Salesian School
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Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Summer Newsletter 2014
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Many of you will also know Liz through all the work she did for the Salesian Parents Association. Mrs Walmsley is embarking on the School Direct
programme to become a qualified French teacher from September.
I am delighted to introduce you to the latest edition of our newsletter. Life
is always pretty hectic here at Salesian but the last academic year seems to
have been one of our busiest yet! It’s been business as usual on a day-today basis with students enjoying great teaching, extra-curricular and spiritual development opportunities but beyond that there have been a number
of exciting whole school developments which will put us in a great position
moving forward, not least our recent designation as a Teaching School. I
hope you enjoy reading more about all this over the next few pages.
Moving On
As is inevitably the case we are very sorry to be saying farewell to a
number of colleagues this year. While it is always sad to see people go it’s
good to know that they will be going on to spread the good work of Salesian School to other places.
Sean Keeling joined the school in 1998 as a DT teacher and later became a
Head of Year and then Assistant Headteacher. Sean has been popular
figure with a generation of students, staff and parents not only for his work
in school but also his commitment to extra-curricular life particularly all the
ski trips he has run over the years. Mr Keeling has been seconded to
Matthew Arnold in Staines to help us deliver our school-to-school support
commitments over the coming year.
Roger Dixon is retiring, having joined us in 2002 as Network Manager. At
the time the ICT facilities in the school were a fraction of what they are
today and we are most grateful to Roger for all the work he has done over
the last 12 years to help us build the large network we have today.
Elizabeth Walmsley has worked at the school since 2004 variously as a
cover supervisor, exams officer, languages teacher and careers advisor.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Ellie Clark started in the English department 9 years ago and quickly
proved herself to be both a popular and outstanding teacher, she was promoted to Head of English and then Assistant Headteacher. For the last
year she has done an excellent job as Head of Sixth Form. Mrs Clark is
joining Mr Stapleton at St. Joseph’s in Slough as Deputy Headteacher.
Alisa Wickens joined the school in 2005 as a lab technician supporting the
Science Department at Highfield Road and later became our Chief Technician when everyone moved to Guildford Road. Over the last year Mrs
Wickens has put her formidable organisational skills to work in the Learning Support Department managing all their administration. The Wickens
family are relocating to Wiltshire.
Rhian Morgans joined us to teach Sociology in 2010 and she later became
Head of Social Science. Quite apart from being a brilliant teacher, she has
inspired dozens of Sixth From students over the last 4 years with her selfless charity work, particularly in the Far East where she has led several
summer trips. Mrs Morgans is also joining Mrs Stapleton at St. Joseph’s in
Slough where she has been promoted to Head of 6th Form.
Lisa Thorpe has taught Geography at the school for the last 4 years, she
also established our massively popular cheerleading squad and was the
Head of Savio House. Miss Thorpe is taking on a new challenge by becoming a primary school teacher and we wish her all the best in her new position as Year 4 teacher at Pyrcroft Grange.
Lucy Gilchrist also joined us in 2010 in the Science department and has
made a huge contribution to the Duke of Edinburgh Award. Together with
Mr McCann, Miss Gilchrist has built up the programme to the point where
we regularly have over 100 students out on weekend expeditions throughout the summer. Lucy has relocated to Buckinghamshire.
Debbie Davies will be known to many of you not only through her various
roles in the front office particularly as our excellent admissions officer but
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also for the great work she has done in leading the Friends of Salesian. Whilst
Debbie has only worked at the school for two and a half years, as a former student
and parent here it feels like she’s been here a lot longer! The Davies family are relocating to Sussex.
Emily Paines joined the Science department in 2012 and was promoted to Assistant Head of Year 10 last year. Emily has done an excellent job in the classroom and
in support of various extra-curricular activities. Miss Paines is relocating to central
London.
Welcome to...
Despite being very sorry to lose these excellent colleagues we are
delighted to be welcoming a fantastic new bunch of staff who we are confident will help us continue this great work. They are:
Ÿ Andrew Clarke, Assistant Headteacher (currently Head of Year 11, SJB)
Ÿ James Smith, Head of Design Technology joining us from Halliford
Ÿ Ros Pool will be heading up our new Autism Centre
Isabel Joce is retiring to her sailing boat following two years teaching Science, predominantly A’ level Physics.
Ÿ Conor Delaney, Head of Italian and Assistant Head of Year 9 who you
will know, is returning from Ireland
After two years on our Chaplaincy team, Brother Jarek is moving to Jerusalem with
the Salesians to continue his studies.
Ÿ Sarah Chapman, a Science Lead Practitioner currently at Fullbrook
Lia Garcia joined us this year to teach Italian and is leaving us at the end of term to
focus on family commitments.
Ÿ Oliver James joining the ICT department
Ÿ Emma Carlile who will be teaching R.E. and Music
Finally, congratulations to Claire Ferguson from the Science department who is
going on maternity leave in September as she is expecting a baby next term.
Our newly qualified teachers, Nel Castle-Smith (Geography), Richard Watt
(Geography), Sheila Gough (Social Science) and Simon Curson (Science).
All of these staff have made a significant impact on our school in one way or
another and we are most grateful to them for everything they have done to support
the children’s education during their time with us. Please join us in wishing them all
the very best for the future.
Our new trainee teachers, Tom Corry (Science), Rosie Lydon (Maths),
Lauren Vandewalle (History), Alex Murphy (History) and Doug Nel
(English) .
We also welcome various new members of the support staff team, some of
whom have already started: Caron Donnachie (Finance), Nicola Kenworthy
(Teaching School), Brid Hesse (Admissions), Emma Slade (Catering), Darren
Smith (Network Manager) and Eliott Kennedy (ICT Technician).
Moving up!
We have also made a number of internal appointments and offer congratulations to the following members of staff on their recent promotions.
Ÿ Paul Bryce, Assistant Headteacher
Ÿ Lizzie Ingram, Assistant Headteacher and Head of Sixth Form
Ÿ Kate Honeywood, Head of Year 7
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Ÿ Laura Reece, Head of Year 12
Ÿ Terry Barker, Head of ICT
Spreading Our Wings: A new school for Runnymede
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Ÿ Ann Murdoch, Head of Social Science
Becoming a Teaching School
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Ÿ Ella Jones, Head of Media
House News
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Ÿ Chris Howell, Head of Spanish
A new look for our website
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Ÿ Chris Browne, Head of Boys’ P.E.
Friends of Salesian
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Science Department
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Design & Technology
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Mathematics
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Geography
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Ÿ Assistant Heads of Year: Dan O’Shea (Year 7), Sarah Pritchard
(Year 8), Sophie Crabb (Year 10) and Carly Griffin (Year 12).
Religious Education
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Modern Foreign Languages
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Ÿ Heads of House: Sarah Payne (Savio) & John Hicks (Zatti)
Art Department
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Ÿ Emma Fitzpatrick, KS3 English Coordinator
Music
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The Hills are Alive (The Sound Of Music)
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So Long, Farewell... (Year 11 Prom)
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... Auf wiedersehen (Year 13 Ball)
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Physical Education
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Charity News
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Duke of Edinburgh Award
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Sixth Form: futures
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School Noticeboard
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Reminder: attendance
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Our new Specialist Leaders of Education who will help deliver our
work as a Teaching School, Marie Banks, Sabrina Lalli, David
O’Reilly, Louise McGowan, Sophie Rider, Rebecca Clarey and
Emily O’Farrell
KS3 Maths Coordinators: Anna Hilton & Chandler Cranfield
Ÿ Sue Dilworth, Literacy Coordinator
Assistant D of E Coordinators: Dan O’Shea, Michael ConnellSmith and Sophie Woodroffe
I am sure all of these colleagues willhelp us to deliver the continuing improvements in the children’s education that we are always
striving for. We are all looking forward to working together with
you again next year and I would like to thank you for all you do as
parents and friends of Salesian; we really couldn’t achieve any of
what you will read about here without your support.
Best wishes for a glorious summer, and God bless,
James Kibble
Headteacher
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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We are delighted to confirm our involvement in plans for a new free school
for Runnymede, to be opened in September 2017. It will be based in Chertsey and we are in discussions with the Local Authority regarding the Runnymede Centre site as one of the potential site options. It will be an 11-16
school taking up to 180 students in each year group.
Salesian School is working in partnership with the Bourne Education Trust,
with whom we have previously worked in supporting Jubilee High School in
Addlestone. The new school will be called Bourne Salesian College.
Why a new school?
Pupil numbers in Runnymede will rise sharply over the next seven years.
The Local Authority is commissioning expansions at six primary schools,
but by 2021 it is estimated that there will be 250 more secondary school
students than there are currently places for.
viding an outstanding quality of education within an
environment of trust, tolerance and mutual respect.
What happens next?
Plans for the new free school are currently open for
consultation.
To demonstrate to the Department for Education
that there is parental support for this proposal, we
need the help of local parents. The DfE requires
that parents with children currently in Years 1, 2
and 3 confirm that they would choose Bourne
Salesian College as their first choice of secondary school (while in no way binding themselves
to this statement.)
To meet this rising demand and to ensure that all of our children continue
to have local access to the highest quality of education, we are proposing
to open a Free School: a new type of state school funded directly by the
Department for Education. They are typically established in areas of strong
demand where parents and educators can demonstrate a shared desire to
improve the educational prospects for local children.
If you or any of your neighbours qualify to contribute to this phase of the consultation, you
can get involved directly via the Bourne Salesian College website (right):
www.bournesalesiancollege.co.uk/.
Why Salesian?
The trunk of the tree is a cross, representing the Christian
faith at the heart of the school. The leaves show our ecumenical nature, welcoming students of all faith and none.
The shield and colours are taken from Salesian School: the
foundation of experience on which the college will stand.
The tree reminds us of the Salesian founder Don Bosco:
Bosco is Italian for [a] wood.
We have demonstrated that we can create a first class learning environment in which every child succeeds, supported by an ethos based on faith,
and love for every student in our care. We think that is worth sharing.
Bourne Salesian College will create a community with the highest aspirations, underpinned by Christian values and ethos but warmly welcoming
and open to those of other faiths or none. Dedicated to achieving the best
outcomes for all learners, the school will serve the local community by pro-
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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This summer has included the development of our new role as a Teaching
School, which was confirmed in April. This makes Salesin School part of a
national programme to train and develop teachers and school leaders, and
lead school improvement in their areas through school-so-school support.
Teaching Schools take a leading role in the following areas:
Ÿ Training teachers
Ÿ Career and professional development for existing teachers, including
leadership training
Ÿ School-to-school support
Ÿ Research and development in teaching and learning
This new role for Salesian recognises our outstanding Ofsted judgement
last September and also our strong track record in delivering initial teacher
training, professional and leadership development for existing staff, of Inital
Teacher Training, Continuous Professional Development, school-to-school
support and research and development. Recent successes have included:
at the school, top open in 2015, citing the school’s supportive and inclusive ethos as one of the reasons for building it here.
We will now work with a number of strategic partner schools in the secondary and primary sectors in both the local area and the wider diocese of
Catholic Schools.
Welcoming the decision, Headteacher James Kibble said: “As the leadership of education – and the training of teachers – become more devolved
and localised, the role of strong local alliances of schools with a vision of
what teaching and learning should be will become ever more important.
We’re delighted to be a central part of that process: the opportunity to
share and spread the experience and expertise that we and our partner
schools have been building can only enrich the experience of the children
and teachers in every school involved, including our own.”
Ÿ Leadership support of Jubilee High School in Addlestone brought about
rapid improvement, with Ofsted crediting “inspirational and highly ambitious senior leadership” for transforming the school (2012).
Ÿ In partnership with Epsom and Ewell High School and UTeach, Salesian
runs ‘Teach England’, a successful induction programme that has supported around 100 Irish and Canadian trainee teachers wishing to work
in the UK this year.
Ÿ In September 2013, Ofsted awarded the school ‘Outstanding’ scores in
all four inspection categories. This was followed by a Section 48 Diocesan inspection in March 2014 which rated the school as ‘Outstanding’
for its religious character and ethos.
Ÿ In March 2014, the National Autistic Society and Surrey County Council
confirmed plans to build a new specialist centre for students with autism
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Year 9 Students coming closer to an understanding of war
on a visit to the cemeteries and trenches of Ypres.
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Salesians have done themselves proud throughout 2013/14, taking part in
a variety of events for their houses, fundraising for their house charities
and promoting school spirit. This year has seen the Photo Booth Challenge
and the Rowathon as well as December’s awesome Christmas disco with
some outstanding dancing from teachers and students alike.
In February, our Year 11s took part in the Blind Date competition – an
eventful flashback to the 90s – as well as the whole school Valentine’s celebration. In March, the yard was flooded with green as part of the St
Patrick’s Day festival and our brave year 7s and 8s stuffed themselves with
food during the rather messy eating competition. Red and Black saw
another lively lunch-time gathering. Our houses raised over £2000 during
the sponsored walk and we celebrated the football in style during the
World Cup (right).
We would like to thank
all the members of
Rinaldi, Rua, Savio and
Zatti for their unending
enthusiasm all year. A
special thanks to tutors
and Mrs Baumgart for
helping and supporting
the house system and
our house charities.
All being well, you are reading this newsletter via our brand new website.
We have redesigned the site from the ground up, creating dedicated new
spaces to report all our news, celebrate our students’ activities and
achievements, and outline our ethos, vision and curriculum. It also features access to our new online calendar: synchronise this to your
mobile device and you will always be up to date with school events!
House Charities
We are very proud to announce that we will be donating the following
amounts to our house charities:
Rinaldi, Thai Children’s Trust: £2644.22
Rua, Baraka: £1632.36
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Savio, Shooting Stars Hospice: £1405.51
Zatti: Lourdes Pilgrimage, £1381.12
From now on, all letters home and documents relating to school business
will be shared with parents via Parent Portal. Parents can log in from the
top of any page in the website, just as students can log in to Ribbit, our VLE.
If you have misplaced your login details, please contact
info@salesian.surrey.sch.uk for a reminder.
We hope you enjoy looking around the new site, which has been designed
and built in-house by Chris Watterston and Mr Allison, with Mr Creen.
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In June we had our Friday 13th Quiz Night and our Quiz Master Mr Hesse,
really tested everyone’s knowledge!
The Friends of Salesian help to provide/contribute towards resources in
the school that your child may not otherwise have access to due to budgetary constraints. We do this by organising fund raising events that you, as
parents can attend and support. Every penny raised is used directly for the
benefit of your child. We cover everything from sports equipment to high
tech resources in the class room. Therefore, it is really important that all
parents show their support in what ever way possible.
The FOS has had a fantastic year and has raised money to purchase some
amazing equipment for the children. We even managed to have some fun
along the way!
We kick started the year in April with ‘An Evening with Frank Sinatra’ featuring Paul Holgate (below). This was a great, sell-out success and it really
kick-started the FOS into action.
Our purchases this year
So far this year the FOS has purchased
Ÿ One new Mini Bus (below)
Ÿ Two brand new outdoor table tennis tables (also below)
Ÿ 1 specialised textiles printer – which will be used for GCSE and A Level
projects.
Ÿ A set of 16 Grammaticus English Games - for students to have a varied,
more fun way of learning .
Ÿ 3 Digital recorders for the language department .
Ÿ Sets of resources for the Maths department .
We Need You!
Please support the FOS by giving some time to help organise/support
events. Contact the FOS co-ordinator - Brid Hesse on 01932 582544 or
bhesse@salesian.surrey.sch.uk
Finally a big thank you to all those members of the FOS, parents and staff
that have supported the events this school year, it has been a pleasure
working with and meeting you all.
Debbie Davis
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Science
Mrs Pritchard’s Reptile Experience
On Extra-curricular day (July 3rd) I brought in some of my “pets” for people
to get up close and personal to. Some of my pets are more exotic than
most! I brought in twelve animals, including crested geckos, uromastyx
(often only usually seen in zoos), a blue tongued skink, a Greek tortoise,
royal pythons and a corn snake. The animals were impeccably behaved and
Buttercup – the microlepis uromastyx, even posed for pictures!
We also found that a number of pupils from other years also were interested enough to join in and so we had quite a crowd who were keen to
learn more about these fascinating creatures. I’m not sure how popular I
was with parents that evening as they dealt with the inevitable requests
for snakes or lizards as pets.
The day the Science Museum came to us. The wonders of
static electricity (above) - and the intestines (below)!
Everyone involved agreed it was a fantastic experience with the pupils
really engaging with the animals and getting the opportunity to handle
them. Mrs Baumgart even plucked up the courage to touch one of the royal
pythons; Mrs Grindrod was not so keen though… maybe next time!
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Technology
Glamorous Garments
Year 10 Textiles trip to Victoria and Albert Museum, Tuesday 1st July
On a beautiful July morning, 18 GCSE Textile students, travelled to London
to see two main exhibitions at the V & A and to visit the cultural and era
specific exhibits that are permanently on display.
This is a great time for this trip as they are at the stage in their controlled
assessment where they are creating their design work and putting together
original ideas based on their chosen briefs, some are based in a set era,
some have selected the cultural inspired brief.
The first exhibition - Wedding Dresses 1775 – to present day, had a
wealth of beautiful garments showing the changes in fashion, trends and
traditions in bridal wear. The students were able to see the dresses up
close and study the techniques, construction and fabrics used.
The most popular exhibition was The Glamour of Italian Fashion from
1945 to present day. Original garments gathered and loaned from Hollywood stars of the past to the creative prints of creative designers such as
Emillio Pucci were al on show.
dress. Prior then it was a passed down, recycled outfit. The Italian Glamour
exhibition we saw amazing, iconic outfits, such as the Emillio Pucci printed
pant suit, Dolce and Gabanna, Valentino and Moschino and many, many
more. Once we had finished at the V & A we travelled by tube to Goldhawk Road to look in the fabric shops and the market there. Here I got
lots of ideas and samples which will be useful for my final piece I make for
my controlled assessment. Overall we enjoyed the day very much and it
was a great experience to help us with our work”.
Year 10 Catering Trip to Laverstoke Park Farm
On a beautiful sunny day in June, the year ten Catering class visited Laverstoke Park Farm in Hampshire to participate in an educational investigation
of a real working smallholding business that prides itself on its expertise of
being organic and environmentally friendly, strength within biodiversity
and being an overall asset to the farming trade.
The expedition provided an amazing learning opportunity that can now be
transferred to our GCSE coursework with an added bonus of subsequent
knowledge for the exam. Despite all the academic reasoning for visiting
Laverstoke farm, it was also great fun and an animal lover’s delight: there
were baby buffalos to bottle feed, chickens to chase and the “Oh So Cute”
piglets who were running free in the pig fields. But oh, many could argue
the farm shop’s amazing produce was a major highlight… Organic ‘no bad
Lunch was had in the beautiful gardens after which we travelled to Goldhawk Road to visit the wealth of fabric shops there so the students could
see the types, options and prices of materials for their controlled assessment final piece.
Here is what one of the students thought of the daya write up from one of
the students:
“We started off by looking at the wedding dresses exhibition, which was
incredible. There were dresses from weddings as early as the 1700’2 to
recent day. The traditions around weddings is fascinating, as it is only since
the 1920’s that we started looking at the bridal dress as a one-off event
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Mathematics
Year 11
Our students have been making the most of opportunities inside and
outside of lesson time. The majority of Year 11s have attended additional
revision classes, preparing for GCSE, and also enrichment classes, getting
familiar with A Level topics. With our exams quite late this year, we had
additional time to work with them, and we look forward to sharing in their
success when results come out in August. Next year’s students will have
further opportunities, in the form of joint parent/student revision classes in
the Autumn, helping parents to help their children with topics as we
approach the Mock exams.
Year 8
I am always pleased to report on our great success in Maths competitions.
Year 8 took part in the UKMT Junior Maths Challenge, with record
numbers of certificates. Special congratulations go to Lance Garcia for
getting Best In School, and to the many other students who demonstrated
confidence and flair with problem-solving.
Our Year 8 team who attended Masterclasses at University of Surrey in
the Spring had a special opportunity to visit the famous Royal Institution in
June with students from all over the country in a day of practical lectures
about Maths and Science. They have worked fantastically together all year
and showed commitment and involvement with all of the activities.
Sixth Form
I couldn’t let the Year 13s leave without commending them on their perseverance and commitment, especially over a drawn-out exam season. All 40
of them have worked really well, and it has been a privilege to teach them.
I am especially pleased that four have chosen to carry on their mathematical studies at university.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
With so much happening in Mathematics next year, we face lots of exciting
challenges, so I am very pleased to be heading up a team of 13 qualified
specialist Maths teachers, a rare and valuable strength in today’s recruitment climate.
Maths Hub
We are pleased to announced that we have been selected to be a National
Maths Hub in partnership with the NCTEM (National Centre for Excellence
in Teaching Mathematics). Salesian made a joint bid, together with Weydon
School in Farnham and St John the Baptist School in Woking, and won the
accreditation to be only one of 32 hubs in the country.
As a Maths Hubs we will lead the work of up to 600 schools who work
together with the shared goal of supporting excellence in mathematics education in the following areas:
Ÿ Teacher training and recruitment of maths specialists
Ÿ Training for subject leaders of Maths nationally
Ÿ Curriculum development
Ÿ Research and development of excellence in maths teaching
To support this work, three members of our Maths department have been
appointed Specialist Leaders of Education in maths. As SLEs, Mrs Lalli, Mrs
Banks and Ms McGowan are all taking leading roles in teacher training and
support, both in Salesian as a Teaching School and in other local schools.
Their work as part of the Hub will ensure that our pupils here at Salesian
have access to the most cutting edge research and teaching methods that
maths education in the UK has to offer.
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Geography
Kenya: July-August 2013
Bournemouth: May 2014
Matt Bosworth, Peter Curtin, Erin Jarvis, Abi Lovejoy, Vlad Marin, Sam
Mingoia, Mark Mulcahy, Flo Thompstone and Freya Townsend embarked
on a trip of a lifetime, spending a month in Kenya. As part of the expedition
we climbed Mt Kenya, the 2nd highest mountain in Africa, experiencing the
effects of altitude and the importance of working as part of a team.
Sixth form students welcomed the
opportunity to carry out fieldwork
techniques on a residential trip to
the south coast. Visiting Bournemouth, Boscombe and Barton-onSea students were able to work collectively to assimilate data for their
summer exams, studying the human
and physical impacts on the coast
line.
We also assisted with conservation work and working alongside local communities. The students and I returned with a massive sense of achievement
and I and they greatly appreciated the support generated by teachers and
parents.
Lyndhurst: May 2014
GCSE students this year were given the opportunity to trial their fieldwork
skills in the very quaint town of Lyndhurst in the New Forest. Thankfully
the weather held and students were able to collect lots of data which they
are now using to complete their controlled assessment tasks.
Ecuador: July-August 2014
Tom Brown, Tom Culhane, Seamus Dunne, Diane Fox, Lemuel Fulgencio,
Ella Hatchwell, Matthew Hayman, Lana O’Donoghue, Katie Wellman and
Emily Williams are all very excited to be travelling to Ecuador for 1 month.
As part of the expedition these students will be assisting with conservation
work and working alongside local communities. The challenge element of
the expedition is to pass our PADI open water scuba-diving course. I know
that I and all of the students are extremely excited about this opportunity -
Iceland: April 2015
We are extremely excited to again invite 40 students to Iceland to experience the drama of living on an active island, visiting exploding geysers,
magnificent waterfalls and learning some local history of Reykjavik and Vic.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Religious Education
heard his testimony. It was also a reminder that we all have a duty to proclaim the Gospel even in the harshest of environments and that miracles do
accompany those who are faithful in their response to the call of God.
A trip to Jerusalem - well, sort of...
The talk certainly made us appreciative of our relative freedoms to practice
our faith in this country. Indeed it taught us that in suffering, faith and the
Gospel message grow strong.
Some Year 8s visited the IMAX
in London in the middle of June
to watch the new documentary
on Jerusalem. It showed a fascinating city in 3D and gave a
very realistic view of what life
is like in this most holiest of
cities.
The documentary was particularly illuminating because it
showed the city from the view
point of three teenagers – a
Christian, a Muslim, and a Jew. This helped our pupils to appreciate the significance of Jerusalem for each of the three major world faiths. However,
more than that, it made real for them the part of their RE syllabus that
looked at the development of the People of God and also their study of
Judaism.
The programme was so informative that it is a trip that we might possibly
run again next year.
Priest In Secret
In May, 8G had the rare privilege earlier this year of meeting a priest who
is working as a priest, in secret, in a country that is averse to Christianity. It
was a once in a lifetime moment to hear a priest share his faith and his
experiences of serving God in an environment that is hostile to the Gospel
of Jesus Christ.
He spoke truthfully about his struggles, the dangers he faced, and those
that he was ministering to. It was a humbling moment for all of us who
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Our article is deliberately vague due to the sensitive nature of his situation
as is the accompanying photograph. The extent to which his talk affected
the students was evidenced in the queue of pupils who lined up at the end
of the lesson to shake his hand.
May Procession and Crowning of Statue
Our May Procession this year was led by Fr Cyril, our Assistant Chaplain,
with students from 8A. It was
our first May Procession
without Ms Coles and Mrs
O’Keeffe and they were particularly remembered in our
prayers. Crowning the statue
of Our Lady with flowers in
May is a specifically Roman
Catholic tradition which dates
back many years.
YSt Augustine’s nursing home in Addlestone
A small group of Year 8 pupils have been visiting the nursing home in
Addlestone once a term to sing for the residents. Our visits bring great
entertainment to those who have given their whole lives to bringing up
families and serving others; indeed, on a couple of occasions they have
even taken to jiving to the dulcet tones of our pupils.
The idea that we should sing for the residents was Mrs Carr’s and has
proved to be hugely beneficial for all involved. We would very much like to
continue this next year.
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Modern
Foreign
Languages
Day Trip to France
On Wednesday 18th June a group of 66 Year 7 students went to France
for the day. Despite the very early start everyone was excited to get going
and thoroughly enjoyed the ferry trip - a new experience for some. After
successfully finding their sea legs, they spoke French in the market at
Audruicq, buying all manner of souvenirs - and plenty of sweets!
We luckily missed the rain, and spent a couple of hours on a variety of different small boats at Eurolac, tucking in to a delicious crepe while there.
Finally we headed to Cité Europe - another chance to speak French in the
shops and buy some treats and souvenirs - before heading back to Chertsey. All in all a fantastic day, and the students did themselves - and their
teachers - proud!
Spelling Bee
Year 7 French and Spanish pupils took
part in a National Spelling Bee competition, and we celebrated at Easter
time sending four students to the
South East regional final in Brighton.
They all did their best, and our very
own Giacomo Sala was awarded
South East Regional Champion.
The National final took place at Cambridge's Anglia Ruskin University on
Friday 4th July, but despite a great
performance he did not get into the
final 4. Over 61,000 students took part
from all over the UK and so we are incredibly proud of Giacomo's
achievement and all of our Year 7 pupils for having some fun with
their languages learning.
Coming Soon...
Salesian Bake Off to celebrate European day of Languages on Friday 26th
September- more information on how
students can enter the competition to
follow next term.
In addition, The Thai Children’s Trust,
with whom the school has been building links for the last three years, will
be working with us to raise awareness
of Thai culture. We will also be introducing a Thai for beginners short course
within the department. More information to follow soon.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
14
Madrid Exchange
The Madrid exchange was one of the most gratifying trips that I've ever
been on.
The experience started with us arriving in Madrid with a warm (not to
mention loud) welcome from our Spanish pen pals and their families at
Madrid Airport. We already knew them well due to their visit to England in
March, but that didn't stop us from being nervous about the prospect of
staying in their houses and experiencing their culture for a whole week.
Many of us were sharing rooms with our pen pals, and when we arrived,
little did we know about the telepizza, maxi bons, tiki tikis and reams of
Spanish food that were awaiting us. Our pen pals (who you can see with us
in the photos on the opposite page) made us feel welcome and we enjoyed
time in their company, but one of the best parts of the trip was walking
around the city and exploring Madrid's culture, all whilst getting to know
people in our own group better. We all enjoyed the sun, the scenery, and
the 40/40 it games which kept us occupied in Retiro park.
Having only been to Spain a few times, I can now say that I know more
about the culture, and in the unlikely event that I am stranded in any
Spanish City, I will be able to survive and interact with the locals thanks to
my newfound Spanish expertise. Moreover, I now know where to find the
best bargains in Madrid (El rastro), dancing goats (plaza real) and I can tell
you exactly what happened in the gripping Atletico de Madrid vs Real
Madrid champions league final (seeing as the chants in the street kept me
up all night).
The trip was an unforgettable experience which I am glad to have been a
part of, and I thank everyone who made it so fun, enjoyable, and character
building.
Jessica De Suza, Year 10
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
15
Art department
Another exciting year for the Art department culminated in the largest
exhibition of artwork to date. The exhibition featured the work of the sixth
form artists and photographers, including our first A2 photography students. A large selection of GCSE final pieces went on display in the main
hall at Highfield Road, included in the exhibition for the first time, along
with the ‘Salesian Vision of Life’ photography competition and KS3 artwork
based on Don Bosco. Visitors have never had access to such a large variety
of work, from so many year groups.
Students at AS and A2 have been inspired by the work of contemporary
artists who showcase on www.thisiscolossal.com. Really adventurous
artwork has resulted. In Photography the improvement in ICT facilities,
including the introduction of an A1 colour printer produced some really
exciting results.
Plans are already forming for an even bigger Art and Photography extravaganza next year. Meanwhile, you can see more of the student work in the
Celebrating section of the new school website.
Rorie O’Keeffe
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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‘Vision of Life’ Photography Competition
2015 marks 200 years since the birth of Don Bosco. Events are taking place worldwide to celebrate his life and Salesian’s mission of serving young people, and that
inspired the Art department to join in with the Salesian Order’s Don Bosco photography competition.
The Theme was ‘Vision of Life’. Students could work on their own or in groups, but
the work had to be original. We had LOTS of exciting entries, so congratulations to
the 15 Runners Up:
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Sarah Bartlett
Francesca Buttaci
Emily Cachia
Ellen Da Costa
Julia Da Costa
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Daniel Ennis
Joni Hannah
Leah Hennessy
Pierce Hinton
Ben Horton
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
Ÿ
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Dillian Kambo
Alice Manning
Giorgio Mazzaretto
Caroline McCormick
Tyler Torchia
Special congratulations to the five winning photographers, whose images are shown
here: Lewis Everall (pansy, below left), Matt Wall (waterfall, below right), Angeline
Augustine (woodland canopy, above right), Richard Soane (morning mist, above
right) and Amy Martin (portrait, right). These students’ work will be given a wider
audience through the Salesian Order’s UK website, and the ‘Vision of Life’ exhibition
which will be part of the Salesians’ Bicentenary Expo next year. Well done all!
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Music department
As we lose our year 11s and sixth formers, the baton is passed to our
younger pupils to lead the musical life of the school, and they have certainly accepted the challenge! This term we have had a new initiative of
music in every assembly – every morning, students have been treated to
solo and group performances for our very talented musicians during their
assemblies. This has been a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the talent we
have, but also for our performers to practise playing in front of a large
audience, and to conquer their nerves!
Other events this term have included the annual Year 10 Musical Soiree,
where our GCSE cohort performed their exam pieces for family and
friends. Our joint choir braved the wind to sing beautifully at our open air
mass for Mary Help of Christians. We have had a wonderful Steel Pan
workshop for our Gifted and Talented KS3/4 musicians, where students
were able to play on authentic Trinidadian steel pans. We also held a rigorous round of auditions for the new Salesian Scholars – as we say goodbye
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
to Grace Manning, Tyler Smith, Lizzie Kilburn and Julian Carlsson, we
welcome Sofia Armella, Callum Mitchell, Caragh Thornley, Darragh Chaplin
and Autumn Clarke who we are sure will be fantastic additions to the
current Scholars.
We finished off the year with our annual school musical in conjunction with
the drama department - this year, The Sound of Music, starring Sofia Armella
as Maria and Henry Hawkins as Captain Von Trapp. With over 100 students involved, this was a wonderful end to the term.
It wasn’t quite the end though! At the time of writing, we are busily preparing for our annual Young Musician of the Year competition which is to be
held on Tuesday 15th July at Highfield Road Hall. This promises to be a
fantastic occasion and we have secured four outstanding judges for our
pupils to perform in front of. At the end, the titles of Junior Musician of
the Year and Senior Musician of the Year will be awarded (current holder
of Young Musician of the Year is Alex Crick).
Thanks as always must go to all parents who support us and the pupils in
all of these endeavours, and make our job possible.
18
A celebration of three nights of The Sound Of Music, directed by Mr Clark and Miss
Clarey with Miss O’Neal and Miss Jenkins, with a brilliant young cast, under our
new lights. They truly earned their standing ovation on the last night.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Year 11 looked amazing as
they stepped out for their
Prom at Silvermere in June.
The methods of arrival are
becoming more creative
every year! Mr Goulborn
rocked the decks and the
evening ended in fireworks!
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Two days after Prom, we said goodbye to
the Year 13s too, at their dinner dance at
the Oatlands Park Hotel. A great time
was had by all, and we wish them well.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
21
PE Physical Education
Rounders
thing to build on in the future. Player of the year was Ben Vassell who was
our most consistant batsman and with our most improved player Marcus
Clark always provided us with some runs. They were ably led by Tom
Cursobs as captain who organised the team both on and off the pitch.
Rounders this year has been largely successful. We have had great commitment from Year 7 and they have made good progress, however due to
various reasons we were never able to put our best team out and they finished 4th in our District Pool. The Year 8s played well, ably led by Bella
Gomes and made the district finals only to come forth on the day. The year
9s struggle at times to score enough rounders and also finished 4th in our
District pool. Completing a fabulous four years of rounders results the Year
10 team not only beat St. George's but also played exceptionally well to
finish 2nd in the District, losing to SWPS by half a rounder.
The Year 8 team have played well but unfortunately were unsuccessful in
the cup and plate competitions this season. The boys played five games
winning only one against SJB away in the last two overs, and only narrowly
losing to BDB by six runs in a nail-biting cup fixture. Although a relatively
unsuccessful season, the enthusiasm to represent the school was endless
and the effort shown by most of the boys on the field was superb. Co-captain Tom Kellond won player of the season with the majority of runs scored
and wickets taken, while Max Burgess shown a vast improvement in confidence and run rate to claim ‘most improved player’ recognition.
Girls’ Cricket
We are also now a Satellite Club for
Surrey County Cricket. Our aim is
to increase the number of players
for the school and to get as many
pupils as possible joining local
cricket clubs. This process has
already started and we now have
ten permanent committee members
who will be using funds from Surrey
to improve our cricket facilities and
equipment which we hope will
entice more pupils to join. The
money will also be used to get
expert coaches in to help improve
our pupils batting, bowling and fielding, with the aim of improving our
teams' results. This is already paying dividends.
We did not quite reach the dizzy heights
of Surrey domination this year but again
great commitment from the girls has led
to great improvements in both batting
bowling. The Year 7/8s came 6th in the
Surrey Inter Cricket competition with
Jade Kasumu winning player of the tournament for her excellent batting and
fielding. The 9/10s represented Surrey at
the South-East Inter Cricket Competition
in Essex. They came away with one win
and two losses and their heads held high, again it topped off a great four
years of commitment from the girls.
Boys’ Cricket
This years Yr 7 Cricket team have been the most successful for a number
of years. They have played 5 games and won 2 and lost 3. To put that into
context the school has not won a cricket game for the last 2 years so for
the boys to come in and won 2 games is a great achievement and someSalesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Next year we aim to increase the amount of games we play both within
school (intra) and against other schools (inter). Again something that has
already improved as we have had 3 intra school tournaments and 15 games
against other schools for yr 7-9.
22
Inter-Salesian Athletics
Celebration of Salesian Sport
Congratulations to all 68 students who took part in the annual Inter-Salesian Athletics championships, hosted by Savio Salesian College, Liverpool. Athletics has been
a very popular club again this year, with students from all year groups showing
great interest, passion and commitment to the sport.
This year saw the introduction of the sports awards evening on 9th July. It
was great opportunity to celebrate the achievements and commitments if
the pupils. Awards included ‘Player of the Season’ and ‘Most Improved
Player’ for each of the sports as well as the ‘Sports Personalities of the
Year’ for each year group, voted for by the pupils themselves. We would
love the opportunity to celebrate even more successes next year and recognise achievements both in and out of school so if your son/daughter has
anything to celebrate on the sporting front next year please let us know!
There were lots of outstanding performances throughout the day, including Helena
Garland (year 10) who won all 3 of her events in the 100m, long jump and relay. For
the boys, Joe O'Connor (Year 9) performed brilliantly, winning his 100m, 200m and
relay.
Overall the girls' team finished in 1st place and the boys' team finished in 2nd place,
just 23 points behind Salesian Farnborough.
Well done to all our athletes!
Girls Results:
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Year 7- 3rd overall
Year 8-1st overall
Year 9-5th overall
Year 10- 1st overall
OVERALL: 1ST
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Boys Results:
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Ÿ
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High Ashurst - Climbing and Orienteering
Students from full course PE attended High ashurst adventure centre
to climb and orienteer. Superb effort and skill levels shown all round with
notable performances from James Ahern and Vicky Duell! This trip provided a valuable contribution to practical grades as well as a lot of fun!
Year 7-1st overall
Year 8-3rd overall
Year 9-1st overall
Year 10-5th overall
OVERALL: 2ND
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It all started on a hot Monday the 14th of July, with a buzz in the air, faces painted
blue, red, green and purple, and students smiling, laughing and cheering on their
Houses. Yes, Salesian Sports day had begun!
With approximately 400 house points between each House it was anyone’s for the
taking. The students all lined up, got into their teams, whilst being cheered on by
their Heads of House Miss McGarron (Rinaldi), Miss O’Connor (Rua), Miss Jenkins
and Mr Hicks (Zatti) and Miss Payne (Savio) waiting for their call of duty from the
fantastic Mr Howell. You could cut the tension with a knife, but in the true Salesian
spirit of Don Bosco, every student pulled together to ensure everyone got to their
events supporting those not even in their House.
To say that the day was exciting and nail-biting would be an understatement, with
students constantly asking “What place do you think we are in?” and “Miss/Sir is it
ok that I only came fourth?” To which our replies were: ‘You got involved, supported
your house and received house points which is a job well done.’
It was clear at the beginning of the day that Zatti the underdogs in fourth place had
a strong set of year 9 boys who were taking the top spots. However later in the day
saw strong teams coming through such as the Year 7 Rinaldi boys, Year 7 Savio girls
and the Rua girls in years 8 and 9. Throughout the day we had a few tears but
plenty of laughs. With the final race of the day complete all students were called to
sit in their houses and wait for the final results...
Commiserations to Zatti (fourth) and Rinaldi (third).
Well done Savio for their creditable second place, and
hearty Congratulations to Rua on winning both Sports
Day and the overall year-round House competition!
Year Rankings
(overall winners in bold)
Year 7
The House team would like to say a special thank you
Year 8
to Mr. Thomas our music man for all his help and
support throughout the year and Miss Thorpe for her
Year 9
hard work and determination with Savio House the last
Year 10
two years.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
Girls
Boys
Zatti
Savio
Rua
Rua
Rua
Zatti
Rua
Rinaldi
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Salesian Bethlehem Project
For the last few years the school has been supporting the Salesians in
Bethlehem, Israel. They have had a presence there since 1891 and currently educate and train underprivileged Palestinians. This project has been
very successful in giving young people the opportunity to pursue a career
in what is a very difficult part of the world with limited job prospects.
For the last two years the Year 7s have raised enough money to sponsor
the education of one Palestinian student at the Salesian Technical Institute
in Bethlehem, equipped him with an education that will transform his life.
A cake sale to raise money for this
project was run by Fr Cyril and Pauline
Watts in June. We are looking to get
more people supporting the project, by
either donating their time or selling items
(Christmas gifts made by the Palestinian
students) around September time.
Fr Mario Murru (right), the rector of the
Salesian Institute, expressed his gratitude
for the contributions of Salesian students
when he said: “This solidarity helps us and encourages us to carry on the
work we are doing as Salesians. Our technical school and practical training
centre helps some 320 young men to get ready for work.”
This is an exciting project that is making a big difference to those involved.
If you would like to help or learn more, please contact Fr
Andrew: aebrahim@salesian.surrey.sch.uk
Ashalayam
If you missed our Ashalayam fundraiser, check out the highlights in our
Youtube video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qstJNP6EVeY&feature=youtu.be
Over the weekend of the 27th June students from year 10,
11 and 12 embarked on their Duke of Edinburgh expedition.
On the Friday, Silver Award students like me took off from
Newlands Corner at 9am with the weather on our side and
in high spirits, despite the heavy rucksacks crammed with
food on our backs. Progress towards our Ranmore common
campsite was swift, with the students’ map reading skills
and fitness playing a vital role. We arrived at the campsite
between 4 and 6pm with sore legs and backs. The evening
consisted of dinner, roasting marshmallows over a fire and
card games, followed by well needed sleep.
After a quick breakfast and the dismantling of tents, we set
off for our next campsite, Bentley copse, converging with
the Bronze students who had set off from Newlands corner.
The weather became steadily worse, with torrential
showers for most of the walk. We also had to navigate along
sketchy paths in dense forests, resulting in setbacks and
frustration. However, through perseverance we all arrived
at the campsite as the weather cleared. Both Bronze and
Silver students enjoyed their evening meal and took the
chance to unwind.
Before we set off on Sunday a mass was conducted outside
by Fr Marco, preparing us for the final stretch. With the sun
shining and temperatures rising, the students set off for
Gomshall, covering the ground hastily now that the end was
so close. The first groups began to arrive at the station at
11:30, ready to collapse into the back seats of their parents’
cars for the journey home. The weekend was a great success; all the students met the challenges presented to them,
proved their endurance and had a great time.
Adam Church
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
25
Year 12 ‘Early applicant’ programme
Post 18 Options day
Year 12 were given the opportunity to participate in a workshop to aid students with writing their personal statements. Steve and Meg our hosts took
us step by step through each section and did their best to talk and advise
every student in the hall. In the afternoon we were fortunate enough to
have past-pupils join us in a carousel style activity where we had the
chance to speak with them one-to-one about life after Salesians. There
were people from a range of universities studying a range of courses and
there were options for people to talk to who had done apprenticeships,
gaps years and the world of work. Overall the day proved to be informative
and useful in the preparation for the future.
Zoe Wai
During the last couple of months the school has set up a group of year 12
students who are thinking of applying to Oxford or Cambridge or who
would like to do medicine, veterinary or law. Here they have given us
opportunities to develop our presentational skills ready for interviews for
Universities in the future.
Teaming up with Sir William Perkins school we have had several meetings
in which we could talk to the group about our subject and topics that really
interest us. This was to help boost our confidence and to develop our
knowledge about our subject so that we would be able to explain to any
interviewer why we wanted to study it. We have also paid a visit to Oxford
University to look around the colleges but also to find out about the early
application process needed to get into Oxford. Overall it has been really
helpful opportunity and has put us in a better position if we decide to apply
next year.
Jessica Parkes
Southampton Trip
The whole of year 12 spent a day visiting Southampton university as part
of their enrichment programme.
The campus is very inviting with a mixture of modern buildings, older buildings, and large, green spaces. The green spaces are very well kept and gave
the whole university a very picturesque appearance and this coupled with
the good quality accommodation made Southampton look like a nice place
to spend my years of study at. We looked at both sets of accommodation (I
much preferred the rooms with en suite bathrooms) and then I decided to
go and discover what my subject course entails. The lecturers were
very enthusiastic about their field and I learned a lot about the modules
that I would be doing. I also learned that the Extended Project Qualification that I am currently partaking in is regarded very highly at Southampton and they will lower their offers based on how well you do in the EPQ
which is a great benefit.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
26
I visited the social area to find out about extracurricular activities that take
place at Southampton and the general vibe of the students already made it
seems as if they were very happy to be at Southampton. I spoke to
someone in the football team and he told me about all the football teams
and other sports that take place at Southampton (including Quidditch... yes,
Quidditch) and there are many and they all accommodate people of
every ability, from casual to athletic level, so there's room for everyone.
For people who don't like sport there were many other clubs to attend and
the students said the social life and clubs were very good and they have
enjoyed their time at Southampton greatly so far. In conclusion the day was
a success and I found that Southampton has a great balance of the academic and social side of university and also has fantastic facilities, opportunities and lecturers.
Ashley Patchell
Student Union
For this upcoming year the Student Union team will be made up of:
Ÿ Emma Odeneal - President
Ÿ Shaun Perryment - Vice President
School Development Fund
Thank you very much to those of you who are contributing to the fund.
If in the past you have ticked the ‘Gift Aid’ box and your tax situation has
changed please let us know so we do not make an erroneous claim. If you
are not contributing and would like to do so, please contact the school
finance office for a form.
Safety of Students and Staff
For the safety of our students and staff can you please remember that
unless you are picking up a sick child you must not drive onto the site at
any time before 10 am or between 3pm and 4.45pm.
If you are driving on site please adhere to the 5mph speed limit and only
park in the marked bays. Do not at any time double park, park in the
yellow walkaways, or block the main entrance as this is for emergency
access. Thank you.
School Insurance
Ÿ Matt Bosworth - Secretary
Ÿ Jack O'Sullivan - Treasurer
We meet with the rest of the Student Union on Thursday lunchtimes to
discuss any upcoming events. Freshtival and a Freshers party are the first
events on the list. It is run entirely by students and is a way of us having
our say in what happens in and around the sixth form, with sixth-form-only
parties on the side too!
Emma Odeneal
Please be aware that although the school does have a very good insurance
policy, it does not cover any belongings your child brings to school and this
includes items such as mobile phones. These are brought to school at
entirely your own risk. The same is applicable to any time you park your
car on the school premises
Paying for lunch
Please make sure that your WisePay account is topped up in time for your
son or daughter’s start of term in September.
Thank you
Peter O’Brien, Business Manager
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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Attendance: reminder for parents
At Salesian we have always taken a very straightforward view when it comes to
attendance: we expect students to be in school every day, barring serious illness or
accident, and we do not permit holidays during term time.
However, parents should be aware that the law now enforces the position regarding
holidays. The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations
2013, which become law on 1st September 2013, state that Headteachers may not
grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher should determine the number of school days a child can
be away from school if leave is granted.
In accordance with the above regulations, requests for leave of absence will be
treated sympathetically, but only in exceptional circumstances can they be
approved. The policy of Surrey County Council (to which Salesian school has
agreed) states that parents who take their child out of school for five days or more
during term time, without the authority of the Headteacher, will each be liable to
receive a penalty notice. Penalty Notices will be issued by the Local Authority.
The penalty is £60 if paid within 21 days of receipt of the notice, rising to £120 if
paid after 21 days but within 28 days of receipt of the notice. If the penalty is not
paid in full by the end of the 28-day period the Local Authority must prosecute the
recipient for failing to ensure regular school attendance under section 444 Education Act 1996.
Please be aware that each parent is liable to receive a Penalty Notice for each child
who incurs unauthorised absences. For example, if there are two parents and one
child, each parent will receive one Penalty Notice. If there are two parents and two
children incurring unauthorized absences, each parent will receive two Penalty
Notices, which in this case would amount to £120 each if paid within 21 days.
There is additional, more detailed guidance regarding County Council penalty notices, available on the school website.
This year’s balloon launch, in aid of the
Don Bosco Ashalayam in Kolkata.
Salesian School Newsletter: July 2014
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