Headteacher Update

I hope families have had a safe and enjoyable weekend. Earlier today I had the privilege of reading through the Year 7 Reports in order to help prepare me to write my SLT comments that will accompany the reports when they go home. Given the challenging circumstances of the last two academic years (both in Year 6 and the first part of Year 7) these were hugely encouraging, the resilience and determination that students have shown extremely admirable. It is also good to see so many of these young people taking advantage of the enrichment opportunities available across school. I know the staff share my view of just how tremendous Year 7 have been since September, well done to all of them.

In less positive news the ongoing impact of the pandemic has meant that despite our very best efforts to keep moving dates backwards, the Y11 and Y13 Proms (like most across the country) have now had to be cancelled. I know both Mrs Avey and Miss De Lashley (as well as the wider teams) are devastated about this and we are aware of how upsetting this will be for students. I am really sorry about this. I know this from personal experience having a son who missed out on this last year. Whilst the compromises that have been forced on our young people over the past two years have been absolutely necessary there is no doubt that students have missed out on important moments in their education journeys. As a school we will continue to do our very best to ensure that the things that we can control are of the highest and most enriching standard possible, a good example of this being the Y11 transition days that have been running for the last two weeks.

Unfortunately across the city the Year 6 Induction Day has also had to be cancelled. This is especially disappointing as these young people and their families have not actually had the opportunity (unless they have siblings) to visit the school of their choice this year. This makes the online meetings that we will be having in the coming weeks vitally important, and also the first day back after the summer holidays which needs to be focused on those new to our school.

Please find below the link to our latest Wellbeing Newsletter:
WB. 21st June Wellbeing Newsletter 18

Covid testing
Many thanks for the ongoing support in terms of the regular testing of students. A reminder that this testing should be done on a Monday and Thursday morning. It is also important to remember that the only reason to go for a test is if your child is displaying symptoms, this also applies if they are identified as a contact. Finally, thank you for not sending your children to school if they are displaying symptoms, the new Delta variant is as we know more transmissible.

Working together as a City
Throughout the pandemic I have been proud of how the city has worked together to manage a collective response. As part of this work we are looking to get as much information from families as possible about how the pandemic has affected children’s learning and wellbeing. The surveys below are being sent out in every school in the city and responses will be completely anonymous. I appreciate your support with this endeavour.

York Education Futures surveys
Parents/carers: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/YorkEducationFuturesParentsCarers
Pupils: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/YorkEducationFuturesChildren
City of York consultations web page: https://www.york.gov.uk/consultation

Head of Year Awards

Head of Year updates
Year 7 – Miss Kincell
I hope you are all well during these uncertain times and want to thank you all for your ongoing support of the school.Whilst we know Monday’s announcement was disappointing for many to say the least, I just wanted to re-highlight the successes of our processes in school. Masking wearing is still mandatory in common areas and corridors, masks are now optional for students in lessons. This has been very welcomed by students who now are able to have their own choice, many still continue to wear their masks. We also have a whole school one way system, which has been very effective for the school as a whole and helped on busy corridors. Our test and trace system, with very rigorous seating plan tracing has worked very well and we continue to only send home students who we know have been a contact, allowing for business as usual to continue as far as possible.

Our online work has also been greatly received and many students continue to access the same work at home as if they were in school. I would just like to focus on assessments, I understand that students who have been at home have been worried about taking assessments at home or missing assessments. Please now, teachers are fully aware of the disparities between working at home and in school and students will not be penalised in any way for this and will be supported upon their return. 

A key reminder that virtual parents evening is taking place Wednesday 30 June, and students have been booking appointments themselves online via Google Classroom, overall this has been very successful, however if you need further support or guidance please do not hesitate to get in touch with the Year 7 Team. In advance of parents evening, you will receive your child’s full reports and parents evening is your opportunity to discuss this. However, if you have any immediate concerns, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Well done to our Gold Award winners this week:

Alex Grist 7Gr: Well done for being selected for Tadcaster swimming club. What an excellent way to represent the school. Keep it up!
Natalie Bowler 7Cm: Well done for your excellent contribution for form time and supporting your peers with their understanding of the LGBTQ+ community. Keep it up!

Library Newsletter
Well, what a hot week! Weirdly, when it’s really warm we don’t seem to have the energy to read heavy books that need a lot of thinking about. I fancy reading something a bit lighter/easier, which is known as a holiday read. Michael Rosen and Anne Fine are the perfect authors for this.

Choosing Crumble Choosing Crumble (Quiz 226526. Level 3.5. Colour Black)
Terri-Lee is applying for a new job. She arrives at the pet shop and is led into a back office for her interview. Apple Crumble, the dog, is sitting behind the desk. Crumble grills Terri-Lee about his basket, vet trips, what he’ll get to eat and not running too fast. Crumble is very particular about his owners, will Terri-Lee’s dance moves and tickling be enough to convince Crumble that she should get the job. You can read the first eleven pages by clicking on the link. https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Choosing_Crumble/KmA2AgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover

The Diary of a Killer Cat Diary of a Killer Cat (Quiz 201696. Level 3.3. Colour Black)
I killed the bird. For pity’s sake, I’m a cat. Poor Ellie is horrified when Tuffy drags a dead bird into the house. Then a mouse. But Tuffy can’t understand what all the fuss is about. …You can listen and read along to the whole book by clicking on the link below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A1WrVjpbU8

Uncle Gobb and the Dread Shed Uncle Gobb (Quiz number 229866. Level 5. Colour Green)
Malcolm is in all ways an ordinary ten-year-old. This is a perfectly ordinary story featuring one perfectly ordinary ten-year-old, his very bossy uncle, some baked beans, a school which tries to make interesting things BORING, the famed Italian city of Ponky, and a genie who appears when you rub your nose. You can listen to the author reading the first few chapters by clicking on the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK2Dn8ZbtN0

Poetry Corner
Callum Miller 7CMp brought me another poem for you all to enjoy. It is written as a kenning, a type of poem that shows but doesn’t tell you what it is about. The fun is to guess what the poem is about. He actually used the answer as the title so I’ll give the title at the bottom.

They are small and blue,
They are mythical creatures.
They stopped a witch’s curse.
They live in a forest,
They live in mushrooms too!
They go on adventures and have fun.
No one beats these small creatures,
They work together as a team.
They are small and blue.

Of course, the title of the poem was Smurfs. This was perfect for Mrs Murphy, our librarian, as Smurf was the nickname she was given at school, even before the Smurfs burst onto the scene! (Because of her name S Murphy. She may be small, but she’s never blue)

Weekly Reminders
Time Capsule – The clock on the time capsule is ticking away. Look on the notice board in your form room for ideas of what to put in, or call into the library and write something in there.

Book Quiz
Don’t forget to complete a quiz for any books you have read. You can access Accelerated Reader quickly by using the following link https://ukhosted83.renlearn.co.uk/1893564

Overdue Books
Please return your library books, we still have over 502 outstanding. Remember, you will not be in trouble for a late return. We will be delighted to see both you and the book again!
Some of you are telling us that you have left your books in your form room. If you have, please can you return them to the library, otherwise the system will show that the book is still on loan to you. Other books of course will be languishing under your bed. Please have a look and return any lates before we break up for the summer.

Year 8 – Mr Arthur
I can’t quite believe it, but we have now reached the final half-term of the academic year. Students in Year 8 have faced a lot of challenges over the past two years and have missed out on quite a bit of their time at Secondary School. However, through all of our collective efforts and the excellent resilience of the students, we are finally moving slowly and steadily towards ‘normality’. It has been wonderful to see students in Year 8 develop and grow in the past year, and make the most of the wealth of ‘Opportunities’ available to them in line with their stage of the Archbishop Holgate’s School Journey. Next year, in Year 9, students will move onto the next, crucial stage of their Archbishop Holgate’s School ‘Journey’ with a focus on ‘Understanding yourself and others’ – where students are encouraged to consider their own values and beliefs, engage with the beliefs of others, and understand how this fits into the wider world of which they are a part. We hope that this focus next year will contribute significantly to students leaving AHS as ‘Global Citizens’ with a firm understanding of themselves, and compassion towards others who share the world around them. 

In other news, this week saw the beginning of organised lunchtime football on the field for Year 8. Miss Halifax will be out with Year 8 students each day organising football games at lunchtimes (posts, bibs, rolling subs – the whole nine yards!). It has been so wonderful to see so many students engaging with football in this way and with such excitement and enthusiasm, and we may get to a point where we can organise a ‘Euros’ style tournament to improve the student’s enjoyment and engagement with organised lunchtime football – watch this space!

We have a big push this half-term regarding standards across the school – we really want to make sure student finish the year strongly ready for the summer break. They key focus is fourfold in terms of focus…

1. Timekeeping – students must ensure that they are getting to school on time, and making their way to lessons on time. Students that are not on school site before 8:45 will receive a HOY Detention after school the following day. Students that arrive to lessons or form time late will receive an ‘L’ code in their planner – Three ‘L’ codes would result in a HOY Detention after school the following day.
2. Staying in lessons – Students must ensure they do things like go to the toilet, or fill up their water bottles, at breaks and lunchtimes. Only in exceptional circumstances will students be allowed to go to the toilet during a lesson.
3. Uniform – Students must make sure they are wearing the correct uniform. Reminders of the school uniform policy can be found on the school website. Students must accept when they are challenged on incorrect uniform, and work with us to help correct the issue.
4.  Accepting when things go wrong, and learning from mistakes – we have explained to the students that we understand nobody is perfect! Everyone makes mistakes from time to time. The key thing we wish to stress is that students learn from the mistakes they make, accept any sanction that comes as a result, and endeavour to not make the same mistake again.

We very much hope with an emphasis on these things in the coming weeks, that students will finish the half-term and the year strongly.

Finally, this week in our Act of Collective Worship, and as part of wider work we do around online safety, we discussed the idea of a ‘Digital Footprint’. We explained the difference between a ‘Passive Footprint’ (data that is collected online without you knowing) and an ‘Active Footprint’ (data that is deliberately inputted online – e.g. commenting on someone’s Instagram Post), and how this is something we all leave behind when we go online. Whilst nothing to worry about, students must be aware that what they post online can come back to them later in life, so they must be very careful and aware about what the post online. The recent example of Ollie Robinson clearly demonstrates how the internet never forgets, and things from the past can come back to haunt you. For those that do not follow cricket, Ollie Robinson recently made his debut for the England cricket team, but has since been suspended since some sexist and racist tweets have re-surfaced from when Ollie was 18. Ollie has since apologised profusely, and explained how he was a ‘different person’ back then, however this has not saved him from suspension from the England cricket team. We therefore feel it is imperative, as part of our wider work around e-safety, to make students aware of their digital footprint so they can make sensible choices online that will not come back to haunt them in later life. The world of social media can be amazing at bringing people together and helping people to interact. However, as with most things, it must be used in moderation and with care and due diligence.

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter item. If you have any issues regarding your child in Year 8, please do get in contact with me at aarthur@ahs.pmat.academy, or Mr Deamer (Pastoral Support Worker for Year 8) at rdeamer@ahs.pmat.academy. All the best to you all,

Mr Avery and Year 9
The weather has been excellent this week, and it has been really nice to see the students in the year group enjoying the opportunity to socialise outside. It seems to have put the students in a really good mood, and I have been delighted with the positive attitude they have shown this week.  The new extra curricular timetable is now available for students at lunchtime and after school, and I would encourage all of Y9 to take up the opportunity to take part in sport this summer term. Euro’s fever has gripped the year group, with many forms taking part in friendly sweepstakes and wall charts proudly on display in form rooms. I myself have managed to draw Belgium in the staff sweepstake – I am quietly confident…. This week the Act of Collective worship was based on the importance of Mental Health, and was delivered expertly by a group of Y12 students. It’s a very proud moment for any teacher when the older students mentor their fellow students, and this was no exception. I know it has had a very positive impact on students in the year group, and the one-to- one mentoring with y12 students is also going from strength to strength. If this is something you feel would benefit your child, please feel free to contact me to discuss this further.

I am delighted to announce that we have a new member of staff joining our year team. Miss Johnstone is the new Pastoral Support Worker for the year group, and will be working alongside myself and Miss Clark until the end of term and into next year. Her roles and responsibilities will cover the wellbeing and day to day needs of the students in the year group. Her experience and expertise will play a very important role, so if you hear a new voice on the phone in the coming weeks I hope this explains why! It’s been really nice to see the positive rapport the students are already establishing with Miss Johnstone, who I know is looking forward to getting to know the students as quickly as possible.

The students of the week are Flo Wakeling (9Gs) for being polite, hardworking and a credit to our year group and Zoe Williams (9EMl) for her resilience and maturity toward a difficult situation. Well done to both.

Miss Turvey and Year 10
It is the first week of the Y10 exams and as parents your main job is to ensure your children are at school, on time with the correct equipment and preferably having eaten some breakfast. Your child’s main job this week is to follow instructions and attempt every question on the exam papers.

Our job, as the school, is to reassure your children that some form of nerves, butterflies in the tummy, lack of sleep etc is perfectly normal. As well as reminding them that these exams will NOT form the basis of any teacher assessed grade, should we go into another lockdown at any stage next year and have the government cancel the exams for a third year in a row. The results of these Y10 exams, as your children have been informed in assembly, in registration by their form tutors and by their subject teachers, indicate to us what level of support is needed for the individual student to ensure they are as prepared as possible for summer 2022. 

There are four possible outcomes for an individual from these exams:
Those who revised and did well need ongoing encouragement; those who revised and did badly need greater guidance in exam technique; those who chose not to revise and did well will be expected to attend extra classes and aim for higher grades; and finally those who chose not to revise and did badly will need to attend extra classes in order to catch up with the learning they have chosen not to access so far. Your support is important in ensuring that your children choose to succeed, so thank you for it.

Mrs Avey and Year 11
The year 11 team is devastated that The Prom has had to be cancelled and know that  our  students are devastated too. Unfortunately for schools, whilst the restrictions lift in society in a further 4 weeks’ time,  they remain in place for all schools until the end of term We explored numerous alternative avenues before reaching this impossible decision. We thank parents and carers for their understanding and acknowledgment that this is beyond our control or wishes.

All money paid will be refunded. If you have paid via Parent Pay, these funds will be paid directly back into your parent pay account, by Wednesday 23rd June. Once you have received funds into your parent pay account, if you wish, you can transfer these back into your own personal bank account. If you have paid by cash or cheque, the Finance department will refund you via a BACS transfer straight into your bank account. The Finance  team will need your account name, sort code and account number. These can be emailed to: tburgess@pmat.acadmey. If you would prefer to speak to Ms Burgess from the Finance team, please tel: 01904 411341 choosing option 4.

All the extra money we raised, which was  intended to supplement the prom experience, will be donated. The money from the Just Giving page will be donated to St Leonard’s Hospice – as per the original letter; the money raised by the brilliant  Prom Committee will go to the Unity Fund and the amazing  £100 raised by Mrs Stephenson and the One Stop raffle, it has been agreed, will also go to the Unity Fund.

Our team is really sorry that this decision was forced upon us. We are glad that Mr Daly generously gifted  the students with a leavers’ book and hoody free of charge and that we enjoyed a relaxed, last morning sharing memories, signatures  and an ice cream. 

Miss De Lashley and Post 16
Year 13 Prom – It was with great sadness that we had to cancel the Prom this year due to the extension of the current restrictions and a lack of further dates to select. If you have paid for prom a refund will be issued. Please do get in touch should you need any support with this. We will be in touch with students in due course.

Y13 Transition – Thank you to all of the students that have been in school over the last few weeks supporting departments and shadowing teams. If your son/daughter is interested in the below scheduled workshops then please do let us know.

• Student cooking class – Tuesday 29^th June (all day)
• Student storage solutions – Wednesday 30^th June (am)

Year 13 Shout Outs

Y12 Mock Prep
We are entering the exam revision window in lessons and set homework. You son/daughter should be busy both in school and at home. The subject support sessions are underway and most sessions are in Period 6 after school. Please see the exam timetable attached.

Year 12 Shout Outs

Collective Worship
Over the next few weeks we are going to watch some reflection videos from the Christian charities Thy Kingdom Come and the Archbishop of York’s Youth Trust. Each week we will watch two short videos from young influential Christians across different spheres of influence. This week we’ll listen to Catholic missionary Pippa share a spoken word about the difficulties and joys of praise and Methodist Youth President Phoebe share her thankfulness for the beauty of our world.  

“Strive to find things to be thankful for, and just look for the good in who you are.” – Bethany Hamilton; professional surfer and Christian speaker & writer
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” – G.K. Chesterton; 19th C. Christian writer and thinker
“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘Thank you,’ that would suffice.” – Meister Eckhart; 13th C. German philosopher and theologian
“For me, every hour is grace. And I feel gratitude in my heart each time I can meet someone and look at his or her smile.” – Elie Wiesel; Concentration camp survivor, writer and Nobel Prize winner
“O God, I will praise you with all my heart and tell everyone about the marvellous things you do.” – Psalm 9: v1, The Bible