Letters

Below you will find the latest school letters, alongside an archive of past communications.

Paper copies and letters issued before Autumn 2020 are available on request.

Our most recent letter is pasted below to allow for easy translation for non-English speaking families.

Thursday 7th May 2026

Dear Parents and Carers,

RE: Leadership Update at Rockwood Academy

I hope you and your families are enjoying the summer term so far. I am writing today to inform you about a change in leadership at Rockwood Academy.

Mr Reeve will be leaving his role as Headteacher at the end of this half term to take up the role of Executive Headteacher at Moseley School and Sixth Form. We would like to thank Richard for his hard work, commitment and dedication to the Rockwood community. Under his leadership, the school has continued to move forward, with Ofsted reaffirming Rockwood’s ‘Good’ judgement last year, providing a strong platform for further improvement.

Mr Malik will be deployed as Head of School after half term, leading the day-to-day running of the school and maintaining a strong focus on the experience and outcomes of our students and staff. Alongside this, Mr Henshaw, Headteacher of Jewellery Quarter Academy, will be seconded as Executive Headteacher across both Jewellery Quarter Academy and Rockwood Academy, providing strategic leadership and oversight.

These arrangements are intended to ensure continuity, stability and focused leadership as Rockwood continues its improvement journey. Both Mr Malik and Mr Henshaw will be spending time in school over the coming weeks to meet colleagues and get to know the wider school community.

We appreciate that you may have questions, and we encourage you to get in touch with the school if there is anything you would like to discuss.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support.

Best wishes,

Jo Sargeant
On behalf of the Executive Team
CORE Education Trust

5^th May 2026

Dear Parent/Carer

This is an important update about school attendance at Rockwood Academy.

Rockwood Academy continues to work in partnership with parents and the Local Authority to improve school attendance.

Thank you to the majority of parents who make sure their children attend school regularly.

There are 2 sessions in 1 school day, the morning session and the afternoon session. If your child misses 19 school days, which is 38 sessions within the academic year, they will be classed as persistently absent (PA) and a more formalised approach to improve attendance will be adopted by the school. This can lead to legal proceedings in the form of government fines and prosecution.

How will your child’s academic progress be impacted by poor attendance?

Attendance during one school year	Equals this number of days absent	Weeks absent	number of lessons missed at school
18 sessions	9 days	2 weeks	50 lessons
38 sessions	19 days	4 weeks	100 lessons
58 sessions	29 days	6 weeks	150 lessons

Inclusive Attendance: Rockwood’s attendance partnership

Rockwood have partnered with Wayne Harris and Inclusive Attendance to ensure all key stakeholders are aware of the role they play which will support our students ensuring their attendance is 100%. Wayne Harris is a nationally recognised figure in education who specialises in improving school attendance. Rockwood will now be adopting a multi-tiered approach to attendance. For this approach to work, it is imperative parents/carers and students engage with the school when removing barriers to poor attendance. We are a community school and take pride in serving our students. However, your input is key to your child’s strong attendance to school and consequently their academic success.

Rockwood’s multi-tiered attendance model

Rockwood Academy have now launched a multi-tiered approach to improving student attendance, where all key stakeholders play a vital role in ensuring their child’s attendance is 100% for the academic year.

There are 3 tiers to Rockwood’s multi-tiered attendance model when supporting students improving and maintaining excellent attendance to Rockwood:

Tier -1- universal strategies- these are actions that ALL students at Rockwood should do to improve/maintain their attendance.
Tier 2- individualised strategies- this is targeted support for students who at risk of becoming persistently absent (PA) (19 school days missed and legal proceedings begin).

Tier 3- higher needs strategies- this is the support we provide to severely absent (SA) students. These are students who have been away for 50% of the academic year.

Role of children at each tier

Attend school regularly and be punctual.
Engage actively in classroom activities.
Support other children.
Share when you have a concern.
Recognise personal achievements.
Actively participate in any targeted interventions provided to improve your attendance.
Continue to engage in school life.

Role of parent at each tier

Ensure children attend school regularly and on time.
Understand and support any concerns your child may have.
Recognise personal achievements.
Work with the school to help understand their child’s barriers to attendance.
Proactively engage with the support offered to prevent the need for more formal support.
Take an active role in the multi-agency support offered.
Collaborate closely with the school on creating and implementing highly specialised interventions. This will prevent legal proceedings.

Parents/carers of students who are close to reaching the 19-day Persistent Absent threshold will be contacted and Rockwood’s multi-tiered approach to attendance will be activated. Please work with us as we continue to ensure your child’s attendance and academic achievement is the best it possibly can be at Rockwood. We are thriving for excellence, and know you also want the best for your child.

Kindest regards.

Mr R Reeve

Headteacher

We would like you to attend our community coffee morning Connect with Alum Rock on Thursday 30^th April 2026 10:00am – 11:15am at Naseby Community Centre. Our school police liaison officer PC Stringer will be available for drop-in support and questions about keeping Alum Rock safe.

21st April 2026

Dear Parent/Carer

Year 8 Parents’/Carers’ Evening – Thursday 23rd April 2026

Rockwood Academy is pleased to invite you to attend the Year 8 Parents’/Carers’ Evening, which will take place on Thursday 23rd April 2026 from 4:00pm to 6:30pm.
This is a crucial stage in your child’s education as they approach the end of year exams. Your attendance at this event is therefore of great importance. The evening will provide an opportunity for you to meet with your child’s subject teachers to discuss their academic progress, mock examination results, preparation for upcoming examinations, and overall attitude to learning.
Teachers will also be available to offer guidance and advice on how you can best support your child in achieving their target grades. Refreshments will be provided.

We expect all parents/carers to attend this event alongside their child.

Evidence shows that poor attendance can have a significant negative impact on academic outcomes. Students with attendance below 90%—classified as ‘Persistent Absentees’—are at a considerable risk of not reaching their full potential.

We look forward to welcoming you on Thursday 23rd April 2026.

Yours faithfully

Mr A Patel
Head of Year 8

17^th April 2026

Dear Parents and Carers

At Rockwood Academy, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff is always our highest priority. As part of our ongoing safeguarding procedures, we will be conducting a Lockdown Drill on Tuesday 21^st April 2026 at 9:20am.

Lockdown drills are an important part of our school’s emergency planning. They allow us to practise how we would respond in the unlikely event that we needed to secure the school site quickly in order to keep everyone safe. By practising these procedures in a calm and controlled way, students and staff learn what to do and how to respond safely if a real situation were ever to occur.

We would appreciate your support in reminding your child about the importance of behaving sensibly and listening carefully to staff instructions during the drill. Taking the exercise seriously helps ensure that all students understand the procedures that are in place to keep them safe.

Please reassure your child that this is simply a practice drill and part of the school’s normal safeguarding procedures.

Thank you for your continued support.

Warm regards.

Mr S Hetherington

Assistant Headteacher

13th April 2026

Dear Parents and Carers

At Rockwood Academy, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff is always our highest priority. As part of our ongoing safeguarding procedures, we will be conducting a Lockdown Drill on Tuesday 21st April 2026 at 9:30am.

We would appreciate your support in reminding your child about the importance of behaving sensibly and listening carefully to staff instructions during the drill. Taking the exercise seriously helps ensure that all students understand the procedures that are in place to keep them safe.

Please reassure your child that this is simply a practice drill and part of the school’s normal safeguarding procedures.

Thank you for your continued support.

Warm regards.

Mr S Hetherington

27th March 2026

Medical Tracker

Dear parents/carers

We are writing to inform you of an important update to our school procedures. From 17th April 2026, we will be introducing a new system to record all student medication and first aid incidents called medical tracker.

This system will allow us to maintain accurate records and ensure clear communication with families. Following any first aid treatment or administration of medication, details will be shared with you via email.

To ensure you receive these communications promptly, please make sure your email address is up to date with our reception team. If you are unsure or need to update your details, we encourage you to contact the school office as soon as possible.

Thank you for your continued support.

Yours sincerely
Ms R Graham
Operations Manager

Dear Parent/Carer

Year 11 Parents’/Carers’ Evening – Thursday 26th March 2026

Rockwood Academy is pleased to invite you to attend the Year 11 Parents’/Carers’ Evening, which will take place on Thursday 26th March 2026 from 4:00pm to 6:30pm. This is a crucial stage in your child’s education as they approach the completion of their secondary schooling.

Your attendance at this event is therefore of great importance. The evening will provide an opportunity for you to meet with your child’s subject teachers to discuss their academic progress, mock examination results, preparation for upcoming GCSE examinations, and overall attitude to learning.

Teachers will also be available to offer guidance and advice on how you can best support your child in achieving their target grades. Refreshments will be provided.

We expect all parents/carers to attend this event alongside their child.

In addition, we would like to emphasise the importance of regular school attendance. To ensure that your child is in the strongest possible position to succeed, they should aim for attendance as close to 100% as possible. Evidence shows that poor attendance can have a significant negative impact on academic outcomes. Students with attendance below 90%—classified as ‘Persistent Absentees’—are at a considerable risk of not reaching their full potential.
We look forward to welcoming you on Thursday 26th March 2026.

Yours faithfully

A Ghafoor
Ms Ghafoor
Head of Year 11

17^th March 2026

Dear Parents and Carers,

You may be aware that there was an incident in the local area this evening involving one of our students.

As this now involves a live police investigation, I hope you will understand that I am very limited on what I can say at this point.

As you know the safety and wellbeing of our students is always our top priority and staff will speak to students tomorrow to remind them who to talk to if they have been affected by this and how to access any help or support they might need.

We are working closely with the police to support their investigation, and tomorrow we will remind students who they can speak to if they have any concerns.

I understand how upsetting this news will be, but please know we will be doing everything we can to provide the support that anyone needs. As ever, please do get in touch if you have any questions.

Thank you for your continued support.

Yours sincerely

Mr. Richard Reeve

Headteacher

16th March 2026

Dear Parents and Carers

At Rockwood Academy, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff is always our highest priority. As part of our ongoing safeguarding procedures, we will be conducting a lockdown drill on Tuesday 24th March 2026 at 9:30am.

During the drill, staff will guide students through the lockdown procedures in their classrooms. Students will be asked to follow staff instructions carefully so that we can practise the process properly and ensure that everyone understands what to do.
We would appreciate your support in reminding your child about the importance of behaving sensibly and listening carefully to staff instructions during the drill. Taking the exercise seriously helps ensure that all students understand the procedures that are in place to keep them safe.

Please reassure your child that this is simply a practice drill and part of the school’s normal safeguarding procedures.

Thank you for your continued support.

Warm regards.

Mr S Hetherington
Assistant Headteacher

4th March 2026

Dear Parent/Carer

We are writing to inform you of the importance of punctuality and regular attendance, in line with Department for Education (DfE) guidance. Ensuring your child arrives at school on time is essential for safeguarding, academic progress, and establishing strong lifelong habits. According to the DfE’s ‘Working Together to Improve School Attendance’ Guidance (2024), good attendance and punctuality are key responsibilities shared between families and schools and as the trusted parent/carer it is vital you take an active role to ensure your child comes to school on time.

Why Punctuality Matters
Late arrivals disrupt lessons, affect learning routines, and means your child may miss key early-morning instruction. Research highlighted by Local Authority Attendance Guidance shows that even small amounts of missed learning accumulate quickly.

Legal Responsibility and Possible Outcomes
Under the Education Act 1996 and reinforced in DfE guidance, parents/carers have a legal responsibility to ensure their child attends school regularly and on time. Persistent lateness can be recorded as unauthorised absence, and ongoing issues may result in local authority involvement, including support plans or legal action where necessary.
How We Will Support You We want to work in partnership with families. If punctuality is becoming a challenge, please contact us so we can offer appropriate support. Early communication prevents escalation.

Our School’s Graduated Punctuality Approach
If your child is late to school, sanctions for your child will include but are not limited to:

Parent notification, 40-minute detention issued
Phone calls home, loss of social time
60-minute detention with senior leadership
Academy-based contribution including: canteen clean up duty, litter picking duty, classroom tidy up.

Thank you for your cooperation and for supporting your child’s success.

Yours sincerely

Mr G Singh
Assistant Headteacher – Behaviour and Attendance

2026 School Letters

2025 School Letters

2024 School Letters

2023 School Letters

2022 School Letters

2021 School Letters

2020 School Letters