2021 Christmas Newsletter

Christmas Term Newsletter 2021

Message from the Principal Dear Parents I am delighted that what we had hoped for at the start of our Christmas term in September - that is, a return to as near normal a school as possible - has happened, including • A safe campus for students and staff – with low rates of infection • The majority of students back on campus with their teachers and peers, making good academic progress and not a ‘bubble’ in sight!

• A full calendar of extra-curricular clubs, sports lessons, training and fixtures • UK day trips and visits, fieldwork and DofE expeditions and camps • Plans in place for international trips & visits • Rehearsals in full flow for the College musical, Grease, in February • Social events for our students • The return of the College’s prestigious Rugby Festival • Assemblies & services in our Chapel • Performances for parents, and peripatetic music and LAMDA tuition • University applications being made • Nativities, a Lower School panto, two Prep carol concerts and an outdoor carol service – with donkeys!

• Children & young people being active, sociable, responsible, caring and compassionate Thank you for your continued support and for helping to keep your children safe and well, which is hugely appreciated. May I wish all St Jo’s families a peaceful Christmas and quality family time filled with festive joy.

Mrs Danielle Clarke Principal

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A Word from Mrs Wood ‘Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of Man’s desire to understand’ Neil Armstrong.

If you work in a Prep School, you cannot fail to be interested in what fascinates and inspires children. It is the daily magic moments that wow and captivate children, causing their eyes to shine, and resulting in deep concentration leading them to new and wonderful experiences. As humans have evolved, these magic moments have helped us to learn quickly and avidly in order to survive.

This term we have enriched the curriculum with magic moments: pupils have been immersed in the continent of Africa, the realms of space and pledged to save the planet. In a world so recently dominated by technology, it has been joyful to watch our pupils still being mesmerised by something that is not on a screen. Enjoyable experiences with their peers and days out have provided awe and wonder.

We endeavour to provide our pupils with experiences in which they show great interest, and provide time for them to wonder and find out. A sense of awe and wonder allows our pupils to become more creative, makes them more curious, deeper thinkers and skillful problem solvers.

The Christmas season also creates fascination and is a magical time. Children do not overcomplicate things and as the Christmas term draws to a close, we have joined together for thoughtful Nativities, joyous carols, enjoyable parties and an enchanting visit from Father Christmas.

I wish you and your family a Christmas filled with happiness and wonder.

Mrs Wood Vice Principal – Head of Prep School

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Rugby Festival Back bigger and better than ever, St Joseph’s College National Schools Rugby Festival returned after last year’s cancellation due to Covid, and it was a defining moment of the term. The College smoothly reinstated all the valued rituals, including the naming of the team, the presentation of match shirts, and the squad singing of Jerusalem, our College hymn, to the assembled school.

Sixteen schools took part, including the previous winners, Wellington College, and the competition was strengthened with the inclusion of Cheltenham College (replacing John Fisher School) and Kings School Worcester (replacing St Peter’s York).

Welcomed back with messages of support from schools and colleges across the country, this king maker in the sporting calendar means almost as much to the wider community as it does to ‘Joeys’ across the globe. Livestream views of the games topped 100,000. The Festival also bolstered the local community, with hotels sold out and food concessions doing a roaring trade.

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‘Sport, and rugby in particular, is so much more than physical exertion. It’s the distillation of hard work, commitment, resilience and camaraderie. It is the stuff that puts the hairs up on the back of your neck!’ said Mr O’Riordan, the College’s Director of Sport.

On the pitch, Millfield won a sensational final with a tense 10-7 victory over Brighton College, to clinch a record seventh title. St Joseph's College's 1st XV performed gallantly throughout the event, losing narrowly to both of the eventual finalists before going on to win the Shield competition.

It was wonderful to welcome so many Old Birkfeldians back to the campus for their own games as well as the Festival proper. The OB rugby match was a massive success and the Old Girls bucked tradition with a netball game instead of the usual hockey.

Among our OB visitors was last year’s Head Boy Harri Williams, now playing for Scarlets and Wales, who generously donated a match shirt to the College. Ben Sams OB, Gabe Jones OB and Louis Martin OB all forging careers with our partners Ealing Trailfinders/Brunel University also came to watch the action. Fellow Trailfinders signing Jarno Longaretti OB and Northampton Saints Prop Leroy O’Neil OB, both joined us, too, as did Saints and England professional Lewis Ludlam OB. The Festival was as ever a brilliant example of #teamstjos.

There are more expressions of gratitude required than could reasonably be listed here, but to everyone who played a part, from our sponsors to our groundsmen, our tireless ball boys and ball girls to our caterers, our housekeepers, IT and caretaking teams, announcers, scorers and parking attendants thank you all!

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News from the Prep School

Prep School Relocates Under African Skies for an Immersive Study of That Varied and Splendid Continent With a whole continent to explore, our Prep children were very excited when their topic work took them to Africa.

The theme was woven into regular school days but was also examined in depth during special workshops.

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It was delightful to welcome grandparents for a morning and they too joined a carousel of African activities, including Kente weaving and creating tile tunics. Grandparents, parents and friends also joined us after Sharing Assembly for an Africa Exhibition in the Prep School hall.

Highlights of the morning included some rhythmic drumming by staff and some energetic African dancing performed by pupils. The work on show included flags of African nations, animal masks, cave art, travel posters, African necklaces and model scarab beetles.

Then think of a suitable destination for a school full of animal-loving children studying the continent of Africa and you could not come up with a better alternative than the 100-acre Africa Alive park near Lowestoft.

This proved to be a brilliant day out for our Year 1 to Year 6 boys and girls. They were able to see many of the wonderful animals they had been studying and painting, including lions, cheetahs, giraffes, rhinoceros and zebras.

The Prep School loved getting rhythmic whilst taking part in an African Drumming Workshop as part of their exploration of Africa.

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Mud, High Winds, Rain and Hills Pose No Problems for Seb Year 6 pupil Seb ran the Witchfinder Trail, an annual 5k run around Manningtree, to raise money for a local children’s charity and was placed 14th overall with a time of 30mins 33secs.

Only a dozen of the 101 competitors were under 18 and Seb was the youngest by far. He finished second in the Under 16s, behind a 15-year-old.

The Witchfinder Trail is a difficult course, over muddy fields and woodland, with a number of turnstiles and two hills to negotiate. Race day also threw in high winds and rain.

Safety First and Always Nursery took part in National Road Safety Week and learnt we can all be road safety heroes. The children particularly enjoyed learning how to use the pedestrian crossing in the Prep School carpark. Our Nursery drivers observed the five miles per hour onsite speed limit and stopped to allow pedestrians to cross safely.

Parents and carers of young children should: • Hold hands with them when walking near roads • Always cross roads at safe places • Ride with children on safe paths away from traffic • Ensure children cycling wear a cycle helmet • Ensure child seats are well-fitted and appropriately sized.

• Set a good example: Drive safely at appropriate speeds; never use a phone whilst driving; always wear a seat belt; never drive under the influence of drink or drugs.

Horrible Work? No, it’s Prizewinning Creative, eye-catching and funny! Emilia (Y4) so impressed the judges of The Times' Weekend/Horrible Histories competition, she was awarded one of just 10 prizes nationally. The judges were delighted to learn - thanks to Emilia's Orwell Times front page - that Boudicca washed her dirty socks in the Orwell River. A prize of some more Horrible History books to enjoy was just right for this young reader.

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Prep School Sport Rugby

Netball

The U10 and U11 rugby teams have enjoyed a long-awaited return to contact rugby. Both teams have taken part in a series of challenging fixtures, but should be hugely proud of their growth and development. This was evidenced in the performances of both teams in their last fixture of the term against St Felix School, Southwold. Perhaps most pleasing, is the level of resilience and respect that has been evident throughout the term. Respect is a Core Value of both St Joseph’s College and England Rugby and the pupils have been fantastic ambassadors of the College in this regard.

The U8 and U9 netball teams have enjoyed an introduction to competitive school sport. The focus this season has been developing basic skills such as passing and attacking space. The girls’ attitude toward developing has been fantastic and this has seen the team go from strength to strength.

Football The focus for our U8 and U9 football teams this term, has been on aspects of team play as well as developing basic skills such as passing, dribbling and shooting. For many of our students, this has been their first experience of representing the College in sport. A highlight this year was the U9 team coming second in Littlegarth’s Football Festival.

Hockey The girls have been working hard this season to develop their team play; in particular, attacking and defensive principles. The coaching team has been particularly impressed with the stick skills on show and have noted the improvement seen in some of the players across the Christmas term. The highlight of their season was finishing it with a win against St Felix School.

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‘Every Artist was First an Amateur’ Participation in the arts unleashes students’ creativity, passion and individuality, complementing and enlivening the academic life of the College and providing the foundation for lifelong hobbies, recreations and careers.

As ever, our Creative and Performing Arts Faculty has been operating at full pitch this term, with students working on a pantomime, rehearsing for the big musical production, Grease, showcasing their talents at the Autumn Concert and competing in outside arts competitions. Our art rooms have seen some brilliant creations and workshops, including Christmas wreath making.

GCSE and A-level Textiles students benefited hugely when designer Hector Maclean, who has worked with Vivienne Westwood, Mark Fast and Matthew Williamson, came in for the day to share his fabulous industry experience. Our students developed their fashion illustration, draping and pattern skills.

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Ralph Waldo Emerson

St Jo's students excelled at the Suffolk Festival of Performing Arts, where they competed in speech and drama classes of a very high standard. Performing in a theatre setting, they received expert feedback from the professional adjudicator.

The categories were verse speaking, prose reading, solo acting, Shakespeare, original drama and duologue acting. Well done to Emilia (Y8), Ben (Y8), Isabella (Y8), Josie (Y9), Samuel (Y8), Clarice (Y9), Poppy (Y8) and Mariam (U6) on their excellent performances. Special congratulations to Samuel for winning the Drama and Shakespeare 12-15 years and to Mariam for winning the Drama and Shakespeare 16 years and above.

Mariam and Samuel went on to perform brilliantly in the Suffolk Festival of Performing Arts Winners' Concert in November. Both were delighted to be invited to perform again with other winners, including instrumentalists, and vocal and speech candidates.

Following a tough audition process with students from across East Anglia, Isobel (Y8) was invited to join the DanceEast Centre for Advanced Training (CAT), an indication of her exceptional talent and potential.

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Staff in the Spotlight

Mrs Sarah Edwards Director of Admissions, Marketing and Communications It feels counter-intuitive to be writing about myself; for most of my professional life it has been my role to write about the amazing organisations that I work for. If all is well, the Director of Communications is usually behind the scenes; only when questions get challenging might you see us in front of camera!

I grew up in Essex, my family originating from East London. I was fortunate to attend some amazing schools; my Dad’s experience of education had been so challenging during 1950s working class London, it was his intention to provide a very different experience for his children. I boarded at St Felix in Southwold, forging lifelong friends who remain very dear and ever present in my life. For Sixth Form, I attended Felsted, though this was an incredibly challenging period of family life, friendships forged there too, have endured. Sport was ever-present and I seized every opportunity to play, normally six days a week!

I graduated from Leicester University with a degree in English and History of Art, impatient to explore our planet. Three months in South Africa were spent living in a tent – nothing quite like wondrous African night skies studded with stars from horizon to horizon. I lived and worked in Sydney for five months, in the relative comfort of a shared dorm in a hostel. It was a city that I fell in love with and hope to take my children to see. I toured New Zealand in a campervan – the epic landscape takes your breath away and prompted prolific letter writing on flimsy blue air mail paper.

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It was my part-time job at university (the players’ bar at Leicester City FC) that opened the door to my post at The Football Association, involving travel across the UK and Europe. Plus, I was never short of match tickets! It didn’t hurt to have a reference letter from Sir Geoff Hurst MBE when I moved into my next role at a marketing agency. I loved the fast pace of agency life and had the privilege of working with some incredible brands: Coca-Cola and their movie promotions, Carlsberg as England Football sponsors and latterly Vodafone’s global Formula One sponsorship with Ferrari and McLaren Mercedes.

This, too, provided opportunities to explore new locations, Hot Laps at Maranello with Michael Schumacher, events in the heart of Milan and visiting the futuristic McLaren Technology Centre. (I took a wrong turn and had to perform a 10-point turn in my beaten-up Saab as they unloaded the trucks with gleaming F1 cars.)

After starting a family, I worked as a marketing consultant. It was then that I began working in the school sector and I was soon offered a permanent role as Head of Marketing and later General Manager at a charity.

We began looking for a school for my son, Oliver, falling in love with St Joseph’s on the day we looked round, guided on a tour by the then Director of Admissions. Oliver joined the College and the nurturing, warm and friendly atmosphere we had experienced that day, prevailed. No surprise then, that when I saw my current post advertised, I couldn’t help but apply. I joined St Jo’s in September 2019, my daughter Maya coming too. I can faithfully report that I continue to love coming to school every single day.

Focus on a Teacher Mr Stevenson Teacher of Chemistry, Head of Birkfield House I was born in Walton-on-the-Naze and grew up in and around Tendring, doing my GCSEs and A-levels at Tendring Technology College. I developed a great love of science due to some inspiring chemistry teachers. I graduated and went on to study Biomedical Science at the University of Essex where I met my wonderful wife Laura; we were in the same flat in our first year!

I did placements in hospitals and found the lab work to be not at all as I had imagined. I reconsidered my options and, possibly, subtly guided by parents (both of whom are teachers) decided to enter the profession. I trained in Colchester and worked my early career at Thurstable School in Tiptree.

In 2017 Laura and I decided on a change and moved to Mexico City to work in La Escuela de Lancaster, a bilingual school in the south of Mexico City. We spent four years there and loved every second of it. The earthquake of 2017 was not a highlight but a humbling experience, especially to see how the Mexican people rallied and showed such courage in great adversity. Mexico is a beautiful country if you ever get the chance to visit I would always recommend Chiapas or Oaxaca; Cancun is the very least Mexico has to offer!

The pandemic cut short our adventure and in 2020 we decided to return to the UK with our two adopted street dogs, en español perros callejeros - Luna and Dante. We decided to return to Laura's hometown of Ipswich and I was successful in my application to St Jo’s. As a new member of the school I have loved experiencing the unique community we have at our school and already feel very at home. The students here make every day truly excellent. The Science Faculty have been incredibly welcoming and the kindness and supportiveness of my colleagues has been incredible.

In my spare time I train mixed martial arts and Brazillian Ju-jitsu. I am a great lover of reading, especially fantasy books, perpetually waiting for Brandon Sanderson's next release. I’m also a passionate vegan and animal rights activist. I love cooking and love to ‘veganise’ old family recipes.

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News from the Senior School From Pedal Power to Rocket Science There's so much to see at the Senior School when you're a Year 6 student, so what could be better than a scooter tour? Our Year 6 girls and boys were split into small groups to explore the campus, examine the facilities and meet some of the teachers who might not yet be familiar to them. Each outing ended at the Sixth Form Centre, where the pupils enjoyed a muffin and a milkshake with Principal Mrs Clarke, Deputy Principal Mr Cinnamond, Senior Pastoral Manager Mr Fletcher and prefects.

Whilst one group was out and about each day another was working in Science with Mrs Gallagher, who had devised a whizz bang lesson on propulsion. The pupils compared various effervescent reactions before fuelling up their rockets (film canisters) for an outdoor launch.

Thanks to Joshua (L6) for his shot of scooterists gliding around Birkfield House.

An Audience with the Author

Cinema Trip Inspires Students of Spanish

Tianna (Y7), Suffolk's youngest author, recently published her first book, Hamsters Don't Get Lost, They Go On Adventures.

Modern Foreign Languages took all Lower School plus Y10 Spanish students to see the new Disney film ‘Encanto’, which is about a magical family in Colombia. Inspired by the film, all students have been learning about Colombian culture in lessons and taking on their teachers in a Colombian general knowledge quiz. Y10 have also had focused lessons on film genres and language to write their own reviews in Spanish. ¡Que viva la magia!

Tianna, who hosted a book launch at Ipswich County Library, wrote the book for children who have lost a beloved pet to help them cope with their grief. She hopes it will be the first in a series of titles.

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Out of the Classroom and Into the Landscape Expeditions and fieldwork are back on and our students could not be happier! Just look at those Duke of Edinburgh candidates (right) enjoying the great outdoors.

Our A-level Biologists are pictured working hard at RSPB Minsmere, where they spent a windy day looking at how the vegetation changed as they moved away from the sea, and comparing the beach ecosystem with a woodland ecosystem nearby.

Our Sixth Form Geographers travelled further afield to learn about glaciation in the Lake District. Investigating glacial deposits meant hard hats on and maths brains engaged.

Following a stunning walk up Borrowdale to find moraines, our geographers spent the afternoon investigating drumlins; all contributing to understanding how ice shaped our landscape as a huge interconnected system over vast periods of time.

Students continued working at their local accommodation, the Fieldwork Centre, learning how to carry out investigations into the Water Cycle. Overall, the weather was cold but the effect was beautiful.

Lest We Forget A moving Service of Remembrance took place in Chapel, when we paid our respects to those who have fought for their country, current members of the Armed Services and all who have been hurt by war in body or mind. Our Operations Manager, Mr Clarke, was one of a number of former servicemen on the staff to take part. He spoke with emotion about his personal experiences of warfare.

Poppy wreaths were presented by the Head Boy and Head Girl on behalf of the Senior and Prep Schools.

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Developments and Events in Mathematics Online Support In 2020-21 online supporting resources were developed and hosted at www.stjosmaths.co.uk. Click on the tab Parental Support and scroll down to your child’s Mathematics class below, where you will find a page which shows objectives with approximate timings for each chapter alongside links to supporting video tutorials, exam questions and worksheets.

We also have a new development this term: an online course which broadly matches the work being studied in the classroom. Each student has their own login details to the site www.drfrostmaths.com and when they log in they will see the course for their class.

Each student can work on the course set up for their class and their progress will be remembered and recorded. The course comprises a mix of video tutorials and questions which are marked in real time.

Competitions Inter House Arithmetic Challenge More than 140 students in the Lower School took part in the annual Inter House Arithmetic Challenge, making it one of the largest participation competitions in the College’s House calendar. Students had to perform well in a range of challenging mental and written arithmetic tasks, which were matched to each teaching group's age and ability. Birkfield won the event.

Inter House Problem Solving Event In the House Problem Solving Competition, 16 of our top mathematicians raced against time in teams of four to solve very tricky challenges. There was great team work between the Year 7, 8 and 9 students in each team, with La Salle the eventual winners.

UKMT Maths Challenge Competition Our Sixth Form students competed in the national UK Mathematics Challenges organised by the University of Leeds. Frank (U6) achieved best in school, which we celebrated along with the success of other students in both the Lower and Upper Sixth.

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Summer Support and Extension Programmes Over the summer period weekly tasks were set for students who wanted to deepen their understanding of the Lower Sixth course and video ‘walk through’ solutions were provided. Additionally, an extension programme was run for those preparing to study Further Mathematics A-level in Upper Sixth. This course used the STEP Support Foundation Modules produced by the University of Cambridge and provided students will an increased ability to problem solve and tackle unfamiliar problems, some new techniques were introduced and the aim was to stretch and ensure a degree of continuity across the summer break. Video ‘walk through’ solutions showing how to solve each of the problems were produced.

Maths Library This is now up and running outside the Maths office.

There is a page of recommended books on the website https://www.stjosmaths.co.uk/reading and any donations are welcome.

How Maths Can Save the World An inspirational and educational show hosted by Matt Parker and a group of leading experts for a live interactive hour online, showing how careers that deal with climate change make use of a variety of maths skills.

Many of the students in Years 10 & 11 - as well as Mathematicians in the Sixth form - watched the recording of the show in November during their Mathematics lessons.

Senior School Sport We have so many wonderful achievements to celebrate! Inevitably, there are many more which have not been included here, but we praise you all.

Results Athletics Charlotte (L6) has been asked to join the England athletics youth talent programme – equivalent to another A-level and a gateway to the British junior talent programme at university level. She is ranked 8th in the UK at U17.

Equestrian Our NSEA riders, Evie (Y7), Imogen M (Y9), Matthew (Y8) and Imogen L-F (Y7) competed in the county teams’ show jumping, and gained a place at Hickstead. Evie qualified for the BRC team arena eventing National Championships 80cm - team 2nd and individual 10th.

Florrie (U6) was part of the Eastern Region team at the British Eventing National U18 Championships. They finished 4th. Florrie also competed at the Pony Club Open Championships and completed their first 2* International Competition.

Table Tennis

Netball

U13A Girls’ and Boys’ teams qualified for the Suffolk County Finals

Lola (Y11): Suffolk Horizon - Div 2 Colchester Adult League; Suffolk Rockets - Div 2 South Suffolk Adult League; East Regional U16 squad; selected Aathlete at the Suffolk Rockets Performance Hub and Selected Athlete London Pulse Performance Pathway Rayleigh Hub.

Well done Alex, James, Marcus, Matthew And Emilia, Natasha, Harriet, Samantha

Tennis Samantha (Y8) won two U14 girls’ doubles titles with her partner, at Framlingham Tennis Tournament and the Grade 3 Suffolk County Closed Championships. She won the U12 girls’ singles at the County Closed, making her Suffolk champion at that age.

Natasha (Y8) and Samantha have both achieved rankings inside the national top 40 in their age group.

They represented Suffolk in the County Cup and won all their matches, beating Lincolnshire, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire.

Swimming

Gymnast Emma (Y11) became Essex county junior FIG overall champion and FIG Junior Regional Champion. She also earned the highest score on the floor in the competition (Plate Trophy).

Hannah (Y10) and Caitlyn (L6) competed successfully at East Region swimming championships. They qualified for the winter regionals at Luton, achieving PBs in their specialist events. Both have improved their county & regional rankings, placing them in the top 10 in most of their events.

Cross-Country

Hockey

Twelve students have made it through to the second round of cross-country and are hoping to progress to represent Suffolk at the English Schools. Grace and Kaci (both Y10) have qualified for the third round and several other SJC students have received a bye into the next round.

County Players: Y11 - Zoe, Aimee, Caitlyn, Nathalie; Y10 - Darcy, Xanthe, Hannah;

Gymnastics

Squash Zoe (Y11) and Bonnie (Y9) competed at the English Junior Championship and have been representing Suffolk in recent high-level competitions.

Y8 - Maya, Charlie, Abigail

Pulse Pathway: Lauren (L6), Caitlyn (Y11), Lola (Y11), Gabrielle (Y10). Suffolk Performance: Catie (Y8), Imi (Y8), Esme (Y7), Sofie (Y8) and Gabrielle (Y10).

Football Erika (Y11) was invited to the Hungarian national team U15 camp in the summer and selected to attend the U17 camp as well.

Eloise (U6) has been selected for the ISFA National team and will play against Scotland. She has signed for Needham Market ladies.

Kaci (Y10) has been selected to play for the ISFA. She passed the first round of trials for the ESFA England U15 squad.

Kaci has remained playing for Ipswich Town, IVR, Exiles and Suffolk.

Darcy (Y9) has joined ITFC’s elite girl’s academy. She played for them in their interclub tournament where in her position of Centre Back she helped to keep a clean goal sheet for her team.

Congratulations to our Senior Football Girls who are through to the ISFA quarter finals after a win against Haileybury. Good luck in January.

Eloise (U6) has represented the JK Allstars She played in the Futures Cup for the Saxon Tigers after being selected from the Regional Performance Centre and for the England Whites at the National School Games. She is currently playing national league for Ipswich Ladies. Eloise is completing the Diploma in Sporting Excellence with Loughborough College and England Hockey.

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Netball Roundup: During the Christmas Term, the U12A and B teams finished 1st and 2nd in their first tournament. Our U14s competed but missed out on a place in the next round. Our 1st and 2nd senior teams competed at U18; the 1st team made it through to the County round where they finished third.

There were cup and plate successes for our U12s, U13s and U15s - all excellent accolades.

Cricket The cricket training programme has seen a huge increase in participation for both the group and individual sessions. We have delivered over 150 individual technical sessions already this year and have worked with almost 40 students to ensure they continue to develop their skills during the off-season.

Boys’ Sport More than 150 boys have represented the College at rugby this term. The U14 team in particular, has played some fantastic rugby - a testament to the programme of development here at St Joseph’s.

Still growing and going from strength to strength is our football programme. Having had a combination of friendly and cup fixtures at various age groups, we are now able to provide access to a high level of fixtures and training to pupils from across the College. This has been reflected in the increased number of teams we have been able to field.

Notable achievements: • Levi, Ethan and Charlie (all U6) were invited to join Northampton Saints’ U18 Programme following their performances at the Rugby Festival.

• Archer Hari (Y7) won gold at the U12 National Championships, beating his own personal best by 50 points.

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Safeguarding With the pandemic and multiple lockdowns, young people are craving connection more than ever before. Yubo (formerly known as Yellow) describes itself as a ‘platform that celebrates the true essence of being young’. Whilst we try to keep on top of the ever-changing social media landscape to protect our children from harm, awareness of possible problems from such sites is always worth having in our parental armour.

Safety Settings

Yubo is a live-streaming platform created to help users meet new people from around the world and connect based on interests, location or gender. It may be downloaded on Google Play Store and is rated Teen/iOS App Store 17+.

Yubo uses artificial intelligence to detect false ages and photos uploaded from the internet. Interactions are monitored by AI and moderators, keeping an eye out for inappropriate content and helping to identify possible offenders. There is also a ‘muted word’ feature which allows users to hide any word, abbreviation or emoji they don’t wish to see.

The creators have improved safety after multiple incidents between minors and adults were reported. There are no set parental controls on Yubo, only general safety settings.

When used properly, these settings can make Yubo safer for children and young people, but safety settings are not fail-safe, no matter how hard a platform tries to ensure they are.

Other users may be blocked and reported, and locations can be hidden. The camera and microphone can be turned off. Users can hide their profile so it isn’t part of the ‘swiped’ process and Yubo can suspend problematic accounts.

What are the risks?

How does it work?

The app asks for the usual information: date of birth, name, and gender. Users must then submit a photo showing their face clearly as well as their email address and phone number.

Users are sorted into one of two primary communities: those aged 13 to 17 and those over 18. They are then able to send messages, video chat and livestream. While Yubo makes users become friends on the platform before they can communicate, its features encourage users not to be a ‘boredo’ and to ‘multiply’ their friends by using tags and participating in livestreams. The platform plays on the fear of missing out (FOMO).

Livestreams can have up to 10 contributors involved with unlimited viewers. Users are able to join livestreams with their camera and/or sound switched off and can then add each other as friends. Users can also use a ‘profile sharing’ feature that enables them to introduce their friends to other users. There is also the ability to meet new friends through swipes. Yubucks are an in-platform currency (starting from £5.99) that can be put towards spotlights, boosts, and turbos for increasing profile popularity and visibility.

• Sexual extortion – There are multiple reports of young people being harassed to send sexualised or nude images and videos from others, and older users trying to get in to the younger community.

• Inappropriate/Illegal content – Yubo scans all content in real-time but may miss profanity, racial slurs or sexualised imagery.

• Information sharing – The app uses information such as personal interests, location and gender to encourage friendships with others who are the ‘same’. It can lead users to a have a false sense of security. Sharing school information, home town or similar may lead to bullying, grooming or similar malicious intent.

• In-app purchases – Yubucks may create a false expectation that money buys popularity.

• Persuasive design – Incessant push notifications and the swiping method, can encourage continual usage and increase feelings of anxiety, stress and depression.

What can I do to protect the young person in my care?

Talk about the importance of protecting personal information. Remind them never to divulge to others they don’t know in real life information such as addresses or where they go to school. Encourage them to employ the safety settings provided. If anything doesn’t feel right, report it!

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Community News

Our Thanks and Good Wishes Go with Julie

OBs Return Bearing Gifts and Sons!

A massive thank you, happy birthday and farewell to Julie Ward, whose skills and hard work in the St Jo's laundry have kept our boarding community in tip top order. With over 20 years’ service, Julie, you’ve been a stalwart! Wishing you a wonderful, well-earned retirement from us all!

It was a great pleasure to welcome Mr Eric Fritzsche OB back to the College, accompanied by his son Florian.

Eric came to the school for the year 1983/84 and studied Maths, Physics and Geography in the Lower Sixth. Showing excellent dedication, he also polished off O-levels in German, Maths, Additional Maths, Physics and English. What an accomplishment! Eric, who went on to become an electrical engineer, was kind enough to say St Joseph's was a turning point in his education. He and Florian have been staying with the English family who hosted Mr Fritzche Snr in Harwich during his year away from Germany Fantastic, too, to welcome back former Head Boy Harri Williams OB - Scarlets and Wales player - who very generously donated a match shirt to the College.

Wonderwomen Pause Mid Marathon OB Aimee Butcher and Drama teacher Mrs Pethybridge paused outside St Jo's for a quick photo opportunity whilst running the Virtual London Marathon. Photo taken at 20 miles and don’t they look well on it.

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Pupils, Parents and Staff Support Children and Teachers in Ghana The Prep School Council handed over 40 rucksacks full of essential school equipment, hygiene products, underwear and Christmas treats to representatives of Porridge and Pens – Ghana. The bags will allow Ghanaian pupils to carry their belongings to and from school each day on journeys that can be long and treacherous.

A further 25 bags of useful items were also collected and donated by the staff of the Prep School for teachers and support workers employed by the Brightlingsea Academy and Girl Power Centre in Ghana. Staff there work very long hours and go far above and beyond what is expected of them, so these bags will be a small token of appreciation for all that they do for children living in poverty.

Thanks to all Prep families and staff who took part. Luca (Y5) proudly presented three additional bags that his family put together for the children they have been sponsoring for several years. He is pictured with Jemma Williams and Lia Smith, the CEO and Operations Manager of the Porridge and Pens charity.

A number of smart, but now superseded, Prep summer dresses were separately sent to another charity supporting community schools in Ghana, Futurestars.

Parent Mrs Deasy collected the dresses when the new summer uniform was phased in and now they are being proudly worn by some young ladies in Tema on the Ghanaian coast. The girls are pictured on board HMS Trent, which was making a goodwill visit to the region.

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Boarding News Work Hard; Play Hard; Have Fun! It has been a fantastic term in Boarding after what has undoubtedly been an unusual year. We welcomed the students back in September after a well-deserved break for everyone, with many of our boarders having been able to return home after a prolonged absence.

We had the opportunity to all live together in Mews for the first half of the term, which was a great way to get to know new boarders as well as a chance for the boarding community to bond as a whole. We welcomed 19 new students to boarding this term, both international and local. All have settled in very well and made new lasting friendships.

Highlights of this term have included the reintroduction of our full complement of external trips and visits as part of our weekend activity programme. Along with our usual array of activities such as baking, sushi making and film nights, we were able to take a number of trips away from the campus. We all went to Cambridge, which was a great success – see Lilly, Judith and Bee’s account of the day.

A newly added trip was to Colchester Castle. This was enjoyed by our Year 7 - 9 students with an informative private tour and the chance to have a go on a virtual chariot simulator!

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One of the biggest things we missed as a boarding community last year was our trip to the Wolsey Theatre panto. We returned this year with all boarders for the second night of the famous rock and roll panto and the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. It was fantastic to see all students, new and old, laughing and enjoying a professional and fun production, which included a surprise shout out for our lovely matron, Mrs Pope’s birthday.

In the weeks leading to Christmas, we were impressed with the hard work and dedication of the Year 11 students as they took on extra study time in the run up to their mock exams. They created a revision plan and set out time at the weekend to get this extra work done. All students have worked hard this term and the atmosphere during study time is one of quiet concentration. This is one of the great perks of boarding: having the dedicated time set aside for study with the support of the staff.

We wish all Upper Sixth students luck with their mock exams after Christmas and look forward to welcoming students back in the new year.

Dr Stimson Mews Housemistress

Boarding Trip to Cambridge There are lots of trips that take place in Boarding, but one of the real highlights this term was the trip to Cambridge. For starters, there was good weather which is rare for autumn in England! This was especially good as we were going punting. The punting trip had history, architecture, beauty, vibes and most importantly lots of laughs. As we are such a big community we obviously had loads of boats, but our boat was just the best. Do you want to know why? Our boat ended up stuck in the middle of the river, when our punter lost his pole. At least we were better than the poor guy who fell into the river on another boat!

After the punting, we had the opportunity to explore the city, do some shopping and sample the really nice street food. We even found some international cuisine and some Nigerian and Caribbean food. The best bit about the trip was having everybody there together and enjoying it as one big family.

Lilly, Judith and Bee (all U6) 23

DAYS STJOS.CO.UK

Open your mind to St Joseph’s College Whole School Open Day – Saturday 19 March 2022 Individual family tours available, please contact admissions@stjos.co.uk or 01473 694576 to book.

Space to thrive St Joseph’s College is a co-educational Independent day and boarding school for ages 2–18

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