Issue 10
Marches Academy Trust Vision and Values Vision: ‘Achievement through caring’ Mission: We believe: Successful, creative, lifelong learners participate in a journey of self-discovery. They know how to learn and acquire skills to be happy and thrive in a changing world with confidence and courage. Values: Excellence - striving always for mastery and personal success. Integrity - consistently acting with honesty, compassion and respect. Empathy - embracing and supporting the uniqueness of every individual. Creativity - inspiring and challenging through invention, experimentation and exploration. Equality - ensuring fair opportunity for all.
A Message from the CEO As we approach the end of this academic year, the Trust has a lot to celebrate particularly the extensive enrichment opportunities that have been made available for our students this term. Our showcase of fantastic cross-Trust enrichment opportunities highlights the benefits of being part of a family of schools. They provide students with deep learning at national and international locations with the added bonus of them meeting new friends from other schools within our Trust. Our Opal Coast expedition enables students to experience an international trip, with many of the students on this trip travelling abroad for the first time. Whilst all of our trips offer an educational element, many of them create memories that will stay with our students forever. Education across the Trust radiates well beyond the classroom and as a Trust we offer an extensive extra-curricular programme. The programme of study is set to meet the aspirations of all students and includes activities in Art, History, Physical Education and Music. Students are encouraged to take part in our programme of activities at lunchtimes and after school. Our students win many awards both representing, and outside of, school which we are immensely proud to celebrate. Following the announcement in the last newsletter that Lower Heath CE Primary School had recently joined the Trust, I am pleased to announce that the Regional Schools Commissioner has agreed in principle for Shrewsbury Academy, Grange Primary School and Longlands Community Primary School to join our Multi-Academy Trust. We are engaging with the school communities and conducting extensive due diligence before the final decision is made. The expansion of the Trust would provide additional expertise and experience to complement our established team. The Marches Academy Trust has developed and grown into a formidable team of schools, with a common aim of giving the children of Shropshire an excellent and wide array of opportunities in the years to come. I hope you have an enjoyable summer and I look forward to welcoming back our students in September. CEO The Marches Academy Trust
Trust Members and Trustees The Marches Academy Trust is governed by the Board of Trustees. Trustees are appointed by the members.
Members
Anna Burgess
Robert Forrester
David Griffiths
Arthur Walpole
Trustees
Arthur Walpole Arthur Walpole Chair Chair
Alex Fry
David Griffiths
Judy Hunt
Stuart Cowper
Mark Liquorish
Sarah Longville CEO
Bob Pearson Associate Member
A Message from the Chair of Trustees We are reaching the end of what has been an exciting school year for our Trust. You will read elsewhere in the newsletter of the many varied events and initiatives that have taken place in our schools to enrich and develop the educational and whole life experiences for our youngsters. Over the same period there have been important developments in the structure of the Trust; with Lower Heath CE Primary School and The Grove School joining us we have grown to five schools. This has required the Trust Board to consider very carefully at each stage how we ensure the balance between healthy growth for our Trust and at the same time ensure that we keep focussed on our core value of ‘Achievement through caring’, putting the children at the centre of everything we do. The reputation of our Trust is now firmly established with the Regional Schools Commissioner at the Department for Education who sees us as a strong Trust able to take other schools into our Academy Structure and to work with them and provide support as necessary. As a consequence we are currently involved in detailed discussion and in carrying out ‘due diligence’ to examine the prospect of Shrewsbury Academy, Grange Primary School and Longlands Community Primary School joining our Trust. This is a very big decision for us and we need to be confident that we can meet the challenge that this poses whilst not weakening our capacity to manage and continuously improve our existing schools. Thank you all for your contribution over this school year. I trust that as we reach the end of term you will all enjoy a well-earned break.
Arthur Walpole Member and Chair of the Board of Trustees The Marches Academy Trust
Inspirational Commonwealth Medallist Pupils at Lower Heath CE Primary School welcomed Team Great Britain triple jump medallist Laura Samuel on behalf of the Sports For Champions scheme. Laura put the Lower Heath pupils through their paces with some energetic circuit training on the school field. The athlete then addressed the pupils in an assembly, where she went on to explain her sport. She told the pupils about her inspiring sporting journey, which began when an athlete visited her Primary School. This motivated her to try sport and Laura went on to discover her talent for Triple Jumping after a school coach encouraged her to give it a try. The children were engrossed as Laura explained how in 2014 she competed in the Commonwealth Games Final, becoming a silver medallist. Before concluding her visit, Laura very kindly officially opened Lower Heath CE Primary School’s recently completed Daily 15 running track and long jump pit, before the whole school took part in a lap of the track to celebrate.
#TogetherWeGrow
Associate Staff: Shared Services Team Human Resources
Julia Hipkiss Trust HR Administrator
Sheila Smith Personnel and Administration Assistant
Facilities
Attendance
Joanne Jones Trust Business Director
Andy Lowe Family Support and Attendance Officer
Marketing
Hayley Alldridge Marketing & PR Manager
Charlotte Smith Marketing & PR Assistant
Finance
Gareth Bridges Trust Finance Director
Alice Wynne Management Accountant
Karen Evans Finance Officer
Amy Gilbert Finance Assistant
Continued Professional Development Focus The Marches Academy Trust values extracurricular experiences for all of its students and creates countless opportunities for students to participate. As you can see in this newsletter, just recently students from Lower Heath CE Primary School have been to York on a residential visit; Tilstock C of E Primary School went to London staying away on a residential visit and Sir John Talbot’s School and The Marches School visited the Opal Coast and Italy. The planning to ensure these events are carried out safely and seamlessly is the job of Emma Swindley, Enrichment Officer for the MAT. Emma is currently studying for a Level 4 in Business Administration alongside her role and says “I really enjoy working for the Marches Academy Trust and the opportunities it has given me; having started here 9 years ago as an Admin Assistant The Marches has given me the opportunity to progress. I really enjoy being able to help students to have experiences they might never have without us providing it for them. I really enjoy hearing the students speak of the fantastic times they have on our extracurricular experiences.”
Emma Swindley Enrichment Officer
Tilstock School Celebrate Extension Opening Tilstock C of E Primary School and Nursery has undergone some fantastic changes in order to improve the look and infrastructure of the learning environment. Since joining the Marches Academy Trust in December 2017, the Trust was successful in receiving a grant to make some improvements to the school that benefit the pupils, staff and visitors. The extension to the reception area looks fantastic with its new access ramp and is welcoming to both current and prospective visitors. The perimeter fencing was installed to improve security of the whole site, alongside additional improvements inside the building to enhance safeguarding and health and safety. A new server was installed improving the IT experience for both staff and pupils. New Wi-Fi around the building ensures the team have good access to the Trust’s central IT systems and programmes. To celebrate this fantastic extension and improvement of services, an official opening took place on 24th May. Local TV personality and veterinary surgeon, Steve Leonard attended to open the extension.
Goblin Car Event Pupils in Year 5 at Tilstock C of E Primary School did a fabulous job at the Goblin Race Car event this year. Leading up to race day, pupils were busy practising how to drive their kit car for the first time with Mr Spicer’s help. Team Tilstock Turbo then tried on all their race gear and really stated to look the part in preparation for the upcoming race. Later in the week, Year 5 then travelled to Leighton Airfield to take part in the Green Goblin Races. There were 34 schools competing and 43 cars taking part in total. In the morning Tilstock C of E Primary School had the opportunity to do six laps of drag racing, prior to pupils taking part in the slalom and timed races. The afternoon saw the big lap races take place, with pupils competing and testing their driving skills. The children were very well-behaved and a credit to the school. Not only that but they even came home with a trophy for recording the best time on the slalom event. They came away a very tired but happy Tilstock Turbo Team!
Young Enterprise Students from Sir John Talbot’s School, Whitchurch, The Grove School, Market Drayton, and The Marches School, Oswestry, who are all part of The Marches Academy Trust family of schools had a successful evening at the recent Young Enterprise Awards. After selling their products at trade fairs over the past few months, students recently attended a ‘Dragons Den Style’ presentation day, where they discussed their Young Enterprise experience and presented their business to a panel of experts. After much anticipation the groups were invited to attend the Young Enterprise Awards Evening, which took place on Thursday 2nd May. The event was to celebrate the achievement of all 22 Young Enterprise groups from the area with 29 awards for various criteria. The evening was attended by over 200 students, teachers, business professionals and sponsors. The Young Enterprise programme challenges students to set up and run their own business idea. During the initiative, students develop skills, knowledge and experience which have a long term impact on their lives and careers.
Opal Coast On Friday 24th May, Year 7 students from The Marches and Sir John Talbot’s Schools headed through the channel tunnel to the Opal Coast in Northern France. Upon arrival, the students had the opportunity to get some refreshments and stretch their legs, while they explored sunny Le Touquet beach. After a long day, the group headed off to bed in high spirits. On Saturday after a hearty breakfast, the students were divided into three groups to enjoy a range of activities on rotation. Students visited the WW2 Nazi military bunker in La Coupole, they learned how to make French bread and croissants at the Le Fournil Bakery and finally the groups visited a snail farm where they learnt about the life cycle of the snails – with some of the students brave enough to try the French delicacy! Sunday saw the end to the trip with the group visiting Montrelieu where Les Miserables was set, before departing on the ferry. The aim of the trip was to make foreign visits available to all and we have worked hard to make this trip accessible to those students who wanted to partake. Students and staff had a very enjoyable trip; for many of the group this was their first time abroad and their first time on a ferry, resulting in new experiences and memories.
SportsFest, Italy Trip Over half-term The Marches and Sir John Talbot’s Schools took 37 students on a Netball Tour to Italy. Even though it rained for four days, which resulted in activities being changed, students and staff had an amazing time and the students were a real credit to their schools. Upon arrival, students were given some free time in rainy Venice; they explored the city and had the opportunity to sample some of the local cuisine. On Tuesday, students received Netball coaching where staff commented on how talented our students were. On Wednesday it rained again, but this did not stop the group going to a local zoo, which was followed by some shopping and a pizza evening. The girls then took part in a full tournament on the Thursday, where all students got through to the semi-finals and the Under 15s came runners up in their competition, which was a brilliant achievement! The girls finished the day with a disco and did not want to leave the dance floor. Thank you to Mrs Bladen (The Marches School), Mrs Newey and Miss Lloyd (Sir John Talbot’s School) who gave up their holiday time to make this such a memorable trip for all who attended.
Tilstock London Residential Tilstock C of E Primary School had an amazing funpacked three days on their Year 5 and Year 6 London Residential. Staff were very proud of all of the pupils; they behaved and represented Tilstock C of E Primary School exceptionally. Pupils and staff waved goodbye to all parents at 7:00am on Monday 3rd June and headed south for London. The group arrived at St Paul’s and All Hallows’ C of E School, who greeted us warmly and allowed Tilstock pupils to have a run around and join in with playtime. Next, pupils said goodbye to the school and minibus and with all their luggage they headed for the nearest tube station, past Tottenham Hotspur’s Training Ground, to find their hotel. Once they had relieved themselves of their heavy luggage the group headed back on the tube to Kings Cross and platform 9 3/4. The group then travelled on to Covent Garden to watch a street act who nominated Mr Spicer to help out. It was then on to the Hard Rock Cafe and Shop for tea and then back to the hotel after a busy day to get ready for bed. The next day Tilstock pupils were back on the tube and on to Westminster. The children exchanged ‘Dabs’ with another school on the boat ferry. Unfortunately restoration is still going on and Donald Trump was in Westminster, so they were unable to see as much as they hoped and moved on to the Natural History Museum followed by the Science Museums. By now the children were starting to get tired, so it was back to the hotel for a rest. That evening, pupils went to Garfunkel’s for tea, followed by going to see Matilda at the Cambridge Theatre, which was absolutely amazing and both pupils and staff really enjoyed the show before going back to the hotel. This concluded a very busy day where the group had walked 12k! On the last day after a big breakfast, pupils packed their cases ready for their trip back home. They stopped off once more at platform 9 3/4 before heading back to St Paul’s and All Hallows’ C of E School. The group said goodbye to the tube for the last time and the host school put on a few dances and films they had made for our students. During this time, pupils told the host school about Tilstock C of E Primary School and discovered some similarities between the schools as well as differences. Unfortunately the group were unable to do a tour of the Tottenham grounds, but all the children received goodie bags. The trip was amazing and the children did Tilstock proud.
Sporting Success At the end of last term Sir John Talbot’s School were welcomed by The Grove School to take part in an Inter-Trust Football Friendly. This was the final game of the term for the teams and it was certainly entertaining. Great sportsmanship was shown by both schools with the final scores as follows: The Grove School’s Year 9 team won their match with a fantastic score of 10-2; The Sir John Talbot's School’s Year 8 side claimed victory, dominating the match with a final score of 12-1 and finally despite their best efforts with both schools not being quite able to get the upper hand, the Year 7 match resulted in a draw, with the final score 3–3. Well done to all students who played, with some fantastic football on display.
York Residential Pupils at Lower Heath CE Primary School had a fantastic time in York this term. Owl Class spent three days exploring the city of York. The weather may not have been on their side, but they did not let that spoil the experience. Owl Class visited the National Railway Museum, the York Castle Museum, the Jorvik Viking Centre and York Minster, as well as taking part in a ghost walk, a boat trip, a walk along the city walls and the Shambles. They walked roughly 20 miles in total! The children learned so much from these experiences, and really enjoyed their stay in the youth hostel. The staff were all very impressed with the behaviour and attitude of all the children from the start to the end of the trip.
Celebration of Artwork
The Grove School, Year 11 artwork.
Sir John Talbot’s School, Tesco one hundred year anniversary mural.
Lower Heath CE Primary School, Kingfisher Class art inspired by Wassily Kandinsky.
Tilstock C of E Primary School, Talbot class prints.
The Marches School, vision and values mural.
T. 01691 664400 | E. admin@mmat.co.uk W. www.marchesacademytrust.co.uk