Welcome to the second newsletter for this term.

It was lovely to have so many year 11 parents attend their first face to face Parents’ Evening on Wednesday night. This is a critical time for Year 11 and we want to make sure that they are getting all the help and support they need. We have our Helping your Child to Revise Parent Information Evening coming up 25 January at 4.30 pm. This will show you how you can support your child in preparing for their GCSE exams.

Year 9 students will have their first Pathways assembly next week. It is time for them to start thinking about what subject they would like to study at GCSE level in KS4. A Pathway Evening will take place after half term for parents to join their child in school and speak to the teachers of each subject available.

Attendance remains a key focus for us. Good attendance helps children to make good progress in school and fulfil their potential in life. Miss school, miss out – Every day counts – Going to school regularly and being part of the school community gives children and young people a sense of belonging and means that they benefit not only from lessons and learning, but also can see friends and teachers, ask for help, join clubs, go on school trips, have a clear routine and can get mental health support.

Whole school attendance for this year is currently 92% which is well below where we should be – our minimum target is 95%. Year 8 attendance is a concern as they have the lowest attendance as a cohort.

The next Parent Voice meeting will take place next Thursday 18 January. We will meet in the Drama studio at 6.00 pm. All parents and carers are invited to attend.

For your information, Friday 2 February is a staff training day and so students will not be in school.

Congratulations to our top achievement point winners for the last week of the Autumn term. Year 7 Sofia, Year 8 Warrick, Year 9 Alice, Year 10 Keira and Year 11 Alfie.

Have a lovely weekend.

Miss Begley

Head of School – Carisbrooke College 

Welcome to our first newsletter for the Spring term.

I want to start by wishing you all a Happy New Year and I hope you had a relaxing break. I would like to thank you for your continued support in encouraging your child to be on time for school, in smart school uniform and with equipment ready to learn. These basic expectations enable everyone to have a positive experience in school. It has been lovely welcoming students back this week.

I have enjoyed delivering assemblies to year 8, 9 and 10. Linked to our Aprire and Achieve strap line and the word ASPIRE which focuses on our core values, the themes this time were on Ambition and Success. Other key messages were around our expectations in terms of attendance and attitude to learning. I will be delivering it to year 7 next week.

Year 9 students will soon be looking to choose their non compulsory GCSE subjects for Year 10. You will soon be receiving information on the Keystage Pathways process. It kicks off with them attending assemblies starting 15 January detailing some of the subjects that will be available that have not been taught at Key Stage 3.

Next Wednesday we have our year 11 parents’ evening in school. Appointments can be booked using the Arbor app. If you have any difficulties in doing so, please contact donna.keogh@iwef.org.uk. This is an excellent opportunity to discuss your child’s progress in class, the recent mock exams and the upcoming GCSE exams in the summer.

The next Parent Voice meeting will take place 18 January. Further details will follow next week.

Congratulations to our top achievement point winners for the last week of the Autumn term. Year 7 joint winners Chloe and Ted; Year 8 joint winners Amelia, Lily and Matthew; Year 9 joint winners Eddie, Tali and Chloe; Year 10 Solomon and Year 11 Emma.

Have a lovely weekend. 

Miss Begley

Head of School – Carisbrooke College