Summer 2016
The
Rutherford Review
Headlines This has been a busy and very successful year. I must congratulate Mr Wilson, Mrs James and Mrs Wells who are retiring this year. I would like to thank them for all their hard work and commitment to the students and the school over many years. Looking at the Newsletter you cannot help but be impressed by the quality and range of enrichment activities for students. There have been many highlights this year however three stand out:
• The excellent Ofsted report in March • Her Majesty’s Inspectors recognising the excellence of our work in the field of business partnerships and employer engagement. • The National Business and Education Partnership award at the British Chambers of Commerce annual awards This week we have just heard about a new and exciting partnership with Northampton Saints Rugby Club. We are now a partnership school and will have access to high quality coaching based at Mark Rutherford. As a school, Ofsted clearly stated ‘Pupils’ attitudes to their lessons are very positive, and they enjoy positive relationships with teachers. This means that lessons are calm and productive. Pupils work hard.’ We are not complacent and we know that it is only through hard work and the right attitude that the School will continue to improve
and offer an even better education. Thank you to all of our stakeholders, parents, carers, governors and students for your support this year. Due to significant changes in the structure of other schools in the area we have decided to increase our intake numbers in Year 7 and 8 from 60 to 100. This is to support our traditional catchment areas and to ensure parents can secure a place at the School. We will keep two points of entry open next year, in Year 7 and in Year 9. This is an incredibly challenging time for parents with so much change occurring in the restructure from the three tier system to a two tier system, especially if you have children in Year 8 and lower years next year. As a school we will support families in and out of our catchment area by offering an excellent education from Year 7 through to Year 13. Finally, good luck to the students and families whose association with the School ends at the end of this term. Please keep in touch and share all your successes with us. To all those returning, have a relaxing and safe summer and we will see you on the 5th September ready for another exciting and challenging year. Mr Richard Millard, Headteacher
Mark Rutherford becomes a Northampton Saints Partnership School
Bourne to Dance! Five of our Year 10 GCSE Dance students were invited to take part in a Dance showcase at Lincroft School on Monday 13th June. The show was dedicated to the highly successful British choreographer, Matthew Bourne, in honour of his recent knighthood. Taking inspiration from his version of The Nutcracker, the dancers created a piece based around ice skating on a frozen lake in a magical and exciting fantasy land. The piece was choreographically supported by Miss Jessop and dancers included: Keira Barnes, Victoria Dewin, Ella Fyers, Katie Jones and Graziella Grasso. Colin Foster said: “I wanted to let you know that I had the privilege of attending the Bourne to Dance performance yesterday evening at Lincroft Academy. The performance of ‘Skating Silhouettes’ by Mark Rutherford Academy pupils was simply outstanding and very well choreographed. I understand it was choreographed by a Year 10 student; it was excellent. The students were incredible in their performance and were a real credit to themselves and their school."
Good Schools Guide awards Mark Rutherford School has been awarded two Good Schools Guide Awards! For more information please see the School website www.markrutherford.beds.sch.uk
We are delighted to announce that we have secured a partnership with Northampton Saints RFC. Northampton Saints are among the elite rugby clubs in England and Europe and were crowned as Premier League Champions as recently as 2014. Initially, our students will be able to access excellent coaching from professional, qualified coaches. Coaches will include the Elite Player Development Manager, Developing Player Program (DPP) coaches and Saints community coaches. Sessions will begin during the second week of term and are accessible for all ages. The School’s 1st XV will be coached for an hour during an afternoon and all other players will be coached during our extra-curricular provision. These sessions will run until the Christmas Holidays with alternative arrangements to be made for the start of 2017. There will also be additional coaching opportunities provided by the Elite Player Development Manager during some lesson time throughout the next school year. As a result of this outstanding opportunity, we will be creating a Rugby Academy for Year 12 students starting in September 2017. Students will complete the BTEC National Extended Diploma in Sport and Exercise Science whilst developing their skills in playing, coaching and officiating Rugby. The partnership will also provide students with opportunities to visit Northampton Saints' playing and training facilities and gain access to professional staff in fields such as diet and nutrition, fitness and exercise and data analysis. This opportunity is open to both current students as well as those attending other institutions. Please contact Mr Snowdon for further information.
Term begins on Monday 5th September Please check the website for timings for each year group
School Dinners Please note: from September the price of a school dinner will be £2.45
Year 10 Applied Art Forest School Illustration Project Following the success of an illustration project last year for a charity, Mark Rutherford’s Year 10 Applied Art students have been commissioned by Bedford University, one of the Business Partners, to illustrate a children’s guide to the brand new Forest School. This exciting venture enables the students to experience a true vocational opportunity; working with a client and exploring professional ways of working such as character design, storyboarding, researching references and meeting deadlines.
The students visited the site on a cold, windy day to record and draw the Forest School environment. Although the Forest School is very new and the trees have not yet matured, the students were very positive about the potential and could visualise how it would look in the future. Senior Lecturers, Susan Braud and Dr Perry Knight were exceedingly impressed with the students’ responses and their work ethic. Currently the students are working on final drafts of their books and we will announce on the school website which individual’s work will be used as the final book.
Arts Participation Badges This term saw the launch of the Arts Participation Badges, presented by the Arts Faculty to those students who had been identified as showing commitment to the Arts through Art, Photography, Music, Dance and Drama. Gold and Silver badges were awarded retrospectively in recognition of the contribution some students have made over the years to the Arts at Mark Rutherford. Students received a certificate and a lapel badge to celebrate their achievement. One student said “It’s nice to be appreciated”. We look forward to seeing the badges being worn with pride. The scheme will be fully launched in September 2016 and students will be able to achieve Bronze, Silver or Gold through their participation across the Arts. There are many opportunities available to explore your creativity through extra-curricular clubs, competitions and activities. Those who have already been awarded Silver or Gold will have the opportunity to build on their success and potentially reach Platinum becoming an Ambassador of the Arts.
Ellie Ball–Year 13 MRS Art
National Youth Theatre Written by: Sophie Rose In February I went to an audition at Toynbee Studios in London for the National Youth Theatre, a branch of the National Theatre for performers aged 14-25. I worked with other auditionees in the morning on improvisation and group work, and took part in an individual panel audition in the afternoon - I was one of 5000 auditionees. A couple of months later I received an email saying I’d been accepted on their junior course - one of 500 successful applicants. This means I’ll take part in a two week course in August, living and working at Trinity Laban in London towards my National Youth Theatre membership. At the end of the two weeks, we’ll have a presentation of what we have been developing for an invited audience and the artistic director Paul Roseby, and I’ll become an official member of the company. Following that, I’ll have access to exclusive casting calls and auditions for members only, receive information on London based connections and networking, and take part in members-only productions in London theatres. I’ll have a secure membership in the National Youth Theatre until my 26th birthday, when I can re-audition for membership to the National Theatre. Alumni of the National Youth Theatre include Daniel Craig, Matt Smith and Timothy Spall.
MRS Summer Art Exhibition 2016 A most enjoyable evening was had celebrating the creative talent of our AS and A2: Art, Applied Art and Photography Students. This well-established event on the School calendar was well attended and generated some fabulous feedback on the quality and standard of the work on show. There may still be some Limited Edition Prints available to purchase - please see the School website for details.
GIRLS ONLY From September 2016 – Year 7, Year 8 & Year 9 The uniform policy requirement will be to wear skirts and trousers purchased from Prestige Design & Workwear. You can obtain these items from either 2 of their shops or online. www.prestigedesignww.co.uk – School Uniform – Mark Rutherford Flitwick Address: Prestige Design & Workwear Ltd, 46 – 48 High Street, Flitwick, Bedford MK45 1DX • 01525 716558 Barton-Le-Clay Address: Prestige Design & Workwear Ltd, Unit 12, Barton Industrial Estate, Barton-Le-Clay,Bedford MK45 4RP • 01582 883222
Sporting Success Athletics County Championships Success! Shannon Munro finished 3rd in the Junior Girls shot putt. Tia Wilson continued her fantastic record of results by winning comfortably in the Junior Girls 1500m. Raphael Bouju had another strong competition, he comfortably won the 100m again, and he then followed this up by winning the Junior Boys long jump with a distance of 5.93m with the final jump of the competition. Reon Lewis also had an excellent night, he finished 2nd in the 100m to Raphael, before winning the Junior Boys 200m in a time of 24.5s. In his final event Reon anchored the Junior Boys 4x100m relay team to victory. Nathan Cox was the winner of the Intermediate Boys 200m, and in the night’s final event he ran a fantastic fourth leg for the Intermediate Boys 4x100m relay to secure his second victory. It was a fantastic evening. Congratulations to all students who took part and got soaked by the rain!
Year 7 and 8 Athletics The final league fixture of the season took place against Lincroft and Robert Bruce Middle Schools. Lincroft have an excellent reputation for Athletics so this was always going to be a challenge for our athletes. However, the following students excelled and achieved some outstanding performances: William Biziki – 1st in triple jump (8.91m) Plamedi Bomolo – 1st in long jump (3.83m) William Biziki – 1st in 100m Willow Tucker – 2nd in 1500m (6.18) Zahi Kasem – 2nd in 800m
Sainsbury’s Active Kids Vouchers A big thank you from the PE department to everyone that donated their Sainsbury’s Active Kids vouchers to the School. This year we have been able to purchase the following with the vouchers you have donated; a set of non-slip marker cones, 24 sequencing spots, 6 aluminium relay batons, a set of water bottles for sporting fixtures, 12 hula hoops and 1 precision balance board.
Latest PE and Sports News For all of the latest PE and sports news including extra-curricular club and fixture updates, sportsperson of the month awards and exam information follow the PE department on twitter via @MRutherfordPE. Both students, and parents/carers are encouraged to follow as we look to establish a new means of communicating PE information.
The feedback from the partners was very complimentary: “Excellent event, very worthwhile.” Barry Robertson, Hybrid Air Vehicles. “Always interested and engaged students. Pleasure to come to these events.” STOMOR. And the responses from the students: “Very educational. I now know how science/maths/geography link in to the different careers.” “It helps you think about all the different options you have and the variety of jobs for an engineer.” “I have learned more about businesses and fields which I didn’t know I could pursue.” Several students have also managed to secure work experience through the local companies too. These are just two of the many events run by Mark Rutherford’s award winning Business Partnership team. For further information or to book a place, please contact Kath on 01234 290200 or email kath.unwin@mrus.co.uk
STEM Year 7/8: Last term we launched our brand new CREST award club (Creativity in Science and Technology) for Year 7 and 8 students. Students are researching and planning either project or practical work with the aim of taking this to the ‘Big Bang’ Regional STEAMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Maths and Medicine) Festival to be held at Bedfordshire University, Polhill campus in June. Completed projects ranging from the use of Hydroponics to grow plants in space to the effects of gravity will then be submitted for bronze CREST award.
Year 8: Four Year 8 students took part in this year’s regional Salters Chemistry Festival at Bedfordshire University, Luton campus. Niamh Brennan, Mya Ditta, Nathanael Holman and Bren Martin took part in two forensic-style challenges against eleven other schools. They worked brilliantly as a team and were commended on how well they represented our school.
Year 9 STEM day and family STEM evening:
We have had two very successful breakfast meetings this term; one in April on the Creative Arts and one in May with a focus on Engineering.
60 Year 9 students had the opportunity to take part in a STEM day in April run by The Smallpeice Trust. Students worked in teams on a number of engineering challenges with a focus on designing and building a system to filter, collect, detect and pump collected rainwater as part of an integrated system on a new smart building. Winning teams or individuals were then invited to participate in a family STEM evening, where families and students competed for fabulous prizes, again thanks to The Smallpeice Trust. Many congratulations go to Summer Rogers, Aimar Che Isa and Kyle Ruta who won a Smallpeice Marine Engineering residential course at Portsmouth University.
Creative and Performing Arts
Year 10:
Students had an insight into careers in the Arts when strains of a jazz saxophone were heard in the usually studious Space 4 Learning; alongside workshops on redesigning the school logo with local graphic artist Bally Meeda and listening to inspiring talks from local musicians, artists, editors and arts organisers, amongst others. Ex students and staff were also persuaded to return to share their successes and achievements.
Year 10 STEM students have now embarked on the second year of our STEM scholarship programme funded by ARM. Working in teams and using kit donated by VEX robotics, they are designing and building a ‘clawbot’ robotic arm at a competitive level. Classroom STEM concepts will be put to the test on the playing field as the winning team of students will then take part in a challenge against other schools on the STEM scholarship programme in October. Two students, Freya Bambridge and Jack Rising have also earned a Smallpeice Nuclear Engineering residential course at Lancaster University.
Business Partners' Breakfast Meetings
“The whole place was buzzing with students jostling to talk to the musicians and artists.” Careers Coordinator, Kath Unwin. “I enjoyed having the range of musicians there to talk about getting yourself out there and actually getting known in the industry.” Music student “I’ve got to say I’m so impressed with it all, such an amazing opportunity for the students and something that is needed in teaching in the arts so congratulations to you. Great speakers, good interaction and well organised.” Michael Naylor, Professional Dancer
Engineering Business Breakfast The students heard a presentation from Ellie Marcham, Bedford Borough’s Economic Development Officer about Engineering in Bedford past and present, and some statistics on the pay and demand for Engineers in the local area. This was followed by a very enthusiastic talk from Barry Robertson about the new Airship being developed at Cardington Hangar. The students were then given the opportunity to talk informally to a wide selection of engineering companies. We had representatives from Network Rail, Baker Perkins, STOMOR, Biotechnology company Algenuity and local companies Briton EMS, Axis Electronics, Manton Engineering, Hybrid Air Vehicles, Lockheed Martin and ARA. Training providers were West Anglia and Bedford Colleges, SSG, AECOM and BHR group.
Year 11: Arkwright Scholarship update - many congratulations go to Brandon Ruta and Samuel West who have now passed the first two rounds of an intense process to earn the right to become an Arkwright Engineering Scholar. This prestigious award will allow them to gain work experience, Engineering mentors and financial support during their A Level studies. They will find out in the summer whether they have been successful in their application, so fingers crossed for both of them!
Year 12: Many congratulations go to Chiana Khindey who has successfully applied for, and gained, a prestigious Nuffield placement this summer. Only 22 students in the whole region were chosen this year from an extensive field of applicants so Chiana is to be commended. Chiana will be working on a Oceanography project run by The Open University in Milton Keynes. Villiers park update: yet again, Mark Rutherford students have benefited from our on-going excellent relationship with Villiers Park Trust, with Joseph Lamey, Thomas Jefferys, Freya Temperton and Emily Pocock all being offered a free residential course to include either Ecology and Evolution, Forensics or Mathematics this summer.
Youth Speaks
Year 12 Visiting Speakers
Mark Rutherford’s public speaking team have been crowned District Champions in the Rotary Club’s prestigious Youth Speaks Competition. The three sixth formers who represented the school are: Nasreen D’Agostino Main Speaker, Thomas Jefferys Chair Person and proposer of the Vote of Thanks Matt Darby. Their winning topic was: “Manners in the 20th Century”. The trio later took runner-up position in the regional final where the individual award for “Best Vote of Thanks” in the competition was awarded to Matt Darby. This is the most successful year yet for the Mark Rutherford team who have reached the District semi-finals for the last four consecutive years.
Year 12 have had a range of visiting speakers. Ben Lewis spoke about his role as a curate and previous employment as a policeman and publican. Kathryn Thompson of Warwick University talked about the importance of the ancient to the modern world and how it is represented to mould our understanding of the contemporary world. Kathryn also explained her doctoral studies. Our final visitor was Professor Joe Nellis, Deputy Director of Cranfield School of Management and Professor of Global Economy who tackled the EU referendum debate. Through Speakers for Schools we were joined by former Arsenal Vice Chairman, David Dein who oversaw the winning of eighteen trophies. He also rose to be Vice-Chairman of the Football Association and served on numerous UEFA and FIFA Committees. As an early proponent of the renaissance of women’s football he was President of the Arsenal Ladies Team. Conspicuously he brought Arsene Wenger to Arsenal and was a prime mover in launching the Premier League. During an entertaining hour full of anecdotes, he spoke about football as a business, the characters he meets and also provided motivational messages for the students. These included that the past cannot be changed but the future can, the need to ‘stick your neck out’ and to take pride, striving to be the best you can be. To conclude Mr Dein answered a variety of questions about issues in the modern game. Finally congratulations to Dr Tyrrell who was able to identify the original five clubs of the Premiership.
New Sixth Form late policy There has been a change in the late policy for Sixth Form students which began on their return from study leave. Two or more lates per week to tutor time will trigger an automatic one-hour detention after school on a Friday. Parents/carers will be notified via the ‘in touch’ system (please ensure we have an up-to-date email address). Students will be notified during tutor time on Friday via their tutor.
In the British Computer Society (Bedford) Coding Competition two teams, one in Year 7 and one in Year 8 both won first prize!
Hilary Murray returned to School... Hilary Murray returned to school this year to talk to Year 12 about her life and career. She left Mark Rutherford School in 1983 to study Social Sciences at South Bank University. As with many young people, she was not sure of her future career path but found a position as a secretary at Reed Elsevier, a book publisher. This was the start of her career. Hilary worked in sales and marketing for 20 years, in a variety of different roles, on adult and then children’s books. In 2009 she became Managing Director at Scholastic Children’s Books. Hilary is now Chief Executive Officer at Hachette Children’s Group. Their authors and brands include well-known names such as Cressida Cowell, Robert Muchamore, Mick Inkpen, David Almond, Enid Blyton, Rainbow Magic and Beast Quest. Our final visitor for the year was Professor Joe Nellis, Deputy Director of Cranfield School of Management and Professor of Global Economy. Professor Nellis has been actively chairing numerous debates about membership of the EU around the Borough this summer. During his visit, he discussed the arguments put forward by both sides in the debate and explained how much of what is claimed is unknown. Usefully he focussed upon what is known about EU membership and about leaving. This successful talk helped to provide the detail absent from the media coverage of the referendum.