Over the course of this week our pupils have been busy considering how they show active citizenship as part of our Theme of the Week assemblies. Hand in hand with our Attendance Matters week the pupils have been focused on what they do to impact and support the community around them.

From our Year 11 Prefects to our Year 7 Student Council Reps our student leadership roles enable pupils to take an active part in the development of Etone College, helping to support our local and wider community.

As part of the assembly pupils had the chance to thank our Community Champions who were very well received as they described their role in supporting Etone with our community mission.

The assembly was also an opportunity to highlight some of the events that will be taking place on Friday 15^th November in support of Children in Need. During the day pupils are invited to wear non-school uniform and donate a suggestion of £1, provided they come fully equipped for a normal school day (including their PE kit).

Well done to all of our Etone pupils for showing their active citizenship and ‘Being Supportive’ as they showcase our Etone Values.

Equality Objective 1
We regularly review our equality objectives and ensure that they feature as part of our school
development plan. In relation to objective 1 – Progress has been made in the following key areas:

• A boys’ mental health leaflet with staff views on how to manage mental health has been produced and distributed as well as discussed with all year groups.
• A Boys’ mental health event regularly takes place in the Café and main hall over lunch times to allow boys to access advice and top tips.
• Mental health lessons have been appropriately updated in all Learning for Life Schemes of Learning across the school.
• Brew Monday and Mental Health drop ins are regularly scheduled and publicised with pupils.
• Etone Mental Health Top Tips and strategies are discussed during form time to ehance and emphasise the importance of wellbeing.
• Top Tips are displayed around school in social spaces via TV screens share strategies and raise awareness.
• Mental Health assemblies for World Mental Health Day, Children’s Mental Health Week and Mental Health Week – These are aimed at raising awareness and tackling stigma associated with these topics.
• Parent information and support is regularly updated and available on the website. Opportunities such as these have definitely raised awareness around the topics associated with boys mental health upskilling pupils in being able to recognise signs and triggers and gives pupils and understanding of how to take positive action to support themselves as well as others.

Equality Objective 2
We have a comprehensive personal development curriculum which is designed to ensure that we
not only meet all statutory content but also provide guidance and support which goes above and
beyond that which is required.
In relation to objective 2 – Progress has been made in the following key areas:

• Ensuring that the Equality Act and all of its component parts are woven through our learning for life curriculum in an age appropriate way.
• Ensuring that Protected Characteristics are identified and addressed throughout our learning for life curriculum.
• Fundamental British Values is highlighted and referenced in assemblies and form time as well as discussed in greater depth during dedicated assemblies.
• Ensuring that prejudice and discrimination issues and examples are a key feature of our learning for life curriculum throughout lessons and assemblies. Key messages associated with these topics are also supported by outside speakers.
• We highlight equality role models through history throughout our Values Booklets
• Our form time readers explore and promote equality examples and themes and form part of follow on form time activities and discussions.
• We have whole school personal development events scheduled throughout the year which promote equality such as Black History Month, Pride, Diversity Week.
• We regularly hold a celebration of cultures through assemblies and learning for life lessons.
• Anti-Bullying Week and Diana Ambassadors are used as a vehicle to challenge discriminatory language. This forms part of Anti Bullying Week, assemblies and form times. Opportunities such as these continually help to raise awareness and tackle prejudice as well as to promote tolerance and understanding within and across our school community.

At Etone College, reading sits as the beating heart of our aim for ‘progress for all’. Research concludes that reading has a significant impact on academic outcomes and progress in every subject, sense of connection to others and the world, and wellbeing. At Etone, we place an exceptionally high importance on embedding reading through the curriculum; in form time readers, and through reading lessons in years 7 and 8.

See below our Reading Roundups:

On Friday 18^th October, we had 15 incredibly enthusiastic Year 6 pupils from Wembrook Primary School join our Descriptive Writing Workshop with Miss Benfell.  Pupils enjoyed looking at the Myth of Icarus, which warns us that sometimes parents know best!  They were then guided to write some wonderful paragraphs, using some ambitious vocabulary and sophisticated language techniques such as personification (Miss Benfell's favourite).  The session ended with some well-deserved orange juice and flapjacks and of course they couldn't leave without their certificates and bookmarks.  A special shout out to our fabulous Year 12 Literature students, Dalida and Hanna, who supported pupils throughout the session.  Pupils left feeling excited and were heard saying 'it was amazing'.  

At Etone we encourage a deep culture of reading. As part of that our challenges are key to developing keen young readers.

To celebrate this we have asked our staff to share pictures of their book shelves. See if you can guess whose shelf is whose.

Introducing our 2024-2025 Themed Bistro Calendar. Each year our catering teams across the trust do a fantastic job of helping to support our Personal Development curriculum with some truly innovative menus focused on celebrating key events across the year.

The next speciality menu is of course our celebration of Black History Month and flavours inspired from the cultures across the world. Join us on the 24^th to enjoy something a little different.

On Wednesday night we had our biggest attendance ever to an online parent session as Mr Bowley hosted that latest edition of KS4/5 Help Your Child Revise.

Each year we take the advice and requests from parents to further enhance our sessions. This year was no different with the feedback being overwhelmingly positive and supportive of the school.

Across the session there was an opportunity to share some subject specific strategies and ideas to support parents with helping revision for A Level and GCSE courses.

The parents in attendance were, as always, engaging and made the session an interactive one. With the chance to communicate some key goals it is well recommended to all parents to attend our future sessions.

Find out more on our sessions here:

Check out the newest edition of the Nuneaton News to see how we have had an impact in our community with our MacMillan Coffee Morning.

Check it out this week!