The following parent update went out to parents on Thursday 3 October. There were a couple of items that were Year group specific as well, but this article just contains the items relevant to all families.
Change to Calendar – INSET Days
We have changed the original date of our INSET Day in the Summer Term from Friday 23 May to Monday 2 June.
This means your child will now not be in school on Monday 2 June – having an extra day’s holiday tagged onto their Summer half-term.
We always have an INSET Day either just before or just after this half-term – it is a good time for staff to work together to outline and plan changes for the new school year. However, we have to vary the day depending on what Y11 / Y13 exams are on at that time and we do not know that till after the academic year starts.
You can see the school’s term dates for 2024-2025 here and the specific school calendar here. Meanwhile, the provisional terms dates for 2025-2026 are here.
Parents Evenings
Following our consultation in the Summer Term, our Parents’ Evenings will remain virtual. 74% of parents voted to remain online, whilst 25% voted for face-to-face – with 1 parent asking for a mix.
Our staff were 100% behind virtual. This was for various reasons including the fact that they could see more parents as the cut-offs were easier, that there is much less over-running, that they saw higher rates of parent attendance, and that the management of queues and turns amongst frustrated waiting parents in corridors was removed.
There remains a chance to come into school Partnership Evenings and school events, and we also do half-termly Achievement Concern Evenings (ACE Meetings) with parents when we have specific concerns. Equally, if any parent wants to information about their child’s progress then they are always free to email in via office@friaryschool.co.uk.
Our online parents’ evenings have been a mix of EduLink for bookings and Teams for meetings but we are trialling a new system in the forthcoming Y13 parents evening. This will only use EduLink. We will see how it runs this half-term then will potentially roll it out from there.
Parent House Points
We very much take the view that every child has a greater chance of success and happiness in our school where school and home work well together.
Consequently, to have a bit of fun with this partnership, we are going to distribute House points to parents. These will be gained where a parent can attend a Parents Evening, a Partnership Evening, or another designated event, such as Year 9 Pathways Evening, etc.
We will then do an annual prize draw – not dissimilar to what we do with your children – and top House point scorers will win a prize. The House Points will also be added to the House total for the House in their battles for the House Cup.
Rest assured, there will be no publication of scores, no links of these points to what your child earns, and the whole scheme is just to have some fun in encouraging home and school to work together.
We’ll give updates on the school website through the year to see which House is on track to with the Parents Cup !
Please do note that having already discussed it with some parents, you cannot earn extra House points by bribing staff or doing your child’s homework. 😊
Target Grades
All students have been set their target grades and these will come out on reports and be put on the front of exercise books and folders.
These target grades are based on the ability of each child when they joined the school. They give you an idea of what your child is expected to get at the end of Year 11 or Year 13. They are not though limiting and most children in our school end up doing better than these targets – despite the fact we set them at a higher aspirational level from the off.
If during Years 7-9 your child talks about a getting a Grade 4 or a Grade 7 please remember this does not mean this is what they actually got. Rather, it is what their work indicates we believe they will get if they continue at that standard until the end of Year 11. Obviously, it would be very difficult for a child to get a Grade 9 in Year 7 – but they could of course address the task so well that we feel that it is the path they are on.
We have used this system for several years and feel it works well. However, we are re-jigging how we explain it your children. We talk about it as a flightpath. The target grade is the end destination and the assessments along the way determine whether you are on course to get there, or even fly beyond it.
Homework
We are not a school that seeks to swamp children with mountains of homework. We recognise that children need time to rest and have fun, as well as to enjoy out-of-school pursuits.
The Year 7-9 HLA assignments allow families to chunk up work up work around family events – it usually just needs a little advance planning to make it work. Maths and French set ‘little and often’ homework as this approach is proven to be most effective. The HLA Timetable can be seen here.
The Year 10-13 homework is related to the exam courses and there are different pressure points at different times; whether they be mock exams, subject assessments, or coursework deadlines. We do keep it as reasonable and supportive as we can and it helps things are mapped out well in advance.
Extra-Curricular Clubs
We offer numerous extra-curriculum activities before, during and after school. The full schedule can be viewed here.
Likewise, we have school trips planned through the year and try and get a chance for everyone to get involved somewhere.
Xmas Carol Concert
This annual event takes place at Lichfield Cathedral on the evening of Monday 9 December and is free to attend. It takes little over an hour and with a series of classic Christmas carols it is a great way to welcome in the festive period.
Parents, grandparents, and long-lost cousins are all welcome so do please put it in your diary. Any child that wants to sing will get into the choir – we can always turn off their mike if they are tone-deaf and they’ll be none the wiser. 😊
Communication
Just as a reminder you will get these emails from me every so often but the main sources of information will be EduLink (so check that app), our website, and our social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter and INStagram).
Please be as proactive as you can be in finding out what is going on and if you ever need any information then just email us on office@friaryschool.co.uk.
PTFA
Ever since COVID we have seen reduced parent engagement with our PTFA – they still do an amazing job, and raise an impressive sum, but there is a falling roll and we need your help.
Ultimately, your child will do better if the PTFA brings in extra funding and they see their parents placing themselves into the life of the school. If we lose it, then we believe the children, and your children, lose out.
It is not about turning up for meetings or manning a bar. It could be coming along to the PTFA Quiz Night, the Comedy Night, the Oktoberfest, etc, or buying a raffle ticket, or buying a £1 per week ticket to win up to £25,000 on Your School Lottery.
The school stands out nationally for student exam results, but we are not standing out enough on PTFA support and we’re asking you to step up and help where you can.
Please help us to help your child.
And Finally
Thanks to all parents for your support as we head towards the first half-term break of the school year.
