which has secured a girls have attended the Netball Academy in place in the next round. Norwich. The girls have showed great determination and dedication since Year 7 and Both teams have now qualified for the County have worked hard to develop their netball skills Round to be played on Saturday 14th November at which has finally paid off. They should be very Greshams School, Holt.

Sport Activities for Students 2015-16

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CLIFF PARK ORMISTON ACADEMY