Cranbrook Education Campus, (CEC) part of our Trust, has been rated "Good" by Ofsted following an inspection in May. The all-through school received "Good" ratings in all areas evaluated by the school watchdog, including the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

Ofsted inspectors noted in their new report that “pupils are happy and safe; they know the school's ‘PERKS of being Crantastic’ values well, which include being kind and safe and that the school has a positive atmosphere and learning is rarely disturbed. 

Inspectors highlighted that pupils benefit from a range of clubs and activities, for instance, primary age pupils participate in the mini Dukes programme, which helps to prepare them for secondary school events such as the Exe Valley and Jurassic Coast challenges.  

The school’s ambitious curriculum was also acknowledged in the report, with inspectors noting that CEC also successfully promotes the importance of reading. Ofsted inspectors further commented on the school's relentless work to remove barriers to pupils participation and success.

Ofsted concluded that the school accurately identifies the needs of SEND pupils and that appropriate adaptations are made, which helps pupils to learn the curriculum and build their independence. 

How welcoming CEC is to pupils from families seeking asylum was also commended by the inspectors who said that their actions exemplify the school's vision to extend opportunity to its community. You can find out more about this work in the recent TES article here: https://www.tes.com/magazine/analysis/secondary/how-we-helped-settle-over-100-refugee-pupils

CEC’s careers programme was also acknowledged, with inspectors stating that pupils in the secondary phase benefit from an effective careers education programme; they have meaningful encounters with employers and receive impartial advice about next steps in their education. 

Other comments from Ofsted included: 

• Recently appointed anti-bullying ambassadors help to promote the school's culture of respecting and celebrating difference.
• Pupils have a strong voice in the school; through the pupil parliament, for example, they represent each other's views and make positive contributions to the school community. 
• The school provides an intelligently designed curriculum for pupils' personal development; the programme covers an appropriate range of topics such as online safety, mental health, and relationships.

To read the full report click here. 

Stephen Farmer, Head of Campus, at Cranbrook Education Campus said:

“I am so proud that CEC has been rated Good in all areas by Ofsted. This judgement is a testament to the hard work of all our dedicated staff, to the attitude of our pupils and the support of their families. We are a school entirely rooted in our community and we hope the opportunities we offer to our young people will transform, not just their lives but the local area.”

Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said:

“Congratulations to everyone at Cranbrook Education Campus. It’s clear how hard Mr Farmer, Ms Gandhi and the whole CEC team work and how much the pupils value their education. Everyone at the trust was particularly pleased to see the amazing work CEC have done to support families seeking asylum was recognised by Ofsted.”

Students at Ted Wragg schools across Devon have been celebrating Thank a Teacher Day this week (19^th June) by honouring their teachers.

Thank a Teacher Day is an annual day of celebration to acknowledge the amazing work that teachers do.  It’s an opportunity to reflect and appreciate the hard work of every single member of school staff.

Headteachers and colleagues from the Trust Executive sent out a video messages to all staff members to say thank you for their incredible efforts, teachers and co-professionals across schools received messages of thanks from students, families and colleagues via personalised postcards and via the online National Thank a Teacher Day portal.

At Isca Academy in Exeter they put on a special breakfast for all staff to celebrate the day and students also nominated a member of staff that they feel has gone above and beyond to help them.

At Marine Academy Primary in Plymouth, there was a whole school celebration assembly where the children had the opportunity to thank the teachers, certificates were also awarded to staff who had been recognised in the Pearson National Teaching Awards and the entire school found out they had received a Silver Award in the Primary School of the Year category. 

Over at Isca Academy in Exeter Ms Dean, the school’s Lead Academic Mentor was also being celebrated after being honoured with a Pearson National Teaching Award for being an Unsung Hero due to her excellence in Special Needs Education.

At Exwick Heights another tasty breakfast was put on for staff and many parents and children sent in postcards of gratitude, as did those at the Whipton Barton Federation. 

At Sidmouth College students even made personalised video messages thanking the teachers that have helped them throughout their school journey. 

Moria Marder OBE, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said:

“Few professions allow people more of a chance to shape the lives and futures of so many young people.  Teaching is a noble profession and it’s brilliant to shine a light on the hard work that is carried out in the classroom every day.

“I hope every teacher knows how vital the work they do is. Every time I visit one of our schools I am always touched by the determination and joy that our teachers bring to their roles, and I hope they feel they have been celebrated this Thank a Teacher Day.”

Today (20th June) is World Refugee Day, an event organised by The UN Refugee Agency to champion the rights of refugees to seek safety, build support for their economic and social inclusion, and advocate for solutions to their plight.

A big part of this is the role education can play in helping children not only have the chance to learn and succeed in their future but to feel safe and secure in a new environment – something which helps their parents settle too.

This is something that Cranbrook Education Campus (CEC), with support from the Ted Wragg Trust have been actively involved in over the last seven months working to support 104 families seeking asylum who were originally relocated to a hotel in East Devon. 

While we don’t claim to have all the answers, Stephen Farmer, Head of Campus at Cranbrook Education Campus, part of the Ted Wragg Trust explains some of the ways in which we have worked with these pupils and their families and where we have seen a positive impact.

1. An integrated hub

CEC has a community support hub called EX5 Alive that works alongside the school to help improve the quality of life for children, young people and families in Cranbrook and East Devon.

As such when families seeking asylum started arriving in the area, both the school and the hub leapt into action to provide them with integrated community support. 

For example, working with the hub and East Devon District Council (EDDC), we appointed an English as an Additional Language (EAL) Refugee Coordinator as a liaison for all pupils and their families seeking asylum. 

The role has given pupils a familiar adult to liaise with and provided them with someone they feel supports and listens to them.  

While not every school will have a community hub on site, what it shows is that having close connections with other agencies such as the local council, is vital to provide an integrated support approach, rather than operating in silos.

2. Uniform needs

It’s so important these children feel they are part of the school and the local community so we ordered and distributed uniforms on their behalf. 

We made sure that all pupils had all the uniform and equipment they needed before starting school.  

3. Teacher training and translation

We have also trained 28 teachers so far on the impact of having an EAL friendly classroom and also given them support on how best to help EAL learners.  

Furthermore, translating documents for pupils and their families has also been important, we have translated over 1000 documents, including classroom materials and documents for parents evenings.

4. Health support

Ensuring refugee children get the health and wellbeing support they need is also key. 

From sexual health matters to vaccines, we have supported pupils with whatever they need.  We have even arranged for pupils to be transported to and from medical appointments with a translator. 

5. A welcoming home

Of course settling refugees from diverse communities into a rural setting can generate particular challenges and we made efforts to ensure that pupils’ religious requirements were supported by providing a place for prayer. 

We also worked with local places of worship who provide donations for the refugee families so they can build connections in the local community.

We also run cooking activities after school giving our pupils seeking asylum the opportunity to cook meals of their choosing with the ingredients provided. 

We have also worked to welcome them to Britain too and introduce them to our culture, such a school trip to the pantomime and taking part in events like sports days. 

You can find further information on this as reported by TES Magazine here.

Marine Academy Primary in Plymouth, part of the Ted Wragg Trust, has launched its new Community Bike Hub.

Ryan Evans, Sustrans Bike It Plus officer at Plymouth City Council was in attendance for the launch on the 7^th of June along with representatives from the cycling charity Sustrans.  

Local families will now be able to borrow adult and children’s bikes and accessories from the school on a weekly rolling basis for free.  The bikes could be used to make the journey to and from school or for leisure trips in the evenings or at weekends. 

Staff at Marine Academy Primary hope that the scheme will allow children and their families to enhance their active travel opportunities and remove any challenges regarding the financial costs of cycling equipment. 

The St Budeaux school aims to provide pupils with a wide range of extracurricular activities in order to expand their cultural capital and understanding of the world.  Marine Academy Primary will continue to consider how they can help to provide experiences for children that they might not have access to otherwise. 

According to a study that followed 8,000 school children over a period of years, pupils who walk or cycle to school may have a healthier body weight than those who arrive by car. Sustrans have also stated that a 20-minute bike ride to work could use the same amount of calories as a cappuccino, a bar of chocolate or a 175ml glass of wine.

Alex Druce, Quality of Education Leader and Trust Lead for Primary Curriculum at Marine Academy Primary said:

“Everyone at Marine Academy Primary is really excited about the Community Bike Hub Scheme and its potential to strengthen our relationships with the community.  I hope that providing local families with access to any cycling equipment they might need will help to not only improve physical fitness but also mental wellbeing by getting them outside and travelling actively.”

Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Multi-Academy Trust said:

“We are lucky to live in a beautiful part of the country with the moors and coast on our doorstep, but it’s not always easily accessible.  I want to say a huge congratulations to Marine Academy Primary for organising this valuable resource for the community.  I hope that people will take advantage of the scheme and get pedalling!”

Year 9 students Zack, Daisy and Maisie from West Exe School, part of the Ted Wragg Trust, cooked a hot homemade meal for the homeless clients of St Petrocks this month.

Originating as a community project providing humanitarian response to rough sleepers in Exeter, St Petrocks officially opened its doors in December 1994, having been given permission by the Central Parish of Exeter to adapt two thirds of St Petrock’s church for use as a homeless centre.  Over 600 people every year face homelessness and multiple disadvantages in Exeter and the surrounding areas.  

Many of those who use St Petrock’s are people often viewed as being on the fringes of, or outside of, society. They include rough sleepers, those being supported in accommodation subsequent to homelessness, those facing imminent homelessness, those released from prison and those discharged from hospital, mental health facilities/specialist accommodation.  

The students have been mentored by the paralympian David Hill as part of his work with the Dame Kelly's Trust. The four Year 9s are all taking part in AQA’s Unlocking Potential Programme which is run by the trust and donating the meals was part of the project’s social action component. 

The Dame Kelly Holmes Trust was set up in 2008 by double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes. It supports retired athletes as they transition from sport and uses their skills and experience to transform the lives of young people through mentoring programmes. The AQA Unlocking Potential programme, run jointly with the Trust aims to bring out the best in young people so that they can achieve their goals.  

The mentors know what it takes to overcome adversity and have the will to succeed not only in sport, but in life too.  Paralympic swimmer and triathlete David Hill grew up by the sea where he learnt to swim at a young age. Despite being born with no left forearm; David was earning swimming badges by the age of 3! His talent was nurtured until David qualified for the 2004 Paralympic Games. He was world silver medalist in swimming in 2006 and took bronze medals in 2009 in both European and World competitions.

The group from West Exe also went along to visit St Petrocks, along with their mentor David, and they were given a guided tour and told more about the charity’s work. Zack, Daisy and Maisie are now partnering with St Petrocks for a ‘sock collection’, they are asking their fellow students to consider donating a new pair of socks for a rough sleeper. The ‘give a pair to show you care’ drive is another part of the students’ social action work to impact the local community. 

 Julie Fossey, Headteacher at West Exe School said:

“I am so proud of Zack, Daisy, and Maisie for the work they have done on their social action project. They all really wanted to do something that would benefit the local community and I know they took a lot away from their visit to St Petrocks. I hope the sock drive will be a big success!”

Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said:

“Being part of and contributing to the local community is a key part of the Ted Wragg ethos and I am delighted that these West Exe students have given their time to help those less fortunate than themselves. I also want to say a big thank you to the staff and volunteers at St Petrocks, not only for everything they do to help the homeless, but for taking the time to show these students around and help them learn more about social issues.”

Students and staff at Lipson Co-operative Academy, part of the Ted Wragg Trust, are celebrating as two pupils who left the school last summer have secured a place on the Stad Amsterdam sailing from Brisbane to Bali in August this year on the Clipper World Tour.

Lucy Lewis and Abi Thorn will be taking part in the all expenses paid trip made possible by the charity Seas Your Future. The school co-ordinated their applications to take part in the trip and they had to supply a personal statement about why they wanted to go on the voyage, an explanation of a challenge or difficulty they have faced, and how they overcame it, a CV and references.  

Not only were Lucy and Abi successful, but a current Year 13 student, Eli Butler will also be offered a place on another voyage on the Pelican of London this summer.

Seas Your Future (SYF) is the operating name of Adventure Under Sail (AUS), which was formed in 2008 initially as a small charity managing funds to provide bursaries for young people undertaking sail related activities, and in 2012 took ownership of the tall ship Pelican of London. 

Its principle strategic aims are to educate young people, through the provision of sailing or sailing related activities and other training and so as to develop their physical, mental, and social capabilities so that they may grow to full maturity as individuals and members of society and their conditions of life may be improved.

The charity operates the ships primarily as sail training vessels for young people, in the northern hemisphere during the spring and summer months mainly around the UK and Europe, and during the autumn and winter months on a six-month transatlantic educational voyage. 

They provide sailing experience and an alternative form of learning for all young people, encouraging equality, inclusiveness, and passion, through adventure and challenge. Their programmes promote personal growth through Sail Training, Maritime Career options and offer hands-on Ocean Science and environmental conservation activities. 

Mr Martin Brook, Headteacher at Lipson Co-operative Academy said:

“I am over the moon for the young people that will get to take part in these life changing voyages.  I wish them all the very best for their adventure and am just delighted that Lipson could help them to succeed when it came to co-ordinating and supporting them with the application process.” 

Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said:

“Everyone at the trust is so excited for Lucy, Abi and Eli and so proud that staff at Lipson helped them to secure these fantastic opportunities.  Not only does Plymouth have a rich marine heritage, but also a lot of the local jobs of the future will be in this sector, so not only do these young people get a once in a lifetime trip, they also get to learn valuable skills that could help them in the future.”