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A Message from Principal, Mr Martin
Last week, three Ofsted inspectors visited the academy to talk to the staff and students, as well as look at lessons, paperwork and schemes of work. The outcome at this stage is confidential, but I would like to thank all the guardians who sent goodwill messages during the inspection. I would also like to praise our students, who the lead inspector described as polite, welcoming and very positive about the school. We will circulate the report as soon as it is published.
This week, Mrs Kirkman and the student council have been working with students on the rules for using toilets during lessons and the range of sanctions for students who misuse the toilet facilities. The students have come up with a number of excellent ideas which Mrs Kirkman will now trial with a wider group of students and guardians, before taking the ideas to the governing body the following week. The new rules will then be put in place in time for Easter. Please can I ask guardians to remind their children that it is illegal for people under the age of 18 to buy a vape and there is a growing evidence base on the potential impact of long term use of vapes.
The Masked Reader, which you may have seen on our social media, received a lot of interest last week, and I would like to thank all those involved in this novel and engaging idea. You can see the video below. We also had a massive response to our photo celebrating International Women’s Day this week, which I was particularly proud to see. In response to the people who asked when International Men’s Day, it’s on Sunday 19th November.
Over the last two weeks we have been conducting the final set of mock exams for Year 11, which have gone really well. Students took the mocks extremely seriously and made the most of this opportunity to discover what they need to work on towards their exams. Staff will be feeding back to students over the coming weeks and adapting their schemes of work to address any gaps in students’ understanding.
Despite the snow this week, we are building up to the Spring concert and Dance showcase. Please see below for information about these two annual events where we celebrate the amazing achievements of our arts students.
Finally, March has been an amazing month for sport at SWA, even by our standards. With national semi-finals and finals in football, netball and rugby. The first final is next Thursday at Twickenham, for our 1st XV, who will be playing in the final of the National Vase at 2:15pm and this will be live-streamed on YouTube - more information is coming soon about travel arrangements for students going to the game. The finals in netball and football are also in the coming weeks and we are still on course to potentially be national champions in all three sports in the same year!
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Messages From Heads of Year
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Year 10 students have made an excellent start to this half-term, it’s lovely to see many of our students using the fresh start to set new goals, both in and outside the classroom.
Students have had the opportunity to reflect on previous topics in various subjects and look forward to new content to complement existing knowledge. Many students speak vibrantly about the content they’ve covered so far, we love to see and hear their enthusiasm! One example of this is in history, our students had the opportunity to listen to a guest speaker discussing how medicine was used during the First World War. Students were able to try on hats, clothes and splints, they left the session with new found knowledge and understanding that will support their studies.
We’ve been looking at the academy’s values of respect and equality during tutor time. Students have had the chance to share their views and link the values to the school community. We encourage all of our students to use these sessions to understand more about the values, reflect upon them and live them in and around our school community.
In sport, our Year 10 teams have attained some excellent achievements! The netball team are through to the final of the Sisters in Sport shield. We are also, proud of our U15B football team who were narrowly beaten by Thomas Telford in the quarter-final of the national cup and our Year 10 rugby players who were narrowly beaten in the quarter-final of the national cup against Dame Allan’s School – Middlesbrough. The teams have gained amazing experiences throughout their journey in the competitions.
A reminder from the year team to continue sharing your child's success with us. We have been so pleased to be able to celebrate some incredible achievements from outside of academy and would love to continue!
As you are all aware, Mrs Clark has now started her maternity leave, although baby is not due for another few weeks. I know that I speak on behalf of the year group in saying that we would like to wish her all the very best and that baby arrives safely and healthy. We will of course share with you any news as and when it is received.
A big WELL DONE to our Year 11 students for their completion of mocks and those who completed their Food Technology practical exams. It has been a busy three weeks, and you deserve a well earned rest this weekend. We want to wish the best of luck to those completing their PE practical exams over the coming weeks, you will be great!
There has been a recent increase in wearing hoodies and jumpers that are not in line with the school uniform policy, please ensure that if wearing a jumper it must be plain back, with no logo or branding, and either crew or v-neck.
Finally, we are busily working away organising Prom and The Year Book. A few key dates are outlined below, and a reminder that Prom tickets are for sale on parent mail. Dates for the Diary:
- 31st March – School Pictures
- 11th July – Prom at Offley Place
Year 11’s are working hard in their final push towards the summer exams, and we are proud of the year group's dedication and determination! Keep it up Year 11.
This week teachers are starting to submit grades and ATL for the upcoming Year 12 progress report which will be issued on March 23rd.
The PRE for Year 12 students is the 30th March and the system will open on March 16th for bookings for the virtual appointments with subject staff.
Final payments have been made for the UCAS and Apprenticeship Higher Education Fair on March 28th – and there are no further places available.
We are looking forward to travelling to Twickenham next Thursday to support the Year 12 students playing in the National Vase Final – best of luck to them all.
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GEOGRAPHY TRIP
At the start of this half-term our Year 12 Geography students travelled three hours to sunny Dorset! Here the students studied costal processes on the stunning beaches of Swanage and the human geography of the coastal towns such as Corfe.
The trip is designed to support students on a part of the course which contributes to 20% of their final grade.
Both teachers and the staff of Leeson House, were super impressed with the student’s attitude to learning on the trip.
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EQUESTRIAN
Two weekends ago, Year 9 student Eva, Year 10 students Connie and Zoe, were out competing in the 70cm and 80cm show jumping competition at Bury Farm. It was a team second place for Connie in the 70cm, and a second for Connie and Zoe in the 80cm.
This weekend, Harriet was out representing SWA in her first dressage competition at Bury Farm where she came second in both of her events.
Congratulations to you all.
For anyone who would like to join the equestrian club, please contact Miss R Ord for more information.
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WORLD WAR ONE WORKSHOP
To kick start the half-term, our Year 10 History students had the privilege to participate in a World War One workshop.
Here students had the opportunity to handle artefacts, try on hats and coats which they otherwise wouldn’t. Only a small portion of the items were replicas!
An excellent opportunity for our students to expand their knowledge away from the day-to-day classroom setting.
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PHYSICS TRIP TO CERN
Our A Level physics students have recently visited the European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland.
They visited the Large Hadron Collider, the world's largest particle accelerator. The trip also included visiting the Universe of Particles museum and the CERN site. They also travelled across the border into France before travelling 100m underground to see one of the largest detectors, the Compact Muon Solenoid.
Students learned about how CERN was built, fundamental particle physics, cosmology and the latest discoveries in physics.
 
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YEAR 11 FOOD EXAMS
Well done to our Year 11 food studies students who completed their practical exams.
All students were focused and organised for the exam, resulting in some excellent dishes being produced and beautifully presented. All students worked hard on this and should feel proud of themselves.
Also, a huge thank you to the guardians who have supported them through the process, we hope you enjoyed their dishes!
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YEAR 12 HIGH ATTAINERS EVENING
The Year 12 High Attainers and Aspiring High Attainers evening took place during the first week of half-term.
The Sixth Form & High Attainers team assisted and encouraged those students to aspire and aim high for various destinations post Sixth Form.
There was a massive turnout from students and guardians, thank you all for attending.
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THE SUMMER MUSICAL
The cast has been decided for this year’s summer musical Les Misérables. The talent at auditions was outstanding and the performing arts team were blown away by the performances they saw. We invited back a Student Alumni on the call back panel who recently worked on Les Mis with Cameron Mackintosh. They commented on how fantastic the auditions were and is looking forward to coming back to undertake some workshops with the cast.
Well done to everyone in the show. We are so excited to start rehearsals.
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DANCE SHOWCASE
Rehearsals are underway for the Dance Showcase 2023. Tickets are available to be bought online, please click on the poster above to purchase your tickets.
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SPRING CONCERT
Rehearsals are underway for the Spring Concert 2023. Tickets are available to be bought online, please click on the poster below to purchase your tickets.
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INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY - STAFF
Samuel Whitbread Academy are proud to be supporting women in education. We have an unprecedented number of women in leadership roles at our Academy and couldn’t be prouder of the work they undertake!
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INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY – STUDENT ALUMNI
Rhiannon is a Student Alumni, who now works for Cotswold Archaeology as a Fieldwork Project Manager, handling the business involvement with the archaeology at Sizewell C.
Working between CASiteTeam, clients, and consultants, she engages with everything from site security to ecology, utilities to unexploded ordnance.
"Archaeology is a fantastic career for women – it's fascinating, with endless opportunities afforded beyond the field, but in my experience, it's still the case that males outnumber females within the construction industry, particularly at manager level."
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POETRY WORKSHOP
This week, a group of talented Year 9 students participated in Samuel Whitbread Academy’s first ever spoken word poetry slam, and they were fantastic!
It was a great opportunity to be creative and explore their voice.
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PATERNAL STAFF PRAISE NOMINATIONS
Dear Guardians,
We are pleased to be continuing our guardian / staff praise nomination initiative where you have the opportunity to send a postcard to a member of teaching or support staff (or even a department) of your choice.
Please use the form below to nominate your chosen staff or department, we will then print and deliver the postcard on your behalf.
This is a quick note of thanks to teachers and support staff for their support, time or effort. We have prepopulated some options, but please feel free to design your own comments.
This will only take one minute to complete so and we really appreciate your time as it makes; it'll make such a difference to our school community.
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ATTENDANCE INFORMATION – STUDENTS IN YEAR 9, 10 AND 11
We would like to remind guardians of the process when reporting a student absent from the academy or leaving the academy during the school day.
Absence from Morning Registration
Student absence should be reported by telephoning 01462 629900 (option 1) or 01462 628041 before 11am. If you have left a voicemail, you do not need to send an email.
Appointments
Appointments should, wherever possible, be arranged outside of academy hours. If this cannot be avoided and your child needs to leave for an appointment during the school day, please could you provide them with a note. This will need to be shown to their teacher if they need to leave whilst in a lesson and to reception staff when signing out. If they have a note, there is no additional need to contact us to make us aware.
If you have medical appointment slips/letters that you would like to share with us, students can hand these in at reception at the time of signing out, or a copy can be sent via email to Mrs A Martin.
Term Dates
Term dates are published on our website and may differ from those published by Central Bedfordshire.
If you need any further information or have any questions regarding attendance, please get in touch with the Attendance Office on 01462 628041 or via email Mrs A Martin (email above).
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ATTENDANCE INFORMATION – SIXTH FORM
Sixth Form absence from morning registration
Student absence should be reported by telephoning 01462 629900 (option 2) or 01462 628065 before 11am. If you have left a voicemail, you do not need to send an email.
Sixth Form Appointments
Appointments should wherever possible be arranged out of academy hours. If this cannot be avoided and your child needs to leave for an appointment during the school day, please could you ask your child to complete a Leave of Absence Form (available in the Sixth Form block). This will need to be handed in to Mrs Bonham in the Sixth Form office.
If you have medical appointment slips / letters that you would like to share with us, students can hand these in at the Sixth Form office or a copy can be sent via email to Mrs C Bonham.
Term Dates
Term dates are published on our website and may differ from those published by Central Bedfordshire.
If you need any further information or have any questions in regards to attendance, please contact the 6th Form Attendance Office on 01462 628065 or via email,Mrs C Bonham.
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MASKED READER
For World Book Day 2023, our students participated in The Masked Reader. Students had to guess which staff member was behind the mask reading a literature favourite.
Can you guess who is behind the mask? Please click on the image below to watch the video.
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READING CHALLENGE
We’re very excited to announce our reading challenge.
This includes seventeen hand selected books from a variety of different genres and authors.
Please visit our library for more information.
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BOOK TOKENS
It was World Book Day last Wednesday, and every year, students are given a token to purchase a book.
This year the tokens are digital, please click on the image below to download your ticket.
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SWA READING NEWSLETTER
SWA Reading Newsletter Spring Term 2, is now available to read.
If you are unsure what to read next or where to start, please read this terms edition for inspiration.
Click on the image below to read the online version.
 
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YOUNG CARERS
New Young Carers Website is LIVE!
New Young Carers Website
Here you will find information on our fantastic offer for young carers, the events and activities we hold, and how young carers can access our offer. There is information for professionals detailing how we are supporting young carers and how schools and communities can get involved, and a section to support parents on how to register their child as a young carer.
There’s also information on who a young carer is, what things they may do as a young carer, and organisations who support young carers, alongside videos and photos of some of our residential trips and activities.
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THE SIMPLE WAY TO BOOK YOUR HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES
Please find a guide by HoildayActivites.com, on the simple way to book your holiday activities.
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CHUMS: EMOTIONAL WELLBEING PROGRAMME
CHUMS next parent/carer education session will be focusing on neurodevelopmental Conditions and Mental Health.
Date & Time: 27th March from 6:00pm to 7:00pm.
Location: Rufus Centre, Steppingley Road, Flitwick, MK45 1AH.
The sessions are available to:
- Parents and carers of children and young people who are registered with a Bedfordshire or Luton GP.
- You do NOT need to be open to CAMHS or CHUMS to access these.
- The sessions are for parents/carers and siblings over the age of 18, children and young people themselves CANNOT attend.
Please click here to book tickets and see the poster below for information.
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DID SOMEONE SAY FINAL?
Last week our U15 Netball team competed in the semi-finals of the Sisters N Sport national competition.
The team knew the match would be difficult, however they showed great control and applied pressure on a very strong opponent. The team are now through to the final!
The date and location for the final are to be confirmed.
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U19 NETBALL
Last week our U19 Netball Academy competed in the semi-finals of the Sisters N Sport national competition. Despite their best efforts, the team unfortunately come to an end in the competition.
We are so proud of this team, they have demonstrated all our academy's values in training and on the court. Well done team!
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TWICKENHAM HERE WE COME!
Last weekend our 1st XV team competed in the semi-finals of the Nat West Vase competition against a strong St Ambrose College. And after a thrilling 30-25 victory, the team are through to the finals. The team will play against Old Swinford Hospital at Twickenham next Thursday.
 
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U18 BOYS’ HOCKEY
Congratulations to the U18 boys’ hockey squad who represented Bedfordshire in the regional hockey tournament at Redbridge, Essex last week. This is a massive achievement for our boys, they are a credit to the school.
A challenge from the start with Gresham’s our first opposition of the day. Radnor was outstanding in goal as always, keeping the score line down. With every game, the team got better and better, Ipswich and Wisbech were strong squads but we didn’t give up and got a well -deserved win against Wisbech. The standard of hockey was very high but we stepped up and played our socks off.
On the day, players’ player Ollie. Special mention for Ben who was an absolute star in goal. Brilliant effort from our debut pairing Charlie and Zach. Well done and thank you for an excellent day of hockey.
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U15 GIRLS’ HANDBALL CHAMPIONS
On Thursday our U15 girls’ handball team brought home gold medals at the County Championships.
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STAY UPDATED
Do you want to stay updated on the sporting news?
Our PE department has a Twitter and Instagram page where results and updates will be shared. Why not give them a follow…
• Twitter: @SamWhitPE
• Instagram: @Samwhita_pe
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ENGLAND SCHOOLS' FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL CUP RUN
This week saw an end to the U16 B team national cup run. After a closely contested match SWA came up short losing 3-2. What a season these boys have had. Reaching the semi-finals is an incredible accomplishment they can be proud of.
Our last team in the run for the national cup is our U16 A team! In the upcoming weeks they will compete in the semi-finals. Wishing them the best of luck.
 
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 Follow us on social media to keep up to date...
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 | This week, a group of talented Year 9 students participated in SWA's first ever spoken word poetry slam, and they were fantastic!It was an excellent opportunity to explore their voice. Please click on the link to read what our students wrote on the day: https://t.co/zJKhcOccw0 https://t.co/EuLSIwhuYO 6 hours ago Follow | |
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Samuel Whitbread Academy E-Newsletter
You are receiving this because you are a Student,
Parent, Carer, Governor or Member of Staff at SWA.
Samuel Whitbread Academy
Shefford Road, Clifton, Shefford, Bedfordshire, SG17 5QS
Tel: 01462 629900 • Fax: 01462 629901
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