Half-term update 13/02/2026

Dear Parents & Carers,

It is the end of the first half of the Spring term and that half-way point of the academic year. Which is always a positive place to stop and reflect.

Among so many positives this term, some notable events include:

• Our Year 11 students are treating their studies very seriously! They have been completing their coursework and preparing carefully for their PPEs (mock exams) after half-term. They have demonstrated such a fantastic attitude to learning and their futures this year - they are real role models for everyone at the school.

• Our Year 10 students were exceptional in their first formal PPEs - showing exemplary efforts in their first time completing formal examinations in the main hall

• The Art trip to York was an amazing success! Our year 7 and 8 students experienced a ‘high art’ culture- with many having their first experience away from home without their parents!

• We have revised how we go about teaching lessons in school. Students and staff have been working collectively on our new “Greet and start” lesson routine. This change ensures students begin working immediately on entry to the lesson, making use of every minute of the learning time. We have a few more changes ready to introduce to how we teach lessons after the half-term- I will share those with you later in the year.

  
  

Year 9

On our return from the February half-term, our Year 9 students will transition from Key Stage 3 to Key Stage 4. They will begin studying material that will be in their final GCSE exams. We look forward to welcoming them back, and helping them to successfully rise to the extra challenge that studying GCSE materials requires.

New Timetables

As mentioned above, with Year 9 moving to their GCSE programme, the whole school will move to a new timetable after half term. New timetables are available to view now on the Parent Portal on Arbor and students will receive a printed timetable during form time on Monday 23rd February when we return for the second half of the Spring term. There may also be some form changes which will also be available to be seen on Arbor.

Year 11 PPEs

Also on our return, Year 11 students will be completing their second set of PPEs (Pre-public examinations). This will enable staff to assess the key areas for revision as they make the final push to those crucial summer exams - thank you to all parents and carers for their support. As well as a huge well done to all of those students for their consistent efforts and application to their learning. For your information- Year 11 students should tackle their revision through small “little & often” chunks. This would well-support the revision approach they follow in their Study+ sessions in school. You can help them to greater success by prompting them at home to do extra work online via their Sparx and SENECA log-ins. These online sites give them regular, bite-sized ‘chunks’ of revision that help them remember crucial exam information.

Uniform & Attitude to Achieve

Thank you to all parents and carers for your continued support in regards to our uniform and Attitude to Achieve procedure. Our students are among the very smartest in Norwich and wear their uniform with a great deal of pride. Wearing the correct uniform also demonstrates to them a common expectation in the world of professional work. You should know that we continue to have staff from other schools visit us and comment so positively on the learning culture in lessons evident in Sewell Park lessons.

FYI, the school’s uniform requirements can be found HERE, including reminders on skirt length and appropriate hair cuts. A few notable points to share with you are:

• There seems to be a national trend for young people to wear deliberately ‘ripped’ tights. Students will be required to change if this is the case.

• One small, simple nose stud is allowed only

• Shaved lines or patterns in hair or eyebrows are not permitted

For PE, students are required to wear appropriate hair bands that are simple and in line with school expectations. Additionally, for safety reasons, all jewellery should be removed before each PE lesson. This includes items such as earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, and any other decorative accessories.

We kindly ask for your support in ensuring that your child follows these guidelines for each PE lesson. This helps us maintain a safe, focused learning environment for all students.

Mobile Phones

I am sure you will have seen the national headlines regarding mobile phones and schools, and the Government's intention to make schools ‘phone-free’ places.

At Sewell Park, we have for a number of years insisted on students’ phones being hidden during the day. This maximises the likelihood of students being focused on their studies, and ‘being in the moment’. We know that some schools have begun to go further, making sure that students have the entire school day without access to the distraction caused by that mobile in your pocket.

There are a number of studies which have shown the benefits to young people of this approach.

One interesting website you may wish to visit is here:

https://www.smartphonefreechildhood.org/resource/smartphone-free-schools-evidence

EdenRed Voucher Scheme Ending

Since 2021, Norfolk County Council has been providing vouchers of about £15 per month per child to families who have children who are eligible for free school meals. This has been possible because of funding provided by the Government called the Household Support Fund (HSF). This fund comes to an end on 31st March.

The Government is putting a new Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) in place that will start on 1st April. The Government's rules for this new fund are different; the County Council cannot use this money to pay for voucher schemes like this.

The Government is clear that the future scheme must be needs tested and include wraparound support. This means that the current eligibility criteria cannot apply.

• Although HSF is coming to an end, there will be ongoing support for families in crisis. We would encourage people to visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/costofliving which will be kept up to date with any help on offer.

• If families have any unspent vouchers, we would encourage them to redeem them as soon as possible and for the March vouchers to be redeemed within the three-month timeframe to ensure they do not expire.

• If families are in difficulty, we would encourage them to contact the Family Hubs services www.norfolk.gov.uk/familyhubs where there is broader support on debt and welfare rights.

• The Big Norfolk Holiday Fun programme is continuing, and the Easter programme will launch in the coming weeks. Families can visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/bignorfolkholidayfun to sign up.

  
  

The final EdenRed vouchers will be sent out on 6th March.

Thank you for getting to the end of this long read! And thank you all for your continued support of our students and our very real ethos of “Enriching minds, enabling success” at Sewell Park Academy.

I hope you all have a restful, family-focused February half-term.

Best wishes,

David Day

Headteacher