September 2024
Dear Parents/Carers
It is a pleasure to welcome you all back to a new academic year. I trust everyone has had a safe and enjoyable summer break, and I look forward to speaking with students about their experiences and holidays over the coming weeks.
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you all back to the new academic year, one which I am full of optimism for, for all our students.
Our year 11 students who left us in the summer achieved excellent results. I am ambitious for all our students and passionate about ensuring your children’s futures are both safe and successful at Erdington and beyond. I will look forward to working with you to ensure all students are successful and are able to leave with the qualifications and skills to be successful in whatever they choose.
Change to Communications
We are always working to improve communication at the Academy. My Child at School app is the Academy platform for all communications. Thank you for signing up. This year we will launch additional functions, which will include assessments, behaviour, rewards and attendance. We will send more information about these changes in due course.
Parents/carers will receive regular communication from Heads of Year and Faculties. Heads of Year will be writing to you separately to inform you of key information and events relevant to your child’s year group, and will make regular contact throughout the year. Please can I encourage you to follow our social media accounts to stay in touch with events in school.
Excellent outcomes start with ensuring all the small things are done well and we believe this starts and ends with maintaining high standards of uniform, punctuality and behaviours.
School Uniform
As we start the new term, to ensure that we all work together in a positive and productive manner can I thank you for your support in ensuring that our tradition and high standards regarding uniform are maintained. Over the past few days we have had visitors from other schools and employers and all have commented on how professional our students look and behave. This strong reputation we are developing will support students once they leave the Academy in securing employment and college places. Excellent uniform equates to unity and that message of unity is important at a time of great uncertainty in the world. Our expectation sheet is available from the Uniform Expectations.
Behaviour Expectations
Key information for the new term has been shared with students in assemblies. Expectations of behaviour is a focus, both in and out of the classroom. I will be discussing with students the importance of good behaviour in classrooms and around school, and their responsibility to be polite and respectful to staff and each other.
With a focus on the importance of respecting the environment both in school and in the wider local community, can I remind you that single use plastic bottles are not allowed in the Academy, and we encourage you all to ensure students have a re-useable drinks container. Over the summer we have new solar panels installed to reduce our carbon footprint. Students found littering will be required to litter pick as a sanction to keep the school premises clean and tidy. Again, I trust I have your support on this, as it is important our students understand the importance of respecting their environment.
Site Developments
We have had a range of developments to the site over the summer term to improve the learning environment for our students. Some of the developments this year have been in the corridor and classroom environments, along with work in science laboratories and as mentioned solar panels to reduce our carbon footprint and energy cost to maximise the funding we are able to spend on students.
We are educating our students to make progress academically, but to also be respectful young adults, who contribute positively to society. Students have been given a competition calendar, which includes an extra curriculum activities timetable, and I would encourage you to speak to your child to participate in some of these activities. They have also had our subject colours booklets for them to again contribute positively in activities out of school time. School is more than just the lessons taught in the day and the knowledge and experiences gained in these activities will help them all the way through their lives, living the Trust vision of Enriching Lives, Transforming Futures.
Yours sincerely
S. Mallett
Principal
