NEWSLETTER Friday 20th March Dear parents and carers, Last Friday when I wrote my newsletter piece for you all I had no idea that the situation would be so different one week later. We are all facing extraordinary challenges at this time and the situation is placing pressure on all parts of society. Our staff have been doing all they can to keep our school open since this crisis began and I would like to pay tribute to their remarkable commitment. They have been extraordinary and we will continue to play our part over the coming weeks.
As I’m sure you will be aware, the Government have taken the difficult decision to close schools for most children. The school will remain open for key groups of students for supervision purposes, although parents are not obliged to use this service. From Monday, the school will continue to be open for children whose parents are frontline workers and for students classified by the Secretary of State as ‘vulnerable children’ plus those with EHCPs. We have sent out information on which families meet this criteria this morning. Please do note that the Government guidelines stress that the safest place for your children is at home and you should only access this, even as a keyworker, if there is no safe alternative. Students on site from Monday who meet this criteria will be supervised to complete online work set for all students in the school. Throughout this period for students at home we will continue to provide home learning resources for your child through Show My Homework. For more detail see my letter dated 18th March 2020. We will also be providing a packed free school meal lunch each day for students who receive free school meals and these will be available for collection and takeaway from 12.10 each day from the front reception for all relevant students, not just those receiving supervision next week. In addition to working hard to communicate to you through letters, emails and texts, we have created a section on our website called ‘Closure Updates’. We are placing key information here on a regular basis, including sent letters, advice and guidance, as well as links to other sites. Do please have a look. It has been very difficult to hear the news about students’ qualifications. For children and young people, who have worked so hard to prepare for their GCSEs, A levels and other examined qualifications, this will be upsetting and we sympathise with them. At the same time, we understand, and are reassured that, children’s grades in GCSEs and A levels will be awarded on the basis of moderated assessment, in collaboration with the exam boards and Ofqual (the exam board regulator). This means that the hard work students have done will be rewarded. It may not feel the same, and nor is it, but they will receive grades that will progress them to the next stage of their lives. We will remember our student celebratory goodbyes – held for Yr11 yesterday and Yr13 today, as dearly in our hearts and memories as we have in any other year and look forward to being able to see these year groups again later in the year. If we are able to mark their leaving in the near future we will endeavour to do so and we look forward to seeing the huge majority of our Year 11s return to us in the sixth form. Mr Sanchez-Brown, our Head of Sixth Form, will be staying in close contact with all students who have applied for our sixth form throughout the coming months; all our students are very important parts of our Cowes family and community including students from these year groups.
I would once again like to take this opportunity to thank you wholeheartedly for your understanding and ongoing support in helping us to manage this unprecedented situation. Stay safe at this difficult time, Rachel Kitley Click the arrows or swipe to turn pages
Please click this link for safeguarding arrangements and closure updates during school closure: https://www.cowesec.org/ouracademy/closure-updates . USING SHOW MY HOMEWORK To log into Show My Homework on a web browser (like Chrome) or on the Show My Homework app, you must use the ‘Sign in with Office 365’ option.
LETTERS Recent letters can be found on our website, under the ‘Communication’ heading and then selecting ‘letters and communication’.
Click here to view recent letters.
Letter from the Principal 18.03.20
Letter from the Principal 19.03.20
We regularly update our social media pages with news and information. You can find us on Facebook as Official Cowes Enterprise College. We are on Twitter @CowesEC. We are on Instagram @cowesenterprise.
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These are the only official Cowes Enterprise College profiles.
MATHSWATCH
When logging in, you must use your full academy email address Year 7 Username Username: First initialSurname19@cec [e.g. example19@cowesec.org] Example: ASmith19@cec Your password will be your Default password: mathswatch academy IT password. This is the Year 8 -13 password you use to login to the Username: First initialSurname Example: ASmith@cec computers at school. If you can’t login, please double Default password: mathswatch check you are entering your email Some usernames have a slight variation if address & password correctly & there are any problems logging on please email Mr Foster dfoster@cowesec.org using the Office 365 login button!
We can confirm that all monies paid for all cancelled trips will be refunded. Please allow us time to process these refunds during our closure time. Many thanks.
CONTACT US The main Academy email address is: info@cowesec.org
Staff contact details can be found on our website: https://cowesec.org/ contact-details Teacher contact details can be found here: https://www.cowesec.org/ our-academy/teachercontact-details READING LIST FOR ALL STUDENTS: A reading list for all students will be added to the ‘letters and communication’ section of our website shortly. https://www.cowesec.org/ouracademy/letters-and-communication
TERM DATES FOR CURRENT ACADEMIC YEAR Friday 3rd April
Last Day of Spring Term
6th April—17th April
Easter Holiday
Mon 20th April
Start of Summer Term
Fri 8th May
Early May bank holiday (VE day)
Fri 22nd May
Last Day of Half Term
25th May—29th May
Half Term Holiday
Mon 1st June
Start of second half of Spring Term
Mon 15th June TBC
Staff Development Day
Fri 17th July
Last Day of Summer Term
Sat 18th July
Summer Holidays Start
TERM DATES FOR 2020/2021 ACADEMIC YEAR 1st September 2020
Staff Development Day
2nd October 2020
Staff Development Day
26th October to 30th October 2020
Half Term Holiday
18th December 2020
Last Day of Autumn Term
21st December 2020 to 1st January 2021
Christmas Holiday
4th January 2021
Staff Development Day
5th January 2021
Start of Spring Term
15th February to 19th February 2021
Half Term Holiday
26th March 2021
Last Day of Spring Term
29th March to 9th April 2021
Easter Holiday
12th April 2021
Start of Summer Term
3rd May 2021
Bank Holiday
31st May 2021 to 4th June 2021
Half Term Holiday
14th June 2021 (to be confirmed)
Staff Development Day
16th July 2021
Last Day of Summer Term
TERM DATES FOR 2021/2022
Term dates for the September 2021 to July 2022 academic year are now live on our website. You can view these via this link: https://www.cowesec.org/partners-and-new-starters/ term-dates
There are lots of websites who offer self-help for young people, and we have included a list of some of these below.
Click the information to be taken to the organisation’s website.
Young Minds - The UK's leading charity committed to improving the emotional wellbeing and mental health of children and young people ChildLine - The UK's free helpline for children an young people, providing a confidential counselling service for any child or young person with a problem The Mix - Free, confidential telephone helpline finding young people the best help whatever the problem Samaritans—Volunteers who listen in confidence to anyone in any type of emotional distress without judgement or telling people what to do FRANK - Confidential information and advice for anyone concerned about their own or someone else's drug or solvent misuse
B-EAT Youth Helpline - online community information, help and support for anyone affected by eating disorders Kidscape - the first charity in the UK established specifically to prevent bullying and sexual abuse It Gets Better Project - created to inspire hope for young people facing harassment.
Brook Advisory Service - The UK's leading provide of sexual health services and advice for young people under 25. Winston's Wish - The helpline offers support, information and guidance to all those caring for a bereaved child or young person