Welcome everyone.
I hope that you will have received home a letter today,
or possibly on Monday, that involves the next step in us becoming an Academy as
part of the Plymouth Catholic and Anglican Schools Trust. (Copy attached at
foot of this document) I am very excited by this next phase and although many
will see no apparent changes, as a College we will become part of a far richer
collective of schools, as well as being more secure – strength in being together, as well as challenge and improvement.
I would like to bring your attention to the various ways you can be involved in
the consultation process, should you wish to:
email us at:
mail@stbonifaces.com
come along to a meeting
in the school hall on 12th Feb at 17:00
write to us
at the College marking the envelope ACADEMISATION
We aim to
become an Academy on April 1st but there are several stages still to
go, not least of which is obtaining formal governmental approval.
The new Behaviour Policy is working well with 5 rewards
to every 1 sanction across the College. There are still teething issues but the
pupils have responded very well as a whole for which I thank them.
Boys in 9L wrote poems based on Love and 1 Corinthians 13. They were outstanding pieces of creative writing, really expressing the Christian perspective as well as explaining their own point of view. It also showed what a class of mature romantics I teach! Stuart and Louis stood out as the most well thought through.
KS3 boys attended a session on HMD last week with the main focus being Journeys. The session was planned by Clare Rogers with different activities including a walk through the RE block looking at quotes and pictures, discussion focusing on the eight stages to genocide and how we can plan a better future, writing a postcard explaining what others can do in the future and luggage tags detailing what they have learnt about the Holocaust.
Behaviour, engagement and interaction with others was brilliant. The boys worked well with others as well as on their own and experienced a different style of teaching and learning.
Miss Sanford
YEAR 7
As we end our first month of 2014, we have
lots to celebrate as a year group. Over 400 entries onto SIMS since January 6th,
lots of subject awards and merits being handed out, and outside of school many
of our year 7 students are taking part in some great opportunities. What an
achievement! Well done to all those who have been putting in so much hard work
and effort. Please use your SIMS Learning Gateway log in to see how your son is
performing in school, it is a live system that has positive and negative events
updated instantly.
This week’s assembly was on the theme of the
Holocaust, to mark the Holocaust Memorial Day. Students were told some of the
untold stories of the Jewish communities in Greece and looked at a photograph
of the “Crying Woman”. We talked as a community of how we can act against these
acts of discrimination and how together we can eradicate discrimination and
hatred within our own communities. This gave us all an opportunity to
reflect on our own thoughts and actions as Christians within a Catholic
community.
A huge congratulation this week for Sam Y in 7G who has been selected to run for Devon in the Cross Country Championship. Well done Sam!
A very important date for your diary;
·
Tuesday 11th February 2014 - Year
7 Parents Evening starting at 3.30pm. A great opportunity for you to meet with your
son’s subject teachers to discuss their progression by subject. I will be
sending out a letter and an appointment cards for you to attend.
To ensure the extremely high standards that Year 7 continue to
demonstrate, please can I ask parents to make a note of the following;
·
Students should adhere to the hair and uniform requirements at all
times. Please ensure that the correct outer wear garments are being used
(particularly with the adverse weather conditions currently). Students should
only be wearing black or navy blue coats, thank you.
·
Mobile phones should not be on during the school day. They should
be switched off and in bags so that learning is not disturbed.
·
Home learning should be completed for all subjects in a timely
manner. Please can parents insist on checking planners and guiding the
students with organisation.
·
Please can parents ensure their son has a reading book in his bag
every day to support our reading scheme. This is to further help and improve
literacy standards whereby all students will undertake 30 minutes of silent
reading each day.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend and that
it stops raining!
Miss Beales – Head of Year 7
YEAR
8
Congratulations to the boys for their effort and
successes this week.
Last week’s assembly was led by Mr Romaine who has set
himself the challenge of presenting all his assemblies this year based on a
cycling theme! His assembly highlighted the qualities of ‘Heroes’ and ‘Zeroes’
and the challenges that we face when confronted by temptations to cheat. It was
another thought-provoking fifteen minutes! At the end of the assembly it was my
pleasure to present 8 certificates to the following; Matt M., Euan A., Callum
C., Harry M., Adrian S., Jacob R., Tom D. and Kieran E. Well done to them.
The Year 8 rugby tournament has, once again, been called
off due to the awful weather that is due to hit us tomorrow but it will be
rearranged so all is not lost!
Thanks to all the teachers, LSAs and support staff who
support us so well in Year 8. Without your invaluable assistance we would not
be making the great progress that is evident at the moment.
B. Tucker
YEAR
9
Thank you to Mr Weaver and 9G for an excellent assembly
this week, it certainly had all the lads captivated. Monday see’s our acting
Deputy Head ‘Mr Ramage’ delivering an assembly on 'overcoming
frustration and difficulty' I am sure this will of great use to many including
myself.
Thanks again to all students who have returned their
option slips, however, there are still one or two outstanding can I please ask that
these are returned as soon as possible if they want to have any chance of
following their selected options.
Well done to the lads who served at Bishop Marks
Ordination on Tuesday and Vespers on the previous evening they really were
splendid occasions. I’m hoping it won’t
be too long before he makes a visit to our college.
With only two weeks to go until the end of term,
competition is hotting up on the rewards and sanctions league with 9B and 9K
neck and neck in the tutor race with only 5 pts. between them, merits are being
keenly sorted by the lads. Let’s keep up the good work across the whole year
group.
Mrs McLoughlin
YEAR 10
Thank
you to all those who attended the parents' evening this week. The turn out was
very good and the feedback from staff and parents was that the opportunity to
speak 1:1 was very useful. The next evening is June 24th.
The
majority of students have now sorted their work experience placement. Thanks to
Mrs Hudson for her unending efforts to support the students.
Mr
Neethling led us in assembly Monday on the theme of cyber bullying. Next week,
Mr Ramage will be delivering his assembly.
A
reminder that the VUE trip letters need to be in by Friday 7th.
YEAR
11
Mrs Mcloughlin, would like to inform parents of all 11P and 11L that
they should be aware that ICT Intervention sessions are running every lunchtime
between now and next Thursday which is the deadline day for coursework. If you could encourage your son to attend
this would be appreciated. Please find
an updated intervention timetable below which includes even more opportunities
for your son to seek extra help and advice from his teachers. The GCSE time
table for the summer examinations should be available very soon. Your son will be given an individual
examination timetable within the next two weeks. Mr Tew, the Director of Sixth Form at St
Boniface’s, has requested that could you return the reply slip to your son’s
offer of a conditional place in year 12 should be returned as soon as possible,
if you haven’t already done so please. Jordan is currently working at putting
together the year book which your son will soon be able to purchase, as a
record of his time at St Boniface’s College.
This is just a reminder that tickets for Andrew’s show Les Miserables
at Lipson are still available! It is on between 18th-22ndFebruary.
Tickets are from the website or Box Office (number should be on website). I Hope
you can go along and support Andrew. ‘Break a leg’ Andrew!
Post
16
Another
week nearer the examinations for the Sixth form. The mock A level results will
be given out next week. If your son/daughter has underperformed then the
teacher should be arranging intervention. A close look has to be made at your
sons ability to revise, i.e what method he is using, also the time that he is
devoting to his studies. The use of past papers and the examination technique.
Each subject has different approaches and skills necessary. Contact your
subject teachers for more info. Your son will be asked to fill in a
revision/study timetable today to highlight the amount of work they are doing.
Please supervise and support.
Resit
monies must be in to Mrs Cox for the June Exams. I hope to have a timetable of
June exams ready by the end of next week
The
Sports Leaders took part in the Devon Ability Games.
On
the 24th of January I helped organise and run the Devon Winter Ability Games. I
feel the games were a success and that all the participants went away happy and
proud of themselves.
My
role as a sports leader was to ensure that the rowing event ran smoothly and
that all the schools and participants data and results were recorded. I was
also in control of the race times and starting the races so I feel that I had a
important role in running the event.
It
was a great experience as it showed to me that there are people less fortunate
than myself and that disability has a place in sport. More sporting
opportunities should be given to those with a disability.
Mr
Tew
God of all goodness and love,
in whom we can trust in every time of need:
be close to all who live in fear and distress
at this time of flooding in our land.
We pray for wisdom and strength for all who seek to
help,
and that through this emergency,
people and communities may be drawn more closely
together
in service to one another;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
GCSE
Provisional Timetable
Pupils will soon be given their individualised version.
Awarding Body
|
Title
|
Exam Code
|
Duration
|
Date
|
Start Time
|
Edexcel
|
Religious Studies Unit 3: Religion
And Life Based On A Study Of Catholic Christianity
|
5RS03
|
1h 30m
|
12-May-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
French Unit 2 Reading - paper based
|
46552F
|
30m
|
12-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
French Unit 1 Listening
|
46551F
|
35m
|
12-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
French Unit 1 Listening
|
46551H
|
45m
|
12-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
French Unit 2 Reading - paper based
|
46552H
|
50m
|
12-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Influences On Life (Higher)
|
5BI1H
|
1h 00m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Influences On Life
(Foundation)
|
5BI1F
|
1h 00m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
Geography A Unit 1
|
90301H
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Geography A Unit 1
|
90301F
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Information and Communication
Technology Unit 1 - paper based
|
45201
|
1h 30m
|
14-May-14
|
Wednesday am
|
AQA
|
Information and Communication
Technology Unit 1 (Short Course) - paper based
|
45204
|
1h
|
14-May-14
|
Wednesday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Chemistry In Our World
(Foundation)
|
5CH1F
|
1h 00m
|
15-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Chemistry In Our World
(Higher)
|
5CH1H
|
1h 00m
|
15-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
OCR
|
History:Study in Development and
Study in Depth:with Germany
c.1919-1945
|
A951/14
|
2h 00m
|
16-May-14
|
Friday am
|
Edexcel
|
Physical Education Unit 1: The Theory
Of Physical Education
|
5PE01
|
1h 30m
|
16-May-14
|
Friday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Physical Education Unit 1: The Theory
Of Physical Education (Short Course)
|
5PE03
|
1h 00m
|
16-May-14
|
Friday pm
|
AQA
|
German Unit 2 Reading - paper based
|
46652F
|
30m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
German Unit 1 Listening
|
46651F
|
35m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
German Unit 2 Reading - paper based
|
46652H
|
50m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
German Unit 1 Listening
|
46651H
|
45m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Universal Physics
(Foundation)
|
5PH1F
|
1h 00m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 1: Universal Physics (Higher)
|
5PH1H
|
1h 00m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
English Literature 1
|
97101F
|
1h 30m
|
20-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
English Literature 1
|
97101H
|
1h 30m
|
20-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
Edexcel
|
Religious Studies Unit 10: Catholic
Christianity
|
5RS10
|
1h 30m
|
20-May-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Geography A Unit 2
|
90302H
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
AQA
|
Geography A Unit 2
|
90302F
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
AQA
|
English Literature 2
|
97102F
|
1h 15m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday pm
|
AQA
|
English Literature 2
|
97102H
|
1h 15m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday pm
|
AQA
|
English Literature 4
|
97104F
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday pm
|
AQA
|
English Literature 4
|
97104H
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday pm
|
OCR
|
History:Historical Source
Investigation with Developments in British Medicine 1200-1945
|
A952/21
|
1h 30m
|
23-May-14
|
Friday am
|
Edexcel
|
Application Of Technology In
Engineering And Manufacturing
|
5EM03
|
1h 30m
|
23-May-14
|
Friday pm
|
AQA
|
Music Unit 1
|
42701
|
1h
|
02-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
English Language 1
|
ENG1H
|
2h 15m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
English Language 1
|
ENG1F
|
2h 15m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
English Unit 1
|
ENG1F
|
2h 15m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
English Unit 1
|
ENG1H
|
2h 15m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: The Components Of Life (Higher)
|
5BI2H
|
1h 00m
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: The Components Of Life
(Foundation)
|
5BI2F
|
1h 00m
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics 1 : Higher Paper
|
1MA0 1H
|
1h 45m
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics 1 : Foundation Paper
|
1MA0 1F
|
1h 45m
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: Discovering Chemistry
(Higher)
|
5CH2H
|
1h 00m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: Discovering Chemistry
(Foundation)
|
5CH2F
|
1h 00m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: Physics For Your Future
(Higher)
|
5PH2H
|
1h 00m
|
12-Jun-14
|
Thursday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 2: Physics For Your Future
(Foundation)
|
5PH2F
|
1h 00m
|
12-Jun-14
|
Thursday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics 2 : Higher Paper
|
1MA0 2H
|
1h 45m
|
13-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics 2 : Foundation Paper
|
1MA0 2F
|
1h 45m
|
13-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
AQA
|
Design and Technology : Product
Design Unit 1
|
45551
|
2h
|
13-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3 : Using Biology (Foundation)
|
5BI3F
|
1h 00m
|
16-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3 : Using Biology (Higher)
|
5BI3H
|
1h 00m
|
16-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3: Chemistry In Action (Higher)
|
5CH3H
|
1h 00m
|
19-Jun-14
|
Thursday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3: Chemistry In Action
(Foundation)
|
5CH3F
|
1h 00m
|
19-Jun-14
|
Thursday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3 Applications In Physics
(Foundation)
|
5PH3F
|
1h 00m
|
23-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Unit 3 Applications In Physics
(Higher)
|
5PH3H
|
1h 00m
|
23-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
AS
and A2 Level provisional timetable
Awarding Body
|
Title
|
Exam Code
|
Duration
|
Date
|
Start Time
|
AQA
|
Geography 1
|
GEOG1
|
2h
|
12-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
Psychology A 1
|
PSYA1
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Engineering Materials Processes And Techniques
|
6931
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Religious Studies:Religious Ethics
(AS):Written Paper
|
G572/01
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Religious Studies:Philosophy of
Religion (AS):Written Paper
|
G571/01
|
1h 30m
|
13-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
History Unit 1N
|
HIS1N
|
1h 15m
|
14-May-14
|
Wednesday pm
|
AQA
|
Design and Technology: Product
Design(3-D Design) 1
|
PROD1
|
2h
|
14-May-14
|
Wednesday am
|
AQA
|
Sociology 1
|
SCLY1
|
1h
|
15-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
AQA
|
English Literature B 1
|
LITB1
|
2h
|
16-May-14
|
Friday am
|
AQA
|
Geography 2
|
GEOG2
|
1h
|
16-May-14
|
Friday pm
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Core Mathematics
1:Written Paper
|
4721/01
|
1h 30m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Mechanics 2:Written Paper
|
4729/01
|
1h 30m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics: Core Mathematics C1
|
6663
|
1h 30m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
Business Studies 1
|
BUSS1
|
1h 15m
|
19-May-14
|
Monday pm
|
OCR
|
Physics:Mechanics:Written Paper
|
G481/01
|
1h 00m
|
20-May-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
Psychology A 2
|
PSYA2
|
1h 30m
|
20-May-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Sociology 2
|
SCLY2
|
2h
|
21-May-14
|
Wednesday pm
|
OCR
|
Biology:Cells Exchange and Transport:Written Paper
|
F211/01
|
1h 00m
|
21-May-14
|
Wednesday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Core Mathematics
2:Written Paper
|
4722/01
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Decision Mathematics
2:Written Paper
|
4737/01
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics: Core Mathematics C2
|
6664
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
AQA
|
History Unit 2R
|
HIS2R
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday pm
|
AQA
|
Geography A Unit 2
|
90302H
|
1h 30m
|
22-May-14
|
Thursday am
|
OCR
|
Chemistry:Atoms Bonds and Groups:Written Paper
|
F321/01
|
1h 00m
|
23-May-14
|
Friday am
|
AQA
|
Information and Communication
Technology 1
|
INFO1
|
1h 30m
|
02-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
OCR
|
Biology:Molecules Biodiversity Food and Health:Written Paper
|
F212/01
|
1h 45m
|
02-Jun-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
History Unit 3J
|
HIS3J
|
1h 30m
|
02-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
Business Studies 2
|
BUSS2
|
1h 30m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Chemistry:Chains Energy and Resources:Written Paper
|
F322/01
|
1h 45m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Psychology A 3
|
PSYA3
|
1h 30m
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Design and Technology: Product
Design(3-D Design) 3
|
PROD3
|
2h
|
03-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
Physical Education 1
|
PHED1
|
2h
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
AQA
|
English Literature B 3
|
LITB3
|
2h
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Probability and
Statistics 1:Written Paper
|
4732/01
|
1h 30m
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics: Mechanics M1
|
6677
|
1h 30m
|
06-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
OCR
|
Chemistry:Rings Polymers and Analysis:Written Paper
|
F324/01
|
1h 15m
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday pm
|
OCR
|
Physics:Electrons Waves and Photons:Written Paper
|
G482/01
|
1h 45m
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
Physical Education 3
|
PHED3
|
2h
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday pm
|
AQA
|
Information and Communication
Technology 2
|
INFO2
|
1h 30m
|
09-Jun-14
|
Monday pm
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Probability and
Statistics 2:Written Paper
|
4733/01
|
1h 30m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Decision Mathematics
1:Written Paper
|
4736/01
|
1h 30m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
AQA
|
Sociology 3
|
SCLY3
|
1h 30m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics: Statistics S1
|
6683
|
1h 30m
|
10-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Religious Studies:Philosophy of
Religion (A2):Written Paper
|
G581/01
|
1h 30m
|
11-Jun-14
|
Wednesday pm
|
OCR
|
Physics:The Newtonian World:Written
Paper
|
G484/01
|
1h 15m
|
11-Jun-14
|
Wednesday pm
|
AQA
|
Psychology A 4
|
PSYA4
|
2h
|
11-Jun-14
|
Wednesday am
|
AQA
|
Geography 3
|
GEOG3
|
2h 30m
|
12-Jun-14
|
Thursday am
|
Edexcel
|
Mathematics: Decision Mathematics D1
|
6689
|
1h 30m
|
12-Jun-14
|
Thursday pm
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Mechanics 1:Written Paper
|
4728/01
|
1h 30m
|
12-Jun-14
|
Thursday pm
|
OCR
|
Biology:Communication Homeostasis and Energy:Written Paper
|
F214/01
|
1h 15m
|
13-Jun-14
|
Friday pm
|
AQA
|
Business Studies 3
|
BUSS3
|
1h 45m
|
13-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
AQA
|
Sociology 4
|
SCLY4
|
2h
|
16-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
AQA
|
Geography 4A
|
GEO4A
|
1h 30m
|
16-Jun-14
|
Monday pm
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Core Mathematics
3:Written Paper
|
4723/01
|
1h 30m
|
16-Jun-14
|
Monday am
|
OCR
|
Chemistry:Equilibria Energetics and Elements:Written Paper
|
F325/01
|
2h 00m
|
17-Jun-14
|
Tuesday pm
|
AQA
|
Information and Communication
Technology 3
|
INFO3
|
2h
|
17-Jun-14
|
Tuesday am
|
OCR
|
Mathematics:Core Mathematics
4:Written Paper
|
4724/01
|
1h 30m
|
18-Jun-14
|
Wednesday pm
|
AQA
|
Business Studies 4
|
BUSS4
|
1h 45m
|
18-Jun-14
|
Wednesday am
|
OCR
|
Physics:Fields Particles and Frontiers of Physics:Written
Paper
|
G485/01
|
2h 00m
|
19-Jun-14
|
Thursday am
|
OCR
|
Religious Studies:Religious Ethics
(A2):Written Paper
|
G582/01
|
1h 30m
|
19-Jun-14
|
Thursday am
|
OCR
|
Biology:Control Genomes and Environment:Written Paper
|
F215/01
|
2h 00m
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20-Jun-14
|
Friday am
|
Extra-Curricular
Clubs 2013-2014
JANUARY-
APRIL
|
MONDAY
|
TUESDAY
|
WEDNESDAY
|
THURSDAY
|
FRIDAY
|
BEFORE SCHOOL
|
Breakfast Club
Fitness
Basketball
All Years
|
Breakfast Club
Fitness
Basketball
All Years
|
Breakfast Club
Fitness
Basketball
All Years
|
Breakfast Club
Fitness
Basketball
All Years
|
Breakfast Club
Fitness
Basketball
All Years
|
LUNCH TIME
|
Fitness Suite + Basketball
Year 9 Basketball
|
Fitness Suite + Basketball
|
Fitness Suite + Basketball
GCSE Revision (A18)
|
Fitness Suite + Basketball
|
Fitness Suite + Basketball
|
AFTER SCHOOL
|
Year 9+10 Football
PG
All Years, Boxing
AW
|
All Years, Badminton
Marjon Students
|
Year 7+8 Football
RJ
AS Revision
3.40-5pm (A18)
DM
|
All Years, Table Tennis
External coach
Year 10, 11, 12, 13 and staff. Hash (Cross-Country/Orienteering)
DC
|
A2 Revision
3.40-5pm (A18)
DM
|
Parental
Consultation Letter.
31 January 2014
Dear Parents
As you may be aware, schools
that are judged by Ofsted to have serious weaknesses or to require special
measures are expected to convert to become academies. While some schools are
unhappy about this requirement, you may also be aware that this was always the
intention for all Catholic Diocesan schools anyway. Thus for St. Boniface’s we
believe that this is an important step forward in our path to improving the
education provided by the College.
The company set up by Plymouth
Diocese to create the support and improvement structures required for all
member schools is called ‘Plymouth CAST’. This 35-school trust is the largest
of its kind in the country and it is a model that has been applauded by
Government for its innovative design. It will allow us to retain local control
about how the College is run but at the same time create a network of
additional monitoring and support. Especially during the next few terms when we
have to improve quickly, CAST will be allocating significant additional
resources to the College together with specialised advisers and closer
monitoring by the company’s Board of Directors. You will find enclosed a sheet
entitled: ‘An Introduction to Plymouth CAST’ that explains a little more about
why the Diocese wished to move in this direction anyway and the general impact
on its constituent schools and Colleges.
The other Catholic schools are
becoming part of the new Trust company in April of this year and with DfE
agreement we hope to convert at the same time. While at one level we have little
choice in this matter (as conversion is Government policy for Colleges in our
situation) it is also part of government policy that we undertake a
consultation process with stakeholders. While this will not ultimately change
the decision, it is nonetheless a good opportunity for you to learn more about
what/how conversion will help us to improve rapidly, ask any additional
questions and make your own views known. Therefore, we want to use the next
month as a consultation period.
In brief, the advantages that
this proposal brings are in the additional support and economies of operating
within a larger network; together with additional resources and targeted
support and monitoring during this next critical period of school improvement.
As parents you will not have to
deal with changes to the all the things with which you are familiar. The
College terms, the timings of the College day, the College name and uniforms,
the teachers and support staff, the curriculum etc will all remain the same. We
will also continue to work alongside neighbouring schools in the local learning
community and retain the effective partnership working we have already
established.
If you would like to ask any
questions about this proposal, find out more information, or tell us what you
think, you can either:-
email us at: mail@stbonifaces.com
come along to a meeting in the school hall on 12 February 2014 at 17:00hrs
write to us at the College
marking the envelope ACADEMISATION
The Governors will be meeting
on 27 February to review all responses to this consultation so that, if
necessary, they can raise any unanticipated concerns with the Diocesan trustees
before the final agreement to convert is signed. The Governing Body will make a
formal response to the consultation on the school website shortly after 27
February which will be found at the following address: www.stbonifaces.com. The
outcomes will also appear on the Headteacher’s Blog.
Yours faithfully,
Mr A R Davies Mr G
Johnson
Acting Headteacher Chair of Governors
An Introduction to ‘Plymouth
CAST’
What is it?
Plymouth CAST (from ‘Catholic
and Anglican Schools Trust’) is a company set up by the Diocese of Plymouth to
create a more secure environment for the constituent schools so that they can
better serve the mission of their Catholic and Anglican dioceses. At a
constitutional level, the formation of the Plymouth CAST represents, firstly, a
change from ‘Voluntary Aided’ (VA) status for each of the schools to a legal
status known as ‘Academy’. Secondly, it means that the schools become part of a
new single legal entity (referred to as a ‘multi academy trust’) rather than
being separate legal entities. The new legal entity is a registered charity and
a company limited by guarantee.
What are the advantages of
being a multi academy trust?
In summary, the advantages are
as follows:-
1. The schools will have more
support to focus on their core vision and remember that they carry pastoral and
mission priorities that cannot always be seen in academic performance tables.
This is because Plymouth CAST is given both the funding for each school’s
budget but also the funding to support vulnerable schools and the school
improvement resources. Thus, we can ensure that those who give support to our
schools understand their wider mission.
2. The schools are less vulnerable individually and
collectively. Plymouth CAST retains the operational control of each school’s
governing body but adds in direct support from a dedicated school support
officer, a shared expectation to support school improvement among the local
Catholic schools and top level monitoring via the Board of Directors. As a
result, if there are any difficulties in a school around standards, finances or
anything else, the system is geared to pick these up early and direct resources
in response. At the same time, economies of scale make all the resources go
further.
3. There is increased
collaboration between the schools in identifying development issues, designing
solutions and securing professional resources. Headteachers across each local
area will meet each term to assess what their collected data and ‘intelligence’
is telling them about how they need to, or can, improve. As this work is done
collaboratively and with the support of dedicated advisers who know the schools
intimately, all schools’ benefit from the combined knowledge and experience
rather than being limited by their own internal know-how.
4. School to school professional
support is identified and brokered through the same collaborative mechanisms.
What difference does the
formation of Plymouth CAST make to parents and children?
The legislation that allowed
CAST to come into existence (Academies Act 2010) allowed academies to change
quite a few aspects of the day to day running of their school, for example, the
timing of the school day and terms, their curriculum provision, their staffing
arrangements and so forth. Also, many schools used a change to academy status
to re-brand themselves and change things like their school name and uniform.
For CAST, however, these have
not been the reasons to move to academy status and, as a result, there is no
reason to make such changes. The difference that CAST makes is that it allows
our schools to be better at doing what they are already striving to do. It is
not about changing for the sake of it but fulfilling our mission more
effectively. In all likelihood, parents and pupils will not experience any
changes at all in the day to day life of the school other than, over time, an
improvement in the education given to the children.
What difference does the
formation of Plymouth CAST make to staff?
In much the same way as
explained above, CAST was not formed in response to concerns about staff and so
it does not require changes to the way staff are employed. It is the intention
to honour nationally negotiated pay and conditions for current and future
employees, so as to ensure that they are not made any less secure. The dignity
of the individual and pastoral care are fundamental Christian principles and
they have to apply to the adults in our schools as much as to the children and
their families.
More importantly, it is hoped
that the greater financial security of the organisation as a whole will give
more security to all employees. At the same time, the collaborative mechanisms
give employees more opportunities for personal and professional development;
recognising when individuals have developed skills by giving them options to
support other staff. In addition, as part of CAST, the schools simply have more
flexibility to respond to staff requests for re-deployment within the
organisation, either temporarily or permanently, to support their professional
and personal development aspirations.
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