Summer Term 1

April 2016

Marriotts News Aim high. Work hard. Be kind.

In partnership with

CONTENTS

100% Attendance ......... 3

Headteacher’s

Commendation Awards 4

500 Word Story

Winners ........................ 5

Dates for your Diary and

HSGA Rose Bowl

Competition ................... 6

The Gambia Project ..7/8

The Last Passing

Moment and Student Voice

...................................... 9

Food and Nutrition ........ 10

Inter-Schools Swimming

Gala and Marriotts

Counselling Academy ... 11

Communication

Procedures ................... 13

Dear Parents, Carers, Students and Staff I hope that this edition of the newsletter finds you well and that you are well rested after the Easter Holiday.

Last term there were many events around the school to help with our fundraising for the charity Action for Children. I am sure you are aware that the Marriotts Marathon Team: Jordan Keighley, Richard Scott, Stewart Scott, Beth Honnor, Joe Whittaker and Lesley Tether (also David Ringshaw not pictured) successfully completed the marathon on 17th April, times ranged from 3hrs 30 to 5hrs 45 minutes and we are happy to announce that we hit our £4,000 target for Action for Children.

Over the holiday there were some fantastic trips including the Ski Trip and Year 11 Science residential trip. We would like to thank all involved.

Last term we said farewell to Mr McGibbon who relocated.

We have made some successful appointments and would like to welcome to ‘The Marriotts Family’ the following new members of staff: Mr Coughlin, Head of Behaviour and Conduct, Mrs Bains, Assistant Headteacher Maths, Mr Reilly, 2nd in Humanities Faculty and Head of Geography and Mr Sapsford, Dance/Drama Teacher.

Attendance

Marriotts School’s attendance is now above the National average at 94.82% compared to 94.7% Nationally with persistent absence at 11.85% compared to 13.8% Nationally. However we would still like to see some improvement in Years 8-11. Please continue to make every effort to be in school on time every day so you can learn and succeed.

Over 50% of students are now Learning Leaders, which means that they need to have an average Behaviour for Learning Score of 3.3,

96% attendance or above and less than 5 Behaviour Points. 98.35% of lessons had no disruption (BfL data).

We continue to run a vast array of trips and visits. This week alone we have students in Morocco as part of our Commenius project and others participating in a business project at the Novotel in Stevenage.

I know that with their high aspirations, commitment to their studies and the wealth of opportunities available to them, students at Marriotts will continue to thrive.

This week Marriotts students wished Her Majesty The Queen a very Happy 90th Birthday and we wish you all a very happy St George’s Day.

Teaching and Learning

In recent learning walks and marking trawls, which see every single teacher being observed and every set of books being examined, 90% of teaching and 93% of marking was judged to be good or better.

All subject areas and all senior teacher judgements of lessons are moderated by an external Ofsted trained inspector.

We continue to work hard to drive up standards of teaching and learning and assessment and feedback across the school so that we can achieve our wildly important goal of ‘Every lesson, every day good or better.’

In lessons we continue to focus on our new teaching strategy ‘Every Minute Matters and Everybody Answers’. We want to make sure that every minute is a learning minute and that everyone is involved—there are no ‘passengers’ at Marriotts School.

Thanks to all families for their support with punctuality — our new after school detention is working well and the vast majority of students are on time every day.

Rock Challenge

We are very excited to announce that although we did not originally qualify for the Rock Challenge final we have since heard that we have gained a place on Friday 24th June in Portsmouth. If you would like to support the Rock Challenge team in their fund raising please use the link https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/marriotts

I hope to see many of you at the Key Stage Concert next week.

Thank you for your continued on-going support. Aim high. Work hard.

Be kind.

Ms B Honnor

Headteacher

“90% of teaching and

93% of marking was judged to

be good or better.”

“...we have gained a place on Friday 24th

June in Portsmouth...”

3

Congratulations to the following students who have achieved

100% attendance so far this year.

Well done for achieving 100%

attendance since

September.

Aim high. Work hard.

Be kind.

Name Reg

Cela, Denis 7A

Hazelton, Faye 7A

Jeffries, Jazmin 7B

Jones, Rebecca 7B

Mandibaya, Priscilla 7B

Wilkins, Lois 7B

Rush, Edward 7C

Cela, Andi 7D

Saunders, Ben 7D

Fursland, Tyler 7E

Crane, Ellen 7F

Dear, Amy 7F

Fenson, Owen 7F

Holley-Goodman, Tegan 7F

Horton, Tom 7F

Mitcham, Ben 7F

Bannister-Goodge, Jodie 7G

Jackman, Katie 7G

McAleese, Matthew 7G

Winbourne, Milli 7G

Chappell, Tom 7H

Godfrey, Abigail 7H

Ilina, Daniel 7H

Wake, Aaron 7H

Jones, Aerion 8A

Chipperfield, Chris 8B

Shaw, Jake 8B

Usher, Connor 8B

Dunlop, Bethany 8C

Gereltauskaite, Agne 8C

Culling, Oliver 8D

Morris, Sophia 8D

Sharpe, Sophie 8D

West, Hannah 8D

King, Gemma 8E

Pape, Emily 8E

Markey, Ethan 8F

Porter, Lucy-Jane 8F

Faulkner, Charleigh-Jen 8G

McCarthy, Lennon 8G

Pagett, Josh 8G

Worton, Sian 8G

Hemmise, Simanie 8H

Marshall, Lewis 8H

Name Reg

Montvilaite, Toma 9A

Whiting, Holly 9A

Woolf, Archie 9A

Edwards, Curtis 9B

Nelson, Sam 9B

Crighton, Erin 9C

Ingram, Lucy 9C

Lunney-Simpson, Aimee 9C

Sapsford, Rebecca 9C

Calderon, Karma 9D

Horlock, Hadley 9D

O'Sullivan, Dayla May 9D

Twigger, Kirsty 9D

Hatt, Polly 9E

Howell, Lily 9E

Amukpo, Owens 10A

Da Rocha, Euan 10B

Edwards, Keanon 10B

Myles, Callum 10B

Purkiss, Holly 10B

Reynolds, Lewis 10B

Bird, Connor 10D

Purkiss, Olivia 10D

Schnapp, Lisa 10E

Bourne, Taneka 11A

Price, Amy 11A

Rolls, Casey 11A

Mole, Jade 11B

Kierzek, Weronika 11C

Stewart, Conor 11C

Thevathasan, Sophia 11C

Ahmed, Abdul-Aziz 11D

Jones, Charlotte 11D

Parry, Melissa 11D

Perry, Sam 11E

Van-Hogermeer, Max 11F

4

Headteacher’s Commendation Awards

We have had a number of students receive the Headteacher’s Commendation Award this term for outstanding contribution to the school.

We would like to congratulate the following students who have been presented with the Headteacher’s Commendation Award for achieving the top Behaviour for Learning scores in their year group:

Samantha Barrett

Toma Montvilaite

Eve Newstead

Dayla O’Sullivan

Kirsty Twigger

We would also like to congratulate the following students who have achieved the award for their hard work in promoting and selling cakes for the charity Action for Children.

Well done and keep up the good work.

Bethany Dunlop

Jessica Manning

Lauren Sullivan

Ms Honnor

“We have had a number of

students receive the

Headteacher’s Commendation

Award this term.”

Every year more than 100 countries around the world mark World Book Day: a day set aside to celebrate reading and books. This year, the UK celebrated on Thursday 3rd March and Marriotts was no exception!

Throughout the week, with the help of English curriculum leaders Bethany Dunlop and Shahzab Ghulam, students across KS3 and KS4 were treated to an assembly highlighting the advantages of reading and the books that shaped the lives of Miss Wagstaff-Sherwood and Miss Rees. On the day students got the opportunity to participate in a variety of competitions including: a form time literary quiz, guess your teacher's favourite book and writing a 500 word short story.

Students from Years 7 to 10 worked incredibly hard and submitted a range of personal, ambitious and inspirational short stories. After careful consideration, the winners were announced and the authors of the top 14 stories were each awarded a £10 Amazon voucher.

Year 7:

1. The Linguist - Nathan Payne

2. Unnamed - Leo Bolter

3. Footsteps - Lily Ringer

4. Unnamed - Faye Hazelton

Year 8:

1. The House with a Million Faces

- Emily Pape

2. Unnamed - Sheringham

McGregor

3. Unnamed - Naima Abdul

4. Unnamed - Callum Allcock-

Green

Year 9:

1. The Tickets - Samantha Barrett

2. Unnamed - Shahzab Ghulam

Year 10:

1. Unnamed - Tyler Circuit

2. Unnamed - Stanley Revell-

Hough

3. Climber - Anna Barrowclough

Love Can Do Amazing Things - Ella Denyer

We're looking forward to next year's celebration already!

Congratulations and well done to everyone who took part.

Miss Stewart

5

“..more than

100 countries around the world mark World Book

Day ”

500 Word Story Winners

“Students

from Years 7 to 10 worked

incredibly hard and

submitted a range of personal,

ambitious and inspirational

short stories. ”

Summer Term 1

Monday 18th

April – First day of term

Thursday 21st

April – Year 10 Parents’ Evening

Wednesday 27th April - KS3 concert.

Thursday 28th April - Year 11 concert.

Friday 27th

May – Last day of term

Monday 30th

May to Friday 3rd

June – Half Term

Summer Term 2

Monday 6th June – First day of term

Thursday 30th June – Sports Day

Friday 8th

July – Year 11 Prom

Friday 22nd

July – Last day of term

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Last day of

Summer Term

Friday 22nd July

Dates for your Diary

HSGA Rose Bowl Competition and Berkhampstead Trophy

Harry Gillespie represented Marriotts School in the HSGA Rose Bowl competition last term. This tournament is for players of Golf who have a handicap lower than 12.

Harry was very exceptional in his putting and shot a 71 to tie for first place. However, on a count back Harry was placed second in the

whole county.

Harry has been selected to represent Herts in the South-East Regional Championships at Eaton Golf Club, Norwich in June, with accommodation and food costs covered by HSGA.

The event at Eaton Golf Club is where selectors will choose 10 boys and 5 girls to represent the South-East in the National Championships at Belton Park, Lincs later the same month.

Harry also played 72 holes to finish joint 24th at the Berkhampstead Trophy awards last term. He has achieved outstanding success in his golfing tournaments and how has a handicap of 2.

We would like to congratulate Harry on these achievements and wish him well in the competitions in June.

Mr Williams

“Harry has been selected to

represent Herts in the South-East Regional

Championships and the National

Championships”

Marriotts School is part of The Gambia Project. Early in March a number of staff and students from the school, along with members of the local community, visited Gambia and in particular the local village Kassa Kunda to help; decorate 5 classrooms inside and outside, fix furniture, install solar power lights to houses and helped build new relationships with the staff and children in the school. During their time in Gambia members of the Marriotts Team also played football and ‘stroked’ crocodiles. We would like to thank and congratulate the following students who behaved impeccably during the visit and conducted themselves and represented Marriotts with pride and commitment.

Sophie Ambrose Charlie Braxton

Samuel Hall Lucy Hemmings Mitchell Hepburn

Jack Humby Jake Keenan Denis Kalema

Millie May Lampshire Charlotte Rolls

Rochelle Staddon Amy Williams

A number of praising comments were received about the students from other guests at the hotel we stayed in. We were even asked which private school the students attended in England. You can see a selection of the photographs that were taken. We have also received two letters from members of the community who attended the trip and took part in the project too.

Mr Drackford

“Dear Ms Honnor

I have just returned from the most amazing week in The Gambia as part of the team from Marriotts School and the local community working as The Gambia Project. I must say how impressed I was at the dedication and hard work of your students. They were willing, attentive, compassionate, generous; I could go on and on. They are a credit to your school and a great bunch of young people. I believe the trip has changed their perspective on life and has made them grow as young adults. I know that many of them are wanting/planning to return next year to continue the fabulous work this project has started. Several hotel guests commented to me on how well behaved and polite the students were. Furthermore, I would like to praise the dedication of the staff from Marriotts Sports Centre, in particular Jamie Drackford and Andy Prior. Without their continued hard work, this trip would not have happened. I hope that you will continue to support this project as it grows. The life experience students will get and the stories and experience they can bring back to the classroom is invaluable. My wife and I both plan to return next year and have been fortunate enough to be included in the organising committee. I look forward to hopefully meeting you and working with your students again in the near future.”

Pete Smith

7

The Gambia Project

“A number of praising comments

were received about the students

from other guests at the

hotel we stayed in….”

8

“Dear Ms Honnor

I just had to write to say how

very lucky I have been to

have shared the Gambian

Project with some of your

delightful students. They were

a pleasure to be with during

our week in the Gambia.

Everyone worked hard to

make the team effective.

They were friendly, helpful

and no task was too great for

them.

Please pass on my thanks and

appreciation and keep up

the good work Marriotts!”

Joan Deakin

“Please pass on my thanks

and appreciation and keep up

the good work Marriotts.”

Do you remember?

Chatting as we made Christmas decorations

As the sun slowly set

As the soft orange glow of the lights illuminated the room

And we smiled

At that passing moment.

Do you remember?

The sweat that dripped from our noses

As we knelt in the meadow

Hoping we could stay there

And not be caught

With that passing moment.

Do you remember?

The bang as the ball bounced around the courtyard

The silent concentration

Trying to just see the ball

And not our lives before us

In that passing moment.

Do you remember?

Staring through the campfire

As the heat stung our eyes

But trying to keep them open

Trying to keep open the door

To that last passing moment.

Do you remember?

Talking, smiling, laughing, looking

Feeling and stopping

Because that is what time told us to do

And starting to think about how much better the future would be

Than that last passing moment.

But then was then

And now is now

And we forget

It became a single, free, farfetched moment in the past

Running across a field glazed with orange light

Running for the next passing moment.

By Nathan Payne

9

The Last Passing Moment

“Do you remember?

The sun slowly

set.”

“Do you remember?

In that passing

moment.

“Students have been discussing

ideas for the house

competition system that is

being introduced.

Student Voice This module every student had the opportunity to voice their ideas and opinion on how the school could be improved during the student voice assembly. Each form group discussion was led by a Sixth Form Leader, with many different ideas being discussed.

Students have been discussing ideas for the house competition system that is being introduced.

Many students put forward ideas about how the space around the school building could be utilised during break

and lunch.

All students were asked to voice their opinions on the marking process in the school and gave very good feedback on the support that they are given through marking.

The School Council helped organise a charity fun run and non-school uniform day that raised over £1200

The Year Council is putting ideas together for the organisation of a

mock EU election

Mr Presland

10

10

“Some of the students have

produced some excellent dishes”

Food and Nutrition

A number of Year 11 students have been working incredibly hard on their coursework to complete their OCR Cambridge National Food and Nutrition qualification.

They have completed 3 short tasks and 1 Food study, and have developed a range of ideas and researched a recipe, the cost and

nutrition of each product, produced a time plan, cooked the dish and then evaluated the product.

Some of the students have produced some excellent dishes.

Mrs Crook

11

“Medals won by Marriotts

students in the Inter-Schools

Swimming Gala”

Congratulations and well done to the following students who represented Marriotts at the local inter school swimming gala last term. The students achieved: Chris Chipperfield (Y8) won a silver medal in the Junior Boys 50m Freestyle. Alesio Ferataj (Y7) won a Bronze medal in the Junior Boys 50m Backstroke.

Josh Pagett (Y8) won a silver medal in the Junior Boys 25m Butterfly. Alice-Ann Killworth, Gemma Hemmings, Daisy Sandon and Frances Mann (Y7) wone a silver medal in the Junior Girls Medley Relay. Daisy Sandon (Y7) won a silver medal in the Junior Girls 25m Butterfly.

Mrs Portingale

Inter-Schools Swimming Gala

Marriotts Counselling Academy Open Evening Event

On 21st March Marriotts School held an Open Evening Event to promote their Counselling and Training Academy. The event was hosted by Miss Ratcliffe, Counselling Manager, and Mrs Ayre, Training Manager. The event was attended by many current students looking to further their education in counselling, and new students looking to be introduced to counselling. The evening showcased the different tiers of Certificates and Diplomas from Level 2 - Introduction to

Counselling Techniques to Level 6 - a Clinical Supervisor. “The evening

showcased the different tiers of Certificates and

Diplomas.”

12

“My course has been really

enjoyable and interesting. I’ve

been able to meet great

people and it’s been nice to get

back into education.”

Marriotts Counselling Academy Open Evening Event cont’d

Marriotts School Academy offers convenient and unique courses. The Academy is a recognised and approved Centre for delivering CPCAB units and qualifications in listening and counselling skills. A current student at the Academy had this to say:

“The course is very well structured; the other students that I’m working with are equally as dedicated as I am. The academy feels a very supportive environment.”

This view was shared by many current students. Another student of the academy, said:

“My course has been really enjoyable and interesting. I’ve been able to meet great people and it’s been nice to get back into education.”

Marriotts School is one of only two counselling training academies that offers such a wide range of qualifications. As well as being in the heart of Stevenage, Marriotts is now helping the community, and students within the school, by offering placements allowing for trainee counsellors to have first hand experience while helping our young people and their families in difficult times.

The Marriotts Academy training courses and workshops are taught in Marriotts state-of-the-art building. They have a suite of fully equipped classrooms with additional spaces for study and skills practice.

Miss Ratcliffe and Mrs Ayres established the Academy in 2014. Miss Ratcliffe has received recognition for her contributions to the local community including the nomination for the SoStevenage Pride of Stevenage Awards for her Marriotts Counselling practice.

During the evening, Miss Ratcliffe said,

“When I first launched this

Academy I felt it was very important to give people the opportunity to train in the field that I have so much passion for. When students reach Level 4 Diploma, they would go on a placement working within the community or become part of our Counselling team. This can only benefit our local area.”

Mrs Ayres said,

“Our Academy provides counselling training for adults who are looking to either develop counselling techniques or listening skills for their work, such as nurses, health practitioners and pastoral care workers. A number of our students are looking to become full-time Therapeutic Councillors, aiming to work in counselling agencies or studying further until they are qualified enough to open their own individual practices.”

Overall the event was a great success!

by Josh Alderman and Lenny Ballard

“The Academy is a recognised and approved

Centre for delivering

CPCAB units and

qualifications.”

If we have emergencies that prevent the school from opening, e.g. snow and bad weather, please listen for announcements on BOB FM - http://www.bobfm.co.uk/, Herts Direct - www.hertsdirect.org , the Online School Closure System at https://www.imodus.com/summary.aspx?company=99 and on the school website.

Please note that although we will continue to notify the local radio station in the event of an emergency closure and will update the website as soon as we are able, our primary method of communication will be by text to the number identified as the primary parent/carer for each of the students in the school.

As a result of this, it is essential that we have your up to date mobile phone number. If you are unsure whether or not you have notified us of your mobile number, please send a note to the school with your contact details and a request for your number to be checked on the system.

Please discuss with your child what you would want them to do in the event of any sudden closure during the day, i.e. should they go to a designated friend’s house. This is especially important for students who do not live locally.

School Comms

Marriotts uses the electronic communication system Schoolcomms. In order for you to receive the maximum possible use from this system we require a valid email address and mobile telephone number for the Priority 1 contact. Please can we ask you to ensure we have up-to-date information on your child.

You can download the App from Schoolcomms (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/school-gateway/id596039615?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4)

We currently have 553 parents registered on the Gateway, that’s over 60%. So far we have 485 parents using the App, allowing the school to communicate free of charge.

Please look on the Schoolcomms website, http://schoolcomms.com/parent-login/parents for more information. The School Gateway App allows you to view your child’s attendance and enable you to notify the school of any unauthorised absence.

The application will also allow you to view your child’s timetable showing what lessons they have, achievement points received any medical details previously advised to the school. You are able to message back from the App with any changes to your own or your child’s details, for example, update on mobile number or change of address.

Schoolcomms is monitored throughout the day by the Admin staff and any messages received will be responded to the same day.

If you experience any problems either with the App or Schoolgateway, please do not hesitate to contact the school office or Mrs Goff on l.goff@marriotts.herts.sch.uk who can help to resolve any issues.

Contact Details

In case of an emergency it is imperative that we hold a valid telephone number and email address for the main contacts we have on our system for your child. If you have recently changed your mobile or home telephone numbers or email address please notify the school office so we can update our system.

If you want to access an existing School Gateway account or create a new one, this requires your email and mobile number to set up; if we do not have the same details on our system it will not allow you to access your account or create one, thus telling you we have out of date information.

(https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/school-gateway/id596039615?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4).

North Entrance

We would like to remind you that the gates at the North entrance in Telford Avenue will be closed daily at 8.30am, if students arrive after this time they will need to make their way to the main school entrance in Brittain Way. The gates will re-open again at 3.00pm at the end of the school day.

Visitors

We would also like to remind you that if you are visiting the school you should do so via the main entrance in Brittain Way and report to Reception.

Facebook / Twitter

In addition to the above we communicate with parents via the school’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Please join us and link to this page for further information. The address is: https://www.facebook.com/MarriottsSchool? and @mMarriottsschfref=ts and @Marriottssch

13

COMMUNICATION PROCEDURES