.png)
Dear Parents/Carers,
Since Monday we have taken guidance from a number of professional agencies. We would like to share this information from the Education Psychologist Team at the Local Authority, we hope that it helps.
Please contact us if your child needs more support. We have a wide variety of support in our counselling service.
.png)
As you may be aware, there was an incident on the school site yesterday (11th December) which is understandably unsettling and worrisome for everyone. The police are now routinely investigating the incident which means we are unable to share much information. However, we do want to reassure you that this was an isolated incident and the boy involved has been deemed fit to return to school, which I hope will relieve any worries you may have had.
We hold frequent lessons, workshops and assemblies on student safety and are constantly educating our young people on their responsibilities. This was thankfully a one-off, isolated incident, but we have extended tutor time today to provide support to students as needed.
We are proud with the way our school community supported each other and worked together yesterday and look forward to continuing with our planned routines and celebrations as we move towards the end of term.
Mr T Lawrence
Head of School
.png)
Dear Parents/Carers,
We are writing to remind you that on Tuesday 19th December we are holding our Academic Review Day. On this day the school will be closed for lessons and all students and their parents/carers will be expected to come to the review day to see form tutors. Attendance at the review day will constitute attendance at school for the day. You will be able to book an appointment between 11.00am to 1.00pm and 1.30pm to 3.20pm.
Appointment bookings should be made via Bromcom MCAS.
You can find guidance on how to do this at the website link below.
https://docs.bromcom.com/knowledge-base/how-to-book-parents-evening-appointments-using-mcas/
On arrival at the school, you will be able to collect your child’s report which shows progress made this term and will be used as a basis to set targets for them for the future.
As you are aware, parking availability in the roads around the school is very limited and local traffic enforcement officers are likely to penalise those parked illegally. You are encouraged to park in the local retail stores’ car parks and walk to school from there.
T Lawrence
Head of School
Celebrating Key Stage 4 & 5 Achievements at Prize Giving
Thursday 30th November 2023
It was a joy to welcome so many students, parents, carers, and staff to our prize giving evening. It was an evening to acknowledge what has been a highly successful year, despite the challenges presented by the recent educational landscape. Our students have demonstrated tenacity, resilience, and pride, which has led to remarkable achievements.
The 2023 results show that we have achieved a new level of success. A higher number of students passed in English and Maths than the previous year, and 90% of our Year 13s secured places in universities, including the prestigious Oxford and Russell Group. Our vision is "Success for Everyone," which encompasses our students, staff, parents/carers, and the wider community. Our students' triumphs enrich the community with hope, founded in the proof of their realised ambitions.
Prize Giving is an opportunity to celebrate a milestone in life. Each of the students who received a commendation has their own unique story of hard work, set-backs, and triumphs. We celebrated all the students' successes and special awards, and we were honoured to welcome several special guests.
Cheavon Clarke, a British Olympic Boxer, addressed the audience and shared his journey from school to his success in boxing. Cheavon represented Jamaica in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, and he later represented Team GB, winning a silver medal at the 2017 European Championships. Everyone was thrilled that he brought in the belt from when he won the IBF International Cruiserweight title. Cheavon is an advocate for his community and supports local and nationwide causes by utilising his success and platform. He has been recognised for his contributions by both GB Boxing and Kent Council, as well as being a Fight4Change Ambassador. He spoke about the importance of hard work, seizing opportunities with confidence and using failures as valuable lessons.
We also welcomed The Mayor of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, Councillor Mr. Dominic Mbang. Cllr Mbang is a Specialist Renal Nurse and Specialist Discharge Nurse at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and has previously worked as a police officer. He spoke passionately about the importance of education and how wonderful our schools in Greenwich truly are. Cllr Mbang also spoke about the two charities that he will be supporting this year, the Stroke Association and the Javan Coker Foundation.
Dr. Donald Palmer, Associate Professor of Immunology at the Royal Veterinary College was our last guest speaker of the evening. With over 45 scientific publications, Dr. Palmer is a leading researcher in the field of ageing of the immune system. He specialises in studying cellular and molecular interactions in T cell development, using advanced technologies such as antibody phage display to identify cell surface structures on tumours. In addition to his impressive research, Dr. Palmer is also a passionate educator. Dr. Palmer also shared in his speech about his upbringing in South London, where he was born and raised by parents who emigrated from Jamaica. Before joining RVC, Dr. Palmer completed his PhD at King's College London, followed by two postdoctoral fellowships at Cancer Research UK and Imperial College. He is also an Editorial Advisory Board member for Immunology News and a member of the British Society for Research on Ageing.
‘Thank you for your support over these formative years and again for attending the evening to share in the considerable success your children have achieved. To you, students, I acknowledge your trials, and I am in awe of your considerable accomplishments. I know that this admiration is shared by all our staff, as staff that care deeply about your personal and academic development. Revel in this milestone. You deserve it. Let it be just one of many more glorious milestones to come!’
Expansion of Woolwich Polytechnic Sixth Form
We're thrilled to announce that the boys' school site has been granted planning permission for a brand-new Post-16 building. This development is in anticipation of the additional numbers expected from the girls' school, who will graduate at the end of Year 11 in the summer of 2024. This will be the very first cohort of girls to graduate from the school, and we're eagerly looking forward to welcoming them to the Sixth Form.
Check out the video below that showcases the new building and how it seamlessly blends in with the existing school structure.
Mr Tim Plumb, CEO of PolyMAT, has expressed his enthusiasm for the project stating,
‘We are thrilled to be part of a project that will benefit students and the local community. By expanding our current facility, we will create an inclusive space that caters to students from Woolwich Polytechnic School for Girls. This will help them not only thrive, but also enjoy their interactions with their learning, with each other and with staff. This expansion will provide students with the ideal environment to further develop their skills and strengths. It will enable them to not only excel in their studies but also to make a positive impact on the world beyond the Poly.’
Our 2023 Sixth Form Open Evening was a resounding success, welcoming our first Year 11 cohort from our girl’s school along with our boys.
Thank you to all the external students that joined us on Wednesday evening we are so excited for you to join our Woolwich Poly community.
Applications are now open: https://www.polysixthform.co.uk/admissions/apply-here
#woolwichpolytechnic #woolwichpoly #polymatschools #polymat #thamesmead #greenwich
Dear Parents/Carers,
We are excited to announce that our school will be participating in Odd Socks Day on Monday 13th November as part of Anti-Bullying Week. This day is an opportunity for students and staff to wear mismatched socks to school in support of the cause. It's a fun and positive way to celebrate what makes us all unique and raise awareness against bullying.
We want to emphasise that with this event there is no pressure to wear the latest fashions or the need to buy anything extra or new, students are encouraged to simply be themselves. This is an important reminder that everyone deserves to feel safe and accepted, and we are thrilled to participate in Anti-Bullying Week in such a meaningful way.
Your son will be involved in other activities throughout the week e.g. whole school assemblies, form class activities.
Information on our anti-bullying policy can be found here
Wear it Pink Day 2023 at Woolwich Polytechnic School for Boys
On Friday, November 3rd, we hosted our annual Wear it Pink Day event to raise funds and awareness for Breast Cancer Now – a cause that's close to our hearts. We're proud to have supported this charity for several years, as several of our colleagues have directly benefited from their support.
Staff and students alike made a donation of £1 and sported something pink to school that day, creating a sea of pink as they walked in. In addition, we organised a Poly Bake Off where staff submitted their homemade desserts to be judged by a panel consisting of Ms Manley, Mr Evans, Ms Hoang, and Miss Redsell. The judges had a difficult job but ultimately awarded the top prizes to Ms Prescott for her Lemon Drizzle Cake, Ms Tomkins for her Victoria Sponge, and Ms Youngs for her Banana Bread.
During break time, we held a bake sale featuring all the delicious entries from the bake-off. We also organised a "Guess the Number of Teapots" competition where staff could donate and submit their guesses. Congratulations to Ms Tibble, who correctly guessed 67 teapots!
Thanks to everyone who participated in Wear it Pink Day, whether by baking, donating, or purchasing cakes. We raised an amazing £213 for Breast Cancer Now – thank you for your generous support! A special thanks to Mrs Hawgood for organising this event and going the extra mile to make it so special for our school community.
.png)
Dear parents/carers,
We are holding some talks at both Woolwich Poly Girls' and Woolwich Poly Boys' schools this half-term on the topic of Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE). They will be given by the Growing Against Violence charitable organisation and will be on the following dates:
Thursday 16th November 3.30 - 4.30pm at the Woolwich Polytechnic School for Girls' site
Tuesday 5th December 4 - 5pm at the Woolwich Polytechnic School for Boys' site
These talks are open to parents and carers of students in either school, so you may attend on either day. The talks will be the same each time so you do not need to come more than once.
Please see the attached flyer for information regarding CCE and contact your child's Head of Year if you have concerns of this nature.
Click to download Child Criminal Exploitation Leaflet
.png)
Dear parents/carers,
The police have informed us of their intention to have a dispersal zone covering Woolwich Town Centre on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 November throughout the days and nights as a measure to prevent antisocial behaviour.
We advise that any children without adult escort may be stopped by the police, questioned and asked to leave Woolwich Town Centre. Failure to co-operate with police instruction may lead to arrest.
Those students coming to Saturday school or passing through Woolwich Town Centre are advised to take or change buses outside the main squares and Powys Street areas.
Mr T Lawrence
Head of School
Bannockburn Primary School joins PolyMAT
We are very excited to announce that Bannockburn Primary School officially joins PolyMAT today, November 1st 2023. Bannockburn is a large and very successful feeder primary school to our existing two secondary schools and will be a key driver of our ambitions to develop our primary offer to other schools.
Bannockburn Primary School prides itself on fostering a unique and diverse learning environment that empowers students to reach their full potential. The school spans two sites, both located within the Plumstead area, offering a purpose-built nursery unit at the Manor Way site. Bannockburn is a school with high aspirations for pupils, their families and the community of Plumstead.
The arrival of Bannockburn means that we now provide education to over 3600 young people in the Thamesmead and Plumstead locality and can extend our work to achieve our vision of Success for Everyone through a cross-phase approach to the education journey.
Bannockburn’s longstanding success and popularity are driven by their caring culture which always puts children first. This was evident from our first discussions and it was clear that PolyMAT’s values of Care and Unity are already reflected in how Bannockburn look after their children and their community.
Our expanded partnership now offers the chance to design the learning journey “through the eyes of the child” and minimise disruption caused by the transition from primary to secondary. The benefits of staff collaborating between phases are considerable and we are all excited about the opportunities of working with our expanded “family”.
Rachel Ford, Headteacher of Bannockburn Primary School, said: “We are all excited to build on our partnership with PolyMAT; sharing an aligned vision to provide our school communities with new opportunities and quality experiences".
Tim Plumb, CEO of PolyMAT, said: “Bannockburn is the perfect school to be the first part of our primary offer, and we warmly welcome their staff, children and community into our partnership – this is a special day for our schools and our Trust”.
PolyMAT Welcomes Bannockburn to the Trust with a Sweet Surprise
This morning, our CEO Tim Plumb and COO Alexa Rendell visited Bannockburn's High Street and Manor Way sites to extend a warm welcome and to deliver some delicious chocolates. This visit commemorates Bannockburn joining our trust, and we couldn't be more thrilled about this partnership and what the future holds for PolyMAT.
