What a cracking start to the new year! I am sending high "notes ♫" of praise to our schools across the Trust that have been singing their hearts out.
Furzeham Primary School travelled over 200 miles to sing at the world's largest student choir in Birmingham, while their friends in our Medway primary schools grabbed their glow sticks and shone at the Young Voices Choir at the London 02 Arena. Well done, everyone!
I was delighted to see our Portsmouth Hub flying the flag alongside the many local businesses and schools at last week's Shaping Portsmouth event. This event is the city's most talked-about business conference, and it's a fantastic opportunity for our schools and central services to meet, collaborate, and partner on innovative projects that help Portsmouth be a great place to live, learn, and work. Many exciting conversations are taking place that will provide new opportunities for students, both during and after school life. Congratulations to everyone who represented the Trust.
It gives me great pleasure to announce that the Long Service Awards will be returning to all of our schools next term. I've had a sneak peek at the list and can't wait to see the celebrations for the Trust's 247 colleagues being awarded this time round . I look forward to hearing the stories about career highs and achievements from our staff who have transformed the life chances of so many children over the years.
There is a real buzz of activity going on in our schools, maybe it's the excitement of our next #WeAreOne event that is just around the corner. LGBTQ+ History Month sees our schools show their true colours through a variety of vibrant activities and events that educate students about LGBTQ+ history and encourage them to embrace their beautiful differences.
I hope you enjoy this edition of Gardner's world, keep scrolling down for more updates and exciting news from across the Thinking Schools Academy Trust regions.
Kent Teacher of the Year Awards are back!
It's that time of the year again, as we celebrate our incredible colleagues for going above and beyond for our young people and help us on our mission to transform life chances.
This year the awards are open to celebrate all of the people who work in the education system, from teachers to receptionists to support workers.
A wide range of award categories include:
- Primary
- Secondary
- Early Careers,
- Support staff including midday supervisors and caretakers
- Volunteer award, which includes members of the PTA and governors
Find out more about the Kent Teacher of the Year Awards
School Highlights
Children dream big for Aspirations Week in Portsmouth
It has been brilliant to see hundreds of children from three school communities in Portsmouth dream big for Aspirations Day by dressing up and inviting parents and carers into the school to share stories about their job.
Meon Infant, Meon Junior, and Moorings Way Infant Schools came together to teach children about careers and aspirations. The national awareness week is designed to broaden children’s understanding of the variety of careers they can aspire to have. It encourages individuals to discover the different job roles available across all different industries.
Ready, Steady, Cook with the Navy at Plymouth High
Three Royal Navy chefs paid a visit to Plymouth High's GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition classes recently.
They gave the students some useful information about different career paths in the Royal Navy and then ran a Ready, Steady, Cook competition. They were divided into teams and given just over an hour to produce two dishes and present them to a high standard. They had the chance to develop their teamwork as well as learn about presentation techniques, including spun sugar.
The Navy chefs were very impressed with the attitude of our students and said they were one of the best groups they’d had the opportunity to work with.
Students from our Medway primary schools join the world's largest choir at Young Voices at the O2 Arena, London.
Our Young students had been rehearsing for this moment for weeks and the day finally arrived on Thursday 19th January, when students from Cedar Children's Academy, Gordon Children's Academy, All Faiths Children's Academy and New Horizons Children's Academy joined a 20,000 person strong choir at the O2 Arena.
The students had a brilliant time and were thrilled to have the opportunity to sing with Heather Small!
Well done to everyone involved, you've all done yourselves 'Proud'.
