St. Mary s CATHOLIC ACADEMY PROUD TO BE A MEMBER OF

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1 St. Mary s CATHOLIC ACADEMY PROUD TO BE A MEMBER OF

2 Simon Eccles HEADTEACHER Stephen Tierney EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR PAGES 2 3 AND

3 Welcome TO OUR COMMUNITY I am delighted to welcome you to St Mary s. As a Catholic academy St Mary s is built on a foundation of Christian principles. Our community is very much a caring family where Staff, Parents and Students work together to ensure that Students develop their potential and grow into responsible, motivated young adults, who are well prepared for their future. St Mary s Staff work hard to ensure that each student receives the best possible education; we set high standards and have high expectations for all. This all happens in state of the art facilities in our recently finished 22.5 million pound rebuild; students at St Mary s benefit from the best possible teaching in the best possible environment. Respecting each student as an individual is central to our caring nature and reflects the Gospel s message of love. A strong and supportive pastoral system cares for all and helps build students self-esteem. This focus on the whole child is supported by a rich range of extra-curricular opportunities allowing students to enjoy their time at St Mary s to the full. As our school mission says: I have come that you may have life and have it to the full John 10:10 Simon Eccles HEADTEACHER I hope you find the information in our prospectus useful, we have tried to portray a full picture of our thriving academy and I do hope you come and see St Mary s for yourself at our Open Evening in September or I would be delighted to take you on a tour of our academy during an academy day by simply contacting my PA at: admin@st-mary.blackpool.sch.uk or on I am delighted to introduce to you the prospectus for St Mary s Catholic Academy. St Mary s Catholic Academy is a member of the Blessed Edward Bamber Catholic Multi Academy Trust. The trust consists of a number of Blackpool Catholic Schools who have decided to work very closely together to support and challenge each other. Our aim is to produce great schools in which your children can happily learn and grow. We seek to provide high quality teaching, excellent pastoral care and enriching faith development within a distinctive family ethos. The trust is developing particular expertise in working across the different phases of a child s education to make it an enjoyable, challenging and seamless journey. Our staff work and learn together as part of this process. Our academies are part of the wider family of Blackpool & Lancaster Diocesan Catholic schools who we also work closely with. This prospectus will give you an initial insight into the work done at St Mary s Catholic Academy. Please feel free to contact the Headteacher and visit the academy to see the great work being done for yourself. Yours sincerely, PROUD TO BE A MEMBER OF Stephen Tierney EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE

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5 Living Life TO THE FULL I have come that you may have life and have it to the full. John 10:10 Our mission as a Catholic academy is to provide an outstanding wholeperson education through which all are challenged to grow in wisdom, understanding, self-esteem and closeness to God. St Mary s offers a unique faith based education from Year 7 up to 6th form with a focus on developing our students as learners. This has led to the creation of a learner model the 4Cs Interdependent Learner: Confident, Connected, Cooperative, Creative. We measure our success in terms of outstanding achievement, high attendance, enriching relationships and an Academy community who individually and collectively live life to its fullest. CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE St Mary s is an outstanding Catholic College providing an education which enables students to flourish Section 48 Inspection, 2012

6 Our Faith COMMUNITY PAGES 6 7 AND

7 Catholic means including everyone St. Mary s is a faith community...in which all students will be supported and nurtured with equal compassion, kindness and justice....in which the person of Jesus is the inspiration and model of love and compassion....in which all are treated as children of God and the values and challenges of Jesus are integral to all we do....in which all are seen as uniquely gifted and encouraged to use these gifts to find fullness of life. Students make an outstanding contribution to the Catholic life of St Mary s and benefit in significant ways by being at the school Section 48 Inspection, 2012 Outstanding social, moral, spiritual and cultural development. Students contribution to the school and wider community are outstanding Ofsted 2011 CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE

8 Our Lear CO PAGES 8 9 AND

9 At St Mary s we offer flexible learning pathways to enable different interests, learning styles and aspirations to flourish. So that students get the most out of their education as soon as possible each student follows one of three initial pathways from year 7. Additional pathways and options become available as students move through the academy to enable students to spend more time in areas that interest them. In year 10 options range from academic, providing a good basis for Sixth Form and university, to vocational and workrelated. All pathways include a core curriculum of RE, ICT, English, Maths and Science. Additional outstanding features include the way in which the school uses partnerships to promote learning and well-being for a diverse group of students needs Ofsted 2011 ning MMUNITY So that students get the most out of the curriculum our Learning to Learn programme, delivered by the different Learning Houses, teaches our students how to learn and helps them develop and improve learning techniques, suited to their own individual learning style. Education does not start and finish in the classroom some of the most powerful education is gained in incredible opportunities provided outside the classroom walls. These range from sporting options, drama productions, musical experiences, art and craft opportunities and political debates to trips to inspirational locations both near and far. Each year we have a Wonderful Week to extend students learning opportunities. Activities have included educational visits to Paris, London and Manchester, and a choice of a wide range of projects from Blackpool s Heritage to Theme Parks to Crime Scene Investigation. Excellent use is made of ICT across many subjects and many students access their learning from home Ofsted 2011 CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE

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11 Caring COMMUNITY At St Mary s we pride ourselves on placing the child at the centre of everything that we do. Our key to success is building relationships that create a sense of mutual worth and a shared goal in creating an outstanding Academy. To achieve this we have 10 tutor groups per year to keep form groups small. This enables form tutors to work closely with students and their parents in a mutually profitable partnership of success. Because we want to ensure each and every student achieves their full potential our behaviour policies are applied consistently. Knowing what the boundaries are ensures everyone operates within them to create an atmosphere of Behaviour for Learning throughout the College. Many aspects of the school s work are outstanding; primarily, the care, guidance and support that students receive and their social, moral, spiritual and cultural development Ofsted 2011 Teachers are frequently described as firm but fair by students Section 48 Inspection, 2012 CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities make outstanding progress Ofsted 2011

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13 Community WITHIN A COMMUNITY We are proud to offer the only post-16 Catholic education on the Fylde Coast, with a vibrant sixth form community of about 200 students. We offer a small, personal and close-knit community of students, with excellent pastoral care, guidance and exam results. Enrichment activites are varied and numerous, with volunteering and leadership opportunities at home and abroad including an annual charity expedition to the Kingdom of Nepal allowing students to act as volunteers in a local school. The high quality dialogue promoted a greater preparedness to learn new and challenging concepts in a supportive and stimulating environment. Ofsted 2011 Students are keen to discuss their future options post sixth form and enjoy the Wednesday enrichment afternoons when they may partake in any number of worthwhile activities, from football to serving soup at the Salvation Army base. CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE

14 Our Nepal COMMUNITY PAGES AND A Journey of a Lifetime Each July we lead a group of students to Nepal - the journey of a lifetime is a cliché, but not in this case. Students who have been on this journey have changed their life direction in incredible ways as a result of their experiences. A true trip of a lifetime to Kathhmandu where they will encounter a beautiful people immerse themselves in an eclectic culture, go on safari in the Nepalese jungle and be able to make a difference whilst volunteering in a local school!

15 helping young people become The Person They Are Called Be to St. Mary s CATHOLIC ACADEMY PROUD TO BE A MEMBER OF CONFIDENT CONNECTED COOPERATIVE CREATIVE

16 St. Mary s CATHOLIC ACADEMY St. Mary s Catholic Academy St. Walburga s Road Blackpool, Lancashire FY3 7EQ TEL: FAX: admin@st-mary.blackpool.sch.uk WEB: PROUD TO BE A MEMBER OF DESIGNED AND PRODUCED BY PPS