Headteacher’s Update
Dear Parents
Christmas may be approaching, however we continue to keep the pace in school. There is no let up due to the festive season. We are acutely aware that every minute students are in school matters greatly.
This week we have had our Christmas Concert. It was wonderful to see the students involved demonstrated their passions for the Performing Arts. There were many students that excelled- too many to mention individually.
We also held our Year 11 Pre Public Examination Results Evening yesterday. We thank all parents that attended that event, and there were many- the vast majority in fact. It is key that the students are supported both in school and at home in this crucial last year. It was great to see so many parents present supporting their children and listening to the key messages. We are sure it will be useful.
As I type this message our Year 9 students are in the Hall learning more about their GCSE Option choices for next year. This is something we would ask you talk to your child about over the coming days, before they make any decisions about their next steps.
In addition ,we recently had a safeguarding audit carried out by some external experts. I feel that it is very important that we have external scrutiny of key areas so that there are ‘fresh eyes’ on our school. The audit went very well and confirmed that safeguarding is effective and that children are safe at school. Whilst this was recently confirmed by OFSTED before the summer break, this is something we continually check and keep a close eye upon. Some excerpts from the written report are below….
“Pupils were observed during both break and lunchtime. There was a calm atmosphere in all areas. Appropriate level of staffing were observed.”
“Pupils were very positive that if they had to report anything then that it would be taken seriously and dealt with by the member of staff.”
“Staff were also confident in what to do if they had a concern about a child, how to report it and who to report it to.”
“Safeguarding is included in the curriculum – pupils spoke highly of their lessons and felt that the areas that they covered were important.”
“All pupils felt safe in all areas of school and that is was a good place to be.”
We are pleased to have the reassurances that our procedures are in place and that students recognise that they are having impact. An area of focus for us is to develop our PHSE curriculum even further this year. Work has already taken place this term, with Miss Wilson taking responsibility as a PHSE Lead, working closely with Mrs Newbury to make our PHSE curriculum even better. During the safeguarding audit, this was also recognised- “A new PHSE lead has very recently been appointed and pupils were very positive about these lessons and know that they are important.”
I also received a letter this week from the Local Authority Director of Children and Family Services congratulating us on our recent Ofsted report. The letter quoted various parts of our report, including
“Manor High School has a purposeful atmosphere across the school. Pupils are considerate, polite and courteous. They work diligently and behave very well. Pupils focus on their learning well.”. The letter goes on to say that I should “be rightly proud of the work of the achievements of the school” and would like to… “wish you, your hard-working staff, and governors every success in the future”.
However, as well as being down to the hard work of these people, who are rightly to be thanked it is also down to the hard work of families in supporting children and the school. Never were the words of Henry Ford more true- “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself”.
With best wishes
Mr S Greiff
Christmas Production
The Performing Arts Department performed their Christmas production – Legends and Icons of Stage, Screen and Song on Wednesday 11th December. Students in our clubs and ensembles have been working hard all term on a variety of items inspired by iconic figures in music and drama.
This was a truly wonderful event and the hall was filled with lots of parents! Thank you also to Brookside Primary for coming to our afternoon dress rehearsal, the students were amazing and were treated to some great performances from Manor High School students. We hope that everyone enjoyed their evening of music and drama.
Year 11 Art & Design Students
Year 11 Art and Design students have been testing out their art skills in a 10-hour practice exam, starting and completing their final responses to their Food project. They have each designed their own original piece and used a range of media, including acrylic paint, oil pastel, clay and fabric. Perfect practice for their Final exam in the spring.
SMD Construction Opportunity
Following the really positive talks with the SMD team we have decided that we will postpone tours of the construction site until the New Year. This is due to the recent weather making the site unsuitable for student visitors at the moment.
The team are really committed to taking some of our students on site. We will be in touch once we have some confirmed dates.
Science Club
Please note that Year 7 Science club will not be running on Monday 16th December.
The club will resume on Monday 13th January 2025. If your child is interested in joining the club, please ask them to speak to Miss Thompson.
Duke of Edinburgh Award
We will be relaunching our programme in 2025 and are aiming to run both the Bronze and the Silver Awards. We will be in touch in the new year with more information including the new costs.
We have always felt t
his is a really important opportunity for our young people and it goes without saying that we are excited to be launching in 2025. As a result we have taken the necessary time to ensure we move forward with a model that allows our students to enjoy and succeed with the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme. More information will come out in the New Year.
PE Notice
We have been very impressed with the engagement in lessons from our students, even despite the inclement weather. We have seen a decline in weather over the last couple of weeks, and we want our students to stay as dry as possible. We have mentioned to all students that they should bring spare shoes and socks in case they get their feet wet in PE lessons. We also suggest the purchase of a waterproof jacket. We are mindful of cost for parents and therefore are not going to provide a more expensive branded option- some suggestions are below. We are more than happy for students to wear these.
Gelert | Waterproof Packaway Jacket | Waterproof Jackets | SportsDirect.com
Regatta | Stormbreaker Jacket | Waterproof Jackets | SportsDirect.com
Regatta | Laiyah Ld99 | Waterproof Jackets | SportsDirect.com
Gelert | Packaway Ladies Jacket | Waterproof Jackets | SportsDirect.com
Regatta | Kids Stormbreak Waterproof Jacket | Waterproof Jackets | SportsDirect.com
Rugby and Hockey has started for years 7,8 and 9, it is essential students have mouthguards for these activities, please see below an example reasonably priced mouthguard.
Sondico | Ergo Fit Fusion Mouthguard | Mouthguards | SportsDirect.com
At £5 these are great value and should last the life of their time here at Manor!
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 Study Centre and Interventions
Please can you reinforce to students that if they are staying behind at school to use the study centre (either to work or to wait for a parent to collect them) they must not leave site first and then come back. We have had a number of students leave site at the end of the school day, head to the shop and then arrive back at school 15 minutes later saying they need to wait in the study centre. We cannot allow students to just come and go like this as it is not safe and also not fair to staff who are supporting in the study centre.
The same is the case for interventions. If a student has an intervention session after school they must leave session 3, stay on site and then head to their intervention. Some students have been leaving site at the end of the day, heading to the shops and then wanting to be let back onto site 15 minutes later. This is also not acceptable.
Thanks for your support with this.
Year 11 – Positive Steps 16 Site (PS16)
Deadline dates: the deadline for applications is Monday 16th December. Please note that any year 11 students who have their 1-1 careers talk during the weeks commencing 16/12/24 and 6/1/25 have a slightly later deadline of Monday 13th January. In order for us as a school to process your applications please ensure you have sent your applications off via the PS16 website by these dates.
Year 11 students have been sent their log in details to the PS16 website. These were sent to students’ school email accounts. This is the site students use to make applications to schools and colleges in Leicester and Leicestershire.
We have also shown our students a simple guide of what to do once logged in to the site. We showed this during assembly. This has also been shared on ClassCharts so that students, parents and carers can refer to it (it is a Power Point).
Please ensure that students keep their log in details safe. Students can now start using this site as set out on the Power Point – ensuring their personal details etc as well as personal statements are up to date on the system.
Year 10 Work Experience
Thank you to all who have brought forms back in. Payments have been set up on the school gateway (thank you also to those who have already paid). Please make your payment promptly so your form can be fully processed.
Safeguarding Update
Tellmi
Christmas can be a bit overwhelming and is especially so for young people who struggle with low self-esteem, negative body-image and eating difficulties. Tellmi offers a safe space to talk about difficult things and get support from others who are dealing with similar issues. Students can access anonymous, pre-moderated peer and counsellor support, as well as 1-2-1 therapy through the Tellmi app and web app. They can also connect to the First Steps ED service to get specialist support for issues relating to body image or disordered eating.
This service is funded by the NHS, so it is free and it is exclusively available to young people who live in Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland. Students don’t need a referral and there is no waiting list.
Tellmi can be downloaded for free from the App Store, Play Store or via our Web App (tellmi.app)
Children’s Wellbeing
Please see attached booklet from the NHS Mental Health Service Team to help support students over the winter – Winter Support Booklet 2024
Food Bank Collection
Manor High School will be collecting food donations for the Oadby Food Bank between now and the 16th December. Please see the attached list for suggested items to support the local community.
