st. agnes ace academy prospectus 2016-17

22 Pages·2016·0.8 MB·English

by  Carol Wint

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ST. AGNES ACE ACADEMY PROSPECTUS
2016-17

CONTENTS

Welcome to St. Agnes ACE Academy
Welcome from the Headteacher and Chair of Governors 2
About St. Agnes ACE Academy 3
Admissions 4
School Staff and Governors 5

Our Curriculum
The Curriculum at St. Agnes ACE Academy 8
Early Years 9
The Core Subjects: English, Mathematics and Science 10
Technology: Computing and Design Technology 11
Humanities: History, Geography and Modern Languages 11
The Arts: Art and Design, Music and Dance 12
Physical Education 13
Religious Education and Collective Worship 13
Personal, Social and Health Education and Relationships Education 14
Educational Visits and Extra-curricular Activities 14
Meeting Children's Individual Needs 15
Assessment and Reporting 16
Homework 16

General Information
School Calendar 17
The School Day 17
Absence from School 17
Wrap Around Care 18
School Uniform and PE Kit 18
School Meals and Snacks 18
Charging Policy 19
St. Agnes PTA 19
Parents and Carers in School 19
Keeping in Touch 20
Behaviour Policy 20
Concerns and Complaints Procedure 21
Safeguarding and Child Protection 21
Health, Safety and Security 21
Equality and Access 22
St. Agnes ACE Academy Prospectus
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ST. AGNES ACE ACADEMY PROSPECTUS
2015-16

WELCOME TO ST. AGNES ACE ACADEMY

We would like to welcome you and your child to St. Agnes ACE Academy. Our busy and vibrant
primary school, a member academy of the Atlantic Centre of Excellence Multi-Academy Trust, is
situated centrally in the coastal village of St. Agnes and is part of a very active and friendly
community.

We endeavour to provide a happy and inspiring learning environment and are confident that your
child will be thrive during their school years with us. Our aim is to provide exciting and relevant
learning experiences for your child. Using a wide range of teaching approaches and technologies,
we encourage your child to explore and reflect as well as to make a meaningful contribution to the
world in which we live.

Our school has its own ‘flavour’, based on the ideals and interests that we hold closest to our
heart. In addition to a firm focus on the essentials of primary education, we are dedicated to the
promotion of environmental awareness and excellence in the arts and sports.

At St. Agnes ACE Academy, we have high expectations of ourselves and our children. We expect
everyone to try their best, to work hard, to be courteous and to contribute to the success of our
school. The governing body, parents/carers, staff and children work together as a team to make a
caring and safe environment where learning is enjoyable and successful.

You are key to this success, and we encourage you to be actively involved in your child's school
life at St. Agnes. We hope that you will share with us in making this a happy and memorable period
of your child's life.

Carol Wint Daniel Corbett
Headteacher Chair of Governors

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ST. AGNES SCHOOL PROSPECTUS
2016-17

About St. Agnes ACE Academy
St. Agnes ACE Academy is a busy, happy and welcoming primary school in the thriving coastal
village of St. Agnes, Cornwall.
Outgrowing and replacing the
village's Victorian school in 1988,
our well-maintained school offers an
inviting learning environment. There
are nine classes, two each for the
Reception year and Year 1 and one
for each other year group, a well-
stocked library and a large, well-
equipped hall. The school building
sits within spacious, landscaped premises which offer ample opportunities for play, games and
athletics, gardening and outdoor education. By September 2017 we will have an additional state-
of-the-art block to house eight new classrooms and other ancillary spaces.
Our aim is simply to be a great community school. Using the considerable talents of our dedicated
staff, parents and other adults in our community, we encourage our pupils to value and think for
themselves, do their very best and make a positive contribution to their world.
The school converted to academy status and opened as St. Agnes ACE Academy on 1st September
2015. St. Agnes Academy is part of the Atlantic Centre of Excellence (ACE) Multi-Academy Trust,
made up of a group of seven forward-thinking academies with a common goal of strong
collaborative school improvement.

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Admissions

The planned admission number (PAN) for St. Agnes is 60 in Reception and Year 1 and 30 in each
other year which means we have places for up to 270 children at the school. Occasionally class
sizes may be slightly larger due to admission appeals that are beyond the school’s control, but in
such cases extra support staff are allocated to ensure all children’s needs are met.
Please apply for a place at St. Agnes Academy by completing an on-line application to the Local
Authority, Cornwall Council. The application form and relevant information may be found at:
www.cornwall.gov.uk/education-and-learning/schools-and-colleges/school-admissions/
Our academy’s Admissions Policy can be found in the Policies section of the school website:
www.st-agnes.cornwall.sch.uk

During the Spring term, the places for Reception children are allocated by the Admissions Team
at County Hall for the forthcoming academic year. The Local Authority uses nationally agreed
criteria to establish those children who will be offered a place at St. Agnes Academy. A waiting
list operates for those children who are not offered a place initially. Older children wishing to
enter the school will be offered a place providing that there is space in that year group.
You and your child are welcome to visit the school to view the full range of our facilities, meet the
staff and children and experience the atmosphere of the school. We are more than happy to
answer any questions you may have in person or by telephone or email.

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ST. AGNES ACE ACADEMY PROSPECTUS
2016-17

School Personnel
Headteacher Mrs. Carol Wint

SENDCo Mrs. Stef Brighouse

TEACHING STAFF
Deputy Headteacher Mrs. Michelle Hall Year 5 (Sunfish)
Curriculum & Assessment Co-ordinator
Upper Key Stage 2 Co-ordinator
Gifted & Talented Co-ordinator
Geography Co-ordinator

Deputy Headteacher Miss Emma Lawton Year 3 (Puffins)
Curriculum & Assessment Co-ordinator
Lower Key Stage 2 Co-ordinator
Literacy Co-ordinator
Training Co-ordinator

Mrs. Emalee Caton Year R (Dolphins)
Foundation Stage Co-ordinator
Religious Education Co-ordinator
PSHE Co-ordinator/ School Council

Mrs. Jennifer Dykwer-Newsome Year 2 (Penguins)
Key Stage 1 Co-ordinator
Computing Co-ordinator
Maths partner

Miss Kelly Williams Year Reception (Seals)
Art Co-ordinator
Design Technology Co-ordinator

Miss Emma Bennett Year 1 (Starfish)
Science Co-ordinator

Miss Charlotte Garratt Year 1 (Seahorses)
Computing partner
Outdoor Ed/ Eco Heroes partner

Mrs. Emma Parris-Fitzgibbon Year 1 (Seahorses)
History Co-ordinator
Foreign Languages Co-ordinator

Mrs. Lindsay Turner Year 3 (Puffins)
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Music Co-ordinator

Miss Josie Radley Year 4
Mathematics Co-ordinator

Mrs. Susie Foreman Year 5
Science partner
Art partner

Mr. Chris Fawcitt Year 6
PE Co-ordinator
Outdoor Ed/ Eco Heroes Co-ordinator

NON-TEACHING STAFF
Higher Level Teaching Assistants Mrs. Sara Hart
Mrs. Judy Thurgood

Teaching Assistants Mrs. Cheryl Higton
Mr. Damian Higgins
Mrs. Karen Hall
Mrs. Sue Crocker
Mrs. Janet Thomas
Mrs. Helen Suiter
Mrs. Joanne Chant
Mrs. Bev Ely
Mrs. Nikki Carey
Mrs. Bev Gilbert
Mrs. Deanna Jarvis
Mrs. Marianne Daysh
Mrs. Debbie Allen
Mrs. Anne Pearson
Mrs. Nadine Metcalfe
Mrs. Karen Morgan

Senior School Secretary Mrs. Karen Potts

School Secretary Mrs. Kerra Sanders

Finance Assistant Mrs. Claire Harvey

Caretaker Mrs. Jenny Tripp
Caretaker's Assistant Mr. Tony Allen

Lunchtime Supervisors Mrs. Jean Willis
Mr. Kevin Knuckey
Mrs. Anabell Zichittella
Mrs. Caroline McGregor-Wood

School Cook Ms. Karen

School Cook's Assistants Mrs. Alison King
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School Governors

Chair of Governors Mr. Daniel Corbett Community
Mr. Ron Robertson Community
Dr. Wendy Ewart Community
(Vacancy) Community
Vice-Chair of Governors Mr. Tony Smith Parent
Dr. Andrew Fripp Parent
Mrs. Emalee Caton Staff
Mrs. Carol Wint Headteacher

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ST. AGNES ACE ACADEMY PROSPECTUS
2016-17

CURRICULUM

The Curriculum at St. Agnes ACE Academy

Our aim at St. Agnes Academy is for our children to believe in and think for themselves, do their
very best and make a positive contribution to their world. We believe that the culture within our
school nurtures a desire for lifelong learning in our children.
For learning to be effective, activities should be real and interactive and relate to children's
experiences. Through our curriculum, we aim to provide genuine reason and purpose to children's
learning.
We appreciate that children are individuals who have very different experiences in their lives and
develop at different rates. We aim to personalise learning by catering for different levels of
understanding, needs and talents in our classes, so that all children can achieve their best.
The primary school curriculum is delivered through three key stages: Early Years Foundation
Stage (ages 4-5), Key Stage 1 (ages 5-7) and Key Stage 2 (ages 7-11). As a maintained primary
school, we follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum in Reception and the
National Curriculum in Key Stages 1 and 2.The National Curriculum consists of three core
subjects, English, Maths and Science, together with the foundation subjects of Computing,
History, Geography, PE, Art and Music and Religious Education. Our school curriculum also
includes Modern Languages and Personal, Social and Health Education (including Relationships
Education).
It is vitally important that our children acquire key skills and knowledge in Literacy, Numeracy
and Science and we place these at the heart of our curriculum. However, our school curriculum
also makes conscious and meaningful links between subjects and areas of study through a
thematic, cross-curricular approach. Each term teachers publish a topic map on the school
website so that families have an overview of their children's learning. Teachers collaborate to
plan programmes of study, sharing their expertise and their ideas to provide exciting, imaginative
learning experiences.
Our curriculum incorporates other important elements related to our children's personal and
social development as well as their local and wider community/ culture. In this way, we encourage
children to consider their own and others' experiences and to make positive life decisions. St.
Agnes Academy is an Eco-School and environmental awareness is built into our curriculum and
extra-curricular activities. We also place a strong emphasis on excellence in the arts and sports.
The school sits in a World Heritage Site and a Marine Conservation Area. We make full use of our
local environment, engage in educational visits and sustain strong partnerships with other
establishments to enhance learning and enrich the curriculum.

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Early Years Foundation Stage
In educational and developmental terms, the Early Years Foundation Stage describes the stage of
children's development from birth to the end of the year in which their fifth birthday occurs. A
significantly high proportion of learning takes place from birth to age five. It is a crucial time
when children need high quality care and learning experiences.
We are fortunate that St. Agnes Pre-school, an independently-managed setting judged
Outstanding in its last OFSTED inspection, offers pre-school provision on the school site, which
precedes and complements the high quality development opportunities we provide in the Reception
year at school.
School starts for children during their Reception year, the year in which they turn five. All
children are offered full-time provision during their Reception year at St. Agnes Academy in
accordance with the county policy. Parents can request that their children attend part time until
they are of compulsory school age; our experience has convinced us that the vast majority of
children benefit hugely from starting school on a full-time basis in September. We do, however,
implement a staggered start to school for all children in order to aid a smooth transition and
start to school.
During the Reception year, children at St. Agnes Academy engage with the seven areas of
learning in the Foundation Stage curriculum:
 Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED)
 Communication and Language (CL)
 Physical Development (PD)
 Literacy (L)
 Mathematics (M)
 Understanding of the World (UW)
 Expressive Arts and Design (EAD)
The seven areas help our staff plan the learning environment, activities and experience (both
indoors and outdoors) and provide a framework for evaluating children's learning journeys
through the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Preparing for School
We work with families and the Pre-school to prepare young children to start school happily and
confidently. Induction activities include parents' information events, home visits and Learning
Together sessions during the term before children start school.
Ideally, we would expect children to be able to do the following before starting school:
 Use the toilet independently and flush after use;
 Wash and dry hands;
 Use a tissue to wipe or blow their nose;
 Understand that adults in school are there to help with any worries they may have.
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Key Stages 1 and 2
English, Mathematics and Science
At St. Agnes Academy, we want our children to be proficient and fluent in literacy, numeracy and
scientific knowledge and enquiry.
English/ Literacy
Taught through the subject of English and woven into virtually all areas of the curriculum, we aim
to give children a high level of literacy. Our children have a love of reading and consistently high
levels of reading proficiency. We actively encourage parents, carers and other members of our
community to take part in daily guided reading sessions.
Children are encouraged to compose for different purposes and audiences and to present their
ideas orally, in writing and through a variety of technological media. We celebrate achievement
and progress in the craft of writing and in handwriting
through displays and reward ceremonies.
To help us to meet the demands of the new National
Curriculum, we are placing a special emphasis this year on
spelling, grammar and punctuation, along with post-levels
assessment.
Mathematics/ Numeracy
We believe that children need a deep understanding of
the number system and calculating strategies which they
can apply to solve real-life mathematical problems. As a school we continue to focus our
curriculum on using and applying mathematics. This this year we are focussing on a ‘mastery’
approach and curriculum in collaboration with mastery specialists from the local Maths Hub.
Science
At St Agnes we are committed to making Science fun and a strong part of all our topics. We aim
to make Science more meaningful by using first hand experiences in
which children can explore and find out for themselves. We
complement this enquiry-based approach with computer research and
other activities to enhance children’s understanding of the physical
and natural world. This year’s curriculum incorporates all aspects of
the new Science curriculum.
Each year we set aside a week at a time to focus our whole
curriculum on Science, technology and ecology topics. Recent focuses
include Energy Week, Switch Off Fortnight, Inventors and Discoverers, Environmental Week and
Science and Technology Week.

St. Agnes ACE Academy Prospectus