The Dean Academy is built on the three core strands of Achievement, Enjoyment and Community and the student body form a vital part of the success and development of all three. Our community is built on happy and harmonious relationships, and we encourage all students to take an active part in the growth and development of this busy, diverse and ever-growing school.

At The Dean Academy, listening and responding to student voice is important to our ethos: not only do students deserve to be heard and consulted on issues concerning them, but they also need to develop the skills required to form a point of view and share it in a reasoned and effective manner. Student Voice is heard in a number of ways, but most visibly through the Year and Student Councils. Representatives from each tutor group sit on their Year Council and their role is to put forward and discuss any issues concerning their cohort. Two representatives from each Year Council then sit on the School Council, where they meet with members of the Senior Leadership Team and issues discussed include curriculum, teaching and learning, students well being and enrichment opportunities.

At the end of Year 10, students are able to put themselves forward for consideration to be part of the Senior Student Leadership Team in their final year of school. The process for choosing the team is entirely democratic and involves an application letter, Husting assembly speech and votes from their year group as well as teaching staff and an interview. This ensures that we build a strong, reliable and proactive team who lead several important projects around school while also providing a role model for younger students. This year, our team are focusing on:

• Eco-Club: a new extra-curricular club which focuses on improving environmental awareness around school. Work is underway to make progress with recycling paper around school as well as linking with the canteen and Food Technology department to collect and recycle tins, plenty of which are used every day.

• Global Action: a group which runs meetings for students in Key Stage Three and Key Stage Four, debating current issues around prejudice and discrimination. Projects are run throughout the year to raise awareness of minority charities and local, national and international issues like sexism, racism and LGBTQ+ rights.

• Care and Guidance: students are working closely with staff in the Student Support Centre to help their peers with issues around mental health, and have developed a number of strategies to help including discussion and grounding techniques.

• Charity and Community: a number of projects are run to support the local community, including collections for the local Food Bank, volunteering at primary schools and local care homes, litter picks in Bathurst Park and fundraising for national and international charities. Last year, over £6500 was raised by the school for charities including Epilepsy Action and St David’s Hospice.

Members of Year 9 have been trained to mentor students in Year 7, with a particular focus on supporting those who find literacy skills challenging. Peer Mentors are linked to a specific Year 7 tutor group, and visit them weekly to help with restorative conversations, one-to-one reading and help the new year group to settle into school life.