Year 6 Newsletter 2012

We’ve produced a newsletter for parents of Year 6 children making their secondary school choices, to remind them of the excellent local choice they have in Trinity. It should be coming home soon, but it is also reproduced below, or you can download it.

High academic standards

Trinity’s results continue to go from strength to strength, with 69% of students getting 5A-Cs at GCSE including English and maths in 2012. The school works hard for all students of all academic abilities and has a special grammar stream for the students it expects to get mostly As and A*s at GCSE. The Schools Minister recently wrote to Trinity to congratulate the school on its sustained improving results.

Percentage of students with 5A-C at GCSE (or equivalent) including English & Maths

Even in 2010, Trinity was judged as Good by Ofsted, and in 2012 another Ofsted, focusing on economics, business and enterprise it was judged to be Outstanding.

Trinity has a strong relationship with many outstanding sixth forms, including local colleges like Christ the King and also with Grammar and Independent schools. Trinity may develop its own sixth form in the future.

A growing local intake

Trinity is popular with local children; this year over 60% of its intake comes from seven local schools. It’s lovely to see the children getting to and from school without having to get up at the crack of dawn for long commutes and with lots of time for extra-curricular activities.

School ethos

Trinity is a school for boys and girls from all backgrounds and any faith or none – as such, it is an excellent preparation for life! While it is a CofE school, 40% of its students do not come through the church route. We think it has a thoughtful, calm and tolerant atmosphere.

Trinity has a highly developed approach to learning intended to inspire pupils with a passion for outstanding learning and the skills they need to be autonomous, independent learners. The teachers are very accessible to both parents and children and seem to be really dedicated. Children are clear about what is expected from them and involved in making decisions about the school and their own behaviour in it.

School environment

Trinity is embedded in its local community with many staff living locally. It has an open and attractive new building and, as well as on-site sports facilities, it has use of the pitches in the neighbouring park and sports fields less than 5 minutes walk away.

The last Open Evening is on Thursday October 18th, but you can also look around Trinity on any school day. Find out more on the school website.

Time for Trinity was set up by a group of parents with children at local primary schools supporting Trinity as an excellent local school – many of us are now delighted to have children at Trinity.

Towards the end of the first half term…

our son is very happy, excited and keen to go to school every day

Our son has nearly completed his first half term in Trinity so we have had time to reflect on what it has been like.

We didn’t want him commuting and Trinity has been so easy. As our local school he can walk there in about 10 minutes. The weather hasn’t been too bad yet but on some rainy mornings this has been a real bonus. We didn’t want him commuting out to Bexleyheath or Dartford as we don’t want to live there so why should he have to go to school there? Getting home has been easy and quick. Even when he has stayed for band practice, lasting an hour, he has still been home by 4.15.

He has started to make some friends outside of the group that came with him from his local primary school. He has told us that the class is a lot quieter than it was in primary school and he can focus on the lessons more. He has enjoyed his lessons and is very keen on history, geography, maths and food technology. He has had varying amounts of homework from up to 1 hour 30 mins some nights to half an hour on others. This is really good as he needs time to get used to the volume of homework. For his PE he is going to the sports ground in Eltham Road and playing football.

The school has engaged with us in many ways. Even before he started, I went to the school to discuss an issue with the Head of Year 7 who saw me immediately and resolved the issue there and then. On the first day (Year 7 only) we went to a service in the main hall at the start of the day and attended a mindfulness session for parents. Since then we have been to a BBQ on the Learning Deck which was lovely and very well attended by all the parents – from Year 7 to Year 11. This gave us a chance to meet some of the teachers including our son’s form tutor in an informal environment.

Last week there was a cheese and wine evening for all Year 7 parents. Here the marking and the teaching methods used were explained. Trinity uses the National Curriculum standards, not the hard to convert B or C+. After the presentations there was an hour when we could talk to all of our son’s teachers over a glass of wine. Every one of his teachers was present. It was an amazing experience as it was not a formal parents evening and yet we felt that we got so much from the discussions we had with teachers. It was a brave thing for Trinity to do but so worthwhile. The targets our son has been set this year are tough and we were concerned whether they were achievable but now we feel he is improving already on the level he achieved at Primary School and that he will be able to make it with support from us.

So after nearly a half term completed, our son is very happy, excited and keen to go to school every day. Every week we are finding more things to be pleased with in the way that Trinity works and are looking forward to the future. Even our 5 year old has joined in asking ‘When can I go to Trinity?’

Parents of a Year 7 Trinitarian

First impressions from a new Trinitarian (parent)

With the second week nearly finished at Trinity, I can honestly say it hasn’t been stressful for either of us.

My son has looked forward to going to Trinity (his friends from his primary school were also going, the important thing to him).  Yes he was apprehensive at first.  Yes he was nervous: of the change in school BUT NO nerves about travel, NO nerves about not knowing anyone.

I was looking forward to him attending Trinity as I have been so impressed with the work done by the school in recent years in terms of progress. Being a small school, I really like the fact that they can get to know every child well and make sure that every child progresses from the level they enter the school at. I like the communication between teachers and parents. I did have a few concerns related to my son and I was really comforted by the degree of caring that the teachers have taken in listening to me.

Yes I was nervous, but only because my little boy was going out into the big world of secondary school and what would he learn!  BUT I’m not worried about him getting to school, or coming home.  I’m not worried about how tired he’ll be.  I’m not worried about when he’ll get his homework done.  He still has time to play and socialise which makes him happy.

A lot has seemed to happen over these past 2 weeks.  My son feels totally comfortable at Trinity.  He is more organised than I ever thought would happen.  He loves every lesson (so far).  The teachers have engaged him in all the subjects.  His favourite being Food Tech – I’m loving that one! He is in no doubt that Trinity expects a lot from its pupils, but he is also in no doubt that Trinity will enable him to be the best that he can be.

I feel that I haven’t lost my little boy to secondary school, but that I have gained a secondary school. The future looks bright!

Proud Parent of a Year 7 Trinitarian

Starting out at Trinity

I wrote last week about the great performance that Trinity students achieved this year.

Even more exciting for us, some of the children of parents who have supported Time For Trinity have now started there, including our daughter alongside many of her friends from primary school. They had a taster day at the end of last term and then had the school to themselves on Friday 7th September, before their first normal week last week. All the children that I’ve spoken to have had a wonderful time and are looking forward to more. I asked our daughter what she would say if one of her friends in primary school asked her about Trinity and she said:

Trinity is an awesome school. The teachers are really nice and the classes are always fun. Anybody who goes to Trinity will be accepted into their big family.

We rounded the week off with a lovely BBQ on the learning deck, organised by the PTA and full of teachers, governors, parents and children catching the last of the sunshine. There was a great feeling of community and optimism, and someone even baked a cake!

We feel very fortunate to have our daughter at an excellent, local comprehensive school that lies at the heart of its community and that she can walk to with her friends – who could wish for more?

Hilary Leevers

Trinity Update and Open Days

Trinity has had a fantastic start to the school year this September.

Those of you who have kept an eye on the school website, or saw the banner up on the school, will have seen that it is celebrating its best results again for the 4th year running.

69% of students achieved at least five GCSEs at A*-C including English and mathematics. This is all the more impressive given the unexpectedly low grades for English GCSEs in schools across the country. Also, only 53% of students sitting exams this summer had achieved the expected level or above at the end of Primary School. Trinity’s intake has changed since then and it now takes children much more evenly across the range of all abilities, including the highest performers, and has many more children from local schools.

5 A*-C at GCSE including English and maths at Trinity and across Lewisham

Earlier in the year the Schools minister wrote to Trinity to congratulate the school on the impressive progress of its students.

If you want to find out more, do go along to one of the open days:

Open Mornings:
Tuesday, 25 September 9.00 am – 10.00 am Tours followed by Headteachers Talk at 10.30 am
Wednesday, 26 September 9.00 am – 10.00 am Tours followed by Headteachers Talk at 10.30 am
Open Evening:
Thursday, 18 October 6.00 pm – 7.30 pm Tours with Headteachers Talks at 6.00 pm and 7.30 pm

Saying yes to our local school

Just a quick reminder to all Year 6 parents and children that school places need to be accepted by the end of the week.

Also, we have got preliminary data on the new intake for Trinity for September 2013 – on the basis of offers made, over 60% of the intake will be drawing from seven local schools. Once offers have been accepted and any movement finalised, we will post some more details on intake and catchment. In the meantime, we’re delighted at the impressive shift in people’s choices as they recognise the benefits of choosing an excellent local school like Trinity.

Schools Minister Congratulates Trinity

Nick Gibb, the Minister of State for Schools, has written to the headteacher of Trinity to congratulate the school on being among the top 100 schools based on sustained improvement in each year from 2008 to 2011. You can read his letter below.

It’s especially nice to read the letter this week as Trinity is much in our minds given that Year 6 children will find out their school places for next year on Thursday. Trinity still has a few places left in Year 9 if there are any older children looking for a wonderful school.

If you’d like to find out more about what’s going on at Trinity on a regular basis, you can follow @trinheadmaster on Twitter – you can see what he’s been up to lately in his tweets at the bottom of this blog.

Update on even better GCSE results!

The Trinity website has now updated its results with re-scorings, and they got even better!

“Best results ever for third year running: 64% 5 A*-C grades with English and Maths. Forty students with more than 10 A*-C grades, fifteen more than 14 and two students with 20!”

This compares with 28% achieving 5 A-C including English and Maths in 2008, 44% in 2009 and 53% in 20. So this percentage has gone up 35% since 2008, or, looking at it another way, many more than twice as many students are reaching this level of achievement.

Trinity’s Great GCSE Results

I’ve just received the following email from Trinity, it’s fantastic news – huge congratulations to all the students (and all the staff too of course!):

Trinity is pleased to announce that we have achieved our best ever results for the third year running.

• 61% achieved 5 A*-C including English and Maths.
• 80% achieved an A*-C grade in English and 70% in Maths.
• 40 Students achieved more than 10, 15 more than 14 A*-C and two students achieved 20 A*-C grades.
• The average point score is up from 330 to 462, on average students achieved 3 more grade Cs than last year.
• Trinity achieved 28% in 2008, 44% in 2009, 53% in 2010 5 A*-C including English and Maths – a rise of 33% in four years.

 

Well done to all students and staff for their hard work and commitment to excellence.

Father Richard Peers
Headmaster

Newsletter (Year 5… and the rest)

Hopefully most parents with children in Year 5 at local primary schools received this Time for Trinity newsletter at the end of the summer term.

We sent it to Year 5 parents because we know that many will be thinking about their children’s choice of secondary school over the summer, but it should be of interest to all local parents.

We reminded parents how many more local children will be going to Trinity and of its high academic standards (as shown in the graph).

Percentage of students with 5A-C at GCSE (or equivalent) including English & Maths

We are really looking forward to hearing about the GCSE results on Thursday August 25th and will be updating the results here.

Good luck everyone!