Diocese of St. Albans Dear Parent/Carer Spring Term 2018 Updates and Important Information No 2 This first newsletter of the spring term includes important information and the key dates for the rest of the academic year 2017/18. It has been an exceptionally busy term with many enrichment activities being enjoyed alongside the curriculum. This newsletter deals only with information affecting the operation of the school. Information and updates about student activities can be found on the website, as well as Twitter and Facebook accounts. Please make reference to the School calendar to ensure that holidays are booked outside of school terms and that you have key events in your diary. Copies of newsletters can be found on the website http://www.st maryshigh.herts.sch.uk/parents carers/recent letters.aspx Parents/Carers Consultation Events & PRD Staff would like to thank parents/carers for the high levels of attendance at events that have been organised for teachers/staff to meet parents/carers to discuss student progress and learning. Research shows clearly that where parents/carers are fully engaged in working with the school, students will benefit with more progress and higher grades. We continue to ask for parents/carers to discuss with their child(ren) what they have been learning and encouraging them to talk about their learning both activities. These conversations will support revision and improve learning. Change to the timing of School lunch In response to feedback from students and staff, there will be an adjustment to the timing of, and arrangements for, lunch after half term. After half term we will stop operating a split lunch and all students will be taking a slightly longer lunch break from 1.20 2.05pm. The extension of the lunchbreak by five minutes will allow improved service provision. These changes provide increased staff supervision at lunchtime and will not have any impact on the start and end of the school day in this academic year. The additional five minutes that is being used for lunchtime has been achieved by reducing time for tutorial/acts of worship from 30 to 25 minutes. This will mean the times of morning lessons will be adjusted but the length of each lesson will remain as 60 minutes. These changes will take a little time to settle so that lunchtime can operate efficiently. We will be monitoring the new arrangements closely and listening to students about their views on the new lunch arrangements. Please note that in preparation for next academic year, the governors are proposing an extension to the school day to allow period 5 to end at 3.10pm and period 6 at 4.10pm. This is to provide an additional five minutes for lunchtime so that we can accommodate the increased numbers of students who are taking lunch in the dining room. More information will be provided in due course. Year 11 Intervention / Preparation for Exams Intervention timetables have been provided for Year 11 students to support them in the weeks leading up to the public exams. Students and parents/carers need to check the timetable regularly, as the timetable is updated each fortnight and will change in response to the needs of students as they emerge from subject lessons, revision and student feedback.
Safeguarding: Keeping Our Students & Staff Safe Laser Pens / Torches A reminder that laser pens are NOT permitted in school. Misuse of laser pens can cause permanent damage to eyes. Possession and/or use of laser pens in school is considered to be a serious breach of School Policy and parents/carers are asked to ensure that they are not brought into school. Parents/Carers accessing the School Parents/Carers are reminded that when visiting the school other than for an event, entry to the school building should always be made via the Main Reception. Staff in reception will be able to help visitors. Unplanned Visits to School Parents/carers are asked to not arrive at school expecting to be seen by a member of staff without making an appointment. This is because staff have timetabled lessons and scheduled meetings throughout the day. Parents/carers will not be able to meet with staff without appointments, so please contact the School by email or phone to request a return email, a call back or to book an appointment. It is helpful if the subject of the enquiry/contact can be made clear when requesting contact with staff so that staff are better able to help. Students on Site after school Students are welcome to stay for sports clubs, interventions and to use the Study Club for Yrs 7 9 that is based in the LRC or the Study Café for Yrs 10 & 11 in the dining room or atrium. Students attending extracurricular activities however, must go promptly to the study areas as they will not be able to join after 3.20pm. Any student leaving an extracurricular activity after 3.15pm is expected to leave school immediately and not go to any other part of the school. Students who are not attending clubs or using Study facilities, must leave school promptly. Students waiting for transport can do so only in the Student Entrance lobby and should not be waiting for longer than 15 minutes. They are not allowed to remain in any other area of the school, as these areas are out of bounds and not supervised. Parent/carers need to ensure that arrangements are made for the appropriate supervision of their child(ren) for the time between the end of school and an evening event, as the School cannot be responsible for students who are not part of formal extracurricular activities and students will not be allowed to remain on site. Thank you. Aggressive & Abusive Behaviour A reminder that the staff of St Mary s work very hard to support all students and their families so that students make excellent progress and thrive in school. We welcome working in partnership with our parents/carers and expect that all adults work with and have respect for each other, modelling our Christian values and high standards for personal conduct. Any behaviour that is aggressive, threatening or abusive will not be tolerated and the governors will act to ensure that our students, staff and other visitors are protected from discourteous conduct. Where required the Police will be involved. Thank you in anticipation of your support so that we can work together and support students to the best of our ability. Security of Bikes on the School Site Parents/carers may already be aware of a rise in bike thefts in the local area and this includes bikes that have been taken from the St Mary s site as well as from students who have been in the local area. The School is pleased to be working closely with the local police to advise students about bike safety and to provide a bike marking service.
The following actions will support bike security, and parents/carers are asked to ensure their children and their bikes are protected as much as possible. Avoid purchasing high value, high trend bikes for students to use riding to and from school. A basic design will reduce the chances of a bike being targeted for theft to order crimes Check that your child s bike is insured (check home insurance or take out specific insurance for bikes usually offered on purchase of a bike). Please note that the School insurance does not cover student bikes/property Security mark the bike with your post code (there will be another bike marking session at St Mary s in the summer term, and more info will be sent nearer the time) Take pictures of the bike and any distinguishing features. Keep these safe in case they are needed for reference in the event of theft Students should use at least one, if not two, robust locks that have a strong locking mechanism as well as a reinforced structure (police and reputable bike sellers will provide advice). Locks should be placed through both wheels and the frame of the bike to secure it to the fixed cycle hoop Students should use the bike shed in school if possible. The shed is locked during school hours Encourage your child to report any concerns they have about their safety to a parent/carer, the School and /or the police. We have regular visits from police officers so that they can meet students and tell them about community activities and support for their safety. Students can ask the police for help with bike security and tell them if they think someone might be trying to get access to their bike or other property If a bike is stolen, report it to the police as soon as possible so that a crime number is secured and the police can use the information to support their investigations. We have had bikes recovered and returned to their owners when information is shared promptly Public Consultation on two proposals by the governing body Proposal 1: Extend to complete the school building to accommodate planned Eight Form Entry (8FE) Enlarge the physical capacity of the school by eight classrooms to complete the planned 8FE school buildings and provide the accommodation as originally designed for an 8FE school. The total building capacity of the school would accommodate 1,400 students. Planning permission for the completion of this classroom block is already in place. Proposal 2: Increase the student capacity number in the School s Funding Agreement The Governing Body proposes to make a Significant Change Application to increase the capacity number stated in the School s Funding agreement signed in July 2012 from 877 (677 Years 7 to 11 and 200 in the sixth form) to 1,400 (1,200 Years 7 to 11 and 200 in the sixth form). The number on roll in this academic year is 1,215. The full consultation documents, including forms that should be used to provide feedback, have been emailed to all parents/carers as well as all other interested parties in the community. Consultation information and feedback forms can also be found using the links on the front page on the School website http://www.st maryshigh.herts.sch.uk/ Thank you for taking part in the consultation. Attendance for Learning Thank you to all parents/carers who are working hard to ensure students attend school every day this is a fundamental requirement to support good progress and high attainment.
In line with national trends, this term has seen higher than usual levels of absence from school due to sickness, including fever and flu like symptoms. It is understandable that where families have experienced the bug, students have had to have time out of school to recover. This however, makes it even more important that students try to avoid having any more time out of school where it can be avoided. Where students have missed learning they must ask staff for missed work so they can complete this, thus avoiding gaps in learning. We still have a target of at least 97% for every student! KS4 School Ties Please check your child s tie! It has come to our attention that a small number of ties purchased from Smith s are faulty. Ties should have the St Mary s crest approximately 5cm below the knot. Some ties have been produced with the crest hidden partially under the knot. If you have purchased one of these ties, please return it to Smith s where it will be replaced. School Uniform donating to support other students If your child has grown out of items of uniform or uniform is no longer required (ie, Year 11 students after summer exams), please consider donating the uniform to the school so that it can be offered to other families. Blazers, skirts, trousers and ties are particularly useful. Thank you for your support. Mobile Phones 2017/18 In general, the large majority of students are to be congratulated on following the school requirement to leave their mobile phone in their locker for the duration of the school day. There are still a small number of students who are choosing to place themselves at risk of having their phones confiscated by leaving them in their blazer pockets during lessons. When phones are confiscated there will not be any negotiation regarding the sanction. Parents/carers are asked to not approach the school to ask for dispensation as it will not be granted. I would like to ask parents/carers to support safeguarding and the focus on learning by reminding your child that the use of a phone during the school day is not allowed and that the taking of photos or making a recording of another person or their voice breaches the School s Acceptable Use Policy and the law. Chewing Gum A reminder that chewing gum is NOT permitted in school. Chewing gum defaces pavements, damages carpets and the school environment. The money used for dealing with chewing gum, if reduced, can be more positively spent on teaching resources. School dates for 2017/18 These dates are published on the website http://www.st maryshigh.herts.sch.uk/term dates school day events that are calendared for the rest of the spring term 2018 are as follows: The key Spring Term 2018 second half term Monday 19 th February: Students return to school (normal school day) Monday 19 th Friday 23 rd February: Yr 10 Practice Exams Friday 23 rd February: 8.25 8.50am Yr 11 Mentoring (and every fortnight for rest of term) Monday 26 th Wednesday 28 th February: Yr 11 Core Subject Exams Wednesday 28 th Feb Saturday 3 rd March: Yr 9 Paris & Disneyland Trip Thursday 8 th March: 6 8pm Yr 9 Options Evening ALL YR 9 PARENTS/CARERS NEED TO ATTEND Tuesday 13 th March: 4 6.30pm Yr 10 Parent/Carer Consultation Evening Thursday 15 th March: 6 7.30pm New Yr 7 Parent/Carers Welcome Evening (Sept 2018 entry) Wednesday 21 st March: Grease School Production Matinee (Primary Schools) Thursday 22 nd & Friday 23 rd March: 7 9pm Grease School Production Sunday 25 th Tuesday 27 th March: Post 16 Business/IT/Maths Paris/Disneyland Trip Tuesday 27 th March: Yr 11 Jekyll & Hyde Tour (Main Hall)
Thursday 29 th March: Final day of spring term (normal day) Summer Term 2018 Tuesday 17 th April: Summer term starts for all students (normal day) Thursday 19 th April: 6 7pm Yr 8 Options Evening Monday 23 rd April Friday May 4 th : Yr 8 Exams Tuesday 24 th April: 2 3pm Founders Day Service Monday 30 th April: 6 7pm WW1 Battlefields Tour Information evening ALL PARENTS/CARERS NEED TO ATTEND Monday 7 th May: BANK HOLIDAY School Closed Monday 14 th May: Public Exams start Friday 25 th May: Progress Review Day (PRD) Monday 28 th May Friday 1 st June: Summer half term Friday 13 th July: End of the academic year. School closes 12.30pm Academic Year 2018 /19 Proposed Term Dates: First Day (Yr 7) of Autumn Term 2018: Tuesday 4 th September 2018 (Year 7 only) First Day (All years) of Autumn Term 2018: Wednesday 5 th September 2017 (TBC) Secondary Transition Evening Tuesday 18 th September: EARLY CLOSURE at 12.30pm HALF TERM: Monday 22 nd Friday 26 th October 2018 Last day of Autumn Term 2018: Friday 21 st December 2018 First day of Spring Term 2019: Tuesday 8 th January 2019 HALF TERM: Monday 11 th to Friday 15 th February 2019 Last day of Spring Term 2019: Friday 5 th April 2019 First day of Summer Term 2019: Tuesday 23 rd or Wednesday 24 th April 2019 (TBC) HALF TERM: Monday 27 th May to Friday 31 st May 2019 Last day of Summer Term 2019: Friday 12 th July 2019. School closes 12.30pm (TBC) School Website I am pleased to advise parents/carers that we will be launching a new school website after Easter. The new look website will reflect our vibrant, thriving community and provide a more comprehensive source of information for all of our website users. The website will be linked to an app that can be downloaded to provide easier access to the website and other information sent out by the School. Whilst our current website will continue to provide key information for parents/carers, there will be no major page updates before the new site is launched. Look out for the new website soon! Keeping Up to Date Please remember to check the School website which will continue to be updated with key dates and reminders www.st maryshigh.sch.uk Sign up to Twitter @SMHSch and Facebook @stmaryceshighschool With very best wishes for a peaceful spring half term break. Stephanie Benbow Head Teacher Published 9 th February 2018