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Wensum Trust Newsletter - Summer 2021-22

Summer Newsletter 2021-22

Welcome

We’ve had a lot to celebrate across The Wensum Trust this term.

We’ve had excellent Ofsted reports for three of our schools, with Acle Academy, Alderman Peel High School and Wells Primary and Nursery School all being rated Good overall.

Acle Academy has demonstrated the remarkable transformation it has been through, going from being rated as inadequate when it joined the Trust in 2016, to now being rated Good. Meanwhile I am delighted that Alderman Peel received an Outstanding rating for Personal Development. The school is clearly committed to the Trust’s vision to offer a unique relational approach to education to develop the whole child, both academically and emotionally.

The teachers and staff at all three schools have worked incredibly hard and I would like to thank everyone for the work they continue to do every day to make them somewhere the whole community can be proud of.

We also celebrated the official launch of The Base at Arden Grove Primary School. I’m incredibly proud that we are able to offer this excellent new resource for children and their families, providing them with the extra specialist support youngsters with social, emotional and mental health needs required to thrive and progress in their education. You can read more about it further on in this newsletter.

Year 6 children have completed their SATs for the first time since the Covid pandemic, whilst children across our high schools have been sitting their GCSEs and A-Levels exams for the first time in two years. I wish everyone the best of luck as they await their results over the coming months.

Finally, it has been wonderful to see the children across all of our schools celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It’s been a wonderful time for all our communities to come together and enjoy the festivities after the challenging times Covid presented us with.

I hope you all have a wonderful summer and I am looking forward to the successes the next school year will bring.

Daniel Thrower

OFSTED SUCCESS ACROSS THE TRUST

08 Jun 2022
Growing school is providing Outstanding Personal Development for students
Alderman Peel High School is providing Outstanding Personal Development for its students with staff who “help pupils to feel safe, grow in confidence and become more independent”.
Read more
04 May 2022
Acle Academy receives 'Good' Ofsted rating after transformational journey.
Acle Academy, one of the first schools to join The Wensum Trust, has undergone a remarkable transformation and received a ‘Good’ Ofsted rating with pupils saying, “the school has changed for the better.”
Read more
04 Mar 2022
'Good' News for Wells-next-the-Sea Primary & Nursery School
Wells-next-the-Sea Primary & Nursery School, situated within the Wensum Trust's Coastal Hub, has once again been recognised as a "Good" school in its latest Ofsted inspection report.
Read more

IN OTHER NEWS...

26 Apr 2022
The Base launches at Arden Grove
The Base is one of four new purpose-built bases in the county providing support to children with social, emotional and mental health needs.
Read more
15 Mar 2022
How schools are discussing Ukraine crisis with pupils
Acle Academy staff encourage an open dialogue around the crisis in Ukraine and encourage pupils to turn to trusted sources around the issue. Staff at Acle Academy dress in yellow and blue to show their solidarity for Ukraine. Helen Watts, Principal of Acle Academy, said the school was enco...
Read more

Wensum and Viking teams go into battle

The first ever Wensum Trust rugby teams competed in a tournament in memory of the Trust’s former CEO, Gerry Batty, in April.

The event was the culmination of the Trust’s secondary school rugby programme in partnership with North Walsham Rugby Club - who are also affectionately known as The Vikings.

North Walsham rugby coaches have been working with teachers across Acle Academy, Alderman Peel and Hellesdon High, to deliver rugby in the curriculum and instil the values of rugby - Teamwork, Respect, Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship.

The programme led to inter-school tournaments and then players were chosen to represent The Wensum Trust in a tournament against other Viking Schools.

The winning team were presented with the Gerry Batty Trophy at the inaugural event which is now expected to become an annual fixture. Gerry Batty Rugby Tournament

Tom Rolfe, Secondary School Lead, said: “It was wonderful to see all The Wensum Trust schools come together as one team on the day and they performed exceptionally well. This event highlights the strong and growing partnership we have with North Walsham Rugby Club and we are looking forward to continuing our work with them across both the secondary and primary schools.”

Hiking for Hector!

Hiking For Hector

Congratulations to staff and children from Heather Avenue Infant School who completed Hector's Hike in May.
 
Hector, who is a pupil at the school, was diagnosed with Leukaemia in April 2021 and to thank the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital for all their support, his family are trying to raise £10,000 to redecorate and improve the rooms of the children’s ward.
 
On Friday 6th May, children at the school completed a sponsored golden mile whilst on Saturday 7th May, 9 members of staff completed an 11 or 15 mile hike, whilst eight others completed an incredible 26.2 mile marathon distance.
 
Stacey Coleman, Headteacher of Heather Avenue, said: “The staff and children were delighted to be supporting this worthy cause, they are proud of what they have achieved and completely blown away by the kindness and support received. We all enjoyed the day immensely, everyone was incredibly positive and supportive throughout the event.” 

Acle Academy celebrates victory at Norfolk County Bowl final

Acle Academy Rugby Victory

Congratulations to the Acle Academy U16 Rugby Team who won the Norfolk Bowl Final.

The team travelled to North Walsham RFC on Wednesday 4 May where they beat Framingham Earl 26-20. 


Many staff and students attended and Acle Academy provided a coach for them to spectate, which created a great atmosphere.

Partnership provides unique learning opportunities for staff and students

Teachers from across The Wensum Trust have been benefiting from its unique partnership with Norwich Theatre.

A number of teachers from across the Trust were joined by other schools in Norfolk in March to take part in a special training day with the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC).

Working with practitioner Ollie Lynes, they explored Romeo and Juliet to find new ways to bring the play alive for students in the classroom. The RSC helped teachers to look at approaches to learning which will amplify the views and opinions of children and young people, as well as ignite a love of language and literature in learners of all backgrounds and abilities.

Secondary School Lead for The Wensum Trust, Tom Rolfe, said: “We are proud to be working with Norwich Theatre as a lead Trust, not only to enhance the learning experience of our students, but to also invest in the continuous personal development of our teaching staff who make that learning a success.”
 

CELEBRATING THE QUEEN'S PLATINUM JUBILEE

Schools across the Wensum Trust have been celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Staff and children in all our communities have been paying tribute as Her Majesty The Queen marks 70 years on the throne. 

Heather Avenue Infant School spent the week before the Summer half-term making bunting, flags and badges for their friends at Woodland Care Home and held an afternoon tea party.

Garrick Green and Lodge Lane Infant Schools held a red, white and blue non-uniform day and celebrated with a street party lunch.

As well as making their own flags and bunting, Arden Grove Primary School had a full day of activities on Friday 27th May with a picnic lunch, a Platinum Jubilee parade and a cake street party.

Meanwhile Firside and Kinsale celebrated with a red, white and blue non-uniform day, a street party lunch and lessons about the history of the Queen.
 

Do you fancy cooking up something special over the summer? 

Then take a look at ‘Flavours of Hellesdon'.

Staff, parents and carers from across the school have been sharing recipes from a variety of cultures, to help spread the love of cooking and to promote diversity across the school community. 

Whoopie PiesLatest recipes include Chicken and Peach Pasta, Tarte Tatin Aux Poirse and these rather delicious looking Chocolate Whoppie Pies!

Flavours of Hellesdon was inspired by Migrateful - an award winning cookery class taught by expert refugee and migrant chefs from around the world.

 

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The new common room at @HHS_6thForm is going to look excellent from September. It will be a great space for students to take some time out and socialise! #SixthForm #FurtherEducation #Norfolk #Norwich https://t.co/ehPxB0X5zB
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