WE KNOW. WE CAN. WE WILL.
EDUCATION WITH DRIVE AND AMBITION EDUCATION IS THE PASSPORT TO THE FUTURE FOR TOMORROW BELONGS TO THOSE WHO PREPARE FOR IT TODAY - MALCOM X
I am delighted to welcome you to Harris Invictus Academy. As the Academic year starts there is always a sense of promise and the anticipation of new opportunities. We hope to inspire our young students through an aspirational and ambitious curriculum; building on our histories, our shared experience and our sense of community. At Harris Invictus, we know how important it is for your children to have a holistic education, providing experiences both within and beyond the curriculum. Students in Year 7 will have the opportunity to play a musical instrument through the Music in Schools programme, participate in sporting activities and become an active member of our student leadership. Other opportunities include the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme and the Jack Petchey Awards. My expectations of students are very high. I expect all members of the Academy to uphold our core values, displaying hard work, good manners, smart uniform and academic achievement. As parents, I appreciate your support in helping your children maintain these high standards. We believe passionately in our mission statement – that we never settle for less and are driven by achievement and success. To be a committed member of the Harris Invictus community is to aspire to learn and gain knowledge. We are able to apply what we know to the outside world. We can do it and we will succeed no matter the circumstances. The relationships between staff, students and parents are fundamental to the success of our Academy. Working together will ensure that students enjoy their time at Harris Invictus, make outstanding progress and leave us as responsible, well-qualified and self-confident young people, ready to make a valuable contribution to society. Ms Lisa Kattenhorn, Principal
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TRADITIONAL HIGH STANDARDS Our ethos is firmly grounded in the traditions of hard work, good manners, smart uniform and academic achievement. These are combined with the best of modern teaching and technology. Class sizes are kept as small as possible and the school’s atmosphere is disciplined and rigorous but also happy.
INTERESTING TEACHING IN EVERY CLASSROOM As part of the Harris Federation, our teachers work with colleagues from our partner academies to share the best ideas and develop fun, interesting and engaging approaches to teaching. But learning does not begin and end at the classroom door. Students have the opportunity to participate in work placements, activity days and study sessions in all manner of subjects. These activities help to bring alive what they learn in the classroom.
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ADMISSIONS There are 180 places available in Year 7 and we welcome students of all abilities and backgrounds. Information about our admissions process and policy is available with this prospectus on our website. Admissions@harrisinvictus.org.uk
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OUR CURRICULUM The Academy’s curriculum is broad and balanced, with an aim that we turn out knowledgeable and well-educated young men and women at the end of our Sixth Form. Our core offer leads to good GCSE passes in English, Maths, Science, History, Geography and a Modern Foreign Language. Our other subjects include: Art; Design Technology; Drama; ICT/Computing; PE; Music and Business. With a specialism in Enterprise, we offer every student opportunities to acquire and practise the skills associated with running a successful business. The theme of ‘being enterprising’ is encouraged in a wide range of learning activities including curriculum lessons, after-school clubs, learning days and educational visits. This specialism has been chosen because it gives students the combination of analytical and interpersonal skills they need to achieve their goals.
A ‘PERSONAL BEST’ CULTURE We believe that when a school gives its students the confidence to believe they are capable of excellence, this is exactly what they go on to achieve. We have a hand-picked team of dedicated teachers who take the time to get to know and understand each student. Every student has an individual timetable. Their progress is tracked rigorously and frequently through regular academic reviews. We foster excellence and have a most able programme. as well as a supportive, bespoke assistance for students with Special Educational Needs. Parents receive reports home regularly so that they are fully informed about their son’s or daughter’s progress. We work closely with you to make sure that challenge and support is in place for all students across the curriculum.
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EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES Our broad range of extracurricular activities includes art, drama, debating and a range of other cultural and learning opportunities. Students are able to participate in additional sporting and outdoor pursuits. There are also theatre and museum visits, as well as opportunities for our students to collaborate and compete with students from other Harris academies in sports, enterprise and creative activities. We want every student to have the chance to shine. Whenever there is demand for a new club or activity, we always try to find a way to make it happen.
MAKING OUR YEAR 7 STUDENTS FEEL WELCOME From the moment they arrive at the beginning of September, we want our Year 7 students to feel welcome, safe and cared for. By feeling settled early on, they can begin to grasp all that we have to offer – academically, socially and outside the classroom. In their first week, every Year 7 meets their own tutor who will coach them, set goals with them and make sure they settle in well.
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We also have a Faculty System, which is similar to a House System. There are four Faculties, with all manner of inter-Faculty competitions. Students are encouraged to win points and prizes for their Faculty through good attendance and behaviour. By putting students into these smaller communities, they feel a greater sense of belonging. The names of our Faculties are inspired by the ‘Invictus’ Poem. Resilience, Courage, Ambition and Undefeated.
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Indoor and outdoor sports facilities make best use of the site, with a full-sized sports hall and activity studio, as well as an outdoor multiuse games area for a range of sports such as football, netball and tennis.
Out of the night that covers me Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance, I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid. It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul. William Ernest Henley
HARRIS FEDERATION PART OF THE SUCCESSFUL HARRIS FEDERATION The Harris Federation is a not-for-profit charity with 50 academies in London and Essex. The founder and Chairman of the Harris Federation is Lord Harris of Peckham. His vision of delivering happy and successful education is brought to life by an excellent team of teachers and leaders. The Federation regularly tops academic studies and national league tables measuring progress and performance. Almost all Harris secondary academies are judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. Harris secondary academies are known for combining traditional standards of manners, discipline and uniform with the best of modern teaching and technology. There are around four applications from parents for every place available.
We send many of our sixth formers to Oxford, Cambridge and other Russell Group universities – winning places on these prestigious courses at a rate of more than twice the national average – as well as top apprenticeships and competitive vocational courses. We are immensely proud of the role that our alumni are now beginning to play in the world and of what we believe our current generation of pupils will go on to achieve. In addition to running schools, the Harris Federation provides high quality training and professional development for teachers throughout this part of England. Follow @HarrisFed on Twitter to stay updated.
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London Road, Croydon CR0 2TB T. 020 3371 3002 Email. info@harrisinvictus.org.uk www.harrisinvictus.org.uk twitter @HarrisInvictus