To help with the soaring cost of living and rising costs of school uniform we are delighted to be launching our very own onsite Uniform Exchange Shop this term!

In a 2020 report carried out by The Children’s Society, families with children at secondary school are paying an average of more than £300 per child, per year in school uniform costs. We are committed to helping our students and their families in whatever way we can and we are confident this new programme will proves successful. We are here to remove any barriers to learning our students may have – ensuring they have the right uniform and equipment is a small step in the right direction.

It’s not just about saving money and easing the financial strain for our families though. We are passionate about sustainability and the impact on the environment that disposing of unwanted inform items has. We’re taking action to help our community be greener, preventing clothing waste that would otherwise end up in landfill.

How we can help you:

Our Uniform Exchange Shop will be open to any child from any Year Group and will stock high-quality items from ties and shirts to blazers and PE kits. You’ll be able to exchange items or just ask for any items of uniform that you may need. Our shop will first launch on GCSE Results Day, Thursday 25 August 2022 and will also be open in school on the following days:

Summer Transition Day – Friday 2 September 2022
Inset Day – Monday 5 September 2022
Inset Day – Tuesday 6 September 2022

How can you help us?

To help us with our mission to recycle and reuse we’re kindly asking all our parents/carers to consider donating any unwanted, new or second-hand uniform items, including PE kit, in good condition to us. We’re incredibly proud of our caring and generous academy community and we know from previous campaigns such as our Foodbank collections that they step up to help whenever we ask. We are amazing at ‘Succeeding Together’.

You can drop off your items at our main academy reception between 8am-4pm any weekday.

Welcome to this, our very first Safeguarding, Mental health and Well-being Bulletin for May 2022.

At Co-op Academy Swinton we firmly believe that safeguarding, mental health and well-being is more than ever a collective responsibility between the academy, students, parents and carers. In that spirit, we will be sharing a range of safeguarding, mental health and well-being information, assistance and updates with you monthly from now on.

We appreciate that some of the content may be sensitive and at times may not be pleasant, however our children are facing more issues of an increasingly serious nature by the day and we firmly believe that the more that we, collectively as educationalists and parents and carers, know and understand, the better we can protect those in our care.

Last week a small group of our female Year 10 students attended an ‘Inspiring Girls Day’ at The Cliff training ground in Broughton.

The trip was organised as part of our partnership with Manchester United Foundation and its’ aim to increase female empowerment and employability aspirations.

During the morning our students enjoyed an inspiring and motivational talk from Polar Preet, a British Army Medical Officer and physiotherapist. Preet had recently completed an astounding 40 day hiking expedition, becoming the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition in Antarctica.

The girls then swiftly moved on to carry out some physical activities facilitated by the British Army. These included; working as a team to complete a tyre stack challenge, arranging them in the correct order and also working in smaller groups to construct a Go Kart using kit provided by the Army.

Our day was rounded off by presentations from The Manchester College who spoke with our students about the many varied opportunities on offer in college and the typical education pathways that lead to employment.

What a day for some of our students in Years 7 and 8 as they took up the challenge of practical training sessions with the North West Military Regiment of the British Army earlier this week.

Each of the challenges were designed to build our students’ individual skills and they were certainly put through their paces, as the images below clearly show!

Everyone was thoroughly involved and pushed themselves to their limits. What a great effort from everyone, we hope you enjoyed the challenges.

Thank you to North West Military Regiment for joining us this week and for delivering such exciting and challenging sessions.

#SucceedTogether

The Our Pass application portal is opening earlier this year for young people across Greater Manchester. It’s the membership pass for 16-18 year olds that they and their families can use to save up to £500 a year in bus travel costs. Our Pass will open for applications from the 3 May 2022. It’s a membership scheme that gives school leavers a free bus pass, plus all sorts of special offers, discounts and experiences – designed to support young people at a crucial moment in their lives.

To apply, students need to go to: ourpass.co.uk find out more below.

What is Our Pass?

Our Pass is a UK first, a simple scheme that ensures that all eligible 16-18 year olds in Greater Manchester have the chance to become an Our Pass member – and gain access to two things: free bus travel, and exclusive experiences:

Travel. For a one-off £10 administration fee, Our Pass provides free travel on most local buses across Greater Manchester. It also gives members half-price off peak 1 day and weekend travelcards on Metrolink.
Exclusives. Membership also unlocks exclusive offers and experiences that range from discounts and event tickets to careers talks, tasters and workshops.

When can students apply?

Applications for this year’s membership (which starts on 1 September) open on 3 May. Those who are eligible this year must live in Greater Manchester and have been born between 1 September 2004 and 31 August 2006. Once they have applied, students will be posted their cards in late August, ready for use on 1 September.

We don’t want any eligible school leaver or college student to miss out. Can you help spread the word, and support your students as they apply?

How can students apply?

Students need to go to: ourpass.co.uk They will also need to have some documents ready, and a valid payment card (so that they can pay the one-off £10 administration fee).
The documents and information they will need:
– An email address
– Passport-style photograph
– Proof of date of birth
– Proof that they live in Greater Manchester
– A valid payment card

How can I support students?

Some young people find the applications process difficult and sometimes applications are rejected – often, because the photo, proof of address or date of birth documents have been uploaded process hard, please encourage them to look at the information and diagrams on this web page: ourpass.co.uk/before-you-get-started. They can also call Transport for Greater Manchester’s Customer Services team for help, on 0300 232 0777 (open Mon-Fri 7am-8pm-and 8am-8pm at weekends).

What about students who don’t have internet access?

They can apply using a paper application form, which they can collect from a TfGM Travelshop. They can pay the fee in the Travelshops by cash or by card. Nearest Travelshops can be found at: tfgm.com/public-transport/travelshops

What are Our Pass Exclusives?
The Our Pass website contains an exciting range of discounts special offers and experiences. Our members have accessed Exclusive offers, from free theatre and gig tickets, merchandise, free swimming, sport and leisure centre passes, and career taster days and experiences only available to Our Pass website members – please encourage students to sign up (this is a separate process to the Our Pass card registration).

Why does Our Pass matter?

The only scheme of its kind in the UK, Our Pass supports young people at a crucial moment in their lives. As they leave school at 16, they face decisions that will shape their future. These aren’t easy decisions to make, as they make them – challenges
Coronavirus pandemic. Our Pass tackles these challenges head on. Membership not only improves accessibility to jobs and learning through free bus travel – essential to those who couldn’t otherwise afford it – but through its membership opens up a world of experiences, connections and opportunities that they might not otherwise discover. Our Pass broadens the horizons of our young people, in every sense.

More information

All queries about the application process, problems in applying, and use of the travel card: help@ourpass.co.uk
For more information and feedback about Our Pass, and Our Pass Exclusives: opportunities@ourpass.info