PCSA - Priory Community School

@ PCSA
SCHOOL NEWSLETTER
SUMMER EDITION 2013
The Principal’s Post
Mr Coles with new Head Boy – Adam
Budd and Head Girl – Morgan Rooke
Dear Parents and Carers,
Once again, I hope you will enjoy reading our Summer
Term newsletter. All areas of the school have
contributed their most recent news. We are again
delighted to report progress. As you will see, GCSE
results are again predicted to be very strong in 2013. I
am very pleased to say that we have developed our
international visits programme. Due to great GCSE
results OfSTED have delayed visiting us until at least
2014. As you will also see on June 3 rd we received a
letter from the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust
(SSAT) informing us we are again in the top 20% of
schools in the country for results improvement from
2009-2012 – 5AC including the vital GCSE English and
Mathematics.
We were very fortunate in 2012 to receive £1.3 million of Academy funding for capital developments at
PCSA. Most of this was spent on building the new SEN and small group teaching centre – it is called the
‘Sir Richard Branson Centre’. The ‘Australian Sail’ is also now on site and being used daily. The Sail is a
picnic style outdoor area to be used for outdoor eating and for some Art and Science lessons. Less easy to
see is that we have also replaced all our boilers and all our windows on the site over the last 12 months.
We were then delighted to receive another £1.4million in April 2013 for more site improvements over the
coming year 2013-14. So, the ‘Priory Sports Village’ will start to be built next month. This is very exciting
and will provide new leisure facilities in North Worle. We will also replace all ‘northern roofs’ and the whole
site will have ‘state of the art’ natural light from above. This investment at PCSA amounts to nearly
£3million over the last 18 months. This is mostly down to the superb work of our Director of Finance
(Martin Kerslake) and his team. Martin puts the capital bids together which we submit to the Government.
We do not think we would have received such investment without our Academy status. It is likely our
future bids will involve a bid for a new Science block. We await news on the primary phase as we have
submitted (with the Council) another bid to Westminster for funding.
Lucia, Alishia and Georgia at Prom 2013
The Year 11s left this term with huge smiles on their
faces due to the wonderful PCSA Prom and our
annual ‘Festival of Transport’. It is a huge
undertaking to lead Year 11 and we thank Mrs.
McBride and her team for all the Year 11 work this
year. The Prom had over 100 staff in attendance,
which I think says much about the staff and student
relationships at PCSA. It is not the ‘norm’ to have
quite so many staff going to the Prom. We are very
proud of Priory students and we want to celebrate
with them. We wish all our Year 11 leavers much
success in the future. We know many will go on to
great things - please do keep in touch. We thank
parents for their support over the years. ‘SUCCESS
DAY’ 2013 is Thursday, August 22nd and parents are
most welcome to attend with students from 10am. We think the
summer exam results 2013 will be very, very good again Mathematics might go over 80% A* - C this year! Please recall the
Mathematics A* - C results over time have been:
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
34%
42%
47%
55%
65%
72%
78%
predicted 84%
Ben Woodhouse – Year 7 who
raised an amazing £480.00
for our school charity on his
own – Well done Ben you are
a Priory Star
Every student counts at PCSA.
We will welcome 256 new Year 7s in September to start their own PCSA journey – 2013-2018. As one
group of students leave another one enters. The images of this year’s ‘Transition Day’ are contained
within the first few pages of this edition of @PCSA. All tutor groups now have 20 - 22 students and we
have 12 tutors in each year group. Great individual support is available. We had 332 first choices for entry
in 2013 and decided to admit 256 in the end. There were several successful appeals. We wish all our new
students a warm welcome for September. We also recently held our Year 5 ‘Open Evening’ on July 4 th.
Year 5 parents can now apply for places for a 2014 entry – please contact the Council who arrange our
admissions. We do not have a September / October Open Evening for Year 6s but any Year 5s and
parents who missed the July 4th night are welcome to contact us for a tour in September.
We have been very busy over the last few months with several national and international visits. We are
very keen to give students visits across the UK and abroad. Recently the Science team took groups to
Paris and to Plymouth! I was very pleased see our successful trips coming back from Paris (Science),
Berlin (History) and York (Year 8 Graduation). For the first time we took 90 of our Year 7s to the
Battlefields of Western Europe. Given the 100 th anniversary of the start of the First World War in 2014 we
are delighted to introduce this annual trip in 2013. It will run again in 2014 for Year 7s. On a sporting
note next January the Priory Ski Trip returns to the French Alps. Over time we aim to further add to our
international theme. We hope to soon visit our South African partner school Steenbok.
Please see inside the piece written by Ms. Sersoub (Acting Head of Languages) about developing
Languages and ‘Global Understanding’ PCSA. We will welcome a new Head of Languages and Global
Understanding in January – Mrs. Anna Venn who joins us from The Royal Wootton Bassett School. In
other staffing news we are very pleased to announce that Mr. Garner has been promoted to become our
new e-learning coordinator. Mr. Garner will lead our superb Digital Leaders and further develop things
such as the new PCSA App (download free from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store). It is also
good news about Mr. Phillips, who after his brilliant work in the Mathematics department has been
promoted to a permanent role as Vice-Principal. He will continue to lead Mathematics for the moment but
will lead on our A and A* work and will be charged with keeping our ‘Pupil Premium’ results a priority. Mr.
Dixon, who has done great work in these areas and with developing Period 6, is leaving us for a Deputy
Headship in South Wales.
As you will see, Period 6 (2.55 – 4.30) has developed greatly over the year. A word though for our
community provision – you may not know that we host several football teams at the weekend, a
cheerleading squad (The Somerset Shadows) and a Karate Club - Shotokan Karate. Please do contact
Beverley Bailey at school who will be able to put you in touch with the people involved. Next year will be
even more exciting as we spend around £700,000 building the first part of the “Priory Sports Village’’.
This will be a complete upgrade of all our sports changing facilities and a new community fitness gym
built. These facilities will be fitness club standard. We will see the buildings starting as soon as the
summer break happens.
OTHER NEWS - We have recently launched an App. Please see the advert here – you can download the
App (free) from the App Store or Google Play Store. Please do download it and use it to keep up to date
with our website and news from PCSA.
The 2013-14 Head Boy is Adam Budd and Head Girl is Morgan Rooke. The Deputies are Leah Vernon and
Connor Campbell. Our congratulations to these students and all our new prefects.
Thank you again for your support this year and have a great break,
Neville Coles - Principal
TRANSITION DAY PHOTOS - OUR NEW YEAR 7S FOR
SEPTEMBER 2013
7A1
7A2
7A3
7A4
7A5
7A6
7B1
7B3
7B5
7B2
7B4
7B6
Good luck to all our Year 7 students starting in September 2013
End of Year Roll of Honour
100% Attendance
From September to time of publication
Year 7
Josephine Lennon – 7A1
Jessica Betts - 7A2
Imogen Hayward – 7A2
Matthew Hull – 7A2
Will Bailey - 7A3
Jack Green – 7A3
Alexander Harris – 7A3
Matthew Ogborne – 7A3
Molly Squire – 7A3
Rachel Eveleigh – 7A4
Kyle Jones – 7A5
Leighanna Discombe – 7A6
Brandon Harvey – 7A6
Methembe Ncube - 7A6
Ellie Pritchet – 7A6
Courtney Bevan – 7B1
Heather Cameron – 7B1
Emily Daly – 7B1
Tyler Smith – 7B1
Ross McKenzie – 7B2
Jack Evison – 7B3
Aimee Cleeve – 7B4
Ethan Hancock – 7B4
Robyn Perrett – 7B4
Michael Williams – 7B4
Jonathan Brooks – 7B6
Chloe Smith – 7B6
Year 8
Luke Maskell – 8A1
Daniel Bradford - 8A2
Jodie Pountney – 8A2
George Sneddon-Coombes –
8A3
Melissa Garfield -8A4
Elly James – 8A4
Victoria Leeks – 8A4
Jacob-Lee Manning – 8A4
Gabija Virsilaite – 8A4
Ella Howe – 8A5
Molly Montgomery – 8A5
Alison Reep – 8A5
Robert Colman – 8B1
Breen Harvey – 8B1
Rachel Hutchings – 8B1
Ellis Andrews – 8B2
Aidan Ingham – 8B2
Kirsty Paynter - 8B2
Danielle Rushton – 8B2
Sophie Browne – 8B4
Rachael Curtis – 8B4
Megan Lewis – 8B4
James Norman - 8B4
Bethany Phillips – 8B4
Isaac Stairs - 8B4
Harry Burgess – 8B5
Suzanne Reep – 8B5
Lewis Batchelor – 8B6
Laura Browne – 8B6
Bethany Tokelove – 8B6
Jack Warren – 8B6
Year 9
Matthew Filer – 9A1
Peter Ake – 9A5
Steven Eveleigh – 9A5
Josh Makin – 9A5
Daniel Mason – 9A5
Kirsty McKenzie – 9A5
Amanda Prosser – 9A5
Reuben Adey – 9A6
Georgia Carpenter – 9A6
Lauren Maynard – 9A6
Abbey Burton – 9B1
Tabitha D’Arcy – 9B1
Summer Davis – 9B1
Shannon Phillips – 9B1
Jasmine Shaw - 9B1
James Winfield – 9B1
Chloe Cummings – 9B2
Chris Hutchings – 9B2
Danielle Kane – 9B2
Ryan Knapp – 9B2
Katie Handley – 9B4
Ethan-Joe Curtis – 9B5
Jamie Freeman – 9B5
Tia-Liona Hannon – 9B5
Oliver Hathway – 9B5
Harry Meacham – 9B6
Jonathan Meredith - 9B6
STARS
End of Spring Term Roll
of Honour -100% Attendance
From September to time of publication
Year 10
Year 11
Matt Attwater – 10A1
Joshua Skuse – 10A1
Isabelle Cox – 10A2
Aaron Reid – 10A3
Thomas Edwards – 10A4
Charlie Gould - 10A4
Ryan Nutland – 10A4
Holly Faithfull – 10A5
Cameron Milkins -10A5
Harvey Sprague – 10A5
James Kerr – 10A6
Jack Bartram – 10B1
Peter Heyworth – 10B1
Kayleigh Phillips – 10B1
Fiona Bell – 10B2
Harlan Chapman-Green – 10B2
Jacob Butt – 10B3
Charlie Lintern – 10B3
Brandon Barlow – 10B4
Conor Haberfield – 10B4
Charlie Harris – 10B4
James Jeremiah - 10B4
Bailey Brain – 10B5
Samuel Hayman – 10B5
Emily Perry – 10B5
Charlotte Alsop - 111
Jospin Buxton - 111
Jacob Swain – 111
Elsie Taylor - 111
Bethany Bowen – 112
Natalie Byrtt – 112
Jon Clark – 112
Timothy Lawrence - 112
Grace Mansbridge – 112
Dexter Barter - 113
Jake Buxton - 113
Georgia Hill-Loveridge - 113
Jordon Holbrook - 113
Jonathan Reep - 113
William Sneddon-Coombes - 113
Stephanie Thomson - 113
Sam McMullan - 114
Cameron Slater - 115
Charlotte Fisher - 116
Molly Maher - 116
Connor Burton - 117
Savana De Sousa-Trowell - 117
Leon Deverson - 117
Darren Wilkins - 117
Luke James - 118
TOP 10 STUDENTS IN EACH YEAR GROUP
FOR POSITIVE SIMS ACHIEVEMENTS
From September 2012 to time of publication
Well Done - a fantastic achievement
Year 7
Year 8
Year 9
Isabella Caine - 209
Charlotte Painter - 205
Jazmine Hurrell - 203
Rachel Eveleigh – 195
Hollie-Ann Alsop - 191
Megan Barrett - 190
Ria Osborne – 187
Taylor Drewer - 187
Lucy Bell - 184
Caitlyn Harper - 183
Amy-Leigh Shepheard - 270
Charlotte Sharpe - 266
Isaac Stairs - 229
Lily Jeffrey - 227
Harry Burgess - 227
Alexander Kempley-Smith - 212
Esme Taylor – 210
Megan Lewis - 209
Hannah Haughey - 206
Harry Smith - 202
James Winfield - 236
Alex Coghlan – 180
Tia-Liona Hannon - 164
Danielle Kane - 161
Jaden Sadiq – 159
Mitchell Trego - 157
Emily Henderson - 154
Simon Dixon – 153
Lloyd Bunyan - 152
Kirsty-Leigh MacDonald
– 151
Year 10
Year 11
Emily King - 188
Christian Reeks – 182
Ashley McKenzie – 172
Alfie Williams - 165
Samuel Fletcher - 161
Rebecca Pickett - 155
Jake Merriman – 149
Nat Apps - 148
Courtney Trundley-Read - 146
Amber Escott – 141
Daniel Mudge - 329
Elaine Querl - 120
Jack Hoskins - 111
Chelsea Park - 103
Laura Thaiss - 95
Daniel Dinsmore - 92
Grace Mansbridge - 89
Yasmin Sadiq - 83
Jon Maynard-Davis – 82
Cameron Freeman - 82
TERM DATES 2013 -2014
TERM 1
Starts
Monday 2nd September 2013
Monday 2nd and Tuesday 3rd September school is closed to
students with the exception of Year 7 who will come in on
the morning of Tuesday 3rd September 2013
All students to return to school on Wednesday 4 th September
2013
TERM 2
Ends
Friday 25th October 2013
Starts
Monday 4th November 2013
Friday 20th December school is closed to students – Staff
Training Day
TERM 3
Ends
Friday 20th December 2013
Starts
Monday 6th January 2014
Wednesday 29th January 2014 – Target Setting Day – School
Closed – Individual Student and Teacher Appointments only
TERM 4
TERM 5
TERM 6
Ends
Friday 14th February 2014
Starts
Monday 24th February 2014
Ends
Friday 4th April 2014
Starts
Tuesday 22nd April 2014
Ends
Friday 23rd May 2014
Starts
Monday 2nd June 2014
Monday 21st July and Tuesday 22nd July 2014 school is closed
to students – Staff Training Days
Ends
Tuesday 22nd July 2014
CURRICULUM UPDATE –
Mr Dodd and Mr Edwards
Cross - Curricular Learning: Year 7 Battlefields Project
This term students had an exciting opportunity to make connections between their learning across
different areas of the Year 7 curriculum. In July, on our Curriculum Enrichment Days, Year 7
students engaged in thematic learning as part of a Battlefields project. This included 90 students
travelling to Belgium and France to visit the battlefields of World War One.
Students had been preparing for Cross-Curricular Enrichment days in their in Languages, English, Humanities
and Computing lessons. In Humanities students have been learning about World War One and the experience
of soldiers fighting in the trenches. In English students have read Michael Morpurgo's moving novel: Private
Peaceful. This tells the story of brothers, Tommo and Charlie, and explores the impact that the war has on
their lives. During Languages lessons students have been learning vocabulary to support this project and their
visit to France. They put all of their learning together using technology, including flip cameras and iPads, in
their Computing lessons. The project is being led by Mr. Plumridge, Mrs. Boll, Miss. Winsborough and Mr.
Latham.
With the centenary of the start of World War One coming up
next year this seems a particularly relevant time for students
to be engaging in this cross-curricular learning project.
Encouraging students to explore connections between
different areas of the curriculum can lead to deep and lasting
learning. Learning based around a theme also provides many
opportunities for students to develop their Personal, Learning
and Thinking Skills including: independent enquiry, creativity,
team work and empathy. Beyond these learning objectives
we hope that, through this project, students will have an
inspiring and memorable experience!
At PCSA, on 8 and 9 of July, students experienced French
culture through a "Cafe de Paris" activity and reflecting on and
recording their learning on the Battlefields theme in teams,
using iPads.
They created presentations using both English
and French language.
Meanwhile, those students visiting
Belgium and France will visit World War One battlefields at
Ypres and The Somme as well as spending time in the
charming French town of St. Omer. On the evening of 8 July
PCSA students will attend the Last Post Ceremony at the
Menin Gate and lay poppy wreaths on behalf of their school.
We wish our students the best of luck with their learning
project and look forward to seeing the work they produce.
NEWS FROM YEAR 7 – Mrs Bowen
It’s hard to believe that our Year 7 students have almost completed their first year with us and that next
year’s Year 7s are already taking part in transition events. It has been wonderful to watch each and every
student develop and grow as they have moved through the year. There has been some outstanding learning
both in class and during period 6 activities with many personal and group achievements. The overall ratio of
achievement points to behaviour points in Year 7 is 12:1 which is a fantastic start to PCSA.
The year group have made an amazing effort in their first year of fund-raising at PCSA both individually and
collectively with a wide variety of fund-raising events.
Congratulations too must go to our students of the week who have been nominated either by their tutors or
subject teachers for outstanding achievements. Here are some of our most recent stars:
Ben Hughes, Lucy Fletcher, Lucy Macklin and
Kyle Godwin with their MANGA work in art. There are
many characteristics that make Manga very
distinctive. The largest thing that Manga art is known
for is its characters. Manga characters almost always
have large eyes, small mouths, and they also usually
have abnormal hair colour. These things give their
characters a very western look to them.
Abi Lawrence with one of her tutors Mr Fisher
A special mention must
go to Ben Woodhouse
for his outstanding
achievements in this
area. Ben completed the
Strawberry Line walk
from Yatton to Cheddar
for this year’s charity CRY
and personally raised in
excess of £480. An
amazing effort – well
done Ben!
Molly Squire, Natasha Bryant and Lily
Thorne helped out at the Spelling Bee and a
number of teachers commented on how
confident and helpful they were. Well done
girls!
In English lessons year 7 students have been studying the book Private
Peaceful and many of our students will be visiting France and Belgium this
term to visit some of the places and battlefield mentioned in the story. We
wish them “Bon voyage” and look forward to hearing all their stories on
their return.
NEWS FROM YEAR 8 – Mrs Davies
Year 8 have had another successful year at PCSA and it is hard to believe that they will be ‘Graduating’ into
the upper school! Over the course of the year, it has been a delight watching the year group blossom into
confident, motivated and successful young people. I look forward to supporting them as they continue their
learning journey through to Year 9. This year has been full of successes both in the classroom and in the wider
school community. At the time of writing, Year 8 have received 30,525 achievement points which is
outstanding. Year 8 are presently the year group with the highest attendance percentage which stands at
97%. Congratulations to you all. I look forward to you all maintaining the excellent standards you have set
yourselves.
York
The main event this term was our trip to York at the start of July which was superb. The students relished the
sights of York which included a boat trip on the River Ouse, a visit to the Railway Museum and who can forget
the infamous ‘Ghost walk’ around the Shambles! The 165 students were a credit to the school and enjoyed
every minute of the experience.
Year 8 in York
Charity
Yet again this year, Year 8 have excelled themselves in terms of raising
money for our school charity. 8B5 raised a total of £185.94. 8B5 are
pictured with their tutor Mrs. Bell who is very proud of the team work
skills they demonstrated in raising this money.
Outstanding Home Learning: Mason Boobyer 8B6
Year 8 demonstrating ‘Great Group Work’
Alex Crowther 8B4 must be recognised for his contributions to the ‘Fuchsia Group Charity’. He has raised
money for this throughout the year.
NEWS FROM YEAR 9 – Mrs Brace
Another fantastic 2 terms for Year 9 at PCSA, students should feel proud of the excellent reports that
have been written and outstanding praising stars. Attendance has been brilliant with a clear rise from
several of the tutor groups, namely 9A1 and 9A2 who have seen their figures go to just below the PCSA
target of 97%, good work everyone, let’s start Year 10 with the right attitude!
As a year group, completing our charity activities this year has been great fun. We raised a lot of money
for CRY, our charity this year by selling cakes, filling socks with pennies, throwing a ball through a hole in
a wooden heart game amongst other things. The best tutor group were 9B5 who packed bags at Tesco in
Weston for a whole Saturday raising an incredible £344! Thank you to all of the students that helped, Mrs
Smith for organising and packing as well, as members of her family who came along to support too.
We are busy preparing for all of the exciting activities planned for end of term, curriculum enrichment
days, sports days and reward trips. Over 120 Year 9 students qualified for the Crealy rewards trip by
achieving excellent attendance, behaviour and achievement. Another 40 students are working hard to
earn a place, working hard on personal targets.
There have been some great achievements in Year 9 this year; there has been a massive intake on the
DofE from Year 9 with over 80 signing up. A big well done to those students for signing up for a
challenging award.
Megan Ward from 9A2 has had a busy time competing on her new forest cross
competition horse ‘Harry’. She recently competed at the Badgworth show and
came 1st in the working hunter’s class. This then gave her the opportunity to
compete in the champion class. Megan had another clear round, she won the
show! Such a fantastic achievement, well done Megan, I cannot wait to hear
about your next event!
Chloe Knight, 9B6 is an exceptional swimmer and has
recently competed for her club in the regional finals.
Chloe is in the top 50 in Britain for 50metres breastroke
Megan Ward
and swam for her club at the recent national competition.
Chloe was just 2 seconds away from qualifying for the
National competition this year; she is now working towards qualifying for next
year. Well done Chloe, such an amazing achievement and experience.
Chloe Knight
Attendance in Year 9 is currently 95.83%, just below the PCSA target. If your
child is unwell and cannot attend school please could I request that you contact
Student Services. We are also working very hard with Year 9 to reduce the
number of late marks that are accrued, please assist us in this by ensuring that
your child arrives at school on time. Tutor time begins promptly at 8.40am. I look
forward to signing more 100% attendance certificates then ever next term.
NEWS FROM YEAR 10 – Mrs Thompson
It has been another incredibly busy yet successful term for our Year 10 students. During this term many
of the students sat important exams in many different subject areas and they conducted themselves
exceptionally well. Students were well prepared and many attended early morning and after school
revision sessions for weeks in the run up to the exams in preparation. I am aware that for some it was a
nerve wracking and stressful time so I want to congratulate all who sat exams on their conduct and
behaviour around school during this incredibly busy time.
June 24th saw our Year 10 students undertaking their Work Experience week – this proved to be an
invaluable insight into the world of work for the students and I visited many who had been incredibly
successful in their placements and had received glowing reports from their employers. We had many
students who chose local placements such as Next, Peekaboo day nursery and Weston Cricket Club but
we also had students who went as far afield as Ryder Levett Bucknall (building surveyors) in Birmingham!
The students were a credit to the school and should be incredibly proud of themselves. There are some
pictures below of students at their placements.
Mr Coles with Amber Hacking, Megan
Phillips, Nick Uttley and Jacob Ham at Mead
Vale Primary School
Charlie Ansell at the
Hair Salon
Mitch Sage at Tudor
Lodge Surgery
As I write this newsletter we are preparing for our end of term celebration assembly and reward trip. In
consultation with the students we have changed the assembly to a morning slot and designed it in the
form of an awards ceremony - these awards have all been created and winners have been picked by the
students. There will also be a short performance from Interlude – a band formed by 4 Year 10 boys which
has, to date been very successful. This year we are taking approximately 200 Year 10 students to Crealy
adventure park in Devon in recognition of fantastic behaviour, attendance and general conduct around
school - this is a fantastic number of students who have been awarded places and I am hoping that they
will have an exceptionally enjoyable day.
I would like to take this opportunity to mention a couple of students who have had some great personal
achievements during the past few months – Nick Uttley of 10A6 has just completed a stint performing in
FAME at the Blakehay theatre where he played the role of Tyrone who does the infamous split jump. Sam
Fieldhouse of 10B6 has also been successful in gaining an early college placement for next year to study
brickwork- the college were exceptionally impressed with the standard of Sam’s two interviews and we
wish him the very best of luck there - Sam will continue to study with us for 2 days a week.
There have also been some fantastic academic achievements and if you have a couple of moments spare I
would recommend watching this clip of Aaron Bartlett of 10A1 reading Out of the Blue by Simon Armitage
– it is fantastic, well done Aaron. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq4YmMOvNlY.
Finally, I would like also to take this opportunity to bid you a short farewell as many of you already know
I will be taking up maternity leave at the end of this term. I have now spent 2 years with this year group
and have got to know them all extremely well – I have been immensely proud of each and every one of
them and all that they have achieved in such a short space of time – they really have been a great bunch
of young people and I can see many of them having a very bright future. I will miss them all but wish
them every possible success as they commence their final year here at PCSA and I cannot wait to see
them again for Prom in 2014 and hear all about their time in Year 11.
NEWS FROM YEAR 11 – Mrs McBride
It is with great pride that I write this as we conclude five very successful years at PCSA for our learners of
2008-2013. I am really impressed with the way our team of learners maintained their focus and applied
themselves to their studies. I am confident that there will be lots of celebrating on our Success Day on
August 22nd 2013.
As we predicted this year’s Priory Prom was the biggest with record numbers of students attending. It was
a fabulous night and I know everyone attended will take many wonderful memories away with them.
More memories, a few tears and lots of laughter were generated at the Festival of Transport and our
special Year 11 Leavers Assembly.
As your pastoral leader for the last five years I have had the privilege of thanking you for your
cooperation at the start of nearly all our assemblies. As a whole year group you have been a delight. I
have also spoken regularly to you all about leaving a legacy at PCSA. I am thrilled to say we have done
just that. This year we have introduced a student leadership team which was strongly led by Andy Green
(Head Boy), Molly Maher (Head Girl), Jake Swain (Deputy Head Boy) and Kaylee Langdon (Deputy Head
Girl). Their final role will be the selection of the new student leadership team in July.
Please keep on learning and look back at our ‘Priory Days’ with the fondest of memories.
I will leave you with one final thought: “The difference between school and life…………… in school
you are taught a lesson and given a test. In life you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson”
Good luck everyone.
SUCCESS RESULTS DAYS
AS/A-Level and IGCSE Results - THURSDAY 15TH AUGUST 10.00 – 11.00 FRONT RECEPTION
Year 11 GCSE Results -THURSDAY 22ND AUGUST COLLECTION IN MAIN HALL FROM 10.00 – 12.00
Year 10 GCSE Results -THURSDAY 22ND AUGUST COLLECTION IN MAIN HALL FROM 11.00 – 12.00
FESTIVAL OF TRANSPORT
NEWS FROM STUDENT SERVICES
We operate “Attendance Call”
at PCSA
Target
97%
Attendanc
e
PCSA currently ranks in the top 6% for attendance in the Southwest area. Over half our students
attended every single day of last term. We closely monitor each student’s attendance and are expected to
work with any families where levels fall below 92%. If a student’s attendance is below 85% they are
categorised by the government as a Persistent Absentee and are in need of intervention. Our Education
Attendance Officer and/or Family Liaison Officer may carry out unannounced home visits in these cases.
As part of this work we carry out regular “truancy sweeps”. When we undertake a truancy sweep, we visit
every family on a specific day to monitor absenteeism (regardless of whether we have been notified of the
absence in advance) and compare the reasons for absence to our attendance records.
Parents have a duty to ensure their child’s regular attendance at school and failure to do so is
an offence under section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996.
The school may authorise ½ day for medical appointments where these are unavoidable. However, we
would ask that you support your child’s attendance by arranging medical/dental appointments before or
after school wherever possible.
Every School Day Matters – Days off School = lost learning over a
year
100%
Attendance
0 weeks missed learning
95%
Attendance
1 week and 4 days missed learning
90%
Attendance
3 weeks and 4 days missed learning
85%
Attendance
5 weeks and 3 days missed learning
80%
Attendance
7 weeks and 3 days missed learning
We are also closely monitoring the students for lateness. Our Education Attendance Officer, John Boden,
will be present at the front of school to challenge those students arriving late. If you bring your child in
late to school you may be given a leaflet with information about the impact of lateness. Please do not be
offended by this as, ultimately, this is for the benefit of your child.
Our aim is to support you in maintaining a high level of attendance. Studies have shown that improved
attendance leads to improved achievement in school. If you have any concerns with regard to your child’s
attendance, please contact Student Services where Rachel Drury (Attendance Improvement Manager),
John Boden (Education Attendance Officer) and Joanne Anderson (Family Liaison Officer) will be happy to
advise you.
Our Student Absence Hotline
To report your child’s illness or other absence on the first and every
day you can either telephone 01934 511 411 (option 1)
telephone 01934 529 366 (dedicated absence line) or
email illness@priory.n-somerset.sch.uk
Please give your child’s name, tutor group and reason for absence.
STUDENT WELFARE
Located within Student Services
The first aid station is situated in the Student
Services. We endeavour to look after all
students should they become ill or injured at
school. We may occasionally need to send
students home if we feel they are too unwell
for school, but we do try to encourage students
to stay if possible.
We can authorise the use of one dose of
medication in a day should the student need it
i.e. paracetamol, providing the appropriate
form is completed by parents/carers and
returned to Student Services
We aim to provide the best support for
your child to ensure they attend school regularly in a safe environment. This, along with your
co-operation, will enable them to achieve their fullest potential at Priory Community School an
Academy Trust
Family Liaison Officer
Priory Community School is very lucky to have its very own Family Liaison
Officer based in Student Services, called Mrs Joanne Anderson.
What is a Family Liaison Officer? The link between home and school.
We Offer…
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Support for parents and families both in school and at home
Free and confidential advice
Group support and coffee mornings
Another contact between home and school
A listening ear
A link with school when a student is excluded
Our Aims…
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As a Family Liaison Officer my aim is to support parents and give them greater confidence when
dealing with any issues no matter how big or small they may be
Bringing up children is not an easy task and does not come with a manual for those unexpected
events. I aim to work with you to resolve any issues and signpost you to other relevant support that is
necessary
Some of the issues I can help with include boundaries, routine, behaviour, attendance, general health
issues and many more
If there is a concern in school I will contact you to arrange a home visit to discuss this with you in
more detail
I work very closely with other agencies and can help with referrals if and when they are required
The advice you will receive is free and confidential, however, if we feel at any time you or your family
are at risk, we may need to share information with other services
A Family Liaison Officer is part of a team of experienced professionals based at schools in and around
North Somerset, also known as Parent Support Advisors
What will you gain?
A
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chance to…
Express problems, anxieties and frustrations
Explore solutions in a supportive atmosphere
Identify and build on your strengths as a parent
Look into support if you feel you need it
Meet other parents in similar situations
Have a direct contact with school
Future events planned
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Family breakfast
Coffee morning
Parenting Programmes
How to drug proof your kids
Mentoring
And much more……..
If you would like to contact us our details are as followsPriory Community School - Telephone (01934) 511411 - Or feel free to email me at
joanne.anderson@staff.priory.n-somerset.sch.uk
Priory Recycle Shop
We are offering an opportunity for parents to recycle school uniform, which can then be given or sold to
other pupils – This helps to save parents money and also cares for the environment by reducing our
carbon footprint.
School uniforms can be very expensive so we are trying to encourage parents to recycle the old school
uniforms that their children have grown out of, or buy a ‘nearly new’ uniform for their child that’s clean
and reasonably priced. We have a lovely selection of winter coats, sweatshirts, polo shirts, trousers,
sports clothing, football boots, shin pads and much more.
The shop will be run on a voluntary basis by dedicated parents and our very own Family Liaison officer.
This will be open to parents on a Friday from 3-4pm on the following dates- 18th October 2013 and 13th
December 2013
Many parents have already benefited from this opportunity so if you would like further information about
this new service or have some spare time to help co-ordinate the shop we would love to hear from you.
If you require any items before the above dates please contact the school to book an appointment.
Please email-Joanne.anderson@staff.priory.n-somerset.sch.uk or contact the school direct on 01934
511411 Ext 303
NEWS FROM ASPENS
The new i-café outlet has become very popular with students who prefer to be outside for morning break
and lunch time.
Products available in the Autumn Term – Pasta & homemade sauces, Panini, Homemade soup, Baguettes,
Sandwiches and wraps, a selection of home bakes, cold drinks and slush, plus ready for the cold weather
to come, hot chocolate.
NEW MEAL DEALS
New for September – simple meal deals offering great value for money – look out for the
new banners.
Main Meals, Pasta or Grab and go items with a small dessert and a 500ml water or small
juice cuplet – just look out for the meal deal stickers.
MEAL DEAL PRICE - £2.05
DINING ROOM
Come in and have a look at the great new counters that will be fitted over the summer!
Bigger and better hot and cold food display will replace the old World Kitchen and Pizza
hatches and with increased service areas the queues should disappear much faster.
£2.05
NEWS FROM PERIOD 6 – Mr Dixon
Allow me, if I may, a moment to reflect on the last two years managing the Period 6 programme. My
brief, when appointed two years ago, was to put extra-curricular provision at PCSA on the map. To start
with, the (rather wordy) ‘extra-curricular activities programme’ was re-branded ‘Period 6’. Next, staff and
students had to buy into Period 6. I’d like to say I worked extremely hard on this, but, ultimately, I didn’t
have to; staff and students alike were only too aware of the benefits that extra-curricular provision
brought with it (increased engagement, improved outcomes) and were there, in numbers, from the
outset. When I asked staff for ideas for more leftfield activities, again, the response was tremendous.
Some suggestions and questions…
‘I want to start a surf board club; I want to build a surfboard with students and then go surfing.’
‘Do you think students will buy into sushi classes?’
‘I speak Japanese and juggle. Not at the same time. But I could at a push. Could I set up a Period 6
activity?’
‘I’d like to run a series of Careers seminars, with local employers coming in to speak to Year 11 students
about what it’s really like being a nurse, an engineer, a lawyer or a plumber.’
With such strong staff and student engagement, it was not a surprise when Period 6 went on to establish
itself so quickly and so firmly across the school last year. And it has continued to grow this year. Each
term’s programme, with over sixty sessions on offer every week, has been as extensive and varied as
ever. While the Term 5 and 6 programme has been dominated by revision and catch up sessions for Year
11, there has been, throughout the year, some real success stories away from the more traditional
pursuits. And it’s not all about exam preparation and Year 11…
Ms Grout’s Magazine Club produced two editions of the outstanding school magazine (‘check them out’ on
the school website); Ms Harding’s Equestrian Club attended a ‘meet’ this year and, having established it’s
credentials, will step on (or canter, anyway) next year; Mr Dewar’s Chess Club, which I’d wanted to limit
to Year 7 so I could call it ‘Chess Club 7’ (Mr Dewar, rightly, refused) attracts students from all year
groups (and a local primary school); Mr White’s Community Art Group not only cleared the underpass of
litter, but they then went on to create a work of art with it; Ms William’s Japanese Club has expanded to
two nights and, fingers crossed, the KS4 group will embark on a GCSE qualification from September; Jon
Mason, a local fencer, will be back for more in September, having ‘thoroughly enjoyed’ his three terms at
PCSA and Strike Back Gym recently started up a Boxing Club, with a world champion belt holder amongst
it’s staff.
A huge ‘thank you’ to all staff involved in the Period 6 programme, and to those students who attend in
their droves.
NEWS FROM ENGLISH – Miss Murphy
Simply the Best of 2013
Mrs McCarthy saw how engaged and creative Y10 were with their extended home learning responses to
'Of Mice and Men'. A short (and highly professional) film version of the novel by Joe Saunders, Matt Jones,
Jack Bartram et al. and a brilliantly designed and executed board game ('Wild West Game of Life') by Will
Kennett were two particular highlights.
Miss Murphy’s learning highlight was the commitment and dedication of her Year 11 iGCSE groups, who
not only completed the entire iGCSE course in 5 weeks, but studied for their English Literature GCSE
exam almost entirely in their own time. “I've no doubt that they will all get the excellent results that they
deserve in August."
Mrs Davies was astounded by the creativity and talent her Year 10 students demonstrated in their ‘Of
Mice and Men’ home learning task. “These projects were a clear demonstration of their excellent
understanding of the key ideas in the novel. The display in my classroom is a real showcase of PCSA
talent!”
Mr Garner found being able to trust Year 11 students to identify their own target areas for revision and
attend the necessary Period 6 sessions to improve their skills in these areas in preparation for their exams
his highlight.
Miss Winsborough was amazed by how thoughtful her Year 10 class were in their analysis of the poem
'Out of the Blue' about the events of 9/11. “They were so creative and sensitive, especially Lucas Morrish,
Matt Attwater, Kieran Knapp and Harvey Sprague.”
Mrs Raeburn was amazed (and genuinely moved) by the monolgues produced and performed to film by
Y10 students, for a role-play assessment. “The way they really inhabited the characters in 'Of Mice and
Men' was stunning - such professional, creative, absorbing work.” Special mention for outstanding
performance goes to Emily Wightman, Aaron Kirsopp, Rosie Jones and Becca Brinn.
Miss Grout’s learning highlight of the year was been seeing the excitement and interest of Year 8; they
arrived at a lesson in our thrillers scheme of learning to find they had a mystery to solve, and only a few
clues and their own imaginations to go by.
This term a group of Gifted and Talented students
met modern British author, Tony White, at Bristol
Central Library. They had the opportunity to see and
listen to the author’s work around the Bristol and
Redcliffe area. Using an exciting new app called
‘Missorts’ - which consists of an interactive map to
trigger the author’s stories and urban soundtrack - we
trailed around Bristol using our maps as guides to
listen to Tony White’s short gothic stories.
Our students also learnt more about the work of a
writer from Tony and were given a few tips and tricks
about writing their own stories. Tony White’s work
has become a permanent public artwork in Bristol,
open for everyone to see and listen to. We would
encourage all families to experience this extraordinary
literature.
Finally, our Year 7 students will have the chance to get to grips with ‘Performance Poetry’ at the end of
term. Each year half will compete before judges, including Year 7 Learning Leader Maggie Bowen. This
follows PCSA students’ successes in Weston Junior Arts Festival over the past couple of years.
NEWS FROM MATHS – Mr Phillips
Mathematics
April Success Day
April 10th was a big day for certain students at PCSA as they received
their mathematics results from exams in March. Results from the
exams were outstanding and meant that over 77% of Year 11
students had achieved at least a C grade in mathematics. Additionally
many students improved their current grades by sitting the
examination at the Higher Tier level.
Many students are now focused on achieving even higher results in the summer. The culture in
mathematics is such that all students are supported to achieve the best grade possible. This summer as
well as record C+ results we are expecting our students to achieve record A and A* grades.
Sunday School Maths
The mathematics team are always willing to go the extra mile for
their students and this year we ran another very successful Sunday
revision school prior to the summer exams. On Sunday 9 th June
PCSA Maths opened its doors to students keen for some last minute
preparations with their teachers. Over 100 students attended the
day and worked extremely hard with their supportive teachers. The
Sunday school was in addition to the extensive Period 6 support
that is offered to students throughout the year.
Junior Maths Challenge
The UK Junior Mathematics Challenge is a national competition aimed at the top mathematicians in Year 8
or below in England and Wales. The challenge involves answering 25 multiple choice questions in one hour
and is sat in school under normal exam conditions.
2013 was a great year for PCSA with 24 students achieving awards from the United Kingdom Mathematics
Trust. Kyle Jones in Year 7 achieved the top score out of all of our Year 7 & 8 students which is an
excellent achievement.
Year 8 Winners
Silver (top 19% in the country)
Jack Warren, Lauren Sinclair, Charlotte Sharpe.
Bronze (Top 40% in country)
Nancy Smith, Emily Millard, Molly Montgomery, Emily
Ashford, Carter Box, Amy-Leigh Shepheard, Charlie
Fulcher, Mitchell Bird, Esme Taylor, Hannah Haughey,
Sam Hansen, Harry Edmonds, Nick Buxton, Luke Gage,
Will Ruth.
Year 7 Winners
Silver (Top 19% in country) –
Kyle Jones, Vaughan Ridsdale, Tara Karadia.
Bronze (Top 40% in country) –
Tasin Ahmed
Tasin Ahmed and Kyle Jones
NEWS FROM SCIENCE – Mrs Daniels
GCSE Science on the VLE
We have made significant improvements to our GCSE science resources on the VLE. All students taking
GCSE science courses have access to these materials to support their learning. There is a section for each
of the units of work. Resources include worksheets, home learning tasks, links to BBC Bitesize, video
clips, web links and a full keyword glossary. We hope that these resources will support students who may
be absent to catch up as well as offer opportunities for independent learning, consolidation of learning and
revision for tests and exams. Feedback from students already using these resources has been very
positive.
Geology Field Trip
Developing geological field-work skills is vital to the success
of those students who opt to take the subject at GCSE. The
field visit to Goblin Combe (near Congresbury), in June,
proved a highly enjoyable and useful experience for this
year’s group. They will have one more ‘practice’ visit before
proving their skills at Doniford in the autumn as 25% of their
GCSE. The students find the exploration of what the rocks of
the Earth tell them very illuminating – the field visits are, of
course, highlights along the way. The photo shows the group
listening to one of the ‘in the field experts’.
Team Solar Shock
On the 30th April Team Solar Shock went to the @-Bristol science centre for the Toyota STEM Challenge
regional final. Since the end of January the team, made up of Will Fuller, Jake Wood, Vaugh Ridsdale,
Elliot Ridsdale, Elly James, Chandler Hall and Will Byrne, have been working hard to design and build a
solar powered model car. Having made it through to the regional final the team had to present their car to
a panel of judges and then race their car down an 8m track three times. The students were accompanied
by Miss Smith, Miss Stanbury and Mr Lightwood. Team Solar Shock were up against teams of much older
students and so did incredibly well to come 4th. Everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable day and the
students have already started thinking about next year’s entry!
Paris 2013
This year we took 60 Year 10 students away for the first
science trip to Paris. Throughout the three day trip we
embarked upon several adventures including; climbing the
Eiffel Tower, calculating rollercoaster speeds in the
Disneyland Park and observing all the wonders that space has
to offer in the best planetarium in Paris. Students were not
only given the opportunity to see science in action, but also
were able to practice their linguistic skills whilst admiring the
diverse culture that Paris has to offer. We saw the fantastic
night shows at Disneyland which were part of the landmark
20th year anniversary.
Plymouth Aquarium Trip
On Friday 21st June some of our Year 7 students
went on the science and art Gifted and Talented
trip to the National Marine Aquarium in
Plymouth. The students took part in sessions
with a marine biologist and a resident artist
within the aquarium. They learnt lots of
fascinating facts about sea creatures from our
native shore species to those that inhabit the
ocean, as well as having the opportunity to use
their artistic talents to capture these wonderful
animals on paper. The highlights were the sea
turtle, sharks and jellyfish! The students spent
the afternoon using what they had learnt during
the day to design their own imaginary sea
creature. This was a thoroughly enjoyable
experience for all those who took part.
NEWS FROM CREATIVE ARTS – Mr Day
Community Art Club
Members of the Community Art club have been completing a long
running project over the last few weeks. The project brief was the
challenge to create an educational Art and Design mural showing a
timeline of famous artists from Art history. The work is 16ft long and
has been painted using a variety of techniques.
If your son or daughter is a student at PCSA and you are both
interested in joining in with the art activities taking place in the
Community Art club on Tuesdays 3pm – 4.30pm from September
please contact Mr White in the Art Department.
Arts Evening exhibition, Drama Performance and Concert
This year’s Arts Eve and Summer Concert is on the 18 th July 2013.
Start time is approximately 6:30pm and will finish approximately 8pm. Tickets will be on sale from the
front reception from Mon 15th, tickets are £4. The concert will showcase all of the schools musical talents
from The Violets (String and Wind Band) to the new and exciting band Cry Paradise fronted by Yasmeen
Butt. This year will see an increase in performances from student’s own compositions. Cry Paradise will be
performing all original material. Two notable performances will be from Paige Lewthwaite (singer/Guitar)
and from Diane Paknejad who both leave this year and will be very much missed by the Creative Arts
Dept. Ones to watch are B Sides. The group are all Year 8 PCSA students who will be performing at this
year’s summer concert.
B:Sides
Cry Paradise
An art exhibition will be taking place as part of the Arts Evening. A collection of artwork will be displayed
in the Atrium gallery, showcasing Year 9, Year 10 and Year 11 Btec Art and Design final artwork. Pieces
will include expressive landscapes, 3d sculpture and Pop Art paintings.
Interlude
Interlude are continuing their assent to rock stardom
with a series of dates in and around the Bristol area.
Fronted by lead singer, Charlie Lintern, the Year 10 band
have built on the success of their outstanding Weston
Grand Pier performance with concerts at Weston
Playhouse, Devauden and Pilning Music festival. The
next major live performances will be at Priory School
Summer Concert 18th July and The Fleece on the 23rd
September.
NEWS FROM HUMANITIES – Mr Shopland
It is a sad time in Humanities as we are saying goodbye to our current Head of History, Mr Markoutsas.
Mr Markoutsas has worked at PCSA for seven years and has not only worked tirelessly to help students
achieve outstanding results but also improved student enjoyment by creating exciting and dynamic
schemes of learning as well organising many out of school experiences such as the Berlin trip for year
11’s. We wish him all the best in his new school, Wadham, and know he will be an extremely successful
Head of Humanities.
The Berlin trip went ahead again last term and all returned stating that it was one of their best PCSA
learning experiences. Year 11 students visited important Historical sites such as the Sachsenhausen
concentration camp as well as the site of the 1936 Olympics. The visit helps students put their classroom
based learning into context as they have been studying Nazi Germany as part of their GCSE.
As part of our current Year 8 programme of study we are
also delivering a series of lessons learning about the
Holocaust. We remember those who lost their lives as well
as understanding how such an event could occur and what
we can do as a society to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
We are working closely with the Holocaust Trust and as a
consequence Ruth Barnett who is a survivor will be visiting
the school for two days to chair discussions with our Year
8s. She managed to escape Berlin in in 1939 and travel to
England via the Kindertransport. Her story is a fascinating
one and having her visit the school really helps students
put these tragic the events into context. If you wish to
learn more about her experience you can read her story
on the Holocaust Trust webpage.
Year 11 exams were a real success in term 5 and 6 and we are expecting to see some great results in
August. We were all very impressed with the levels of maturity exhibited by our students and the revision
sessions that took part on the weekends and holiday time before the exams were well attended.
Finally we are all looking forward to taking our Year 7 students on lots of Field visits over the next couple
of weeks to help provide the best possible learning opportunities we can. These include visits the
Quantock hills for Geography as well as Chepstow Castle for History. For the first time ever several
Humanities teachers will be helping to organise and run the new World War One battle field trip where
learners will have the opportunity to visit some of the sites of memorial such as the Menin Gate as well as
areas where the most fierce fighting took place.
NEWS FROM LANGUAGES AND GLOBAL
UNDERSTANDING – Ms Sersoub
Year 11 GCSE groups
Our fantastic Year 11 students have been working exceptionally
hard in the last few terms preparing for their GCSE exams. A
key part of the GCSE courses is the speaking controlled
assessment and the LGU teachers have been working one-toone with students to help them prepare. A number of LGU
teachers also gave up their own time at the request of the
students to run revision days during the Easter holidays.
During our 11 lessons you might be fooled into thinking you
were in a French school due to the quality of French speaking
that emanates from our classrooms! We are very confident of
record results this year! Our Year 11 students have been a
pleasure to teach and we wish them all the best for the future.
Year 8
After options choices were made earlier this year our Year 8 students have already been reorganised into
their new GCSE groups. The aim is to give them the best possible start to the GCSE course that they will
begin in September. We have some extremely capable linguists in this year group so are expecting record
results over the next few years! Bonne chance!
Trip to Belgium/France
In terms 5 & 6 LGU colleagues have been busy assisting in the
preparations for what promises to be a momentous experience for
many of our Year 7 students. Over 90 students are taking part in the
trip to France and Belgium which will include the opportunity to pay
tribute to the sacrifice of a generation on the battlefields of WWI.
Students have been practising speaking skills that they will use on
the streets and in the shops of St-Omer and will act as excellent
ambassadors for PCSA.
Japanese 日本人
Japanese lessons are still taking place during Period 6 in LGU thanks to Megan
Phillips. In this Period 6 activity students are encouraged not only to study the
Japanese language, but there is also an emphasis of teaching our students about
Japanese culture.
Modern Greek and Polish at PCSA
This year, as well as our traditional subjects of French and Spanish, some PCSA students have undertaken
examinations in Modern Greek and Polish. The LGU faculty had another member for a few weeks when Mr
Markoutsas superbly supported our students in their Modern Greek studies. We are looking forward to
expanding the range of languages taught at PCSA and are always happy to hear from parents/carers who
have an interest in other languages and cultures.
New staff in LGU
In term 5 we appointed a new Central Leader of Languages and Global Understanding, Anna Venn. Mrs
Venn is an exceptionally well-qualified colleague with an extensive track record of leading successful
languages faculties. Mrs Venn has many plans for the LGU faculty including reestablishing foreign
exchange programmes, encouraging world trips and involving PCSA students in initiatives such as the
British Council’s ‘Connecting Classrooms’ programme.
NEWS FROM COMPUTING & DESIGN –
Mr Pound
Students and teachers alike have had the opportunity to expand their perspectives of Computing and
Design outside the classroom this term.
As avid programmers, members of the Raspberry Pi period 6 club met their future counterparts from
engineering firms Atkins Global and Buro Happold in the classroom. Josh Eckett and Ed Savage visited the
school as part of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths) Ambassador program that was set
up to allow enthusiastic pupils a glimpse into the careers they may well pursue as technology experts.
The merits and shortcomings of different coding techniques were discussed between the students and
professionals, giving both the opportunity to realise the connection between talents developed at PCSA
and real life hurdles faced in the industry. However, what was even clearer was how awestruck the
engineers were with the pupils’ Scratch games, Mr Savage being mystified by Ross McKenzie’s (Year 7)
‘Airport Scanner’ challenge, much of which was developed at home (Scratch is free to download on
PC/Mac - scratch.mit.edu).
Teachers in the faculty, Mr Pound and Mr Latham, have
been building relationships with primary schools too,
particularly with Worlebury who visited to use our excellent
ICT facilities. The Year 5 pupils, supported by gifted PCSA
students, are being taught a series of lessons that will offer
a firm footing in Key Stage 3 schemes of learning for when
they begin secondary school in just over a year’s time. The
visits have also offered the teachers time to discuss new
developments in the primary curriculum and ensure
progress for these children continues at a rapid pace
throughout the transition into Year 7.
Several Year 10 pupils have opted to undertake their work experience placement within the faculty, Scott
Beeching, Simon Hazell and Aaron Bartlett, who are considering professions in education and technology.
The students undertook the full range of responsibilities: planning and delivering some outstanding
lessons to lower school, developing resources on the school’s Virtual Learning Environment, and even
reordering stationery and Mr Pound’s IT equipment cupboard. Let’s hope the latter didn’t put them off too
much!
Sainsbury’s Catering visit
GCSE catering groups have visited the Sainsbury’s store in Worle. The students have been learning about
products, processes and packaging as part of their course. Sainsbury’s in Worle were very enthusiastic in
wanting to help demonstrate to the students how these processes work in the catering and retail industry.
The students began by having a health and safety talk, and then proceeded to be taken round the store
on a tour. The students were then shown the meat and fish counter and how to properly fillet a fish as
well as learning the difference between normal fish and smoked fish. The students also had a store tour
and then proceeded to the bakery where they were shown how all of the different machinery operates and
how the products are made. In the café they were shown how café staff prepare and produce orders
ready for customers to eat and had a demonstration by a barista how to make coffee. The tour concluded
in the training room, where students sampled some of the products that Sainsbury’s offered. The
afternoon field trip was a big success with more groups of GCSE students to follow.
Weston College Visit Priory
The Catering and Hospitality department from Weston
College came into a GCSE food lessons to do a work
shop and demonstration session with the students. The
gentleman, known as 2 men in a white van, brought
with them an array of different fish. The students were
shown how to season and present the fish in a
professional style, they were also able to sample and
discuss about the dishes presented to them by Weston
College. The students asked questions about potential
career paths that they may take in the future; relating
to the catering and hospitality industry. A special well
done goes to Maddy Bowen in 9B2 who helped out in
the demonstration and showed off some remarkable
skills to her fellow peers. Well done Maddy!
Period 6 activities
From the start of term 6, D&T has been running a Year 7 after school
club. The club allows pupils to further their skills in Design and
Technology and use their imagination and creativity to design and make
products of their own choice. We have had 3 very keen regular
attendees who have made a variety of products including; a medal rack,
a shield and a fort. Another team are still working on their F1 in schools
car and are busy developing their portfolio ready for the competition in
February 2014.
This year textiles club has taken place
in a P6 on Tuesday and has been well
attended by a number of students. The
range of textiles products that they
have made included T-shirts; bags
pencil cases, tops and a dress. Students
have learnt a range of skills including sublimation printing, how to make
and use their own pattern and applique.
And finally…. Mr Pound has been cooking (yes cooking) for the
Computing and Design faculty. The new team has been working together
for a year now and it is fair to say that we are now “one team” and the
benefits have been seen with shared resources and the development of
teaching practice.
NEWS FROM PE – Mr Sherring
As the 2012/13 academic year, draws to a close, I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the PE
faculty to thank all of the students who have represented PCSA this year. We have once again seen an
incredible number of students participating in both extra-curricular clubs and fixtures. It is this
commitment that really drives the standard of PCSA sport forward and makes our job so pleasurable.
PE Kit
Some Year 7 girls modelling the new PE kit launched this
academic year. The coloured socks are available for students to
purchase when they participate in period 6 sporting activities.
Year 7 Rounders
The Year 7 rounders squads have consisted of 4 teams this year.
Over 45 students have been attending period 6 rounders on
both a Tuesday and Thursday evening since April. This has been
the best turn out for rounders for a number of years. The
commitment and dedication by these students to this sport has
been exceptional.
Date
Opposition
Thurs 2nd Worle
May 2013
A, B, C &
D team
Thurs 9th
Clevedon
May 2013
Tues 14th
Sidcot
May 2013
Wed 22nd
May 2013
A team
Thurs 11th
July 2013
Tues 16th
July 2013
Year 7 Rounders Squad:
Score
WON
11 ½ v 10 ½
POTM
Melissa
Waite
WON
Cancelled due to
weather
conditions
Backwell
WON
13 ½ v 8
Gordano
Re-arranged
July 11th
Chloe
Carchrie
for
All North
Somerset
Teams
Megan Barrett, Chloe Broom, Lucy Fletcher, Chloe Carchrie, Erin Norris, Jessica Agnew, Robyn Perrett,
Aimee Cleeve, Patricia Kokoftopoulou, Chloe Bearsby, Megan Dymmock, Lucy Macklin, Chloe Walcot, Ria
Osbourne, Imogen Hayward, Jess Betts, Caitlyn Harper, Cora Henry, Courtney Marshall, Lauren Plumley,
Jaz Hurrell, Jodie Sirmon, Saskia Trowbridge, Taylor Drewer, Rachel Eveleigh, Kayleigh McGill, Chelsea
Bailey, Carla Kan, Tarra Karradia, Rebecca Cortlett, Tamsyn Waller, Emily Daly, Kamila Walczak, Melissa
Waite, Courtney Harding, Kayleigh Shepheard, Victoria Hudson, Rhya Khastar, Ellie Stephens, Elli Hedges,
Sophie Tucker, Leighanna Dinscombe, Alex Lee, Jodie Walker, Lauren Black and Charlie Hart
Year 8 Rounders
The Year 8 rounders period 6 sessions have been running since the start of term 5 and we have provided
2 teams every week. The girls could run themselves as they are very responsible and dedicated. They
play very well as a team and their excellent fielding skills have been commented on several times at
fixtures due to the teamwork shown in game situations.
I have high hopes for them in their North Somerset Tournament and over the next few years at PCSA.
Date
Thurs 2nd May 2013 B team
Opposition
Worle
Thurs 2nd May 2013 A team
Worle
Thurs 9th May 2013
Tues 14th May 2013
Clevedon
Sidcot
Wed 22nd May 2013
A team
Thurs 11th July 2013
Thurs 27th July 2013
Backwell
Score
WON
9-8 ½
WON
9½-4½
WON
Cancelled due to weather
conditions
WON
11 ½ - 12 ½
POTM
Sophie Allen
Sammi Brown
Lily Jeffrey
Lily Jeffrey
Gordano
All North Somerset
Teams
A team squad:
Izzie Goodey, Lily Jeffrey, Charlotte Sharpe, Leah Woodman, Megan Lewis, Kirsty De Grussa, Ella Howe,
Bethan Saunders and Sammi Brown
B team squad:
Breen Harvey, Jodie Pountney, Abbie Palmer, Holly Kattana, Rachel Curtis, Emily Charleston, Alicia
Cooper, Kayleigh Rendall, Melissa Garfield, Sophie Allen, Amy- Leigh Shepheard and Tarra Byrtt.
Year 9 Rounders
The girls remain undefeated in their after school fixtures,
having beaten Worle, Clevedon and Backwell. We continue to
have good numbers at practice on a Tuesday and a Thursday
after school. The squads for the A&B teams took part in their
North Somerset Tournament on Wednesday 19th June at
Clevedon School. The A team won the whole tournament and
are now the North Somerset Rounders Champions 2013.
Year 10 Rounders
This season of rounders for the Year 10 students have been
convincingly successful with an undefeated record of matches against local schools which has been
brilliant to witness. However, this hasn’t been without its challenges of attendance to training with the
girls under a lot of pressure from exams and so revision P6 attendance has been essential. Due to this a
committed group of girls have been attending rounders practice before school which has really proved to
assist and maintain their skills within matches. Despite some difficulties with training attendance the girls
represent a strong side to contend with and am confident they will do well in their tournament on the 2nd
July. Particular recognition to Lucy Poole, Beth Chattwood, Kirsty Potts, Katie Mitchell, Tiana Edwards and
Katie Lasson who without fail attended all the training including at 7:45am on Wednesday mornings; a
fantastic effort.
Year 11 Rounders
Our Year 11 students have had a lot on the last few weeks and months with GCSE examinations and
coursework deadlines to meet, so we ran a rounders period 7 practice on a Wednesday at 4.15-5.15pm.
The girls were dedicated enough to attend these sessions which ran after the original period 6 sessions in
the lead up to their North Somerset Tournament.
The North Somerset Tournament took place
at Gordano School on Tuesday 30th April at 46pm. The girls played in a round robin
tournament and played 7 teams along the
way, including a PCSA B team. They won all
of their games and have left PCSA on a high
as North Somerset Rounders Champions. A
big well done to all involved.
A team squad: Chelsea Park, Georgia Stallard, Danni Barford, Izzie Jeffrey, Steph Thomson, Molly
Maher, Georgina Mann, Savanna De-Sousa Trowell and Beth Nash
B team squad: Naomi Upward, Amber Loveridge, Sabrina Farndon, Hannah Cope, Georgia Taylor,
Rhiannon Ingham and Grace Weaver
Spring Schools Games
Both our Year 9 and Year 11 hockey squads qualified for the School games as they are both North
Somerset Champions, the Year 9s played some outstanding hockey beating Cabot School (Bristol) and
Ralph Allen (Bath) to win the gold medal and become Area Champions. The Year 11’s also played Cabot
School and Chew Valley on a very hot day afterschool and came away with a Bronze medal. Eight Priory
students are currently taking part in county hockey trials at Clifton College for six weeks. Good luck to
Poppy and Lucy Gibbons, Summer Davis, Becca Lucas, Beth Cole, Emily Watkins, Izzy Goodey and Lily
Jeffrey.
Athletics – North Somerset School Championship at Gordano 2013
We entered a team in each of the age groups and had some fantastic results:100m Year 8 1st Megan Lewis 15.4 secs
800m Year 8 3rd Isabel Goodey 3.06
200m Year 8 3rd Charlotte Sharpe 31.8 secs
Javelin Year 8 2nd Ella Howe 11.02m
High Jump Year 8 1st Leah Woodman 1.25m
1500m Year 9 3rd Emily Watkins 6.22 & High Jump 2nd 1.30m
100m Year 9 3rd Katie Waugh 15.1 secs
800m Year 10 1st Emily Whiteman 3.05
1500m Year 10 1st Trude Trickey
Triple Jump Year 10 3rd Chloe Cowell 6.3m
Netball Avon Netball Academy Nominations
Congratulations to Megan Barrettt, Chloe Carchrie, Lucy Fletcher, Erin Norris and Charlotte Sharpe who
were all selected to participate in the screening process for the Avon Netball Academy. This involved the
girls taking part in three camps which are lead by top Avon County coaches and playing with and against
other students from across the county. A brilliant opportunity which the girls have really enjoyed and we
wish them all the best of luck to get through to the next stages.
Boxercise
This year has seen the introduction of a new area of the curriculum in the form of boxercise; a high
energy activity which involves participants punching focus pads with boxing gloves through a range of
punches and movements. This has been introduced within the key stage 4 curriculum which the students
have really enjoyed releasing their stress and frustration out on! In addition to this Boxercise has reached
PCSA staff in a class after P6 so watch out for some touch teachers coming to a classroom near you!
Sports Day
Due to a disappointing, washed out summer last year the Olympic Sports Day was unable to take place,
not even allowing the reserve day to be in contention! However, the summer this year has had a
promising start and we are confident that this year’s PCSA’s sport day will go ahead with a bang! This
year sees the first sports day where students will be competing within their houses named after Great
Britain’s most successful athletes; Beth Tweddle, Tom Dailey, Kelly Holmes and Sir Chris Hoy. Allowing a
range of students to come together to compete for the prestigious accolade and first house trophies for
Sports Day.
Cricket
The Year 10, cricket team has come on leaps and bounds from previous years. They have managed to go
the entire 2013 season unbeaten. This incredible season has also seen the boys clinch the North Somerset
title!
Previously the team has enjoyed mixed success, but always
managed to find enjoyment in the sport, despite the results.
This fantastic attitude has remained, although has now been
backed up by some performances of real quality and
maturity.
The squad has been led this year by captain Josh Skuse. This
has brought a fresh perspective to the team and allowed
them to really ‘gel’. The tournament was testament to this
new team ethic, with 13 boys playing throughout the day and
more impressively with all of them contributing in some form.
However, special mention should go to Harry Wiseman who
stole the show with some outstanding batting and bowling in
all 5 games. He was highly praised by all the other players
and coaches on the day and received the ‘Player of the
Tournament’ award.
Year 9
Unfortunately for the Year 9s it has been a short season due to
cancellations and the unreliable British weather. They have played
3 out of their 7 arranged fixtures, where they won 1 and lost
2. The boys opening game was against local rivals Worle, a close
game, but Worle were the better side on the day. Their second
game was at home to Broadoak, again a very close game, but
thanks to Lucas Elliman hitting 33 not out, PCSA was able to seal
the victory. The last game saw the 9s face an incredibly strong
Churchill side that all play at the same local club. Although they
lost to Churchill team, the boys felt they played well and learnt a
lot from the experience.
Year 8
The Year 8s extra-curricular sport over the last 2 terms has been somewhat indifferent to say the least.
They are a very talented cricket team but have had limited fixtures due to the changing, and often bizarre
weather conditions for this time of year. When they have had a fixture they are yet to be challenged. To
date they have played against Broadoak and Hans Price, both games were won comfortably and the boys
did not have to move out of 2nd gear. Special mentions go to Owen Denyer and Charlie Camper who have
both captained a winning side thus far!
Year 7
The Year 7 cricket team has seen a great up take by the
year group. Over 40 learners have turned up to the p6 club
and of these; over 30 have represented the school in
competitive matches. The side has been very enthusiastic
with regard to training and have developed their skills in all
areas of the game.
Games against local schools have gone well, with great victories
against Worle, Churchill, Hans Price and a narrow defeat to Broadoak.
The side has seen some outstanding performances from some talented
young players: Brad Lucas as captain has led the side well with
excellent bowling, Tom Trewern has taken some very important
wickets, teasing the batsman with his spin, Joe Statham has been the
side’s most consistent bowler, always keeping the batsman under
pressure, Ayden Chenoweth displayed an outstanding batting
performance against Churchill having to retire after hitting three 6’s
and Nathan Langdon has developed his batting skills and now sets a
great platform for the side.
The Athletics season is just starting to pick up pace, with the North Somerset KS4 Championships having
just been completed. PCSA gave a good account of themselves with a number of high place finishes. The
highlights included: 2nd place overall for the Year 8 boys, 1st place finishes for: Tom Brannigan - Y9 high
jump and Taryn Selway-Joseph - Y9 100m and a host of 2nd place finishes for: Jake Middleton – Y8 100m,
Ben Lewis – Y8 200m, Charlie Camper – Y8 Shot, Taryn Selway-Joseph – Y9 200m and Aaron Fry – Y10
discus.
Of these great results, it was especially pleasing to see Tom Brannigan progress through to the Avon
School Championships where he finished a very creditable 3 rd place in the region.
We have high hopes for a number of Year 7 athletes, who have worked incredibly hard in preparation for
their forthcoming Championships.
‘Friday Morning Fitness Club’
The ‘Friday Morning Fitness Club’ has seen an increase in attendance of late and has seen numbers of 30+
arriving at 7:40am to be put through their paces. The ‘club’ has vertical learning at the heart of
everything the learners are put through, from our GCSE learners in 11 exploring fitness-training
techniques for practical examination to our younger learners who are witnessing their first taste of high
intensity physical activity. We are always looking to extend the numbers and give learners as many extracurricular opportunities as possible.
Full regular updates on fixtures,
results and general information
on what’s going on in the PE
faculty please follow us via
twitter - @PCSASport
NEWS FROM DUKE OF EDINBURGH –
Mr
Biddle and Mr Thompson
This year we have seen over 50 Year 11’s achieve the Bronze
level award; they completed two expeditions in terrible weather
overcoming all barriers put in front of them, with not one learner
failing to complete this section of the award. These weekends
were full of fun and emotions. Witnessing the excitement in all
the groups as they crossed the finish line after 2 days of walking,
navigating and cooking was definitely a highlight of the year for
all teachers involved.
The fantastic impact the year group had on the local community
was of great credit to them. They challenged themselves by
volunteering at: local sports clubs, schools, charity shops and
helping elderly neighbours with tasks such as shopping and
gardening. The DofE at PCSA is without doubt, having an impact
on the community we live in, well done to all.
Their success was celebrated with a meal at Hussain’s restaurant, where all enjoyed fantastic food. Many
thanks to the Hussain’s for helping us celebrate their success.
The current Year 10s have just started their training for the
expedition by attending weekly training sessions, in areas such as:
tent erecting, cooking and map skills. The group has also completed
the ‘Heart Start’ programme which has provided them with the
necessary first aid experience they will need when venturing into
the ‘wildernesses’. They have also learned how to assess and cope
with certain medical scenarios where basic recovery position or CPR
may be needed. Thank you again for support of all staff in allowing
the learners to gain this qualification. They have so far all done
excellently and another two hard but enjoyable weekends can be
looked forward to in October. The Year 9s have just finished
enrolling on the award and we have currently enrolled over 80 to
date, which is an unbelievable number, and shows the maturity of
our youngest recruits.
The DofE gives young people so many opportunities to have an impact on the community that they live
in, their family life and challenge them by experiencing the weekends away completing the expedition . I
would like to thank all staff involved in the on-going training and assessment of our learners to make this
award possible.
NEWS FROM PSHE AND CITIZENSHIP
Mrs Finlayson
Student Voice - School Council
As another academic year draws to a close I would like to thank all the tutor and year representatives
who have worked to bring the views of the students to council meetings. This is an important part of
ensuring our students are heard here at PCSA. A special thanks to Year 11 Leon Deverson who has led
and implemented several changes to the school council this year.
School Charity 2013-2014
In our last meeting tutor representatives discussed the nominations for our
2013-14 school charity. These nominations were all local charities and narrowed
down to a final three by the year representatives - an extremely difficult task
with so many worthy causes needing help and support. After
presenting the final nominations in tutor time and assemblies,
Year 7-10 students completed a vote on Thursday 20th June and
with The Fuchsia Group receiving the majority of votes. The
Fuchsia Group stands for friendship, understanding cancer, help
and support in abundance. They are a local charity formed in
2010 to offer support for those people and their families affected
by cancer. The group meets every Thursday at Worlebury Golf
Club to share their experiences in a friendly and understanding
way. Moneys raised by the school will help fund further training in
counselling, listening and bereavement skills. Congratulations to
The Fuchsia Group and we look forward to working with you next
year.
International World Red Cross / Red Crescent Day
On May 8th outreach workers from the Red Cross put on an event
for 40 Y7 students to come off timetable to learn about the
concepts of conflict and migration. Activities were designed to
enhance students' global understanding of conflict and migration,
and provided an extension of the migration topic that Y7s study in
Geography. As well as providing students with the opportunity to
build on their Citizenship knowledge, the activities enabled
students to develop empathy and team work skills. An excellent
morning was had by all and many students completed outstanding
presentations to the Red Cross about what they had learnt.
Curriculum Enrichment Days
On Monday 8th and Tuesday 9th July both Year 9 and Year 10 completed their PSHCE themed days. Year
10 worked with the English and maths faculties to prepare for the world of work. Many thanks to all the
staff involved and especially to Liz Davis for organizing a wide range of employers to mock interview our
students.
Year 9 focused on learning about the Justice System, in particular how Magistrate Courts operate.
Students visited the North Somerset Magistrates Courthouse to see the courtrooms and talk to
magistrates about their role. Sadly the Courthouse is closed on the Monday so A half spent an hour with
Magistrate guest speakers. We are also delighted to have ex PCSA head teacher and magistrate David
Dennis working with students in school where they are role-playing a mock courtroom trial.
NEWS FROM EXTENDED SCHOOLS
The summer holidays are rapidly rolling around as another academic year draws to a close. We’re making
ourselves known across the length of the country once again with a visit to London for a tour around
Wembley Stadium on the 8th August. We’re also taking trips to Devon’s Crealy, Bristol Zoo and Thinktank
in Birmingham. Creative Kidz will be running their usual summer workshop based in our hall, however,
they have now opened this up for PCSA pupils to take part in over a two day period. One day will be
devoted to acting and drama, the second to musical theatre.
Also coming up this summer is a government-funded two week summer school for our new starters to
take part in. Getting lost, meeting new people, fitting in and meeting new staff members are all things
that students say they worry about before making the change to Secondary School. With this Summer
School we hope to be able to alleviate the worries of making this change. For the first week, we will be
using a company called ‘Bigfoot’, who will work with participants to create a play based around
‘transition’. The second week will see ‘Transformers’ coming in, where students will be doing things of a
more arts and crafts nature. Whether they take part in just the one week, or both weeks, hopefully all
who take part will find it leaves them feeling more confident for their new start in September.
The Family Breakfast was held on Saturday the 9th March for those 251
students (and families) that will be joining us in September. It was, once
again, a thoroughly successful event; final numbers came out at over 400
breakfasts served. The ever popular Circus skills were once again in
attendance, teaching people plate spinning, juggling and numerous other
skills. Edupet were also there with gerbils, hamsters, Degus, snakes,
spiders and a barn owl (all kept very separate from each other). Our Year
11 prefect team ran a make-your-own-mother’s day card table and we also
had cup-cake designing and jewellery making. All in all it was a very busy
day!
NEWS FROM CAREERS - Mrs Davis
This term the main fo
Year 11 students have been sitting their GCSEs and ensuring that they achieved the desired results
to enable them to progress to the next level of education and training. All students have taken part
in College interviews and will have the opportunity to attend bridging days to help with the transition
process. We wish them every success in the future.
Careers Guidance Interviews
The Careers Library has been well used by students seeking information and guidance regarding all
the opportunities available to them and researching potential career options. Staff have been
available to help, guide and support students where necessary with all the difficult decisions that
need to be made to ensure students are on the correct career pathway.
Paul Harper, Weston College’s Progression Officer, has also been on hand with his regular weekly
drop-in sessions, and students have also benefited from presentations from other Colleges and
training providers.
Work Experience 2013
As we go to press over two hundred Year 10 students are taking the opportunity to get a real taste
of working life! Students have organised placements right across the career spectrum and have
travelled all over the country. Work Experience gives students a fantastic insight into the
expectations and demands of employment as well as highlighting a wide range of careers they might
not have previously considered.
My thanks to all the staff that have supported the Work Experience programme this year, we have
had some excellent reports and the students have been a real credit to themselves and the school,
showing real talent, enthusiasm and maturity beyond their years. All students are issued with a Log
Book, which gives the employer the opportunity to complete a written reference for the student, this
is extremely valuable when students attend interviews for future employment and work experience
of any kind it always great on the CV!
JACK SAUNDERSON at AVON SKI
& ACTION CENTRE (left) – Jack
had an excellent report from his
employers, he had been involved
with delivering a variety of activities
to clients including:- bush skills,
team building activities and caving.
AARON BARTLETT - working with
Mr Latham in PCSA’s IT Department.
Aaron has also been helping in a
variety of other curriculum areas.
AVON & SOMERSET CONSTABULARY
Year 10 students Emily Wightman, Alex Kilpatrick, Stephen Bowen
and Max Powley(from left – right). Getting a taste of life as a Police
Officer.
PC Pete Rooke who worked alongside the pupils all week as their
mentor said: "The students who took part are a credit to their school
and to Weston. Throughout the week they showed enthusiasm and
commitment and asked lots of intelligent questions. I hope that this
experience means they will consider a career in policing and has
given them an insight into the varied and stimulating work we do."
For the full story please look at the following link.
http://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/LocalPages/NewsDetails.aspx
?nsid=27593&t=1&lid=6
Connor Neale
at The Bristol Flying Centre Bristol Airport
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Our current Year 11 students have just completed their two year work placements, during which time
they have been able to gain vital employability skills and make a valuable contribution to the
organisations they have been working for, all students have had excellent references from their
employers and I know there were a few tearful goodbyes! Students elect to work in a wide variety of
career sectors including, nursery and primary education, hairdressing, construction, retail, animal
care and the automotive industry. We currently have 18 students in Year 10 finishing their first
successful year of their placements. The majority of placements lead on to part-time work,
apprenticeships or further training and qualifications within the chosen career sector.
YEAR 10 PROGESSION CHOICES
Year 10 students have the opportunity to take part in the following work related learning activities,
with the aim of helping to prepare them for their future progression choices and working life:-
WESTON COLLEGE TASTER DAY
WEDNESDAY 3RD JULY 2013
.
240 Year 10 students have the opportunity to try out the
course of their choice and have a taste of the real College
experience. Students will be based over the three College
sites with over 20 different vocational areas to choose from
and a wide range of A level courses to sample.
Students will also have the option to attend a similar day at
Bridgwater College in November. More details to follow.
Monday 8th July 2013 – Work Awareness Day
Students will spent the day working with the English Faculty who have planned a range of activities
to help prepare students for the world of work, including, learning vital interview skills, techniques,
and essential practice.
Students have already had the opportunity to work with Weston College staff earlier in the term,
with the aim of helping students to produce CVs and write letters of application that they will use
during their Mock Interview. Work on enhancing these documents has also continued during tutor
time.
Tuesday 9th July 2013 – Mock Interview/Personal Finance Day
Students from
2012 Enrichment
Day – looking
ready for
business!
Year 10 students had the opportunity to take part in a mock interview by going through the whole
process of applying for a job. Students attended school in business code of dress and were armed
with their Record of Achievement which will include their CV and written letter of application for
interviewers to scrutinise.
This event is greatly helped by the preparation work students have made during tutor time and
students were able to put the lessons learnt the previous day into practice! Students also took
part in Personal Finance workshops organised by the Maths Faculty, with the aim of helping students
gain a better understanding of important financial matters such as Tax, National Insurance,
student loans etc and the cost of buying a car as well as understanding Utilities and getting the best
deals!
For the interviews we were joined by 23 employers, from a wide range of career sectors, all keen to
help give our students the very valuable “real life” learning experience of taking part in the interview
process.
Important Date for Year 10/11 Students
THE ANNUAL
CAREERS CONVENTION
HELD AT THE WINTER GARDENS
WEDNESDAY 9TH OCTOBER 2013
5 PM – 8 PM
This is an excellent opportunity for Year 10 and 11 students to research all their future career
options under one roof, with over 40 different exhibitors attending the
Conference, including Colleges, 6th Forms, Universities, training providers and
employers.
More information to follow regarding open evenings for local Colleges and
Further Education establishments in September.
My sincere thanks to all staff and the wide range of employers that
have supported the Careers Education and guidance programme this
year.
NEWS FROM ADDITIONAL EDUCATION NEEDS
– Miss Scott
News from the Sir Richard Branson centre….
This newsletter comes to you from our brand new “Sir Richard Branson” centre. As I write, we have
been open for just over two weeks. You may well have spent the winter months watching the centre
being built. Although I was very much involved in the design and planning process, it was amazing
to see the finished product. The centre is spacious, light and well equipped with up to date
technology, including twenty computers and plenty of ipads. Decked out in school colours, it’s well
worth a look if you are visiting the school. We are particularly pleased that our new centre has state
of the art seating and a covered area for students and staff to spend their social times together.
The new centre houses Support to Learn, Return to Learn and three intervention rooms, all of which
provide maximum opportunities for us to interact with students and support them to reach their
potential. To date, we have increased our literacy and numeracy support in KS3 and Mrs Selby
(currently heading up the KS4 area) tells me that she works with up to 50 students in any one day.
In addition to students accessing the centre, we continue to send our LSA team out and about
around the school.
As Year 11 are finishing their last exams and saying their final “goodbyes” we look back on some of
the successes we have had. Dan Mudge, one of our regulars in Support to Learn, leaves us with a
record number of positive achievement logs. He has certainly broken a PCSA record with over 250
positives in just one year.
NEWS FROM THE LIBRARY – Mrs Harris
There have been a lot of activities going on in the Learning Resources Centre and it promises to be
just as busy right up until the end of term. As well as the usual activities such as the library based
reading lessons, tutor time reading, Period 6 and home learning, we have had many extra fun
events that have really supported students’ literacy and learning.
Carnegie 2013
The annual Carnegie Awards shortlist for 2013 was a superb range of books with a lot of Young
Adult titles to tempt our older students in to read these excellent titles. The shortlisted books were:
The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan
A Greyhound of a Girl by Roddy Doyle
Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgewick
A Boy and a Bear in a Boat by Dave Shelton
Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner
In Darkness by Nick Lake
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Wonder by R J Palacio
The winner was announced on the 19th June. Congratulations to Sally Gardner, author of Maggot
Moon.
Scholastic Book Fair
Scholastic delivered our annual book fair during April and it was a great success with many
purchases being made by our book loving students. We were also able to buy lots of new titles
over a wide range of interest levels that are now sitting on our library shelves just waiting to be
read and enjoyed. Congratulations also to the lucky five students who won a free book!
Book Buzz
We have again registered for the wonderful reading programme called Bookbuzz from Booktrust. It
was a huge success last year enabling every Year 7 student who started at Priory Community School
to choose a free book to keep, swap and simply enjoy. The choice of books for the students who will
be joining us in September this year is fantastic and we can’t wait to show them what’s on offer.
The aim of the programme is to encourage reading for pleasure, independent choice and develop a
whole school reading culture. We will also receive a free set of contemporary books for our library
shelves.
Children’s Laureate 2013
We also learned with great pleasure that Malorie Blackman was announced Children’s Laureate 2013.
Malorie Blackman is a creative writer of young people’s literature and this award celebrates her
outstanding achievement. The Children’s Laureate is managed by Booktrust. Previous laureates of
this award include Julia Donaldson, Anthony Browne, Michael Rosen, Jacqueline Wilson, Michael
Morpurgo, Anne Fine and Quentin Blake. And of course, students will find many of her books – and
the books of the previous laureates – on our library shelves.
Our letter from the SSAT
Showing PCSA as Top 20%
of schools in the country
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