Dear Parents/Carers,
The Term Ahead
Now that we have settled back into school after the summer holidays, I thought it time to share with you our plans for this term. We are looking forward to this new academic year and are certainly excited about the plans we have for our students to continue to flourish at Grace Academy Coventry. Following on from last year’s success, we are also eager to invite the community in for more events this term.
Firstly, here are some key dates for this term:
- New Tutor introductory phone calls - week beginning 18th September
- Open evening for prospective students currently in Year 6 - Thursday 28th September 6-8pm
- Year 7 Meet the Tutor Evening and Sixth Form Open Evening - Thursday 5th October 5-7pm
- School closed to ALL students (staff training day) - Friday 20th October
- End of term – Friday 27th October
- Half term break - Monday 30th October to Friday 3rd November
- School resumes – Monday 6th November
Student Expectations
We pride ourselves on how well our students dress and the pride they take in their uniform. Please use this link to view our Uniform Policy: Grace Academy Coventry Uniform Policy which contains all the information you need regarding uniform. Should you have any questions or concerns, please speak to your child’s form tutor in the first instance. Additionally, Andy Blair, our new uniform provider, is offering 10% off new uniform when you bring in your old uniform to be recycled. This will not only to help with the cost of uniform but also reduce the level of waste going to landfill. Details of our new uniform provider can be seen here: https://coventryschoolwear.com/
A reminder about our behaviour processes are below and our Behaviour Policy can be seen via this link: Grace Academy Coventry Student Behaviour Policy for more detailed information.
Every lesson, students receive a lesson stamp which indicates how they have behaved in that lesson. Students will receive a subject stamp in lessons if they have consistently demonstrated the “Grace Way”. If students go above and beyond in their lessons they will receive a gold star stamp. Students may also receive negative stamps in lessons including a YCDB (you can do better), NIL (not in line with expectations) or a Parked (removed from the lesson) stamp. The negative stamp is an indication that your child is not making appropriate choices in lessons and these will lead to after school detentions. Please ensure you are regularly checking your child’s planner so you can have conversations with them at home about their behaviour in school. Information about detentions is sent home via our Go4Schools system. If you do not have a Go4Schools account please contact Reception and they can support you with this.
This year we really look forward to rewarding students who have demonstrated the “Grace Way” with a variety of trips, activities and events. Students have been informed in assembly that it is imperative that they strive for 97% attendance and demonstrate positive behaviour so they can be invited to attend these trips throughout the year.
We expect all students to maintain a minimum attendance of 97% to maximise their chances of making positive progress in school. We expect that students will arrive to line ups for 8.20am so they can have a calm and positive start to their day. If students arrive after this time they will be sanctioned with a detention for the number of minutes they were late to school. For further information about our attendance policies and processes please read our Student Attendance Policy via this link: Student Attendance Policy .
Key Stage 4 Update (Years 10 and 11)
The start of term has been busy for Key Stage 4 as we have been helping students to adjust to their GCSE studies.
For Year 10, our focus will be helping them to settle into their elected GCSE options. For some students this will mean changing their courses to find an option that they feel more interested in and better suited to study. By the end of this term students will not be able to change their subjects so it is really important for us to support them in finding the right pathway for them.
Whereas, this term for Year 11 we will be focusing on the academic support offer. Our Year 11 Launch starts on 25th September with coursework catch-up sessions. Following on from this, we have our Period 6 sessions, where students are expected to attend daily sessions to boost their skills and knowledge. Every day after school students will have a programme of study to attend and we schedule subjects on different days to maximise the additional support that we can offer. Students will be registered in every session they attend so that we can reward them for this attendance.
Sixth Form
We have had a fantastic start to the new school year in Sixth Form. Our new Year 12 cohort have made an impressive start to their A level studies, already showing great enthusiasm for their chosen subjects. We are hoping to be able to take the Year 12 students to an Oxbridge University, showcasing their Limitless Potential and raising their aspirations for their future studies.
Our Year 13 students have come back with a positive attitude towards their final year of studies. Those students wanting to continue their studies at university will be starting their UCAS applications this half term by writing their personal statements and researching different universities and courses on offer. Those wishing to take the route of apprenticeships or employment will be working on finalising their CVs and will be researching different apprenticeship and employment opportunities.
We are also looking forward to showcasing our Sixth Form at our Open Evening for our current Year 11 cohort on Thursday 5th October, in preparation for them completing their Sixth Form Applications.
Ethos and Personal Development
This term, we have kicked off the year with a fantastic opportunity by taking students with outstanding attendance and attitude to see the Lion King in the West End Theatre.
This term, some Year 7 students will be taking part in a workshop focused on boosting confidence and self-esteem as they begin their new journey with us. We will also be running some workshops to support students with their mental health and positive wellbeing.
We look forward to celebrating various events in the calendar this term, such as European Day of Languages, World Mental Health Day, Children's Book Week, World Values Day and Black History Month.
We will be holding our Macmillan Coffee Morning on 29th September and so please do send your child in with change for sweet treats that will be sold during break and lunch time.
This term also sees us focusing on Harvest celebration. Each year group will be given a different item to bring in. The year with the most items will win a prize and ALL donations will be taken to support our local food bank. Mr Driver will be leading assemblies to introduce this in the coming weeks.
We are also proud to welcome our Early Career and Trainee teachers who bring lots of enthusiasm and fresh perspective to our staffing body, and we look forward to guiding them to become the best teachers they can be and to showing them what a rewarding vocation they have joined.
To find out more about your child’s curriculum and why they are learning this, please visit our subject pages on our website or click this link: Grace Academy Coventry Curriculum Intent.
We are excited for the academic year ahead and for our students to continue to flourish and develop, as we move forwards in our 'Grace Way'.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs N Whiles
Principal
