governors' report 2010

Governors’ Annual Report to Parents 2010

Governors’ Report to Parents - 2010

Governors’ Annual Report to Parents 2010Professor Trevor Kerry Chairman of the Governing Body, Brooke Weston College

Dear Parent or Guardian,

As you know, the Governors report each year to parents on the key events in the life of the school and on the progress which has been made in the school over the past year. This Report is now published on the school’s web-site rather than in expensive printed format.

2009/2010 year has been another exciting period, characterised by outstanding achievements and changing practice, both in school and in the governing body. You may recall that, when Brooke Weston took academy status, the governing body was re-constituted. Many of the governors from the previous Governing Body remained in place, and a few new members have joined. So we have been pleased to welcome Kerry James (Chair of Governors, Corby Business Academy), John Hill and Mike Deane-Hall.

As a way of making our membership more transparent Brooke Weston News has been running a series of profiles of individual governors; and it will continue to do so until every governor has featured. In this way we hope to make you more familiar with who we are, our particular interests and responsibilities. You can, of course, contact the Chair of Governors at any time via the school. Further information in the public domain comes in the form of the School Brochure and


the School Profile which are available on the Academy web site.

During the past year governors have been assigned to work closely with senior staff in specific areas of curriculum, and in this role we have visited the school and paid close attention to our areas of interest. The experience has been most useful, allowing governors an even more intimate knowledge of what happens in school. As usual we have held our regular governors’ meetings; and our Residential in the autumn in which we meet with all the new staff and then spend a Saturday morning in detailed briefings. To log our contacts with the school we have instituted a governors’ signing-in book at Reception and we have made formal reports on visits at governors’ meetings. I feel extremely privileged, as Chair, to have such an able, enthusiastic and informed group of governor colleagues. They give freely of their time and energy to the school.

We have been impressed, as usual, with the examination results at both GCSE and GCE levels. Year 11 recorded a fine set of outcomes, with every student achieving at least nine passes at A*-C grades and thus ensuring a seventh year for the school of 100% A*-C grades. A*/A grades were awarded in 38% of cases; and nearly a fifth of all students achieved ten or more A*/A grades. In the crucial benchmark of 5 A*-C grades in including mathematics and English, the school reached 86% this year. In addition to these fine performances, 20 students secured Distinction grade in the BTEC National Award in eBusiness. Following these successes, 138 students proceeded to the sixth form; 32 continued studies in other local instiutions, 4 were apprenticed and 5 entered directly into employment.

The picture at GCE level was also a positive one with 49.6% of grades in Year 12 reaching A or B (40% last year). At GCE in Year 13 60% of grades were awarded at A*/A/B and the average points score increased from 295 last year to 333. The average grade profile was

AAB. 73% of pupils secured their first choice university places; and 22.2% secured employment.

The governors extend to the Executive Principal, the Principal of Brooke Weston, and to all the staff and pupils their warmest congratulations on a job well done on the examinations’ front.

Alongside these academic successes, there has been a mass of sporting achievement by both teams and individuals. On the individual level, students have represented the District or County in cross country, athletics, swimming, football, rugby, netball and wheelchair tennis; Lucas Rowe was selected for the national judo squad. Teams have operated at District level and were champions in basketball (Year 8 boys and girls), football (Year 9 boys, Year 10 boys, Year 11 boys), and cross country (Year 12 boys and girls). Year 9 boys were County football champions and year 8 boys were joint League champions.

Despite the high achievements of Brooke Weston staff have noted a drop in the achievement levels of pupils on entry to the school – a result of changed admissions arrangements following Academy status. To remedy this the school has put in place its Focus on Literacy strategy, and this has proved very successul in mitigating the effect of the lowered achievement. The year has also seen renewed effort being put into vocational work both at Key Stage 4 and post-16 to support the school’s Applied Learning Specialist School status. There is active pursuit, too, of the individualised learning agenda, so that students’ courses are governed more by choice and aptitude rather than ‘age-and-stage’.

Retention of staff was higher during the year than has been the case recently. The governors wish Mrs Sue Kerley well in her retirement; she has been a good servant of Brooke Weston in a senior role. Staff training continues to be a priority: three members of staff are currently on MSc programmes in education, and three others are working on first or higher degrees with the Open University. Support staff, too, are


supported to undertake professional development training; most notably, the Head of the Grounds Staff is congratulated on achieving a first class degree in Land Management.

Students continue to care about, and for, the environment of the school; the standard of the built environment remains high. The de Capell Brooke Arts and Media Centre has added a new dimension to the plant and to the curriculum. The science area was redecorated this year, and the dining facilities re-furbished. IT facilities are upgraded as part of a running programme. Visitors continue to be impressed by the standards to which the buildings are maintained by Buildings’ Manager and cared for by the students.

Governors are charged with a particular concern for the maintenance of every aspect of quality in the way in which the school operates. In the areas of academic standards and effective teaching the school has robust monitoring systems in place which are based on Ofsted’s models. Governors take a keen interest in the outcomes of these monitoring processes and the school reports regularly on them. Governors are closely involved with the School Develop Plan, with the suite of Policy Documents through which the school operates, and with target setting across the school.

Students continue their charitable work and raised almost £21,000 during the year for a range of charities as well as supporting educational work in Gambia. The school remains popular and the admission criteria ensure that it retains its fully comprehensive intake. The sixth form continues to grow. Students also broaden their horizons by foreign travel; this year has seen overseas trips or work experience visits to Barcelona, Berlin, Brittany, Costa Brava, Madrid, New

York and Paris as well as to Fairthorne Manor Activity Centre.

Brooke Weston grows, too, as an institution within the Corby educational scene. It is now very much at the heart of a Partnership of schools which includes the Corby Business Academy and the Kettering Science College. Staff from the school provide support in terms of personnel, materials and expertise. The Partnership is overseen by the Executive Principal, Peter Simpson; and governors now divide their meeting agendas into school-related and Partnership-related matters so that they can be briefed on all aspects of the working of the Partnership.

The support of parents remains critical in the life of the school. As well as direct action through the Parents’ Association, parents provide the stability, encouragement and support which students need to enter on such a demanding régime as Brooke Weston’s. Our Trustees continue to provide outstanding support in countless ways. So, to all of you behind the scenes we extend our thanks and good wishes.

Yours,

Professor Trevor KerryChair of Governors, Brooke Weston