Louis Dunford’s Song Sparks Thought Provoking Art Project at Dartmouth Academy   Students at Dartmouth Academy have embarked on a powerful and thought-provoking project inspired by the music of Louis Dunford. The project began when a Year 10 teacher was introduced to Louis Dunford’s song Ballad for Benjamin by her husband. Deeply moved by the song, which pays tribute to a young victim of knife crime, she developed a classroom project exploring the themes and realities behind the music. Over recent weeks, students have learned about Benjamin’s story through the Ben Kinsella Trust, discussed the impact of knife crime in their communities, and created reflective artwork in response. Ben had ambitions to become a graphic designer and loved art, making it particularly poignant to see students expressing their reflections through creative pieces. The project ties directly into Dartmouth Academy’s art and design curriculum, which encourages pupils to develop skills across a range of media, techniques, and processes while encouraging personal expression and aesthetic judgement. Beyond technical skills, the curriculum promotes historical and cultural awareness, critical thinking, and the ability to engage in wider philosophical conversations about art. The school hopes the project will not only develop artistic skills but also encourage empathy, discussion, and awareness of the serious impact of knife crime on communities. Nicola Perrott, Assistant Principal at Dartmouth Academy, said: “This project has been incredibly moving for both staff and pupils. Art gives our young people the opportunity to respond personally to real-life issues, and Louis Dunford’s music inspired them to reflect, discuss, and create in a meaningful way.” Matthew Shanks, CEO of Education South West said: “Projects like this demonstrate the incredible power of art and music. We are proud of the students and staff at Dartmouth Academy for engaging with such an important topic with thoughtfulness and creativity. This is exactly the kind of learning that helps not only develop skills but also compassion.”        

Primary Pupils Find Their Voice as Dartmouth Academy Triumphs at Youth Speaks

Primary pupils from Dartmouth Academy celebrated an outstanding evening of success at the Rotary Youth Speaks competition, held at Stoke Fleming Village Hall this month. The Rotary Youth Speaks competition is designed to develop public speaking, teamwork and critical thinking skills. 

The event showcased the talent, confidence and commitment of pupils from local schools, with teams delivering researched and thought-provoking speeches on a range of topical issues. Other schools taking part included Stoke Fleming Primary School and Blackawton Primary School.

Dartmouth Academy enjoyed exceptional success on the night. The Junior 1 team, made up of Year 6 pupils Mia-Rose M, Thea C and William H, were crowned overall winners for their compelling and well-argued speech on “A Social Media Ban for Children Under 16”. Their presentation impressed judges with its clear structure, strong research and confident delivery.

The achievements continued with individual awards for the Junior 2 team. Oakley F was named Best Overall Chairperson and Sienna S received the award for Best Overall Speaker for her outstanding performance. The Junior 2 team’s speech, titled “How Useful Is AI?”, demonstrated thoughtful analysis and teamwork, with Evan C delivering an excellent Vote of Thanks.

The school would also like to thank Dartmouth Rotary Club Chairperson Robert Benns for organising and hosting the event, which continues to provide valuable opportunities for young people to develop public speaking skills. Dartmouth Academy was honoured to have Dartmouth’s Mayor, Councillor Andrea Cates, on the judging panel and is grateful to the Rotary Club for their continued support and for generously donating book token prizes to the winners.

Jennifer Tierney, Primary Principal at Dartmouth Academy, said:

“We are incredibly proud of our pupils and the confidence, curiosity and ambition they demonstrated on stage. Their success reflects not only their hard work, but the emphasis we place on communication, critical thinking and giving pupils the confidence to express their ideas clearly and respectfully.”

Matthew Shanks, CEO of Education South West said:

“Congratulations to all the pupils who took part in the Rotary Youth Speaks competition. Their passion, teamwork, and ability to present complex ideas with clarity is truly inspiring. Events like this highlight the talent and potential in our schools and show just how much our young people can achieve when given the opportunity and support to shine.”

Primary Pupils Find Their Voice as Dartmouth Academy Triumphs at Youth Speaks Primary pupils from Dartmouth Academy celebrated an outstanding evening of success at the Rotary Youth Speaks competition, held at Stoke Fleming Village Hall this month. The Rotary Youth Speaks competition is designed to develop public speaking, teamwork and critical thinking skills.  The event showcased the talent, confidence and commitment of pupils from local schools, with teams delivering researched and thought-provoking speeches on a range of topical issues. Other schools taking part included Stoke Fleming Primary School and Blackawton Primary School. Dartmouth Academy enjoyed exceptional success on the night. The Junior 1 team, made up of Year 6 pupils Mia-Rose M, Thea C and William H, were crowned overall winners for their compelling and well-argued speech on “A Social Media Ban for Children Under 16”. Their presentation impressed judges with its clear structure, strong research and confident delivery. The achievements continued with individual awards for the Junior 2 team. Oakley F was named Best Overall Chairperson and Sienna S received the award for Best Overall Speaker for her outstanding performance. The Junior 2 team’s speech, titled “How Useful Is AI?”, demonstrated thoughtful analysis and teamwork, with Evan C delivering an excellent Vote of Thanks. The school would also like to thank Dartmouth Rotary Club Chairperson Robert Benns for organising and hosting the event, which continues to provide valuable opportunities for young people to develop public speaking skills. Dartmouth Academy was honoured to have Dartmouth’s Mayor, Councillor Andrea Cates, on the judging panel and is grateful to the Rotary Club for their continued support and for generously donating book token prizes to the winners. Jennifer Tierney, Primary Principal at Dartmouth Academy, said: “We are incredibly proud of our pupils and the confidence, curiosity and ambition they demonstrated on stage. Their success reflects not only their hard work, but the emphasis we place on communication, critical thinking and giving pupils the confidence to express their ideas clearly and respectfully.” Matthew Shanks, CEO of Education South West said: “Congratulations to all the pupils who took part in the Rotary Youth Speaks competition. Their passion, teamwork, and ability to present complex ideas with clarity is truly inspiring. Events like this highlight the talent and potential in our schools and show just how much our young people can achieve when given the opportunity and support to shine.”

Dartmouth Academy Primary Phase Success at Rotary Youth Speaks Competition

The recent Rotary Youth Speaks competition, held at Stoke Fleming Village Hall, showcased impressive talent, confidence and commitment of pupils from local schools, as teams took to the stage to deliver researched and thought-provoking speeches on a range of topical issues. Pupils from Stoke Fleming Primary School and Blackawton Primary School also competed in the event.​​​​

We are delighted to share that our school enjoyed outstanding success on the evening. Our Junior 1 team, made up of Year 6 pupils: Mia-Rose M, Thea C and William H, were crowned winners with their compelling and well-argued speech on “A Social Media Ban for Children Under 16”. The team demonstrated excellent research, clear structure and confident delivery, impressing both judges and audience alike.

The success didn’t stop there. Members of our Junior 2 team were also recognised individually, with Oakley F awarded Best Overall Chairperson and Sienna S awarded Best Overall Speaker for their exceptional performances.  We were thoroughly impressed with the whole Junior 2 team whose speech was titled, "How useful is AI?" and would like to mention Evan C who delivered an excellent Vote of Thanks.

The Rotary Youth Speaks competition is designed to develop public speaking, teamwork and critical thinking skills and all pupils involved represented the school with maturity, enthusiasm and professionalism. We are incredibly proud of everyone who took part and congratulate them on their fantastic achievements.

We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to Dartmouth Rotary Club Chairperson Robert Benns for organising and hosting this annual event, which continues to provide such a valuable opportunity for young people to develop their public speaking skills. We were honoured to have Dartmouth’s Mayor, Cllr Andrea Cates, on the judging panel and we are very grateful to the Rotary Club for their continued support and for generously donating book token prizes to all the winners.

Dartmouth Academy Primary Phase Success at Rotary Youth Speaks Competition The recent Rotary Youth Speaks competition, held at Stoke Fleming Village Hall, showcased impressive talent, confidence and commitment of pupils from local schools, as teams took to the stage to deliver researched and thought-provoking speeches on a range of topical issues. Pupils from Stoke Fleming Primary School and Blackawton Primary School also competed in the event.​​​​ We are delighted to share that our school enjoyed outstanding success on the evening. Our Junior 1 team, made up of Year 6 pupils: Mia-Rose M, Thea C and William H, were crowned winners with their compelling and well-argued speech on “A Social Media Ban for Children Under 16”. The team demonstrated excellent research, clear structure and confident delivery, impressing both judges and audience alike. The success didn’t stop there. Members of our Junior 2 team were also recognised individually, with Oakley F awarded Best Overall Chairperson and Sienna S awarded Best Overall Speaker for their exceptional performances.  We were thoroughly impressed with the whole Junior 2 team whose speech was titled, "How useful is AI?" and would like to mention Evan C who delivered an excellent Vote of Thanks. The Rotary Youth Speaks competition is designed to develop public speaking, teamwork and critical thinking skills and all pupils involved represented the school with maturity, enthusiasm and professionalism. We are incredibly proud of everyone who took part and congratulate them on their fantastic achievements. We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to Dartmouth Rotary Club Chairperson Robert Benns for organising and hosting this annual event, which continues to provide such a valuable opportunity for young people to develop their public speaking skills. We were honoured to have Dartmouth’s Mayor, Cllr Andrea Cates, on the judging panel and we are very grateful to the Rotary Club for their continued support and for generously donating book token prizes to all the winners.

We are thrilled to invite you ALL to our half termly School Support and Snacks event in the Cube on Thursday 29th January at 9am. This is a brilliant event for all of our families to attend, to allow you to access a wealth of information from a range of valuable professionals.

On the 29th Fiona Dawson will be doing a short input on the EHCP process. Following the inputs there will be the opportunity to speak to numerous organisation and enjoy a coffee and croissant!

We look forward to seeing you on Thursday 29th.

 

We are thrilled to invite you ALL to our half termly School Support and Snacks event in the Cube on Thursday 29th January at 9am. This is a brilliant event for all of our families to attend, to allow you to access a wealth of information from a range of valuable professionals. On the 29th Fiona Dawson will be doing a short input on the EHCP process. Following the inputs there will be the opportunity to speak to numerous organisation and enjoy a coffee and croissant! We look forward to seeing you on Thursday 29th.  

Young Eco-Champions Lead the Way in School Recycling Initiative

 

This month a group of pupils from Dartmouth Academy participated in an exciting ‘Waste Action Day’, aimed at improving recycling across the school. Working alongside Alex and Izzy from Resources Futures, the pupils reviewed the results of a recent recycling audit and discussed what actions were needed to make a real difference. 

The children then got creative, designing eye-catching bin labels and posters using scrap and best paper to clearly show where recycling should go and which materials belong in each bin. Pupils also collaborated to write an assembly script, learned a fun recycling song, and played an interactive game to deepen their understanding of why reducing, reusing, and recycling matters.

In the afternoon, the pupils confidently presented their assembly to the whole primary school, sharing what they had learned and demonstrating how everyone can recycle better. They highlighted the locations of recycling bins and explained how to use them correctly, ensuring that the message reached the entire school community.

Jennifer Tierney, Primary Principal at Dartmouth Academy, said:

“The enthusiasm and creativity our pupils showed during Waste Action Day was incredible. Not only have they helped improve our recycling systems, but they have also become true eco-champions, inspiring the whole school to take better care of the environment.”

Matthew Shanks, CEO of Education South West said:

"It’s fantastic to see our pupils taking the lead in protecting the environment. Waste Action Day not only teaches important lessons about recycling and sustainability, but it also empowers children to make a real difference in their school and community. Initiatives like this show the positive impact young people can have when given the tools and support to take action."

Young Eco-Champions Lead the Way in School Recycling Initiative   This month a group of pupils from Dartmouth Academy participated in an exciting ‘Waste Action Day’, aimed at improving recycling across the school. Working alongside Alex and Izzy from Resources Futures, the pupils reviewed the results of a recent recycling audit and discussed what actions were needed to make a real difference.  The children then got creative, designing eye-catching bin labels and posters using scrap and best paper to clearly show where recycling should go and which materials belong in each bin. Pupils also collaborated to write an assembly script, learned a fun recycling song, and played an interactive game to deepen their understanding of why reducing, reusing, and recycling matters. In the afternoon, the pupils confidently presented their assembly to the whole primary school, sharing what they had learned and demonstrating how everyone can recycle better. They highlighted the locations of recycling bins and explained how to use them correctly, ensuring that the message reached the entire school community. Jennifer Tierney, Primary Principal at Dartmouth Academy, said: “The enthusiasm and creativity our pupils showed during Waste Action Day was incredible. Not only have they helped improve our recycling systems, but they have also become true eco-champions, inspiring the whole school to take better care of the environment.” Matthew Shanks, CEO of Education South West said: "It’s fantastic to see our pupils taking the lead in protecting the environment. Waste Action Day not only teaches important lessons about recycling and sustainability, but it also empowers children to make a real difference in their school and community. Initiatives like this show the positive impact young people can have when given the tools and support to take action."