Here you can find the latest news and updates. If you have any suggestions for news articles or you would like to contribute please do not hesitate to contact the project team. |
Funding AnnouncementWednesday 11th August
Following the announcement on Friday by the Education Secretary regarding funding for academy rebuild projects, the Academies Sponsors have released a statement.
Click for full Press Release Newsletter #2Friday 16th July
The second Hastings Academies Newsletter is now available for you to download. This will be distributed to students at Hillcrest, Filsham Valley and The Grove as well as local primary schools and the wider community. Appointment of Principals DesignateMonday 12th July
The sponsors are pleased to announce that Theresa Phillips (Head of Hillcrest) and Jenny Jones (Acting Head of Filsham Valley) have respectively been appointed as the Principal Designates for The Hastings Academy and The St Leonards Academy. Their appointments are a clear reflection of their hard work, determination and success in their current schools. It now puts us in a really strong position to move forward together to achieve the successful opening of the Academies. At the same time the sponsors are committed to finding the best Chief Executive to lead the Academies. The sponsors did not appoint at the first attempt to recruit a Chief Executive, but are continuing the search for a candidate that can be convincing in their ability to lead the Hastings Academies. A second round of recruitment is now underway and interviews are arranged for the 19th & 20th July. The outcome of those interviews will be included in our next Newsletter. Moving forward togetherMonday 12th July
Staff and governors from Hillcrest, Filsham Valley and The Grove have been invited by the sponsors to spend a day looking in detail at the plans for the academies. The conference 'Hastings Academies: Moving forward together' to be held on the 16th July has been timed to enable colleagues to start to make contributions to help transform the vision for the academies into the detailed plans that will shape the delivery of these two new schools. The day has been designed to allow teaching, non-teaching staff and governors to look in depth at the education and ICT proposals and issues around design and construction of the new buildings. The sponsors have also taken the opportunity to invite Frank Green, Chief Executive of the Leigh Academy in Kent and members of his team to speak at the conference about their own experiences of setting up and running a successful academy. Designing your futureMonday 12th July
In September the process of designing the two new school uniforms for the academies will start. Lecturers in fashion design from the University's department of arts and design will be running a series of workshops and activities involving students from Hillcrest, The Grove and Filsham Valley as well parents and staff. The aim is to design cost effective uniforms that the whole community can be proud of. Academies' names unveiledMonday 5th July 2010
After weeks of consultations, the names of the town's new academy schools have been chosen.
Filsham Valley and The Grove will merge and become The St Leonards Academy, while Hillcrest will become The Hastings Academy. The scheme's sponsors, East Sussex County Council (ESCC), Brighton University and BT, gave out 2,500 ballot papers to the three schools due to be closed and the academies' six feeder primary schools.They received 930 responses with the majority opting for The Hastings Academy and The St Leonards Academy over the other options - The Saxony Academy and The King Harold Academy, or The Turing Academy and The Logie Baird Academy. The Academies names will now be officially registered with the Department for Education. Education Brief and ICT VisionWednesday 2nd June 2010
The Sponsors have agreed for the Education Brief and ICT Vision to be circulated to the wider community. Please click on the documents to download:
Education Brief Summary
The Hastings Academy ICT Vision
The St Leonards Academy ICT Vision
Newsletter #1Friday 28th May 2010
We are very excited to announce that the first Hastings Academies newsletter is now available. The newsletter has been distributed to students at The Grove, Filsham Valley and Hillcrest as well as being circulated to the wider community. You can download a copy here Students have their sayMonday 10th May 2010
In April a team of students from Hillcrest travelled to London to attend a workshop with the Sorrell Foundation. Here they discussed issues that affect their school and learnt more about academies. Following on from this they conducted further research and met again at the end of April to create and present visual brief boards for their top issues. You can read all about the experience and it's outcomes in The Pupils' Brief Funding AgreementThursday 18th March 2010
Stop Press - Secretary of State approves Hastings academies. The funding agreement to allow the academies to go ahead was signed late on Thursday 18th March and this will enable the sponsors to begin setting up the academies. Click for full Press Release Sponsors meeting with Staff and GovernorsTuesday 23rd February 2010
Sponsors are meeting with Staff and Governors this evening to answer questions about the Academies. East Sussex County Council Press ReleaseTuesday 26th January 2010
East Sussex County Council have agreed the closure of Filsham Valley, The Grove and Hillcrest to make way for new state-of-art academy schools. Click for full Press Release Sponsors meeting with StudentsWednesday 25th and Thursday 26th November 2009
Sponsors are meeting with Student Reps from Filsham Valley, The Grove and Hillcrest to discuss the plans for the new Academies and to answer any questions. Consultation LaunchedMonday 7th September
This is your change to have your say on the plans for the new Academies in Hastings. Throughout September the Sponsors will be holding meetings with parents, young people and the wider community. You will also have the opportunity to fill out a questionnaire to tell us what you think. Green light for Academies' next stepMonday 8th June 2009
Plans for two new state-of-the-art Academies in Hastings have moved one step closer to reality after the government signalled the green light for the next stage in the process.The government’s agreement to the outline plans for the two new academies means the proposals can now move forward to the next stage which will include more detailed planning and consultation with the public.The outline plans for the two new Academies, to replace Hillcrest, The Grove, and Filsham Valley schools in 2011, were submitted to the government at the end of last year. This included information on where they would be sited, how many pupils they would cater for, and what they will teach.The documents agreed by the government also set out the way in which the new Academies would take forward issues such as inclusion, raising skills levels and the provision of academic and vocational education as well as how the opportunities for modern technology and innovation to be at the heart of learning would be developed.Now the sponsors of the two proposed academies – the University of Brighton, East Sussex County Council and BT – will be able to work on finer details of the proposals in a feasibility period. A crucial part of the next stage will be the wide consultation that will be carried out with parents, staff, pupils and the wider community in Hastings in September and October.In line with procedure the government has also appointed a project management company to support the sponsors as they take forward the plans.Councillor Keith Glazier, the County Council’s Lead Member for Children’s and Adults’ Services said: “We have waited sometime for this decision from the government. We’re delighted we now have the green light and are looking forward to developing the detailed plans for these hugely exciting projects."There are many issues we need to examine and the projects are very complex. However, they represent an extremely exciting opportunity for Hastings – the academies will be fantastic places to learn. We will make sure people get every opportunity to see the plans, ask any questions they want, and discuss any concerns they have. There will be a detailed consultation with the public as we have promised all along."University of Brighton Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Stuart Laing said: “The University of Brighton is delighted the government has approved the next stage of the academies project and look forward to working closely with the council, BT and the wider community in Hastings to develop this initiative further during the consultation process."The university is already committed to the delivery of education in Hastings at University Centre, the home of the University of Brighton in Hastings. Using our unique areas of expertise we look forward to contributing further to the individual achievements of the students in Hastings, as well as bringing about regeneration in the borough."Geraint Williams from BT added: “BT is excited to be part of this innovative learning project. We are looking forward to working with our fellow sponsors and the community of Hastings, and to bringing our skills and expertise to help the young people of Hastings fulfil their potential."On the eastern side of the town the proposal is for a brand new academy on the Hillcrest School site which would accommodate 900 pupils aged 11 to 16 and deliver the core subjects of the National Curriculum. The new Academy would open in 2011 and building work on the new buildings has a target completion date of 2012.Meanwhile, on the western side of the town a new Academy would provide for 1,500 pupils aged 11 to 16. The plan is to redevelop the Filsham Valley School site to be the home of the new academy. Again, the new Academy would open in 2011 with a targeted move into its new buildings in 2012.Both of the new Academies would be non-selective schools and each would be fully inclusive with improved special educational needs facilities incorporated into each. Each of the new academies would be developed to minimise disruption to pupils – the approach to ensuring pupils’ learning does not suffer during the building process will be developed during the feasibility stage.All of the plans will need to be approved by the government and a decision on whether the Academies will go ahead is expected to be made after the feasibility period.Councillor Glazier added: "There is a huge amount of work now to be done before we’ve got the final detailed proposals to submit to the government and these new Academies can become a reality. Everyone involved is determined to grasp this extremely exciting opportunity for Hastings which will not only transform education provision but will also play a major contribution to the regeneration of the town."Further information on the Academy proposals including the outline plans the government has approved in each of the Expression of Interest documents is available from our Hastings Academies pages. |
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Hastings Academies in brief
Student places: The Hastings Academy – 900 boys and girls aged 11 to 16; The St Leonards Academy – 1,500 boys and girls aged 11 to 16.
Sponsors: University of Brighton, BT (British Telecom) and East Sussex County Council.
Location and timing: Opening in the existing three school buildings in September 2011; the Academies' buildings are due to be completed at Hillcrest (The Hastings Academy) and Filsham Valley (The St Leonards Academy) sites in September 2012.
Curriculum: Caters for students of all abilities, building on existing provision for students with special educational needs; offers a wide choice of courses and subjects plus greater learning opportunities through the sponsors and local partnerships Specialisms: Information Communications Technology for both Academies plus English for The Hastings Academy, and Mathematics for The St Leonards Academy. Sixth-form provision: None, both would build on existing links with further and higher education establishments, including Sussex Coast College and Bexhill Sixth Form College, to enable students to continue with their studies in the local area. Community: The Academies will work in partnership with the local community and offer them access to new lifelong learning opportunities and recreational activities. 
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