Newsflash
Edition 13: Friday 4th December 2015
LETTER FROM MR WILSON
Welcome to Edition 13 of Newsflash.
First and foremost this week, I would like to say how much I enjoyed Singing in the Rain. It was
possibly the best school production I have had the privilege to see and, in my view, better than many
productions staged by professional theatre companies. I am sure that anyone else who saw it will
agree that it was an amazing show. We really do have some very talented students; Joseph Lewis,
Molly Marshall-Hopkins, Abi Bright, Chloe Fraser, Daisy Smithson and Katie Cross, as the lead
characters, were exceptional, but the whole cast, all 63 of them, were excellent. We also have an
outstanding Expressive Arts Team and I would like to thank all of them for the hours and hours that
they have put into rehearsals and into staging the production of the show. Thank you to everyone
involved. Your performance made me feel so proud to be the Headteacher of the Academy.
With the worst of the winter ahead, we have already had weather warnings about snow and
treacherous conditions. The Academy will always do everything it can to stay open but,
unfortunately, there may be occasions when we have to close. Although snow and ice do bring
hazardous conditions to any school site, the main problem that we face in the bad weather is
difficulties for staff and students getting to and from the Academy. When the roads become
gridlocked, it can take hours for commuters to get to work; unfortunately, at a school, you cannot
have 850 students unsupervised on site waiting, possibly for hours, for staff to arrive. Please be
assured though, closure will only ever be as a last resort. Your child’s learning and progress is far too
important for us to close unless absolutely necessary. Further information about the arrangements
for a closure due to bad weather can be found in this edition of Newsflash.
We are fast-approaching the end of term and it is hard to believe that Christmas is almost here. We
break up for the Christmas holiday on Friday 18th December and, in line with other High Schools, will
be closing early at 12.00 noon. Attendance is crucial over the last two weeks of term as lessons will
continue as normal right up until 12.00 noon on the final day. The Academy will re-open for staff on
Monday 4th January and, for students, on Tuesday 5th January.
Thank you for reading this edition of Newsflash and, as usual, I hope you have a good weekend.
Best wishes
Mr P. Wilson
Headteacher
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
GCSE COUNTDOWN
Year 11, you are now 13 weeks into your final year and there are only 17 school weeks left, just 85
days in school, until your first GCSE exam.
GCSE speaking assessments will be taking place next week for students studying French. The
assessments will be on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th December. Please encourage your child to
prepare thoroughly for these important exams.
The practical performance for the GCSE Drama examination will take place on Thursday 10th
December. The assessment will last all day from 8.30am to 4.30pm. Good luck to all those involved,
we are sure that your hard work and thorough preparation will pay off on the day.
All Year 11 students will have received the results of their pre-public exams this week. As always,
some students were very pleased with their results whilst others were disappointed. The main
purpose of the pre public examinations is to prepare you for your final GCSE examinations next
summer, to find out what you know and understand and to identify areas that you still need to work
at. The pre public exams will also have shown some of you that there are no short cuts and that the
only way to guarantee success is through hard work and thorough preparation. The important thing
for all of you is that you learn from the experience and any mistakes you may have made and give
yourself the best possible opportunity to succeed next summer.
IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK
Students from Years 10 and 11 who are studying GCSE Textiles or Photography visit the Clothes
Show at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.
Students taking GCSE P.E. go climbing and abseiling at the Manchester Climbing Centre.
The Academy Cross Country Team competes in the Tameside Championships at East Manchester
Harriers.
Students visit the Lowry Theatre to watch a performance of “Lord of the Flies”.
Students studying GCSE Photography visit Manchester Museum to photograph some of the more
unusual and interesting exhibits.
Two more School Leaders visit Droylsden to see how we are bringing about on-going improvements
to the behaviour, ethos and leadership of the Academy.
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
SINGING IN THE RAIN
Well done to everyone involved in the production; the best yet!
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
“Many thanks to you for inviting us to the Show tonight. We thoroughly enjoyed what was a most
professional and entertaining production. Please pass on our thanks and congratulations to the cast,
orchestra, backroom staff, teachers and everyone else associated with the fabulous Show. Well done
to all.”
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
“Thank you all for a wonderful evening at last night’s performance of Singing in the Rain, it was
brilliant and we really enjoyed it. All the cast should be really proud of themselves as you could tell
how committed and full of enthusiasm they were. Well done to everyone at the Academy.”
“I am emailing to tell you how much I enjoyed your school production last night. Your staff and
students worked really hard, you have some extremely talented singers. I applaud the young man
(one of the leading roles) who just jumped, smiled and carried on singing after he slipped (such a
pro!). Molly as always has a voice of an angel. It was also lovely to see more male dancers, the tap
dancing was a joy to watch, I wanted to get on stage and join in. Well done to all involved, your hard
work paid off, the show was FANTASTIC.”
HEADTEACHER’S CELEBRATION OF ACHIEVEMENT
Congratulations to the following students who were invited to attend this week’s celebration of
achievement:
Ilsa Khalil
Zhen Zhang Kian McGuiness Jayde Blencowe Aadam Majid
Emma Shaw Daniel Waite Alicia Fenton Liam Howe
Mr Wilson was also delighted to present certificates to Pearl Slate and Brook Hardman for making an
outstanding contribution to their community. Pearl and Brook have both acted as volunteer helpers
at their local Scout Group in Clayton where they have worked with, and supported, younger
members. The leader of the group contacted Mr Wilson to say how impressed she was by their hard
work and commitment; she said that nothing was ever too much trouble for them and that they
were both excellent role models to their peers.
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
ARRANGEMENTS FOR CLOSURE IN THE EVENT OF BAD WEATHER
As outlined in the Headteacher’s letter at the beginning of this edition of Newsflash, the Academy
will always do everything it can to stay open but, unfortunately, there may be occasions when we
have to close.
If a decision to close the Academy is made before the start of the school day, then a text message
will be sent to all parents and carers informing them of the closure. A message will also be put on
the Academy website and on local radio stations.
If we have to close during the day and send children home, then a text will be sent to all parents and
carers before the students are dismissed. Students will also be given a letter to take home before
they leave, a message will be added to the website and a tweet sent out accordingly. We would
always look after a child if he or she had nowhere to go.
FEEDBACK FROM THE YEAR 10 STUDENT COUNCIL
Learning
You said: There is more challenging work set now in lessons and learning is better because of
improved behaviour and seating plans.
You want the Academy to look at: The jump from Years 9 to 10 when students start GCSE courses
and the range of ability within some teaching groups.
Homework
You said: Homework is really helping us to consolidate on our learning.
You want the Academy to look at: Making sure that homework is always set on the right night so
that the demands of different subjects are spread out over the week.
Behaviour
You said: Behaviour has improved significantly since last year.
You want the Academy to look at: Ensuring any low level issues with behaviour are tackled
consistently by all staff in line with the very high expectations of the Academy Behaviour Policy.
Extra-curricular activities
You said: Extra-curricular opportunities, particularly at lunch time, are often biased towards sport.
You want the Academy to look at: Providing a wider range of lunch time activities and
opportunities.
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
MATHS PUZZLE OF THE WEEK
There is a pole in a lake!
One half of the pole is stuck in the ground at the bottom of the lake. Another one third of it
is covered under the water and 10 ft of it is sticking out above the surface the water. What
length is the pole in feet?
REMINDERS AND MESSAGES
Remember, someone will win this bike on the day
we break up for Christmas. If you have 100%
attendance from Monday 9th November until
Friday 18th December, it could be you!
Have you registered your team yet for the great Intergalactic Star Wars Quiz? The quiz will take place
in the Atrium at 4.00pm on Thursday 10th December. For further information, please see our quiz
master and event organiser Mrs Godrich in the Learning Resource Centre.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
The Academy will break up for the Christmas Holiday at 12.00 noon on Friday 18th December. It will
re-open for staff on Monday 4th January and, for students, on Tuesday 5th January.
ARTS’ AND SPORTS’ ROUND UP
Well done to the following students who represented the
Acdemy at the Tameside Cross Country Championships.
Under 12 (Girls)
Sana Subhani, Kenzie-Leigh Bentley, Phoebe Plant, Amelia
Silvestri and Ellie Craven
Under 12 (Boys)
Archie Farrell, Max Ahmed, Connor Gerrard and Connor
Dopson
Under 14 (Girls)
Ellie Richardson, Caitlyn Wilding, Mia Linney, Nicole Young
and Rhoda Sarpong
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work
Under 14 (Boys)
Sam Farrell, Daniel Shaw and Owen Hallworth
Under 16 (Girls)
Keira Holland
U16 (Boys)
Billy Deniz, Rodney Osei, Jack Garlak and
Connor Hogan
The event took place at East Cheshire Harriers with the
competitors completing a 5km course. Well done, in particular, to
Ellie Craven who came 7th overall in the U12 (Girls) race and who
has been selected to represent Tameside in the Greater
Manchester Schools Competition.
Great learning through politeness, honesty and hard work