Staff and students at Bristol Metropolitan Academy will be turning a much-loved Christmas tradition on its head this year in aid of a charity which supports the city’s homeless.

The Fishponds school will be running a reverse advent calendar this December in aid of the Julian Trust.

How the reverse advent calendar works is a very simple idea. The calendar has the same 24 gift days as a traditional advent calendar, but instead of opening a window and receiving a gift or chocolate, you donate whatever is pictured in that window. This will include items such as clothing, personal hygiene items, food and sleeping bags. At the end of the calendar, all collated items will be delivered to the Julian Trust.

The Julian Trust has been welcoming and accommodating homeless people and rough sleepers in Bristol since 1986. The independent charity, which is entirely run by volunteers, offers people in need a hot meal, a bed for the night and a warm welcome.

Cameron Shaw, Principal of Bristol Metropolitan Academy, said: “We are pleased to be able to support this local charity that supports some of the most vulnerable in our community when they need it. The idea was brought to my attention by Donna Whitcliffe, one of our Heads of Houses, who felt that our students, staff and families would really like to support a charity that operates so close to home.”

CLF academies feature in the December edition of the Voice Newspapers, including a front page! Scroll down the page to find out more.

Bristol’s Begbrook Primary Academy has been rated as ‘Good’ in all areas by education watchdog Ofsted after impressing inspectors with its ‘rich’ curriculum and ‘inclusive’ ethos.

The judgment follows a detailed analysis by four Ofsted inspectors, who spoke with staff and parents, observed lessons and carried out a ‘deep dive’ into a number of subject areas.

One very talented student from King’s Oak Academy in Kingswood spent the day at the Future Lionesses Goalkeeper Training Day.

Pupils at Frome Vale Academy (FVA) can now spend Penguin Pounds – school money designed by Year 5 teacher Ross Fossard and featuring the academy mascot.

The smash hit West End musical and global phenomenon School of Rock was performed by an extremely talented cast of students at Bristol Metropolitan Academy for their annual production.

There was such huge demand for this blockbuster show that all tickets for the six performances were snapped up in less than a week.

A rapturous reception from these sell-out audiences was fitting reward for more than 100 students from Years 7-11 who spent 10 months of preparation and rehearsals fine-tuning their talents.

School of Rock tells the story of the overly-enthusiastic guitarist Dewey Finn (played by Year 10 students Ben Beighton-Horne and Luke Elliott) who gets thrown out of his bar band and finds himself in desperate need of work. Posing as a substitute music teacher at an elite private elementary school, he exposes his students to the hard rock gods he idolises and emulates – much to the consternation of the uptight principal. As he gets his privileged and precocious charges in touch with their inner rock ‘n’ roll animals, he imagines redemption at a local battle of the bands.

This production involved an enormous amount of cross curricular support from art and design & technology teams who constructed the set and props. Other members of staff from across the Fishponds academy have supported the hectic schedule of rehearsals.

Matinee performances were also staged for Cabot Learning Federation primary and secondary schools.

MET Productions Director & Programme Leader of Drama, Meesh Vince, said: “This show has created a huge sense of belonging and camaraderie between staff and students. Thank you to Dave Vince, DT teacher and the Artistic Director who created and designed a fantastic stage set, props and technical elements for the show. Thank you to Lucie Morrish, drama teacher, who has been the vocal coach and choreographer. I would also like to thank everyone else involved for making this amazing show possible, thank you.”

A Taunton secondary school has embarked upon an important new chapter in its long history by becoming an academy, joining a successful schools trust – and unveiling a brand new name.

The former Heathfield Community School has today (Friday) achieved academy status and become Monkton Wood Academy – a name chosen after consultation between school leaders, staff and students, and designed to reflect its location and semi-rural environment.

Additionally, Monkton Wood has today formally joined the Cabot Learning Federation, a trust with a strong track record of delivering improvements to schools throughout the South West.

The impact of close collaboration with the CLF has already been seen in a recent Ofsted monitoring visit, which heralded an ‘ambitious vision and clear plan’ for school development which has already led to improved student attendance and behaviour.

Hannah Jones, Principal at Monkton Wood Academy, said:

“We are immensely proud of our school and the positive way it has impacted lives throughout this community over many years. It is now time to begin a new phase in the school’s journey, and we are hugely excited about our next chapter.

“Our new name has been chosen after consultation throughout our school community. We feel it continues to respect our history, and reflects our location and environment. I am pleased the change has been so warmly welcomed.

“Looking ahead, we are delighted to be working within the Cabot Learning Federation family of schools as we continue to build upon the improvements noted by Ofsted during their recent visit.”

Picture caption: Monkton Wood Academy Principal Hannah Jones unveils the school’s new name and logo with students (from left) Maisie Durman, Noah Day-Hitchen, Bethel Chitambira and Aretha Agere.