Firstly I would like to say a big well done to our Year 11s who finished their second round of mock GCSEs last Friday. Once again we are so very proud of them, they have worked hard and on the surface seemed very calm and in control. I am sure they will tell me that they were swan like, (paddling furiously underneath!). Many of them seemed to be quite pleased with how their exams went; a gentle indicator that they had prepared! Well done Year 11.

I would also like to say well done to our new Exams Officer Emma King whose hard work and precision meant the mocks were executed with hardly a hitch.

As you may know we are very frustrated that Covid has got the better of us this week and we have had to move to a rotation of remote learning for some groups. I know that we are not the only school in the area having to do this and I am devastated that we cannot keep the school fully open. However, I am also sure that this way, we can ensure quality teaching of our students by teachers they know and trust, rather than external supply (which we are struggling to obtain) or large-scale auditorium style teaching. We are very hopeful that this is an extremely short-term measure and that this may only need to happen intermittently, leading up to Easter.

 

Fundraising

We had a excellent turn out for Comic Relief and news below about the RSPCA collection. We now turn our thoughts to Ukraine and I would like to thank those of you who have already been so generous with the items specified on the poster. We will continue with the fundraising until the end of term, especially as the ever enthusiastic senior students have approached me with some specific fundraising ideas for Ukraine, above and beyond the collections of items. 

 

 

 

Eco Hub News - ECO VOLUNTEERING DAY POSTPONED

Unfortunately, due to staff illness, we are having to postpone our Eco volunteering day to Saturday 23rd April, after the Easter Holidays. Thank you to those who have already returned their consent letter. Please see the attached letter with the new date or grab one from Ms Pillar or Mrs Holmes. Helpfully, postponing the day does mean that the ground will have warmed up for our plants to go in and we will all be a bit warmer when digging the pond. We can’t wait to make the Eco Hub even more wildlife friendly; so far, we’ve spotted blue tits, robins and bullfinches enjoying our new bird table. The volunteer day now also coincides with Earth Day which is on Friday 22nd April. More details can be found using this weblink, https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2022/.

Next week, we begin our two week Great British School Clean in partnership with charity Keep Britain Tidy. Look out for the posters and slides in mentor time explaining how you can get involved and why we should care about the waste we produce. Keep an eye out for any litter that can be recycled or put in the bins around the school site. You can even make a pledge to ‘pick up a bag’ at www.keepbritaintidy.org. As the #GBSchoolClean slogan says, ‘No one is too small to make a big difference.’  Kind regards, Ms S Pillar

 

 

Ski Trip

We are currently in the process of finalising the details for the Ski Trip which we plan to take place during February half term 2023.  We have been in contact with a number of different companies and the price has come back very similar with all of them, the resort which we will be going to is Crans-Montana in Switzerland, we will be flying as per the feedback from the survey.  We want to have a definitive price in the next two weeks for the trip but the likely cost will be between £1300-£1400.  Full details of the trip will be shared once the price has been confirmed.

 

 

Year 7 Rugby Tournament

14 Year 7 boys had the opportunity to take part in their first ever 10 v 10 Rugby games and tournament, the team had the opportunity to play 5 other local schools and put into practice what they had been learning in lessons and Rugby Club.  Although not winning any of their games they did get better as the tournament progressed scoring a total 3 try's, losing one game with the final play of the game.  In the last game Ringmer finished scoring the last try of the game against an extremely strong Seaford team.  They all played within the spirit of the game and showed excellent sportsmanship.  Well Done, Mr Coulthard

 

 

Ronnie's competition - The results are in!

I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who got involved with both guessing Ronnie's breeds and donating to the RSPCA. They are extremely grateful for all of your donations as are all the animals they care for.

We are only looking at the top 3 results from Ronnie's DNA, they actually found 15 different breeds!

No one got the top 3 but many got 2 out of 3 so a big well done.

If you would like to follow Ronnie on instagram to see all her adventures please add her, ronnietheringmerrescuedog.

Thank you,

Miss Jo Beattie, Teaching assistant / ELSA / Wellbeing practitioner 

 

Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) are back for 2022

Following the success of the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) project in 2021, the programme is back again for 2022.

The programme has already been hugely beneficial for children across East Sussex, with thousands accessing provision in 2021. You can take a look at the positive impact on the website.

The sessions, which include the provision of a healthy meal, are available for free to young people between 5-16 in receipt of benefit-related free school meals thanks to funding provided by the Department for Education.

Funded activities will be taking place during the Easter, summer and winter school holidays, with 49 providers already confirmed for delivery in April. Activities over Easter will range from skiing to circus skills, from programming to bushcraft, from arts and media to drama and music. There is something for everyone! The activities are running out of more than 70 different schools and community venues county-wide over the holiday period. To find out what provision is running in your local area and book a place please check the Holiday, Food and Fun webpage.

https://new.eastsussex.gov.uk/children-families/childcare/welcome-to-holiday-food-and-fun 

 

 

Easter Holiday Food and Fun – South Brockwells Farm  - Mini Farmers

Please see the attached flyer below.  South Brockwells Farm is a very local farm to you where they are launching a Farm School over the coming months with the aim of working with children and young people to educate them on the role farming plays in their lives and to support with their mental health and wellbeing through working with animals.  

They are very pleased to be launching our new HAF Easter Holiday Club - South Brockwells Farm Mini Farmers for children aged 7-14. This is free for families receiving benefits-related free school meals.

 

Update on Ringmer Youth Project - Design a logo

A new youth drop-in is to open every Friday evening (term time) between 6-8pm. Sadly due to business pressures, the Forge is no longer available, but we are still aiming to open up at a venue in Ringmer from 22 April. 

BUT before this -we need your help!   We need a NAME and a LOGO designed by YOU!

The space will be open exclusively to pupils in Years 8-11 as a place to meet friends. There will be a £2 admission fee and you’ll be asked to book in with us when you arrive and book out when you leave.   This new group is being set up by a small group and funded by the Community Safety Partnership.

Please send your ideas for name (on its own) or name and logo before 1 April to us at RingmerYP@outlook.com   Our friends at the Coffee Lounge have offered a £20 voucher to treat the winner.

If you have any questions or ideas about what you'd like to see at your youth club, let us know via email.

Parents & Carers – you’re invited to come to an information session from 8pm on Tuesday 29 March at the Anchor. Please email us at RingmerYP@outlook.com to stay in touch.

 

 

All Abroad! Bus Easter Holiday clubs in Glynde 11-14th April - FREE FOR FSM

Please see the attached flyer for All Abroad! Bus Easter holiday clubs to the families who receive/are eligible for benefits-related free school meals and also to those who meet any of the criteria listed in the table below.

This provision is part of  the Government’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme which is once again offering fun, food and enrichment for children and young people across England during the holidays - the full list of provisions is here. 

All Abroad! Bus aims to 'transport' children abroad through the languages, tastes and cultures of food, primarily from French-, German- and Spanish-speaking countries around the world.

Other eligible groups

Referred to Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services

Disabled – Have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) Have special educational needs or disability (SEND) or are on the disability register

Young Carers (look after someone at home)

Have a disabled sibling

Referred to the School Mental Health Teams

Electively home educated

Gypsy, Roma & Traveller

Supported by “Family Focus”/”Troubled Families” services provided by the council

Children in Need (CiN), Children on a Child Protection Plan (CP) and Looked After Children (LAC)

Live in areas of high deprivation

 

Jumble Sale – Saturday 26 March in aid of the Ukraine Appeal

 

Safeguarding

Child Q - Safeguarding Practice 

You may have read about the case of Child Q who was strip searched by two female Metropolitan Police Officers in a school. The review report by City and Hackney Safeguarding Children Partnership published this week makes dreadful reading. There are a number of shocking aspects to the case, not least that no-one from the police or the school spoke to a parent. Child Q was so distressed about what had happened that her mother took her to the GP, and it was the GP that contacted Children's Services.

The review report is 'clear that the strip search of Child Q should never have happened and there was no reasonable justification for it.' The report found that the school was fully compliant with expected practice standards when responding to its concerns about Child Q smelling of cannabis and its subsequent search of Child Q’s coat, bag, scarf and shoes. 'This demonstrated good curiosity by involved staff and an alertness to potential indicators of risk.'

You can be reassured that we will at all times act in accordance with our behaviour policy which states that:  

The Principal and staff authorised by the Principal have the power to search students or their possessions, without consent, where they suspect the student has a “prohibited item”. 

We search students at Kings Academy Ringmer only if we suspect that they are carrying a prohibited item and we therefore need to safeguard all stakeholders in the school community.

However at all times we must preserve the dignity of the students in our care therefore: 

• An appropriate room is used for the purpose of searching

• The manner in which searching is conducted is considered and sensitive 

• Pockets and bags are only searched

• Use of a metal detector will be used over the body

• There will no physical contact made with the student’s body at any time, unless the student is at risk of harming themselves or others

• There will always be two members of staff present, at least one of which will be of the same gender as the student

• We will inform parents/carers if we have had to make a search and agree with the parents any further random searches, going forward.

 

 

Have a great weekend.

 

Kind regards

Sian Williams

Principal