Headteachers Newsflash – Albion Academy

The Albion Academy Headteacher Newsflash

Friday 27th November 2020

Environment Agency update, Yr 11 Mocks and more…

For regular readers of the weekly NewsFlash hopefully you will remember that last week I asked if you lived in the locality of the school and were suffering with fly infestations that you might consider reporting your issues to the Environment Agency.

I have a very brief update regarding developments that I would like to share. So, you may recall if you live close by that in May/June you would have had an influx of flies and of course in the recent couple of weeks it has once again been quite appalling. Our collective support has led to an enforcement officer visiting an industrial unit close to our school and speaking with the owner. The result has been that actions have been agreed going forward to significantly reduce the current problem but to also try and ensure that in future it does not escalate to the issue a lot of us have been dealing with in recent weeks.

During the call the enforcement officer made it clear that should there continue to be issues or at some point in the future the flies return then we endeavour to contact the Environment Agency once again. So a reminder of the number should you need it in the future: Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60. It is a 24-hour line and is completely free.

On the 3^rd December England will emerge from Lockdown 2.0, Greater Manchester will revert back to being in Tier 3 with all the rules and obligations that come with it. Therefore, unless there is a valid medical reason, having a face covering is still an expected part of uniform. There is a great deal of peer reviewed scientific evidence to suggest that face coverings help reduce the spread of virus’. Here are some links for you to buy your own face masks if you do not wish to purchase our own for 50p, Boots the chemist, Superdrug and Amazon if you are more DIY inclined this YouTube link will direct you to a long list of videos showing how to make your own face covering.

Finally, thank you so much to all our parents and carers who have been so patient and understanding during the past three weeks regarding learning from home, accessing work online. We have tried to make it is easy as possible for your children to be independent and self-sufficient the Academy YouTube videos and communication home has given instructions on how to log on to TEAMS. Yesterday I was with groups from Years 7, 8 and 10 and saw how teachers were explaining how to access work online.

We always try to respond in a reasonable time, however please note that it is not expected of staff to reply to messages late into the evening or over the weekend.

Attendance Matters – Every day counts

End of Week 12, where is the time going? We continue to deal with the trials and tribulations of the track and trace app, staff children having to isolate, pupils in The Albion having to isolate, weekend calls/texts/emails trying to establish who was with who before school, at break, lunch and walking home. Bring on the vaccine and a bit of normality.

Mathematics update

Every week you child is set compulsory online homework via Sparx (Year 7) or Hegarty Maths (Year 8-11). The Mathematics department is proud of how hard students work and their engagement at home directly correlates to the progress that these students make in their half-term assessments!

We run weekly competitions in every year group looking at class-by-class engagement as well as praising those individuals who are spending the most time studying independently.

This week we would like to share with you our most hard-working students in each year group. Well done!

We have also seen some fantastic work completed whilst students have been “Working from Home” – keep up the good work!

Please also note, that all mathematics work for year groups working from home is always set on their homework platform. Please support your child in ensuring that learning time is not lost due to COVID!

Year 11 Updates - From Mr Wild

SMUG AWARD WINNERS

11A – Anabela Djalo Balde
11L – Paul Williams & Piot Karaszewski
11B- Jodie Hodkinson
11I – Kaleabe Mekonnen
11O- Kieron Rabbetts & Sara Elys Leite

Messages from the teachers to Yr 11 pupils…

Jodie Hodkinson for Mrs Roslan and Miss Hemsley – really pulling out of the hat in science. Very proud of her!
I would like to nominate Daniel Helsby, Karrar Al-Chaab, Anthony Curits. All three of these have been working hard, attend my interventions without question. Genuinely well done deserved for these. SQU
Yasser Al-Tamimey – Smashing his Creative Media work on Monday – quality AND quantity. PND
Please can I nominate the following for a SMUG award: Lilner Neto – for great creative writing and use of question phrases in a GCSE writing question. Darcey Davidson – for consistent effort and participation in class in addition to significant improvement in her writing skills when answering GCSE style questions. SCO
11I – Mustafa and Karolina for their continued hard work and dedication in English, especially in their recent Romeo and Juliet assessment! 11A – Teni for her hard work and completion of extra work outside of class to secure her success.11L (form) – don’t know if this is allowed but Devante and Paul Williams did some great work this week in form on their English speeches 🙂 GJO
Josh Walsh for working his socks off always. He has almost made 2 grades of progress in maths. Stays after school for additional help and has a positive and resilient attitude. GGA
Please will you add Kieron Horton to the SMUG list. He was AWESOME today! Awarded for skilfully using an independently written plan to create a well-crafted exam response. LRE
Carolina Borta – great work in class and extra effort with homework during first few weeks. BMU
Please can I nominate Josh Bache. He’s been working really hard in maths – homework always completed, fully engaged in lesson, showing resilience in assessments. Also, when I pop into other lessons he’s always on task and doing the right thing. AFI
Angel Presley – Consistently working to the best of her ability, always focused and hardworking in Art. AHO
Mariam has impressed me by getting in touch about work in my absence and by giving Nene a good run for her money on Duolingo! DOS
Can I nominate Olivia as she should be smug this week, she got 90% in her Physics homework and is working really well. EDA

ISOLATING STUDENTS - Mock Exams

For any students that are currently isolating in year 11, all pupils have received an email from Mr. Wild outlining the remote learning that your child should be accessing, along with information about how your child will catch up on any exams that they may have missed due to isolation.

November Mock Exams

The November mocks commence on Monday 30^th November, please see the exam timetable below for guidance. Pupils should be using the “6 Week Revision Plan” in order to direct their revision and best prepare for the exams. Just in case you missed the Virtual Information Evening on Thursday 12^th November, you can catch up on how you can support your child by following the link below.

http://www.albionacademy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/YEAR-11-Parents-Revision-Support-evening.pdf .

United Learning Parent Surveys – Your voice matters

If you have yet to register your views, thoughts and opinions we really hope that you will complete this survey to help us gather your feedback, it takes only 15 minutes to complete and automatically enters you into a free draw to win a £25 Amazon voucher.

Please be aware:

The survey link will be sent to one parent/carer email address per family from Edurio. The email is entitled ‘United Learning Parent Survey’.
The code is linked to pupil data, so cannot be shared or completed more than once.
Neither the school or United Learning will be able to identify you or your child from your response, unless you write something in one of the free text boxes that identifies you or your child by name.
If neither parent/carer has received the email and you have checked your ‘junk’ boxes, please contact us at school to let us know, so we can arrange for this to be sent to you again.
If you have any problems completing the survey or need any help, please contact us.

The surveys are live right now with the deadline for completion being Friday 4^th December.

Your views are important to us and your feedback will help us understand what you value most about our Academy and to help identify development priorities.

GCSE examinations and November mocks

Year 11, there are only 14 school weeks left, just 90 days in school, until your first GCSE exam, we will help be ready, confident and competent. Your November mocks are scheduled to begin on Monday 30^th November – see the timetable above. Remember that we have provided you with a handy revision guide ‘5 Habits of an Effective Learner’ to help you to structure your revision time away from the building. Little and often helps far more than cramming the night before.

College & Careers Information – Mrs Baker

Mrs Baker is still on hand before, during and after school for Year 11 pupils who want to plan ahead and begin their applications for college, apprenticeships, training or employment. With the mock exams only a few days away we fully expect that your attention will be on revision and preparation, as it should be. Once your exams are completed it is important that you start to finalise your applications.

Most of the local colleges across Salford, Manchester and Bury have all prepared virtual tours which you can access via the college’s own website. However, if you would like a copy of the prospectus, please can you email Mrs Baker (Julie.baker@albionacademy.co.uk).

You can also find regular college and career updates on Twitter by following @MrsBakerAlbion.

Safeguarding updates – worried about a child?

Sometimes we come across a situtation and it makes us instinctively feel uneasy. It might be something a person says to a child, or the way an adult is acting or behaving. Perhaps it might be things we see online via the many different social media sites there are now. You might not be able to put your finger on it, but something in your gut is telling you “that’s not right”.

If the child goes to our school we would like you to report your concerns to us, let us deal with it. It is what we are trained to do after all.

But what if they do not go to the Albion and you don’t know which school they go to? Well, Salford Council has some excellent advice and guidance on what you should do and how you can go about reporting something that does not look or sound right.

This link will take you directly to the worried about a child site on the council website: https://www.salford.gov.uk/children-and-families/safeguarding-children/worried-about-a-child/

Remember, if you are worried about a child that attends our school please contact the school reception on 0161 359 6100 or email contact@albionacademy.co.uk and ask for The Safeguarding Team or label your email ‘Safeguarding concern’.

Our Designated Safeguarding Lead is Mr P Feast.

Our Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads are Ms D Andrews and Ms M Lawman.