Welcome to Hethersett Academy Welcome to Hethersett Academy – a focused centre of excellence and successful learning for all. We provide a broad and high-quality curriculum that has been recognised by Ofsted as being Outstanding in all areas, and our students consistently achieve some of the best GCSE results in East Anglia. We are here to ensure that each student achieves highly and develops their own particular abilities, interests, and talents to the full – academic, sporting, personal and social.
Young people are key partners in their own learning and their voice matters: we listen to their views and ideas and act upon them. We are not afraid of tradition at Hethersett Academy and place a strong emphasis on good manners and courtesy. We take many opportunities to extend learning beyond the classroom.
We provide all of our students with an exceptional range of opportunities including many sporting, cultural and technological activities, with many finding hidden talents and lifelong passions. Pastoral care is of high priority, afterall happy children are more likely to be successful, well rounded adults. We are able to get to know individuals, with all their unique strengths and characters, and able to encourage them to strive to excel.
Supported by staff with a real care for their wellbeing, we aid the development of the vital life skills which ensure that young people can contribute to their communities as active citizens, both today and in the future as they progress on to university and their career. We look forward to you and your child joining us on this exciting and rewarding journey.
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‘We are not afraid of tradition at Hethersett Academy and place a strong emphasis on good manners and courtesy.’ Jane Diver Principal
Hethersett Academy is one of East Anglia's top performing schools recording the highest Progress 8 score in East Anglia in 2017 - and is rated Outstanding by Ofsted in all areas.
About our academy Our academy starts at Year 7 and aims to ensure students have a strong foundation to tackle GCSEs in Year 11 before moving onto further study. We have strong links with nearby primary schools, ensuring a smooth transition, and our size and community focus helps students settle in quickly whether they join us in the main Year 7 round or through a mid-year transfer later on.
‘Our vision is that every student achieves their best.’
Many of our students come from Hethersett, Little Melton, Mulbarton, Cringleford and nearby villages, although we are increasingly welcoming families from Eaton, Norwich and Wymondham who are keen to benefit from our academic focus and broad range of cultural and sporting activities. Our vision is that every student achieves their best – this, of course, includes their academic results, but we also highly prize developing each student as a capable and valuable member of the community.
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We aim to achieve this by ensuring everyone associated with the school commits to achieving outstanding progress, and enjoys and engages in their learning while being prepared to take on challenges without the fear of failure. Through this ethos we encourage each student to be a responsible and active member of both the school community and their local neighbourhood. Students can create their own curriculum to suit their particular strengths as they move through the school towards their formal GCSE examinations. Our academic curriculum is supported by a huge range of extra activities such as the trips and visits undertaken within subject areas, participation in music and art events, and a wide selection of sporting opportunities across a huge range of sports activities. Our extended school day brings about additional enrichment provision, focusing on science, technology and maths, creative arts and literacy.
All students have an opportunity to study something new or to build on subjects they already enjoy. In addition, they are able to choose from a variety of extracurricular sports and hobbies run by external coaches and members of the community, as well as volunteers from within the academy.
Joining our academy New students joining Hethersett Academy in Year 7 enjoy a structured programme of transition days. During this time, parents also have the opportunity to come along to meet the students’ form tutors. The purpose of the transition period is to:
• Introduce students to their form tutors • Meet each other • Reassure students and parents alike that they will be well cared for when they arrive at the academy
• Ask any questions of academy staff We aim to work with parents and carers to help our students flourish and develop into accomplished, cultured young adults over their time with us. Our new students have:
• Dedicated cloakroom facilities • A personal storage locker • An allocated pastoral support adult They are also introduced to other children already at the academy who welcome the opportunity of mentoring our new students.
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Learning for life Our curriculum covers a diverse range of subjects to help each student find their passions, and tailor the choice of subjects to their particular strengths. It is important that all students achieve excellence in English, maths and science. We apply focus to numeracy and literacy skills from the moment they enter the academy. During their early years our students study a broad curriculum including English, biology, chemistry, physics, maths, history, geography, French, Spanish, religious education, technology, physical education, art and music. We guide students as they narrow their studies towards GCSE, ensuring they challenge their goals and make the right choices for them as individuals. The academy day starts each morning with tutor time, enabling students to settle in and focus on the day’s work ahead. Tutors are able to get to know their students so that they can support them appropriately through the year. The academy is divided into four colleges: Brunel, Curie, Dyson and Hawking.
All students will have the opportunity to trial one of the school sports teams. Team sports will take place on a Monday and Friday after school and a late bus to Mulbarton and surrounding villages is available for these students when there is a later finish time. Each student is allocated to a college and we hope they will represent their college in one or more of the competitions that run through the school year. Reward merits are accumulated for class work and other activities and these lead to an awards ceremony at the end of term. Our timetable is made up of 28 teaching hours per week, divided into one-hour classes, plus break and lunch time. On Monday and Friday the day comprises five lessons and on a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, students have six lessons.
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Encouraging broad horizons We ensure that students are able to take advantage of a wide range of trips and visits, supporting classroom learning and developing our young people’s confidence and personalities. Each trip is carefully managed to ensure that students gain the most they can from their time out of school. To give just a flavour, recent trips have included short local coastal walks and camping trips, and visits further afield including visiting the CERN laboratory and Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland, and touring the historic monuments of Paris. We place great value on cultural activities and sporting pursuits. Collaborating as part of a band or orchestra, or pulling together in a sports team helps develop important life skills such as teamwork, communication skills, self-belief and confidence – as well as ensuring real enjoyment and fun. We encourage students to learn a musical instrument – from classical instruments as part of our string ensemble or jazz band to modern instruments as part of our rock school – and to experiment with art, drama and dance.
‘We place great value on cultural activities and sporting pursuits.’
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‘Unique structured environment that also offers a potential career path.’ We stage regular concerts and showcases so students can experience the thrill of performing in front of an anticipating audience, including at prestigious venues like Norwich Playhouse and Norwich Cathedral. Our student sport leaders help other students throughout the academy take part in sport, and also assist with activities for local primary schools. Our popular Combined Cadet Force offers students the chance to learn valuable self-reliance and teamwork skills, in a unique structured environment that also offers a potential career path. Alternatively, some students may opt to enrol for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award where again, they are presented with many personal challenges. We work closely with The National Citizens Service and Camps International to enable students to volunteer locally and internationally. Whatever your child is interested in, we believe we can help them develop their skills.
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Supporting our students Partnership with parents We work in close partnership with parents and provide regular access to progress data as well as the opportunity to come into school for a parents’ evening to meet and speak with teachers about the progress their child is making. Communication between school and home is critical to ensuring the right support is given to enable the student to make outstanding progress. Throughout the year, we organise specific year group events to keep you informed of progress. We also arrange events to coincide with important times where students are making choices about the subjects they study as they progress towards the GCSE exams at the end of Year 11.
Pastoral care
Student ethos
Uniform
Every student is important and to ensure we identify and support each student’s needs we operate a college system alongside our excellent special educational needs department. Our four colleges provide a clear support system for each child, from their form tutor to their assistant college lead, to the senior leader in charge of care and guidance. Academic mentoring is provided for students to help them achieve their goals.
We support our students to be kind, work hard and take pride with formal structures that include the student council, head boy and girl, college captains and prefects. Our vision is that students enjoy and engage in their learning – listening to their views is important in ensuring this happens.
Our uniform is smart and traditional. We encourage each student to take pride in their appearance and be proud to belong to Hethersett Academy and to represent the school on their way, in uniform, to and from school.
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A wide range of subject options We offer a wide range of subject options, giving our students the chance to focus on their skills and interests. We constantly review our subjects and qualifications to ensure they reflect the needs of students and their future employers. Courses recently offered include: • Resistant materials
• Applied science
• Design and technology: Textiles
• Arabic
• Drama
• Art and design
• English language
• Biology
• English literature
• Chemistry
• Enterprise and marketing
• Child development
• French
• Computing
• Food technology
• Design and technology
• Further maths
• Maths
• Geography
• Music
• Graphics and architecture
• Photography
• Health and social care
• Physical education
• History
• Physics
• Information and
• Religious education
communications technology • Travel and tourism
• Science • Spanish
We are a National Teaching School, and part of the Inspiration Trust family of schools, dedicated to ensuring that our young people have the greatest possible opportunities regardless of their background.
Applying for a place Most students join us at the start of Year 7. The application process is organised by Norfolk County Council, and begins in the autumn of the year before. Norfolk County Council will ask you to choose which school you would like your child to attend, with applications closing at the end of October.
They will then allocate places, with offers sent out at the beginning of March. Should more students apply than we have places, spaces will be allocated based on our admissions policy; this is updated from time to time and can be found on our website. Details correct as of September 2020 Queen’s Road Hethersett Norwich NR9 3DB 01603 810924 enquiries@hethersettacademy.org www.hethersettacademy.org