Our 2021 – 2022 Term Dates are as follows:
Year 7 Students will begin to return to school from Wednesday 25th August.
All other students will return to school from Thursday 26th August.
At present the government are in the process of sharing a mass testing programme to operate in secondary schools on our return. We will share details of this towards the end of the summer break.
Year 7 are invited in on their own on the first day as they missed out on all their induction visits so we want them to have a day on their own to get used to the school. This staged introduction to school life will enable all students to become familiar with new safety measures and their designated areas within the school as there are new routines for all to get used to
To enable them to adjust to being in school and get used to the new routines necessitated by the government guidance we will be inviting year groups in as follows:
| Date | Year Group | Start Time |
| Wednesday 25th August and Thursday 26th August | Year 7 | 8:40 am |
| Thursday 26th August | Year 8 and 9
| 8 :50 am |
| Year 10 and 11 | 8.30 am | |
| Friday 27th August | All students from all year groups | Usual start time |
| Monday 30th August | School closed for Bank Holiday |
What are the staggered start and finish times and why are we implementing them? We have adjusted school start and finish times for each year group to support social distancing and prevent public transport and the school entrance becoming over crowded. We have 1200 students arriving and leaving each day.
| Year Group | Entrance / Exit Area | Start Time | Finish Time |
| Year 7 | Student Reception Gate- Straight to Science Block | 8.40am | 2.55pm |
| Year 8 | Student Reception Gate – Straight to Math’s area | 8.40am | 2.55pm |
| Year 9 | Sports Hall Gate- Straight to MFL area | 8.40am | 2.55pm |
| Year 10 | Sports Hall Gate- Line up in Tutor Groups | 8.30am | 2.45pm |
| Year 11 | Student Reception Gate- Line up in Tutor Groups | 8.30am | 2.45pm |
Orchard Mead Academy – Term dates 2021 – 2022
| Term No 1: 38 days (7 weeks 3 days) | |
| INSET DAYS (Staff Training) | Monday 23rd & Tuesday 24th August 2021 |
| Schools Open | Wednesday 25th August 2021 (Year 7 students only) |
| Thursday 26th August 2021 (All years) | |
| Bank holiday | Monday 30th August 2021 |
| Schools Close | Friday 15th October 2021 |
| Autumn Half Term Holiday | Monday 18th October 2021 to Friday 22nd October 2021 |
| Term No 2: 40 days (8 weeks) | |
| Schools Open | Monday 25th October 2021 |
| Schools Close | Friday 17th December 2021 |
| Christmas & New Year Holiday | Monday 20th December 2021 to Tuesday 4th January 2022 |
| Term No 3: 29 days (5 weeks 4 days) | |
| Bank Holiday | Monday 3rd January 2022 |
| Schools Open | Tuesday 4th January 2022 |
| Schools Close | Friday 11th February 2022 |
| Spring Half Term Holiday | Monday 14th February 2022 to Friday 18th February 2022 |
| Term No 4: 35 days (7 weeks) | |
| Schools Open | Monday 21st February 2022 |
| Schools Close | Friday 8th April 2022 |
| Easter Holidays | Monday 11th April 2022 to Friday 22nd April 2022 |
| Term No 5: 24 days (4 weeks 4 days) | |
| Schools Open | Monday 25th April 2022 |
| May Bank Holiday (schools closed) and additional Bank Holiday | Monday 2nd May 2022 & Tuesday 3rd May 2022 |
| Schools Close | Friday 27th May 2022 |
| Summer Half Term Holiday | Monday 30th May 2022 to Friday 3rd June 2022 |
| Term No 6: 25 days (5 weeks) | |
| Schools Open | Monday 6th June 2022 |
| Schools Close | Friday 8th July 2022 |
| Summer Holiday begins | Monday 11th July 2022 |
Bank Holidays: 30th August 2021, 27th & 28th December 2021, 3rd January 2022, 15th & 18th April 2022, 2nd and 3rd May 2022, 30th May 2022
Inset Days: 23rd and 24th August 2021, 20th December 2021, 11th & 12th July 2022 Please note: On inset days, pupils are not required to attend school.
In addition to the above the school will close at 2pm on the following Mondays to allow for whole school Professional Learning:
Monday 13th September 2021
Monday 4th October 2021
Monday 1st November 2021
Monday 6th December 2021
Monday 10th January 2022
Monday 21st February 2022
Monday 21st March 2022
Monday 16th May 2022
Monday 20th June 2022
Together We Can Make a Positive Difference