Dear Parent/Carer,

Welcome to our first monthly newsletter of 2015 where we

can share with you important information about the life of

the Academy.

HMI MONITORING VISIT

I am very pleased to share with you the feedback from our

HMI Monitoring Inspection in December. The full letter can

be found under the ‘Latest News’ section on our Academy

website, which states that the Academy is taking effective

action to tackle the areas requiring improvement as identified

in the full inspection in September.

I have highlighted some of the key headlines from the report:

“You (the Principal) are resolute in your determination to

improve the Academy. As a result of the well prioritised

actions you are taking, the Academy is moving in the right

direction”.

“Attendance is improving … and … Fixed Penalty notices

have been used successfully to improve the attendance of

students who are persistently absent”.

“Leaders regularly check on the quality of teaching”.

“Subject leaders hold teachers to account for the slower

progress of some students”.

“You have rightly organised extra support for students and

are monitoring their progress carefully”.

Governors… are robust in challenging the Principal and the

senior leaders to make improvements in a timely manner.

We are very pleased to inform you that there will not be any

further monitoring visits required at this time.

We maintain a strong focus on the quality of teaching in

order for all students to make at least expected progress,

especially our current Year 11 who are working towards their

summer exams.

Alongside this we are focussed on ensuring that behaviour

for learning is good and improving.

If you would like to contact me directly about any matter,

please email me at principal@theacademy.me

Please also see page 2 for highlights from the article in last

weeks’ Bucks Herald about the progress we are making.

CHANGES TO THE SENIOR LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE

At the end of term, Mr McGroary stepped down from his role

as Vice Principal. He is now a full-time member of the

English curriculum team.

Mrs Haslam has stepped down from her post of Vice

Principal, but continues to support the senior leadership team

as Director of Operations. She retains oversight of Post-16

amongst her other areas of responsibility.

Mr Neil Sykes has joined us this term as Interim Vice Principal

and has already established himself positively with students

and staff within the Academy. His key areas of responsibility

are Behaviour for Learning and oversight of Year 11,

working with Miss Kitter who is the new Achievement Director

for Year 11.

NEW STAFF

This term we have welcomed several new staff:

Miss Burn, Curriculum Leader Maths

Ms Morris, Teacher of D&T

Ms Hasnain, Teacher of Science

Mr Pfiffer, Teacher of Science

Mr Piers, Teacher of MFL

Mr Bryan, Teacher of Media

Ms Hussain – continues as Teacher of Law

Miss Holloway, Learning Support Assistant

Mr Bowen, Learning Support Assistant

Ms Rajkovchevska, Learning Support Assistant

Mrs F Froment

Principal

Newsletter of The Aylesbury Vale Academy

Paradise Orchard Berryfields Aylesbury Buckinghamshire HP18 0WS

t 01296 428 551 enquiries@theacademy.me www.theacademy.me

January 2015

Dates for your diary, February 2015

05 Feb

Year 10 University of Bedfordshire Visit

11 Feb

Years 10, 12 and 13 Careers Fair

11 Feb

Years10, 11, 12 and 13 Performing Arts Evening

12 Feb

Year 10 Parents Evening

24 Feb

Year 10 Challenge Day at the University of Cambridge

26 Feb

Year 11 GCSE Performing Arts Theatre Workshop

(Aylesbury Waterside Theatre, Evening session)

Y9 GCSE Options Process

Year 9 are currently going through a really crucial time for them

as they make decisions about which subjects they want to take

as they move into KS4. Please use the key dates below to help

with your discussions with your student at home. The options

booklet contains details of the curriculum on offer to the

students along with details of all courses we are possibly offering

depending on numbers. Copies can be downloaded from the

website in the Year 9 section.

Key dates include:

29th January - Options evening

An opportunity to explore the subjects that may be offered

23rd February

Option Block forms returned to tutors, signed by parents

All students will have an individual meeting with staff to discuss

their option choices and where necessary choose alternative

courses if their first choice is not appropriate or available.

Confirmation letters will be sent home before Easter with the

details of all options agreed for KS4.

An Ofsted inspector says

Aylesbury Vale Academy is

making progress after being told

it required improvement in

September.

During a recent ‘monitoring’ visit

inspector Sarah Hubbard held

meetings with staff and observed

English and maths classes.

In a letter sent to academy

principal Fiona Froment, she

writes: “You are resolute in your

determination to improve the

academy.

“As a result of the well-prioritised

actions you are taking, the

academy is moving in the right

direction.”

The report adds that “the assistant

vice principal is monitoring

students attendance carefully and attendance is improving as a result”.

“Fixed penalty notices have been used successfully to improve the attendance of students who are persistently absent.”

Bucks Herald Headlines - Aylesbury Vale Academy ‘moving in the right direction’

Principal Fiona Froment outside the Aylesbury Vale Academy

In case of snow!

All students and parents are reminded that in the event of the

Academy being either fully or partially closed due to snow or

extreme weather, announcements about the closure and which

years are affected will be posted on the Bucks schools closure

site http://closures.buckscc.gov.uk/, played on Mix96 and

placed on the Academy website. Please avoid calling into the

school as the switchboard does not open until 8am.

Work for students will be placed on Show my homework so that

students can continue to learn throughout the day.

News from Post 16

UCAS

The UCAS deadline has passed and 24 of our current

Year 13 students along with 2 students from last year

submitted applications to University courses through

UCAS. This is the highest number of students applying in

any one year and is almost 50% of the Year 13 cohort.

Students have applied to courses as diverse as Law,

Nursing and Psychology to Music Technology, Digital

Games Design and Television and Film Production.

Almost half the students have already received at least one

conditional offer and we look forward to updating you

with their progress as the year continues.

Post 16 Open Evening

Over 60 students in Year 11 came to look around the

fabulous post 16 facilities and to see the range of subjects

that may be on offer next year during the Open Evening

on 19th January.

For anyone who was unable to make that evening there

are copies of the booklet available from Mrs Sutton, Mrs

Haslam or Mrs Freshwater in school. School staff are

available to help students make informed choices at this

crucial time.

Form tutors, Miss Kitter, Mr Sykes and the post 16 team

are available in school along with the independent

support from Connexions on a Tuesday and

Thursday. Application forms are due to be returned to

school by Tuesday 3rd February.

The Option booklet is available on the AVA website and

contains further information about the possible subjects,

the process for applications and the key dates.

Upcoming Careers Day 11 February

Students in Year 10, 12 and 13 will meet professionals

from the world of work at a careers event on 11 February.

The day will see a range of industry professionals visit the

school to give talks about their industry.

The pupils will then have the opportunity to question them

on all aspects of their role, to get a better picture of what

the job is really like. The event run last year was very

popular with students and the day aims to make students

aware of the choices within their next steps; to inspire them

academically and professionally and enable students to

make informed decisions when selecting their future

career.

After the event please talk to your students about the event

and find out what they have learned through the sessions.

Media Studies trip to the BBFC

As part of our Media coursework unit we visited the

British Board of Film Classification in London on Tuesday

20th January in the hope of gaining some insight into the

world of film and age restriction. The trip was very useful

and we were able to have a personal interview with the

BBFC Education Officer, Heidi Renton. We got to ask her

further questions directly related to our coursework task

and we also got the chance to film her response to use in

our creative A2 coursework documentary.

I really enjoyed this experience and found it very beneficial

as we were not just getting opinions from other sixth

formers and pupils in our school, we also got the chance

to meet new people and get a more diverse response to

film to use in our coursework. Jessica Hill, Year 13

We also participated in a short briefing from one of few

directors at the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification).

This was an essential element in our studies as we were

luckily allowed to conduct a short interview with the

director herself, in which we will use in the making of our

documentary for part of our coursework, along with the

information gained from interviewing random people in

the streets of London purely to show realistic view of

society’s opinions. Trevina Durham, Year 13

Year 11

Year 11 had a mock results assembly on Thursday 15th

January to give students a taste of their final results day in

August. Many students were extremely pleased with their

results and some of their feedback can be found below.

“I was pleased with my English results, I worked hard for

them.”

Brittany Labross, 11 Far 2

“I’ve really improved in Science – I did this by working

hard and asking questions when I am unsure about

something.”

Aleese Smith, 11 Nob 2

“I was happy with my Maths results in particular.”

Gemma Weimar, 11 Far 2

“I was really pleased with my Maths result – all my

hardwork and revision paid off!”

Paige Horsler, 11 Nob 2

“I’m happy with my results and I will continue to work hard

to improve them further. Nothing is impossible, even the

word itself says possible.”

Ishmal Malik, 11 Fra 2

“I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust

my sails to always reach my destination.”

Jack Carroll, 11 Far 2

“I was pleased with my results as I answered all the

questions on the exam papers successfully.”

Liam Wells, 11 Nob 2

“Through hard work and determination I achieved some

great results, including an A* in Catering.”

Destini Smith, 11 Fra 2

Three Key Revision Tips

1.Start revising early

If you haven’t already started, now is the time to start your

revision. Make a timetable to plan your revision and stick

to it. Remember to also attend the revision sessions at

school.

2. Don’t spend ages making your notes look pretty.

Don’t waste your time. For diagrams, include all the

information you need, but don’t try to produce a work of

art. Limit yourself to two or three colours when

highlighting.

3. Take short breaks

Plan to take a break every hour when you are revising.

Chaplain’s Corner

Well, Christmas and New Year’s Eve already seem a long way

behind us and if you’re anything like me you’d probably have to

trawl your memory banks to remember exactly what you did,

gave or received over the period.

Our memories

aren’t great;

we soon forget

and move

onto the next

thing in our

lives. That’s

why we read in

the Bible that

God gave the

Israelites their

festivals “so

you can remember”, they are told; Christians celebrate

Communion or Mass because Jesus told them to remember his

crucifixion and a few weeks back many Muslims celebrated an

Eid for Milād-un-Nabī to remember the birth of Muhammad. I

recall back in November a student asking me in why we have

‘Remembrance Day’. I told him that we have Remembrance day

simply to “remember, so as humankind we don’t make the same

mistakes twice.”

In our assemblies this past week we have been recognising

‘Holocaust Memorial Day’ (HMD) which takes place on 27th

January. It is a day dedicated to the remembrance of those who

suffered in The Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution, but also

because we’re so forgetful and those subsequent genocides in

Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. The chosen date is the

anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp by

the Soviet Union in 1945. Auschwitz-Birkenau was the largest

Nazi German concentration camp and death camp. Between

1940 and 1945 The Nazi’s deported at least 1,300,000 people

to Auschwitz – the numbers are huge: 1,100,000 Jews,

150,000 Poles, 25,000 Roma, 15,000 Soviets, 25,000

prisoners from other ethnic groups. Of these 1,100,000

people were killed with approximately 90% being Jews, most in

the gas chambers.

Across the 1930s to 1945 nearly 6 million Jews were killed.

This is an incredibly large number of deaths through systematic

killing – but each death was a living human being, a son, a

daughter, a mother, a father, a grandmother or grandfather, a

musician, a footballer, a scientist, a doctor – they each had lives

that they were living but were cut short.

Why? Simply because they followed a tradition or a belief

different from others. The world stood by for much of the 1930s

doing nothing to combat the rise of anti-semitism across Eastern

Europe.

On HMD we can honour the survivors of genocide and

challenge ourselves to use the lessons of their experience to

inform our lives today. It’s a chance to recognise that genocide

does not just take place on its own, it’s a steady process which

can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked

and prevented. We’re fortunate here in the UK; we are not at

risk of genocide. However, discrimination has not ended, nor

has the use of the language of hatred or exclusion.

There is still much to do to create a safer future and HMD is an

opportunity to start this process.

Gareth Lane – AVA School Chaplain

Year 7

Hello my name is Crystal Dalton and I am in Year 7, I am really

enjoying the opportunities that have been offered to me here at

the Academy. The Enrichment programme means I go to a club

every day.

On Monday I go to sewing club, it is really fun you can make

anything you want as they don’t tell you what you have to make!

On Tuesday and Friday I attend homework club, I go to the

Library where Mr Cluett is very helpful and funny. We have

access to the computers and lots of books which makes doing

my homework much easier!

On Wednesday I go to netball club where Miss Packham and

Miss Hennessy put us through our paces to ensure we know the

rules and play effectively as a team ready for our matches

against the other local schools. Although if it is too cold I

sometimes attend Art club which I really enjoy as once again

you get to make things, although this time the challenge is

always to create something out of the resources the teacher puts

on the table, so we have to use our imaginations!

On Thursday I do drama club with Miss Sparrow who is also my

form tutor. Last term we did a production of the Little Match

Girl, it went really well and the parents were impressed when

they got to see it at the carol concert. I am looking forward to

the challenge of learning my new role for this term’s

performance.

‘Sowing the Seeds’

Great fun was had by all Year 7 when they got to spend a day

considering their futures and learning more about what to do

after Year 11. The Bedford University staff and students really

engaged the students challenging their thoughts and making

their dreams seem possible, guiding them through the process

of choosing courses and identifying what subjects and grades

they would need to achieve to make it a reality. This got some of

the students already beginning to think about their options in

Year 9. The mixture of research, presentation and creativity

activities allowed all to get involved, students produced some

great T-shirt designs and wowed the University students with their

confidence when presenting their ideas and explaining their

reasons behind their choices.

Here’s hoping in 2021 we will have lots of students leaving 6th

form and setting off for university. Miss Hennessy AD Yr7

On Monday the Bedford University students came and we learnt

about the university and future paths. I liked it as we found out

career paths. The best part of the day was when we got to

graduate. At the graduation ceremony we wore red hats and

robes and walked out to receive our certificates. The day was

amazing. Charlotte Bannerman 7 Nobel 1

On Monday the 12th January 2015 all of Year 7 had a ‘Sowing

the Seeds’ day run by Bedford University. On the day we took

part in many activities and were taught about university, the

courses you can take and their requirements.

Some of the activities we did were:

P1 Building a bridge between two chairs out of newspaper, tape

and glue.

P2 Trying to match pictures of people to what job they have, or

if they don’t have one.

P3 Using a prospectus to answer questions about Bedford

University

P4 Designing a t-shirt

which would represent the

life of a university student,

using drawings instead of

writing. We also had to

present our ideas to the

rest of the class.

P5 A talk about career

c h o i c e s a n d t h e

opportuni ty to ask

questions about university

life.

P6 Year 7 graduation wearing the clothes you would wear when

you graduate.

The activity I enjoyed the most was the bridge building in period

1, but the most helpful period was P3 because I got a chance to

read the Bedford University prospectus and to look at the robotic

and engineering part to see what you need to do its course.

James Vicarage 7 Franklin 2

On Monday 12th January Bedford University kindly came to our

school to spend the day with Year 7 and help us to understand

more about university. First of all they introduced themselves in

the main hall and asked us a few questions about our views on

university. Secondly we were split into our forms where to lovely

mentors from the university took us to a classroom. We learnt

about stereotypes and how a lot of people judge others life and

career just by what they look like. After that we did a team

building activity, where as a group we had to build a bridge

using only newspaper and very little sellotape. It was a difficult

task but as a team everyone succeeded and every group’s

bridge held the object. We also designed a T-shirt showing the

life and responsibilities of someone at university.

Shakeelah Bowman 7 Franklin 2

1st Franklin 2 (100pts) 2

nd Nobel 1 (80pts) 3

rd Franklin 1 (60pts)

Samea Akhtar Khalid Afzal Youssef Adel

Shakeelah Bowman Simon Beasley Courtney Edwards

Scott Cottrell Charlotte Ecob Zoe Gibbs

Aidan Gardner Kieran Hathaway Falak Nadeem

Harmony Lean Samia Nadeem Gallum Garman

Tayna Mayhew

1st

2nd

3rd

Year 7 Get Geographically Creative!

In Geography, Year 7 have been learning about the structure of

the earth as part of their module on volcanoes. For homework

students where challenged to either design a vehicle or write a

short story with the title “Journey to the centre of the earth”.

Their finished work clearly illustrates their amazing imaginations

and geographical knowledge. One student designed the

“Drillizer” with over 3000 buttons and settings! Others created

vehicles from granite and diamonds. Many students wrote

wonderful short stories where they combined fact and fiction with

flare.

Homework is a wonderful opportunity for all students to

independently showcase their achievements. Please remember,

that details are always put on “Show my homework” so that

parents/ carers can support and monitor progress.

Mrs Underwood, Curriculum Leader Geography.

Christmas Jumper Day

On the 17th December the Aylesbury Vale Academy hosted their

3rd Christmas Jumper day to raise money for the Save the

Children charity. Prizes were awarded to best staff, best student

and best homemade outfit as a way to thank the students and

staff for their festive cheer.

Winners (left to right) Mrs Wright, Paige Bridges & Charlie Solomons

Sixth form entries

Student entries

Staff entries

We began this term by reinforcing the basic expectations that we have of all students. Please ensure that your child attends the

Academy in the correct uniform (order forms available from Mrs Cumming if required), arriving on time and with the correct

equipment. This will help to get them ready to make the most of every day of learning at the Academy.

Thank you for your ongoing support with our expectations.

Lunch Club Christmas

Party 2014

The last Tuesday of the

School year was the date

for the Lunch Club

Christmas Party. Usual

venue, around 75 students,

masses of food and pop

and the expectations for a

good party were palpable.

Nobody was disappointed

and that sentiment was

shared by the staff members

who came along to

support, encourage and

enjoy some Christmas food.

As you can see from the

pictures Mr Hallam and a

small Choir sang some

Christmas songs. Year 11’s

Robyn Rumbal l and

Shannon Sharp sang

beautifully accompanied by Robyn on Guitar. The Rev. Gareth

Lane presented a thought provoking video which contained

humorous animations and was very noisy at times.

The Christmas food was prepared by Mrs Gannon and Mrs

Wright and their teaching teams, and as you can see it was a

real feast. The Christmas tree was a real fake one and most

people did choose to put on their silly Christmas hats which

came from the crackers, Rev. Lane certainly did!

The idea behind lunch club is that it gives the chance for less

confident students to gain social skills and self confidence in a

supportive environment where the normally shy and hesitant get

the chance to express themselves more fully, make a few new

friends along the way, and of course get a good lunch at the

same time.

Enrichment

It’s been a very busy time with enrichment at the Academy with

plenty of competitions taking place. The following are the

current results of the indoor football competition:

War Poetry Competition

Nobel gain 300 points with 3 winners and Faraday achieved

200 points with 2 winners.

Enrichment Cards

Do not forget to get your Enrichment Cards signed for any club

you attend. Once completed, bring your card to Mr Bacon in

the P.E office for a new one.

Enrichment Representatives

Congratulations to the following students who have been

selected to be the Enrichment Representatives for the upcoming

year:

Year Franklin Faraday Nobel

7 1st and 2nd 3rd -

8 3rd 1st and 2nd -

9 3rd 1st 2nd

10 1st 2nd 3rd

11 1st 2nd 2nd

KS3 Girls 1st 2nd 3rd

6th Form 1st 2nd 3rd

Overall Scores 1200 points 1530 points 890 points

Franklin Faraday Nobel

Konrad Moussaoui

(College Captain)

Jordan Briggenshaw

Maycie Fitzsimmons

Jay Hawkins

Jade Gascoigne

Keeley Ashley

Tyler Hussey

Tommy Burnell

Dina Echarki Barreno

Edward Ashley

(College Captain)

Jacob Parke

Harleigh Piggett

Leo Chapelle

Millie Empson

Mitzi Entecott

Alex Oduwole

Mariam Ogurhill

Connor Smyth

Jack Cannon

(College Captain)

Kieron Hathaway

Elianne Forde

Gamu Chineka

Josh Gallagher

Olivia Algar

Ferrari Schembri

Emma Siefkes

Joe Wright