News

Highflyers head to Cambridge University with help of OCR bursaries

Thirteen of the West Midlands’ most talented A level students, described as “remarkable”, “outstanding”, “extremely gifted” and “exceptional”, have won bursaries from exam board OCR to support them with studies at the University of Cambridge.

One of those students is Sehrish Mahmood from Cradley Heath, who attended Ormiston Forge Academy and will be studying Law at Magdalene College.

The students, all of whom are about to begin studies at Cambridge, will receive £3,000 for each year of their undergraduate studies. This will allow them to make the most of their time at university rather than worrying about money. The students attended schools and colleges across the West Midlands, including in Birmingham, Coventry, Redditch, Uttoxeter, Bromsgrove, Cradley Heath, Stratford and Shrewsbury.

Sehrish said: “I feel very fortunate to have been granted the OCR Bursary. The financial support will allow me to engage in many opportunities presented at the University of Cambridge, in regards to both my studies and any extracurricular activities I take on, that may not have been accessible to me otherwise. I am confident that the absence of financial burden will enable me to flourish at the university, and maximise my potential. To OCR I am thankful, as I know this bursary will benefit me, and others, greatly.“

The bursary winners were celebrated at an event at OCR’s Coventry offices on 19 September.

Congratulating the students on their achievements, Saul Nassé, Chief Executive of OCR’s parent organisation, Cambridge Assessment, said: “We feel lucky to play our small part in helping these 13 outstanding students with their studies at Cambridge University.

“They won places at Cambridge, so they are all academic high flyers but they have other talents too. Many have supported other students in their schools and carried out voluntary work in their local communities. There are also gifted musicians, performing artists, sportspeople, debaters and science and maths competition winners amongst them.

“It has been great to meet them today, along with their families and the teachers who have inspired and supported them. I am sure they will all flourish at Cambridge University and I wish them all the best for their time in college and beyond.“

Year 11 Mock Exam Timetable

Year 11 students were given their mock exam timetable today. Please find it below for reference.

Extracurricular Activities 2019/20

We offer an extensive whole school extracurricular programme at Forge. Please download the PDF below for a weekly plan of our activities. Thank you.

Ormiston Forge Academy Celebrate GCSE Results

With over half of all students achieving a GCSE Grade 4 or above in English and maths, there is cause for smiles and celebration today at Forge.

Overall, 54 per cent of students achieved a Grade 4 or above in both English and maths – with Grade 4 set by the Government as a pass. This also represents a 7 per cent increase on the Grade 4 English and maths from 2018.

There has also been a six-percentage-point increase, to 32 per cent, in the number of students achieving a Grade 5 or above in both English and maths – defined by the Government as a “strong pass” or better.

In English, 72 per cent of students achieved Grade 4 or above, an 8 per cent increase on the 2018 result. In BTEC sport, 94 per cent of students earned a Distinction, this coming after an incredible result in 2018 where 90 per cent of students performed to the highest level. The Academy also saw strong attainment in individual subjects where 25 per cent of biology students, 22 per cent of physics students, 33 per cent of classics students and 38 per cent of chemistry students achieved a Grade 7 or above.

Dr Lisa Mason, Principal at Ormiston Forge Academy, said:

“We are pleased with the GCSE results this year which show a significant and obvious attainment improvement on our strong results from 2018. We are proud of the achievement of our students and the tremendous effort our teachers have put in.

“The results this year complement our excellent A level results showing just how much value we are adding to students’ academic outcomes.”

Last week students at Forge capped a remarkable year with 91 per cent of the A level cohort achieving three or more passes at grades A*-E. Students from the Academy – judged Good in all areas following an inspection by Ofsted in 2016 – achieved a 100% pass rate in all subjects.

The Ormiston Forge Academy Open Days for prospective parents are on Thursday 19th September from 6.00pm–8.30pm and Saturday 21st September from 9am until 12. Parents and children and invited to come and see Forge and all it has to offer for themselves.

GCSE subjects are marked under the new 1-9 grading system, with 9 being the highest grade. New GCSEs are linear in structure rather than modular, with all exams at the end of a two-year course. A grade 4 is effectively an old C grade and the top grade, a grade 9 is the equivalent of the very top A*.

Ormiston Forge Academy Celebrate Strong A Level Results

Ormiston Forge Academy in Cradley Heath is today celebrating another strong set of A level results and continues to confirm its position as one of the top schools in the area for sixth form study.

At A level, over a quarter of entries achieved A-B grades and 91% of the A level cohort achieved three or more A level passes at grades A-E. These follow a strong showing in 2018 and set a consistent positive trend for post 16 study at Forge.

Students from the Academy – judged Good in all areas following an inspection by Ofsted in 2016 – achieved a 100% pass rate in all subjects.

The average point score (APS), a national marker, for A level students has maintained in 2019 with a score of 27.27 – an increase on 2018. This means that the average grade achieved by A level students is a C-.

These successes are mirrored in Applied General results where students who have undertaken Applied General courses have seen an increase in the average point score from last year. This has led to the maintenance of a high average grade of Merit.

Principal, Dr Lisa Mason, said: “The strong partnerships we foster between staff, students and their families have paid off resulting in outstanding levels of achievement and success for our students.

“Teachers and students alike have really focussed their efforts on moving their grades up, so that the hard-won C grade or Merit can be just as fulfilling as the top result.

“These results are the effort of hours of hard work from students and I’d like to congratulate our students and students up and down the country who are now planning to continue their education or enter the world of work.”

73 sixth form students have studied towards an impressive total of 159 A levels this year, across a diverse and broad range of 49 subject areas. All students have the opportunity to study at least three A levels at Ormiston Forge Academy, with some choosing to go the extra mile with a fourth subject.

The vast majority of students have also had their first choice of university places confirmed. 67% of students who applied for university have gained their first or second choice places. 33% of students will go onto employment meaning that the Academy continues to ensure that all students who leave the sixth form at Forge are in education, training or employment.

The assistant principal for Key Stage 5, Darren Grimes, said: “With the move away from coursework and modular exams it’s a testament to the hard work of students and the support put in place by our teachers that our students consistently gain places at excellent universities on a range of highly competitive courses.

“It is particularly pleasing to see our 2019 progress score significantly higher than it was in 2018, a year when we got above national performance scores for Applied General subjects.

“Our results have shown, that over the last few years, students who study in our sixth form do well. We’ve created an environment where they are able to flourish; it’s a safe place where they have academic and pastoral support and the result is that they are happy and successful.”

Nick Hudson, CEO of Ormiston Academies Trust, said: “I would like to congratulate the students, staff and the whole school community at Ormiston Forge Academy on these great results, which are testament to the hard work and determination of students, supported by their teachers and parents.

“As a trust, it is our absolute priority to ensure that every student has the opportunity to fulfil their potential and the skills to succeed whether going on to study at a leading university or entering the world of work. We look forward to working with the academy to build on these achievements.”

If you are a year 11 student and would like to consider joining us in the sixth form in September, contact Mrs Yvonne Siviter, telephone: 01384 566 598 or email: yvonne.siviter@oatforge.co.uk as soon as you have your GCSE results on Thursday 21st August.

Ormiston Forge Academy also has an Open Day on Thursday 19th September and Saturday 21st September for any families wanting to learn more about joining year 7 or our Sixth Form in September 2020. The doors will be open from 6.00pm–8.30pm on Thursday and 9am until 12 on Saturday. No need to book, just turn up.

Open Events 2019 (for a September 2020 start)

We’re delighted to be able to announce our open event dates for September. We will be throwing open our doors to prospective students and their parents on Thursday 19th September and Saturday 21st September.

Children who are due to start secondary school in September 2020 and their parents are invited to visit Forge to gain a taster of life at the Academy. Once again, we achieved another set of excellent A level results last summer as well as a first-class set of GCSE results.

Ormiston Forge Academy is an oversubscribed school and we have a Good grade from Ofsted. We are rated as Good in every category we were inspected – including sixth form; personal development; pupil outcomes; quality of teaching and effectiveness of leadership and management. In 2017 we were also designated as a National Support School (NSS) with our executive principal appointed a national leader of education (NLE) and eight members of staff designated as specialist leaders of education (SLE)

The doors will be open from 6.00pm–8.30pm on Thursday and 9am until 12 on Saturday. No need to book, just turn up.

Visitors will be able to try out science experiments, view paintings, watch our food technology department cook for our modern foreign language cafe, check out our new range of Chromebooks, interact with the geography and history departments and meet our Executive Principal, Mr Burns and Principal, Dr Mason amongst many other things. Also in attendance will be our football scholars and The Access Project who help our student improve their grades, even more, to get them into a top university.

Last year an incredible amount of visitors turned up and our year 7 in 2019 is full so please arrive early and allow around 90 minutes to get the most out of your visit. Attending our open events will give you the opportunity to make the right decision for your child’s education.

Please contact Mrs Yvonne Siviter on 01384 566 598 or email yvonne.siviter@oatforge.co.uk if you have any questions.

Facebook events for Thursday 19th and Saturday 21st September – www.facebook.com/events/154754395440766

In memory of John Parker

Today we remember John Parker, who sadly passed away this past weekend. Mr Parker was headteacher of Heathfield Technology College, our predecessor school, for 27 years from 1984.

Mr Parker will be remembered for his significant contribution to our community and this school, our thoughts are with his family.

Five Star Food Hygiene

Congratulations to staff in our canteen for getting the best possible food hygiene ratings after an inspection from the Food Standards Agency.

Our Educaterers run facility got a rating of five (out of five) which means that everything at the eatery is in tip-top condition.

Each establishment is checked in three categories, including hygienic food handling, cleanliness and condition of facilities and building and management of food safety.

Half term revision schedule

You can download a PDF of our half term revision schedule here:

Howzat For A Year 7 Cricketer!

Students at Forge play a diverse range of sport and today we’d like to celebrate Harry in year 7 who is clearly a prodigious cricketing talent.

Harry plays his club cricket for Stourbridge Cricket Club and plays for a range of age groups from U12s to U15s. He has recently made his debut for the adult Saturday fourth team.

He was recently awarded Worcestershire County Cricket Club U11s Most Valuable Player of the season. Every game during the season, the players’ performances are turned into points. Harry accumulated a total of 497 points over the season, he had an outstanding season with both bat and ball. Harry’s total is the highest achieved in the six years the award has been given out.

Over the season of 10 games, he took 17 wickets and scored 217 runs.

He is now in the U12s county team and has been invited to play with the academy side which are mainly 14, 15 and 16-year-olds. He recently played his first game for the Academy vs Cheshire.

Please join us in congratulating Harry and wishing him luck with the bat and ball in the future. Perhaps one day we’ll see Harry play for Worcestershire Rapids or the Birmingham Bears… or England. Howzat!