What to expect

On the first two days of term at Tewkesbury School students in Year 7 will be the only year group in school. This is to help you settle in before the other students return.

You need to wear your Tewkesbury School uniform and arrive at school by 8.30 am.

There will be staff and prefects to meet you. You should arrive through the main gates and report to the central tennis courts, look for the sign with your Tutor Group name. You’ll be there along with the other new members of your new Tutor Group.

During the morning you will meet Mr Brownhill, your Head of Year and Ms McGillycuddy, the Headteacher, for an assembly. You will then spend time in your tutor base with your Tutor who will give you your timetable and lots of other important information.

Listen carefully and if you are unsure about anything, then just ask!

You’ll also meet some of your subject teachers.

Official school photos will be taken on one of the afternoons, so remember to bring a brush or comb!

There will be plenty of time to meet up with friends during break and lunch times.

The first days are all about you getting to know more about the school.

• Your bus pass or bus money, if you’re travelling on the bus

• Bike lock and key, if you are cycling to school

• Padlock for your new locker (suggest using a combination lock)

• Lunchbox and snacks. You will have a free meal in the canteen on the first day. Please ask your parents to credit your catering account on ParentPay for anything in the future.

• A drink in a refillable bottle

• Pencil case and calculator. It is really important that you have all of the stationery equipment, as we are unable to share items.

• Any medication that you need to take at school, i.e. inhaler or insulin

There is no need to bring any PE kit on the first days. You will hear from your PE teacher who will tell you what kit you need to bring and when.

The school day will start at 8.30am and end at 3.25 pm and 2.30pm on a Friday.

Remember to make arrangements with friends and family about how you will make your way home from school.

Most importantly, enjoy your first days!

You have now finished your primary school and are moving up to Tewkesbury School. This will mean that you are leaving a small school where you probably know everyone and will be starting again as a new student in a much larger environment.

Tewkesbury School is a lot larger and at first you may find it a bit overwhelming. You will soon get used to the size of the school, the new subjects you will learn and you will make lots of new friends.

You will soon learn your way around so don’t worry.

This website and your induction days will help you answer questions like:

§ What equipment should I take on my first day?

§ What are the school rules?

§ What can I have for lunch?

§ What happens if I am ill?

§ Will I make friends easily?

§ How will I get to and from school?

At Tewkesbury School there will be a lot of staff and students to help you. You will have a different teacher for each subject and you will soon get to know the classroom routine and what they expect of you. Teachers will help you to become more responsible for your learning.

You will be placed in your new tutor group/teaching group with other Year 7 children. Groups are a mixture of abilities, made up from all of the local primary schools, plus children who may have joined from further away.

You will stay in the same tutor group (TG) from Year 7 through to Year 11. Your main contact at Tewkesbury School will be your tutor, who you will see every day, in the morning. Your tutor is a good person to talk to if you have a problem or something is worrying you.

Your tutor will be your in-school parent and will keep an eye on your academic and pastoral well-being. Within a short time, they will get to know you very well and will be the first point of contact between your parents and your teachers.

Every morning, you will attend registration in your tutor base and your tutor will take the register.

On some days, there may be an assembly. After registration, you leave your tutor base and go to lessons.

You will need to know how to get to Tewkesbury School. We suggest that during the summer holidays you practice getting yourself to and from school.

Many students travel to school on a village bus or public bus. If you think you will travel to school by bus, before term starts, make sure you find out where the bus stop is and how long it takes to get there from your house.

If you live in a village you can apply for a bus pass from Gloucestershire County Council. Make sure you have your bus pass and/or money with you every day and try to arrive at the bus stop at least 5 minutes before the bus arrives.

Many students cycle to school. If you choose to come on your bike, you should plan your route in advance so that you know how long it will take you to get to school. Choose the safest route possible and be wary of traffic on busy roads.

Wearing a cycle helmet is important and you will also need lights in the winter and a lock so that your bike is secure when you leave it in the bike sheds. The bike sheds are locked during the day.

You should arrive in school by 8.35 a.m.

There should be no students on site before 8.00 a.m. Breakfast is available in the main canteen

The security gates will be closed at 8.35 a.m. and stay closed for the duration of the school day.

Warning bells ring at 8.35 a.m. and at the end of lunch at 1.30 p.m. Please finish what you are doing and make your way to registration or afternoon lessons so that you are not late.

If you cannot attend school, make sure that a parent/carer contacts the Attendance Officer at school before 9.00 a.m. on 01684 851806 or via the school app Edulink.

You will need to be well-organised and make sure that you have everything with you each day.

All students are expected to have their learning equipment with them in a sturdy school bag.

Each night, you will need to look at your timetable to work out what you need to bring the next day. It is helpful to pack your bag each evening so that you don’t forget anything you might need.

If you find it difficult to organise yourself, practice packing your bag or ask someone at home to help you until you get used to doing this.

Make sure you have a spare copy of your timetable pinned up at home for your parents; the timetable can also be viewed on the school app for parents.

You will have to carry your bag and equipment around with you as you move between classrooms, so pack your bag carefully as it can become heavy.

There are lockers available for you to leave belongings in. Bring in a small padlock with key on your first day and you will be able to use your locker right away. Talk to your tutor about lockers.

It’s important to write your name on all of your equipment so that things don’t get lost, or if they do, they can be easily returned to you. If you need to check for lost property then go to the Student Reception.

It’s a good idea to have plenty of spare stationery, glue sticks, printer paper, etc, at home.

You are allowed to bring a mobile phone to school but it must turned off at all times, and as soon as you get in to school.

You should also bring any medication you need, i.e., an asthma inhaler or diabetes testing kit as it is your responsibility to have it in your bag if you need it.

You need to be very careful with your valuable items, so if you are worried about losing something, it is better to leave it at home.

Every day you will have different lessons with different teachers and you will be given your individual timetable on your first day.

You will have to move around school to go to lessons. Some lessons will be taught in classrooms and some in laboratories or workshops.

It might take you a while to get used to moving around, but you will soon become good at remembering when your lessons are and where you need to go for them.

The work that you do will be at the right level for you and it is important that you always tell the teacher if you are finding it either too difficult or too easy.

It is likely that you will have some subjects that you haven’t done before. You will also be using new equipment that you probably didn’t have at primary school, for example, in the science labs or in music and sports lessons.

Throughout the year, your parents will be given regular reports on your progress. Make sure you complete all work, take part in lessons and come properly equipped to every class.

Tewkesbury School’s day looks like this

Registration in your Tutor Base 8.40 am – 9.00 am

Period 1 9.00 am – 9.55 am

Period 2 9.55 am – 10.50 am

BREAK 10.50 am – 11.05 am

Period 3 11.05 am – 12.00 pm

Period 4 12.00 pm – 12.55 pm

LUNCH 12.55 pm – 1.35 pm

Period 5 1.35 pm – 2.30 pm

Period 6* 2.30 pm – 3.25 pm

Warning Bells will ring at 8.35 am & 1.30 pm. *No Period 6 on a Friday - school finishes at 2.30 pm on a Friday

There are two breaks in the timetable where you are able to eat snacks/lunch and use the toilet if you need to.

You will be able to buy food the school canteens during breaks and lunchtimes.

Breakfast is available before school. You will need your student lanyard with your cashless catering card to buy food at school. There are machines that you can use to credit your card with cash or your parents can do this from home via an online system.

You will need to discuss with your parents what you will have for lunch. On some days you might chose to do different things. You should bring a drink of water to school every day to keep you hydrated between lessons. There are drinking fountains where you can fill up your water bottles.

If you have a problem at break or lunchtime, speak to a teacher on duty or go to the Student Reception. If you need to use the phone to contact parents for any reason, break and lunchtime are the best times to do this at the Student Reception. Do not phone your parents directly, the school will contact them if necessary.

You will be given homework in most subjects. To give you time to settle in, you will not get homework in the first few weeks. Homework is also set and managed online using ClassCharts. It is used for all year groups by all teachers in all subjects.

Students and teachers go to the ClassCharts website to set and view homework tasks, deadlines and attachments. Parents are given a log-in so that they can monitor this at home.

You will have to remember to complete your homework and hand it in at the right time. It is a good idea to check ClassCharts every evening to make sure that you are up-to-date with everything. Try not to leave all of your homework until the night before and try to spread out your homework tasks.

If you are struggling with homework, ask someone at home to help you or check with a friend. See the teacher who set it for you. Your teachers will not mind if you need to ask for help. As long as you are organised and don’t leave homework to the last minute, you will be fine!

Everyone occasionally has a problem or worry at school. This might be losing something, arguments with friends, problems with other students, feeling unwell or difficulties with work. There are lots of people at Tewkesbury School who are here to help you.

Some new Year 7s have concerns about being bullied, picked on or teased. You may worry because other children have told you things. You will be pleased to know that these events are extremely rare. Older students are normally very keen to help new students and will look after you if you are lost or worried.

Teachers They can help you if you tell them that you don’t understand your classwork, homework or need some advice about what you are learning.

Tutors Your tutor is always ready to listen to you, advise and help you. Talk to them during morning registration.

Student Reception Is open before school, during the day and after school. The staff are there to help you if you are lost, injured, unwell, late, have lost something, need to sign out, need a new timetable, need help to find a teacher, or need to use the telephone.

Home Your family will want you to help you. Tell them about things as soon as possible. Don’t let things get worse. They will be able to contact the school to find out what to do.

Any incident of bullying is dealt with quickly. Here at Tewkesbury School we strive to ensure that our whole school community feels safe, and enjoys the school experience, to that extent any incidents whether isolated, or meeting the above statement of bullying, should be reported and investigated by the pastoral teams.

Bullying is 'the repetitive, intentional hurting of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power.' - Anti-Bullying Alliance

With our schools technology progressing forwards, and a large number of students having their own Chromebook we have updated our ways of reporting incidents.

Alongside this we also want to make it easier for students and parents to report incidents. After submitting the incident report on our Anti bullying reporting site, it will be reviewed by the pastoral team. The incident will be swiftly resolved by either the pastoral team, or the by the students tutor.