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Sport, Visual Arts and Performing Arts
Sport and Performing Arts • Association of Colleges and North West Colleges’ league competitions in various sports • Access to gym and personal training sessions • Major college production each year • College orchestra • Live Band Nights • Salford Dance Explosion • Major contribution to Glaston-Bury • LAMDA Qualification Charity and chaplaincy-based work • 4C group - College Community for Charities and
Campaigns • Fair Trade Week • One World Week • Rotary shoebox appeal
At Holy Cross we enjoy one of the best reputations in the North West for Sports and the Arts. Sport
At Holy Cross we enjoy one of the best sporting reputations in the North West and, increasingly, at national and international levels too. Our sporting teams and individuals consistently achieve a high degree of success in a variety of sports, and these can be enjoyed at a competitive and/or recreational level.
Great sports choice We enter a large number of competitions through our affiliation to the North West Colleges league, sports governing bodies, and the Association of Colleges with their annual three-day sporting festival. In recent years our students represented Holy Cross in sports at local, regional and national levels.
Scholarships Students who excel in their sport are encouraged to gain selection for county or national teams. For any
student competing at this level or higher, there is a sports scholarship scheme providing some financial and timetabling assistance to meet individual needs.
Supporting your future Sport will also strengthen and enrich your personal statement. It illustrates to university admissions departments and prospective employers that you have some of the qualities they are looking for. These qualities include physical resilience, good health, teamwork, commitment and a sense of purpose, passion and enthusiasm as well as wider interests.
Visual Arts
It is ideas that have stood front and centre in the recent history of Art and Design. Art and Design at Holy Cross mirrors this, as students are encouraged to explore a diverse range of sources, generating practical work where ideas are developed in Art & Design, Graphics, Photography or Textiles. These disciplines can be life-affirming, lifechanging, teachable, learnable, intellectual and an unbelievably exciting way to look at the world. Students find the most inventive, personal and innovative approaches to making artwork, taking ownership of the creative process, solving problems and arriving at a place often beyond their expectations. Art & Design is celebrated in and around the college, as well as in the huge final exhibition, held off site for the past nine years. For more details see: http://anoaktree.org As a department we believe it is critical for our students to develop a number of skills to help prepare them for a career within the creative industry, and in 2017 we launched ‘The Collective Project’ as a space / platform / opportunity for our students to further develop and share creative practice. The Collective is an eclectic group of inspired young artists and designers at Holy Cross College who have been involved in exploring and creatively responding to an ambitious array of topics. Since its inception, more than 100 students have contributed to the programme and today it has grown to be an exemplary demonstration of student initiative and capability. Now operating as a self-run, highly developed organisation our students are putting their skills as artists and designers into practice. We have held exhibitions attended by thousands of people, distributed over 4,000 publications, and raised over £5,000 as a successful business to fund their creative endeavours. For more information please see: http://www.thecollective.org.uk
Performing Arts
We are a close-knit family of subjects that offer a lively and exciting enrichment programme to support our students and offer them a wide variety of extended performance opportunities. Over the past few years, we have staged the musicals Little Shop of Horrors and West Side Story and the operas ‘Requiem’ and ‘L’enfant et les Sortilèges,’ alongside Dance and Christmas Evenings and our ever popular Live Music Nights. We stage most of our public performances in our newly refurbished hall. The department also hosts a Drama Studio; Dance Studio; Recording and Mixing Studio and 5 Music Rehearsal rooms.
We seize opportunities for our students to perform within our local community, with performances at Bury Met; Bury Art Museum; Ramsbottom Music Festival; Carol Singing at Manchester Markets and band performances at Glaston-Bury. Staff in the department have a variety of industry expertise and will help you to develop your performance technique and there is plenty of direct support that will prepare you for future auditions.
Within the department, we have a Director of Music who organises our thriving 40+ choir and Chamber Choir which meets weekly. We also have a choral scholarship programme for our most ambitious singers. Aside from this, we offer instrumental and voice lessons with a dedicated team of professional musicians. We run weekly rehearsals with the orchestra, jazz band and guitar ensemble, a biennial Music Tour (previous trips have included Paris and Freiburg) and also an annual Theatre trip to London. If developing skills as a theatre or sound technician is more for you, there are opportunities to work with industry-standard lighting and sound equipment. You don’t have to study Performing Arts subjects to take part in the many cultural activities available at Holy Cross – they are open to all. We just ask for determination, enthusiasm and a can-do attitude!
Case Study
Emma Rayner
Subjects studied: Biology, Psychology, Physical Education I selected my A level subjects to reflect requirements held by universities to access my career aim of a physiotherapy degree course.
I was able to manage my academic and netball aspirations thanks to the flexibility of staff at Holy Cross in structuring my timetable to accommodate the, sometimes competing, demands of both areas. My form tutor's assistance in helping me with my university applications was really beneficial and was greatly appreciated. It enabled me to fulfil my career aspirations.
Case Study
Harry Surplus
Subjects studied: A Level Maths, A Level Further Maths, A Level Drama & Theatre Studies
My time at Holy Cross was fabulous. The welcoming, approachable and friendly teachers made my experience one to remember. I throughly enjoyed studying maths and learning from expert mathematicians. My lessons were engaging, challenging and most importantly fun. As well as maths, the drama department helped share my creative side and opened some excellent opportunities for me, like becoming Deputy Stage Manager of ’Les Miserables’. If you love performing like me then I’d highly recommend getting involved in the college production. I am now studying Mathematics at The University of Manchester. I hope to complete a PGCE and become a Mathematics teacher. A big thank you to Holy Cross for everything.
Holy Cross Sixth Form College
Holy Cross College is situated conveniently close to Bury town centre and approximately 1/2 mile from the bus and metrolink station giving access to all nearby towns and to central Manchester (Victoria and Piccadilly stations).
Holy Cross Sixth Form College Manchester Road Bury Lancashire BL9 9BB Tel: 0161 762 4500 www.holycross.ac.uk Email: information@holycross.ac.uk
