Head's Welcome

Welcome to Esteem South Academy

We are an AP (alternative provision) Academy providing education to pupils who have been permanently excluded from mainstream education in the South of Derbyshire. Our provision in Newhall caters for pupils in all Key Stages up to KS4. We are commissioned by the Derbyshire Local Authority to educate pupils at day 6 after a permanent exclusion (PEX). We aim for pupils to reintegrate to another school as soon as they are ready to do so. Parents are unable to elect our academy following the admissions process for Derbyshire, and as we are a short term intervention academy, we should not be named in section I of an EHCP.

Whilst the vast majority of our pupils have been permanently excluded, we will work closely with local school clusters and the local authority to provide opportunities for young people who are "at risk" of exclusion and offer dual registered placements through a service level agreement. Such placements can be successful in preventing permanent exclusions. We must always prioritise places for excluded pupils who have no school roll, but we are very proud of our dual registration offer and the success that these pupils have in our academy.

We are committed to working in partnership with young people, their parents and carers, their schools and other agencies to re-engage pupils and enable them to become successful learners and responsible citizens. Where pupils are able to demonstrate positive and improved behaviour, and a desire to achieve, we aim to help them transition back to mainstream school. For those who require a more alternative approach, we provide a balanced and varied curriculum. We aim to be creative to provide pupils with an opportunity to reset, re-engage, improve relationships and in turn improve their positive behavioural responses and attendance over time.

At Esteem South Academy we aim to create a positive culture for staff and pupils. We will focus on the positive and use praise, reward and consequence, not sanction. We aim to make progress over time from every pupils individual starting point.

Our academy site is nurturing and has a high staff to pupil ratio. Staff aim to support pupils to re-engage, meet pupil need and encourage them back on a pathway to success. We are very proud of the work that we do to re-engage pupils back into education and see how they flourish over time.

The academy received an overall 'Good' Ofsted judgement in January 2023 and this is testament to our inclusive attitude to education for our staff, pupils, parents and all other stakeholders. We are a welcoming and supportive academy, with a

relentless determination to provide the very best education for every child. We place pupils at the centre of everything we do, with a focus on creating a culture of success and a positive climate for learning.

Janine Dix

Executive Headteacher