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Harris Academy Clapham is a place where students are encouraged to be exceptional.
EVERYTHINGacademy. IS
Our new building is purpose-built for our students. They are educated with us until year 11, after which they will be able to apply to Harris Clapham Sixth Form which opened in September 2021. The two academies work very closely together to make sure our students are fully prepared for the next stage in their education.
Our students appreciate the opportunities we create for them. We take great pride in them and the way they relish participating in every aspect of life within the POSSIBLE
Deborah Gostling Principal
Our staff are justly proud of the achievements since Harris Academy Clapham opened in 2020. We take our role within the community very seriously and families are key partners in our work.
Our students work hard and we fully support them to turn their dreams into reality. Our aim is that they will leave having excelled, ready to make a positive contribution to the world, and filled with the self-belief that ‘everything is possible’.
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OUR 2023 COHORT
We invest heavily in their training to ensure their teaching excellence continues to go from strength to strength. Our staff are skilled in ensuring that the aspirations and needs of each individual child are met.
Students joining in 2023 will be the fourth year group in the academy. Our student leadership team helps to support and mentor each new intake as they model being an outstanding Harris Clapham student.
It is our absolute priority that every child has the best chances of success. We select teachers who are experts in their subjects and who are highly committed.
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We want all of our students to enjoy their education and to achieve their true potential. In every subject they are taught a deep level of knowledge and skills to fully prepare them for their future lives.
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A WELL-ROUNDED EDUCATION
We achieve the right balance across all national curriculum subjects. In line with our value of ‘having a global view’, students study two languages at key stage 3 (Years 7 to 9). As well as Spanish, students learn Chinese and are able to take it right up to GCSE.
Our purpose-built facilities also mean we offer excellent teaching and resources for sport, technology and the full range of performing arts. A new library supports our students to read widely and become highly literate young people.
Our curriculum has a deliberate focus on shaping the character of our students. Our pastoral curriculum ensures students understand our expectations and learn how they can make a positive impact upon the city and world in which they live.
In 2021-22 our clubs programme included over 40 weekly clubs for just two year groups. We invest heavily in sport, including fixtures, and have already reached peaks of excellence in competitions.
From 2022-23 Duke of Edinburgh will launch in the academy. An exciting trips programmes gives students a wide range of opportunities beyond the academy site.
At Clapham it is a core expectation that every student does at least one after school club; most do many more.
Every term students also participate in Innovation Days to experience inspirational and high quality enrichment activities beyond the formal curriculum.
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We are part of the Harris Experience for the most able students from Year 9 onwards. This extends the curriculum through a programme of academic and cultural experiences. Recent examples range from learning the art of auctioneering at Christie’s to a day of lectures at the University of Oxford.
Every child deserves the opportunity to experience exciting new challenges outside the classroom.
ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Our enrichment programme also includes a wide range of non-sporting clubs including music and performing arts, languages, debating, coding and the arts. Students can also participate in the Police Cadets.
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ENDEAVOUR FOR EXCELLENCE HONESTY A VIEW
• to work hard and relish challenge • to never give up • to learn to take sensible risks • to always strive for the best for themselves and for each INTEGRITYotherAND
GLOBAL
• to act with kindness, treating others the way they would like to be SELF-BELIEFtreatedWITH
• to have the power and agency to achieve their ambitions for themselves and the wider world OUR VALUES
Our commitment to our learning applies to staff and students alike. We are all on a learning journey. Through upholding The Clapham Commitment, we ensure that our vision and values are tangible in every-day life in the academy and beyond.
E xemplary in the way I present myself
To support me with this, I will always strive to be
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• Relish tasks that challenge me so that I continue to stretch myself
• Be determined to succeed even when I find it challenging
• Look after the academy equipment and environment as if it were my own
THE CLAPHAM COMMITMENT
• Never give up
T enacious in all that I do
PPERFECT:repared and ready for learning
• Be willing to try new things, knowing that mistakes are also learning opportunities
• Be a sensitive listener to the views of others
• Move quickly and calmly when the bell goes
E xcited to learn
• Complete my homework
• Ask questions to find out more
F ocused on being successful
• Respond promptly to instructions and at the first time of asking
R espectful of others, my environment and myself
• Make the most of opportunities I am given, so that I can make my mark on the world
• Complete tasks to the very best of my ability
• Take pride in the presentation of my work and in my uniform
• Act with integrity, honesty and kindness
• Arrive on time to the academy and to lessons so that no learning time is wasted
• Embrace the fact that we are all unique and celebrate this
• Have all my equipment with me for each lesson (including my reading book)
• Show good manners and always be polite in the way I interact with others
C urious to know more
I am here to develop into the best version of myself I can possibly be.
• Celebrate my learning by sharing it with others, for example in group work, assemblies and on trips
• Review my learning from the previous lesson so that I store it in my long-term memory
• Read widely around my subjects to extend my understanding and vocabulary
Our full admissions policy can be found on our www.harrisclapham.org.ukwebsite.
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Like all secondary schools, children with education, health and care plans will be offered the first places. Looked-after and previously looked-after children will have next priority.
Every year since the academy opened we have been over-subscribed. To apply for one of our 195 places, name Harris Academy Clapham on the Common Application Form provided by your home local authority.
After this, priority will be given to siblings of students already attending the academy. Priority will also be given to children of staff who have been recruited to fill skill-shortage areas.
ADMISSIONS
All remaining places will be offered to children on the basis of the proximity of their home to the academy.
Following this priority will be given to students of Glenbrook Primary School. Although the two schools are not affiliated to each other, we are next door to one another.
“Harris Academy Clapham is not only a school where you can prosper in your education, but also a place where you can mould your character.”
WHAT OUR CLAPHAM FAMILY SAY ABOUT OUR ACADEMY
Below are some of the comments from our students and parents:
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“This school is really amazing. We are provided with a lot of opportunities and experiences. We are lucky to be here.”
“My child is so happy to go to school. It makes such a difference to have amazing teachers that care for the students. Thank you for all you do.”
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The Federation regularly tops academic studies and national league tables measuring progress and performance. Almost all Harris secondary academies are judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. Harris secondary academies are known for combining traditional standards of manners, discipline and uniform with the best of modern teaching and technology. There are around four applications from parents for every place available.
In addition to running schools, the Harris Federation provides high quality training and professional development for teachers throughout this part of FollowEngland.@HarrisFed on Twitter to stay updated.
We send many of our sixth formers to Oxford, Cambridge and other Russell Group universities –winning places on these prestigious courses at a rate of more than twice the national average – as well as top apprenticeships and competitive vocational courses. We are immensely proud of the role that our alumni are now beginning to play in the world and of what we believe our current generation of pupils will go on to achieve.
The Harris Federation is a not-for-profit charity with 52 academies in London and Essex. The founder and Chairman of the Harris Federation is Lord Harris of Peckham. His vision of delivering happy and successful education is brought to life by an excellent team of teachers and leaders.
PART OF THE SUCCESSFUL HARRIS FEDERATION
10 33 Clarence Avenue, SW4 8LD T. 020 4513 9350 E. info@harrisclapham.org.uk www.harrisclapham.org.uk@HarrisClapham