Tanbridge Review - Tanbridge House School
Transcription
Tanbridge Review - Tanbridge House School
Tanbridge Review Autumn/Winter 2012 Issue 18 As we embark on the New Year and reflect upon the Autumn term, I would like to take this opportunity to thank every member of our community including parents, carers, students and staff for your continued support of Tanbridge House School. Of course, this has culminated in a wonderful Ofsted report which acknowledges the superb work of everyone connected to our school; this has been an outstanding team effort. May I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2013. Jules White Headteacher From Good to Outstanding! Tanbridge House School is celebrating after being rated as an “Outstanding” school in its latest Ofsted report, placing it amongst the top schools in the country. Following an inspection on 22 and 23 November 2012, the school received the maximum of four “Outstanding” grades for Achievement of Pupils; Quality of Teaching; Behaviour and Safety of Pupils; and Leadership and Management. Tanbridge has been informed that since September 2012, when the new Ofsted framework was introduced, only 3% of schools are graded as Outstanding. Mr White, Headteacher, said: “I am pleased that the hard work of every student and the support provided by our parents and carers has been recognised. Most importantly, the dedication and quality of my colleagues, teaching and non-teaching, has been fully endorsed. The report provides an exciting platform from which to build for the future.” On hearing the excellent news, two of Tanbridge House School’s student reporters, Euan Thomas and Rosie Carruthers, decided to look at what they think makes their school “Outstanding”… See page 3 for Euan and Rosie’s thoughts on our Outstanding news! “Tanbridge House School has a fantastic school community and I think the school’s outstanding status goes beyond academic successes.” Euan Thomas, Year 10 Tanbridge student wins BAFTA Award for Computer Game Tanbridge House School student Chris Purdy has won a Children’s BAFTA Award in a national Games Design competition and will now work with experts at the University of Abertay in Dundee to develop his game further. See page 3 Students quiz Council CEO Four Tanbridge students had the opportunity for a Question and Answer Session= with Kieran Stigant, Chief Executive of Horsham District Council, and Mr White during a visit from Mr Stigant in November 2012. See page 7 £9,500 granted for new active initiative Staff and students have raised close to £3,000 for charity between September and December 2012 through Non-Uniform Days, participating in ‘Movember’ and a Friends of Tanbridge Quiz Night. Tanbridge House School and Horsham District Council have been granted £9,500 from Sport England to fund a new initiative which aims to get every student and member of staff involved in a new physical activity. For more details on each of these activities please see pages 4-5, 7 and 8. See page 2 Nearly £3,000 raised for charity Sports News Sports Round Up • • • • • The Senior Gymnastics Squad (pictured right) followed on from the March 2012 success of the Junior team and won the pair and group floor sections of the West Sussex Senior Gymnastics Competition. The gymnasts (Jade Brewster, Vikki Rudderham, Molly Adams, Aimee Tolhurst, Nadine Dovey, Natassia King, Maddie Goacher and Josie Lanning) all worked incredibly hard to train and rehearse for this competition for the 2 months prior The U13 girls’ Football team have now reached the last 16 in the country in the National Cup. This follows a 7-0 win in the previous round, beating Mossbourne Academy in Hackney. This is the best achievement ever for a girls or boys team from Tanbridge House School. Year 7 and 8 students had their first Hockey fixtures this term. The girls drew their match but the boys unfortunately lost. However they were playing Year 8 and 9 students so we feel they put up a good fight! In Dance news, Rock Challenge rehearsals are now in full swing and the Reflex Dance Group are preparing for a performance at the Hawth Theatre in early 2013. The U14 girls came 2nd in the Area Basketball Tournament. They were beaten by Holy Trinity but won a very exciting game against St Paul’s to clinch second place. Key Stage 4 boys were the winners at the Horsham Area Schools Badminton Championships held at THS. Photo courtesy of: BAFTA/Richard Kendal Tanbridge House School student Chris Purdy has won a Children’s BAFTA Award in a national Games Design competition and will now work with experts at the University of Abertay in Dundee to develop his game further. Here are some of our sporting highlights from the Autumn/Winter term: • BAFTA Awards success for Tanbridge student The BAFTA Young Game Designers initiative, which is in its third year, aims to inspire the game designers and game-makers of the future, by giving young people aged 11-16 the chance to design and create their own video game and develop it with industry professionals. Tanbridge to get active thanks to new funding Tanbridge House School and Horsham District Council have recently secured £9,500 of funding from Sport England to deliver an exciting new project to engage students with sport and physical activity. Tanbridge’s aim is to use this funding to get more students participating in a physical activity. Six key activities have been identified for development in the project - dance, table tennis, freestyle gymnastics, golf, archery and baseball. Activities will be delivered with a range of partners through Horsham District Council, local sports clubs and organisations across West Sussex and will involve professional coaches, training opportunities and off site visits. Funding will also be used to train teachers so that these new activities can continue to be delivered at school in the future. Leader of PE at Tanbridge House School, Mrs Hyslop, said: “We are delighted to have been successful with our bid for funding. Our aim is for this money to build on the Olympic legacy from London 2012 and continue to inspire a generation to try new things and engage with sport - even those who might not consider themselves to be typically sporty. We believe there has never been a better time to show young people what a positive impact an active lifestyle can have. The joint partnership with Horsham District Council will enable us to deliver a really exciting programme throughout the year and ensure everyone across our school community has the opportunity to develop a passion for physical activity.” Cllr Sue Rogers, Horsham District Council’s Cabinet Member for a Safer and Healthier District, said: “Horsham District Council has a long history of successful partnership working with local schools. This award will further cement links between schools and local clubs and help students with the transition from school sport to community and club based participation.” For the first time this year the competition had two strands: the original Game Concept Award is for an idea for a new game, including a description of the characters, the world of the game, and how it will be played. The inaugural Game-making Award presented by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe was aimed at games made using game-making software or programming languages. Young people could enter both categories as individuals or as a team. Chris was crowned the winner of the Game-making Award and will now work on his game with experts from the University of Abertay and will visit SCE London Studio, makers of the BAFTA Award-winning EyeToy® and SingStar® franchises. The winners’ entries were chosen from hundreds across the UK by a jury of games industry professionals, educationalists and celebrity gamers. Actor/presenter Tyger Drew-Honey (Outnumbered, Friday Download) was on the Game-making Award jury and presented Chris with the award alongside Maria Stukoff, Head of Academic Development at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (pictured above right). Chris’s game Smiley Dodgems requires players to keep a “smiley” character alive as long as possible against an onslaught of enemy shapes. The jury, which was chaired by Jonathan Smith, Head of Production at TT Games, described the game as having “clean visuals and compelling gameplay with impressive finesse”. On receiving the BAFTA Young Game Designers Gamemaking Award, Chris said: “I’m very excited to be given the opportunity to develop my game further and I can’t wait to visit a real games studio. I’d recommend this competition to anyone as it has been great fun putting my entry together. Winning is a bonus!” Celebrity ambassador Tyger Drew-Honey said about the Game-making Award: “I was really impressed by the level of detail that went into Christopher’s game, Smiley Dodgems, and I had to tear myself away to try out the other entries! It was great to be able to finally meet him and the other nominees at the Children’s Awards.” Project to build on “Olympic Legacy” The Sport England funding bid is looking to build on Tanbridge’s Olympic Legacy which stems from an already thriving sporting ethos in the school. This has developed through a whole host of events around the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. After an Olympic Day in May 2011,complete with a visit from Lord Coe, the school hosted its own Paralympic Day for local primary schools (pictured right) with a range of 2012 Paralympic hopefuls in attendance. In addition, student Gabriella Rogers carried the Olympic torch on its relay journey through Lewes and a team of 16 students attended the Paralympics as volunteers in the Sitting Volleyball events. Students excel at Sussex Table Tennis competition Tanbridge House students did themselves proud recently, topping the boards in a number of categories at the Under 13 Sussex Table Tennis Alliance Crawley and Horsham School Team Championships at Holy Trinity School in Crawley. The BAFTA Young Game Designers initiative seeks to equip young people with the knowledge, skills and confidence to become the next generation of successful game designers. It aims to demystify the creative process of games development and highlight how key qualifications in areas such as maths, physics and computer science are essential for those wishing to enter the industry. BAFTA has partnered with Abertay University and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) on the initiative. Further details about the competition, as well as teaching resources and details of workshops that took place around the country, can be found at: www.bafta.org/ygd Year 7 and 8 students from six different schools competed against each other for two hours during the competition. A range of categories and bands allowed for individual performance recognition as well as team achievements. In the end, students George Hazell, David Smith, Lauren Pound and Alice Hazell progressed onto the next round of the School Games after coming first in the mixed team category. Benedict Carter and Alice Hazell also came first and second respectively in their band, with George Hazell winning his band overall. In the Under 16 competition, our top four players also managed to make it through to the next round of the School Games - well done to all those who took part! 2 We would like to thank the West Sussex County Times for allowing us to use some of their photographs in this Tanbridge Review. Year 7 s visit local Care Homes Young Chef title up for grabs A group of Year 7 students visited four local care homes in the run up to Christmas to sing Christmas carols and hand out Christmas cards to the residents, many of whom have profound physical and mental disabilities and require around the clock care. Two Year 10 students competed in the Rotary Young Chef competition this term, battling it out in the kitchen against students from Forest and Farlington Schools. 21 students visited Bouldings (Orchard Lodge), Orchard Lodge, Kingsmead Lodge and Rapkyns Care at tutor times during December. Miss Watson, Leader of Year 7, said: ”A visit from our students will have no doubt meant a great deal to residents of these homes, especially at this time of year. The students all acted with great maturity and compassion and I am very proud of them for taking part.” Chloe Baller and Adam Baker each designed and cooked a two course menu which was then judged by a panel of professional chefs. A student from Farlington School was announced as the winner at the end of the competition. Miss Masterman, Food Technology, said: “Both Chloe and Adam did a great job in putting together a creative menu and delivering under pressure! They should be very proud of themselves.” Embracing technology in the classroom Teachers have been embracing new technology this term and exploring different ways to inspire and improve student learning by introducing iPads into the classrooms. At the end of the last academic year, following consultation with staff and students, Tanbridge invested in the latest 3rd generation iPads. The majority of these iPads are used by students across the Science curriculum enhancing learning and engaging young people. The imaginative uses of apps, combined with instant video, photography and student teamwork is inspiring! Teachers across other departments are also piloting iPads and Apple TV with their students. Significant work has been completed in PE, Business, ICT and English, with lead teachers exploring the many opportunities that such technology provides. Mr Tidman and Miss Black have been instrumental in showcasing these developments. Mr Harding, Assistant Headteacher and Leader of Tanbridge’s ICT Development Group which has been set up to ensure that the school makes the best use of today’s technology, said: “Teachers have been using iPads creatively to bring new ideas that previously were unavailable. This is an exciting journey of discovery for both students and teachers.” Alex Smith, Head Boy and one of the student members of the ICT Development Group said: “It has been really exciting to be part of the ICT Development Group. Students and teachers have been working together to see how technology can be used to support our learning and the teachers have listened to our opinions and ideas. So far I have used one of the iPads in Business Studies to record and edit video and upload it to a website and I’m looking forward to using them again in other subjects.” 3 Focus on: Our Outstanding Community Students give their views on Outstanding School Congratulations! (continued from page 1) Messages from the school community have been flooding in following the publication of our Ofsted report. We would like to share some of these lovely messages with you: Two of Tanbridge House School’s student reporters, Euan and Rosie (both Year 10), decided to look at what they think makes their school “Outstanding” after hearing about our new Ofsted grading. “Many congratulations on a superb Ofsted report...it is great to see that not only was it applauding the academic side but all the other aspects of school which is great to hear.” “I would like to send my congratulations and well done to all of the staff at Tanbridge...Throughout the inspection my daughter commented how the lessons that she had were the same standard as her normal lessons.” Community/Culture “I am writing to congratulate you and the school as a whole, on achieving an outstanding Ofsted inspection. I have read the report and it is truly outstanding in all areas and makes for excellent reading.” “Tanbridge House School has a fantastic school community and I think the school’s outstanding status goes beyond academic successes. Students treat each other in a polite and friendly manner and teachers play a key part in the school’s respectful culture. “You have shown the children that excellence is something that is attainable and worth pursuing...You have made them feel proud of their school, their teachers and themselves.” “I am aware how difficult it is to achieve outstanding, but truly believe Tanbridge House absolutely deserves it.” For example, some Year 10s recently chose to become reading friends with Year 7 students; helping them with their reading and acting as a mentor.” Euan Thomas Positive change thanks to Student Board Teaching & Learning The Information Shop in Horsham has decided to extend it’s opening hours as a result of recommendations made by Tanbridge House School’s Student Board. “Our lessons are interesting and fun. Teachers engage with us so that we feel part of the lessons and we are encouraged to think for ourselves, actively participate and make decisions about our learning. There are ICT resource centres for each department and lessons often take place outside the classroom, making them memorable and fun.” The Information Shop, based at the Y Centre, is funded and supported by West Sussex County Council. It caters for young people aged 13 to 25 and is a friendly and informal place where young people can go to get advice on a variety of issues such as careers, money issues and family and relationships. Rosie Carruthers Experience and opportunities “I think we have outstanding opportunities in school. Extra-curricular activities are a key part of school life and every club has a fun and friendly atmosphere. We have the opportunity to gain experience of what life is like in the real world. Year 7s get to try their dream jobs for a day and we have opportunities to work with businesses on projects too. Last Summer three students even went on a special work placement to IBM in London.” Euan Thomas Achievement “Everyone is encouraged to reach their personal best. There is a ‘Celebration of Achievement Assembly’ for each year group at the end of every school year, which celebrates and rewards not only those who have performed exceptionally well in each subject area, but those who have overcome huge obstacles to achieve their personal best.” Rosie Carruthers The students also spoke to Chair of Governors, Mr Bob Dulieu to gather his thoughts on the news. He said: “The Governors are extremely proud of what Tanbridge House School has achieved and this report validates our own views that this is truly an outstanding school. Credit must go to every single member of staff, their dedication, professionalism, and commitment to the school and students is inspiring. The Governing body would also like to thank our fantastic student body and the parents and carers who have supported Tanbridge House on this journey. Jules White and his management team have worked tirelessly to achieve the aim of making Tanbridge House an outstanding school and this report is a well deserved acknowledgement of their superb leadership” “Teaching is outstanding. Teachers plan interesting and enjoyable lessons extremely well. Lessons motivate and engage all students.” Ofsted Report November 2012 Artwork created for new look Horsham Station Art students from Tanbridge House School have helped to brighten up the new look Horsham Station by decorating it with their artwork. A number of schools created artwork for the station. Transport Minister Norman Baker visited in November as part of the official opening and was most impressed with the work done by all the schools involved. Year 9s help Children in Need A group of Tanbridge House School’s Year 9s donned their finest “onesies” in November 2012 in a bid to raise money for Children in Need. Tanbridge House School held a non-uniform day for all students on the Monday after Children in Need and students were invited to donate £1 in return for wearing their own clothes to school. However, a group of students in Year 9 decided to try and raise even more and asked if they could collect sponsorship in return for wearing fashions latest must-have; the “onesie” into school. In addition to this, some students wore animal costumes, undertook sponsored silences and two students even collected sponsorship for fasting throughout the day. The students raised just over £450 between them, which contributed to the whole school total of £1643! Mrs Price, Leader of Year 9, said: “We have a very caring culture at Tanbridge House School and our students inspire us to keep thinking of others and do what we can to support those in need. I am incredibly proud of these students for going above and beyond what was expected of them and trying so hard to raise money for Children in Need. They have done fantastically.” At the end of the Summer term, Student Board undertook a two day project to see how they could encourage more young people to use the Information Shop. They visited the shop to find out about the services on offer before returning to school to conduct research and discuss their ideas. The group then prepared an action plan and presented this at the end of the second day to members of Horsham District Council and West Sussex County Council. One of their suggestions was to extend the opening hours of the shop from 5pm to 5:30pm, in order to give school students time to go home and change out of their uniform before visiting. This idea has now been implemented. Members of Horsham District Council were so impressed with the students’ work that they invited a group of them (Josh Trout, Matt Crompton, Sam Waller and Katy Ellis - pictured L to R above with Mrs Linsell, Student Board Coordinator) to present again at the Council Chamber in December 2012. As a result, West Sussex County Council and Horsham District Council are now discussing how they might be able support further changes. Sam Waller, 14 and Josh Trout, 16 said: “We have really enjoyed finding out more about the Information Shop and presenting our ideas for how we think it could improve. The Information Shop already offers a brilliant range of services and advice for young people – our recommendations focus on how we can make more young people aware that it is there and encourage them to step through the doors. It is a brilliant facility and we feel that we are lucky to have it.” Mr Osmond wins Community Outstanding Teaching for Mr Osmond received a West Sussex County Times Community Award in November following a nomination from an ex-student for the Outstanding Teacher Award. Tanbridge House students started the project with Mr Hyde last year and he helped them to create a range of large murals for the walls which are now on view for the general public to see. Described as ‘really funny’ and ‘a bit of a lunatic really’, Mr Osmond was recognised for his unforgettable lessons. He said: “To receive something like this is really overwhelming, and to be at Tanbridge - it’s a privilege to work alongside the students of this community.” Mrs Palmer, Leader of Art, said: “The students really enjoyed creating these pieces - it was quite a challenge to make something on such a large scale. The work they have done is really impressive and I’m delighted that their efforts can now be appreciated every day by the Horsham community.” Students from his Tutor Group and French class recorded messages for Mr Osmond to be played on the night and even performed a rendition of his infamous “Gameshow Song!” Well done Mr Osmond! “Students’ positive relationships with one another and staff generate excellent learning. Students learn enthusiastically.” Ofsted Report November 2012 4 Award 5 Movember Madness! Staff at Tanbridge House School decided to do their own bit of fund-raising and took part in Movember; growing moustache’s for the month of November and raising £450 in the process to support Prostate and Testicular Cancer. An “awards ceremony” took place at the end of the month, with prizes going to Mr Tidman, Mr Liley and Mr Thorpe, who was awarded Best in Show! Female members of staff also took part at the end of the month and wore fake moustaches throughout the day. Mrs Smale was announced as the best female Movember supporter and, along with the other prize winners, received a trophy specially made by The Technology Club. Summer celebrations of outstanding GCSE results In August 2012 we were delighted to confirm that 80% of our students gained five or more A* - C GCSE passes including Maths and English. 96% of the year group gained five or more good A* - C passes overall. Headteacher Mr White commented: “These remarkably good results are the culmination of several years of hard work and dedication across the school. I would like to thank my staff for their professionalism and parents/carers for their wholehearted support of the school. Most praise, however, must be reserved for the students themselves who have performed superbly. The results are outstanding by any measure.” Presentation Evening 2012 We were of thrilled to invite students back to school on 6th December for our Presentation Evening. The evening gives students the chance to collect GCSE Certificates, catch up with friends and attend a special awards ceremony. Prizes for achievements in each subject were given out as well as a number of additional awards, including those for Attendance and Service to the Community. The top prize of the evening, ‘The Leslie Prize’ (sponsored by Horsham High School) was awarded to Valentina Chirita (pictured left with Mr White and Judith Harding, School Governor) in recognition of her outstanding contribution in a specialist subject. We would like to thank our prize sponsors: Rawlison Butler, Mr John Snelling, Novartis, Mr and Mrs Head, Mr Peter Tobutt, Horsham Rotary Club and the Inner Wheel Club of Horsham. Business Breakfast Meeting Local businesses attended our Business Breakfast Meeting on 23 November and had the opportunity to find out more about working with the school and each other. The meeting took place on the final day of our Ofsted inspection and was also viewed by members of the inspection team! Visitors had time to make new contacts and network during the two hour event which also featured presentations from Year 11 students, who talked about their entrepreneurship in charity work and their recent business trip to Brighton and Hove FC (see page 8), as well as Apprenticeships in Sussex and DG Studios. Mrs Linsell, Marketing & Development Manager, said: “The Business Breakfast Meetings are always popular events as they provide a really good opportunity for local businesses to extend their contacts and meet new people. On top of this, many visitors are keen to work with the school and our students in some way so it’s a great opportunity for us to get together to discuss ideas.” Anyone who is interested in attending future meetings should contact Mrs Linsell at [email protected] 6 GCSE success for younger students Five students have achieved remarkable results in their Language GCSEs this year; gaining four A*s and two As between them; despite sitting their exams either one or two years early. Council CEO visits Tanbridge House School A student report by Jack Edwards (Yr9) and Thea Elvin (Yr10) On Thursday 14th November, Kieran Stigant, Chief Executive at West Sussex County Council, paid a visit to Tanbridge House School to meet students and tour the school. Amongst the students are Gus Best and Desiree Laredo Castro, who were aged 15 and 14 respectively when they sat their exams. Gus achieved an A in Italian, whilst Desiree gained an A* in Spanish. Mr Stigant visited a variety of lessons, being shown around by Senior Prefects before being interviewed by students Anya Brant, Jack Edwards, Thea Elvin and Sam Waller about issues relating to his work and the variety of areas that he oversees. Desiree said: “As I speak Spanish, it made sense for me to try and do my GCSE last year as I felt ready for it. I had to do extra preparation and studying on top of my regular subjects. I’m really proud of myself for getting an A*, especially as I took the exam a year early.” Students prepared a range of questions for Mr Stigant. When questioned about the decline in opening hours of public libraries, Mr Stigant said that the Council had three options: close smaller libraries, close libraries with low usage or alter opening hours. The Council made the decision, based on usage patterns, to limit the opening hours of some libraries to 20 hours a week. The communities surrounding the libraries were given the chance to vote for the hours that best suited them, and all libraries, with the exception of just one, were granted their requests. Gus said: “Although I speak Italian, I made a point of revising my spelling and writing skills for the exam. I’m now concentrating on studying for the rest of my GCSEs which are coming up this year.” Mark Osmond, Head of Modern Foreign Languages said: “We are very proud of these students. This is a considerable achievement given the fact that the majority of them are not native speakers. We would like to extend our congratulations to all of them.” Mr Stigant was also asked by the students about how he prioritised his workload at the council and the reason he became involved in that line of work. He talked about his main influences including a well-known politician and statesman, Joseph Chamberlin, who died in 1914. Unlike most major politicians of the time, he had not attended either Oxford or Cambridge University. Mr Stigant was full of praise for the school and said how impressed he was with the quality of teaching and the standards of student conduct and engagement. Kieran Stigant with Mr White and students (L to R) Anya Brant, Jack Edwards and Thea Elvin Good Samaritans make THS proud This term we received notice on two separate occasions of incidents where our students have gone out of their way to help others in need outside of school. On one occasion two youngsters rushed to help a Year 7 student who had fallen over on her way home. The students helped her up and made sure she was OK to get home, as she was quite shaken up. Mum was very grateful! On another occasion two Year 8 boys came to the aid of an elderly lady who had fallen outside her home. They helped her inside and waited with her until a family member came and her son came into school the next day to personally thank the two boys. As a school we are very proud to have such thoughtful and caring students at the heart of our community. We look forward to welcoming Mr Stigant to Tanbridge House School again in the future. Merry Christmas Everyone! Tanbridge House School’s musical community came together at the very end of the Autumn/Winter term for the annual Christmas Concert which featured a programme full of festive music performed by students in the school’s main vocal and instrumental ensembles. The concert took place on Tuesday 18th and Wednesday 19th December and included performances from the Chamber Choir, Junior Choir, Senior Choir, Junior Orchestra, Senior Orchestra, Concert Band, Brass Ensemble and Jazz Band! The concert also included two vocal duets which were sung expressively by Year 11 students. There was a matinee performance for local Primary School children on 19 December. Mrs James, Leader of Music, said: “The Christmas Concert is a very popular event and we were sold out on both evenings again this year. It is a wonderful way to end the year and is a true celebration of music and of the immense talent that we have in abundance here at Tanbridge House School. All of the performers did an incredible job and the Music department is very proud of them. ” 7 Business Masterclass goes to Brighton & Hove Football Club Students from Tanbridge House School got a taste of the business world in September when they visited Brighton & Hove Albion’s American Community Stadium for a Business Masterclass, as part of an Albion in the Community Education initiative. Raising awareness of Climate Change Eco-conscious students got involved in a campaign with UNICEF UK to encourage the government to protect children from the effects of climate change. Students designed paper leaves and wrote messages to the government on them about why money should be contributed to the Green Climate Fund; a pot of money coordinated by the United Nations that can help poorer countries adapt to climate change. This money could protect millions of children from climate-related disasters by ensuring they have enough food and clean water, are protected from harm and have the chance to go to school. The work was part of UNICEF’s new Schools Campaign Network; a new project to get young people’s voices heard in their campaigning. 11 schools that are involved in the UNICEF UK Rights Respecting Schools programme have taken part in the School’s Campaign Network so far. The all-day class – attended by 25 Year 11 students – provided an opportunity for students to develop the skills required to start a business enterprise. Students were tasked with developing a new iPhone/iPad app and developed business plans, conducted market research and carried out a SWOT analysis. Natasha Adams, Activism Officer for Unicef, said:: “I’m really thrilled that Tanbridge House School has taken part in our first ever Schools Campaign Network action. Our Speak Up for Children campaign is all about protecting children from the effects of climate change. Having children’s voices heard as part of the campaign makes our message all the more powerful.” We currently have two active groups of students who get involved in activities like this, including the Rights Respecting Responsibilities (RRR) group and the Eco-Representatives group. The students then had to define their roles within the team and further develop their app before presenting it to an assessment panel. As part of the visit students toured the stadium, taking photos and video on iPads to refer back to when developing their app. Students used the tour to assess the stadium in terms of its construction/ layout, current media/PR provision and commercial partnerships. Miss Black, Leader of Business at Tanbridge, said: “The Masterclass programme was a fantastic opportunity for students to observe the varied business roles in a Championship side’s stadium. Students had to develop an innovative mobile phone app that would benefit the football club or enhance the supporters’ experience at the club. The winning app (to be decided) will be turned into a real app and be available through the App Store! Overall the day was engaging, inspiring and informative for students and staff!” Luke Rookwood, one of the students who took part in the Masterclass, said: “The Amex Business trip gave me a great insight into the foundations and roles that need to be done to run a Championship football club effectively. It helped me to understand new technology and software being used in a business environment.” Matt Mead, Head of Education for Albion in the Community, said: “The students took on the task head-on and designed apps in a variety of ways; creating not only those that add value to a match but those that would generate revenue and commercial opportunities. The students have set very high standards for the remaining Schools Masterclass events and have positioned THS as a school of choice for Albion in the Community.” Tanbridge House School and Albion in the Community are now looking towards some follow-up projects in the future. Mr Tidman, Tanbridge’s Gifted & Talented Coordinator, commented: “As a teacher in charge of Gifted & Talented enrichment, I am really excited about the opportunities that Albion in the Community can provide for Business, ICT, Media and PE students at THS.” Tanbridge Parents raise £900 Parents from Tanbridge House School have raised over £900 through a “Friends of Tanbridge House School” quiz night. Parents from the school community joined forces with staff members to take part in the quiz, which featured 10 rounds of questions and a raffle with prizes kindly donated by Wabi Restaurant, John’s Toy Shop of Southwater, Coco’s Salon and Sainsbury’s. The money raised was split between the Tanbridge House School Fund and its partner school; the Masaba Friend’s School in Kenya. Tanbridge has been actively raising money towards a new Library for the Masaba school for the past year and the total raised is now standing at £6,000. The goal is to raise £10,000. Mr Marshallsay, Assistant Headteacher and organiser of the quiz night, said: “It was great to have so many parents attend this event run by the staff and parents of our school. There were some very interesting rounds, revealing the vast knowledge our parents have of 80’s Pop music! We would also like to say a big thank you to all who helped organise the event.” Adventurer inspires Year 11 A group of lucky Year 11 students were treated to an inspirational session in December with Alex Alley; an inspirational speaker, World Champion, Round the World Yachtsman and Adventurer! During his visit, Alex told students the story of his adventures which include participation in the Global Challenge. Dubbed ‘The World’s Toughest Yacht Race’, the Global Challenge sails the ‘wrong’ way round the world against the prevailing winds and currents. During the 10 months of the race, Alex covered approximately 35,700 miles in some of the world’s most hostile oceans. This took his total racing mileage to almost 100,000. Alex’s visit also included a DVD of the race alongside some student activities which focused on developing an ability to persevere and succeed. The session culminated in students writing down their goals and aspirations for the future and feedback was hugely positive. 8 8 Tanbridge House School, Farthings Hill, Guildford Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1SR Headteacher: Mr Jules White, BA (Hons) Tel: 01403 263628 Fax: 01403 211830 Email: [email protected] Web: www.tanbridge-house-sch.co.uk