Harris Academy Morden Prospectus

A brand new Academy with drive and ambition.

Courage, Challenge, Success

A Brand New Academy with Drive and Ambition Welcome

Although Harris Academy Morden is a new school, it builds on more than 20 years of experience within the Harris Federation and an exceptional track record in London education.

Harris Academy Morden is a brand new school with a highly aspirational culture.

We promote the traditional values of good manners, hard work, excellent behaviour and smart uniform. Students at the Academy benefit from a range of opportunities inside and outside the classroom designed to ensure that their achievements match our high expectations of them.

The teaching techniques at Harris Academy Morden are tried and tested, including at the nearby Harris Academy Merton. This is one of the highest achieving schools in the borough and one of the most popular, with around four applications for every place that is available.

If you visit Harris Academy Morden, you will see students who treat each other with care and respect, teachers who are trained and resourced to inspire the best in every class they teach and a highly experienced leadership team with a track record of developing outstanding schools. The Academy is a happy and hardworking community with drive and ambition.

Mr A Halpin Executive Principal

We are particularly pleased to be working closely with a wide range of prestigious organisations who are supporting us to make sure that the education at Harris Academy Morden is second to none.

These include one of London’s top universities, King’s College London, who work with our science department and the British Medical Association who make sure that students interested in medical careers receive one-to-one mentoring from junior doctors.

Everything is in place for Harris Academy Morden to have an outstanding future. I hope that you will consider attending our Open Event where we will be looking forward to meeting you and your son or daughter.

Above all, as a Harris Academy, we have high expectations of every student regardless of their background or academic starting point. Our core aim is to equip every student to achieve highly, academically and personally, now and in the future.

If you want your son or daughter to have an education with pace and purpose, please do come along to our Open Evening so you can find out more.

Sir Daniel Moynihan Ed.D, M.A., B.Sc. (Econ) Chief Executive of the Harris Federation

Mr L Mallin Principal

Mr A Halpin Executive Principal

Mr L Mallin Principal

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Applying for a Place There are 180 places in Year Seven.

As an Academy, we are an independent school that is free to attend.

We welcome applications from boys and girls of all academic abilities.

If you are interested in a place, you should name the Academy on the Common Application Form given to you by your Local Authority.

Our full admissions policy is available with this prospectus and on our website.

Being Educated at Harris Academy Morden • A leadership team with experience of creating highly successful, popular schools within the Harris Federation • Opportunities for all students, regardless of their background or academic starting point, to achieve highly • The traditional values of good manners, strong discipline and smart uniform combined with the best of modern teaching methods and technology • Class sizes that are kept as small as possible

The Track Record of our Sponsor – the Harris Federation Our Academy is run by the Harris Federation, a charity with more than twenty years’ experience of education in London.

The Harris Federation has built its reputation on a family of Academies that, across the board, are setting standards of excellence and fulfilling high expectations.

Of the 11 Harris Academies so far to have been inspected by Ofsted, nine have been rated as ‘Outstanding’ – this record is unmatched by any other education body in the country.

Harris Academy Merton, which will be familiar to many parents in the area, was rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted within three years of opening.

There are currently 19 Harris Academies. All of them are located in and around London.

• Extra support in small groups and one-to-one for students who need it • Master classes in exciting and challenging subjects • Zero tolerance of bullying in any form • Reports home to parents every six weeks • Emphasis on helping students to develop excellent personal qualities and social skills • Close links with all of the other Harris Academies, most of which are rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted.

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I created the Harris Federation because I know the value of a good education.

It is the best start in life that you can give to a child. With Sir Dan Moynihan and his exceptional team of Principals in charge, our Academies have shown that there is no reason why inner-city schools cannot be outstanding and that there are no children in London who cannot achieve when given the right education. London’s parents, citizens, entrepreneurs and professionals of tomorrow are being educated at Harris Academies and we are nurturing them so that their adult lives are happy, fulfilling and successful.

Lord Harris of Peckham

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Welcome from Day One of Year 7 We are a happy, welcoming and thriving community in which every student is valued and actively participates in Academy life.

From the moment our new Year 7s join us at the beginning of September, we want them to feel welcome, settled and cared for. On their first day, every student is assigned to one of the four Faculties our Academy is divided into.

Their Faculty Tutor takes a personal responsibility for coaching them, setting their targets and making sure they settle in well.

Through inter-Faculty activities and competitions, students identify with their Faculty and this provides a sense of belonging and security to a smaller unit within the wider Academy.

A World of Learning Our curriculum is personalised and challenging.

Whether a student needs to be stretched, is struggling or is somewhere in the middle, we will always work to inspire the best in them.

In Years 7–9, there is a very well-rounded selection of subjects with an extra focus on Maths and English – your son or daughter will have one lesson a day in each of these subjects.

From their first year at the Academy, students also study Science, History, Geography and RSE, French and Spanish. Other subjects include Technology, ICT, Art, Music, Drama and PE. When our students choose their GCSEs in Year 9, they begin coaching for university. This helps ensure they make good decisions early on about their education and understand what they need to do in order to achieve their ambitions and aspirations.

By the start of Year 10, they are fully prepared to begin studying towards GCSEs and then A Levels.

Throughout Years 7–13, students who need it will receive extra support in small groups and one-to-one. There is also a range of Master Classes to ensure all students are stretched and challenged.

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Sixth Form The Harris Federation has a strong reputation for delivering outstanding Sixth Form education across London. Our Sixth Form is federated with other Harris Post 16 centres including Harris Academy Merton.

This allows us to offer opportunities that are simply not available elsewhere, including 29 A Level courses and a very good range of vocational courses.

Students taking an academic pathway receive excellent academic tuition and university coaching (including Oxbridge mentoring through our links with two Oxford colleges). They can also choose from a range of A Levels that are highly regarded by Russell Group universities.

Our vocational and technical pathways are equally ambitious, with small class sizes, specialist tuition and intensive careers guidance as students work towards successful and fulfilling futures.

Outside the Classroom Our broad range of extracurricular activities includes art, drama and debating societies and a range of choirs, bands and orchestras.

Sailing, tennis, chess, dance, netball, rugby and trampolining are just some of the sporting activities students are able to try their hand at. Some of these take place jointly with Harris Academy Merton and the Harris Federation.

We want every student to have the chance to shine. Whenever there is demand for a new club or activity, we always try to find a way to make it happen.

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Strong Governance We are accountable to an Academy Governing Body (AGB).

The AGB is an independent body and is responsible, with the Principal and Executive Principal, for setting and monitoring the educational direction of the Academy and the targets to be achieved over time.

The AGB includes representation from the teaching and non-teaching staff, parents and the community. The AGB is Chaired by Mr Tony Bayon. To contact our Chair of Governors, please contact him via the Academy – the address is at the back of this prospectus.

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Harris Academy Morden

Lilleshall Road, Morden, Surrey SM4 6DU Tel: 020 8687 1157 Fax: 020 8687 1158 Email: info@harrismorden.org.uk www.harrismorden.org.uk

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