Keeping in Touch Lees Brook Community School’s Newsletter for Parents

A Founding Member of the Northworthy Trust

Dear Parent July 2018

Keeping in Touch I can’t quite believe that we are breaking up for the summer! This year has been a really positive one for the school; it has been an extremely busy one for the students and staff but all the hard work that has been going on is really starting to have an impact. We are looking forward to a positive set of GCSE results this summer.

Hot Weather The weather has been amazing over the last few weeks. It is lovely being in the new school, some of us can remember the temperatures reached in the old buildings! The new school is designed to manage the heat and has a fresh air cooling system, this has meant that although definitely warmer than usual, the environment has remained pleasant and students have been able to get on with their work as usual without being too distracted by the heat. Staff have used a common sense approach and have not expected students to wear blazers in the warm weather.

Activities and Events Overall, it has been a really exciting year with lots happening; I hope that the extra curricular newsletters you have received have given you a flavour of some of the events on offer. Lees Brook is a very busy place with lots of opportunities for students; this year we have ran an incredible 163 in and out of school events for our students – that must be a record! In particular this year we have had a high number of career and employer encounters for students and have tried to promote the use of STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) in future career options. We have strong links and frequent visits from many of the city’s global employers, such as Rolls Royce, Toyota, Tomlinsons and Bombardier, among many others.

One of the (many) highlights from this year was the winning of the Big Bang Trophy earlier this year. One of our groups of students created an app to improve the independence of visually impaired travellers – it would organise a person’s journey completely, from home to destination. This idea won the group, the regional competition and entry into the national competition in March 2019. What an amazing achievement.

Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh has been a massive success this year, we have had an amazing 101 students working towards their D of E award. This year we have also introduced the Silver Award and have had 19 students working through the programme. In February, we had our first D of E award evening; it was lovely to celebrate the achievements of all the students involved.

School PE Kit From September, there will be a change to our PE kit. Students will now be expected to wear black kit regardless of the activity/sport they are taking part in. The white T‐shirt is being phased out so when you buy any new PE kit, please only replace old kit with black kit. The outdoor kit remains the same, black/orange reversible Rugby shirt (or plain black sweatshirt) black shorts, black tracksuit bottoms or plain black legggings are also permitted. Studentss will not be allowed to wear any kit that does not conform to the school PE kit including, hoodies and any other colour clothing.

Please do not hesitate to contact a member of the PE team if you have any further questions regarding this matter.

Dress code The dress code is in the planner, on the website and is part of this newsletteer. Please take time to read it again before purchasing any new uniform this summer. Some concerns that have crept in are short black skirts, as a reminder skirts must not be more than 2” above the knee and must not be tight or made of a stretchy material. Similarly shoes must be formaal in style, not a black trainer. If you are unsure about an item, please contact the school before spending any money.

Morleys’ Offer I have been discussing with Morleys an offer for Lees Brook parents. We have agreed £5 off when ovver £50 is spent and £10 off when spending over £100. I hope this goes some way towards helping with the costs, especially if you have more than one child in school.

Work Experience Congratulations to Year 10 students who have been out on work experience over the last two weeks; we have had overwhelmingly positive feedback from the employeers with many stating that they would employ the students straight away if they were available!! Work experience is a really valuable experience for our students and helps Year 10 to realise the importance of working hard and their academic results for their career paths in the future.

Class Charts We now have over 75% of parents using the Class Charts app. It is an exceellent resource that we want to encourage all parents and students to be using from September, all homework will be logged on Class Charts primarily rather than the school planner. Please be aware that, due to the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), it is a parent’s responsibiility to ensure that the contact information (email address) is up to date and correct on both Class Charts and the Parents Evening System. Pease use the ‘quick start’ guides on the website under the parent tab.

School Calendar Please find attached a calendar for next year, similarly to last year, we willl be having two INSET days over a weekend in November. Please make a note of key dates for your children, such as examinations during the year as well as form tutor and subject evenings.

It just remains for me to wish all the students a happy and safe summer holiday; school finishes at 1.30pm on Wednesday 25th July. Exam results day is Thursday 23rd Auguust and results will be available for Year 11 students at 10.00am. The school has two INSET days on Thursday 6th and Friday 7th September, therefore students will return to school on Monday 10th September.

Yours faithfully

Zoe House Headteacher

IMPORTANT DATES FOR STUDENTS AND PARENTS

2018‐2019 ACADEMIC YEAR

THE SCHOOL YEAR Autumn Term *Thursday 6th September – Friday 21st December Half Term Holiday Monday 29th October – Friday 2nd November Spring Term Monday 7th January – Friday 12th April Half Term Holiday Monday 18th February – Friday 22nd February Summer Term Monday 29th April – Thursday 25th July Half Term Holiday Monday 27th May – Friday 31st May May Bank Holiday Monday 6th May *Please note students return on Monday 10th September due to Staff Development Training Days

STAFF DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING DAYS INSET Day 1 Thursday 6th September INSET Day 2 Friday 7th September INSET Day 3 Friday 30th November INSET Day 4 Monday 3rd December INSET Day 5 Friday 21st June

EVENTS AND MEETINGS School Photographer Tuesday 25th September Winter Fair and Christmas Market Friday 7th December Year 7 Form Tutor Evening Wednesday 7th November Year 7 Grade Reports issued Friday 21st December

7 th Year 7 Subject Evening (Grade Reports issued) Thursday 7 March Year 7 Grade Reports issued Friday 12th April Year Year 7 Exams Begin Monday 1st July Year 7 Form Tutor Evening (Reports issued) Thursday 18th July Year 8 Form Tutor Evening Wednesday 7th November Year 8 Grade Reports issued Friday 21st December

8 th Year 8 Subject Evening (Grade Reports issued) Tuesday 26 February Year 8 Grade Reports issued Friday 12th April Year Year 8 Exams Begin Monday 1st July Year 8 Form Tutor Evening (Reports issued) Thursday 18th July Year 9 Form Tutor Evening Wednesday 7th November Year 9 Grade Reports issued Friday 21st December

9 th Year 9 Subject & Options Evening Wednesday 6 February Year 9 Grade Reports issued Friday 12th April Year Year 9 Trial Exams Begin Tuesday 7th May Year 9 Form Tutor Evening (Reports issued) Thursday 18th July Year 10 Subject Evening (Grade Reports issued) Tuesday 15th January Year 10 Subject Evening (Grade Reports issued) Tuesday 30th April 10 Year 10 Revision Evening Thursday 23rd May th Year Year 10 Trial Exams Begin Monday 17 June Year 10 Form Tutor Evening (Reports issued) Thursday 18th July Year 11 Revision and Post 16 Evening for parents Wednesday 17th October Year 11 Trial Exams Begin Monday 5th November Year 11 Subject Evening (Grade Reports issued) Thursday 10th January 11 Year 11 PiXL Exams Monday 25th to Wednesday 27th February th Year Year 11 Subject Evening (Reports issued) Wednesday 10 April Year 11 GCSE Exams Begin Monday 13th May Year 11 Prom Friday 21st June th Skills Academy Welcome Evening Wednesday 12 September 16 Skills Academy Student Progress Evening Tuesday 4th December Post Skills Academy Student Progress Evening Tuesday 30th April

GCSE Revision and Reward ‐ Breadsall Priory ‐ 23rd March 2018 Year 11 students had the day at Breadsall Priory taking part in master class workshops in English, Maths and Sciences with the idea of aiming for the top GCSE grades of 8 and 9. Students were then treated to lunch and use of Breadsall's leisure facilities. A fantastic day was had by all the students and it was great to reward all their hard work in school.

County Indoor Athletics Sports Hall Final ‐ 18th April 2018 The students who took part in the County Indoor Athletics Sports Hall Final were a real credit to the school. They worked together and supported each other all afternoon.

The results; Year 7 boys 1st Year 8 boys 1st Year 8 girls 5th

Huge congratulations to all the teams but especially the boys’ teams for becoming the County champions. The school have only seen one other team do as well as this in 17 years.

Wicked ‐ the Musical ‐ 19th April 2018 The trip to see Wicked at the Birmingham Hippodrome involving GCSE Music students across the Northworthy Trust from Lees Brook & The Long Eaton School, was a great success. The musical written by Stephen Schwartz contains one of the set works GCSE Music students are required to study for their listening and appraising exam, so we were delighted to be able to make this trip possible. The students represented Lees Brook well with exemplary behaviour; they thoroughly enjoyed the trip and the chance to meet with the other students in the Northworthy Trust.

Year 7 County Cup Final ‐ 20 April 2018 The Year 7 football team had a very productive season at Lees Brook competing in the league, City Cup, County Cup, and the National Cup! They showed a high level of determination, resilience and team work to progress to the last 16 in the National Cup. They finished the season on a high becoming the first ever Year 7 football team to become County Champions ‐ beating St Mary's (from Chesterfield) 1‐0 at Moor Farm.

Year 10 Students getting to grips with Employment and Business Earlier this term over 50 Year 10 students have been taking part in a series of workshops to help develop their employability and business skills.

At the end of April they took part in workshops led by ‘Learn by Design’ and looked in detail at key business themes like target setting, sales and marketing, finance and business planning. They followed this up by further developing these skills in additional workshops in early May led by, ‘Ideas4Careers’ where they took part in two more workshops entitled, ‘What’s My Line’ and ‘The Apprentice’.

The ‘What’s My Line’ workshop involved them working with six local employers in a speed networking activity where the students had to guess the nature of each employer’s profession by asking suitable questions. Each group had about 8 minutes to question and then guess the nature of the employer’s business.

In the afternoon in the ‘Apprentice Workshop’ students worked in teams using the skills they had acquired from the workshop in April to plan, design and create an item from various materials. They then had to ‘pitch’ their design to ‘Lord Sugar’ aka Miss Kendall, their Head of Year. Prizes were awarded for the best design and most effective team.

English Schools Track & Field Cup ‐ Tuesday 11th May 2018 On a very warm and sunny day back in May we took 26 students to represent Lees Brook in the first round of the English Schools Track & Field Cup at Shobnall athletics track, Burton‐upon‐ Trent. With each student taking part in two events during the day, a busy and hectic schedule was soon upon us, as well as the sun cream! There was plenty of success throughout the day but with a strong opposition from schools more north of the county, Lees Brook managed a best of 4th overall, unfortunately none of our teams making it through to the next round. It was an extremely positive experience for our students.

Creative Conductors Workshop ‐ Learn by Design group ltd ‐ 16th May 2018 On Wednesday 16th May, selected students in Year 7 were given the opportunity to attend a creative design workshop, delivered by Learn by Design.

The aim of Creative Conductors is to inspire young people to consider a career in engineering and/or STEM, whilst improving understanding of electrical circuits, and practicing soft skills, including teamwork and creativity.

Teams are challenged to design and develop a product, which is powered by electricity and hence able to produce sounds via laptops when touched. Teams produce 3D working prototypes of their products, from cardboard and other craft materials, before presenting these to the class.

The event was a great success and the pupils produced some fantastic ideas.

Vertikal Days ‐ 17th May 2018 It was a world of Cranes! 45 Year 10 students attended the Vertikal Days workshops at Donnington Park.

Vertikal Days is the trade fair for the lifting industry with hundreds of companies from around the world exhibiting lifting equipment such as cranes and platforms. We were invited by Liebherr, an international manufacturer of lifting equipment, to get involved with practical workshops for schools running alongside the trade fair. The workshops were coordinated by My Future, My Choice a company that links schools and industry.

The days were very well organised with students building a pneumatic powered lifting arm and then competing in a race to move an object. The students worked in teams supervised by an apprentice from Liebherr. During the morning, students also controlled a brand new crane on its way to be delivered to a lifting company. They had to knock footballs from traffic cones using the swinging hook. After lunch the students went out into the trade fair with their apprentice to find out information about the lifting industry and get hold of a few freebies. The day ended with presentations from the students and then the presentation of prizes. Thank you to Liebherr and My Future, My Choice for organising such and excellent day.

Lees Brook Rounders Teams During the summer term, Years 10, 9 and 7 all represented Lees Brook at the annual Derby City Schools Rounders Tournaments at Chellaston Academy.

Year 10 – Thursday 17th May: Lees Brook won 3 and lost 2, finished in 3rd place with outstanding performances by Isobel Goodwin.

Year 9 – Wednesday 23rd May: Lees Brook won 2 and lost 2. Good all round performances by all.

Year 7 – Tuesday 19th June: Lees Brook won 2 and lost 2. Good all round performances by all.

High 5 Maths Workshop ‐ 29th May 2018 Our students were invited to attend a regional maths workshop developed by two maths leads in Derby. The focus of the day was to help our students hone their skills in Algebra, Problem Solving, Geometry and Ratio and Proportion. The session took place on Tuesday 29th May at Derby Moor School. Our students were attentive and hardworking throughout the day and commented on how they'd been given the skills to help with their final two maths examinations.

Jaguar Land Rover Factory Tour ‐ 5 June 2018 In June, 32 students in Year’s 7‐9 visited the Jaguar Land Rover Factory in Solihull to learn about manufacturing. Students were taken on a three hour factory tour and experienced how a Land Rover is made from start to finish. During the afternoon, students took part in several production line challenges, where they were required to work in teams to build model cars under timed conditions. Students had a great day and learned lots about production processes; they found out about careers in the design and manufacturing industries. We are looking at arranging another trip to the factory in the new academic year.

The Big One: Chaddesden Carnival Saturday 3rd June Lees Brook hosted the performance arena at Chaddesden’s carnival ‘The Big One’ at May half‐ term. The school band and choirs performed, hosted by George Waddington and Oliver Manley. We were joined throughout the day by First Stage Dance School, Rock of Ages and Razzamataz Theatre. It was a very hot day, but thoroughly enjoyed by staff and students

Assembly and Workshops ‐ Year 10 (MOD) ‐ 12th June 2018 On the 12th June we had the RAF in to deliver an assembly to the whole of Year 10 on different career opportunities within the military. All of Year 10 were spoken to and given an opportunity to get more information about the careers, training and apprenticeships on offer. The uptake of students wanting more information was fantastic. There were also three workshops on offer to selected students. A PT session to build on trust, communication and aspiration; a mission involving equations and team building and an extra information session for anyone wanting more information. The day went so well that we are inviting them back in for Year 11 to work with students who showed an interest. All students were really positive and worked really hard, well done Year 10.

Performance in Education Workshop ‐ 26th June 2018 On Tuesday 26th June 2018, all of Year 9 took part in an interactive presentation called Steps to Success. This was designed to highlight the range of future options available to students after they complete their GCSE studies in Year 11. A range of academic, vocational and blended pathways were discussed to help students identify a route that will suit them the most. Students' behaviour and participation in the workshop was impeccable and the presenters spoke very highly of our students.

Year 11 Leavers Celebration ‐ 13th June 2018 It was great to celebrate Year 11 students in our ceremony. Lots of certificates were handed out by their form tutors and subject teachers. They have been a wonderful year group and accomplished so much as individuals and as a collective. Mr Taylor will miss them a lot. Let’s hope the results reflect the hard work staff and students have put in. We are very confident they will.

Nottingham University Degree Show 2018 ‐ 18th June 2018 On Monday 18th June, 30 students in Year 10, studying Design and Technology, were given the opportunity to visit Nottingham University Product Design Degree Show to view their graduate design work. Students were given a lecture by the Head of Design and then had the chance to view the degree work and question the students about their projects and the design process.

This was a good opportunity for the Year 10 students to get ideas for their own GCSE projects and better understand design in practice.

Sudbury Hall ‐ 20th June 2018 The Art department took a group of Year 9 Art students to Sudbury Hall, the students worked alongside students from St Giles School, working in pencil, chalk and water colour. They had the opportunity to work within the grounds and sketching the architectural beauty of Sudbury Hall itself. Students worked really well on their own and supported the St Giles pupils throughout the drawing tasks.

Year 11 Prom Year 11 students enjoyed a brilliant occasion and lovely celebration of their time in school at Morley Hayes. Amongst the amazing arrivals, were a horse and cart and a tank! Students also decided to donate a large proportion of the money they raised to fund the school Prom to charity. Students have spent the year raising money for their Prom by packing bags at Asda in Spondon, baking cakes and running events in school like Splat the Teacher. They donated £700, to the Teenage Cancer Trust as a gesture to a fellow student in the year battling the disease.

Roots Performance Saturday 23rd June 2018 Following 10 weeks of after‐school performance club, Mrs Davies and Miss Wagg took 14 students across Years 7‐9 to perform at a regional performance platform at Nottingham High School called ‘Roots’. This was a fantastic evening, the students rose to the challenge, with a performance to be very proud of.

Year 8 Careers in the Arts Day Monday 25th June 64 Year 8 students had the opportunity to experience careers in the Arts across four of Derby’s main arts venues; Quad, Derby Theatre, Deda and Baby People. The students took part in workshops and had the chance to learn about the range of jobs in the Arts. A great day had by all!

Boys into Higher Education ‐ 28th June 2018 Boys from Year 10 were invited to attend a trip to Derby University to raise aspirations of going to university. Students got the insight into university education and were given the opportunity to have taster sessions on different subjects. Students were also given a tour of the campus and an insight of university living by being shown around halls of residence and talking to current Derby University students. Students worked hard and specifically enjoyed the sports element of the two days. Well done boys.

Big Bang Midlands Competition 2018 ‐ The STEM Engine “Moving the Midlands Forward” The brief “Using Science, Technology, Engineering or Maths (STEM), identify and create a product to improve an aspect of the transportation network within the Midlands”

Real‐world product/solution: We created an app to improve the independence of visually impaired travellers. Our solution was to have an app that organised a person's journey completely, from home to destination. This would greatly increase the independence of visually impaired travellers, who would otherwise have to rely on someone else to assist them.

This idea won the group, the regional competition and entry in to the national competition, held at the NEC in March 2019.

Congratulations and a huge well done to all involved!

Along side this, 70 Year 8 pupils had the opportunity to visit the Big Bang show and experience lots of exciting activities.

Sports Day 2018 ‐ 2nd July 2018 This year our annual Sports Day took place on Monday 2nd July, one of the hottest days of the year! The inter‐form athletics competition took place throughout the day with field events and track heats in the morning and track finals and relays in the afternoon. There were some outstanding performances with 17 school records being broken. A big thank you to all the staff for their hard work and congratulations to the students that participated. The overall results will be announced at the end of term but below is a list of the new school records.

Year 7 Tia Bennett 100m (14.23s) Faith O'Connor Shot Putt (6.08m) Amelia Thornton Standing Long Jump (1.89m) Sam Wojcik Standing Long Jump (2.30m)

Year 8 Jake Horvath‐Szovati 100m (12.04s) Shot Putt (10.64m) Cameron Chand 300m (48.03s) Max Turton Standing Long Jump (2.50m) 8CHC Boys Relay (55.20s)

Year 9 Jodie Sharratt Standing Long Jump (2.02m) Standing Triple Jump (5.92m) Antoni Staszkiewicz Standing Long Jump (2.41m) Keenan O' Connor Standing Triple Jump (7.44m)

Year 10 Isobel Goodwin 100m (13.63s) Caitlin Morley Standing Long Jump (2.00m) Harry Goodwin Standing Long Jump (2.06m) Sam Ferra Standing Triple Jump (8.60m)

City Sports Day ‐ Moorways Stadium ‐ 4th July 2018 We had a great day of athletics at Moorways with 44 students from Y7‐10. Please see below the results of students who made the podium;

Year 7 Tia Bennett 200m 2nd George Reynolds High Jump 1st

Year 8 Cameron Chand 800m 3rd Louis Harrison 200m 3rd Maleah Quintana 200m 1st Jake Horvath‐Szvati 100m 1st NEW CITY SPORTS RECORD (11.4s)

Year 9 Kai Moore Discus 1st Zana Zekaj 200m 3rd Leon Feurtado Triple Jump 3rd

Year 10 Demi Leadbeater 300m 2nd Ami Bate shot 2nd Cameron Nightingale 1500m 2nd Isobel Goodwin 100m 2nd

Inspiring visit to top university ‐ Raising Aspirations ‐ Loughborough University ‐ 9th July 2018

16 Year 9 students visited Loughborough University to sample for themselves why the institution is so renowned on the world stage.

Students started the visit with a tour of the world class facilities that were used by Team GB Olympians during their final preparations for the 2012 Games. They were given an insight into what a typical day for university students is like. The Loughborough University Schools Visit programme is designed to give young people the chance to sample a day at a Higher Education institution. The visit aimed to inspire students, but especially those who may not have previously considered going to university. It also helps to inform and support students that are thinking of studying a sport related course or developing a future career in the sector.

Students also got to experience a seminar in nutrition and then later had a practical session on sports fitness testing. All students thoroughly enjoyed the visit and the opportunity to go.

Arts Day On 9th of July all of Key Stage 3 were off timetable to participate in Arts activities. The aim was to develop an Arts community around the theme of Lead, Believe, Create, Succeed. We were fortunate to be joined by four professional artists who worked alongside staff and students in graffiti, rapping and breakdance. Staff rose to the challenge and created bespoke workshops, from origami to baking. The 25 workshops were celebrated in a final assembly in which students shared and performed their work. An inspiring day.

Gogglebox Years 8/9 have been working closely with Baasit Siddiqui (from Channel 4's Gogglebox) over the past month on a series of workshops called "Let's Pitch it". Students researched existing programme formats with Baasit then went onto to devise their own show idea creating a powerpoint presentation and a short 2 minute promotional video. Student work has been entered into a country wide competition judged by the the Siddiquis and Channel 4 Gogglebox programme team with prizes including a trip to London for the winners and the school will receive a green screen, two camera drones, two go‐pro cameras and some INOBots. Fingers crossed; this has been an excellent opportunity for students to learn about media and practice key skills such as teamwork and presenting.

Rewards Trip ‐ Drayton Manor Theme Park All year groups recently enjoyed their end of year reward trip to Drayton Manor theme park. Pupils were selected for the trip using the reward point system alongside positive behaviour data. The weather was very kind on all four trips and students spent the day having fun on the rides and exploring the zoo. The behaviour on all trips was exemplary and it was a pleasure for each Head of Year witnessing students appreciating their reward.

School of Physics ‐ University of Nottingham ‐ 11th July 2018 On 11th July a group of high ability Year 10 students went to visit the School of Physics at Nottingham University to gain an insight into university life. They spent time in the undergraduate labs where they learnt how to calibrate colorimeters and measure the efficiency of motors. They also got a tour of the campus, met current students who are studying physics and attended lectures.

Crest Award Primary Link Day ‐ 12th July 2018 A group of Year 9 students, Charlotte Henderson‐Gamble, Luke Fuller, Annabelle Stone, Jan Rzepa, Zana Zekaj, Bradley Wynne and Henry Cracknell, have been working hard over the last few months to organise a forensics day for Year 5 students from Cavendish Close and Parkview Primary School. The day was entirely planned and delivered by the Year 9s. The students spent the morning learning different techniques and the afternoon putting their skills to use to solve a crime. All the Year 9 students were exceptional and the Year 5s thoroughly enjoyed the day. The Year 9s are now writing a report about the project to be submitted to earn their silver CREST award.

Duke of Edinburgh’s Award It has been a very busy year for D of E at Lees Brook. We have had a record number of 101 students working towards their D of E Award and this year we have introduced the Silver Award, which has proven to be very popular, with 19 students working through the programme. We have also made significant investment into new equipment, including brand new tents, rucksacks, Trangia Stoves and waterproofs, for students to use on expedition. We thank the Rotary Club, Derby Lions and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award for their support with this. We have additional staff members working towards their outdoor leadership qualification to allow us to expand our provision further next year.

A Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is a fantastic achievement and we encourage all students at Lees Brook to take on the challenge. The award programme encourages young people to step outside of their comfort zone, gain new experiences and try different things. The Award helps young people to become team players, problem solvers and gives an amazing sense of achievement. The award is highly regarded by colleges, universities and many employers, as it encompasses the key attributes they look for.

The award programme consists of four sections, three of which students undertake in their own time and are of their own choosing; students are required to develop a new or existing skill, volunteer their time to make a difference in the community and learn a new/develop an existing physical activity. This year, there have been some excellent achievements, including volunteering with the PDSA, running marathons and learning to play musical instruments, to name but a few.

For the final section, the expedition, students are taught skills including map reading, navigation and First Aid, during a training day, before undertaking their expedition in the open countryside. Students walk in groups, carrying all their kit in a rucksack. Students navigate their way along a route that they have planned, stopping overnight at a campsite. The Bronze Award is open to all students in Year 9 and the Silver Award is open to all students in Year 10.

Bronze expeditions – Peak District Due to the high number of Year 9 students taking part this year, there have been two Bronze expeditions, with six walking groups in each. Students undertook a full practice expedition in spring and during June and July students have been undertaking their Assessed Expedition. Groups began their expedition in Hartington and navigated their way through the Peak District to a campsite in Thorpe, near Dovedale. At the campsite students set up their tents and cooked their evening meal on a Trangia Stove. The next morning students were up early to cook their breakfast, before packing away the camp and beginning the second day of their expedition, walking into the Manifold Valley. Throughout the two days, students walked a total of twenty two kilometres. Leaders were very impressed with the efforts of all students who took part and students had a great time. All students passed their Assessed Expedition.

Silver Award in Gloucestershire At Silver, students are required to walk for a total of three days in more challenging terrain. This year, students undertook their practice expedition near Hathersage, in the Peak District, where they further developed their skills to prepare for the Assessed Expedition.

In July, students undertook their 30km, Assessed Expedition in the Wye Valley and Forest of Dean, the second largest forest in England. Students began by walking north through the forest, following the Gloucestershire Way, to their first campsite in the Forest. On the second day students left the forest and walked into the beautiful Wye Valley, which straddles the border between England and Wales. Students camped in the Wye Valley before completing the final leg of their expedition, walking through the Wye Valley.

Students had an enjoyable time exploring a different part of the country and visiting a new campsite each day. All groups preformed outstandingly throughout their entire expedition, with faultless navigational skills. Leaders were extremely proud of all of the students involved in the expedition and hope that they progress on to complete their Gold Award.

Awards Evening In February, we held our first Duke of Edinburgh Awards Evening, to celebrate the success of students achieving their D of E Award last year. Special guests included the Mayor of Derby and Jackie Bull, the Midland Director for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, who spoke about our students’ achievement. There will be another Awards Evening in the new academic year to celebrate all those that have achieved their award this year.

How to start your award We have an excellent pass rate for the award, with all students expected to pass this year.

We will be enrolling our next group of Year 9 Bronze students in November 2018 and all of our current Bronze students will be invited to begin the Silver Award in September, continuing on their D of E journey.

There will be a Year 9 assembly in November and a parent information evening to provide more information around this time.

Year 9 Graphic Products: Print iT Competition Year 9 Graphic Products students entered a national competition where they had to design and promote either a Computer Game, Music Band or a Sports Brand and I am very pleased to announce some of our students won the Print iT competition this year with several students being highly commended!

Winners: Eloise Gordon Stables Jack Royle Leo Allgood

Highly Commended: Abbie Pattison Charlotte Read Evie Baker Ariana Martin‐Cleal Jodie Sharratt

We look forward to receiving the prizes, the winners will be awarded cameras from Fuji and the highly commended will be awarded books from Bloomsbury and Engineer records have donated a cd for each of the winners and highly commended. Photos to follow on Twitter soon!

Bombardier STEM club A group of Year 8 and 9 students have been working one‐to‐one with Bombardier employees and have gained a first‐hand knowledge of the processes carried out on the Derby‐based, Bombardier Transportation site. Students have been part of a process where they have developed a train from the start process, looking at interior and exterior design, right through to the development of traction and braking, as well as understanding the key parts and systems on a train. Within the STEM club students have developed problem solving, design, mathematical skills while experiencing a real life scenario.

On Wednesday 18th July, as part of the Bombardier STEM project, students visited the Bombardier factory in Derby to pitch their projects to the company. They had to present a bid to a panel of senior Bombardier representatives and had a tour around the site. All groups were fantastic and very professional. The winning group was Sub Zero who presented an excellent bid that Bombardier said was very professional. This experience has opened up opportunities of work experience and careers in engineering. Thank you to Bombardier and congratulations to the students who participated, a great experience to put on your CV and testimonial. SCHOOL UNIFORM

BLACK BLAZER The black uniform blazer with the school logo on the pocket must be worn at all times. It must be clean and smart. Damaged blazers must be repaired or replaced. Jumpers and cardigans are not permitted.

WHITE SHIRT A formal style white shirt with a stiffened collar must be worn under the blazer; it must be plain white with no logo of any kind. Shirts must not be see‐through or tight fitting. Collars must not be worn up around the neck; shirts must be tucked into skirts and trousers all the way round and not just tucked in at the front. Coloured T‐shirts must not be worn beneath the shirt.

SCHOOL TIE The school tie in the correct year group colour must be worn in a smart manner at all times. Ties must not be decorated with badges, pins, clips etc. If a student forgets their tie, they must borrow one from the school until theirs is replaced.

Year group colours: Year 11 – Red, Year 10 – Silver, Year 9 – Gold, Year 8 – Green, Year 7 – Blue.

BLACK SKIRTS Skirts must be plain black and of a formal cut. They must be no shorter than 2” above the knee, not tight and/or made of a stretchy material. Ankle length skirts are not permitted for safety reasons.

BLACK TROUSERS Trousers must be plain black and full length. Jeans, tracksuit bottoms and leggings/jeggings are not permitted (trousers with studs on will be classed as jeans). BELTS must be black with a standard buckle.

SHOES Shoes must be of a formal style and plain black (the rim around the shoe must also be black). Boots, canvas shoes, trainers or trainer type shoes will not be permitted. Heels must be no higher than 3 centimetres. *Boots can only be worn when there is snow or ice on the ground.

OUTDOOR COATS Outdoor coats must be smart and a dark colour; not display any offensive logos and taken off in all lessons. Less formal items, such as hooded tops and tracksuit tops are not permitted.

BAGS Bags must be big enough to hold an A4 folder. No offensive slogans, symbols or badges on bags, books or folders.

HAIR Extreme hairstyles or coloured hair are not permitted. In certain lessons, long hair must be tied back for health and safety reasons. Shaved patterns and tram lines are not permitted.

MAKE UP A minimum amount of make‐up is allowed eg light foundation and mascara. Students will be told to remove excessive make‐up. Lipstick is not permitted.

NAIL VARNISH Only neutral or clear varnish is allowed. Nail extensions are not permitted.

JEWELLERY Only one pair of modest sized ear studs and a wrist watch are allowed. A letter from parents requesting permission is required for any medical or religious items. All jewellery must be removed for PE and Dance lessons.

BODY PIERCINGS No body, tongue or face piercings are allowed even if they are covered with retainers or plasters.

PE KIT Indoor kit: Black T shirt, black shorts, sports socks and indoor trainers Outdoor kit: Black/orange reversible rugby shirt, long black socks, black shorts, black tracksuit bottoms or plain black leggings

DANCE KIT Black T shirt Black shorts/leggings

Out of Hours and Summer Safeguarding‐ Advice for Parents/Guardians Most of us look forward to the summer break with great excitement but for some young people it can be a time of anxiety especially for those who rely on regular face‐to‐face contacts with their friends or who enjoy the security and structure provided by the school day.

If you are concerned about any young person in respect of their emotional wellbeing or you feel that they are vulnerable to harm or abuse and you are uncertain whether they are receiving support you may wish to contact one of the agencies listed. Many of the agencies have established links and will ensure that your concern or query is directed to the appropriate agency.

• Call Derbyshire (Derbyshire County Council Social Services) 01629 593 193 • First Contact (Derby City Council Social Services): 01332 641172 • Child Line 0800 1111 • Online issues or exploitation contact Child Exploitation and Online Protection Agency (CEOP) https://www.ceop.police.uk/Ceop‐Report/ • Suspicion that a young person is at risk of Child Sexual Exploitation‐ contact Safe and Sound 01332 362120 • Advice, support and options if you, or someone you love, goes missing or runs away‐ 24 Hour Anonymous Helpline Text or Call 116 000 • Radicalisation/Extremist behaviour see advice on:

http://www.derbyshire.police.uk/Safety‐advice/Terrorism/Prevent‐Team/Prevent‐ Team.aspx

Or contact:

Police 101 (999 in an emergency) Crimestoppers UK 0800 555 111

The relaxed atmosphere of a summer break can also lead to young people lowering their guard. Please continue to talk to the young people in your care about online and social media safety and encourage them to share any concerns that they have about any contacts they receive. CEOP have an excellent website called “Think u know” which can be accessed on https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/ On the website there is a “Support Tools section on the top menu from which you can access a number of informative films which you may wish to watch on your own or with young people in your care.

Mrs S Hadwin (Designated Safeguarding Lead) July 2018