Head’s Message
Dear Parents,
Thank you once again for your support. You responded quickly to the Parents
Questionnaire which has now been posted off for analysis. The ‘findings’ from this
questionnaire are invaluable to us in our planning for the future and we will share the
outcomes of this report in our next bulletin. Our students and staff have also completed a
similar questionnaire.
Our exam results continue to improve as we try to ensure that students achieve the best
possible grades of which they are capable. This year we are pleased to report 73% (as I
write, although we expect this to increase to around 76%) of students attaining 5 A*-C
grades at GCSE. This is well above the National average and is a significant achievement
in terms of value added. Student attainment including Maths and English is also now well
above the National average. Maths GCSE results in particular were much improved with
11 students gaining A*grades. We are delighted to report that all of our students gained
some accreditation which again is a superb achievement for the College. Our record for
excellent results for students of all abilities is now well established and places us as a
leading Durham school.
We ask you for your continued support in ensuring that your child is punctual to school and
that his/her attendance remains high I have enclosed some information on attendance and
punctuality in this mailing. We ask for support with school uniform. We maintain that high
standards of uniform and how the student wears it, high standards in behaviour and
punctuality are closely linked to high achievement which is the aim for all of our children.
I have also enclosed for you information on uniform, conduct and catering which I ask you
to read carefully. Please also remind your child that whilst travelling to and from school,
they are ambassadors for Sedgefield Community College: poor behaviour embarrasses
themselves and the school and their parents!
Once again I would like to thank each parent for supporting Sedgefield Community
College as we continue to support each child in our care. This support is never taken
lightly and is indeed one of the great strengths of our college. On behalf of our governors
and staff, I wish you a successful and purposeful new school year.
Yours sincerely,
Lynne Ackland
Head teacher
Attendance
Good attendance is vital for progress in learning and keeping track of attendance is a
major task in such a large school. We do have an attendance officer – David Bewick and
an Educational Welfare Officer but we would be grateful if you could:
- Provide notes to tutors for any absences with the reason clearly stated.
- Reinforce the importance of good timekeeping to your child – to lessons and at
tutorial times. Lateness is treated as truancy in the eyes of the law and will be
followed up by our attendance officer and EWO. Persistent lateness can result in a
fixed penalty fine for parents.
Uniform
There have been many discussions about uniform but the policy has not changed for the
past 8years! We are grateful for parental support in purchasing uniform according to the
policy. Students of all year groups are expected to wear the correct school uniform.
This includes Black footwear which means all black no stripes, markings, labels etc will be
permitted. The uniform is inexpensive and easy to purchase – financial help may be
available if there is a problem. The uniform is as follows:
- Black College Sweatshirt with College Logo
- White Polo Shirt
- Black trousers/skirt
- Plain Black footwear
Student appearance is expected to be ‘fit for purpose’. Make up, jewellery (except one pair
of studs and 1 watch), fashion belts and extreme hair styles are not acceptable.
Student Conduct
The College has a clear system of sanctions and rewards. This is outlined on the website
www.sedgefieldcommunitycollege.co.uk. The College is a large institution and depends on
cooperation and mutual respect to this end we shall implement our policy fairly and
attempt to be as consistent as we can. This year we have employed two Student Support
Officers – Guidance who will work within the Student Services team – if necessary you
may be contacted by them.
Tracey and Sandra are not teachers and therefore are not
restricted to break or lunch free time. Jane Hocke is senior admin officer for Student
Services should you wish to contact the key stage coordinators or the Student Support
Officers -Guidance.
Simple rules such as switching off mobiles, i pods etc during lessons, being prepared for
lessons, saying please and thank you are important – we require your support on these
matters.
Sedgefield Community College Association operates as a non profit making organisation which has charitable status.
The Association enjoys use of Sedgefield Community College facilities on evenings, weekends and school holidays.
Facilities have improved greatly at the College since 2002. The college has a floodlit 60m x 40m multi game area and 3 floodlit tennis courts. The capital build which was derived from Sports College finance included a fitness suite, which contain 16 life fitness cardio and weight machines and 22 station ICT suite. State-of-the-art air conditioning was added to the fitness suite in August 2006.
The Community Association has a varied timetable of activities which take place on week nights and weekends. The Association now boasts over 750 members. The association also holds a selection of Adult learning classes. A timetable of events hosted at the college can be accessed below. Some of the clubs that have been established over the last few years include. • Gymnastics Club • Dance Group • Martial Arts Club • Badminton Club • Football club and casual use football • Tennis Club • Mini Tennis coaching • Indoor Bowls • Athletics Club • Trampolining Club • Fitness Suite Membership and casual use • Durham Area Disability Trampolining • Lots of adult learning activities • Holiday Sports Camps • Newcastle United Football in the Community Coaching. • Holiday tennis coaching
CHANGE AT SCCA
A key feature of the future development of the Association lies in the Management Committees’ intended transformation of the existing coffee bar area to create a ‘Community Café’. Using Pasta King branded products the café will offer SCC students and community users an innovative and modern food service which will be of high quality but reasonably priced. Building work commenced on 14th August 2006.
Customer care clearly remains important and improving the responsiveness of the Community Association service to customer needs will be a priority for the staff team. Plans are now in place to support the Community Association team to move towards more effective working practices based upon their identified strengths and abilities. They will no doubt work hard to take the Association forward and deliver an outstanding service for all users.
Contribute to the future transformation of your Community Association
- The Association urgently needs members to stand for the Management Committee and fulfil key voluntary Officer roles. Information can be found at the Community College Business Office.
- All user groups must nominate one member to stand as a representative on the Management Committee, in keeping with the SCCA Constitution.
- The Association would benefit enormously from volunteer input during the daytime as well as during evenings – Over 55s are particularly welcome as mature Community users are currently under-represented.
- The Association would benefit also from receiving membership subscription as soon as possible; without cash flow it simply cannot function.
There has never been a better time to renew your Fitness Suite membership; the suite now benefits from Fixed, Commercial Air Conditioning and a full maintenance service.
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