2024 Welcome Letter
Dear Parent/Carer
INFORMATION FOR PARENTS/CARERS WHOSE CURRENT YEAR 6 STUDENT HAS A PLACE AT OUTWOOD ACADEMY FREESTON FOR SEPTEMBER 2024
As we head towards what is the end of the academic year, we hope you and your family are well and that the final few weeks in Year 6 have been successful, with your child enjoying their end of year activities following the SATs papers. We are very much looking forward to welcoming all new Year 7 students to our academy in September and would like to take this opportunity to share some really important information with you.
Firstly, we want to thank you for your support so far, helping your child to access the transition website and all the information available on there. If you have not managed this yet, the site remains live and can be accessed via the following link: https://transition.freeston.outwood.com
YEAR 6 INDUCTION DAY - WEDNESDAY 10TH JULY
Our colleagues have been visiting our main feeder primary schools learning about our new young people to gather pastoral and academic data. This is so we are best placed to plan for all aspects of their schooling, including any additional needs that they may have.
In addition to this, we would like our incoming year group to spend some time in our academy. Students should arrive on Wednesday 10th July, wearing their primary school uniform between 8.10am and 8.20am. All students must use the gate on the turning circle on Favell Avenue next to the caretakers house. Staff in yellow jackets will be there to welcome students. All Year 6 visiting students will also leave via this exit on this induction day at 2.25pm (students can wait at the gate until 2.30pm if waiting for friends/family or older siblings). During the day students will get to learn more about our site, how we operate and sample some of our subjects.
PARENT/CARER INFORMATION EVENING - WEDNESDAY 10TH JULY
As much as we know our new students are looking forward to coming into the academy, we would also like to invite our new Year 7 parents and carers to an information evening on Wedesday 10th July starting at 5pm, we are hoping to be finished for 6pm. Please arrive at the main reception for this to start as promptly as possible. We will cover details regarding September starting arrangements, our standards and expectations and how we can work together to get the very best for your child.
Students will receive a free snack and a drink at break time. If you would like your child to bring their own drink, snacks and packed lunch then please do so. Please note that we do not allow fizzy drinks or large chocolate bars/large bags of crisps on site. Refillable water bottles are encouraged and there are water fountains in the dining room to use to replenish these. At Lunch, students will receive a free lunch, however, please send your child with a packed lunch if this is preferred.
UNIFORM (FREE SCHOOL UNIFORM BUNDLE)
The collection day for the free school uniform bundle is also the 10th July between 3:30pm and 7:00pm; staff will be on hand to support distribution, in addition, if you have not yet handed in your data collection form or consent forms we will support you to complete them whilst you are there. We expect it to be very busy around the information evening time of 5:00pm so please ask that you allow lots of time on this evening.
The attached uniform leaflet sets out information regarding uniform collection and exchange. A relative or friend may collect the bundle on your behalf. We do not have any facilities to try on the uniform at the academy. The bundle can then be taken home and tried on, if any aspect needs changing then you will be able to bring it back at a designated time on Tuesday 6th August 2024.
SEPTEMBER START INFORMATION
- Year 7 students will start at our academy on Tueasday 3rd September. Only Years 7 and 11 will be in on this day with all other year groups joining us on Wednesday 4th September. - On that first day, Year 7 will be placed into a year group tutor group, and will initially be taught in this group for the majority of their lessons. Tutor groups will be allocated on 3rd September.
- We have designed an ACE (Academy Conduct Expectations) programme for Year 7, which is an enhanced pastoral programme to support students and their transition to secondary school. This will include tasks and activities to support wellbeing, to gain or reflect on necessary study skills, to form a sense of belonging to their new Academy, year group and tutor group, and to identify literacy and numeracy levels to allow for intervention and early support.
FIRST DAY IN SEPTEMBER
As mentioned already, the first day for Year 7 will be Tuesday 3rd September, and we expect to see students arrive between 8.10 and 8.20am wearing full academy uniform including a bag to put their planner, books and pencil case in. On this first day Year 7 students must use the gate on the turning circle on Favell Avenue next to the caretaker's house as they did on the induction day in July. Staff in yellow jackets will be there to welcome students. All Year 7 students will leave via this same exit on this day. On subsequent days students can choose which of the two exits to use which is best for them to return home - please agree this with your child if you are collecting them.
During the day, students will be provided with their planners and timetables, have a tour of the school, receive a presentation from the Principal and spend time with their tutor, going through lots of the details that they will need to know to successfully get started at Outwood Academy Freeston. The day will finish with an inter form quiz based on the school and the transition information they have received. We hope this will give an informative but fun end to the day.
Morning Break Students will receive a free snack and a drink at break time. If you would like your child to bring their own drink, snacks and packed lunch then please do so. Please note that we do not allow fizzy drinks or large chocolate bars/large bags of crisps on site. Refillable water bottles are encouraged and there are water fountains in the dining room to use to replenish these. Students will not be able to purchase anything on Wednesday 6th September as the system will not be set up for you to add funds.
Lunch Students will receive a free lunch, however, please send your child with a packed lunch if this is preferred.
Students will also have their photograph taken by the professional photographer in the academy in the first couple of days, this is used for safeguarding purposes within the academy on our management systems and you also have the opportunity to purchase this.
IPAY - PAYMENT FOR FOOD, TRIPS, SPARE TIE AND PLANNER ETC
The Academy uses an online payment system ‘ipay’ for break, lunches, trips and any additional payments that may be needed whilst your child is at school with us. We are a fully cashless academy so students never have to worry about carrying cash. We also use a biometric finger image which turns the information into a digital signature in order to purchase items from their ipay account.
It is intended that the ipay letter and details of the biometric policy (and authorisation) will be provided on the uniform collection day (10th July), this will enable you to set up your child’s account and place money on it. When this is done your child will be able to purchase food from the restaurant.
All dietary requirements can be catered for, but please get in touch if you have questions or concerns about the food on offer. Some students still opt to bring a packed lunch regularly, and this is absolutely fine, these students still eat with their peers in the dining room.
DATA PACKS
Thank you to all who have completed the online data pack. It is crucial that this is completed so that we know as much as possible about your child, including up to date contact details. If you have not completed the online document, please do so immediately. If you would prefer a paper copy please email enquiries@freeston.outwood.com requesting a paper data pack. If any of this information changes since you sent in your pack, eg you move house, change mobile number etc please contact us to make these changes. To complete the data pack you require a student reference number (which was provided on the initial welcome letter), if you require a reminder, please email enquiries@freeston.outwood.com
ANY QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions then please don’t hesitate to get in touch, our transition dedicated email is available for use: transition@freeston.outwood.com And for regular updates on Academy news and events, follow us on Twitter @OutwoodFreeston or review our website www.freeston.outwood.com The academy website is updated on a regular basis and details all information that you may require. To ensure that you are aware how we use student data please read the Privacy Policy which is on the website.
Parent Portal
As part of our communications to parents, we have recently launched the Outwood Parent Portal to all students, parents and carers to access. The parent portal is an online tool that will allow you to access real-time information about your child's academic progress. Through the portal, you will be able to view attendance records, view praise given to your child by teachers, number of sanctions issued in school and access overviews of Praising Stars reports including academic & effort grades. The portal will provide you with a clear and comprehensive overview of your child's academic progress and will help you to stay informed about your child's performance at school.
The portal is secure and can only be accessed using a unique magic link associated with your email address we hold on file. We take the security of your personal information very seriously, and we have implemented robust security measures to protect your data.
Visit portal.outwood.com
To sign in:
● Enter your email address
● Check your inbox for a special “magic link”
● Tap on the link to sign-in!
We communicate regularly with parents/carers via Groupcall text and messaging service. You will be able to register for this service in September 2024 along with the Parent Portal.
We are looking forward to a fantastic transition day, to welcoming you on the information evening and to a successful start in September.
Yours faithfully
Lisa Allott
Principal
For regular updates on Academy news and events, follow us on Twitter @OutwoodFreeston or view our website www.freeston.outwood.com