Volume 11
Issue 13
Friday 22 April 2016
Dates For Your Diary
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Monday 25 April to
Friday 29 April
Thursday 28 April
Monday 2 May
Wednesday 11 May
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Year Book Photos (see below)
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Year 12 Parents’ Evening 1630hrs - 1930hrs
May Bank Holiday
Parents’ Forum 1830hrs
Year 9 and 10 Careers Day Tuesday 19 July – Can you help?
We are finalising our planning for this year’s annual careers event at Wolgarston.
Currently we have over 30 representatives from vocations such as Nat West/ Royal Bank of Scotland,
Aspire Training, Advanced Computer Software, Burton and Shropshire Hospitals NHS Trust, Carillion, Donna Louise Trust, Chartered Institute of Accountants, Countrywide estate agents, Staffordshire University, Entrust Careers Officer, Nova Training and many other individual businesses.
Our students and their parents will be able to visit all the stalls or those of their choice during the day,
details and a brochure will be released closer to the event, and in addition there will be presentations
about how to apply for and perform at interviews which will also be for students and parents to attend
if appropriate to your child’s needs.
If you can help and have a career or business that could provide information to students we would be
delighted to invite you to be with us for the day.
If you are interested please contact Mr Curtis on 01785 788400.
Year Book Photos
Our Year 11 students will be able to have their photographs taken for the Year Book week beginning
Monday 25 April. Each House has their own appointment to attend to have their photos taken in our
C Block Photography Studio at tutor and break time on a specific day.
Monday… Pyrenees
Tuesday… Himalayas
Wednesday… Rockies
Thursday… Alps
Friday… Catch-up Sessions
CONTACT DETAILS:
Wolgarston High School, Cannock Road, Penkridge, STAFFORD ST19 5RX
01785 788 400 (Main Reception) 01785 788 414 (Family and Student Services) 01785 788 404 (Attendance Line)
FAX: 01785 788 418 EMAIL: [email protected]
Visible Learning
Impact Coaches
To help Visible Learning become embedded into our culture at Wolgarston a special team has been
set up. These are the Impact Coaches.
The role of an impact coach is to be the driving force of Visible learning and to provide advice and
support to teachers in the school about its implementation. This may involve mentoring, observing
and having conversations with those members of staff who request their input. The coaches have
been selected from all faculties and departments so that each of these has access to at least one
dedicated impact coach who can advise them, but staff may find it more useful sometimes to speak
to an impact coach from a different area of the school.
In addition to the role outlined above, the impact coaches meet regularly throughout the year to discuss how Visible Learning is being implemented and to create action plans of what the whole school
should do as we move forward. One such meeting before Christmas resulted in the survey that students carried out about Visible Learning and the results were analysed at another meeting to form the
basis of where we go next as a school.
The impact coaches are keen to put Visible Learning at the forefront of everything we do at Wolgarston so that our students benefit the most and become assessment capable learners. Feel free to
talk to any of them about this.
The impact coaches are:
Mr Swinnerton
Mr Booth
Miss Edwards Mr Leonard
Mr Leonard
Mrs Brasher
Miss Causer
Mrs Cavanagh
Mr Skinner
Mr Stringer
Mrs Weston
Easter Bake Off Challenge
at
Wolgarston High School Bakery
On the morning of Monday 21 March our Year 10 GCSE Catering students were challenged to make a
cake for Easter. The success criteria was that the cake had to:
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show the Easter theme
be made from a sponge cake mixture
be decorated to a quality commercial standard.
Staff and students were invited to come into the Food room to look at the display of Easter Cakes and
leave a nomination for their favourite. Many voters asked if they could choose their top three rather
than just one. Oh no! One vote and one vote only!
Congratulations to all the students who took part in this Easter Bake Off – your cakes were amazing.
Prizes for the top nominations were awarded to:
Hannah Page, Jessica Sinnott, Isabel Lewis and Holly Swift
Hope you all had a healthy!! Easter break
Wolgarston Fine Dining!
At the beginning of last half term, Year 11 GCSE Catering students carried out their final practical exam – to design and prepare a two-course International meal to a high quality restaurant standard. The
results were amazing from ALL the students, which reflected a lot of hard work researching, experimenting with dishes and working as a professional chef. Each and every one of them should be extremely proud of their achievements.
At 1230hrs family and friends gathered at Wolgarston to enjoy a culinary experience.
It was tremendous to see so many proud faces. (As promised, I have not included your photos in this
publication!)
Thank you for taking the time to come in and celebrate in our restaurant – from the comments you
gave back, it is clear that you enjoyed the visit and left feeling full!
In my opinion, it was clear to see that ‘the cherry on the cake’ for the students, was the fact that you
came into school to celebrate and share in their success!
Many thanks and best wishes from Mrs Burford &
Mrs Beach.
We have included a small selection of photographs, there will be a display in school of every students’’
work.
Before the Easter break we saw Fun Friday being
moved to become Fun Thursday - the traditional Wolgarston Sixth Form end to a half term. For this event,
Miss Kent and Mrs Sexty provided an Easter egg hunt
for questions that needed to be answered correctly to
win a prize egg. Much fun ensued and the winning
teams were very egg-cited!
British Biology Olympiad
Earlier this year A-Level biology students were put through
their paces to select two representatives of Wolgarston to
enter the British Biology Olympiad. Lydia Page (Year 13)
and Emil Galanides (Year 12) were the successful students
and took part in the first round shortly after Christmas. Lydia
was Highly Commended for her performance by the Royal Society of Biology and Emil achieved a Gold Award which
meant that he was able to move on to the second round which took place in March.
Only the top 150 students out of 7,200 who entered from across the country were
taken through to round two, so despite not making it into round three Emil should be
very proud of his achievement. We are!
“Football Memories and History”
Calling all our ex-football players from 1957 onwards.
Over the last twelve months we have launched our Football
Centre and new 3G football pitch but we have been winning trophies for many years. Can you help us to fill in the gaps?
If you played in a District or County Cup winning football team please let us know which year you won
it and what age group and if possible which teacher ran your team when you won it. So, for example
Year 11 District Cup winners 1996, Mr Giles.
If you can help please e mail [email protected] or call 01785 788400.
Year 9 Boys District Cup
On Friday 15 April, our Year 9 Boys Football Team played their semi final of the Stafford & District Cup
V Weston Road High School. We started brightly and took control early on with Cameron Jackson posing a constant threat to the Weston Road backline. It was Jackson’s striking partner Alex Wingfield
who managed to break the deadlock thanks to a calm finish from inside the area. Wingfield managed
to double Wolgarston’s lead after 20 minutes thanks to another good finish. Weston Road’s only threat
was the long ball on the break and thankfully Sam Edmunds was always on hand to sweep up behind
our defence whenever needed.
Weston Road began the second half well but were unable to break through our well organised defence. With 20 minutes to go we started playing some superb football, probably the best we have
played all year. Cameron Jackson scored a much deserved goal and Alex Wingfield managed to grab
his third goal of the game. The best was still to come and it was Alex Marsh who popped up with two
fabulous strikes from distance that confirmed Wolgarston’s place in the District up Final thanks to their
6-0 victory. The final will be played on Friday 6 May on our 3G pitch.
Squad:
Edmunds, Powney, Black, Manley,
Black, Woodman, Archer, Hallchurch,
Arthrell, Lyons, Jackson, Wingfield,
Wall, Bickford & Marsh.
MOM:
Jackson
Wolgarston Sixth Form District
Cup Semi-Final
Wolgarston 4 - 0 Sir Graham
Balfour High School
Having recently won the British Colleges, West Midland Division,
the Sixth Form football centre team have embarked on their District
Cup programme and progressed to the final after a 4-0 semi-final
win against Sir Graham Balfour High School on Wednesday 20
April. The final will be played at Wolgarston on the 3G pitch with a
1600hrs kick off on Friday 29 April. Our opponents will be King Edwards Sixth Form who progressed to the final after beating Stafford
Grammar School on penalties.
The team performance on the evening was very solid with a clean sheet a welcome outcome from the
semi-final and the goal scorers were Kyle Wainwright (2), Chris Mayne and Reece Perry.
Year 11 District Cup Semi-Final
Wolgarston 5 – 1 Fair Oak
Our Year 11 football team progressed to their first ever District Cup Final after a comfortable win
against Fair Oak who scored a late consolation goal but rarely threatened.
Goals from Callum Stephenson (3), Joe Duckhouse and Tom Edge gave us a clear victory to follow
up a 2-1 win against Blessed William Howard in the quarter final.
The final will be played at Wolgarston on the 3G pitch with a 1600hrs kick off on Thursday 28 April.
Our opponents will be either Alleynes or Walton High school.
Year 10 Football
Last night our Year 10 lads booked their place in
the District Cup Final thanks to a 2-1 victory over
a very strong Sir Graham Balfour High School
side.
We started well and took the lead after a flicked
header from George Foster. Sir Graham Balfour
bounced straight back to get their equaliser
which meant both sides went in all square at half
time. We needed to show lots of resolve and resilience to ensure that we didn’t concede in the
second half as we were put under a lot of pressure. With 10 minutes to go a long ball forward
ended up falling at the feet of Blaze Rogers only
for him to ferociously fire the ball into the roof of
the net. Goalkeeper Sam Adams had to keep
switched on to deny Sir Graham Balfour a late
equaliser at the death!
The final will be played on Wednesday 27 April on our 3G pitch.
Squad: Adams, Shaw, Swift, Britton, Cooley, Miller, Pitt, Hayes,
Bryant, Weaver, Lever, Rogers & Foster.
MOM: Adams
Careers News
Good News Stories of Ex Wolgarston Students
This week we were visited by Nova Training who presented a workshop
to fifty of our Year 10 students so as to raise awareness of Apprenticeships. The workshops were really helpful and our students found them
very informative.
A few of our Ex Wolgarston Students attended Nova Cannock after
leaving school last summer. Each went with very different aims and aspirations. At Nova they support learners from day one to find out where
they shine and what they can offer potential employers, Karen Jackson
is Nova’s progressions officer, and a former Wolgarston student, who
works to help them find suitable progression routes. Here is the progress of three of them.
Tom came to Nova with his GCSE passes in both Maths and English
but wasn’t sure what to do next! His main
aim was to gain a job or Apprenticeship. He wasn’t sure on the area he
wanted to work in so Nova helped him build a CV and participate in employability activities to get him work ready. We helped Tom apply for
many jobs in a variety of areas and managed to get him into a brilliant
Office based Apprenticeship. He is still doing really well.
Edward came to Nova and passed his Level 2 functional skills in English, his Diploma in Motor Vehicle and he also completed a work placement at a local garage, then an opportunity arose with a landscaping
company that were looking for a learner to complete 2 weeks work experience placement with them, Edward decided to give this a try and the
company were so pleased with him they offered him a fully paid Apprenticeship to start the following Monday. He is now working with them and
progressing well and will be completing a qualification in Horticulture.
Dina came to Nova and completed a 2 week work trial at a local Hairdressers and was offered a Full time Apprenticeship. She is doing fantastically well and the shop have
nothing but praise for her. She will attend their academy one day a week to gain her level 2 in hairdressing then hopefully move onto her level 3. The feedback from the company is that she works very
hard and picks things up quickly which is always great to hear.
Careers Advice
As an Apprentice in the British Army you’ll have
experiences you simply won’t find anywhere
else. You’ll make friends for life and travel the
world, all while earning a very competitive wage.
We train thousands of people in roles ranging
from IT to engineering to catering and
healthcare. So, whoever you are and whatever
your ambitions, we can help you become a better
you. #abetteryou
Careers Advice
Construction is growing, with 120,000 apprentices needed by 2018. Construction is an
industry that is helping to shape the future. It’s not just about building sites, technical
apprentices, such as Architectural Apprentices earn while they learn and enjoy fantastic
training and development opportunities for jobs offsite.
For more information about the range of careers in construction click below.
www.goconstruct.org
Start your career with an apprenticeship. Earn a salary, gain experience
and professional qualifications. Don't miss these great new vacancies, including Degree Apprenticeships and the new Solicitor Higher Apprenticeship which allows you to
qualify as a Solicitor and gain a law degree (LLB).
SEARCH AND APPLY
What’s on offer? We offer two disciplines of Apprenticeship at Thames Water. These are Electrical ICA
and
Mechanical
and
Electrical.
What will this role involve? The next 4 years are
going to be really busy learning loads of new skills
and gaining experience in technologies and area's you
didn't even know existed. This is a blended course
where you will study both electrical and mechanical disciplines at college and out on our sites.
Who we are looking for? Apprentices are key to our success and we have very high standards when
selecting our apprentices. Therefore you should have a minimum of five GCSEs at grade C and above
including English, Science and Maths (B grade in Maths for ICA).
£14,500 starting salary plus benefits.
Each apprentice will also receive a laptop and smart phone on joining.
Click here for more info and to apply
Bri-Stor Systems are a manufacturing company based
in Hixon, Stafford who are currently recruiting for Apprentices. They have also organised an open evening
on 26 April 2016 1700hrs - 1900hrs.
Click here for more info on Bri-Stor
Are you between 14 and 17? Studying GCSEs or A
Levels? Have an interest in health as a career? Then
you can book onto the Operating Theatre Live, Summer Tour 2016. At the event students will work in a
real operating theatre with real doctors, nurses, midwives and allied health professionals dissecting real
specimens and performing real surgical techniques.
Tickets are on sale now, to find out more visit:
www.operatingtheatrelive.co.uk/tour.html
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION SEE STUDENT INFORMATION,
CAREERS, UPCOMING EVENTS ON THE SCHOOL
WEBSITE.
Click on the blue
CareerMap link (below) or visit their website
(www.careermap.co.uk) for advice, industry
news and the latest
apprenticeship jobs…..
Click to see the Alcohol Education Trust website; there is
some interesting information
and advice
for parents.
You can also click to see their
March newsletter.
Careers Advice
Click on the box link below to see a brand
new magazine packed with advice on
Apprenticeships and careers.
For all your questions about careers and
work experience please visit
www.wolgarston.staffs.sch.uk
student information, careers, links to local and
national websites or student information work experience.
For access to the work experience database students
will need to collect a work experience pack from
Student Reception
and use the enclosed user name and password.
Inspirational Quotes
“Thousands of candles can be
lighted from a single candle,
and the life of the candle will
not be shortened.
Happiness never decreases by
being shared.”
Buddha
Famous Dyslexic
Scott Quinnell
Born 20 August 1972 in
Glamorgan
Former Welsh International
Rugby League &
Rugby Union Player
He scored 11 tries for Wales
and captained his country
on 7 occasions in
Rugby Union
Dyslexic
Wolgarston PE Department are on….
Please follow the PE Department on Twitter for up to date news about the PE clubs, fixtures, results, visits,
BTEC & GCSE PE and lots more! @wolgarstonPE
ALSO AVAILABLE IN LARGE PRINT - PLEASE CONTACT:
[email protected]
Or take a look at our website at www.wolgarston.staffs.sch.uk
Wolgarston High School now has Twitter and Facebook!
Our Twitter account is @WolgarstonHigh
Follow us for updates and general school information.
The next issue of the SNU due………………………………....………………………………….....……6 May 2016