July 2024 /
Issue
DUNRAVEN EDUCATIONAL TRUST
Spotlight
Dear Families
I’m delighted to welcome you to the summer edition of Spotlight, our Trust newsletter. Its aim, as usual, is to give you a flavour of the many things that our young people have been involved in over the course of this term. I hope that you find it interesting. A reminder that you can see more of what the students have been involved in via the ‘twitter’ (known now as X) feeds for each school.
I continue to be impressed and inspired by the wide range of opportunities that our schools offer to our young people, both academic and social. Arts, sports and outdoor learning compete with subject-related events to engage students’ attention. Before and after school as well as weekends, our staff go above and beyond what’s expected to enrich the main school offer. This term we’ve also had Year 6 residentials, Year 11 and Year 13 prom nights, Duke Of Edinburgh expeditions, summer fairs, activities week, world culture days, music concerts and summer shows.
The Trust team continues to work alongside our school leaders to support and develop what we can offer to our young people. This includes a range of things from working with subject leaders to develop curriculum provision; supporting improvements to school sites (like the creation of Goldfinch’s astroturf pitch); ensuring that school budgets are well looked after to provide even better value for our families and communities.
The headteachers have been hearing from parents who are keen to support the ‘stick to bricks’ campaign for mobile phones. This is to encourage families to delay getting their children a smartphone until they are old enough to manage the consequences of having one. There is a clear sense that primary aged children and younger teenagers don’t need a smartphone; a cheaper ‘brick’ phone allows them to call and text to keep in touch without the hazards that can come with having an internet-connected device. There is plenty of research to suggest that life without social media is happier and less stressful for young people (and adults too!). There was a reason why Microsoft boss Bill Gates didn’t let his children have a smartphone until they were 14.
I want to thank those who give their time and expertise to support our schools as governors and trustees. This is a crucial role in our community and we are fortunate to have such a dedicated and passionate group of people. A particular thanks for their service to Joan O’Mahony and Paul Thomas who step down as chairs of The Elmgreen and Dunraven local governing boards respectively at the end of this term.
Ofsted Success
Congratulations to Rosendale staff (and children and families) on all of their hard work which led to such an amazing report following their Ofsted Inspection in April. The school was last inspected in 2014 but it was well worth the wait. The report begins ‘this is a truly joyful place where pupils thrive’! Headteacher Kate Atkins and her team are rightly proud of all that the staff team has achieved.
This means that all of our schools now have an up to date inspection report and all have developed since the previous visit. We continue to be hugely impressed by the dedication of the staff teams across the Trust and the great work they do in support of our young people.
With very best wishes for a restful and safe summer break.
David Boyle CBE CEO
Where learning is child’s play!
Over the past two years, the Play Team at Van Gogh Primary has been developing the OPAL (Outdoor, Play and Learning) programme to enhance the playground and play of the children.
Did you know that playtime equals about 20% of every child’s day at school? It is also, for some children, one of the few times that they have to play outside regularly with their friends and without electronic devices (!)
The team started the journey by building an outdoor stage for the children to act, dance and sing, preparing the ground to install a sandpit for all pupils to dig out treasures and build sandcastles. They then set up large storage containers on both sides of the playground to keep equipment
With the support of families, the pupils started using donated clothes to enhance their role play skills; trying out buggies and suitcases to push and pull each other across the playground; choosing stuffed animals and dolls to look after and care for and take board games to play collaboratively.
PE mats, tyres, barriers and crates have been central in creating demarcated areas where children feel safe and comfortable to play in small groups, set up obstacle courses and practise their gymnastics and skipping skills. A football net has enabled our sporty children to refine their techniques in various ball games. An art area has been the delight of so many pupils using their creative mind in drawing manga characters, painting for pleasure and making bracelets, headbands and necklaces.
In the garden area, pupils have used their imagination in the mud kitchen to prepare tasty cakes and brew high quality tea and coffee. They grew plants and herbs for the catering team to cook delicious lunches and used the water dispenser to collect water and mix it with sand, mud or run it through pipes and watering cans.
After two years of hard work and collaboration with pupils and families, we are delighted to announce that Van Gogh Primary has achieved the Platinum Standard Quality Mark for outdoor play and learning in schools. This is a very exciting opportunity to celebrate playtime and enjoy spending quality time with the pupils at the end of such a busy and exciting
Multicultural Day 2024 at Dunraven Primary
Our first Multicultural Day was so successful, it is now celebrated annually. Students and staff dress in clothing which represents their culture or heritage in some way. A range of activities were put in place around the school as part of the celebration.
In the primary phase, students learned about the different countries and languages represented in our school as well as family history. In reception classes, they also enjoyed learning some traditional African dances.
In the secondary phase, there was a fashion show and dance event. Students shared food at the end of the day along with a performance from our excellent Reggae Band.
At lunchtime, our catering team served a range of food from Chinese noodles to West African jollof rice. After school, our community came together to share food from a wide range of countries. This has become a really joyful Dunraven tradition and one we look forward to being even better still in the future.
Phoenix Lettings News
Did you know that there are a range of different holidays clubs for children taking place at our schools during the Summer Holidays?
Phoenix Lettings supports a number of different organisations in delivering a range of activities to children including multisports, performing arts, music, lego clubs, dance, gymnastics and more! Please keep an eye out for leaflets and banners at participating schools.
We are proud to be able to support the schools in becoming vibrant hubs for pupils and families within the local community during the evenings, weekends and holiday periods. We continue to support all schools through the promotion of available facilities to hire.
If you would like to enquire or know someone who might be interested in hiring our facilities, please do get in touch via our website contact us page.
For all Phoenix Lettings enquiries please visit www.phoenixfs.org.uk
E: phoenix@det.org.uk
T: 020 7959 4126
Sports Roundup from The Elmgreen School
A range of sporting events at The Elmgreen School showcased the talent of their students. Showing resilience in practice, avoiding either despair in defeat or arrogance in victory, the young people demonstrated a range of skills for a successful life ahead. These included:
The U13 girls 5-a-side football team didn’t lose a single match in the extended Lambeth Girls Tournament. They proceeded to win the tournament overall, taking home a nice shiny trophy.
The U14 boys basketball team went undefeated all season, ultimately winning the Lambeth Final to become the Lambeth League winners for 2024.
The U15 boys football team reached the South London Cup Final, played well but lost on penalties in the end.
The U16 boys football team had a bye to start their run but then held
a winning streak to triumph as the South London Cup Winners for 2024.
The girls NFL Flag team were undefeated in their pool matches but frustratingly lost their semi-final and just missed out on progressing to the Lambeth final. They did, however, win their last game to place third in the NFL Flag Lambeth League.
A tremendous and successful summer of sport.
TRUST TERM DATES
Back to the future?
‘Victorian day’ was a wonderful experience for Rosendale’s Year 5 to learn all about the Victorian era. It was an engaging show that used a wide range of interesting subjects from employment to jump ropes to education to give a real flavour of a day in the life of a Victorian. Highlights from the workshop included drills, drama and observing artefacts. The host began the day with dabbling in a harshly disciplined institution of that time: school. The daily prayer was followed by a cleanliness inspection, before finally ending in diction. After that, students considered a large range of contemporary jobs, including chimney sweeps and street sellers, ahead of performing such roles with several props. Then, children returned to their classrooms to make a popular Victorian toy of that time, thaumatropes. They magically merged two drawings together to create another! And finally, we found out about famous Victorians like Queen Victoria herself. Overall, an amazing day!
By Jack (5ST)
Autumn Term 2024
Monday 2 and Tuesday 3
September
Professional Development Days for all schools (staff only - no students in school)
Wednesday 4 September
Phased return to school begins
Friday 25 October
Last day of half term
Monday 28 Oct - Fri 1 Nov
Half Term Holiday
Monday 4 November
All Students Return
Friday 15 November
Professional Development Day (staff only - no students in school)
Saturday 16 November
Banding Admission Test for Y7 admissions tbc.
Friday 20 December
Last day of term
Friday 23 DecemberFriday 3 January 2025
Christmas Holiday
Monday 6 January
Professional Development Day (staff only - no students in school)
Tuesday 7 January
Students return
Spotlight
The full term dates for 2024-25 can be found on the trust website: www.det.org.uk
Become a Foster Carer
A new child comes into care every day in Lambeth. Many of these children will need the love and stability that a foster carer can provide.
What is fostering?
Being a foster parent means caring for someone else’s child as part of your family. Foster carers look after children who are unable to live with their parents, through no fault of their own. You’ll be given lots of training and support, as well as allowances to cover living costs, the costs of food, travel and for the time you’ll need to invest in supporting any child in your care.
Who can foster?
Lambeth Fostering welcome applications from everyone with a passion for caring. You just need to be over 21, have a spare room, good written and spoken English, and permanent UK residency.
Find out how you can be the difference: www.lambeth.gov.uk/be-the-difference
Dunraven Students March on Westminster
Well, they went by train actually but you get the idea. Dunraven headteacher, Mr Maidment, was very pleasantly surprised to be invited with students to give the closing address at the Department for Education’s Conference on Tuesday 16 July. Mr Maidment was accompanied by Ashirah (Year 12), Mikel and Henning (both Year 10) who each focused on their hopes for education under the new government. Mikel made clear the need for a credible plan to address child poverty. Ashirah dreamed for a more holistic assessment system. Henning made the case for rebuilding the position of the Arts in Education in the United Kingdom.
All three students, along with their headteacher, highlighted the need for a system that aligns the interests of the school with its students and the need for a properly resourced and rewarded workforce. The students were asked for their views on how to get more young people to contribute to politics and left the audience in no doubt as to their desire to do just that. There is a bright future that lies ahead when our young people find their way to making the decisions that will make the world a better place for all.
New School Library at Goldfinch Opens to Community
The new school library at Goldfinch has officially opened, following a successful fundraising campaign last academic year that raised over £12,000. This generous support enabled a complete revamp of the library. Although the project was extensive and took some time, the outcome is a beautiful, well-stocked library filled with diverse and exciting books for the children.
The library hosted its first book day in March, a joyous event for students. Separately, a special party was held for sponsors, who were thanked for their contributions. The school is about to run a second round of inviting families to read with their children, spreading the love of books. The whole school community is delighted with this fantastic new resource.
The Sharing Excellence Partnership, led by Dunraven School is a Lead PGCE Partner with University of Roehampton offering training placements leading to PGCE and QTS in vibrant urban Lambeth, Wandsworth and Croydon primary and secondary schools.
Why choose us for your teacher training? Unlike others, you can choose the school where you train, and gain experience with us before your course starts. We offer a warm welcome and a supportive training environment, with enhanced employment prospects within the Trust schools.
For all enquiries please visit www.sharingexcellence.org.uk
Or email teachertraining@ sharingexcellence.org.uk Follow
Notices
Governors’ Notice
As we approach the end of another school year, we would like to take this opportunity to express our thanks to all our Governors and Trustees who make such a valuable contribution to their communities. They volunteer their time to support the schools within our Trust and make a real difference as a result.
We have introduced you to some of the people on our governing boards through our newsletters. We have looked at why they volunteer their time and how they have become involved in governance. We also recognise that so many of our volunteers, both in their professional and personal lives, provide wider support to the areas in which they live. We were delighted to see that Nana Baffoe, governor at Rosendale Primary School, had the opportunity to attend the King’s garden party at Buckingham Palace in recognition of the work
Spotlight
she does with the ELEVATE Youth Mentoring Programme.You may also be interested to read a recent article in the TES magazine regarding Jennese Alozie, one of our Trustees, who is the CEO of the University of Chichester Academy Trust.
We would like to recognise and give thanks to those individuals who are moving on from our governing boards at the end of this term:
Anthony Blaiklock, Trustee; Joan O’Mahony and Mark Chetwynd, The Elmgreen School; Eleni Hack, Van Gogh Primary School; and Timo Asling, Dunraven School. We are very grateful to each of them for their time and the commitment they have shown to our schools. We look forward to introducing you in the autumn term to the new Governors and Trustees who will be joining our boards. You can find out more information about each board under the governance section on the school and Trust websites.
We are always interested to hear from anyone who would like to know more about becoming involved in governance with our Trust. You do not need to have a knowledge of, or experience in, governance and education. You will have a keen interest in our schools and community and be prepared to commit the time needed to play an active part in supporting the work that we do. Please contact Kylie Burgess, Governance & Compliance Manager for an informal conversation at governance@det.org.uk
School Uniform Review
We provided an update regarding the school uniform review process in our spring newsletter. We would like to thank everyone who took the time to engage with the survey along with the student groups who had a chance to provide their views on their school’s uniform.
The Headteachers are now reviewing this feedback. One theme that came through strongly was the availability of pre-loved uniform: we will focus on where families can donate and obtain pre-loved uniform items at each school.
A tender process for the uniform suppliers will begin in the autumn term, with our focus remaining on uniforms that are sustainable, affordable and accessible for all.
Families should continue to purchase uniforms from their current supplier as usual in the meantime. We will provide a further update to families in the autumn term.
If you have any questions, please contact us through: info@det.org.uk
contact us: info@det.org.uk
www.det.org.uk