Autumn 2018
News from Bablake
What a year!
B
ack in the summer, we were delighted to announce our second successive year of record-breaking GCSE results, with a stunning 50% of all grades at 9, 8 or A*. Our Fifth Form pupils did us proud and their outstanding results made us the 18th co-educational independent school nationally at GCSE, according to the Times. The year group adapted very well to reformed GCSEs and 62% of pupils gained at least eight 9 – 7 or A*/A grades. Bablake prides itself on aspiring not only to academic excellence but also to a well-rounded education. Our pupils achieved these GCSE results whilst still finding time for an array of commitments outside the classroom. The Headmaster said: “We are very proud of our pupils’ outstanding performance. It amply ref lects the ethos of the
www.bablake.com
school: a happy, ambitious and generous community, which enables our pupils to thrive in mind, body and spirit.” Our Upper Sixth also performed strongly, with 74% of all grades at A*, A or B and 46% at A* or A. It was obvious that recent exciting developments in the Bablake Sixth Form had successfully provided students with a ‘bridge to the adult world’, with many being accepted onto the most competitive university courses, including Medicine, Dentistry, Veterinary Science, Law, Economics and Engineering. Head of Sixth Form, Mrs Alison Tumber, said: “It is always pleasing to see the students you have taught over the last seven years achieve such excellent A level results. This year I am particularly delighted to see that the 18 students who joined Bablake for the Sixth Form have made the most of all the opportunities afforded to them over their two years here and have achieved some exceptionally good results.”
News
Beth Shalom On Thursday 19th October, all Third Year pupils and a small number of the Lower Sixth visited Beth Shalom, the National Holocaust Museum. This is the twenty-second time that we have been as a school and it was another sombre, poignant day of ref lection. We placed stones on the memorial for the million children who died in the Holocaust, and walked around the harrowing exhibition which details Nazi persecution and the killing of Jews (and other minority groups) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. We then listened to Holocaust survivor Hanneke Dye, who was
born in 1943 and who was initially hidden in a vacuum cleaner box for her safety when the Nazis came knocking on her family’s door. She spent the first two years of her life in hiding, until she was reunited with her parents after the end of the war. In his ref lection on the trip, Rabinder Dhadda (3JFS) wrote, ‘I think it’s important to learn about the Holocaust because it will enable children to realise what the products of hate are, and that we should learn to love one another. If we forget, people won’t realise what hate is capable of and how extreme it can get.’
Remembrance Fourth Year pupil Archie Badham was asked as a representative of CCF and the young people of the village of Fillongley to participate in the Parish Council’s involvement in lighting one of a chain of Beacons throughout the country as part of the ‘Battle’s Over’ Commemoration which was organised by the Queen’s pageant master. There was a reading entitled ‘Tribute to the Millions’ and the Parish Council asked six members of the Parish to read this out, one of whom was Archie.
2
the LION
House
Pumpkin-Carving Competition Back in October, the House Pumpkin-Carving Competition took place in the Art Department. Pumpkins were hollowed out the previous day by prefects, and pupils then drew on designs with a marker pen and carefully cut them out using a clay knife. They were supervised by House prefects and House staff and were given about 40 minutes to create a design. The prefects also joined in with the fun, carving their own designs. Mr Cleaver was called in to judge and declared Bayley House the winner. Once again, a great competition and many thanks to the Art Department.
It has been a busy term for @bablakecareers with the annual Upper Sixth Mock Interview Morning, delivery of six Careers Forums/ Fora and publication of four fortnightly Careers Circulars.
g pumpkin T he winnin
Chinese
Careers
The department has also worked closely with Sixth Form students looking to complete UCAS applications, apply for apprenticeships or seek work experience.
Celebrations
On the 24th September, we celebrated the MidAutumn Festival with our students from China. Traditional red envelopes were exchanged and moon cakes given to celebrate this very important event in the Chinese calendar.
Notably, Vedika Bedi spent a week during October half term with BAM Construct in Rugby and Amrit Bhandal returned to Bablake at the start of the term with a degree apprenticeship offer from Aston Martin on his CV! Careers Forums/Fora have included a Speed CV session, a visit from former pupil Remy McNamara in which she spoke of her experience as a #BrightStart apprentice with Deloitte, and the visit of a Third Year medical student from the University of Warwick to discuss MMI practice. We were also very pleased to welcome back former pupils Rachel Taylor and Emily Robinson this term. Both gave very inspiring talks about the importance of languages and where they can take you in today’s society. They each spoke of the need to break down barriers and how languages can complement a number of subjects from Medicine, Law and Engineering to Marketing, Economics and Finance.
BABLAKE
3
the LION
Chemistry Lectures Recent Chemistry lectures at the University of Birmingham enabled our Sixth Form students to learn more about Chemistry and extend their thinking beyond the A level specification. The first lecture was entitled ‘The First World War – its chemical origins’ and was presented by Professor Alan Dronsfield. We discovered that although poison gases were first employed in the 19141918 war, the consequent fatalities were relatively few compared to the millions
who perished through the application of high explosives and synthetic propellants. The main feature of this talk was the 19th Century chemistry which underpinned the industrial production of these materials, particularly in Germany. Large scale manufacturing organic chemistry really started with the synthetic dyestuffs industry, and the lecture included one demonstration of early dyeing. The second lecture was delivered by Professor Stephen Liddle and was called
‘Uranium – the bogeyman of the periodic table’. For or against, we already have legacy issues from nuclear power and weapons and there will be more in the future. Most nuclear applications use uranium and the talk unpicked this complex area and presented some facts about uranium and the science that is done with it. The chemistry of the lanthanide and actinide complexes were discussed and challenged preconceived ideas about structure, bonding and reactivity.
Christmas 2018 This year’s tree remembers some of the pupils and staff who lost their lives during the First World War. Although the centenary of it ending draws to a close, we should also remember the human cost of armed conflict.
4
the LION
Crest A number of our Sixth Form students completed Gold Crest Award placements during the summer holidays. George Evans and Ajan Manoharan spent their time at Lancaster University under the supervision of Dr Jaroslaw Nowak; Lauren Cox and Hana Dhanani completed a Psychology based placement at the University of Warwick Medical School under the supervision of Dr Vivek Furtado; and Upper Sixth students Amrit Gill and Ellie Herniman headed to Imperial College. George and Ajan observed neutrino interactions in a Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LArTPC) and had access to the MicroBooNE experiment in Fermilab, Chicago and produced images of the interactions. George explains, “We studied the images to compare the two styles and learned the key differences so that our brains could recognise the main features of
either style. Since the differences can be very subtle, correctly identifying a signal image can be difficult and, to an extent, subjective. Even a computerised system only has an accuracy of around 30%, far below that of expert physicists. Our aim therefore was to obtain a higher accuracy than the computer from an unseen sample of images.” George and Ajan thoroughly enjoyed the placement and it took them far beyond the content covered in their A level syllabus. Lauren reports that, “Hana and I were delighted to spend a few days at the start of the summer holidays at Warwick University for our Gold CREST Project to answer the question ‘Do those detained in hospitals under the ‘Mental Health Act’ have an equal opportunity to participate in mental health clinical trials in the UK?’ We were shown how to use different databases and websites to collate information and come to an informed conclusion. After analysing over 200 clinical trials using two different search terms, we found that 51% of the studies we looked at exclude those detained under the ‘Mental Health Act’. We both thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity to deepen our knowledge of this subject and
would like to thank Dr Vivek Furtado for all of his help and guidance during our project.” Ellie told us:
“Amrit and I completed our Gold CREST Placement in the cancer and surgery department at Imperial College London, under the supervision of Mr Joel Abrahams. “We took part in two main experiments, the first being a PCR electrophoresis where we were able to determine the genotype of several mice samples for the PTEN gene (a tumour suppressor).” “We also took part in a protein extraction which involved investigating the apoptotic effects on cancer lines of Cisplatin and Doxorubicin. We used a nanodrop to test the purity of our samples, which included both organic and inorganic contamination. We spent time in the animal testing labs to understand more about the array of treatments and the processes they must go through in order to become a patented drug.”
Harrismith We were delighted this October to welcome three visitors from our partnership school in South Africa. Mr S.P. Tshabalala, Head of Humanities at Harrismith School, and Grade 12 students Mondli and Sinethemba spent two weeks getting to know the Bablake community, attending lessons and visiting local landmarks. This included a memorable trip to Stratford and a backstage tour of the RSC theatre where they were treated to a display of fake blood, wigs, body parts and costumes. The party also had the chance to visit London, Oxford and Birmingham and to spend a morning at Bablake Junior School. It was a wonderful experience to be able to repay some of the hospitality we always receive when we visit Harrismith, which we are planning to do once more in July next year. Many thanks to all those who helped make the visit such a success, especially to those members of staff and parents who hosted our guests during the visit.
BABLAKE
5
the LION
Future Leaders During the summer holidays, a number of Bablake pupils took part in the Future Leaders course at PET-Xi Training, which centres around enterprise and the world of work, and raised over £1,200 for charity. The three-week course focused on three themes: working together, improving learning and performance, and problem solving, and took place at PET-XI Training’s headquarters at the Westwood Business Park in Coventry. Pupils joined forces with others from around the city to create a business app by taking on various roles within accountancy, marketing, human resources and even that of managing director to deliver a Dragons’ Den style pitch to PET-Xi Training colleagues Maggie Thomson, Kelly Wright, Sharon McGuire, Julian Davis and David Hutchinson. Hattie Morris tells us: “It was really useful because it was like an interview and you could see how it would fit
into a real-life situation, because you watched your peers and picked up tips so we were not just self-assessing, we were analysing others.” By rising to the challenge of raising £1,000 for charity in the final week of Future Leaders, they held a variety of activities including cake sales, a sponsored silence and a 14km walk and collected a total of £1,204.83, which was shared between Myton Hospice, Cancer Research, Lupus UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, Mind, the Salvation Army, Zero Hunger, with Langar, British Lung Foundation and the Dogs’ Trust. Amerdeep Chanian, team leader at PET-Xi Training, said he had been impressed by the standard of the students’ work throughout the summer programme which also gives UCAS points for those planning to go to university. “This is the eighth year we have held the Future Leaders course and it is focused on developing skills to demonstrate to universities and future employers that students have all-round abilities and not just academic achievements,” he said.
Junior Languages Club Languages Club has once again been in full flow and pupils started the term by making their own Schultüte loaded with goodies for the return to school. They have also enjoyed a prize-winning European languages quiz, a food-tasting session and lots of fun activities as we head towards the festive season. It has truly been glitter galore, as pupils have decorated gift tags and Christmas crackers, wishing their families ‘Joyeux Noël’, ‘Frohe Weihnachten’ or ‘Feliz Navidad’!
6
the LION
Bookbuzz 2018 Bookbuzz created so much excitement this year amongst our Shell pupils. We were delighted to participate in the scheme again as it always stimulates so much interest and enthusiasm for reading. The Bookbuzz scheme is a reading programme initiated by BookTrust that provides a selection of books for Year 7 pupils, selected by a panel of experts. The books chosen are for pupils to keep and take home.
Here at Bablake we have a library lesson early on in the Autumn Term dedicated to choosing one of the books. Pupils have the opportunity to look through the sample books and posters and then make their choice. Pupils are often impatient for the books to arrive but it is always worth the wait to see the genuine excitement on their faces, as you can see from the photos, taken by Mr Mark Woodward during one of our library lessons. Looking through them I think
our staff are equally excited to share the new books with pupils! We have participated in the scheme since its outset and every year it proves to be as popular as ever. My sincere hope is that this, along with all the initiatives we take, will help to inspire a lifelong love of reading. For some it will be the start of that journey, for others another step along the way.
Junior Science Our first session involved making slime, in which pupils followed a simple recipe using PVA glue and borax solution. They coloured the slime using food colouring, rolled it up into a ball and bounced it around, having great fun in the process! Our second session involved making a marshmallow catapult. Pupils watched Mrs Sharkey (Senior Science Technician) assemble a catapult using marshmallows and then attempted to make it in groups. With a little guidance, they assembled the catapult and launched marshmallows from it, with some even managing to launch their marshmallow from one end of the room to the other.
We have also been making butter and looking at marmite under a microscope to try to bridge the cross-curricular link between food and science. The session started with pupils vigorously shaking double cream in a glass jar, which after a few minutes separated out and formed butter. Mrs Sharkey then setup a microscope with a slide containing a thin layer of marmite. She whisked the marmite until it changed colour to white and then placed a slide of the whisked marmite under the microscope for the pupils to view. When you whip your Marmite, it fills with lots
of small bubbles. Those bubbles become more cramped the more you whip it, so the colour changes as light travels into or out of the air bubbles. The pupils were able to observe the colour change and bubbles under the microscope. A messy session but exciting for all the pupils who attended and took part!
BABLAKE
7
the LION
Art & Music Anna
Musical Success Sixth Form student Anna White was thrilled to undertake a tour to Florence with Pro Corda, where she performed the Rachmaninov piano trio in three different venues over a week. Anna raised money for the trip earlier this year by giving a lunchtime recital at St. John’s Church and said “it was the best trip I’ve been on; Pro Corda is fun and really inspirational.” Along with Ellie Aitchison, Anna also took part in the CBSO Youth Orchestra course during October half-term, with a final concert at Birmingham’s prestigious Symphony Hall.
Enya
Sathvika
Congratulations to Sixth Former Enya Bowe, who gained an excellent pass in her DipABRSM music diploma examination in the summer. Enya gave a solo recital on her flute, supported by researched programme notes, and concluded with a viva voce examination of her work. The DipABRSM is an excellent achievement, and we hope it will help secure Enya a coveted music college undergraduate place later this year. Enya also took part in a flute summer school with renowned flautist Philippa Davies; the course was at Benslow Music in Hitchin and Enya took part in ensembles, masterclasses and duet performances, ending with a final concert. Sathvika Krishnan, also in the Sixth Form, took part in SAMYO rehearsals this summer, where she is leader of the national youth choir for Indian music, before going to India to study with Guru Mudikondan Shri S.N. Ramesh in preparation for her concert in Mylapore Kapileeshwara Temple. Lower Sixth student Edwin O’Brien had one of his compositions, a setting of the Pie Jesu, performed at the CBSO Centre in Birmingham during October half-term, by Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, as part of a showcase of youth compositions. Edwin took part in a workshop with BCMG and other young composers, led by David Horne from the Royal Northern College of Music.
Gracie Morris Congratulations to Gracie, who attends The Pauline Quirk Academy in Coventry, as she recently gained her grade 5 (with distinction) in Musical Theatre in Production. Gracie only joined the group last year, but is obviously going from strength to strength.
8
the LION
Daniel Baden Congratulations to Daniel Baden who, as part of SoundLabCov, performed at the Godiva Festival during the summer. The children involved all spent a day practising at the Birmingham Conservatoire and were delighted to see their performance televised on BBC1’s Inside Out programme.
Life
Autumn Concert ‘
After many weeks of rehearsals, Bablake’s Music Department showed off its talents at this year’s Autumn Concert. Opening with a powerful performance of Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, the orchestra was the first to impress the audience, continuing with a fun arrangement from Les Misérables. The audience continued to be entertained by the great variety of performances, which included all families of instrument and many genres of music. The String Quartet delighted everyone with its rendition of Wonderwall, as did the brass
group with its programme of 80s rock. In addition to the many group performances, our Sixth Form music scholars executed some excellent solo pieces, most notably Enya Bowe on flute and Anna White on cello, who both impressed the audience with their conservatoire audition pieces. The night ended with an explosive performance from the percussion group and it’s safe to say that everyone left feeling happy and entertained. Congratulations to everyone involved and thanks for a great evening.
Emma O’Brien workshops The Art Department invited local artist Emma O’Brien in to school for two days in October to run workshops for Second Year pupils. Emma, who has visited Bablake a number of times previously, worked with groups of pupils to produce terrifyingly delightful soft sculptures modelled on her own work. The pupils learned how to develop their characters using a variety of textile techniques to produce their design. Emma’s own work, which ranges from illustrations to books and soft sculptures, can be seen at ‘naughtymonsters.com’.
Drawing
After a gap of one year, life drawing sessions have returned to the Bablake Art Department. Upper Sixth students have undertaken a seven-week course as part of the Friday afternoon Enrichment programme. The sessions are led by local artist Tanya Kozin, RBSA, who has a strong reputation for creating her own sculptures and paintings and who exhibits regularly in London as well as locally. The sessions aim to develop the students’ observational drawing skills and will add an extra dimension to the portfolios of those applying for art courses next year.
Jemma Foy
Workshops
Also in October, the Art Department organised two full days of animation with ‘Let’s Animate’ for Second Year pupils. In these sessions, pupils learned skills such as character development, storyboarding, Claymation techniques, lighting, filming, editing and applying soundtracks to their own short films. Jemma Foy, who ran the sessions, has many years of experience in the industry and is based at Fargo in Coventry. BABLAKE
9
the LION
Art Visits
At the end of the summer term, Third and Fourth Year GCSE Art pupils explored the delights of the Ashmolean Museum. The main exhibition was entitled ‘Cool American Modernism’ and contained work by artists such as Charles Demuth, Georgia O’Keeffe, Edward Hopper and Charles Sheeler and looked at the dispassionate way in which artists clinically recorded the world in the period between the wars. The pupils also had the opportunity to explore the permanent collections, which range from classical civilisation and the history of the decorative arts to a worldrenowned selection of painting which spans the renaissance right through to the twentieth century.
10
the LION
Charity Charity fundraising got off to a flying start at Bablake this year when our annual Macmillan Coffee morning, organised by a team of Sixth Formers, raised £776. Harvest festival followed shortly after and pupils gave generously to ensure that we were able to make a fantastic donation of food and toiletry items to the city’s food banks. Our non-uniform day raised over £1200 for our partner school in South Africa, Harrismith, and we have more exciting
events planned for the rest of the year. Zara Edmonds of 3JFS, along with various friends, organised a cake sale which raised over £300 for Wear It Pink Day. Sixth Form student Lorna Williamson recently worked alongside Shell pupils to help organise Bablake’s BBC Children in Need charity week. Various events were held, with the highlight being a series of fun-filled lunchtimes where pupils could ‘Soak the Teacher’. Needless to say, this was a great fundraiser and we are delighted to report that the week’s events raised over £1000 for Children in Need.
Languages Bake Off for Macmillan The Modern Foreign Languages Bake Off recently saw many budding chefs produce some of the most amazing cakes for charity. The cakes were then sold at the Macmillan Coffee Morning to raise money for this very worthwhile cause. Members of the Sixth Form Charity team had the pleasure of tasting and judging the cakes and it is fair to say that this was a very difficult task! Many congratulations to all those who took part and a huge well done to Charlotte Tomlins and Tasha Bvunzawabaya, both of 2CAM, who claimed first prize with their stunning MFL letter creation. Emilia James of ShACP and Kate Sexton of 3JMG were awarded second and third place respectively. We are already looking forward to running the competition again next year, so ready, steady, bake! BABLAKE
11
the LION
Drama
12
the LION
Drama Q & A session with pupils following the Legally Blonde auditions and the recent Drama Showcase What did you enjoy most about the showcase? • I enjoyed the fact that we got to express ourselves on stage. – Charlie Tayton • I thought it was really fun to show everyone what we had been working on, and putting it all together in such little time was challenging and helped develop certain skills to do with Drama, like communication and confidence, which I think is a really good thing. – Sophie Jackson Why do you think it’s important to perform our work in front of other people? I think it is important because then we get to express ourselves in front of an audience. Also it is good to have people see what we are doing in our lessons. – Selina Gilmour • So that we can learn from our mistakes and build confidence. – Tilly Shields • It’s important because it develops our selfconfidence and proves to ourselves that we can do things in front of people. – Charlie Tayton Do you think there are any skills that you develop in Drama lessons that you don’t get to develop in other lessons OR what makes Drama important to study? • I feel that a big skill that I can develop in Drama is my confidence in front of a big crowd. Usually I get stage fright and I don’t like being in front of lots of people but now, thanks to these lessons, I am more confident. – Rhys Esling • I think that Drama lets you express yourself in ways that you can’t do in other subjects. I think it’s an extremely important subject as it also boosts your confidence and language skills.
How did it feel to perform in the showcase? • It felt very strange as it was so different to anything I have done before. The way that the Shell audience was arranged around the perimeter of the stage really gave them the chance to witness everyone performing at their best. – Elliott Eardley • Whilst performing I began to feel less nervous and it was a nice environment having everyone in the other groups supporting each other while we were performing. – Keira James
“I think it’s an extremely important subject as it also boosts your confidence and language skills.” – Sophie Jackson
Why is it important to take opportunities to share performance with an audience? • To share your work with new people. It gives you the chance to receive constructive criticism from different perspectives and opinions and this can improve your overall performance the next time you share it. – Elliott Eardley • ...it also gives a point to the work, as you get to share it with others. – Keira James What skills did you draw on and develop as a result of the performance on Wednesday? • To perform an ordinary monologue for four minutes without actually saying a word; this is a very creative take and gives you the confidence to use your facial expressions and body language, which most people find quite difficult or uncomfortable. Using this technique forces you to be as realistic as possible as nobody really talks for such a long period of time! – Elliott Eardley
– Sophie Jackson
BABLAKE
13
the LION
Out & About Valencia trip Very early on Saturday 20th October a group of 28 pupils set off on a four-day trip to Valencia, the third largest city in Spain. It was a trip full of activities which immersed pupils in Spanish culture and gave them a highly valued opportunity to put the Spanish they had learnt into practice in real life situations. They surpassed all expectations!
Saturday One of the most memorable experiences was our Flamenco lesson in a professional dance studio a few short hours after our arrival. In true Bablake style, our pupils (and Mr Wright) threw themselves wholeheartedly into learning the intricate foot, arm and hand movements required for this Spanish art. They enjoyed performing a full routine in authentic Flamenco dress at the end of our session.
Sunday Sunday involved a walk on the wilder side with a day trip to the Terra Mítica theme park in Benidorm. As well as the traditional adrenaline-inducing, stomach-churning rides, pupils and staff were able to enjoy a wide range of entertaining and professional shows, some with a spooky Halloween twist.
Monday We recovered from our exciting Sunday with a relaxing boat trip on Monday morning in a sleepy village called El Palmar, close to the paddy fields where paella rice is grown. We were sadly too late for the harvesting of the rice, which happens once a year in September, but were able to appreciate small village life in the time we spent there, as well as learning about the importance of rice to the Valencian economy. After a lunch break in the architecturally stunning City of Arts and Sciences, we enjoyed time in the science museum itself where we were able to play ‘mind football’ and calculate our body fat percentages, among other things. Our tour of the Fallas Museum allowed pupils to gain an insight into a uniquely Valencian tradition – the burning of effigies in the annual Fallas festival. Each year the best Falla of the year is saved from the annual burning and preserved for posterity in this quirky little museum.
Tuesday Our final full day in Valencia started with a tour of the central market, sampling the delights that the stall holders had to offer. It was interesting to see that fresh market food is still at the heart of Spanish cuisine, and our intrepid pupils were all too willing to sample fresh oysters and sea urchins. We moved on to the Old Town area and tasked pupils with a treasure hunt testing their knowledge, Spanish, creativity and teamworking skills. Much Spanish was spoken, and paella and churros were eaten before we headed for the Mestalla football stadium for our final tour of the week.
14
the LION
Sport Tang Soo Do success Congratulations to Abby Barnes for winning two medals at the International Tang Soo Do competition in Dublin back in October. Abby received a gold medal for her weapons and a silver for her forms. Abby, who is a black belt herself, was competing against other black belt competitors who were a higher Dan grade, so more qualified, which makes Abby’s achievements all the more impressive.
Gaelic Football Congratulations to Patrick Heffernan, who was selected by the Warwickshire GAA County Board to represent Warwickshire in the U14 “Féile Peile Na NÓg 2018”. This is the U14 Gaelic football world cup which was held in Ireland with 176 boys’ teams competing from Ireland, France, America, Canada and the UK. Patrick and his teammates were hosted by families from a club in Ireland and spent their evenings with them. Patrick and his team had a fabulous time and were successful in reaching the quarter finals of their division.
Shell Olympics 2018
The annual Shell Olympics took place at the start of the term and was a fantastic event. There were lots of smiles and cheers and, most importantly, no rain! The Shells gathered on the terrace, the whistle was blown and the action started. There were eight exciting events for the pupils to try: hockey dribbling, football penalties, tennis ball and racket, welly wanging, relay, hockey shoot out, netball shooting and obstacle course. The aim was to have fun and get as many points as possible. To get the highest score, good teamwork and communication were needed. The House prefects did an excellent job of running the events. At the end of the morning, there was very little difference between the points and, in some cases, only one point separated the Houses; ultimately, Bayley boys and Fairfax girls won and lifted the trophy. Well done to all the pupils who took part and to the House staff for setting up such great event. We look forward to an exciting year of fun and challenging House events.
BABLAKE
15
the LION
BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year After an amazing summer of sport, Sixth Former Kare Adenegan continues to shine and we are delighted to report that she has been named 2018 BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year. Kare has enjoyed a spectacular 2018, as she became T34 100m WPA European champion, winning her first gold medal in senior competition and taking silver in the T34 800m. She also set a new T34 100m world record at the London Anniversary Games, before seeing off rival Hannah Cockcroft for the first time in her career in a thrilling championship race at the Diamond League. Kare received her award at the Radio 1 Teen Awards in front of thousands in attendance at the SSE Arena, Wembley, and will also attend the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards ceremony in Birmingham on 16th December.
primary schools across the West Midlands to host special Super Movers Active Assemblies. The next step in Kare’s athletic career will see her working towards the World Championships, to be held in Dubai in November 2019. There will be competitors from the European circuit, but the competition will obviously be a far wider-reaching one and Kare is very much looking forward to this exciting event. To many of us, it may seem a long way off, but Kare and her coaches already have a plan in place to help her on her journey. As a Sports Scholar here at Bablake, Kare will be mentoring a small group of our elite sporting pupils throughout the year. She is proud to be able to pass on her knowledge and skills as an inspirational leader in school and, as she maintains an excellent balance between her academic and sporting life, she continues to be a fabulous role model to our students.
In November, Super Movers, a BBC and Premier League initiative which aims to get children moving more throughout the day recently teamed up with BBC Sports Personality of the Year to bring a series of special visits to primary schools across the West Midlands. Kare, along with Gabby Logan and Blue Peter presenter Radzi Chinyanganya, headed to six lucky
Badminton Earlier in the term, the badminton team played its first fixture of the year against a very strong King Edward’s Birmingham team. Matches included singles, doubles and mixed doubles but we were unfortunately narrowly defeated in the singles 5-3 and lost 7-1 in the doubles. Upper Sixth pupil Ravi Bodalia defeated the best two players at King Edward’s and remains unbeaten in all of his singles matches against other schools. The team thoroughly enjoyed the visit to Birmingham and we look forward to many more exciting matches during the year.
16
the LION
Boys’ Sport Dan Mousley Huge congratulations go to Dan Mousley on his selection for the England U19 Young Lions cricket squad. This is so thoroughly deserved and we wish Dan every success! We recently spoke to Dan about his many achievements and share a few of his thoughts with you here: ‘I am obviously very proud to have been selected for the Young Lions squad, which comprises the best players in the country for the U19 age group. This came as a little bit of a shock, as I am still a year young and will be surrounded by many young players who have just signed their first professional contracts. I am delighted to be part of the Young Lions and will travel with them to India this winter.
Boys’ PE The 1st XV has been outstanding this term, displaying a fantastic attitude and continuing to make great strides in performance. After dominating the annual Mick Hibbert match against King Henry VIII, the team was denied the victory it deserved by a last play score with the match finishing in a 17-17 draw. The U15 team has also excelled in reaching round 4 of the NatWest Vase with an outstanding victory over King Henry’s, and a win against a strong Princethorpe team, which was another highlight. The U14s also continue to develop well, whilst the U13s have lost just once this term. The Shell squad is showing great enthusiasm, with high numbers attending training and progress excellent. Many congratulations to Asman Salik, who has been selected to play for the U15 West Midlands water polo team. We wish him good luck for his forthcoming matches.
My sporting ambition is to play professional cricket for Warwickshire and England. My sporting role model is Andrew Flintoff and even as a young boy, I always wanted to be a match winner and a character who wore his heart on his sleeve, so he was my first role model. My best sporting advice is to back your own ability and believe in yourself no matter what the situation.’
BABLAKE
17
the LION
Netball
Girls’ Sport We have made an exceptional start to the season, winning 70% of matches played across the age groups, with the U12, U13 and 2nd VII teams remaining undefeated. The 1st VII had a tough season last year but has demonstrated resilience and returned with a real competitive attitude. Games against Old Swinford and Wolverhampton Grammar were end to end, but with some excellent defensive work by captain Ellie Herniman and Lawou Mpafe, we managed to keep the opposition out of the circle. ViceCaptain Ashleigh Stonier and GA Hattie Morris have developed a synchronised relationship in the circle and are displaying some excellent shooting so far this season. The U19 Coventry Schools Netball tournament turned out to be a competitive game against KHVIII. Unfortunately, we finished runners up this year, but secured a place in the County Tournament. The U15s were given an opportunity this season to compete in the U16 Coventry Schools tournament. This group of girls demonstrated excellent talent and rose to the challenge. Individual praise must be given to Maria Savage for selection at the Wasps U18 Birmingham Hub and to Hannah Denton on her continuing success at Loughborough Lightning. The girls finished runners up in their tournament and followed in the footsteps of the seniors to the Warwickshire
18
the LION
tournament where they played some outstanding netball. There were some close games v King’s High (8-7) and St Martin’s (7-7) with a clear win against Rugby (9-1). The experience of playing against older girls has been good preparation to compete against their own age group next year. The U14A had a difficult start to its season with player injury. They nevertheless managed to overcome this, winning all their games at the Coventry Schools tournament and qualifying for the Warwickshire tournament. The team is now fighting fit, demonstrated in an outstanding game v Kingsley, where they won 30-1. The U12s and U13s are both unbeaten and are really showing their potential. In just six matches, the two teams have scored 139 goals! They have defeated some top opposition, King’s High (203), Solihull (19-9) and St Martin’s (23-3) (35-8) and we wish both teams the best of luck for the rest of the season. Individual congratulations must go to Imogen Pemble, Libby Harrison, Libby Stinton, Manuella Tchapdeu, Elizabeth Akinkoye and Emily Maughan on selection for the Warwickshire U13 squad. Earlier in the term, the U12 girls had an exciting day out at the Ricoh arena during which they met Wasps players. They were also allowed to visit the players’ changing rooms and even managed to play on the show court, benefiting from some expert coaching.
Jumping to Success
Bryony has had much success eventing this season. She competed as an individual at Osberton International Horse Trials Arena Event and came 3rd in the 90cm and 8th in the 1mtr and was a junior competing in a class of 57 adults. We are very proud of Bryony and wish her continued succsess.
Cross Country As always, our girls have had a successful cross-country season. We have great talent across the age groups, which is exciting for the athletics season. In the West Midlands Cross Country cup Minors category, Krista Bennett finished 3rd out of 54 runners with Ellie Hart finishing 15th. In the Junior category Erin Keeling finished 34th out of 47 runners and in the inter category Emma Allroggen came 1st with Freya Bennett 10th out of 33 runners. The League Championships which are held over three weeks of competing and the City Championships also proved fruitful for Bablake: League Championships U12 Krista Bennett (Gold) U14 girls’ team (Gold), Hannah Elliott (Bronze) U16 Freya Bennett (Gold) City Championships U14 girls’ team (Gold), Hannah Elliott (Gold) U16 girls’ team (Gold), Emma Allroggen (Gold), Freya Bennett (Bronze)
Other congratulations Iz Hemus recently won her dressage competition which qualifies her for the winter riding club championships. Many congratulations to Fifth Former Emma Allroggen, who has been selected for the 25 strong England U16 hockey squad. All of her hard work has really paid off and this is thoroughly deserved. We wish her the best of luck for her forthcoming training camps and trials.
Hockey England Hockey has given the girls’ tournaments a revamp this season, with a broader opportunity to play schools further afield at U18 and U16 level and with both age groups having the choice to compete in either the plate or the cup. The U16s first match was a bye which took them through to the second round of the cup where they faced Dean Close. The girls were very unlucky in this game and lost (2-1). Their next opponent will be RGS Worcester or Clifton College and we have no doubt that the girls will rise to the challenge. In addition to their cup games, they have made an impressive start to their indoor journey, successfully beating King’s High (4-3) and Rugby (4-0) at the Warwickshire tournament. We wish them the best of luck at the next round. The 1st XI have had some well fought matches, beating Wellingborough (1-0), NUL (1-0) and most recently Wrekin (3-2). The games have been end to end with some excellent play from the squad. A highlight for the team was their match against Wolverhampton which they won (9-0) with a hat trick from Emma Allroggen and a double hat trick from Imogen Al-Dabbagh. At the U14 Warwickshire tournament, the girls knew it was going to be a tough day, but they once again did Bablake proud by competing at a good standard against all the opposition. Unfortunately, at the start of the season the team lost their centre Midfield to injury, but despite this they defeated NUL (6-0). As in the netball, the U13s are showing their hockey potential, winning 10 games out of 12 played. A real highlight was their game against NUL (11-0), with additional goals being totted up against King’s High (6-1) and KHVIII (7-0). The team is developing its game from 7 aside to 11 aside with the goal of winning the Warwickshire tournament in sight. The U12s are going from strength to strength and have a depth of talent across the A-D teams. The D team are yet to lose, with a (3-2) win against Solihull and a (3-2) win against Princethorpe. A highlight for the U12A team was its victory against our city rivals KHVIII (8-0).
BABLAKE
19
the LION
Headmaster’s Notes
CHANGES TO
TEACHING STAFF for January
By the time you read this, we shall be approaching the end of an action-packed and breath-takingly full Autumn Term. I hope that every member of this very positive school community will be proud of what they have achieved and of how they have made Bablake an even better place. We began the term buoyed by outstanding summer examination results. Not only had the School climbed 32 places in the Telegraph independent schools A level league tables, but we had
been ranked 18th nationally in the Times co-educational independent GCSE tables.This success came as a consequence of dedication, team-working, co-curricular balance, highquality teaching and strong and supportive relationships between pupils and staff. It is great to celebrate such good news, but league tables only tell a part of the story, and we should never consciously set out to climb them. Indeed, of far greater importance are the individuals who lie behind the statistics and, above all, their dreams, their challenges and their happiness. Reflected within these pages are so many aspects of these aspirations.Whether or not they are mentioned by name, every pupil plays their own important part and should be determined to make the most of the rich and life-changing opportunities of their education.They only have one chance.
John Watson
Valete Mrs Mandie Bradshaw Mr Paul Creighton Mrs Alison Learmont Henry Mr Clive Mohamed Miss Lauren Mullan We wish all these colleagues every happiness and thank them very much for their loyal service to our community.
Salvete We look forward to welcoming: Mrs Hannah Gardner (Biology) Mr Glenn Mellor (Physical Education) Mr Mark Sidwell (Site Services) Mr Dave Tennant (Chemistry) Miss Rebecca Welchman (Geography)
Bablake School Coundon Road, Coventry CV1 4AU
t 024 7627 1200 f facebook.com/bablakeschool
f
024 7627 1290
e info@bablake.coventry.sch.uk
t twitter.com/bablakeschool
w
bablake.com
Designed by The Jade Studio - thejadestudio.co.uk Printed on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests.