E: [email protected] T: 01858 440770 W: www.robertsmyth.tgacademy.org.uk

p Dear Parent/Carer,

I must begin my introduction by expressing my heartfelt gratitude to parents, students and members of staff for a fantastic and purposeful start to the academic year. There are so many things to be grateful for already this year and while it is impossible for me to capture all the great moments, I must take this opportunity to select some important highlights during the best half term period that I have experienced since my arrival.

I must start by congratulating every student who has attained merits in lessons, assemblies or as part of events. I have been very impressed by the hard work that has taken place and the excellent examples of recognition that students have experienced. Equally, we have been delighted to recognise every student who has not been assigned a single penalty point for the entirety of the half term period as a result of their preparation, character and diligence. It is statistically significant that this comment applies to the majority of students in the main school and this is an outstanding achievement. I think that this is an important moment to remind parents and students that future rewards, events and trips will be directly linked to the merit and penalty point system. There is no doubt that the increase in positive recognition has been beneficial for students and it is something we will continue to build upon.

I would also like to thank our team of form tutors for their excellent work in the delivery of a PSHE programme at the start of the day from 8.45 – 9.10 a.m. This has been the focus of our first curriculum review, and I was delighted to gain student and staff feedback on how this area of the curriculum is working and the benefit to student experiences. This has been a very positive development which students value and I am highly ambitious that we continue to offer as much structure, support and guidance for students so that their school experience is excellent.

I must now turn to some of the things that have really inspired me during this half term. It would be fair to say that I completed the summer holidays in a slight state of delirium following A-Level and GCSE results which reflected the best results that the Academy has achieved and some individual moments of success that will always live with me. Following those successes, I am delighted to have welcomed such a talented group of students to begin their A-Level studies with us in Year 12. This group has been ably supported by form tutors, Miss Syngajewski and Mr Luhrs and they have already made a fantastic first impression. At the same time, we have welcomed a highly talented and hard-working group into Year 7. These students have managed a new timetable, rooms, teachers and peer groups during their first half term with composure and confidence and we are very proud of the excellent start that they have made. Despite the difference of both age and stage, we have been enriched by welcoming so many gifts, talents, abilities and characters into our setting. I would like to congratulate all students for navigating their respective points of transition and for making a positive start.

Having highlighted specific year groups, I do feel that a special place must be reserved for students in Year 11. There is no doubt that these students have raised the bar to a different level this year because they have demonstrated focus, resilience, emotional maturity and hard work throughout the first half term. I have taken the time to write to a list of students who have already attended 10 or more revision classes in their own time in preparation for GCSE examinations which is an incredible display of commitment. I know how much students want to succeed, and they can be reassured that their teachers, members of support staff alongside college leaders will be there for them every step of the way. I have been so impressed by the way that they have started the year and I must thank them for the superb example that they have offered their peers. I am personally invested in supporting them through the coming weeks and months and to this effect I will personally lead the trial exam process in November to give them maximum support and guidance. Whilst re-charging is crucial over the half term break, this is also a key time for revision ahead of those exams. If you are a parent, then you may approach this conversation by asking for their trial exam timetable (putting it on the fridge door) and asking to test them on their ‘knowledge organiser’ (https://www.robertsmyth.tgacademy.org.uk/parents/revision- support-for-parents/).

Finally, I would like to congratulate Milly and Grace Burrows for their performances at the Dance World Cup in the summer where they competed at national level. I would also like to celebrate Iris Singleton’s progression into the Gold Fleet following her sailing success at the World Championships in July. I am delighted to be able to congratulate Vincent Graziano for his performance for the Great Britain Roller Hockey team in the European Championships in Italy and Ailsa McDonald on her performance in the British Championships, which has led to her selection into the Scottish swimming senior bronze squad. Whilst this is not an exhaustive list, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the hugely talented and wonderful students that I work with every day. This remains my privilege and I wish you all a very well deserved half term break.

Reminders

Please note these points from our Behaviour Policy as we approach the next half term; I did cite this information in July 2019 ahead of the new academic year, but it may be helpful to be reminded of this information:

- All students will be expected to have the following equipment on the first day back: two black pens, a purple pen, a highlighter pen, a glue stick, a calculator, a ruler, a pencil, a sharpener and an eraser

- All students must have their green planner when they return. This is an essential part of their equipment used for tracking positive stickers of recognition and penalty points for breaches of the behaviour policy. If a planner cannot be produced, then it this will result in an afterschool detention

- Students know that they cannot have any piercing other than a single, discreet stud in each ear; they know that hair dye is not permitted, nail polish is not permitted and boys know that hybrid ‘trainer style’ shoes will not be accepted and their footwear should have a distinctive heel for the removal of doubt. It is vital that parents take responsibility for ensuring that when their child arrives at school, they are dressed appropriately. Form tutors will complete a uniform check on Monday 21st October to ensure that students are in full adherence. If they are not, then sanctions will be applied, and parents contacted

- We remain proudly a ‘mobile phone free site’. If a phone is seen or heard during the day then it will be confiscated. Only a parent or carer may then collect this item. This will not be possible beyond 4 p.m.

Daniel Cleary

Principal

Dates for your Diary

Wednesday 23rd October 2019, Year 11 Careers Day

Tuesday 29th to Thursday 31st October 2019, History trip to France

Wednesday 13th November 2019, Sixth Form Open Evening

Friday 15th November 2019, Academy Training Day (Students not in school)

Monday 18th November 2019, Academy Training Day (Students not in school)

Monday 25th November 2019, Year 11 Trial Exam Week

Wednesday 27th November 2019, Sixth Form Open Morning

Tuesday 3rd December 2019, Parent Focus Meeting

Tuesday 10th December 2019, Year 8 Careers Day

Thursday 12th December 2019, Christmas Concert

Monday 16th December 2019, Year 13 Trial Exam Week

Friday 20th December 2019, Academy closes at 1pm

Half term really has arrived quickly this year, with summer barely seeming to have finished! This year brings a slightly new look Local Governing Body (LGB), with the retirement of several valued long- serving governors who were central to helping the Academy join the Tudor Grange Academy Trust (TGAT) a few years ago.

I am only a few weeks into my period as Chair of the LGB, but already it has been a busy and productive time: from the results days back in August, start-of-term, to the open evening, and the awards evening. The LGB has had its first meeting of the year, considering the Academy’s GCSE and A-Level results, and is continuing to work closely with the senior leadership team on the Academy’s Improvement Planning, as we seek to develop an outstanding academy for Market Harborough and the surrounding area.

It is fantastic to see the continued investment by TGAT into the Academy’s grounds and infrastructure: for those parents who have not seen the rear of the site, several ailing temporary classrooms have been demolished over the summer, and replaced with a great outdoor space with benches and table tennis tables for the students.

If you are interested to find out more about the work of the LGB, you can do so here on our webpages: https://www.robertsmyth.tgacademy.org.uk/about/governance/. The LGB is always interested in hearing from parents and carers who wish to know more about the LGB: at the moment we are particularly interested in hearing from anyone with experience/interest in health and safety. Please do get in touch using the contact details provided on the website.

I hope everyone has a chance to relax during the half-term break, not least because the next half-term run to Christmas is one of the longest on record!

Geoff Green

Chair of the LGB

Sports Day 2019

Well done to all students who participated in Sports Day 2019. Over 220 students travelled to Rockingham Triangle for a day of competition between the four colleges – Bragg, Hammond, Logan and Moseley.

The atmosphere throughout the day was superb with students from all colleges and year groups supporting each other. Leaders from Years 11, 12 and 13 supported the running of the day alongside current academy staff, and former academy staff who supported the track events. After a day of intense competition Moseley were crowned champions. Bragg finished second once again, with the winners from the previous two years Hammond in third and Logan fourth.

Well done to the following Year 7/8 students who broke academy records – Ben (100m and 200m), William (1500m), George (Javelin), Ollie D (300m and Long Jump), Talia (Long Jump), Harriet/Freya (800m). Ben now holds the Year 7 and Year 8 100m record and the 200m record. We look forward to several students challenging the longstanding academy records for Year 10 next year.

Congratulations to all the event winners and all participants and thank you to all the staff who ensured the smooth running of the event.

Sports Day Winners - Field Events

Event Winner House Distance Record

Boys Javelin Y9/1O Chaunce Wilson H 25.18m

Boys Javelin Y7/8 George Williams M 28.50m  Girls Shot Y9/10 Iris Singleton B 6.47m

Girls Shot Y7/8 Harriet Oxley L 6.47m

Boys Triple Jump Y9/10 Cameron Douglas B 10.21m

Girls Long Jump Y9/10 Chloe Woodward M 3.91m

Girls Long Jump Y7/8 Taliah Arundell-Reid B 3.82m  Boys Discus Y9/10 Samuel White B 29.14m

Boys Discus Y7/8 Jake Panter H 19.22m

Girls High Jump Y9/10 Tabitha Tooms H 1.40m

Girls High Jump Y7/8 Safiyeh Mohseni L 1.30m

Boys Long Jump Y9/10 Joe Pearson M 5.08m

Boys Long Jump Y7/8 Ollie Docherty H 4.63m  Girls Discus Y9/10 Sophie Barney B 16.15m

Girls Discus Y7/8 Holly Craven B 13.95m

Boys High Jump Y9/10 Will Hubbard H 1.60m

Boys High Jump Y7/8 Nathan Green B 1.40m

Girls Javelin Y9/10 Evie Van Nierop M 17.22m

Girls Javelin Y7/8 Zoe Morgan Williams B 16.88m

Boys Shot Y9/10 Will Leebrook M 9.49m

Boys Shot Y7/8 Oscar Lowe L 8.64m

Girls Triple Jump Y9/10 Livvy Kendrick B 8.76m

Track Events

Event Winner House Time Record

Boys 80m Hurdles Y9/10 Joe Pearson M 14.2

Boys 80m Hurdles Y7/8 Finn Colman M 15.7

Girls 80m Hurdles Y9/10 Tabitha Tooms H 14.3

Girls 80m Hurdles Y7/8 Alice Streeter L 16.5

Boys 200m Y9/10 Joe Pearson M 26.6

Boys 200m Y7/8 Ben Orton L 26.8 

Girls 200m Y9/10 Lucy Primrose H 30.2

Girls 200m Y7/8 Thea Richards M 32.2 Boys 1500m Y9/10 Thomas Hooper L 5.06.5

Boys 1500m Y7/8 William Ronald M 4.51.4 

Girls 1500m Y9/10 Erin Brazier L 6.19.3

Girls 1500m Y7/8 Thea Richards M 6.12.0

Boys 300m Y7/8 Ollie Docherty H 45.5 

Boys 400m Y9/10 Leo Cripwell H 63.4

Boys 800m Y9/10 Ciaran Barrow M 2.15.2

Boys 800m Y7/8 William Ronald M 2.31.2

Girls 800m Y9/10 Tabitha Tooms H 2.33.5

Harriet Oxley / L Girls 800m Y7/8 Freya Wingfield- 2.45.4  B Dobbs Boys 100m Y9/10 Will Hubbard H 13.2

Boys 100m Y7 Olly Oxley M 15.0

Boys 100m Y8 Ben Orton L 13.3 

Girls 100m Y9/10 Lucy Primrose H 14.4

Girls 100m Y7 Lottie Whitelaw L 15.6

Girls 100m Y8 Josie Stanger L 15.3

Boys 4x100m Y9/10 Moseley M 55.7

Boys 4x100m Y7/8 Hammond H 58.3

Girls 4x 100m Y9/10 Hammond H 58.6

Girls 4 x 100m Y7/8 Bragg B 65.3

Cross Country

Well done to the following students who represented RSA at the cross county races on Saturday 28th September. If you would like to participate in the next race or would like more information please see Mrs Edwards.

Senior girls

Lizzie Clapp 3rd, Beth Wallis 4th

Junior boys

Will Ronald 3rd, Will Colman 29th, Max Johnson 35th

Year 7 boys

Finn Singer 8th

This half term has seen the start of a number of clubs and fixtures. The football and netball leagues are fully under way and we have been really impressed with attendance at our clubs.

Selected Netball highlights

Year 7 vs High School - Won 12 - 2

vs The Kibworth School - Won 7 - 6

Year 8 vs Gartree High School - Drew 6 - 6

vs - Won 13 - 3

vs The Kibworth School Won – 10 - 6

Year 9 vs Lutterworth High School - Won 32 - 15

Year 10 vs Gartree High School - Won 21 - 1

vs Lutterworth High School - Won 23 - 18

Year 11 vs The Kibworth School - Won 38 - 9

Well done to all the netball teams, there have been some excellent performances to start off the term. The girls have enjoyed games against Gartree, Lutterworth High and Kibworth with many more games and tournaments still to play. Well done to the Year 7s, Year 8s and Year 10s who are currently second in their groups.

Year 7 Netball Team

Year 10 Netball Team Year 11 Netball Team

Selected Football Highlights

Year 8 vs Lutterworth High School - Won 10 - 0

vs The Kibworth School - Won 5 - 2

Year 9 vs Gartree High School - Won 1 - 0

vs Lutterworth High School - Won 4 - 2

vs The Kibworth School - Drew 2 - 2

Year 10 vs Gartree High School - Won 6 - 2

vs Guilsborough (National Cup) - Won 4 - 2

vs The Kibworth School Won 6 - 1

Our Year 7 team have worked extremely hard and despite their defeats, they have shown excellent commitment and teamwork. Equally whilst our Year 11 team lost to Gartree High School and The Kibworth School, the effort and attitude of the team has been outstanding. Well done to the Year 10s who top their group currently with the Year 8 and 9 teams currently still in the running for progression through to the next stage.

Year 11 Football Team

Year 10 Football Team

Rugby

It has been great to see the large numbers of Year 7 and 8 students attending rugby sessions. We look forward to their games starting after half term.

The U15 rugby team performed really well against Lutterworth High in the NatWest Vase. Despite closely losing, there were some excellent tries from Cripwell, Williams, Coleman and Hawker. The county cup fixtures for U14, U15 and U16 will take place just before half term. All teams should look out for rugby fixtures after half term.

U15 Rugby Team

Students need to continue to check the PE noticeboard for updates regarding new clubs and activities.

Sports Leadership

Students on current courses - Level 1 (Year 9), Level 2 (Year 11) and Level 3 (Year 13) need to see Mr Scully ASAP regarding the work for the qualification. New courses will be advertised for students after half term. Well done to all those students who have been officiating at academy fixtures or assisting in core PE lessons.

Extra-curricular clubs

Well done to all of the students who have attended our clubs or represented the Academy this half term, it has been great to see so many students engaged with our clubs and teams. Thank you also to the parents, grandparents and guardians who have attended our games; it is greatly appreciated (for those new to the academy we do run a ‘supporter of the year’ award!).

Mike Scully

PE Department

A level Music

The A level music students visited New Walk Museum this term to watch an open rehearsal of Mark Simpson’s Oboe Quartet as part of International Music Festival. This featured professional oboist Nicholas Daniel working with Mark Simpson to rehearse the piece. The students found the process fascinating and the level of detail they went into was eye-opening. The students will be taking part in another workshop with Mark Simpson later in the year where he will help them with composition and eventually perform their work.

Soul Patrol

After two days of some brilliant auditions, the new line up of Soul Patrol has been decided. There were some fantastic auditions which made the decision processes really hard, but congratulations to the following students who were given a place in the band:

Enza Azeez, Martha Burton and Joseph Pugh vocals, Kyle Devlin playing bass, Jamie Pyle on the drums, Kye Gardner playing the piano, Molly Pye and Alex Herdman playing the saxophone, Anna Halberda on the trumpet and Lauren Copple playing the trombone.

Lucy Wass

Head of Music

We have been working closely with the Eco Group students to introduce a number of initiatives and learning that gets the whole Academy and wider community involved in exciting environmental and sustainability projects. Our students are passionate about the environment and want to lead the way by making positive changes.

SO FAR …..

Students have access to a recycling plastic bottle machine; we have witnessed students bringing in bottles from outside the Academy and groups of students working together to collect bottles from around our site to recycle. All recycled bottles are collected weekly and transported directly to the plastic recycling plant. This has been an amazing transformation for our site, and witnessing our students get on board has been inspiring.

Along with this great initiative our students are using a new waste management system for managing their daily waste material in the dining areas; the options are general, food waste and recycling. I would like to pass on my thanks to the students and premises team for supporting this programme.

I would like to welcome our new Year 12s to the catering department in the 6th form.

Where possible our 6th form facility is encouraging students and staff to use recyclable cups when purchasing hot beverages and students are offered a discounted rate on all hot beverages when using a recyclable cup. We have also introduced a rinse station so that re-usable cups can be cleaned after use.

Continuing the recycling theme within our 6th form facility, all food containers and cutlery are 100% compostable; we are very proud of our achievements.

We have introduced a number of new recipes on our menu cycle and students are enjoying new tastes and flavours; pictured are the Chicken Skewers which are proving extremely popular. Our Chinese Street Food proves to be our top seller and we are currently working on a new style of Chinese buffet. Our upcoming Halloween Menu is always a student favourite!

Our facility is open throughout the day offering a café style service featuring daily hot specials at 12.30pm & 1.30pm

After half term we will be introducing our homemade soups back onto our menu; please look out for more details.

I would like to pass on the comments I have received from the catering team:

“It’s a pleasure to serve such polite and respectful students” - Key stage 3 & 4 students

“What a great start to our year and a great atmosphere throughout the social dining area”. Key stage 5 students

We look forward to receiving any comments and feedback; we very much appreciate your continued support.

Emma Spencer and the Catering Team

Hammond Arboretum Sunday 13th October 2.00pm to 4.30pm

On Sunday 13th October Hammond Arboretum will be open from 2.00pm until 4.30pm as part of the National Open Garden Scheme. The site of just under 2½ acres contains an unusual collection of trees and shrubs, many from Francis Hammond's original planting dating from 1913 to 1936 whilst headmaster of the school. There are species from America, China and Japan with malus and philadelphus walks and a moat. The arboretum is the proud owner of four champion trees as identified by a national specialist.

Admission: Adult: £4.00

Child: Free

Features and Attractions Guided walks and walk plans available.

*** Home-made teas will be available to buy to fundraise for the RSA Parents’ Association ***

Autumn Term 2019

Friday 11th October 2019, Academy closes

Monday 14th to Friday 18th October 2019, Half Term break

Monday 21st October 2019, Academy opens to staff and students (week B)

Friday 15th November 2019, Academy Training Day (Students not in)

Monday 18th November 2019, Academy Training Day (Students not in)

Friday 20th December 2019, Academy closes at 1pm

Spring Term 2020

Monday 6th January 2020, Academy opens to staff and students

Friday 24th January 2020, Standardisation, Moderation and Assessment Day, Trust Inset Day (closed to students)

Friday 14th February 2020, Academy closes

Monday 17th to Friday 21st February 2020, Half Term break

Monday 24th February 2020, Academy opens to staff and students

Friday 3rd April 2020, Academy closes

Monday 6th April to Friday 17th April 2020, Easter holiday

Summer Term 2020

Monday 20th April 2020, Academy opens to staff and students

Friday 8th May 2020, May Day Bank Holiday

Friday 22nd May 2020, Academy closes

Monday 25th to Friday 29th May 2020, Half term break

Monday 1st June 2020, Academy opens to staff (Inset Day, students not in)

Tuesday 2nd June 2020, Academy opens to students

Monday 29th June 2020, Standardisation, Moderation and Assessment Day, Trust Inset Day (closed to students)

Friday 10th July 2020, Academy closes

Dear Parent/Guardian/Student

Privacy Notice - Data Protection Act 1998

The is the Data Controller for the purposes of the Data Protection Act. We collect information about you and may receive information about you from other educational establishments you have attended previously. Information may also be received from the Learning Records Service. We hold this personal data and use it to:

 support your teaching and learning;  monitor and report on your progress:  provide appropriate pastoral care, and  assess how well the Academy is doing.

This information includes your contact details, national curriculum assessment results, attendance information and personal characteristics such as your ethnic group, special educational needs and any relevant medical information. If you are enrolling for post 14 qualifications we will be provided with your unique learner number by the Learning Records Service and may also obtain from them details of any learning or qualifications you have undertaken.

We will not give information about you to anyone outside the Academy without your consent unless the law and our rules permit it.

We are required by law to pass some of your information to the Local Authority (LA), the Department for Education (DfE) and the NHS Vaccination Team.

If you want to see a copy of the information we hold and share about you then please contact the Data Manager.

If you require more information about how the LA and/or DfE store and use this data please go to the following websites:

http://www.leics.gov.uk/schoolsfpn and http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/ims/datamanagement/privacynotices/pupilsdata/ http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/ims/datamanagement/privacynotices/pupilsdata/thirdpartyorgs/

If you are unable to access these websites, please contact the LA or the DfE as follows:

Mike Challands Information and Data Team Room G8 County Hall LE3 8RF tel: 0116 305 6637 email: [email protected]

Public Communications Unit Department for Education Sanctuary Buildings Great Smith Street London SW1P 3BT website: www.education.gov.uk email: [email protected] tel: 0870 000 2288

Prospects - once you are aged 13 or over we are required to pass on certain information to Prospects. Prospects is the South Leicestershire careers support service for all young people aged 13 to 19. We may provide both your name and address, and those of your parents together with any further information relevant to Prospects services’ role. However, you can ask that no information beyond name and address be passed to Prospects if you are over 16 years old. Your parents also have this right. Please inform the Data Manager if you wish to opt out of this arrangement.