Dear Parent/Guardian,
We hope you are having a restful Summer break and are looking forward to our new Year 7 students joining us in September. We understand that there may be some anxiety involved in starting secondary school, but hope that some of our transition activities (for example, our New Entrants evening, the taster day and the Summer sports days) will make the process as smooth as possible.
This bulletin is designed to provide helpful information for the start of term and onwards to reduce uncertainty and to ensure our new students start with confidence on the first day of term:
Term 1 begins on Monday 2nd September 2024 (Day 1 of the student timetable) Students must arrive no later than 8.20am. The school is open from 7am and the canteen serves from 8am. When students arrive in school, they can either go to the rear playground or the main hall while waiting for registration to begin. At 8.20am they should listen for instructions to find their way to their form room, which they have already visited during their taster day on 23rd June.
Term 1 ends on Thursday 17th October 2024.
Timings of the school day: The usual timings of the school day can be viewed here. Year 7s will start lunch slightly earlier at 1.10pm for their first 2 weeks of school.
School Uniform: A reminder that items of school uniform can be purchased from both Tacklebag and Monkhouse Schoolwear. Both providers are able to supply the 5 mandatory branded items of uniform (tie, blazer badge, rugby jersey, rugby shorts and rugby socks) as well as other essential items. Please remember that other than the 5 mandatory branded items of uniform, all other items (such as the plain white T-shirt and shorts, and the navy blue blazer, etc.) can be purchased from any other retailer. Please note that prices charged by both suppliers are different, and Tacklebag, because it’s an online only provider, charges less. Click here for the uniform section of our website.
Whilst white or black trainers are preferred, students can wear trainers of any colour.
RMSA, Secondhand Uniform: We continue to be immensely proud of the tireless fundraising efforts of our parents association, the RMSA. Click here to find more details including how to volunteer your time.
The RMSA have adopted a way for parents to purchase second hand uniform using uniform.co.uk Please note that the site is closed during the Summer break and will reopen in September, when you will be able to see what is available and make a purchase.
Equipment/First day: Students should arrive on their first day wearing their school uniform, with a pencil case and Maths equipment (as listed on our website), ready to study lessons 2, 3, 4 and 5 on their timetable (lesson 1 will be with their form tutor in their form room). Student timetables will be issued to parents by email during the next fortnight, and students will be reminded of their timetable during Period 1 on Monday 2nd September.
If your child has a timetabled PE lesson during periods 2, 3, 4 or 5 on Monday, he should bring his games (blue) kit. This is because Year 7 will be playing hockey during their PE lessons in Term 1.
Mobile phones/Smart watches: The school has a strict policy on mobile phones, to ensure they are not a source of distraction or a tool for bullying and unkindness. If any student makes their phone visible, or attempts to use it during the school day at any time it will be confiscated (except in a classroom at the invitation of the teacher). The item will be given to the Lower School Pastoral Office who will contact parents. The phone will only be returned if collected by a parent.
Smart watches are effectively a miniature phone worn on the wrist, so for the same reasons they must be left at home.
Care of belongings: All items of clothing and equipment should be named. Students should take care of their bags during the school day. Bags should be carried to each lesson. During break and lunchtimes bags are not allowed in the dining hall so should be placed on the racks outside. These racks become very full of bags that look very similar so students should be certain to collect the correct bag. A distinguishing feature such as a keyring or a patch may be useful.
What should a student do if they lose an item: Should a student lose their school bag, PE bag or an item of uniform, they should search the playground and bag racks in the first instance before checking at Reception and then lost property. Opening hours of our lost property office are posted on the door.
Wisepay queries: Wisepay login details were provided to students to take home on the taster day on 28th June. Wisepay is the system by which parents pay for all activities and services (school fund, trips, catering balances, revision guides, chromebook contributions, etc). Any Wisepay queries (most frequently password reset or account access issues) should be directed to office@sjwms.org.uk. These will be dealt with during term time only.
Wisepay and the Canteen: Wisepay login details were provided to students to take home on the taster day on 28th June. Parents should ensure that, if they wish their child to purchase items from the canteen, sufficient funds are available. Please click here for the menu and price list.
Cucina: Our catering service is provided by Cucina, a private company on contract with all Leigh Academies Trust schools. All food service, menu choice and payment systems are managed by this company. Cucina welcomes feedback from parents and can be contacted at catering@sjwms.org.uk or sjwms@impactfood.co.uk.
Chromebooks: All Year 7 students will be provided with a Chromebook device. This will happen in the first few days of term, after the ‘loan agreement’ has been signed and an opportunity for parental contributions has been provided. Please look out for further communication about this.
Online Safety: we are mindful of the risks to our students associated with time spent online. We make regular posts in Google Classrooms to help raise awareness and encourage sensible online behaviour, and strongly encourage parents to exercise heightened curiosity about what their son or daughter is doing online. The school uses a filtering and monitoring system called Smoothwall. This product monitors students’ use of their chromebook both at school and at home, and will send an alert to the school if inappropriate words are used or searches conducted. When the Chromebook device is being used in school students are protected from accessing inappropriate material by the web blocking software used by Smoothwall.
Sports Fixtures: Year 7 will start the academic year playing rugby in their games lessons, our standard Autumn sport. We play both ‘contact’ and ‘non-contact’ rugby and parents will be asked to give consent if they wish their child to play contact rugby. We anticipate many Year 7s will join our rugby teams and represent the school.
All our fixtures can be found on https://sport.sjwms.org.uk/, our dedicated microsite. All players and supporters can find future games and current results on this site.
Non-participation of PE lessons: If your son is unable to participate in a PE or Games lesson due to an injury, we cannot accept confirmation of this by email due to the nature of PE/Games lessons taking place outside of the classroom. Students will only be permitted to sit out if they have a physical paper letter with them, which must be written and signed by a parent detailing the date and reason for non-participation.
PE and Games kit: students in Years 7 – 9 should only wear their Games kit on the day they have Games during Period 5. On days when they have a PE lesson, they must wear normal uniform and change.
Year 7 Academic support/homework club: takes place on Mondays, Tuesday and Wednesdays after school at 3.15pm in the DaVinci block. The library is also open at lunchtimes.
Transport/Buses: Many students travel to school by bus. Local services are provided by Arriva . Their website can be accessed here. Please click here for details of their student travel services.
Reporting Absence: Parents should report their child’s absence each day either by email to absence@sjwms.org.uk, or via the My Child at School App. If no contact is received to explain an absence, the school’s Attendance Officer will make contact with parents. Further information can be found on our website here.
Parking: please be mindful of safe and considerate driving and parking when dropping off and collecting students before and after school. The safety of our students when travelling to and from school must remain a priority. Driving onto the school site is not permitted before or after school to help keep our students safe, unless previously agreed in advance with reception. Please consider parking safely further away from the school to meet your son.
Student Conduct: Good order and discipline are essential to the provision of a high standard of education. Effective teaching and learning can only take place in a well ordered environment.
Our school manages behaviour extremely well so we can provide a calm, safe and supportive environment which our pupils want to attend and where they can learn and thrive. Next-day detentions are a key part of this, and we ask for parents’ continued support in ensuring students behave and work exceptionally well. Here is a guide to what we expect.
Bullying: transition from Year 6 to 7 can sometimes bring with it concerns about bullying. Our school has a reputation for good order and discipline, and we are strict about bullying. In a school of over 1500 students we recognise there may be some who may demonstrate unkindness, but this is a rarity and students and parents can be reassured that our school is a pleasant, safe and cohesive environment. Experience tells us that most bullying behaviour takes place online, outside school hours, using social media platforms. We know for instance that many new students will set up WhatsApp groups or similar. We ask parents to be vigilant about the groups that students join and to check what material is posted.
School calendar: please check this regularly. School events, such as Parents’ Evenings, INSET days, mock exams and other events can all be found on our school calendar which is on our website: https://sjwms.org.uk/events/
Foundation Day – Compulsory day of attendance: The school’s Foundation Day is held on the first Saturday of July each year. This year it takes place on Saturday 5th July 2025. Foundation Day is a compulsory day of attendance for all students; the Monday following Foundation Day is taken as a day off in lieu.
Clubs and societies: we offer a range of activities to engage our students outside the classroom. The list is on our website and will be updated for Terms 1 and 2 during the first few weeks of the new term.
Safeguarding: permeates every aspect of our school and influences all decisions and actions taken by our staff. Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy describes this aspect of our work, and the Safeguarding pages of our website are very useful. Our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is Mr Morris, and he is supported by 2 Deputy DSL’s, 7 Heads of Year and 3 Heads of School/Key Stage. Each Key Stage has 2 or 3 non-teaching pastoral support staff. We have 5 Mental Health First Aiders, 6 Learning Support Assistants, 3 ELSA practitioners and 2 Counsellors.
If your son or daughter needs help or support, or you are worried about another child, please don’t hesitate to contact us on office@sjwms.org.uk or safeguarding@sjwms.org.uk.
Wellbeing: we recognise the pressures that our students face in their daily lives, both in and outside school. The school has extensive and diverse provision in place in order to support the wellbeing of its whole community. Please see the details on our website. We encourage those who need support to contact us.
Kind regards,
School Office
