Issue 33 • December 2017

Henlow Academy

NEWSLETTER

Dear Parent/Carer,

As we approach Christmas the weeks fill with events, carols, cards and a sense of anticipation. Our

Christmas dinner on Thursday was certainly evidence of how much pupils are enjoying the festivities. The

key stage 2 concert and play 'The Xmas Factor' was enjoyed by many families as each night was a full

house, and we were all fortunate to hear a wide range of instruments and voices with some well known

Christmas favourites included. 'The Xmas Factor' had a little of everything (including Simon Cowell) but

most of all it was true to our Henlow ethos of giving pupils the opportunity to thrive. The growing

confidence was visible on stage as our younger pupils learnt lines, donned costumes, collaborated with

others and learnt to play to an audience. I'm very proud of them and I know many parents, siblings and

grandparents smiled, laughed and clapped as we enjoyed this intriguing tale. In addition to our own

concert, some members of our choir took part in a Barnardos concert at the Royal Albert Hall.

Congratulations to those taking part in this wonderful evening. Our Christmas card was designed by

Niamh in year 6 and I'm sure you will agree it is a very distinctive picture which meaningfully brings

together elements of our community and Christmas.

If you have visited in the daylight you will have noticed that the building work has started, and our gym

and classrooms will be with us by the new academic year. This very exciting project is underway and we

are all looking forward to the progress reports the future behind to take shape.

During this Autumn term pupils have been engaged in their learning at the highest level and we are

proud to highlight the impressive progress being made. Alongside this we also like to mention the steps

pupils are making in their wider contributions to society and the ways in which they are flourishing in

pursuits out of school. The roll of honour on page draws on all of these areas and celebrates our young

people and all of their endeavours.

Unfortunately, as many of you know, we are saying goodbye to one of our year 5 form tutors, Mary

Cochrane, as she leaves us to take up her dream job running a community cafe for those with special

needs. In her own words, she has loved being a part of our school this term but we understand her

reasons for leaving us. Mrs Cave, an experienced middle school teacher, is joining us in January and 5MC

have already had the chance to meet her.

Please note that all middle school applications for places need to be completed by January 15th. May I

end by wishing you a Merry Christmas and a happy 2018.

Thank you as parents and carers for supporting us at school and ensuring that together we develop the

potential of our young people. Caren Earp l Headteacher

Dates

Inset Day - Tuesday 2nd January

Return to School - Wednesday 3rd January

Job Vacancy

Lunchtime Supervisor

Please visit

http://www.henlowacademy.co.uk/jobs.php

for more information.

Important Notice School Admissions Policy consultation document for the proposed

Admission Policy 2019 is available on the school website.

Christmas Concert Below are some pictures from our Christmas Concert. Many thanks to Mrs Fordham and

Mrs Armitage for putting on such a fantastic show. Thank you also to all the parents who

got children to rehearsals, practised lines with them, provided costumes and came

along to support on the night.

Congratulations to all the pupils who took part in our Christmas Concert. You certainly

put on a stunning show!

Out of School Achievements Tom Killeen, who attends Rodney’s Dance School in Hitchin, has recently competed at

Silver Level in both Ballroom and Latin at the National Association of Teachers of

Dancing at Crawley in November. In both Ballroom and Latin, Tom reached the Finals

and came 2nd in the Quickstep, 4th in the Tango, 2nd in the Jive and 5th in the

Samba. Reaching the finals has meant that Tom has qualified to take part in The

Medallist of the Year Grand Finals 2018 to be held at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool

late next year.

Rodney’s Dance School teaches all levels and new children and adults are always

welcome – Rodney.pj@gmail.com or 07773688314.

Congratulations, Tom!

Hello! My name is Daniel and I do lots of music in my spare time. Recently I went on BBC

Radio Cambridgeshire because of this. Brass Banding is one of my key hobbies and, with

Cambridge Band, I play the cornet. The interview is about the band I'm in, City of

Cambridge Brass Band Youth Academy, and our Christmas concert. It was also to re-

cruit members for the band as we are currently in need of tenor horn players. It was on

their Lunchtime Live show and it was a truly amazing experience! The concert that we

spoke of was at the start of December and had a nearly full audience.

The way I was selected to take part in this is during one band rehearsal, the conductor

mentioned that we were going to be featuring on the radio and he was looking for two

volunteers. I was so excited and if I could I'd go on the radio again. I have many more

musical achievements, but this was a particularly proud moment for me.

Article written by Daniel Hutchins, 8NR

It is with great pleasure that Frederik Simmen can announce that following his audition

in October he has today been selected for The National Children’s Orchestra 2018

under 12 Orchestra. He has also recently been accepted as a viola player for the North

Herts Youth Orchestra and recently took part in their 40th anniversary concert at Hitchin

town hall. It has been a great year for him and he now has much more musical fun to

look forward to in the new year!

Well done, Frederik!

Year 5 Rugby The year fives have been having a great turn out at training all year and it showed in

the county tournament. Quite a few members of the team hadn’t played competitive

rugby outside of school lessons and for the team to win over half of their games was a

great accomplishment. Special mention goes out to Fraser Kotrys who was the player of

the tournament for some great tackling and overall fantastic leadership of the team.

Another special mention for Blake Caswell who was the most improved player. He had

never played rugby before and was our top try scorer. Well done to all involved and

there is a lot of potential moving forward into year 6.

Well done to Fraser Kotrys, Mackenzie Kotrys, Blake Caswell, Owain Ace, Tom Igoe,

Harley Teale, Harry Keen, Connor Smith, Max Andrews, Leo Allen and Finley Tillett.

Visual

Impairment

Sports Day

Mason Bradley in 5BW went to the

Bunyan Centre in Bedford to take

part in a sports event especially for

children with a visual impairment. It

was an exciting day in which Mason joined other pupils from other schools in cricket,

football and tennis activities. The sessions were run by the England national team

coaches. The football coach was the Head Coach of the England Deaf Team.

KS2 Netball There has been huge success with the KS2 netball teams

this season and there has been a fantastic number of

pupils participating in the club after school; we have even

managed to create a B team ready for a friendly match

against Etonbury at the start of next year. The teams have

been of a high quality this year and the pupils have been

learning lots with regards to tactics to prepare for when

they go to the fixtures against other schools. Both teams

have been very successful; the year 5 team came 4th in the

league and the year 6 team came 3rd in the league.

Year 5 Results: Year 6 Results:

Congratulations, team!

Henlow 10 0 Holywell

Henlow 4 0 Marston Vale

Henlow 4 0 Woodlands

Henlow 9 1 Parkfields

Henlow 2 2 Alameda

Henlow 3 3 Etonbury

Henlow 0 3 RBA

Henlow 13 0 Parkfields

Henlow 9 0 Alameda

Henlow 4 3 Holywell

Henlow 4 1 Marston Vale

Henlow 1 7 Arnold

Henlow 0 6 RBA

Henlow 0 9 Etonbury

Henlow 3 6 Woodlands

Introducing Miss Black I have been teaching Secondary English, drama and media

studies for many years and have acted as an NQT mentor

and behavioural management coach to colleagues. I have

specialised in boys' intervention and delivered seminars on

T&L practices: some radical!

I have a daughter called Willow who is nearly three; I took

two years out of my busy teaching career to raise her. I am

now back to teaching full time, whilst she attends nursery

(and has started pre-school early!)

I love watching documentaries and enjoy reading historical literature (both factual and

fictitious), psychological thrillers and mysteries and have a growing selection of books

on the theme of 'mindfulness' - a subject that I believe has subsequently filtered its way

into aspects of my teaching.

I enjoy cooking and experimenting with a variety of herbs and spices and am currently

trying to build up my confidence in cake/biscuit making...but I'm afraid to say I will not

be applying to compete in The Great British Bake-Off any time soon!

I have two British Short haired cats, called Oscar and Caspian. I adore animals and na-

ture and support a number of charities and campaigns in order to demonstrate this.

Charity Work Gemma Lyons, Maddi Paul and Natasha Vaughan (pictured below) held a bake sale in

aid of 'Burning Nights' the CRPS awareness charity. They raised £87. A fantastic cause

and an amazing amount of money raised.

Another charity bake off raised money for the Guide Dogs for the Blind: a really

worthwhile animal charity which helps people with sight loss get out and about. Caitlin

Butler, Haylee and Charlotte Fuller, Alice Deal and Liberty Shepherd raised £54.97.

Pupil Premium Free School Meals

Are you entitled?

If you would like to find out if you are entitled for your child to receive Free School Meals,

please contact Customer Services at Central Bedfordshire on 0300 300 8306. Further

information can be found through the following link http://

www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/money-and-benefits/free-school-meals/

The qualifying benefits to receive free school meals are:

* Income Support

* Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance

* Income-related Employment and Support Allowance

* Support under Part IV of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

* The Guarantee element of State Pension Credit

* Child Tax Credit (provided you are not also entitled to Working Tax Credit, and your

annual gross income does not exceed £16,190 as assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue

and Customs)

* Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax

Credit)

* Universal Credit (during the initial roll-out of this benefit)

Please be advised that you can only apply for Free School Meals through Central

Bedfordshire. Henlow Academy cannot process the application.

If your child is already receiving Free School Meals, please remind them that they are

entitled to ask for school dinners in the morning – registered through the squid account

in form time. This will automatically be available for them.

Please be aware that the process for using the squid account during lunch times is

exactly the same for children using free school meals or paying for school meals.

If your child is currently under a Pupil Premium Category they will receive a letter over

the next few weeks with further information as to the support available at School.

Young Carers

Do you think your child is a young carer?

A young carer is someone aged 18 or under who helps look after a relative who has a

condition, such as a disability, illness, mental health condition, or a drug or alcohol

problem. Most young carers look after one of their parents or care for a brother or sister.

If you believe that your child might be a carer, please contact

jgregory@henlowacademy.org.uk.