Tarleton Academy's Blog - February 2020

Welcome to the second Tarleton Academy Blog which celebrates the activities, events and successes of the last half-term…

 

HoS Award Winners for January 2020

Congratulations to the following students that were selected by Mr Cunniffe, from the nominations made by teaching and support staff, to be the Head of School’s Award winners for the month of January!

 Mr Cunniffe is looking forward to reviewing the February nominations and meeting the next winners when we return after the half-term break!

 

National Validated GCSE Results 2019

 

Tarleton Academy has developed an enviable reputation county wide, due its sustained excellent academic achievements and it’s purposeful, calm and nurturing environment it provides.

 

Recently, it was officially announced that Tarleton Academy is within the top 17% of schools nationally and one of the very top performing schools in Lancashire with the confirmation of the summer’s superb examination results. The Progress 8 measure of students completing their studies at Tarleton Academy last academic year, stands at +0.37 and is classed as ‘Above Average’. This is significantly above both the national average of -0.03 and the Lancashire schools average of -0.11.

 

This success is even more notable when we consider that the academy is a non-selective, mixed gender community school with students from all abilities and backgrounds - very different to the many selective schools that achieved similar overall results in 2019. These facts make the students’ achievements and progress even more impressive and demonstrate the hard work and dedication of the students, staff and their families - undoubtedly a winning team! If you want to know a little more and access the school's comparative data, check out the news article on our website. https://tarletonacademy.org/news/2020-02-11-another-year-of-success-for-tarleton-academy 

 

Year 9 KS4 Options Process

On Thursday 13th February we held our ‘Key Stage 4 Options Evening’. We were really pleased with the level of attendance by the Year 9 students and their parents – thank you for your continued support. During the evening Mr McLardy’s presentation outlined Year 10 & Year (Key Stage 4), along with its context, as well as the options processes and timeline we follow. Students were issued with their ‘Options Form’ at the end of the talk and were invited with their parents to attend the ‘Options Marketplace’ to discuss subjects with teaching staff so they can make informed decisions with their choices. Please remember that options forms need to be completed and returned to school by Friday 28^th February. If parents or students need and further guidance please use the link below and do not hesitate to contact school if you have any unanswered questions. https://www.tarletonacademy.org/curriculum/options

 

Enriching the learning experience…

On Thursday 9th January Year 9 students Jaime D, Charlotte G, Oliver Mc, Ged F, Gabriel D, Rhys F, Mack A, Paige H, Will J, Frankie L, Alfie M and Ben R attend Liverpool University take part in a three practical STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) focused sessions at the Central Teaching Laboratories. The day included creating hydrogen sensors, electrical engineering and bionic engineering. It also gave the students a real feel for studying at university level and the courses and qualifications that are available at university level - creating those crucial aspirations for the future!

 

Mr Fletcher, who accompanied the students, stated that the Year 9 students conducted themselves impeccably and took on the sessions with real energy and a clear focus. Well done to all the students that were involved!

Tarleton Academy works in close partnership with Runsahw College and each year we enrole students in a wide ranging selection of activities within their ‘Horizons Project’, aimed at students that demonstrate a talent within the focus subjects. This year students have been involved with:

Activity	Date
How to Make a Million – the study of key concept within Economics	Tuesday 15th October
Surprising Science	Tuesday 12th November
New Approaches to Drawing Workshop	Tuesday 3rd December 2019
The Business Ethics Challenge	Wednesday 11th December 2019
The Krypton Factor	Tuesday 21st January 2020
High School Mock Trial Competition	Tuesday 4th February 2020
Forensic Psychology: Offender 12 Profiling Workshop	Thursday 6th February 2020
Life and Death in Ancient Greece	Tuesday 11th February 2020

 

Primary Links - Science Investigations with TARDiS

On Tuesday 11th February we welcomed Year 5 pupils from the TARDiS (Tarleton and Rural District Schools) schools to participate in the first of two science investigation sessions. The first morning was focused on the question ‘How do we keep things hot?’ The purpose of the investigation was to find out the impact of insulation materials and which insulation materials are the best. The pupils from Banks Methodist Primary School, Banks St Stephens CE Primary School, Hoole St Michael’s CE Primary School, Bretherton Endowed CE Primary School, Tarleton Holy Trinity CE Primary School, Tarleton Community Primary School, Tarleton Mere Brow CE Primary School, Rufford CE Primary School, Holmeswood Methodist Primary School and Richard Durning Primary School had a fantastic morning and the feedback from Mr Houghton and Mrs McLardy was really positive! We are now looking forward to inviting the pupils back to Tarleton Academy on Tuesday 28th April to conduct investigations using microscopes!

 

PSCHE Days

We recently held our third PSCHE day of the academic year on Thursday 23^rd January and yet again it was a really positive event! During the day Year 7 experienced a WOW day (World of Work); Year 8 learned about a range of topics including: challenging stereotypes – sexism, bigotry and ageism; Year 9 students focused on the options process for GCSEs and considered these choices in relation to relevant college courses and their career aspirations; Year 10 students looked at the dangers of drug use, British Values, tolerance, the dangers of extremism and knife and gang related crime and Year 11 focused on a financial theme, developing interview skills as well as receiving their Practice Exam Results reflecting upon their performance and their next steps as we move towards the summer examination series. We believe the PSCHE days are a crucial part of our curriculum offer and critical to our overall aims of developing well rounded young people with the resilience, confidence and drive to take their place within an ever changing world!

 

Local Academy Council Visit

It was great to have the Local Academy Council (LAC) in school on Friday 14th February to see a normal school day and we are pleased to say that in keeping with Valentine’s Day - they loved it! Mr Pilkington (Chair), Mrs Taylor (Vice-Chair), Mrs Houlihan and new members of the council; Mrs Jeffers, Mrs Ashcroft, Mrs Ashcroft-Hore and Mr Pateman were in school for the first two lessons of the day and break time to get a feel for the climate for learning in lessons. All of the councillors, whom have children at the school, were impressed with the students' engagement in their learning, the students' strong relationships with staff and how open they were to discussing their learning with them. Mr Pilkington stated that the 'family feel of the school was clear for all to see', whilst Mrs Taylor said that she 'loved the confidence and friendliness of the students' and that their 'behaviour was excellent too!' It was a really positive morning and a great way to finish on the last day before the break for the half-term.

What a great iDEA!

During Computer Science lessons Year 8 and Year 9 students have been introduced to iDEA.  iDEA is a programme which helps students to develop digital, enterprise and employability skills.  Throughout a series of online challenges and events, students can win career and life enhancing badges, unlock new opportunities and ultimately gain an industry recognised award that helps them stand out from the crowd.  

Students have been working on their iDEA badges outside of their lesson time and it is great to have our first accredited BRONZE badge winners - well done! The three students are Caitlin, Niamh and Callum. Mr Miller stated ‘It has been really pleasing to see how engaged the students have been working towards their accreditation and the fact that they have complete the work outside of lesson time stands them in good stead to take on the challenges of their studies across the curriculum.’

 

Basketball Success:

Well done to the U16 Girls Basketball team who made it to the Lancashire schools U16 final. They played against Bacup & Rawtentstall Grammar school, unfortunately suffering a narrow defeat. The girls lost 48-36 but the game was very close throughout. All the players and the coaches have worked extremely hard this season and we are very proud of your achievements!

The Boys U16 Basketball team also matched the feat of the Girls U16 team by reaching the Lancashire Cup final – the first time a school has made both finals in same age group in the competition’s history! They made the final by recently beating Haslingden 45-40 at Tarleton Academy. The final will be played after we return from the February half-term break and we wish them the very best of luck!

 

Staffing changes – February 2020…

We recently wrote to you to explain a small number of staff changes for when we return after the half-term break ( https://tarletonacademy.org/school-letters ). We have said 'goodbye for now' to Mrs Bryan and Mrs Gill who have both started their maternity leave. We would like to wish them both the very best for what is an exciting time for them and their families. We would like to thank them for their commitment to ensuring that our young people have been supported effectively and we look forward to hearing their updates on family life and welcoming them back to work for a rest in the very near future!

 

We have appointed a new member of staff to our Pastoral and Behaviour Team, Mrs Foster, who will take up the role of Team Leader within the Personal Development Centre from Monday 2nd March. This change will enable Miss Daly to take up an exciting opportunity across the Multi-Academy Trust (MAT). Whilst we are sad to see her move away from a full-time role based at Tarleton, we want to acknowledge that her new role will enable all our schools to access her invaluable skills.  Miss Daly has been a dedicated member of the staff team over many years and has served the children and the Tarleton community tirelessly. I know she is very well respected by the students and parents alike because of the time, patience and diligence she has consistently demonstrated in her roles in school.

 

Vacancies

There are a number of great opportunities to join our winning team. We have vacancies for teaching, support and community based staff working for Endeavour Learning Trust at Tarleton Academy. We have current openings for the following positions:

- Casual Cover Supervisor

- Lunchtime Welfare Assistants

- Examination Invigilators

- Sports Attendant/Lifeguard

Please use the link to find out further information: https://www.tarletonacademy.org/our-academy/job-vacancies

 

Key dates for the next half-term:

• Wednesday 26^th February – Interim Review Day (students attend in uniform for their individual appointments)
• Friday 28^th February & Friday 6^th March – Year 9 Vaccinations
• Thursday 5^th March – Year 11 Parents’ Evening 4pm-7pm
• Thursday 19^th March – Year 8 Parents’ Evening 4pm-7pm
• Monday 23^rd March to Friday 3^rd March - Year 11 Practice Examinations 2 – Monday
• Friday 3^rd March  - School Closes for the Easter Holidays at 12.30pm (buses are arranged for this time)
• Monday 20^th April – School re-opens for all years for an 8.45am start

All students return to school on Monday 24^th February for an 8.45am start  - We are looking forward to welcoming everybody back ...have a great weekend!