Dear Families
I hope this update finds you and those closest to you in the very best of health. Having seen our two week timetable cycle through, we are feeling back into the swing of things as this week draws to a close. Our new Year 7s have found their feet, they are building their confidence in navigating the building and, already, are contributing so much positivity to our community. It has been lovely to see them settle in and to see our more experienced students go out of their way to make them feel welcome.
Year 6 Open Evening – 2nd of Oct 2024, 5pm – 7.30pm
Our Year 6 Open Evening is just around the corner. This is a chance for families of Year 6 students to meet members of our student leadership team, subject staff, hear from the myself and to get a feeling for what makes our Academy such a unique and special community. For families of current students, please look out for permission slips if they have volunteered to help out as a student ambassador on the evening.
Extra Curricular Clubs and European Day of Languages
We are pleased to share that our extra-curricular clubs are now up and running for the new term. A full timetable of activities, including days and times, has been emailed home to parents and carers. Students are also reminded of the available clubs each day during form time, helping them stay informed and get involved.
We strongly encourage all students to take the opportunity to try something new and make the most of the wide range of clubs on offer. Our aspiration is to see 100% of students participating in at least one club—whether it’s sport, music, STEM, debate, or creative arts, there’s something for everyone.
Looking ahead, we are excited to be celebrating Languages Day on Friday 26th September. This is a fantastic opportunity to recognise the rich linguistic and cultural diversity within our school community. We look forward to supporting the event being led by our MFL department, and we hope all students will get involved in the celebrations. As part of the event, staff have taken part in a special “Masked Linguist” challenge: members of staff have recorded a short phrase in a different language while wearing a mask. Students will watch the video in form time and take part in a quiz to guess both the language and the member of staff behind the mask.
At lunchtime, the MFL department will also be hosting a range of activities in the language block, including language taster sessions to try out new languages, international TV and film screenings, and quizzes and competitions with prizes.
Year 7 Update
Another amazing week from Year 7. It has been a pleasure to welcome in the Army to do some exciting and interesting team building events with each form group, focusing on working together, building friendships and demonstrating some employability skills such as resilience and time management. It has been a pleasure to watch them take part and demonstrating what amazing students they can be. The Army also presented a careers assembly outlining the 200+ job roles and apprenticeships that the army can offer.
This week as a Year 7 are focussing on ‘High Expectations’ both in and out of lesson. This includes in class, listening to the member of staff and challenging them to ‘aim higher’ but also at break, lunch and between lesson, showing what an excellent Derby Moor Academy student looks like. Staff will still use the phrase “hands free, eyes on me in 3,2,1” when requiring the students to listen to them and ensuring they meet our high expectations as a year group and school.
Year 8 Update
A fantastic week again for Year 8. Students have really settled into their new groups and are working really hard. Students have been focusing on keeping that full direct attention on the member of staff. “Sustained attention to the teacher is essential for learning, as it enables students to process and retain instructional information effectively” (Posner & Rothbart, 2007). It has been great to walk into lessons and see students paying full attention on what they are doing and enjoying their learning.
Next week their focus shifts on to high expectations. This is one of our school values and permeates everything we do. We have high expectations of the children in our school, as I am sure you do from home. “High teacher expectations are consistently linked to improved student outcomes, fostering both academic achievement and self-belief” (Rubie-Davies, 2014). We also expect students to have high expectations of themselves in areas such as conduct, work ethic, uniform and presentation of their work.
Year 10 Update
Year 10 are really settling into their option subjects, with some BTEC classes already beginning their coursework. It’s been great to see a sense of maturity emerging across the year group and a noticeable change from the end of Year 9—this is really encouraging as they take on the challenges of KS4.
This week’s assembly focused on safety and safeguarding. Students were reminded of the importance of speaking to staff if they ever feel unsafe or at risk, and of the clear processes in place to report concerns to Mrs Daire or Mr O’Connell. We emphasised that while disclosures cannot remain confidential, the team is always here to listen, support, and take action where needed. We also discussed the need for punctuality in assembly. Students are reminded that Year 10 is a crucial year, and arriving on time every day is vital for their learning and progress. Overall, the Year Group have started well and are showing great potential. We are looking forward to seeing them continue to grow in confidence and responsibility throughout the year.
Year 11 Update
Year 11 have made an excellent start to their GCSE year, and we would like to take this opportunity to congratulate them on their attitude and efforts during these first few weeks. We would also like to take this opportunity to outline the arrangements for intervention, particularly for those who are experiencing it for the first time this year. Our dedicated teaching staff deliver after-school intervention sessions to support students in their academic progress. These sessions are designed to close gaps in knowledge or skills and to enable students to make even greater progress; each session is subject-specific and focuses on targeted skills or topics. At Derby Moor Spencer Academy, intervention has consistently proven to be successful across all subjects, and therefore, we strongly encourage students to attend in order to maximise their potential ahead of their final GCSE examinations in summer 2026. Below, you will find an overview of the intervention timetable running until October half term:
| Monday | |
| Maths X half | All invited |
| English Y half | All invited |
| Tuesday | |
| Maths Y half | All invited |
| English X half | All invited |
| Wednesday | |
| No after school intervention – staff meeting | |
| Thursday | |
| Science | All invited |
| Friday | |
| Options subjects | |
| History | All invited |
| Geography | All invited |
| Business | All invited |
| Art/Product design/Textiles | All invited |
| BTEC PE | Invite ONLY |
All Year 11 students will receive positive points for attending intervention sessions and it is worth noting that all positive points accumulated are counted towards the Passport for Graduation at the end of Year 11. More details will follow on this soon. Should you require any further information on the above please do get in contact with Miss A Hill (ahill@derbymoorspencer.org.uk).
Duke of Edinburgh Information Evening
The DofE parent information evening will be 5:45-6:45pm on Monday 22nd September. This event is for students in Year 9 wanting to start their Bronze DofE journey. It will cover the cost and requirements for students interested in working towards their Bronze Award over the next year. Miss Lancaster and Mr Bennett look forward to welcoming you on Monday.
Careers update
This week’s job of the week is a Nature Conservationist
Derby Moor Dispatch: The Derby Moor Dispatch goes out weekly to all students in Year 11, 12 and 13. The Dispatch contains a wide range of opportunities for work experience, summer schools, careers related webinars and so on. Please do have a look at the latest edition. The Dispatch is emailed to the students’ school email address, so it is important that they check this regularly on a Monday. You can also view the Dispatch via the Careers page of the Derby Moor website. Please do take a look at the website as there is a wealth of useful information including a specific page for parents.
Luminate Careers: Kat Garland, Flavia Ojok and Marsha Johnson from Luminate will be in school on Thursdays and Fridays throughout the year. As well as seeing students for 1:1 sessions or part of a group workshop, they are also available to support with completing application forms and checking CVs. Any student who wants some help simply needs to ask their tutor to make them an appointment or drop in and see one of the Luminate team in the Careers Room. Luminate have an excellent website with a wealth of useful information. They have also produced this video to help families talk to their children about careers choices.
Final notes
We have had some challenging weather to contend with since term has started, and it has felt like Autumn has arrived. We are hopeful that things will be more settled next week, but it is likely that temperatures will feel somewhat cooler. Students will need to be prepared for this with a coat that they can wear over their blazer for the journey to and from school. For families who drop off and pick up in vehicles, can I please ask you to use the schools turning circle rather than parking on Moorway Lane or the entrance to Ivy House. Both cause a significant hazard for children and other road users.
As you will see form the content of this week’s update, our students have settled in to the rhythm of school life well, coming to terms with their new timetables, roomings and getting to know new staff and classmates. It really is a thing of joy to see our community unite again and begin the next chapter in their whilst working hard to fulfil our school motto. Together We Succeed.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend,
Scott Doyle
Principal
