Welcome to the second newsletter for this term.

I want to start by saying how proud I have been of the behaviour and attitude of year 11 in their trial exams. They have taken them seriously, used time between exams to revise, been polite and courteous to the exam invigilators and there have been no issues at all. As I have said in previous newsletters, these exams are really important as they will enable the teachers to support their students leading up to their GCSEs in the summer. There is plenty of time still to cover any gaps in learning and for targeted revision to be put in place.

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.

We had a significant drop in attendance at the end of last term across all year groups. Whole school attendance for this year is currently 90.7% which is well below where we should be. Year 11 attendance this week has been the highest of all year groups every day (not dropping below 98%). This needs to continue now that exams have finished! Year 10 attendance is a concern as they have the lowest attendance as a cohort.

A child who is absent a day of school per week misses an equivalent of two years of their school life. Each day of school missed by a child will reduce their attendance by 0.5%, and that means they miss five lessons. 95% attendance is ten whole days of school that has been missed – that’s 50 lessons. 90% attendance is twenty whole days of school that has been missed. 90% attendance – which is classified as persistently absent means that they have missed 4 weeks of schooling.

As a reminder, we are now offering the opportunity for parents/carers to purchase second hand uniform from the school. If this is of interest to you, please use this link CC Uniform to a form where you can express your interest and a member of staff will contact you.

We have a wide range of items in the lost property box, from prescription glasses to jewellery. If your child is missing an item, please call the school reception and a member of the team will endeavour to reunite your child with their lost articles. If items are not collected within 12 months of them being lost, they will be donated to charity.

In the afternoon of Wednesday 18 January, the School Immunisation Team will be in school delivering the flu inoculation to those students who missed the first session in December. If you would like your child to receive this but haven’t yet completed the consent form, you can do so here using code 136012.

Have a lovely weekend

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. It has been a very positive start to the new term.

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.

Next week sees the start of the year 11 trial exams. Students in year 11 should all have received their timetables from their tutors. These exams are very important and are used to plan the support and interventions required leading up to the GCSEs in the summer. Monday morning starts with their Option A exams and in the afternoon it is the first of their English papers.

I appreciate that for some this will be a stressful week. There are a significant number of exams staff on hand to support students through this, as well as their tutors and Mrs King. Morning exams start at 9.00 am, students need to be lined up by 8.45 am. Punctuality to school is very important.

In their assembly today, protocols and expectations during exams were shared. This was a reminder of the things that are considered as malpractice if they occur by the examination boards. They must not have mobile phones or watches on them, only water in clear bottles without labels are allowed in the exam hall, pockets need to be empty and they must remain in silence throughout their exam from the time they walk in the door, to the time they leave. We have a duty to report malpractice in the summer exams, and we will, in order to ensure the integrity of our centre.

Year 9 students will soon be looking to choose their non compulsory GCSE subjects for Year 10. They will attend assemblies during the last three weeks of this half term detailing some of the subjects that will be available that have not been taught at Keystage 3. This is the first stage of the Keystage Pathways process and more information will be communicated to you before half-term.

As a reminder, we are now offering the opportunity for parents/carers to purchase second hand uniform from the school. If this is of interest to you, please use this link CC Uniform to a form where you can express your interest and a member of staff will contact you.

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 would like to say well done and thank you to the students, parents/carers and all of our staff for their work and support this term. I had the pleasure of attending the Celebration assemblies this week. We rewarded students for their behaviour, engagement, progress, attitude and attendance throughout this term. I was extremely proud to award over 190 Headteachers awards to students nominated by staff for their outstanding contributions to lessons.

The seasonal festivities certainly began! We had our delicious Christmas lunch on Wednesday from Chartwells – thank you to the catering team for all of their hard work and Mrs Day for help with preparation. Myself, Miss Bracegirdle and Miss Keogh helped serve many many meals and students were full of praise for the tasty feast.

After we’d all eaten our lunch, the staff performed a pantomime of their own. Three performances were held so that every student had a chance to watch. It was fun for the cast to take part and the students enjoyed seeing Carisbrooke staff out of their every day roles!

On Thursday evening we held a Christmas Concert at St John’s Church in Newport. Thank you to all the students and staff who performed and organised such a big event. It was an excellent evening and I was so proud to be head of Carisbrooke.

And then to celebrate the end of term, we had our Santa Dash. 140 staff and students took part in the run from school to the Castle and back and then enjoyed delicious, creamy hot chocolate on their return. Huge thanks to Mrs Peake for organising it and to the staff that ran with the children. Thank you to Mrs Mursell, Mr Lythgoe and Miss Leigh for running with the students and Mrs Smith, Heads of Years and Mrs Day for helping with the arrangements. Also thanks to Miss Peckham for the live music whilst students enjoyed their hot chocolate. We raised in excess of £695 and this will be going to The Wight Brainy Bunch, a small charity that provides a support network and financial assistance to local families affected by Brain Tumours.

I was immensely proud of the contributions made to the IOW Food Bank. The Festive jumpers and Mufti were excellent.

Whilst all of these events were taking place, lessons remained as normal and students were well behaved and worked very hard.

All the staff at Carisbrooke are extremely proud of all our young people and we wish you all a Happy Christmas and New Year and we look forward to seeing all our students back in school on Tuesday 3 January, ready for a new term, in full uniform and with a positive attitude to learning.

This week we have had performances of Peter Pan and Wendy at Medina Theatre.  The students have worked so hard during the year and their hard work has paid off!  I went to both performances and was blown away by both. A massive thank you to Mr Lyle, Mrs Peckham, Mrs Shorrock and Miss Elkin for all their hard work putting the show together. It was a very professional performance. The storyline of the performance was a family struggling with grief following the loss of their youngest child and the team decided that the chosen charity for the production was “Sands” – the UK’s leading pregnancy and baby loss charity. Over £300 was raised with the sale of the programme and tea lights.

When we return after Christmas year 11 will have their trial exams in the sports hall. They start the week beginning 9 January. Timetables will be given to students next week. They had an assembly today from Mrs Edwards on the expectations and guidance on what they need to do when they sit their exams.

As the weather is getting colder, please do remember that we do have school jumpers available to buy which can be worn under blazers. Coats can obviously be worn to school but are not allowed to be worn in the buildings. Please support us by discouraging your child(ren) to bring hoodies to school, they are not allowed to be worn and if they are, will be confiscated.

Next week the festivities begin.  We have our Christmas lunch from Chartwells after which the staff will be putting on a performance of their own pantomime!  Thursday evening we have our Christmas Concert at St John’s Church in Newport.  This is free entry so come along and join in with the festivities.  Friday we have Christmas themed mufti day and the Santa Dash.

Whilst all of these events are exciting in the lead up to Christmas, lessons will remain as normal and we expect our usual good behaviour and uniform from the students.

As a reminder, the last day of term is Friday 16 December. This will be a normal full school day, finishing at 3.10 pm. We come back to school on Tuesday 3 January 

Have a lovely weekend.

On Tuesday a group of students from Carisbrooke and Medina College and The Island VI Form performed at a concert at Osborne House. The students were fantastic and we are very proud of them. A huge thank you to Mrs Peckham and all involved in supporting the students. You can read about this further on in the newsletter.

The end of term is fastly approaching and we have many events planned. Next week is the performance of Wendy and Peter Pan at Medina Theatre. Tickets are still available and you can order them via Medina Theatre. The following week we have our Christmas Concert at St John’s Church in Newport. This event is free to attend and is promised to be a full evening of Christmas festivities. On the last day of term, we have a Christmas themed Mufti day and also our Santa Dash. This is where students run two km from Carisbrooke College to Carisbrooke Castle and return. Christmas attire is encouraged! For your child to sign up for this, please sign up via School Gateway. All students receive a Christmas hat and a hot chocolate after the run.

Our canteen is serving Christmas lunch on Wednesday 14 December and you can see the full menu in the newsletter.

Flu immunisations are taking place for students in years 7 – 9 on Tuesday 6 December. If you haven’t already completed the consent form, there is a link for information on how to do so in the newsletter. Without this, your child will not be unable to receive the vaccine – which is a nasal spray rather than an injection.

Please see our website for useful information on how to keep up to date with your child’s achievement points, behaviour points and attendance on our new Parent Portals. There is a positive correlation between students’ attendance and their outcomes. Research has shown that students with less than 95% attendance on average achieve a grade lower than those students with attendance greater than 95%. I am concerned about the drop in attendance over the last couple of weeks with all year groups but more so with year 11. They have their trial exams when we come back after Christmas. Students need to be in their lessons.

Please remember, whilst we have all of these exciting events planned, we still have two weeks of learning for students and expectations around behaviour and full uniform remain the same.

Have a lovely weekend.

Today, year 11 students either went to the Isle of Wight College or attended the Island VI Form to get a first hand experience of the opportunities available post year 11. At the VI Form they had the opportunity to experience lessons from the wide variety of subjects that are on offer at A level. I popped down to see them and feedback from them was that they enjoyed the lessons and found it very informative. Hopefully, it will give them the motivation to work hard and achieve their targets in the summer exams so that all opportunities are available to them.

The trial exams for year 11 start 9 January – the students need to be making the most of every lesson and learning opportunity. Tutors are going through weekly revision tips with them. Information on revision sessions during and after school will be shared next week.

On Thursday, a group of year 8 students went to Southampton University for them to experience ‘A day in the life of a student’ at a university. The students thoroughly enjoyed the day and said it was interesting to see how it is being a student at University.

Next Wednesday we will be welcoming a couple of our Governors into school. They will be talking to students at break and/or lunchtime to gain an understanding of how they feel about their learning, their progress and their school experiences. They will be seeking the views of parents/carers over the coming weeks.

On Saturday we had seven brave students from Carisbrooke and Medina take on the task of running Independent Arts in Newport town centre. It was a jam packed day and our students worked incredibly hard, standing in as the Managers, Hub Co-ordinators and Workshop Practitioners. They managed to beat the Hub’s previous footfall for one day by 200+ people, welcoming 453 members of the public through the doors. They raised money for the charity and organised superb musical performances from our fab VI Form students. Well done to Toby and Lily in year 11 and Louis and Mia in year 9. I thought I would share some of the feedback we received:

Your students are an absolute credit to you all. I was so touched by how they supported one another and worked so well together, they were a great team. To see their friends and families come along to champion their day was an added joy and I am really so impressed by the values the Federation instill in their pupils and the ethos of encouragement.

We have flu vaccinations for students in years 7 – 9 on Tuesday 6 December. A link to the consent form has been sent out previously. If you haven’t completed this and would like your child to receive the vaccination, please do so.

Please see our website for useful information on how to keep up to date with your child’s achievement points, behaviour points and attendance on our new Parent Portals.

Have a lovely weekend.

On Tuesday 15 November, we had a Federated Careers event held at the Medina Theatre. It was a very informative evening starting with guest speakers from some of the post 16 providers on the island. They shared the opportunities and gave guidance on the different pathways that are available. The students then had the opportunity of talking to over twenty exhibitors from island businesses, the NHS and the forces, in the sports hall. Those students who were unable to attend will receive the information booklets given out on the evening. Talking to some of our students it was clear that they left with a lot of information regarding their options after year 11.

Next Friday, most year 11 students will attend the Island VI Form for their ‘taster day’. This will give them an insight into what it is like to attend a VI Form and the differences between secondary school and further education. It is also an opportunity to find out about new subjects which would be available to them such as criminology and forensic science.

Next Thursday, a group of year 8 students will be visiting Southampton University for them to experience ‘A day in the life of a student’ at a university. We will share how they get on in next week’s newsletter.

Tomorrow, Independent Arts in Newport are allowing a ‘Student Takeover’ event, between 10 am – 4 pm. Students from across the Federation will be taking on roles such as managers, creative practitioners, meeters and greeters and fundraisers. All details have been designed by our students, including publicity, window displays, workshop ideas and music. Please pop in if you are able.

As shared last week, tickets for our Federative production of Wendy and Peter Pan are on sale, so if you have not already done so, please support our young people by buying tickets for one of the performances on Wednesday 7 December or Thursday 8 December. Tickets can be bought online through Medina Theatre.

Can I please take this opportunity to remind you that students require a suitable coat now that winter is here. With all of the rain this week, we have had students arrive at school with no coats and so very wet for the rest of the day.

Attendance has dropped at the college this week. I cannot stress how important regular school attendance is for giving children the best possible start in life. The aim should be to attend 100% of the time. Students who miss school frequently can fall behind with their work and do less well in exams.

Have a lovely weekend.

Today the whole school met on the Astro to observe two minute silence on Armistice Day. It was very sombre and the respect shown by the school community was outstanding. I am so proud of them.
‘At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month – we will remember them.’
Danica M and Bailey H in year 11 carried the wreath down to the Astro. Danica then recited the Exhortation and Bailey the Kohima Epitaph. Mary Teague, an ex parent, performed the Last Post and the Reveille.

This week rehearsals have continued for our federated Christmas Performance of Wendy and Peter Pan and our Christmas music concert. The performances are on Wednesday 7 December and Thursday 8 December. You can purchase tickets for Wendy and Peter Pan here.

On Tuesday 15 November we have a Federated Careers event being held in the Medina Theatre, including exhibition stands in the Sports Hall. The presentation starts at 5.45 pm, the doors will open at 5.30 pm. It is an important event as it will raise awareness of the range of options that students have following their GCSE exams in the summer. Information will also be shared about revision techniques and exam preparation routines.

There are a number of focused year 11 sessions available to support students in preparation for the summer exams. It is crucial that students buy into these opportunities so that they reach their potential in their GCSEs. If there are any barriers to your child attending these sessions please contact their Head of Year. We will be looking to offer support with further inventions in the half term holidays. These will be shared with parents well in advance.

Follow us on our social media platforms as there are many events and activities coming up this half term. Links can be found at the bottom of this newsletter.

Have a lovely weekend.

Welcome to the first newsletter of this half term. I hope you enjoyed the week’s break.

This week I have led assemblies to years 8 to 11 (Year 7 did not have one due to the development day). Our core values are built around ASPIRE which are Ambition, Success, Progress, Inspirations, Respect and Equality. My focus was on Equality as this links with the PSHE focus for this half term which is Celebrating Differences. We looked at the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. We also looked at the meanings of equality and diversity.

We have had two amazing trips out for years 10 and 11 to watch live performances at the theatre. On Wednesday a group of music and drama students went to London to see Wicked. Full details are further in the newsletter. Thursday a group of 180 year 10 and 11 students went to Southampton Mayflower theatre to watch An Inspector Calls. I had the pleasure of joining them on this trip and the students’ behaviour was exceptional – commented on by the staff of Solent Cruises. We all really enjoyed the performance. More information on this trip will be shared in next week’s newsletter.

We have had confirmation from the NHS School Immunisation team that students in 7, 8 and 9 will receive the flu vaccination in school on 6 December. Further information will be sent out regarding this in the coming weeks.

It was lovely to see so many of our Year 11 and their parents/carers at our Open Evening at The Island VI Form yesterday evening. It was a great opportunity to talk to our amazing students and staff, as well as see the facilities that we have. The application process is now open and if you were not able to visit in person then an online version of the prospectus is available here and the application form to download. We also have subject related videos available for you to watch with messages from our staff. If you would like to arrange a tour of the site or have any queries at all, please contact us at viform@iwef.org.uk.

Have a lovely weekend.

Welcome to our last newsletter for this half term.

This week we have had our Celebration Assemblies for all year groups. Attendance, progress and attitudes to learning were all celebrated. I was impressed with the number of Headteacher awards that I had the pleasure of presenting and very proud of the recipient of the Pride of Carisbrooke Awards. Congratulations to our winners and keep up the good work.

We had our year 7 Disco on Wednesday to celebrate how well the students have settled into life at secondary school. The evening was a great success and it was lovely to see the students in their party outfits and having fun.

On Thursday I had the pleasure of joining the Year 11 geography students on a field trip as part of their GCSE studies to Sandown and Yaverland. Thankfully the weather improved as the day went on and it was a very interesting and informative trip that all the students enjoyed.

On Thursday 3 November between 5.00 pm and 8.00 pm, The Island VI Form, our federated VI Form provision based in Nodehill has its Open Evening. This is an opportunity for year 11 to find out in more detail the courses that are on offer and what VI Form life is like. They can look at the facilities, talk to staff and students about the subjects and begin to think about what they are going to do when they leave year 11. There are over 40 subjects at Level 3 for them to choose from. Please have a look at the website for more details.

We have a staff development day on Monday 31 October, so we are closed to students (except for those students sitting an exam at The Island VI Form). We’ll see all students back into school on Tuesday 1 November.

Have a great half term break.