LATEST NEWS...cont
Building a New Future - click here for our dedicated BSF website.
Consultation Meetings;
- Learning - The Skills We Need | Tuesday 18th May 10:30-12:00 Meeting Room 1 or 18:00-19:30 Music Performance Room (MPR)
- Learning - The Way We Learn | Tuesday 8th June 10:30-12:00 Meeting Room 1 or 18:00-19:30 Learning Resource Centre (LRC)
- Open Meeting | Tuesday 22nd June 19:00 Music Performance Room (MPR) . All Welcome.
Many of you will have seen the press release in the Abingdon Herald 10thMarch, announcing that funding has now been agreed by the government for four schools in Oxfordshire to be part of the “Building Schools for the Future” scheme. As you know Larkmead School is one of the four schools and will receive its share of £62million.
The school had anticipated this announcement and had been preparing for inclusion in the programme. The school will now consult widely as it prepares its vision for the future.
Building a New Future (cont.)
The vision will include the following: an understanding of our learning goals; a clear education brief and an awareness of what we would want new buildings to do in order that they allowed for the vision to become a reality. This is a tricky point. We do not design the buildings and by we I do mean the whole school community, rather we design the type of learning we want to take place and we draw up specifications which then go out to tender and different firms of architects and builders interpret our specifications and put forward designs that seek to meet our vision.
There are a few very important issues to consider even at this early stage:
Consultation
The consultation period will be very short, probably three months. We need to consult widely and in depth. This means that all members of the school community and beyond will have an opportunity to take part. This could take various forms: open meetings; working group and an on-line forum. It is unlikely that any of us will have this opportunity again in our lifetime here at Larkmead. I often wander through towns and cities wondering about the designers who erected civic buildings and we will have the opportunity to influence a lasting civic building to serve our community.
Timescale
It is likely to take five years from now until the project is completed and built. The end product is likely to be a mixture of new build and refurbishment. Building is unlikely to start for another three years. Until that time the school will continue as it is and will continue to make short term improvements to the school site.
Building Process
If there is a substantial amount of re-building this is likely to take two years to complete. This does mean that we will have to plan carefully for this so that it does not in any way interrupt the learning of our students. The BSF process has been going for six years and there is considerable experience of how to manage the transition from old buildings to new without disrupting the life of the school. We will manage this well and we will use the transition positively with students and staff. It would be possible for us to use the building process as a learning opportunity for students; sharing the expertise of the various professionals and finding links between the learning in school and its application in the real world. This too is a very exciting opportunity.
For now it is a very important time for the school. We have done a re-branding exercise with students and we will consider the uniform all tied in to the prospect of the type of school we all want to see serving our children and the community. It doesn’t get much better than this but it will only happen with your full support and a lot of hard work.
KS4 Coursework - Timetables, Homework & Revision Guides now available from the Key Stage 4 section, click here.
School Uniform
I would like to congratulate the vast majority of Larkmead students for their very smart appearance, and I would also like to thank parents/carers for their continued support of our uniform policy. Please can I remind everyone that the only permitted piercings are one small pair of ear studs worn in the ear lobes (these must be removed for P.E. and Dance to comply with Health and Safety regulations). Any other piercings are not permitted. With effect from Monday 22 February plastic retainers will no longer be permitted to be worn. Students should therefore plan to have a new piercing only at the start of the summer holidays when it will have time to heal before the start of term.
Larkrise (our PTA) events, click here
To see the video about our media suite created by local company RM, click here
Amazing software & hardware deals for students - Upto 90% off Microsoft software RRP, click here for more details
