I am really pleased to be able to introduce the first Brockington

College newsletter of the new academic year and to welcome all

parents, including new parents of our Year 7 pupils, to

Brockington College in 2012-13.

Pupils have made a fantastic start to the year and I am delighted

with the Year 7 pupils who have settled in extremely well. I would

like to publicly recognise the work of the Primary Schools, in

partnership with Brockington College, guaranteeing that the

transition process is as successful as it is. Equally, I do not under

estimate your contribution as parents in ensuring that your

children have high standards in all aspects of school life. Thank

you so much for giving us your full support, it makes a significant

impact on the success that your child will enjoy at school.

Particular thanks to all parents/carers for supporting our college

uniform policy, by ensuring that pupils are dressed correctly for

college. They look tremendously smart and this has an effect upon

standards within the classroom.

As the College motto states, we want our pupils to ‘learn to live life

to the full’. This is not just a phrase, but a daily challenge for all

pupils at the College. We demand high academic standards from

the pupils, which will help them to fulfil their dreams and

ambitions, but we also want every child to make the most of all

that we offer at the College. As you will have seen from the

Enrichment Booklet, there are countless opportunities for pupils

to participate in a number of extra-curricular sports, music, art,

drama, academic or other interests. We believe strongly in

developing ‘rounded’ pupils that have a wide range of interests

and the ability to relate to and respect others. Our enrichment

programme will help pupils develop these essential elements and

we would encourage you to encourage pupils, to join in.

In respect of academic achievements, our previous Year 9 pupils

gained the highest Teacher Assessment levels on record and made

progress from the end of Year 6 to the end of Year 9 that places

Brockington in the top 10% of schools nationally for most subjects

at both Level 5 and at Level 6. We are really proud of these

achievements, but we have set even higher expectations for our

current pupils and I can assure you that we will do our best to

improve standards even further.

As a college, we have several targets this year that will enable us to

give our pupils the best life opportunities. Teaching and learning

remains our highest priority at the college and staff are currently

working extremely hard to plan engaging and challenging lessons.

Please ask your child to describe what and how they are learning

at the college.

Dear Parents/Carers and Friends of the College,

Dates for Your Diary Year 7 Consultation Evening (Tutors Only) Wednesday 3 October 2012 Year 9 Options: Parent Pathway Meeting Wednesday 16 January 2013 at Brockington College Year 9 Consultation Evenings Band 1: Monday 21 January 2013 (BROCT) Band 2: Wednesday 23 January 2013 (KINGL) Year 9 Options Advice Evening Wednesday 6 February 2013 at Lutterworth College Year 8 Consultation Evenings Band 1: Monday 18 March 2013 (BROCT) Band 2: Wednesday 20 March 2013 (KINGL) Year 7 Consultation Evenings Band 1: Monday 13 May 2013 (BROCT) Band 2: Wednesday 15 May 2013 (KINGL) Year 9 Commemoration Evening Wednesday 3 July 2013

September 2012 Bulletin 1

Name: _____________________________________________ Form: _______________________

IMPORTANT REMINDER

Year 9 parents/carers please

remember that the deadline for

sending upper school

admission forms to the

local authority is

Wednesday 31 October 2012

On a final note, I can only offer my apologies as a very

frustrated Principal in respect of the issues around water

supply that we have been experiencing. We have

unfortunately unearthed a series of issues concerning the

initial set up of the system, which can only be corrected at

weekends to ensure that the college remains open during

the week, hence why updating has taken longer than would

normally be expected. Thank you for your patience in this

respect.

Chris Southall, Principal

September 2012 Bulletin 2

LOST PROPERTY

Items of lost property are taken to the reception. Named items can, of course, be more easily returned to the rightful owner. Lost property is now displayed outside the main college reception at lunch times, giving pupils a daily chance to reclaim any missing items. Parents/carers who wish to come and view lost property should telephone reception (0116 2863722) to make arrangements to come and do so after college.

Due to the volume of lost property, anything

remaining after 2 weeks will be donated to charity

HOLIDAY DATES FOR 2012-2013

Autumn Term 2012 Mid-term break: 22 to 26 October 2012 School closes: 21 December 2012

Spring Term 2013 School opens: 8 January 2013 Mid-term break: 11 to 15 February 2013 School closes: 22 March 2013

Summer Term 2013 School opens: 8 April 2013 May Day: 6 May 2013 Mid-term break: 27 May to 31 May 2013 School closes: 12 July 2013

BROCKINGTON MATTERS

Marking Policy 2012 As a result of our own monitoring along with parental feedback during the academic year 2011-12 the Assessment and Marking Policy was re-written. In order to do this, time was spent with staff during INSET sessions and subsequent meetings creating a manageable policy. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the parents who commented upon draft versions via the Parent Forum last year. Your comments were taken on board and appreciated. The Governors have also commented and had input into the policy as well. Please find attached a Parental Summary as to what you should expect from Assessment and Marking at Brockington College. If you wish to see the more detailed policy it is on the school website. If you have any concerns regarding marking, please do not hesitate to contact the relevant department, or if you have a wider concern, your child‟s tutor or Year Achievement Co-ordinator.

Clare Darby, Vice Principal

Secondary School Transfers Autumn 2012 CLOSING DATE

WEDNESDAY 31 OCTOBER 2012 If you have a child that is due to transfer from infant to junior, primary to high or high to upper school in the Autumn Term 2012, the closing date for return of applications is Wednesday 31 October 2012. ALL parents have to make an application, even if you wish your child to attend the catchment area school for your address, a place will not be secured otherwise. Please make sure your application is received in the Allocations Section by the deadline. Applications received after this date will be dealt with after those received on time. An application pack has been sent to all parents and you can apply by returning the application form or by applying online at www.leics.gov.uk/admissions (please note, if you do not have the internet at home, you can access this service FREE at your local library). For more information, contact: School Admissions on 0116 305 6684 or via email at admissions@leics.gov.uk

September 2012 Bulletin 3

Aim:

To ensure that all our pupils have their worked marked in such a way that it improves their learning and builds

their self-confidence and their self-esteem

To enable our pupils to be able to say

What they are good at

What they can improve

What level or grade they are performing at

The marking of your child‟s work will be undertaken in a variety of different ways. The following table gives you a guide as to the type of marking you and your child should see in their books. The frequency of each type of marking will depend on the subject but should be within the guidelines below. At Key Stage 3, those subjects which only have 1 lesson a week (Music, Drama, Art, ICT and RE) will only give written feedback once per term. This is due to the fact that staff in these subjects may teach over 600 pupils a week and are unable to provide feedback to pupils as frequently.

The most important marking is Quality Teacher Marking. Pupils should have their books quality marked once every 9 les-sons as a minimum and 12 as a maximum (the frequency of the lessons vary between subjects so core subjects will be marked more regularly than foundation subjects).

Please note: Not all work will be set in exercise books. Extended pieces of work may be done as a separate document.

Some subjects (Maths and Science) set on-line tasks which can be accessed by pupils from home and which give an analysis of their strengths and weaknesses. A homework timetable is published annually and can be found on the school website. It gives the frequency of homework and the approximate length of time pupils should spend on their work.

Effort: Pupils may be rewarded for their effort with a variety of stickers/stamps in their books to acknowledge the effort they have put into their work. They may also receive merits; commendations and postcards home which reflect either effort and/or achievement.

Monitoring: 1. To encourage best practice and consistency, monitoring will take place termly by the Head of Department. 2. The Senior Leadership Team will also review marking through the school quality assurance review cycle and

address any issues with the Head of Department

A copy of the full policy can be found on the school website.

Marking Policy – Guide for Parents

Type of Marking What it looks like

1 Acknowledgement Work stamped or signed and dated. It means the work has been checked for completion.

2 Quality Teacher Marking

Two strengths and a what next? This is detailed feedback and relates to how well the learning objectives have been met in class or for homework. It gives the next step to improve the work S- Strength - you have … S- Strength - you have … W - What next? -have you thought about… Pupils will have the chance to respond to the „W‟s either through written work or questioning.

3 Knowledge Exercises

Results from tests e.g. tests marks out of 20 It could also be an assessment which may be given a KS3 level

4 Quality Marking by Pupils

Two strengths and a what next? As above but done by pupils with support from clear criteria from the teacher

September 2012 Bulletin 4

School Uniform Policy

We are constantly striving to ensure that we maintain our high standards of dress. Thank you to all of those pupils and parents/carers who have supported our uniform rules and are wearing the correct clothing as specified in our uniform policy. The rules are much clearer and simpler for everyone to follow. There are also much tougher sanctions in place for those that do not adhere to the rules. Please take some time to look through the following information to ensure you are clear about the guidelines. If you are unsure, or would like further clarification, please contact the relevant Year Achievement Co-ordinator for your child.

Brockington College Uniform – Essential Requirements Trousers These should be smart tailored black trousers not jeans. Trousers must be suitable for a working environment - NO denim, rivets or „skinny‟ black fashion trousers, leggings or jeans.

X

Skirts Skirts should be suitable for a working environment - not too short or tight. Skirts should be knee length or longer.

X

Shoes Shoes should be all black, small heeled or flat. All shoes should be enclosed and suitable for a working environment. Pupils must not wear shoes with logos, coloured patterns, laces or stitching.

X

September 2012 Bulletin 5

WHAT UNIFORM DOES MY CHILD NEED? Please ensure that each item is named and that your child leaves home correctly attired in college uniform appropriate for a working environment. The Governors’ policy on college uniform must be followed by all students.

The college uniform supplier is Match Fit Kit www.matchfitkit.co.uk

Email steve@matchfitkit.co.uk Telephone number 02476 350630

Uniform can be ordered through the college website www.brockington.leics.sch.uk or by telephoning the above number.

For further information please visit the ’uniform’ section of the school website.

September 2012 Bulletin 6

PE KIT Can pupils remember to bring ALL their Equipment and PE kit on the day they need them. Phone calls home will not be made for forgotten kits and equipment. The PE department has some items of sports wear that pupils may borrow.

Voice it!

As a result of the feedback we received on our „Anti Bullying‟ Survey last year, we have launched two new systems designed to make it easier for pupils to log their concerns about Bullying, Anti Social Behaviour or any other concerns about pupils or behaviour in and around the college. The first system is accessed through the school website, where pupils can email the pastoral team (either anonymously or they can provide their name). You can find this by looking at the pupil pages in the „Care, Guidance and Support‟ section of the website. The email is checked on a daily basis and then steps are taken to deal with the issues highlighted. The second, similar, system is ran through the „Voice it‟ boxes, which are located outside of the Pastoral Office and in the library. Pupils can fill in a form, available in the library, or the front of reception, (some tutors also have forms available in their tutor rooms) and then place it in the box. Again, they can be anonymous or they can give their name. So far the systems are proving successful. We have found that it has removed the barrier for some pupils, the hardest step can often be telling someone what is wrong, this is much easier to do and much less daunting when it doesn‟t have to be face to face! Please keep using the system and keeping us informed. If we are aware we can act, if we don‟t know about the issue upsetting you then we can‟t possibly help!

Summary of Issues:

Locker Keys and Identity Cards – Hints and Tips for Pupils

Have a check list of things to remember in an obvious place. Pack your school bag the night before. Have a key ring on your locker key (easy to identify if lost/found). Have a secure place for your identity card. Remember to take found cards and keys immediately to Reception. If you lose your identity card and then find it, it will have been ‘blocked’. Please hand the card into Reception. Remember to check the balance on your card before selecting food.

6 issues with other pupils Investigated and pupils dealt with where necessary

1 thank you to member of staff for their support and resolving of issues

N/A

1 issue about the school bus Dealt with by Assistant Principal

1 issue of concern over Year 7 settling in Dealt with by Pastoral Manager and Year Achievement Co-ordinator

13 issues over uniform Investigated by Year Achievement Co-ordinator

The Brockington College Enrichment Programme Autumn

Term 2012 is now on the school website

September 2012 Bulletin 7

What an Opportunity – Brockington go Olympic Style!!

On Friday 27th July, 8 Brockington pupils left Leicester train station early in the morning to travel to the Olympic Park to take part in the Guard of Honour at the Olympic opening ceremony. We had been invited by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games to be one of 200 schools to take part in this fantastic event. The train journey went quite quickly as the pupils entertained the staff! On arrival at St. Pancras, we caught the Javelin train to the Olympic Park at Stratford, London.

The atmosphere was amazing and the pupils soon got into the swing of capturing the spirit. Cameras were

snapping as we had our eyes peeled for sports stars. We went quickly through security and entered the amazing Olympic Park. From here we had a tour of the site and saw the Aquatics Centre, Velodrome, Stadium, River Bank Arena and many more. We were informed of the build up to the games and the sustainability of certain venues. From here, we went for our official photographs with our flag. Our adopted country to celebrate alongside Great Britain was Cape Verde.

Next, we went to our “holding” camp in the Copper Box. The venue for the forthcoming Handball was amazing. We received our Guard of Honour T shirts and had more to eat!!!

BROCKINGTON NEWS

September 2012 Bulletin 8

At 8.30pm, we made our way to our Guard of Honour position. As the excitement was building up for the arrival of the athletes, we saw many of the dancers who were performing in the opening ceremony. We were lucky enough to witness the helicopters hovering in the sky who were to deliver the Queen and James Bond!! The atmosphere was electric. Soon the athletes started arriving and the cheers went up. We greeted the Greek team first and then the others nations entered alphabetically. Cape Verde had a team of 3 being one of the smallest nations!! When they saw our flag and heard our screams…they were ecstatic! Unfortunately for the Brockington group, we had to leave to catch the last train back just as the countries beginning with J were about to

approach. We were gutted at the thought of not seeing the legendary Usain Bolt. However… we showed spirit and determination to ensure we got our glance of one the Games main characters. The photos might be a bit blurred but we saw the man!!! From then it was full speed ahead to make sure we got on our way to get the train back to Leicester. Unfortunately a certain Mr Beckham delayed us further! We were unable to cross the bridge out of the Olympic Park until he had whizzed by amid the fireworks in his speed boat!!! But we were there!!!

We got back to St. Pancras in time for refreshments and our train. Miss Wyeth and Miss Heggs had a much needed hot chocolate while the pupils reminisced of their day. Fraser Burbery treated us to a little sing song around the piano in the station before we boarded the train back to Leicester. Staff hoped the group might chill out a little, but no, they were still buzzing all the way back to Leicester!! We were met by the parents who seemed to be as excited as the pupils, despite the fact it was nearly 2.00 am! The pupils who took part were Erin Hall, Lotte Bozon, Emma McGuigan, Paige Rowell, Frazer Burbery, Adam Daybell, Callum Franks and Tom Copley. Their behaviour was excellent and they really did keep the staff entertained. We had an incredible day, a once in a lifetime experience and the memories will live with us for a lifetime.

September 2012 Bulletin 9

Drama and Music News

Musical Instrument Examinations A huge well done and congratulations to all pupils who took musical instrument exams at the end of the summer term. The hard work certainly paid off so well done everybody! Festival Rock – July 2012 Well done to past year 9 pupils Tom Marlow 9B, Max Allen-Taylor 9L, Megan Woofenden 9R, and present pupils Sofia Vassallo 8K and Joe Crofts 9K for their performance in the Festival Rock performance at the end of the summer term at O2 Academy. The standard from all entries into the „Battle of the Bands‟ and the „Performance‟ sections of the show were very high indeed and certainly showed off the wealth of talent we have here in Leicester and at Brockington. Although we didn‟t win any main prize as a school, a massive well done to Tom Marlow who won the „Best Guitarist‟ award and received a brand new state of the art Marshall amp. Well done everyone! Musical Instrument Lessons Here at Brockington College, we recognise the importance that learning to play a musical instrument can have on a young adult. It can help to promote a sense of self-discipline, self-esteem and enhance self-expression/creativity. We, therefore, encourage as many pupils as possible to start and learn a musical instrument. Due to the Leicester-shire Arts in Education no longer being able to provide lessons for us, our instrumental lessons will be provided by a team of fabulous private instrumental teachers for the year 2012-2013, and all teachers have options for individual and group lessons to make finding the right type of lesson for your child easier. All teachers have previously worked for the Leicester-Shire Music Service and as, part of the new structure of instrumental teaching, they have all been added to the County Council Associated Teachers Register. If you are interested in booking lessons for your child, then please contact the teacher of the instrument you are interested in as listed below. They will then send out their information and contracts in order to start lessons with them. If you have any questions, please contact me at the school on 0116 286 3722 or via email ams@brockington.leics.sch.uk

Music Extra-Curricular Activities

Performance Opportunities this term: Monday 3

rd December 2012 – Brockington Choir, Blaby Old Persons Forum, 2.00 pm-3.00 pm

Wednesday 5

th December 2012 – Brockington Christmas Show, 7.00 pm-9.00 pm – ticket information to follow

Wednesday 12

th December 2012 – Brockington Choir, Blaby Civic Council Dinner, 7.30 pm-9.30 pm

Instrument Name of Teacher Contact details for the teacher

Flute Ms Teresa Bexon 01455 239373 07791456054 tjbmusic@talktalk.net

Keyboard, piano Mr Ian Maw ianmaw@tiscali.co.uk

Drum kit Mr Adam Stringer 07941 549962

Guitar (electric, bass and classical)

Mr Dave Jobson 0116 2920622 07948 402728 guitarlessons@tiscali.co.uk

Singing Mrs Sarah Woodhall 07866015774

Clarinet, saxophone Mr Patrick White Patrick.White@leics.gov.uk

Cornet, Trombone, Baritone, French Horn

Mr Alex Crutchley latheduckap@hotmail.co.uk

Violin, Viola Ms Sally Smith sasviolinviola@hotmail.co.uk

Time/Day Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

1.00 pm - 1.30 pm

Woodwind Group/Harvest Festival Musicians

Harvest Festival Readers

Harvest Festival Singers

Harvest Festival Readers

Dance Ejay Club

(Music ICT)

3.30 pm - 4.30 pm

Choir (when not staff meetings; pupils will be told

the Friday before)

Brockington Orchestra

Rock Groups Choir

September 2012 Bulletin 10

September 2012 Bulletin 11

BROCKINGTON COMMUNITY

Don’t send your unwanted textiles to Land Fill,

give them to us and together with ecokids we will raise

bags of money!

£££££££££££££££££££££

ecokids will give us £600.00 for every tonne of

unwanted goods, so please bring in good quality clean

clothes, soft toys, pairs of shoes, bedding, curtains and hand bags.

The more we collect, the more we make!

£££££££££££££££££££££

We now have a Textile Bank situated on the school main car park.

MATHS CHALLENGE

The Maths Challenge is now up and running and all pupils are encouraged to enter. Over the last few weeks it has been introduced to Year 7 by their Maths teachers and Year 7,8 & 9 form tutors have the challenge for display in their classroom. The pupils have had the challenge emailed to them (and will receive a monthly update throughout the year of the winner for the month and the following months challenge). There are 2 categories to enable ALL pupils to take part. They can either enter the MindBender or the Creative Challenge. The points system this year will be as follows: 5 marks for an outstanding entry (and Commendation) 4 marks for a very good entry 3 marks for a good entry 2 marks for a satisfactory entry 1 mark for handing in the Challenge If pupils chose to enter the MindBender, answers must be set out clearly, explaining how they arrived at their solution. The overall winner for the MONTH will be presented with a certificate and will receive vouchers to purchase food items at the break time servery :) Each month pupils enter, their marks will be recorded and at the end of the year the overall winner for the YEAR (the boy or girl with the highest running total) will receive a cash voucher and certificate. The Maths department trusts the pupils will enjoy the challenges and do their best to embrace this competition :)

September 2012 Bulletin 12

September 2012 Bulletin 13

Even though it is getting much darker earlier in the evenings, we still want you to use your bikes as a way of getting to and from school. So here is your chance to win some lights for your bike, so you can ride safely in the dark conditions. All you need to do is design a poster on one of the following topics:

a) Tips to safe cycling b) Tips to keep your bike in good condition

Hand your posters into the Cabin by Wednesday 7

th October 2012

Think you’re the next Steven Speilberg or one of the new Coen brothers???

If you are interested in creating

your own short film, come and

see Mrs Thorpe in 114 at

12.25 pm on Thursday

4th

October

to find out more!

September 2012 Bulletin 14

Brockington College’s Artificial Grass Pitch

Our full size 3G pitch can be used for football and training for a range of sports and is fully floodlit

and covered by CCTV. The rubber crumb pitch is available to hire any evening of the week, (where

spaces in the timetable permit) for casual pay and play use, as well as weekly team training. The pitch

can be hired by the third or in its entirety, (our thirds are approximately three times the size of

some operators’ small sided pitches). We also hire out the facility on Saturday and Sunday too if you

need a surface that won’t get muddy in winter! Whether you want a pitch for a one off football game

or need a pitch to train on a weekly basis, we offer competitive prices and a state of the art playing

surface to suit your sporting needs.

For more information, please contact Steve Buck (lettings@brockington.leics.sch.uk) or 0116 286 3722 for availability and prices.

Artificial Grass Pitch Sponsors are:-

Narborough & Littlethorpe Action Group Parents and Friends of Brockington College

HOLIDAY DATES FOR 2013-2014

Autumn Term 2012 School opens: 29 August 2013 Mid-term break: 21 to 25 October 2013 School closes: 20 December 2013

Spring Term 2014 School opens: 7 January 2014 Mid-term break: 17 to 21 February 2014 School closes: 11 April 2014

Summer Term 2014 School opens: 28 April 2014 May Day: 5 May 2014 Mid-term break: 26 May to 30 May 2014 School closes: 11 July 2014

Adult Learning at Brockington We offer a variety of daytime and evening classes for adults in the following curriculum areas: Arts, Care & Vocational, Sports, Languages, Skills for Life and IT. Courses we are offering for the Autumn Term include Drawings and Painting, Digital Cameras, Yoga, First Aid, Makaton, Beginners Guide to IT. If you are interested in joining a course, or would like some more information or advice on courses throughout the county, please do not hesitate to contact the Central Enrolment Team: Freephone 0800 988 0308. Have a look at the Leicestershire Adult Learning Website: www.leics.gov.uk/golearn Up to 100% discount for those in receipt of benefits – please ring for further information 0800 988 0308.

September 2012 Bulletin 15