Committed to Achievement

2017-18 Governors Annual Report to Parents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR OF GOVERNORS 3 MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER 4 SCHOOL LIFE DURING THE YEAR 5 2017-18 5 THE SCHOOL YEAR ACTIVITIES 6 MADRID TRIP 6 JAMIES FARM, WILTSHIRE 6 UNIVERSITY OF SURREY TRIP 7 STEM LECTURES—DISNEYLAND PARIS 7 AUSCHWITZ TRIP 7 WINDSOR CASTLE 8 UCAS TRIP 8 ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES 9 CAREERS INSIGHT OPTIONS MORNING 9 WELL BEING EVENT 9 PHILOSOPHY AND POLITICS WORKSHOP 10 SCIENCE WEEK 10 MOCK TRIALS 10 ANTI BULLYING AMBASSADORS 10 FUTSAL TOURNAMENT 11 YEAR 7 CRASHES COX GREEN 11 THE SCHOOL YEAR SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS 11 FOOTBALL 11 ROWING 12 ATHLETICS 13 SWIMMING 14 RUGBY 14 NETBALL 14 OTHER SPORTS 14 FUTURE PLANS AND EXPANSION 15 THE SIXTH FORM – GROWING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH 15 THE SPORTS ACADEMY IN THE SIXTH FORM 16 COX GREEN SPORTS ACADEMY TEAM ACHIEVEMENTS 16 STUDENT LEADERSHIP 17 PROVIDING FOR OUR MOST ABLE STUDENTS 18 OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS 19 PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, BEHAVIOUR AND WELFARE 20 ATTENDANCE 21 YEAR 7 REVIEW 22 WORKING WITH PARENTS 23

2

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR OF GOVERNORS

As Chair of Governors for Cox Green School I am very pleased to be able to write part of the foreword to this, our 7th Annual Report to Parents. The last 12 months has again been a very busy time for Cox Green School and the Governors.

We are extremely proud of our school and the progress it continues to make. The school is growing each year and next September our combined Years 7, 8 and 9 will total more than 600 pupils. The accommodation development to provide facilities for this and future growth will be ready for the start of term in September. It has been a very challenging project and dealing with the consequences of a congested site has not been easy.

It has also been a very busy year for our new Headteacher, Frances Walsh. To bring a new Headteacher into a school with so much change underway, and to see the continued success of the school, is very satisfying indeed. The relationship between Governors and the School Leadership Team continues to grow and allows us to look forward to very positive outcomes.

As Governors we also recognise we have some wonderful staff, whose commitment to the young people they work with is second to none. Those students deserve every success and it is the job of the Governing Board to facilitate, through involvement and challenge, their journey through this part of their education. We acknowledge that without the passion and commitment of our staff this would not be possible.

We are still on the look out for two new Parent Governors to join the Full Governing Board. Should you, or anyone you know, be considering volunteering please feel free to contact me or any of the Governors, through the school, and we will gladly meet you to discuss what is involved and how you can contribute to the success of Cox Green School.

The role of the Governing Board is encapsulated in its three key functions:

• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction; • Holding the Headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff. • Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

Thank you for your time and I look forward to 2018-19 and the continued development of Cox Green School.

Paul Louden Chair of Governors Cox Green School

3

MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER Our excellent exam results and the £5 million investment has raised our profile significantly, resulting in a record number of applications to the school and a long waiting list of prospective students wishing to complete their education at Cox Green. Our new building has taken shape over the past academic year and we are thrilled with the wonderful teaching spaces and fabulous “dine@coxgreen” canteen facility that has been created.

Over the last two years, staff and students have been adapting to the GCSE and A Level syllabi. For most subjects this has required greater content coverage as well as the introduction of linear (end of Key Stage) examinations. Students and staff have coped admirably with the new GCSE and A Level reforms and approached the exam period with a very positive attitude. We are confident that all their hard work and efforts will be repaid with excellent exam results.

We are well known within the community for our polished Drama and Music performances and our Cox Green School Band continues to delight with performances in and outside the school environment. This year band members had the kudos of performing for the Prime Minister! In addition, we have several students excelling in the Arts and Drama field, with performances in the West End, film and local theatre.

The commitment and dedication of our staff means that we are able to host a variety of after school clubs and support groups for our students. We were delighted to be able to offer students extra-curricular activities including “Rock Climbing”, “Chocolate y Churros” (Spanish Club), a variety of PE clubs, in addition to drop in clinics, revision sessions and Homework Clubs. Our after school Maths Club is extremely well attended by students from all years.

Sporting success featured heavily again throughout the past year, with students competing in team and individual events at national and international level, including swimming, rowing, football and athletics. Our football teams in each age group continue to excel and our girls’ teams in particular remain a dominate force in the leagues.

Our students have had many opportunities to attend trips within the UK and overseas to support and enhance their learning and build friendships. Trips to Madrid, STEM trip to Paris, Ski Trip to Andorra, as well as theatre and gallery trips continue to be popular with students. Our annual “Cox Green Crash” remains the highlight for our Year 7 students who get to spend the night at school!

Our PSHE programme, has provided students with advice and information ranging from On Line Safety, Mental Health, Drugs and Alcohol, Life Skills and Volunteering. Our SAFE team continues to provide support with key concerns throughout the academic year for all students.

We are committed to maintaining our excellent reputation in the community and our students wear their uniforms with pride. Our older students have been providing mentoring support to younger children and the Sports Academy have been involved with mentoring Year 7 and local Primary School children. We support local and national charities and many fundraising events have been organised and driven by our Sixth Form, raising money with Cake Bakes, Mufti Days and “Wear a Hat Day”.

Many of our Sixth Form students will be going on to Further Education. Several have secured scholarships overseas and thanks to the great relationships our Careers Adviser has forged with local employers, and the Careers and Enterprise Company, several will be pursuing apprenticeship opportunities.

Our parents continued support is much appreciated and contributes massively to making our school successful. Thank you! Regards Frances Walsh Headteacher

4

SCHOOL LIFE DURING THE YEAR There were a significant number of school trips during the academic year. The Governors would like to thank all those staff who gave up their time in support of our students. 2017-18 September 6th Form - English Dorian Gray 6th Form - Enrichment Reading – Wessex Primary School Year 10 – Football Collingwood College Year 7 Team Building - Longridge 6th Form Team Building - Bournemouth

October Year 11 – Geography Field trip - Bournemouth PE English Schools Cross Country 6th Form – Geography Field trip - Swanage PE/MFL Madrid

November 6th Form – Geography Field trip – Reading Year 12 Safe Drive, Stay Alive event 6th Form - Chemistry Chemistry in Action 6th Form – Biology Biology in Action PE – Year 10 Boys Football - National Cup Year 10 Jamie’s Farm

December Music Wessex School Winter Fair Music MENCAP Monday Club Music NRAS Carol Concert Music Cox Green Community Centre Luncheon Club Year 7 – English A Christmas Carol - Windsor Castle Music Carol Concert – St Mary’s Church, White Waltham Year 11 – Careers Bucks New University – Taster Day

January PE Cross Country – Newbury Showground Year 8 Emotional Wellbeing Champions 6th Form – Media BFI – Study Day Year 11 – History Auschwitz 6th Form – Product Design Building Site visit Year 8 Pre-16 Widening Participation and Outreach Events @ Surrey University

February Year 8 STEM Lectures trip to Paris 6th Form – Art Art in the Apartments -Windsor Castle Year 11 – Drama The Ferryman

March Year 7 Anti-Bullying Ambassadors Training Day Year 9 Politics & Political Philosophy Workshop 6th Form – PE Real Tennis Year 9 Mock Trial – Reading Courts

April 6th Form – Careers UCAS event – Excel London 6th Form – Maths Further Maths revision session – University of Reading Year 7 Year 7 Crashes Cox Green

May 6th Form – English A Street Car Named Desire PE ESAA Athletics – boys Music Cox Green Village Fayre 5

Year 10 – English DNA Year 9 & 10 – Drama War Horse PE ESAA Athletics – girls Sports Academy UCFB University, Wembley Stadium

June Year 10 – Geography Field Trip to Bournemouth Year 10 – History Berlin Year 13 Prom

July Year 7 KidZania Year 11 Prom 6th Form Thorpe Park Year 10 Brecon Beacons Music St Edmund Campion School summer fete

THE SCHOOL YEAR ACTIVITIES Cox Green firmly believes that students should be given opportunities to learn outside and beyond the classroom, as well as access to different types of activities and experiences. As you can see, we run a wide range of trips and residentials (both abroad and nearer to home.) Below are details of some of the trip reports written by our students.

MADRID TRIP Thirty three students travelled to Madrid for a five day training experience with the Real Madrid Academy coaching staff and played a series of games against Spanish sides. The matches were streamed live so parents had an opportunity to follow the games; the teachers did a great job keeping Twitter updated with photos and information. The highlights of the trip were undoubtedly meeting football legend Xabi Alonso, watching Real Madrid Vs Eibar play in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium and defeating the Spanish teams in each match! The students were impeccably behaved and did a great job of representing the school. We have had an overwhelming response from parents thanking us for the fantastic experience the trip gave our students which has been much appreciated. Thanks must go to Mr Gullick, Miss Stevenson, Mr Shields and Miss Fryers for giving up their time and working with the teams on such an amazing trip. Thanks also to Analytica Resources who sponsored the kit.

JAMIES FARM, WILTSHIRE 27th November to 1st December - 12 Year 10 students participated in a residential project at Jamie’s Farm in Wiltshire. They experienced the wide variety of life of a working farm and throwing themselves into all of the activities offered with great enthusiasm. Experiences have included the daily routine of shovelling manure from the pig pens to actually delivering new born lambs. About delivering the lamb, Spencer Ashford said “It was incredible to help an animal give birth and I’m really proud of what I have achieved during my time here.” During her time here, Jess Southby has also overcome a fear of animals. She said “I have really enjoyed cuddling the rabbits and it doesn’t make me freak when they wiggle.”

6

Iesha Cumberbatch said “my highlight has been riding on the back of the quad bike and being able to work with horses. It has really helped me improve my confidence.” Students have been embracing the life at Jamie’s Farm and are looking forward to returning home to talk about all of their experiences and things they have learnt.

UNIVERSITY OF SURREY TRIP From 29th January to 2nd February, a group of Year 8 students visited the University of Surrey each day to experience different aspects of University life. The University trip to Surrey was really exciting because I’ve never been to a university before so it was very exciting for me. On the Monday we were mixed into groups with other schools and introduced ourselves and made some friends too. We also had a tour of the campus which is really big. Over the whole week we participated in a variety of courses to get an idea of what it is like to do the subjects at university, with emphasis on getting us interested. I enjoyed drama the most because we did improvisation. By Jess Grantham

STEM LECTURES—DISNEYLAND PARIS—5th to 7th February My time on the Stem Trip to Disneyland Paris It was an early 6.30 am start on Monday, when we set off to the Eurotunnel to start our journey to Disneyland Paris! I was excited but nervous about what to expect on my first trip abroad without my parents. The journey was long but broken up with stops along the way for food and to stretch our legs. We finally arrived at our destination, the Hotel Cheyenne, which would be our base for the next 2 nights. The following day we had breakfast and headed off to the Disney Village through the snow which was freezing but great fun and we got to have a snowball fight along the way. We arrived in the Disney village for our first STEM lesson. We learnt about how rollercoasters were made and all of the science and maths behind it for example the friction of going over a loop in a rollercoaster and how you have to beat gravity. I found this really interesting as I had never thought about it before. After the lesson, we got to around the park! The rides were incredible and even though I have been before, I still loved it! The snow made the park very magically and pretty; especially the castle. After the park time, it was time for tea at King Ludwig’s Castle again before we embarked on another STEM lesson. This time we got to design our own rollercoaster, which was really cool. We had to do a presentation in front of our class, the teachers and two park leaders. My group designed a Moana Ride. Everyone came up with lots of great ideas for future rides! Overall my time at Disneyland Paris was spectacular and magical. I’d like to thank the teachers who organised the trip and looked after us. Thank You!! By Scarlett Brothers

AUSCHWITZ TRIP Year 11 students visited Krakow in Poland from Thursday 25th January to Sunday 28th. The students had a packed schedule during their visit. On the Friday, pupils had the opportunity to visit Auschwitz Concentration Camp and were given a tour with an expert. This was a once in lifetime opportunity and one that they will not forget. It was an extremely

7

emotional experience as well as being very informative. Students finished the day with a meal at a traditional Jewish restaurant with live music! On the Saturday, students had a packed schedule including a tour of the city, a meeting with a Holocaust survivor and a tour of Schindler’s factory. In the evening, pupils took part in a few hours of bowling with some impressive skills on show! On the final day, students had the opportunity to visit the Salt Mines, which was a highlight to many on the trip! The trip was an unforgettable experience for all of the students and staff involved. All pupils were a credit to the school for the entire trip; they were engaged, well behaved and made it a fun experience for all! A big thanks goes to Mr Foster, Mrs Warner and Mrs Gibbons for coming on the trip! By Mr Burrows

WINDSOR CASTLE - A-Level Art Trip Last Wednesday, 28th February, Year 12 and 13 A- Level Art students were invited to Windsor Castle to draw from one of the largest and most important art collections in the world. This was an amazing and rare opportunity as this is the first time any school had been allowed access to rooms which were designed by Prince Albert. Students spent the morning in the Print Room with the curator drawing from a range of portraits. These included work by Leonardo da Vinci, Hans Holbein, Lucien Freud and many more rare and precious images. Students learnt about the different processes and materials used by the artists and the history of each of the images. In the afternoon students visited the Queen’s Ballroom to draw portraits by Van Dyke, court painter during the reign of Charles I, with the Castle’s Artist in Residence.

UCAS TRIP - Thursday 19th April University; something many people have been to; are at or in the case of the year 12's it is something we are thinking about doing. So to kick start our thinking we all went to the Excel Centre in London to go to the UCAS Convention being held there. For many of us it was a time for us to collect some new pens, bags and wrist bands from the various stalls there- we were over half way through the year, all our hard work meant that many pens were beginning to run out and any free pens are a help. Despite this, it had been a helpful experience, getting to talk to the Admission staff of many universities, students themselves and even people who wanted to do the same course as you from other schools. At the University of Warwick one of the students was extremely helpful, telling us about her first year, the societies she joined and why she loved it there. I left the stall with a new outlook on what to look for in a uni and the sort that I wanted to go to. I'm sure many other students shared in my experience there, having learnt lots about their courses and where they would like to go. I left there with a heavy bag- 12 prospectuses of different universities- and a big smile on my face. Next step- Open days! By Charlotte Hayward-Faulkner

8

ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES As well as various residential trips, the school offers other experiences to enhance learning and develop our students as great team players and citizens of the future. Some examples include:

CAREERS INSIGHT OPTIONS MORNING The year 8 options day, on Thursday 18th January, kicked off to a great start with four guest speakers, aiming to bring four very different career pathways to life. Starting off the talks was Sarah Haigh who gave students the insight into life as a midwife, and the rewarding experiences that it gives, including travelling, career progression and if you choose, a job for life. Sarah Barry was our next speaker; Sarah is a pilot for TUI and navigates medium and short haul flights for Thompson holidays. Sarah informed students of the pathway they could follow to becoming a pilot, and gave us a snapshot of her experiences flying and the training pathways for the job role. Next to present was Charlie Jerome, who is currently an apprentice at GSK in Cox Green; Charlie had chosen to go into an apprenticeship from the age of 16 and is currently working towards his HND and is looking to eventually complete his training up to degree level. We are fortunate enough as a school to have GSK as our Careers Enterprise link, which allows us access to speakers from various departments within GSK, speak with apprentices and ask for support with careers events; they also invite us for tours of the site and mentoring sessions from senior members of the GSK team. Finally Ashley Smith, Cox Green Sports Academy director, spoke about his playing and academic pathway, which was extremely inspirational and a number of students have since spoken to Ashley about his journey from playing competitively, coaching and onto setting up his own business. Following on from the assembly, students then went into sessions that looked into university pathways, employability skills and qualities, and ‘Next Steps’, which covered, apprenticeships, sixth form and local colleges. The afternoon was spent in GCSE taster lessons, feedback from which has been extremely positive.

WELL BEING EVENT On Monday 22nd January I was training to be a mental health champion. I went to Marlow Youth Centre and we learnt about all of the different types of mental health. A woman came in to talk about her experience of mental health; she mentioned self harming and depression. She tried to get the point across that not all mental health patients are crazy and that all they need is a good listener to talk to and to express their feelings. For our campaign we made a quilt. On this quilt we put action cards in the slots that people could take anonymously, quote of the day to make yourself happy, random acts of kindness to brighten someone's day, and ways to think about good things you’ve done today. Overall it was a very interesting day. By Sara Barsoum 8.5

9

PHILOSOPHY AND POLITICS WORKSHOP Some of our year 9 students attended a GIFT workshop in Marlow on Friday 9th of March. The workshop was held for intellectually curious Year 9s and was an opportunity for the students to enjoy learning about Philosophy and Politics - a topic that is not on the regular syllabus in depth - in the company of other bright, curious students from different schools. The students had the opportunity to find out where they sit on the political map and see what solutions various philosophers and countries have offered to the problem of creating a fair society. The workshop was hosted by Jason Buckley, Director of Studies at GIFT and also an expert in philosophy in schools who trains teachers around the world. (GIFT is the name of the provider of internationally-renowned enrichment courses)

SCIENCE WEEK During 1st break on Friday 16th March, students in Year 7 and Year 8 completed the ‘squashed tomatoes’ challenge. They had to build a basket to hold tomatoes and design a device to move the basket safely without squashing the tomatoes. The group that transported the greatest number of tomatoes in one trip won!

There have been a range of external competitions too! Students in Y7 and Y8 have been encouraged to get creative and design a lab coat that illustrates the wonders of Science. If successful, the winning student would bag themselves a prize and a class set of lab coats with the winning design for the school. Year 9 have been challenged to produce a poster that highlights the importance of exploration and discovery. Sixty students from Year 8, 9 and 10 were selected to enter the Junior Biology Olympiad. These students had to sit two 25 minute papers after school during the week, in a competition against other students in the country. James Meyrick received a Gold Award, Georgina Bradfield and Alex Taylor received Silver Awards, 11 students received Bronze Awards, 10 students received Highly Commended Awards and 19 students received Commended Awards. This is an amazing progress on last year when we received one Gold, one Silver and one Bronze Award. Well done to all the students involved.

MOCK TRIALS Congratulations to the students who took part in the Mock Trial on Saturday 17th March. They all performed brilliantly and were a credit to the school. Well done girls!

ANTI BULLYING AMBASSADORS On Wednesday 21st March, 11 members of Year 7 were trained to become ‘Anti Bullying Ambassadors’. The students travelled to a school in Wembley to attend a training day where they networked with other passionate young people to exchange ideas and share good practice. All of our representatives were a credit to Cox Green by thoroughly getting involved in the sessions. They have an abundance of amazing ideas of how bullying can be tackled within the school and how they can put their training to best use. Watch this space for news of their upcoming events!

10

FUTSAL TOURNAMENT On Wednesday 28th March, the Year 12 Sports Academy students organised and hosted a Futsal tournament for the Year 7 students. Each form group submitted a team of 10 players, the Year 7 staff also submitted a team. The winners of the competition were 7.6 who displayed some great football and team work skills. The Sports Academy students must be commended on their organisation skills and enthusiasm for the event which meant it was a huge success.

YEAR 7 CRASHES COX GREEN On the night of Friday 27th April, students from the Sixth Form Leadership Team planned a sleepover with Year 7 students. During the day Year 8 students prepared a lovely meal for them as part of their Food Technology lessons, and throughout the night lots of fun was had. A highlight of the night was watching a movie at midnight in our brilliant theatre. All campers eventually went to bed around 2am. Now we are looking forward to the next one!

THE SCHOOL YEAR SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS Cox Green School is not only fortunate to have amazing sporting facilities but also to have fantastic sports men and women in the student body. Some of our sporting successes include: FOOTBALL Year 7 The Year 7 football team had some notable achievements: • They came 2nd in the district league • They got to the 3rd round of the national cup • The Participation rates increased allowing the development of two squads in year 7

Year 8 and 9 It has been another fantastic year of development for the year 8 and 9 football teams, with successful runs in the league and county cup.

Year 8 The year 8 football team continued to impress on and off the pitch with their fantastic work ethic and attitude. All of the boys in the squad continued to develop both technically and tactically and this was reflected by a number of outstanding performances that included an 8-0 home win in the County cup. The boys got to the County cup semi-final but were unfortunately narrowly beaten 2-0 in a match in which the boys showed fantastic desire throughout. A stand out moment of the year was during a fixture against Luckley House School in which the teams were mixed to ensure students from both schools gained the most out of the fixture, after a convincing start to the game from our boys. The outstanding attitude and manner from the boys was clear to see as they made every effort to make the Luckley house students feel as welcome as possible. A real show of class from our boys! This year’s squad included - Rayan Akkache, Harry Holden (Captain), Freddie Lewendon (Captain), Elliott Tompkins, Joe Richards, Joe Brinston, Ohran Carpenter, Finn McCartney, Sean Long, Cameron Chapman, Dylan Gilbert, Jack Murphy, Curtis Anderson, Sonny Herman-Haines, Violet Kingston-Wheeler and Elle Scott. Well done for another fantastic year.

11

Year 9 The year 9 football team continued to build upon their development from year 8 and demonstrated impressive tactical and technical performances on a number of occasions. It was evident in a number of fixture throughout the year that the boys had really taken on board the tactical elements that had been worked on in training. This included an impressive run in the County Cup that came to an end in a narrow semi-final defeat to Charters School. After an outstanding 5-2 win in the quarter finals against Easthampstead Park the boys were unlucky to drop out of the competition in the Semi-Finals. This year’s squad included- Harvey Young (Captain), Matthew Irwin, George Bowden, Jake Dargie, Tom Rowlands, Bartosz Sobolowski, Freddie Yates, Ben Grant, Frankie Burnard, Sam Woods, Shahmir Rashid, Ellis Bailey, Harry Chapman, Ben Milligan, Louis Rogers. Well done to all of those involved.

Year 10 The Year 10 Football team had several impressive achievements: • They got to the 5th round of the national cup tournament. • They reached the semi-finals of the county cup championships before being knocked out. • They came 2nd in the district league. • 33 students from year 10 boys and girls successfully went to Spain and took part in an intensive week football programme at Real Madrid C.F

Rowan Smith signed a contract with Crystal Palace Football Club U15’s Centre of Excellence Academy and also played in the Premier League National Cup Final against Chelsea F.C.

Malika Meena signed for Arsenal and England U15’s

ROWING Congratulations to Tess Horler, Ametz Parcell-Arregi , Olivia Stewart and Olivia D'Aversa for their amazing individual and team results in the Indoor Rowing event at the Berkshire School Games. All the girls showed amazing mental strength and superb team work. The girls came 3rd place in the sprint relay and 5th place in the 2000m (just 0.6 second behind 2nd place). Individually Olivia S came 5th in her heat; Tess came 6th in her heat; Ametz and Olivia D both came 4th in their heats; with Ametz placing 4th overall.

Congratulations to Dillon Cook for winning Gold in the J15 Coxed Quad and the J16 Doubles at Maidenhead Regatta in May.

Miss Ella Holloway, teacher of PE and Geography, was selected for the GB Para-rowing development squad. Earlier this season she won the PR3 classification British Indoor Championship title over 2,000m. She was also part of the title winning mixed relay team.

Indoor Rowing Championships Jakub & Jan Pleskac won a Silver Medal in the South England Indoor Rowing Championships on Sunday 4th February 2018 at the White Horse Leisure Centre in Abingdon. Even more impressively, they did this as a team of three against the other groups of four as one of their team didn't turn up! Congratulations! On Saturday 9th June at a Junior Regatta at Blenheim Palace, Jakub won bronze in the J14 coxed quad and Jan won gold in J13 double rowing for their club - Eton Excelsior.

12

ATHLETICS Caitlin McCara competes for WSEH Athletics Club and was selected for their 4x100m relay team at the Youth Development League National Final at Birmingham's famous Alexander Stadium on Sunday 3rd September. The competition sees the top clubs in the U.K. compete against each other to determine the best club in the country. Caitlin ran the first leg of the relay and the team held on to win a silver medal in a close race. Hopefully this will be the first of many medals for her at National level

County Sportshall Athletics Competition Olivia Phelps, Y10, came 4th out of 33 girls competing on Sunday 15th January at TVAC in the County Sportshall Athletics competition in Eton.

Berkshire Inter-Schools Cross Country Championships On Saturday 20th January, 13 Cox Green Students competed in the Berkshire Inter-school Cross Country Championships at Newbury Show Ground. Luke-Lom Hynes won a silver medal – the first ever for the school in this event; he qualified for the South East regional events and potentially England.

Abbie Jones came 17th in the County, and narrowly missed qualifying for the regionals by one place.

Berkshire Schools County Championships On Saturday 9th June in the Berkshire Schools County Championships at Palmer Park Reading there was more athletic success. Luke Lon Hynes won Gold, Finlay More came 3rd, Abbie Jones came 4th, Olivia D’Aversa came 5th and star of the day was Rowan Smith who led in the 1500m from the front and no one could catch him.

Cross Country Abbie Jones, year 11, won a silver medal in the final Cross Country race in the Chiltern League at Milton Keynes on Saturday 10th February. Her team also won a team bronze for her club Maidenhead Athletics Club, which is the first in their history for U17 girls.

Berkshire Sportshall League Sunday 28th January 2018 - Congratulations to Anu Hynes who won a team bronze at the final Sportshall match at TVAC on Sunday. Great performances from Callum Jones, Joshua Pope, Imogen Wilson, Zoe Flitton and Bethany Blackwell, all representing Maidenhead Athletic Club. Congratulations to Olivia D'Aversa and Olivia Phelps (pictured) who won a Team Bronze in U15 girls for Maidenhead Athletic Club. Olivia Phelps has qualified for Berkshire County Sportshall for the 5th consecutive year.

13

SWIMMING Congratulations to Katie Crowhurst, 9A1, on winning 6 Gold Medals in her Age Group at the English Federation of Disability Sport National Para-Swimming Disability Championships (25m) in Manchester on Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th December. Katie also raced at the WDSC level 1 long course meet at Wycombe leisure centre on the weekend of 10 & 11th March. Katie broke 5 South East Region Para Swimming records and one British Para Swimming record. In April - Katie competed at the National Junior Para Swimming Championships and achieved 6 Gold Medals. I am also delighted to announce that Katie has been chosen again this year by Sport England to be one of their 'Backing the Best' athletes. This is Katie's 3rd year to receive funding in recognition for her sporting talent. As part of the award Katie was invited to an athlete workshop on Thursday the 3rd of May at Loughborough university. During the Summer half term Katie represented Great Britain at the Para Swimming World Series held in Sheffield. Katie raced in 7 Events against swimmers from all over the world, but unfortunately there were no medals this time. She is now training hard as she will be participating in the Summer Nationals in August.

Aaron Cheung will be representing South East England in Indoor Swimming.

RUGBY Molly Horler, Year 13, has been selected for the Wasps’ Centre of Excellence as part of the England Rugby player pathway. Many Congratulations! Molly was also asked to give a speech at the Women’s Sport Trust Award Evening. The Women’s Sport Trust was honouring Carol Isherwood OBE for her contributions to women’s rugby as a player, coach, mentor and founder member of the RFUW (rugby football union for women). In 2008 she was voted International Women’s Personality of the Year.

Alex McNamara, Year 9, represented Slough in an International tournament in Germany.

NETBALL On Wednesday 14th March the Year 7 Girls Netball team won all their matches making Cox Green Year 7's the overall winners of the Windsor and Maidenhead League (a culmination of many league tournaments). Many congratulations!

OTHER SPORTS Charlie Henwood, Year 8, achieved a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Devansh Bhikhan, Year 9, played cricket for Boyne Hill Cricket Club and represented Berkshire.

Zoe Flitton, Year 7, won the BRS School race for Skiing.

14

FUTURE PLANS AND EXPANSION It has been a very exciting year at Cox Green School as we watched the development of our £5 million pound Building project taking shape. This additional school block has enabled the school to expand taking a further 30 students in Year 7.

The funding awarded by RBWM is in recognition of the highly successful OFSTED that praised the leadership, teaching and behaviour as well as the great set of examination results. The demand for places has seen a significant increase over the years and this expansion means that we can now provide additional spaces to those students wanting to join Cox Green School. The extra funding has enabled the development of excellent new facilities such as: A larger kitchen and dining facility; 8 additional new teaching rooms; An increase in the number of science laboratories; An additional set of changing rooms; An additional computing room.

Work started in July 2017 and the building will be ready for the new Year 7’s joining us in September 2018

The new building is named “The Holyport Building”.

THE SIXTH FORM – GROWING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH Through our morning Seminar programme, students in Year 12 and 13 have received opportunities to contemplate, debate and discuss the themes of Health, Careers, Well-Being and Success, Sustainability and Politics. Feedback has been extremely positive, with students going on to further research the topics or challenge their own personal views and outlooks on these wide- ranging issues. The life skills these informative sessions provide for formulating their own opinions and views, as well as debating with their peers, will be invaluable for their future education and employment beyond school. The Sixth Form leadership team successfully established a peer mentoring scheme this year, whereby a team of students across both years supported younger students with their academic studies and emotional support. Both sides found this a particularly worthwhile experience, with students looking to continue this into the future. We are extremely proud of our Year 13s in the fundraising initiatives they have led this year. Two of our students led a hot chocolate sale in aid of the First Days charity, whilst we have had a number of cake sales and dress down days for prom. A small team of students have been extremely committed in providing a twice- weekly tuck shop for Sixth Formers and staff. Through our Wednesday afternoon enrichment programme, students are able to diversify their interests and skills. A number of our students have continued to volunteer with the “Singing for Health” charity, children’s dance classes and supporting young pupils at Wessex Junior School with their literacy skills. For those who wanted to explore sport, we have provided open access to the gym and weekly football sessions. Plus, we have run a Foreign Language Film Club and Student Cooking sessions, enabling our students to explore healthy meal ideas within a budget. Beyond this, students were active in running and leading a lunchtime Debate Club and the successful “Cox Green Rocks” band night. 15

Once again students have benefitted from the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) which gives students the opportunity to make their own decisions, learn from their triumphs and mistakes and, successfully manage their time; skills that are in demand in the workplace as well as their future studies. All EPQ students have acquired extra skills not just excellent results. This year students have researched, analysed and presented on a diverse array of topics including; Equality and Women’s Football, the 2008 Financial Crisis, Charles II’s leadership during the Great Fire of London and, Roller Coaster design. In all cases the student has added either breadth or depth or both to their knowledge base. We have had an extremely successful year for our Year 13 and Year 14 students as they embark on their future pathways. We have had a number of unconditional offers from universities this year, as well as offers from UCL, Birmingham, Bristol, Southampton and Surrey. One of our students will also be taking up a place with the prestigious Ballet West company. Alongside this, we have been impressed with our students and their Apprenticeship success this year. Apprenticeships have been secured with Barrett Homes, AWE, Morrisons and local businesses, including accounting and sales. Parental involvement has continued this year with a high turnout at parents evening and with engagement with the information evenings, including the What Next UCAS/Apprenticeship pathways event.

THE SPORTS ACADEMY IN THE SIXTH FORM Our Sports Academy offers a bespoke post 16 programme which combines full time education and professional football training. On completion of the 2 year pathway students can expect to progress to University, International Scholarships, employment within the sports industry or progression to elite sport.

As well as students undertaking both A Level and BTEC subjects, the Academy allows students to grow and develop work ready skills through multiple streams such as; work experience, FA coaching qualifications, sport industry networking and employment.

In 2017/18 the Sports Academy had success on and off the pitch. 4 students have gained part/full US University Academic & Athlete scholarships for 2018/2019. A number of Sports Academy students are graduating to UK universities to further their learning within Sport. 2018 saw the Sports Academy winning its first trophy beating The Forrest School 2-1 in the U19 Berks Schools Cup Final.

Several of our students experienced national success with partner club Windsor FC reaching the quarter-final of the prestigious FA Vase.

Off the pitch, the Sports Academy students continue to embed themselves within the school community in particular supporting a Yr. 7 mentoring scheme and coordinating a Yr. 7 Futsal in house tournament.

COX GREEN SPORTS ACADEMY TEAM ACHIEVEMENTS This season was the first season that we entered the U19’s National League. Despite not fully knowing what the league would be like and how we would react it was fantastic that, for most of the season, we were competing in the top two. Unfortunately, we were sometimes unpredictable going from what our opponents described as ‘the best team they’ve played’ to dropping points against some of the big teams. This meant that we finished our first season fourth playing 20 games: winning 13, losing on 5 occasions, scoring 65 goals and only conceding 24. The joint best in the league which shows that if not anything else, we were very exciting and one of the teams to watch!

16

Our two Cox Green Academy sides also have had strong seasons in their leagues. Our Tactic Central squad finished the season in third place winning 8 out of 16 games. Our Tactic Foundation squad consisting of only U17 players finished second winning 8 out of 10 games and 1 point behind the League winners.

Our U18’s squad in conjunction with our partner club Windsor FC in the Allied Counties floodlit league ended the season with a 3rd place overall; winning 9 out of 14 games. The highlight game had to be winning 3-0 against eventual league winners Flackwell Heath with only 11 fit players and our usual Goalkeeper Henry Poole having to play at right back and doing extremely well. What a night that was!

Windsor 1st - Partner Club The great part about having a partner club is seeing how many of our young Academy boys have had the chance to compete at senior level in some prestige competitions. 13 of our current Academy players represented the Windsor FC first team this season, with another 4 ex-players playing regularly. The biggest success was reaching the quarter finals of the FA Vase, being two games from Wembley with many of our Academy youngsters playing key roles in the cup journey.

Individual success Hugo Sobte, Luke Appleton, Brad Pearce all have been invited to train with Brentford B team this season. Hugo has attended every week; Luke was invited to go with the squad for a week tour of Ireland. Last summer Keaton August went out to New Zealand to train with their U17’s National team with the hope of being selected for their final 23-man squad for the world cup. Keaton was down as number 24 which in itself was a brilliant achievement considering he had been injured with an ACL injury this season. He has since broken into the Windsor 1st team. Jack Denton came to us as a year 14 student this season and has played in almost every Windsor 1st team game having a huge impact on results. He will be leaving us to go to the US on a scholarship. Dan Roth (a second year) finished top scorer and Players Player for the U18’s and is also going to the US on a football scholarship. Ed Port won Player’s Player of the year for the U19’s and scored the winning goal in the cup final; he is also going to the US on a scholarship. Our most recent piece of good news was that our year 14 Brad Pearce was offered an U23 professional contract at National League side Sutton United where he will start pre-season training.

STUDENT LEADERSHIP This year has seen exciting opportunities for Student Leadership within the school.

Year 7 have been demonstrating their leadership capabilities this year with the addition of the new ‘Tutor Ties’ initiative. Each week a new member of a tutor group is nominated by their fellow tutees to wear the special tie. For the following week they are then responsible for leading the monitoring activities for their tutor group.

11 members of Year 7 have been trained to be ‘Anti-Bullying ambassadors’ through the Diana Award national programme. During the training the students were asked to think of ways to eradicate bullying in schools and ensure fellow students felt supported. These students have created a number of ways to promote the issue within school and we look forward to them carrying out these activities for the remainder of the summer term and going forward into Year 8.

A group of year 8 students have been trained as Mental Health well-being Ambassadors; as part of this training they have made a whole school campaign to be displayed in the SAFE area and created a presentation which they are delivering to KS3 pupils. Furthermore 15 Year 8 students have been involved in a mentoring scheme

17

where they have been paired with year 7 students and support them to develop their literacy and provide positive role modelling to them.

This year has seen the growing success of school prefects. An array of students have represented the school at a wide variety of school events such as Open Evenings, Parents Evenings and the Remembrance Day service. In addition the student body has initiated a variety of charity events raising significant amounts for money for local and national causes. The Senior Student Leadership team and Sports Academy students have initiated a new mentoring programme for year 11 and year 7 students which has been hugely successful.

PROVIDING FOR OUR MOST ABLE STUDENTS It is of paramount importance that we meet the needs of our most able students. We offer challenge in lessons and a diverse range of enrichment activities as well as individual and group mentoring. A specific member of staff was appointed to lead a whole school drive towards improving the progress of the most able students in February this year.

Staff this year have worked on developing and embedding techniques in the class room to stretch and challenge students. This saw a rise in the number of teachers using success criteria linked to blooms taxonomy, higher order questioning, flipped learning approaches and encouraging student led learning, as evidenced through learning walks. A book of best practise has been developed and collated by the HPA lead member of staff, where departments have shared examples of how they stretch and challenge students in lessons. In practical subjects such as PE, subject teachers use success criteria in creative ways to assess the student’s prior knowledge and understanding of a topic. Success criteria is shared as a problem solving challenge that the students need to work together to solve. This approach has proven to be successful as it allows the students to connect prior learning to new learning.

Professional development days were set up within the school which saw stretch and challenge being one of the focus areas for the staffing body. Staff worked collaboratively to share best practice and included examples of students work in the process. A ‘teachmeet’ was held where every department shared at least one strategy they used to enable students to access the very highest grades in their subject. This has been very successful as staff have shared the strategies that have proven to enhance student progress with other departments. The impact of the training was evident throughout the following self-evaluation process.

The self-evaluation process has been developed to include student feedback on the level of challenge that is provided in individual lessons and over time. Student feedback is shared with staff to encourage continuous development of the teaching and learning strategies that we use in lessons to stretch and challenge our students. This has allowed staff to identify areas of strength and areas of development from around the school. This will continue to be a priority in the next academic year to ensure we are providing as much challenge as possible in every lesson.

The most able Year 7 students have taken part in the planning and organising of transition activities for the new students that will be joining Cox Green in September 2018. The students have planned and created a video of frequently asked questions, discussed their favourite subjects and completed a virtual tour of the school. The project was researched, planned and executed by the year 7 students independently.

18

Additionally, some of our More Able Students took part in a Politics and Philosophy workshop. The students took part in discussion about what makes a fair society. They completed a range of interactive activities to find out where they sat on the political map and to see what solution various philosophers and countries have offered to the problem of creating a fair society. The students thoroughly enjoyed learning about a topic that is not part of the normal school syllabus in depth, in the company of other able, curious students from other schools.

In March, a group of Year 8 and 9 students took part in a Mock Magistrates Court Trial at Reading Crown Court. The students took on the roles of magistrates, jurors, witnesses and lawyers to argue both for and against defendants in a thrilling case. Overall the trip was very interesting and allowed the students to demonstrate their skills in persuasion and presenting facts.

1:1 and small group mentoring for our More Able students has been successful and we have provided highly individualised programmes for our students. Throughout the course of this year, Year 10, 11, 12 and 13 students have taken part in group and 1:1 mentoring sessions focusing on individual target setting, interview skills, revision strategies and organisation to help prepare them for their forthcoming GCSE and A-level exams. Feedback from this process has also been shared with staff so they are as informed as soon as possible on how to support these students. The students have found the sessions rewarding and highly supportive in preparing them for their exams.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS Cox Green School sees reducing the progress gap between those students who are disadvantaged (in receipt of free school meals in the last 6 years, in care, service children and those who are young carers) as an absolute priority. We work hard on an individual basis to remove any barriers to learning.

All disadvantaged students have received a careers interview and attended University open days depending on their year group. The additional funding the school receives has supported a range of initiatives which are explained in detail on the school website where they have been evaluated for impact.

We have become more aware that we have a growing number of students who have significant care duties outside of the school day and these duties bring barriers to their learning. We have worked with the Children’s Society to set up a Young Carers Club. Its aim is to raise awareness of these individuals to staff and to support these students with their additional barriers. A number of sixth formers are mentors to these students and the group meets on a regular basis to talk, share concerns and experiences.

We continually adjust our curriculum offer so that it is bespoke to each year group. A group of students went to Jamie’s farm where they experienced working on a farm for five days building their confidence and promoting team-work. It was amazing to see student’s leadership skills and resilience really growing. We have run focused interventions, such as the sports academy students mentoring some of our year 7 students through football. There has been paired reading in the mornings and a significant involvement from all our post 16 students in mentoring individual students. Reading programmes such as ‘Read-Write-Inc’ have been demonstratively successful in rapidly raising student’s literacy skills. Maths and English have run smaller class sizes in particular year groups, to support students with the core skills, and targeted revision sessions for individuals to work on gaps identified in mock exams and classes.

19

We are very aware that a set of good qualifications at GCSE or A Level are not the only tools students will need to reach their next step, either to go to University, Apprenticeship and ultimately their career. Our homework club has been adjusted due to student demand and therefore the nights it is on have changed. The staff member running it supports students in completing the homework, finding resources and providing a space to do it. The homework club runs on a Tuesday and Thursday afternoon from 3.15 to 4pm in Media. Students have been shown in tutor time how to review their work each day and also how to manage their time and homework using their planners. Students are aware they should be spending about 50 to 80 minutes per evening reviewing the day’s learning from their five lessons in addition to any homework they are given from a subject. Students who have gone on to do well at Apprenticeships or University always remark that it is the frequency of work they have done independently that has helped them the most.

We subsidise trips for disadvantaged students and encourage participation in at least one of the myriad of extra-curricular and enrichment clubs run throughout the day. Examples of such enrichment activities this year have included: Auschwitz, Madrid, Paris, college trips, a wealth of performing arts and musical events, charitable events, reading events in the community, work experience and a range of theatre trips. We recognise that although we publish enrichment activities and suggest them to students they still do not always attend. We would strongly urge parents and carers to ensure that their child participates in at least one enrichment activity to help nurture their soft-skills and make them more competitive career-wise. Employers are on the look-out for the soft-skills of communication, leadership and teamwork.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, BEHAVIOUR AND WELFARE At Cox Green School we have worked hard to ensure that our students are really well cared for, are kept safe and are supported in becoming the best young people they can be. We continue to offer a wide-range of extra-curricular activities to develop individuals and their character. Hard work, perseverance and resilience are key attributes that we promote through our challenging curriculum, high expectations and enrichment activities.

We have had another record increase in the number of positive points that have been issued to students and these have been celebrated through the issuing of bronze, silver, gold and our new governors award badge as well as through half-termly celebratory assemblies, positive weekly news stories, sixth former of the week and a special tie for each year 7 tutor group that gets handed to tutees that have excelled. For a fuller flavour of these awards, please look at our back catalogue of parent newsletters.

We expect high standards of our students and ensure that learning time is maximised. The standard of students’ uniform and equipment is high as this is checked at the start of every day. Our school behaviour policy supports all staff to ensure students have every opportunity to reach their potential through a calm and organised learning environment. We recognise that all students will have varying needs and backgrounds and we aim to support these. For example, we have a “Young carers” group who support emotionally and practically students at Cox Green School who have a range of caring responsibilities at home. We have an anti- bullying group who raise awareness of bullying in all its forms and an LGBT+ group who raise awareness around diversity.

Uniquely, we have a significant student support team, referred to as The SAFE Team, who ensure the safeguarding, welfare and readiness to learn of Cox Green School students in their care. The team are well trained regarding the issues young people face and emerging trends in society so that we are then able to meet them through our PSHE programme. For example, year groups have received education and support about mental health, the use and dangers of social media, gang awareness, the impact of knife crime on victims and families, healthy relationships, diet and exercise amongst many others.

20

Student voice is very positive about the pastoral support they receive that makes them feel happy and safe. This is supported by 95% of parents feeling their child is happy at Cox Green School and 97% feeling their child is safe at Cox Green school. The PSHE, tutor and assembly programmes further develop the whole child at Cox Green School by focusing on such topics and issues as: multi-culturalism, radicalisation, online digital footprint, drugs and alcohol, cancer, anti-bullying, citizenship, British values, financial awareness, employment skills, practice interviews and so on. We believe that over the seven years students spend at Cox Green School, these programmes, help our students to develop into well rounded individuals, ready for today’s society.

ATTENDANCE We are proud of our standards of attendance and continue to expect our students to have as close to 100% attendance year on year. We recognise that even 5% less than this in each year of study, means a student will have missed a quarter of an entire academic year’s worth of learning by the end of year 11. We continue to set a school target of 96% attendance and are relentless at supporting students and their parents in ensuring this. Attendance is celebrated and rewarded at the end of each half-term and at the end of each academic year; in particular those students achieving 100% attendance for all five or seven years at Cox Green School.

Attendance is one of our core foci and to support this we offer access to parenting classes, regular home-school contact, support in lessons, use of within school resources and referral to outside agencies. We make home visits when we have no known reason for a student’s absence and work closely with an Educational Welfare Officer. We believe there should be ‘no excuses’ as to why a student should not succeed. Attendance is vital to all of us as it supports academic progress and social interaction both in and out of school and ultimately provides the holistic, well-rounded education at the centre of our core values.

The impact of the attendance tracker, in conjunction with the work of the SAFE Team and the Attendance Officer, have ensured Cox Green’s attendance is well above the national average. In addition, our Persistent Absence figure (those students who have less than 90% attendance) has made significant reductions again this year. A student who has an attendance of 90% or less in each year of study will have missed almost half a year of school by the end of year 11 and will achieve 3 GCSE grades lower than the average student. We continue to impress upon both students and parents their responsibility in catching up with any work missed due to absence for whatever reason, without putting additional burdens on our staff.

Being punctual to school and lessons is also a constant focus for us as we are preparing students for the working world and reinforcing successful employment habits. The number of students attending school late in the mornings is minimal, however where it is a problem for individual students our punctuality report has a significant impact.

21

YEAR 7 REVIEW Dear Future Year 7’s My first year at Cox Green has been amazing! All the teachers have been very encouraging and kind and I also made lots of new friends. There are many changes going from Primary to Secondary school, but I promise you they are easy to cope with. At school, the subjects are amazing! Science is great fun, with lots of practicals and experiments to try. In Art you will learn about new styles and techniques of drawing, such as shading and complementary colours. PE, I have to mention – it’s so much fun, with lovely teachers who introduce you to new sports. Outside of school hours, there are many clubs for you to enjoy. I attend Science club and it’s so much fun. There are thousands of opportunities to experience new things that you would not get to do in the lesson. If I had to give the new Year 7’s some tips, I would say to work hard, make friends and always keep smiling!

Megan McDonnell 7.2

Dear Future Year 7s I was very nervous when I came to this school. There were so many people and a lot of classrooms I thought I would get lost trying to get to class. Not many people from my old school were coming and I was scared that I wouldn’t make any friends. However, all the teachers have been very friendly and when the bell rang and we had to get to class, they helped me so I wouldn’t get lost. I made new friends easily and soon I stopped being nervous about school. All the lessons are really great fun and every day we learn new things. Some of the subjects may be difficult but I still enjoy them because all the lessons are great.

Dominic Lyons 7.2

Dear Future Year 7s Since I have been at Cox Green School I have loved going to the amazing clubs. Personally my favourite clubs were Sports Writing Club, Football, and Science Club. My top 5 simple tips are: 1) Always make friends straight away, if you wait too long there will be a bunch of friends groups and it will be harder for you. 2) Always try your best in all lessons. Work hard in the lessons you love and work even harder in lessons you struggle with. 3) Join a club. I recommend clubs that are after school, like football and Science, or in school like Choir or Sports Writing. 4) Never give up because if you give up now you might as well give up for ever. 5) Enjoy your passion. Keep hold of the jobs you would like to do and make them happen and that’s all.

Holly Chinnery 7.1

22

WORKING WITH PARENTS We hold regular parent meetings and the Headteacher offers an open door policy so that strong relationships are developed. As well as the usual Progress Parent Evenings, we have regular “Headteacher Surgery” Sessions where parents are invited in for 15 minute sessions to discuss items of concern.

All letters to parents are posted on our website, just in case they never make it out of the school bag!

At each Parents’ Evening we also formally survey our parents so that we know how they feel about the school and what we can do to improve. Feedback is overwhelmingly positive as shown by the results of the academic year 2017 – 2018:

Feedback From Parents' Evenings 2017-2018

96% 96% 95% 95% 95%

93%

My Child is Safe My Child is Well My Child is Happy My Child Is Making My Child Is Taught Would Recommend Looked After Good Progress Well this School to another Parent

23