Hermitage Academy (England)

Hermitage Academy (formerly The Hermitage School and The Hermitage Academy) is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, England.[1] The current executive headteacher is Dr Janice Gorlach, appointed in September 2019 after the resignation of Miss Felicity Smith. Mr Darren Stewart has also been appointed as the School Headteacher. It is currently sponsored by North East Learning Trust (NELT), a multi-academy trust with partner & sponsor schools across North East England, including Academy at Shotton Hall and Teesdale School.

Hermitage Academy
Address
Waldridge Lane Chester-le-Street County Durham , DH2 3AD England
Coordinates	54.85122°N 1.59264°W
Information
Former names	The Hermitage Academy, The Hermitage School
Type	Academy
Motto	Every Child Experiences Excellence Every Day
Local authority	Durham County Council
Trust	North East Learning Trust
Department for Education URN	136683 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Executive Headteacher	Dr Janice Gorlach
Head of School	Mr Darren Stewart
Gender	Mixed
Age	11 to 18
Enrolment	1,108 as of February 2020
Capacity	1039
Colour(s)	Blue & White
Website	http://www.hermitageacademy.co.uk/

Prior to 2019, the school was sponsored by The Hermitage Academy Trust, a single academy trust. Before the school was taken over by NELT, Miss Felicity Smith was appointed as principal, appointed in November 2015 after the resignation of Mr M. Murray.

Previously a foundation school administered by Durham County Council, The Hermitage School converted to academy status in April 2011 and was renamed The Hermitage Academy. However the school continues to coordinate with Durham County Council for admissions.

The Hermitage Academy offers GCSEs and BTECs as programmes of study for Key Stage 4 pupils, while students in the sixth form have the option to study from a range of A-levels, Cambridge Nationals and further BTECs.[2]

Admissions

Hermitage Academy enrols 1,108 students, ranging from Year 7 to Year 11. 12.6% of attending students receive free school meals.[3]

The Academy Day

Currently, the school operates on a timetable featuring 1 hour lessons, allowing for a maximum of 5 lessons per day. Prior to 2019, the school had 1 hour 15 minute lessons, with up to 4 lessons per day. However, with the introduction of NELT into the school, the change was made to 1 hour long lessons.

A total of 1 hour and 15 minutes a week is spent with form. PAUSE, standing for Punctuality, Attendance, Uniform, Student planner & Equipment, is 15 minutes at the start of each school day, where the mentioned things are checked by form tutors. Students are expected to follow school standards, including correct uniform and equipment. Important messages are also passed to students at this time. The school also featured 25 minute Guidance sessions prior to 2019, carried out between Monday and Thursday and dedicated to personal, social, health and economic education, covering issues such as fundamental British values, citizenship and democracy, among others. These lessons were also phased out by NELT.

A new uniform was introduced in September 2020 for students in the academy. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the new uniform is still yet to be mandatory.

Hermitage Academy School Timetable : From September 2019

	PAUSE	Period 1	Period 2	Break	Period 3	Period 4 + Lunch	Period 5	Extra Curricular
Monday - Friday	8:35 - 8:50 (15 minutes)	8:50 - 9:50 (1 hour)	9:50 - 10:50 (1 hour)	10:50 - 11:10 (20 minutes)	11:10 - 12:10 (1 hour)	12:10 - 13:50 (1 hour) 40 minutes rolling lunch 12:10 - 12:50 or 13:10 - 13:50	13:50 - 14:50 (1 hour)	14:50 - 16:00

The Hermitage Academy School Timetable:[4] Prior to September 2019 _a

	PAUSE b	Period 1	Period 2	Guidance c	Period 3	Period 4	Extra Curricular
Monday	8:45 - 8:50 (5 minutes)	8:50 - 10:05 (1 hour 15 minutes)	10:05 - 11:35 (1 hour 15 minutes) 15 minutes rolling break	11:35 - 12:00 (25 minutes)	12:00 - 13:45 (1 hour 15 minutes) 25 minutes rolling lunch	13:45 - 15:00 (1 hour 15 minutes)	15:00 - 16:00 (1 hour)
Tuesday	8:45 - 8:50 (5 minutes)	8:50 - 10:05 (1 hour 15 minutes)	10:05 - 11:35 (1 hour 15 minutes) 15 minutes rolling break	11:35 - 12:00 (25 minutes)	12:00 - 13:45 (1 hour 15 minutes) 25 minutes rolling lunch	13:45 - 15:00 (1 hour 15 minutes)	15:00 - 16:00 (1 hour)
Wednesday	8:45 - 8:50 (5 minutes)	8:50 - 10:05 (1 hour 15 minutes)	10:05 - 11:35 (1 hour 15 minutes) 15 minutes rolling break	11:35 - 12:00 (25 minutes)	12:00 - 13:45 (1 hour 15 minutes) 25 minutes rolling lunch	13:45 - 15:00 (1 hour 15 minutes)	15:00 - 16:00 (1 hour)
Thursday	8:45 - 8:50 (5 minutes)	8:50 - 10:05 (1 hour 15 minutes)	10:05 - 11:35 (1 hour 15 minutes) 15 minutes rolling break	11:35 - 12:00 (25 minutes)	12:00 - 13:45 (1 hour 15 minutes) 25 minutes rolling lunch	13:45 - 15:00 (1 hour 15 minutes)	15:00 - 16:00 (1 hour)
	PAUSE	Period 1	Period 2	Period 3	Lunch	Extra Curricular
Friday	8:45 - 9:00 (15 minutes)	9:00 - 10:15 (1 hour 15 minutes)	10:15 - 11:45 (1 hour 15 minutes) 15 minutes rolling break	11:45 - 13:00 (1 hour 15 minutes)	13:00 - 13:30 (30 minutes)	13:30 - 2:45 (1 hour 15 minutes)

^{^a} This timetable will not be used from September 2019, as 1 hour lessons, which previously existed prior to 2016, are reintroduced.

^{^b} PAUSE stands for Punctuality, Attendance, Uniform, Student Planner & Equipment. It is 5 minutes of form time.

^{^c} Guidance is 25 minutes of form time dedicated to PSHE education.

Teaching Staff

Hermitage Academy currently has 75 teachers in total. Most of these are teachers of form classes, ranging between forms in Year 7 - Year 13.

In September 2019, the form names changed from being the first & last name initial of each teacher. Each form now includes one letter of the name of the school and this spells out "Hermitage", excluding the duplicate "e".

Year 7 [New Uniform]	7H Form Tutor TBC	7E Form Tutor TBC	7R Form Tutor TBC	7M Form Tutor TBC	7I Form Tutor TBC	7T Form Tutor TBC	7A Form Tutor TBC	7G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 7: Mrs K Hardy
Year 8 [New Uniform]	8H Form Tutor TBC	8E Form Tutor TBC	8R Form Tutor TBC	8M Form Tutor TBC	8I Form Tutor TBC	8T Form Tutor TBC	8A Form Tutor TBC	8G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 8: Mrs L Kenny
Year 9 [New Uniform]	9H Form Tutor TBC	9E Form Tutor TBC	9R Form Tutor TBC	9M Form Tutor TBC	9I Form Tutor TBC	9T Form Tutor TBC	9A Form Tutor TBC	9G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 9: Miss K Hall
Year 10 [New Uniform]	10H Form Tutor TBC	10E Form Tutor TBC	10R Form Tutor TBC	10M Form Tutor TBC	10I Form Tutor TBC	10T Form Tutor TBC	10A Form Tutor TBC	10G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 10: Mr M Widdowson
Year 11 [Crimson Tie]	11H Form Tutor TBC	11E Form Tutor TBC	11R Form Tutor TBC	11M Form Tutor TBC	11I Form Tutor TBC	11T Form Tutor TBC	11A Form Tutor TBC	11G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 11: Mr C Gibbins
Sixth Form [Non-Uniform]	12H Form Tutor TBC	12E Form Tutor TBC	12R Form Tutor TBC	12M Form Tutor TBC	13I Form Tutor TBC	13T Form Tutor TBC	13A Form Tutor TBC	13G Form Tutor TBC	HEAD OF YEAR 12: Mr M Rowles HEAD OF YEAR 13: Miss S Whitaker	OTHER SIXTH FORM STAFF: Mrs S Gamble & Mrs S Finley

Ofsted Inspection

In their most recent Ofsted Inspection, occurring in October 2018, Hermitage Academy was deemed Inadequate by inspectors.[5] Inspectors stated that teaching was far too variable between lessons, leaders have been too slow halting the decline in the quality of student's education, and that the school had weak progress from Year 7 to Year 11. However, it was also pointed out that students were polite and courteous around school, safeguarding was effective and situations of bullying were dealt with effectively. In response, the school was taken over by the North East Learning Trust, which is discussed in detail further down the page. A second inspection is expected within the next few academic years, to assess the Academy's progress.

The previous inspection The Hermitage School received was in 2007, with inspectors deeming the school Outstanding.[6]

Construction of the Year 7 Teaching Block

Completed June 2017, the Year 7 Block was a £1.3 million building provides 8 new classrooms labelled from 7–1 up to 7–8, toilets and an amenity space for new Year 7 students. The new building formed part of the Academy's on-going estate management and curriculum improvements and was designed for the youngest year group to ease their transition to the main school after moving from primary school. Included in all classrooms are spaces for 32 students, as well as slide across whiteboards & television screens as projectors. Two of the rooms are also separated with a folding partition wall, which can be folded to form one larger room.[7] During the 2019 GCSEs, this block was used primarily for Year 11s. As of June 2019, this block is now used as a block for English, as Year 7 students revert to moving through the school for their lessons.

North East Learning Trust

It was announced on 10 June 2019 that as of the following academic year, the North East Learning Trust will be appointed to sponsor the school.[8] The North East Learning Trust is a multi-academy Trust founded by Academy at Shotton Hall, an outstanding secondary school in Peterlee.

The following actions have taken place in September 2019:

• Dr Janice Gorlach was appointed as Executive Headteacher.
• Mr Darren Stewart was appointed as School Headteacher.
• A 1-week timetable replaced the previous 2 week timetable.
• The school day is set to be from 8:35 to 14:50, compared to the old school day being from 8:45 to 15:00, (On Fridays, this was 8:45 to 13:00).
• Lessons are set to return to 1 hour long, with 5 lessons in the school day.
• 3 year groups are expected to be on lunch at once, compared to in 2018 where between 1 and 2 year groups share a lunch.
• All year groups are expected to have break at the same time.
• Fences have been placed along the boundary of some areas of the school.
• Planners and exercise books have been branded in North East Learning Trust branding.
• The area provided for students during break and lunchtimes has been increased.
• Cold food and hot food is served in two different halls.
• Prefects, as well as "Head Boy" and "Head Girl" roles were introduced to the school, occupied by Year 11 students to further support younger years as well as help out at school related events.

Some of these actions, particularly the new lunch and break plans, were met with some controversy, with some students stating the "Gigabyte" (School canteen) is already too full, and that the little room there is to expand will not make a difference. After the change occurred in September 2019, these opinions continued, even with the increased area given to students, with break and lunch being referred to as "chaos" by some students. These issues were eventually resolved for the most part, although Year 11s and Year 13s in particular have disagreed with exams being carried out in the Sports Hall, due to a "lack of sufficient heating" and "unsuitable working conditions".

Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic

In accordance to government guidelines, the Academy was forced to close on the 20th March 2020, as a result of the spreading COVID-19 pandemic.[9] During the United Kingdom's lockdown period, only vulnerable children and children of key workers could enter the school. Schoolwork was instead set online using Classcharts, and later Office 365 was used to set work, communicate with students and host online live lessons.

Year 10 and Year 12 students are expected to receive additional face to face support on the 15th June,[10] likely within school premises, with the school following stricter hygiene regulations. This return is likely to include smaller class sizes (maximum of 15 per class), social distancing regulations, one-way corridors and a limited number of students in school at any one time. Non-attendance would not be fined during the COVID-19 pandemic if this were the case. Other year groups are believed to not return to school until September at the earliest.

GCSE exams were also cancelled. In order for students to be awarded a grade, class teachers were made to give a predicted grade of students, as well as ranking them from best performing to worst performing.

References

1. "The Hermitage Academy – Chester-Le-Street". thehermitageacademy.net.
2. "Hermitage Academy Sixth Form". thehermitageacademy.net.
3. "Downloads – GOV.UK". get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
4. "Academy Day – The Hermitage Academy". Retrieved 28 June 2019.
5. "The Hermitage Academy Ofsted Report – October 2018" (PDF). www.thehermitageacademy.net. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
6. [email protected], Ofsted Communications Team (12 September 2018). "Ofsted Inspections prior to 2011". reports.ofsted.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
7. "Year 7 Teaching Block". Brims Construction. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
8. "North East Learning Trust Letter" (PDF).
9. Adams, Richard; Stewart, Heather (18 March 2020). "UK schools to be closed indefinitely and exams cancelled". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
10. "Opening schools and educational settings to more pupils from 1 June: guidance for parents and carers". GOV.UK. Retrieved 4 June 2020.

External links

• The Hermitage Academy official website