S T. C U T H B E RT ' S
C AT H O L I C H I G H S C H O O L
Educating Boys Since 1881
NEWSLETTER ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
Celebrating Success
The first in a series of celebration events was held at the Ullswater
Outward Bound Trust in the Lake District.
The aim is to reward students who have
excellent attendance and behaviour
records by offering them a fun-filled
activity. The students, who came from
year 8, 9, 10 and 11, enjoyed a wide range
of activities including canoeing on the
lake, overnight camping, rock climbing
and an assault course. A chilly highlight
was a 'jog and dip' event which allowed
students to cool off in the lake after a run.
All students who achieve good attendance
and behaviour standards are entered into
a draw for the celebrating success events,
the next of which will take place at Kielder
Water and will give students various waterbased experiences including raft building.
Many thanks to all the staff who have
helped in the organisation and smooth
running of these events.
ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
The School is celebrating 130 years of
educating boys during 2011 with a wide range
of activities and events.
St Cuthbert's started teaching boys on August 16th 1881,
having been founded by Bishop James Chadwick. It is
understood to be one of the oldest Catholic state schools in
the North of England and has many famous and
distinguished alumni. As well as figures from the world of
performing arts – Sting, Neil Tennant and Declan Donnelly
– a number of old boys have gone onto reach the top of their
professions. These include Yale University historian, Paul
Kennedy and Centre for Life architect Sir Terry Farrell as
well as a range of sporting luminaries.
Joining Forces
In an historic move St Cuthbert's will
be joining forces with Sacred Heart
C a t h o l i c H i g h S ch o o l f r o m
September 2011 to provide a broader,
more enriching experience for our
senior students.
The two schools' governing bodies
The anniversary will be celebrated with a visit from
Bishop Seamus Cunningham, a mass at St Mary's
Cathedral and an exhibition of photographs and artefacts
amongst others. A celebratory dinner is also being
organised.
The celebration comes at a particularly exciting time for
the school with the new buildings and the formal
collaboration with Sacred Heart Catholic High School
both launching in September 2011.
Mrs Davison, Deputy Head teacher, said, 'The
anniversary is a chance to celebrate our past but also to
showcase how we are moving forward.'
h ave a g re e d t h a t a fo r m a l
collaborative agreement will exist
between the schools. In practical
terms this means that students from
both schools will be able to follow a
post 16 course at the brother or sister
school, widening the choice of
subjects for all of our students. The
schools have also harmonised
enrichment activity to allow for boys
and girls to work together on a wide
range of activity including cooking
for life, spor ts leaders and
conversational modern foreign
languages.
Mr Anderson, Head of Sixth Form,
commented, 'There is a tremendous
opportunity here for students from
both schools to access a very broad
curriculum with excellent
enrichment opportunities.'
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
We are delighted that our new
buildings are ready ahead of schedule
and have been formally handed over
to the school.
The new buildings will provide a
purpose-built block for Year 7 and 8
students to use as their form base as
well as providing the English and
Languages departments with new,
b e s p o ke a c c o m m o d a t i o n a n d
facilities. In addition the Science and
Technology block has benefited from a
major extension which will allow for
all of our students to work in a top
class environment.
The completion of our buildings will
also allow for an expansion of the
curriculum, with food technology
now being made available to
students.
The build is also great news for
Sports and Fine Art enthusiasts.
The school's sports facilities have
been improved considerably with
the addition of a new full size sports
Outward Bound
Following a successful bid for funding from ASDAN, a group of Year
10 students are heading off to the Lake District on an outward bound
experience.
The students will work on a range of activities designed to encourage
team building and problem solving in a challenging outdoor setting.
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hall, a fully equipped gym and a suite
of new teaching rooms. The Art
block has been refurbished to
provide students with the light and
space they need to produce their
high quality pieces.
M r M u r p hy, H e a d t e a ch e r,
commented, 'The completion of the
building provides the school with a
great opportunity to provide an even
broader curriculum in a top class
environment.'
ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
REVISING
WITH
PARENTS
Year 11 students and their
parents enjoyed an evening of
revision and study skills prior
to the summer exams.
Leading Edge : High Achievers
The hard work of students, school staff and parents has been recognised by
a leading educational body.
St Cuthbert's recently received an award for being one of the top five schools
in the country for our Year 11 results. The award, to celebrate the high
number of students achieving the benchmark five A*-C including English
and Maths, is welcome recognition of a major improvement in the standards
our students achieve.
The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust has further recognised the
school's success by inviting us to become a Leading Edge school. This
formally acknowledges our expertise in certain key areas and makes it easier to
provide advice and guidance to other schools, particularly in Science and
Modern Foreign Languages.
Back to Education for Teachers
Fifteen of the school's teachers have volunteered to return to the classroom in
order to further improve their skills.
The evening, organised and run by
the school's learning mentors, gave
participants the chance to learn
about revision and study skills. Over
70 people attended and the response
to this opportunity was
overwhelmingly positive.
Many thanks to Mrs Lewis, Mrs
Holgate and Mrs Garay.
WORKING IN
PARTNERSHIP
Our close connection with local
universities continues to reap rewards
for students across the school.
A number of teachers are taking Northumbria University's Masters in
Professional Practice. This programme is designed to assist middle leaders
develop their understanding of best practice in light of current educational
research. Some teachers have also opted to study on the Middle Leaders
Development Programme.
By furthering their own education, the teachers at St Cuthbert's can keep
abreast of the very latest developments in thinking. Students will be glad to
know that it's not only they who have deadlines and exams to think about.
Key Stage Four students continue to
benefit from ACE days (Aiming for a
College Education) which encourage
students to learn about different
aspects of university life as well as
vocationally targeted days such as
Engineering Days and ICT days.
Through Newcastle University's
Partners scheme a number of former
students have gone on to study a
broad range of degrees at the
university. Last year alone twelve of
our Year 13 students progressed onto
degree programmes at Newcastle.
A group of fifty Year 9 students took
part in a Higher Education Journey at
Northumbria University. The aim of
the day was to find out about
university life through a series of
fun-filled activities.
Further events in Sports, Art and ICT
have run at Sunderland and Teesside
Universities throughout the year.
Three Way
Partnership
Gifted and Talented Year 6
pupils from feeder
primaries have been
invited for a residential at
Hawkhirst, Kielder to
work with staff from
Sacred Heart and St
Cuthbert's.
This three-way partnership will
see the pupils engage in a
selection of fun-filled activities
designed to boost confidence
through team working and
problem solving.
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
Cambridge Explorers
A group of Year 10 students enjoyed a trip to Jesus College,
Cambridge which allowed them to get a flavour of life as a
Cambridge undergraduate.
The students participated in a range of activities designed to
raise awareness of university life including staying in the rooms
used by famous Jesus College alumni poet S T Coleridge,
Prince Edward and novelist Nick Hornby.
The trip continues a tradition of working with Jesus College
that has seen James Day (Medicine) and Donald Futers
(English) progress to study at the College.
Open University
Record numbers of Sixth Form students have
taken courses with the Open University this
academic year under the Young Applicants in
Schools Scheme.
The Open University, the country's largest, offers a
broad selection of first year undergraduate courses
to motivated Sixth Form students to give them a
taste of undergraduate-level study.
Students have completed courses in a range of areas
including Psychology, Beginners Chinese,
Introducing Astronomy, Human Genetics and
Digital Worlds.
These courses not only give students a flavour of
more advanced study but they also allow students to
develop wider study skills.
St Cuthbert's has one of the largest cohorts of
students following Open University courses in the
country.
The Venerable Bede
Head of Science, Dr Harbinson, has revealed a hidden talent by painting a commemorative
portrait of the Venerable Bede.
The painting, which will be unveiled during a special Mass at St Bede's Church in Jarrow, is
to mark he 150th anniversary of the consecration of the church. The Venerable Bede (673735) is revered as both a scholar and teacher at Jarrow, considered by many to be the preeminent early mediaeval historian.
Dr Harbinson is one of many school staff with 'hidden' talents away from the classroom, in
the fields of art, music and sport.
Cycling for Charity
A big well done to Jordan Dobson, Jack Stephenson and Jay Dunlavy
who completed a forty mile charity bike ride along the Derwent
Valley.
The students, who had completed an earlier training ride, raised well
over £200 for Cancer Research UK. The ride went from Blaydon,
climbing steadily up to the Waskerley Way, past Consett and then
returning by the same route. They weren't put off by the wet and windy
weather, despite having a head wind for most of the ascent.
Many thanks to Mr Donaghy for organising the event and to Mr
McMahon who cycled the forty miles having not been on a bike since
he was a teenager!
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
ST CUTHBERT'S CARE
Enterprising Year 13 students have taken part in a charity business
venture in collaboration with St Cuthbert's Care.
Two teams of budding businessmen were each given £200 to invest in order
to make as much money as possible for the charity. Fittingly the teams came
from our Economics and Business Studies groups respectively. Although
the final totals are not yet known, well done to both teams for all of their
efforts during the year.
RUNNING UP THAT HILL
Hundreds of students and staff took part in the Sponsored Mile in May to
raise money for sports in school.
Breaking All
Records
The tradition of collecting Lenten Alms
broke all records in 2011 thanks to the
outstanding generosity of our students.
Students collected in excess of £2,500
during Lent through regular giving. The
observance of Lent through almsgiving
has produced a record amount of money
which has been distributed to three
charities as selected by the students.
Cancer Research UK, Marie Cancer Care
and the Alan Shearer Centre were all
delighted with the student's efforts and
each expressed their gratitude during
special assemblies.
A special thanks to Mrs Lewis for all her
efforts and encouragement.
The event, organised by the PE department, encourages participants to raise
sponsorship for a range of charities. Students took the opportunity to wear
fancy dress whilst racing their teachers around the mile-long course. Well
done to all concerned for a fantastic fundraising effort and in particular to
the PE department for entering fully into the spirit of the day with some
great fancy dress.
DESIGNER
COAT
Three Year 10 students put their
design skills to good use when
dreaming up a solar-panelled
heated winter coat.
The design challenge, set by
Sunderland Business Innovation,
saw the group progress through
several stages with their idea. Well
done to Jack Mortson, William
Reynolds and Daniel Anderson for
their brilliant concept and design.
Salters' Festival of
Chemistry
Eight Year 8 boys took part in a
Chemistry Competition at Newcastle
University in which they had to
demonstrate their investigative and
analytical skills working as a team.
The boys also enjoyed an afternoon of
'Great Egg Race' style invention in
which they used scientific principles
to great effect. Well done to both
teams, one of which came second.
Exploring
Human Health
A team of Sixth Form biologists
spent a very informative session
working on the topic of kidney
disease with scientists from the
Centre for Life.
Dr Lorraine Eley from the Institute of
Human Genetics spent time with the
students, sharing aspects of the
cutting-edge work that takes place at
the internationally renowned Centre
for Life.
A group of Year 11 and 12 Biologists
had a trip to Newcastle University's
Medical School to learn more about
human physiology.
The students had a chance to see the
dissection room and to learn more
about the human body and human
organs through observation.
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
Flying High
A group of Year 10 engineers
spent an enjoyable day at the
Aviation College at Newcastle
International Airport.
The students learnt about some
applications of engineering in an
aviation setting and had a chance to
work on a jet propelled Meteor. This
included the use of a hydraulic jack, four
of which were used to lift the jet in order
to inspect the undercarriage.
James Turnbull commented, 'The day
was great fun. We learned that sections
of some motorways are designated as
emergency landing strips for aircraft.'
Gold Crest
Congratulations to our Year 12
Engineering in Education Scheme
team who were rewarded with a
Gold Crest award for their work
with Siemens.
SCENE Ambassadors
Congratulations to Jonathan Russell, James Ryan and Jordan Miller who
successfully carried out their role as SCENE ambassadors, promoting
Science, Technology and Maths (STEM) subjects amongst primary school
students.
The three received training on teaching young pupils before preparing
lessons on Global Warming and delivering them to Year 5 children. The
lessons were a great success for all concerned.
Jack Gilmour, Michael Emmerton,
Adil Parvez, Michael Nugent and
Jonathan Russell worked with
industrial mentors from Siemens
on wind turbines and testing new
parts for them. They presented
their findings at a Celebration and
Assessment Day at Newcastle
University for which they were
awarded the prestigious Gold
Crest.
This event is one of a series of
collaborations with Siemens, our
industrial partners.
European Parliament
Three Year 12 linguists recently enjoyed a trip to the European
Parliament in Strasbourg during which they were able to debate a range
of issues with MEPs from different countries.
Darren Johnson, James Robertson and Michael Craggs travelled to
Strasbourg in April as part of an area-wide initiative to increase
awareness of the workings of the European Parliament. The students
were invited into the MEPs debating chamber in which they discussed
a range of issues including the environment.
SMELLS GOOD
Parents and teachers been cooking up a range of treats inspired by food from
all around the world.
Recent sessions have included an inter-European collaboration in which staff and
students from a range of European countries demonstrated a range of European
cuisine. This included traditional dishes from Germany, Italy and Spain. Our
visitors were treated to typical North Eastern favourites such as pease pudding.
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
EUROSTAR
Language Trips
Eurostar is designed to
promote greater
understanding between
European countries and
during the stay staff and
students attended lesson
Trips are taking place to
France, Germany and
Italy. All of them are
designed to help students
Twenty for students and
staff from Germany,
Italy and Spain visited St
Cuthbert's under the
Eurostar scheme.
with some of our Year 9
students. The visitors
also participated in an
Italian cookery class at St
Cuthbert's and enjoyed a
range of cultural visits.
Further collaboration
will take place over the
coming year as the
scheme will run until
2012.
CAMBRIDGE BLUE
Many congratulations to former student James
Day who recently won his full Cambridge blue for
captaining the Cambridge University first XI for
the 127th varsity match held at Oxford United's
Kassam Stadium.
James, who left St Cuthbert's in 2008 to study Medicine
at Cambridge, has represented the university since his
arrival there. Being selected as captain for the 2010-11
season has seen James rewarded with a full blue (sporting
award).
The varsity football match is one of the oldest football
rivalries, with Sir Bobby Robson managing the
victorious 1964 Oxford Team.
Unfortunately for James, Cambridge lost the match 3-1.
The Modern Languages
department has again
produced an excellent
programme of trips
abroad.
develop their language
skills in a relaxed, fun
setting. Students will
have the opportunity to
work with a range of
hosts during their trips.
Further detail will follow
in the next newsletter.
Ten Years After
A past vs present football match was played at the end of
the season to commemorate the ten year anniversary of
winning the National Schools Cup.
Managed by former Deputy Head, Dave Stapylton, and
captained by goal-scoring hero Chris Murphy, the former
students enjoyed a tour around the new buildings before
taking to the field of play. The match, played in an
exemplary spirit, saw the TSS Cup winning current first XI
draw 1-1 with the Old Boys.
It remains to be seen if the National Cup winning side will
fare as well when the 25 year reunion match takes place in
2026!
MEDICAL MAN
Many congratulations to Masoom Tariq who has been
successful in gaining a place at Durham University to
study Medicine.
Masoom, the youngest of four brothers to have studied at
St Cuthbert's, has worked extremely hard, not only for his
A level studies but in preparing for the highly demanding
medical school admissions process.
James is pictured on the back row, third from the left,
wearing the captain's armband.
His reward is a five year degree programme at Durham's
Queen's Campus followed by a career in Medicine. Very
well done!
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
MOVING ON
Year 13 students marked the end of their time
in school with a memorable leavers' event.
The evening started with a liturgy in the school chapel
to give thanks and pray for the continuing success and
happiness of the students. Students then enjoyed a
buffet with staff before being entertained with speeches
by Joe Nevins, Will Murtagh, James Collerton and Mr
Murphy. The evening provided plenty of opportunity
for reminiscing about some of the more humorous
episodes in the last seven years.
Oxford Bound
Many congratulations to Ben Tate and Mark
Futers both of whom have been successful
in winning places at Oxford University.
Mark, whose brother Donald is currently
studying English at Cambridge, will read for
a degree in Economics and Management at
St Hilda's College. Mark achieved straight
A grades at A level in 2010.
Ben, whose brother Christopher studied
Medicine at St Anne's College, Oxford, will
study Law at Balliol College. Ben has spent
a year out working with local law firm
Mincoffs.
Mark and Ben join a long list of students in
recent years who have gone onto study at
top universities in the UK and abroad.
ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE
Ruth Johnson, an actor from Northern Stage, spent a
very pleasurable day working with 90 Year 9 boys in a
Shakespeare workshop.
The boys spent time learning about performance and
had the opportunity to memorise and deliver famous
quotations from Shakespeare. Following an afternoon
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of dramatic interpretation George Poxon (Shylock) was
selected to go forward as the school's representative for
the BBC competition 'Off By Heart'. This will be
televised later in the year.
Well done to all who participated so enthusiastically.
ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
The Book of Lost
Things
Novelist John Connelly, well known for
his Charlie Parker series, visited school
to talk about his books and the creative
writing process.
Fans of his books were able to get their
copies signed as well as to ask questions
about the creative process and how to get
published. This visit is one of a series of
opportunities boys have had in recent
months to explore the writing process.
Other authors have included SAS hero
Chris Ryan and children's horror writer
David Gatward.
THE WRITE STUFF
TOP CLASS
Forty successful young writers proved they had the
'write' stuff when they created their own mini sagas.
Evening Chronicle readers should watch out for the 'Top Class'
page in September as it will be produced by a group of our current
Year 9 students.
The students, from Years 8 to 10, have been
successful in having their writing selected to appear
in a publication in the near future. Well done to all
concerned.
The boys will have the chance to tour the printworks and to spend
time producing their very own front page, featuring a spread of
stories drawn from the many exciting things happening around
school.
Gothic Howarth
Year 12 English Literature students are
set to visit Howarth in Yorkshire,
home of the Bronte sisters.
The trip is part of their preparation for
studying Emily Bronte's 'Wuthering
Heights' for their A2 course as part of
a Gothic literature module. The
students will soak up the atmosphere
that gave rise to literary classics
including 'Jane Eyre'.
Emily Bronte lived at Haworth
Parsonage with her sisters Anne and
Charlotte and brother Branwell.
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
PICTURE THIS
2011 has been another excellent year for the Art department with
students across all courses producing extremely high quality work for
their end-of-year exhibitions.
The breadth and expertise displayed
by
students following BTEC, GCSE,
Applied A-level and A level Art,
not to mention some stunning
images from the A level
Photography groups,
continues to impress teachers,
parents and visitors to the
school. This year examiners
again congratulated students and staff for the
creativity, imagination and skill on display.
William Siou, a Year 13 artist, has been so successful that his work
has been on sale over the last year both on-line and at local galleries.
Duke of Edinburgh
SOARING HIGH
Well done to the Year 12 Duke of Edinburgh
group who are on their way to completing their
Silver Award.
Well done to the Year 9 basketball squad
who were rewarded for their season-long
winning streak with a run out before a
Newcastle Eagles' game at Sport Central.
The group navigated their way around County
Durham for their practice expedition and despite
a disturbed night under canvas are now ready for
their final trip which will take place in the North
York Moors.
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The Year 9 team won the Tyne and Wear
County cup and also won the Newcastle
Schools championships, beating Walker in
the final.
ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
Golfing Genius
Jack Hermiston, Year 10, continues to excel
on the golf course, representing England at
Under 16 level.
Jack, who has a handicap of +0.2, has a glowing
record of golfing success. He recently finished 2nd
playing for the Newcastle Men's Team in the
Northumberland 72-hole strokeplay
championship. Jack came second in the
English/Scottish under14s championships last year
and continues to test himself playing in men's and
junior county matches.
Well done Jack for achieving such a high standard
and putting in all the hard work required to
succeed.
Swimming for Gold
Many congratulations to three students who have
been making waves in swimming pools around the
region.
Tom Howley, a Year 10 student, has put all the early morning
training to good effect in picking up a string of gold medals at
the County Championships. Not content with this Tom has
gone on to triumph in his favoured stroke at the Regional
Championships picking up two more golds. Best of luck at the
National Championships Tom.
Lawrence Coales Duffy who, like Tom, swims for the City of
Newcastle, has had a strong season reaching several finals at the
County Championships and putting in some strong
performances at the Regional Championships. Well done too
to Harry McKenzie, an Aquajets swimmer, who has had some
very strong swims over the last twelve months, competing in
both the County and Regional Championships.
Black Cat
Glory
Congratulations to Reece Noble who has been
successful in being awarded a two year
scholarship with Sunderland AFC.
Reece, who has been with Sunderland for several
years, follows his brother, Liam, to the Stadium of
Light. He is one of several players from recent
years who has progressed onto
professional clubs, including Lee
Novak at Huddersfield, Ryan
Donaldson at Newcastle United and
Clark Keltie at Lincoln City. Reece's
brother Liam has recently enjoyed a
loan spell at cup-winning Carlisle
United.
Judo Success
Brothers Michael and Stephen Nugent have
recently returned from a very successful
weekend at the National Judo Championships.
Michael, Year 12, finished in a very creditable fifth
place in his age category whilst younger brother
Stephen performed brilliantly to win silver medal.
Well done to both players.
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ISSUE 3 - SUMMER 2011
Olympics Here We Come
Athletes from across the
school have made a very
promising start to the 2011
season.
Highlights so far include Ose Dawodu who not only won
the county shot putt and 60metres but did the latter by
setting an all-time record. Steven Knox has competed well
in early season, winning the county high jump.
The school's Inters team (Years 9 & 10) won the
Northumberland round of the English Schools Athletics
Cup and have now qualified for the Northern Regional
final. At the Tyneside Senior Schools Championships
the team also performed well with Terry Morgan picking
up gold medals in the shot and the javelin and Jack Smith
winning the discus.
At the recent City Athletics championships we were the
most successful school, winning 10 gold and 10 silver
medals across a range of track and field events. Well done
to Zach Haddon for his continuing success in both the
long jump and triple jump and to all our other
competitors.
Cup Finalists
2010-11 has been another strong season for the school's
football teams with victory from the first XI (Tyneside
Senior Schools Cup) right down to Year 7 (TSS Cup, City
Cup and league champions).
The first XI not only won the cup but consolidated their
position in the top flight finishing 4th in the league. Other
notable successes include the Year 8B team and the Year 9
team both of which made it to the Cup Finals and Sam
Burns who played for the county side which made it to the
national semi-finals.
It's Soccer in the USA
Sam Burns, Year 13, has put his sporting talent
to good effect in winning a soccer scholarship to
St Edward's University, Austin, Texas.
Sam, first XI captain for the
cup-winning 2010-11 season,
will be jetting off State-side
once he's completed his A
levels in English, French and
Sports Studies. Sam has done
particularly well to succeed in
gaining the scholarship as they
are becoming increasingly
competitive in the current
environment.
Sam will combine his on-field activity with studying
English Language and Literature.
Sport Central
Gifted and Talented sportsmen from
Year 7-10 are destined for a day
sampling all that Northumbria
University's state-of-the-art sports
facility, Sport Central, has to offer.
The experience will give students
opportunities to take part in a range of activities not
available in school.
Sport Central is managed by Daryl Dixon, an old boy of
the school.
ST CUTHBERT'S SKI
Forty-five boys from
years 8-10 enjoyed a
ski trip to
remember in Passo
Tonale, Italy during
the Easter holidays.
The boys (and staff), who ranged in skiing ability
from absolute beginner to national level, enjoyed the
warm weather whilst learning a range of skills. As
well as skiing there was an opportunity to attend a
dog sled school and a range of social activities.
The school team will compete in the Nationals next
term.
Gretna Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, NE15 7PX. Telephone: 0191 274 4510
E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.st-cuthbertshigh.newcastle.sch.uk
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