Personal Development
At Robert Bloomfield Academy we strive to offer the highest possible quality of education for every single student in our community.
We strongly believe that education is not solely about the academic progress of a child, but how we develop our students into respectful and active citizens. As a school, we are privileged with the responsibility to develop the youth of our community, and it is a job we take with the upmost importance.
One of our prime targets is to keep students mentally healthy, and we can achieve this through developing self-confidence, resilience and knowledge. We achieve this through offering a range of opportunities throughout their four-year journey with us, and we are extremely proud of the inclusive diet all of our students are offered.
We aim to prepare our students for the next stage of their education, and beyond. We are proud to start a career programme for our students that can support them in starting to explore the vast range of opportunities available to them, and support all of our students to become determined and aspirational individuals.
Our Personal Development Catalogue highlights the breadth and range of opportunities our students get at Robert Bloomfield Academy, and we will continue to search for new opportunities indefinitely.
Current Extra-Curricular Clubs that may be offered:
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Sport at RBA
We have an impressive reputation for sporting excellence with provision for all kinds of sporting opportunities. We were the National Schools’ Athletics Champions in 2009; in addition we have reached regional and national finals in rugby, football, hockey, indoor athletics, athletics and cross-country in the last three years too. We field teams for inter-school fixtures in cricket, rounders, netball, hockey, rugby, football, gymnastics, table tennis, badminton, basketball, cross-country running, athletics and swimming. Fixtures and teams are created for all levels of participation. There are also numerous extra-curricular activities before school, at lunch time, after school and occasionally on weekends. The school has excellent facilities for sport, including a large sports hall, a floodlit Astroturf, extensive playing fields and a gymnasium.
Sport Clubs that may be offered:
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Performing Arts
Performing Arts is an integral part of school life and pupils ‘elect’ to do drama as part of Year 8 options. Recent drama productions have included, ‘Aladdin’, ‘The Lion King’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and there are termly dance or drama productions where pupils can showcase their talent. Our ‘cheerleading’ squad are extremely talented and have won numerous competitions.
Performing Arts Clubs that may be offered:
- KS2 Cheerleading
- KS3 Cheerleading
- KS2 Dance company
- KS3 Dance company
- Production acting/singing
- Production dance
Music
Music has an important place in the school with many children joining in music activities in their own time. Many children (usually around 250 children each year) learn to play string, woodwind and brass instruments with tuition from visiting tutors. The school receives a subsidy towards the cost of providing instrumental lessons and parents are asked to pay a termly fee to cover the full cost. Complete details of the instrumental tuition scheme are available on request. Many children then join our bands, KS2 pop choir, Glee Club and orchestra and take part in our termly concerts or visit local schools or community groups to perform.
Music Clubs that may be offered:
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Pastoral Care
The Pupil Support Room is the pastoral base for the school. Our aim is to develop and maintain emotional wellbeing and to create an environment in which pupils feel happy, confident and valued so they are able to thrive academically. On a day to day basis we are here to help any pupil should they need any additional support. We are also the gateway to accessing support from Central Bedfordshire Council and external agencies via the Early Help process. We regularly liaise with these outside agencies and parents to ensure our pupils are getting the extra support they need to be able to fulfil their potential. We also run a number of clubs aimed at boosting pupils' social skills, self-esteem and confidence.
Pupil leadership team
We have a dedicated team of Y8 elected officials who represent the Student Body. This is a new concept for RBA this year and together with the Heads of House, we have a very strong student voice at RBA. The PLT have their own dedicated area of the website, which they manage, with support from Mrs Crowley. The link is here
There are also numerous pupil leadership opportunities available for pupils to apply for. These are designed to develop self-confidence and self-esteem as well as developing independence, commitment and critical thinking. There is an application form to complete for each role and the roles range from school ambassadors and student council members to zoo keepers and LRC monitors.
Internet Safety
At RBA we seek to embrace technology and the internet and prefer to educate the pupils to ensure they are safe when working on-line. Internet safety is a regular topic for year group and whole school assemblies. We also work closely with Kevin Gourlay from ChildNet to ensure our pupils understand the potential pitfalls of the internet. Kevin also works with our parents to keep them up to speed with current trends and hazards.