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winstanley college
Spring 2018
Congratulations to all our applicants on accepting a place at Winstanley. We have had a bumper year for applications and hope that you are looking forward to joining us in September. Here’s a taste of what’s been going on at college this year and a look at what’s to come.
Winstanley Road Billinge Wigan WN5 7XF • 01695-633244 • www.winstanley.ac.uk
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College News It’s been a thrilling few months for Team Winstanley which included us topping the national league tables for 2017 A-level Results.
Top of the Tables – Results 2017 Winstanley’s students’ A-level achievements once again place the college at the top of the Government’s performance tables published in January. Principal, Louise Tipping says ‘this outstanding achievement is a credit to the staff and students who are willing to put in that little bit extra that makes the difference.’
But as Louise adds, ‘Ours is only part of the story; Winstanley students come to us well qualified from local schools and the College then supports their development both academically and personally so they’re able to progress to achieve top degrees from some of the best universities in the country - for example, this year alone we’ve had 19 offers from Oxford and Cambridge.’
Department for Education School and College Performance Tables 2017 Average A-level Grade
Average Point Score per Student
AAB Facilitating Subjects*
winstanley college
B
35.31
16.7%
Wigan UTC Wigan and Leigh College The Deanery St Mary’s Catholic High School St John Rigby College Runshaw College Carmel College England Average
D . C C C B C C
15.92 . 26.34 30.34 29.95 36.64 32.83 31.13
Source: Department for Education Performance Measures published Jan 2018 *Facilitating Subjects: those subjects defined by the government as the most useful for progression to University
. . 8.7% 16.3% 3.4% 15% 10.2% 14.3%
Spring 2018
What does this tell you about Winstanley? The high number doing very well in facilitating subjects helps over 40% of our students to go to the prestigious top universities. This tells you that our students invest their ÂŁ27,000 tuition fees in a degree from a university that really opens doors for them.
On average students achieve grade Bs at A level. This tells you that Winstanley students achieve A level grades which give them the widest choice of university or career destinations
The vast majority of our students go to university. What this tells you is obvious but also consider that a healthy 18%, or around 150 students each year choose to go straight into careers usually with apprenticeship status or structured and funded training.
*Facilitating Subjects Mathematics and Further Mathematics English Literature Physics Biology Chemistry Geography History Languages (Classical and Modern)
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Student Success
Our favourite thing to do is celebrate the incredible things our students achieve, from winning awards to charity fundraising, not a day goes by without them giving us something to shout about.
Winstanley Students Shine at British Education Awards Two former Winstanley College students have been recognised at The British Education Awards. Joe Silvester and Jessica Fairhurst, who both finished college last summer, were shortlisted in the categories ‘A-Level Achievement’ and ‘Vocational Achievement ‘ respectively. Joe was awarded runner-up in his category in recognition of his top A-level grades in Maths, Economics and Further Maths and subsequent progression to a higher level apprenticeship with accountancy giant, Deloittes.
Jessica won first prize in her category. The judges were impressed with her outstanding A-level grades in Textiles (A*) Graphics (A*) and Photography (A*) which was followed by a year on the college’s Art Foundation course where she also gained top marks. She then secured her place at Goldsmiths in London, one of the most prestigious art colleges in the country. Around 400 guests gathered for the celebration at the iconic Beetham Tower at Hilton Manchester Deansgate and enjoyed a three-course dinner and entertainment.
Spring 2018
Oxbridge 2018
Record Oxbridge Offers for Winstanley Students A record 19 students from Winstanley College have received Oxbridge offers: twelve have offers for Oxford University and seven hope to head to Cambridge in September 2018. It is a much deserved result after months of preparation and is testament to the hard work that the applicants have put in. History teacher, Matt Fisher and Biology teacher and Oxford graduate, Daniel Crabtree, who together co-ordinate Winstanley’s Oxbridge Programme were delighted with the news. Matt commented: 'We have always worked successfully to get students into top universities but to hit an all-time record for
Oxbridge offers is particularly exciting. Our growing links with Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge and Pembroke College, Oxford give applicants the best possible chance of getting an offer through thorough preparation, including subject workshops, visits and interview practice.’ College Principal, Louise Tipping added: ‘It is an exceptional achievement and we are really proud of the students for their hard work and dedication. Thanks also to the staff who have worked tirelessly to support them through the entire process.’
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FIRST CHOICE In The ity Commun
We are proud to be part of a thriving local community and enjoy the opportunity to get involved and give something back. This year we have held numerous events for school pupils, entertained the crowds at St Luke’s 90th Anniversary celebration, organised a litter pick and taken part in many other local initiatives.
Flash Bang! Chemistry students from Winstanley College wowed High School pupils from across the borough with a spectacular ‘Flash Bang’ show, based on those performed by the Royal Society of Chemists. With a series of short flash and bang experiments they enlightened pupils on the world of atoms, molecules, solids, liquids and gases and
the colour changes, fizzes, flashes and bangs they make. Flash Bang received fantastic feedback from the younger, budding scientists and hopefully inspired some to study Chemistry in the future.
Spring 2018
Students Celebrate 90 years of St Luke’s
Winstanley music students were delighted to perform as part of St Luke’s Church, Orrell, 90th anniversary celebrations. Performances included classical guitar, a bit of Bach on the church organ, solo singers and college bands. Art students also contributed, creating pieces of church-themed artwork which was displayed at the concert.
Leanne Brownbill, Head of Media and Performing Arts at the college, said: ‘It was an honour to be asked to perform at the 90th anniversary of the consecration of the church. There was a great turnout from the local community who were very complimentary about the performances. Our Winstanley TV crew were also on hand to film the event which was a fantastic experience for them.’
Respect Week Staff and students organised a litter pick up on Winstanley Road as part of Respect Week (12th – 16th February). They managed to collect several bags full of rubbish and were thanked by appreciative local residents. Other activities for Respect Week included: making bird boxes, a blind football taster session and a ‘Show Some Respect’ mini marketplace.
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FIRST CHOICE Dance Champions Winstanley College dancers shone at the Northern Frostbite Dance Extravaganza in Manchester. The college competed in the ‘All Star’ category, which included not just colleges, but dance schools as well, meaning the standard was very high. Despite some serious competition, the dancers went from underdogs, with only a handful of cheers when welcomed for the first routine, to champions with rapturous applause and high praise throughout the rest of the day.
The results for Winstanley were: • Hiphop - 1st • Jazz - 1st, plus crowned Grand Champions - meaning the dancers achieved the highest marks in jazz in the whole competition • Contemporary - 1st and Grand Champions
Dance teacher, Kelly Birchall, who accompanied the dance troop said: ‘It was a super successful day with 10 trophies and two champion flags to bring back to college. The students were fantastic and a credit to the college; we received so many compliments and congratulations from the judges and other competitors.’
Spring 2018
Foyles Young Poets Huge congratulations to six Winstanley College students who have been highly commended in the prestigious Foyles Young Poets competition. 85 entrants were highly commended in the competition out of a total 11,000 applicants, making it a huge achievement. The winners were: Bianka Barabas, Jade Wilkinson, Kyle Spencer, India Alldred, Bailey Blackburn and Elizabeth Cook, who each received a goody bag full of books and other treats, and most excitingly, will
Winter Wonderland
have their poems published in an online anthology and benefit from ongoing support from the Poetry Society via publication, performance and an internship programme. The Poetry Society Director, Judith Palmer named the college in her speech this year, stating that it really is ‘an amazing accomplishment to have 6 winners from the same college.’
The run up to Christmas saw a bundle of festive treats including Christmas Jumper Day in aid of Save the Children, a santa dash, sing-a-long at the staff meeting and the annual Winter Wonderland. Student, Flora Jackson, organised Christmas Jumper Day as part of her Extended Project qualification, successfully securing raffle prizes of a Starbucks Hamper and Wigan Warriors tickets; she also arranged for Wish FM’s Chris Milow to draw the winners. A fantastic £700 was raised from the day. The Winter Wonderland event unveiled a range of stalls, grottos, candy, festive cheer and even a bucking bronco Christmas pudding! Pupils from Hope School in Wigan also attended, selling their homemade Christmas goodies. The event is all done in the name of charity and this year, along with Save the Children, charities included The Salvation Army, The Brick and Madagascan Wells.
FIRST CHOICE Are you
ready?
For all our applicants preparing to become Winstanley students, here’s a reminder of what’s coming up and who to contact if you have any questions.
Looking forward to taster days?
Enrolment
All applicants will receive an invitation in the Spring Term to either our 5th or 6th July Taster Day, where you will be able to try out your subject choices and enjoy loads of fun-filled activities. Don’t forget to let us know if you want to change any of the subjects on your application so that you can try them out on your Taster.
After collecting your GCSE results it will be time to come and enrol on either 23rd or 24th August. We will contact you by letter before the end of June with details of how to enrol. Don’t worry if you want to change your subject choices as this can be done at enrolment. If you are likely to be on holiday please let us know so we can book an alternative time. For queries about Taster Day or Enrolment please contact the Admissions Team: admissions@winstanley.ac.uk or 01695 628610.
Spring 2018
Enrichment Have a look at all the exciting extra-curricular activities on offer – hopefully some of these might grab your interest or be useful for a future career. If you go to our main website you will find ‘Enrichment’ at the top of the home page.
Transport You should have received information on travelling to college around the time of your college interview. However if you have any queries, please contact our Transport Manager: debbie.liptrot@winstanley.ac.uk
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