Headteacher’s Update
Dear Families
During this week we have seen a turn in the weather, with lighter mornings which always brings a spring to the step. Spring appears to be upon us at long last. We all feel a little more invigorated as the dark nights start to leave us.
Here at Manor High, as we have said many times, we are committed to developing excellent people. Leadership and character development are key to this. Whether this is displayed through sporting participation, performing arts, or being involved in projects or competitions, it doesn’t matter as long as there is participation.
This week has seen a week of character development. Our well-being ambassadors spent the day at South Wigston High School at the wellbeing conference this week and they are very keen to develop their ideas further in school.
Our Maths Department had a busy week too, attending the Maths Feast at City of Leicester College on Wednesday and the Maths team Challenge at Leicester Grammar School on Tuesday.
On Thursday we topped that all off with a Tabla session in school for some of our students- they were thrilled and inspired by the skills shown and this is something we will be exploring further as part of our music offer.
Finally from me, our iPads are really enhancing students’ classroom experience but I must ask for something please. You must ensure that your child does not remove their iPad from it’s case and that the device is treated with care, in the same way students treat their mobile telephones. They should store them safely in their bags and not with liquids, or other equipment that could cause damage. iPads are crucial to the learning experience at Manor High, and we have worked hard to keep the cost of these to an absolute minimum therefore if there is damage beyond what is reasonable wear and tear you will more than likely receive a telephone call from our pastoral team to discuss replacement costs. To the vast majority of students, this does not apply as they are looking after their school equipment very well and reaping the benefits of using this technology in classrooms.
With best wishes
Mr S Greiff
Maths Competition
This week, a group of four Year 8 and 9 students participated in the UKMT Team Maths Challenge at Leicester Grammar School. Ruhama, Joel, Jude, and Elyas demonstrated exceptional cooperation, resilience, hard work, dedication, and a passion for mathematics that truly shone throughout the competition. Each team member proved they could remain composed under strict time pressures, fully aware that every point mattered in this closely contested event.
The first challenge required the whole team to work together to complete 20 multifaceted questions within 45 minutes. The next challenge, called the Cross Number, divided the team into pairs, with one pair solving across clues and the other solving down clues. The catch was that some answers depended on the other pair solving their clue correctly! Teamwork and clarity were essential, as the rules prohibited pairs from communicating directly— they could only exchange information through the teacher.
The third challenge followed a similar format: the team was split into pairs again, and each pair’s solution provided a crucial value for the next pair’s question. The final challenge was a shuttle relay, where teams were spread across the room and had to solve mathematical problems before submitting their answers to a judge (teacher). A correct answer earned them two points and a new question for the opposite pair, while an incorrect answer gave them one more attempt—failing that, they received zero points.
The UKMT Team Maths Challenge is no easy feat, yet our students showcased outstanding problem-solving skills, critical thinking, and teamwork. Whether tackling complex puzzles, solving tricky problems, or thinking outside the box, each student represented our school with pride and enthusiasm.
A huge round of applause for the effort and commitment shown by the Manor High KS3 students in preparing for this prestigious competition! Their spirit of collaboration, unwavering support for one another, and perseverance in tackling challenging problems with confidence and determination were truly commendable.
This experience has not only enhanced their mathematical skills but also fostered their personal growth as individuals and as a team. We are incredibly proud of Ruhama, Joel, Jude, and Elyas, and we look forward to seeing them continue to excel in future challenges.
National Careers Week
Just a reminder that we are actually running our school Careers Week events this year in the week commencing 24th March. We will be focussing our activities around Labour Market Information (LMI) and looking at the World of Work here in Leicester and Leicestershire. In preparation for this could parents/carers have a look at the World of Work Booklet 2024/25 which has been provided by the Leicester & Leicestershire Business and Skills Partnership. This booklet looks at the range of different career opportunities we have available and helps young people and their parents/carers to really look into potential; careers including pathways into those careers and so much more information. The 2024/25 booklet can be found here via this link: LLEP WORLD OF WORK LEICESTERSHIRE
During our Careers Week (24th March) we will work with students to look at this resource and to understand the opportunities available to them as well as to encourage them to start thinking about potential career routes (or even consider alternative career routes if they already have some ideas in mind). We will also be asking our students to interact with parents/carers to have discussions about this. So please do start looking at this as soon as you have the opportunity as it will be useful for students in preparation for our careers week.
Please note that this extra link also takes you to a World of Work web page that then has different sub links for various sectors if needed: World of Work Leicester and Leicestershire – LLBSP
Arbor Communications
In January we changed our main database for pupil and parent data. The new system is called ‘Arbor’.
From 28th April 2025, we will be switching over our communications from School Gateway to Arbor. This will allow us as a school to communicate with you more efficiently
Between now and 28th April 2025 please download the Arbor Parent App and register. It can be found in the app store or google play store. The logo you require is:
Please follow this link to help you get started –
Parent Portal and App – Getting started and logging in – Arbor Help Centre
If you experience any issues, please let us know via admin@manorhigh.leics.sch.uk If you have a child at another school and you currently use Arbor, Manor High School should appear automatically.
At the start of the next academic year we will also be moving from School Gateway to Arbor payments, which will allow you to use one app rather than 2 different apps. This will prevent you having to remember multiple log ins and passwords. During the summer term we will send out communications to support this transfer, but for now you should continue to use School Gateway to pay for services such as meals and trips.
College Applications & PS16
Some students will be receiving invites to attend offers holding events / offers events at schools/colleges they have applied to. We can not let students offsite during the school day unless we have had consent from a parent / carer in the same way a students would need consent to attend a medical appointment etc.
School and college offers meetings – important dates
Thursday 27th March – Change of day! Beauchamp College will be in school and will be meeting with all of our Year 11 students who have accepted offers at Beauchamp College. Once we have the times for students we will share this with them. No consent from parents is needed here as the meetings will take place on our school site and during our school day.
TBC – Beauchamp City Sixth Form will come into school to meet with any students who are holding offers with their school (same as Beauchamp College but the date is to be confirmed).
Year 11 – Positive Steps 16 site (PS16)
Please can all year 11 be aware of these key next steps regarding Post 16 applications. Thank you.
Next steps:
- Regularly log into PS16 to see if you have had any offers or messages from schools or colleges. Be patient as different schools/colleges work with different time frames. You should hear back by the end of March latest.
- Regularly check your emails (the email address you gave on your PS16 profile e.g. school or personal email) as schools / colleges may email you here
- Do not worry if your friends have already heard from a school / college and you have not. This is totally normal.
- Accept all offers that are made to you. You can hold multiple offers. Do not ignore an offer whilst waiting for your favourite school/college. Accept any offers you are given. On results day you will choose where you go to (after you have seen the grades you get).
- If you wanted to make changes to any of your applications you need to call the school/college and speak to them. If you have any issues come and find Mr Croucher / Mrs Mahomed.
Leicester College Applications
If you have applied to Leicester College through Post 16 they have emailed students (on ps16) to say they will be dealing with your application through their College Learner Hub. Please do not worry! They have said that they will email you information about how to log into the College Learner Hub and how to then manage your application etc. Please check your emails regularly (the emails you sent to them via your profile on PS16) to keep an eye out for their messages. If you have any concerns you must contact Leicester College and then also come and speak to Mr Croucher / Mrs Mahomed.
Simply put this means that Leicester College will manage your application through their College Leaner Hub. Any other schools/colleges you applied to will still be managing your application through Post 16.
Pathways at Post 16 (all years)
It is always good to plan ahead. As a result we have started talking to our Year 9 and 10 students about different options available to them in Post 16 education after Manor High School.
On Tuesday our Year 9 students had an additional assembly that was led by Gateway College. The assembly highlighted the different routes available to students in Post 16 education (including A Levels, BTECs and T Levels all available at Gateway). On Thursday our students in Year 10 heard from Leicester College about the pathways they offer (including Apprenticeships and T Levels)
It is important for all students to be aware of pathways available to them. We have attached a presentation from Gateway and the following links take you to various areas they showed:
A video of their facilities – https://www.youtube.com/@GatewayCollegeLeics
Their home page for open events – https://gateway.ac.uk/
For all students and parents/carers it is never too late to start looking at the different schools/colleges available and thinking about possible routes after Manor High School.
| Here are some explanations of key terms that may help when looking at Post 16 course – it is never too early to start looking 😊
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| Level 3
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The next stage of qualification after GCSEs. A levels are a Level 3 course. BTECs and T Levels run Level 3 courses too. |
| Level 2 | GCSE passes (grades 4 and above) are Level 2 qualifications. At post 16 a Level 2 qualification holds the same weighting as a GCSE pass. These courses may be suitable for students who need to retake a GCSE (E.G. English or Maths) and they then open the doorway to Level 3 qualifications. There are BTECs run at Level 2 and some colleges also offer Foundation T Levels which are Level 2 |
| Level 1 | A qualification that is equivalent to a GCSE grade of 1-4. These qualifications are suitable for students who may need a more accessible course to help them move towards higher levels. There are a range of vocational subjects that are at Level 1. |
| T Levels | A vocational qualification that is linked directly to a career. They are 80% coursework and 20% work in experience in the career area. T Levels are a Level 3 course that are equivalent in weighting to 3 A Levels. Some colleges do offer Level 2 foundation T Levels that bridge the gap into the Level 3 courses. |
| BTEC | A vocational course that is linked to an employment sector or area. BTECs are split into units and these are completed as coursework. There is usually an examined unit too but the majority of a student’s grade comes from the coursework. BTECs do run from Level 1. Some BTECs are worth more in terms of weighting than others e.g. L3 EXTENDED/ADVANCED Diploma – 3 ‘A’ levels, L3 Diploma (National/Technical) = 2 ‘A’ levels, L3 Extended Certificate = 1 ‘A’ Level. |
| Apprenticeships | These are courses that involve a large placement for paid work within an employment sector. The student then also attends college in order to learn more about the sector and gain qualifications. Apprenticeships run from Level 2 all the way to Degree Level. |
| A Level | An academic course. These are set up in the same way as GCSEs but are clearly harder (being Level 3). They are assessed at the end of a two year course via an exam. Some A Levels do have smaller elements of coursework too such as PE, Music etc. They are offered for the same subject areas as GCSE subjects as well as some more additional subjects too. |
Alumni
We are really keen for former Manor High School students to share their experiences of the world of work with our students.
If you, a family member or even friend who was a Manor High School student and could possibly help us with this please email us via the Admin email (FAO Mr Croucher).
Many thanks.
After School Expectations for Students
Our after school expectations are that all students should leave the site unless they:
- are waiting to be picked up (these students should wait in the study centre only and must not be wandering around the site etc)
- attending an intervention session (students must head straight to their intervention session, not leaving site briefly and then returning)
- attending a detention (students must head straight to detention)
- attending an extra-curricular club (students must head straight to their club)
- students should not be waiting around for friends to be let out of class, or for friends to come out of detention etc
- Lastly, we cannot have students staying after school to play recreational sport on the ball courts as this is not supervised.
Thanks for your support with this.
Safeguarding Update
Please read the attached Online Safety Newsletter
