In terms of whole-school events, below is only an illustrative summary of some of the many things which serve as highlights of the past half-term…

Charity and Community: Race for Life – September

  

We are especially proud of how community-minded all students at NLS are – and we are particularly appreciative of the role-modelling efforts of our wonderful Sixth Form students. These images from our recent Race for Life event show the terrific positivity on display and how we as a community meet challenge with good humour, determination and collaborative spirit. Across the school, a magnificent £2703 was raised. Well done all!

Charity and Community: World Mental Health Awareness Day, Hello Yellow – October

In support of this, Sixth Form students sported yellow to mark their understanding of a key issue affecting so many. Assembly and Tutor Time was geared up to highlighting how it impacts so many and to give practical support ideas which students could draw upon. A whole-school event (with cake sales and the like), we are delighted to announce that a total of £860 was raised. It was great to see so many staff and Sixth Form students (as well as Lulu, the school Therapy Dog) actively involved:

 

  

Enrichment

It is great that so many of our Sixth Form students have taken the opportunity to be involved in our very popular Enrichment programme – and with such gusto! Our offer is a diverse one and is organised according to opportunities which are teacher-led or self-regulated. The former includes:

• D of E Gold
• Indoor Sports - Badminton, Basketball, Table Tennis etc
• General Sport - Football etc
• E.P.Q – which is now incredibly popular (in light of fantastic historical results and the possibility of contextualised offers from post-18 providers – e.g. universities)
• Wellbeing: walks, mindfulness, conversations

Meanwhile, the latter includes:

• Strategy Board Games
• Reading for Pleasure
• Leadership
• Sixth Form Magazine
• Super-curricular Research
• Teaching Assistant Volunteering
• Care Home Volunteering

We are delighted so many students are volunteering either in or out of school to help those in the wider community: you will be very proud of your children, we are sure. To see students actively engaged with younger people (as a T.A.) and with the more elderly (in the care home we support) is a highlight of the role for many of us and a genuine pleasure to behold.

As suggested above, we are also pleased that a record number of students are taking the opportunity to undertake an E.P.Q (Extended Project Qualification) and to follow in the footsteps of their current Year 13 predecessors – 60% of whom scored A* or A in their brilliant projects last year. These students now have the equivalent of an A/S level (50% of the full A-level) to put on their upcoming applications to university, apprenticeships, employment…

Elsewhere our Year 13s enjoyed something of an enhanced enrichment curriculum through our Personal Development sessions, delivered by Mr Schofield. This term included attention to CPR – with the images here capturing nicely some really valuable learning experiences.

 

 

The Geography team have offered one of the first of many subject-specific enrichment opportunities available to students here. A day out in Granchester as a Field Trip was not all ‘messing about on the river…’ – but that was one of many highlights

 

Future Pathways - UCAS and Apprenticeships Event, NLS and Edgbaston October

Tuesday 14 October saw our annual post-16 Careers Fayre – with a number of apprenticeship and Higher Education providers on-site, it was an opportunity for a ‘speed-dating’ approach to be used to acquire knowledge about Future Pathways. Expertly curated as always by Mrs Barley-Morey and Mrs O’Donnell, students learned lots.

 

Year 13 students enjoyed a visit to the UCAS and Apprenticeship Event at Edgbaston on Friday 16 October. This trip was arranged to further support our Year 13 students in identifying and pursuing their Future Pathway options.

With around 200 exhibitors present, students had the opportunity to speak to a range of exhibiting universities and apprenticeship providers.  The event also featured a range of useful seminars where they could gather more information including:

• UCAS Personal Statement & Application Advice
• Why take an Apprenticeship
• Higher and Degree Apprenticeships
• Student Finance

 

This was a lovely opportunity for students – it will be key in supporting them with their final decisions at this important time.

It built on the Future Pathways work we started back in June as many are now finalising their applications to university, apprenticeships and elsewhere.

 

With the last point in mind, well done to the 13 students who have made Early Entry applications to the ‘high demand’ subjects (medicine, veterinary science, dentistry) and organisations (Oxbridge). It’s a real challenge having to act as quickly and maturely as they have but we are once again confident of some excellent next step destinations for these students and the wider cohort.

We hope they are as successful as last year’s Year 13 students Luke (Oxford) and Oliver (Cambridge) in their endeavours.

Student Leadership

We are very grateful for all the excellent work our Senior Student Leadership Team has done over the course of this half-term. Not only have they already represented us so well at the Year 12 Information Evening and at the Prospective New Year 7 Open Evening, they are getting ready to represent us and their areas of leadership at the Prospective New Year 12 Open Evening on Thursday 6 November.  With Senior Student Leaders Jimmy and Amelia (effectively Head Boy and Head Girl) leading the team and working in concert with Mr Schofield, Mr Boyes and Mr Lowdell (as well as others) they have done much in terms of ambassadorial work but also in the raising of the profile of areas such as charity & community, diversity & equality. This should equip them with some terrific experiences for life preparation and also asserts the vitality of Student Voice here at NLS.

A recent Student Leadership highlight involved Ila and Evelyn presenting an assembly on Black History Month – which complemented opportunities to learn more elsewhere.

Congratulations to the Year 12 students who have recently been awarded College Leader roles: 

Tutor Time and P.S.H.E Curriculums

In terms of the Tutor Time curriculum, recent coverage in Year 13 has been on preparation for the world beyond NLS and applications for next step destinations (linked to our Future Pathways provision). Meanwhile, there has been the perennial focus in Year 12 on the transition to post-16 study and establishing good study habits as well as an understanding of the self, habits and ways to realise potential and adjustment to changing contexts. All of this has been supplemented with our assembly programme which has foregrounded the notion of High Challenge, Deep Support and the P.S.H.E programme - which has complemented all of this with its attention to Health & Wellbeing. 

Student Voice Survey – Survey on Transition in to Year 12

Each year, we invite feedback on the transition process in to Year 12. Early headlines (as illustrated below) are really positive and indicate a successful period between Year 11 and the first few weeks of Year 12. We are especially pleased with how well those students New to North Leam have settled – following a period of Enhanced Transition and specific support being put in place.

While the vast majority of feedback points were positive, we will address those areas for improvement identified and which include: some aspect of Tutor Time improvement, refreshment enhancement, even-greater guidance on curriculum coverage in order to make well-informed decisions about subject choices.

Student Rewards

For efforts in tutor time, across lessons and in school in general, students are accruing many rewards points in Sixth Form – which is great to see. With their College affiliation noted, here are the Top 10 in each year:

Year 12

Year 13

Well done to these Top Ten students but to all of those who are so committed to their studies and to school life here at NLS.

Online Safety

A reminder that our website contains a variety of online safety information within the Safeguarding tab and we have recently added the October Online Safety Newsletter and a link to Parentsafe which is a very useful tool produced by LGfL (London Grid for Learning).

It offers a wide range of support materials and advice for parents to keep children and young people safe in the online world.

Topics on offer include:

• Top tips for right now
• Safe settings and control on various devices
• What’s that APP?
• Talking to children about the topic
• Screen time
• Top topics including fake news
• Sex and relationships
• Help and reporting

You can view resources and advice via the links here:  Parentsafe LGfL Website and Online Safety Information on the NLS Website

Diary

Please be aware or reminded of these key dates:

• Mocks – having started this week continue in the week after half-term
• Odd Socks Week - support anti-bullying, culminating in Odd Socks Day on Nov 14
• Remembrance Event -  November 11
• College Assemblies – w/c November 17
• Year 13 Sociology Trip to Justice Centre - Nov 11, Nov 25, Dec 2 (depending on groupings)
• Arts Trip to London -  December 5
• Safer Driving  Workshop – throughout Nov (as part of our Personal Development offer)
• Christmas activities: Winter music Concert – Wednesday December 3, Christmas Jumper Day - December 12, Hamper collections - throughout December, Cards for Care Homes (SF initiative) - early December

If you have any queries at any point, please do make contact via the usual communication sources.

On behalf of myself, the Sixth Form Team and the school, have a terrific half-term.

S A Taylor
Senior Assistant-Head-teacher (inc. Head of Sixth Form).