Welcome to the Easter newsletter. This has been yet another amazing term with lots going on and lots to be proud of. You will see from all the contributions to this newsletter just a sample of what’s been going on. At the time of writing this newsletter, nearly 150 year 7 students are about to embark on camp. An opportunity for teambuilding, character development and making friends and making memories. This is the first time we have held a year 7 camp in many years so I am looking forward to hearing all about it and sharing stories with you in the summer newsletter.
There are very few school days remaining until Year 11 and Year 13 students sit their real, final GCSE and A Level examinations, I want to say a big congratulations to them for all the hard work and determination they have shown throughout their time at Garibaldi but in particular this year. As always, there is plenty of help and support on offer should they need it. As stated in my recent letter, when school reopens on Monday 15th April, Year 11 students are expected in at the usual time but should head straight to the sports hall for a special event to support them in preparation for the upcoming exams.
At the start of the year, we send all parents, by post a copy of our school handbook which contains all sorts of important information on matters such as our expectations, key contacts, attendance information and pastoral information to name but a few aspects. Recently a number of parents have asked if this can be reshared. Therefore please find attached a general copy of the booklet. As a reminder, the first point of contact is usually your child’s mentor. The best way to get in touch is by email. We cannot always get to a phone straight away if we are teaching but will get back to you as soon as we possibly can.
I recently wrote to you with details of the Easter closing times and dates. Again, just for reference, we reopen on Monday 15th April 2024. Year 11’s should attend school at the usual time but should head straight to the sports hall. Other year groups should arrive at school and be in their mentor rooms at 10:45 for registration and lessons will recommence at 11am.
We have one member of staff leaving us at Easter. Mr Harrison joined us in September 2021. He has been a real asset to the Maths department, joining us as a brand new teacher. He has really contributed to the life of the school and will be deeply missed. We all wish him well as he moves on to pastures new. We also give our very best wishes to Ms Stevenson, who begins her maternity leave after Easter. Good luck with the impending arrival and we look forward to plenty of pictures in due course.
Below are a few noteworthy celebrations and highlights from this term. I hope you all have a lovely relaxing break and will see students back at the usual time on Monday 15th April for the final term of the year.
Best wishes from the staff and Governors at Garibaldi.
The Garibaldi School in Forest Town – which is part of Nova Education Trust – celebrated the opening of its newly-renovated and refurbished Sixth Form Centre.
The opening ceremony was attended by the local community including staff, current and ex-students, governors, local councillors, Nova Education Trust members and local businesses Make Consulting and Tour Construction.
The original building consisted of a home layout as it was the caretaker’s bungalow but with significant funding from Nova Education Trust, an extensive project was possible to improve the learning environment for current and future Sixth Form students.
Year 12 Student Leaders, Ashton Lang and Isobel Dobson, said: “We are grateful for the chance to study in a new and improved Sixth Form.
“As current Year 12 students, we look forward to how this new Sixth Form will allow us to make the most out of our studies in Year 13.”
Nearly a decade ago, the Sixth Form consisted of 35 students but as it stands now, with increasing applicant numbers, the new provision could support 120 students.
The Garibaldi School is continuing to grow and strengthen their academic success and this is evident in their Sixth Form A Level results, placing them in the top 10 in the county.
Ben West, Director of Garibaldi’s Sixth Form, said. “I am proud of the achievement of our Sixth Form which has continued to go from strength to strength."
"The new facilities and fresh, modern look mean that the space is suited to students’ needs and allows students to study and work in a comfortable, light environment that is conducive to achieving well."
“I am looking forward to showing off our new Sixth Form space to students in younger years so that they can see themselves using the facilities in their future.”
James Aldred, Headteacher at The Garibaldi School, said: “The high grades being achieved are enabling many students to secure university placements, apprenticeships and employment opportunities, with four students securing places at Oxford and Cambridge universities.
“I hope the new Sixth Form base will be a space for the students to be proud of, inspiring and promoting adulthood, responsibility and independence.”
With significant thought and planning going into the renovation, the main aim was to provide a space that replicated a work environment, supporting the needs and requirements of young people and to bring all of that into the 21st century.
Make Consulting, who designed the space and brought the project to life, said: “It’s been a pleasure to be involved."
“Thank you for allowing us to attend your opening ceremony. It was great to celebrate with you and see the finished result. It looks amazing.”
There were a lot of people to thank at the ceremony and James Aldred made sure he did not miss anyone out who helped this project to completion.
He added: “I hope that this provision lives up to your expectations, is something you’re proud of and that for future generations of sixth formers is a provision they aspire to. Thank you again to everyone who attended.”
You can read the article in the Chad by following this link
https://www.chad.co.uk/education/the-garibaldi-school-celebrates-opening-of-new-sixth-form-provision-4545601
Over the course of this term Year 9 students have been working hard in lessons and have taken steps to gather as much information as possible about potential option choices they would like to elect into for their Year 10 and 11 GCSE years. In doing so, this has enabled Year 9 to complete an initial trawl of option choices to allow subjects to put them into option blocks to ensure that Year 9 students get their preferred choices where possible.
Following this we have held a Year 9 Curriculum / Options Information Evening on 24th January 2024 where the students were presented with the option blocks which will be available to them during Year 10 and 11 from the initial trawl. This was attended by approximately 400 people including students from the year group and their parents / carers and it was fantastic to see so many using the time to study our subject areas and speak to staff.
This was an exciting milestone into their educational journey. The purpose of the evening was to provide information that supports students to make informed choices, to give them an opportunity to seek advice and guidance from subject experts / senior leaders and to help parents and students to ask the right questions to help make the right choices when selecting their options.
Students can then focus on ensuring that they understand the content of each GCSE or vocational course to ensure that the subjects they choose are most applicable to them ensuring ultimate success post Garibaldi.
To continue on their pathway of electing their options, there were some key events that took place in school during the term following the information evening including option/subject taster sessions and also our Year 9 Parents Evening on Wednesday 21st February where parents and carers had further opportunity to speak to subject teachers about progress and ask any questions they may have about choosing those subject areas during the options process.
The deadline for completion of option choices was Friday 15th March 2024 and students will be informed of their final allocations during the summer term in advance of starting Year 10.
Any queries about the options process, please contact your child’s Mentor in the first instance.
During January 2024 Year 11’s finished their second and Year 13’s their first round of mock exams and their conduct throughout the exam period was fantastic. We know that during this final year it can be challenging for students but we are so proud of how hard they are working. For both year groups it was an intense fortnight of exams that really replicated what lies ahead in the summer series.
Students in both year groups are due to receive the grades from their mock exams in a ‘Mock Results’ session after half term. This will be a really important and we hope useful point of reflection to assist students in gearing up for the final fifty or so school days until the real exams start in May.
Well done Year 11 & 13!
As Year 11 approach the end of their GCSE's at The Garibaldi School there will be a number of exciting opportunities available to them to celebrate their time with the school. We have a lots of exciting things planned for our Year 11 students - Prom, leavers hoodies, celebration assembly and a trip to Alton Towers. These activities are now in the planning stages as payment deadlines have now passed. Thank you to everyone who has made payments to be involved in the various celebrations. We will be in touch at the relevant time with further information about each of these events.
We like to celebrate how hard our students have been working and give them some time to make some memories together to take on with them as they take their next steps in their journey.
Drum and guitar lessons are available in school this year with lots of students already taking advantage of the heavily subsidised lesson prices.
Guitar lessons take place on Monday mornings with Mr Goodwin and drum lessons on a Tuesday with Mr Ellis. The cost of the lessons are £50 for a full term which is to be paid in advance. This includes a minimum of 10 lessons all 20 minutes in duration during lesson time subject to training/INSET days. The times are on rotation so the same subject is not missed each week.
If students are interested in finding out more, please see Miss Biggs in Music 1 at break or lunchtimes who will be happy to give you further information.
The attached letter may provide more information at this stage.
On Monday 25th March our Year 7 students will be heading to Caythorpe for a 3 day residential camp. The camp will consist of team building exercises such as: abseiling, high rope courses, giant swing, code breakers and Jacob’s ladder. The trip will focus on character and personal development which supplements the curriculum. It also provides an amazing opportunity for students to continue to forge links with their peers, create bonds with other members of the year group and embed lasting memories. Watch this space for more updates on the trip in our next newsletter.
On Wednesday 28th of February 2024 a class of year 10 students enjoyed a trip to Newstead Abbey. This trip builds on the NPO Literacy Project that the students within this class are a part of. In English lessons they have been engaging in creative writing sessions, a key component of the GCSE English Language course, working towards a final written task held at Newstead Abbey, to complete the project.
The freelance writer who led the writing sessions commented that they “loved writing with them and sharing their ideas over the last few weeks. Seeing how much they committed to writing [on the day] was astounding. [They’d] rarely seen a group of people that age (or any age) who are happy to settle into writing for such extended periods.”
The class were a credit to the school, and their work will soon be showcased on the Newstead Abbey Blog page once we have completed our final drafts.
Sixth Form Successes with University Offers!
We are delighted that four of our Sixth Form students have received offers to study at either the University of Cambridge or the University of Oxbridge. Working with their mentors and Miss Hadley, the students had to write a convincing personal statement about their passion for their chosen subjects and how their skills and knowledge equipped them for university study. All students also had an interview with the admissions panel for their chosen course at Cambridge or Oxford. We are thrilled to have received the highest number of Cambridge/Oxford offers across the Trust!
Sutton Trust US Programme
Year 12 student Millie Harpham has been selected to take part in the Sutton Trust US Programme for this academic year. The Sutton Trust US Programme introduces students from across the UK to the American higher education system, and offers an all-inclusive trip to the US to experience university life. We are thrilled that Millie has been selected and we know this will be an invaluable experience for her. Well done Millie!
This term we have been looking at our rewards, recognition and motivation strategy,
On the 21st March we welcomed a group of volunteer students who contributed to this discussion. I want to thank all of these students for giving up their time to add valuable ideas to the discussion.
Their feedback, along with the feedback from our staff, has led to a really exciting strategy in which we are looking forward to rewarding our students to support their motivation.
The progress we are making dovetails with our character education agenda in which we are reflecting on how we can reward our students on their virtue based performance.
Our next step is to invite parents into school on 30th April to contribute to this consultation on this agenda, we look forward to welcoming any parents interested in contributing to this discussion.
Our intention will be that the full implementation of the agenda will start in half term 6 and we are really looking forward to celebrating our students successes with them and with you.
On Friday 15th March, Mike Blair, Head of documentaries and current affairs at Multi Story Media (ITV), visited the school to give a talk and question/answer session on his role as a producer for ITV with our Year 10, 12 and 13 students. He shared some show reels for documentaries and shows that he has worked on and spoke to the students about his educational and career journey thus far. He talked to students about the importance of documentaries and how these can give people a voice and, ultimately, raise awareness of worldwide issues.
This will hopefully have encouraged our students to go away and learn more about some of the stories. He then touched on some of the light entertainment shows he has worked on and shared his inside knowledge that Paul O’Gradys replacement on For Love Of Dogs, Alison Hammond, has a fear of dogs! The students asked some interesting questions, one being would he have done anything differently at 17 knowing what he knows now? Fortunately, he agreed that he wished he would have worked harder at school and made better choices!
On Monday, March 18th Sheffield based artist Will Rea came into school to lead an art careers session with a group of Year 9 students selected from an application process. It was fantastic to see so many students responded to Will’s mural designs and illustrations with a detailed application expressing their interest to attend this session, with lots of questions to ask.
Below is a link to Will’s website for some examples of his artwork, connecting to this terms theme of Commercial Illustration, looking at the work of creative practitioners in our surrounding area, and how art can become an exciting career choice as students in Year 9 approach their GCSEs.
https://www.willustration.co.uk/
The session included a careers presentation by Will about his path into his career and becoming a World Illustration Awards prize winner, with examples of his commissioned and independent work, followed by a Q and A and a practical drawing task around gridded drawing, the process that Will uses to enlarge his illustrations to paint them on to huge walls. We were all very impressed with the students and hope they enjoyed the experience.
Just before Christmas we held a dress down day in school to raised money for Cash for Kids Mission Christmas. As you can see as a school we donated £386.94 to the charity which helped by gifts for children.
We received the following thank you message from the charity:-
"Garibaldi School’s very generous fundraising of £386.94 from your dress down day was so appreciated and also meant that we had additional funds for Mission Christmas to buy much needed gifts in key age groups. We often had moments in the campaign where our gift donations did not include gifts for babies (under 3) and also for teens (particularly boys 8+ this year). Your additional monetary support ensured that we were able to bring the joy of Christmas to ALL children - babies and teens included - across the Midlands. Thank you."
We would like to thank all our students and parents for your continued support in making a difference and helping others.
On Friday 9th February 2024 we had a whole school non uniform day to raise money for Young Minds.
Young Minds are the UK’s leading charity fighting for children and young people's mental health.
We want to see a world where no young person feels alone with their mental health, and all young people get the mental health support they need, when they need it, no matter what.
Thank you for all that supported this event and made donations we made a total amount of £421.72 to donate to this fantastic charity.
This followed a group of Year 7-11 students attending the NottAlone Live! event on Thursday 8th February. Despite the event ending early due to snow, the group of students got stuck in with a series of talks and spoke to a range of stall holders promoting mental well-being. We were very proud of how these 9 students represented the school and have since, along with others, become mental health ambassadors to arrange events across school.
Just before Christmas as part of The Garibaldi School Charity initiative and social action agenda, instead of the traditional £1 non uniform donation, we asked our students and staff to donate some food or toiletries to the Sherwood Food Bank, and my goodness me, did our students and staff deliver! (much like the big man himself!) All of our students arrived to school in their fantastic festive clothing, to be greeted by big smiles and festive tunes where students donated in their droves.
It was phenomenal to see all of our students recognising the need and significance to support others within our own community over the festive period. As a result of the food bank drive, we were able to donate a significant contribution.
Sherwood Food Bank collected the donations on Friday 15th December and with the help of our student leaders and willing staff volunteers, we were able to load it all in to go to those who may benefit from a little extra help over Christmas. The collection drivers, Dennis and Owen passed on their sincere gratitude, they said ‘the donation was absolutely fantastic’ and were keen to invite Garibaldi students to help with donation sorting in the future.
Since the start of the new year, Sherwood food bank have been in touch to thank us for our efforts. We donated 567.80 kgs which means 1,758 meals for local people in crisis.
We look forward to building a collaborative relationship with the Sherwood Food Bank.
Valentines Smiles
On Thursday 8th February Year 8 Enterprise Enrichment students sold their hand made valentines treats, available during both break times in the main hall. Prices ranged from 50p to £2.50 and they had an amazing turn out which hopefully boosted profits for these business minded students.
Mrs Pickering and Mr Chapman were really pleased to see the students enjoying themselves as well as demonstrating excellent team work, leadership and community spirit.
Look out for the next ‘Easter Eggstravaganza’ on the last day of this term!
Holocaust Memorial Day took place on 27th January and we sent each student home with a candle and a card with a Holocaust victim’s name in preparation for Holocaust Memorial Day to take part in the ‘Light the Darkness’ memorial to remember those who died in the Holocaust, under Nazi persecution, and in subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur and elsewhere. By lighting a candle, victims are commemorated and survivors honoured.
We encouraged our students to place a lit candle (or unlit) in their window to Light the Darkness, helping to spread the message of tolerance and understanding. We also encouraged them to share a photo of their candle on social media using the hashtags #GaribaldiBeacon, #Holocaust Memorial Day and #Light the Darkness.
We had the privilege last year to be chosen as a Beacon school. It is a flagship programme run through University College of London, and aims to enhance the provision and practice for Holocaust teaching and learning in schools. We remain committed to making sure students are aware of the impact the Holocaust had on people across the world and the importance of the ‘Fragility of Freedom’ - this year’s theme. Students also took part in a number of activities in mentor time, in lessons and around the school site to learn more about the Holocaust and its long-lasting impact.
If you wish to discuss this subject further with your child the following website is useful: Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (hmd.org.uk)
It is important that we praise the bravery and resilience of those who survived, standing in solidarity against oppression. The event helps us to reflect on current issues in society today.
Student Leadership at Garibaldi is continuing to go from strength to strength.
Sixth form students have taken the lead on organising a plethora of activities for Red Nose Day, and this has involved delivering assemblies to all year groups. We have also had the pleasure of welcoming students from Newlands Primary school and Holly Primary school to experience some of the lessons at Garibaldi, thanks to the maths, science, art, music and geography departments for giving up your time to support with this. It has been fantastic to see some of our student supporting with the primary liaison work.
In addition, a working group of students have worked with myself to look at the Character words around school and identified where they think they should be placed. Their input has directly resulted in the positioning of the language around the school site.
We are also looking at reviewing the rewards process at Garibaldi. We look forward to inviting parents in to discuss our ideas in the near future, but as we formulate what this strategy may look like, 28 student volunteers are going to support us in this journey.
I am delighted to share that the first 13 year 7 students graduated with their Pledge Award on the 6th march. This was celebrated by a morning of games, hot chocolate and cupcakes with Mrs Moors and Mr Aldred.
This means that all 13 students have completed 8 independent tasks which have focused on developing their character education skillset. We are extremely proud of their achievements. Well done to:
Sophie Briggs, Olivia Ripley, Imogen Sherratt, Abi Wan, Isla Worthington, Frances Steel, Jess Osborne, Evie Clifton, Lexi Picton-Woolley, Ava Pritchard, Zack Spencer, Sonia Zuromskyte and Mbali Sibanda.
We look forward to the next celebration event where we are able to congratulate more students in their fantastic achievements.
It’s that time of the year again: WORLD BOOK DAY
To celebrate all things literary, staff dressed up as characters from their favourite books on Thursday 7th March. Preparations in the English department had been running at intense levels for weeks as English teachers (well, Ms Walker, mainly, with sterling support from the Art department) were planning their most ambitious costume extravaganza yet. Despite some fairly intense espionage and interrogation by the students, we have managed to keep the book that’s the topic of our joint costumes a secret. The only hint given: Ms Ratcliffe would love to bring in her dog, Peggy, to complete her costume???
We hope you enjoy the photos from the grand reveal. Well done to all involved.
We had a special delivery of 100 Easter eggs! These were handed out to those students in Years 7, 8 and 9 who achieved their Accelerated Reader point target this term.
Every student who participates in the Accelerated Reader Program (currently from Year 7 - 9) have a point target which is renewed every term. They achieve their target by reading a book and attempting the corresponding AR quiz. If they are successful they earn points towards their point target – simple!
Well done to all those students who earnt a chocolatey Easter treat.
It has been a busy term for sports competitions since the turn of the year!
Year 10
Our Year 10 boys team have progressed to semi final of the Town Cup Competition where we face a difficult game against local (and fellow Nova School) Meden Academy. Victory would secure a trip to the One Call Stadium and we wish the students well in their aims of making the final. The game is scheduled to be played on Thursday 7th March.
Year 9
Unfortunately our Year 9 boys team bowed out the competition in a tough quarter final game against Joseph Whittaker School. The team showed great determination and heart before eventually succumbing to a 5-1 defeat.
Year 7/8 Girls
Our Year 7/8 Girls Football Team continues to go from strength to strength and are currently doing the school proud in their debut competition, the English Schools FA 'New Teams' Cup. Round 1 brought a fantastic 5-0 victory against fellow Nova Trust school, Nottingham Free School. A second home draw matched us against Nottingham based Fernwood School, whose stubborn resistance was eventually broken in a 3-0 victory. A difficult away trip to Chesterfield based Tupton Hall stands between the girls and a round 4 fixture. We wish the girls all the best for the game and we are so proud of the attitude, skill and togetherness they are showing on and off the pitch!
Away from Football it is great to be able to celebrate the achievements of our students. Special mention in this instance to Evie Clifton in Year 7 who despite horrendous conditions (where students were happy to finish with both running shoes on their feet), ran brilliantly in the National Cross Country Finals to come home ranked 7th in the country overall for her age group. Well done Evie, your dedication and efforts have been recognised in your performance and we are really proud of your success.
Over the winter one of our students, Cameron Jackson has been paying to train for the MCC Nottinghamshire Cricket Foundation, which is the step just before county cricket level.
Recently, Cameron had the opportunity to take part in a trial to make it on to their A or B team, where he can train for free and participate in games, representing Nottinghamshire. During these games, there may be county scouts watching and if they make it through to the final he will have the chance to play at Lords.
We are delighted to share that Cameron made their A team following these trials and is over the moon to be given this opportunity to represent Nottinghamshire during his cricket matches. We are extremely proud of Cameron and cannot wait to follow his journey at this level.
Well done Cameron!
On Tuesday 23rd January the Year 7 and 8 girls played Nottingham Free School in the English Schools Cup. The girls came out on top with an outstanding performance with a 5-0 victory. The togetherness shown and the ability to support and encourage each other was second to none.
A second home draw matched us against Nottingham based Fernwood School, whose stubborn resistance was eventually broken in a 3-0 victory. A difficult away trip to Chesterfield based Tupton Hall stands between the girls and a round 4 fixture. We wish the girls all the best for the game and we are so proud of the attitude, skill and togetherness they are showing on and off the pitch!
Good luck girls!
If you have a concern about the safety or welfare of a student, please do make contact with the school.
You will be able to speak with any member of staff in school, your concerns may be referred onto the Designated Safeguarding Leads in school. Details of our Designated Safeguarding Leads are on the above poster which is available to students all over school.
Students can speak with any member of staff in school, including (but not limited to) their mentor, pastoral manager or teachers
For further information on support that is available both in and out of school, please refer to
We have lots of events happening over the recent weeks:-
Sixth Form Parents Evening 16/01/2024
Year 9 Parents Evening 21/02/2024
Year 10 Parents Evening 06/03/2024
It was fantastic to see so many parents and carers at these events, it is a great oppurtunity for parents/carers to speak directly to staff in each subject area and receive information and talk through progress to date and what is in place for the coming months. The events were hugely successful which made for busy and productive evenings as always. Though we appreciate that not all parents may have been able to make theses evening we would encourage you to get in touch if you have any questions or would like further information on your child’s progress or to discuss any concerns and thank you all for your continued support.
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Year 11 & 13 Information Evening - 17th April 2024
Year 7 Parents Evening - 24th April 2024
Year 8 Parents Evening - 8th May 2024
Parent Engagement Evening - Focus: Reading - 5th June 2024
The Garibaldi School
Train to teach with the Nottinghamshire Torch SCITT