Principal’s Update
Published: Fri 15 November 2024Dear Parents/Carers,
We hope you had a restful half-term holiday, though that already seems a long time ago. We are in full swing, preparing for our upcoming assessment period. This is an important term, particularly for Years 11 and 13, as they undertake their first set of mock exams.
Additional Studies Winter Break
As winter is approaching, we will be pausing our Additional Studies programme to ensure students can make their way home earlier in the darker months. Our Additional Studies Winter Break begins on Monday 25th November 2024, and will last until Monday, 27th January 2025. During this period, there will be no Additional Studies sessions, and school will end at 3:30 pm every day unless your child attends an extracurricular club or has a detention. The library will remain open until 5:30 pm each day.
Autumn Assessments
On Thursday 21st November, our Autumn Term assessment period will begin. Your child(ren) have received an assessment timetable and topic list during tutor time; these are also available to view here. Please refer to your child’s planner for effective revision strategies and to the knowledge organiser for core knowledge areas to be covered in the assessments. If you have questions or concerns during the assessment period, please contact your child’s tutor: see here for tutor lists.
Sixth Form Open Evening
Our Sixth Form Open Evening will take place on Thursday, 21st November, for students who would like to apply to our Sixth Form. The event runs from 5:00 to 8:00 pm, and each booking requires the attendance of at least one adult. To book a slot for our Sixth Form Open Evening, please click here.
Parent Governor Election
One of our current parent governors, Oleander Agbetu, is stepping down from her role on the governing body as her term comes to an end. We would like to thank Oleander for her years of committed service to the academy and for bringing expertise and challenge to the local governing board. An election for a new parent governor will take place from Friday 15th November 2024 to Friday 29th November 2024. Please see a letter with full details here and the application form to put forward your candidacy here.
2024 Founders’ Day
We were delighted to welcome distinguished guests to our annual Founders’ Day celebration, where we commemorate the official opening of the academy and award students who achieved outstanding results in the 2024 GCSE exams. Distinguished attendees included Catherine McGuinness CBE, Chair of the Trust Governing Board; David Chalk, Sheriff of the City of London; Timothy Sanders-Hewett, Master Fletcher of The Worshipful Company of Fletchers and Tyreke Leslie, actor and former Guildhall School of Music and Drama student, as well as our governors. It was wonderful to see our alumni return to celebrate their peers’ achievements, enjoy several inspiring speeches, and listen to beautiful performances by The City Academy Hackney school choir and musicians. The ceremony concluded with our school song, during which alumni in the audience joined the choir on stage.
Financial Times – Africa Summit
One of our students, Emmanuel Adu (Year 12), was selected by the Financial Times to attend their prestigious Africa Summit. Emmanuel shared, “It was an amazing event where I got to listen to and speak with world leaders, members of African governments, and CEOs and CFOs of global companies such as American Express and JP Morgan. The event gave me insight into how what we learn in economics applies to real life and how the language of business and economics is used in practice”.