I hope you are well. We’ve had a wonderful first week back with our ‘gems’ at JQA. Students have been re-learning how we do things here: our key lesson routines, including SHINE and also our Year 7 students have started to become immersed in the culture of excellence at JQA. All parents, by now, should have returned the signed Home School Collaboration form.
On Friday, all students took part in an important Respect session to recognise the life and impact of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The Academy is closed on Monday 19th September, in line with government guidance, to give our community the opportunity to pay their respects to the late Queen. A letter confirming this is here.
This week, we look forward to a more subdued Heritage Week than last year. At JQA, we are privileged to be located in an historic area of Birmingham, rich in heritage, and we believe it is important for our students and staff to connect with this vibrant history. Students in all years will be hearing from Tina Francis, a local artist, in assemblies this week and students in different years have been selected to do activities such as a tour of St Paul’s Church, a walk about the Lunar Society and a walking tour about a local author. There are many FREE activities for families to get involved in this weekend too and you can find a link to these here.
CORE Extra begins on Tuesday, with all students staying until 4.10 to take part in an enriching activity. We are looking forward to staff sharing their passion, from Musical Theatre to Latin and Astronomy, all students will be issued their termly option shortly.
Also this week, we welcome parents of Year 11 students to the Academy on Thursday for our annual Year 11 Information Evening. We will be joined by post-16 providers too to discuss life after JQA for our Year 11 students. We look forward to seeing you there for 5pm and a letter about this event is now online.
Finally, our first Collaboration Coffee Morning was a successful event last Wednesday and we look forward to welcoming any parents to our drop-in event each Wednesday. It’s a chance to get support this anything at all: from using Parent Pay to worrying how to get your child back into healthy routines. As finances become more stretched for families, I encourage all families who are not in receipt of free school meals to check their eligibility and make an application if appropriate. A letter about this is here. I invite an parents that need support with this to come along to our Collaboration Coffee Morning on a Wednesday between 9am -11am or call the Academy on 0121 729 7220.
We are now full in Year 7 and managing a waiting list – testament to the community’s increasing confidence in JQA.
As always, please call us on 0121 729 7220, leaving a message if lines are busy, and we will support you.
You can always contact me directly this week at: [email protected]