In this newsletter:
- Message from our Principal
- Children’s Commissioner for England – National Survey push
- Changes to free school meals – CCC
- HAF programme summer
- Year 5 Sports Activity Day
- Water Safety
- Year 11 into 12 induction days
- Staff fundraising darts
- Netball academy – Years 7-9
Message from our Principal
It is a bit of a bumper newsletter message from me this week, so I thank you in advance for your attention.
Working with local primaries
Firstly, I would like to say a massive well done to all of our students this week, another really warm week to get through. It has also been wonderful to welcome lots of primary visitors this week. We hosted two days of transition sessions for Year 6 into 7 students on Thursday and Friday, alongside our Induction evening for families on Thursday evening. It has been great to properly welcome these students and families to our community this week. On Monday of this week, we hosted a multi-sports PE afternoon for Year 5 students from a range of local primary schools. The Year 5s tried lots of different sports such as trampolining and table tennis and had a great time!
Mobile phone update for September 26
I want to take this opportunity to clarify our position on a mobile phone free environment for next academic year. 75% of parents responded that they would send their child to school with a phone and there was a strong preference for the magnetised pouch option, also with around three quarters of families opting for this; 9% of families said they wouldn’t send their child to school with a phone. Our survey went to all current St Ivo families and also our current Year 6 into 7 families too to gain their views, and we received 350 responses in total.
In reviewing the feedback, we have made the decision to move to magnetised pouches, and will provide these free of charge to all students in year 7 to 11 at St Ivo. Sixth Form students who will have slightly different expectations. We will send out all the information alongside an FAQs document on Monday, and pouches will be distributed to all students in September so parents do not need to purchase anything. Mr Daly and I have recently visited Swavesey VC, who have used this approach for a year now, and it was really interesting to see how embedded their routines are around pouches. We have designed the FAQs to respond to any questions that were included in the survey, and also advice from SVC, and I hope that it contains all the information that families will need. Please look out for this on Monday.
Goodbyes
It is also the time of year when we say goodbye to some of our wonderful colleagues who are leaving us this week.
Both Dr Craig (Head of History) and Mr Burniston (Head of Business and Economics) are leaving this year, having both served the school for over 25 years – I’m sure there are people reading this who remember being taught by them during their own time at the school.
Dr Craig was on the senior leadership for a number of years at St Ivo, serving as Vice Principal until a couple of years ago when he stepped into the Head of History role. He has given so much to the school over the years, and we are so appreciative of his calm and cheerful attitude. He will be greatly missed by the History department, and by the wider school community.
We are also saying goodbye to Mr Luck (D&T), Mr Smith (Head of Year and Head of Performing Arts), Mr Wang (History), Ms Yorke (Geography) and Miss Harness (Art) at the end of term, and we wish all of them the best of luck in their next steps and new schools. The role of a teacher is amazing as it means that you get to see and connect with so many students over the years of teaching in a school, and I know that all these colleagues will have opened children’s eye to the joy of their subjects, and hopefully inspired a love of learning along the way.
Mrs Dobos our Teacher of Reading, and Mrs Reagan our Sixth Form Administrator are also leaving us at the end of term, and both have made a huge difference to students in their roles and wish them all the best for September and beyond.
Looking into next year
I am delighted to say that we are fully staffed for September, and I will introduce all new staff in my first newsletter of the new year.
As another little peek into next year, in the Autumn term we will be launching STAR week, which will be an activities week taking place for the whole school. It will take place in late June 27, designed to tie in with Year 10 work experience week, and the timing of the Year 8 Switzerland trip. We know that enrichment experiences and opportunities are so important for young people, so we will be building an enrichment curriculum for the week for all students. We are still in planning stages at the moment, but it looks like it’ll be a really exciting week for students, with lots of different trips, visits and activities planned. More to come on this in the Autumn term.
Thank you for reading through to the end of this message – I do appreciate it. Please look out for the phone pouch details on Monday. I hope everyone has a lovely weekend.
Children’s Commissioner for England – National Survey push
With the summer holidays fast approaching, I am making one final push to ensure that as many children and young people as possible in every school and college take part before the end of term.
I am asking for your support in ensuring pupils from your school complete the survey here: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/thebigfuture.
Free School Meals – Update from CCC
HAF summer holidays information
FAQs for Parents – Summer Holiday Voucher Scheme
Year 5 Sports afternoon
We were delighted to host our Year 5 Sports Tournament, welcoming 125 local primary school pupils for a fun-filled afternoon of trampolining, indoor sports, and a variety of exciting activities. It was fantastic to see so much enthusiasm, teamwork, and determination throughout the event. Every student received a certificate to take home to celebrate their participation and achievements. We can’t wait to organise our next Year 5 Tournament and welcome even more young athletes to St Ivo Academy!
Water Safety
With the hot weather at the moment the risk of cold water shock is very real. We would ask for parents/carers support in sharing the video resources below with your child.
Cold Water Shock – When Fun turns Fatal
Float to Live Toolkit: resources for download
Float To Live – What To Do If You Fall In Water
Norwich Football summer camps
Our camps offer a range of football and multi-sport activities suitable for children aged 5 – 15 years old .
We are also a registered Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) provider, meaning eligible families can access funded places through the HAF programme during the summer holidays.
Please find the link to our booking page here
Year 11 into 12 Induction days
It was fantastic to welcome over 100 prospective Sixth Form students to our Taster Days. They experienced lessons in their chosen subjects, explored the Sixth Form Centre and café, met the Head of Sixth Form during assembly, collected their summer work packs, and enjoyed an exciting trip to Go Ape. We can’t wait to see them again in September to enrol after receiving their GCSE results and officially join our Sixth Form community.
Staff Darts Fundraising
Our staff darts fundraiser was a fantastic success, bringing colleagues together for a fun and friendly competition in support of our Food Rooms. Thanks to everyone’s generosity, we raised an incredible £505 for all the fundraising activities, which will go towards purchasing additional items for the Food Rooms to support our students and families. To make it even more meaningful, students will have the opportunity to vote on the extra items we’d like to stock. A huge thank you to everyone who took part, donated, and helped make the event such a success!
