GOVE R NOR S ’ ANNUAL REPORT TO P AR E NT S FOR T H E SCHOOL YEAR 2002/2003
Contents 1 . Chair m an’s Welcome 2 . Agenda 3 . Member s hip of Governing B ody 4 . S t af f List 5 . H ome S chool Agreement 6 . H ighclif f e P r of ile: • Community Programme • Admissions • S EN Numbers • Looked after Children • Attendance • Exclus ions • S chool Day • S chool Term Dates • Panda Cat egor y • Free S chool Meals • Peripatetic Mu s i c L es s on s and T akeup • Uniform Grants • Awards 7 . S chool Priorities 2003-05 • Continuing Pr ofes s i onal Development • Per formance Management 8 . P olicy Framework of the Gover ning B ody 9 . I nclus ion Policy 10. R ew ar ds Policy 11. H ighclif f e Challenge 12. R ew ar ds and Mot ivation 13. S E N Policy (under review 14. E xaminat ions 2003 15. S ub Committee R epor t s ( i) Community Links ( ii) Cur r iculum ( iii) F inance ( iv) P r em is es 16. P ar ent al response slips
T his document has been prepared i n accordance wi th the DfES guidance “Gover nor s ’ Annual Reports and S chool Prospectuses in S econdary S chools” fr om May 2002. Prospectuses for both main school and the s i x th form are published i n the Oct ober pr eceding nor mal year of entry (eg for September 2004). The s chool provides parents with a Wel come Pack of useful information at the New Parents ’ E v eni ng hel d i n the Jul y preceding nor mal entry in S eptember.
Pleas e br ing thi s report with you to the Gover nor s ’ Annual Parents’ Meeting Chair man’s Welcome November 2003
On behalf of the Gover ning B ody I would l ik e to welcome you all to our Annual Meeting i n 2003 and i n particular our new par ents .
T his last year has seen further significant developments at Highcliffe S chool. T he Gover nor s continue to be fully focused on the need to pr ovide the bes t possible education for our students. There can be no doubt that we have a very high standard of teaching s taff at the s chool who effectively monitor and encourage ever yone to per for m at the ver y best of their ability.
Our results in 2003 have again been excellent and we anticipate that our res ults in 2004 will also demons tr ate our further progression as a t op s chool in Dors et. Can I take this oppor tuni ty of congratulating on your behalf all the s tudents who took GCSE’s and A levels in 2003, they have again been a cr edi t to the s chool.
We ar e delighted at the s ubs tantial increase in the number of our Year 11 s tudents who s at their GCSE’s in the s ummer and who have decided to r emain at Highcliffe to s tudy for their A levels . They clearly have been encouraged by our A level results and al s o the ex citing oppor tuni ti es that we have to offer.
T here ar e maj or building wor k s in progress at Highcliffe. We have a new Drama S t udi o and we will soon have a new Des ign and T echnology Block, which is currently under construction and wi l l again suppor t the S chool’s philosophy of creating the ver y best learning envir onment for our students.
We believe that there is a t hr ee- way partnership, which has to function s uccessfully if we ar e to ens ur e that we achieve our mutual objectives. I am talking of the S tudent, the S chool and you, the Par ents . Please s uppor t the s chool wherever you can, and thi s includes attending our Annual Meeting, which is your chance to talk to Gover nor s on the impor tant issues. Last year the attendance at this meeting was again very disappointing. However we do s incerely hope that we will see an increase in the number of parents this year.
Finally, I hope that you find thi s Report both informative and i nter es ti ng. I would l i k e to thank everyone in our Community for all their best efforts in ens uring that Highcliffe is an ambitious with, yes, rapidly improving s chool.
Martin Axton Chair of Governors ANNUAL PARENTS' MEET I NG 4 t h DE CE MB E R 2003 - 7.30 p.m.
T he Gover nor s welcome this oppor tunity to meet with parents to dis cuss any item aris ing fr om the R epor t, or any other issues concerning the gener al running of the s chool. We as k parents to accept that this meeting is an inappr opr iate for um in which to r ais e individual matters relating to s tudents or staff. In these cir cums tances , pleas e contact the s chool to mak e an appointment with the Headteacher or member of staff as appr opr iate.
T he pur pos e of the Annual Meeting is to pr ovide an oppor tunity for parents to dis cuss the Annual Report and the manner in which the Gover nor s , the Head and the L E A have dis char ged their responsibilities to the s chool.
I t is to be noted that there wer e no r es olutions taken from the AGM l as t year.
AGE NDA
1. Welcome par ents
2. Apologies
3. I ntroduction of Governors
4. Governors ' Report - discussion
5. Res olutions - under the r egulations for the conduct of these meetings , a vot e may be tak en only if a quor um is present. For a r es ol ut i on to be valid the number of parents present at the meeting mus t be equal to at least 20% of the number of registered s tudents . For this meeting 2 25 parents must be pres ent.
6. T he F utur e - Governors would welcome par ents ' views in look ing to the futur e of the s chool.
7. A.O.B. Member s hip of the Gover ning B ody
Mr Jeremy ALLIN Vice Chair Conings ley House, Vaggs Lane, Tiptoe, 01425 620427 Partners hip Gover nor Nr. Lymington, Hants, SO41 OFP to S ept 2007 Mr Martin AXT ON Chair 10 Freshwater Road, Friars Cliff, Christchurch, 01425 276971 Partners hip Gover nor BH23 4PD to S ept 2007 Mr Ben BARNETT 86 Farnham Road, Poole, Dorset BH12 1PS 01202 383636 Partners hip Gover nor & BOWMAN, BAE SYSTEMS (CDI), New Filton to July 2007 Hous e, Filton, Bristol, BS34 7QW Mrs S us an CONNELLY 47 Ridgefield Gar dens , Highcliffe, Christchurch, 01425 273262 Parent Governor to BH23 4QG 2006 Mr Mathew DOWNS Highcliffe S chool 01425 273381 S taff Governor to July 2005 Mrs Mandy GARDI NER 1 Pipers Drive, Mudeford, Christchurch 01425 275019 Parent Governor to BH23 4TR Oct 2007 Mrs Chris tine KI NG Highcliffe S chool 01425 273381 T eacher Governor to Oct 2005 Capt John LOFT S 55 Wortley Road, Highcliffe, Christchurch 01425 271972 LEA Gover nor to July BH23 5DR 2007 Mrs Myra MAWBEY ‘Hathaways ’, 16 Wharncliffe R d. , Highcliffe, LEA Gover nor to July Chris tchurch, BH23 5DD 2007 Mr Philip MI LLS Highcliffe S chool 01425 273381 T eacher Governor to May 2005 Mr Peter MOS ELEY T inkers ' Revel, 1C live R oad, Highcliffe, 01425 270760 Parent Governor to Chris tchurch, BH23 4NX Oct 2004 Ms Judith POTTS Highcliffe S chool 01425 273381 Headteacher Mrs Julie S AWDON S tanpit House, 69 S tanpit, Mudeford, 01202 470786 Parent Governor to Chris tchurch, BH23 3LX 2006 Mr Harry S HARP 157 Hightown Road, Ringwood, Hants, 01425 474221 Partners hip Gover nor BH24 1NL to S ept 2007 Mr Graham S MI T H 17 S eafield R oad, Christchurch BH23 4ED 01425-270974 Parent Governor to Mar ch 2005 Mr S tephen WHI T E 34 Glenville R oad, Walkford, Highcliffe, 01425 272650 Parent Governor Chris tchurch, BH23 5PY to Oct 2007 H ighcliffe S chool 11 – 18 Foundation School and L anguage College
Name of S tudent: ……………………………………………… T u t or Group ………… D at e …………..
H OME -S CH OOL AGREEMENT T he S chool will try to: ♣ addr ess all forms of bullying wher e it comes to light. ♣ ens ure that it cares for the health, safety, welfare and happi ness of each student. ♣ provide an education that harnesses the potential of each child to encour age them to r each the highes t standards. ♣ fos ter the mor al, cultural and s pi r i tual aspect of education. ♣ contact parents over concerns about their child’s work or behaviour. ♣ monitor attendance and punctuality carefully and wor k with students, parents and the E ducational Welfare Officer as soon as a pr obl em is perceived. ♣ s et and mar k home s tudy regularly. ♣ check use of home s tudy organisers. ♣ provide r egular information in the for m of National Curriculum levels/GCS E grades, reports and an annual parents’ cons ul t at i on evening. ♣ keep par ents informed about school events through, for example, regular newsletters, letters for s pecific act i v i t i es . ♣ encourage s tudents to car e for local community and s chool environment to and fr om school. ♣ fos ter use of I nformation Communication T echnology (I CT ) where possible.
T he Par ents will try to: ♣ work with school to s uppor t high expectation based on their child’s potential. ♣ let the s chool know of concerns that may affect their child’s education. ♣ s uppor t the s chool’s policies for behaviour including r ules about uniform (and cycl e helmets if applicable) and the s anctions applied. ♣ ens ure that the child i s punctual and attends school regularly providing a good r eas on in a not e when required. ♣ encourage a r es pect for local community and s chool environment. ♣ encourage and s uppor t their child i n completing home s tudy. ♣ s ign the S chool Organiser regularly. ♣ s uppor t the child i n organising the br inging to s chool of correct equipment. ♣ attend par ents ’ cons ul t at i on evenings as necessary. ♣ s how inter es t in the life of the s chool.
T he S tudent will try to: ♣ be polite and hel pful to all members of the s chool community. ♣ take r es pons ibility for his/her own actions and be pos itive about improvement towards targets. ♣ do class and home s tudy as well as he/she can, using S chool Organiser as a det ailed r ecor d and planning tool. ♣ bring the correct equipment to s chool. ♣ wear school uniform and obey the r ules . ♣ s how car e of surroundings by helping to keep the s chool free of litter and gr affiti. ♣ behave s uitably on the way to and fr om school whatever the for m of transport. ♣ s how r es pect to the member s of our school and the wider community. ♣ us e the s chool’s ICT provision as set out in the guidelines. ♣ act in a manner that is mindful of his/her own and other s health and s afety.
S ignature of Parent/Guardian …………………………………….. Signature of Student …………………………… Date H OME / S CH OOL AGREEMENT
Our Goal: Parents are bet t er informed and involved
T hroughout your son/daughter’s career at Highcliffe we wil l work together to ens ure that you are both informed and i nvol ved, most appr opr i atel y, about their curriculum plan, development and pr ogr ess.
ARRANGEMENTS: ST UDENT DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESS
P r ogr ess Check T his is an interim check on the attainment, attitude and pr ogr ess of each s tudent. The pur pos e of this Progress Check is to k eep you updated about the progress being made in each subject area. It will also allow faculty areas and tutors to identify students where fur ther suppor t or action is required.
T he F ull Student Profile T he s tudent profile gives a full report on the attainment, attitude and pr ogr ess in each subject area and i ncl udes their current level of attainment set against national criteria. To identify the potential in all students and to s et challenging targets for them, data of prior performance and fr om cognitive abi lities tests are us ed to s et challenging tar gets for them. Individual subject-based l ear ni ng targets that suppor t student progress are r ecor ded on the pr ofile. The pr ocess of reporting to par ents will increasingly give you information about the progress made by your son/daughter towards these tar gets .
P ar ent s ’ Evenings are held for each year group after receipt of your s on/daughter’s profile.
P ublic E x am i n at i on Results Parents will receive S AT S results at the end of Year 9.
I nt er im meet ings with specific s t aff as required. Occas i on al l y there may be a s peci fi c n eed to meet in addition to thos e above. Please contact the s chool to mak e an appointment. We will respond at the ear liest point. Remember if you arrive at school without an appoi ntment the member of staff that you need to s ee will most likely be teaching.
T he intr oduction of the Or ganis er provides parents, specialist teachers and your son/daughter’s tutor, the oppor tuni ty to s har e points of progress, items of news and i tems for recognition, clarification/resolution.
We have als o intr oduced for students 14-19 their own I ndividual Learning P lan and t ar get s to k eep abr eas t of their development and futur e pathway. T his will include –
1. Current studies/options. 2. Planned choi ces for post–16 studies (based on prior achievements and target grades). 3. Career pathways or directions.
T he annual T ut or Evening provides the oppor tuni ty parents and tutor s to focus on topics relevant to our students’ devel opment .
W I DE R DEVELOPMENTS
Our July Year 6 into 7 Parents’ W elcome P ack provided at the July I nduction Evening for parents prior to S eptember start.
T he Curriculum Booklet 14-19 Dis tributed to s tudents and par ents in Year 9 as part of the planning pr ocess for stating their 14-19 programme and pr efer ences .
T he I nt r anet Site for parents and visitor s Parents can access this site which is now under development. The webs ite addr ess is: www.highcliffe.dorset.sch.uk
T he S chool Newsletter: H2U Produced by our News Team; usually two per term.
S pecif ic l etters: for example Activities , Trips and Vi s i ts organised by staff throughout the year .
T he H ighcliffe Calendar We ar e always pleased to s ee par ents getting involved i n the life of the s chool by supporting per for mances and events .
You, as parents, have s uppor ted both your child/children and the s chool. Here ar e some examples:
• Ens uring that your child attends school and i s punctual • Avoiding tr affic con ges t i on and potenti al hazards at the main school gate • Providing full school uniform, PE kit and equi pment for your child • Ens uring that your child complies with the dr ess and j ewellery code • Encouraging your child to manage litter and chewing gum in a pos i t i ve way • Providing a war m, private s pace for homes tudy and assisting your child with homes tudy as and wher e appr opr i ate • Attending, where appr opr i ate, Maths Catch Up cl asses and other extra activities • Enabling your child to attend S ci ence S ummer School ensuring that it was a great success • Attending par ents ’ eveni ngs and tutor evenings • T aking par t in the Highcliffe S chool Association (H.S .A.) and s uppor ti ng fund rais ing events • S uppor ti ng and enj oyi ng a r ange of performances including Global Rock at the B our nemouth Pavilion • Attending the L anguage L ear ning s essions at Highcliffe with your son or daughter • Providing funds for student refreshments and l unch • Helping your son or daughter take par t in extra curricular sport and clubs • Making s ur e that your son or daughter’s kit and possessions are clear ly named i n case they end up i n ‘lost property’ • Monitoring and mak i ng us e of your son or daughter’s Student Organiser • Actively encouraging and pr ovi di ng funds so that your son or daughter can participate in trips and vi s i ts • Bringing to our attention and/or helping to r es olve issues which affect your s on or daughter’s well being and s uccess • Encouraging and pr omoti ng your son or daughter’s respect and appr eci ati on for the community and s chool environment • Being a Gover nor of the s chool • Promoting s por t, recreation and l ei s ur e inter es ts through your active s uppor t and networ k s • Providing oppor tuni ti es for work experience and wor k related pr oj ects and activities • Being able and wi l ling to mak e a vol unt ar y and val uabl e contr ibution to S chool Fund • Attending the Gover nor s ’ Annual Parents’ E veni ng and mor e !!
Over all, you invest a cons ider able amount of time, care, love and s uppor t to help your children develop str ong self esteem, confidence, pos it ive values and develop their capability to learn well from an early age. H I GH CL I FFE SCHOOL: PROFI LE
Cat egor y Foundation 11 – 19 mixed compr ehens i ve Partner school of the Chr i s tchur ch S ixth Form Des ignated S peci al i s t S chool (1.9.2000) Language Col l ege
D es ignat ed Feeder Schools – H ighcliffe P yr amid Brans gor e Pr i mar y S chool Brockenhurst Primary S chool Highcliffe Juni or School Hordle Pr i mar y School S t Luke’s Primary S chool T iptoe Pr i mar y School
Mission “Our mission is to es tablish, for all our students, a challenging and pr oducti ve l ear ni ng environment which is both academically and vocati onal l y relevant.
We s eek to s har e wi th our family of schools and our local community the oppor tuni ti es , res ources and ex per ti s e neces s ar y to r ais e s tandar ds of achievement and par ti ci pati on at all ages , in the s tudy and appr eci ati on of foreign languages and cul tur es .
We ai m to equi p our students of all levels of ability with the s k ills, knowledge and attitudes they need to enter into r ewar di ng empl oyment or training as further steps along a pat h of life- long l ear ni ng. ”
Our Goal T o ens ur e that all students learn to thei r full potential in an informed, caring and s uppor ti ve environment and that challenging l ear ning ex per i ences develop s tudents as successful confident young adul ts .
Our Vision “I believe in using what you have, instead of mourning for that which you do not. I n t hir t y years time, I want to be able t o look back at my youth and know that I used my talents fully: that I wasted nothing.” – A H ighcliffe S t udent . Community Programme As part of our Specialist School (Language College) Plan we have been developing our links and pr ovis ion at Highcliffe.
T his year at Highcliffe we have: Developed our Twilight Language L ear ning Pr ogr amme Held a F ami l y Learning Day (MFL/S aturday workshop) Embarked on broadening our joint provision with the Adult Education Centre in Christchurch Developed our global network of partner schools and acti vi ti es (Germany, France, Japan, South Africa)
P r imar y School and Pyr amid Activities S taff and s tudents undertake to wor k with primary schools . Examples include:
Regular teaching in Modern Foreign Languages (week ly) Regular teaching in Expressive and Per for mi ng Ar ts (week ly) Common Pyramid Pr oj ects “One World Ar ts Project” acr oss Christchurch Providing technical support through the S uppor t Agreement for Information, Communication T echnology (ICT)
Chr is t church: T hree s econdar y schools working together Chr is t church Sixth With our Partner Schools (Grange and T wynham) we have r eviewed the collaborative model introduced to deliver sixth form provision (1998). Parent/s tudent feedback has informed thi s review. As numbers are now appr oachi ng s ome 500 students (Christchurch S ixth) we have now enter ed a period of developing the Highcliffe-based curriculum provision. T his now means substantial programme is available her e at Highcliffe. S tudents can travel to enj oy wider oppor tuni ti es within the collaborative arrangements, but this is becoming less of a necessity and mor e an individual choice.
We anticipate that through the ear ly expression of student course pr efer ences we will be planning an even wider programme bas ed at Highcliffe nex t year. Our collaborative arrangements are mor e focus ed on sharing good pr acti ce, training and devel opment work between colleagues in Christchurch and l ess emphas is on shared curriculum delivery of subjects to s tudent groups.
A common Action Plan (LI G) T his is emphasised in our common Action Plan under the L eader s hip I ncenti ve Grant (LI G) aimed at continuing to impr ove and r ai s e s tandar ds overall. Colleagues from each school form teams to tack le common areas for development. S chool Based T eacher Training ( S CI TT) across Bournemouth and Poole Highcliffe has entered i nto a par t ner s hi p wi th 13 other establishments to develop a for mal organisational arrangement for continuing pr ofessional development. A s pecial focus will be s har ed tr ai ni ng of colleagues new to teaching thr ough various schemes (DfES ).
H ighcliffe L anguage College : Local T raining Centr e S t at us During the s ummer the S pecialist S chools T rus t awarded Highcliffe L ocal T raining Centr e S tatus in MFL. We will work within the r egion to pr omote and develop MF L teaching.
I nves ting in our s tudents ; promoting oppor tunities for greater participation in their school. Admissions (as of January Plas c 2003)
Number on Roll 1124 as per return 17th Jan
Age Dob Boys Girls 11 1.9.89 – 31.8.90 112 99 12 1.9.88 – 31.8.89 98 116 13 1.9.87 – 31.8.88 114 104 14 1.9.86 – 31.8.87 100 116 15 1.9.85 – 31.8.86 96 90 16 1.9.84 – 31.8.85 19 24 17 1.9.83 – 31.8.84 15 20 18 1.9.82 – 31.8.83 1 0
T otal Boys 555 Girls 569
H ighcliffe S ixt h Form: (as of S eptember 2003 Plas c r et u r n ) 172
S t andar d admission number 210 for 2002/03 (Des ignated S even Form entry: ) Students are or ganis ed i nto eight tutor groups.
Applications received for Year 7 September intake 2003 - 271 first pr ef er ences at closing date.
Number on roll for Year 7 as of S eptember Form 7: 219
S E N Numbers
T otal SEN S tatements - 16 Cognitive & Lear ning - 2 Behaviour, Emotional and S oci al - 8 Communication & I nter action - 4 S ens ory & Phys ical - 2
T otal School Action Plus - 38 (+5 in S ixth form) T otal School Action - 104 (+5 in S ixth form)
T otal SEN register - 158 (+10 in S ixth Form)
L ooked Af t er Children T here wer e 4 look ed after children in the las t academic y ear and currently 4 in this academic y ear .
Attendance
Aut hor is ed Absences 7 % (last year 7.3% )
U naut hor is ed Absences 0.2% (last year 0.2% )
T he level of unauthorised abs ence has levelled out at a r el ati vel y low r ate. Attendance P olicy By law, all children of compulsory school age ( between 5 and 16) must get a full-time education.
Continuous attendance and good punctual i ty are essential for each student to learn well, develop r el ati ons hi ps and bui l d upon their previous best. We ex pect all students to be at school, in their tutor room, ready for morning r egis tr ation at 8.35.
By law we ar e r equir ed to indicate on the r egis ter whether a s t udent is pres ent, engaged i n an appr oved educati onal activity off site, or absent. We mus t also dis tinguis h between authorised and unauthor i s ed abs ence. In our efforts to encour age good time-keeping we will give an hour’s detention to any s tudent who is late without good r eas on on two or more occas i on s in a week . We wor k closely with the L ocal Education Authority’s Education Welfare Officers who monitor attendance and hel p par ents to meet their responsibilities if there are any problems.
As parents you can help by: • Ens uring that your child comes to s chool regularly, arrives on time and obeys the s chool’s rules. • Making s ur e that your child under s tands that you would not approve of him or her missing s chool. • Contacting the s chool on the fir s t day of your child’s absence and confi r mi ng in writing the r eas on for the abs ence when the child r etur ns to s chool. • As king well in advance s hould you need per mi ssion for your child to miss s chool for a s peci al reason or medical appointment. • Avoiding tak i ng your child on holiday during ter m time – especially when he or she s hould be tak ing ex ams or tests. The law s ays that you do not have the r ight to tak e your child on holiday during ter m time without the permission of the Headteacher. Appl i cati on forms are avai lable fr om the tutors . • T aking an interest in your child’s s chool work and s uppor ti ng the s chool in its efforts.
T he r ew ar ds for good attendance ar e: • S ecure lear ning and r el ati ons hi ps • Less “catch up” wor k to do • A cer tificate for full attendance – awarded termly
Our target is to r educe the number of days lost through authorised abs ence.
Aut hor is ed Absence (as defined by DfES ) • S ickness or other unavoidable caus e ( s uch as hospital treatment). • A day of religious observance by the r eligious body to which the par ents belong. • Leave of absence gr anted. • Attendance at another school. • Late arrival at school with good r eas on. • Exclus ion.
U naut hor is ed Absence is any absence for which the r eas on is not known or authority has not been given.
E xclus ions T here was one per manent exclusion in the las t academic y ear (Year 8 boy). T here has been one per manent exclusion in the current academic y ear (Year 8 boy).
T he pr es ent School Day is:
8.35 a.m. to 1 .20 p.m. 2.15 p.m. to 3 .20 p.m.
During the teaching day there ar e pr es ently 5 teaching per iods , four in the morning and one in the after noon, each of one hour ’s duration. Progression routes being tak en by Year 11 Students (2003)
Des tination Percentage Pos t 16 Education and T r ai ni ng 98% Other 2%
S chool T erm Dates (2004 – 2005) T his is the bas ic pattern of term dates. Dates for Staff T raining day have to be decided and ther e may be s light adjustments made to the bas ic cal en dar to allow for addi ti onal activities.
Aut umn S pr ing S ummer T erm S tart 01/09/2004 04/01/2005 11/04/2005 Half T erm Break 25/10/2004 14/02/2005 30/05/2005 Half T erm Restart 01/11/2004 21/02/2005 06/06/2005 End of T erm 17/12/2004 24/03/2005 22/07/2005
P anda Cat egor y 5 – 9% as of 2002/03
F r ee S chool Meals - 49
Number of students receiving P er ipatetic Mu s i c l es s on s 2002/03 Guitar 54 Drums 37 Flute 17 S axophone/clar inet 8 116
Number of Uniform Grant Applications 2002/03 11 2003/04 9
Aw ar ds S pecialist Schools Trust Awards T he s chool achieved the “Gr and S l am” of all three awar ds which we r epor ted earlier in the year in H2U.
GCS E Performance 2 002 – 70% Club Value Added Awar d I mproved S chool Award
British Council I nt er nat ional School Award Las t year we had done enough to as pir e to s ubmit our action plan for developing an international ethos and pr ogr amme to pr omote “inter national citizens hip wi thi n and acr oss the curriculum.” With everyone’s help we s et about developing this aspect in our curriculum. Each edition of H2U gave us an oppor tuni ty to s har e developments and we wer e delighted to be notified i n Augus t that we had been successful. No mean feat! Only some 360 schools nationally have managed to s atis fy the r equir ements since the awar d was launched in the late 1990s. This not an end but only the beginning…
We have been appr oached by the B r itis h Council to twin with Padma S es hadri Bala S eni or Secondary School in Nungambakkam in I ndia t o mentor them towards securing the s ame awar d. The B r itis h Council have a maj or project with a gr oup of schools in I ndia who want to “go for it” as we did. Addi ti onally, Highcliffe has appeared i n two lead ar ti cl es in national (TES) and l ocal news papers (Your Dorset) for our work in this area. We ar e now putting i n place a world-wide networ k .
We have j us t really begun to “s cr atch the s ur face” of how our link with the Britis h Council and networ k might be br ought into play to impr ove the r ange of oppor tuni ti es for all at Highcliffe. Our “global teacher” Mr . Coughlan has led this initiative well to this stage and a br oader “international team” has been set up to help tak e it on a pace.
B uilding Bridges Partnership w ith Ballard S chool New Milton Acting mor e locally to impr ove oppor tuni ty, with the enthus ias m and har dwork of Mr Pearce, we s ubmitted a bi d wi th Ballard S chool to the DfES for addi ti onal funding under this scheme. Our intention is to wor k together on quite tightly focus ed ar eas to ex tend oppor tuni ti es , making the mos t of each other’s s trengths and assets so they can be us ed to ex tend l ear ni ng oppor tuni ties , es pecially for students who have par ticular talents. Transport has been a k ey to opening up thes e oppor tuni ti es and ther e may be a Chr i s t mas surprise in s tore! We will keep ever yone pos ted thr ough H2U.
W olf s on Foundation Award Las t term our Science team, keen to impr ove fur ther and enhance the refurbis hment work in the labor ator ies already in hand, decided to mak e a bi d for addi ti onal funding for new equipment and other complementary resources. We have been visited by the assessor and now ar e awaiting the res ult which is due ar ound Chr i s tmas . We will again keep you posted thr ough H2U!
S ummer School (Dorset LEA bid) Our team, eager to develop pr ovi s i on for gifted and tal ented s tudents , committed thems el ves to r unning a S ummer School for Year 7 students. Again their initiative and har d wor k paid off and by all accou n t s it was greatly appr eci ated and a s uccess. The L E A evaluation report has been very positive about the r ange of activities offered and the enthus ias m of both staff and s tudents alike.
T hes e ar e only some of the ex amples of the s uccessful projects which secured awards in the las t period. Some ar e s till to come into fr uition. H2U throughout the year tries to k eep ever yone infor med about these activities . GOI NG F OR IT IN 2003/04 S por t s mar k We ar e k een to develop our sporting pr ovis ion and have been working har d to get things in place to r eally move for war d on the playing fields . The team here at Highcliffe have decided to tr y to achieve the S ports mark award as a mar k er along the way.
Ar t s mar k Again we ar e cons ider ing this award as a means of pressing for war d i n this area. We have s ome ex cellent examples of work and s uch a br oad s et of criteria coul d help us to evaluate what we do and what else we might develop s o that we have a br oad pl atfor m in place.
L ear ning and S kills Council Award News has just been received that we have been successful in securing addi ti onal funding to s uppor t the r ais ing of grades (level 2) in Key Stage 4 . T his project will help s ome of the “boos ter ” s tr ategies we ar e developing and putting in place to help our students do even better.
S CH OOL PRIORITIES 2003-05 W H OL E SCHOOL PRIORITIES
We continue to monitor and r eview our work, building upon the for mal reviews in the pr evious period. This included par ent and s tudent surveys and feedback as well as some ex ter nal consultant/inspector faculty reviews. During the coming year the s chool will revisit parent/student experiences and vi ews as a biennial cycle.
T he following s tr ands and obj ecti ves have been framed following on from our review pr ocesses.
S T R ANDS : (A-C)
A Developing our ethos and cultur e as a lear ning community
1. Ens ure that all staff can contribute to the pos itive cultur e of the s chool 2. Engage par ents and ex ter nal agencies in suppor t strategies for students 3. Engage s tudents in the development of their school 4. Develop academi c t u t or i n g and s uppor t processes 5. Develop our networks and s ys tems to enable ear lier intervention to s uppor t students who ar e in need of learning s uppor t plans or extension plans 6. Extend oppor tuni ti es to lear n more widely 7. I mprove s ys tems for recording and tr ack ing attendance 8. Extend oppor tunities for professional research and di al ogue for improving provis ion and r ai s i ng s tandar ds 9. Continue to r ais e es teem and moti vati on through participation, recognition and r ewar ds 10. I mprove the quality and r ange of the lear ning envir onment and faci l i ti es to deliver the curriculum 11. Cons olidate our Specialist S chool and L anguage College pr ogr amme including 12. T he inter national dimension.
B Developing the quality and r ange of teaching and lear ning styles and s t r at egies
1. Developing the policy and pr ovis ion for our gifted and tal ented s tudents 2. Maintaining and ex tendi ng the K ey Stage 3 Strategy in line wi th National Framework 3. Reviewing the 14 – 19 programme, increasing appl ied GCS E and vocational elements 4. Reviewing and updati ng ( accor dingly) schemes of work across the s chool 5. I ncreas ing the r ange of exemplar material and gui dance acr oss the s chool 6. Embeddi ng lesson observation, feedback and outcomes into timetabled day-to-day practices 7. Achieving gr eater consistency in the implementation of our homes tudy programme 8. Making better use of assessment strategies and data t o infor m teaching and l ear ni ng 9. Continuing to develop our capacity to ex ploit I CT for teaching and learning
C. Developing and empow er ing leader ship and management
1. Review and r evi s e, where appr opr i ate, Leadership and Management roles and r es pons i bi l i ti es 2. Develop the s tr ategic r ol e of the Gover ning B ody and Gover nor s 3. Cons olidate our new Per for mance Management policy and pr ocesses 4. Continue to develop and ex tend qual i ty assurance s tr ategies 5. Extend s uppor t to develop colleagues in their professional roles as both leaders and manager s and i n their effectiveness
T he s chool is in the latter stages of finalising the S chool Progress Plan drawing upon more r ecent performance data and anal ys i s . Data s y s t ems are developing to infor m teaching and l ear ni ng and s et targets. T he s chool also tak es part in an LEA annual cycle of school reviews.
Cont inuing Pr ofessional Development (CPD) S taff training is developing via a number of routes and s tr ategi es including national, local and L E A networ k s . A developing s tr ength is the ability to deliver good qual i ty training fr om within the s chool. T ypical areas have cover ed: T he K ey Stage 3 Strategy 14-19 developments As pects of teaching and lear ning Monitoring and mentor ing Assessment and tar get setting Data handl i ng and anal ys i s Behaviour Management I nformation Communication T echnologies I nclus ion Health and s afety Cours e s pecifications and br iefings
T he s chool is taking oppor tuni ti es provided by national initiatives related to the new professional framework. For example: NPQH (National Professional Qualification for Heads hip) Online cour s es offered thr ough the new National College for School Leadership (NCS L) Advanced S k i lls Teachers (2) Leading teacher s in Key S tage 3 Fas t track route for new teacher s (1) Appl yi ng for Serving Fas t T rack Teacher status I nduction T raining for new teacher s Our Graduate T eacher Programme ( 2 )
A well as developing our capacity to offer more thr ough local and nati onal networks (noted ear lier)
P er f or mance Management T he s chool has reviewed i ts arrangements and conti nues to develop our s ys tems in line with national requirements. All newly qualified s taff benefit from a pr ogr amme of continuous suppor t, mentoring and r evi ew as part of their formal Induction Programme. We ar e delighted to r epor t that all these members of staff successfully completed thei r induction year. Appl i cati ons for T hres hold Assessment have been successful and a s i mi l ar picture holds true for progression on the Upper Pay Scale.
T he Headteacher and L eader s hi p team arrangements for Performance Management are included wi thi n this framework.
P olicy Framework of the Gover ning B ody During the las t three year s , we have been reviewing the Policy Framework of the Gover ning B ody in line with national legislation and r equi r ements . This has been a cons i der abl e tas k . We anticipate that this will continue thr oughout the next few year s in terms of drafting new policies and r evi ewi ng ex is ting ones . I n this report we have included s ome ex amples of policy to illustrate our work. Our newly formed I ncl us i on Policy, for example, also s ets the ethos and practical requirement to develop our Rewards Strategy to encour age and reward s tudent participation in trying out many oppor tuni ti es to dis cover their interes ts , talents and potenti al .
We have been developing the Highcliffe Challenge for some time and have j us t launched it this year. Essentially it is a l ear ni ng fr amewor k to over lay across the curriculum and i s cumulative acr oss a K ey Stage and ar eas of experience. Again, we aim to pr omote a “have a go” ethos in a s uppor ti ve cultur e. To develop s tudent responsibility and l ear ni ng s k i lls the MyHighcliffe ar ea has proved popul ar with our students. With experience and r efi nement, it should prove to be a power ful learning tool suppor ted by our academic t u t or i n g provis ion. Parent access to MyHighcliffe will shortly be made available and par ents will be informed s epar atel y about this.
We have als o included our SEN policy which is currently being r edr afted to meet the new r equir ements which have been introduced.
P olicies renewed/updated P olicies to be r eview ed Admissions Policy Child Pr otecti on Anti-Bullying Poli cy Collective Wor s hi p Assessment Policy Data and I nfor mati on Management Attendance Policy Governing B ody S tanding Or der s & Arrangements Behaviour Management Policy Lettings Career Education & Guidance Policy Literacy Policy Work Experience Policy Modern Languages Spelling Poli cy I nternational Policy Non-S moking Policy Work Experience Heal th & S afety Policy Numeracy Policy Citizens hip Pol i cy S ixth Form Version: Home S chool Agreement Cover Policy S pecial Educational Needs Curriculum Policy S pelling Poli cy Dres s Code S uppor ti ng Pupil s with Medical Needs Drugs & Dr ugs Abuse Policy S chool Security Policy Gifted and T al ented Pol i cy Accessibility Policy Home S chool Agreement Home S tudy Policy I nclus ion Policy I nformation & Communication T echnology Marking Policy Per formance Management Racial Equality Policy Rewards Policy S ex & R elations hips Education Policy Continuing Pr ofes s i onal Development
I NCL U S I ON POLI CY Nat ional Curriculum T his school endorses the National Curriculum statement on I nclus ion which s tates the pr inciples essential to the curriculum. This statement embodies the intent that dis application from any part of National Curriculum should be k ept to a mi ni mum. Def init ion I nclus ion means providing effective lear ning oppor tuni ti es for all students. An inclus ive curriculum: a) S ets suitable lear ning challenges for all b) Res ponds to the diver s e lear ning needs of all c) Overcomes potential barriers to lear ning and assessment for individuals and groups of students.
I nclus ion becomes a par t i cul ar issue for students who: Have s pecial educational needs S how ability much above or much below their chronological age Have emotional/behaviour al barriers to lear ning Have a nat i ve language other than English Have a phy s i cal condition which impairs their sight, hearing, speech, mobility Have interrupted s chooling becaus e of illness or parental mobility
Det ails of the I nclusive Curriculum a) Learning chal lenges T eachers need to adapt the pr ogr ammes of study to tak e accou n t of the abilities of their students, where necessary using content from earlier or later Key Stages. In providing for more able s tudents , teachers may plan further differentiation by extending the br eadth and depth of study or by drawing on the content of different subjects. Students falling s ignificantly below expectations for the K ey S tage, may need to us e the Pr ogr amme of S tudy as a context for appr opr i ate lear ning. b) Divers ity of needs T eachers should have high expectations of all, regardless of sex, ability, dis ability, social/cultural/ethnic back gr ou n d, linguis tic back gr ou n d. Teachers need to plan their teaching s tr ategies so that all can make effective us e of lessons. They should: ♣ create effective lear ning envir onments ♣ s ecure s tudent motivation ♣ provide equality of opportunity through teaching appr oaches ♣ us e appr opr i ate assessment procedures ♣ s et targets for learning. c) Overcoming barriers Barriers to lear ning may exist because a s t udent has a s peci al educational need ( whi ch can have a var i ety of causes), a di s abi l i t y or has insufficient knowledge of the language of delivery. S pecific act i on to pr ovide access to lear ning might include additional planning, language s uppor t, helping s tudents manage their emotions and behavi our and enabling s tudents in KS 4 to pr epar e for work.
P r ovis ion for Inclusion I n Highcliffe S chool, the following methods are us ed to ens ur e inclus ion: 1. Documentation – the ideals of inclusion are embodied i n: School Pros pectus , Staff Handbook , Home-School Agreement 2. Learning S uppor t – provision under the S E N Code of Practice ( s ee s eparate handbook for details), including i n- cl ass support and s pecialist teaching 3. Pas toral Care – suppor ti ng s tudents who have emotional/behavioural barriers to lear ning; enabling all to benefit from the curriculum provided 4. Couns elling/Mentoring – individual contact with trusted adul t (teacher or other) for students with particular problems 5. Outs ide Agencies – where appr opr i ate, liaison with agencies such as Education Welfare Officer, Educational Psychologist, Behaviour Suppor t 6. S tudent Grouping – suppor ti ng differentiation by grouping s tudents appr opriately for the s ubj ect and their ability 7. Differentiated S chemes of Work – access to lear ning at their own level for all students 8. Work-related curriculum – differentiating the curriculum for some s tudents at KS 4, dis applying s ome of the National Curriculum. and offering wor k placements 9. Careers Information – together with Progress File and i ncl udi ng Wor k Experience, helping s tudents make per s onal action plans and s ee their learning as part of a cont i nuum 10. Literacy strategy – fostering attention to literacy in all subjects, improving the bas ic s k i lls of some s tudents 11. Numeracy strategy – improving bas ic k i lls and s uppor ti ng numeracy in all s ubj ects 12. NQT suppor t scheme – tutoring Newly Qualified T eacher s to enable them to us e appr opr iate teaching and l ear ni ng s tyles 13. I CT – where appr opr i ate us ing I CT as a means of delivery of National Curriculum and s uppor ti ng s ome lear ner s by provision of laptop computers and s ui tabl e s oftwar e 14. Anti-bullying pol icy – fostering an ethos in which bullying is unacceptable and offering both peer and tutor /teacher support 15. Anti-racis t policy – ensuring equal oppor tuni ti es 16. Parental contact – discussion with parents both formally at calendared meetings and by appoi ntment, and i nfor mal l y 17. Dis abled access – improvements to the buildings and s i te for wheelchair s 18. S ocial suppor t – lunchtime s uppor t for students who might become is olated 19. Homework club – enabling s tudents to complete wor k on site with help i f needed 20. Diagnos tic t es t i n g – to assist in identifying s tudents in need of support
Whilst it is clear that all these s tr ategies and agencies are in place to ens ur e the inclus ion of all students, there ar e obvious ly some ar eas where ther e is need for improvement.
T he S chool Handbook should s et out the pr ocedur e for moving towar ds special provis ion for inclusion, through the L ear ning S uppor t programme. ‘Inclusion’ s hould never be a euphemi s m for ‘exclusion’. An inclusive curriculum does not is olate s tudents because the teaching and lear ning offered i n the classroom is not appr opr i ate to their needs . Instead i t is adapted s o that all students, with s pecial arrangements made for them where necessary, have access to the means of learning. Inclusion is not just a matter for the L ear ning S uppor t team, but for every teacher, as an individual and as a member of a s ubj ect , faculty or year team.
Compiled by: D.As hton Revis ion number: Agreed by: Headteacher Adopted by: T he Gover ni ng B ody Review date: Summer 2004
R E W AR DS POLICY At Highcliffe S chool, we believe it is very important to r ecognis e and r ewar d the efforts, achievements and s uccesses of our students. We us e r ewar ds to motivate the s tudents , encouraging them to par ticipate fully in the many different aspects of school life. Through this, an individual’s gifts and talents can be nur tur ed as well as his or her expectations of their own performance rais ed.
We r ecognis e and r ewar d s tudents in many different ways, such as: • Prais e – quality feedback , individual recognition and i nter es t from the teacher • I nvolvement in decision making – (e.g. School Council) • Res pons ibility (e.g. librarians, news team, prefects, Principal Students, Helping Hands ) • Merits and moti vati onal marking • S chool colours and badges • Head of Year certificates • Honours Book awards
A new addition to this list is the ‘Pr ais e Car d’, a pos tcar d s ent from the s chool directly to par ents to ack nowledge cer tain achievements of their son or daughter – we want parents to k now how pr oud we ar e of their achievements. Prais e car ds may be s ent home in recognition of consistent or exceptional appl i cati on or hard wor k in Years 10 and 11, or they may be s ent home as part of the r evis ed mer i ts scheme j us t launched i n Years 7, 8 & 9. When students receive mer its for good wor k , it will be their responsibility to collect these mer its and then have them recorded. Senior students will be available to r ecor d mer i ts two lunchtimes a week onto the S chool I nformation S ys tem. When students have had 30 merits recorded, they will receive a certificate fr om their Head of Year in assembly. When they reach a t ot al of 50 merits in the year , a Pr ai s e Car d, signed by the Head of Year, will be s ent home, informing their parents of this achievement. 80 merits will generate a s econd H ead of Year certificate and 100 merits will result in a Pr ai s e Car d s igned by the Headteacher being s ent home.
At the end of every term we will be holding achievement assemblies for each year group, at which rewards will be dis tr ibuted: • A gift voucher for the s tudent with the mos t merits in the year group. • A pr iz e for the tutor group wi th the mos t merits. • Other rewards distributed thr ough the ‘Achievement Draw’ - For every 10 merits that have been recorded by the s tudent that term, they will be allocated one tick et in the dr aw. 100% attendance for the ter m will also res ult in a t i ck et . The mor e mer its collected, the mor e chance of winning a prize. T he aim of this system is to encour age ever yone to wor k towards gaining merits , to give all students the chance of winning a pr i z e and to mak e collecting mer its even more fun! If you would li k e to find out more about the ways we r ewar d s tudents , or if you have any comments, please contact Mr. Yapp ( As s i s tant Headteacher) via t he S chool Office.
T HE HIGHCLIFFE CHALLENGE
T he aim of Highcliffe Challenge is to motivate s tudents through the cumulative collection of experiences across each key stage. Every student has the entitlement to expect, in addition to a br oad, balanced and appr opr i atel y differentiated curriculum a r ange of oppor tuni ti es to challenge and moti vate them, helping them to develop as individuals.
K ey Stage 3 : By the end of Key Stage 3 every student will have had the oppor tuni ty to:
• Experience an international dimension activity • Participate in an outdoor education experience • Begin work for his/her Progress File • Represent his/her tutor group i n an assembly or activity • Participate in a literary or artistic per f or m an ce • Become a member of the S chool Reception Duty T eam • Participate in a s por t s team or sports coaching • Access and uti lise the I CT network to develop I CT literacy • Undertake induction to the L ibr ar y Resource Centr e and become a res pons ible libr ar y borrower • Undertake envir onmental/cons er vation work • Develop ex ami nati on and s tudy skills • Participate in the S tudent Council, Youth Parliament or other representative body • Become involved i n charitable fundr ais ing and/or community service • Monitor his/her health and fi tness profile • Participate in a t echnological, mathematical or scientific ev en t • Achieve 100% attendance for at least three ter ms
16 experiences: participation in 12 needed to pass the Highcliffe Chal lenge.
K ey Stage 4 : By the end of Key Stage 4 every student will have had the oppor tuni ty to:
• Experience an international dimension activity • Participate in a literary or artistic per f or m an ce • Participate in a communi t y /bus i ness activity • Participate in a s por t s team • Participate in the S tudent Council, Youth Parliament or other representative body • Participate in outdoor education (e.g. Duke of Edinburgh, sports leadership programme) • T ake a pos i t i on of responsibility such as: School Prefect, Helping Hands , DI G, Librarian, H2U News Team • Participate in a pr ogr amme of work experience and car eer s education • Have an individual interview about post-16 transition • Fully complete his /her Progress File • Participate in the appl i cati on process for post-16 learning/training • Achieve 100% attendance for at least three ter ms
12 experiences: participation in 8 needed to pas s the Highcliffe Challenge.
K ey Stage 5 : By the end of Key Stage 5 every student will have had the oppor tuni ty to:
• Participate in a bus i ness or community activity • Coach/train younger students • Participate in a literary or artistic per f or m an ce • Participate in the appl i cati on process for post-18 learning/training • Participate in the S ix th Form enrichment programme • Participate in the S ix th Form Council, Youth Parliament or other representative body • Complete a per i od of study of a F or ei gn Language or European S tudies from thos e on offer • Extend hi s /her Profile to r eflect participation in wider oppor tuni ti es • T ake r es pons ibility for his/her Individual Learning Plan • Key Skills Level 3 qualification I CT • Complete the UCAS application process • Achieve 100% attendance for at least three ter ms
12 experiences: participation in 8 needed to pas s the Highcliffe Challenge.
Ver if icat ion Examples of activities that count as separate ‘ex per iences ’ wi l l be made available when the s cheme is launched and on the S chool Intranet. Other activities could count, but they would need to confirmed by the appr opr iate Head of S chool.
S tudents will need to have ver ification that they have completed a par ti cul ar experience. To ver ify an activity, they will enter the details of the activity they have under tak en into a s ect i on of the ‘MyHighcliffe’ ar ea of the s chool Intranet, identifying which member of staff can verify the activity. This will automatically generate an e-mail to that member of staff, who will then simply have to click on a l i nk ‘yes’ or ‘no’, to ver ify, (or not) that activity. Positively verified activities would then appear in the s tudent’s ‘MyHighcliffe’ ar ea, which the tutor will be able to s ee at the nex t academic t u t or i n g s ession with that s tudent. When a s t udent has the r equir ed number of activities verified to pass a K ey Stage Challenge, the r elevant Head of Year would be automatically notified.
Acknow edgement When students have completed the Highcliffe Challenge, they will be pr es ented in an assembly with a cer t i fi cat e and a badge to wear : a br onz e badge for the completion of the K S 3 Challenge, a s i l ver badge for the completion of the K S 4 Challenge and a gol d badge for the completion of the K S 5 Challenge. Once s tudents have completed a Challenge, they can begin work on achieving the next Challenge, even if they are s till in an earlier key stage. R E W AR DS AND MOTI VATI ON
November 2003
One ver y important aspect of encouraging good behavi our in s chools is positive r einfor cement of student achievement. Through rewarding good wor k and pos i ti ve behaviour , and thr ough encouraging s tudents to become fully involved i n the wider life of the s chool, students become mor e active, more awar e of the oppor tuni ti es that surround them and genui nel y want to achieve more and become mor e involved. The pos itive, ‘can do’ at mos pher e is encouraged as students realize that their achievements, whatever they may be, wherever their strengths lie, are recognized and rewarded.
Over the pas t year, two maj or appr oaches for positive reinforcement have been implemented at Highcliffe – the S chool Rewards Policy and the Highcliffe Challenge. The policy statements outlining thes e s tr ategies are included. Both strategies place the emphas is on students taking r es pons ibil ity for recording their achievements . Each strategy also pr ovides a r ange of rewards for s tudents to aim for. These include:
• Gold, silver and br onz e badges for the K ey Stage 5 , Key S tage 4 and K ey Stage 3 Highcliffe Challenges , designed by the S tudent Council. • ‘Prais e Car ds ’ s i gned by the Head of Year (50) or the Headteacher (100) sent directly home infor mi ng par ents when s tudents have had 50 and 100 merits recorded el ectr oni cally in a y ear . • Head of Year certificates for achieving 30 and 80 merits in a year. • A £20 WH Smith Achievement Voucher for the s tudent in each of Years 7, 8 & 9 achieving the mos t merits each term. • Achievement vouchers as raffle pr iz es (10 merits = 1 raffle ticket) in each end of term year group ' Achi evement Assembly’ ( Year s 7, 8 & 9). • A pr iz e to s har e for the tutor group i n each of Years 7, 8 & 9 with the mos t merits recorded each term. S o far , these s tr ategies have pr oved to be ver y popular, as the following facts and fi gur es show:
Mer it s :
37,214 merits were recorded el ectr oni cally last year (2002 – 2003): • 25, 837 in year 7, • 9, 016 in year 8, • 2, 297 in year 9. • 286 students received H ead of Year certificates for gaining 30 merits , • 166 students had Pr ai s e Car ds posted home for achieving 50 merits , • 49 students received H ead of Year certificates for gaining 80 merits , • 10 students had Pr ai s e Car ds , signed by the Headteacher, pos ted home for achieving 100 merits.
S o far in 2003–2004, 5,619 merits have been recorded electronically by 632 different students (this being in the fir s t 7 week s of the s chool year).
T he H ighcliffe Challenge: S ince being l aunched in October 2003, so far the following numbers have tak en part in the Challenge ( Year s 7 & 10 have been encouraged not to r us h things at this stage as they are only at the beginning of their respective K ey Stages):
Year 7 - 20 students (9% of the year group) Year 8 - 93 students (42% of the year group) Year 9 - 55 students (25% of the year group) Year 10 - 10 students (5% of the year group) Year 11 - 88 students (40% of the year group). One s tudent, Alex S achs has just completed the Highcliffe Challenge!
T he Highcliffe Challenge has only been running for just over a month, and i t is already generating much interest and enthus i as m. Our first students will be pas s ing the Highcliffe Challenge befor e the end of this Autumn term. By the end of the s chool year, many s tudents will be wear ing with pride the Highcliffe Challenge badges that they have ear ned, encouraging other s to be mor e involved and aim to get for themselves the r ecognition that they rightfully des erve. S E N POLI CY (under Review: currently being r e-dr afted) T he pr ovis ion for Special Educational Needs at Highcliffe S chool is in accor dan ce with the Code of Practice and fol lows guidelines laid down by the L E A. The obj ectives for making pr ovis ion for students with S EN are that the s chool allow all its students to tak e up thei r curriculum entitlement. It aims to wor k in partnership wi th their parents . It plans for the integr ation of S EN provision into differentiated pr ogr ammes of study across the faculties as well as monitoring and maintai ning current records enabling access for all concerned.
All faculties have an S EN policy where aims and obj ecti ves to cater for all students are us ed i n planning s yllabuses and s chemes of work and the deliver y of the curriculum in appr opr i ate teaching and learning s tyles .
• I n line with the Warnock report the aims of the L ear ning S uppor t Department are the s ame as those for all students in the s chool. I t is recognised that many students will, perhaps for only a s hor t time, have s ome for m of S EN and that some s uppor t may be required.
• T he s chool will ensure that equality of educational opportunity is provided for all students.
• All teachers are teacher s of S pecial Educational Needs and as s uch will enable all students to access the lessons.
• T he ter m ‘S pecial Educational Needs ’ encompasses the gifted or exceptionally able s tudent as well as the s tudent with learning difficulties .
• S tudents with S pecial Educational Needs should and wil l, wherever possible, be educated al ongs i de their peer s .
• S tudents with S pecial Educational Needs will benefit from a variety of grouping s tr uctur es and teachi ng appr oaches including the us e of I CT .
• When working with students with S pecial Educational Needs , teachers will seek to r ais e the s elf esteem and confi dence of thes e s tudents by allowing and pr ovi di ng oppor tuni ti es for s uccess.
• Effective pr ovis ion will be s ecur ed wher e ther e is the gr eates t possible degr ee of partnership between parents, students, teachers and ex ter nal agencies. • S tudents are involved i n reviewing tar get setting as part of the I EP process and deci s i ons about their future educational provis ion.
Funding r eceived i nto the s chool budget is used at the dis cr etion of the Gover ning B ody to fulfil their duties with regard to mak ing provis ion for students with S EN.
I n accor dan ce with the s tudents ’ S t at ement of S pecial Educational Needs , they may be withdr awn from lessons, either individually or in small groups for literacy, numeracy, language or specific t each i n g to addr ess a par t i cul ar need. In addition, there is suppor t provided during lessons and ex tr a curricular time by Learning S uppor t Assistants to enable s tudents to access the wor k in lessons and complete individual study.
S tudents on the S E N regis ter are fully integrated i nto the life of the s chool and ever y effort is made to ens ur e their curriculum entitlement. All students are encour aged to achieve the highes t possible s tandar ds and to develop i nto r es pons ible and s uccessful members of the community. E NT R I E S FOR PUBLIC E X AMI N AT I ON S
(NOT E: The following par agr aphs provide a br oad i ndi cati on of the Governors ’ pr es ent policies and pr inciples for students being entered for public ex am i n at i on s from the age of 15 upwards).
S tudents are cons ider ed for entry to public ex am i n at i on s on the recommendation of the Headteacher and the assistant teaching s taff. Students will be couns elled and par ents will be cons ulted but ultimately the decis ion as to the type and level of examination for which the s tudent is entered i s a pr ofessional one.
Entry, certification and ex ami nati on fees for subject, courses and cours e components which students take on the r ecommendation of the Headteacher and as s i s tant teaching s taff are pai d for by the Governors under certain circumstances. Further information is available fr om the s chool.
E XAMI NAT I ON RESULT S – SUMMAR Y SUMMER 2003
K ey Stage 3
Key Stage 3 results overall were again very pleasing with our highes t ever average points score. The ambitious targets that were s et for this year group wer e not quite achieved i n any of the thr ee s ubj ects but Maths missed by a s i ngl e per centage point. In 2003:
• 79% of students achieved l evel 5 or above in English
• 84% of students achieved l evel 5 or above in Mathematics
• 81% of students achieved l evel 5 or above in S cience
T he abs ence of some candidates accou n t s for some of the s hor tfal l, particularly in English. Of the s tudents who s at the tes ts , 88% in Maths , 84% in S cience and 86% in English achieved l evel 5.
S chool T argets KS3 2003 (set in Aut umn 2002)
Englis h 85% Mathematics 85% S cience 85%
T hes e r es ults are alr eady above the tar gets that have been set within the County for 2004. S chool T ar get s KS3 2004 Dor s et Targets KS3 2004 Englis h 85% 80% Maths 85% 79% S cience 85% 80%
S chool targets were s et in Autumn 2002 and ar e to be r eviewed.
I n English, 42% of students achieved l evel 6 or above. In Maths 60% achieved l evel 6 or above and i n S cience 49% and thi s represents significant improvement on 2002. The impr oved performance at the higher levels has also helped thes e curriculum areas to achieve their best ever average points score. To build on this excellent foundation we have s et ourselves further ambitious targets at level 6 and above.
K ey Stage 4
Extra s uppor t targeted at Year 11 last year helped to ens ur e that, at GCS E level, 66% of students achieved 5 or more A* - C gr ades . This is above the pr evious three- year average of 65% and i s well ahead of the 62% target set for the County.
T he aver age points score for all subjects, which reflects the performance acr oss the whole cohor t, was 47.2 for those s tudents who s at GCS E examinations in 2003. The aver age points score capped to the bes t eight subjects was 40.
T his year group contai ned a wi de r ange of ability and i t is again pleas ing to note the levels of success achieved by students across the ability range. T he per for mance of students was above that predicted by their cognitive abilities tests and their prior attainment at Key S tage 3 .
As well as some outs tanding i ndi vidual achievements:
21% of students achieved 10 or more A* - C 41% of students achieved 8 or more A* - C 57% of students achieved 6 or more A* - C
T ar get s for GCSE KS4 S chool 2004 Dor s et 2004 5A* - C 75% 63% 5 A – G 99% 97% Average point score per student 51 45 S ixt h Form Highlights Year 13 had an average GCS E points score of less than 5 (Grade C) and ther efor e we wer e delighted to s ee thes e s tudents make above average pr ogr ess. They achieved i n excess of their target grades s et on their prior attainment. Highlights included:
• Nearly 99% pass rate at A level • Appr ox i matel y 95% pass rate at AS level • Over 80% of Highcliffe S tudents exceeded thei r Target Minimum Grade at A level • S tudents with exceptional performance o Patrick S teen, 3 Grade A at A level and Gr ade C AS Maths o James Bishop - TMG E based on average GCS E point s core of 4.2 - achieved 2 Grade B and 1 Grade C • All but two s tudents were placed on their first choice degr ee cours e
Current Year 13 UCAS applications T o date ther e has been 1 appl i cati on to Ox for d, 1 to Cambr idge and 1 for Medicine. L ink I nspector to S chool – Harry T urner, Head of School I mpr ovement
Gover nor s Sub-Committee R epor t s 2002/03
T he Curriculum Committee R epor t
Member s H arry Sharp, Chair, Partnership Gover nor Martin Axton, Chair of Governors Judith Potts, Headteacher Nick O’Connor, Deputy Headteacher Philip Mi lls, Teacher Governor Mandy Gardiner, Parent Governor S us an Connelly, Parent Governor
T he agenda for the curriculum committee is very broad i ndeed, as are the r es pons ibilities of the committee. The committee addr esses all aspects of the s chool curriculum, including the taught curriculum at Key S tages 3, 4 and 5 (Sixth Form) as well as the wide r ange of extra curricular activities that student engage in. We ar e currently reviewing the level of student involvement in the ex tr a curricular oppor tuni ti es that we offer, with a vi ew to achieving a S por t s Mark s tatus for the s chool as well as to evaluate the impact that this provis ion has on the s chool community.
A k ey focus of the pas t 12 months has been the s ignificant increase in the platfor m for our Sixth Form. As a par t ner in the Chr is tchur ch S ixth Form we have now developed a s t r ong s ens e of Home S chool identity at Highcliffe and ar e in the for tunate pos ition to be recruiting wel l from Year 11 students as well as increasing the number of external applicants. More s tudents now tr avel to Highcliffe fr om our partner schools for their studies than at any point in the pas t. We ar e now able to meet the demands of a year 12 that has more than doubled i n size, together with the lar ges t ever student number in Year 13. Accor di n g to the L ear ning and S kills Council figures we have incr eas ed the S ix th Form by 89% at Highcliffe and the Chr is tchur ch Collaboration now cater s for over 500 students which, makes the S ix th Form the s econd l ar ges t in the region.
T he Committee is sensitive to the fact that every member of the s chool community plays an important part in the over all life of the s chool and hence mak es a cont r i but i on to the ‘curriculum’. We recognize that the r elations hip between students, parents and s taff in school is critical to our school improvement strategies. As part of our ongoing wor k in developing a home s chool learning partners hip we would welcome any comments relating to the curriculum that we offer at all Key S tages within the s chool. We have als o developed a r ange of presentations to complement the tutor evenings at school for which we als o welcome any feedback .
T he r ange of agenda i t ems that we addr ess include: • How we identified and wor k with our gifted and tal ented s tudents in school • Monitoring the preferences process as students make decis ions about their individual learning programmes, particularly at the trans ition points from Year 9 into 10 and fr om Year 11 into the S ixth Form. • I mplementation of a wor k related l ear ni ng programme at Key S tage 4 • T o wor k with the L ear ning and S k i l l s Council to r ais e GCS E achievement (Level 2) • T o develop a curriculum that is relevant for all our students and to wor k more clos ely with new par tner s • Planning accommodation improvement and ex pans i on to meet the needs of the s chool and the br oader curriculum • Developing an academic t u t or i n g programme for all students • T imetable time for teachers to impr ove their teaching and learning s k il ls • S uppor ti ng F aculties with development time to s tar t new cour s es and i mpr ove ex is ting ones • Providing access to wider accr edi t at i on in the K S 4 curriculum, e.g. modular GCSE, AS level, ASDAN award, NVQs • T he intr oduction of the Pr ogr ess File in the PS E curriculum • KS 3 Strategy developments which are infor med, planned and s uppor ted wi th help of LEA K S 3 consultants • Curriculum Leaders are k ept up to date with good pr acti ce at a national level, which is then cascaded to all staff
T he Committee are committed to continuing to pr ovide a curriculum that is dynamic an d r el evant to s tudents ’ needs , interests and abilities .
Community Links Sub-Committee Annual Report Gr aham Smith, Chair, Parent Governor Martin Axton, Chair of Governors Judith Potts, Headteacher Mandy Gardiner, Parent Governor John Lofts, First Governor Philip Mi lls, Teacher Governor Chris tine K ing, Teacher Governor Gareth Hughes, Deputy Headteacher Myra Mawbey, LEA Gover nor Ben Barnett, Partnership Gover nor Julie S awden, Parent Governor Mathew Downs , Staff Governor
T he community links sub-committee has presided over a wi de r ange of issues during the year that have r es ulted i n a s tr onger partners hip between the s chool, LEA and the community.
T he committee has been instrumental in honing the char acter and s hape of the s chool as an 11-19 centre of learning by their active s uppor t of school- bas ed i ni ti ati ves that have included the development of the S ix th Form and ex tendi ng the over all provision at Highcliffe. A mos t pleasing tr end i s that of the continued gr owth rate of the S ix th Form. This is indicative of the changing char acter of the s chool and i s a r es pons e to both the wis hes of the par ental body and the s tudents themselves, who s ee Highcliffe as a nat ur al extens ion to their studies beyond GCS E . Indeed s uch developments have fur ther enhanced the s tr ategic r el at i on s h i p that has developed between the s chool and the L E A in terms of funding and s uppor t.
L ocal Community Regular meetings this year with the local community have been well attended. Primarily they have pr ovided the oppor tuni ty to infor m the local residents about the new building impr ovements and have provided a for um for their views to be air ed. The gover nor s wish to extend thank s to Councillor Capt. J. Lofts for his hard wor k and dedication in guiding the s chool throughout the planning pr ocesses involved i n the new build. In addi ti on, Councillor A. Griffiths is to be thanked for being i ns tr umental in the development of the tr affic conges tion control scheme. This is aimed at reducing conges tion in the vicinity of the s chool at peak times. Many thanks to par ents who have alr eady responded s o pos itively to the s cheme in terms of drop-off points.
I nclus ion T he committee has reviewed and adopted the s chool policy on I nclus ion, which was presented by Mrs. D. As hton (I nclusion Co- ordinator) and the B ehaviour al Support Framework, both are intended to pr ovide a multi-agency response to the needs of s tudents through their Individual Behaviour Support Plans (IBSP) where necessary. Much stronger relations have been forged wi th the ‘Connexions’ and E ducational Welfare S er vice with the res pective appoi ntments of Joan Bartlett and Dawn Rudge to the team. The L ear ning S uppor t and Gui dance T eam has also been s uppor ted by Mrs. G. Alders on and the peer suppor t group Hel pi ng Hands . As a r es ul t , increasingly a multi-agency appr oach can now be adopted when devising s tr ategies to s uppor t individual students.
S adly, the s chool bade far ewell to PC W i l liams (who has moved on to a new pos t) after numerous years of tireless service to Highcliffe. We ex tend our sincere thank s to him for his past service and bes t wis hes for the futur e. PC Williams has been replaced by PC Car ol e Darkin, whom we welcome to the s chool and tr us t that she will enj oy working wi th us.
Admissions T he community links group has had a pi vot al role in formulating the res pons e of the s chool to both the Hants & Dor s et LEA new admis s ions arrangements and i n setting the s tandar d admi ssion number that has now been agreed at 216.
Attendance From S eptember 2003 the s chool has moved towar d el ectr oni c regis tration, which is carried out via l apt op computer s . This will provide up- to- the- minute infor mation about students. Within the s chool rewards structure s tudents are r ewar ded for good attendance thr ough certification and H onour s Book nomination. The attendance r etur n made to the DfES illustrates a pl eas i ng downwar d trend i n the number of unauthorised abs ences (0.2% ) and an overall figure of 93% attendance for the whole s chool.
S chool Council T he committee meet regularly with Mrs. C. King and r epr es entati ves als o attend gui dance and gover ni ng body meetings . Alex S achs (Year 11 Representative - School Council) recently informed the Governing B ody of the r ole of the s chool council in the r edes ign / refurbis hment of the toilets , the awar d of the cater ing contr act the des ign of a webs ite and the S ix th Form Cafe. In both cases, the companies concerned ack nowl edged that it was the fir s t time in their dealings with schools that the s tudents had been involved i n the negotiations and that their views had been both thought- provoking and challenging when putting their respective bids and plans together.
Alex S achs has become a member of the Chr is tchur ch Youth Council and i s also r epr es enting Chr is tchur ch Lions in a r egi onal Citizenship competition. Jasmine Rouf (S ixth Form) has been elected to the Dors et and the National Youth Parliament.
E nvir onment F or Teaching And L ear ning T he s chool has continued to develop an effective wor k ing relations hip wi th Dorset LEA. The committee has been involved i n reviewing var ious facility contracts and i n the cons ul tation process with regard to the new building des ign. In addition, planning is s ues associated wi th the new r eplacement building for the R OS L A block have als o been tabled. This has been a maj or project for the s chool and the gover nor s are delighted to hear that building appr oval has been secured. Work on the technology block has now s tar ted i n earnes t and i s ongoing in readiness for the nex t academic y ear .
H 2 U Communication with parents and the local community has been further improved as a r es ul t of the r egular publication of the s chool H2U newsletter led by Mr. P. Coughlan and hi s team of students. T he news letter appear s regularly and is circulated to par ents and local residents. It aims to pr ovide infor mation about activities at s chool and to celebr ate the many successes achieved by the s tudents in both their academic an d ex tr a curricular activities.
I CT We have now pr ovided the oppor tuni ty to involve the gover ning body of I CT developments such as the ‘Highcliffe Challenge’ whi ch pres ents students with the oppor tuni ty to wor k in close cons ultation with staff in order to gain accr edi t at i on for achieving challenges which complement their studies. Both the ‘Highcliffe Challenge’ and ‘MyHighcliffe’ ar e now available to s taff and s tudents via t he internet. This is a maj or and uni que development to Highcliffe that provides the oppor tuni ty for students to tak e on more owner s hip of their progress and to pr ovide r egular updates of their achievements. T he ‘MyHighcliffe’ s i t e is soon to be available for parental scrutiny
Mer it s and R ew ar ds A new s ys tem of recording achievement has been introduced whi ch involves the us e of the intranet to awar d mer i ts and r ecogni s e achievement. This has further enhanced the cultur e of achievement and r ewar d that has been instilled i n the s tudents and pr ovi des them with the oppor tuni ty to collect merits in order to develop thei r web-bas ed por tfolios. This initiative has been significant in ensuring that students are r ewar ded for their achievements and for ms an intrins ic par t of their learning pr ocess.
I nt er nat ional School Award Highcliffe S chool and L anguage College has now been granted I nternational School status by the B r itis h Council as a r es ul t of our bid and s tr ong l ink s have been established wi th our partner school in S Africa – Joubert Ludidi. In addi ti on, staff and s tudents have participated i n the Chr is tchur ch Pyramid ‘One Wor ld’ pr oj ect through performing and E x pr essive Ar ts . H ighcliffe S chool Association T he HS A have wor k ed wi th a t eam of staff and par ents in activities to r ais e funds for the s chool by arranging s oci al events. As a r es ul t , the s tudents will benefit from the funding to pr ovide:
• games for a l uncht i me club • football kit for the both the boys ’ and gi r l s ’ s occer team. • £1,000 to s ubs idis e Activities Week • £1,000 to Per for ming Ar ts to pur chas e new ins tr uments • £1,000 to PE to pur chas e R ugby kits and pos ts
T he main source of funding for the association is that of the 200 Club and the r ecycling of print cartridges. Social events are als o organis ed s uch as Quiz & Games nights.
F und R aising
S out h African Link Partnership S chool T hrough fund r ais i ng, Highcliffe s tudents have been able to purchas e a full football kit for Joubert Ludidi School in S outh Africa. T he k it is sponsored by Highcliffe and has the motto in Xhos a ‘S iyakunye Phambili’ whi ch means ‘Moving F or war d T ogether ’.
Comic R elief – Mufti Day £1076.50 B lue P et er – Bring & B uy £407.05 W or ld B ook Day - £60 Oper at ion Christmas Child – Current I nitiative Nov 2003 – over 190 s hoe box es have been received to date.
Monies from ‘T he B ig W alk’ – Have now been distributed to local charities
Poole Hos pital Cystic Fibros is £1590 Oakhaven Hos pice £1590 Meningitis T rus t £1590
Links Community Development £1090 Africa L i nk in S chool £500 £1590
S chool Fund £6357.88 (towards our new minibus fund) F inance S ub-Committee
Member s hip P et er Moseley, Chair, Parent Governor Martin Axton, Chair of Governors Judith Potts, Headteacher Harry Sharp, Partnership Gover nor Jeremy Allin, First Governor Chris tine K ing, Teacher Governor Kay Lewis, Resource Manager S tephen White, Parent Governor
T he s chool’s current financial position continues to r eflect events of the 1990’s when a redetermination of the funding available for the payment of business rates resulted i n the s chool incurring an operating defi cit of £157,000.
T his legacy has required the s chool and the L ocal Education Authority (LEA) to agr ee a s t r at egy that manages the level of deficit in the s chool’s accou n t s while allowing the s chool to impr ove the educational environment for the s tudents . The s chool carries a deficit that is licensed by the L E A, within the fr amewor k set by the Department for Education and S k i lls.
During 2002/03, the s chool produced a medi um- t er m financial plan that reflected the need for front loading of investment in staff and facilities as part of the s chool’s overall improvement plan. The financial plan also pr ovides for repayment of the defici t by the end of 2007/08.
For the financial year 2002/03, the main sources of funding wer e delegated funds from the L E A of £2.45m and fundi ng fr om the Learning and S k i lls Council for the S ix th Form that amounted to £352,000. Standards Fund money of £275,000 included £123,000 for the L anguage College and £6,500 for the S ummer School for gifted and tal ented s tudents moving to the s chool in S eptember 2002. The DfES pas s ported £72,000 of funding dir ect to the s chool.
T he s chool set a r evenue budget for 2002/03 that forecast a defi ci t as at 31 March 2003 of £266,200.
T he budget was set at this level in order to pr ovide additional teaching hour s in support of the curriculum and ti metabl e, and to allow the es tablis hment of a full leadership and management team. Addi ti onal suppor t s taff were employed i n order to enhance s tudent s uppor t, finance and data handling. It was also necessary to tak e accou n t of staff pay awards and compr ession of the main teaching pay scales. Overall, increases to s taffing budgets cost an addi ti onal £336,300 compared wi th 2001/02.
Another feature of the budget was the s chool’s membership of the LEA’s building management scheme. This required a £32,000 increas e in the funding allocated for the building maintenance cos ts , but enabled pr ogr ess with renovation works around the s chool. Joining the building management scheme pr ovided the s chool with access to additional capital funding for major refurbishment works.
During the year , financial reporting was enhanced thr ough the us e of data hel d on Dorset County Council’s financial systems. The actual deficit at the end of the 2002/03 financial year was £264,000. A s ummar y of actual revenue ex penditur e and fundi ng for 2002/03 is attached.
Capital Funding for the year was £84,000, and j us t over half of this was carried for war d i nto 2003/04 to help fund the r emodelling of the fr ont entrance to the s chool. The r emainder was used to purchas e r eplacement kitchen equipment and addi ti onal dining tables . A classroom was refurbished for use as an I nformation T echnology base, and r epl acement classroom furniture was purchas ed for the Des ign and T echnology faculty. Capital spending plans are appr oved by the L E A, to ens ur e that they comply with the Asset Management Plan for the s chool.
Governors feel that 2002/03 provided a s ound pl atfor m for future developments at the s chool, including the ex pans ion of sixth form provis ion at Highcliffe.
Each year, parents are as k ed to cons ider making payments to Highcliffe S chool Fund, as these funds are an important source of income. During 2002/03, parents contributed £1,800 with individual donations averaging £10. The maj or ity of this money was used to pur chas e equipment for the S cience faculty. For the current year, £1,200 has been received to date. For parents wis hing to mak e a cont r i but i on who have not yet done s o, a for m is attached at the back of this report. P r emis es Sub-Committee Member s hip Mar t in Axt on, Chair of Governors Harry Sharp, Partnership Gover nor Judith Potts, Headteacher Kay Lewis, Finance Officer Mathew Downs , Network Manager Malcolm Ambros e, Site S uper vis or David Williams, Assistant Headteacher David Johnson, Head of Mathematics/T imetabler
(S upported Dr Graham Alner (Consultant: Dorset Buildings Division, Peter Robs on (Dorset Education Officer), John Long ( Dor s et Buildings Maintenance and I ns ur ance S cheme: BMIS)
W or k currently being undertaken:
• New Reception Area s pr i ng 2003 • Loss of Room 1 for new Reception meeting r oom space • Phas e two : signage autumn 2003 • I nternal painting s et for summer/autumn 2003 • Heating values /management system summer 2003 • External painting and guttering phas e two and thr ee s ummer 2003 • Electrical power suppl y upgraded s ummer 2003 • Removal of closed mobi l e s ummer 2003 • Phas e one : Major rewiring of old Chr i s tchur ch Grammar School building s ummer 2003 • T hree s cience labor ator ies , two pr ep r ooms and wor k room refurbis hed Augus t – Sept 2003 • New Double Ar t S tudio mobile Augus t- S ept 2003 • New Per for mance S tudio Augus t- Oct 2003 • Relocation of temporary Performance mobile to tennis courts s ummer 2003 • Reorganis ation of maintenance ar ea/s heds etc. autumn 2003 • Café F acility for 6th form (conversion of common room) Capital from Catering contr act August-Sept2003. • Dis abilities Discrimination Act works to s tair s , door s , toilet, and ramps August-Sept and ongoi ng 2003 • Creation of office on English corridor Sept 2003
S ince S eptember 2000 the s chool has been actively pursuing, in partners hip wi th Dorset LEA, the r eview of accommodation and the development of an Asset Management Plan (AMP) in line with national and county-wide s tr ategy. Due to the natur e of the wor k the Gover ning B ody resolved to conduct its business in a s l i ght l y different way to other sub-committees . The r eview and associated programme of works requires a ver y frequent meetings ’ s chedul e with relevant project leaders and contr actor s . The gr oup ther efor e meet often during the s chool day and wi th the appr opr i ate pers onnel in attendance. This group then works within the other sub committees to cons ider various facets of each aspect and pr oj ect. Regular updates are then made available at each meeting of the full Governing B ody. The s chool endeavours to k eep the communi ty informed thr ough our newsletter (H2U), various letters and dis plays .
Over the las t year the Gr oup have wor k ed to es tablish the condition, suitability and net capacity of Highcliffe S chool in line with the curriculum needs and the char acter of the s chool as an 11- 19 community comprehensive s chool. This Strategic R ev i ew is currently basing the pr oj ected need on an admission number of 216 x 5 year groups in main school (1080) with an anticipated s i x th form of around 280: 1360 (total). The s chool has consulted wi th the LEA who are in agreement with the viability of these pr oj ections as a bas i s for planning.
T he s chool has responded pos i ti vel y to the developments (14-19) taking place nationally and mor e par ticular ly the s chool’s change of character (1998) with regard to s ix th form provision at the s chool and i ts designation as a S peci alist S chool. The las t year has continued to be an exciting if demanding one, as we have s ought to s uccessfully resolve what in effect is something ak in to a R ubi k ’s cube!
We ar e now in the final stages of this Strategic R ev i ew and outline programme of works. Related pr oj ects have alr eady got underway to enable the s chool to r es pond to the needs of health and s afety and asset depreciation on the one hand and to be able to pr ovide a curriculum befitting our teachers/students and the 21s t century on the other . We ar e, as ever, well suppor ted by the County team linked i nto this Review and ex pr ess our appr eci ati on to ever yone who has played an active par t in programme or exercised pati ence during per iods of disruption and del ays .
T he pr ogr amme of works undertaken during the s ummer was very ambitious and wi th the bes t efforts of the s chool team and cons ultants we s tr ove to minimis e delays within the ter m. We have formally written to Dor s et setting out some s ugges tions in hinds ight, given that such work on schools is now a pr i or i t y and involves substantial capital grant from central government often quite late in the day. The lis t of projects indicates the s cale of works currently being under tak en over the per iod. We have been particularly impressed wi th the contr ibution of ideas from our Student Council members and other groups of students who have been involved i n some of the pr oj ect planning for the new facilities for their school. Students have r es ponded well to thes e and with respect.
T he r efur bis hed toilets and S i x th Form café have been well received. We intend to pr ess for further refurbishment works to other toilets. Our new Reception is now up and r unning and we watch with anticipation the building wor k related to our new Performance Hall and Ar t, Design and T echnology centre.
S chool Security As part of the over all programme of work mentioned above, the s chool has involved var i ous specialists in reviewing as pects of s ecurity and assisting us with prioritising wor k . We ar e pleas ed that Dors et LEA helped fund our new r eception with a s ecur i t y grant. Although the whole pr oj ect is not complete, it has made a s ubs tantial improvement already. Other work has included new (or refurbis hed) external door s and l ock i ng mechani s ms , harmonising and ex tendi ng fir e and i ntr uder alarms, more walk ie- tal k ies for duty s taff, our new s ecur ity badge s ys tem currently being phas ed i n for vis itors , staff and s tudents in the S ix th Form.
Work will continue and we anticipate developing our formal policy as part of the pr ocess noted above.
Dis ablities Discrimination Act (DDA) : Access T he r elatively recent introduction of this legislation has brought new res pons ibilities and oppor tuni ti es for the Gover ning B ody and community. As part of our review and pr oj ect work we have endeavoured to mak e s ome r eal inroads into mak ing Highcliffe mor e accessible. We have a s tair lift on a mai n stairwell and the r eview is currently considering fur ther lift requirements. With the new performance hall and ADT Centre we will have four disabled toilets dis tributed evenl y over the whole s chool site. Door way controls and door access in terms of ramps are being pr ovi ded wi thi n the programme of works. Further handle r ails and tr ead mar k i ngs on s tairs are under consideration. Wheelchair provision and access has improved. Assistance has also been secured fr om the Access to Work team.
Having got started, we r ealise how much is still to do! Again, we anticipate developing our formal policy on Accessibility as part of the pr ocess above and wi der access needs (including curriculum access and modi fi cati on and l anguage access). R et ur n to Form T utor T ut or Group
Gover nor s ’ Annual General Meet ing 4 t h December 2003
We/I the par ent/s /guar dians of ……………………………….. will be attending the Annual General Meeting.
S ignature ………………………….
Opt ional I have a ques t i on about …………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………………… Pleas e r etur n slip to F or m T utor Par ks ide Highcliffe H ighcliffe S chool Chr is tchur ch 1 1 – 18 Foundation School and L anguage College H eadt eacher D eput y H eadt eacher s Dor s et Ms J A Potts BEd ( Hons ) Mr G H ughes BA ( Hons ) Mr N O’Connor BSc ( Hons ) BH23 4QD T elephone: (01425) 273381 Fax: (01425) 271405 office@ highcliffe.dorset.sch.uk www.highcliffe.dorset.sch.uk
j aps cfund1/s mr
14th October 2003
Dear Parents
Highcliffe School Fund
Each year at Highcliffe we as k parents to cons ider making a donat i on to Highcliffe S chool Fund. These funds are our main source of income other than our budget s hare fr om the L E A. This fund enabl es us to pur chas e i nval uabl e, addi ti onal curriculum suppor t material and equi pment.
Las t year with your suppor t (£1,800) we wer e abl e t o pur chas e S ci ence demons tration models, balances and mater i al . This complemented what we had already been able to put in place. Last year we cr eated a new S cience bas ed I CT clus ter and made a s ubs t ant i al investment in new textbook s . This year, three S cience l abor ator i es , two pr epar ation areas and a S ci ence wor k room have been completely refurbished, with another three l abor ator i es planned for refurbishment next year. With your help we have been able to mak e s i gni fi cant headway with our Science pl an.
At the begi nni ng of term, Mrs. Hazel Wheeler took up pos t as our new Learning Res ource Centr e Manager replacing Mr s . Hall who deci ded to embar k upon a ful l - time hi gher education course.
Mrs . Hall had made a s i gni fi cant impression on our Learning R es our ce Centr e much to the benefi t of our students. I know that Mrs. Wheel er relishes the oppor tuni ty to buil d upon this work. We wi l l therefore be ear-marking any contribution you feel that you are both willing and abl e to mak e for new material for our Learning R es our ce Centr e. The L ear ni ng R es our ce Centr e i s a gener al s uppor t for all students and r es our ces available ar e a vi t al source of material to help acr oss all our students’ cur r i cul um projects, classwork, coursework and homewor k. Your contribution would be much appr eci ated and hel p to mak e a difference.
A r epl y slip i s attached. Thank you!
Your s sincerely,
J. A. Potts Headteacher Highcliffe S chool
SCHOOL FUND 2003/04
REPLY SLIP
P leas e R et ur n to Mrs. B r ight w ell in the F inance Off ice bet w een 8 a.m. and 9 a.m.
S tudent Name(s) T utor Group
…………………………………………………………………………………. …………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………. …………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………. …………………………
Delete as appropriate
I am able to mak e a cont r i buti on to the S chool Fund and encl os e a cheque for
£ ………………………. payable to Highcliffe S chool .
I am unable to mak e a contr i buti on at this time.
S igned …………………………………………………………………………………………… Parent/Guardian
PLEAS E PRINT NAME …………………………………………………………………………………