Parent Bulletin

Dear parents and carers,

I hope that you have had a safe and happy Christmas break. Staff at Archbishop’s are very much looking forward to welcoming your child/children back to begin the new term. As a reminder, all students will be returning back to school on Tuesday 3rd January. Students will need to arrive in full school uniform ready for their morning registration which starts at 8:45am.

Typically the Spring half term 1 is a very busy and productive time for students particularly in the upper years of school. The Year 9 students will continue through the GCSE Pathway process which culminates in them selecting a number of courses to supplement their core GCSE qualifications. Of particular note to families of Year 9 students is the Pathway Evening which takes place on Thursday 26th January. During this evening, parents and carers will have the opportunity to speak to Heads of Department as well as listening to a presentation from Mr Williams who is our Curriculum Deputy. This is a key evening in helping to support and guide families through this process.

Students in Year 10-13 who study vocational qualifications have BTEC examinations this half term. The first of which starts in the second week back after our return. Letters have been sent home to the families of these students to inform parents and carers. Students will need to continue to work hard in lessons and to spend time fully preparing for these examinations outside of school.

This half term is especially important for students in Year 13 and Year 11 who are working towards being exam ready ahead of the summer examination season. Students in both of these year groups should be encouraged to attend the additional after school taught P6 revision sessions run by subject teachers. Historically, these sessions have been a good way in helping students to gain confidence, skills and subject knowledge to help supplement their own independent revision.

Year 11 will have their mock assembly on Monday 16th January in which they will receive the grades for the mock examinations that they sat prior to the Christmas break. This is a key opportunity for students to reflect on their progress and celebrate their achievements. As part of this reflection students will identify areas that they wish to develop. These will be then discussed in the Year 11 Progress Evening in which colleagues will talk through how working collectively we can help to support every child achieve their aspirations.

Students in Year 12 will shortly be taking their in-class assessments to help benchmark their progress at the start of their Sixth Form journey. These assessments are an important part of each student’s academic journey and they should be taken seriously by them. Staff are working with students in lessons over the next two weeks to help prepare them for these assessments. However, students will need to continue with their preparations outside of school.

Whilst there is a particular focus on academic achievement this half term, I would like to remind families to encourage their child/children to engage in the many extra-curricular activities available to them. It is important that students find a balance with their studies and taking part in the opportunities available to them will help with this.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your families a very Happy New Year!

Inclusion corner
Each half-term, our new Inclusion Corner newsletter will aim to: share important information and links to inform parents/carers on Special Educational Needs, shining a spotlight on a different area of need; celebrate our students’ achievements, both in and out of school; publicise news and events that may be of interest to our SEND parents/carers; and finally, introduce parents/carers to each member of our inclusion team here at AHS. To access the latest newsletter please click here.

Personal Development Autumn 2022
Last term there was a vast array of brilliant opportunities regarding Personal Development for students to be involved in. We are delighted that so many students had the chance to engage in additional enrichment outside of the classroom. To get a sense of what has been happening please read the latest Personal Development article please click here.

Uniform
As we approach the new school term, we would like to remind parents of the renewed focus around uniform standards in school. Should you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact a member of the Senior Leadership Team or your Child’s Head of Year.

As students return after the Christmas break, there will be a renewed focus in the following areas:

• Trousers and skirts
• Jewellery
• Makeup
• Trainers
• Hoodies
• Ties

Trousers/Skirts

• Trousers and skirts will remain unbranded due to our continued commitment to poverty proofing uniform.
• Leggings, Jeans, short skirts and bodycon skirts do not meet the school’s uniform standards. Any student wearing these items will be asked to change into uniform provided by school.
• School skirts should sit just above the knee.
• Trousers and skirts will be purchased by school to offer students the chance to change, should they arrive to school in inappropriate uniform.

Jewellery

• Two plain studded earrings will be allowed, no more. A single plain nose stud will be allowed; however, this must not be in excess of 0.5mm.
• In the case of new piercings, students must wear a plastic temporary stud until they are able to wear the smaller nose stud.
• Any additional jewellery will be confiscated by any member of staff who sees the student wearing it. It will then be handed into main reception. Students will no longer be allowed to ‘put away’ their jewellery.
• Students can collect their item of jewellery from main reception at the end of the school day.
• Please note that nose bars, nose rings and septum piercings are strictly prohibited.

Makeup

• Makeup is not allowed to be worn at school. This includes false eyelashes, painted nails and eye makeup.
• Students will be provided with makeup wipes to remove any obvious signs of makeup. Students with painted or acrylic nails will be asked to remove them at reception.

Trainers

• School shoes need to be smart, black, leather like or leather shoes with no obvious colouring, patterned designs or metallic bars on the shoes.
• The wearing of trainers is strictly prohibited in school.
• Students who wear the wrong type of shoe to school will be sent to reception to change their shoes.
• Upon return to reception, shoes will be thoroughly disinfected ready to be worn again.
• For the time being, branded school shoes will be allowed, however this will no longer be the case in September 2022 in line with our commitment to Poverty Proofing.

Hoodies

• Hoodies are not to be worn around school, or at break and lunchtime. A ‘Hoodie’ is classed as a hooded jumper or an item of clothing that resembles a jumper like garment.
• The only exception to this is the AHS hoodie, which is allowed to be worn over the standard shirt, tie and Jumper across the winter period until February half term.
• Should a student come to school in a hoodie, parents will be called and asked to provide an alternative item of clothing for their child and an agreed deadline will be put in place. Should the student continue to wear the hoodie to school, it will be confiscated from the student and an AHS school jumper will be offered as a temporary alternative.

Ties

• Students who attend school without a tie will be lent one at main reception. The students name will be taken and they will be expected to return the tie at the end of the school day.
• Parents of students who do not return ties will be contacted by school in order for the tie to be returned. Lost or damaged ties will be charged at a price of £7.
• Students will be able to purchase a tie at the price of £7 from reception at any time.

It is also essential that all students bring a school bag each day and have their planner with them. The planner is viewed as part of our school uniform.

Wearing the correct school uniform is a vital part of school life. Should students choose to refuse a reasonable request to change their school uniform, or comply with the standards set out above, they will of course be supported to make the right decision. However, should students still refuse to meet the uniform expectations set out by the school, they will work in our reflection room until they agree to change their uniform. Any student who refuses to work in reflection may risk an escalated sanction.

Break and lunchtime arrangements

Year 9 and Year 10 are switching their break and lunch slots from Tuesday. This is to help identify the different year groups on the backfield (through their different coloured jumpers) and to help with the logistics of running the school. In summary, Year 10 will change to the first sitting of break and lunchtimes (9.55 and 12.15) and Year 9 will change to the second sitting of break and lunchtimes (10.55 and 1.15). Apart from this change of time there will be no other difference to the arrangements for break and lunchtime.

Year team messages to parents and carers

Each week, the pastoral year teams will communicate any key messages, successes and upcoming dates to be aware of in this section of the parent bulletin.

A message from the Sixth Form pastoral team

Welcome Back!

We hope you had a restful and happy break and that students are ready for the new term. It’s a busy one. We welcome Mr MacFarlane as Head of Year 13 whilst Mrs Williams is on maternity leave.

Year 12 Mock Exams
These will take place wc 16th January for our A Level students. For the first two weeks of this term there will be in class guided revision to support their ongoing independent revision.

BTEC January External Assessments
These take place for our Year 13 students and some of our Year 12 students across January. Mock exams have taken place and feedback issued. Students have individual timetables.

REMINDER Year 11 Sixth Form Applications
Thank you to all those that that have applied to date. Late applications are welcome. It does not mean that applicants are obligated to take up their place if they are still undecided and applicants can change their subject choices if, and when, they wish.

A message from the Year 11 pastoral team

I hope all students and families in Y11 have had a very relaxing Christmas break, and are full of energy for the term ahead. I am really looking forward to seeing them next week, and hearing about all the exciting things they have done over Christmas. The students of year 11 had an excellent first term, and their hard work toward mock exams have laid a very strong foundation for success across the rest of the year. Hopefully the students can hit the ground running and build on the success of the first term. It was really nice to see our students enjoying themselves in the last week of term, taking part in the roller disco and enjoying their form Christmas party on the last day of term. This was certainly a well earned reward and I hope students made some memories they will keep with them for life.

Before the start of the new term and a new calendar year, I wanted to remind parents of the most important areas of focus for Y11 students. As always, the best results come when there is a strong home/school partnership, guiding the students to success. I thought outlining the key priorities for the Spring term would be of use to parents, in order to support your child’s return to school.

Uniform
As you will have seen from communication by the Head of School there is a renewed focus on school uniform standards when we return to school. The focus will be in the following areas:

• Trousers/Skirts – Jeans and Leggings will be a particular focus.
• Jewellery – two plain studs in each ear and a single plain nose stud are allowed, but nothing more.
• Makeup – any obvious signs of make up will be removed.
• Trainers – will be swapped at reception for school shoes.
• Hoodies – any jumper that is not AHS branded or a coat.
• Ties – will be issued to students, but any that are not returned will be charged.

Uniform standards across Y11 are often very good, and I fully expect there to be no major issues when we return in January. However should you have any questions regarding uniform expectations, please feel free to contact either myself or a member of the Year 11 pastoral team.

The Fundamentals
With regard to Year 11 being successful on their return to school, this term we are focussing on the fundamentals to ensure students make the most of their time in school before their exams this summer. We ask that, as always, parents are supportive in assisting their child to meet these reasonable expectations on a consistent basis. Should you have any concerns about your child’s welfare or education, please feel free to contact either myself or a member of the Y10 pastoral team.

1. Attending school regularly (aim of 95% and above attendance)
2. Arriving to school on time
3. Wearing the correct uniform
4. Behaving and working hard in lessons
5. Completing homework
6. Attending Period 6

By sticking to these very basic principles, it puts our students in the best possible position to reach their full potential in their GCSE examinations this summer. I wish all our parents and families a very happy and healthy new year, and I look forward to the continued success of Year 11 in 2023.

A message from the Year 10 pastoral team
Another term begins at Archbishop Holgate’s School, and I’m looking forward to welcoming Year 10 back after a lovely two week break. I hope all our families have had a lovely few weeks and our students have enjoyed a rest, I know I have and I feel excited to get back to the swing of AHS!

In our last Act of Collective Worship we celebrated a number of achievements in the year group including us delivering prizes to forms and individuals on the last day of term.

Well done to 10EWh for the highest attendance for the last half term!

Our top 5 forms for merits:
5th – 10SLa 2349
4th – 10MHe 2405
3rd – 10ABt 2442
2nd – 10RDn 2625
1st – 10KGn 2770

Our top 5 students for merits:
5th – Poppy Hearld (10ABt)
5th – Lilly Mae Carrington (10Di)
4th – Caitlin Casey (10MHe)
3rd – Sharanyo Mazumdar (10RDn)
2nd – Toby Hassall (10MHe)
1st – Ronnie Thompson (10KGn)

The year group as a whole got a staggering 23,181 just in one half term!

Can I just say a massive well done to these individuals they consistently live the school values and are dedicated hard working lovely young people. I am also proud of the whole year group and the consistently positive attitude they have.

I will continue to report on merits every week in the bulletin as it is crucial to celebrate our successes as a year group! Remember you can look at your individuals merits on the ClassCharts app – if you haven’t downloaded this please let us know and we can help you to do so.

It is in Year 10 that students really start to focus on their GCSEs, through learning new knowledge and developing new skills and our students are doing well at this, we will continue to encourage them to do so and it has been great to see the positive start they have made and I look forward to seeing this continue.

Students will also be completing work experience, which will bring breadth and diversity to their curriculum as they work to learn exam skills and new knowledge, as previously mentioned students should be trying to arrange their work experience placements now for one week commencing on Monday 15th May and will run until Friday 19th May.

Any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch with myself or Mr Arthur (who is organising the work experience).

We will continue to be consistent as always as a Year Team and I will be speaking to students in our Act of Collective Worship on Tuesday about ensuring that we all get the fundamentals of school right in order to ensure we are all successful. This includes ensuring students maintain the highest standards of attendance and punctuality, as well as working hard in lessons and ensuring homework is completed to the best of their ability.

Further to this, the school uniform is also a key part of our Archbishop Holgate’s School community. It was wonderful to see the Year 10 students arrive on Tuesday morning in excellent uniform. Students must also ensure they maintain high standards with regards to footwear, jewellery, nails, appropriate trousers and skirts, and that they are wearing an Archbishop Holgate’s School tie. We very much want to work with families to make sure that students meet the basic uniform expectations of the school so please get in touch if you have any concerns.

We are also excited to announce Mrs Robinson will be joining us as our new non-teaching Assistant Head of Year along with our current team of myself (Miss Deacon – Head of Year) and Mr McPaul (our teaching Assistant Head of Year) in the Year 10 team, she will be a real asset and I look forward to her joining the team.

Thank you for taking the time to read this first parent bulletin of the new term – we as a pastoral team are very excited for the term ahead, we know all our Year 10 students are fantastic young people and I cannot wait to see them continue on their journeys this year.

If you have any queries regarding your young person in Year 10, then please do get in touch by emailing myself (mdeacon@ahs.pmat.academy), Mr McPaul (cmcpaul@ahs.pmat.academy) and/or Mrs Robinson (jrobinson@ahs.pmat.academy) or calling main school reception and we will get back to you as soon as we can. Thank you – Miss Deacon

A message from the Year 9 pastoral team

It is a great time to look back and celebrate what a fantastic start to Year 9 our students have had and look forward to the exciting opportunities 2023 will bring.

Year 9 students have represented themselves and school fantastically well since September and have worked very hard throughout all subjects, impressing members of staff throughout the school. They have also represented themselves well in sporting events through the term as shown by Miss Wheater’s many updates.

There have been some bright spots to look back at; the re-arranged rewards trip to Flamingo Land, open evening guides from the year group,the interhouse cross country with Lydia Scott and Loic Clegg leading the way, the AHS rugby girls team walking out with the flag at the world cup, Christmas Fayre, Minster Service with some fantastic contributions from YEar 9 Students, Roller skating reward, and of course the last lesson with form tutors before Christmas.

GCSE taster day will be happening on Tuesday 17th January. Students have already hopefully made the four choices of what they would like to try during these taster sessions. This is a day for students to be able to get a taste of a subject they may not have studied before to further guide them in choosing what they would like to study for GCSEs.This will then be followed by the options parent evening on Thursday 26th January.This is an opportunity to be able to take to teachers more about the subjects that your child might be interested in to further inform an decisions going forward.

Cultural trips will also be starting in January. Trips to the Media Museum in Bradford, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park in Wakefield and the Royal Armouries in Leeds. Students will be rotating through these three places throughout the rest of the year looking at some cultural aspects of history, media and art that they may not have been able to in lesson time.

We can also look forward to full reports coming home and the Year 9 parents evening following this

From all in the Year 9 team, we hope you have had a restful Christmas and we look forward to having a fantastic 2023 together with you.

A message from the Year 8 pastoral team

We hope you and your families managed to have a restful break over the Christmas holidays. We know that it won’t have been a happy time for everyone so please do get in touch with us if you feel there is anything we need to be aware of to support you and your child after the Christmas break.

We are so looking forward to a fresh new term with our year 8s after having a fantastic end to the term in December. Thanks goes to Mrs Dugdale and her form for delivering a brilliant assembly about Christmas films and their messages of hope in the final week of term. It was clear they had worked hard on this and those who stood up on stage and spoke should be particularly proud of themselves.

We will begin the term with an assembly in the hall where we will be reminding students of the high expectations that we have for them and that they should have of themselves including reminders about working hard in lessons and on homework, following reasonable instructions from teachers and being kind and compassionate to each other around school. As always, we will also be going through our students of the week and Head of Year awards. We look forward to welcoming them back in this assembly and would kindly ask that you reiterate the same messages of high expectations with your child at home.

It will still be very cold this half term so a polite request that you send your child to school in appropriate outerwear. We were still seeing a number of students without a coat on and bare legs for some girls in skirts even in the cold spell just before Christmas! If you need help sourcing anything then please do get in touch and we will do our best to get your child sorted.

We have lots of fun activities coming up this term in line with our part of the AHS journey of ‘opportunities’. We look forward to it and hope our year 8s are too!

A message from the Year 7 pastoral team

Happy New Year and we hope that you all had a peaceful and restful break. We are so excited to welcome our Year 7s back for another really exciting term at AHS. This half term we are looking forward to having the ‘Big Talk’ in Year 7 where we invite external speakers to talk to our year 7s about healthy and safe lifestyles.

A few reminders for January:
In Year 7 we ask that all students wear black shoes with no branding or logos on them. Students will be asked to change their shoes if they are not in line with our uniform policy.

We would encourage all year 7s to be wearing their coats whilst the weather is still cold. Please let us know if you need any support with this. We have lots of spare hats and gloves in the y7 office which students are welcome to use.

Well done to our Students of the Week:
7ASU – Archie Clennan – for always being a bright and cheery member of the form!
7CMM – Leona Koay- for her outstanding attendance throughout the first term, her constant positivity in the classroom, and her outstanding effort in accelerated reading quizzes.
7PI – George Arbini – for a great first term at AHS
7HV – Jason Bi- For contributing to form time discussions and being a polite and delightful member of the form.
7MPE – Camille Whatling – For having an amazing first term. You are an asset to 7MPE!
7CST – Henry Taylor- For always being helpful in form and contributing great ideas in form time discussions. Well done Henry!
7MLN – Gerrard Humphrey – For always being so positive, helpful and compassionate in form. Well done and thanks for being such a kind member of our form!
7JHE – Ethan Hawkins – for holding himself to high standards across all lessons
7BL – Tia Farrar – an improvement in attendance. Well done! I hope it continues in to the next term too.
7ZBL – Leah Ward – for making the most of all opportunities available at AHS!
7CY – Jessica Abbott – for having a fantastic first term at AHS. You have lived our school values every single day!

Well done to our Head of Year awards:
Kai Chapman 7MLN – For amazing charity work outside school and raising lots of money for Shine21! Well Done
Finlay Price 7CST – For living our school values every single day and showing quiet resilience in everything he does. Well Done Finlay!

Collective Worship
Theme
Our form tutor collective worship this week is linked to the arrival of the wise men to visit Jesus and themes contained in their story, as well as the new hope and fresh start of a new year.

Quotes
Monday: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him’ – (The Bible – The book of Romans chapter 15, verse 13)
Tuesday: Every moment is a fresh beginning. – T S Eliot
Wednesday: On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. – Matthew 2:11
Thursday: As it was for the Magi, so it is for us. The journey of life and faith demands a deep desire and inner zeal. – HH Pope Francis I
Friday: Truth, by which the world is held together, has sprung from the earth, in order to be carried in a woman’s arms. – St Augustine