nunnery news - Nunnery Wood High School

May 2015
As pi re, Str ive , Ac h ieve
NUNNERY NEWS
FROM THE HEADTEACHER
cheer him up. Thank you to Ms Speechley for
organising this terrific experience.
Successes and Challenges
Finally, it’s always a powerful experience to
see Year 11 students tackle the examination
season. Our students are supported by an
excellent revision programme but even so, it
can be a challenging time and we wish them
all the very best.
It was good to meet many of you at the recent
Parent Consultation Evenings and hear the
positive things you had to say about the
school. Many of you will have completed a
survey too. Many thanks if you did; it’s
important for us to know what you like about
Nunnery Wood and where we can give our
students an even better experience.
Mr S Powell
Headteacher
There have been so many trips, sports events
and visits over the past few weeks that it’s
impossible to capture them all here. Certainly
our teams have been competing well.
Following on from the success of our
Mathematicians winning the regional final of
the Big Maths Quiz at Birmingham University,
we’ve had our boys’ badminton team
competing in the national finals in Wakefield
and our girls’ rugby team in the nationals at
Twickenham. They finished in the top ten
nationally, which is a fantastic achievement.
Well done to all of you – and to staff and
parents who’ve supported.
Students got political by voting in our own
General Election that copied the real event.
Candidates from all the main parties visited
and spoke to students and over 1200 staff and
students voted on May 7th. Labour won here,
with the Conservatives in second place. I’ll
pass the news on to Ed Milliband; it might
2
ARTISTS OF THE MONTH
Megan Davies
Laurence Canoy
Ruby Howes
3
DISNEYLAND TRIP
awaiting our arrival!
During the first weekend of the Easter
holidays, Mrs Price, Miss Johnson, Mr
Steward, Mr Burford and Miss White
departed Nunnery Wood High School for
Disneyland Paris with 40 extremely excited
Year 9 and 10 students.
Our first evening was spent familiarising
ourselves with the vast array of shops in the
Disney Village, which threatened to render
many of us bankrupt before the first day was
over, then grabbing some food that didn’t
have to be eaten on our laps aboard a rocking
ferry or coach.
After a long and tiring journey, we all arrived
safe and sound to our castle themed hotel.
There was even a throne in the lobby
4
The following morning, 27 performing arts
students left the hotel after breakfast with Mr
Steward and Mr Burford to attend a Musical
Theatre Workshop in the back lot of the
Hollywood Studios. These students were lucky
enough to be able to work with some of the
cast members from Disney itself on a musical
performance piece taken from the film
‘Tangled’. There were vast amounts of singing,
dancing and acting from all, including the
teachers! Unfortunately, there are no photos
allowed inside the workshop-the magic must
remain a closely guarded secret!
weather was a little ‘damp’, no one allowed
the rain to dampen our spirits as we spent the
evening watching in awe as the Disney
fireworks lit up the night sky over Cinderella’s
Castle.
All too soon it was time to leave and with one
last opportunity to shop and maybe take in
one more loop the loop, we climbed upon the
coach and headed out with cameras full of
memories and heads full of dreams of
performing on a Disney stage one day.
I would like to thank all the teachers for giving
up their time to facilitate this trip but my
thanks and vast amounts of pride lie firmly
with the students. They were a credit to
themselves, to their parents and to the
school. I hope to see all of you again when we
do it next year. Well done!
Whilst our ‘actors’ were busying themselves
putting on a show stopping performance, the
remaining students accompanied by Miss
White, Miss Johnson and Mrs Price began
work on a bespoke arts projects, incorporating
their artistic and photographic skills. A variety
of these photographs will soon be on display in
school for all to see.
Miss White
Although we all participated in a variety of
educational activities, there was still time to
take in the rides and parades that Disneyland
is famous for. We all spent the day and the
evening flying over the streets of London with
Peter Pan; shooting aliens with Buzz from Toy
Story, being dropped from great heights by a
broken lift in the Tower of Terror or being
launched into space with Aerosmith on a roller
-coaster that made Miss Johnson giggle and
Mr Burford look decidedly pale!! Although the
5
ELECTIONS
Last Thursday, the polls for the 2015 general
election closed. The public believed that there
would be very close result between labour
and conservatives. In the end the
conservative party won a majority with
over 50% of the seats , 331 seats in total
nearly a hundred more than the Labour Party.
UK General Election 2015 Summary
On May 7th, 66.1% of the UK public went to
their local polling station and voted for their
preferred party. The Conservative party, led
by David Cameron, won 331 seats (out of 650)
with 36.9% (11,334,520) of the votes whilst the
Labour party, (previously) led by Ed Miliband,
came 2nd with 232 seats and 30.4%
(9,347,326) of the votes.
In Scotland, the Scottish National Party (SNP)
won, overtaking Labour, the once dominant
party in Scotland. Labour have now been in a
difficult position as many of their shadow
cabinet seats have been taken. This is an
advantage for both the Conservatives and the
SNP as Labour is slowly diminishing like the
Liberal Democrats.
The Liberal Democrats (which were in a
coalition with the Conservatives) suffered a
dramatic downfall- losing 49 seats- coming
4th with 8 seats and 7.9% (2,415,888) of the
votes.
Nigel Farage was supposed to resign however
his party wouldn't let him resign, so he is still
the leader of the UKIP party.
The Scottish National Party came 3rd and
gained 50 seats which gave them 56 seats with
4.7% (1,454,436) of the votes. The much loved
UKIP gained a seat giving them 1, with 12.6%
(3,881,129) of votes whilst the Green Party
gained a seat, again giving them 1 seat, with
3.8% (1,157,613) of votes.
By George Copson Veale, Jamilah Ahmed and
Ali Ahmed
By Callum Hibbert and Phillipa Bray
The Labour Party team won the Nunnery
Wood High School Mock General Election
2015. Well done to them and all students who
participated
6
Overview of the Nunnery Wood High School
Mock Election
Election Fever hits Nunnery Wood!
On 7th May there was a General Election in
In the run up to the schools mock election,
which the citizens of Britain voted for who to
campaigning was furious with posters covering run the country. Here at Nunnery Wood we
every lick of paint in the school. Stickers were
have also been doing our own mock election in
handed out and informative leaflets were
which students voted for their favourite
thrust into the palms of unsuspecting students. political party, based on their policies.
Positive or negative – Nunnery Wood High
Each of the main political parties were
School’s Mock Election was everywhere.
represented by eager students who
Students were welcome to join the political
campaigned vigorously to secure their vote.
escapade whether it was assigned with a
Some students campaigned for their chosen
political party or creating innovative
propaganda. Many students also turned up for party, whilst others chose to support or help
out in other roles. Conservative, Labour, Green
the enlightening sessions with hopeful
Worcester candidates (Louis Stephen – Greens, Party, Liberal Democrats and UKIP
representatives designed posters and gave
Joy Squires – Labour and Robin Walker –
talks. They also gave assemblies, trying to
Conservatives) and the exciting debate
persuade students to vote for them. Many
between the five parties which students were
students showed their support by wearing
involved with.
badges and rosettes supporting their chosen
Assemblies were partaken in throughout the
political party. Hustings were held and there
campaign, teaching people about the party’s
were extremely lively debates. Local electoral
ideologies, manifesto and general politics.
candidates Robin Walker (Conservative), Joy
All in all it was a very informative and enjoyable Squires (Labour) and Louis Stevens (Green
few weeks with students wearing rosettes and Party) all attended the school to meet with
stickers with pride and happy to answer any
students and explain the importance of voting
questions from any classmates about each
and what their party stood for. The talks were
party or the general election. It was very
all very well attended and the candidates
successful and created a buzz of interest
received some very challenging questions
towards politics which is refreshing and
from their audience!
promising for the next generation of voters.
By Izaak Gilchrist 10.2 (Labour) and Abigail We learned that who you vote for as an
McFarlane 10.5 (Conservatives) individual person can make a difference to the
future of the whole country and by casting a
vote you contribute to the running of the
country.
By George Copson Veale year 10
Ballot boxes were delivered to all form rooms
7
ELECTIONS
Nunnery Wood Red, the Nation goes Blue.
the votes, the largest in recent history. Joy
Squires for Labour came second, followed by
James Goad for UKIP, Louis Stephen for the
Greens and Federica Smith for the Liberal
Democrats. With the exception of
Conservatives and Labour in different places,
the result in Worcester is roughly similar to the
result nationwide. Furthermore, the Year 8
results, the only ones with a Conservative
victory are very close nationwide.
If you’ve been reading or watching the news
before this election, you would’ve heard that
it was too close to call. The opinion polls
suggested different results, but all suggested
neither Labour nor the Conservatives would
have enough for a majority. However, the
exit polls (often the most accurate of the
opinion polls) suggested the Conservatives
would have a considerable lead over Labour,
but not enough to make a majority
government.
In our school, compared to the national vote
share (not seats), the Conservatives scored
29.1%, a fairly sizeable difference from the
36.9% overall and Labour 34.6%, compared to
30.4%. However, if you were to swap the
results over, our first and second place came
close.
In the end, Friday evening, we found out that
the election was won with a Conservative
majority. Labour followed in second, 99 seats
behind. The SNP came third, with a total of
56 seats, winning all except for three seats in
Scotland. The Liberal Democrats lost 49
seats and were left with eight and both the
Greens and UKIP only won one seat.
The Greens did significantly better than the
national result, receiving a 11.8% share in our
school and only a 3.8% share nationwide.
The Lib Dem results were also similar, 6.6% in
school, compared to 7.9% nationally.
The proportions of votes do not mirror the
amount of seats though, with Conservatives
gaining over half of the seats, despite only
having 36.9% of the total vote. This is
because the system we follow is the First
Past the Post system, where the winner of
each constituency goes to Parliament, being
easy to understand and creating a stable
government, but being distinctly unfair,
grossly benefitting major parties.
Finally, one of the best things about this
election was that it got people talking about
all different sorts of politics, as compared to
the usual apathy. I have, as a result of this
election, witnessed and participated in
numerous debates about everything from the
politicians to the economic policies to the
privatisation of the NHS to nuclear weapons
to immigration.
Also, in Worcester, Robin Walker retained the
seat for the Conservatives, winning 45.3% of
Charlotte Cobley
8
Our mock election
On Thursday 7th May the country held its
breath as it waited to discover which party
would hold the reigns of Britain for the next 5
years. Here at NWHS we decided to hold our
own election, to help those too young to vote
to develop their own political opinion for the
time when they to get a say on which road we
take. The different parties were formed by
students who already had strong political
views and wished to educate others on the
subject. Just like in the real election, they each
made posters and speeches and engaged in
debates to try and win as many of the
students’ votes as possible. Unlike the real
election the victory went to Labour, a fairly
new left wing party focused mainly on helping
the working class, who secured 432 (34.56%)
of the votes, followed by conservatives with
364. The highly controversial UKIP party
came next with just less two hundred votes,
just beating the Green’s. Not surprisingly the
highly unpopular Lib Dems trailed in, in last
place.
The count was carefully supervised.
Overall the mock election was a success with a
huge 1219 votes cast. Hopefully the next
generation of Worcester voters will now be
able to make a well justified choice on who
they want in the next Government when they
vote in 2020. In the real election the
Conservatives where victorious securing
power for another 5 years.
Things got pretty heated in the final debate
before polling day.
By Elizabeth Carron
9
ACTIVITY DAYS
Activity days during the final week of the academic year are an integral part of the school
curriculum and support our commitment to offer a broad range of learning experiences, as
advised by the Department for Education, through a menu of trips and alternative methods of
learning. We believe that students can gain a tremendous amount personally by taking part in
activities in a different environment. The activities offered enable different learning experiences
to be gained through the implementation of alternative learning strategies and the
development of personal skills.
The final week of the academic year will provide 3 opportunities for students to participate in a
range of different activities. On Tuesday 14th July the PE department will plan and lead our
annual Sports Day that celebrates team work, endurance, physical exertion and skill. Students
will participate in a range of events including Athletics, Tug of War, Curling and Indoor Rowing.
On Thursday 16th July students will be able to participate in a day long activity that they have
chosen. Each of the activities provides an opportunity for students to gain new experiences and
enhance their skills. Students will be able to choose from onsite and offsite activities, some will
be free of charge and other will incur a fee. Some of the proposed activities include visits to West
Midland Safari Park, Water World and The Snow Dome. Students could alternatively select to
spend the day in school designing and cooking an Italian menu or producing an animated film.
The full details of the range of activities on offer will be shared in early June 2015.
The last day of term will be dedicated to students enhancing their Spiritual, Moral, Social and
Cultural (SMSC) understanding. Students will work in groups sharing their experiences and
beliefs, whilst also developing their own understanding of the world around them.
More specific details surrounding our Activity Days will be shared in Nunnery News, on the
school website and via form tutors.
Mon 13th July
Normal School
day
Activity
Meetings during
AM registration
period
Arts Awards
rehearsals
Tues 14th July
Sports day
Wed 15th July
Normal School
Arts Awards in
the evening
10
Thurs 16th July
Free choice
activity day
A variety of
onsite and offsite
activities that
students can
select to
participate in for
the day.
Fri 17th July
SMSC Day
Early Finish
1.10pm
End of term
CHESS
The Delancey UK Schools’ Chess Challenge 2015
It’s been an exciting time for Chess Club over the last two months; twenty six students from
across all years have been taking part in the first stage of the Delancey UK Schools’ Chess
Challenge 2015. During this initial stage of the tournament each student plays a total of seven
matches, gaining 3 points for a win and 1 point for a loss. Prizes are also up for grabs for reaching
a certain amount of points, but for many students the main goal is to achieve 15 points to enable
them to qualify for the second round of the tournament - the ‘MEGAFINAL’.
After some nail biting matches we are pleased to announce that ten of our students have
qualified for the MEGAFINAL: Morgan Jenkins, Amir Iqbal, Bob Scott, Jacob Alldridge, Mason
Lloyd, James Pett, Tyler Powell, Sam Rowberry, Mitchell Cracroft and Joe Rastall, will all be
competing in the Megafinals, which take place at the University of Worcester on 17th May 2015.
Joe deserves a special mention because he was the only person to win all seven of his games,
granting him eternal glory with his name etched on the school trophy!
Thanks to all the students who have taken part in the Chess Challenge. Chess Club continues
every Tuesday lunchtime. All abilities from Chess Grand Masters to beginners who want to learn
how to play Chess, are all welcome
11
ELECTIONS
Labour Wins with Majority
On 7th May, 1250 votes were cast in our Mock
General Election in which students voted for
candidates who represented political parties.
After a frantic lunchtime trying to calculate
the results, Labour won with 34.56% of the
votes - a total of 432 votes. Conservatives
followed in second with 29.12%, with UKIP in
third with a much smaller 15.44% of votes
overall, the Greens fourth with 11.76% of votes
and the Liberal Democrats last with 6.64% of
the total votes cast.
Additionally, Labour won in Years 7, 9, 10 and
11, securing the largest victory of 40.26% of all
votes cast in Year 7. However, Year 8 had a
victory for the Conservatives, with that party
securing 44.80% of the votes, the largest
proportion in any year group, with Labour only
supported by 27.20% of Year 8s.
The Liberal Democrats, although finishing last
in every year group, got the largest share of
the votes in Year 11, winning 11.97% of all
votes. The Greens also gained the most votes
in Year 11, coming third with 16.24% of the
votes.
Thank you for everyone who voted in the
Mock Election and congratulations to the
Labour Party on their victory.
We understand that some people voted for
their friends rather than policies, however, it
was a valuable learning experience and
generated lots of political discussions.
By Lottie Cobley, Year 10
12
Politicians
support school
mock election.
We were
extremely
fortunate to
have visits
from local
electoral
candidates in
the lead up to
our school
mock General
Election. Our first
guest was Louis
Stephen from The
Green Party,
followed by Joy
Squires
representing the
Labour Party and
finally Robin
Walker,
Conservative MP
for Worcester. Each
candidate
explained the
policies of their party, before having to
answer very tricky questions from students!
HISTORY
History students from year 9 took the opportunity to get involved in a local history project to
bring Spetchley Park Gardens to life.
Justin Hughes from Worcester Archive and Archaeology Service delivered workshops in school
in which students were taught how to interview people in order to find out useful and
interesting information. They then put these skills to the test when they interviewed family and
staff from Spetchley Park. The recordings will be used around the estate to tell visitors exiting
and interesting stories from the past.
The stories that we heard were fascinating and we were sorry that we could not have stayed
longer to hear more. Why not visit the gardens and hear the recordings later in the year?
Pictured are : Molly Hadley, Joe Foster, Molly Fearman, Ruby Vickers and Jade Bedford
13
DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY—YEAR 11
14
PRACTICAL WORK
15
ART
On the 22nd &
23rd April, the
Art Department
invited in artistin-residence,
Kate Brookes to
work with a
selection of Year
9 and 10
students.
Kate, also the
manager of
Worcester
Resource
Exchange, worked with the students over 2
days to create pieces of artwork in response to
the music, ‘Holst- The Planets: Mars’. The
students worked with a variety of mixedmedia materials and techniques and carried
out both independent work and group work.
closed, expressing their feelings and
emotions to the music. These studies were
then worked on over the day, leading them
towards working on huge canvases two
metres wide! The students worked really
hard and thoroughly enjoyed the day.
We look forward to seeing their work on
display at the Cathedral for the Voices and
Visions exhibition, in May and also being
used as a backdrop for the Nunnery Wood
orchestra and dancers as part of their
performance
The students started off the session working
on a smaller scale and painting with eyes
16
CHESS CLUB
‘CHESS MASTERS’ VISIT NUNNERY WOOD HIGH SCHOOL
On Wednesday 29th April some of Worcestershire’s ‘Chess Masters’ visited Nunnery Wood High
School’s Chess Club to play against our very own ‘Chess Masters’! Bob Scott, James Pett, Joe
Rastall, Amir Iqbal, Mason Lloyd and Sam Rowberry battled valiantly, but despite their best
efforts were all defeated. Some of the matches were very close and gave our visitors a run for
their money.
A big thank you to everyone who took part and especially to Dr Ray Collett (President of the Junior Chess Academy) for helping to arrange this visit. We hope that this will become a regular
event and all our Chess Club members agree that it will help to improve their match play and
maybe next time Nunnery Wood Chess Club will be victorious in the next battle against ‘The
Masters’!
Watch this space!
17
CAREERS
help with their decisions.
Year 11
If you are concerned about your son or
daughter’s plans for after year 11, please let
me know.
[email protected] or
01905 363642
Since September all year 11 students have
been offered one to one career guidance
interviews to support them with their plans
for when they leave Nunnery Wood.
Due to the raise in participation age, all
young people are required to continue in
education or training until they are 18. This
does not have to be 6th form or college. For
further information see https://www.gov.uk
The 16-19 Bursary
You could get a bursary to help
with education-related costs if
you’re aged 16 to 19 and:
If your son or
daughter is hoping to
continue with an
apprenticeship it is essential that they have a
backup plan until they have a definite start
date for their apprenticeship secured. This
could be a college, 6th form or traineeship
place offer.

studying at school or college (not
university) in England

on a training course, including unpaid
apprenticeships
There are 2 types of 16 to 19 bursary.
Vulnerable student bursary
Recruitment processes for places in the
armed services can be lengthy, so again, until
a start date is confirmed a back-up option
should be secured.
You could get a bursary worth up to £1,200,
depending on your circumstances and
benefits. www.gov.uk/1619-bursary-fund/
Discretionary bursary
You could get a discretionary bursary if you
need financial help but don’t qualify for a
vulnerable student bursary. Your education or
training provider decides how much you get
and what it’s used
for.
GCSE results day
I will be in school on examination
results day in August so if any
student has concerns about their
initial plans I will be available to
18
Year 10
Careers Resources
Worcestershire Skills Show visit
In March we took some year 10 students to
this event. This is the first time it was held in
Worcester. The aim was to link businesses and
schools and for students to find out more
about what employment and training
opportunities were on offer locally.
Student Portal – students can access
relevant careers websites to help with their
research and planning for future careers
under the careers information link.
Some feedback from students included
“It was a
brilliant day
and I hope I
can attend
“The best
part was
finding out
about the
Library – there is a range of careers
literature which students from all year
groups can access. These include college,
6th form and university prospectuses,
Apprenticeships information, specific job
sector information, CV and interview skills
help books.
“It was good &
interesting to speak
to different employers
about different jobs
and find out what
grades you need to do
Lunch Time drop in sessions – held every
Tuesday and Friday lunchtime in the careers
office opposite the library. No appointment
needed.
The students who attended enjoyed the
experience and it has generated a number of
careers and work related questions and I hope
these events will continue in future years.
Mrs Davies
Careers and Work Experience Co-ordinator
19
ECO NEWS
Towards a Sustainable Future
Our year 9 students have been focusing on aid,
in a new scheme of geography work. With the
support of the Duckworth Trust (a registered
Worcestershire charity dedicated to the
conservation, protection and enhancement of
the natural and built environments for the
people of Worcestershire) and Concern
Universal (the Hereford based International
Development and Emergency Relief
organisation which works with people in some
of the poorest countries of the world to find
local, sustainable solutions to poverty &
inequality) our students had the opportunity to
learn about the 'Litre of Light' development
project and compare it to another aid project
on fuel efficient stoves in Malawi.
The Litre of light project aims to bring light
into homes in low income countries very
cheaply, using recycled bottles and a spot of
bleach, whilst the stove project aims to reduce
death and disease from smoke inhalation as a
result of cooking on open fires, along with
reducing the time spent gathering wood and
reduced carbon emissions.
Students had the chance to sample first-hand
the impact of a 'litre of light' by trialling light
boxes made by one of our handy year 9
parents and where shown how to make the
fuel efficient stoves and have a go at creating a
miniature one with modelling clay. Students
then evaluated the advantages and
disadvantages of the projects before deciding
which project they thought most valuable.
20
You can find out more about these aid
projects here: http://www.litreoflight.co.uk/
http://www.theguardian.com/globaldevelopment/gallery/2013/mar/28/malawisustainable-stoves-in-pictures
P.E.
U13 Girls Rugby Team
U15 Girls Rugby Team
The u13 girls’ rugby team have worked incredibly
hard and have made massive progress this year.
They have attended training in the pouring rain
and freezing cold, even those who are injured
make sure they are there to help. On 9th
December the girls travelled to Sibford where they
played in an exceedingly tough tournament. They
beat Sibford school 15-5, Royal Latin School 30-0
and Cooper School 10-0. Unfortunately they lost
to St Pauls and Bredon Hill School, in two of the
toughest and tightest matches I have ever seen, I
was staggered by their commitment, intensity and
the amount of quality tackles they made, the final
scores were 10-15 and 10-25. This meant they
came second in the tournament.
These girls have worked very hard this year to
develop their teamwork and confidence in the
game. The girls played their first match of the
term against Tewkesbury. They played a very
controlled game, with meticulous organisation,
and stole possession at every point of contact.
They eventually won the match 87-0 which was a
massive achievement.
Since Christmas the girls have played Bredon Hill
Middle school twice, narrowly losing the first time
and winning the second.
On December 11th the girls travelled to Sibford
where they played in an exceedingly tough
tournament. They beat Sibford school 40-5,
Royal Latin School 30-0, Warriners School 30-0,
Carterton 30-5. Unfortunately they lost to St
Pauls, in one of the toughest and tightest
matches I have ever seen, I was staggered by
their commitment, intensity, and the amount of
quality tackles they made, the final score was 1015. This meant they came second in the
tournament.
They went through the West Midlands finals
where they came up against some stiff opposition.
They beat Bredon Hill Shark 20- 0,
Wodensborough 40- 0 but lost to Oldfield 20-5.
This placed them second in their pool and gave
them the opportunity to play for a place in the
national finals at Twickenham. The competition
was fierce and with explosive tackling and
excellent organisation the girls worked tirelessly.
They beat James Taylor school 30-10, drew with
Bredon Hills A team 25-25 with Grace Moseley
having a try disallowed in the dying seconds, and
lost to Oldfield 20-10. This meant that the girls
came joint second with Bredon Hill A team and
narrowly missed a place in the national finals, I
know they are already planning for victory next
season.
I am exceedingly proud of the girls who, once
again, qualified for the Midlands Championship.
During this tournament girl’s played
fantastically, with excellent support, rucking and
line speed that the other teams could not cope
with. This meant that not only did the girls win
the tournament, becoming West Midlands
champions once more, but they were
undefeated at the tournament. The girls beat
John Taylor school 40-5, Walsall Academy 20-5,
Church Stretton 25-0 and then went on to play
Church Stretton in the quarter finals beating
them 35-5, Thomas Allianes 35-0 in the semifinal and Wodensborough 40-0 in the final. Well
done girls, I am incredible proud of how you
played and carried yourselves throughout the
tournament.
Miss G Woolley
This is an amazing team who support and care for
each other but also strive for success, a team that
embodies everything good about sport and I
cannot wait to see what is to come.
21
YEAR 11
YEAR 11 FINAL THOUGHTS
Early indications about destinations after
Nunnery Wood are as follows:
Our Year 11 students are in their final weeks of
preparation for their GCSE exams, which kick
off in earnest on May 11th.
The year group are working hard to complete
final assessments and attend as many revision
sessions as possible.

170 students have secured conditional
places at Worcester 6th Form.

72 students will be attending Heart of
Worcester College.

19 students are interested in securing an
apprenticeship
nd
May 22 will see the Year group have their
Leavers Assembly in school. We are looking
forward to an hour of celebrations, music and
dance plus an added bonus of five years of
video clips, which we have salvaged from our
archives. Students will then join staff in the
canteen for afternoon tea.
We still have a few students who are awaiting
confirmation on training programmes.
If any parent has any questions or queries
about the final weeks, then please email Mrs
Telger, [email protected]
If students wish to have a spare shirt with
them for signing, they are very welcome.
However school uniform will be worn on this
day.
LAST MINUTE REMINDERS.
We are in the final
stages of planning
for their Prom,
which will be held
on 26th June at
Treetops Pavilion on
the Safari Park.
Tickets are on sale from Mrs Telger and cost
£26. The event starts at 7pm and ends at
11pm. Parents are very welcome to see the
students arrive in style. Photos will be
available on the night from Prompix and will
cost £5. The students have all met the
photographer and know all about how to
pose.

School uniform will be worn to all
examinations

Mobile phones must be handed over, but
it is preferred that they are left at home

Breakfast is available free of charge to all
Year 11 students from May 11th in the
canteen.

Make sure the examination schedule is
highlighted and in a safe place.

Have plenty of spare pens, pencils and
equipment. Stationery is available to
purchase from school reception.
Calculators and memory sticks can be
bought from the Finance Office. Please
see Noticeboard on page 25 for current
price list.
Good luck!
Mrs E Telger
22
WELL DONE!
A huge well done to James Glennie in 11.8.
James has been volunteering at St Richards Hospice book shop since
January.
He works every Saturday afternoon for more than 4 hours.
He is doing this because he wants to gain experience of working with
people and doing something that he thinks is worthwhile, with a view
towards achieving his ambition to become a GP.
We are really proud of James’ commitment to a truly worthwhile cause
and wish him well for the future.
In April 4 students went to the Regional Badminton Championships in Birmingham;
Matthew Richardson (Yr 9)
Luke Richardson (Yr 9)
Hugo Simmonds (Yr 8)
Tom Scotson (Yr 8)
They had qualified for this through winning the following:
Round 1 - City Schools Championships (Bishop Perowne High School)
Round 2 - Hereford & Worcestershire County Championships (University of Worcester)
The competition and standard of play was excellent and the boys played extremely well, with
no shortage of skill or effort. Each match consisted of 5 games (2 singles & 3 doubles).
They won each game in their group beating Kingswinford, King Edwards School and John
Masefield (Ledbury) and therefore qualified for the final.
The final was against the winners of Group 2,
Clayton Hall School which proved a fantastic
match and we narrowly won!
The team have therefore been crowned West
Midlands Regional Champions and have
qualified for the Centre Parcs National
Badminton Championships in Sherwood
Forest on Sunday 10th May. I feel very proud of
the boys for such a tremendous effort. They
deserve much credit!
Mr M Russell
23
YOUNG CARERS
A TIME FOR CHANGE FOR YOUNG CARERS
IN WORCESTERSHIRE.
Below are some of the tell tale signs of a
young carer:
On Monday 20th April, in the presence of her
Royal Highness the Princess Royal, Mrs Telger
represented Nunnery Wood High School at a
conference to support and promote our young
carers. Her Royal Highness addressed the
conference and met with the young carers
from Worcestershire.


The charity YSS has been working with
vulnerable children, young people, adults and
families for over 25 years. In Worcestershire
alone there are 3490 reported children and
young adults who have been identified as
young carers.
These remarkable children and young people,
without questioning, accept a great deal of
responsibility at a very young age, often
missing out on what should be the carefree
days of their childhood. It became obvious
throughout the conference that they are more
likely to be struggling with their education, feel
socially isolated and in some instances
struggle with their own physical health and
emotional well-being.
24
Poor school attendance
Frequently late to school or reluctance to
stay afterschool for clubs

No packed lunch or money for food

Homework not being completed

Worrying about a parent

Poor concentration

Tiredness

Anxious

Weight loss

No parent present at Parents Evening

Poor attainment

Social isolation

Early maturity
If after reading this short article, you feel that
you may know or have a feeling that a child or
young person is a carer, please contact the
school and ask to speak to Mrs Telger. Her
direct number is 363646.
NOTICEBOARD
Essential Equipment
Did you know you can purchase stationery and equipment from school? Reception and Finance
are open for students to purchase items from Monday to Friday, 8.00am to 8.30am, 10.50am to
11.05am and 1.10pm to 2.00pm.
Available from Reception
Available from Finance
Black Pen
Pencil
Rubber
15cm Ruler
30cm Ruler
Sharpener
Calculators £5.65
Memory Stick £2.85
Year 11 Tie
£4.00
10p
5p
5p
10p
15p
5p
STUDENT ABSENCE LINE
(01905) 363636, THEN PRESS ‘1’
School Website
For the latest information on policies, admissions, uniform requirements,
curriculum news; to download copies of the Nunnery News and press
releases or visit, go to www.nunnerywood.worcs.sch.uk.
Parental Portal
Twitter
Don’t forget—the parental portal is updated
regularly to keep you up to date with news
and events within the school.
You can follow us on
Twitter
@Nunnerywood
25
DESIGNERS OF THE MONTH
Sam Danvers, Ben Ramsey and Harry Simmonds.
In Year 10, the Product Design students have started on their GCSE controlled assessment which
is to design and make a product of their choice that is influenced by a particular designer or
design movement. These three students have made an excellent start picking up full marks on
the first research section and going on to produce high quality design work using both CAD and
traditional hand drawn presentation methods. Finally they have produced a card model of how
they think their final product will look. The hard work starts now however as they finalise their
design solution and start to manufacture their final product. All three should be confident of
achieving the top grade!
26
DANCE
A special thanks to the students below who
were involved in the moderation:
On May 5th Year 11 GCSE Dance students
were involved in Nunnery Wood’s first GCSE
moderation. Many other students from years
7-11 were also involved in the moderation and
gave up hours of their time to work with the
year 11’s on different units of the course. The
moderation went very well and the senior
GCSE moderator was extremely
complimentary of the students involved and
commented on the high standard of work.
Well done and thank you to all involved.
Libby Ridlinton
Molly Phillips
Lauren Roberts
Yasmin Li
Sophie Peach
Michael Jorden
Lorien Peters
Sian Norwood
Ella Sutton
Mollie Ferman
Zia Fiarkodos
Megan Ellis
Hollie Yapp
Lawrence Canoy
Shannon Caihill
Holly Stokes
Candice Fink
Millie Want
Laura Holmes
Elroi Vargas
Year 11 GCSE Dance students
Caprice Blake
Paige McDaid
Jasmine Randall
Cariss Davies
Charlotte Drummond
Jacob Hale-Hussain
Caitlin Dowie
Taylor Hall
Caoimhe Heath
Jink Jinks
Georgia Hoole
Laura Bairstow
DANCE
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PHOTOGRAPHY
Huge congratulations to Michela Perrett
and Tessa Gardner for being awarded a
finalist place in the Worcestershire Young
Photographer of the Year 2015 Award. The
Beacon Camera Club received around 500
submissions for the competition and we
are very proud to see that Michela and
Tessa were 2 of the 31 chosen as finalists.
Well done to both girls!
28
WHAT’S ON—JUNE
EVENT
LOCATION
DATE
The Elgar Birthday Concert
Elgar Birthplace Museum
5th
Worcs Rapids vs. Notts Outlaws
Worcs County Cricket Club
7th
Evening Scenic Special
Severn Valley Railway
7th, 14th & 21st
Local Market
Croome Court
7th
Shakespeare at the Castle
Worcestershire County Museum 12th
Worcestershire vs. Warwickshire
Worcs County Cricket Club
14th-17th
Worcs Rapids vs. Derbyshire Falcons
Worcs County Cricket Club
19th
A Celebration of Worcester’s Talent
Swan Theatre
20th
Family Fun Race Day
Worcester Racecourse
21st
30th Upton Jazz Festival
Upton-upon-Severn
25th-28th
Folk Festival
Jinney Ring Craft Centre
27th-28th
Race the Dragon
Worcester Racecourse
28th
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
June 2015
3rd
Worcester City Schools Athletics Championships Year 8
4th—9th
Normandy Trip
9th
Joint Concert with Worcester Brass
12th
DofE Bronze Training
15th & 16th
INSET Days
18th
Ramadan begins
23rd
Sports Award Evening
26th
Yr7 & 8 Reports to Parents
29th-3rd July
Year 6 Transition Week
29
PARENT REPRESENTATIVE ON THE
As a result of the end of term of Steve Hegerty and Di Briggs we will have two vacancies for
Parent Representatives to the Governing Body.
The period of office is for four years unless terminated by resignation or disqualification and the
appointment will be from the 1st June 2015 (unless a ballot is necessary). Prospective nominees
should not be discouraged from standing for election if they are unable to serve a four-year
term; it is possible to resign before the term of office ends if they so wish.
At this stage we invite nominations for the vacancies properly proposed and seconded on the
proforma attached and returned to Mrs West (PA to the Headteacher) at the school by 2.00 p.m.
on Monday 1st June 2015. The following are disqualified from holding office:



a person who is bankrupt or who within the last four years has made a composition
with his/her creditors;
a person who within the last five years has been convicted of a crime and sentenced to
a period of four months or more imprisonment (whether suspended or not) without
the option of a fine - the disqualification extends to twenty years for a person who has
been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of more than two and a half years, and
is indefinite for a sentence of more than five years - but convictions for offences
committed outside the UK can be disregarded if they would not have constituted an
offence under the law in the UK;
a person who in the previous five years has been convicted under Section 547
Education Act 1996 for causing a nuisance or disturbance on the premises of a school.
The next meeting of the Governing Body after this date is the 2nd July 2015 at 7.00 p.m.
Mrs H West
Clerk to Governors
30
E GOVERNING BODY
To:
Mrs H West
Nunnery Wood High School
Spetchley Road
Worcester
WR5 2LT
NUNNERY WOOD HIGH SCHOOL PARENT GOVERNOR ELECTION, May 2015
NOMINATION PAPER
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOMINEE
PROPOSED
SECONDED
ADDRESS
ADDRESS
ADDRESS
NAME OF CHILD
NAME OF CHILD
NAME OF CHILD
TUTOR GROUP
TUTOR GROUP
TUTOR GROUP
SIGNED
SIGNED
SIGNED
Please return by Monday 1st June, 2 p.m.
31
NUNNERY WOOD HIGH SCHOOL
Headteacher: Mr S Powell
Spetchley Road
Worcester
WR5 2LT
Telephone:
As pi re, Strive, Ach ie v e
Fax:
01905 363636
01905 363666
Website:
www.nunnerywood.worcs.sch.uk
E-mail:
[email protected]
32