Dear Parent/Carer,

 

There is much to celebrate and share with you since the beginning of the new academic year.  Please do take a few minutes to read the newsletter and digest the wealth of opportunity, experience and provision which is afforded to all of our students at the Priory Belvoir Academy.  Thank you to everyone who has donated to the Grantham Food Bank.  It is always with a sense of pride that the Belvoir community comes together to support those in need.  Our catering provider staff from IDEAL did a first class job of providing Christmas dinner with all the trimmings to over 550 students and staff, served up by the Senior Leadership Team, which was thoroughly enjoyed by all.  Finally, you will have seen the recent communication about the change in term dates from September 2024 and these are now on the school website for 2024-25 and 2025-26 here

 

Awards Ceremony

In October, St Mary’s in Bottesford provided a wonderful setting once again for our annual Priory Belvoir Awards Evening.  Over 80 awards were presented on the night to a student in each year group for every subject.  One of them went on to win the prestigious subject award named after a national or international award for a related subject area e.g. The Priory Belvoir Nobel Prize for Science and the Priory Belvoir Brit Award for Music.  We were treated to entertainment by some of the cast of upcoming school production - We Will Rock You and our guest speaker this year was former Belvoir pupil, Rory Jackson, who is now studying music production at a London university.  His journey provided an inspirational insight into how paths to a goal can vary.

 

Remembrance

Our annual Remembrance service was held in St Mary’s Church, Bottesford and this year our service explored the concept of Service throughout a variety of anniversaries and events including the 70^th anniversary of the armistice which ended the Korean War, the 75^th anniversary of Windrush, as well as Commonwealth Day.  Year 7 and 11 were led by cadets in the walk to the church and the service incorporated a selection of readings, literature and music delivered by students and staff.  Students’ sense of occasion was exemplary.  Our remaining Years 8-10 students participated in Remembrance assemblies in school.

 

Peacock Pride

In the final week of assemblies, many pupils were recognised as a ‘champion’ in the Peacock Pride Award categories.  Teachers nominated students with a focus on ‘Responsibility’ and ‘Inspiration’ this term.  Students who support their teachers in class by taking on jobs within the classroom or specifically for that subject will be rewarded alongside those that are nominated for their creative prowess or their inspirational participation in class discussions.  All nominations will go into the big prize winning wheel spin in each assembly.

 

Macmillan Cake Sale

As part of our ‘Breath Day’ activities, we held our annual Macmillan Cake Sale at the end of November.  Our Student Leaders, Assistant Leaders and House Leaders did a superb job of serving the wonderful array of cakes provided by you, our Belvoir community for this much looked forward to event at Belvoir.  We made a stunning £880 this year.  Thank you so much for any baking you did, encouraging your child to bake or any buying of cakes for us to sell. 

 

Sport

This term has been full of sporting opportunities for students in PE.  All year groups have had netball fixtures for the girls and rugby fixtures for the boys.  Additionally, all year groups have had boys and girls football and basketball fixtures.   The next half term will include more basketball, football, netball and badminton.  If your child has not been involved but would like to be, please tell them to come and speak to their PE teachers to get more information.

 

Highlights from this term include:

• Years 7-10 all taking part in the Leicester Tigers development tournament with each year groups gaining some victories.
• Year 7 girls and year 10 boys competing in their local leagues and getting to the area play off for football and narrowly losing to Uppingham.
• All the girls netball teams winning their local leagues to get to the play off stage.
• Year 11 boys training all term on a Friday afternoon to come back from 15:0 down to beat William Robertson Academy at rugby 
• Hosting an excellent evening of football and netball against Priory Ruskin Academy and coming away with 5 out of 6 victories 
• Year 10 girls beating Robert Smythe to get into the semi-finals of the county cup in Netball.

A special mention must also go to the die-hard netballers who turn up every week to train with Miss Jones and Miss Ratcliff and the year 7 boys who were mad keen on football, dodgeball and then switched to basketball when the nights drew in.  Finally all those girls and staff who have turned up on a Friday after school to learn how to play NFL flag football.  Well done everyone. 

Out in the field - Geography

• We have been very impressed with our Year 7 Geography classes this term during their fieldwork investigation at the River Devon in Bottesford.  Pupils were gathering data to investigate whether the meander here in the village has the same characteristics relating to speed of flow and depth as the theory suggests in the textbook.  All pupils were well behaved throughout and engagement in the tasks carried out at the river was excellent. 
• Thirty Year 9s spent a weekend in the stunning location of Snowdonia in North Wales at the beginning of November.  They undertook team challenges in the grounds of the field study centre where the group stayed in and spent a day hiking in a glaciated landscape where they got to see firsthand examples of landforms in the UK created by ice.  On the final day, the level of challenge increased again.  All pupils took part in a morning of rock climbing and the level of support and encouragement shown for each other was brilliant.

 

Music

The music department continues to be a hive of activity with rehearsals reverberating around the school site:

 

Instrumental Teachers

Over the past six months, two new teachers have been added to our list of peripatetic music teachers.  Joe Gaskin – drum teacher, came highly recommended and alongside his teaching, he continues to perform both nationwide and abroad in a huge variety of styles! Will Hay – guitar teacher, is an accomplished live and recording session guitarist and was also a top four jazz finalist on Sky Arts Guitar star. We are so pleased to have such a wealth of experience from our visiting teachers, as it brings the real world of the music industry into our education world.

 

 

 

Alison Donnelly Retires

As well as new teachers joining the Music department, it is also time to congratulate Alison Donnelly, teacher of singing and piano for a number of years, on her retirement! Alison has been a big part of the department, helping out with school shows, GCSE recordings, and a huge number of highly successful exam entries over the years. She will be popping back in January to help out with some GCSE recordings, but she will be missed by staff and students alike.

Hayley Chapman of RockVox Academy will be starting in January taking over the singing students, and Lucy Jones of LJB Music in Grantham will be taking over the piano teaching.

 

Rock School

Great news for our Rock School this year – Will Hay has taken over the reigns of running the group every Tuesday afterschool, meaning students now have access to a professional gigging musician to guide them in the creation of bands, and performance of songs they love. Following on from the Summer Showcase, we now have a waiting list for students to join this group!  We are looking forward to seeing the fruits of their labour at the Christmas Showcase on 19^th December, as well as on the last day of term where they will be performing to all year groups as an end of year treat!

 

Sound and Lighting Training

To add to our already extensive list of extra-curricular activities, this year we have been able to train up a group of students on our sound and lighting equipment in the main hall. Students involved in Rock School and the school production of We Will Rock You spent the day working with Mark Burford of Lincoln Audio, to learn how to set up for professional performances. More training will be provided in the tech rehearsals for the show, with the aim of creating a group of students who are then able to pass on their knowledge and skills in future years. Mark also did a careers talk with our Year 10 and 11 GCSE Music and Drama students, to help give them an insight into our subjects outside of the classroom – an invaluable tool for students of any age.

 

Christmas Showcase

Following on from the success of our Summer Showcase back in June (a very warm evening!), this year, for the first time, the annual Christmas show usually performed on the last day of term, is being put on for parents to see. Students from Rock School, and some of our GCSEs students will be able to show parents what they’ve been working on since September. The performance will be on Tuesday 19^th December, and coincides with our Friends of Belvoir pre-loved uniform sale. Refreshments and mince pies will be available!

 

We Will Rock You, February 2024

Rehearsals for our School Production of We Will Rock You have been going on every week since our return to school in August. Staff and students alike have been working tirelessly to learn dialogue, lyrics and dances in preparation for the performance in February 2024. Immediately after the Christmas break, tickets go on sale on for the following dates:

• Thursday 8th and Friday 9th February 2024.
• There will be three options:

Adult Single Ticket - £7.50

Concession (under 16 or senior) - £5.00

Family Ticket (two adults/two concessions) - £22.50

Please be aware that for our previous school production, tickets sold out so our advice would be to put the date on your calendar and book early to avoid disappointment!

A text will go out to advise when the tickets go live on the system and students will be notified in school via the tutors. We hope to see you there rocking out with us! 

 

Drama

• In September, students from year 10 and 11 travelled to Leicester Curve to watch an adaptation of the play 'Metamorphosis' by Frantic Assembly and Lemn Sissay. Year 10 have been taking inspiration from the design and movement work to inform the creation of their own devised performances.
• In November, 25 students from year 9 and 10 went to see a performance of the musical 'Everybody's Talking about Jamie'. As well as enjoying the brilliant performance, they took part in a backstage tour of Nottingham Playhouse, as part of our career's provision. Students were able to view the various departments including wardrobe, prop store, paint shop and the tech box. They met with professionals from each department and quizzed them on their job role, career pathways and experiences.
• In school, we have had visits from professional actors and directors. Year 9 have been studying the play 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime' by Frantic Assembly in preparation for their mock exam. 48 year 9 students took part in a workshop with an actor from the company to explore their approach to movement work and devising performance. 
• Year 11 had a visit from a director for the company Pilot Theatre, who ran a workshop exploring the characters and themes from 'Noughts and Crosses', the set text for the GCSE written exam. 
• 13 students from year 8 have been busy completing tasks for their bronze Arts Award projects. Arts Award is open to all students in year 8 and is designed to develop their skills within the Arts, along with their independent learning, organisation and creativity. This term they have been creating presentations on people within the arts industry who inspire them. After Christmas they will be working on a performance or showcase in an arts skill, anything from singing, dancing, painting to circus skills! At the end of year 8, these students will receive their certificate of achievement from Trinity College London, along with their silver inspiration badge.

Food

• Year 11 GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition students have completed their NEA 1 which is 15% of their final grade, lots of biscuits were had by all. Students are now focusing on their NEA 2 which is worth 35% of their final grade. In March, students will be able to show case their practical skills on a range of dishes representing ‘international hotel breakfasts’, we can’t wait to sample them all!
• All Food Studies students are looking forward to ‘Christmas’ week at the Academy and will be making Christmas Crinkle Cookies and Chocolate Yule logs to get into the festive spirit.

 

Year 7

• The Year 7 team have very pleased with the positive start they have made at Belvoir. The amount of bottle tops they have collected for Dove Cottage has been a great indicator of their enthusiasm. So far they have collected over 100kg’s of bottle tops which will be recycled into products.  There will be a presentation in the new year and we hope an opportunity to see the recycling project and its impact in action.   
• During the term Year 7 have had two drop down days. The first, Stay Safe, took place during the third week of the term. This included: fire safety, Online Safety, Healthy Relationships, Alcohol and drug awareness. The second, at the end of November. Students had range of activities planned; Ready Steady Cook, Chinese dance, Yoga and Gender equality. On both days students did the school proud and visiting speakers were full of praise for the students. 
• On the second to last day of term, Year 7 enjoyed a trip to Nottingham Playhouse to watch Cinderella and again were a credit to the school.

Year 8

A huge thank you to Year 8 and tutors for making Mr Williams feel so welcome since he joined the school. Mr Williams says it has been a real pleasure to get to know so many of the students and see them in so many different guises. The highlight for him has been the achievement breakfast held for the students who had gained at least 50 achievement points. Seeing the happiness and sheer volume of food that was consumed left him speechless! The ready steady cook session for the year group was fantastic with the students showing enthusiasm, support for their peers and a healthy amount of competitive instinct. Sadly the students picked the wrong winning team (not Mr Williams!!!) but in time he will forgive them. It has been a pleasure to see so many pupils getting involved with extra-curricular activities such as the numerous sports teams, the We Will Rock You performance and the Warhammer club. Keep up the good work year 8!!

 

 

 

Year 9

One of the highlights of this term for Year 9 was the Breathe Day organised to give them an opportunity to try some new things. Student’s had some educational sessions ran by experts in Gender Equality and Hinduism as well as learning new skills from a DJ and a professional beat boxer! This was a fantastic experience, and many students showed off their new talents in front of their classes.

Secondly, it was wonderful to see so many Year 9’s being rewarded in the end of term assembly on Monday. 77 students were nominated by their teachers for either taking responsibility in lessons or extra-curricular activities, or being inspirational in the classroom. Some students were nominated multiple times, and it was lovely to see so many being praised for their great efforts.

Finally, throughout this term, Year 9 have been working hard in preparation for their exams in January. Lots of students have shown a fantastic amount of commitment to their revision, and they have received lots of praise from class teachers for their independent learning. I wish them all the best in their upcoming exams, and I know they are all capable of fulfilling their potential.

 

Year 10

It has been a busy and exciting term for our year 10’s. It has been a pleasure to watch them engage so positively with their new GCSE studies. On a Thursday all students have a double period of one of their option subjects (PE, DT, Food, Art, Music and Triple Science) and it is amazing to walk around and see so much talent and passion for these subjects. They also responded fantastically to a PSHE drop-down day in which we had external speakers delivering sessions around First Aid, banking and finance, careers and sexual health. The feedback from all of these speakers was how mature and responsive our year 10’s were, whilst gaining some valuable life skills. Pupils have continued to progress with organising their Work Experience placements for next March, a great opportunity to experience an environment for life after Belvoir! I hope they all have a wonderful, and much needed, Christmas break ahead of another fantastic term in the New Year.

 

Year 11

Year 11 have had a busy start to their final school year, with a focus on their GCSE exams and their futures beyond Belvoir. In November, we visited Newark careers fair, which gave students the opportunity to speak to local employers and Post-16 providers. The response was overwhelmingly positive and many students came away with more confidence for their futures. This term also came with mock examinations for Year 11. Whilst this can be a stressful period, as a student body they engaged with afterschool revision sessions and were able to gain invaluable experience of the running of exams ahead of the summer term. Following this, students have also had a mock results day, to experience the various highs and lows that may come in the summer.

Finally, each year we offer Year 11 students the opportunity to apply for student leadership positions, as a chance to develop leadership skills through various responsibilities across the school. This involved writing a letter of application and then those successful took part in an interview with Miss Molloy – Head of Year 11 and Mr Newton - Headteacher. The resulting decision was difficult due to the high calibre of applicants, but ultimately six students were selected: Daisy Bayman, Archie Carson, Evie Saggers, Rowan Meynell, Zak Rothera-Oxley and Orla Mapletoft.  Well done to all of them!

Literacy Intervention

• Over the course of this term, Mrs Tucker and Mrs Wigley have been supporting over 80 students in total, from Years 7, 8 and 9, with their reading, with one to one and small group tuition sessions. Following on from the NGRT reading screener test in September, these students had a further diagnostic test to identify their barriers to reading and were placed on the most appropriate reading pathway for them: phonics, fluency or comprehension.
• We have seen impressive progress with these students. Students and parents have expressed how much their attitude towards and confidence in reading has improved as a result. Data analysis shows that 82% of this cohort has made progress with their reading ages, and 10 student in Year 8 have made more than 2 years progress with their reading age, since the intervention started.

 

 

 

Seeing the English Curriculum in Action

• The English department have been ensuring that older students have had the opportunity of seeing the GCSE English Literature texts performed on stage over the course of this Autumn term. Miss Smith and Miss Wilson took 90 students from years 10 and 11 to see the most recent RSC production of Macbeth in Stratford Upon Avon in October. Later in the month, they also took 60 students from years 9, 10 and 11 to see the Mark Gatiss production of A Christmas Carol at the Nottingham Playhouse. In November, 50 students from Year 9 got to experience the chilling stage production of the modern gothic classic, The Woman in Black at the Theatre Royal in Nottingham, complimenting their studies of gothic literature. The students had a screaming and jumping good time, although the award for most petrified viewer goes to Mr Colton, who spent most of the second half hiding his eyes from the unfurling horror on stage.
• Although years 7 and 8 haven’t yet had the chance of attending a dramatic production, they have had the opportunity of choosing their very own Belvoir Book Buzz book from a curated list of popular children and young adult fiction. The English department will make students’ literary Christmas wish come true in the final week of this term, when they will receive their book, along with a cup of hot chocolate and a golden chocolate coin as we re-enact the Norwegian Christmas Eve tradition of Jolabokaflod , or Book Flood. This sees people gift books to each other, then cosying up in their favourite book nook with the book, drinking hot chocolate and eating chocolate. Sounds perfect!

 

Careers

• The Careers provision at Priory Belvoir is going from strength to strength. Mrs Wrate has joined the team (with Mrs Suschitzky - Careers Leader and Mrs Seddon - Careers Advisor), as Careers Co-ordinator for the Academy.
• In early October, year 10 and 11 attended our KS4 information evening. The event gives students and parents the chance to chat to staff about how to prepare our students for all that KS4 brings. In addition to this, there were multiple local post 16 providers available to help students with those important next steps.  
• Year 11 took their annual trip to the Future First Expo Careers Fair at Newark Showground on Weds 15^th November. Exhibitors consisted of the National Horseracing College, John Deere, Boots, and the Uniformed Services, amongst many more. Year 11 were able to see the range of apprenticeships available to them, students also got the opportunity to speak to local post 16 providers about their future plans. It was an eye opening and informative experience, many free pens were had by all!
• Year 10 had a 1 hour introductory session to Unifrog on Thursday 23^rd November Unifrog - The universal destinations platform. Students answered 4 quick profiling questionnaires about their interests, personality, works profile and skills. Upon completion, career match suggestions can then be viewed. It is an excellent platform for all things careers including up to date information on the labour market, help with CV writing and personal statements, as well as helpful guides and videos on many topics. Students will use Unifrog again in Personal Development lessons. All children will be linked up to this platform in due course and have their own personal log in/password which can be accessed from home as well.
• I am pleased to report the Year 10 work experience 2024 spreadsheet is looking healthy, about 60% of students have placements confirmed which is great, so thank you for your support on this. Mrs Suschitzky and Mrs Wrate are working very hard to ensure all placements are sorted by the end of January 2024, this will then allow us to make sure all risk assessments are completed and returned by March. Please contact cwrate@prioryacademies.co.uk if you have any further information regarding your child’s placement, or indeed, should you require help. Any students who do not have a placement on those 3 days, will go on 3 work place visits with staff from the Academy.

 

Celebrating other Faiths and Cultures

• Two new Religious Studies trips have been run since September! GCSE Religious Studies students in years 10 & 11 were given the opportunity to visit Lincoln in October, seeing both Lincoln Cathedral and the Islamic Cultural Centre & Mosque.  Students also had the opportunity to take part in a multi-faith debate panel, where they asked challenging questions to a panel consisting of a Muslim Imam, a Christian Priest, a Humanist speaker and an academic from the Progressive Jewish Synagogue.
• The November trip took the GCSE Religious Studies students to the National Justice Museum in Nottingham. They did a workshop that included redesigning the UK prison system, learned about some of the ways historical prisons were conducted, and took part in their own Hate Crime court case. Watching our students role play being judges, barristers and witnesses in a real court room was a sight to behold!
• The RE team also held a Diwali competition to celebrate the diversity of our school and community. There were lots of highly detailed and well thought out entries across the school! The lucky winners received a Head’s breakfast – complete with onion bhajis, pakoras, samosas and plenty of sweet treats usually eaten at Diwali celebrations.

 

Warhammer Club

• Warhammer club, which is set after school on Friday, has increased in number and popularity this module, with students in year seven to ten enjoying and playing the table-top game. Warhammer was created by Games Workshop in Nottingham in 1983, and the Warhammer Alliance schools programme has generously donated and provided Belvoir with free resources to get started in miniature building, painting and playing. The main purpose of the club is to spark creativity and to get students thinking strategically whilst they navigate the board to complete objectives and ultimately, win the game! Over the last few months, impressive models have been created, and a couple of students even built their own boards! Written by Harry H – Yr 9

 

In the Spotlight

• Patraic and Rian Hunt recently attended awards at the Grantham Tennis Centre.  Patraic was awarded best player of the year and Young Volunteer of the Year as he is a team leader supporting the different groups and competitions in the club.
• Clayton Christensen continues to train and swim three times per week and now competes with the Melton Mowbray County Swimming team.  He has also recently competed in the East Midlands swimming championships in Derby.
• Josh Hatherley continues to go from strength to strength in running.  He completed the vitality 10K in aid of Get Busy Living and raised £500 and came 407^th out of 15000.  He has also won the schools league at Mallory Park – joint gold medal along with the Priory Belvoir’s gold medal.  Josh is now gearing up to the counties and national cross country in January and the English schools qualifications in February.
• Grace Hatherley has competed in all of the Mallory events for the Priory Belvoir Academy and given her best shot at the English Schools competition.  We hope Grace recovers soon from her from injury.
• Mitchell Fardell-Ball’s commitment to the sea cadets has been recognised in the recent awards evening where he was awarded five trophies for: the most qualifications gained in 2023, most boating hours in 2023, cadets choice award, commanding officers choice award and cadet of the year.  Mitchell has gained his paddle sports instructor qualification enabling him to teach up to 8 cadets on kayak and paddleboard.  He has also achieved his power boat level 2 licence, which means he can take a powerboat out up to 10 miles offshore alongside a number of other qualifications which he has put himself forward for.  Congratulations! 
• Clem Beardmore continues to be a phenomenal fund raiser.  Following a successful submission for a grant from Leicestershire County Council’s Environment and Transport Department, Clem has learned that he has been awarded £1000 towards new bike shelters at the school. He has already raised over £1000 through his 26 mile challenge and a further £300 in his 4.5kg Toblerone raffle.  The Lions have pledged a third of the profits on the Boxing Day Duck Race after Clem pitched and it is hoped that will be around another £500 towards his target amount.  Well done Clem!
• After completing an ‘Exploration’ voyage with the largest youth development sail training charity in 2021, Keira Evans was offered a place on an ‘Empowerment voyage’ which she completed in the summer holidays of 2023 which was fully funded by a very kind donor.  Keira wanted to ‘pay it forward’ so that other young people could take part in a  voyage and benefit from this unique experience as part of their journey into adulthood and to help them make a positive life choices.  Keira raised £530 by completing the Seagrave Wolds Challenge, a 16 mile hike around the Leicestershire countryside.  Well done Keira!   

 

Welcome to new staff

When we return after the Christmas break, we will warmly welcome four new members of staff:

Mrs Kabir – Teacher of Science

Ms Taylor – Subject Leader of Geography

Miss Clegg – Teacher of Maths and Head of Year 9

Ms Curry – Learning Support Assistant.

 

….And a change of role:

Miss Wilson has already started her new role as second in the English department.  We thank her for leading Year 9 as their Head of Year for the last two years. 

 

On behalf of the staff at the Priory Belvoir Academy, we wish all our families a very happy and safe Christmas and New Year.

Yours faithfully,

Mr L S Newton

Headteacher

 

 

Calendar

January 2024

W/c 15^th January – Year 9 Mock Examinations

24^th January – Year 11 Mock Interviews

25^th January – Year 11 Parents’ Evening

26^th January – Year 7/8 Author Visit

 

February 2024

8^th/9^th February – We Will Rock You (evening productions)

28^th February – MFL Business Workshop

 

March 2024

W/c 11^th March – Year 10 Work Experience week

21^st March – Year 10 Parents’ Evening

22^nd March – 26^th March – Iceland Trip