SAMUEL WARD MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST The Samuel Ward Academy Trust is a partnership of schools located on the Suffolk, Cambridge and Essex borders. We share the same values, face similar issues and are geographically close enough to support and challenge each other. We recognise, however, the unique characteristics of each of the communities we work in and how they are reflected in distinctive school cultures. We encourage cultural diversity, celebrate the special qualities of each of our schools and recognise that for communities to become sustainable they must develop and grow. We are not looking for corporate solutions but a partnership that respects, sustains and supports. Our model is about creating interdependence; schools that are more self-sustaining than standalone academies, less dependent than local authority schools and more independent than schools in corporate chains. However, we do all subscribe to a set of shared values, principles and operational processes that ensure quality education for all our young people. Our central belief is that every young life is special; open to possibility, gifted with the potential to change the world for the better but also bound by the limits of their own circumstances. Our ambition is to unlock the potential of all children, remove the barriers to aspiration and ensure that all our young people succeed.
Welcome to Newmarket Academy, a ‘Good’ school with outstanding ambition. We know how to make progress, to succeed and to keep striving to do better – and so do our students. Our students are the heart of the school, the school is the heart of the community and those relationships mean everything to us. Ofsted, who judged the Academy in 2017 to be a ‘Good’ school, recognised this when they commented that the ‘teachers know their students well and in turn students trust their teachers’. They also recognised that our students have ‘high expectations of themselves and each other’ and we know they have high expectations of us. The reason for this is because we know that real progress and learning and development comes from the students, from their desire and aspiration. We value each individual and give them the opportunities and the help they need to succeed. And we know how to do it because we have done it.
Newmarket Academy has been transformed in the last four years from struggling to successful. We don’t want to hide our past but use it to celebrate where we are today: A school built on shared values and the passionate aim to create successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens. But we don’t expect you just to take our word for it; throughout this prospectus we will show you what Ofsted said in their own words, and we encourage you to visit us at any time to look around the school. We value the success of every individual, their honesty and integrity, celebrate creativity and foster resilience and independence. Our aim is to be a school the community is as proud of as we are of our students. Our students who every day, just like us, strive to progress, succeed and keep doing better.
Nick Froy Principal
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Our Values
Our ethos is one founded on the principle of mutual respect, a strong set of values, supportive relationships and high aspirations and ambition for all.
Compassion is caring about others. It is wanting
to help those who are hurting. Compassion is showing kindness to all people.
Courage is being brave when we are scared.
It is being able to do something when we feel bad or fear we might fail.
Honesty is being truthful with the decisions we make and the actions we take every day. Integrity is being honest. It is being trustworthy. Integrity is being true to yourself and your beliefs. Resilience is about being able to stay strong when things go wrong. Respect honours the good things that others and we do. Respect values people and things for who and what they are. Respect honours people and things of special worth. Responsibility is taking care of the people and things that are ours. Responsibility is keeping our promises. It is doing our duty for our family, school, community and country. Wisdom is gained through learning and doing. Wisdom is knowing what to do. It is knowing right from wrong, good from bad.
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Transition
We plan our transition activities carefully to make sure that th possible.
We know that the move to secondary school is a big step for your child which is why we focus on the small things. Our experience, and a great deal of educational research, tells us that the best way to overcome this is to make your child feel safe and secure as quickly as possible. That is why we start the transition process long before September with special days in school and evening events to make new students and parents feel at home. (‘The school’s care for the students starts before they enter year 7’.) We have small tutor groups where knowing and supporting the individual student is the priority. The tutor works with your child for the entire time they are at the school and before your child’s first day you will have already met them. We have established small separate areas for the youngest students which they can call their own including a Year 7 and 8 dining room and social area.
he experience is as smooth as
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Belonging
We also know that in order to feel secure, your child will need to feel th are known well by staff and that they have opportunities to make new fri
We know that in order to feel secure, your child will need to feel that they belong, that they are known well by staff and that they have opportunities to make new friends. To help this we keep our tutor groups small, no more than 20, and deliberately so; students in small groups form new, powerful friendships quickly and so feel more at home. Your child’s tutor will do much to help them. They will be mentor, coach and advocate. They will work with you to identify your child’s strengths and passions, any barriers to their learning and the solutions to overcome them. As well as a parents’ evening, in November, where you can come and speak to the tutor and all your child’s teachers, we have a special awards night every summer term. We will also report home four times a year and provide a detailed written report for each subject. We
hat they belong, that they iends.
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see every student as an individual, and we know that high quality relationships count; after all, trust needs to be well established in order to allow for challenge and growth. Above all we seek to create the partnership between home and school which we know underpins success.
Meeting Time An opportunity for your child to discuss topical issues, engage in enterprise initiatives and to take leadership roles with the other members of their tutor group.
Your child’s day will start with Meeting Time. Run by their tutor, Meeting Time is an opportunity for your child to discuss topical issues, engage in enterprise initiatives and to take on leadership roles with the other members of their tutor group. Meeting Time focuses on the development of literacy, numeracy, oracy, thinking, reflection and teamwork. It provides an opportunity for students to engage with our values in a safe, supportive environment in which to challenge their preconceptions.
As your child progresses through Years 7 & 8 they, and others in their group, will increasingly take the lead in running these sessions with the tutor becoming a facilitator and mentor, rather than a teacher. This is how we build the capacity to learn, to lead and to work with others.
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The Houses
Brooke, Franklin and Tutte houses are communities in th pupils from Year 7 through to Year 11.
Your child will also join one of our three houses which they will stay in until they leave Newmarket Academy. The Houses are led by pastoral House teams who keep ‘a close eye on how well students are doing and make sure teachers are responding to their needs’. Chosen by our students the Houses are named Brooke, named after poet Rupert Brooke, Franklin, after scientist Rosalind Franklin, and
Tutte, after mathematician and code-breaker Bill Tutte. All local figures who epitomise our values. Houses are communities in themselves and they involve all students from Year 7 through to Year 11. Each house has its own identity and values, and these form a focus for assemblies, Meeting Time and events throughout the year. Belonging to a house engenders pride and a sense of belonging, provides opportunities for healthy competition and teamwork and promotes and embeds our values. The houses also provide a mechanism for students from all years to connect, meet and shape their identities.
hemselves and they involve all
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A Personalised Curriculum
The curriculum that your child will follow in Years 7 and 8 is one that i a firm base for continued success at GCSE and beyond.
At Newmarket Academy we are committed to ensuring every student makes better than the national average levels of progress. We have built a curriculum in years 7 and 8 which supports all students, challenges the most able and provides a ‘good balance of subjects which meets students’ needs and interests’. The curriculum that your child will follow in Years 7 & 8 is one that is designed to provide a firm base for continued success at GCSE and beyond. It is also a curriculum that recognises that not every child is the same. Our Challenge Curriculum offers, in addition to the National Curriculum subjects, a greater focus on languages and critical thinking,
is designed to provide
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whilst our Support Curriculum provides access to a full range of subjects that include English, Maths, Science, French, History, Geography, the Arts, Resistant Materials, Food & Nutrition and P.E. For those that would benefit from additional support in English and Maths, that is also available. We will work with you to help select the right curriculum for your child, and in the process of doing so, lay the foundations for GCSE success. The lessons that your child will take part in will vary in terms of the types of learning that takes place. Many will involve instructional activities that will help your child develop the skills needed to recall information quickly and accurately, others will have an enquiry focus, enabling students to spend longer carrying out investigations with increasing amounts of independence. In Maths, the focus will be on mastery, the process of ensuring full and complete understanding before moving on. Many lessons will have a practical component and will encourage the development of skills in the Arts, Resistant Materials and Sport. All lessons take full advantage of our ‘small’ school which allows students to move confidently to the many specialist resource areas that exist for Technology, Food Technology, Photography and Sport across the school. ‘Students support each other in lessons and they are keen to do well’.
Enrichment
We believe that enrichment opportunities are an essential part of your child ’s education.
We believe that enrichment opportunities are an essential part of your child’s development. That is why each student will be expected to choose at least one after school activity. Ofsted reported that ‘the addition of an extra timetabled lesson has given the students the opportunity to broaden their horizons, raise their aspirations and increase their enjoyment of school’. The Forest Heath Sports and Leisure Centre is on our site and offers opportunities for all students. These activities foster competition and team work and also resilience and leadership. That is why we have an intentional focus on leadership skills with every student having the opportunity to gain a leadership award, many externally validated. Through enrichment comes the confidence borne of trying something new, of broadened experiences and of a wider set of friendships. Enrichment encourages teamwork, competition and resilience. It also develops leadership. A sports complex with swimming pool, Astroturf, indoor cricket and tennis capability will support a new generation of sports stars, state of the art IT will help grow future mathematicians and scientists and
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performance opportunities develop confidence in the performing arts which goes beyond school. Year 7 students will also take part in the MidBac Award which encompasses a range of learning activities and opportunities to embed the values of the Academy, develop leadership skills and requires students to reflect upon their progress to help them in the future.
Ambition & High Aspirations
We believe that high aspirations underpin academic achievemen
We believe that high aspirations underpin academic achievement and personal development. We will encourage your child to believe in their potential, providing them with regular feedback, ambitious targets to reach for and careers advice and guidance to help them mould their futures. We know that this is an organic process, so your child’s tutor will review their ambitions and progress regularly. We also recognise that many of our students will ultimately want to consider applying to university, but that others capable of doing so may not have thought it possible for them. Our Aspiration & Challenge Programme aims to address this, providing enrichment activities run in conjunction with a number of Higher Education institutions, including the University of Cambridge and centres of excellence in London.
nt and personal development.
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Your child can expect to experience excellent teaching
Teaching
Newmarket Academy is a key member in the Suffolk Borders Teaching Alliance and our new ‘Research School’ designation. It enjoys close links with a number of outstanding training providers and offers a wide range of professional development for its teaching and support staff. We run a programme of Continued Professional Development for teachers, co-ordinated and delivered by qualified Lead Practitioners, with regular training and research sessions and quality assurance to ensure teaching is consistently high quality. As a result, Newmarket Academy’s teachers are very good and the approaches that they use are at the cutting edge of educational practice. Many of our teaching staff engage with educational research of one description or another. What this means for your child is that they can expect to experience excellent teaching and outstanding learning.
g and outstanding learning.
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The Academy
There is such a broad range of learning opportunities available, both ins
The move into Key Stage IV will mark a decisive moment for your child. On reaching Year 9 students are ready to begin their GCSE study, with firmly established academic skills and a sense of belonging as part of a House community. We maintain a clear and consistent focus on the individual needs of each student, who each have their own learning plan. Ofsted reported ‘strong pastoral care, targeted action and good support’ at the Academy. There is such a broad range of learning opportunities available,
side and outside the classroom.
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both inside and outside the classroom, including trips, extracurricular activities, exchange visits and summer term projects. Our students can go forward into careers or further education with the courage and confidence to achieve. Our careers guidance programme is a ‘strength in the school. The high quality advice helps students to understand why they need to work and do well’.
Peer Support
Many of the eldest students take on the role of mentors for the new me
Coaching groups remain small and Meeting Time continues, its focus remaining on the development of confidence, literacy and leadership. Our belief that positive peer to peer relationships help our students learn means that coaching groups in Year 9, 10 and 11 are vertical. This is a key feature of life in the Academy. Our experience suggests that this has a very positive impact on all year groups, with younger students learning from those slightly older than them, whilst many of the eldest students take on the role of mentors and coaches for the new members of their coaching group.
embers of their coaching group. www.newmarketacademy.co.uk
A Broad Curriculum
Students begin to increasingly ta
The core of the Newmarket Academy curriculum is focused on the English Baccalaureate; English, Maths, Science, a Modern Foreign Language and History or Geography, as we believe this provides the best range of experiences for the vast majority of learners, and that achieving well in these subjects will enable them to access more skilled employment and the Sixth Form Centre. The majority of students also take an Art and a Technology subject, though under these umbrellas sits an expansive list of qualifications to suit each individual, some with a strong vocational element. Standards in Art, Drama and
ailor their own learning.
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Technology are high. Students’ work is breathtaking in quality: from Drama productions and musical performance to painting, sculpture and in applied subjects like engineering. More able students can also take Classics in addition to separate courses in Biology, Chemistry and Physics, whilst there are other options available to students who need additional support with Maths, English and work related learning. Our students connect with the wider world through annual exchange trips with France and Lexington USA and we have strong links with schools in France, Holland and the United States. We have trips to Spain, India and a planned Maths challenge to New York City. We have secured sponsorship from the local community to make it possible to open these trips to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Opportunities to learn never end. We have weekend classes, and our learning platform provides resources and lesson details and support 24 hours a day.
Achievement
Students make exceptional progress from their starting
At GCSE, students at the Academy make greater progress than students nationally. The reason for this is the attention given to trying to meet the individual needs and interests of each student, as well as the outstanding teaching delivered by our staff. As a result, students make ‘good progress’ from their different starting points, no matter what their ability. Ultimately this leads on to A Level success, access to apprenticeships or progression into other areas of Further Education.
g points, no matter their ability.
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Leadership
We offer a plethora of leadership qualifications, many of
We offer a wealth of leadership opportunities including roles as school, sport, e-safety, subject and house ambassador. Many of the students that engage with these schemes also help out in our partner schools in the community and in doing so help the next generation of students to successfully make the transition to Newmarket Academy. The Student Leadership Award is available to all students and is externally accredited. Students take part in the Duke of Edinburgh Award, the Junior Community Sports Leader Award, can become trained peer mentors and access Young Enterprise leadership opportunities. This programme was recognised by the 2017 Inspection team.
f them nationally accredited. www.newmarketacademy.co.uk
Partnership
We know that real success is achieved through p
We are proud of our partnership with the community. Newmarket is a proud and historic town and we are grateful for the support of the community. The Newmarket Academy Godolphin Beacon Project raises the ambition and aspiration of every one of our students. The project puts the school at the cutting edge of community partnership and has been a significant factor in the transformation of the school. ‘The school has developed strong ties with local organisations and this is raising students’ aspirations and broadening their horizons’. We believe that a positive mind-set can make a significant difference to a learner’s sense of themselves and of what they can achieve, so we provide targeted feedback, plenty of practice and an enormous amount of emotional support to ensure that our students are ready and ambitious to encounter the challenges they will face. We have a strong focus on the building of resilience and, through our programme of carefully considered examination preparation, we help our students master the techniques they will need in order to be successful. We know, however, that real success is achieved through partnership and mutual support, so we will also work with you to ensure that you feel well equipped to support your child in their learning.
partnership and mutual support.
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Sixth Form
As your child moves through the Academy and then on to the Sixth Form at the new Sixth Form Centre in Bury St Edmunds they can look forward to the future with confidence, a confidence built on firm values; a confidence that comes from preparing for the future now. Our status as a key partner in this project will ensure that all of the Academy students will be given a place at the centre, a seamless transition will be able to take place and transport provided.
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Newmarket Academy, Exning Road, Newmarket, Suffolk, CB8 0EB Tel: 01638 664412 www.newmarketacademy.co.uk