LAR  NEWSLETTER 

27/06/25 , Module 6

What a show High School Musical was last week and thank you so much to all the families and staff that came to support in the audience! Every year I am blown away by the confidence and resilience of our young performers, the calibre of the acting and dancing continues to exceed my expectations and we truly have some phenomenal young people here who really shine in the limelight of the stage! I would like to publicly thank Mr Clarke and Mrs Rowe in particular, along with many other staff, who have dedicated significant amounts of personal time after school to allow our students the opportunity to deliver something so entertaining for our community. If you missed it there are recordings on the Google Classroom so please do take time to sit back and enjoy the show!

Staff are currently in the throes of planning our STEM day, Sports Day and Rewards day for the last week of the year and we look forward to sharing the details of these co-curricular events with you all. Our personal development offer that affords students the opportunity to invest time in these additional events is something we are proud of; its thanks to  the dedicated staff organising them behind the scenes that enable drop down days like these to take place. 

This week I have enjoyed writing the nominations for the rewards assemblies due to take place later this module. While we are already planning ahead for next year and putting things in place for September, it's important we also take stock on what an incredible year our students have had and I look forward to celebrating this with them later this module in their college assemblies. 

Mrs Cramlington

Principal

Disabled Bays - Displaying Blue Badges

We have noted that a number of families are using the disabled bays despite not having displayed disabled blue badges to park there. While we appreciate some of our students may have some minor injuries, I kindly ask we collectively work together to ensure our physically disabled students have priority of these spaces for their walking frames and wheelchairs. Recently they have been unable to park which has made it difficult for some students during end of day pickup. The designated pickup and drop off point is not much further than the disabled bays, so if you do not have a blue badge to display for a LAR child I respectfully ask that this zone be used so that our blue badge holders can park in the designated bays. 

Phone Calls Home

We've had an increase in students approaching staff regarding topping up parent pay and students going to an after school club or intervention. Please can we remind you all that we don't have the time capacity to keep phoning home and chasing parents regarding these little things. We kindly ask that this is looked and discussed before your child arrives on site.

Water Bottles

As the weather is getting warmer, we've noticed the increase in students not bringing a water bottle. Please can we ask that students come to the academy with a water bottle to ensure that they are staying hydrated.

Year 10 Masterclasses

Just like to remind parents that all year 10 students should be attending these sessions after school:

• English masterclass on Mondays

• Science masterclass on Tuesdays

• Maths masterclass on Thursday

Borrowed Ties

Unfortunately more students are forgetting or losing their academy ties then not returning the stock that is loaned to them.  From today students will be loaned a different plain coloured tie that does not have the school logo. This ensures our students are still dressed smartly in line with policy but will mean the new red, green and yellow ties will be distinguishable from the college ties bought by families. 

In the interests of saving the academy money spent on lost stock this will make them identifiable for staff, so as children leave the site so we can retrieve them. 

If your child comes home with a plain green, red or yellow clip on tie please be aware this belongs to the academy and we kindly ask that you ensure it is returned. 

'High School Musical Jr' Production: A Soaring, Flying Success!

Our school's 'High School Musical Jr' production on Thursday 19th and Friday 20th June played to sell-out crowds, showcasing the incredible talent of our pupils and staff.

Over 60 pupils were involved in the cast, backstage crew, and the LAR Super-Stars cheerleading team. Their professionalism, confidence, and flair truly brought the famous Disney musical to life.

Charlie H shone as Troy, while Lucie H and Amelia B each brought their unique touch to Gabriella on alternate nights. Lucy R and George M, as the comedic duo Sharpay and Ryan, had the audience roaring with laughter.

A huge thank you to everyone who supported this spectacular show. Staff and pupils worked tirelessly since January to make it a memorable event.

Leigh Academy Rainham was delighted to host over 150 Year 5 pupils from a range of local primary schools for our annual Transition Evening. The event gave students a valuable opportunity to experience life at secondary school through a series of engaging and hands-on taster sessions across a wide range of subjects.

Pupils took part in exciting activities including dissecting in Science, painting in Art, and playing basketball in PE. They also enjoyed sessions in English, Maths, Drama, Dance, Modern Foreign Languages, History, and Geography – each designed to give them a real flavour of what lessons at Leigh Academy Rainham are like.

The atmosphere throughout the evening was full of energy and curiosity, with students enthusiastically engaging in every subject and getting a feel for our welcoming and dynamic learning environment.

We’re thrilled to have had so many young learners visit us and hope the evening helped to build their excitement and confidence as they begin thinking about the move to secondary school. A huge thank you goes to our staff and the participating primary schools for making the event such a success.

The sun shone brightly on the LAR pitches last week as our colleges battled it out in the highly anticipated Inter-College Rounders Competition! A fantastic display of teamwork, skill, and sportsmanship was on show from all participants, making for a truly memorable event.

After a series of exciting matches, it was Kingsley College who emerged as the overall victors, demonstrating exceptional talent and consistency across the year groups. Their strong performances saw them secure impressive wins in both the Year 7 and Year 9 categories, ultimately sealing their well-deserved championship title.

Turing College put up a formidable fight throughout the competition, showcasing their prowess and finishing in a commendable second place overall. Their determination and excellent play were evident in every game.

Rounding out the top three was Angelou College, who secured a respectable third place. Despite a brilliant win in the Year 8 competition, their overall points tally placed them just behind Turing. Their Year 8 team's victory was a testament to their dedication and skill in that age group.

A huge congratulations to Kingsley College on their fantastic achievement! And well done to all the teams – Turing, Angelou, and every other college that participated – for making this year's Inter-College Rounders Competition such a resounding success. The spirit of healthy competition and camaraderie was truly inspiring to witness.

We're already looking forward to next year's competition to see if Kingsley can defend their title, or if another college will rise to the challenge!

Well done to all of our students for receiving this certificate of achievement for Sparx Reader. We are so proud of you all!