On May 24th Minsthorpe was subject to a Section 8 inspection by Ofsted. The inspectors described Minsthorpe Community College as remaining good (and improved) since the last inspection in March 2014. You can see from the report below that they were highly impressed by what they saw and also acknowledge the fact that we are keenly aware of those areas in which we need to make improvements having already made an impact in these areas for development through the work that we have been doing.

The success of this College lies in the fact that it is a partnership between staff, students, governors and parents/carers and this excellent report is a testament to the strength of the relationship that exists between staff and students.

We should all be proud of this report as it is a reflection of our collaborative efforts.

Mr Henshaw
Principal

From September 2018 we are making a very minor change to the Minsthorpe Community College uniform. Students currently wear two colour of ties; the purple tie in Years 7 and 8 and gold in Years 9, 10 and 11. However as a large college with over 1500 students on roll it will be useful for students, parents and staff to be able to identify which year group an individual belongs to at a glance.

Therefore each year group will wear a different colour tie which students will keep throughout Years 7 to 11. Not only will this help with identification but also with costs, as you will only need to buy the one colour tie. The system below allows all students to wear a different coloured tie in just over one year. This won’t involve any parents having to purchase a new tie other than those who were already expecting to do so under the current uniform policy. The introduction of the new ties is as follows:

September 2018

• The new Year 7 will join us from their primary schools and parents are expecting to buy a new uniform. The tie we ask them to buy will carry the usual Minsthorpe design and logo but it will not be the usual purple one, but a new magenta tie. They will keep this colour tie until Year 11;
• Students moving up into Year 8 will keep the purple tie that they purchased in September 2017 until Year 11;
• Students moving up into Year 9 are already expecting to purchase the gold tie. However, we will ask them to buy a new green tie and they will keep this until Year 11;
• Years 10 and 11 will keep their current gold ties until they leave at the end of Year 11. We recognise that it is unfair to ask Years 10 and 11 to buy a new tie for the shorter time that they will get use of them, therefore their gold tie run out over the period 2018 and 2019.

September 2019

• The new Year 7 will have a new blue tie in September 2019 which differs to the remainder of the year groups. They will keep this colour until Year 11.
• The year groups moving into Years 8, 9 and 10 will all now be wearing the distinct colour ties that we introduced in September 2018 (see above).
• Year 11 will still be wearing their gold coloured ties but will now be distinct as no other group will be wearing this colour tie.

Once students have moved through the 5-year cycle from Year 7 to Year 11 their colour of tie can once again be introduced to the new Year 7. All colour ties will be available to buy after the 18th June from the local uniform stockists, the Finance Office at the College or on Schoolgateway at the existing price of £4.50 each. We hope that you can see the sense and benefits of this minor change, which we are pleased will incur no extra cost to yourself.

Yours faithfully

Mr R Henshaw
Principal

As you may be aware the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) come into force on 25th May. In light of these changes to how personal data is handled, we have updated our Privacy Notices to reflect this.

These can now be found at the following location: Equality & Data Protection

Dear parent or carer,

We have just told your child’s school that we will inspect it on 24 May 2018. The lead inspector will be Barry Found, HMI. We are writing to you because we would like to know what you think about the school. Please take a few minutes to read the leaflet below. It explains why we inspect schools, and what happens during an inspection.

Your views about the school are important to us

If you are a registered parent or carer of a pupil at the school (including pupils on sick leave or who are temporarily excluded), you can tell us your views about the school by completing Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, at: www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk

Parent View asks for your opinion on 12 aspects of your child’s school, including the progress made by your child, the quality of teaching, how the school deals with bullying and poor behaviour. It also provides a free-text box for you to make additional comments, if you wish. The inspectors will use the online survey responses when inspecting your child’s school. Written comments can also be sent to the school in a sealed envelope, marked confidential and addressed to the inspection team.

To register your views, you will need to provide your email address, which will be held securely. It will not be used for any purpose other than providing access to the online survey. Neither schools nor Ofsted will have access to any email addresses.

Please complete the online survey by noon on 24 May 2018 as this will give the inspection team more time to consider your views. However, we will consider all online responses that are completed during the inspection, although the free-text box facility will not be available after noon on 24 May 2018.

Speaking to an inspector

If you are unable to complete the online survey, it may be possible to speak to an inspector during the inspection, for instance at the start of the school day, or to pass on messages to the inspectors if you are unable to speak to them in person. Inspection administrators will be happy to make the necessary arrangements. If concerns are raised about child protection, we may have to pass the information we receive to social services or the police. You can contact the administrators on 03000130580. Inspectors will be pleased to receive your comments, but cannot deal with complaints about individual pupils or settle disputes between you and the school.

Thank you in advance for taking the time to complete the online survey.

Yours faithfully

Brenda Alexander

As well as completing the survey, you can use Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, at any time during the school year to give Ofsted your opinion of your child’s school. You can also use Parent View to see survey results for schools across England. Visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

On Thursday 17th May I had the pleasure of attending the NEON Awards Ceremony at the Palace of Westminster. NEON is an organisation dedicated to widening participation in Higher Education and Minsthorpe Community College was amongst 80 schools and colleges nominated for the prestigious award in this category. We made the final 3 and I am proud to say we beat off stiff competition from Ashton Sixth Form College in Manchester and Brampton Manor Academy in Newham to be crowned the winner of the 2018 Access Award. This is an award given by our peers who recognised the incredible work that Minsthorpe does in providing opportunities for our students to succeed.

Pictured is myself, with Alice Taylor from the National Collaborative Outreach Project who have funded a great deal of our excellent HE programme, receiving the winners certificate from Gordon Marsden MP, Shadow Minister of HE, FE & Skills.

Ray Henshaw
Principal

Connexions Wakefield Digital are hosting a NEET event on Wednesday 5th September aimed at school leavers who do not have an offer of learning or who fail to take up their offers. Training providers in the district will be on hand to speak to young people about their provision and the opportunities available, with some providers able to offer immediate starts. Advisers from Connexions Wakefield Digital will be available to offer impartial advice and guidance and plan on-going support to NEET young people.

The Student Leadership Team has decided to hold a Non-Uniform Day in support of causes chosen by the College Action Teams.

The charge for all students attending College in non-uniform is £1.00.

We must stress the following:

• No fancy dress
• No hats for students in Key Stage 3 and 4
• No extremes of fashion including clothing which has slogans/offensive writing or innuendo
• No excessively high heels
• No jewellery other than simple stud earrings

Mr D Lloyd
(Associate Assistant Principal)
On behalf of the College and the Student Council

Minsthorpe Community College has been shortlisted for the prestigious NEON Award for 2018.

The National Education Opportunities Network (NEON) was founded in early 2012 as the professional organisation to support those involved in widening access to higher education (HE) and social mobility. At the heart of NEON is a cross-sector approach bringing together HE institutions (HEIs), schools, colleges, the voluntary sector, professional bodies and employers.

"Minsthorpe was nominated for its tireless work in preparing students for university" said the delighted Principal, Ray Henshaw. "We help many of our A-level students to get to university and many of them are the first in their family ever to have achieved this. It is an honour to be shortlisted for the award as it shows that our peers recognise how much we do to create opportunities for our students" added Ray.

The Award will be presented to the winning school on Thursday 17th May at a glittering ceremony at the Palace of Westminister.

UPDATE (01/05/2018): We have learned that a number of bus services will not run after 2pm on Friday May 4th and that some of our feeder schools are closing early due to the procession of the Tour de Yorkshire. We are mindful that a number of our students walk younger siblings home from their primary schools so have, reluctantly, taken the decision to close the College earlier at 2:00pm on Friday. Bus companies have confirmed they are able to run normal services at 2pm when the school closes, but they cannot guarantee bus services after this time.

Welcome to Yorkshire has now officially announced the race timings for the Tour de Yorkshire – which travels through our district on Friday 4th May.

The men’s race will enter South Elmsall at around 4pm and leave Castleford at around 4.35pm.

Rolling road closures will take place during the race, which will last around 30 to 50 minutes. In order to allow staff, students and parents to get home before the rolling road block passes through – and to see the event if they want – the College will close promptly at 14:45 and all after-college events on this day will be cancelled (unless parents and students are individually notified by the organiser).

Full details are available at the Tour de Yorkshire website.

Are you currently in Year 13 studying for A-levels?

Are you unsure what to do next year?

Are you thinking about taking a gap year before university?

Are you looking to gain a competitive edge for that Higher Education/job interview?

Do you want to have a unique status to enhance your UCAS Personal Statement?

Do you want to work with children in the future – either as a Teacher or a Teaching Assistant?

If the answer to these questions is ‘yes’, Minsthorpe Community College can offer you training to achieve the Higher Level Teaching Assistant status. You will be trained to support the teaching and learning of young people and have the chance to be placed in a primary and/or secondary school in order to get some practical on-the-job experience.

You will also gain some invaluable Professional Development by accessing the training offered to staff at the College and by joining some of the development sessions offered as part of our successful School-Centred Initial Training (SCITT) programme. See the brochure below for further information.

If you are interested send an email to enquiries@minsthorpe.cc with ‘HLTA Programme’ in the subject line.