Spirit - Girls' Division Magazine 2016-17

This year’s magazine celebrates the fact that Bolton School was announced as a recipient of the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in June of this year. We believe that we are the first School in the country to win such an Award. At the heart of our ethos in the Girls’ Division are the words of the School Prayer: that we should ‘extend to others that which we so richly enjoy’. Community Service is therefore at the centre of what we do and you can read much about the girls’ volunteering and charitable giving in the pages of this magazine. It is wonderful to work in an environment where the pupils are so keen to share their privileges with others.

Community Service is also one of the key elements of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards, which all girls in Year 9 take at Bronze Level and very many girls go on to complete at Silver and Gold. You can read about their adventures on expedition on pages 25 to 28. I certainly hope that Hannah’s account of her Gold Award trip on ‘Tenacity’ inspires some of the younger girls to do the same. As you will see from the girls’ stories, expeditions may be exhausting and may test individual resilience, but they are also a wonderful bonding experience and enable girls to develop skills and attributes which would otherwise remain hidden.

Aside from service and the expedition, girls are also expected to learn a skill for DofE. Indeed at Bolton School, the development of the girls’ skills is one of our key aims. I am always amazed by the products which they create in Design Technology, Resistant Materials, Textiles and Food Preparation. I am sure that you will be equally impressed when you turn to pages 33 to 36. Similarly, girls have endless opportunities to develop their dramatic, musical and sporting abilities. This year the School production of ‘Miss Saigon’ was a memorable, magical experience for cast, crew and audiences alike.

Finally, academic challenge is vital in a selective, academic school like ours. The Enrichment talks (p.4) have been a great success and have attracted girls, parents and friends of the School alike. We are already enjoying planning next year’s programme. No less important if the girls are be stimulated in their studies are the many trips which the Departments have organised over the year. I am always grateful to the staff for their amazing contribution to this part of school life, particularly when so many visits occur during the school holidays. As a community we are committed to making the most out of all our opportunities and for that we are all richly rewarded indeed.

S Hincks, Headmistress

Miss

Bolton School Girls’

MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the latest edition of Spirit. Our themes for the magazine this year are Adventure and Service: epitomised by the images on the cover. The front of the magazine features pupils undertaking their The Duke of Edinburgh Award expedition, and girls’ Adventures can be further explored in the pages of this edition through DofE, trips to Patterdale Hall, Outdoor Learning and international travel. The back cover depicts The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, which the School was proud to receive in 2017. As always, Spirit will give you a flavour of what each year group has achieved and enjoyed, and I hope you enjoy looking back on a busy year in the Girls’ Division.

Miss A Bradshaw

School Receives Award for Voluntary

Bolton School has won the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (QAVS) 2017. This unique UK national honour, which is equivalent to an MBE and is the highest accolade given to local volunteer groups, was created by the Queen in 2002 to mark the occasion of her Golden Jubilee. The award has been given to the whole School, from the Nursery to the Sixth Form, and we believe we are the first school in the country to be honoured in this way.

Miss Hincks was thrilled at the news: “We are absolutely delighted to win this award, which reflects the wide range of community activities that our pupils are involved with – from our Infants singing for local older residents to our Sixth Formers committing thousands of hours of their time to voluntary service.”

Pupils throughout Bolton School are involved with a huge number of projects locally, nationally and internationally. However, on top of that, the whole School is instilled with Lord Leverhulme’s ethos of giving back to the local community: something which is echoed by the School Prayer. By providing opportunities to get involved and supporting them in their voluntary work, the School cultivates social responsibility in each pupil and a culture of volunteering across the Foundation. Establishing a habit of volunteering to benefit others and give back to society is a key part of each pupil’s education.

Photos (L-R): Urban Outreach Hampers donation, Tea at the Riley, Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes donation, helping out at SHINE, Harvest in the Girls’ Division

Receives Queen’s Voluntary Service

A letter from the QAVS Team to the School said:

independent Assessment Committee, chaired by Sir Martyn Lewis CBE […].

The Autumn Term saw a flurry of community action projects. The School made a huge donation of food items to Urban Outreach at Harvest, and as Christmas approached the girls donated 91 shoeboxes to Operation Christmas Child. Six teams of Year 12 pupils took on the ‘Saucy Pie Challenge’, attempting to collect 1,300 packets of mince pies and accompanying brandy or rum sauce in time to fill Urban Outreach’s Christmas Hampers. With just over three weeks to achieve their goal, the pressure was really on and the girls were put to the test! Their fundraising activities, donations from supermarkets, and the generosity of the Girls’ Division – in particular 7D, 8C, 9B, 10F, 11C, D1 and E1 – all helped the Sixth Formers to achieve their target on time.

Year 12 in particular have been really engaged with volunteering this year and have supported a broad range of community projects. They have registered 5911 hours of voluntary work, an average of 65 hours per student, and 20 girls have achieved a gold certificate to certify they have volunteered over 100 hours!

Tea at the Riley has once again been enormously popular throughout the year. Guests have joined Sixth Form girls in the Leverhulme Suite of the Riley Centre each month for hand-made finger sandwiches, home-baked cakes, a cup of tea or coffee and a good chat. Pupils have also provided entertainment for their guests through the year, including special performances from Beech House Choir and the Junior Girls.

Pupils have also volunteered at care homes and hospices, have given their time to read with younger pupils, and have been involved with running the SHINE: Serious Fun on Saturdays programme for local pupils in Year 5, among many other projects.

“The work your group does for the community was very much admired by the

The award represents a tremendous achievement for your organisation. We hope that everyone involved, and particularly your volunteers, feel immensely proud of the recognition that this Award represents.”

Memories of Miss Saigon

By Molly McLaughlin, Year 13, who shared the role of Kim with Caroline Blair, Year 12

Miss Saigon is set in Vietnam in the final days of the Vietnamese war, and tells the tragic love story of a young and vulnerable Vietnamese woman, Kim, who falls in love with an American G.I. soldier, Chris.

When it was first announced that Bolton School were going to perform a joint production of Miss Saigon l was extremely excited as I had been to see it in London and had been obsessed ever since (and still am). So, when I found out we were doing it at school I didn’t even hesitate to audition – I knew whichever part I got it would be such a poignant and memorable way to complete my journey at Bolton School. When I was given the part of Kim, I was left with a real mixture of emotions; predominantly excitement but also anxiety as, although I’d had lots of experience of singing in public, I had never really done acting before. Therefore going into the rehearsal process I felt nervous, but I quickly realised there was nothing to be concerned about; everyone was in

the same boat and all of the staff were always prepared to give us constructive and one-to-one support and advice. By the time of the shows, I had become so used to acting in front of people that it almost became second nature to me.

The cast began rehearsals in September 2016 and from the outset a very natural bond immediately formed amongst everyone from Year 10 upwards; we really did become a sort of family and I was able to form many long-lasting friendships.

In the lead-up to the actual performances, rehearsing with the orchestra was something I will never forget; the quality of musicianship and orchestration made it feel like we were performing in the West End – as many comments have since reflected.

The staging of the show was spectacular; the technicians put in a huge amount of work and I felt honoured to be performing on such an amazing stage. Before every performance there was a real

‘buzz’; we had worked incredibly hard over the months and we couldn’t wait to show everyone the amazing spectacle.

And amazing it was! Every performance was sold out leaving many more seeking tickets. The response from the audience was overwhelming and although I was so sad when the final show came to an end, I felt extremely privileged to have had the experience, reassured by the fact that I had achieved something very special and will be left with memories that will stay with me forever.

As for the cast, we are all still in touch and are planning to have a get together in summer!

For younger years considering whether to take part in productions at Bolton School, I cannot urge you enough. I really feel I have grown as a person and was able to do things I never thought I was capable of, and I have every intention of continuing with musical theatre and singing as an extra-curricular activity at university.

Participating in the show was a great experience, having had the opportunity to work with people of different ages to us and with very supportive people around us all the time. As well as being the youngest, we weren’t nervous to perform, just excited. This show will always be a great memory for us.

Alice and Ella Nielsen, Year 4

Who shared the role of Tam, Kim and Chris’s child

An Enriching Year

Throughout the 2016-17 academic year, the Girls’ Division has hosted a hugely popular series of regular evening lectures from high-profile guest speakers on a diverse variety of Arts and Sciences subjects.

So many things have been successful about the lecture series this year!

All the talks have been enriching for our pupils and pupils from local schools. They have had the opportunity to hear about and consequently think about academically challenging ideas that are at the cutting edge of Science and Technology – from Professor Jeff Forshaw describing the evolving theory of how the Big Bang happened and modelling the inflaton field, to Dr Heather Williams describing the novel ways in which medical imaging is being used and current research in this field, to discovering the interplay between science and cultural history with natural phenomena such as the Northern Lights.

The lectures have given our pupils the chance to meet high profile figures who are excellent role models in various fields. They have also been able to speak to them personally, which must be an inspiring experience. Our speakers have shown pupils academic subjects applied in real world careers and the paths that they have taken in those careers.

It’s difficult to choose a highlight as all the speakers have been excellent. The talk from Heather Williams was delivered at the perfect level for our girls and in a manner they enjoyed – she related to the young girls very well.

At the end of the aurora talk, a member of the audience asked a question which looked to catch out Dr Melanie Windridge. She started to give an answer which didn’t quite relate to the question. However, what she was doing was laying the ground work for everyone to understand, as there were various threads which came together to give a proper answer to the question. We were able to bring pupils from a comprehensive school in Blackpool to the Jeff Forshaw lecture, and one of the boys was a big fan of Jeff. He joined us for the celebration dinner before the lecture and had a chance to ask Jeff a few questions as well as spending time with our pupils. It was wonderful that he got to meet one of his “heroes” as well as spending time with kids who enjoy and respect the value of learning, as he does. I think he was inspired by this event.

Mrs Hone and I have also been delighted by the attendance of parents and the local community, who have given us fantastic feedback. Everyone, no matter how young or old, is curious about the world we live in, and the local community have reported that they have thoroughly enjoyed the talks.

Ickringill Academic

I particularly enjoyed the History lecture from Suzannah Lipscomb, as I felt the speaker was inspiring, and also the Northern Lights lecture because I felt the science was made accessible and there were some very interesting travel elements to it.”

Guest Speakers:

“I thoroughly enjoyed the enrichment lectures; they included a vast variety of talented speakers and gave me a lot of insight and knowledge on subject areas I wished to learn more about. I especially enjoyed the talk given on Animal Testing as it was informative as well as being very engaging.”

Mr B

Enrichment Coordinator for the Sciences

Dr Laura Waters

Alternatives to Animal Testing

Dr Susannah Lipscomb Leadership Lessons from the Tudors

Dr Melanie Windridge In Search of the Northern Lights

Dame Evelyn Glennie In Conversation

Lemn Sissay Poet

Prof. Jeff Forshaw Universal: A Guide to the Cosmos

Dr Heather Williams Seeing Inside - Imaging the Structure and Function of the Human Body

Michael Howard

The Poetry of Art and the Art of Poetry

Professor Jeff Forshaw helps the audience to understand the cosmos

Lemn Sissay giving a powerful poetry reading

Dr Susannah Lipscomb with pupils

Dr Melanie Windridge after the Aurora talk

Dr Heather Williams gives an introduction to medical imaging

“I went to many of the lectures and very much enjoyed them.

Khadijah Ali Year 11

Zara Walsh Year 11 Dame Evelyn Glennie performing in the Great Hall

All For Good Causes...

The School has raised over £13,000 for charity this year! Year group events such as the Year 7 sponsored silence for Cash for Kids, Year 8 Young Apprentice Challenge supporting Guide Dogs, Year 9 Children in Need cake sales, the Year 10 Christmas post raising money for Chrisites, and the Prefects’ Panto raised £7,000. Whole school events made over £3,000 for the Charities of the Term, which this year were Save the Children, Birtenshaw School, Refuge and Age Concern.

Alzheimer’s Society

In the run-up to Christmas, Old Girls, Girls’ Division Sixth Form students and staff emptied their jewellery boxes to contribute more than 350 pieces to a collection of unwanted jewellery for Alzheimer’s Society! It was estimated that over £600 would be raised thanks to the donation.

Christmas Jumpers

Pupils donned their best Christmas Jumpers and festive accessories to raise money for Save the Children.

Christmas Post

Year 10 pupils present Howard Newall, Community Fundraising Officer for Christie’s, with a cheque for £1,354.83 following their hugely successful Christmas Post fundraising.

Guide Dogs

Girls in Year 8 met up with Toni Forrest and her guide dog, Quilla, a Labrador Retriever, to hear about the vital work that guide dogs perform. In PSHEE, the year group took part in the Business Challenge to raise money for Guide Dogs: given a budget of £10, they had a week to set up, create and market products and then five days to sell and ‘reinvest’ the money to make more profit. The girls raised £953.62 in total for the charity!

Cash for Kids

“I really enjoyed the sponsored silence because I knew that all the money I raised would go to the children that are less fortunate then ourselves. I have to say it was hard, though (especially for me). By the end of the day, once it was all over, I felt proud not just of myself but all the other forms and girls who had also taken part. A week later I got to go and take part in a shopping spree to buy toys for the children.” Kheshayna Jadwa 7C

The Year 7 girls raised £2,800 for Cash for Kids and Key 103’s Mission Christmas Appeal. The money was used to buy Christmas presents for the appeal, which delivers the gifts to disadvantaged children across Greater Manchester.

Well Good

This year Well-Good has funded the construction of wells to the tune of £5,200! The money is being used to build wells around the world in places like Malawi, Indonesia, India and Nepal. Girls’ Division pupils are currently on track to complete the half a million questions required to fund an additional well in Niger.

The completed projects can be viewed on the Well-Good website: well-good.org/Water-Projects

Extracurricular Endeavours...

Bolton School Bake Off

This year’s Bake Off saw twenty-three competitors whittled down over four weeks to just four girls. Pupils baked and decorated holidayinspired cupcakes, made savoury biscuits and crackers, created pastries with a regional influence, and put a modern twist on traditional desserts to win their place in the final.

The finalists had just forty minutes to bake their Showstopper pieces: Khadijah Ahmed (7D) created a Supreme Mango and Passion Sponge, Yasmin Rose (8B) baked a Lemon and Blueberry Triple Layer Cake, Genevieve Storey (8S) made a Really Raspberry Chocolate Cake and Francesca Williams-Denton (7G) crafted a Magical Melting Chocolate Ball!

Miss Hincks, Mrs James and Mrs Smalley judged the competition and announced that the Bake Off 2017 winner was Yasmin. Khadijah also received special commendation for the delicious flavour of her Showstopper. Congratulations to all of the girls on their delicious creations!

“My favourite day in Year 7 was the Bolton School Bake Off Final as lots of people came to watch me and support me. I really enjoyed this day as it was lots fun and I got to create an amazing showstopper.” Francesca

High Flyers

The newly formed High Flyers club has been encouraging girls to reach new heights while developing their STEM skills and knowledge of technical textiles this year. Pupils are working with Coating Applications and Cameron Balloons, world leaders in Textile manufacture and balloon design, to make two 80 cubic metre balloons, which will stand at approximately 7 metres tall when complete and filled with air.

The designs are a group effort, based on the best elements from individual pupils’ designs, and are inspired by the Girls’ Division and the Coating Applications logo.

From carefully cutting enormous patterns and fabric, to working with 7 metre sections of fabric in the sewing machine, the girls have met each new challenge that came with balloon-making with enthusiasm. They have really enjoyed coming together each week to work on the project, and there is a sense of excitement building now that the sewing has begun and as the balloon is starting to take shape before their eyes. Everyone is really looking forward to the launch and can’t wait to watch the first balloon fly into the sky!

High Flyers Club will finish the Girls’ Division balloon next year and also start to craft the Coating Applications design.

Painting For Pleasure

Painting club has been all about painting on objects this year and has seen girls paint on pebbles, floppy disks, parcel tags and twigs. The twigs, displayed in a large vase, make a striking addition to the art room.

Props Club

Psychology Club

Running fortnightly from October to Easter for Years 10 and 11, Psychology Club covers topics such as criminal profiling and forensic psychology, memory and bio-psychology. This year we ran a competition to see who could identify parts of the brain in the most accurate and imaginative way, which was won by Anita Cardozo, 10A.

Anatomy Club

Anatomy club has been well attended by KS4 and KS5 students this year on a Monday lunchtime. Suturing bananas, investigating tooth decay and learning about the structure of the brain have been some of the topics covered.

Props Club creating the head of the dragon for this year’s Joint Production, Miss Saigon.

The winning Showstopper cake baked by Yasmin Rose

YEAR 7 EXPERIENCES

Chester Zoo

Girls took on the roles of different groups - either for or against the change - to debate this thorny question during Geography lessons. They had to explain their reasons at a mock public meeting. The final decision was that the rebuild should go ahead.

“Chester Zoo was really enjoyable as we got to see the zoo by ourselves and see lots of different animals. It made us more independent and we could focus on the things we enjoyed the most. Our favourite animals were the monkeys as they were energetic and fun! We felt free and happy to be at a Chester with all our friends and our favourite teachers. We hope we can do many things like this again.”

Patterdale Year 7 Girls

Patterdale was an adventure – morning, afternoon and evening! Everyone was very excited on the way there because it was the first time we were going on a residential trip together and we were getting to know each other properly. We did lots of activities such as canoeing, archery, rock climbing, abseiling, night-time orienteering with head-torches, gorge-walking – you name it! It was really great working together and making friends with some of the girls in my year that I don’t usually talk to. It was also exciting to have some independence and complete challenges we had never faced before. The views around Patterdale were amazing as well! We had the best time.

“I really enjoyed going to visit Chester Zoo because it was nice to be able to see all the different animals like the elephants and painted dogs that we may have never seen before. Despite the rain and cold weather it was still very enjoyable.”

“My favourite day of Year 7 was the drama day because we got to watch a movie and after that we went into groups with people we had never talked to before and it helped me make more friends. It was also entertaining and interesting to see what games all the other groups had made because they were all different, colourful and unique.”

Ayesha Jiva, 7S

The Year 7 girls have enjoyed improving their teamwork, strategy and skills in

Should Glosthorpe be regenerated and changed, or should it remain the same?

Safaa Patel & Ruby Rimmer 7D

Charlotte Kennedy 7C

EXPERIENCES

Netball

and Lacrosse, and in particular the competitive fun of the interform tournaments.

Stratford & Butterfly World Year 7 Girls

My favourite part of Year 7 has definitely been the trip to Stratford-uponAvon. We made so many new friends, the activities were great fun and the places we visited were breathtaking!

The beautiful, sunny weather matched our moods perfectly as we arrived in Stratford. We went on a tour around the historic town, which was interesting and educational. We learnt a lot about William Shakespeare and the environment he grew up in, even seeing his home! We made masks and had professional performers come and do some acting with us, which really make sure think. We also loved the art in Coventry Cathedral and visiting Butterfly World.

When we visited Warwick Castle, we had a walk through medieval history! We got to go beneath the crumbling castle and see models of knights and peasants with their armour and swords. The tours were really interesting and afterwards we got to explore. We loved walking around the castle walls. The birds of prey show was amazing as they showed off some amazing tricks. The best thing was spending time with our friends like one big sleepover!

Formby

A wonderful day with red squirrel sightings, sand dune evaluations, microclimate measurements and sand castle building – obviously with a geographical theme!

Narnia Boardgames

Faith Trail

“I found the church interesting because the vicar explained that if there is only one God, most religions worship the same God but in different ways and that makes everyone part of the same world.”

Faye Clarkson 7D

“I enjoyed learning about how much respect people show to their gods and holy books. They show so much love and dedication to their religion, it moved me.”

Humairah Thagia 7D

“I found it really interesting to go to all of the different religious places of worship and it was fun to learn about different things. I enjoyed the Mandir because it was interesting to learn about the gods and deities in the Hindu religion. One thing I found out was that Hindus only have one god with many different forms.”

“My favourite thing was walking into the classroom and making new friends. I have made lots of new friends since that day and even have got two new best friends. I feel happy here and everyone is friendly to me.”

Jessica Dixon, 7G

Pupils made creative Narnia-themed board game designs based on C S Lewis’s The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

Emily Bilsborough 7S

YEAR

ICT/Music Day

Pupils enjoyed a day of ICT and Music activities. The girls each received a micro:bit – a tiny computer with a host of built-in sensors – and programmed it to create a Rock, Paper Scissors game. In the afternoon, they played ‘In the Jungle’ on the kettle drums, re-worked ‘What Shall We Do With A Drunken Sailor?’ on various instruments and created a Bolton School Samba.

Jodrell Bank

A ‘Destination Space’ workshop looking at the work that Tim Peake did during his time on the ISS, including his blast off into space, was an exciting feature of the trip to Jodrell Bank! Girls simulated spacewalk activities by using a robotic arm to move shapes around and build a circuit to simulate repairing wiring on the ISS.

Patterdale Hall

Girls enjoyed a range of Outdoor Pursuits activities at Patterdale Hall. They went sailing and canoeing on Lake Ullswater, where some groups even saw rainbows! From gorge walking to circus skills, the varied itinerary was lots of fun. The trip, during curriculum time, is a great way of helping the Forms to bond together after the long summer break.

Slavery Museum

Year 8 travelled to Liverpool Slavery Museum for a day of workshops and exhibitions on that city’s involvement in the slave trade

YEAR 9

Army Leadership Day

Improving problem solving, leadership and teamwork skills through an Army Leadership Day with Lancashire Fusiliers.

Meet Tommy Atkins

Year 9 were entertained by a one man theatre show “Meet Tommy Atkins” in which performer Peter Gill told the story of a First World War veteran through a series of monologues dating from the war itself to old age in the 1950s.

Children In Need

The whole of Year 9 put on a series of cake and sweet sales over the course of a week, raising £1,141.38 for the Children in Need appeal.

Extracurricular Extravaganza

During a week off from their normal timetable to allow the year group to complete their two-day Duke of Edinburgh practice expeditions, Year 9 girls were treated to two days of complementary activities in School. The Parents’ Association organised a day of activities entitled ‘Parents of Future Entrepreneurs’: pupils were asked to split into teams and create a personal safety item for Year 6 pupils. At the end of the day, products were presented to a judging panel. The winning team received prizes and priority entry into the Year 10 Young Enterprise competition! The girls also spent a day focusing on their Mental Health and Wellbeing, receiving talks on Emotional Health and Life Balance from external speakers from Third Space and from Mrs Sanders. The day boosted their confidence and self-esteem, encouraged them to participate in ‘random acts of kindness’, busted stereotypes on mental health, and ended with a relaxing yoga session.

Self-Defence and Karate Club

Volcano Cakes

Creating cakes that show the structure of a volcano for Geography.

YEAR 10

Hardwick Hall

In preparation for their GCSE exam, Year 10 recently visited Hardwick Hall, a National Trust property in Derbyshire. Hardwick, which has changed very little since the early seventeenth century, was built by Elizabeth, the Countess of Shrewsbury, more commonly known as ‘Bess of Hardwick. It is one of many ‘prodigy houses’ - massive mansions built by wealthy courtiers in Elizabeth’s reign. Many were built to host Elizabeth on her progresses, but she never visited Hardwick - it was too far north!

Film Academy

The Year 10 Film Day was a huge success once again. Following a fight choreography session and lessons in screenwriting and how to use the camera from the Young Film Academy, the girls dispersed into the grounds to make their own ten-shot film. The day ended with a screening followed by an awards ceremony. The Oscar for Best Picture was awarded to Love Never Dies, created by Amina Dar, Elizabeth Glover, Jasmin Hussain, Safia Kapadia, Jessica Price, Emily Rajbhandari, Lucy Stiles and Charley Wakefield.

Cardboard Cake!

Made by GCSE Art students

Christmas Post

Each of the six Forms took it in turn to put on a festive sketch, all depicting a disaster in the run-up to Christmas which could only be overcome with the support of their fellow Bolton School pupils! From parodies to the US presidential election to a version of Home Alone, the sketches were varied and hilariously funny. By selling cakes, sweets and treats and delivering Christmas cards around School, Year 10 raised a phenomenal total of £1,354.83 for the Christie Charitable Fund.

Geographic Exploration

Year 10 geographers enjoyed a day out investigating Dean Brook River for their GCSE course – measuring downstream changes.

Imperial War Museum

Year 11 paid an enjoyable visit to the Imperial War Museum North and were able to catch the fascinating ‘Fashion on the Ration’ exhibition, which demonstrated how men and women stayed “on trend” during straightened times.

National Citizen Service

In March, the whole of Year 11 visited Bolton Lads and Girls’ Club where they had a fun afternoon finding out more about National Citizen Service, or NCS. This national scheme takes place over the course of four weeks outside of term-time. It is designed to allow young people to develop citizenship, teamwork, social responsibility and a host of other skills while simultaneously giving back to the local community.

Pupils taking part are put into groups with young people from schools across Bolton so that everyone can make new friends from different backgrounds and lifestyles. They then take part in a residential outdoor activity week to get to know one another and improve confidence, and a residential week in halls at the University of Bolton during which they attend seminars to improve life skills and learn about the issues facing the local area. For the final two week of NCS, the groups create and run their own community project, which counts as 40 hours of volunteering.

Abi Sharples

Melissa Cartwright

Khadijah Ali

The BEST Day

The whole of Year 12 took part in the annual Business Enterprise Skills Training Day, or BEST Day, developing soft skills through workshops and small assignments all linked to the world of business. The keynote address was given by Fiona Gibson, Managing Director at Accenture: she focused on transferring the skills learned throughout the BEST Day into a real-world setting as well as the skills that all entrepreneurs need in order to succeed. A marketing task with Nadia Rae, entrepreneur and baker, asked the girls to design and market their own afternoon tea package. The groups created and pitched a new and innovative idea for a sleeping bag to Independent Career Coach Stephanie Foster. They heard from Jonathan Bailey, a Student Recruitment Officer at the University of Nottingham, on the subject of presentation and communication skills. Finally, a session run by Bolton School staff tasked the teams to evaluate business ideas for university students, choose their best three and present them.

The innovative ideas and creative strategies that the Year 12 students came up with throughout the day impressed both our guest speakers and members of staff.

Historical Association

Many Sixth Formers enjoy the monthly Historical Association (Bolton Branch) lectures hosted by the School, and Year 12 volunteers have provided reviews for the branch website. Here is an excerpt by Tilly Rodriguez on Britain’s response to the American Civil War:

“

With regards to the question of why the British government didn’t intervene [in the American Civil War], the situation in Britain at the start of the war must be considered. They had large piles of raw and finished cotton and the over production of cotton would have led Britain into a depression anyway. Furthermore, the effects of the ‘cotton famine’ [caused by depressed imports of American raw cotton to Britain during the early 1860s] were uneven over Lancashire, for example Preston and Blackburn suffered more than anywhere else, and it did not spread to most of the UK, therefore pressure wasn’t on the government to intervene. Mill owners weren’t overly affected and due to the social hierarchy at that time it would have been their responsibility to ask the government to intervene. But they had savings and believed they could help their employees by teaching them to read or write. Cotton could also be sourced from elsewhere such as India. India also aided the UK by donating money to organisations committed to welfare and relief of those struggling with the consequences of the cotton famine.”

YEAR 12

Psychology Project

Psychology students in Years 12 and 13 attended an insightful talk from Wendy Rydzkowski, an educational and child psychologist. She talked to the girls and boys about her job, including funny stories and experiences which reflected the joy and excitement she gets from her work. The group was also invited to take part in some research and a resource project, and Year 12 jumped at the opportunity: “Recently, a group of Lower Sixth Psychology students participated in a resource project being pitched to a publishing house by Wendy Rydzkowski to develop autistic teenagers’ understanding of social situations.

Mrs Rydzkowski had talked to us about the difficulties faced by teenagers with autism trying to form romantic relationships as they have no understanding of socially acceptable responses in any given situation. The idea that we came up with was that of a ‘first date’ and we discussed possible ‘mistakes’ one could make. A few problems expressed were: eating food which is not on your own plate, playing on your phone for prolonged periods of time, holding hands at inappropriate times or without reciprocation, and giving someone an extravagant gift upon meeting for the first time.

Within each scenario two reactions were suggested – one positive and one negative. This allows the teenagers to understand how to read nonverbal communication via facial and bodily expressions; this was so the teenagers would be able to develop their understanding of how their behaviour could be construed by other people.

Furthermore, it would allow discussion about the appropriate way to respond once they recognised the reaction again and how they would either maintain the positive reaction or try to change their behaviour in light of a negative reaction.”

Year 12 Psychology students

Parliament Visit

The Year 12 Government and Politics groups visited the Westminster parliament; as well as a guided tour of both chambers, pupils took part in an interactive session on the legislative process.

YEAR 13

Linguists Debate

Six Year 13 linguists represented the Girls’ Division at the annual MFL North West Debating Competition. They debated ‘Brexit is the answer’, ‘Give me knowledge not money’, ‘Numbers are better than letters’ and ‘We need to halt the progress of technology’ – all challenging topics, and all the more interesting in a foreign language! Isobel Birtwhistle and Ashleigh Meech debated in French, Ruchika Sharma and Eleanor Winters in German, and Aleena Dhokia and Victoria Cramer in Spanish. They all did an excellent job, in particular the Spanish team who made it all the way to the semi-final and narrowly missed beating their opposition in a “Brexit” head-to-head.

Leavers’ Day 2017

Aishwarya Chohan, Skull Shakira Campion, Family

Writing Workshops

Girls in Years 8 and 9 were inspired by poet Mandy Coe’s workshops. Throughout, she focused on how pupils feel about themselves and the strength of being a young woman. Her writing tasks were designed to encourage pupils to start writing and she was really pleased with the girls’ focus and enthusiasm, and in particular with the many creative ideas that were generated.

Open Mic Night

Pupils shared a stage with poet and playwright Caroline Bird at this year’s Open Mic Night. 27 pupils performed, showcasing a marvellous selection of work from the Journal Classes, the Creative Writing Group, the National Poetry Day Competition, and the Creative Writing Retreat.

Award Winning Writer

Congratulations to Year 11 pupil Emily Graham, whose short story ‘Bolton’ has been awarded first place in The Portico Sadie Massey Award for Young Writers. The piece is about Emily’s hometown, exciting events in her life and how they link to her feelings about the place. It will now be published in a special book, Time Travellers and the Crystal Dome, alongside other winning entries and stories by children’s authors.

These three poems were written during the Creative Writing Retreat to Patterdale Hall during the February half term. 18 pupils were inspired by the beauty of the Lake District and enjoyed opportunities to write on board a boat as they crossed Lake Ullswater, at Wordsworth’s cottage, and overlooking woodland waterfalls. Daily workshops and one to one tutorials were led by two accomplished mentors: Dr Peter Sansom, poet, and Tobias Jones, crime writer and journalist. Everyone left feeling that their writing and confidence progressed significantly through the week.

All things English... Writing Retreat

Courtship

She doesn’t Blink. He doesn’t Breath.

The house creaks a snore.

Home after a day at the beach. He confesses his love She tilts.

Night air sinks into her Legs.

Shoulders. Stomach. Her bikini, pink.

He wears blue, Then brown, Then blue Then white.

He has no jacket to offer She has nothing to say. They stay Beneath the porch light.

Ellen Bate 11C

In the Proximity of H2O and Sodium Phosphate

The ball of plasma which the earth orbits is set. The structures of beaks and feathers have stopped hunting their gilled prey. The disturbance of the atmosphere has dispersed. The elements in the air have stopped being compressed by the sun. The undulations of H20 and Sodium Phosphate have settled. The distant red-shift nuclear fusionators are glistening.

A single structure immune to sinking, propels forward moving using air resistance. Oh! What a beautiful stage of the diurnal cycle, to spectate the salt water that covers most of the earth.

Lucy Rowlands

11B

Typewriters

I see you there.

Clouded in a mist of mystery.

I miss you more than you know.

It hasn’t been the same.

I’m 13 now.

You walk with happiness.

Like you always did.

Your memory stings my eyes when I remember you, I feel tears well up.

You smell of ink and oil.

From the typewriters you fixed. And your waist coat unchanged. I miss you.

You’re taller than I remember.

Your rhythmic footsteps.

Like the tapping of typewriter keys.

Sophie Hann 9S

Poets’ Corner

Captain Lockhart’s Goodbye Will Ahoy me matees!

This is me goodbye.

O how time flies; I need to keep thinking, but my poor ship is sinking.

O what shall I do?

If I never make it out of here, I just want to make it clear, that if I die I want to give me house to me grandson, Barney.

Me treasure, me food, me loot, me diamond encrusted boots, they’re sinking after me ship got shot. Me crew are running around; to think I’m in charge of this crazy lot! I’ll pray and pray; just someone save me soul.

Goodbye me friends. This is the end; I’ll soon be meeting the Lord.

A message sent from the pirate Captain James Lockhart

Kiana Murray 7G

One of three winners of the School’s National Poetry Day Competition on the theme of Messages

Hunger Hill

Sit on a bike. Pink is best. With purple tassels on the handlebars. Ride the wavering, wobbling wheels on your way, plant your feet on the pebble paved path, take in the sloping elegance of your kingdom: Hunger Hill.

You are five again, you are Queen again, your dominion belongs to you again. Square red houses join to square red garages and square red flowerpots sit on square red window sills.

Taste the air.

So far untainted by the smoke of dragons and Ford Fiestas.

Lift your feet off the ground now, steady there, don’t fall, you’re soaring down the hillside; it’s like you never left at all.

Eloise Booth Y12-F2

Selected as the Year 10-13 winner at Open Mic Night by Caroline Bird

Invitation from a Horse

Gallop along, Live among the hey and nays, smell our lovely horse muck, listen to the trots of our hooves, have the ride of your lives up on our backs cantering away in the wind, wear the earth like a glove in the sudden breeze, close your eyes wrap yourself in darkness, come and see what you’re missing.

Charlotte Jones 7B

Chosen by Caroline Bird as the Year 7-9 winner at Open Mic Night

Preparation for the Future...

Each year we offer the girls (and boys!) the opportunity to attend our specialist Careers days. The first was a Media and Digital Media Day in the Autumn term. We had two keynote speakers, the first being Mike Bushell, a sport presenter on BBC’s Breakfast who has tried out 474 sports with the aim of inspiring others to find the right one for them. Mike talked about his life and career, including writing his own newspaper as a child, acting in a school production, and working for newspapers before getting his TV break. He said that all of these experiences gave him stories to tell, but none more so than touring Europe with his band and visiting Berlin at the time the Berlin Wall came down. He encouraged pupils to go out and get life experiences to talk about during job interviews.

Sarah Jones is the Deputy Head of Media at Coventry University and a former journalist and TV presenter. She describes herself as a storyteller and works extensively with virtual reality. Her presentation was about immersive media and VR, with additional focus on lessons from her career.

A variety of other presentations took place during the day. Old Boy Mike Lodmore, who now works for dock10 TV studios at Media City in Salford, gave a fascinating workshop about broadcast engineering in which pupils set up a miniature TV studio. Other guest speakers included Margaret Burgin, Future Skills Manager at the BBC; Neil Dougan, lecturer in Film and Television at the University of Bolton; Kevin Fenmore, the Programme Leader at the School of Media, Design and Technology at the University of Bradford; and two members of the Tower FM team.

In the Spring term we were privileged to welcome Dr Mohammed Jiva to be the keynote speaker for a whole day dedicated to exploring the reality of working in the NHS. Dr Jiva is a full time GP but also holds a number of influential managerial jobs within the NHS. Having received a MBE in 2014 and an award at the House of Lords in 2015, his next goal is to support the migration of the existing health service across the Rochdale Borough towards a new system that supports and manages public health and expectations of the Boroughs residents. His presentation on the Evolution of a New National Health Service was received with great interest.

There were 11 other talks during the day, including a presentation from UCLAN on the relatively new role of the Physician’s Associate as well as talks on other specialist areas; sessions from both Lancaster and Manchester universities on the admissions procedures for their medical schools and Manchester’s dental school.

Several alumni also gave their time to speak at this event. It was fascinating to hear from Old Boy Mobeen Qureshi about life as a medical student and junior doctor. His stories were inspirational but he did not shy away from exploring the real pressures of his work. We were delighted to hear from Old Girl Helena Bird from Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust about her work in Pharmacy, and from Old Girl Carishma Hirani who spoke about her degree in Operating Department Practice.

The day was a great success and allowed both girls and boys to learn about a wide range of roles they could go on to explore further for themselves.

Business Links

“What

Mrs K Knowles, Mrs E Lowe & Mrs C Sutcliffe

Once again international firm KPMG has launched its paid summer internship programme, offering two successful candidates from across the Girls’ and Boys’ Division Sixth Forms the exciting opportunity to shadow employees in the KPMG Audit and Corporate Finance teams. Bolton-based chartered accountants Cowgill Holloway have also run the ‘Future Stars’ programme for the second year, allowing Priya Guhathakurta (Y12-C2) and Luke Cavanaugh to experience the world of business and finance through a series of week-long placements. Staff at Cowgills also gave their time to talk to pupils one lunchtime to answer the question

is the Budget and Why is it Important?” Attended predominantly by Business and Economics students, this useful lunchtime seminar was fascinating and pupils came armed with plenty of interesting questions!

Mike Bushell

Old Girl Carishma Hirani

Young Enterprise

Due to growing demand there were four Young Enterprise teams this year. Two from Year 10, ...in a jar and Luxe, and two from Year 12, Mugs Away and Anime. All four teams succeeded in developing a product which they sold at a range of markets and events during the year. …in a jar won the Best Company at the Bolton and Bury Area Final and made it through to the next round, where they performed extremely well but were against some strong competition. Well done to all the girls who took part!

“

We are …in a jar, a company that specialises in small luxury gifts in jars. All our products are lovingly put together by our team to create the perfect product. Whether it’s a therapeutic spa experience you’re after or just some simple gardening, we have the product for you.”

...in a jar Luxe

Mugs Away Anime

Biology Olympiad

Back in March, some Year 10 students participated in the Biology Challenge organised by The Institute of Biology. The aim was to involve as many pupils as possible in a challenging and interesting biology competition. Questions were set on the school curriculum but the online competition also rewards those students whose subject knowledge has been increased by reading books and magazines, watching natural history programmes and taking notice of the news and media for items of biological interest.

Thousands of students across the country took part in the competition and we did extremely well achieving 1 gold, 10 silver and 10 bronze awards. 16 students achieved a commended award and 8 students a highly commended award. Congratulations to all those who were involved.

Chemistry Olympiad

The International Chemistry Competition is a national competition which provides an opportunity to stretch and challenge post-16 students studying chemistry. Four girls took part in the Olympiad this year in January 2017 and all of them gained certificates. Shivani Manoharan (not pictured), Kirsty Fielding and Anna Rowlands achieved a silver certificate, and Francesca Adams gained a gold certificate. Well done to all the girls for doing so well on such a tough, two hour chemistry challenge, and so close to having done their mock exams too!

Physics Olympics

On 1 March, eight Year 9 students represented the Girls’ Division in the annual Physics Olympics competition. This took place in Boys’ Division and 23 teams from various schools around the greater Bolton area took part in the competition. Teams of four students rose to the challenge in five practical tasks – Rainbow Babies, Bullseye, Sink or Swim, Jelly Baby Towers, Delayed Timing – together with the theoretical ‘Fermi’ Quiz.

All the teams were named after famous Physicists and our Year 9 students were in Team Röntgen, placing fourth in the Jelly Baby Towers competition and scoring highly in the Delayed Timing event, or Team Planck, achieving high scores in the Rainbow Babies and Bullseye events and winning first prize for the Jelly Baby Towers competition. Well done to all the girls!

Bronze

Young Analysts

The Schools’ Analyst Competition is a competition run by the RSC’s Analytical Division for Year 12 students and comprises teams of three students. Teams are required to undertake various practical analytical determinations based on problems relevant to industrial and social needs. The teams are judged for skill, understanding and accuracy and the tasks promote teamwork and safety in the laboratory. The competition provides some tasks which are relatively familiar to students such as titrations and others which are less familiar, such as chromatographic separations or atomic spectroscopy. Competitors learn new skills, as well as demonstrating their existing knowledge, skills and aptitude for analytical science.

CREST Awards

The British Science Association’s Crest Awards involves pupils undertaking a science-based project of their own choosing. A group of Year 8 pupils and three groups of Year 9 pupils completed the Bronze award, a minimum of 10 hours of work, and two groups of Year 9s earned Silver Awards: 30 hours of individual scientific work. Bronze group projects revolved around various themes including fingerprints, making bath bombs, making and testing lipstick and investigating antacids, while the Silver awards were for projects on building an eco-house and researching natural and anti-bacterial products. On completion of their work, girls presented their findings to Mr David Ward, the regional CREST Coordinator.

This year the competition took place at UCLan and the Girls’ Division team comprised of Katerina Gramm, Reem Harandou and Amie Murray; they did not win but had good fun and demonstrated excellent teamwork and very good problem solving skills. Many thanks to Dr Fielder for taking the girls to the event.

Maths Olympiad

This is a competition aimed at girls in Year 11 and above. The paper lasts two and a half hours and consists of five complex mathematical problems for which full written solutions are required. The Olympiad for Girls aims to inspire as many girls as possible to get involved in advanced mathematical problem solving. Fifteen of our most able mathematicians participated in the competition and Francesca Adams, Year 13, was awarded a Distinction for her efforts.

Gold Emma Sellwood

Silver Lauren Whitaker, Hannah Rayner, Ella Fullelove, Sharon Daniel, Jessica Chae, Honey Higham, Anna Clark, Amy Potter, Hana Hanif, Lizzie Crowther

Charleigh Adams, Lima Assi, Rachel Jarvis, Mariyah Karim, Amelia Doherty, Jade Jolley, Amy Mackie, Alison Jordan, Yolanda Hughes, Aliza Imtiaz

Team Planck: Kate Hailwood, Sophie Hann, Shreya Kamath, Lily Rimmer

Team Röntgen: Maddy Godwin, Haleemah Mohammed, Maya Parmar, Olivia Stubbs

UKMT Individual Maths Challenges

The UKMT Individual Maths Challenges are lively, intriguing multiple choice question papers, which are designed to stimulate interest in maths in large numbers of pupils. The three levels cover the secondary school range 11-18 and together they attract over 600,000 entries from over 4,000 schools and colleges.

The Junior Challenge is aimed at pupils in Year 8 or below, the Intermediate Challenge is aimed at pupils in Year 11 or below and the Senior Challenge is aimed at pupils in Year 13 or below. Gold, silver and bronze certificates are awarded to high performing pupils and the most successful participants at each level are invited to enter follow-on rounds: Kangaroos or Olympiads.

During this year, certificates have been awarded to the following girls:

Senior Challenge Intermediate Challenge

Gold Shivani Manoharan (invited to take the Senior Kangaroo Follow-on round)

Silver Francesca Adams, Georgina Owen, Vasudha Marthi, Susam Tham, Imaan Bhuta

Bronze Jessie Sou, Kiran Cheema, Hannah Daley, Katerina Gramm, Anika Patel, Maaria Patel, Reem Harandou, Lenoni Anderson

DRAMA

Animal Farm

“I have really enjoyed doing the drama production of Animal Farm. We have had lots of fun and exciting ideas for the layout and props! I cannot wait till we get to perform it! We have been practising it twice a week and then some of us go in our lunch breaks too.”

Imogen Haworth 7G

Wonder

Pupils from Years 8 and 9 impressed audiences with their studentdevised promenade production of Wonder, adapted from R. J. Palacio’s international bestseller of the same name. Caitlin Foster shared the role of August with Thomas Britton, supported by a strong cast from both Divisions.

Each night, Wonder offered an array of highlights. Students acting as teachers managed their ‘classes’ convincingly. At the summer camp, there were campfire sing-alongs accompanied by ukulele and hilarious tent skits that drew out the cast’s personalities as much as a sense of the novel’s characters. Student monologues offered introspective counterpoints to the action. Particularly memorable were the final lines of the performance, about learning to find the wonder in everyone and that everyone should get a standing ovation at least once in their life.

Gold Alison Jordan

Silver Sharon Daniel, Lima Assi, Ella Fullelove, Emily Rajbhandari, Emma Sellwood, Sophie Hann, Aishah Umar, Haleemah Mohammed Bronze Molly Hill, Millie Hurt, Charleigh Adams, Lauren McGann, Chloe Tsang, Lauren Whitaker, Hana Hanif, Lizzie Crowther, Maddie Kennedy, Ingrid Lam, Hannah Rayner, Lauren Robinson, Amy Mackie, Sana Saleem, Sana Riaz, Katie Couriel, Ella Thompson, Niamh Dolan, Nabilah Thagia, Arya Serena, Maya Parmar, Madeehah Ahmed, Maddy Godwin, Shreya Kamath, Sarah Walker, Rosalyn Harper, Katherine Baker

Geographers in Years 10 to 13 visited Iceland over the Easter holidays. They were delighted to see volcanoes, waterfalls, glaciers, geothermal power, geysers and basaltic columns during their trip!

Icelandic Adventure Roman Holiday

In the Easter holidays, about 50 girls from Years 8 and 9, a handful of teachers and I travelled across the sea to the beautiful city of Rome for four nights and I can definitely say that it was well worth the waking up at 3:00 in the morning on a Monday.

We saw everything from the Trevi Fountain to the Colosseum to the Sistine Chapel, which was my favourite. I think it’s safe to say that

most of my friends enjoyed the shopping days at the Spanish Steps as there were some very interesting shops there: Gucci, Dior and Sephora being the main ones. We were even lucky enough to spot the Pope as we were on our way to the Vatican museum! I got a good view because I was clever enough to fall down the hotel stairs the day before (oops) so I had to go in the taxi with Ms Field. All of us had such an

CLASSICS DEPARTMENT

amazing time there and I plan to visit with my dad in the future. I would highly recommend this trip to anybody who has the opportunity because Rome is such a stunning place, full of art, fancy buildings, shops and best of all great pizza! Just make sure you take enough euros for all of the souvenirs you’ll want to buy.

Yasmin Rose 8B

Historical Happenings

Senior girls have continued to enjoy a full complement of trips; and we have had a lot of fun in History Club this year. The Autumn Term was spent making Victorian Christmas Decorations and learning about crafts that were popular during the Industrial Revolution age. In the Spring Term we investigated Tudor pirates to enhance the learning of the Year 8 Voyages of Discovery curriculum. We ended the year making Medieval chocolate castles which was requested by our excellent History prefects Anjali Anicatt and Emma Duper.

It has been a busy year in Politics club with two mock elections. Back in November, the Girls’ Division elected Hilary Clinton over Donald Trump as President of the United States with 82% of the vote. Recently, girls in Years 7-10 ‘voted’ for MPs in North West constituencies, and it has certainly been interesting to compare votes cast and seats won! The Conservatives achieved a clear majority in School, winning 14 ‘seats’ (or forms) with 53.3% of the vote, and Labour won the other 7 ‘seats’ with 32.8%.

Finally, Mr Winrow displayed great civic virtue by donating £25 to the Christie hospital in return for the huge Papier-mâché ‘Trump head’, which was created by a Year 10 form for their performance in the ‘Christmas post’. Since then, ‘the Donald’ has resided in B20 with the department still unsure as to how it could be used. If anyone has any ideas, please get in touch!

Mr C Owen

Witnessing Drama in the US Senate

28 excited Sixth Form girls and four staff took off on the biennial History and Politics trip to New York City and Washington DC over the Easter holidays. When we arrived in New York we were met with a heavy downpour. However, the wet weather did not dampen our spirits and by the next day we were climbing the Rockefeller Center under sunny skies. After our visit to one of the busiest cities in the world, we headed to the less hectic Washington DC – or so we thought. However, by now we should realise that politics is rarely drama-free. While we were in town, the Democrats and Republicans were facing off over Donald Trump’s controversial Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch. The Democrats planned to filibuster Gorsuch’s confirmation in the Senate, in protest of the fact that the Republicans refused to give Obama’s nominee a confirmation hearing in 2016. After cheekily asking a security guard if we were allowed into

the Senate, we were able to watch the “prefilibuster” by Democrat Senator Jeff Merkley. He discussed an array of issues, including the consequences the “stolen seat” would have for democracy in America and the issues that politicians in the future would face if Gorsuch was confirmed. Whilst watching the filibuster, many of us felt as though we were experiencing history – granted, not a lot to ask for on a History and Politics trip.

We listened to Merkley for about an hour, which some of the girls thought was quite a long time until they woke up the next morning and realised that he was still speaking! In total, the Merkley filibuster lasted for 15 hours. However, ultimately the Republican leader in the Senate triggered the so-called “nuclear option” to amend Senate Rules and halt the filibuster, and Gorsuch now sits on the Supreme Court.

After taking a detour through Philadelphia, we arrived back at JFK airport to leave the USA with heavy hearts and plenty of new evidence to use in essays under our belts. Although every part of the trip was a fantastic experience, it is safe to say that nothing topped the opportunity to sit in the Senate Gallery, looking down onto the Senate floor (a chamber which already holds so much history) and seeing the divisive issues of modern American politics unfold before our eyes. Thank you to all the wonderful staff for accompanying us to the USA and giving us the opportunity to experience American History and Politics up close – it was a truly unforgettable trip and a great way for many of us to end our time at Bolton School.

Cerys Baines Year 13

On the Battle of Gettysburg tour

Outside the US Supreme Court

Sitting with Abraham Lincoln

GCSE Work

Antonia Jamieson

Antonia Jamieson

Alice Sandford

Ruby Browne

Ella Smyth

Annette Elmes

Emily Graham

A level Work

Aleena Dhokia, Folded Libby Lupton, James

Aleena Dhokia, Grandma

Megan Preedy, After Whistlejacket

Darcey Bradburn, Sister

Abbie Gregson, Birds

Priya Guhathakurta, Garlic

Penny Booth, Fish

Awards Evening Bronze Award

A special awards evening was held at Bolton School as students from the Girls’ and Boys’ Divisions celebrated picking up their Gold, Silver and Bronze certificates. All Senior School pupils at Bolton School complete the Bronze Award and many go on to achieve Silver and Gold Awards.

Pupils from both Divisions provided their own perspectives on achieving the award. Hanna, who picked up a Gold certificate, had run the Wigan 10k race, gone on an expedition for four days trekking in the Lake District where she learnt teamwork and communication skills, had assisted young children at Beech House Infant School and had taken a job mucking out at stables. Kiera, who has already received her Bronze and Silver awards and is now working towards her Gold, spoke of how she has learned to play golf, taught in a dance school and helped out with Disability Snowsport UK, where she had picked up invaluable life lessons which can be used on her CV and talked about in future education and job interviews. This summer she will complete her Gold Award after a sailing adventure on a catamaran out of Portsmouth.

Special guest for the evening was Old Girl Janette McCormick, now Deputy Chief Constable of Cheshire Constabulary, who presented pupils with their certificates. Reflecting on her time at Bolton School, she said it was here that she learnt to challenge things when they are wrong. She told the award recipients that they should be incredibly proud of themselves: not only have they done much good for the local community but they have also improved their own life skills including leadership, communication and team-working. She told the girls and boys that they form a community of 140 million volunteers across the globe and said: “Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy as, through your work, you vote everyday what kind of community you want to live in.”

Headmistress Sue Hincks brought the evening to a close, offering her own huge congratulations and encouraging all pupils to go for the Gold Award as it is the epitome of what you can do as a young person.

In my practice expedition I learned a number of skills and built up my physical ability which I enjoyed. On the first day we were dropped off at Barrow Bridge where we would start our expedition. We were given a map and a compass and had to navigate our way to Bibby’s Farm, where we would later set up our tents. In total for the first day we did about seven or eight hours of walking in the sun with fairly large bags on our backs. The first day was more of a challenge as there was a lot more walking involved and I had never used a map before but I feel I can now do that. When we got to the camp we had to set up our tents which I found quite simple to do. I also had to learn how to use a trangia to cook my dinner which was a new learning experience. On the second day we did less walking and walked for about four or five hours having small breaks in between, navigating as we went. Overall the experience was a bit tiring but I also learnt how to build my team working skills, use a map, set up a tent, use a trangia and build my physical strength which I enjoyed.

Saira Hussain 9D

Overall I found D of E quite the experience. It was exciting, nerve wracking and fun. We learnt to take the correct equipment and even to alter the things we brought. Our instructors taught us how to use a map and compass to navigate around the area and, after a long day’s walk, we settled at camp. Everyone brought different meals, from Mac and Cheese to Meatballs and we ate using the stove. Eventually we went to sleep and were surprised to be woken at 7:00am by Mr Bradley. We quickly made breakfast and dissembled our tents to set off for yet another day of walking. The second day was my favourite out of the two. The sun was shining and we passed fields of sheep and horses, occasionally stopping to stroke them. Soon enough we reached the Scout Hut.

The D of E experience is something I will remember, I will definitely go on to the Silver and maybe even Gold after the fun and hard work of doing Bronze.

Emilie Fielding 9B

For my physical section I completed a series of 5 kilometre courses every Saturday morning. It was quite challenging but very rewarding at the end. At first I wasn’t motivated at all; however, every week it became easier and I began getting faster times. The course was very difficult to start with, and at first it took me 45 minutes. Now I’m able to finish it in 35 minutes. I think this was beneficial because I’m getting fitter while having fun. I advise anyone who’s doing D of E to try something new and make sure that you enjoy doing it.

Roxy Asumu 9G

For my D of E skills section, I have chosen to do drawing; a hobby which I enjoy. My main goal was to improve my shading gradation, something which I was not particularly good at as pencil was a medium which I rarely used, instead preferring markers. At the beginning of the three months, my drawings looked flat and had no depth. However, nearing the end I feel my shading and gradation greatly improved. I have learnt to use weight of line and I have gotten better at graduating from light to dark in my drawings. I really enjoyed doing this because it allowed me to improve something which I wouldn’t normally work on.

Alexandra Greenwood 9D

For D of E we had to volunteer somewhere for either three or six months, so I decided to volunteer at the Woodlands Animal Sanctuary for six months. At the sanctuary I did different jobs and learnt different skills, which helped my confidence with animals. I started work cleaning out the hedgehogs. I managed to clean about 20+ beds in the hours I volunteered every Sunday. I also had to organise my work space, meaning that the hedgehogs could be cleaned out quickly and efficiently. Overall my experience with the hedgehogs helped me become more comfortable with animals I’m not used to working with. I would highly recommend this for anyone wanting to volunteer in the future.

Kate Hailwood 9B

Silver Award

Our group of 52 Silver Duke of Edinburgh expeditioners arrived on Friday lunchtime and met our instructors. We had to pack our bags and then headed out on a 5 mile walk to our campsite where we pitched the two-person tents. At 7pm we made our tea on the trangiers and drank hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows before getting into our tents.

Saturday was a prompt start at 8am and, after breakfast, we set off for a full day of walking with the instructors, covering about 18km. After an early night, we were out walking on Sunday on our own and in teams of 6-10 girls. We had to take turns reading a map and learning to use a compass. We learnt how to react if someone fell unconscious and how to put them in the recovery position.

Highlights of the trip were many, but we enjoyed stopping by a lake in the sunshine and taking pictures. It was a challenging, exhausting but rewarding experience and we look forward to the real expedition during the weekend of June 16-19th 2017.

Lucy Stiles and Nuttall 10A

For my Physical I wanted to improve my fitness in order to be able to compete at a higher standard. I achieved my aim.

Bolton

Anabel Nuttall, 10F

For her Skill section, Bryony Meech (10B) worked on improving her climbing ability. Her aim was to be able to do the harder routes easily by the end of this section.

Ellie Gedman-King (10A, seated in the photo) did Young Enterprise for her Skill section. Her group was very successful, reaching the Manchester Finals.

Gold Award

Sailing on Tenacity

Hannah Shaw Year 13

After walking for both our Bronze and Silver Awards, we wanted to do something more exciting for our Gold expedition to end our DofE journey on a high. After exploring the options, we discovered that the ketch Tenacity of Bolton, built by the Boys’ Division and now operated by Tall Ships Youth Trust, offers voyages which meet the Gold expedition criteria. We were pleased to be given a generous donation from the Scott Trust to help fund the expedition.

Bright and early on a Saturday morning, eight excited and tenacious girls got on a minibus bound for Inverkip Marina on the west coast of Scotland. Once on board Tenacity, we soon settled into our new, cosy environment where we would spend the next week in very close proximity with each other. Friendships and our resilience were tested in true DofE fashion!

We began by completing two days of training where we were taught the basics of the boat, how to navigate, safety procedures which we hoped we wouldn’t have to use and, most importantly, how to actually sail the boat. However, we were grateful for our brief first aid training when one of our team members fell down the hatch on the first day, meaning we had to look after her whilst continuing to sail.

The days were busy with various tasks to complete such as daily engine checks and looking after the boat. We had to plan our all our meals, catering for dietary requirements (and fussy eaters) and cooking at sea without electricity whilst the boat was keeling over dramatically. We were also tasked with planning our route, using maps and other navigational equipment, calculating the time we would spend sailing and looking for potential ports that would accommodate our requirements: electricity hookups, a big enough berth, and more importantly warm showers and wifi!

Throughout the week we travelled around the Isle of Bute stopping at Largs, Tarbert, Bannatyne (with a population of around 10 people) and Rue, sailing the boat for up to eight hours and mooring at a different port each evening. We worked as a team, taking turns to sail the boat whilst others helped to tack and rope tie when necessary. We also had to update the log book often and monitor the equipment and readings.

We soon became used to the unpredictable Scottish weather, enduring both sunny and stormy days. We were determined to continue sailing towards our destination without giving up, even if it meant being soaking wet and freezing cold.

Though the work was hard, we had fun wherever possible. To name a few examples, one evening we explored and consequently fell in love with the town of Tarbert, and Hannah and I re-enacted the famous Titanic pose whilst singing ‘My Heart Will Go On’ on the last day as we moored into Inverkip Marina for the last time, much to the amusement of the other sailors there – not to brag, but we did get a standing ovation!

In order to record our journey, we took it in turns to write a daily blog for the Tall Ships website, which was eagerly read by our families and other keen followers after our journey was featured on the School Facebook page.

By the end of the week, we all agreed that it had been a fantastic experience. We had learnt new skills and had an amazing time whilst improving our teamwork skills and growing closer as a group. We are happy that we took the opportunity to do something different and unforgettable for our Gold expedition, which was a great finish to our Duke of Edinburgh Award. We are pleased to report that, following our expedition, Bolton School and Tall Ships Youth Trust are willing to offer sailing on the Tenacity of Bolton to any other group of girls who hope to do this for their DofE awards. This was an exciting once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we would highly recommend it.

Rachel McGinty (10E) volunteering at the Promenade Care Home where she undertook many activities to help the residents. She enjoyed the whole experience.

Musical Notes...

May Serenade

The May Serenade was once again filled with spectacular performances from girls in Years 7 to 13. As the last concert featuring the whole of the School before older girls depart for examinations and the swan-song for Year 13 musicians in particular, the evening is always a special and

memorable occasion. This year was no exception and there were many highlights to this wonderful evening of music. In particular it was wonderful to hear from the solo performers: Samantha Schofield (Year 9), Chloe Tsang (Year 10), Alisha Maini (Year 13), and two Music Festival

prizewinners, Lucy Stiles (Year 10) who won The Most Promising Musician Award, and Caroline Blair (Year 12) who received the Carter Cup. There was also delightful music from the School’s varied ensembles and the Senior, Middle School and Chamber Choirs.

“One thing I really enjoyed about Year 7 was the May Serenade. It was really brilliant! Bolton School has a huge variety of talent, from singing to playing and ending with an orchestra! Performing with the Middle School Choir was brilliant and this was a day I will never forget.”

Sarah Habbab 7S

Samantha Schofield playing ‘Swedish Concert’ on the flute at the May Serenade

The Middle School Choir singing Toto’s ‘Africa’ at the May Serenade

Year 8 learning to play ‘In the Jungle’ on the steel pans Beautiful music at the Ceremony of Carols

Music Festival 2017

The Girls’ Division Music Festival took place over the course of two days, allowing pupils in Years 7 to 13 to perform on a wide range of instruments. Almost 100 entrants came forward and the variety of performances, ranging from classical to contemporary music played on instruments from the organ to the ukulele, showed the diversity of talent within the School. Our adjudicator Les Pratt, a BBC Radio 3 producer, was very impressed with all of the performances and gave the girls some valuable feedback and advice.

The Music Festival winners

Middle School Woodwind Grades 1-4 Jessica Bailey Madeleine Bodger Ariella Tanfield Middle School Woodwind Grades 5+ Samantha Schofield Kate Hailwood & Summer Kay Senior School Woodwind Grades 6+ Abigail Naylor Lucy Stiles Hannah Rayner Sian Rowlands

Middle School Piano Grades 1-3 Samantha Schofield Elizabeth Rogers Jasmine Shum Niamh Woodward Middle School Piano Grades 4+ Carol Habib Sophia Liang Sophie Hann Victoria Wong & Estelle Pass

Percussion Mille Ashton & Sally Cowling Lucinda Butterworth Rachel Care Ensembles Senior saxophone quartet Vocal duet Percusssion trio String quintet Guitar Sharon Daniel & Phoenix Khan Saira Hussain Alice Leary Middle School Orchestral Strings Katie Couriel Sana Riaz Faye Clarkson & Jasmine Curtis-Walker Senior School Orchestral Strings Sally Cowling & Amara Vijayadurai Annabelle Boulos Open Mic Jessica-Rose Curtis-Walker & Emilie Fielding Hafsa Syed Chloe Ferguson Middle School Voice Isabella Morgan Olivia Sample Ananya Ajit & Natalie TaylorTowers Senior School Voice Caroline Blair Jacqueline Jones-Humphrey Ellen Bate Sian Rowlands & Hafsa Syed

Organ Estelle Pass Senior School Piano Grades 1-4 Caroline Blair Hafsa Syed Senior School Piano Grades 5+ Chloe Tsang Lucy Stiles Amara Vijayadurai Santina Hundle

Brass Antigone Blackwell Ellen Bate Jacqueline Jones-Humphrey Philippa Everest & Caitlin Nuttall

The Carter Outstanding Musician Cup Caroline Blair Most Promising Musician Award Lucy Stiles

ABRSM Exams Summer 2016

Name Instrument Grade Result

Anika Maini Flute 4 Distinction

Alisha Maini Flute 8 Merit

Alexandra Nelson Clarinet 6 Pass

Vasudha Marthi Piano 8 Merit

Kate Shanley Violin 1 Pass

Jennifer-Mae Coetzee Violin 2 Pass

Isabelle Du Plessis Violin 3 Pass

Anika Maini Voice 2 Merit

Taya Panter Voice 2 Merit

Jess Kay Voice 4 Pass

Anoushka Sharma Violin 1 Distinction

Molly Grimshaw Violin 1 Merit

Martha Louise Brennan Violin 2 Distinction

Kelly Yee Hung Chae Violin 2 Pass

Maya Parmar Clarinet 4 Pass

Hollie Asquith Guitar 1 Distinction

Safa Karim Piano 1 Pass

Imogen Grace Ferrier Cello 1 Merit

Faye Eleanor Clarkson Cello 2 Merit

Jasmine Curtis-Walker Cello 2 Merit

Uma Patel Cello 2 Pass

Rosalyn Harper Cello 3 Pass

Sana Riaz Piano 5 Merit

Lizzy Harkness Baritone 4 Merit

ABRSM Exams Autumn 2016

Name Instrument Grade Result

Antigone Blackwell Trombone 6 Pass

Angelie Chitre Flute 2 Merit

Dinburgh Ai Singing Prep Successful

Ella Grace Clarkson Singing Prep Successful

Paavana Sugumar Singing Prep Successful

Laila Westwood Singing Prep Successful

Holly Fowler Singing 2 ABS

Holly Stevenson Singing 2 Merit

Olivia Sophie Parker Stubbs Violin 3 Pass

Inika Vardhan Violin 4 Merit

Su-Sam

Ani

Trinity Exams Autumn 2016

Name Instrument Grade Result

Hannah Rayner Clarinet 8 Distinction Cassia Drummond Clarinet

Kareena Singh Piano

Eleanor Shaw Piano

Anoushka Sharma Piano

Distinction

Distinction Katherine Couriel Violin

Jasmine Shum Piano

Olivia Melling Violin

Jemima Stubbs Singing

Distinction Anu Jain Piano

Merit Lucy Rowlands Piano

ABRSM Exams Spring 2017

Trinity Exams Summer 2016

Name

Instrument Grade Result

Ellen Masterson Piano 4 Merit

Victoria Chi-Wing Wong Piano 3 Merit

Rosie Crowther Piano 2 Merit

Holly Stevenson Piano 2 Merit

Adithi Prasad Piano Initial Distinction

Tilly Watkinson Piano Initial Merit

Lucy Stiles Piano 6 Distinction

Katherine Baker Piano 1 Distinction

Francesca Dewhurst Piano Initial Distinction

Sreya Coomer Singing 6 Distinction

Hannah Olivia Holt Singing 4 Merit

Ria Bansal Singing 3 Merit

Madeline Ashton Singing 1 Merit

Gabriella Ferris-Koussa Singing 1 Merit

Freya Marland Singing Initial Distinction

Ellen Mae Bate Trumpet 5 Pass

Jessica Minnie Willcock Euphonium 8 Distinction

Lucinda Butterworth Piano 4 Pass

Emilie Reilly Piano 3 Merit

Ariella Tanfield Piano 3 Merit

Elspeth Jessica Harper Piano 3 Pass

Alexia Howarth Piano 1 Distinction

Sofia Riaz Piano 1 Distinction

Zara Kadva Piano Initial Distinction

Matilda McCann Piano Initial Distinction

Du’a Qedwai Piano Initial Merit

Alice Sandford Clarinet 5 Pass

Amelia Myatt Flute 6 Pass

Kate Hailwood Flute 4 Merit

Harriet Dickens Flute 2 Distinction

Georgina Derry Sykes Flute 2 Merit

Charlotte Kennedy Flute 2 Merit

Charlotte Amelia Johnson Flute 6 Pass

Trinity Exams Spring 2017

Name

Instrument Grade Result

Lauren Hilton Clarinet 4 Distinction

Lucy Stiles Saxophone 8 Merit

Alexandra Thea Cooke Saxophone 7 Merit

Ananya Darshan Saxophone 5 Distinction

Ariella Maria Tanfield Saxophone 4 Distinction

Hannah McKee Saxophone 3 Distinction

Jessica Bailey Saxophone 3 Distinction

Emma Seddon Saxophone 2 Distinction

Lorna Stirzaker Piano 6 Merit

Esha Mishra Piano 3 Distinction

Nicola Jane Shaw Piano 2 Distinction

Eva Lakshmi Hurst Piano Initial Distinction

Martha Rose Morrow Piano Initial Distinction

Sophie Hann Piano 4 Distinction

Emma Arnison Piano 1 Distinction

Sana Riaz Violin 5 Merit

Jacqueline Jones-Humphrey Singing 6 Merit

Hannah Holt Singing 6 Merit

Sian Rowlands Singing 5 Distinction

Isabella Morgan Singing 5 Merit

Zara Walsh Singing 5 Pass

Natalie Taylor Towers Singing 3 Distinction

Eve Birtwhistle Singing 3 Merit

Santina Hundle Piano 5 Pass

Amerleen Hundle Piano 4 Distinction

Emilie Reilly Piano 4 Merit

Nicole Williams Piano 4 Pass

Angelie Chitre Piano 3 Distinction

Jasmine Curtis-Walker Piano 3 Merit

Lauren Aryee Bunting Piano 3 Pass

Charlotte Winrow Tenor Horn 8 Merit

Isabel Harper Flute 8 Merit

Lois Ho Sze Mok Flute 4 Merit

The Joint Senior Clarinet Choir perform ‘Hava Nagila’ at the May Serenade

The Steel Pan Ensemble played ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy’ and ‘Hakuna Matata’

Resistant Materials & Product Design

A selection of GCSE Resistant Materials and A Level Product Design work.

1. Doll’s House - Saana Ahmed (Year 11), dolls’ house with balconies made from laser plywood

2. Pop Art inspired stationery storage - Ayesha Safri (Year 11), Pop Art inspired stationery storage box made from flexible plywood and dye sublimated veneer

3. Squirrel ‘saloon’ feeder - Vanessa Azavedo (Year 11), ‘Squirrel Saloon’ wild animal feeder made from soft wood, copper and HIPS

6. Pyramid lamp - Chelsea Twist (Year 12) 12

7.

Multi colour LED lamp - Alexandra Cooke (Year 12)

Mandala inspired lamp - Humairaa Haider (Year 12)

Lamp inspired by gaming characters - Sudah Ahmed (Year 12)

Ajustable glowing tube lamp - Lucie Hardman (Year 12)

Flat pack coffee table - Hannah Al-Saidi (Year 13), a space saving, flat pack coffee table for a student

Modular stationery storage - Charlotte Johnson (Year 13), a modular, flat pack stationery holder aimed at a young adult

Textiles

GCSE Final Products

A Level Final Products

Fatimah Naeem, Modern Vintage dress

Jaya Guhathakurta, South American inspired wall-hanging

Children’s dresses, beanbag poufs and an educational toy created by: Top Row: Simran Rayarel, Zineerah Bax, Eleanor Gibbons, Kathryn Austin Bottom Row: Katie Tan, Abigail Shaw, Alisa Grundy

Year 12 Bodices (top to bottom, left to right): Emily Stansfield, Millie Liptrot, Rosie Somerville, Clara

Lewison-Hawksworth, Maisie Camm, Lauren Crowther

Holly Wilcock, Bridal Gown

Year 7

Textiles Resistant Materials

Girls had fun designing and making novelty bedroom thermometers suitable for a baby’s bedroom. The girls learnt about smart materials, CAD/CAM and batch production.

Year 8

Pupils

Year 9

Girls worked independently to design and make bespoke boxes containing LEDs which light up the edges of clear acrylic. They learnt how to construct a wooden box to fit certain dimensions, advanced their CAD/CAM skills and made functioning circuits.

Year 10

Using the work of past designers – specifically Charles Rennie

and the era of Art Deco – to inspire clock designs. All the girls learnt how to vacuum form plywood, create inlaid laser cut patterns and chose to either fit an analogue mechanism or use soldering skills to incorporate a digital panel.

Cushions inspired by India, made using techniques such as appliqué, tie-dye, embroidery and block printing.

Fleece hot water bottles based on folk art from around the world.

enjoyed designing and making animal-themed MP3 players suitable for sale in a WWF merchandise shop. They learnt how to solder, vacuum form and customise their animal designs.

A range of travel-themed wash bags.

Decorative products inspired by the theme of Peru.

Mackintosh

Café Culture

Cafe culture is becoming increasingly popular. There are many coffee shop brands on the high street, in railway stations and shopping centres. Design and make an attractive sweet or savoury product to be sold from the counter in a coffee shop.

School Meal

There has been much concern related to the quality of meals served to students in school canteens. The ‘healthy school dinner’ campaign has brought about many positive changes. A school canteen is to launch a new and creative range of food products to appeal to 11-16 year olds. Design and make a nutritionally balanced product that could be sold in the school canteen.

The Great British Bake Off

Traditional bakeries and supermarket in-store bakeries are very popular. Consumers are attracted to the freshly made products and the ever increasing range of sweet and savoury products available. Design and make an attractively finished product to be sold from a bakery.

Festivals

Music festivals continue to thrive and are enjoyed by people of all age groups. These events often take place in the summer over several days. Many different food outlets are often available. Design and make a savoury product that could be available to eat at a major music festival.

Entertaining in Style

Food is a major part of any celebration. The food is usually made in quantity and is often known as ‘finger food’. This style of food can be served at occasions such as: Proms, 18th birthday parties and cultural/ religious festivals. Design and make a sweet or savoury product to be served at a finger food buffet.

Eleanor Gibbons, Year 11

Georgina Swift, Year 11

Rachael Crompton, Year 11

Isabella Tankard, Year 11

Fiza Hussain, Year 11

Sixth Form German students boosted their appreciation of German culture, history and the language during a recent visit to the capital, Berlin. The trip was packed full of fun and learning, with everything from a Ritter Sport chocolate workshop and a musical revue, to a trip to the Topography of Terror museum, where they learnt about the rise of National Socialism, and the Reichstag, where the German parliament sits. They even managed coffee and cake near the Brandenburg Gate!

Sixth Form Berlin Trip German Exchange

The German Exchange is an excellent opportunity to make friends and explore a new place with people your age. It might seem scary to go away to another country and live with another family for a week, but Emily Fielder (10D) discovered that her nervousness melted away pretty quickly once she was with her exchange family: “I was nervous at the start of the week, especially for the weekend as it was going to be me, my exchange partner and her

family. But the weekend was great fun and we bonded loads.”

Asmara Stubley (10B) says “I enjoyed meeting up with other Germans and their exchanges after school, as we made lots of new friends.”

Esmee Higgins (10D) intends to go back to Bonn in the summer holidays to visit her new German friends. She says that she loved “just chilling” and “playing football with no worries.”

Lydia Lycholat (10C) also formed some lasting friendships – “I loved going out with the German exchange and getting to know them was great as I know they will always be close friends forever.”

Not only did the girls develop good relationships with the partners, but they were also able to improve their German skills in reallife German-speaking situations.

Isobel Plant (10A) had an amazing time and loved experiencing a new culture. She says: “It really helped me improve my self-confidence with speaking in German.”

Alexandra Haworth (10E) also loved the exchange:

“I had such a good time, especially at the weekend when I went to the theme park, it definitely helped with my German!“

Jessica Kay (10E) says that the German exchange was:

“an incredible experience! I have gained so much confidence and my German ability has improved dramatically. I am grateful I was able to experience this opportunity.”

La Casa de Bernarda Alba

First performed in 1945, ‘Casa de Bernarda Alba’ is set a decade earlier, before the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. The play, performed at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre, follows the Alba family. In the events proceeding the death of her husband, Bernarda Alba, an uncompromisingly domineering and powerful woman, prolongs her own mourning period to eight years, before inflicting the same, strict regime on her five daughters, aged between twenty and thirty nine years. The women thus become enthralled in a tangled web of jealousy and secrecy, the consequences of which prove to be devastating! ‘La Casa de Bernarda Alba’ is an interesting and intricately woven play which featured outstanding performances from its all-female cast. We found it to be of great use in comparing it to our chosen novel of study, ‘Como Agua para Chocolate’ and we would highly recommend this play whether you study Spanish or not!

Spanish Flash Fiction

Congratulations to Anna Clark in Year 10 who has won joint first place in the Year 7-11 category of the inaugural Oxford University Spanish Flash Fiction Competition! Her story is about someone losing a member of their family in a tragic accident, and she wrote each sentence in English before translating it into Spanish. The judges were impressed by the combination of linguistic accuracy and creative inventiveness. They reported that the concentration on a single moment via the character’s highly-focused gaze, combined with glimpses and suggestions of a broader story and more painful memories, made the piece particularly evocative and compelling.

Mona de Pascua

Super Spanish... Valencia Independent Study Trip

During February half term, three of us travelled to Valencia in order to take part in an intensive Spanish course in the city. Having organised the whole trip ourselves and having each received a sum of money from the Scott Trust in order to take part in this experience, we were anxious for it to begin. Due to the fact that our classes ran from two until six in the afternoon, we were free to explore Valencia every morning. It was during these mornings that we took part in a bus tour of the city, visited La Plaza de Virgen and Valencia’s renowned Cathedral, as well as numerous other historical sights. The classes themselves were taught solely in Spanish and we studied diverse topics such as individuality and sibling relationships. The teachers were extremely helpful and we all got along with our fellow classmates, with whom we could only speak Spanish as their nationalities varied from Japanese to Korean. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip and feel as though our fluency has improved greatly; therefore we would recommend this experience to anyone planning to study a language at a higher level.

Writing in Spanish

Year 8 did research on the Spanish Royal family. Year 10 used their grammar creatively to describe an ideal home. Year 9 have been creative with language describing their dream holiday destination, creating a biography for their favourite singer, writing a short story for entry to the Oxford competition and producing their own adverts, many of which starred their pets! Watch Faatima Adam’s advert on YouTube: https://youtu.be/6VnTEB_

La casa de mis sueños

“Esta casa lujosa está en el campo por lo tanto está lejos de las tiendas. Tiene veinte habitaciones amplias, cuatro balcones impresionantes, dos terrazas, tres jardines preciosos y una piscina muy grande. También hay vistas al bosque donde hay muchos árboles altos y unas flores. Finalmente lo bueno de la casa es que se prohíbe tener mascotas y así se puede dar un paseo tranquilamente por la mañana.”

Ammarah y Imane Year 10

Year 8 pupils studying Spanish celebrated Semana Santa by designing their own “Mona de Pascua” (Easter Cake) and Holly Stevenson rose to the challenge by actually making her design, which was delicious.

Había una vez una chica guapa que se llamaba Sofía. A Sofía le encantan las delfines. Un día fue un paseo de delfín, inesperadamente un pirata apareció y la secuestró. Pero Sofía era inteligente. Mató al pirata. ¡A Sofía es la capitana de la nave ahora! El fin.

Victoria Cramer Year 13

Madeehah Ahmed & Faarima Adam

French Exchange

Stepping off a train preparing for a week of a different language, culture and lifestyle was, I have to admit, terrifying. But it was exciting too, and the time flew by way too fast. We stayed in the gorgeous, rural town of Moulins, and whilst going out, playing games at the weekend and enjoying all kinds of amazing French food, I became great friends with my correspondent and her generous family. They were all so lovely to be around and I know that she will be a lifelong friend. Whilst in France, I could feel my conversational and speaking skills improving rapidly. I hadn’t expected to dream in French! Ultimately, the main thing for me to say is that no matter what your worries may be, the French exchange is the best way to make new friends, improve your French and experience a whole other culture. If you are given the opportunity to participate on the exchange, I recommend that you grab it with both hands because I have found it a truly amazing experience – one that I will never forget.

Ella Kaut-Howson 10D

Oxford Competition

On Friday 3rd March, a selection of pupils in Years 7 to 10 were invited to take part in the French film essay competition organised annually by the University of Oxford and whose aim is to enable pupils studying French to embrace the world of French cinema.

To enter the competition, students were asked to re-write the ending of a film. This year’s film was MicMacs à tire-larigot, from French director JeanPierre Jeunet (most famous for Amélie). After watching the first hour of the film, pupils were sent off to create a new ending, which had to be plausible yet imaginative. It colud take the form of a screen-play, a play-script or even a YouTube entry! We were delighted to hear from the judges that Carol Habib in Year 7 had been awarded a commendation by the panel for her entry in the Year 7-11 category. The competition was extremely strong and the judges congratulated Carol on her truly exceptional achievement.

Journée Française

Students in Years 12 and 13 improved their language skills at the annual joint French conference for Bolton School Sixth Form students, presented by Richard Peltier of Français Facile. The interactive Journée Française allowed students to tackle challenging topics linked to their A Level studies: a French charity, diversity in French-speaking music, immigration and Europe, poverty, and whether prison is a real solution. They were able to talk together and with Richard about the issues involved in some depth.

Swimming

The Swimming Team has had a very good year, with success in a number of competitions. The Junior and Senior Age Groups were certainly thrown in at the deep end! Their first competition was the North West Secondary Team Championships, held in Liverpool, to try and qualify for the English Schools National Relays Competition. The Junior Age Group just missed out on qualification, making the reserve list this year. There was once again a number of inter-school fixtures, with a win against the Boys’ Division being a highlight for many of the girls.

Outside of these fixtures, the squad produced a range of good performances in other competitions across the age groups. In November, an U15 and Senior Team travelled to Stonyhurst College for the prestigious John Parry

UNDER 12

UNDER 12

SALFORD 100s

In November 2016, twelve Year 7 girls competed in the Salford 100s Lifesaving competition at Westhoughton. The competition is steeped in history and this year had 62 girls participating from schools in the Bolton area. All of the girls performed the lifesaving tests successfully but a special mention to Lucy Dixon, who was the overall winner on the day.

SALFORD 100 s

Lucy Dixon Amelie Duncalf

Molly Holt Katy Malley

Georgia McGinty Isabella Morgan

Kiana Murray Evie Owens

Millie Price Lucy Sackfield

Bethany Shum Kareena Singh

YEAR 7 IMPROVERS

Relays. The Senior Team finished 3rd place in the freestyle relay, with the U15 Team finishing 1st in both the medley and freestyle relays.

Three teams also competed in the Bolton Town Swimming Championships. The Intermediate Team finished 2nd in their competition, with an individual win for Katherine Baker in the 50m backstroke. The Senior Team had a very close competition with Canon Slade that resulted in a tie for points and both schools sharing the title.

Niamh Knowles and Tara Wallis helped the cause with individual wins in their respective events. The Junior Team did exceptionally well winning both the freestyle and medley relays. There were also individual wins for Amy Doyle and Elly Fraser. This resulted in them winning overall and becoming the Town Champions.

INTERMEDIATE

Katherine Baker Anita Cardozo Amy Chicken India Corlett-Moore

As a result of their success the Junior Team were asked to represent Bolton in the Greater Manchester School Games in March. The four girls selected represented the borough of Bolton and finished joint second with Stockport. The swimmers have also celebrated a number of individual successes this season. Elly Fraser was selected from her ASA ranking to represent the North West in the English Schools InterDivisional Competition in March. We have also had a number of swimmers competing in County Championships with their clubs outside of school. Elly Fraser became County Champion in the 100m and 200m breaststroke in the Under 14 Age Group and Lucy Dixon in the 400m Individual Medley, 100m and 200m breaststroke in the Under 12 Age Group.

Lucy Dixon Amelie Duncalf Molly Holt Beatrice Hughes

Katy Malley Georgia McGinty

Isabella Morgan Kiana Murray

Caitlin Nuttall Evie Owens

Millie Price Lucy Sackfield

Kareena Singh

Jessica Bailey Phoebe Booth

Isabel Brennand Tahira Collins

Victoria Cook Isabelle Corrigan

Maya Croasdaile Amy Doyle Elly Fraser Celia Logan

Aliza Nirodi Maia Patel Katie Riggs Genevieve Storey

SENIOR Priya Chevli (C)+ Isabelle Devine Jessie Harper Emma Higginbottom Niamh Knowles* Jennie Maher Thea Simpson* Tara Wallis* Samantha Woods*

Caitlin Foster Caitlyn Howard

Laraibe Latif Katie Schaffel

Amaia Taylor

Lucy Dixon, winner of this year’s Salford 100s Lifesaving competition

The U15 team with their two trophies from the John Parry Relays

Rounders 2015/16

The numbers of girls attending lunchtime sessions for rounders this year simply exploded, with over 170 girls attending clubs throughout the summer term from Years 7-10.

The poor weather, however, played a part in seeing a number of league fixtures cancelled which was disappointing but unavoidable. The Year 10s were undefeated throughout the term in their league matches, winning all 7 games played. The Year 9 team once again benefited from England rounders coaches, with regular sessions after school on Wednesdays. It was great to see so much enthusiasm for the ‘flat bat’ game from all ages.

YEAR 7 ROUNDERS

Imaan Ahmed Ellen Baines

Imaan Bhad Poppy Blackhurst

Tahira Collins Lucy Conor

Victoria Cook Issy Corrigan

Maya Croasdaile Amy Doyle

Chloe Ferguson Elly Fraser

Eve Gould Scarlett Gregson

Gracie Grundy Emily Guy

Lizzy Harkness Bethan Hill

Ruby Hill Amerleen Hundle

Phoebe Hurt Madiha Jiva

Summer Kay Mia Langtree

Amelia McKeown Emily McGrail

Charlotte Martin Ellen Masterson

Millie Mercer Lily Morrow

Molly Morrow Isabella Moss

Amelia Myall Isha Nunkoo

Taya Panter Estelle Pass

Dhruti Patel Kaitlyn Paton

Emma Payne Lucy Pixton

Katie Riggs Yasmin Rose

Alice Ryder Fabeha Shafaat

Izzy Silvano Caitlin Smith

Sophie Smith Anna Staal

Daisy Taylor Rhianna Taylor-Birch

Hannah Welsby Katie Wild

Vanessa Wong

Gymnastics

The girls who have attended the Year 7 Gymnastics Club this year participated in the Bolton Schools’ Gymnastics Competition at Ladybridge High School on Wednesday 8th March.

The girls had been preparing their floor routines, jumps using the trampette and their vaults for a number of weeks in their lunchtime practices. They all performed their routines very well in their respective sections and enjoyed the occasion.

Well done to the girls who competed; they were: Alicia Backhouse, Molly Bell, Ruby Broughton, Kelly Chae, Aisha Darsot, Poppy Donohue, Carol Habib, Molly Holt, Caitlin Nuttall and Lucy Sackfield.

Congratulations to Poppy Donohue who achieved 2nd place in the Advanced section of the competition.

YEAR 8 ROUNDERS

Layli Alikhasi

Alecia Anderson

Katherine Baker Arabella Barker-Smith

Ria Bansal Eve Birtwistle

Maddy Bodger Ellie Bridge

India Corlett-Moore Katie Couriel

Jessica Curtis-Walker Freya Dando

Rubie Dey Niamh Dolan

Abigail Duckworth Kate Dziobon

Isabella Forshaw Harriet Forster

Rachel Funk Liberty Giggs

Ella Harkness

Elspeth Harper

Zakia Herez Alice Higginbottom

Abigial Hughes

Charlotte Hughes

Anaya Jesani Zara Jiva

Lizzie Lees Shreya Kamath

Olivia Kaute Vicky Kettle

Phoenix Khan Amber Kirkham

Esther Kenworthy Willow McCain

Eleanor Murray Mia Monsen

Charlotte Moore Fatima Naeem

Anna Phillips Zara Rattoo

Manhoor Raza Sana Riaz

Sara Salim Honor Smith

Ashley Sprott Olivia Stubbs

Jennifer Taberner Natalie Taylor-Towers

Nabilah Thagia Sarah Uddin

Aisha Umar Nisha Varsani

Sarah Walker Ellie Wallis

Lizzie Warburton Ella Wilson

YEAR 9 ROUNDERS

Easha Aslam Huma Azim

Neha Bagewadi Imogen Bootle

Annabelle Boulos Lucinda Butterworth

Naeema Bux Isabelle Catlow

Jessica Chae Amy Chicken

Anna Clark Sharon Daniel

Ella Fullelove Ellie Gedman-King

Elizabeth Glover Esmee Higgins

Honey Higham Molly Hill

Mabel Horridge Isabella Howe

Millie Hurt Jasmin Hussain

Rachel Jarvis Mariyah Karim

Ella Kaut-Howson Maddie Kennedy

Ingrid Lam Robyn Lever

Cate Lord Bryony Meech

Annabel Nuttall Lucy Nuttall

Safa Patel Emma Sellwood

Alexandria Smith Asmara Stubley

Imogen Swift Lauren Whitaker

YEAR 10 ROUNDERS

Saana Ahmed Gabby Appleby

Kate Astbury

Vanessa Azavedo

Natasha Barnes Ella Bolton

Rachael Crompton Seren Davies

Eleanor Gibbons Jaya Guhathakurta

Hannah Holt Emily Hunt

Charlotte Lawler Imogen McDonald

Naadiyah Mohammed Emily Pike

Zayna Quereshi Thea Simpson

Ella Smyth Millie Wood

Sam Woods

Back row L-R: Caitlin Nuttall. Alicia Backhouse, Ruby Broughton. Carol Habib, Molly Holt

Front row L-R: Kelly Chae, Lucy Sackfield, Poppy Donohue, Aisha Darsot, Molly Bell.

YEAR 7 GYM CLUB

Alicia Backhouse Molly Bell

Ruby Broughton Kelly Chae

Aisha Darsot Poppy Donohue

Holly Fowler Sarah Habbab

Carol Habib Molly Holt

Emily Jefferson Georgia Johnston

Katy Malley Kiana Murray

Millie Price Caitlin Nuttall

Lucy Sackfield Jasmine Shum

Year 10 Rounders Club

Edinburgh Netball and Lacrosse Trip

The season began well with an exciting trip to Edinburgh with the Senior Lacrosse and Netball Squads. Over the course of the weekend, the girls played matches against Stonyhurst College, Edinburgh Thistle Lacrosse Club and Fettes College, with two convincing victories for this year’s strong Netball team. They also had the opportunity to discover and explore Scotland’s historic capital city and university buildings. As always, a meal at The Hard Rock Café was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

Sports Day 2016

Sports Day Results

2016 Track Events

Yr 7 70m A Amelia McKeown 7C

B Lucy Conor 7B

Yr 8 A Esther Kenworthy 8D

Yr 9 75m A Molly Hill 9S

B Amy Chicken 9B

Yr7 100m A Olivia Matthews-Berry7G

B Grace Collins 7G

Yr8 A Harriet Forster 8G

B Mia Monsen 8G

Yr 9 A Isabelle Catlow 9B & Claudia Barnes 9S

B Beth Taylor 9D

Yr7 800m A Maya Croasdaile 7S

B Amy Doyle 7C

Yr7 200m A Lizzy Harkness 7S

B Xena Logan 7D Yr9 A Lydia Lycholat 9D

B Imane Nagi 9D

Sports Day Results 2016 Field Events

Yr 7 Long A Vanessa Wong 7G Jump & Phoebe Hurt 7D

B Ella Rose Parkin 7S

Individual Sports Trophy Winners

JUNIOR

VICTRIX LUDORUM

Gabby Appleby, Sophie Brown, Eleanor Gibbons, Thea Simpson & Sam Woods

SENIOR VICTRIX LUDORUM

Georgina Owen

COLLINSON TROPHY FOR LACROSSE

Louisa Brophy & Molly Dick

SENIOR NETBALL TROPHY

Alex Duxbury

Back row L-R: Georgina Owen, Louisa Brophy & Molly Dick

Front row L-R: Alex Duxbury, Thea Simpson, Eleanor Gibbons, Gabby Appleby, Sam Woods. (Sophie Brown not on photo)

Netball Captains Report

Being joint netball captains this season has been a privilege, which has been made even better by our dedicated and enthusiastic team. Most of us have been together since Year 7 and it has been very special to witness us all grow, not only as individual players, but as a team. We’d especially like to thank Mrs Heatherington who has been a dedicated coach and huge support to us over that past season. The senior netball team have had a successful season, winning a large proportion of our games convincingly. This is due to our hard work and communication as a team. I know that we speak on behalf of the whole team when we say that school netball has been an important part of our lives for the past 7 years, and it is something that we will all hugely miss once we leave.

Alex Duxbury & Georgina Owen

Lacrosse Captains Report

Kaut-Howson 9C

A Ella Wilson 8D B Harriet Forster 8G Yr 9 A Zoe Grainger 9G B Isabella Howe 9G Yr 10 A Lauren Standen 10D Yr 7 Discus A Imaan Ahmed 7C Yr 8 A Rubie Dey 8D B Lizzie Lees 8G Yr 9 A Maddie Kennedy 9C B Lauren Wheeler 9S Yr 10 A Jaya Guhathakurta 10G Yr 7 Javelin A Chloe Ferguson 7B Yr 8 A Anna Phillips 8C B Honor Smith 8B Yr 9 A Bryony Meech 9C

This year we have thoroughly enjoyed being lacrosse co-captains. It has been a privilege in our final year at school to be able to lead such an enthusiastic and talented squad. We will fondly remember the many trips we have been on such as the Edinburgh tour and the yearly trip to National Schools. We are very grateful for our teammates’ hard work and dedication as without this we would not have had such a successful season. We would like to especially thank Miss Donaghy for being our coach throughout our school career and for making school lacrosse so fun and enjoyable.

Molly Dick & Louisa Brophy

Swimming Captain’s Report

Serving for a second year as the swimming captain has been a great honour and an amazing experience. I am so thankful to my team for their unwavering enthusiasm and to Mrs Duddle for entrusting me with this responsibility for two years. What was so special about this experience was the amount of support from every member which made me want to push myself as a swimmer and their captain. All of this has resulted in competition success this year.

From when I first joined the club in Year 7, the swimming captain has always been someone I have looked up to as a role model and being captain has enabled me to assume that position. The sport as a whole has been something I’ve enjoyed doing so being captain has meant a lot to me. The opportunity given to me has made a significant impact on my life and I would like to thank Mrs Duddle again for giving me the chance to represent the school as their swimming captain.

Priya Chevli

Athletics 2015/16

The weather wasn’t kind to us last summer and out of three inter-school fixtures scheduled, we were only able to host one which was our throwing competition against Canon Slade. Nevertheless, a committed core of girls from each year group trained hard throughout the season and were rewarded with some outstanding Personal Best Performances. Particular mention to the Year 9 Athletics team who were runners-up at their Bolton Town Championships, with some excellent individual performances. Lydia Lycholat was runner-up in the 100m Final and was a member of the relay team who were also runners up, which included Imane Nagi, Jess Price and Beth Taylor. The Year 10 team also did very well to finish in a very creditable 3rd position overall. At the Junior competition, the Year 7 team finished in 4th place whilst the Year 8 were worthy runners up in their event. Congratulations to Ella Wilson on becoming town High Jump champion. In addition to athletics, a thriving run for fun club took place on the running track on Thursdays and Fridays.

YEAR 7 ATHLETICS

Imaan Ahmed Jessica Bailey

Ellen Baines Poppy Blackhurst

Lucy Connor Victoria Cook

Isabelle Corrigan Maya Croasdaile

Chloe Ferguson Eve Gould

Gracie Grundy Lizzy Harkness

Bethan Hill Ruby Hill

Phoebe Hurt Summer Kay

Helena Lintott Celia Logan

Ellen Masterson Olivia Matthews-Berry

Eloise McDermott Millie Mercer

Molly Morrow Rebecca Parkinson

Maya Peter Lucy Pixton

Mia Short Daisy Taylor

Vanessa Wong

YEAR 8 ATHLETICS

Roxanne Asumu Arabella Barker-Smith

Eve Birtwhistle Ellie Bridge

India Corlett-Moore Jessica Curtis-Walker

Rubie Dey Niamh Dolan

Abigail Duckworth Kate Dzioban

Isabella Forshaw Harriet Forster

Rachel Funk Liberty Giggs

Ella Harkness Elspeth Harper

Zakia Herez Charlotte Hughes

Amber Kirkham Elizabeth Lees

Willow McCain Mia Monsen

Anna Phillips Ashley Sprott

Olivia Stubbs Elizabeth Warburton

Ella Wilson

YEAR 9 ATHLETICS

Huma Azim Imogen Bootle

Jessica Chae Amy Chicken

Lizzie Crowther Sharon Daniel

Amelia Doherty Molly Hill

Esmee Higgins Honey Higham

Mabel Horridge Isabella Howe

Millie Hurt Jasmin Hussain

Rachel Jarvis Mariyah Karim

Ella Kaut-Howson Maddie Kennedy

Cate Lord Lydia Lycholat

Rachel McGinty Bryony Meech

Sarah Mogg Imane Nagi

Jessica Price Asmara Stubley

Imogen Swift Beth Taylor

Gabi Williamson Olivia Wright

YEAR 10 ATHLETICS

Gabriella Appleby Vanessa Azavedo

Natasha Barnes Ellen Bate

Sophie Brown Rachael Crompton

Imogen MacDonald Thea Simpson

Ella Smyth Samantha Woods

Badminton Running Club

YEAR 7

YEAR 7

Mia Bennett Imaan Bhad

Lucy Connor Isabelle Corrigan

Elly Fraser Madihah Jiva

Ruby Hill Phoebe Hurt

Xena Logan Charlotte Martin

Cross Country

The weather was perfect in October for the 12 girls in Year 7 & 8 who took part in the Bolton Schools’ Cross Country championships held at Smithills School.

Congratulations to all the girls who took part but special mention to the following who finished in the top 15 of their respective races and were nominated to represent the Bolton town team at the Greater Manchester Cross Country championships.

Year 7 - Lucy Dixon (2nd), Anna Wiggetts (8th), Alicia Backhouse (12th).

Year 8 - Phoebe Hurt (7th), Lucy Pixton (9th) These girls went on to race at the Greater Manchester schools Cross Country Championships in February where in the Year 7 race Anna Wiggetts finished in a very commendable 42nd place. In the Year 8 race, Lucy Pixton was placed 52nd whilst Maya Croasdaile finished just behind her in 53rd place. Commiserations to Phoebe Hurt who sustained an injury to her ankle whilst running the very muddy Heaton Park course and was unable to complete the race.

YEAR 7 TEAM

3rd overall at Bolton Cross Country Comp

Lucy Dixon (2nd) Anna Wiggetts(8th)

Alicia Backhouse(12th) Caitlin Nuttall (29th)

Bethany Shum (32nd) Beatrice Hughes (47th) Alesha Jiva (83rd) Safa Hasan (84th)

YEAR 8 TEAM

Phoebe Hurt (7th) Lucy Pixton (9th)

Gracie Grundy (30th) Isabelle Brennand (66th)

YEAR 9

Emily McGrail Dhruti Patel

Maya Peter Yasmin Rose

Caitlin Smith Ariella Tanfield

Daisy Taylor Olivia Travi

Fizaa Valli

YEAR 8 Abigail Duckworth

YEAR 9

Easha Aslam Naeema Bux

Esmee Higgins Honey Higham

Mariyah Karim Ella Kaut-Howson

Maddie Kennedy Safa Patel

Asmara Stubley

Kelly Chae Alesha Jiva Ayesha Jiva Beth McGuinness Teja Reece

Alecia Anderson Maimoona Ghanchi

The Tennis Squad have competed in the local round of the AEGON Teams Tennis tournament this season, with some close matches in both age groups.

The Under 15 team competed against Withington and Manchester High School for girls. The girls were defeated by Manchester High, but in the match against Withington the scores were even after the singles and doubles games. A championship shootout then had to be played with a tie-break of 10 points. The girls competed well and after a number of nail biting shots, we unfortunately lost by 10 points to 7. This meant we finished third in the group and, in order to progress through to the semi-final stages of the competition, the girls needed to be in the top two positions in the group.

The Under 13 team played their matches against Kirkham Grammar, Withington and Manchester High. All girls who represented the school in this age group played some excellent tennis in their games. The girls won against Kirkham by an impressive 5 sets to 1, were defeated against an

Winter Running Club

extremely strong Withington School, and in their final match against Manchester High won three sets of singles meaning that we needed one set of the doubles to win the match. Eve Gould and Lizzy Harkness were successful winning by 6 games to 4.

Therefore we were overall winners by 4 sets to 1. We were then waiting for other matches to be played to confirm whether we would go through to the Semi-finals, needing to top the group. Unfortunately we finished in third position and therefore didn’t have enough points to progress to the next stage of the competition.

Girls in Year 8, 9 and 10 age groups played in friendly doubles matches against Kirkham Grammar giving wins for the Year 8 and 9 teams. After totalling all of the games, we were overall winners by 42 games to 30. Friendly matches against Bury Grammar and Westholme School were unfortunately cancelled due to weather. Well done to all of the girls for their efforts and commitments throughout the season!

Football

An enthusiastic group of girls have trained regularly throughout the winter at the Tuesday lunchtime running club, setting themselves targets for improvement in distance and time. YEAR 7 Imogen

A small core of committed girls trained regularly with a Bolton Wanderers community coach on a Monday lunchtime throughout the winter. They enjoyed competitions at the Premier fives tournament in October and again in April, hosted at Bolton School. Particular congratulations to Lizzy Harkness and Eve Gould in Year 8 and Anna Phillips in Year 9 who were all selected to represent Greater Manchester this season.

Howarth Teja Reece Lucy Sackfield Henna Sorwar

Anna Phillips, Eve Gould and Lizzy Harkness have all represented Greater Manchester at Football this year. Two of the girls have since signed professional contracts: Anna with Manchester City and Lizzy with Everton.

YEAR 7

Maysun Cheema Lucy Dixon Beatrice Hughes Bethany Shum Scarlett Whittle YEAR 8

Mia Bennett Isabelle Brennand Xena Logan Millie Mercer Isabella Moss YEAR 8 Fatimah Naeem Sarah Walker

YEAR 8

Charlotte Hughes Vicky Kettle Anna Phillips Elizabeth Warbuton YEAR 8 Isabelle Brennand Isabelle Corrigan Chloe Ferguson Gracie Grundy Lizzy Harkness Sophie Smith YEAR 10

YEAR 9 Charleigh Adams Amy Chicken Mabel Horridge Bryony Meech YEAR 10 Natasha Barnes Imogen MacDonald Thea Simpson Zara Walsh Samantha Woods

YEAR

YEAR 7

Jessica Bailey Chloe Ferguson Eve Gould Gracie Grundy Lizzy Harkness Phoebe Hurt Aliza Nirodi Lucy Pixton

Girls training at Football Club

Lacrosse

Throughout the year, the lacrosse teams have competed in a number of matches and tournaments across the North of England, and also further afield at Surrey Sports Park at the National Schools Championships. Thank you to all the players for their hard work and commitment this year.

This year, many pupils have also played lacrosse at representative level for their County and Territory. The following girls were selected to represent the U18, U15 and U13 Lancashire County Lacrosse squads:

U18 ‘A’ SQUAD

Ellie Bridge Louisa Brophy

Molly Dick Alisha Maini

Georgina Owen

U18 ‘B’ SQUAD

Maisie Camm Eleanor Gibbons

Mabel Horridge Millie Hurt

Rachel Jarvis Maddie Kennedy

Amie Murray Asmara Stubley

U15 ‘A’ SQUAD

Ellie Bridge Mabel Horridge

Abigail Hughes Millie Hurt

Phoebe Hurt Maddie Kennedy

Asmara Stubley

U15 ‘B’ SQUAD

Arabella Barker-Smith Imogen Bootle

Amy Chicken Chloe Ferguson

Eve Gould Esmee Higgins

Rachel Jarvis Rachel Roscoe

Reserve:Isabelle Corrigan

U13 ‘A’ SQUAD

Isabelle Corrigan Chloe Ferguson

Eve Gould Lizzy Harkness

Phoebe Hurt Vanessa Wong

U13 ‘B’ SQUAD

Ella Brophy Martha Halford

Ruby Hill Alice Leary

Olivia Maguire Amelia Myall

Rachel Roscoe

ENGLAND LACROSSE ACADEMY

England Lacrosse runs talent development programmes for girls through an Academy system. The system plays an important role in raising the performance of junior players and contributing to the success of the National teams at U19 and Senior levels.

Congratulations to the following girls who are currently enrolled in the Academy:

U15 REGIONAL ACADEMY:

Ellie Bridge Millie Hurt

Maddie Kennedy Asmara Stubley

NORTH

Following on from their success at County level, the following girls were selected to represent the U19 North of England Squads at the Territorial Tournament, which took place on Sunday 19th March at Warwick University.

‘A’ SQUAD

Louisa Brophy Georgina Owen (C)

‘B’

SQUAD

Ellie Bridge Maddie Kennedy

NATIONAL SCHOOLS LACROSSE

During the Spring Term, the 1st Team competed in the National Schools’ Championships at Surrey Sports Park in Guildford. The girls played over 2 days, qualifying for Division 1 for the second stage of the tournament. They played some excellent lacrosse, beating a number of schools including Malvern St James, Sherborne, Coloma and Shrewsbury. Congratulations to all the players for reaching the quarter-final stages of the Division 1 tournament.

NORTHERN SCHOOLS LACROSSE

Throughout the year, the lacrosse squads have competed in the Northern Schools’ Tournaments in Yorkshire and Shropshire. The younger age groups played very well, with the U12 team finishing as runners up to Moreton Hall School. The U15 team also had an excellent tournament, finishing in a very close 2nd place to the overall winners, Harrogate Ladies College. Well done to all the players for representing the school.

SENIOR SQUAD

Millie Adamson + Hannah Al-Saidi

Gabriella Appleby * Aaliyah Ascroft * Louisa Brophy + (C) Sophie Brown * Maisie Camm Rachael Crompton * Molly Dick + (C) Eleanor Gibbons * Alisa Grundy * Jaya Guhathakurta * Priya Guhathakurta Alisha Maini + Amie Murray Georgina Owen + Hannah Saad Alice Sandford * Charlotte Winrow +

UNDER 14

Arabella Barker-Smith Eve Birtwhistle

Ellie Bridge (Captain) Freya Dando

Liberty Giggs Abigail Hughes

Charlotte Hughes Zakia Herez Amber Kirkham Elizabeth Lees Mia Monsen Anna Phillips Olivia Stubbs

UNDER 13

Imaan Ahmed Isabelle Corrigan

Chloe Ferguson (C) Eve Gould

Gracie Grundy Lizzy Harkness

Bethan Hill Ruby Hill

Phoebe Hurt Summer Kay

Charlotte Martin Emily McGrail

Molly Morrow Amelia Myall

Isha Nunkoo Lucy Pixton

Rachel Roscoe Isabella Silvano

Sophie Smith Genevieve Storey

Hannah Welsby Katie Wild Vanessa Wong

UNDER 15

Imogen Bootle Amy Chicken

Esmee Higgins Mabel Horridge

Millie Hurt Rachel Jarvis Maddie Kennedy Bryony Meech Asmara Stubley Olivia Wright

UNDER 12

Hollie Asquith Maddy Brooks

Amelia Charova Faye Clarkson

Jessica Crompton Jasmine Curtis-Walker

Francesca Williams-Denton Sacha Doyle

Amelie Duncalf Martha Halford

Charlotte Jones Megan Jones

Mia Kitching Alice Leary

Olivia Maguire Anika Maini

Tisha Matsika Georgia McGinty

Martha Morrow Eva Murphy

Caitlin Nuttall Shriya Pindoria

Millie Price Anna Wiggetts

LANCASHIRE COUNTY LACROSSE

Netball

The 2016-17 season was as busy as ever. Particular highlights include selection at County level of Georgina Owen (Y13) and Cate Lord (Y10). Cate was also selected for the U19 Development squad of Manchester Thunder. The U14 Team enjoyed success at the GSA tournament finishing as Runners-up. The U18 Team had a particularly rewarding season after reaching the semi-final stages of the County round of the national Schools Competition and becoming the highest scoring team of the season breaking the 60 goal barrier in their match v Bury Grammar in December.

In addition to Saturday and midweek league fixtures, the Under 15, Under 14 and Under 12 teams were all successful at their respective Bolton School Tournaments held in October and March respectively whilst the Under 16 team were runners up in their competition.

At the County Tournaments held in March the Under 14 team performed especially well to reach the semi-final of their competition.

Thank you to all girls who have committed their time to training and representing school throughout the season. Thank you also to Mrs Heatherington, Mrs Duddle and Mr Owen for their continued support of the netball teams and without whom none of the above would have been possible.

UNDER 15

UNDER 12

Hollie Asquith Martha Brennan

Maddy Brooks Summer Burke

Amelia Charova Jessica Crompton

Rose Crowther Jasmin Curtis-Walker

Poppy Donohue Martha Halford

Charlotte Jones Alice Leary

Olivia Maguire Anika Maini

Georgia McGinty Kiana Murray

Caitlin Nuttall Millie Price

Jasmin Shum Karenna Singh

Anna Wiggetts

UNDER 14

Arabella Barker-Smith Ellie Bridge

Jessica Curtis-Walker Ruby Dey

Isabella Forshaw Harriet Forster

Charlotte Hughes Amber Kirkham

Elizabeth Lees Eleanor Murray

Anna Philips Olivia Stubbs

Jennifer Taberner Sarah Walker

Elizabeth Warburton

YEAR 8

YEAR

Year 6 Memories...

My favourite memory of Hesketh House is when we had to design new flavours of sandwich in Year 3. I thought we were just doing an imaginary sandwich but we weren’t and I had to make a sandwich with lots of crazy toppings like fish fingers, chips and coleslaw! – Aaminah Ali, 6P

One of my favourite memories is when we went on a school trip to the Imperial War Museum North because it was fascinating and exciting. – Amelia Cordwell, 6P

Two of my favourites memories are doing the ESB in Year 6 and being a part of the Football Team and getting into the quarter finals of the competition we were in. – Ruby Hurt, 6P

I remember the joy of getting the role of Peter Pan in the Summer Concert in Year 5 as I had been determined to get the part! – Safa Karim, 6P

The Sports Hall Athletics competition in Year 4 was great fun. As was the picnic in Queen’s Park in Year 3 and Drama Day in Year 6 when I got to play the pantomime cow! – Vlada Kozak, 6P

I particularly enjoyed the Year 6 Drama Day that we did in the Senior School. I played the part of Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk but unfortunately I was losing my voice so it was difficult to hear me! – Charlotte Lowe, 6P

I will always remember when I got the Progress Trophy in Year 3 because it was such a surprise to me and it helped me to develop more confidence in myself. – Ai Makino, 6P

The most memorable moment for me is when I met my friends on the playground on the first day in Year 3. – Esha Mishra, 6P

One of the most memorable occasions I have had in Hesketh House is the first time I came into school in Year 3 and didn’t cry because I wanted my mum. – Olivia Myall, 6P

One of my most memorable moments is when I got picked to enter the AJIS Art Competition and had to draw a person I admire. – Holly Nicholson, 6P

My favourite memory is when we did Bikeability and we got to ride our bikes with our friends. – Anisha Pahade, 6P

My

One

Some

My

My

favourite memory of Hesketh House is when I represented the school in the AJIS Football Tournament. – Krupa Patel, 6P

of my special memories of Hesketh House is when I met my friends and we made our friendship group. – Ila Stephenson, 6P

of my favourite memories are when we did the flash mob for Mrs Brierley’s retirement in Year 5 and when I got picked for the Sports Hall Athletics Team. – Malaika Zaidi, 6P

favourite memory is being presented a chess trophy in assembly by the High Sherriff of Greater Manchester. – Astha Patel, 6P

favourite memory is of me and my friend writing our poem for the John Muir Award because I love writing. – Felicity Field, 6P

“My best memory of Hesketh House was when the helicopter came and I was chosen to go inside.” –

Melodious Music

From the Winter Warmer to choral singing at the Spring Fair to the Summer Concert, and lots of assembly performances in between, the Junior Girls’ year has been punctuated by marvellous music. The String Quartet and Hesketh House Choir competed at Ramsbottom Music Festival, giving excellent performances full of poise and confidence: the Choir earned third place, and the instrumentalists were marginally beaten by the Senior School Quartet. A smaller Junior Choir sang at the AJIS Music Festival. The adjudicators at both events were full of praise for the musicians. The AJIS Proms also offered a few top musicians the opportunity to join a combined AJIS orchestra for the day, culminating in a performance.

Music Festival

Congratulations to all of the pupils who performed at the Music Festival, from novices to accomplished musicians. The adjudicators, Jonathan Middleton and Stephen Martin, were both impressed by the terrific standard of playing and presentation!

Piano

Year 6: 1st Ai Makino

2nd Angelie Chitre

3rd Janani Velayutham

Year 5: 1st Nyah Pomian

2nd Rhea Sudhakar

3rd Grace Houghton

Year 4: 1st Sofia Riaz

2nd Imaan Rashid

3rd Hana Turnbull

Year 3: 1st Nikita Luhar

2nd Tilly McCann 3rd Marissa Hollinghurst

Instrumentalists

Vocal:

1st Sophie Swift 2nd Eva Hurst 3rd Dinburgh Ai

Beginners:

I have really enjoyed the MFL days that we have done at Hesketh House as I like to learn new languages. – Batool Tabani, 6P

One of my favourite Hesketh House memories is when we did the virtual reality Google Expedition to Borneo. –Imogen Masheter, 6P

and Ensembles

1st Nyah Pomian 2nd Hannah Faulkner 3rd Paavana Sugumar Woodwind, Brass and Drums: 1st Pip Nuttall 2nd Esha Mishra 3rd Janani Velayutham

Strings:

1st Uma Patel 2nd Anoushka Sharma 3rd Dinburgh Ai

Small Ensemble:

1st Piano Duet: Anna Brennand & Alexia Howarth Ensemble:

1st String Quartet: Anoushka Sharma, Molly Grimshaw, Francesca Dewhurst & Uma Patel

Old Boy Jason Appleton, Station Commander of RAF Shawbury in Shropshire, visited School in his helicopter and spoke to children from Nursery to the Senior Schools. The Junior Girls and Boys were the first to greet him on his arrival!

The Choir singing at the Spring Fair

The Flute Choir perform at the Winter Warmer

Music Festival Ensemble Prizewinners: the String Quartet (Anoushka Sharma, Molly Grimshaw, Francesca Dewhurst and Uma Patel)

Pianist Sofia Riaz at the Music Festival

Janani Velayutham playing the Clarinet at the Music Festival

The Junior Girls meet their sponsored police horse, Bumble, and his partner Maxwell.

Uma Patel, 6L

Art Attack! Sporting Successes

The AJIS Biathlon saw the team win 1st place overall, with individual medals for Charlotte Harris (gold) and Pip Nuttall (silver). At the AJIS Sportshall Athletics, the girls enjoyed their most successful year with 12 medals collected overall. Pupils picked up 7 gold medals in the 3 Lap, Speedbounce, Standing Triple Jump, Standing Long Jump (also setting a new record), Vertical Jump and 6 Lap Paarlauf Relay, where the team also won silver! Further individual successes were achieved at the AJIS Tennis: Alina Halim and Vlada Kozak won all their group stage games to compete in the semi-finals with Vlada progressing to be crowned champion. The Junior Girls and Junior Boys jointly won the Bolton Schools Cross Country League, and the team additionally earned 2nd place in the Girls’ competition. The Year 5 and Year 6 teams did well in the AJIS Cross Country, both finishing 8th overall, and Charlotte Harris earned an individual 2nd place. Pupils earned the right to represent Bolton at the Greater Manchester Games after coming in 2nd place at the Bolton Schools High-5 Netball Tournament.

Stone Age style cave painting by Scarlett Bowie and Carrie-Anne Warbrick (3J)

Oil pastel observational drawings by Ellie Hood (3H), Nora Oesterle (3H) and Nia Raja (3J), linked to the Science topic ‘How Does Your Garden Grow?’.

Inspired by Japanese artist Hokusai. The 2D nets will be assembled to make 3D pyramid boxes to display pupils’ interpretations of Hokusai’s ‘The Great Wave’.

Year 4 were asked to create illustrations for The Iron Man by Ted Hughes using Word, Insert and Shapes.

Rainforest trees, looking at pattern and colour in nature, by Zara McCann and Tilly Watkinson (both in 5M).

Aztec headdress designs by (clockwise from top left) Emilie Graham, Amelia Quinton Taylor, Freya Wood and Emma Taylor-Beardsworth (all in 5H).

6L Blitz Hannah Adamopoulos

Bolton

The AJIS Biathlon Team with their medals

Joint Winners of the Bolton School Cross Country League

High-5 Netball Tournament Team

Some of my favourite memories of Hesketh House are being part of the Sports Hall Athletics Team and the Cross Country Team because this makes me proud. – Ruby Hassall, 6P

My favourite memory of Hesketh House is when we learned about World War Two in Year 6 and we made model victory gardens with Anderson shelters in them. – Charlotte Duffy, 6P

Patterdale Memories:

My favourite memory of my time at Hesketh House is the very first night we stayed in Patterdale because it was like a big sleepover with all my friends. – Angelie Chitre, 6P

My favourite memory of my time at Hesketh House is gorge walking in Patterdale because everyone was laughing and having fun. – Phoebe Chuck, 6P

One of my favourite memories of Hesketh House is when we went gorge walking in Patterdale. – Lola Grundy, 6P

My favourite memory of Hesketh House is when I went to Patterdale Hall in Year 5 and me and my friend, Fliss, had such a laugh! – Georgie Sykes, 6P

My favourite memory of Hesketh House is when we went to Patterdale and put our heads under the waterfall. – Cloe Ramirez, 6L

My favourite and funniest memory of my time at Hesketh House is when my wellies sank to the bottom of the lake at Patterdale. – Hanna Adamopoulos, 6L

One of my best moments at Hesketh House was sailing in Lake Ullswater at Patterdale. – Nicola Shaw, 6L

My favourite memories at Hesketh House are when we went on the ski trip and had fun at Patterdale in Year 6. – Janani Velayutham, 6L

My best memory of Hesketh House is the first time we went to Patterdale Hall in Year 4 because it brought me and my friends closer together. – Kimberley Short, 6P

My best memory at Hesketh House is when we went gorge walking up a waterfall at Patterdale. – Helena Ormerod, 6L

A special memory of mine from my time at Hesketh House was when I did the ‘Big Mama Bear Jump’ into the gorge at Patterdale. – Emma Seddon, 6L

My best memory at Hesketh House has to be when we went to Patterdale and walked up to Aira Force. – Harriet Dickens, 6L

One of my most memorable times at Hesketh House was when the Patterdale instructors came to us in Year 3 and there was a picture of me doing archery in the newspaper. – Tanya Thakrar, 6L

Fond Farewells...

Mrs Julia Reina

Music Teacher

This summer we say goodbye to Mrs Reina, who has has taught at Bolton School since September 2011. This was her first post as a qualified teacher.

What are you doing next?

I also teach at a small independent Christian school in Liverpool, where I live, so I will be devoting more time to that school, teaching piano, guitar, and GCSE Music.

What has been the highlight of teaching at Bolton School?

There are so many amazing events and activities going on in this school, especially in Music, so I have to mention the concerts. Bridgewater Hall of course stands out in the memory, but one of my favourites was conducting the Year 7 Concert when we did songs from The Lion King!

What will you miss about BSGD?

Above all, it is the people. I have taught hundreds of great students, worked with talented young musicians, and I have had fantastic colleagues to work with, especially in Team Music! Oh, and I will definitely miss school lunches when I have to make my own each morning...

Do you have any advice for pupils?

Just simply to make the most of all the opportunities on offer at Bolton School. I have never known a place with so many clubs, trips and events to be involved in! Try new things, find what you enjoy and give it your all. Don’t miss out because you feel unsure, or your friends are doing something else, or you’re hungry and just want to go to lunch...

Are there any other memories you would like to share?

I admit that I had no idea what Christmas Post was actually about for the first two or three years of being at Bolton School!

Mr Eric Morgan

Science Technician

Mr Morgan is retiring after working in the Science Department for the past 11 years.

I have only been at Bolton School since 2006. I started part-time as a cover for technicians who were off sick. The Headmistress at the time, Gill Richards, asked me to take a full-time contract so I handed my notice in at Thornleigh Salesian College and started my permanent job here in January 2007.

As the KS3 technician I could indulge my childish thoughts and I have really enjoyed welcoming year 5 and 6 pupils for Primary Liaison sessions in the Science department. Hopefully I have made an impression on some of them to want to do science at Bolton School.

I brought many skills from my previous career as a Telephone Engineer and when I retire I will miss using them. I have been able to perform miracles in my other role as A/V technician for several departments and I have gained a lot of satisfaction.

My future will be taken up with looking after my disabled wife and enjoying the freedom of not working. I will be able to spend a bit more time bell ringing and researching my local church, dating back to before Henry VIII.

What I will really miss is the team of technicians, other support staff and many of the teachers I have come into contact with over the past 11 years.

Alumni Events

‘7’ Class Reunion

Over 200 Old Boys, Old Girls and former staff gathered at School in May for a trip down memory lane. For many it was the first time they had returned since leaving and there were some emotional reunions with former classmates. After catching up with old friends and enjoying a traditional school dinner there was an opportunity to take a tour round School to see what had changed - and what hadn’t!

Bristol Dinner

The Grand Hotel – Friday 30th September 2016

Oxford Dinner

Balliol College – Friday 18th November 2016

Alex Hopkinson (2002-2016)

Cambridge Dinner

Pat Priestley (née Oxley, 1945-1953)

Margaret Southgate (née Close, 1960-1967) Christine Watson (née West, 1958-1965)

Alex Hopkinson (2002-2016) Lucy Nolan (1996-20101)

Duncan Leary

Lucy Nolan (1996-2010)

Alan Hardy (1946-1954)

Yvonne Lowe (née Conroy, 1947-1955)

Audrey Hollingsworth (née Ashworth, 1947-1954) David Lowe (1944-1954)

Yvonne and David Lowe

Heather Walker (1993-2000)

‘Very enjoyable. My first experience - but not my last!’ Audrey Hollingsworth ‘A wonderful opportunity to catch up on Bolton School news.’ Margaret Southgate

‘As usual, a most enjoyable get-together.’

‘A lovely pause in hectic Oxford life to catch up with friendly faces.’

‘Such a lovely evening and lovely to see and hear what everyone is doing.’

‘So lovely to be here in such amazing company.’

Jesus College – Friday 3rd February 2017

Sarah Richards, Natasha Hall, Sohail Daniel, Than Dar (all Class of 2015)

Holly Holt (2007-2014), Emily Bodger (20072014), Izzy Sabini (1999-2013), Charlotte Wardle (Class of 2013)

Susan Gillard (née Brewis-Levie), Maxine Robbins (née Raffle), Sylvia Hutchinson, Jane Irving (all Class of 1985)

Vanessa Mitchell, Peter Reed Jane Reed (née Hall, Class of 1971) Andrew Mitchell (1962-1967)

Inspirational Alumni

Old Girl Returns as Manchester High Sheriff

Lady Smith of Leigh (1953-1961), the High Sheriff of Greater Manchester, returned to School to deliver an engaging address to the girls during morning assembly. After recalling how she had sat in the very same hall as a pupil, she spoke about the history and duties of the High Sheriff’s office.

She explained that the term ‘Sheriff’ was first coined in Saxon times and is the oldest continuous secular office under The Crown. There are several references in the Magna Carta about measures designed to cut the power of the High Sheriffs – Lady Smith said if she had been in office during King John’s time she would have had tax collecting duties and would have been very powerful! However, the role is now

largely ceremonial and symbolic as a keeper of the Queen’s peace. One of her jobs is to entertain high court judges and she also has the pleasure of meeting royalty when they visit the area. Her role also involves supporting the emergency services, the police and the armed forces, and she particularly enjoys visiting people working in the voluntary sector.

Lady Smith also visited Hesketh House where she talked to pupils about what her role as High Sheriff involves and recounted some fascinating anecdotes about her time as a Bolton School pupil before presenting the Junior Girls’ chess team with certificates and a trophy they had won the previous evening at a Bolton League match.

Inspiration from WAGGGS Chair

Old Girl Nicola Grinstead returned to Bolton School to speak to Sixth Form students about her experiences and career. She currently has two jobs: she is the Deputy Chief Executive for Great Ormond St Hospital (GOSH) and also the Chair of the World Board for the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS). She spoke passionately about both of these roles, talking the Sixth Formers through a ‘typical day’ at GOSH and WAGGGS and also touching on the important work that both of these organisations do. She gave an overview of her ‘defining moments’ and closed her talk with some great lessons and advice inspired by her career so far. She ended with the message that the girls should not underestimate themselves and the contribution they can make.

Pupils face Grandmaster in simultaneous chess match

Old Boy and chess grandmaster Nigel Short returned to School to meet the new crop of chess enthusiasts and to inspire the next generation of players.

Nigel left Bolton School in 1981 and at that time was already a chess prodigy, having tied for first place at the British Championship in 1979 and become the youngest International Master at the time in 1979/80. He was awarded the title of grandmaster at the age of 19, becoming the youngest in the world at the time. He remains one of the most successful players Britain has ever produced.

His visit culminated in a simultaneous chess match against 23 Junior and Senior School pupils, ranging in age from 8 to 18. As the match got underway, the Arts Centre fell silent and there was an atmosphere of intense concentration. At the hour mark, all pupils were still playing. However, the first few began to

fall shortly after and, by the time an hour and a half had passed, Nigel had halved his pool of opponents. However, as two hours went by, eleven boards remained active, including representatives from all four parts of the School.

Ultimately the grandmaster’s wealth of experience proved too much for the next generation, and after two and a half hours of chess, the last Bolton School player, Year 10 pupil Sharon Daniel , was defeated. Sharon, who is Captain of the School chess team and a member of the National Junior Chess Squad, and has previously been crowned the British under-11s and under-13s girls’ champion, said “I was honoured to be playing a grandmaster because it’s not every day that you get to play one of the best players in the world, and to be the last player standing showed that I am able to compete with players at a higher level.”

“Every chess player hopes to play a grandmaster at least once in their lifetime but this is the second time I’ve had the opportunity to play with Nigel Short. This is a wonderful experience that I will never forget. I would like to thank Bolton School for organising this event which will help to inspire the next generation of chess players.”

The High Sheriff of Greater Manchester with the Deputy Head Girls, L-R: Vasudha Marthi, Victoria Jolley, Alisha Maini, Rebecca Dixon, Sreya Coomer

Helen Thaventhiran (née Crawforth,

1994-2001)

Helen is now a university lecturer in Literature from 1830 to the Present and is a fellow of Robinson College, Cambridge. She lives in Cambridge with her husband, James – an immunologist – and their two children: John, who is four years old and Francis, who is 18 months old.

Alice Gregson (1992-2006)

Having hated cross country at School and being more of a swimmer than a runner, Alice is sure Mrs McCulloch and Miss Donaghy would be shocked to hear that she is going to be running the London Marathon on 23rd April for Children With Cancer UK, a charity which does amazing work funding research into childhood cancer, as well as supporting children with cancer and their families through welfare programmes and awareness schemes. Anyone wishing to sponsor Alice in this worth cause can visit her link: https://goo.gl/ESTCgi

Laura Grace (2002-2007)

Congratulations to Laura who has recently graduated from Lancaster University with a PhD in Medicine. She has now stepped out of academia and is working in medical communications as a medical writer.

Holly Morton (2004-2009)

After completing a BA in English Literature at University of Chester with a 2:1, Holly worked for a brief spell at Graduate Prospects, and is now studying for a Masters in Creative Writing at the University of Salford. She hopes afterwards to study for a PGCE.

Rosie Brown (2000-2010)

Rosie graduated from Cambridge in 2013, and chose to dedicate her degree to the late Dr Brown of Bolton School’s RS department.

Having caught the musical theatre bug whilst playing Fantine in Bolton School’s production of Les Misérables in 2010, Rosie went on to study for a Masters at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. However, after that she decided that she hadn’t quite finished with theology, and so returned to Cambridge for an MPhil which she will be completing this year, and graduating with the further Cambridge MA. Rosie is moving to China to work for Disney Education Worldwide, before applying for PhDs in religious studies in the USA.

Tia Louden (2002-2011)

After graduating from Reading with a degree in Politics and International Relations, Tia went on to do a Masters in HR at the Henley Business School. She is now working as an incident coordinator for Microsoft.

Hannah Furey (Class of 2012)

Hannah graduated in December having achieved a First Class Honours degree in Microbiology in Relation to Medicine from Leeds University during her intercalation year.

E lizabeth Garretty (2006-2012)

Lizzy studied at West Thames College, London (2014-2016) and achieved her qualification in Specialist Makeup (Theatre, TV, Film and Fashion). She graduated in June 2016 and is currently employed as a Wig and Makeup artist for The Lion King, Wicked and Matilda in London’s West End.

Isobel Cotogni (2007-2014)

Isobel is in her final year at Durham University studying Classics and hopes to pursue a career in the media after graduation. During her first year at Durham, she joined The Tab, the largest student news provider in the UK, and began to write articles for their Durham website. She worked closely with the editors to develop her news reporting and became Deputy Editor at the start of her second year. Several of the articles which Isobel has written for The Tab have been picked up by national newspapers such as The Sunday Times, The Daily Mail, The Sun and the Independent. With this invaluable experience down on her CV, she gained a placement at BBC Breakfast last summer and shadowing at ITV Tyne Tees. Isobel began her final year in October as Editor of The Tab Durham and returned to ITV as a weekly intern. Her advice is that industry experience is vital for those wishing to enter a career in the media and joining a student news network at university is the most important first step in gaining further experience.

Corin Greaves (2007-2014)

Corin is studying History at Bath Spa University where she has recently been awarded the Bill Martin History scholarship in support of her dissertation research on radical Civil War pamphlets. She will be going on to study for an MA in Medieval and Renaissance Studies at the John Rylands’ Institute at the University of Manchester in September.

Rachel Thomas (Class of 2007)

Rachel recently got engaged to James Clarke (Boys’ Division, Class of 2005), the pair having first met whilst at School. Although being good friends whilst at School, they did not get together until five years ago when they found themselves both living in the Bolton area after completing university. Rachel and James are now in the midst of wedding planning – with Bolton School a possible venue for the big event!

MAHA ABBASI

University of Salford

Law

SENNIA AHMED University of Liverpool Medicine

SADAF ALIKHASI University of Hertfordshire

ZAYNAB BADAT

Extended Degree in Science

Apprenticeship with PWC Accountancy

KATE BALL Apprenticeship with Siemens Accountancy

EMILY BARNES

Regent’s University London

Fashion Design with Marketing with Integrated Foundation

HANNAH BARNES (2015 Leaver) University of Liverpool Criminology

NATASHA BECKETT Nottingham Trent University

SOPHIE BENNETT

The University of York

FAZILA BHUTA Gap Year

CHARLIE BIDDULPH

PHOEBE BIRCHALL

De Montfort University

Spanish and European Studies

Linguistics with Spanish

Accounting and Finance

Manchester Metropolitan University Philosophy

CHARLOTTE BODGER University of Leeds Economics

LUCIE BURLEY Lancaster University Law

REBECCA BUTCHART

SAAMIN CHEEMA

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Batchelor of Music and Performance

University College London (2017) Biochemistry

ESTHER COMPSTY (2015 Leaver) Instituto Marangoni, Italy

Fashion Business

FIONA COOPER University of Newcastle upon Tyne Medicine

CHARLOTTE CROWE University of Sheffield Dentistry

OLIVIA DALY (2015 Leaver) University of Central Lancashire

AMY DYKINS

Asia Pacific Studies – Korean

York St John University Psychology

CONNIE EYLES St Edmunds Hall, Oxford University German and Beginners’ Russian

CHARLOTTE FIELDING University of Newcastle upon Tyne Modern Languages, Translation and Interpreting

CHLOE FISHER

SALLY FLETCHER

Southampton Solent University

Yacht Design and Production

Lancaster University Business Studies (Industry)

NUALA FOWLER Manchester Metropolitan University Foundation Diploma in Art and Design

ALYS GARTH University of Warwick Law

EILIDH GIBSON Loughborough University Drama

NICKY GILLIBRAND Lancaster University Law and Politics

ISABELLA GREGORI (2015 Leaver) London Metropolitan University Quantity Surveying

ANCHAL GUPTA (2015 Leaver) Sofia Medical School, Bulgaria Medicine

AMY HADJINICOLAOU Durham University Economics

EMMA HAILWOOD Gap Year

LAURA HAINEY University of Nottingham History

ELEANOR HARDING St Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge (2017) Medicine

ABIGAIL HARRISON University of Leeds Management with Marketing

NATALIE HENDERSON University of Nottingham English

MOLLY HERON University of the Arts London Fashion Marketing

STEPHANIE HIGGINS Gap Year

CHARLOTTE HOPKINS University of Leeds Criminal Justice and Criminology

ALEXANDRA HOPKINSON St Anne’s College, Oxford University Classics

AMELIA HOWE University of Chester Physical Education

JODIE HUGHES University of Liverpool Politics

ABBIE HUMPHREYS University of Nottingham English

JESSICA HUNT Liverpool John Moores University Marketing

EMMA HUSSAIN University of Exeter International Relations and Modern Languages

SARAH IBBERSON Durham University History

AMINA JAMEEL University of Manchester Dentistry

NEHA JEYAM University of Leeds International Business and Spanish

TARA JEYAM University of Liverpool Medicine

ALLIYA JIVA University of Manchester Aerospace Engineering with Management

OLYVIA JONES University of Nottingham Aerospace Engineering

AMY KADODWALA University of Warwick Physics

RIYA KALHAN Gap Year

AMBA KARSONDAS University of Leeds French and Russian

EMILY KAY University of Liverpool Law with Business Studies

NICHOLE KAY (2015 Leaver)

TAYYIBAH KHALID

RABIA KHALIQ

University of Newcastle upon Tyne

Chemical Engineering (5 years)

London School of Economics and Political Science Mathematics and Economics

University of Liverpool Medicine

FARHANA KOLI (2015 Leaver) University of Leeds Dental Surgery

ALICIA LANGLEY (2015 Leaver) University of Manchester Law

NATALIE LAWLER

ANNA MARIE LINFITT

Birmingham City University

Interior Design

University of Edinburgh Performance Costume

ROBYN LOMAS (2015 Leaver) Employment

OLIVIA LOWE

AMY LYONS

AYESHA MAHMOOD-QURESHI

MARIAM MAJID

Lancaster University Law

Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University Medicine

Brunel University London Mathematics with Professional Practice

Buckinghamshire New University Stadium and Events Management

GABRIELLA MARAGAKIS University of Leeds Psychology

HANNAH MERCER University of Hertfordshire Marketing

KHAMILLAH MOHAMMED (2015) Lancaster University

SERENA MOHTASHAM

Natural Sciences (Study Abroad)

Birmingham City University Legal Studies

CHARLOTTE MORLEY Gap Year

RAEESA MULLA (2015 Leaver) University of Manchester Biochemistry

AMY MUNSLOW University of Liverpool International Politics and Policy and History

KHADIJA MUSA University of Manchester History

MAUREEN NDAHIRO

Queen Mary University of London English

AAMINA NOORGAT University of Manchester Healthcare Science (Audiology)

BETHANY O’DONNELL University of Liverpool Engineering Foundation

RUTH OGDEN The University of Birmingham Philosophy

IMAN ORTHS

King’s College London (University of London) Mathematics

EMMA PARKES University of Leeds Management with Marketing

JAIMEE PATEL City University London

Actuarial Science

ISABELLE PEARCE University of Bristol Veterinary Science

LISA QUINN (2015 Leaver) University of Liverpool Accounting and Finance with a Year in Industry

AISHA QURESHI (2015 Leaver) University of Manchester Accounting and Finance

ALICE-KATE RAMSBOTTOM (2015 Leaver) Durham University Geophysics with Geology

OLIVIA RAMSDALE Keele University Politics

EMMA RAYNER University of Bath Mathematics

CHLOE ROBERTS Apprenticeship

AMY RUDDLE University of Liverpool Psychology

OLIVIA RUSSELL (2015 Leaver) University of Leeds Medicine

RAHEEMA SATTAR Gap Year

SOPHIA SECRETARY Gap Year

MARIYAH SEEDAT Gap Year

PARISA SHAH University of Liverpool Philosophy

ELISE SKEELS-CALDWELL Bangor University Psychology

ISABELLA SMITH Durham University (2017) Politics with Year Abroad

ANIKA SWAMY Keele University Biochemistry

AMBER TOBIN (2015 Leaver) University of Newcastle upon Tyne

BRIANNA TRUE

Politics and Economics

The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts Theatre and Performance Design

ELLIE TYSON University of Nottingham Psychology

FAY WAN University College London Medicine

HANNAH WATERS Lancaster University

Politics and International Relations

JO WATERWORTH Sheffield Hallam University Food and Nutrition

GEORGIA WHITE University of Newcastle upon Tyne

Combined Honours

VICTORIA WHITEHEAD (2015 Leaver) Durham University Geography

GINNY WHITESIDE Bangor University Psychology

JESSICA WILLCOCK Keele University Music

ALEX WOODHEAD University of Lincoln Criminology

MAGGIE ZHOU University College London Economics

Extend to others that which we so richly enjoy

Bolton School Girls’ Division

Chorley New Road, Bolton, BL1 4PB 01204 840 201 boltonschool.org