Headteacher Update

Dear parents and carers,

Last week was a challenging one in school and I appreciate the patience, support and constructive feedback from families. It is this partnership working that allows us to both celebrate our successes as a school community and where necessary reflect and put in place plans that will support the process of continuous improvement. Thank you. We are disappointed about having to postpone the plans for Enrichment Week on Monday and Tuesday as we know students were looking forward to both the Flamingo Land trips and activities in school. However the unprecedented hot weather and red warning are things that we must take very seriously with the wellbeing of students and staff our number one priority. The Reward trips will be rescheduled for the Autumn term and we hope that we will be able to move forward with our plans for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

In terms of arrangements for Monday and Tuesday

• Children are welcome to wear either their school uniform without tie or their PE kit to school on these days
• All children must bring their own water bottle and hat – Bottles should be refilled throughout the day to avoid dehydration
• We recommend that all children apply sunscreen before arriving at school and bring extra suncream with them to apply throughout the day
• The use of an umbrella as a parasol if children are walking to and from school

In addition to the above:

• As the temperature is due to get warmer throughout the day no child will be participating in outdoor physical activity. PE have amended their lessons to made sure there is a combination of lessons in the swimming pool, gym, sports hall, studio and fitness suite
• We have placed additional water bottle filling stations around the school to allow children to refill at breaks and lunches
• Sunscreen will be available for children to apply themselves but we recommend children bring their own
• We have where possible re-roomed the classrooms that are likely to be the warmest and into where possible rooms with air conditioning
• We are not planning to stop students going outside for break times but there are places inside and with shelter if they prefer
• We would encourage your child to go home straight after school to avoid spending any more time than necessary in the heat. We are not planning on closing school early but should anything change we will be in touch.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact school via reception.

Families will have received a letter on Friday reflecting on the past year and looking forward to September 2022 and beyond. We are excited to have the additional leadership capacity to help support families and the student experience. The Newsletter this week will also provide additional information about how we have strengthened our pastoral provision for next year.

Pre-loved uniform shop
As we approach summer a reminder about both our pre-loved uniform shop and the school Unity Fund. The pre loved uniform shop can be accessed via the link below and if your family requires support from the Unity Fund please email either gstainsby@ahs.pmat.academy or krobinson@ahs.pmat.academy for more information: https://app.uniformd.co.uk/items/172

I’d like to wish families a safe and happy summer break. We will send a Parent Bulletin at the end of Week 5 of the summer holidays with a reminder about the start of term arrangements and then again before we return in September.

Head of Year Awards
Please find below the final Head of Year Awards list for the year.

Head of Year Updates
Year 7 – Miss Kincell, Miss Powell and Miss Cooper
It is quite an unusual thing to be writing my final ever parent bulletin, I have to say this cohort
have been wonderful and I am so honoured that they were my final Year 7 group at AHS. I have loved this role and this year group has been a huge part of why. This couldn’t have been better illustrated than through today’s Sports Day. I have truly never seen the values be lived so fully, students cheered and celebrated for each other as well as consoled and cajoled each other. Thank you to parents and families also for supporting the school this year, we are so happy to have you all as a part of our community.

Key reminders for next week:
Students must bring: a water bottle, apply suncream before school and bring more with them and a hat. Students may wear their PE kit on Monday and Tuesday to be more comfortable.
Monday and Tuesday will be students’ normal timetable, they should bring their usual resources with them.

ANn: Riley Atkinson – For being an excellent member of 7ANn. Thank you for all of your fantastic contributions to discussion this week.
ASU: Adam Said – for being brilliantly organised and helping me with Sports Day!
Bl: Leo Deighton – always engaging in form time discussions in a mature and sensible manner. A delight to have in 7Bl.
Cy: Bethel Ogbemudia – for an excellent first year at school and always being a pleasure to have in form time
Gr: Flear, Harriet – For a great first year and always being supportive and kind. Thank you.
Hf: Joe Molloy – for always being kind and friendly to everyone in the form, and for an excellent year 7.
Hv: Poppy Cooper – For representing the school for athletics , well done!
MLn: Daisy Jordan – For a fantastic start at AHS and with our form, well done!
MPe: Paige Saye – For being a consistently fantastic member of 7MPe for the entire year. You have never had an off day. Well done!
Mr: Lincoln Nicholson for his much improved time keeping
SMf: Hetty Doney – For her fantastic contributions on our PSHE Wellbeing morning and being a real glue that holds our form together. Her commitment to our journey is tremendous! Well done.

Well done to our Head of Year Awards:
Emily Brown – for overcoming significant barriers and making a fantastic start to her AHS Journey. Well Done, we are very proud of you!
Seth Clements – Well done for a year of determination, hard work and living the school values. Well Done!

The Library Newsletter:
Well, that’s it. We’ve now completed our final week of lessons. Lots to look forward to next week, from trips out to enjoying your hand-picked activities. I can’t believe where this year has gone. Although, we have managed to pack in a whole host of library activities. Starting with bookmark making and finishing with thank you cards.

Lots of things get left behind in the library. I always hang on to things for a couple of days hoping you will come and collect them. However, I have taken a number of things to the lost property boxes in reception. Don’t forget to have a look there before we break up for any lost items.

A huge thank you for all the help you have given me in the library this year. It makes my job so much easier knowing that the desk is in good hands, enabling me to spend time with students in the main body of the library. Lots of you have already told me that you wish to continue in your role when you move up to Y8. This has delighted me no end that our library community will continue to thrive next year.

We asked for all library books to be returned by Friday this week as we are having a stock take next week in both libraries. However, if you know that you are still in receipt of a book, please feel free to pop in and drop it off. Thank you in advance. Also, if you feel the urge to have a clear out over the summer, please could we have any of your unwanted books. We take anything from age nine upwards. I have been known to purchase our library books back from the charity shop!

Recommendations:
Jackdaw Summer by David Almond (Quiz 214116. Level 3.3 Colour Black) tells of Liam’s summer. On the day he follows a jackdaw, his life changes forever.

There is a tiny sound somewhere in Rook Hall. We can’t turn away. We can’t run. We pick our way over the rubble and sheep droppings towards the sound of crying. And there it is, on a pile of broken stones. It’s a baby, wrapped in a brown blanket, in a basket. There’s a scribbled note pinned to the basket. PLESE LOOK AFTER HER RITE. THIS IS A CHILDE OF GOD. And there’s a jam jar filled with notes and coins at her side.

You can read the first couple of chapters by opening the link. (Please be aware that there are swear words in this excerpt.) https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Jackdaw_Summer/-d-HAgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover

Holiday Heartbreak by Rachel Renee Russell (Quiz 225947. Level 4.5. Colour Purple) is part of the Dork Diaries series and has all the usual teenage embarrassing moments.

This morning I had these fluttery butterflies in my stomach that were making me feel super nauseous. But in a really good way. I felt so insanely happy I could just vomit, sunshine, rainbows, confetti, glitter and those yummy little Skittles thingies!

You can read the first 50 pages by clicking on the link https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Dork_Diaries_6/s4Q74buBQ9EC?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover

Year 8 – Mrs Avey, Mrs Mennell and Mr Handley
With just the final week of term to go we’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate our Year 8 students on an excellent year. They are a fantastic year group and we are proud of what they have achieved this year. The students are in a great position to push on in Year 9. We hope that all the students heading off to Europe have a brilliant time and make good memories, we will stay in regular contact with families. We want to thank parents and carers of Year 8 students for their support this year and we wish all families connected to our Year group have an enjoyable summer.

This week saw the Trading Game and Sports Day. We were very impressed with the Year 8s on both of these days. During the Trading Game students took part in a stock market simulation game and the way they engaged in the activity and they way they behaved was excellent. The organisers, Mr Avery and Miss Overton have expressed to the Year 8 team how impressed they were with the year group. Sports Day was another big success for our Year 8s. They were really well behaved, very supportive of one another and showed what an excellent year group they are.

Next week brings Enrichment week which is something we have been looking forward to. We are really sorry about having to cancel the plans for Monday and Tuesday as we know students were looking forward to their Theatre Day and Flamingo Land trip. We’d like to thank Miss Barrett for all the hard work she put into organising the enrichment activities for the Monday. The unprecedented hot weather we will be seeing is something we have to take very seriously and the safety and wellbeing of students is the number one priority. Please do check the communication from the head teacher that confirms what the school will be doing to mitigate the hot weather and safeguard all people in the school on these days. The community coffee morning on Wednesday and the day of sport on Thursday are still expected to go ahead as normal as are the three activities chosen by the students on the final day.

We’d also like to congratulate the following students on their success at the York and District Athletics. These students should be really proud of their achievements:

75m Hurdles – Lucy Gilbertson – 1st
200m – Hannah Birkenshaw – 5th
100m – Jessie King – 5th
100m – Otto Kearns – 5th
200m – Sam Skelton 4th
High Jump – Loic Clegg and Sam Skelton – 4th
Long Jump – Jessie King – 5th
High Jump – Lucy Gilbertson – 6th
Shot Put – Ebony Maude – 4th

As ever, thank you for your continued support. If you have any issues regarding your child in Year 8, please do contact school reception to get in touch with Mrs Avey (Head of Year 8), Mr Handley (Assistant Head of Year 8) or Mrs Mennell (Year 8 Pastoral Support Worker).

Year 9 – Mr Arthur, Mr Deamer and Mrs Deacon
Not only is this the last parent bulletin for Year 9, it is also my (Mr Arthur’s) last ever as Head of Year. Year 9 have certainly had challenges thrown their way during their time at AHS, predominantly centered around two lockdowns interrupting their end to Year 7, and the middle part of Year 8. However, they have come out of the other side stronger and have really hit their stride as we approach the end of Year 9.

In my final address to the year group recently, I told them about a podcast I have been listening to called ‘Diary of a CEO’ with Stephen Bartlett, where he interviews successful business people and celebrities about their lives and how they became successful. Recently he interviewed Bear Grylls, and he said something that really resonated with me and was something I wanted to share with the Year Group. He said that when he was at school, he was frustrated that everything his school seemed to value, he wasn’t. He wasn’t academic or clever, he wasn’t sporty, and he wasn’t very popular. But he said the one thing he always prided himself on; the thing that he tried to be above anything else, was being kind. The happiest people in life are always those that are kindest to others. This was my parting message to Year 9 – Yes, get the best grades you can, excel in sports if you’re sporty and build close and meaningful friendships with as many people as you can – but if you are anything in life, be kind.

Myself and Mr Deamer (who is also leaving the year group) have thoroughly enjoyed working with Year 9 these past two years. There are so many wonderful children in this year group with bags of talent and potential, and whilst we may not be in their pastoral team from September, we will keep a close eye on their progress with great interest and we are still around if they ever want to say “hello!”

Just a couple of reminders before I go – this week is Enrichment Week. As you may have already seen, Monday and Tuesday will be students following their normal timetables due to the red weather warning for heat, and students can wear their PE kit in school. Currently, the plans for the Year 9 trip to Flamingo Land on Wednesday will be going ahead as the weather will be significantly cooler – students will need to bring sun cream, plenty of water and a packed lunch. Thursday is Industry Day organised by Mr Hunt, and should be an excellent day for the students – Year 9 have always thrived on days such as this, like the Trading Game they did at the same time last year. I am very much looking forward to Thursday! Finally, the last day is their Enrichment Activities they have signed up for, so they need to follow the instructions in the booklet and make sure they are dressed appropriately for whatever activity it is they might be doing.

And finally, congratulations to the following for winning the final Head of Year Award of the year…