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Opening of Aylesbury's newest church school

A GRAND opening marked the start of term at Aylesbury Vale Academy, the newest church school in the Diocese of Oxford.
 

Students donned their smart new uniforms to start classes at the Aylesbury Academy, on the site of the former Quarrendon School, exactly one year after the opening of the Oxford Academy, in the former Peers School building. Both academies are sponsored by the Diocese, as part of a Government drive to improve schools in deprived areas. Up and down the country faith or voluntary groups work in partnership with local authorities to improve schools in deprived areas by creating academies to help raise aspirations and standards.

 Leslie Stephen, Director of the Oxford Diocesan Board of Education, said: ‘The opening of the Aylesbury Vale Academy is an exciting day for us all. The Academy is a 21st century expression of the Church of England’s historic mission to provide education, and we look forward to a long and successful working relationship. 
‘As sponsors, we will work hard to make sure that Aylesbury Vale becomes an outstanding community Academy that provides excellent education for its students and plays a key part in the local communities.’
 

Bishop of Buckingham, the Rt Revd Alan Wilson, performed the opening ceremony on Monday, September 7. Academy principal, Jonathan Johnson, was headteacher of the former Quarrendon School.  He said: ‘The school did a lot of work to raise standards, but was not fit for purpose and we decided to do something radical and become an academy. We are still based in the old building, serving a deprived area of Aylesbury.  However, in 2012 we will move to a new building on a new housing estate.Jonathan said: ‘We will continue to serve students from the same catchment area, but also take in the new estate.’
 

Jonathan was excited about plunging into the academy’s first term. He said: ‘It’s an honour and a privilege to serve this community. I have been embraced and welcomed here since day one. I have the best job in the world. The academy is about providing an inclusive frame work based on Christian principles and values that no one can argue against. It’s a values based academy. The new school features an innovation room complete with state-of-the-art ICT equipment and a refurbished reception area decorated in bold shades of blue, the academy’s new official colour.'
 

Students at the academy will be placed in one of three colleges, each named after historically famous scientists to reflect the Academy’s focus on science and ICT: Faraday, Nobel and Franklin. The academy’s new uniform is composed of grey skirts or trousers, white shirts and blue blazers adorned with the individual college logos.
 

Also new will be the “vertical grouping” teaching system adopted by the academy, under which students of different ages will be placed in groups for a half hour of tutoring each day. This gives older pupils the opportunity to mentor younger ones and develop a sense of responsibility and leadership.