Last weekend, ten Year 12 and 13 students completed the expedition section of the Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award. They have been working exceptionally hard and undertook two practice expeditions in the Peak District and the Brecon Beacons. The final qualifying venture saw them scaling the peaks of Snowdonia and, despite some late nights and wet days, I am pleased to announce that they all passed the section and are well on the way to receiving their Gold Award. We hope that by March they will receive their invitation to meet the Duke of Edinburgh himself to receive their Awards.

This is a tremendous accomplishment by all involved and I am very proud of them. They are some of the first students enrolled in any Academy to achieve this great honour and their success is richly deserved after all of the hard work they put in.

The Duke of Edinburgh Award will commence again in the next couple of weeks for years 10-13. Mr. Harris will provide details through assemblies next week, so get ready to take on the challenge!

A big thank you to Mr Lewis, Mr Davies and Miss Hancock for their support over the last few weeks, the students could not have done it without you.

If you are a Year 7 parent or carer, you should have received a letter inviting you to come to the Academy on Tuesday 3rd November from 4:30-7:00pm for a Settling-In Evening. This event gives you the chance to meet your child’s tutors, and it is also an opportunity to participate in some exciting workshops aimed at helping you to support your child’s learning at home. Workshops range from Literacy at Home through Internet Safety to Rugby!

If you would like to attend a workshop (or two!), please ensure you complete the reply slip on the letter by Wednesday 14th October and hand it in to the office.  Workshop places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. If you have not received the letter, contact the General Office who will provide you with a copy.

Please keep 3rd November free. We would love to see all Year 7 parents and carers there!

Counselling is …

The chance to talk to someone confidentially if you are unsure what to do about problems in school, at home, or with friends, or if you have any concerns.

You won’t be judged or told what to do …

You can talk about anything that worries or upsets you:

• Family and friends
• Relationships
• Feeling confused, sad or angry
• Exam stress
• Bullying
• Pressures
• Lack of confidence

To arrange to see me you are welcome to contact me yourself or ask you tutor or Head of Year to arrange a time for you. My room is next to the LSU, near the Rendezvous café.

The first debate of the school year will take place after school on Wednesday 21st October. Pupils from Years 9 and 10 will be arguing for and against the following motion: This house believes that celebrities are above the law. Everybody is welcome to watch the debate, grill our speakers and put their own point forward!

The auditions were tight and the performances impressive, but the selection committee has decided on following lead characters: Joy Davis as Miss Lynch; Daniella Korankye as Patty Simcox; Feyi Coker as Eugene Florczyk; Berry Squire as Vince Fontaine; D’Arcy Squire as Johnny Casino; Aleemat Salami as Cha Cha DiGrigorio; WITH Samir Ali as Danny Zuko; and Charlotte Nguyen as Sandy Dumbowski. Congratulations, we’re looking forward to another great CoLA production!

Pottery club will be held every Wednesday from 3:15 to 5:15pm.

We will be learning how to use different techniques to model in clay and to decorate our work using coloured slip, glazes and paint. You can even have a go at throwing a pot (preferably on a potter’s wheel!!) All years are welcome to join, but there are only 15 places available – so it’s first come, first served. See Ms Myers in Art for details.

Please remember that we expect you to check your child’s planner regularly. Teachers and other staff write notes about homework and other school matters in it, so you should review it to make sure you are up-to-date with your child’s schooling. If lost, replacement planners can be obtained from the General Office at a cost of £5 each.

When preparing your child’s lunch and break food, please remember that children should bring only water, milk drinks and non-fizzy fruit juices to school. Sweets and non-approved drinks will be confiscated.

There have been some cases recently of students setting up small businesses selling sweets, crisps and drinks to each other. This is definitely forbidden, and will be treated as a disciplinary issue.

·         Parents can pay for trips and food by Visa card payment.

·         We give 10% extra on all cheque and card payments over £20 for food, and 5% for all cheque payments under £20. So a cheque for £25 will put £27.50 onto the card – the equivalent of one free meal every fortnight!

·         If students have a MINUS balance on their cards of £5 or more, they will be unable to get any more credit until the debt is paid.

·         We will issue credit slips for lunch for only three consecutive days. After that, the student must purchase a new dinner card.

·         The cost of a new dinner card is now reduced to £5.

·         All payments for trips, etc, should be made at the new Finance office in the Rendezvous café. Parents can still pay at the General Office, but all payments by students should be made at the Finance office.