HEART MattersNews and Views from HEART Academies Trust Bedford Academy Shackleton Primary Cauldwell School Shortstown Primary Bedford Academy Shackleton Primary Issue 01 | Spring 2019 Cauldwell Primary Shortstown Primary www.heartacademiestrust.co.uk Welcome Welcome to the first ever edition of HEART CONTENTS Academies Trust Newsletter – HEART Matters. The aim of the newsletter is to provide an opportunity for Bedford Academy 4-5 children and families to find out more about the brilliant events • Investor in Careers Award Success for and activities that are happening across all of the HEART Bedford Academy Academies Trust schools, as well as bringing together the amazing • Rising Stars work of all of the staff and pupils across the Trust. • NSPCC Number Day • Year 11 Students impress on Mock Interview Day Shackleton Primary 6-7 • Harvest Festival Donations New Appointment • Shackleton Choir’s Trip A new Chair of Trustees has been appointed this week. • History Week David Hoare, a former Chair of Ofsted, and currently Chair of the • Charity Days Teenage Cancer Trust has been elected unanimously by the Board to be • World Book Day the new Chairman of the HEART Academies Trust. David has an unparalleled range of experience in guiding schools across Cauldwell School 8-9 the UK and has a clear vision for taking our schools forward. To be able • Table Tennis to bring his level of expertise to the HEART Academies Trust will give us • Exciting Ideas for Outdoor Learning an enormous advantage in helping us become a fantastic school group. He already has a clear sense of key priorities for the HEART Academies • Our trip to the Snozone Trust and he is the right person to take us forward in the next stage of • Communication Friendly Award our development. Shortstown Primary 10-11 Our Headteachers have all met David and welcome his appointment. Two new additional independent Trustees, Kevin Binley and Rebecca • NSPCC Number Day Jarrett, have also recently joined the Trust Board with expertise in • Forest School finance and HR. • Talk about Mental Health Day • Safer Internet Day • Chinese New Year VOCES8 Event 12 2 HEART Academies Trust | www.heartacademiestrust.co.uk | Spring 2019 Singing their HEARTS out Over 200 pupils from all four HEART Academies Trust schools performed with internationally esteemed vocal group VOCES8 on Monday 25th March at the Corn Exchange. Parents of the performing pupils, staff, trustees and governors In preparation for the concert, singers from the VCM had the opportunity to attend the concert, sponsored by The Foundation, the parent organisation of VOCES8, worked Harpur Trust and directed by Paul Smith, CEO of the VCM directly with pupils at each of the schools to teach them the Foundation and co-founder of VOCES8. pieces with the overall aim being to encourage the children to Children performed traditional songs from Ghana, Kenya and develop an appreciation of music and its benefits. South Africa alongside the VOCES8 singers, as well as jazz and Hannah Oldridge, Education Development Advisor at The soul classics, and the world premiere of a new piece composed Harpur Trust, who co-ordinated the project, said “Music is linked by Paul Smith using words and music devised by the pupils, to wellbeing and there is a great deal of evidence to show that called ‘Starburst’. music and singing have an incredible impact on a child’s learning, their wellbeing and their motivation.” HEART ACADEMIES TRUST ACADEMIES HEART See page 12 for more images of VOCES8 Branding Update Have you seen the new-look prospectus? If not, you will do very soon! All of the schools have now updated their new prospectus. The prospectus fits neatly inside an outer cover that details information about HEART Academies Trust. A big thank you to the schools for all their extra work in putting this together. The next step are new-look websites for each school. Bedford Academy’s new website went live in January and initial feedback has been extremely positive. Cauldwell’s website will be next to go live and all of the schools should have a new website by the end of the summer. Spring 2019 | www.heartacademiestrust.co.uk | HEART Academies Trust 3 Bedford Academy Investor in Careers Award Success BEDFORD ACADEMY BEDFORD for Bedford Academy Bedford Academy is delighted to have been re-awarded The Quality in Careers Standard. The school was re-assessed in thank you for your continued interest and their journey to higher education, further December 2018 by an external support towards Investor in Careers and education and apprenticeships. assessor for the CSW Group and was once again congratulate you on achieving The strong support from the Leadership proud to receive the confirmation re-assessment of the award under the Team and Governors in supporting that it has been accredited as “fully revised standard.” Careers and the enthusiasm and hard meeting all the accreditation criteria Bedford Academy achieved full Investor work of Careers Leader Mandy Green incorporating the Gatsby Benchmarks” in Careers status in December 2015 and and in house Careers Adviser Jon Dawe for the national quality award for its the school was awarded the Careers who plan and deliver it has ensured careers education, information, advice South-West National Best Practice that after three years of the holding the and guidance provision (CEIAG). Award in January 2016. Investor in Careers Award they have The CSW Group, trading as Investors in Rosemary Sutton, Assessor of IIC/QICS, successfully renewed it. Well Done.” Careers, is a Licensed Awarding Body for commented, “Bedford Academy deserves Mandy Green, Careers Leader at the national Quality in Careers Standard its success as the first Academy/School to Bedford Academy, said, “We are the and confirmed the decision made by renew their Investor in Careers with CSW first of the SEMLEP 100 schools to meet the external assessor, Rosemary Sutton, group under the new Quality in Careers all eight Gatsby Benchmarks. I believe following her visit to the school, to re- Standard (14th December 2018). it to be innovative and creative and am award The Quality in Careers Standard As Bedford Academy’s assessor on the proud to be the very first school to be re- from 14th December 2018. day the Careers team along with key assessed under the new Quality in Careers Ed Whitefield, Investors in Careers staff, the Chair of Governors, members of standards. During this time our careers Consultant, stated in his letter, “I their business community and students all provision has developed considerably and I would like to say how impressed we explained and provided excellent evidence am massively proud of the well-structured, are with the continuous quality of your of how they achieved all eight Gatsby high quality careers provision that the CEIAG programme and would like you benchmarks by July 18 and maintained students at Bedford Academy receive. ” to feed this back to the headteacher, all and developed their careers education The award is for a period of up to staff, and governors. and impartial careers guidance to make three years, expiring at the latest on I would like to take this opportunity to sure every student excels and achieves in 14th December 2021. Students from challenges which tie around a theme. drumming, dancing or mask making King’s Oak, This year’s theme is ‘Nature’ and the before bringing all three together to Elstow, Cotton first session focussed around African perform in our Main Hall in front of End, Cauldwell, culture and the celebration of nature, a group of teachers. The students, as Shackleton and taking inspiration from the Disney always, were a credit to their schools Shortstown film The Lion King and the Circle of and a pleasure to work with and we Primary Schools were welcomed to Life. Students, in one hour, worked look forward to our next collaboration. Bedford Academy for our first Rising in groups to either learn African Stars session of the year. Now a staple of the Bedford Academy calendar, the Rising Stars programme is running for the fourth consecutive year. The programme involves around 100 students in total, from Years 5 and 6 in the Primary Schools and Years 7 and 8 here at Bedford Academy, coming together to collaborate on one-off 4 HEART Academies Trust | www.heartacademiestrust.co.uk | Spring 2019 NSPCC Number Day Twenty of Bedford Academy’s best Year 7 and Year 8 Mathematicians took on Mr Marsham in the NSPCC Number Day ‘Who Wants To Be a Mathionaire’ Challenge in support for the NSPCC. Despite beating the students in the Challenge, Mr Marsham lost when challenged to a ‘Double or Quits’ offer which resulted in him having his legs waxed! As well as the Maths challenge, our Sixth Form Charity Committee were able to raise over £80 through their cake sale, ‘Guess the Age of the Teacher’ and ‘Guess How Many Sweets Are In The Jar’ competitions. A big thank you to all of our Sixth Formers involved, with special ACADEMY BEDFORD thanks to Sabihah Begum, Franka van der Kolk, Alisha Ahir and Ayesha Ahir. Year 11 Students impress on Mock Interview Day Year 11 students have been carrying out mock interviews, joined by a host of volunteers from Bedford Rotary Club, Lloyds Business Banking and The DWP. Mock interviews have been provided for experience it had been and wishing the photograph this and upload it to their all Year 12 students for the last few years, students all the best for the future. online record of achievement (START). but this is the first year that this unique All students were given personalised Well done to all and many thanks to our experience has been offered to every feedback and have been reminded to team of volunteers.