001_Year_7_05Nov2021_ECI

Parent/Carer Bulletin

Friday 5th November 2021

Year 7

Dear Parents and Carers,

We hope the Year 7 students had a restful and proactive half term. They were set the challenge to stay off
their mobile phones for the duration of the week. This was to promote the students working on their
wellbeing, anxiety and stress are proven to be reduced with less time on social media (phones). One or two
students have relayed their positive experiences with this and hope to hear many more.

The students have returned to school this term with a positive mindset and this has been the theme from
the start of the academic year. Their attendance as a year group is above 95% and this is fantastic,
attendance is a very important factor in performing well within subjects at school. All students should be
encouraged to maintain as high an attendance rate as possible.

This year the students in Y7 and Y8 have teamed together to support the amazing work the Living Life
charity based in Eastbourne does for disadvantaged children in Croatia. Last year the students in Y7 passed
over 80+ boxes to give children a Christmas present they would otherwise not receive. In a joint project with
Y8 we are hoping to raise over 100 boxes. What items you need will be listed in a presentation. You can
choose to create a complete box or donate individual items. There is a £2 donation per box that goes
towards transportation costs

The deadline for boxes/items is the 17th November.

Thank you all once again for the continued support you are providing at home and please continue to
congratulate the students for their positive approach to Y7!

Yours sincerely

Toby Meanwell
Raising Engagement & Standards Director (Associate SLT)
Director of Year 7

NOTICES

Nasal Flu Vaccinations for Years 7 to 11 - Monday 8th November 2021
The Sussex Immunisation Team are holding a flu vaccination clinic at Uckfield on Monday for the children of
parents/carers who have provided parental consent.
Please be advised that the deadline for consent has now closed.
Further information is available on the NHS Choices website www.nhs.uk.

Approximate timings for the day are as follows;
Year 7 - 10am to 11am
Year 8 - 9am to 10am
Year 9 - 2pm to 3pm
Year 10 - 12.20pm to 1.20pm
Year 11 - 11.20am to 12.20pm

Year 7 Geography Rainforest Workshop
The Geography Department has arranged an exciting workshop opportunity for all Year 7 students to take part
in on Friday 3rd December 2021. The workshop is delivered by a visiting educational animal handling company
called Zoolab. This is a one hour workshop that will take place at school during one of their lessons that day.
Please see attached information.

Ski Trip 2022
Following the huge success of our previous ski trips to Austria, we are delighted to have secured a provisional
booking with the same company for the first week of the spring holidays 2022. Please see attached for more
information.

Academic Reports.
These will be issued on Edulink in the next two weeks. Please do go through this with your child to praise
their accomplishments and discuss any areas which need improvement. Students will be reflecting on these
in their personal development sessions with their mentors.

Communication of Covid vaccinations at other sites
Parents are now also able to book a Covid Vaccination for their 12-15 year old child at a local site through the
National Booking Service hence, we would like to request you to send some communication out to parents
asking them to inform the Sussex Immunisation Team on 01293227797 if they have consented via the form
we sent out and then subsequently had the child vaccinated at another site. This will ensure our lists are
updated. Thank you.

Covid Immunisation Team

Sussex Safer Roads Presentation - Wednesday 24th November at 2.25pm

Year 7 will be attending the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership presentation " Look up!". The presentation raises
awareness about pedestrian safety and the dangers of distraction when travelling with friends and peers. The
show is based on the streets of Sussex and teaches year 7s their responsibilities as pedestrians, techniques to
say 'no' to dangerous situations and an understanding of the impact of their actions on others. The
presentation is created to give students of this age confidence to avoid potentially dangerous situations.
If you have any further questions, please contact Will Roney, Curriculum Lead, Life Learning.

PTA Fundraising
The Uckfield Parent Teacher Association (PTA) do great work in raising funds for the college - for example
they recently donated £15,000 to the college to help pay for the new Multi-Use Sports Courts which are
nearing completion. These courts will be used by all students during PE lessons and during social time and we
would not have been able to fund them without the support of the PTA.
Their next fundraising drive is to help buy outdoor furniture for the college - benches, tables, shelters,
basketball hoops, table tennis tables etc. which will obviously be used by all students.
One of their fundraiser activities is to hold a raffle of ‘Pamper Hampers’ - hampers which contain lots of
products and treats to pamper yourself with.
Please could you donate something to go in one of these hampers - perhaps some toiletries or
cosmetics, a scented candle, some chocolate or some herbal tea!
If you have anything to give, please ask your child to give your contribution to the staff in reception who
will collect these together for the PTA - Thank you - PTA

Vacancies at Uckfield College:-

JOB TITLE: Cleaning Supervisor
HOURS: Monday – Friday, 2pm-10pm, 8 hours per day
SALARY: £12 per hour – paid 2 weekly
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: 2 Years Cleaning experience. - see attached information
JOB TITLE: Cleaner (part-time)
HOURS: Multiple shifts
SALARY: £9.50 per hour – paid 2 weekly
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Cleaning experience not essential - see attached information

JOB TITLE: HR Officer
Single Status Scale 6 - £20,495 to £21,322 pro rata 37 hours per week, term-time only
(Actual salary equates to £18,080 to 18,810) - [Link to Job Advert] [Link to Information Booklet]

Reading Roundup
Reading Intervention sessions have started this week with some Year 9 and 10 students. If this applies to your
child, you will have received a call and a letter. Please remind them to attend so that they can benefit from
these sessions.

We recommend that all students should read independently for at least 20 minutes a day in order to enjoy the
multiple benefits that it offers.

Recommended Read

Ms Floyd recommends ‘A Year of Living Danishly’ by Helen Russell for KS5 students and parents: “Russell moves
to Denmark, 'the happiest country in the world' for a year, and starts an investigation into why the Danish live
more happily, and how we can utilise these lifestyle changes in our own lives and attitudes towards work, home
and leisure time.”

Talking Point - Planning for World Book Day 2022
Our World Book Day planning committee is already busy making plans for World
Book Day 2022 (3rd March). It’s the 25th anniversary of the event, and we
want to make it the biggest and best one yet here at Uckfield College! We are
currently researching authors to run talks and workshops for the occasion. If
you happen to have an author in the family, or a connection to one, please do
get in touch with Miss Buckland at [email protected] or Mrs Izzard at
[email protected]

This term the Y12/13 BTEC Health and Social Care students have been studying the effects of ageing on
memory. They have created this booklet to support the senior population of Uckfield. Please feel free to share
it with your older family members and friends.

PREVIOUSLY SHARED INFORMATION:

Students attending college must bring a clean face mask to college every day - just in case they
are required to wear one.

They are required to wear a mask when they visit Student Services
Students must wear masks at all times when travelling on the buses.

Masks are now being sold at Student Services:-
➢ Disposable medical type masks - 30p each
➢ Reusable, washable cloth masks with a filter - £3.50 each

Please bring correct change where possible.

Police Youth Officers
The College is very lucky to have two wonderful Youth Officers named PC Codling and PC Bishop. Both of these
officers have lots of experience in working with young people and their role in the College is to educate and
support rather than criminalise students.

This academic year, following on from discussions with students PC Codling and PC Bishop will be in school
fortnightly on Wednesdays. They will be based in Learning+ and will be doing the following;

Time Action

10:00-11:00 Working 1-2-1 with students when required
11:00-11:20 Walking school site speaking to students
11:20-13:20 Completing education workshops with students
13:20-14:00 Drop in service

If students wish to book 1-2-1 appointments with the Police Youth Officers they should email
[email protected] or speak to a member of the pastoral team.

If you have any questions about the Police Youth Officers and their work in the College please speak to your
child's pastoral leader.

World Record Attempt - 1st August 2022 - fastest 2 females handcuffed together
running/walking from John O’Groats to Lands End

Me and my running friend Kate are hoping to set a world record for
the fastest 2 females handcuffed together to run/walk from John
O’Groats to Lands End (875 miles) in 15 consecutive days (or less).

Why?

We are hoping to raise £10,000 for MIND, raise awareness of
mental health and promote friendship, exercise and having goals as
ways of managing mental health.

Can you help?

We are going to need a lot of support and publicity and would love
to get as many people as possible involved with anything and
everything such as:

● Marketing

● Training
● Equipment
● Fundraising
● Nutrition
● Physiotherapy
● Etc.

If you would like to get involved and offer some support, please can you email
[email protected]

Many thanks in advance,

Sam Alvarez
Director of Sixth Form
Head of Sixth Form (Wednesdays)

ACRES Courses - Starting soon
Cookery - Cakes and Bakes | First Aid at Work | Willow Weaving
See our website for more information: acreslearning.org.uk
Keep up to date with our courses - sign up here

Adult College for Rural East Sussex

Covid protocols - an update:
Following Public Health England advice, we are updating our covid protocols with a slight change.
99% of our staff have been vaccinated. We have had a good number of Sixth Formers being vaccinated since
they had the option back in the summer. We trust that there will be good take up of the optional covid
vaccinations for 12-15 year old students too.

What remains the same:
● We expect all students and staff to take a lateral flow test twice a week.
● Students who either have symptoms or have tested positive with a PCR, should stay at home.

Slight change:
If a student is in a household where someone else tests positive but the student does not have symptoms
themselves and they have not tested positive (LFD or PCR), they should:

1. Take a Lateral Flow test every day that someone in the household is self-isolating (10 days)
2. Be in school
3. Wear a mask in lessons as they have an increased risk of being exposed to the virus at home
We are no longer offering the option of staying off for a few days and lateral testing themselves each day.
Thank you for your ongoing support.

Please follow this link to see how we are managing the pandemic this term: Covid protocols Sep 2021.

Please note that students do not need to self-isolate if they are in close contact with a positive case, which will
mean that there should be much less disruption to learning this year. However, there still will be disruption if there
is an outbreak, so students must keep doing all the steps in the presentation above. In particular, it is vitally
important that all students lateral flow test themselves twice a week.

We require students to collect them from their Year Office or Student Services. Please remind your
children to collect a kit when your supply at home is running low. We are also happy for parents and carers to
collect the kits for their children from Visitor Reception during the College day.

● Report each test result to us using Uckfield College home test confirmation form

and to the NHS site online as positive, negative or void. This information is critical in helping us to
understand the prevalence of the virus across the country

Below is the guidance on face coverings on School coaches/public buses:
COVID-19 spreads through the air by droplets and aerosols that are
exhaled from the nose and mouth of an infected person. The
requirement to wear face coverings in law has been lifted.
However, the government expects and recommends that
people wear face coverings in crowded areas such as public
transport.

Uckfield College Life - Summer Edition

Uckfield College Life will be published once a month. We have attached the Newsletter to the title above -
if you wish you can click on the title to see the newsletter. Please e-mail details to Toni Fletcher,
[email protected].

Job Vacancies - see link below for current vacancies page for both Support staff and Teachers
https://www.uckfield.college/vacancies

Uckfield College Facebook - Uckfield College Facebook page

UCTC TWITTER- Follow us on Twitter @UckfieldCollege

Term dates for the Academic years 20/21 & 21/22 - http://www.uckfield.college/termdates

Reporting Absences - See link to information on Website