Spring Edition: December 2019 - March 2020
LONG ROAD SIXTH FORM COLLEGE Parents Newsletter
LongRoadSixthFormCollege @LR6FC @lr6fc
www.longroad.ac.uk 01223 631100 enquiries@longroad.ac.uk
WELCOME Happy New Year!
We have tried to narrow down our favourite
We are ecstatic to announce that we have
events that have happened over the last term
started the year with a celebration, achieving a
to share with you; but remember you can keep
continued GOOD rating in our Ofsted
up withe everything that has been going on by
inspection that took place at the end of last
checking out our website noticeboard -
term.
www.longroad.ac.uk/noticeboard.
We can't believe that we have already
We hope you enjoy this second edition of our
completed the first half-term of 2020 - with all
Parents Newsletter and wish you a happy 2020!
the exciting activities happening across college the weeks have flown by!
CONTENTS Page 3: Ofsted Report 2020 Page 4: Careers and Progression Updates Page 5: Highlighting Exceptional Students Page 6: Long Road student wins The Babraham Institute 1st prize Page 8: AoC national Championships 2020 Page 9: MedSquad Mock Interviews with Cambridge University Students Page 11: Long Road Elves raise funds for Alzheimer's Society Page 12: Long Road Alumni lead Sport Level 3 Diploma workshops Page 13: Educational Trips and Visits Page 14: Forthcoming Events
GOOD OFSTED REPORT 2020 LONG ROAD LEARNERS: RESILIENT, FOCUSED, HIGH ACHIEVING A short inspection of Long Road Sixth Form College took place on 11th to 12th December 2019. We are delighted to announce that Ofsted’s judgement is the College continues to be a good provider.
“I am so pleased with this inspection outcome as it continues Long Road’s unbroken record of positive Ofsted judgements and truly reflects the real commitment and care of our talented staff team, college governors and our hard-working, impressive students.” Yolanda Botham – Principal
Long Road is recognised as a college that prepares students for academic success and for exciting, diverse futures. Inspectors praised the value of our inclusive, rich curriculum, the quality of our teaching and learning and our exceptional student support. Ofsted were impressed by the quality of student work, their resilience and ambition.
Our specialist teachers, employer-led projects, industry mentors and extensive enrichment opportunities all enable our students to develop the expertise and skills they need to progress and thrive: ‘Teachers prepare students effectively to cope with higher-level study, an apprenticeship or employment. As a result, students are resilient and focused on achieving their goals. Students successfully move on to high-level apprenticeships, including in chemical or aerospace engineering and accountancy. Most students choose to study at university. They complete their courses and gain highgrade degrees.’
We know we aim to support every student as an individual so it was particularly pleasing that inspectors highlighted the excellent care and support provided by teachers, learning assistants and progress coaches. ‘Teachers and learning assistants support students who have high needs very effectively… This helps them make good progress with their work. ‘Progress coaches provide students with very good support. For example, they help students to improve the quality of their written work.
As a result, students improve their confidence and develop appropriate professional behaviours.’ ‘Students are well behaved and respectful to each other and to staff.’We have read the Ofsted report with care and will reflect on what we need to do to develop further. We are proud of what we have achieved since our last inspection and we are ready for the next challenge, as Ofsted says: ‘leaders and managers closely monitor the effectiveness of teaching and learning strategies.’ We certainly do and our next goal is to be judged outstanding.
A full copy of our Ofsted Report 2020 is available on our website: https://www.longroad.ac.uk/the-college/generalinformation/ofsted-report/
or on the Ofsted website: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted
CAREERS AND PROGRESSION UPDATES Apprenticeship Careers Fair On Thursday 16 January we held our annual Apprenticeship Careers Fair in collaboration with Form the Future. Taking over the Learning Resource Centre for the day, 20 organisations from a range of industries including Astra Zeneca, Morgan Sindall, Bidwell's, Cambridge University Hospitals and Cambridge University Press. Many exhibitors commented on how positive our students were and how well-informed they were about what they wanted to do in the future. "It is a real testimony to the college how well-prepared the students seem to be" said Ashley Ringger of Cambridge Assessment, and this was a sentiment repeated by many of our visitors!
Lincoln University STEM visit The College received funding from NEACO and Lincoln University to take up to 50 STEM students on a day trip to Lincoln University. On Friday 17 January our Science Department and Careers Department accompanied 50 science students to the University of Lincoln School of Life Sciences and the School of Chemistry. At the School of Chemistry students had the opportunity to experience forensic lab analysis with blood splatter identification, fingerprint techniques and human anatomy. At the School of Life Sciences students explored the importance of proteins in biochemistry with a series of engaging interactive demonstrations including looking at corn starch's non-Newtonian liquid properties and using yeast to produce the loudest of hydrogen gas tests. At the end of the day students had the opportunity to ask current Masters and PHD students about their University experiences and their career choices for the future.
HIGHLIGHTING EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS Kes Berry A huge congratulations to Kes Berry, Year 2 student currently studying Art and Design Level 3 180 Extended Diploma, who has successfully received a conditional offer to study Fine Art at Worcester College, University of Oxford!
Ellie Groom Many congratulations to Ellie Groom who has successfully applied, completed a phone interview and made it through to the late assessment interview process of the Harrods school leaver programme, offering limited places to students each year.
If successful, Ellie will be based in the London central branch where she will take part in a Level 3 Apprenticeship Scheme gaining a Level 3 Retail Team Leader qualification.
For more information on the Harrods School Leaver Programme click here: https://www.harrodscareers.com/school-leaver-programme
Alice Hitchin Congratulations to Year 2 student Alice Hitchin who has been offered a conditional offer to study Gateway Medicine at Lincoln University. Satff at Lincoln University were so impressed by Alice that they have offered her reduced entry requirements of BBC (normally ABB / BBB)
Jordan Spiller Congratulations to alumni Jordan Spiller whog graduated from Long Road in 2019. Jordan has successfully gained a place at Kent Medway medical School in Canterbury!
AoC Sport National Championships 2020 Congratulations to the following students who have qualified for individual sporting events at the AoC National Championships at the University of Nottingham in April 2020: - Aditi Dhillon – Women’s Table Tennis - Amy Cope – Women’s Cross Country - Cathy McKeag – Women’s Cross Country - Emma Charwin – Women’s Rugby Regional Team - Harry Lee – Men’s Singles Badminton - Henry Pipe – Men’s Cross Country - Katie Segrave – Women’s Rugby Regional Team - Markus Sanchez Allison – Men’s Cross Country - Seb Abbott – Men’s Singles Badminton
LONG ROAD STUDENT WINS THE BABRAHAM INSTITUTE 1ST PRIZE
In December, The Babraham Institute
chance to look at all the posters and
There were 3 prizes. In no particular
held a 6th Form student conference;
speak to the students who had made
order, 2nd and 3rd places went to
students had been invited to submit
them. This was followed by a speaker
students from Beaulieu Convent
Biology-based posters for a scientific
programme. 5 speakers gave talks
School, Jersey and Hills Road Sixth
poster conference. Posters are one
about their routes into science, why
Form College. First prize when to a
of the main ways that scientists
they would recommend what they do
Long Road student, Shilan Bayir
communicate their research and
but also the potential difficulties of a
(2nd year, Biology) for her poster on
findings to other scientists. We are
career in science. 3 of the speakers
the ‘Antimicrobial properties of
delighted to say our students were
were PhD students and two were
garlic’. Shilan had carried out an
extremely interested and supportive
scientists further on in their careers
investigation where she found
of this new event, so much so that
but who had taken different science-
different anti-bacterial properties of
Long Road students accounted for 15
based routes after PhD completion.
uncooked vs cooked garlic. Shilan
posters out of a total of 24 submitted
All of Long Road students said they
was there with Mum and both were
student posters!
had found the presentations really
delighted.
engaging and after the talks, some of A number of our students attended
our students spent quite a lot of time
the conference, either by themselves
talking to the speakers about further
or with parents. As well as 6th form
science education and careers.
student posters, a number of PhD student posters were also displayed.
Saving the best until last, after the
The evening started with the poster
talks the winners of the poster
viewing session where there was a
competition were announced.
LONG ROAD STUDENT WINS THE BABRAHAM INSTITUTE 1ST PRIZE
This was the first time that The Babraham Institute has run a 6th Form student conference, we hope that the success of the evening means this will become an annual event! We would like to congratulate all the Long Road students who took part in the event on all their hard work:
Abbie Wood: Monoclonal antibodies in immuno-oncology Alexandra Rice: Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures Amy Cope: Spectral analysis of chlorophyll in leaves during the colour change in autumn Diana Baus: What is a plant-based diet? Sophia Allwrihgt: The future of GM crops Chloe Hynes: Speech, language and the human mind Ellie Comer: Induced pluripotent stem cells for Parkinson’s Disease therapy Eszter Elo: How to win the battle against psoriasis Macey Russell: A medical high – is CBD effective?Megan Williams: DNA in police investigations Natania Jackson: The health benefits and risks of a plant-based diet Natasha Cole: The biology behind abortion
AOC NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS 2020 Long Road sports students have successfully qualified for
Joining the Basketball Academy we have the following
the AoC Sport National Championships to be held at
students competing in their respective sports…
Nottingham University in April 2020.
Aditi Dhillon – Women’s Table Tennis Amy Cope – Women’s Cross Country Over the last few years we have only had representatives in individual sports but this time we have
Cathy McKeag – Women’s Cross Country Emma Charwin – Women’s Rugby Regional Team
students competing in both team and individual sports.
Harry Lee – Men’s Singles Badminton
Our Basketball Academy won the regional tournament to
Henry Pipe – Men’s Cross Country
qualify for the National Champs for the 1st time ever after coming so close in previous years. The squad will
Katie Segrave – Women’s Rugby Regional Team Markus Sanchez Allison – Men’s Cross Country Seb Abbott – Men’s Singles Badminton
involve 11 students from the programme.
Congratulations to all 20 students representing the college and the Eastern Region at the National Championship. Good luck for your events in April, we can't wait to hear how you get on!
MEDSQUAD MOCK INTERVIEWS WITH CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS At the end of November, a group of 6 MedSquad students took part in mock MMIs (multiple mini interviews) with members of the Long Road Senior Leadership Team and Medical students from the University of Cambridge.
Our Long Road MedSquad is a group of students who are interested in applying to medical schools after they finish their studies at Long Road; these students work closely with University of Cambridge medical students who frequently lead workshops and talks giving our MedSquad students advice and guidance on applying to medical schools across the UK. This is the 2nd year that MedSquad students have taken part in mock medical school interviews organised by Biology Course Team Leader, Paul Andrew.
In the UK, MMIs are the most popular method of interviewing potential medical students; with almost all medical students having to face an MMI at some point in their journey along their chosen career paths. With nearly 30 medical schools in the UK using this method of interviewing, students can find they are assessed on a variety of topics at different institutions. In general, students will face between 5 and 10 interview stations, with each interview lasting between 5 and 10 minutes. Stations can range from 1-on-1 interviews to role-play scenarios; each station is designed to test different skills that medical schools are looking for in their students. A good understanding of clinical concepts, current affairs and medical ethics are key and prior preparation is vital!
MEDSQUAD MOCK INTERVIEWS WITH CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Our students faced 7 different interview stations; with interviews lasting 5 minutes and then have a 3 minute debrief giving the student the opportunity to hear interviewer feedback and take a look at the comments on their review sheet. Station 1 was led by Andy Goodwin, Head of Progression and Careers, who focused on ethical issues in medicine; Station 2 was led by Paul Andrew, Biology Course Team Leader, who looked at the students’ personal statements and their insight into medicine; on Station 3 sat two medical students from the University of Cambridge, Jane Li and Alex Burrows, who assessed data interpretation.
Moving on to Station 4, students were assessed on photography interpretation by Yolanda Botham, Long Road Sixth Form College Principal, and Karen Everitt, Learning Resource Centre Manager; students then had a 1-on-1 interview with David Jones, Head of Science, discussing current issues and topics surrounding the NHS; next up at Station 6, Steve Dann, Vice Principal, and Chris Childs, Assistant Vice Principal, gave the students a role-play scenario. Finally, on Station 7 students were interviewed 1-on1 by University of Cambridge medical student Madhu Pandiaraja on why they want to study medicine.
The event was a great success once again with positive feedback from all students and staff involved.
LONG ROAD ELVES RAISE FUNDS FOR ALZHEIMERS SOCIETY
On Friday 6th December a festive feeling took hold of the college as staff and students were invited to take part in Elf Day – dressing as Christmas Elves to raise money and awareness for Alzheimers Society.
Members of staff across the college took part, with Ben Hudson, Course Team Leader Level 3 Applied Sport, dressing as Santa with Matt Payne, Sports Services Manager, and Liam Badcock, Sports Services Technician, taking on the role as head Elves.
Ben, Matt and Liam bought spread Christmas cheer throughout the college as they visited classes and spent break time and lunchtime collection donations from staff and students. We are delighted to announce that the final total raised was all of which will be going to Alzheimers Society!
We’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who got involved and to all those who made a donation.
£100,
LONG ROAD ALUMNI LEAD SPORT LEVEL 3 DIPLOMA WORKSHOPS We would like to say a huge thank you to our #LongRoadAlumni who have recently come back to campus and spent time working with our current Sports students! Our Alumni have volunteered their free time to come back to Long Road and talk to Sports classes, giving advice and sharing stories about their time at Long Road and what they have been doing since leaving us!
Josh Lewis Josh was a 60 credit Level 3 Extended Certificate Sport student who finished with a Merit in May 2019. He was also Captain of the Men’s 1st Football Team, who won the College Football league last year. He is now studying Business Sport Management at the University of Lincoln.
Mollie Messenger Mollie was a 180 credit Level 3 Extended Diploma Sport student who left Long Road 4 years ago, achieving DDD*.
Mollie is now a Massage Therapist and pitchside First Aider for the Cambridge Rugby Club 1st Team. She is studying a Level 5 Professional Diplom in Sports Massage and Remedial Soft Tissue Therapy alongside her work.
Connor Campbell Connor left Long Road 6 years ago after achieving a DD* in 120 Level 3 Diploma Sport. He went on the Solent University of Southampton where he graduated with a 2:1 BSc Sports Coaching.
Since graduating Connor has worked as a Cambridgeshire Cricket Development Coach teaching cricket in a range of primary and secondary schools. He is now working as a Graduate Assistant Sport and PE Teacher at North Cambridge Academy before training as a secondary school PE teacher next September.
Emma Negus Emma was a 60 credit Level 3 Extended Certificate Sport student who left Long Road in May 2019 with a D*. She is currently coaching gymnastics and dance in primary schools around Bury St Edmunds and Newmarket, taking some time to decide what course she wants to study at University.
EDUCATIONAL TRIPS AND VISITS Our students have taken part in the usual wide range of trips, visits and visiting speakers this term, a list of which can be found detailed below. You can also keep up-to-date and find out more about a range of college activities on our website noticeboard -
Date
www.longroad.ac.uk/noticeboard
Department
Event
08 January 2020
Criminology
Criminology Conference: Life Behind Bars
08 January 2020
Media
Norwich University of the Arts
15 January 2020
Criminology
Border Force, Stansted Airport
16 January 2020
Careers & Progression
Apprenticeship Careers Event
17 January 2020
Careers & Progression
University of Lincoln bespoke Science open day
18 January 2020
Foundation Art
New York City
20 January 2020
Biology
Young Pharmas masterclass, McCrum Lecture Theatre
23 January 2020
Photography
National Portrait Gallery
23 January 2020
Careers & Progession
Applied Science trip to Sizewell B Power Station
24 January 2020
Performing Arts
Splendid Theatre Company workshop
29 January 2020
Business
Cambridge University Press employability skills workshop
29 January 2020
Careers and Progression
Applied Science trip to Suez Recycling & Recovery UK
30 January 2020
English
Arts Theatre - Othello
04 February 2020
Business Studies
South Cambridgeshire Hall employer visit
04 February 2020
Science
Aveva Group - tour and talk to graduates and apprentices
05 February 2020
English
Julie Blake, Poetry by Heart workshop
07 February 2020
11 February 2020
Performing Arts
Equality and Diversity
Big Brum Theatre Company Jekyll and Hyde performance
Palace of Westminster - Pride of Parliament tour
26 February 2020
Biology
Babraham Institute half day lab project work and careers session
27 February 2020
Performing Arts
The Arts Theatre - The Woman in Black
03 March 2020
Criminology
Lincoln University Criminology Open Day and Lincoln Castle Prison
04 March 2020
Psychology
Krakow residential trip
06 March 2020
Film Studies
Arts Picturehouse & St John Divinity School
06 March 2020
Enrichment
Gold D of E Canoe Skills Training
FORTHCOMING EVENTS We have exciting range of trips, workshops, visiting speakers and college events coming up next term, a provisional list of which can be found detailed below. Make sure your child talks to their subject teachers or Progress Coach if they want more information on any of our forthcoming events. You can also keep up-to-date on a range of forthcoming events our website noticeboard -
www.longroad.ac.uk/noticeboard/events
Date
Department
Event
11 March 2020
Economics
Jonathan Haskel, Bank of England visiting speaker
12 March 2020
Religious Studies
A Level Philosophy Conference
12 March 2020
Business
Bank of England and Coal Drop yard
16 March 2020
Media
VFX Festival
30 March 2020
Media
New York City
02 April 2020
Performing Arts
Year 1 Assessment Night (Eclectic 2020)
05 April 2020
English
Cambridge Ice Arena
Term Dates 2020 03 April 2020
End of Term
06 - 17 April 2020
Easter Holiday
08 May 2020
Bank Holida (College Closed)
25th - 29th May 2020
Half Term
04th - 05th June 2020
Staff Training Days (College Closed to Students)
22nd - 23rd June 2020
Applicant Welcome Days (College Closed to Students)
24th - 25th June 2020
Open Evenings
16th July 2020
End of Term
LONG ROAD ALUMNI This year Long Road is working with the charity Future First to help us stay in touch with former students; we're really excited to invite you to be part of it!
If you're a former student we'd love to hear what you've done since leaving us. Whether you're at university, completed an apprenticeship or have had a variety of jobs, we would love for you to join our alumni network so that we can stay connected and let you know about exciting opportunities to get involved.
There is no obligation to do anything after you've signed up but you'll receive a few updates to let you know what we're up to here at Long Road and you'll also hear about opportunities to get involved if you want to.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with Abby on afutter@longroad.ac.uk.
Signing up is easy - just follow this link: https://networks.futurefirst.org.uk/signup/longroad
Alternatively...
futurefirst.org.uk Click 'log in' Click 'Sign up as a Leaving or Former Student' Type in 'Long Road Sixth Form' Go to
Term 2: December 2019 - March 2020
LONG ROAD SIXTH FORM COLLEGE Parents Newsletter
LongRoadSixthFormCollege @LR6FC @lr6fc
www.longroad.ac.uk 01223 631100 enquiries@longroad.ac.uk