Newsletter 1 11 2013

Christmas Term

Friday 1st November 2013

COMMUNITY MASS All Hallows' Chapel- Every Friday 9am-9.45am, Parents/Carers/Parishioners

Table Tennis

ALL ARE WELCOME!

Deposit charges start at £5 for 4 bats + 1 ball.

SPECIALIST SUCCESS OF THE WEEK

Located in the Go Shop in the POD in the Quad.

Y13 BTEC Business students have been successful in securing a start-up business loan from Dragons' Den Peter Jones CBE for £250. They will now run a business called 'Maccookie' for 4 weeks in November as part of the Tycoon in Schools Competition. If shortlisted in January 2014 The MakeItMacc Team behind Maccookies could be invited to an Award Ceremony at Buckingham Palace. Later in the year MakeItMacc hope to channel their energies and some of their profits into a more far-reaching enterprise project and seek further funding from The Heritage Lottery Fund.

Having already been given 'the green light' for their initial application, they hope to make a full bid that could see £12,000 coming into College to launch a project to raise the profile of Macclesfield heritage through the eyes of young people, in the local community and beyond. (JL)

Item must be returned after each break and the hire charge will be returned if items are kept in good condition.

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK Prayer for the Departed Merciful Father, hear our prayer and comfort us. As we renew our faith in your Son, whom you raised from the dead, strengthen our hope that all our departed loved ones and our departed brothers and sisters in Christ will share in His resurrection.

Amen.

PARENTS AS PARTNERS: FOOTWEAR Please check your child's footwear. Shoes: black, low heel and substantial.

No boots, soft shoes, trainers or other footwear allowed.

As well as being a requirement, this footwear is especially important during the winter. Good shoes tend to have better grip/treads than the flimsy fashion items some students choose. In more extreme weather, if wellingtons or walking boots are worn for the journey to/from College during challenging weather conditions, shoes should be brought in for changing on arrival.

CHRISTMAS TERM MONDAY 28 OCTOBER 2013 TO THURSDAY 19 DECEMBER 2013 Friday 8 November Year 7,9,11 Academic Reviews Issued Tuesday 12 November, Year 11 Mock Exams begin Thursday 21 November, Year 7 and 9 Parents’ Consultation Day 9am– 7pm Thursday 21 November, Children's Takeover Day for Years 10 and 11, opportunity to accompany relative or friend to work.

Thursday 28 November, Year 7 Sex and Relationship Education Evening 7– 8pm (Information on curriculum for Parents) Monday 2 - Friday 13 December, Assessment weeks for Students Friday 6 December 6pm, PTA Disco Year 7 and 8 Thursday 12 December 7pm (Provisional), Carol Service St Albans Church Friday 13 December, PTA Christmas Party (details tbc) Wednesday 18 December 7– 9pm, Key Stage 4 and 5 Awards Evening– College Hall

PRINCIPAL’S SURGERY Parents / Carers are invited to attend a Principal's Surgery to discuss any concerns or ask questions, on the following dates Tuesday 19 November, 9am - 10am Tuesday 3 December, 3.30pm - 4.30pm There is no appointment system so please be prepared to wait

ATTENDANCE MATTERS Year 7 - 96.5% (down 1.2% on the previous week) Year 8 - 95.5% (down 1.0%) Year 9 - 94.1% (down 2.7%) Year 10 - 91.5% (down 4.5%) Year 11 - 93.5% (down 2.6%) BEST FORMS - MICHAELMAS TERM: 7H - 98.25% 8W - 98.30% Best overall so they win toast and hot chocolate courtesy of the Principal 9F - 98.10% 10M - 97.10% 11F - 97.50%

97.00% 96.00%

95.00% 94.00% 93.00%

92.00% 91.00% 90.00%

89.00% YEAR 7

YEAR 8

YEAR 9

YEAR 10

YEAR 11

All forms win a box of chocolates to share and their successes will be celebrated in assemblies over the next week.

After such a fabulous week previously this was a poor end to the term. We did have many cases of illness, but these figures are still disappointing. The average for the week is 94.2% (down from 96.6% last week). Since 3rd September attendance is now 95.8%. We aim for 97%.

Last week GIRLS attendance has decreased to 93.3%, BOYS attendance has decreased to 95.1%. Since 3rd September boys are still winning girls 96.3% to 95.4%.

Parents are politely reminded to avoid absence unless it is absolutely necessary.

Thank you for your ongoing support regarding medical absence and holiday absence.

Holiday absence from College Holidays will not be authorized from 1st September 2013 under new legislation on all English schools. Requests for holidays must still be made in writing to the appropriate Key Stage leader (Mrs Garvey KS5, Mr Blades KS4 and Mr Diamond KS3), but in the vast majority of cases they will be unauthorized. A Fixed Penalty Notice may be issued of £60 per parent / carer per student, to be paid within 21 days, otherwise the penalty will rise to £120 per parent / carer to be paid within 28 days. If the penalty remains unpaid then the matter will proceed to the Magistrates Court where you will receive a criminal record if you are found guilty.

Medical absence from College Whilst the College requires parents to contact us on each day of absence , school policy now requires that any student who accumulates 7 or more days of absence during the course of the academic year will be asked to provide medical confirmation of need to be absent before any further absences are authorized for medical reasons. This is a necessary measure as we closely monitor absence due to illness / medical reasons in order that we can ensure students are supported where needed. For your information medical confirmation does not have to be a doctor's note but can also take the form of a medical appointment card, a copy of a relevant dated prescription or evidence of medication being taken If no medical evidence is provided then the absence will be coded as unauthorized. Ten or more unauthorized absences may result in you receiving a Fixed Penalty Notice. This incurs a penalty of £60 per parent / carer to be paid within 21 days, otherwise the penalty will rise to £120 per parent / carer to be paid within 28 days. If the penalty remains unpaid then the matter will proceed to the Magistrates Court where you will receive a criminal record if you are found guilty.

The link between attendance and achievement is well researched and documented and students should be aiming for an attendance rate of no less than 97% over the year. Thank you for your continued support with this importance issue.

CALENDAR

Term

College Opens to Students

College Closes to Students

Christmas

Monday 28 October 2013

Thursday 19 December 2013

Epiphany

Monday 6 January 2014

Friday 14 February 2014

Easter

Wednesday 26 February 2014

Friday 4 April 2014

Whitsun

Wednesday 23 April 2014

Thursday 22 May 2014

Trinity

Monday 2 June 2014

Tuesday 22 July 2014

The following are the dates for training days in 2013-14. Students are not required to attend on these days.

Monday 24 February 2014 Tuesday 25 February 2014 Tuesday 22 April 2014 Friday 23 May 2014 Wednesday 23 July 2014

ADVANCED NOTICE Languages Controlled Assessments 2013-2014

Please find below the list of dates for the languages controlled assessments. Each assessment can count for 15% of the final GCSE. Teachers will let your son/daughter know on which dates they will complete assessments. Please avoid time off both on the date and in the lessons preceding these dates. Please contact a.harrison@allhallows.org.uk with any queries.

Year 11 Writing 2 Speaking 1 Speaking 2

11y Thursday 16 January 11g Tuesday 21 January Monday/Tuesday 9/10 December Thursday and Monday 13/17 March

Year 10 Writing 1 Writing 2 Speaking 1 Speaking 2

10y Tuesday 10 December 10g Thursday 12 December 10y Tuesday 6 May 10g Thursday 8 May Tuesday/Wednesday 10/11 March Thursday/Friday 3 /4 July

Year 9 Speaking

Tuesday/Wednesday 8/9 July

Recommended Reads- “Scream Street� series by Tommy Donbavand Fang of the Vampire Luke Watson and his parents are moved to Scream Street, where they and other "unusual lifeforms" are trapped. The only way out is for Luke and his new friends to find six powerful relics hidden by the founding fathers. 1st book in series.

Invasion of the Normals Opening a doorway out of Scream Street seems to have brought with it a whole new set of problems, and Luke, Resus and Cleo are beginning to realise just what they have unleashed. Scream Street faces a greater threat than ever before - normals.

Heart of the Mummy Luke and his spooky friends try to find the next relic, which is a heart from a mummy. Evil Sir Otto tries to thwart their plans