News, Press and PR

The Bourne Academy has launched a new initiative to encourage Year 11 students as they reach the summit of learning before GCSE exams begin. At a time when students are really feeling pressure, we wanted to emphasize how proud we are of them.  Last term, we wrote a secret letter to parents/carers letting them know about the initiative and inviting them to write a letter to support their child at this crucial time.

Parents, carers, siblings, wider families and Academy staff wrote individual letters to each student in Year 11 filled with words of encouragement to support students as they head into the exam season. The ‘proud letters’ were kept confidential, which added to the emotion when they received their surprise letters in an Assembly last week; the letter opening was accompanied by champagne flutes filled with pink lemonade together with specially decorated cupcakes.

Mrs Leech, Assistant Principal says ‘Our Year 11’s received motivational letters from family and staff letting them know just how proud we are of them both in terms of the effort they have put in over the last two years in the run up to their exams and on what fantastic young people they have become.  As you can imagine this was a very special and somewhat emotional event.  Our thanks go out to everyone who wrote a letter.  This will help spur students on in that last push towards their exams.’

The Bourne Academy is delighted to have secured over £25,000 in funding from Public Health Dorset for its Outdoor Education provision. This funding will develop an ‘Outdoor Education & Survival School’ at the Academy, which will build a cohesive pathway, across the Academy community and curriculum, to develop positive mental and emotional health in young people through outdoor and adventurous activities at the dedicated Academy Outdoor Education Site.

The Activities of bush craft, adventurous sports and leadership tasks are fundamental challenges that lead to a development of resilience, confidence, wellbeing and self-belief.  The skills that young people develop through Outdoor Education are transferable to everyday life and academic challenges.

This project will reach further than to just the Academy’s own students as the project is set to host guests from local primary schools to join this learning pathway – starting the wellbeing process at an even younger age. Activities will increase confidence, boost positive mental health, inspire resilient attitudes to challenges and instill a deeper understanding of teamwork across all ages, genders and ethnic groups.

The Bourne Academy together with catering providers Innovate is delighted to announce that, following a recent fundraising bid, it have been selected to join in the National School Breakfast Programme. Funding for the programme comes from the Department for Education and is being delivered by a partnership of two charities: Family Action and Magic Breakfast.

The Academy has historically provided toast, orange juice and hot chocolate to our students on arrival each day. With the wonderful new funding, from today (Monday 18^th March) drinks will remain the same, but the ordinary toast will be swapped for a bagel. This will not only allow a £9000 saving to the Academy over a year, but the bagel is a much healthier option compared to the original toast alternative; the bagels are from ‘Bagel Nash’ (a special recipe made using a mix of wholemeal and white flour, low fat, Vitamin D-enhanced, with no artificial additives).

In addition to the donation of bagels, the funding also included £500 for a chest freezer, which has now been installed, allocated to store the delivered produce. The Bourne Academy is absolutely delighted to the recipient of this funding.

Wellbeing Coordinator Alison Price highlights the importance of a balanced breakfast ‘When children start off their day with a well-balanced breakfast it can improve mood, increase energy, enhance positive feelings and help clarity of thought!’ The aim of National School Breakfast Programme is that ‘no child is too hungry to learn’.

The Bourne Academy have enjoyed a conversation themed ASPIRE day today.  At The Bourne Academy, students are assessed through subject-led Aspire Days, where they spend the day working in teams on various projects. They will develop into literate, numerate, global citizens who ASPIRE, and the curriculums taught through the Academy competencies:  Ambitious, Self-confident, Physically literate, Independent learners, Resilient and Emotionally literate. 

Students were involved in numerous conservation themed activities including The Global Warming Debates, workshops about renewable energies & single use plastics and a marine biology talk with Tom ‘The Blowfish’ Hird. Our Art department created a giant sea sculpture to highlight the impact plastic is having on our seas.

Staff at the Academy have been leading a war on plastic. Last year the Academy removed takeaway cups, which had previously been supplied to staff for teas and coffees, not only has this saved Academy funds, but it has saved countless unrecyclable cups from being sent to landfill. Head of sciences, Jonathan Fry, says ‘As the human population increases, our hunger for convenience and shortage of time inevitably results in us continuing to take shortcuts, even when these shortcuts are invariably leading us down a dead-end.’

Mr Fry suggests that together we can make a massive difference ‘even a small daily change from everyone could drive a larger evolution, so that we live in synergy with our planet, rather than misusing it.’

It has been an enjoyable day, inspiring students and staff alike to do what we can to conserve our planet.

This week at The Bourne Academy Year 8 students took part in an exciting workshop called ‘Heathland Arson Courtroom Drama,’ delivered by the Urban Heath Partnership and supported by Dorset Fire and Rescue Service.

The session was very engaging and students learned about the devastating effects of heathland fires and the dangerous consequences of arson. Students acted out all the roles of a courtroom, including a judge, the accused, defence lawyer, police officer, fire fighter and witnesses to the crime of Arson.

The Bourne Academy is delighted to have recently welcomed House of Lords member, Baroness Kate Rock and successful local business woman Katushka Giltsoff as guest speakers. The pair gave inspirational talks to our business studies students through the ‘Speakers for Schools’ forum, sharing their personal life stories and encouraging our students to work hard and follow their passions.

Baroness Rock who sits on the House of Lords Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence was able to share her insights on the skills needed for future careers. The students asked thought provoking questions and felt reassured that the robots would not be stealing our jobs just yet! Kate said it was a pleasure to meet our students and visit our inspirational school.

Katushka shared her journey working globally as a stockbroker and now as a highly successful headhunter. Both speakers live in Dorset and it was a pleasure to meet them and see them inspire our students further.

Careers Leader, Vicky Woodings, said “It was wonderful to have such passionate guest speakers who gave up their time to share their personal stories and inspire our students to follow their own dreams and ambitions. Katushka and Kate were a delight and excellent role models for any girls keen to enter male dominated businesses”.