St Michael's Information Brochure 2015

St Michael’s CE High School A Church Of England Academy Therefore, choose

Excellence Within A Christian Context

Hello and welcome to our prospectus Whether you are visiting as a pupil, parent or carer of the past, present or future or simply have an interest in our school we hope you feel informed about every aspect of school life.

At St Michaels we strive to make you feel welcome and settled in a safe and happy environment created by both staff and pupils. We value each pupil who works and learns here equally and aim to help them achieve the best they can to ensure they have an enjoyable and successful learning experience in our school.

Being a Church of England High School the Christian faith helps us to continue to develop our strengths and overcome weaknesses with resilience. It teaches us to follow Jesus’ actions to become better people both in and out of school. The kingdom of God brings us together to give us a real sense of community.

Millie Joy and Thomas Letch Head Girl and Head Boy

LEARNING AND TEACHING THE CURRICULUM The Curriculum at both Key Stage 3 and 4 is challenging, engaging and exciting, reflecting the particular needs of our pupils KEY STAGE 3 At Key Stage 3 (Years 7,8 & 9) all pupils study: English, Mathematics, Science, a Modern Foreign Language, Geography, History, Religious Education, Technology, Information and Computing, Art, Music, Dance, Drama, Physical Education, Learning to Learn,Citizenship and Living Education (Personal, social and health education). Our more able pupils are offered the opportunity to study a second Modern Foreign Language from Year 8 onwards.

KEY STAGE 4 At Key Stage 4 all pupils continue to study English (Language and Literature), Mathematics, Science (either Double Award Science or Triple Science), Religious Education, Physical Education (non-exam course) Citizenship and Living Education (Personal, social and health education). They must also study one of the following; History, Geography, Information Communication Technology, Computer Science, a Modern Foreign Language.

In consultation with parents and staff, pupils can also choose two subjects at Key Stage 4 from any of the subjects below: • • • • • • •

Art Catering Computer Science Dance Drama Food Technology French

• • • • • • •

Geography Graphics History Information Leisure & Tourism Media Studies Music

• • • • •

Music Technology Physical Education Product Design Spanish Textiles

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION Parents have the legal right to withdraw their children from Religious Education or collective worship. The Governing Body would be surprised and disappointed if any parent who had accepted a place in this Church of England Academy were to do so. Any parent who does wish to exercise that right should contact the Headteacher.

DROP-IN CLINIC Drop-in Clinics are held every Tuesday from 15.30 – 17.00, no appointment necessary. Please feel free to call in if you wish to discuss any matters relating to your child’s education.

PUPIL GROUPING Pupils are placed in ability groups as soon as possible in Year 7 for Maths, English, Science, Humanities and Languages. Grouping is based on the Key Stage 2 results and the Cognitive Ability Tests which are carried out during the first few weeks of term.

Groups are kept under constant review to ensure pupils are taught in a group where the pace and level of work matches their ability. In other subjects pupils will be taught in mixed ability groups.

ASSESSMENT Assessment is an integral part of learning and teaching and teachers are assessing progress every lesson. More formal assessments take place in each subject area at least once a term and in most cases every half term. Ofsted have commented that St Michael’s has developed “very effective strategies for evaluating the progress and achievement of its pupils, which are models of their kind.” Expectations of pupils are very high and much work is done on an individual level to ensure that learning is personalised and that all pupils are working to their potential.

REPORTING TO PARENTS At St Michael's we work extremely hard to make sure parents and carers are informed and involved at every stage in their child's education.

There are four formal points of contact with parents throughout the school year: • A consultation evening is held where parents and carers make appointments to see each of their child's subject teachers.

• A full written report is sent home giving details of attainment in each subject area.

• An "information to Parents and Carers" sheet is sent home twice a year giving expected GCSE grades, current performance, effort and conduct grades.

LEARNING AND TEACHING Data from these reports is collated and analysed by Curriculum & Subject Leaders who monitor progress in individual lessons ensuring pupils achieve as fully as possible.

Tutors and Pupil Managers meet with individual pupils and any pupils who do not meet their targets are monitored closely for a period of time, with intervention strategies put in place to make sure they get back on track.

A strong and positive relationship between school and home is vital and parents and carers are contacted and support will be asked for if there is any cause for concern either within one particular subject area or across a range of subjects.

HOME LEARNING (HOMEWORK) Learning is enhanced and reinforced by regular home learning. All pupils are given a home learning timetable and expected to complete all home learning set. Failure to do so results in a detention.

The demands of home learning will vary throughout the five years at St Michael's with longer more complex tasks being set in Years 10 and 11 in line with course demands. Home learning takes a variety of forms and may include research, learning by rote, consolidation exercises, revision, completion of classwork, reading creative projects or collaborative exercises e.g. via the schools virtual learning environment (VLE) Moodle.

Pupils record home learning in their personal organisers and we expect parents and carers to check these regularly to ensure it is being completed. Before starting home learning tasks set for the day, pupils are required to read through notes made in lessons that day, to check they have understood the work. We recommend that pupils use the ‘Moodle’ VLE website and engage in reading to supplement formal home learning.

Our gifted mathematicians take part in the UK Maths challenge. Pupils in upper school are given opportunities to attend masterclasses at Runshaw College. We encourage our pupils to aim high and opportunities are offered to pupils wishing to enter prestigious universities by attending Runshaw’s “Oxbridge Bound” activity day.

Our able pupils are offered the chance to take part in the Rotary Club of Great Britain’s “ Youth Speaks”, competition. This is open to all ages in school.

Our Year 11 AGT pupils are given the opportunity to sit the AS Level General Studies examination to foster critical thinking and awareness of the wider world. Pupils achieve superb results on a regular basis.

ABLE, GIFTED AND TALENTED At St. Michael’s every child is unique and special and will be challenged regardless of their ability.

Pupils are identified using a range of , from CAT scores on entry to teacher identification in subjects. A register of Able, Gifted and Talented pupils is regularly updated and the pupils are monitored – in tandem with our whole school monitoring system- to identify individual progress and provision, along with extra-curricular activities. Each subject area has particular strategies in place to provide for the needs of the most able.

CAREERS Year 9 pupils are required to think about their GCSE options and the sorts of careers that particular subjects might lead them into. Pupils in all years study Careers in their Living Education lessons and also in Citizenship. Sessions in Year 9 are intended to help and guide them through the Options process, including how to write a Personal Statement and the range of GCSE courses on offer.

Pupils are given a great deal of support through liaison with local colleges and apprenticeship providers. In addition to this, pupils can request further guidance from our Independent Careers Advisor.

Many of our talented pupils represent the county in a range of sports and in bands and orchestras. Workshops are held with prestigious companies such as Ballet Rambert, Ludus Dance Company and the Royal Shakespeare Company. The school has close links to local colleges that provide extra-curricular activities for our AGT pupils. The biennial school production provides extensive opportunities for our talented musicians, dancers and drama students

In order to assist pupils and parents with this process, school encourages the use of Lancashire Interactive, a single access point which brings together all of the careers information, advice and guidance in the region. The software is easy to navigate and boasts a range of videos and case studies which personalise the careers and enable pupils to imagine themselves in the job. Lancashire Interactive also helps to broaden pupils’ views on careers they may be interested in and to explore possibilities which they may not previously have considered.

SEND St Michaels CE High School seeks to educate all pupils including those with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), by recognising individual needs, talents, gifts, circumstances, difficulties and disabilities. The entitlement of SEND pupils to a fulfilling and meaningful education with equal opportunity to achievement and participation across a broad balanced curriculum, including the National Curriculum, is implicit.

The school recognises the importance of early identification and intervention in order to address the needs of SEND pupils, as identified in The Code of Practice for the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs (2014).Entry to external assessments and examinations, commensurate with ability will be available to all SEND pupils.

A range of approaches to develop independent learning are used to ensure a measure of challenge and support for SEND pupils and these can include small group working, 1:1 or additional support in lessons.

It is acknowledge that all staff have responsibility for SEND pupils and parental involvement will be valued since the school believes that partnership with parents is central to the successful education of all SEND pupils.

KEY STAGE 4 - RESULTS Subject Additional Maths Art Art Textiles Biology Catering Chemistry D&T Product Design D&T Food Technology D&T Graphic Products Dance Drama English Language English Literature French Geography German History ICT Mathematics Media Studies Music Music Technology Physical Education Physics Religious Studies Science Additional Science Core Spanish A/S General Studies BTEC Principles of Science BTEC Application of Science

Entries 22 48 30 40 30 40 11 14 11 29 28 221 221 28 50 218 59 220 221 16 24 10 53 40 221 129 132 7 16 49 52

A* 6 11 4 10 0 6 0 0 1 2 3 19 14 8 2 4 21 35 22 0 6 0 0 8 90 7 2 0 0 M 9 19

A 7 13 6 12 9 13 3 2 0 5 5 37 45 8 21 19 15 61 34 3 9 0 10 18 76 12 19 2 3 P 33 32

B 4 10 12 15 8 16 3 8 1 13 13 81 91 8 15 55 14 63 57 8 8 10 14 12 29 55 63 1 5 F 7 1

C 3 12 8 3 9 5 4 2 4 5 5 63 51 4 6 66 6 39 85 2 1 0 7 2 15 48 45 4 7

D 0 2 0 0 2 0 1 1 2 2 2 17 17 0 4 48 2 14 14 3 0 0 6 0 7 7 3 0 0

E 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 2 0 1 13 1 5 4 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 1

F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 7 0 3 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

G 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

U 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

X 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

A* - C% 91 96 100 100 87 100 91 86 82 86 93 90 91 100 88 66 95 90 89 81 100 100 74 100 95 95 98 100 94 86 98

SUMMARY 2014 5A* - C 92% 5A* - C (including English and Mathematics) 84% 5A* - A 29% 2013 5A* - C 95% 5A* - C (including English and Mathematics) 86% 5A* - A 31% 2012 5A* - C 97% 5A* - C (including English and Mathematics) 83% 5A* - A 38% 2011 5A* - C 95% 5A* - C (including English and Mathematics) 78% 5A* - A 32%

BTEC KEY M Merit P Pass F Fail

THE TUTORIAL SYSTEM On entry to the school pupils are placed in tutorial groups with an individual tutor. These groups are seen by their tutor each morning. Pupils normally remain in their tutorial groups for the whole of the five years at the school. Our most talented singers and instrumentalists from Years 8-11 form Hughes tutorial group and take part in many performances in school.

The tutor maintains an overview of the progress of each child across the curriculum and delivers the Living Education programme. He or she is in a unique position to ensure that each child is happy, working to their potential and contributing to the life of the tutorial and the wider life of the school. The tutor is normally the 'named person' in school. Through the daily interactions in the tutorial group and the Living Education programme tutors promote the core values of the school and aim to ensure that pupils live within a Christian framework based on respect for others and personal integrity.

Each tutorial has a 'patron' who is a person, living or dead, who embodies the Christian ethos and way of life. Many of the patrons maintain contact with their tutorial by letter or by personal visits. Tutors are managed by Pupil Managers who have pupil progress as a key focus for their work.

BEHAVIOUR FOR LEARNING • All teachers have the right to teach.

• All pupils have the right to learn.

• Everybody has the right to feel and be safe.

• Everybody has the right to dignity and personal respect.

• Everybody has the responsibility to ensure that we can all enjoy our rights.

We believe that children learn best in a disciplined and secure learning environment. Children have the right to learn and teachers have the right to teach without disruption. We have very high standards of pupil conduct and disruptive behaviour is not tolerated at St Michael's. Pupils are encouraged to do their best and hard work is rewarded in departments and at a whole school level via special certificates recognising high effort grades on reports. Praise and encouragement go hand in hand with fair and firm discipline; a recent addition to St Michael’s is the ePraise reward system, where all pupils are commended for their good work or kind deeds.

PASTORAL CARE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES These are available to support pupils who, for whatever reasons, are not making the most of their abilities and opportunities. The school can call upon a wide range of skilled agencies to work with these pupils including the Attendance Officer, the School Nurse and the School Psychology Service.

PUPIL VOICE Pupils are regularly invited to contribute their views to many aspects of school life, including learning and teaching and staff appointments. Pupil focus groups are held regularly throughout the year.

TYPES OF BEHAVIOUR To ensure that pupils can be safe and enjoy their education, certain types of behaviour are not acceptable. Smoking and chewing gum are not permitted in school. Pupils may bring mobile phones to school but they must be switched off (not kept on silent) as soon as pupils are on the school premises (inside and outside the building) during the school day. Phones will be confiscated if seen by staff. The use or supplying of illegal substances in school, or on the way to or from school will not be tolerated. Pupils found in possession of illegal substances will be given a long fixed term exclusion. Pupils supplying illegal substances either free or for money will be permanently excluded; there are no mitigating circumstances. Alcohol must not be brought into school.

CHRISTIAN YOUTH WORKER IIn our school we are very fortunate to have a Christian Youth Worker. Our present Youth Worker is Dan Bishop.

REPORTING CONCERNS Our aim is to make St Michael's a happy, safe and caring place for our pupils so that they can benefit from the best possible education. All our staff, both teaching and non-teaching, are dedicated to this aim. If parents do have a concern or a complaint we would ask you to speak to your child's tutor or come to the weekly drop-in clinic on Tuesday afternoons from 3.30pm-5pm.

If the matter cannot be resolved through these channels you should discuss your concern with the headteacher.

Dan also runs Discovery Club at lunch time where students can get to know one another and ask “Big Questions” about God, life and faith. He is also responsible for the worship band.

STUDENT LEADERSHIP At Saint Michael’s we believe passionately in educating the whole person – body, mind and spirit.

As a result of this we have a number of Student Leadership roles across all the year groups which give pupils the opportunity to discover and to develop key leadership skills. These roles include School Council representatives, Librarians, Science Ambassadors, Peer Mentors Prefects, and many more right up to Head Boy and Head Girl. Pupils in these roles have to demonstrate commitment, organisation, good communications, initiative and reliability, all of which are key skills for life skills beyond the classroom. As a school committed to Christian Values we also believe in servanthearted leadership as we seek to follow the examples of Jesus Christ the great Servant-King. In practice this means student leaders putting the needs of others first and using their positions of responsibility for the benefit of the whole school community.

Dan is the only member of staff called by his first name by pupils. He helps to maintain our links with the parishes and feeder primary schools. Pupils are welcome to visit Dan in his office to chat about their successes and concerns. Dan works closely with tutors, pupil managers and the Assistant Headteacher to help our children feel safe and happy to be the best they can be and do the best they can do.

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES EXTRA CURRICULAR Educational/off site visits frequently take place at St Michael’s and are planned educational experiences designed to enrich and enhance the curriculum.

St Michael’s CE High School has adopted the Lancashire County Council Policy and Guidelines for Educational visits and has a trained Educational Visits Co-ordinator who oversees all visits. All visits must follow statutory responsibilities for Health and Safety and will include appropriate risk assessments.

DANCE Saint Michael’s Dance Department offers pupils the opportunity to join the extra-curricular dancing school, ‘The CODE – Centre of Dance Excellence’. Each year group has its own Dance Company and we also have a popular and talented All Boys Dance Company (ABDC). In Year 11 we also have the Saint Michael’s Dance Academy, which is made up of pupils who have a real talent and passion for dance. This includes Dance Captains, Vice Captains and Principal Choreographers who assist staff creating pieces and taking responsibility for directing rehearsals and performing routines.

Visits of low risk (Type A) are approved by the Governing Body and visits which are of a higher risk (Type B) are referred to Lancashire County Council’s Educational Visits team for approval. Parental consent and medical information must be provided prior to a pupil taking part in any visit.

Our dancers take part in many whole school performances, productions and acts of worship, as well as regional and national dance events through Youth Dance England. As a school we host many residencies to enable our pupils to experience different dance styles and the opportunity to work with professional dancers. Recent collaborations include Matthew Bourne’s ‘RE:Bourne’ Dance Company.

ART CLUB Pupils are given the opportunity to visit the art rooms at lunchtimes and after school to develop Course work further, receive extra tuition or explore new techniques and ways of working.

As well as providing excellent extra-curricular provision, the Dance Department is recognised as a lead school in the North West for dance education. With specialist teachers and excellent activities, We are heavily involved in sharing good practice with schools in the region.

CHESS CLUB Pupils of all ages and abilities are welcome to come along.

DISCOVERY CLUB Discovery Club takes place each week for pupils in Years 7 to 9. The club provides an opportunity for pupils to make friends and ask big questions about life, the universe and everything. Games and snacks are usually followed by a short bible study and time for discussion. Pupils are encouraged to reflect on the relevance of the gospel message today, and to put Christian values into action in their lives

It is led by a member of staff who is an experienced player. Pupils can either play simply for enjoyment, or they can join the school league which is organised using the ELO rating system used in many sports.

The league is updated on Moodle. Pupils new to the game will be shown the basic moves and aims of the game before being introduced to some of the main tactics and pitfalls.

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES DRAMA The Drama Department at Saint Michael’s additionally offers lots of opportunities for pupils who enjoy drama and wish to extend their skills. We encourage pupils to improve their performance skills and now offer the opportunity of taking the London Academy of Dramatic art's graded examinations.

There is a Drama club running within the department every lunch time. These clubs are run by the student directors within our pupil appointed Drama Council. We play games, work on improvisation skills and perform short plays.

The Drama club’s skills are frequently called upon to support school worships through readings and dramatic performances. We also collaborate with other members of the Performing Arts team to produce highly acclaimed work for the Shakespeare for School Festival, and for the biennial school musical.

We warmly welcome anyone who wishes to get involved and get creative.

DUKE OF EDINBURGH AWARDS With the help of Lancashire County Council and the Anderton Centre, Saint Michael’s is offering our young people the chance to get involved with the Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme. This is a voluntary programme of activities for young people aged from 14–25. The Duke of Edinburgh awards challenge young people to undertake activities that need teamwork, endurance and a will to succeed.

Once in Year 9 and being 14 years of age, students can apply to start their bronze award. They will be assigned a staff member who will be their mentor through various parts of the award. The bronze award has four parts, a skill, a service, a sport and all must take part on a two day expedition. The students will practise for their expedition and are free to choose the other three activities leading up to the award. The award will take in excess of 6 months to complete all elements.

Students becoming involved and completing some or all of the awards will have an internationally recognised addition to their curriculum vitae, which will be of benefit when starting out in their future careers.

KARTING CLUB The aim of the Karting Club is to enable children to experience driving a kart without the expense of purchasing one. It provides a cheap and fun introduction to racing.

The club runs on most Wednesday nights in the garages at the school throughout the year, teaching the youngsters and parents how to perform basic maintenance so that they can understand how the mechanics of their kart works.

LIBRARY (THE ARMSTRONG CENTRE) Our new library opened in September 2015. The modern, comfortable furnished building is equipped with the latest technology to facilitate research and independent study. It is very popular with pupils Additionally the Library boasts a wide selection of recent fiction titles and non-fiction books which are regularly updated. Pupils may borrow and read books on the set of Kindles made available to them. There is also a range of opportunities and activities on offer including competitions and a book club.

All pupils have the opportunity to become part of the library team, being trained in ICT and librarianship skills.

MOODLE CLUB Moodle Club is a daily lunchtime opportunity for pupils to use Moodle and Mahara and also seek advice for navigating through the virtual learning environment. Every pupil has access to computers and the internet in school time and support is always available

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES PERFORMING ARTS The performing arts contribute significantly to St Michael’s as a vibrant learning community, offering an extensive range of extra-curricular opportunities which cater for the talents and interests of all ages and abilities.

In addition to the numerous activities run by the separate departments at lunchtime and after school, there are many occasions when Music, Dance and Drama combine to prepare inspiring integrated arts presentations, the highlight being our biennial major school production.

Our most recent, “Bugsy Malone” impacted across the whole school, celebrating the performing arts at the heart of St Michael’s, where it enriches the lives of everyone and supports that distinct Christian and expressive ethos of the school.

MUSIC Extensive extra curricular music activities offer opportunities for pupils to further their interests and above all have fun making music with others.

We have three choirs; the largest of which is open to all pupils and staff who enjoy singing, whilst our Chapel Choir and junior counterpart, the Training Choir, carry particular responsibility for enhancing the worshipping life of the school.

Our bands and orchestra provide a platform for our musicians, many receive instrumental tuition from our variety of peripatetic staff, enabling them to extend their skills through ensemble playing of varying standards.

Pupils are encouraged to join our Wind Band as soon as they acquire elementary skills, whilst our Stage Band offers a smaller group of players the more demanding and challenging rhythms of popular Jazz, Blues and dance styles. Smaller ensembles and solo performances are an integral part of the department’s work and a number of different “music academies” cater for our particularly talented musicians who direct their own groups.

Our steel pans are a further highly popular facility, with a different steel band in most year groups.

Performance opportunities are available through our highly popular lunchtime concert series with one concert taking place each half term.

Our “Summer Music” concert each year sees around 150 musicians coming together to celebrate the achievements of the music department. Our large musical productions take place every 2 years involving over 100 dancers, singers, dramatists and musicians with recent presentations including Les Miserables, The Sound of Music and Bugsy Malone We continue to be a centre for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music with around 100 pupils successfully taking instrumental, vocal and theory exams each year

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES SPORT Our extra curricular programme at Saint Michael’s gives pupils the opportunity to stretch their sporting skills further and also to experience the exhilarating feeling of participating in school teams and competitions.

We expect high standards of behaviour, effort and attendance.

The Physical Education Department enjoys excellent sporting facilities with extensive playing fields,a large refurbished sports hall, good tennis/netball courts, a spacious gymnasium, and a recently upgraded climbing wall.

These facilities afford a diverse range of activities both within the curriculum and also in the wide ranging extra curricular programme.

Activities include: Netball, Badminton, Football-both boys and girls, Fitness, Basketball, Cricket, Climbing, Orienteering, Rugby, Rounders, Handball, Hockey, Swimming and Athletics. There are many links with outside clubs such as the All Seasons Leisure Centre, LESAN Netball Club, Year 11 Netball winners in Chorley Infernos.

Most notable recent successes have been: • Winners of the Year 7 Netball Tournaments (Both A and B teams) • Chorley and District Netball Champions in Years 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 • Chorley and District Badminton Champions U14 Girls and U16 Girls - County winners for Gold U14 Girls and U16 boys • Chorley and District Indoor Athletics Championships Year 7 Boys Gold, Year 7 Girls Year 8 Boys Gold, Year 8 Girls Gold • Lancashire Indoor Athletics Champions for Year 7 Boys, Year 7 Girls 5th, Year 8 Boys 3rd, Year 8 Girls 4th • Chorley and District Gymnastics 10 Gold, 7 Silver, 7 Bronze • Chorley and District Swimming Gala Runners Up, 4 Gold, 3 Silver, 2 Bronze • Chorley and District Handball Silver Medalists • Chorley and District Athletics Champions Years 7, 8, 9, 10, and Overall Chorley and District Champions • Chorley and District Rounders Champions Years 7, 8 and 10 • Year 7 Chorley District Football Champions • Year 10 Holland International Tournament Winners • U16 Boys Lancashire Centre Parks Badminton Champions • U16 Badminton Lancashire Red Rose Champions • U16 Badminton North West Bronze Medals

STEM CLUB The STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Maths) Club is open to all pupils after school each week. Members have the option of entering a range of national competitions and challenges or they can just compound their interests in a range of subjects.

We have run STEM related trips, and invited STEM ambassadors into school in order to bring topics to life, and to hear about real life experiences from experts. We are very lucky in Lancashire to have a great deal of STEM support from ‘STEM first’ a government funded body providing advice, access to ambassadors and a number of excellent resources.

Since January 2012 we have undertaken a range of fun activities – including: • Designed an egg protection system – allowing it to be thrown at least 3m.

• Designed and raced balloon rockets across the room.

• Produced mini lava lamps and have grown salt crystals.

• Created a tower out of food products.

• Designed a school STEM sign.

• Produced smog in a glass beaker.

• Built a paper roller coaster for a schools competition.

• Designed t-shirts and used thermo-chronic and photochromic paints/pigments.

• Bought a weather station for the school and sent data to BBC stargazing live during the solar eclipse.

ADMISSIONS When your child moves into Year 6 you will be advised by your primary school in how to access Lancashire’s online admissions application system. There you will find information from your education authority describing the process for admission to secondary school. It is the responsibility of applicants to contact the high schools to inform themselves of individual admission policies and to find out when the school’s open evening will be held. This year’s open evening takes place on Wednesday 16th September from 17.00 until 20.00. The school also has three open days on Thursday 17th (09.30-12.00 and 14.15-15.15), Friday 18th September (9.30-12.00) and Friday 9th October (9.3012.00) when parents can call without appointment to view the school.

St Michael’s CE High School Admissions Process complies with Lancashire’s Coordinated Admissions Scheme and is approved by Blackburn Diocesan Board of Education. Every parent will be asked to express all three of their secondary school preferences on one application which is submitted to Lancashire County Council online. If you live outside Lancashire County Council you will express your three preferences to your own education authority e.g. Bolton or Wigan, and they will forward your choices to Lancashire if any of your choices is a Lancashire school. The closing date for applications for high school is 31st October 2015. It is also the responsibility of applicants to read thoroughly the Admission Policy and arrangements 2016-2017 for St Michael’s CE High School so that they understand how to make an application to the school. The full policy and arrangements can be found as a flyer within this prospectus or alternatively via our website at www.saint-michaels.com.

St Michael’s, along with many church schools has its own additional supplementary form. This form MUST be completed if you wish the application to be assessed under the faith criteria for admission and returned to the school by 31st October 2014. The supplementary form will be available from the school if not enclosed within this prospectus. Applications received after 31st October will be marked as late.

TERM DATES 2016-2017 MICHAELMAS • Staff Training Day Wednesday 31 August 2016 • Term starts Thursday 1 September 2016 • Staff Training Day Monday 26 September 2016 • Half term Monday 24 October - Friday 4 November 2016 • End of term Friday 23 December 2016 LENT • Term starts Monday 9 January 2017 • Half term Monday 13 - Friday 17 February 2017 • End of term Friday 7 April 2017

TRINITY • Term starts Monday 24 April 2017 • May Day closure Monday 1 May 2017 • Half term Monday 29 May - Friday 2 June 2017 • End of term Friday 21 July 2017 ACADEMIC YEAR Pupils begin in September in Year 7 and remain in this year group until the May/June half-term break. On their return in June they enter Year 8. This transition from one academic year to the next occurs annually at the same time thereafter.

SCHOOL TRANSPORT Please see the Lancashire County Council website for information on Home to School Transport.

This can be accessed at www.lancashire.gov.uk and entering ‘School Transport’ into the search engine on their website. Various school bus services operate from a number of locations. If your child lives further than three miles from school, you may be entitled to transport assistance. The Home to School Transport policy on the Lancashire website describes of applying for transport assistance and any entitlement for low income families.

TIMING OF THE SCHOOL DAY Period 1 (Registration/Living Education/Worship/Assembly)

8.50 – 9.15

Period 2

9.15 – 10.00

Period 3

10.00 – 10.40

Period 4

10.40 – 11.25

BREAK

11.25 – 11.45

Period 5

11.45 – 12.30

Period 6

12.30 – 13.10

LUNCH

13.10 – 14.00

Period 7

14.00 – 14.40

Period 8 (No period 8 on Friday)

14.40 – 15.25

GENERAL INFORMATION ATTENDANCE We want all pupils to have the opportunity to do the very best they can and believe that high levels of attendance are very important. Studies show that there is a clear link between pupil attendance at school and high achievement. Leave of absence may only be granted by the school in exceptional circumstances. Parents/carers are requested therefore not to arrange leave of absence (family holidays) during term time.

If your child is unwell you should contact school to explain the reason. Where there is no contact from parents to explain an absence, the attendance co-ordinator will record an unauthorised absence. All absences from school must be explained by a note or phone call from parents and as much notice given as possible.

UNIFORM All items of uniform can be purchased from the school uniform preferred supplier – JADA, apart from shirts and boys trousers which can be purchased from any supplier.

No jewellery apart from a wrist watch is allowed. Hair must be of a natural colour and make-up is not permitted. Ties must be worn and shirts should have their top buttons fastened and be neatly tucked into trousers or skirt. The school will be the final arbiter regarding suitability of dress and appearance.

Indoor Clothing • Blazers - Maroon badged blazer as supplied by the school preferred supplier JADA. • Jumper - Optional. Lower School, Years 7-9 maroon v-neck with school crest. Upper School, Years 10-11 black v-neck with school crest • Shirt - White, traditional style, good quality with stiff collar. Shirts must be tucked into waistbands at all times.

• Tie - School crested clip-on tie, maroon for lower school and black for upper school.

• Girls' Trousers – Regulation badged trousers supplied by the school preferred supplier JADA, these are the only trousers which are acceptable.

• Girls' Skirts - Regulation badged skirts supplied by the school preferred supplier JADA, this is the only skirt which is acceptable • Socks - Black, plain with no motifs for under trousers. White ankle socks or white knee length socks for girls wearing skirts or black opaque tights (minimum 40 denier). Over the knee socks are not permitted.

• Boys' Trousers - Black, plain, traditional style, not skinny fit, high waisted, polyester/wool mixture. Underwear must not be visible. Belts should be black with a discreet buckle.

• Shoes - Black, traditional style. NO boots, trainers or suede material, this includes trainer style such as Vans, Converse, Nike etc. Black-laces if lace ups. Heels no higher than 3".

No logos/colour flashes.

OUTDOOR CLOTHING • Coats - Plain black anorak, coat or fleece with no exterior markings or logo (except for reflectors). Hip length at least (no denim, suede or leather material) • Scarves – Only plain black (no football scarves or hats) PE GIRLS • Maroon polo shirt (with printed initials) (also used for dance) • Maroon shorts (with printed initials) • Maroon Sweatshirt with logo • Plain black joggers/leggings (also used for dance) • Maroon PE socks • Trainers BOYS • Maroon shorts (with printed initials) • Maroon rugby shirt (with printed initials) • Maroon polo shirt (with printed initials) (also used for dance) • Plain Black joggers (also used for dance) • Maroon football socks • Shin pads • Trainers • Football boots Saint Michael’s pupils choose to: • Follow the school uniform regulations. This means that they wear their uniform with pride.

• Not wear jewellery – this includes earrings. If you choose to have your ears pierced, have them done at the start of the summer holidays.

• Make sure that their hair is of a naturally occurring shade. No shaven heads or lines cut into the hair. Hair bands and slides should be plain black.

• Make sure that they do not wear make-up or nail varnish.

Astley Road, Chorley, Lancashire, PR7 1RS • Telephone: 01257 264740 • Email: admin@saint-michaels.lancs.sch.uk • www.saint-michaels.com