Post by Patrick on Sept 18, 2008 15:48:52 GMT
Academy 360 is one of Tony Blair's new schools. It's got off to a rocky start though after 40 of it's pupils have been suspended in just two weeks of opening!:
"A zero-tolerance crackdown has seen up to 40 pupils suspended from Sunderland's £20million flagship new academy – in just two weeks.
Paul Prest, chief executive of Academy 360 in Pennywell, has wasted no time in setting out a strict discipline campaign.
Measures included in the tough new regime include:
* A stock of spare uniforms in every size to loan to pupils who do not come properly dressed for school.
* Work packs for suspended pupils – with a further suspension for those who do not complete them before returning to school.
* Automatic exclusion for students spotted smoking.
* A ban on pupils leaving school grounds at break times and lunchtime – with suspensions for anyone caught sneaking off the premises.
Lunch breaks have also been cut to 30 minutes, but Mr Prest said this was not part of the crackdown on pupils leaving school at lunchtime.
"Academy 360 is committed to providing all of its students with the best possible education," he said.
"To secure that, it is vital that we set and achieve the highest standards – in work, behaviour and discipline – and we cannot tolerate any attempt to subvert those standards.
"We have to make this clear at the outset so that no student is left in any doubt as to what is expected of them.
"We are sure this is the right approach and believe that, working with students and parents, we can create an environment in which all young people realise their potential and succeed; together we can make a difference."
Teachers at the gentoo-sponsored academy are said to be delighted with the new discipline regime, which has been hailed as the first time disruptive behaviour has been taken seriously.
Staff have been told not to shout or get confrontational with students who disrupt classes, leave school premises when they are not supposed to or get caught smoking.
Instead they are to take the names of any pupil breaking the rules, and the individuals are then dealt with outside the classroom. Mr Prest said this was part of efforts to make Academy 360 an "emotionally intelligent school".
Once excluded pupils return to school, if they misbehave again they risk further longer suspensions.
Mr Prest said parents are expected to make sure their children complete work packs while they are excluded, which he said was to make sure they continue to study until they are ready to return to school.
Mum Kay Dixon, who has a daughter at Academy 360, said she was in support of most of the new rules at the school, but thought maybe some of the youngsters should have been given a warning before being suspended.
"I think he's got to tread carefully and not go over the top, but he's got to make it clear that it's not just a one week or one month wonder and then it will all be back to how it was," she said.
"I think the 'closed doors' policy is a really good idea if he can make it work and keep it working.
"I think it will cut down on the litter and the antisocial behaviour and round the shops."
All pupils at Academy 360 were given a free jumper or cardigan, a coat, a reversible top and PE top for the start of term.
Ms Dixon said she was pleased to see Mr Prest was being strict on the uniform.
"I think it's a really nice uniform, much better than the last one, and I think all the kids look smart in it," she said.
Gladys Chilton from Pennywell Youth Project (PYP), next to the school, said Mr Prest had met representatives from the centre to discuss his plans before the start of its first term.
"If it works it will be fantastic," she said. "His ideas are fantastic and I wish him all the best. I hope the school can get over any teething troubles this year."
Ms Chilton said PYP had taken a hit with the academy's lunchtime ban, losing out on up to 120 pupils who regularly bought their lunch at the centre before they were told they could no longer leave the school grounds.
She said: "We found we lost that (business) but then again, so long as it's keeping them indoors and they're not going round the shops – apparently they did cause a lot of hassle there on a dinner time."
She added that it takes time for "a new brush to sweep clean" and she was not sure how easily pupils who had already been at the school for a few years would take to the new regime.
The academy, which replaces Pennywell School and Quarry View Primary School, is the first to be developed under Sunderland City Council's Building Schools for the Future Programme.
Views from the schoolyard
Mealtime mumblings of discontent have erupted at Academy 360, where angry pupils have criticised the new rules that could see them kicked out of the school for leaving the grounds at lunchtime.
Some Year 11 students have written to the Echo to give their views on the new lunchtime regime.
"I am a 15-year-old and am very angry about the decision to keep pupils in Academy 360 in for lunch. It should be a pupil's choice what they want to eat and where they want to eat it. Some people may not want to eat school meals, and the head does not care what people think. I would be very thankful if you could publish how I feel."
"I am writing to tell you I am a 15-year-old child and am very unhappy about the chief executive of Academy 360 and his decision to make everyone stop in for their school dinners. He is trying to make the entire school body stay in a little dinner hall and the dinners are disgusting. If you leave the school premises, you get a three days exclusion."
"I am a 15-year-old girl at Academy 360. I am not happy about the school rules for dinner time. You are not allowed to go home for your meals anymore. I think this is ridiculous because what about if young people are carers for their mum or dad and they are stopped from helping them? I think they should do something about it."
Paul Prest, chief executive at Academy 360, replied with this statement.
"It is our belief, and that of the Government, that students' performance benefits from remaining on the premises throughout the day. Parents were consulted extensively on a number of proposed changes to the current school day, including this one, in advance of the new academy opening."
"A zero-tolerance crackdown has seen up to 40 pupils suspended from Sunderland's £20million flagship new academy – in just two weeks.
Paul Prest, chief executive of Academy 360 in Pennywell, has wasted no time in setting out a strict discipline campaign.
Measures included in the tough new regime include:
* A stock of spare uniforms in every size to loan to pupils who do not come properly dressed for school.
* Work packs for suspended pupils – with a further suspension for those who do not complete them before returning to school.
* Automatic exclusion for students spotted smoking.
* A ban on pupils leaving school grounds at break times and lunchtime – with suspensions for anyone caught sneaking off the premises.
Lunch breaks have also been cut to 30 minutes, but Mr Prest said this was not part of the crackdown on pupils leaving school at lunchtime.
"Academy 360 is committed to providing all of its students with the best possible education," he said.
"To secure that, it is vital that we set and achieve the highest standards – in work, behaviour and discipline – and we cannot tolerate any attempt to subvert those standards.
"We have to make this clear at the outset so that no student is left in any doubt as to what is expected of them.
"We are sure this is the right approach and believe that, working with students and parents, we can create an environment in which all young people realise their potential and succeed; together we can make a difference."
Teachers at the gentoo-sponsored academy are said to be delighted with the new discipline regime, which has been hailed as the first time disruptive behaviour has been taken seriously.
Staff have been told not to shout or get confrontational with students who disrupt classes, leave school premises when they are not supposed to or get caught smoking.
Instead they are to take the names of any pupil breaking the rules, and the individuals are then dealt with outside the classroom. Mr Prest said this was part of efforts to make Academy 360 an "emotionally intelligent school".
Once excluded pupils return to school, if they misbehave again they risk further longer suspensions.
Mr Prest said parents are expected to make sure their children complete work packs while they are excluded, which he said was to make sure they continue to study until they are ready to return to school.
Mum Kay Dixon, who has a daughter at Academy 360, said she was in support of most of the new rules at the school, but thought maybe some of the youngsters should have been given a warning before being suspended.
"I think he's got to tread carefully and not go over the top, but he's got to make it clear that it's not just a one week or one month wonder and then it will all be back to how it was," she said.
"I think the 'closed doors' policy is a really good idea if he can make it work and keep it working.
"I think it will cut down on the litter and the antisocial behaviour and round the shops."
All pupils at Academy 360 were given a free jumper or cardigan, a coat, a reversible top and PE top for the start of term.
Ms Dixon said she was pleased to see Mr Prest was being strict on the uniform.
"I think it's a really nice uniform, much better than the last one, and I think all the kids look smart in it," she said.
Gladys Chilton from Pennywell Youth Project (PYP), next to the school, said Mr Prest had met representatives from the centre to discuss his plans before the start of its first term.
"If it works it will be fantastic," she said. "His ideas are fantastic and I wish him all the best. I hope the school can get over any teething troubles this year."
Ms Chilton said PYP had taken a hit with the academy's lunchtime ban, losing out on up to 120 pupils who regularly bought their lunch at the centre before they were told they could no longer leave the school grounds.
She said: "We found we lost that (business) but then again, so long as it's keeping them indoors and they're not going round the shops – apparently they did cause a lot of hassle there on a dinner time."
She added that it takes time for "a new brush to sweep clean" and she was not sure how easily pupils who had already been at the school for a few years would take to the new regime.
The academy, which replaces Pennywell School and Quarry View Primary School, is the first to be developed under Sunderland City Council's Building Schools for the Future Programme.
Views from the schoolyard
Mealtime mumblings of discontent have erupted at Academy 360, where angry pupils have criticised the new rules that could see them kicked out of the school for leaving the grounds at lunchtime.
Some Year 11 students have written to the Echo to give their views on the new lunchtime regime.
"I am a 15-year-old and am very angry about the decision to keep pupils in Academy 360 in for lunch. It should be a pupil's choice what they want to eat and where they want to eat it. Some people may not want to eat school meals, and the head does not care what people think. I would be very thankful if you could publish how I feel."
"I am writing to tell you I am a 15-year-old child and am very unhappy about the chief executive of Academy 360 and his decision to make everyone stop in for their school dinners. He is trying to make the entire school body stay in a little dinner hall and the dinners are disgusting. If you leave the school premises, you get a three days exclusion."
"I am a 15-year-old girl at Academy 360. I am not happy about the school rules for dinner time. You are not allowed to go home for your meals anymore. I think this is ridiculous because what about if young people are carers for their mum or dad and they are stopped from helping them? I think they should do something about it."
Paul Prest, chief executive at Academy 360, replied with this statement.
"It is our belief, and that of the Government, that students' performance benefits from remaining on the premises throughout the day. Parents were consulted extensively on a number of proposed changes to the current school day, including this one, in advance of the new academy opening."
A.P.P.S
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