Dear Parent/Carer

Welcome to Pleckgate High School

Congratulations! Your child has been successful in securing a place at Pleckgate High School for September 2016. As you may know, the school recently converted to Academy status as part of the Education Partnership Trust and we are now looking to build on the recent success of the school and use our Academy status to bring about continued improvements to the education of the young people within our Pleckgate community. I am proud to be the new Headteacher, ready to lead the school on a journey towards outstanding.

Since I joined the school in January 2016, I have found the school to be completely focused on ensuring the best outcomes for all students. Our school’s GCSE results last year were amongst the highest in the borough and placed us as the fifth highest performing school in the country, compared to schools with similar prior attainment.

We are very proud of our achievements: our examination success, our extra-curricular programme, our charity work and our community involvement. We are committed to the pursuit of outstanding teaching and learning, alongside the highest possible academic, personal and moral standards for all students. This commitment is built upon a shared belief in hard work, self-reflection and a culture of respect and support for others.

I would like to invite you and your child to a welcome event on Wednesday 23^rd March from 5:00pm until 6:00pm when you can take part in exciting activities and experience our outstanding facilities. This is also an opportunity for parents to meet with staff and senior leaders and learn more about our school.

Please could you confirm your attendance at the welcome event by calling the school on 01254 249134 or sending an email to admissions2016@pleckgate.com

I look forward to meeting you.

Yours sincerely

Mark Cocker

Headteacher

Pleckgate celebrated their World Book Day with an inspirational visit from author Sufiya Ahmed.

Sufiya achieved her dream of becoming an author while working at the Houses of Parliament and she talked to the Pleckgate Year seven and eight students about the obstacles she had to overcome to fulfil her ambitions.

Sufiya wrote ‘Secrets of a Henna Girl’ about a British girl who is forced into a marriage and the struggles she must overcome to regain control of her life. It is for young adults aged 12 and above.

“It’s a story of hope and courage and about one British girl who stood up for herself,” said Sufiya, who was inspired to write the book after seeing activists against forced marriages when she worked in Parliament.

Sufiya gave a talk about her life and the book and the pupils at Pleckgate were inspired.

Year Seven student Rimla Minhaj said: “Sufiya talked about what she had to go through to write her book and the struggles she faced. I can’t wait to read it.”

Sifa Turi said: “We got to act parts from the book which I really enjoyed and then we had to design a bookmark. I learnt a lot from Sufiya’s talk.”

It was Sufiya’s second visit to Pleckgate from her home in London.

“I like coming here, I last came in 2013 and was glad to be invited back again,” she said. “I was impressed with the Year Sevens, they asked questions with confidence, which showed they had listened and understood what I was telling them.

“I have achieved my dream, and was lucky to have another career as well in the Houses of Parliament, and hopefully I have inspired the students to chase their dreams.”

Pleckgate High School’s able and talented set learnt about life at university with a visit from Cambridge students.

The five university students spent a morning with Year 11, 10 and nine pupils hosting workshops on university life, medicine and the arts.

The aim was to help the Pleckgate students gain more knowledge about possible subjects they can study and gain information about going to university.

Year 10 Learning Manager Nicola Hartley said: “We want the students in Year 11s and our able and talented students in Years 10 and nine to know more about university choices and be inspired.

“The Cambridge students did also talk about options such as apprenticeships and the advantages of both university and apprenticeships in jobs like engineering.

“It gives our students and insight into life at university and can help to guide them in which direction to take.”

Michael Ha is a fifth year medical student at Cambridge, and also a ballroom dancer for England. He said: “I love talking to students about Cambridge, I have been doing it for five years, but it is about university life in general and my experience in medicine. I like to show just what you can do and how far you can go in subjects. It’s the first time I have been to Pleckgate and some of the questions I asked were at sixth form level but they knew the answers.”

Pleckgate student Aatika Hayat said: “I want to go to Cambridge to study medicine so I found the workshop inspirational. Michael showed us that while you study hard, you can also have fun in learning.”

Fellow student Zahra Bachu said: “I want to be an optician so it was a perfect talk listening to Michael as he has concentrated on eyes in his study of medicine.”

Muzaffor Bandarkar added: “I want to be an engineer. I always wanted to go to university and this has confirmed it’s the right course for me.”

They can certainly cook up a treat at Pleckgate High School – as the catering staff’s Gold Award shows.

The chefs at Pleckgate were presented with the top award by Recipe 4 Health which is awarded to businesses which meet the requirements for food hygiene and trading standards legislation, offer healthy options and are committed to being socially responsible.

The Pleckgate staff, led by Catering Manager Sue Barton, were presented with their award at Blackburn with Darwen Council with other councils across Lancashire recognising this prestigious award.

Sue said: “We were assessed over a day, where our menus were looked at, the catering area was examined and I had to fill in various forms.

“It’s an honour for the school to get this award. We serve everything from Halal to vegetarian food and we always have a set meal with vegetables or salad and fruit.

“It’s important to serve healthy and nutritious food and this award is great recognition for us and Pleckgate.”

Year Sixes got to make couscous, increase their science knowledge and put their sporting talents to the test at a ‘Welcome Evening’ at Pleckgate High School.

The school auditorium was full to capacity with families who had come to the school where head teacher Mark Cocker gave a speech to parents about the benefits of Pleckgate while pupils sampled the subjects on offer.

“We have a superb school here with excellent facilities and we celebrated our best ever GCSE results last year,” said Mr Cocker.

“We pride ourselves on doing the best for each individual student and we want students and parents to come in and see how great our school is for themselves.

“We have excellent links with the community, modern facilities and superb staff who got that extra mile for students.”

In the science labs, which are open planned onto a winter garden, students got to handle ‘skulls’, carry out various tests with Bunsen burners and handle flames – all in safety of course.

There was English and maths lessons while, in the sports hall, it was a game of ‘bench ball’ and in Food Technology, pupils tried their hand at making Couscous.

“It was a positive evening and we look forward to welcoming the students here next year for what we are sure will be an inspirational five years,” added Mr Cocker.

A group of Pleckgate students enjoyed a goal-den night out as they cheered Manchester City into the last eight of the Champions League.

Despite City drawing 0-0 with Dynamo Kiev, Manuel Pellegrini’s team won 3-1 on aggregate and the Pleckgate students revelled in their trip to the Etihad Stadium, organised by the school.

Safwaan Loonat wrote a piece about seeing City’s stars close up, saying: “We got to our seats and the players were training right in front of my shocked face.

“As everyone was chanting ‘Head and Shoulders’ for Joe Hart, the Pleckgate students joined in.”

Safwaan captured the excitement of the match as City hit the post – ‘this made me leap out of my seat’ – and he explained the ‘panic’ he felt in the final minutes.

He concluded: “I thought it was a very good experience and a very good atmosphere. I also have to thank the teachers who took us as they put a lot of effort in.”

Uzair Noray was the Pleckgate sports reporter for the day and he wrote a match report about the game.

“It wasn’t a thriller but it was a job well done,” was his conclusion on City’s show.

Other students were thrilled at the chance to see a Champions League clash first hand.

Ubaid Makba said: “It was a pleasure to go and I hope I have the chance of going again,” while Muneeb Makba added: “This was an amazing experience.”

A new approach to e-safety for Pleckgate as we join a nationwide peer education programme.

Pupils from Year 8 and 9 in our school are set to become Digital Leaders after joining an innovative new internet safety programme from UK charity, Childnet International.

Launching in September 2015, the Childnet Digital Leaders Programme aims to empower young people to champion digital citizenship and digital creativity within their schools and to educate their peers, parents and teachers about staying safe online.

By signing up to the programme we have joined an exciting online community, where students access training and support from Childnet’s expert team, record achievements, and collaborate and share inspiration with schools across the UK. Supported by Facebook and the European Union, the programme gives young people opportunities to engage with leading technology companies and have a say in creating a better internet for the future.

The Digital Leaders Co-ordinator Mrs Dean says:

We have signed up to the programme to put our pupils at the heart of our school’s approach to e-safety.  We know this is important and Childnet have given us an opportunity to try something new.

Childnet’s new programme will help us to strengthen our e-safety provision for the future by giving the Digital Leaders the responsibility for teaching other students, parents and staff how to stay safe using technology.

Ramadan at Pleckgate

Ramadan falls within the exam season in 2016 and will do so for the next few years. This year the middle of Ramadan will coincide with the summer solstice. The combination of long days and exams will put extra pressure on many of our pupils. Ramadan is a time of self –reflection, increased religious devotion and self- control. We at Pleckgate would like to make this time as safe and productive as possible for our pupils who choose to fast.

Fasting as a student

A pre-dawn meal (suhur) is absolutely essential for a student as this will replace breakfast during the month of Ramadan. This pre-dawn meal should be wholesome and filling in order to sustain energy for many hours. It is important to include slowly digested foods. Complex carbohydrates are foods that will help release energy slowly during fasting and are found in grains and seeds like barley, wheat, oats, cereals, semolina, beans, lentils, wholemeal flour and basmati rice. Fibre-rich foods are also digested slowly; these include bran, whole wheat, grains and seeds, potatoes with the skin left on, all types of bread and breakfast cereals, vegetables such as green beans and fruit such as apricots, prunes or figs.

The meal which breaks the day’s fast (Iftar).

This meal could include dates following the Prophetic traditions. Try to eat a healthy balanced diet, enjoying some protein from meat/fish or lentils and some vegetables. Try to eat as you would normally and remember to eat only a moderate amount, especially of fat and sugar. There will be ample time between iftar and suhur to eat and drink. Take extra special care to drink plenty of water during this time. It is good to sip small amounts whilst praying, doing revision, reading and other activities. This will keep you strong for the long fasting hours and will help prevent dehydration and headaches.

Avoid beverages containing caffeine such as tea, coffee and cola. Reduce the quantity consumed before Ramadan to prevent headache, irritability and mood swings.

Taraweeh (night prayer) is the prayer performed during the month of Ramadan. It is advisable to perform 8 units of prayer (rakaahs) at your nearest mosque to save time to help gain enough rest/sleep.

Abstain from doing too much physical activity such as extra sports, running for the bus, and generally rushing. Take the opportunity to rest when you can and avoid the dehydrating effects of sitting in hot sunshine.

Try to plan your day ahead. Check the examination timetable carefully on the night before an examination. Prepare your clothes, schoolbooks, pens and so on in advance to avoid rushing around in the morning.

If your health is put at risk due to the fast, i.e. dehydration or injury, you can break your fast as your health is more important. Islam teaches that Allah has given permission in the Qur’an to break the fast in these circumstances. Islam does not require you to harm yourself in fulfilling the fast. If a fast is broken, the days will need to be made up by fasting at a later date when your health is better.

It is really important that if you have a medical condition, especially one that requires regular medication that you see your GP before Ramadan begins to discuss treatment options that do not interfere with your fast. You can also talk to your Imam.

A consultation with your GP or community pharmacist before Ramadan starts should provide an opportunity for you to discuss your options such as using inhalers, taking tablets or receiving injections that will allow you to control your medical condition whilst completing a fast safely.

Advice for parents and carers

• Ensure that your child is eating healthily and balance the food from all the major food groups
• Ensure that your child is waking in time to have suhur (the meal before fasting begins) every day
• Ensure that your child is well hydrated between iftar and suhur
• Ensure that children who are exempt from fasting do not fast (under the age of puberty and/or severely unwell)
• Encourage children to prepare school books, clothes and so on the night before so there is not rush in the morning.
• Help your child to organise a timetable so that they can manage revision and school work with fasting and prayer.
• Ensure that your child is taking any medication prescribed by their doctor. With the permission of the doctor, some medication, such as hayfever tablets might be taken during non-fasting hours. Consider reducing visits to and from family and relatives during Ramadan when that coincides with school study/exam times
• Try to encourage children to resume their studies if they become lethargic
• Fasting for children under the age of seven or eight is not advisable. It is a good idea to make young children aware of what fasting involves.

What we will do as a school

• At Pleckgate we want to ensure that all students feel they are able to practice their faith with the support of the school community.
• Lunch times will be reduced and fasting pupils will have access to supervised quiet spaces to rest.
• Revision lessons will take place in cooler classrooms during hot weather where possible.
• Any pupils not fasting will be provided with a space to eat where they feel comfortable.
• We will consider granting some exemptions from PE to children who are fasting.
• We have considered the possible impact that fasting and late night prayers during Ramadan may have on some of our pupils when setting dates for other activities, such as sports days and trips.
• A prayer room is available to all pupils and will continue to be available during Ramadan.

We would like to wish all the Muslims within our Pleckgate community a very peaceful and happy Ramadan.

Aadil Seedat is a student used to making tough decisions – he has to as he aspires to be a Premier League referee.

Pleckgate pupil Aadil, 15, is a referee in the East Lancashire Junior League and is following in the footsteps of his dad and brother who are also men in the middle.

“My dad Mohammed is a Level Five referee and recently won the best referee award in the East Lancs Junior League.

“My older brother Irfan is also a referee so it does run in the family.”

Aadil is a Level Five referee like his dad but, due to his age, he can only officiate at Under 14 games. He wants to go all the way to Level One which would be a top flight professional ref.

“I referee on Saturdays and Sundays and I have had to send someone off for a two-footed tackle and also give tough decisions like penalties,” said Aadil.

“I really enjoy it, you do have to take some stick at times but you learn to deal with it. You have to be a strong character.

“You never know when you are going to be assessed so you always have to be at your best and hopefully I can keep moving upwards.”

If he doesn’t make it as a referee Aadil has plenty to fall back on as he wants to take biology, psychology, physics and maths A-Levels and study optometry at university.

Pleckgate’s Deputy Head Girl Kayla Cookson is a true sports all-rounder – playing, coaching and studying a range of sports.

Kayla, 15, is now in Year 11 but from Year Seven she has played in the school’s netball, rounders and athletics teams – and did take part in football for a few years but had to give it up as she was so busy.

She won her school’s sports award in Year Seven and Year 10 and was also third in Lancashire Schools Athletics competition over 100m. She has also taken part in cross country for Pleckgate.

Her big love out of school is martial arts and she has been a member of Sokudo club in Blackburn since she was nine-years-old where she carries out a range of martial arts such as kick boxing and ju-jitsu.

In martial arts, she achieved her black belt in 2014 and now she will try for her Dans which are considered the master rankings in martial arts.

Kayla is also a yellow belt at kick-jitsu and a green belt in kick boxing and has recently taken up Thai Boxing at Shin Gi Ruh Thai Boxing Club in Blackburn and has just started competing for them in various events.

“I had my first bout in Manchester,” said Kayla. “I was really nervous. It was three one minute rounds but it was stopped in the first round so I won.”

In martial arts, Kayla has also risen to the rank of assistant coach and she goes into Westholme School twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays, and coaches the infants and seniors.

Her job is to help to form a 12-week lesson plan and deliver it with a coach.

“I also have to make sure the students in my care don’t misbehave or get upset so it is a responsible job,” she said.

As well as her sports, Kayla is the Deputy Head Girl at Pleckgate and has also won her bronze award for the Duke of Edinburgh.

She does want to use her PE in the future and wants to take A Level sport at college alongside psychology, chemistry and biology and study sports biomedicine at university.

Pleckgate High School has been hailed as a ‘Beacon of success’ and has won praise for their ‘good level of attainment for all pupils.’

The Institute for Public Policy Research recently completed a research project entitled “Northern Schools: Putting education at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse”.

A major theme of this project was the ‘gap’ between outcomes for disadvantaged pupils and others in the north of England.

An alternative league table of northern secondary schools was published in the research, using a number of factors from the Department for Education data – and Pleckgate came out on top in the Blackburn with Darwen area.

Schools included in the table were found to have a small gap between academic outcomes at GCSE for students from deprived and other backgrounds and a good level of academic attainment for all pupils.

Pleckgate are categorised as having 37 per cent of their pupils as disadvantaged with 53 per cent of these reaching five ‘good’ GCSE grades (A*-C).

The percentage of non disadvantaged pupils achieving ‘good’ GCSE grades was 61 per cent showing that Pleckgate provide a strong all-round education for all their students.

Head teacher Mr Cocker said; “It is fantastic to once again see Pleckgate High School recognised for its academic excellence.

“This year we have already celebrated being ranked fifth nationally, compared to other similar schools for our 2015 GCSE results.

“At Pleckgate we believe in an outstanding education for every student, no matter what their background.

“To be recognised as a ‘Beacon of success’ is further validation that all students who attend Pleckgate High School are given the best opportunities to excel academically.”

Pleckgate High School have appointed their Head Boy and Girl for the next school year.

Abbaas Shakil is the new Head Boy with Hasan Khan his deputy.

The Year 11 Head Girl will be Aysha Dagra while her deputy is Umayrah Hassan.

“I am proud to be the Head Boy,” said prefect Abbaas Shakil.

Picture: (left to right) Umayrah, Abbaas, Hasan and Aysha

 

Pleckgate High School has boasted a 95.19 per cent attendance this school year so far as students admit they don’t like missing school.

A large number of students have chalked up 100 per cent attendance during their years at the school.

One of them Bilal Ahmed is in Year 10 and Bilal, who has just sat his Maths GCSE a year early, admitted: “I have been slightly ill a few times but my mum won’t let me miss school so I don’t think I will ever have a day off!”

Zainab Ahar, also in Year 10 and another who has just completed her Maths GCSE a year early, said: “I didn’t know I hadn’t had a day off school but, like Bilal, my mum won’t let me.”

Year 10 student Afaafah Patel also has a 100 per cent record while Year Nine student Mohamad Juber Kaif said: “I don’t like missing school.”

Head teacher Mark Cocker said: “We have a strong attendance record here at Pleckgate, the parents of our students know how important school is and I think it shows in our GCSE results. Last year were our best ever GCSE results and we hope we can surpass that this August.”

Pleckgate High School is the Lancashire Telegraph Secondary School of the Year 2016.

Pleckgate’s entry impressed a panel of judges and the school will be presented with the award at a glittering ceremony at Stanley House later this month.

It means they have been voted the best school in East Lancashire by the Lancashire Telegraph education panel and the school has had plenty to shout about over the last year – with plenty more successes to come.

Last year they celebrated their best ever GCSE results with their pass rate an impressive 58% on pupils gaining five or more A*-C grades, including English and maths, which means they surpassed all previous results. It puts them in the top five in the UK, based on similar schools, according to the Department for Education.

The school, which became an academy in February, also encourages trips to broaden the horizons of their students and they have a strong, positive presence in their community, raising £10,000 for a variety of charities last year.

Further to the awards, Pleckgate was recently highlighted as a ‘Beacon of Success’ in a survey using Department of Education data. It showed Pleckgate as number one in Blackburn in Darwen for their strong level of attainment for all their pupils, no matter what their backgrounds.

“It’s a great honour to be the Lancashire Telegraph Secondary School of the Year,” said head teacher Mark Cocker. “We are on a journey to outstanding and awards like this recognise the giant strides we are making.”

There was cornflakes, soup, chocolates and more as Pleckgate held a Ramadan Food Bank collection.

“As it is Ramadan at the moment, many of our school community will be preparing for the last ten days before Eid,” said teacher Shahiesta Raja. “This is a time for reflection and charity. “As part of this, we organised the food bank collection for two charities, both of which serve our local communities.

” Our students, parents and staff were extremely generous with around 2000 items of food collected that will benefit our local community. “

Pleckgate is aiming to break its record by raising almost £10,000 for charity this school year.

Caption: Pleckgate High School foodbank collection handed over to ABDUSSAMED MULLA (country director for Alimdaad Foundation UK),  SHAKIL KAROLA (store manager and volunteer) and TALHA MULLA (foundation volunteer and Pleckgate IT technician) as well as MARK COCKER (Pleckgate head teacher) with Pleckgate students