thestreetlyacademy valuesandachievement
Our Vision Values and Achievement At The Streetly Academy, our moral compass is steered by our very clear values. Our emphasis on some traditional expectations of respect, good old-fashioned uniform standards, and effort are fully encapsulated with our PRIDE system, drawn from the Olympic and Paralympic Values of Personal Excellence, Respect and Friendship, Inspiration, Determination and Courage, and Equality. These values run through the school in everything we do. At The Streetly Academy we feel morally obliged to consistently improve in everything we do. From teaching to support work, behaviour management to leadership, working to ensure that every student, no matter what their ability, can grow, flourish, and achieve in a safe and stimulating environment. Values and Achievement sit at the centre of our vision, and we expect that every person connected to the school, parent or governor, student or staff member, maintains the same focus.
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Our Curriculum
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Assessment
Key Stage 3 At Key Stage 3, the curriculum is broad and balanced for all our students. They study a range of subjects including English, Maths, Science, ICT and PE. Beyond this core, Geography, History and Religious Education are taught as separate humanities to all students. Drama, Art and Music comprise the Creative and Expressive Arts curriculum. French and Spanish are learnt by students throughout the Key Stage. Technology is taught through a carousel of different aspects; electronics, food technology, resistant materials, systems and control and graphical products. We offer Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship Education (PSHCE) throughout the Key Stage. Students are divided into two equal ability bands in each year. These bands are then set by ability in English, Maths, Science, Modern Languages and PE. There is a high achieving set in each band in each year in all subjects – the Alpha group. We also create a transition group that nurtures those students who require additional support. Key Stage 4 We strive towards a Key Stage 4 programme that allows for personalisation. This is achieved through student preferences, learning styles and the range of courses on offer. These courses are a blend of traditional GCSE’s, Applied GCSE’s and Vocational options. Maths, English, Science, PE, Religious Education and PSHCE are courses that remain as a crucial part of the curriculum throughout this Key Stage.
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An essential part of our curriculum is the setting of student targets for achievement over a Key Stage. These targets encourage students to be aware of their potential and to work towards challenging goals. The targets are based on each student’s personal achievement in their Key Stage 2 SATs at primary school. At Key Stage 3, targets are broken down into manageable steps and at Key Stages 4 & 5 targets are set at the start of each course. Progress towards targets is measured formally four times a year and, within subjects, even more regularly. A progress report is issued to parents and carers so that they can follow their child’s achievements after key assessments and these reports also feed into the Parent Portal of the FROG platform. There are regular, calendared, meetings for students to meet with their form tutor to discuss their progress and to set personal targets. There are additional meetings for GCSE & Post 16 students to meet with a member of the Senior Leadership Team to discuss vital progress towards their targets. In addition to this, a full written report for each subject is issued during the year. In this report there is a detailed statement outlining what each student has studied and achieved, as well as a series of improvement targets. Form tutors and pastoral staff also comment on the student’s personal qualities and commitment to the school. Parents and carers have the opportunity to meet with staff at our Parents’ Evenings, which are always very well attended. Students are given the responsibility of making appointments for their parents to suit their personal needs. Parents can also contact pastoral and subject staff throughout the year if they have concerns.
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Specialism Although school specialisms are a thing of the past, we still maintain that our commitment to our specialism is Physical Education and Sport. Through high quality facilities (including our new Fitness Suite and All Weather Pitch) provision and teaching we offer a high quality programme of Physical Education and extra-curricular activities. We are a lead partner school with the Youth Sport Trust and have achieved ‘Gold Partner Status’ as a result of our outstanding work. Since 2011, we have acted as the hub site for our School Games Organiser. This exciting development extends our work into our partner primary and secondary schools, where we play a crucial role in providing competitive opportunities for all students in our region.
valuesandachievement
The Streetly Academy – a Specialist Sports College
We are a successful Sports College, and this success has been achieved through a number of strategies: • An increase in specialist PE teachers – this has enabled us to provide all students with two hours of high quality PE each week. It has also enabled us to increase the amount of out of hours activities and events our students can take part in. These activities cater for all students, from physical recreation activities to high level sport. • The range of PE and Sports qualifications that are on offer through the curriculum increases each year and all students have the opportunity to do Sports Leadership awards, particularly in Key Stage 4 and Post 16.
Our sports specialism is not just confined to the Physical Education department but is embedded across every aspect of school life through the Olympic and Paralympic values. Students are rewarded for demonstrating; Personal Excellence, Respect, Friendship, Inspiration, Determination, Courage and Equality in every lesson, every day. We believe that these values are transferable to all aspects of life and contribute to being a positive, well-rounded citizen.
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Work Related Learning In accordance with the QCA guidelines for delivery of Work Related Learning (WRL) The Streetly Academy is committed to delivering a comprehensive range of opportunities to learn and develop skills about the work place and future career opportunities. Although only being obliged to deliver WRL as part of the Key Stage 4 curriculum, The Streetly Academy has taken steps to go above and beyond this requirement and is currently delivering useful activities across the Key Stage 3 curriculum as well. There are many ways in which students have the opportunity to visit employers to gain experiences of subject skills in relation to a particular job. Also, there are a growing number of areas in the school that have developed links with businesses in the local community and we are fortunate to have many employers coming into school to get involved with project based tasks.
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Enterprise The Streetly Academy places real importance in making sure that students are encouraged to develop the skills to be successful when entering the world of work. Indeed, Enterprise is delivered across the curriculum and through wider school events. Firstly, the cross curricular delivery of Citizenship makes sure all students are taught the important issues of financial and economic understanding of the world they are about to enter. This deals with important matters such as dealing with money and how to handle budgeting. Enterprise is also delivered in many forms in the curriculum. Lessons are delivered with a focus to encourage those skills each student may need to be successful in the world of work; such as team working, taking risks, problem-solving, presenting and communicating to people. It is the school’s intention that through thorough use of Enterprise skills such as these, students will develop into more prepared employees and employers of the future.
Along with the delivery of Enterprise Education, Work Experience and our Annual Careers Information Evening in preparation for students leaving the school, there are many other WRL events. These other events include work simulations in lessons and interview simulations to prepare students for the skills required when leaving into the competitive field of work. Over recent times there have been significant opportunities offered by the school to make sure that students leave our school with the most informed and rounded chance of success when entering the world of work.
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Careers Education
Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship Education (PSHCE)
Careers education and guidance is an important element within the curriculum. We work closely with local firms and businesses who attend a Careers Fair to offer information and guidance to students. Connexions and ESS-Team are organisations used by the school which offer advice on education and careers, playing a part in preparing our students for their lives out of school and all Year 11 students
The PSHCE programme aims to enable students to develop a healthy, safe lifestyle and to make informed choices regarding personal, social and moral issues. The programme incorporates sessions on drugs education and substance abuse, together with sex and relationships education.
have an interview with a qualified adviser.
Drugs Education
Careers education is part of the PSHCE programme and a structured and varied programme is in place for all year groups. A number of our students participate in an Employability Skills Programme, delivered in conjunction with Walsall Education Business Partnership.
Schools play a key role in providing education relating to drugs and we aim to create a safe and supportive environment that enables young people to develop their knowledge, understanding, and attitudes to drugs and drug related issues and the consequences of substance abuse.
Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) SRE is incorporated into the PSHCE programme and is taught within a moral and values framework which enables students to make informed choices in their later lives.
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Citizenship
Out of Hours
The cross curricular citizenship programme aims to give students the knowledge, skills and understanding to become informed, thoughtful and responsible citizens. We aim to achieve this by raising students’ political awareness in addition to their awareness of moral and social responsibilities and understanding of their role within the local, national and global community. The Citizenship programme promotes an understanding and respect for
As a Lead Partner School with the Youth Sport Trust, The Streetly Academy provides many out of hours activities for students. The PE department provides a new timetable each term in a whole range of activities for all students. These activities range from trampolining, dance, aerobics, fitness training, badminton and futsal.
diversity and an awareness of rights and responsibilities and what these can mean in practice. We encourage students to become involved in active citizenship projects and our students regularly raise money for a number of different charities.
The school has teams in football, cricket, rugby, netball, athletics, swimming and rounders. Many more opportunities are organised through the House system and these also range from mass participation events to more competitive events, like the annual school Sports Day at The Alexander Stadium. The school organises many visits, trips and holidays throughout the year for students of all ages. These include language visits to Spain and France, PE visits to an outdoor pursuit centre and the Year 7 residential. Weekend visits are organised for our gifted and talented students. The school has an annual musical production which is the culmination of work from the Music, Drama, Dance and Art departments. The school also runs revision classes, booster sessions and specialist subject clubs for students in many subject areas.
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Special Educational Needs including Physical Disability Our Special Educational Needs department supports students with a wide range of needs. The department currently has a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO), Physical Disability (PD) Co-ordinator and 19 Teaching Assistants, 3 of whom are Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HLTA’s). The SENCO teaches the Year 7 transition group. This group benefits from small group teaching in the basic skills and other subjects with one teacher for 40% of their timetable, enabling their effective transition to secondary education. The department is streamlined into teams (autism, dyslexia, language skills development, physical disability, social communication, Successmaker, to name but a few) whereby Teaching Assistants can offer effective interventions to support students, both within and out of lessons. We offer supervised provision at break and lunchtimes, and a weekly Homework Club. Our Teaching Assistants also support educational visits. We aim to provide a personalised education programme for our students, and involve them in person-centred reviews.
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The Streetly Academy is an Additionally Resourced Provision (ARP) school for students with physical disability, within the Special Needs department. We cater for all disabilities, thus enabling students to access mainstream education, supporting both educational and personal needs. The school buildings are accessible to all, and our facilities include a Physio room, Personal Hygiene rooms and specialist equipment for PE, D&T and other subjects. Also, a number of extra-curricular activities are organised for our students. A recent visitor commented, “I feel that the department do their utmost for the students and truly value their individual needs, enabling and empowering them to learn and achieve, as independently as possible”. If you require further information, please don’t hesitate to contact either our SENCO or PD Co-ordinator on the school number, extension 327.
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valuesandachievement
Transition
Pastoral System
Moving from primary to secondary school is an exciting time for most children, but we recognise that it can be a challenging experience for some.
On joining The Streetly Academy, students are placed in one of 9 mixed ability form groups. Students will stay with their form and form tutor for the whole of their time in school. Each year group has its own designated social space and students are encouraged to take responsibility for their particular area.
We aim to make the process as secure and happy as possible and we spend a lot of time throughout the year visiting our local primary schools to get to know students before they join us in September. In addition, there are occasions when primary school students are invited in to Streetly in order to get to know the school and our teachers and other staff. Our induction programme is planned to enable students to feel a part of the Streetly team as quickly as possible. This includes: •• September Open Evening for prospective Year 6 students and parents •• Ongoing Primary school visits throughout the year •• June Induction event for specific primary schools
Each year group is led by a Head of Year and an Assistant Head of Year, who are responsible for the care and guidance of students in their year group. The pastoral staff, including your child’s form tutor, work in partnership with parents to ensure that all students are supported in their progress. We believe in building close links between home and school in order to minimise problems and celebrate success. The school is organised into 3 houses for the purpose of sports and other competitions. The houses are: Atlas (yellow stripe on tie) Electra (red stripe on tie) Maia (blue stripe on tie)
•• July Induction Day & Evening for all students •• September special first day for new Year 7 students •• October ‘Settling in’ Parents’ Evening •• October Residential experience
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Attendance Good attendance is the key to your child’s success. We have high expectations of attendance for all of our students and we expect them to attend 100% of the time unless they are ill. Our reward system recognises those with outstanding attendance. We ask that all parents support the school in maximising levels of attendance. We work with an Education Welfare Officer to support parents who may experience difficulty in ensuring their child’s full attendance. Parents are asked to contact the school on the first day of their child’s absence to supply a reason for any nonattendance.
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Expectations Rewards At The Streetly Academy we aim to recognise and celebrate the achievements of all students who demonstrate a positive attitude towards school through the Olympic and Paralympic values. These values are recognised and students are rewarded for demonstrating them in all aspects of school life. Through our electronic ‘Sleuth’ system, behaviour points are collected by students throughout the year with our top performers receiving e-mail certificates and prizes are awarded to tutor groups at regular intervals. Students are also rewarded at our high profile Curriculum Awards Evenings and our PRIDE Awards Evening which takes place at Villa Park.
If your child is taken ill at school, it is important that we are able to contact you straight away. Therefore it is vital that your child’s personal records and contact details are kept up to date: if you change address or telephone number, please notify the school office immediately.
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Sanctions
Uniform
The Streetly Academy expects very high standards of behaviour from all students.
We expect all of our students to wear their Streetly uniform with pride. Looking smart and ready for work establishes a positive attitude to their studies.
Where these standards are not met, we have a scale of sanctions which ranges from a verbal warning to detentions and finally to fixed term or ultimately permanent exclusion as a last resort. We believe in working closely with parents to prevent minor problems escalating into more serious breaches of our behaviour policy.
Bullying Unfortunately, a certain level of bullying exists in all schools. However, we believe that here at The Streetly Academy, bullying is not a problem that the vast majority of students will experience. We deal with any report of bullying quickly and sensitively and we encourage students, parents and carers to let us know if they have any concerns.
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Project Streetly The Streetly Academy is committed to providing high quality leadership opportunities to all of our students. Our Project Streetly programme was introduced in 2011 and has grown into 13 different groups with over 10% of the school population leading on various projects across the school. Teams such as the Charities team, the Community team, the Events team, the Media team and the Sports Leaders team plan and organise events, provide services and initiatives that directly affect the lives of all people associated with The Streetly Academy and the local community. All students can join a Project Streetly team through a short application process and our aim is to have all students involved and contributing to the successful running of The Streetly Academy in the future.
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School Meals We operate an in house cashless catering service, providing a variety of high quality meals at breakfast, break and lunch times. The Sixth Form can use the facilities throughout the morning as a Bistro style service. All meals offered comply with the current nutritional guidelines, and we also use a software package which both calculates the nutritional breakdown of meals and identifies allergy information. We recognise the guidance and advice provided by various organisations including the School Food Trust regarding healthy eating and healthy lifestyles. Students bringing packed lunches are catered for and can eat with friends in the dining area. The Catering Manager is happy to advise and give guidance on specific dietary requirements on request. We have a 5 star rating from Environmental Health for food safety and hygiene.
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Homework & Learner Autonomy At The Streetly Academy we recognise that homework is a vital aspect of developing Learner Autonomy and supporting the progress of our students. We also value the support of parents in fostering this aspect of student work. Learner autonomy is a vital skill to develop as your child progresses through the school. The amount of homework set should always be reasonable, but challenging in order to prepare students for the rigors of GCSE and Post 16 education. We use our FROG learning platform and student handbooks to communicate homework to students and parents.
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Reading At The Streetly Academy we see reading as having the single most measurable impact on the progress and achievement of our students and as such it is a priority within our curriculum and as part of homework set. Reading helps develop concentration, vocabulary, an understanding of language and imagination. We ask our parents to support us by encouraging reading at home. ‘Reading for pleasure has been increasingly recognised as not only having a bearing on reading skills but as intrinsically important in its impact on life chances’ (Bradshaw et al., 2010).
We ask parents to monitor the quality of homework your child is doing and of course to communicate with teaching staff about any concerns about homework being set or being done by your child.
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Sixth Form The Streetly Academy Sixth Form is a community of learners enrolled on both Level 2 and Level 3 courses. A large percentage of our population is made up of students who have already secured success in their GCSE courses at The Streetly Academy and who wish to continue their learning journey with us – a relationship founded on success which we wish to see continue. Our students benefit from modern, purpose-built accommodation providing both study and recreational spaces, including enhanced sporting facilities such as our Sports Hall, Fitness Suite, Dance Studio and refurbished All Weather Pitch. We are proud to offer over 30 courses of study within the Sixth Form, with the majority of these being GCE A levels. Some of these are in traditional academic disciplines – the subjects students might have studied at GCSE – English Literature or History, for example; others are non-traditional or vocational subjects such as Economics, Film Studies or Forensic Science. A separate Sixth Form prospectus is available on request.
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