There is a great deal to be proud of at Archbishop Holgate’s School, a school that has served the city since 1546 not least:

Our staff, our students and our achievements as a school community

We are a school that knows itself well, a school with clear strategic direction and a strong vision for the future, a school that is committed to continuous improvement and a school that is driven to ensure that each individual young person in our care receives the very best education possible. As part of our mission to be deeply Christian we embrace excellence and academic rigour, but this is set within a wider framework to ensure a rounded approach to personal development, rooted in worship, service and community. We have excellent students and brilliant staff, colleagues who are committed to ensuring that the young people in our care achieve and succeed and make the most of their individual gifts and talents.

Achievement come in many different forms and Archbishop Holgate’s is a flourishing school signified by outstanding examination results, sporting and musical achievements, a wide and varied programme of extra-curricular opportunities and whole school celebrations for the entire school community. Collectively, as a staff, we enrich our students in many different ways and when they leave Archbishop’s they do so as well-rounded young people with the skills, qualities and relevant qualifications to help them shape their own futures and also to benefit the communities they serve.

Whilst we will always strive to improve further, it is important that as we take time to pause and celebrate levels of success that are not usual. Prior to the pandemic official outcomes across the school were exceptional.

• As a school we have never been more successful in terms of KS4 and KS5 results. At Post 16 results are in the top 2% nationally with 2019 data showing A Level achievement that included 42% of all grades being awarded at A* or A.

• At GCSE, 2019 results confirmed a three-year trend of outstanding Progress 8 scores, +0.53 in 2017, +0.60 in 2018 and this year +0.79. These results were the strongest in the city for the third consecutive year and in the top 4% nationally.

• Progress of our disadvantaged students (as well as all other groups of learners) at both Post 16 and GCSE are excellent. At GCSE a Progress 8 score of +0.27 is twice as strong as all other students nationally, strong evidence that all students thrive at Archbishop’s.

• We are a truly comprehensive school and now admit 300 students into Year 7 with young people joining us from 39 different schools from across York, North Yorkshire and the East Riding.
• We achieve our success by working together as a school community.  There is a great deal of mutual support and good will across our school.
• We continue to improve our facilities and grow our staff and leadership to ensure we remain successful. Almost three quarters of teaching staff have some form of additional opportunity in school. In September 2020 the school completed a £4.4 million investment in new facilities, made possible by our excellent relationship with the Local Authority.
• We are also proud to be part of a bigger community within the Pathfinder Multi Academy Trust and are delighted with the opportunity to support over 4000 children and 580 staff across 10 schools. We also lead the Pathfinder Teaching School Hub that has trained over 300 new teachers over the last six years.

In order to build on what we have achieved so far we need to continue to prioritise the welfare and development of our staff and students:

Supporting our staff

We continue to work hard to prioritise both the professional development and well-being of colleagues.

The AHS Approach – A positive and purposeful school community

• Our school is a community where we help and support each other in line with our Christian Values of Justice, Compassion, Forgiveness and Trust and our commitment to ‘Values, Care, Achievement’.
• We believe in the strength of a positive and purposeful school community, underpinned by visible supportive leadership at all levels.
• We work on the assumption of ‘good intent’ and that ‘mutual good will’ is key for a school to be successful over time. We trust that colleagues are striving to do their best, but those that need support are not afraid to ask and it will be provided in a non-judgemental way.
• We are proud of our record of recruiting, retaining and developing our staff. Our commitment to the Career Pathway and Learning, Training and Development programmes reflect our ongoing desire to help all our staff be the best they can.

To ensure that we continue to build on what we have achieved have both our Career Pathway programme for all staff and ten key commitments for our school community that we will continue to prioritise both as a school and as part of a Multi Academy Trust.

Supporting our students

As a Church School that is distinct and effective in all it does we have always prioritised the all-round development of all our students as highlighted at the start of this document. We have however worked extremely hard to make this even more visible to students through the AHS JOURNEY which identifies the key opportunities available in each year group.

Year 7              Joining in
Year 8              Opportunities
Year 9              Understanding yourself and others
Year 10            Responsibility and resilience
Year 11            Next steps
Year 12            Examples to follow
Year 13            Your future

We work very hard to support not just our students academic progress, but also their Wellbeing.  This is through the ‘AHS 4 Steps to Wellbeing, which are summarised in the poster below:

Teaching and Learning

The single most important factor in ensuring that all students succeed is the quality of the teaching that they receive. Whole school success comes from consistently high quality teaching and learning that ensures common experiences in all classrooms based on high expectations and shared vision and values. Teachers should not underestimate the impact that each of us can make as individual teachers. Students respond best to the teachers who regularly go ‘the extra mile’; those who care about helping their students succeed. Teaching time is precious and every minute of every lesson needs to be used as effectively as possible, this ‘golden thread’ that runs through all our work ensuring that no student is left behind.

Final thoughts…

We are proud of all the opportunities we offer as a school, extra-curricular opportunities in music, art, drama, and sport, complemented by excellent enrichment opportunities and a full enrichment week in July as well as our steadfast commitment to charity and volunteering. We have an inspiring curriculum enhanced by a breadth of experience made possible by the huge range of trips, visits and cultural opportunities we offer. Add to this the positive way our students speak about the care offered from their tutors and teachers, the pride they have in their school and our ongoing excellent  reputation within the school community and we continue to be a school moving in the right direction.

An education of the highest quality is what all parents want for their children and at Archbishop Holgate’s we are ambitious and committed to each and every student in our care. As a school community we believe in the power of Christian Values ‘lived into being’, ‘care for each individual’ and ‘maximum achievement for all students at all levels’. We are absolutely resolved to remain an outstanding 11-18 school that is committed to continuous improvement and helping each student make the most of their individual gifts and talents. Archbishop Holgate’s is an excellent place to be, a school where staff and students are happy and fulfilled, a school that works together to achieve excellence.

‘I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full’ John 10:10