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JANUARY 22nd 2016 Issue 8
Our Aim
In accordance with our Mission Statement the School’s aim
Faith and Worship
60
To help us to grow spiritually as followers of Christ and as members of a C community: to make prayer, worship and liturgy central to school life.
School and Community
Celebrating Years of Celebrating 60 Years of60Outstan Outstanding Learning 1955 - 2015
To encourage and develop relationships between home, parish, school and the wider com in order to prepare our pupils to become responsible, I love comingcaring to workcitizens. here each day.
Often it doesn’t feel like work. We are a Catholic co privilege to see our young people flourishing, to sp School closes for half-term February 13th ways and watch them grow in confidence. They a To develop an effective system of communications and relationships which is based Year 11 GCSE Drama every lesson great adventures and stories unfold bor 60th Anniversary School Review Gospel values of mutual respect, tolerance, care and understanding towards all member Written (this week) January 25th and creativity. Our equally inspiring staff are dedica school community. Over the next few care. weeks They we willmay be reviewing closely a re person in their get outstanding brings so much more to the education of our studen HT Surgery January 25th of aspects of school life and consulting on some Individual Support and Development number differently so that every child can realise their gifts a PSHE Super Day January 11th they are.to Doing this badge; meansinthat we are bringing changes the school the introduction of a to Burns Supper January 29th 7 pm ethos of to theencourage school. To celebrate the unique nature of each person and their development as indi
Communications and Relationships IMPORTANT DATES & FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Year 11 Parents’ Evening
February 4th
motto and our school vision and values. Contributions to
There is great spirit and energy in this school. You c curricular activities, in the array of research projec Ash Wednesday February 10th our are gratefully received. details to thecommunity creativity that flows through our More learning. There A National Teach To introduce all pupils to a broad, balanced, relevant and differentiated curriculum and t one is left behind, no-one is left out. Visitors New York trip February 13th A National often School o follow. pupils with the necessary knowledge, skillsofand Christian values required a rapidly ch purpose they find in the school; in this comes fro Year 8 Reviews Curriculum
February 8th - 10th
this process from parents, guardians and members of
On Wednesday we welcomed Grindsmith Coffee Company from Deansgate into the school with their mobile coffee cart. Pete and Natasha from the company gave up their time free of charge to teach Year 10 students about producing, making and creating great coffee. This included teaching them to use the professional machines and discussing the ethics of coffee and the challenges of being an entrepreneur. They also opened a pop-up coffee shop that saw staff, students and members of the local community come in for pastries and various beverages. Sixth Former Toni Eckersley, said that she had learnt a great deal about how to make a cappuccino and was impressed by how difficult the process was, but wanted to show off her perfect milk foam. The coffee shop also opened for the Year 9 parents evening. We look forward to our partnership with Grindsmith continuing as we explore the possibilities of opening a permanent student-led venture in the now-over-subscribed 6th form for next year.
COFFEE ENTERPRISE LAUNCHED
The BBC School report group just goes from strength to strength. They were out in force this week reporting on school events and have now had their work published on the BBC blog. They were especially lucky to be visited by professional journalist, camerawoman and producer Georgina Kiedrowski who has worked with Bear Grylls and was planning her next trip to cover the refugee crisis in Jordan. She participated in a morning workshop and fielded questions about her work from the students.
BBC SCHOOL REPORT UPDATE Year 8, 10 and 11 Spanish students were treated to an enjoyable and creative performance by the Flying Theatre Company who performed their piece Viva Espana to the students. Thank you to Miss Higson for arranging this.
SPANISH THEATRE PERFORMANCE
We hosted the second of our Business Breakfasts this week, welcoming yet more enterprising thinkers and doers to the school. The Year 10 Young Enterprise group were able to network with our business partners and learn more about the skills needed for life and work by listening to conversations between the business people, Mrs. Cheshire and Mr. Davis. Thanks to Anita from our good friends the 16-25 Growth Hub for yet again helping to facilitate the meeting. This week we took the first tentative steps towards creating a whole school library. English teacher Mrs. Fay is leading the work and we are seeking donations of books from parents, guardians and local people. You can sponsor a new book and your name will be recorded in the frontispiece of the volume. Please contact us for more details.
The newly formed Profile Group is leading assemblies all next week to raise awareness of the cause that they are supporting. The group, led by Miss Singleton, has over 20 members who are co-ordinating various activities. They have an excellent logo (seen here) designed by Autumn Coomber in Year 9 and they are now collecting donations of baby clothing and equipment to give to new mothers highlighting the positive alternative to abortion. All donations are gratefully accepted.
PRO-LIFE GROUP
BUSINESS BREAKFAST & LIBRARY DEVELOPMENT
Year 11 students had the privilege of listening to speaker John Pridmore on Thursday. John is a regular visitor to the school and spoke with the entire year group about his life in organised crime, his upbringing and the transformation that occurred when he opened his heart to God. His positive message and honest reflections were an inspiration to many in the room and we were honoured to spend time with him praying. John gave each student a business card encouraging them to contact him and also took part in the Sacrament of Reconcilation with all the year group. Over the course of two days over 200 students went to confession, many of them did so directly after hearing John speak. Head of RE Mr. Davies commented: ‘Over 200 pupils and staff took the opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation over the past couple of days; a most significant number and testament to the spirituality we all help instil in our community. This engagement in the Faith is uncommon and should not be taken for granted. Our school has been recognised as a beacon of good practice. Our visitors congratulated us on the work we do and recognised, from the moment they entered the building, a warmth of welcome from us all.’
VISIT BY JOHN PRIDMORE & SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION Congratulations to Year 10 student Holly Grimes who was selected this week for the RFU Under-15 North Junior Academy for the women’s rugby team - a fantastic achievement. Congratulations also go to Charlotte Bradley (Year 9) whose writing appears in a newly published Young Writers’ anthology.
CONGRATULATIONS TO HOLLY AND CHARLOTTE
our commitment to the local community: expectations of students and parents/ guardians This week I was very privileged to meet with local residents. I had invited them into the school to get to know our community and to develop our links with it. I think it is vital that we are an outward-looking school who are very much part of the community. Many of the residents were positive about our young people, particularly those who on the night stayed behind to help serve tea, coffee and biscuits. The residents raised a number of issues with me that I think merit being brought to the attention of parents and guardians. I ask that you give due consideration to these and, where they apply to you or your child, consider acting on them to improve relationships for the benefit of everyone. •
Please observe the 20 mph speed limit on the roads surrounding the school where it applies.
•
As far as it is possible parents, staff and visitors are asked not to park on Ash Drive. Doubleparking especially is dangerous and inconsiderate. When picking up children from school you are asked to park with consideration for local residents and, if possible, park a distance from the school to allow students to walk safely to buses and cars. If you find yourself in a discussion with a local resident regarding this matter please speak with respect at all times.
•
If your son or daughter cycles to school they must wear a helmet and ensure that they are displaying working lights. In addition, they must cycle on the road and not on pavements. If staff see these guidelines being infringed we will contact parents and guardians to discuss and will ask that the young person concerned does not cycle to school unless the matters are addressed.
•
All litter is unacceptable. Parents and guardians are asked to remind their children of this and are asked to reinforce to students the need to use the litter bins provided. Students caught littering are always asked to take responsibility for their actions. Student-led litter patrols in the local area will begin soon.
•
The safety of our students is our priority on the roads around the school. This comes before the convenience of parents and guardians
Thank you in advance for your support in these matters.
Ben Davis, Headteacher
REMINDER - TOOTOOT: IMPROVING COMMUNICATION & TACKLING BULLYING I am pleased to announce that we have now launched a new online system for reporting incidents of bullying or any other concerns that our young people may have. It is called Tootoot and can be found via the link on our website (on the top bar of the home page) or accessed by following this link: http://www.tootoot.co.uk The site is completed secure and allows students to report bullying, harassment, racism, mental health concerns, abuse or any other issue directly to the school at any time of day or night. The information is then picked up immediately by the appropriate member of staff and dealt with swiftly. Our students are already excellent at speaking to staff about these issues, especially when they have concerns or anxieties, so Tootoot does not replace face-to-face communication. It is simply an extra way of telling us when students have concerns. Every student has been given a Username and Password. These can be changed if necessary- any issues with the administration of Tootoot are dealt with by the school. You might find it useful to view the following online films which tell you more about Tootoot. You can also download a free Tootoot app to your phone or to your child's phone. https://tootoot.co.uk/how-it-works https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTOFOb9-CZM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FuB4q_biyI As with any online platform we ask parents and guardians to monitor children's usage and to ensure that Tootoot is used responsibly to report genuine incidents and concerns. The start of the new year may well be a good time for parents and guardians to review the way their children are using the internet. We have become aware of a number of apps that are being used to hide photos and texts from on phones, often behind a calculator. Sometimes these photos and texts are being used inappropriately to embarrass or bully others. All students, particularly younger ones, would benefit from being spoken to by parents and guardians about safe and responsible internet use, security settings on social media profiles and the risks of sharing photos and personal information online. We can help with this - just get in touch.
 
OUR SCHOOL THIS WEEK internationally reknowned speaker john pridmore meets the year 11 student leadership team (above) and talks to all of year 11 (below).
OUR SCHOOL THIS WEEK
GRINDSMITH WORKING IN THE 6TH FORM WITH YEAR 10; THE BBC SCHOOL REPORT GROUP HEARING FROM JOURNALIST GEORGINA KIEDROWSKI
YEAR 9 PARENTS’ EVENING (JANUARY 20TH) PARENT FEEDBACK SUMMARY THE OVERALL ATTENDANCE WAS 65%. THIS IS BELOW EXPECTATIONS AND A 2% REDUCTION ON LAST YEAR. WE ARE KEEN TO WORK WITH PARENTS AND GUARDIANS TO IMPROVE ATTENDANCE AT THIS PARENTS’ EVENING. Parental Attendance %
Form 9A
69
9B
78
9C
67
9F
60
9J
41
9L
69
9M
70
Overall parent attendance
65
2015 Year 9 Parent Attendance
67
PARENT SATISFACTION SURVEYS We issued parent surveys to all those who attended. 56 surveys were completed and returned. The collated results are below. All numbers are percentages. Agree/ strongly agree
Disagree/ Strongly disagree
Don’t know
My child is happy at this school
99
1
My child feels safe at this school
95
5
My child makes good progress at this school
100
My child is well looked after at this school
96
4
My child is taught well at this school
96
4
My child receives appropriate homework at this school
84
This school makes sure its pupils are well behaved
99
This school deals effectively with bullying
66
This school is well led and managed
93
This school responds to any concerns I raise
82
5
I receive valuable information from the school about my child’s progress
93
7
I would recommend this school to another parent
99
1
12
4 1
4
30 7 13
YEAR 10/11 EXAMS 2016 Monday 22.02.16 to Friday 26.02.16 YEAR 10/11 EXAMS 2016
all other subject areas NOT22.02.16 MENTIONEDtoHERE will26.02.16 run their year 10 exams in Monday Friday the classroom during normal lesson time. STUDENT TIMETABLE DAY
DATE
9.00AM START
Duration
10.45 START P3,4&part5E
Duration 2.00PM START
Duration
MON
22.02.16
YR11 Add Science 1h 30m YR11 Triple Bly 1h 30m 6th Form Maths P1 1h 45m
10.45am YR11 Maths P1 Non Calc
1h 45m
YR11 RE
1h 30m
TUES
23.02.16
YR10 English
1h 45m
5L start: YR10 Maths P1 Non Calc
1h 45m
WED
24.02.16
YR11 English 6th Form English
1h 30m 1h 30m
5L start: YR10 Maths P2 Calc 1h 45m YR11 Triple Chy 1h 30m 6th Form Maths P2 1h 45m
THUR
25.02.16
YR11 Maths P2 Calc
1h 45m
5L start: YR10 Science
FRI
26.02.16
YR11 RE
1h 10m
10.45am YR11 Triple Phy
1h 30m
1h 30m
Dear all: It has been agreed by Ben, that all other subject areas will run their year 10 exams in the classroom during normal esson time.
A schedule will be produced for this, which will show the timeline in which to complete them.
PLEASE NOTICE THAT THE DATES HAVE CHANGED FROM THOSE PUBLISHED IN THE CALENDAR: THEREFORE, W/C 04.04.16 AND 11.04.16 WILL BECOME NORMAL TEACHING WEEKS.
Do you want to feel really prepared for your English exams? Improve your: Timing SPaG Analysis Reading (all of these skills can BOOST your grades in EVERY subject too!) Mrs O’Connor – 2E1 – 8am - Mondays and Wednesdays