A very happy new year to you all. I hope that 2019 is a prosperous year for you and your family.

Transcription

1 Issue th January 2019 Dear Parents/Carers, A very happy new year to you all. I hope that 2019 is a prosperous year for you and your family. It has been very pleasing to see students return for the Lenten term with a positive attitude towards behaviour and learning. This week we have celebrated the Epiphany with students and explained the meaning of encountering Jesus Christ in our lives and what we can do to make positive contributions for the greater good of our school community and world. Our Jesuit Values for this half term are Eloquent and Truthful and we will be communicating with students the importance of being eloquent in the commitment to their faith and truthful in their words, thoughts and actions. Of course this is something that everyone is expected to do all of the time but during this half term we will make a special effort to reward and celebrate positive acts that exemplify these values. Over the next two weeks year 11 students are involved in mock examinations. Please keep them in your prayers at this time. We hope all their hard work pays off in the summer. A huge thankyou to all students, parents and carers who have donated gloves, hats, blankets, sleeping bags, scarves and toiletries to the Winter Night Shelter. We have raised a significant number of items that will understandably support the homeless people in our community. Today year 9 students have been involved in sorting items for the drop off this afternoon. On Sunday 13th January a group of year 12 & 13 students along with myself, Mrs Anderton and Mrs Smith are preparing food for the homeless at the night shelter at Our Lady of the Angels church. Look out for the photographs in next week s newsletter. On Wednesday next week we have some visitors in school from St Thomas Aquinas school in Birmingham who are interested in our knowledge curriculum. This is a great way to showcase some of the excellent learning that takes place and an opportunity to share good practice; we look forward to welcoming visitors to our school. I wish you all a pleasant weekend. Mrs Thomas Acting Principal

2 Catholic Life Message from the Pope Every person is unique and unrepeatable. Let us ensure the disabled are always welcome by the communities in which they live. Jesuit Values This half term we are focussing on Eloquent and Truthful as our values. Dear God, I lean on You because I know you care about me. Your strength supports me, Your love carries me. You are here for me: To help me through every pain. To be my eyes when I feel the need to turn away. To be my ears when I can't bear to hear what has to be said. To be my heart, always filled with hope and courage. Thank You. ~Amen Thought for the week "Talking and eloquence are not the same: to speak and to speak well are two things. A fool may talk but a wise man speaks." Heinrich Heine ( ) German poet and writer

3 Catholic Life Saint of the Week St Hilary of Poitiers St Hilary was born into a pagan family (non-worshiping) but through his education and study of multiple religions and scripture, he became a Christian. He was married with a daughter when all were baptised. St Hilary was ordained a priest and later appointed the Bishop of Poitiers, France. He was exiled from his Diocese for four years because of his Christian beliefs and public preaching. He wrote many significant Church documents including Hymns and Psalm reviews. St Hilary s Feast Day is 13th January. He is a Doctor of the Church and the Patron Saint of lawyers. St Hilary: Pray for us that we cherish our faith and live by God s teachings.

4 Catholic Life Jesuit Values Spring Term 1 Foci: Eloquent and truthful Each half term all schools within the Archdiocese of Birmingham that have elected to adopt Jesuit values to underpin their school ethos focus on a particular pair of values. The foci for the Spring term are eloquent and truthful. As such, as a school community we would like to raise the profile of the importance of being eloquent in communicating our commitment to our Faith and truthful in our words, thoughts and actions. Of course, this is something that everyone in our school community should do all the time, but during this half term we make a special effort to reward and celebrate positive actions that exemplify these values. We would like our school prayer life this half term to reflect upon the values of being eloquent and truthful and, to facilitate this, each week the bulletin will contain an appropriate prayer, thought for the week and relevant Bible reading. These will be incorporate within school worship. Eloquent They listen to my voice John 10:22-27 [JB] It was the time when the feast of Dedication was being celebrated in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the Temple walking up and down in the Portico of Solomon. The Jews gathered round him and said, 'How much longer are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.' Jesus replied: 'I have told you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father's name are my witness; but you do not believe, because you are no sheep of mine. The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me.' The Eloquent Prayer of St Aidan of Lindisfarne (c ) Leave me alone with God, as much as may be. As the tide draws the waters close in upon the shore, make me an island, set apart, along with you, God, holy to you. Then, with the turning of the tide, prepare me to carry your presence to the busy world beyond; the world that rushes in on me, till the water comes again and folds me back to you. Amen.

5 Information Attendance and Punctuality Excellent attendance and punctuality to school are imperative to ensure students achieve their very best. This year we are having a real drive on these two key areas and we expect students to attend school regularly and be on time each day. I would like to take the opportunity to remind parents/carers that each day absent from school is equal to 5 hours of learning lost. Holidays in term time will not be authorised (only in exceptional circumstances) and parents/carers may receive a fixed term penalty notice. In regards to punctuality the school gates close at 9am so any student arriving to school after this time will be late and consequently given a C1. If a student is late twice in a week a C3 consequence will be issued. If your child has an illness related absence please contact the school by either calling or attendance@st-thomas-more.net. We require all our parents/carers to notify the school of your child s absence or this absence will be recorded as unauthorised Warwickshire Attendance Service As part of Warwickshire County Council's Transformation agenda there are ongoing changes within Education and Learning. In the Autumn term ACE started the transition from SEND and Inclusion to Learning and Performance. From January 2019 ACE will be changing its name to become the Warwickshire Attendance Service (WAS). Part of the rationale for the change in name is avoiding confusion with Adoption Central England (ACE). There are currently no plans to change how the service functions. Mary Ann Evans Hospice Nuneaton Thank you for all your donations for the giving tree in lieu of sending Christmas cards We raised 35

6 Information Project Rugby is coming to you.. TOUCH RUGBY & CONTACT RUGBY SESSIONS AVAILABLE FOR BOYS & GIRLS (No experience required) Wasps RFC are offering Rugby coaching through their after school clubs from January When: Every Monday (from 14th January 2019) Where: Nuneaton Old Edwardians Rugby Club, Weddington Road, Nuneaton Time: Between the hours of 3.30pm and 5pm. Age: Yr7 Yr11 All coaching will be delivered by qualified & experienced coaches from Wasps RFC and all participants will have the opportunity to receive Wasps tickets to a game during the season. The offer is open to both boys and girls and nobody will be turned away. There will also be taster sessions to introduce participants to gain an understanding of the game. Rugby is a fast, vibrant and exciting game and Wasps RFC will ensure that you will be coached correctly in a safe and enjoyable environment whatever your skillset! Lost Property A number of items have been held in lost property for over a year. We have made the conscious decision to donate all items to the local charity shop as previous communications stated. Winter Night Shelter donations from St Thomas More School! Well done to everyone and thank you for supporting this worthy cause.

7 Information

8 Subject Paris trip 2019 Final balance is due for Paris trip 2019 by 11th January Total price 430 pp English and Media Faculty This term year 7 and year 8 have read an incredible amount of words as part of the Accelerated Reader programme. So far we have fifteen millionaires and four two millionaires! Congratulations to the following students: Millionaires Two Millionaires Aiden Muprapallil Bennett Mathew Danie Benny Hannah Mcnulty Jack Alexander James Wright Lauren Makepeace Leon Joby Nathaniel Finc Nyra Bohoui Oliver Williams Oskar Kasperek Riya Ingalagi Sofia Smith Theo Gillum Ruadhan Taylor James Sebastian Joshwa John David Daniels

9 Information Please check your child s Internet use Can I urge you to regularly check your child's mobile phone to 'parent' their viewing? It is always disheartening to see how upset parents are when they have to learn from us what inappropriate websites their child has been accessing. You should also be checking who their friends on social media sites are. Do they know all those so called friends? We are still struggling to educate our youngsters about safer online use. Where parents/carers do regularly check and educate their child about staying safe there are very few or no problems at all. Too many of our children (generally very well raised, good children) still put themselves at risk by thinking they know who this ''unknown 12 year old from another school' is, but has turned out to be an adult with questionable intentions! Safeguarding Team Wednesday 9th January Friday 25 th January Thursday 7 th February Key Dates Year 11 Mock Exams start Year 11 Mock Exams finish Year 13 Mock Exams start Uniform Policy more.net/assets/uploads/policies/school- UNIFORM-Sept pdf Instagram Please follow us on sthomasmorecatholicschool for exciting updates about St Thomas More Catholic School and Sixth Form College. Behaviour Policy more.net/assets/uploads/policies/behaviour- Policy-2018.pdf Protecting Children s Privacy online A parents, carers and educators Guide Please click the link below to view the guide.

10 Subject ATTENDANCE LADDER TOP TEN FORMS 17th 23rd DECEMBER SH % 7HE % 11CE % 7NT % 9BW % 7WL % 7SN % 7AH % 8BK % 11PW %

11 Information LEAVE OF ABSENCE DURING TERM TIME UPDATED INFORMATION FOR PARENTS The Supreme Court recently reached a decision in the case of Platt v Isle of Wight Council which has clarified the law on unauthorised leave, including holidays, during term time. The parents of children of compulsory school age are required to ensure that they attend school on a regular basis. The Supreme Court has made clear that attending school regularly means that the children must attend school on every day that they are required to do so. As such, the parents of any child who is absent from school without authorisation for any length of time are likely to be considered as committing an offence under s444 of the Education Act Head Teachers retain the ability to authorise leave in accordance with the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations When considering such requests for a leave of absence, the school are obliged to act within the law. Head Teachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application. If the leave is granted, head teachers are able to determine the number of school days a child can be absent for. It is for the Head Teacher to decide what is exceptional and it is at their discretion if the circumstances warrant the leave to be granted. The school can only consider Leave of Absence requests which are made by the resident parent. Each application for a leave of absence will be considered on a case by case basis and on its own merits. Where applications for leave of absence are made in advance and refused, the child will be required to be in school on the dates set out in the application. If the child is absent during that period, it will be recorded as an unauthorised absence, which may result in legal action being taken against the parent(s), by way of a Fixed Penalty Notice. Failure to make an application for leave in advance can also result in a Fixed Penalty Notice being issued to the parent(s). All matters of unauthorised absence relating to a Leave of Absence will be referred to the Attendance, Compliance and Enforcement Service of Warwickshire County Council It is important to note, Fixed Penalty Notices are issued to each parent of each absent child, (for example 2 children and 2 parents, means each parent will receive 2 invoices in the amount of 120 each, totalling 240 for both children, this is reduced to 60 per child if paid within 21 days). Where a Fixed Penalty Notice is not paid within the required timeframe as set out on the notice, the matter will be referred to Warwickshire County Council s Legal Services to consider instigating criminal proceedings under S444 Education Act Fixed Penalty Notices are issued in accordance with Warwickshire County Council s Code of Conduct for Penalty Notices. Your child s progress academically as well as socially is our shared priority Warwickshire Secondary School pupils recorded 8,895 half day sessions of absence due to holiday in the Autumn/Spring term during academic Warwickshire Secondary School pupils recorded 8,895 half day sessions of absence year 2017/18. This is an increase of 1,816 on the previous year. due to holiday in the Autumn/Spring term during academic year 2017/18. This is an increase of 1,816 on the previous year.