Dear Parents and Carers,

It is with great pleasure and excitement that I write to you in my first newsletter as Head of School at Callerton Academy.

Over the past few weeks, I have had the opportunity to visit classrooms, meet staff, speak with pupils, and begin to get to know many families. I have been incredibly impressed by the enthusiasm of our students and their willingness to engage in their learning. The dedication and professionalism of the staff team has also stood out, and it is clear that they work tirelessly to ensure every child is supported to succeed.

First impressions matter, and mine have been overwhelmingly positive. There is a real sense of warmth here, alongside high expectations and a commitment to helping every child reach their full potential. I feel both proud and privileged to now be part of this community.

I am very much looking forward to building on the school’s many strengths and working in partnership with you all in the months and years ahead. Thank you for the warm welcome I have already received.

Year 11 

We would like to extend our huge congratulations to our Year 11 students, who have reached a historic milestone for Callerton Academy as the first cohort to sit GCSE examinations, and we are very proud of the commitment, resilience, and determination shown by students so far. Students have worked hard in lessons, interventions, pre-exam boosters and have shown great attendance and punctuality throughout the exam season. 

As they continue through this important exam period, we encourage all students to maintain the excellent work ethic they have demonstrated so far. The upcoming half-term provides a valuable opportunity to rest, recharge, and revise with purpose. Continued focused preparation will help ensure they return feeling confident and ready for the final stretch. 

We wish every student the very best of luck in the weeks ahead and commend them once again for being pioneers in our school’s history. Keep up the good work!  

Leavers Assembly will be after the last full cohort exam on 15th June, more details to follow. Prom is Tuesday 30th June. Starting at 6pm at Callerton where there will be cakes and celebrations, before departing on coaches to the venue for 7pm. We will return to school via coach at 11pm.  

Attendance 

The Academy now has access to a school minibus, although this isn't a guarantee every day, it has made a massive impact on certain students in getting them into school and on time. After half term, the bus will be used as a 2-week intervention for students who may be struggling to get into school or attending on time. 

If there are any families that feel they may benefit from a 2-week intervention for their student to be on the bus, then please reach out to school to provide your suggestions. 

Our Attendance team has been strengthened and increased to allow for further work and interventions to be put into place. Alongside this, student voice has been gained around rewards and incentives.  

A new incentive will be launched in the last half term in line with the World Cup. Further information will be provided to the students in school around this, but it would be great to start initial conversations at home around ensuring students are attending and on time, especially when the World Cup games have been on.  

All prizes and rewards during this intervention will all come from the information gained from the student voice ballot boxes. 

We thank you for your continued support with Attendance – ‘Missing School is Missing Out’ 

Workshop 

Callerton Academy were proud to welcome Dr Graeme Turnbull from Northumbria University. 

He ran a very exciting workshop in Art lessons with year 7 to explore their Still Life project through looking at real insect specimens through microscopes. Looking at colour theory and how different lights reacted in different ways with each specimen. 

 

School Meal Vouchers – Half Term Holidays

Vouchers for the half term holidays are confirmed and will be issued on 22ndMay. Same eligibility as usual. £15 per week per child. We’re hoping that we can get the same for the summer breaks, but I’ll let you know nearer the time.

As usual you will receive the voucher via email, and you can select which supermarket to use it at, whichever is best for you. At Callerton Academy, we use a company called Wonde to provide these vouchers for parents and carers. Here is a YouTube video that walks you through what you should receive. The system is easy to use with clear instructions in the email.

Changes to the School Day

Just a reminder, as notified earlier this month there will be changes to the school day with effect from September.

The school day will begin at 8.35am and finish at 3.05pm. The day will consist of a 30-minute form period followed by five one-hour lessons.

This revised structure will reduce the amount of time lost to lesson transitions, allowing learning time to be used more effectively. Importantly, the total amount of learning time across the day will remain unchanged.

Extending the daily form period will strengthen the role of the form tutor and provide additional time to support pastoral care, PSHE and personal development, ensuring that students’ wellbeing and wider development continue to be a central focus of school life.

Uniform September 2026 

We consider wearing a school uniform to be very important, and we appreciate the support of our parents, carers, and guardians in helping us maintain our high standards.

Main School Uniform: 

• A suitable warm and waterproof coat which can be stored in the school bag during the day
• Navy polo shirt with logo* 
• Navy round neck sweatshirt with logo*
• Plain black tailored school trousers or black tailored knee-length shorts or a black pleated skirt (which is pleated all the way round)
• Plain black, sensible school footwear (trainers or boots are not permitted) 
• Grey or black socks or black plain tights (not patterned). 
• A suitable school bag which can hold all of your equipment, books, PE kit and coat.

PE Uniform: 

• PE plain navy shorts or joggers or tracksuit bottoms or sport leggings
• Royal blue polo shirt with logo*
• Plain navy round neck sweatshirt. If you already have the royal blue PE jumper with the school logo, this is also still acceptable (PE jumper is an optional item)
• Training shoes with non-marking soles (not leisure shoes)

Transition Year 6 

It is very exciting to be welcoming our new Year 7’s in September. Callerton Aademy continues to be a school of choice with demand for spaces far outweighing the number of students we can accept.

Our transition dates have been set with the parents evening on 25th June and Transition Day being 7th July. 

Message from School Health Team

The HPV catch up session will take place on Friday 12 June 2026.

Nurses have also advised that they will take the opportunity to vaccinate Year 9 students who are outstanding their TdIPV/MenAcwy vaccinations from the previous campaign.

Thank you for your continued support. I hope you all have a lovely half term break, and we can hopefully enjoy some sunshine!

Yours faithfully,

Mrs S Cooke

Acting Head of School

Callerton Academy