A message from Mrs Rothenburg
Well, here we are – the last day of term and the school year! It’s been a fantastic week with lots of fun events, trips to both Yorkshire Wildlife Park, Flamingo Land and a residential for our Year 9s at Carlton Lodge. Thankfully the weather has been kind, so everyone has been able to enjoy lots of outdoor fun. You can read more and take a look at some photos in the Millthorpe Messenger which will come out to you over the weekend.
Below you can see a bumper list of golden ticket recipients – well done to everyone who has been awarded a golden ticket over the last fortnight. It’s wonderful to see such a long list of names.
We’re looking forward to seeing Year 11s in school on Thursday 22 August when they will be able to collect their GCSE results. I know how hard they have worked, so we’re keeping everything crossed that they get the results they want – they deserve every success!
In September, Year 7s and Year 11 Student Leaders will start the Autumn Term on Tuesday 3 September with all other students returning on Wednesday 4 September.
Until then, it just remains to say I hope you all have a fantastic summer break!
With best wishes,
Kavina Rothenburg
Acting Headteacher
Welcome to the Summer edition of Sensations – South Bank Multi Academy Trust’s termly newsletter
As the term draws to a close, we wanted to share some of the fantastic events, trips, collaborations and projects which have taken place in our schools and across the Trust over the last few months. The newsletter really does only scratch the surface, but we hope it gives you a flavour of what makes our schools such wonderful places to learn and work.
You can see Sensations here – enjoy the read!
I hope you have a wonderful summer break; we look forward to welcoming everyone back in September.
With best wishes
Mark Hassack
CEO, SBMAT
What is my child learning at the moment?
Please see below to find out what your child has been learning about recently in order to have productive discussions about their education:
Year 7 – Faculty: Science
Conversation starter
Year 7 have been studying Women in Science – looking at the achievements of Rosalind Franklin, Katherine Johnson, Dr Hayat Sindi and Cynthia Breazeal, amongst others. Students have been recognising gender stereotypes, suggesting reasons why there are so few women in science and explaining how we can change the narrative.
Year 8 – Faculty: English
Conversation starter
Year 8 have been finishing their Conflict Unit with an exploration of dystopian writing, looking at extracts from texts such as 1984, The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games. Students have learnt the defining characteristics of dystopian fiction before going on to enjoy group work in which they created and then presented their own dystopian world to the rest of the class.
Year 9 – Faculty: Performance
Conversation starters
- Drama: Students have ended the year by completing their reading of ‘Noughts and Crosses’ by Dominic Cooke and performing scenes from the play, demonstrating their understanding of the characters and development of use of the Acting Tools. These have been a pleasure for Mrs Sladen and Mrs Rothenburg to watch – thank you, Year 9, and well done!
- Music: Students have been learning about the history of British pop music, interesting composers, and the development of the orchestra.
- PE: students are involved in the summer sports programme which involves either cricket or softball (boys) or tennis or cricket (girls).
Year 10 – Faculty: Global
Conversation starters
- French: We are developing our listening, reading and writing skills and learning top tips to maximise marks on each paper, following our school-wide focus on “Every Mark Matters.”
- German: We are learning about the division of Germany post WW2, communist occupation and the fall of the Berlin Wall.
- Computing: We are completing the final topics of Paper 2. Test Data, IDE’s, Translators, Interpreters & Languages.
Year 11 – All faculties
Conversation starter
Year 11 GCSE Results Day will take place on 22 August 2024. Students are invited to attend Millthorpe to collect their results between 10.00am and 12.00pm.
Students should come into the school site via the rear entrance please. Results paper handouts will take place in the Gymnasium as the Main Hall is undergoing building works. All Year 11 parents/carers have received an email with full details, and these were also posted for students on the Prom Google Classroom.
Certificates and badges for Year 11 students who have completed their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award will also be available for collection on results day.
We hope that you will find the above useful when talking to your child about their learning.
Additionally, you might want to take a look at the curriculum section of our website which has lots more information about what your child is, has, or will be learning over the academic year. Or maybe you want to read ahead to see what is in store for your child in the next academic year…
Parent/carer voice
We are keen to hear your thoughts and views, so we would welcome your responses to this short Google Form. This focuses primarily on Teaching and Learning, and the ways that we communicate what is happening in school with you. The feedback form will close on Sunday 4 August. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey.
Attendance
As another successful academic year draws to an end we would like to ask parents to pause and take note of their child’s attendance percentage.
We’ve recently delivered an assembly to our Year 10 students about starting the ‘Year 11 GCSE race from the startline’. We are urging students to be in school every day so they don’t lose any learning time. This message clearly applies to all year groups, but it is particularly important for our older students.
As a rough guide, students with an average attendance of 90% (a good percentage in a class test but not in the attendance world!) miss roughly 500 hours of learning over the course of their time with us (five years). For every 10% fall in attendance, 500 more hours are lost. We can all agree that reaching your full potential becomes incredibly challenging when you miss so many hours of teacher support and guidance. Learning is hard enough as it is and we know the GCSE road is challenging, so we want to make it as smooth as possible. Outstanding attendance is the first and most vital step towards becoming the best you can be.
There is clear evidence out there showing how important a strong September start is. If the right attendance habits are established at the start of the year, they tend to continue in the same vein right the way through to July. A quote taken from a report published by the Children’s Commissioners states that “children who had an unauthorised absence on any day during the first week of term had an average term-level unauthorised absence rate of 25% compared to an unauthorised absence rate of 2% for pupils who didn’t miss any sessions in the first week.”
If you need any support with your child’s attendance, please talk to us.
New services at the school gate in September
In last week’s email, we announced that we have developed a system to ensure students are ‘Ready to Learn’ on entry to the school site by 8.40am. When the new arrangements are put into place in September, we will be focusing on learning once the school day starts at 8.45am. To allow this to happen we will be providing two services at the school gate:
Equipment shop
Most students arrive with the correct equipment (you can see a list of requirements at the bottom of this page), but there is a small percentage of the school population who arrive without the required equipment. This means teachers have to stop delivering lessons to hand out the necessary equipment.
From September, students will have the opportunity to purchase equipment at the gate. We won’t be checking to see if students are correctly equipped, but students can voluntarily visit the equipment shop. As they are taking responsibility for their own learning, they won’t incur any detention or negative comment. In fact, the opposite is true as they are making sure they can start the day correctly, something to be applauded. The cost of any equipment purchased at the gate will be added to ParentPay.
If students don’t take up the opportunity to purchase equipment at the gate and arrive in lessons without the tools to participate in the learning, teachers will add a note to Class Charts. If a student receives three such notes, they will receive a lunchtime detention.
Uniform
We ask that all students are dressed in the correct uniform on entry onto the school site by 8.40am (please note the back gate running down to the Knavesmire will automatically close at 8.45am). Any trainers worn for a more comfortable walk to school will need to be changed at the gate.
We have a small amount of uniform to lend to students who don’t arrive correctly dressed. This will ensure students arrive at form time perfectly dressed and ready to learn so we begin our day of learning without any issues.
Students arriving at the gate wearing incorrect uniform will have a note added to Class Charts. If a student receives three such notes, they will receive a lunchtime detention.
Safeguarding over the summer
Although the summer will provide many of us with a well deserved rest, we understand that the long break can also bring about additional pressures and stresses as our lifestyles change over this period.
The safeguarding team will monitor emails periodically however, in our absence please be aware of the below contact details:
- MASH (Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub) during office hours on 01904 551900 or the
- North Yorkshire Emergency Out of Hours Duty Team on 0300 131 2131
- York CAMHS Crisis Team on 08000516171.
Support for students
Support for parents
ISSP policy
For several years, Millthorpe has been involved with York ISSP (York Independent State School Partnership). The ISSP is an equal partnership of twelve secondary schools – nine state/academy schools and three independent schools in the city. The main aim of the ISSP is to provide the most able students across the city with academic challenges through opportunities which schools cannot provide alone. The programme includes a lecture series, masterclasses, Latin and Astronomy GCSE classes and Summer Schools amongst other events and activities.
Job of the week – Quantity Surveyor
In this job, you are trying to save people money by finding safe ways to reduce construction costs. You are also responsible for ensuring that a project sticks to strict legal quality and safety requirements. You need to be able to understand the needs of the clients, negotiate contracts and prepare and analyse costings. Good organisational skills are key. For more information on becoming a Quantity Surveyor, you can watch this video.
Hamilton Panthers need a goalkeeper!
If anyone is interested in trying out to be a goalkeeper for Hamilton Panthers Under 14s football team next season, please contact Simon Town on 07708 169747.
York Eagles Basketball Club
York Eagles Basketball Club is on the lookout for new players, both boys and girls, of all abilities and aged 8-18 years.
The club boasts nine championships since 2008, winning three in the last three years (U14 Girls/U16 Boys and U18 Men).
To find out more, please take a look at the attached flyer.
#WakeUpWednesday – A guide to worry and anxiety
NHS statistics indicate that the need for mental health support for children and young people in the UK is higher than ever, with 1 in 6 children (16%) reported as being in need of such help. Unchecked worry and anxiety in under-18s is a key contributor to this figure, with roughly 4 in 10 children (37.4%) saying they don’t receive regular support.
While everyone has worries, and recognising that these are perfectly normal and are vital to work through with resilience, chronic worry or anxiety is different. This can cause damage to young people’s wellbeing – such as losing sleep, feeling emotionally drained, and having their school grades impacted.
It’s vital that children and young people suffering from acute worry or anxiety have effective tools to manage their fears and regain control, and know when to seek further help. This Wake Up Wednesday guide offers expert guidance on how to provide that support.
Fantasy Football 2024/25
If there are any Fantasy Premier League players out there, the game launched for the new season on Wednesday and there are there different mini-leagues you can join for school:
- The old mini-league has been retitled Millthorpe Alumni for current and former Millthorpe staff and students. Code: y5liuo
- There is a new Millthorpe Masters for current staff and students. Code: 1ewkhh
Get your team set up before the start of the new Premier League season and join the competition! There will be monthly and overall season prizes this year, and bragging rights if you beat Mr Sloan. The more the merrier!
Safeguarding
If you have significant concerns for the welfare of a child, in addition to being able to contact Mrs Cole, Mrs Cooper or Mr Beever during school hours by emailing safeguarding@millthorpe.southbank.academy, you may wish to make direct contact with the York MASH (Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub) on T: 01904 551900, option 3. They operate an out-of-hours service so concerns can be raised with them at any time.
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