UTC Oxfordshire
Newsletter – 23rd September 2022
Dear all,
We hope you have had a good week. School has been quieter today with some of our students out at the UTC Oxfordshire vs UTC Swindon Sports Day. We’ll update you next week on the results but we hope everyone involved had a great day.
Friday 23 September - Autumn Equinox 2022
The Autumn Equinox 2022 in the Northern Hemisphere was at 02:03 today at which time the sun was directly over Earth's equator. This means everyone across the globe gets a day and night lasting approximately 12 hours each. For the Northern Hemisphere, the September equinox marks the first day of autumn. Autumnal equinox 2022 brings fall to the Northern Hemisphere | Space
Ferrari Track Day
We hope some of you were able to attend the Ferrari Challenge Event last weekend and enjoyed the day. We hope to be able to offer access to the event again next year for those of you that missed out. Here are some images of what sounds like a fantastic event.
Thank you again to our friends at Ferrari for inviting us to join them.
Supporting Year 13 with University applications
Year 13 are now in the process of completing their personal statements for UCAS. The school deadline for completing these and loading on the UCAS website is Friday 2nd December 2022.
On the UCAS website there is a page for parents to access. It is a good idea to register for the newsletter so that you are aware of key dates, visits and important information about the whole UCAS process. As parents you can support your student with their personal statement by helping with ideas about their hobbies and interests, any volunteering they may have done or other information that we at the UTC may not know. A personal statement is not just about their interests and about what they want to study, but also about the student holistically. UCAS website – www.ucas.com
Whatuni.com is a useful website that can help and support in narrowing down your selection and compare all possible options. https://www.whatuni.com/
Unifrog
Year 13 will have been signed up to a destinations platform called Unifrog. This platform is fantastic in helping students decide where they would like to go Post-19. Year 13 can use this platform to help them write their personal statements for their UCAS application. Unifrog will not just help with university applications, but is very good at helping find the right apprenticeships options.
Please watch the videos below to find out more@
Attendance – week ending 16th September
Please see below last week’s overall attendance figures for each tutor group. There is a direct link between attendance and achievement and UTC Oxfordshire is committed to understanding and supporting those students whose attendance falls below our target of 97%. Please be aware that our register closes at 9am. If your student arrives after this time, without good reason, they will receive a U code, which is a morning’s unauthorised absence, regardless of what time they arrive in school. Please inform us by 8.30am if your student is not able to attend or will be late – either by calling 01235 391587 and using option 1 to leave a voicemail, or email attendance@utcoxfordshire.org.uk.
If you receive the absence text, please respond as soon as possible. If you are receiving it every day, indicating your student has not arrived by the start of tutor time, please speak to your student about the reason for their lateness. If you have any concerns, please contact our Attendance Officer, Paula Ramsbottom: pramsbottom@utcoxfordshire.org.uk or your student’s Head of Year or tutor.
Progress Consultation Evenings
Over the coming weeks we will be holding our Progress Consultation evenings per year group. You will receive further information before your specific year group’s event. They will be held virtually and are an opportunity for you and your student to meet with subject teachers and discuss the progress being made.
The booking system will open a week before each event, please find a useful guide to using the system here.
Vacancies
We are thinking ahead to our exam seasons and looking for Exam Invigilators to provide supervision of internal and external examinations throughout the year. If you would like to discuss the role further please contact our Exams Officer Sarah Loveland on sloveland@utcoxfordshire.org.uk
We are also looking for a minibus driver for the school’s home/school transport provision. Please contact our Facilities Manager, Dave Langston on dlangston@utcoxfordshire.org.uk if this is of interest to you or anyone you know.
Further details of both vacancies can be found on our website: UTC Oxfordshire - Staff Vacancies
Opportunities
Women in STEM at PwC
This webinar on 19th October from 18:30–19:15 is for students in Years 10 to 13 and their parents/carers. They will hear from inspiring females in technology and discover what a career in technology or accounting at PwC could look like. Tickets can be secured here: Women in STEM at PwC
Year 10 October half term - Science Oxford Insight Week
https://scienceoxford.com/schools/secondary-schools/insight-weeks/
Level 6 (Degree) Apprenticeship roles – AWE open now
https://www.awe.co.uk/careers/future-careers/apprentice-scheme/level-6-degree-apprenticeship-roles/
National Space Academy
The National Space Academy will be hosting online careers conferences for students and parents/guardians, thanks to the UK Space Agency. These conferences will allow viewers to find out about some of the most exciting job opportunities within an ever-growing industry. Jobs within the sector range from working with satellites to help predict the weather and farmers to better understand their crops, designing and building rockets, to becoming a space lawyer.
These interactive online careers conferences will explore the range of careers available before delving further into the career choices of three of their speakers. Looking at how their career journey brought them to where they are today and what it is they do daily. This will be followed by a 30-minute Q&A session with the speakers.
Saturday 3rd December 2022 - 10.30 - 12.30
Year 10 and 11 students - Book here
Saturday 3rd December 2022, 14.00 - 16.00
Year 12 and 13 students - Book here
Online careers conference - Information for parents and guardians
Thursday 1st December 2022 - 18.30 - 20.30
Aimed at parents/guardians with students aged 14-18, however parents/guardians with children of any secondary school age are welcome to join. - Book here
Please also see the link below which includes the above information:
https://nationalspaceacademy.org/what-we-do/careers-conferences/online-careers-conference
Elements Café
Dates for the diary
- Wednesday 28th September - Year 10 Open event
- Wednesday 5th October – Year 13 Parent Consultation Evening
- Wednesday 12th October – Year 12 Parent Consultation Evening
- Wednesday 19th October – Year 10 Parent Consultation Evening
- Thursday 20 October– Friday 28 October – Half Term
- Wednesday 2nd November – Year 11 Parent Consultation Evening
- Wednesday 9th November– 6th Form open Event and Careers Fair
Term dates for 2022 to 2023
- Autumn Term 1: Friday 2 September 2022 (years 10 and 12 only) to Wednesday 19 October 2022. Whole school in attendance from Monday 5 September 2022
- Autumn Term 2: Monday 31 October 2022 – Friday 16 December 2022
- Spring Term 1: Thursday 5 January 2023 – Friday 10 February 2023
- Spring Term 2: Monday 20 February 2023 – Friday 31 March 2023
- Summer Term 1: Wednesday 19 April 2023 – Friday 26 May 2023
- Summer Term 2: Monday 5 June 2023 – Friday 21 July 2023
Further details can be found on our website: https://www.utcoxfordshire.org.uk/term-dates/
Have a good weekend
Stay safe
Best wishes
Emma