Dear Parents, Carers, Guardians and Prospective Students
The choice of school at age 11 can be very daunting. It is difficult to compare different schools and to decide what would best suit your own child. Therefore, in addition to the information contained within the Prospectus, Ercall Wood prepares a range of literature to help you make an informed choice.
This is a school where people are valued as our greatest resource and their welfare is paramount. All students receive excellent pastoral care and the opportunities that they can take advantage of are outstanding; this is the beating heart of our school with students, in most cases, being taken from Year 7 to Year 11 by a single Form Tutor and a Head of Year who remains with them from Year 8 to Year 11.
We know that the move to secondary school can be exciting and stressful. We have an excellent transition programme that will hopefully address any fears and enthuse them. This includes a peer mentoring system for new students that has received national recognition.
Our dedication to welfare is reflected in our recent Healthy Schools accreditation. Rigorous standards must be met in 4 key areas; Personal, Social and Health Education, Emotional Health and Well Being, Healthy Eating and Physical Activity.
We want all students to be happy and enjoy school. We believe that these are the fundamental ingredients for effective learning. These values have ensured ever-increasing exam success. This year we became one of the most successful schools in the area with 79% of our students achieving 5+ A*-C in their GCSE’s.
As a Specialist Technology College we are committed to the provision of a technologically rich curriculum and as a Leading Edge school we take an active role in sharing good practice with other schools. There has been a huge amount of investment over the last ten years in technology provision. The underlying principle of the school is that all subject areas should be well equipped and be good places to learn in.
These principles have shaped plans for a new build for September 2013, plans for which are now well underway. We have already started investing in facilities for this future with the installation of a new Apple Macintosh computer room and one of the first ‘4D’ teaching and learning cinemas in any school in the country!
With excellent pastoral care and a track record of academic success, I am very proud of the school. It is a busy, purposeful institution that looks to the future whilst preserving traditional and diverse values that our community cherish.
I hope your child will want to join us, should you or they have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at the school. I look forward to the opportunity to work together to promote excellence through challenge and initiative.
Yours sincerely,
Chay Davis
Headteacher
