PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

At Alec Hunter, we pride ourselves on our curricular and extra-curricular offer. All students have access to a rich extra-curricular provision which will help develop character and enhance engagement in both traditional and non-traditional activities. At Alec Hunter, we provide our young people with the opportunity to cultivate their passions, develop new skills, enhance their existing abilities and expand their experience of the wider world. We seek to expose them to an array of cultural capital opportunities and support them in developing into resilient, respectful, independent young adults, equipped with the necessary skills to embark on the next steps in their education and their lives beyond.

Cultural Capital

Cultural capital is defined as the accumulation of knowledge, behaviours and skills that a student can draw upon and which demonstrates their cultural awareness, knowledge, and competence; it is one of the key ingredients a student will utilise to be successful in society, their career, and the world of work.

At Alec Hunter Academy, we want to ensure that our students develop the aspiration to succeed and to help them to achieve goals and become well-rounded members of society. We recognise that for students to aspire and be successful academically and in the wider areas of their lives, they need to be given a variety of opportunities to develop their cultural capital. We do this by exposing students to a broad range of experiences, through our curriculum, extra-curricular activities, trips and visits, visiting speakers, assemblies, events and careers activities.

Skills Days

Three times over the academic year, we run Skills Days for all year groups. During these days, we do not follow the normal curriculum or timetable. The students participate in alternative learning activities which would not be possible within the normal structure of the school day. Some of these take place at the school, but this is also an opportunity for visits to places of interest or for off-site pursuits to be undertaken. The programme is planned by departments working together to offer engaging experiences such as life skills workshops, enterprise activities, careers interviews, team-building tasks, guest speakers and educational trips. Our aim is for all students to gain new skills, broaden their horizons and be offered the opportunity to take part in at least one off-site activity every year.

Jack Petchey Awards Scheme

For over a decade, we have successfully run the Jack Petchey Achievement Award Scheme at Alec Hunter. The scheme recognises outstanding young people across London and Essex. Students are nominated by staff and peers, and if selected as an award winner, they receive a certificate, pin badge and a book from Sir Jack Petchey himself. They also choose how to spend a £300 grant to benefit their school. Award winners are young people who have demonstrated impressive personal resilience, shown great kindness to others, or gone the extra mile to achieve – perhaps when faced with adversity or unfamiliar challenges.

Personal Development Passport

At Alec Hunter, we wish to promote and recognise our students’ engagement with all that the school has to offer, including opportunities beyond the traditional taught curriculum. We have created a Personal Development Passport, which draws together all the additional elements that combine to enhance the secondary school experience for our young people. Each year, students will receive an itemised record, detailing their achievements and the activities with which they have engaged over the academic year. This could be, for example, the clubs they have attended, sports teams for which they have been selected, school performances in which they have participated, Skills Days activities undertaken and house points gained. We know academic successes are important, but the students who gain the most from their time at Alec Hunter are those who fully embrace wider school life and the passport encourages our students to reflect and take pride in what they have achieved alongside their day-to-day learning.