I hope everyone is having a good week. 

 

It has been extremely busy here at The Dery with our annual Experience Week and I thought I would give you a quick summary of what has been going on ...

 

Our Year 7 students have been involved in Bury’s relaunch of the Twinning Programme. This was first delivered by The Derby Grammar School French teachers in the 1960s. We have secured a place on the planning committee and are developing the International Changemakers European strand, which will see our students participate in an Expressive Arts tour of Angouleme and host visiting students from Angouleme back in Bury.

 

The Year 8 experience was led by the Maths, Science and Technologies Faculties with support from our highly successful Year 10 STEM Racing Team, who have captured the attention of ARAMCO, the world’s most valuable integrated energy and chemicals company – you may have seen their name on the billboards at The World Cup. Following a successful marketing campaign, the team secured a whole-year-group experience for their Year 8 peers. The Silverstone Museum visited free of charge to deliver workshops throughout the day. The shared prize for STEM leaders and Year 8 competition winners is an all-expenses-paid trip to Silverstone to watch a Formula One race from the control room.

 

Year 9’s experience centred around our Duke of Edinburgh’s Bronze Award, including the expedition and a programme of volunteering activities.

 

The primary focus of the week for our Key Stage 3 students has been to deliver engaging career centred experiences that equip students with transferable skills for life such as leadership development. Students have had multiple opportunities to meet and interview inspirational community role models.

 

Students in Year 7, 8 and 9 have also participated in statutory PSHE sessions covering financial literacy in Year 7 and Year 8 and statutory content on navigating online and societal harms, extremism and incel culture in Year 9.

 

Meanwhile, our Year 10 student have undertaken a four-day work experience placement, a compulsory element of the curriculum designed to offer valuable insight into the world of work, develop practical skills and explore potential careers pathways.

What a week – inspiring and making a difference!