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Academy Trust welcomes Handsworth Wood Girls Academy

King Edward VI Academy Trust welcomes Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy The King Edward VI Academy Trust Birmingham is delighted to announce the addition of another school. Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy is a non-selective school which, on 1st September 2018 will officially join the seven King Edward VI Academies at Aston, Camp Hill Boys, Camp Hill Girls, Five Ways, Handsworth School for Girls, Handsworth Grammar School for Boys and Sheldon Heath.   Professor Hywel Thomas, the Chair of the King Edward VI Academy Trust, remains keen to discuss the opportunity to partner with other secondary schools. He said: “When we were formed last year, we said that our aim is to support more non-selective schools in the city. We are delighted that Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy is now part of the trust. It reflects the multicultural nature of the City and it is a school where the staff and the girls work hard and give a great deal back to their local community.”   Patrick Burns, the Chair of the King Edward VI Foundation, which also supports two very successful independent schools in Edgbaston (King Edward’s School and King Edward VI High School for Girls), said: “We opened our first non-selective sponsored Academy at Sheldon Heath in 2011 and we are now delighted to be welcoming another non-selective school into our “family”. Our mission is to make Birmingham the best place to be educated in the country and we hope that the addition of Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy can play a part in achieving that ambitious goal.” Nicola Walters, Headteacher at Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy said: “I am delighted to be joining the King Edward VI Academy Trust. Our school believes that an outstanding education is a balance between academic success and personal development. I am looking forward to working with the Trust and its other schools so that we can benefit from being part of a wider network of support. I am confident that by working together we can continue to offer our girls opportunities to ensure they leave our school confident in their abilities, along with a good sense of who they are.” The King Edward VI Academy Trust builds on other recent initiatives by the King Edward VI Foundation to work closely with other schools in the city. The King Edward’s Consortium, which includes over 20 schools, was recently rated the best school-based teacher training provider in the country. In addition, for the last five years, the Opening Doors programme has been providing outreach and support to primary schools across the city, with the aim of raising aspirations and providing opportunities for enrichment.