Another busy week with the school beginning to move towards a busy and bustling community. The senior students after their Key Stage Three assembly are busy visiting tutor groups recruiting students as Eco Reps and Student Council reps.

 

We are delighted to be starting up with clubs again, there are new clubs beginning to appear around the school and next week I will share a full schedule of lunchtime and after school clubs and events.

We are starting to play fixtures again ... I will hand over to the PE department here:

We now have regular clubs running throughout the week, on Mondays, we have Netball club for Years 9, 10 & 11, Tuesday is Football club for all year groups on the 3G and Thursdays it is Netball again for Years 7 & 8.  So far this academic year we have had 117 different pupils attend the clubs which we are running.

We have also had football fixtures for our Year 8 & 9 students in which we have performed well for parts of the games; the Year 7s have had their first taste of competitive netball in a tournament on Tuesday.  Unfortunately, we have had at least 3 fixtures cancelled due to the other schools not being able to attend.

As a school, we are also organising the local Secondary Sports Partnership Cross Country event on Wednesday 20 October.

 

KS4 Careers Evening

Last night was our first in school event. I was delighted to see so many students and parents attend the KS4 Careers Information Evening. We were visited by more than 10 sixth form provisions including the very popular BHASVIC and schools such as Uckfield who offer sixth form opportunities. It was such a joy to see our Year 11s out in force planning their inspiring futures.

 

Dates for your diary

1. Student Progress Evenings

Year 11 – Wednesday 10 November 2021

Year 7 – Wednesday 1 December 2021

Year 9 – Wednesday 19 January 2022

Year 8 – Wednesday 9 February 2022

Year 10 – Wednesday 23 March 2022

 

2. Remaining INSET Days

INSET 3 – Monday 1 November 2021

INSET 4 – Friday 11 February 2022

INSET 5 – Wednesday 22 June 2022

 

3. Whole School Photo Day

Thursday 21 October 2021

 

Refillable Water Bottles

Can you please ensure that your son/daughter only brings in refillable water bottles that are made of plastic or metal only.  Glass ones are not allowed

 

Maths Department

Great news – The Board Club starts Monday 4 October 2021 for Years 7 to 9.  See attached flyer below.

 

Art Department – Art Competition

Enter our first competition of this academic year!  This competition is open to all years, so show us what you've got! 

The theme is 'Alphabet', the materials you need are a standard square post-it note and whatever art material you want to use on top e.g. biro, paint, collage, mixed media etc...

The Rules:

1 One letter per post-it

2 Artwork should be done on the post-it note - with no overhang

3 Your name, surname and tutor group should be clearly written on the back 

4 Submissions should be given in by the deadline (26th November) any late submission will not be put forward to the Judges. You can submit more than 1 piece.

Submit your work to either Miss Hook or the Art submission Post Box that will be in reception as of next week by the deadline date of November 26th 2021.

There will be 3 winning categories with runners-up prizes up for grabs too. Happy Creating and good luck! 

Please see the attached PDF below with more information and examples/ideas.

 

Food Technology – Cookery Club

Weekly after school cookery club beginning next Wednesday 6th October for Years 7 and 8 only, running until early December.  The club will be held from 3.30 pm to 5 pm in F08.  Students will need to bring in their own ingredients.  Mrs Budd will provide a list in advance. Numbers will be initially limited to 15 and places allocated on a first come, first served basis. Edulink email giving further information will follow shortly.

 

Local Authority's 'Local Offer' for children with SEND

Click here for the East Sussex Local offer which gives information about many aspects of SEND services and support available for children and young adults with special educational needs and disabilities up to the age of 25, and their families.

 

Students with caring responsibilities - Opportunity to take part in research

We have been approached by Danielle Proctor, Research Assistant, iSupport for Dementia Carers to share the attached flyer and to ask if any students who have caring responsibilities, would be interested in taking part in a new research trial funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NHR).  The study has full ethical approval, aims to improve the support currently available to young dementia carers.  The opportunity to take part in this research trial is being rolled out to all secondary schools across the UK.  Contact details are on the attached flyer below.

 

Safeguarding Focus

1. Action for Happiness Calendar – Please follow this link: https://www.actionforhappiness.org/calendars

            The monthly calendars are packed with actions you can take to help create a happier and kinder world. 

2. Cannabis Edibles Information 

Over the summer there was some media reporting about 'sweets' laced with cannabis, amongst other things. Here are some resources that you might find useful: The Surrey Safeguarding Partnership and Catch-22 have produced this helpful leaflet: Edibles: Information for Parents & Carers https://cdn.catch-22.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/SYPSMS-Edibles-Information-for-Parents.pdf

Ealing Grid for Learning has a ‘toolkit’ about edible cannabis, which includes a powerpoint presentation from the Metropolitan police, here: Safeguarding alert: Edible drugs disguised as sweets https://www.egfl.org.uk/news/2021/03/safeguarding-alert-edible-drugs-disguised-sweets

Another resources are: Cannabis Edibles Information Sheet (SORTED) https://safeguardpro.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Edibles-Info-Sheet-SORTED.pdf

3. New Wellbeing Website – e-wellbeing

See link: https://e-wellbeing.co.uk/

e-wellbeing is a digital wellbeing service for young people, run by YMCA DownsLink Group. Their aim is for all young people to be able to access the right support and information around their emotional health and wellbeing, in the right place, at a time that is right for them.

This website is for young people who live in Sussex (including Brighton & Hove) but our tips and resources are accessible to everyone.

They understand that accessing support around your mental health can be confusing and complicated sometimes. They are there to help you understand a bit more about how to be mentally healthy and how to connect to support across Sussex.

And if you'd like to get in touch about anything else, email them at: e-wellbeing@ymcadlg.org. 

 

Sian Williams

Principal