blessed william howard tel: 01785 244236 catholic high school … newsletter decembe… · have...

The Painsley Catholic Academy. A Company limited by guarantee, registered in England & Wales with company number 08146661. Registered office address: Station Road, Cheadle, Staffordshire, ST10 1LH

Blessed William Howard

Catholic High School Part of The Painsley Catholic Academy

Rowley Avenue, Stafford ST17 9AB

Tel: 01785 244236

Email: [email protected]

www.bwh.staffs.sch.uk

Principal: Mr K. J. Brown BSc (Hons) PGCE NPQH

Newsletter – December 2018

“Christmas isn’t just a temporal celebration or the memory of a beautiful (event);

Christmas is more … Christmas is an encounter!” - Pope Francis

Dear Parents / Carers,

I would like to start by thanking you for the warm welcome you have given me as Principal at

Blessed William Howard Catholic High School. We have come a long way in a short time and, whilst

some changes are more challenging than others, our key objective remains to prioritise the care

and education of our students.

As Christmas approaches, we are still very busy in school with many special events, fundraising

activities and preparations for our Mass on 21st December, 2018. Parents are welcome to attend

this Mass which will begin at 11.15am.

During Advent at Blessed William Howard we focus on the true meaning of Christmas. Our Christmas

Carol Concert was a beautiful celebration of the season and was very well attended by students

and parents. I was amazed by the talent of our musicians and by the whole of Year 7 who came

together to provide a brilliant performance at St. Austin’s Church. The traditional Christmas concert,

also a highlight in the school year, provided us with another fantastic musical event. We

experienced a range of diverse talents with our new rock music group making their debut and

carols from our choir and soloists. I am very proud of all our students and staff who work hard and have used their talents for the benefit of our community and the glorification of God.

Recently, I have started to reach out to our community to work together on joint projects. I would

like to thank the Residents’ Association of Rowley Park who have worked with the school to provide me with information to improve the safety and wellbeing of our community.

We have also increased our supervision of students, in the morning and afternoon, on the Newport

Road and Rowley Park. Students and parents are reminded that our students’ safety is of

paramount importance and we never stop trying to make the journey to and from school as safe as

we possibly can.

Following feedback from students, we have made changes to lunches and break times. All students

have a fully supervised playground. Our menus are being reviewed in the new year and dining

facilities are currently being increased, with the use of the main hall as a further dining area for Year

11. Year 11 also have access to the library during lunchtime and there is a separate homework club

for other year groups. Both Year 11 and Year 10 have benefited from Learning Conversations with

the SLT and independent career advice and guidance.

Our staff members are also working to provide an increasing programme of support and

intervention sessions. Further Learning Conversations and more career appointments for Years 10

and 11, along with a new pastoral programme for all, will ensure that students understand more

clearly what they need to do in order to progress into the world of work and be good citizens,

embracing Catholic and British Values.

Blessed William Howard Catholic High School, Rowley Avenue, Stafford ST17 9AB Tel: 01785 244236

Email: [email protected] www.bwh.staffs.sch.uk


God Bless,

Mr Karl Brown, Principal

Iceland Trip - Overview During the half term break I was lucky enough to

accompany a group of 24 students, along with Dr

Murray and Miss Wood to explore Iceland on a

school trip.

Our group stayed at the Hotel Ork in Hveragerdi in

the south of Iceland and had a jam-packed

itinerary from the Tuesday to the Friday.

We visited the Golden Circle, the Secret Lagoon in

Gulfoss, an ice cream farm, and Pingvellir National

Park where we crossed the bridge between two

tectonic plates (North American and Eurasian).

Trip highlights included swimming outdoors in the

Secret Lagoon, a pool heated naturally by

geothermal energy. The Geysers at Geysir and the

Basalt beaches were also spectacular. We were

very lucky that for the full duration of the trip the

weather was beautiful - cold temperatures (around

freezing) but with blue sky and sun.

Student quotes:

"This is the best trip i have ever been on!"

"I wish I had taken GCSE Geography after seeing

how amazing these places are.”

The students all behaved exceptionally well, and

were a real joy to be with. My thanks, also, to the

two members of staff who accompanied us.

Miss Townsend

We welcome new staff in the new year who will enable us to continue to offer a broad and

balanced curriculum delivered by professional specialist teachers.

Mrs Gibbs – Science Teacher, Mr Trout – Mathematics Teacher

Mrs Ford – English Teacher, Mrs Aylott – History Teacher (returning from Maternity Leave)

Mrs Rollo – Mathematics Teacher

I am delighted with the achievements of our students this term, from sports stars to musicians, poets

and artists - I would like to congratulate them all.

Finally, a reminder that school will end at 12.45pm on 21st December, 2018 and we will return to

school on 7th January, 2018. I wish you and your family a safe, happy and Holy Christmas.




Mindful Mondays (Miss Shapiro)

This term, during tutor time, the focus has been on

supporting the well-being of our students.

This has been reinforced by the ‘In Your Corner’

Schools’ Campaign which ran throughout November,

with the main aim of ending the stigma associated with

Mental Health.

The ‘Asking twice’ initiative continues to raise the

importance of students being there for each other by

showing that they care. That might mean continuing to

do the ordinary things they would do as friends or

showing they are able to listen if someone needs a chat.

Simple things can make a big difference.

The four sessions held were:

Session 3: Mental Health and Me

This session explored the benefit of

self-care and showed students

some examples of what might help

their well-being.




Art Department Remembrance Day - 100 Poppies

This term our Year 7 and Year 12 art students worked together to create a special ‘100 poppies’

art piece to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day. The poppies were made from

old plastic bottles and were displayed at the front of the school.

GCSE

Well done to our Year 11 Art GCSE students, many of whom have created excellent work in their

coursework projects (examples below).

As a reminder, the Art GCSE coursework deadline is the week beginning 7th January 2019. At the

end of the first week back in January students will be issued with their exam paper for the Art

GCSE, this is worth the final 40% of the final grade.

The Art Department




Top performing Students

Congratulations to our top performing students of the term who have been awarded over 150

achievement points and should be very proud. Well done to:

Birmingham University Trip Our A-Level physics trip to Birmingham university took place on Monday 19th November. Students

left the school at 8.30 am and returned back at around 5pm accompanied by myself and Mr

Richards. This was an exciting event, specifically designed for A-Level physics students, and

allowing them to hear from five scientists who are working at the cutting edge of their specialisms.

World experts in the field of theoretical nuclear physics (Professor Jim Al-Khalili) and particle

physics (Professor Frank Close and others) gave talks. In addition to these talks there were two

sessions from a Physics examiner, who looked at reading questions and analysing what answers

are being looked for – essential skills for those looking to perform well in A-level physics exams. As

well as complementing material from A-level courses, these talks were exciting and very

interesting.

Dr Yurtmen

Quotes from Students: “A day to be remembered!”

Don Bosco House:

Sarah Hartley, Y9, with 182 points

Molly Hood, Y7, with 169 points

Irene Jelinek, Y8, with 161 points

Ava-Rose Ingram, Y7, with 157 points

Toby Hassall, Y7, with 156 points

Bessie Brown, Y7, with 151 points

Amelia Wild, Y7, with 151 points

Louis Smith, Y9, with 151 points

Chloe Massam-Simon, Y7, with 150 points

Kolbe House:

Rebecca Palmer, Y9, with 182 points

Malachi Bance, Y9, with 180 points

Matthew Gough, Y7, with 156 points

Skye Ingham, Y8, with 153 points

Romero House:

Jom Ernest George, Y9, with 159 points

Mollie Mullen, Y7, with 154 points

Teresa House:

Olivia Arrowsmith, Y8, with 171 points

Natasha Horton, Y9, with 164 points

Xiangou Sun, Y9, with 161 points

Ellie-Mae Bagnall-Lambe, Y9, with 154 points

Annabella Harris, Y7, with 151 points




“ A fantastic experience for all A-Level Students”

“I thoroughly enjoyed the physics trip as it helped me find out about all future careers in the

physics field.”

Sports This has been a great half term for sporting

achievements. Well done to all who took part.

I am delighted to report that our Y7 boys and Y8

girls were both first in the district indoor athletics

event and will now go on to represent the district

at the county championships.

Well done to our Y9 boys who were winners of the

district badminton competition.

Congratulations to Finn East, Y7 (right) who was

first in the district cross country and to Matthew

Gough, Y7 (left) who was third out of more than

40 competitors. The boys will now represent the

district in the county championship in February.

Good luck!

Also, champion swimmer – Zack Hancox, Y11, was

delighted to have a chance to meet Adam

Peaty, Olympic World record holder this month at

an event at The Moat House with his swimming

club, Stafford Apex.




Music This has been an incredibly busy half

term for our singers and musicians. In

November a group of BWH

musicians, and former St Mary’s

Catholic Primary School students,

were invited to return to their old

school, in Brewood, to perform for

students and guests at the grand

opening of the new school nursery.

The BWH liturgy group musicians soon

had the primary school children

singing and joining in with all of their

action songs.

To mark the start of Advent, Year 7 students lead the carol service in St. Austin’s church. The

readings and carols told the story of Christmas. The school choir also performed some of their

favourite Christmas music on this occasion. There was a beautiful performance of John

Rutter’s ‘Angel’s Carol’ by Madeleine Daune and Sian Bell. All of the children really did us

proud, with fantastic feedback from parents and guests.

Back in October Mr Snow, our new ICT manager, advertised for volunteers to form a rock

band. Staying behind every Friday night the band have been busy learning how to ‘Rock-

out’ under the direction of Mr Snow. Reuben Bance's performance of ' Get Back' in the

Christmas Concert was most memorable, as was Sian Bell's performance of 'All I Want For

Christmas'. The rock band are scheduled to perform in Birmingham on March 30th, I am really

looking forward to hearing them perform again and I am very grateful to Mr Snow for his input

into enriching the extra-curricular musical life of the school.

I spend every lunchtime preparing ensembles for the Christmas Concert. This year has been

no exception; the orchestra, choir, liturgy group musicians, beginner clarinets, rock band and

soloists all joined together to showcase a fantastic display of talent. Soloists Jack Wilson,

Madeleine Daune, Reuben Bance and Amelia Daune were all amazing, and, Grainne

O’Reilly performed a beautiful traditional Irish Dance. Amelia Cooper and Cieran Lewis were

the comperes for the evening – what a brilliant job they both did.

We would also like to wish the students below, from Style

90 Gymnastics Club, the very best of luck as they are

competing in the West Midlands Schools Acrobatic

Competition on Saturday 26th January in Stoke-on-Trent. If

they win their category they will qualify for the Schools

Acrobatic National Finals in May.

Good luck to:

• Lily Harrison & Esther Boulter

• Charlotte Michie & Ruby Allen

• Eve Boulter & Carmen Senior

• Michelle Haskell & Libby Hornby

• Aimee Greensill & Phoebe Greensill

Mr Aston

Zack Hancox with Adam Peaty




Poetry Success

Congratulations to Shane Armitage-

McGirr, who’s acrostic poem (where

the first, last or other letters in a line

spell out a particular word or phrase)

based on 'The Grinch' by Dr Seuss,

won first place and a £25 High Street

Gift voucher in a recent competition.

Well done also to Jess Bradshaw,

Caohmie Baldock and Cameron

Harvey who also received awards for

their poems.

The competition was organised by

Stafford Dyslexia Support who have

been working with these students

over the course of the term.

Mrs Slade

I have had the privilege of spending every Wednesday

morning working in three of our lovely feeder primary

schools, St John’s, St Patrick’s and St Anne’s, preparing

children from Year 4-6 for a Christmas Concert at Blessed

William Howard High School. It was an absolute joy to

welcome them into our school and listen to them sing and

make music together. Congratulations to all children who

took part.

The Year 11 GCSE music group went out of school on

Wednesday 19th December to sing carols for the residents

in our local community, Rowley Hall Nursing Home. It was a

very entertaining and lovely way to spend an afternoon.

Well done to all musicians who have been involved and

helped out at these events. None of it would be possible

without you.

Congratulations to Jack Wilson (guitar) and Amelia

Cooper (musical theatre) who have both passed Grade 8

in performance studies his term. Both students are in Year

11 and have achieved high results on top of their GCSE

work. Well done to you both.

Mrs Helliker

PTA

We would like to formally thank those members of the PTA who are stepping down this year.

They have given up a great deal of their time and really made a great impact on the school.

Their hard work and enthusiasm has been much appreciated by parents, governors, staff and

students alike.

We are delighted to welcome the following new appointments:

Chair - Joanne Lennon

Vice Chair - David Hannett

Treasurer - Charlotte Alexander-Munn

Secretary - Claire Taylor Bradshaw

The first meeting will be held on Wednesday 9th January at 6.30pm and new members are most

welcome.

Ailish Steel, from St Anne’s performing at BWH




7th January 2019 - Spring term starts

9th January - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

14th January to 18th Jan - Y13 Mock Exams

18th January - Y7 Trip to Symphony Hall CBSO

24th January - Y11 Parents' Evening 6pm - 8pm

25th January - Y8 Reports available

30th January – Local Governing Board Meeting 6pm

5th February - Y11 GCSE Music Concert 7pm

6th February - PTA Meeting 6.30pm

6th February to 8th February - Y7 Retreat to The

Briars

7th February - Sixth Form Parents Evening 6pm -

8pm

14th February - 6th Form Community Party

18th February to 22nd February - Half term holiday

27th February – Local Governing Board Meeting

6pm

28th February - Y9 Reports available

6th March - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

18th March to 22nd March - Sixth Form Assessment

Week

18th March to 22nd March - Y7 - Y11 Assessment

Week

25th March to 29th March - Y7 - Y11 Assessment

Week

1st April to 4th April - Y11 Art Exams

3rd April - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

12th April - INSET DAY

15th April to 26th April - Easter Holidays

29th April - Summer term begins

1st May to 3rd May - Y13 Art Exams

1st May - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

1st May to 3rd May - Y9 Retreat to The Briars

6th May - May Day Bank Holiday - school closed

11th May - D of E Training Morning

13th May to 25thJune - Public Exams

15th May - Sixth Form Leavers' Mass 2.15pm

24th May - Y11 Leavers' Mass

24th May - Y12 Reports

27th May to 31st May - Half term holiday

3rd June - School re-opens

5th June - Y8 Geography River Trip

5th June - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

6th June to 7th June - Y8 Geography River Trips

6th June - Y8 Parents Evening 6pm - 8pm

12th June – Local Governing Board Meeting 6pm

14th June - Y7 Reports

27th June - Y11 Prom at The Moat House

1st July to 3rd July - A-Level Taster Days

1st July - Y6 Induction Day

3rd July - PTA Meeting at 6.30pm

4th July - Y7 Music Festival

4th July - Y9 Parents Evening 6pm-8.30pm

8th July - Y6 Parents Induction Evening

15th July to 18th July - Y10 and Y12 Work

Experience

22nd July - INSET DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED

23rd July - SUMMER HOLIDAYS

Teaser

Look out for former BWH student, Ben Shaw, as he makes his TV debut over the

holidays in the ‘Emmerdale’ New Year special!

blessed william howard tel: 01785 244236 catholic high school … newsletter decembe… · have...

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