Principal’s update – 28/04/2020
Dear parents and carers,
As you will have heard, the Department for Education has recently announced that they will make available IT hardware for vulnerable children, alongside disadvantaged Y10 students with limited access to a digital device, during the period of school closure. We welcome this move, and I know many parents will too.
We do not yet have details about the project, but we do know that the Local Authority and the Dartmoor Multi-Academy Trust will be given a fixed number of laptops and tablets to loan to parents to support children who are designated as qualifying for this scheme. We know that there will not be a device for everyone, so some decisions will need to be made about their allocation. Also, it is intended that the laptop remains the property of the LA or Trust, and therefore there will be limitations placed on how they are used. When we have more details, such as the date these will actually be available, I will be sure to provide an update.
The school will be closed on the May bank holidays, but we will remain open throughout the half term break for children of key workers and vulnerable students. If you need to send your child to school in half term, and they qualify for a place, please can you let us know by 0800 on Monday 25th May so that staffing can be arranged.
Thank you all for your patience with us during this period of partial closure. Please remember that we are here to help you, so please feel confident that you can contact us at any time and we will endeavour to support as much as we can.
Information: increased fraud risk during coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
Periods of instability, such as during the coronavirus pandemic, bring an increased risk of fraud. Fraudsters will actively exploit these difficult times and will target vulnerable areas for financial gain.
We have been informed some learners and parents have received a letter from ESFA asking for personal learner bank details in relation to the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund. We never ask for personal bank account details. This is a fraudulent letter – please do not respond.
Update from the Principal – 14th April 2020
Dear Parents and Carers.
Thank you for your patience over the last few weeks. We have finally received more specific information from the exam boards about grade allocation for vocational qualifications. The information is pretty much the same as it was for GCSEs and A Levels. However, grading will be more individualised as each course is different, made up of multiple units and assessed in different ways.
Teachers will be asked to draw on a range of evidence from the past 2 or 3 years and make a judgement about the grade each learner would most likely have achieved had they been able to complete their assessments in summer 2020.
Ofqual, the exams regulator, has made it clear that teachers will not be permitted to discuss with you the grading process or the grades we submit to the exam boards. This is because our judgements will be subject to some kind of moderation process. However, we can tell you that the final grades will be ‘calculated grades’, a mix of completed work and partially completed units and your process across the course.
Please find the link below if you wish to read a more detailed account
https://www.gov.uk/
Sarah Jones
Principal.
