Parent/Carer Notices for all Year Groups
12th December 2025
Principal's Message
Dear Parents/Carers
Parent/Carer Survey
Thank you very much for all the responses to our parent/carer survey so far. If you are yet to complete it, and would like to, please find the link here.
Community: mutually involved and highly supportive
We were delighted to be involved in the Uckfield Late Night Shopping last week with our student choir, ‘College Voices’ bringing the Christmas magic with a range of songs. Despite the truly adverse weather conditions, 46 of our incredible students demonstrated outstanding resilience—the ultimate musician’s trait. The rain poured, but they sang until it nearly stopped, proving that the show must go on! Thank you to Ashdown Radio and the Chamber of Commerce for hosting us.Â
We were also pleased to be part of the Holy Cross Church Festival of Trees again and our tree celebrated the spirit of belonging – to each other and to our community. Thank you to Mrs Brown and our talented Art students.
Important message about attendance
We typically have high levels of attendance at College but are noticing that some students are missing days here and there, sometimes for very minor or no reported reasons.Â
Every day is carefully planned to teach key aspects of our curriculum and students are disadvantaged by being away. For example, if a Key Stage 4 student misses a Friday, they would miss 5 separate subject lessons covering content that is necessary to build on in the following lessons, or perhaps something that will not be returned to again in depth before the final exams. They would also miss a PDT (form mentor) session or a key assembly where they are given important information or learn useful revision techniques. So odd days that build up over time do matter, and do have a negative impact on a student’s learning.
We do understand completely that some absences are, of course, unavoidable. However, we also love seeing our students and want them in and on time as much as possible. Students should not miss any days at school at all, unless it is really necessary due to illness. This includes all of next week; we shall be continuing high quality teaching and learning until the very end of term.Â
Wishing you a great weekend!
Best wishes
Sara Marshallsay
Important Notice: Early Finish on Final Day of Term
Please be advised that the College will close early for all students on Friday 19th December, as this is the final day of Term. The College day will end at 1:20 PM on this date.
Please ensure that you have made appropriate travel and collection arrangements for your child to accommodate this earlier finish time. All contracted school buses have been notified and will collect students at the adjusted time.
Change from Edulink/SIMS to Arbor - Martin Bradley
We currently use Edulink/SIMS as our system to provide you with information about your child(ren) and for you to communicate with us.
From Monday January 5th, we will switch from Edulink/SIMS to a new system called Arbor. This new system will bring many advantages for the College, as Arbor is modern, intuitive, coherent, coordinated, centralised, cloud based and works on all devices.
We will continue to manage your child’s chromebook and we will still use Google Classrooms (for homework and assignments), SchoolCloud (for parents evenings), SPARX, Century, Educake, Seneca and some other educational software packages.
We need to manage a phased change over to Arbor, so staff and students will switch to Arbor on Monday 5th January but we will keep Edulink available for parents until Monday January 19th. On this date you will please need to join the Arbor Parent Portal or the Arbor Parent App to access information about your child and report absence reasons.
You can access Arbor via the Parent Portal Page on a computer (log in details will be provided to you in January) or via the Parent App for smartphones and tablets.
This article provides an introduction to the Arbor Parent Portal for parents and carers, detailing how to log in, navigate the homepage dashboard, and access various features such as attendance statistics, and communication tools. It also explains how to switch between multiple children’s profiles and view detailed information about each child’s academic progress and College activities.
This additional article provides more in depth information about the Arbor Parent Portal and the Parent App including where to download the app.
The information available on Arbor will increase as the year progresses.
We will share more information with you in January including how you can access support to get started with Arbor
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Uckfield Food Bank Donations
Lost Property - final reminder
We have a large amount of unnamed lost property that has accumulated.
If your child has lost an item, they should come to Reception to search through lost property.Â
Items remaining with us after Friday 19th December will be donated to charity or disposed of.
Please ensure that all items of uniform and equipment are clearly named to prevent this volume of lost property. Owners of named lost property will be emailed, so should check their inbox for any messages.
Winter Holiday Activities and Food available for children receiving FSM - reminder
The winter holiday is approaching and Holiday food and fun! will be back!
Eligible families can find out what’s available and book a place on the HAF booking website.Â
This DfE funded programme offers a range of exciting activities for young people who receive benefits-related free school meals. Parents/carers can check if they qualify by reading the East Sussex County Council website Free school meals page.
All sessions include a healthy meal and are free to eligible young people. There is a great range of clubs spread across multiple venues in East Sussex. Activities include sport, art, theatre, forest school, animation, music, dance and circus skills.
Christmas Hamper Raffle
Save the Date: The Uckfield College Carol Service - Tuesday December 16th, 2025 - reminder
As the festive season approaches, we invite you to reserve the evening of Tuesday, December 16th, 2025 for our annual Carol Service.Â
Doors open: 5:45pm | Service starts: 6:00pm Â
We look forward to welcoming you to this festive event!
Art of the Week
Look at the incredible use of tone! From the dramatic darks of the tree line and shaded areas to the bright, sunlit grass of the rugby pitch, the contrast brings the whole scene to life and gives it amazing depth. This piece beautifully demonstrates how effective simple graphite can be when handled with skill. Well done to Poppy in year 9! Keep creating and inspiring us! #SchoolArt #StudentWork #ArtShowcase #PencilDrawing #LandscapeArt #DrawingSkills #ToneAndContrast #YoungArtists #RugbyPitch #ArtEducation
Photo of the Week
We're thrilled to announce this week's winner: Daisy S in Year 10! This digital photomontage is a fantastic example of a student taking inspiration from the work of an artist we have studied in lessons- Linder Sterling- and using it to generate an exciting, original piece of their own. It is a brilliant testament to the exciting ideas our year 10 students are beginning to develop and skilfully execute in their coursework! A huge congratulations to Daisy! #PhotoOfTheWeek #Photography #GCSEPhotography #StudentWork #LinderSterling #CollageArt #Creativity
Did You Know?
Year 7 Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Wednesday 17th December –Â Year 7 Christmas Lunch day
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early closure for all students – 1.20pm
Monday 5th and Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
Year 7 Life Learning Lessons in Term 3 - Will Roney
In fulfilling the statutory requirements in teaching Relationships and Sex Education, next half term students in Y7 will be learning about Puberty. Students will learn about the reproductive systems and the physical, emotional and mental changes that can occur during puberty. Students will also be taught about bodily autonomy and being respectful.
This is a long established and successful scheme of learning, to which students have historically have responded very positively. You are welcome to contact me directly to discuss this scheme of work further.
Year 8 Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early closure for all students – 1.20pm
Monday 5th & Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
Year 8 Life Learning Lessons in Term 3 - Will Roney
In fulfilling the statutory requirements in teaching Relationships and Sex Education, next half term students in Y8 will be learning about safe relationships in relation to looking out for warning signs regarding grooming and sexual exploitation as well as identifying traits of healthy and unhealthy relationships. Students will be following a programme named Real Love Rocks developed by Barnado’s, the children’s charity. Students will also learn the harmful effects of FGM (Female Genital Mutilation), the reasons why it happens and the legal status of the practice in the UK.Â
This is a long established and successful scheme of work which students have historically have responded very positively to. You are welcome to contact me directly to discuss this scheme of work further.
Year 9 Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early closure for all students – 1.20pmÂ
Monday 5th & Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
Year 9 Life Learning Lessons in Term 3 - Will Roney
In fulfilling the statutory requirements in teaching Relationships, Sex Education, next half term students in Y9 will be learning about the traits of healthy and unhealthy relationships as well as different types of sexuality. Students will also learn the law on sharing explicit sexual images and sexual harassment.
This is a long established and successful scheme of work which students have historically have responded very positively to. You are welcome to contact me directly to discuss this scheme of work further.
Year 10 Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early closure for all students – 1.20pm
Monday 5th & Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
Year 10 Life Learning Lessons in Term 3 - Will Roney
In fulfilling the statutory requirements in teaching Relationships and Sex Education, next half term students in Y10 will be learning about the law in regards to consent in a variety of contexts such as sharing sexually explicit images, safe relationships, harassment and keeping safe.
This is a long established and successful scheme of work which students have historically have responded very positively to. You are welcome to contact me directly to discuss this scheme of work further.
'A Christmas Carol' GCSE workshop - reminder
‘Really fun to watch and helped me memorise the quotes faster. So worth it!’
‘An excellent reminder of the plot before our exam! It was a fun and interactive event with our year which was a core memory to look back upon finishing our last year!’
‘It was really fun and interactive and helped me remember certain specific details as we had acted them out.’
How to find Great Work Experience Opportunities
Students –Â How To Find Great Work Experience Opportunities!
If you’re trying to find a work experience opportunity this is the webinar for you!
60 minutes of really practical advice to help young people connect with employers and find GREATÂ work experience opportunities.
TUESDAY 9TH DECEMBER – 6.30PM
We will be covering:
- Â How to use social media to find work experience
- Â What your parents / relatives can do to help you
- Â Why your ‘adult network’ is key…and who is in it?
- Â How to demonstrate to an employer that you’re serious about their work
- Â An email template you can use to contact employers
- Â Why developing ‘relationships’ is your key to getting people to help you
- Â How to prepare to get the most from your work experience
- Â What you need to do after your work experience
At the end of the session, you’ll have a list of things that you can do that will really help you find a great placement……and you’ll be able to get straight to work!
Click the link below to book your FREE ticket:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/
Year 11 Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early closure for all students – 1.20pm
Monday 5th & Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
Year 11 Habits of Champions Grade 7-9 Evening 10th December
Thank you to those of you who attended the Habits of Champions: students aiming for Grades 7-9 evening. It was an excellent evening and parents were very positive about the session. Please see attached a PDF of the slides which were presented.Â
Year 11 Trial Examination Results
Your child will be receiving the results from their recent Trial Examinations next Wednesday, 17th December 2025. This will take place in the refectory, with key staff on hand to support students and answer any questions students may have.
We understand that receiving examination results can be a significant moment, but it is crucial to remember that these are not their final, real results. These Trial Examinations are a practice run, designed to provide a snapshot of your child’s performance at a specific moment in time and to also give them a platform from which to build.
Key Messages Regarding the Trial Results
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- A Moment in Time: these results reflect where your child is now. They do not define their ultimate outcome.
- Time for Progress: there are still several crucial months before the real GCSE examinations, offering plenty of time to make significant progress, including a second set of Trial Examinations in February.
- Established Practice: we issue these results in this format because it is a well-established practice that has historically had a positive impact on focusing students and driving improvement in the final run-up to the summer exams.
Moving Forward: Support and Next Steps
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The true value of these trials lies in the feedback and the subsequent action planning.
- Detailed Feedback: your child will receive full, comprehensive feedback from their subject teachers outlining their areas of current strength and, more importantly, the specific areas for development. A full academic report will also be sent home when we return from the Christmas break.
- Staff Support: staff are dedicated to supporting your child through this final phase. If they continue to show up, focus, and work constructively with us, we are confident they will make excellent progress.
- Parents’ Evening: a prime opportunity to discuss these results and future support in detail is our dedicated face to face Parents’ Evening on Wednesday, 15th January 2026. This is an invaluable chance to speak directly with subject staff about next steps and strategies for improvement.
Please encourage your child to engage positively with the feedback they receive. If you have any immediate concerns regarding the Trial Exam results once they are issued, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s form tutor in the first instance.
Year 11 students applying to an FE college at the end of Year 11
Students who are applying to an FE college rather than joining Uckfield College 6th Form will usually need to apply through the East Sussex e-prospectus and they will need a log in for this.Â
The log in details for each student have been shared with Mr Prichard and Mr Stonebanks and students can get their log in details from them if they need these to access their application.
A Christmas Carol workshop reminder - valuable GCSE preparation for all Year 11 students!
‘Really fun to watch and helped me memorise the quotes faster. So worth it!’
‘An excellent reminder of the plot before our exam! It was a fun and interactive event with our year which was a core memory to look back upon finishing our last year!’
‘It was really fun and interactive and helped me remember certain specific details as we had acted them out.’
Sixth Form Notices
Key Dates
Tuesday 16th December –Â The Carol Service at Holy Cross Church – from 6pm
Friday 19th December –Â Last Day of Term. Early Closure for all students – 1.20pm
Monday 5th and Tuesday 6th January –Â INSET days. College closed to all students
Wednesday 7th January –Â Start of term for all students
How to find Great Work Experience Opportunities
Students –Â How To Find Great Work Experience Opportunities!
If you’re trying to find a work experience opportunity this is the webinar for you!
60 minutes of really practical advice to help young people connect with employers and find GREATÂ work experience opportunities.
TUESDAY 9TH DECEMBER – 6.30PM
We will be covering:
- Â How to use social media to find work experience
- Â What your parents / relatives can do to help you
- Â Why your ‘adult network’ is key…and who is in it?
- Â How to demonstrate to an employer that you’re serious about their work
- Â An email template you can use to contact employers
- Â Why developing ‘relationships’ is your key to getting people to help you
- Â How to prepare to get the most from your work experience
- Â What you need to do after your work experience
At the end of the session, you’ll have a list of things that you can do that will really help you find a great placement……and you’ll be able to get straight to work!
Click the link below to book your FREE ticket:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/