NNeewwsslleetttteerr NNoo.. 22 –– OOccttoobbeerr 22001155 Dear Parents/Carers

The academic year has begun positively and productively with pupils settling to their studies and developing their talents outside of the classroom. I cannot emphasise enough the value of all pupils broadening their educational experience through engagement in extra-curricular activities. Certainly this newsletter and others demonstrate that there is a wealth of activities covering a wide range of areas. If your son/daughter is currently not participating in any extra-curricular activity then I would urge them to do so in term 2. Colleges and future employers are interested in more than the academic achievements of an individual and we aim to support each child in developing a strong CV.

Events/activities this term have included: daily sports clubs and matches, theatre trips, science trips, DofE scheme, a music concert, daily dance club, fundraising activities, a swimming gala, Ieadership training, church visits, Classics trip to the British Museum and Covent Garden, Battlefields trip, choir, orchestra, booster classes and other extra-curricular clubs. Still to come is the annual visit to an opera at Glyndebourne, an author visit, a science trip including supper at the Herstmonceux Science Centre and a trip to Berlin for historians during the October holiday. I would like to thank staff for all they do to provide such experiences so as to extend your child’s interests, talents and knowledge.

Highlights of this term include our very successful Open Evening which was held on October 6th. It was wonderful that over 250 current pupils returned that evening to act as ambassadors for the college. Many a visitor commented on the pupils’ enthusiasm and confidence in talking about the teaching and learning, as well as admiring the displays, demonstrations and activities provided to give the Year 6 pupils a taste of secondary school life. I would like to thank parent/carers for allowing the pupils to help at Open Evening, which was a great celebration of school life. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Year 7 pupil, Maddie Baszczak, who gave an inspiring speech on her first five weeks at St Richard’s which was really well received. My thanks as well to Head Boy, George Handrihan and Head Girl, Charlotte Greenlees, who not only delivered speeches at the Open Evening but also at our Feeder School roadshows. It was really good of them to give up their evenings and it was pleasing that they were supported by their Deputies, Andrew Phillips, Phoebe Driver, Alfie Differ and Ruby Edwards. Finally, thanks to the Senior Prefect Team who looked after Year 7 so well during their first two weeks of term, guiding them to lessons daily and making them feel so welcome.

On 8th October, we held a Grandparents’ morning and we were delighted by the numbers of grandparents who were able to come: some travelling from as far as Leeds. After a beautiful Mass celebrated by Father David Parmiter, our visitors enjoyed refreshments before being taken on a tour of the school by their grandchildren. The whole community enjoyed having the grandparents visit the classrooms to watch the teaching and learning. Thank you to the choir, soloists, readers and dancers for their part in the Mass.

The first Parental Focus Group meeting this term was a Teaching and Learning tour and an opportunity to raise issues. If you are able to spare an hour on a Wednesday morning or Thursday evening once a term then please feel free to join our informal meetings. Dates are on the back of this newsletter and on the website.

Finally, I am pleased to inform you that our headline figure for five or more A*-C passes including English and maths has increased to 75%. A full breakdown of results in each subject will be given in Newsletter 3 once we have received the outcome of all re-marks.

Can I thank you for your support and involvement in school activities this term and wish you and your child a relaxing holiday. I look forward to the pupils' return on Monday, 2nd November refreshed and eager to take on the challenges of term two.

Yours sincerely

Principal

Message from the Chair of Governors

I do hope that as we approach the end of Term One that everyone has settled into college life.

Parents/carers, we encourage you to join in as many of the activities/events that you can as you

will enjoy them.

Recently, I enjoyed the company of Grandparents at an event especially arranged for us, where

we met together for Mass, followed by refreshments before having a tour of the college. It was a

wonderful morning.

I would encourage all Parents and Carers to read the whole of this newsletter as it celebrates so

much good work that is going on in the community.

With my prayers

Keith Osborne, Chair of Governors

Free school meals – are you entitled?

At St Richard's, we are committed to working with pupils and their families to ensure that they receive support both within and beyond the classroom. One way we can help is to ensure that families eligible for free school meals receive them. St Richard's receives funding from the government for pupils who are eligible for free school meals and this money is used to provide extra support, for example by supplying eligible pupils with free study guides.

Who is entitled? Free school meals can be provided to parents/carers if they are in receipt of any of the following benefits:

Income Support

Income-based Jobseekers Allowance

Income-related Employment and Support Allowance

Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Child Tax Credit (provided they are not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190, as assessed by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs)

Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

During the initial roll out of the benefit, Universal Credit

Anyone entitled to Working Tax Credit is not entitled to free meals regardless of income

How to apply? You can apply directly to East Sussex County Council for free school meals via the following link:

https://admissions.eastsussex.gov.uk/Enrol/Website/default.aspx

Alternatively, your child can pick up an application form from the Reception office for you to complete and return to County or to Mrs Hollands in Reception. The school can then use the Checking Service to confirm entitlement but you may need to show up-to-date proof that you meet the qualifying criteria.

If approved, the entitlement will be credited daily to the cashless catering system.

Once entitlement is established, free school meals are continuous unless the school is notified of a change in your circumstances. If this happens we will contact you for up-to-date proof of entitlement. It is your responsibility to let us know of any changes that may affect your entitlement to free school meals. If you do not tell us of a change and your child continues to receive free meals when not entitled, you may build up a debt which will have to be repaid.

Further benefits of claiming Free School Meals include:

Help with transport costs.

Pupil Premium funding.

Newsletter

Our newsletter is distributed in the penultimate week of each term. The youngest member of the family in the

college has responsibility for passing the newsletter on to parents/carers. However, all pupils in a family

need to have a signature from a parent/carer to indicate that the newsletter has been received. The

acknowledgement is in the journal. It is important that this is signed within a week of publication, particularly

when we have a planned half-day closure. If you are willing to receive the newsletter via email please inform

Mrs Klein at mrskleink@strichardscc.com and she will add you to the email group. It would help the

college greatly if more parents/carers chose to receive the newsletter via email or were willing to access

it via the website.

YEAR SEVEN NEWS

As we approach the end of the first term at St Richard’s I would like to congratulate all the pupils

on an excellent Term 1. I have been absolutely delighted with the way that they have conducted

themselves and embraced everything that has been offered to them. A real treat for me was

seeing so many Year Sevens helping at the Open Evening on 6th October. A special mention

should also be given to Maddie Baszczak for delivering an outstanding speech about settling into

school to over 500 parents and Year Sixes in the hall that evening. Well done, Maddie!

At the end of each term, the pupils are asked to reflect upon their experiences and I have also

done this with the Year Seven tutors. One area that we feel parents can support their children is by

labelling their belongings. Sadly, there have been a few occasions where PE kits have been

misplaced and it is very hard to reunite belongings if they have no name on them. Homework, on

the whole, is being done to a good standard and handed in on time. To help your child in this

area I urge you to check their planner and become familiar with our new ‘Show My Homework’

tracker on our website. You and your child have a password to indicate their personal classes,

however if you have

difficulty accessing this

you can do the following:

visit our school website

and scroll down to the link

within the ‘College Site’

section (see left).

Once you have clicked on

the link you will be taken

to our school portal which

shows all homework set for

every class in the college.

On the left hand side are many filters to enable you to find your child’s class, teacher, subject and

so on (see below).

Within their journals you can cross reference classes by checking their

timetable. It will have the subject and teacher’s name on it. Once you have

located a piece of homework you must click on the link (see right) to show a

full description of the

homework, when it was set and when it is

due in. Hopefully by everyone working

together your child will flourish!

PSHEe: Year Seven will be exploring the

following themes in Term 2: Anti-bullying (to

coincide with anti-bullying week), British

values in our community, PC Ellis will visit to

discuss peer group pressure and staying

safe, careers and for some forms they will be celebrating form services.

Dates for your diary: Friday, 23rd October - End of Term and our Mufti-Day; Friday, 20th November -

Settling-in reports go home and Thursday, 26th November - Year Seven Parents’ Consultation

Evening.

Mr Bligh, Pastoral Leader Year 7

YEAR EIGHT NEWS

Year 8 pupils have made a very positive start to the academic year. Please encourage them to

stay organised, manage their workload and balance it all with participation across a range of

extra-curricular activities.

Charity Work: Form Captains were chosen by each form and are responsible for organising each

form’s charity fundraising activity this year. 8F have kicked things off with plans to run a marathon!

It may be more achievable than you expect, as each pupil plans to run a measured mile and

record some footage to make a marathon montage.

PSHEe: Learning activities began this year with pupils considering ’50 things A TEENAGER SHOULD

DO BEFORE REACHING 20’. Please check and see if they can iron their clothes, understand what

a mortgage means or have a basic understanding of electrical wiring! Pupils also considered

areas around ‘Emotional Well-being’, including: motivation, stress and self-image. During next

term, pupils will work on ‘Positive Friendships and Anti-Bullying’. These topics are vital for Year 8

pupils to explore and discuss as they are learning more about themselves and their influence and

effect on each other.

Be the Best You Can Be: Year 8 have begun our ‘Be the Best You Can Be’ programme which aims

to inspire our pupils to engage with the ethos and values of the Olympics; attempts to foster the

Olympian spirit and helps them to be more self-aware, self-confident and self-responsible. Block

Day on Thursday, 1st October focused on these activities. Form assemblies are focused around the

Olympic and Paralympic values which drive the ‘Be the Best You Can Be’ programme. Form 8R

presented their assembly on ‘Friendship’ on Wednesday, 7th October. With a mixture of songs,

poetry, drama and prayer, the message of friendship was clear.

Extra-Curricular Clubs: Please take time to ensure that pupils are making the most of the array of

extra-curricular activities, clubs and sports that are on offer. Encourage your children to check the

activities board in the main corridor and give something new a go!

Mr Carradine, Pastoral Leader Year 8 (mrcarradinee@strichardscc.com)

YEAR NINE NEWS

Year 9 have made a positive start to 2015-2016. I am pleased to see so many charity events

underway this term. 9O have been raising money for Syria through the raffling of a new DVD and

9R raised an impressive £50 overnight to help the refugees from Syria. Particular mention goes to

Jeremy Harrington and Archie Ansell in 9R for their efforts. 9S held a Macmillan coffee morning on

25th September and raised just under £30 during a break time sale. They baked their own cakes

and did an excellent job selling them without being tempted to eat them! Well done to everyone

in 9S. 9L are busy also with a charity event. As a year group our first event will be our annual crazy

tie which raised nearly £200 last year. If pupils have time on their hands in the next few months I

would urge them to get creative and to aim to participate in and indeed win the event.

So far I have been able to send home nine postcards for excellent work and I would encourage

more pupils to let me know if they are doing particularly well in a subject area, as well as individual

members of staff commending pupils, which has led to five postcards being generated. I would

also like to thank Alfie Angella and Ethan O’Hara-Harris for regularly reading in assemblies so far

this year.

I would urge parents to check Show My Homework as well as their child’s journal. Homework

expectations are renewed after the holidays and the last few weeks have seen numerous pupils

being placed on observation report to help with their organisation and quality of homework

produced. If your child is placed on report can you please sign their reports daily until they have

built up a week with all positives and they will be taken off report. If you have any queries about

this, please do not hesitate to contact me by email or phone.

In PSHEe, Year 9 have been learning about relationships as part of a unit called SRE. Topics

include: What makes a good relationship? In this unit, pupils learn to define features of friendships

and other relationships and they look to find out which qualities make relationships thrive and

develop. Pupils also learn about assertiveness and passivity in relationships as well as looking at

how aggression can be a side effect of this. Pupils are also learning about safe and happy

relationships as well as contraception and STI’s.

Our next PSHEe topic in term 2 starts with: ‘What is emotional health and well-being?’ which

touches on developing confidence and reducing stress. Pupils will be offered tactics and

strategies for reducing stress. As part of the unit they will also be looking at how appearance can

be superficial and that stereotypes are very easy to create. Anger management will also be

explored and finally, mental health issues.

I would like to congratulate Year 9 on their excellent behaviour, attitude and enthusiasm on the

recent Enterprise Block Day.

Mr Doherty, Pastoral Leader Year 9

YEAR TEN NEWS

I have generally been impressed with the start our Year 10 pupils have made to this academic

year: the vast majority of pupils are working hard and taking on the challenges of GCSE courses in

a mature and responsible manner.

PSHEe: The relationships unit in Year 10 PSHEe is going well with pupils approaching it in a mature

fashion.

Block Day: I hope the pupils found the Retreat at The Hastings Centre valuable and that they take

time to discuss their experience with you at home.

End of Term Social Event: We are hoping to hold an end of term Movie and pizza/KFC social on

the last day of this term, Friday, 23rd October. Further details to follow.

Prefect Points: Pupils are being encouraged to strive for and collect Prefect Points. A way you can

track how well your son/daughter is doing in Year 10 is to regularly look at the number of prefect

point rewards he or she is being awarded.

Fundraising: Well done and thank you to Megan Isaacs from 10O who

organised and held a cake sale for Macmillan Cancer Support, raising

£45.77. A great effort! Thank you to everyone who supported in any way.

How you can help support your son/daughter in Year 10

Academically:

Continue to check their journal weekly and sign. It would be beneficial to discuss the

different homework tasks and controlled assessments, which are also recorded on ‘Show My

Homework.’

All targets should now be recorded in their journal for all subjects. Please spend time going

through these with your son/daughter so that you are fully aware of the grade they should

be working towards.

Ask to see your son/daughter's exercise books regularly. There will be targets for

improvement recorded in them all (as well as lots of praise hopefully) so you can discuss with

your child their way forward.

Pupils should be completing two hours of homework on average, five nights a week. If they

are not, please get in touch (and thank you to those who have already). There is always

something they could be doing, from reviewing work, producing mind maps/revision notes

on topics, to reading/researching around the subjects to benefit their literacy skills.

Remember that staff are contactable by e-mail which you can find on the school website.

Please do not hesitate to get in contact with any of your child's teachers or TAs if you feel

you need further help to guide them through this year in a particular subject.

Socially:

Please continue to encourage your son/daughter to be involved in extra-curricular activities

both inside and outside of school. Not only does this ensure a well-balanced, healthy young

person, it also affords real impact on self-esteem and aspiration.

This is often a stage in a young person's life when they are seeking more freedom and can

be vulnerable to a great deal of outside pressures. A good piece of advice is to always

phone the parents/carers of your child's friend if they are planning a sleep over or party at

their house to ensure it is supervised to your expectations. Your son/daughter may tell you

nobody else does this but let me assure you, the vast majority do.

If at any point you feel the college can support your son/daughter further in either the academic

or social aspects of their development, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Miss Easton, Pastoral Leader Year 10

YEAR ELEVEN NEWS

Year 11 are working hard and contributing positively to the school. The Prefects have been

exceptional this year in ensuring that the younger pupils have been supported in settling in to

school. Prefect training this term went really well with a focus on how we can improve the duty

rota and in devising a ‘talk to a senior prefect’ break drop in space in C1. It was followed by a

delicious meal of fish and chips at Little Marabou in Bexhill who were very welcoming and

accommodating.

Parents’ Information Evening: The Year 11 parents’ information evening was brilliantly attended

and we are hopeful that it proved useful to both parents and pupils on ways to start and support

the revision programme.

Mock Examinations: The mock examinations take place between 25th November and 4th

December. These provide an important indicator of your child’s progress and represent a key

milestone in preparation for the summer examinations. Year 11 pupils should begin revision during

the October holiday and spend some time every evening revising material for the examinations.

From 16th November all homework will be suspended except for revision tasks and most subjects

will have revision lessons from the week beginning 9th November. The mock examination timetable

will be issued on 9th November. Please note that some examinations may run past the end of the

normal school day and pupils will need to make alternative travel arrangements.

Further Education: Term 2 sees the majority of further education colleges offering Open Evenings

for young people and their parents. We strongly recommend that you attend several of these in

order to get a flavour of the Local Area Offer. All of the main providers and several of the minor

ones have given presentations in school to Year 11. Applications should be made directly to

minor, private and out of area providers. Applications to the main providers (Sussex Downs, Sussex

Coast and Bexhill College) should be made via UCAS. All applications need to be in by 1st

December in order that St Richard’s pupils are amongst the first for interviews and college offers.

Pupils are working hard on their UCAS application forms at school but should also be supported on

this process at home.

PSHEe: Year 11 PSHEe in term 2 will involve a road safety presentation, stressing the hazards to

people in their mid-teens. The drama is hard hitting but promotes an important safety message.

The pupils will also be completing their profiles and then covering revision techniques in

preparation for the mock examinations.

GCSE Pod, Google Drive & Learning Well: All pupils can access GCSE Pod. They can do so simply

by signing in to our VLE on the website and accessing it from the Apps button.

There is a wealth of support here which pupils can

download to iPads or computers or even their smart

phones. Listen or watch them together. Ask your child

questions afterwards. What are they still unsure of?

Ask them to write it down and bring it in to their

teachers or Teaching Assistants.

Teachers have been uploading a wealth of revision and support

material onto google drive. It is easy to access. Click on the drive button

on the dashboard. You will then see the various apps for this drive. Click

on My drive or Shared with me to access all the revision support. This will

be continuously added to over the next few months.

Our learning well link is:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCroIYcvdecXz_XFzCMjgrYQ

or search in YouTube ‘Learning well channel.’ It is packed full of ideas and videos from the staff

here on the revision process.

Block Day: Feedback from the Block Day was excellent with pupils all really appreciating the

opportunity to work on controlled assessments and begin revision.

Film Night: We have a film night scheduled for Friday, 4th December to celebrate the end of the

mocks.

Mrs Bligh, Pastoral Leader Year 11

Year 11 Raising Money for Charity

11U - #SaveSven: Hashtags come and hashtags go, but hopefully Year 7, and one pupil in particular, will remember this one. Spurred into action by an assembly on the suffering of the people of Syria, 11U came up with an idea to raise money. Their cunning plan was to raffle a large cuddly toy based upon a character from a film. Mr Stickland made a late evening dash to Argos to purchase a large cuddly toy for the raffle. He overcame his embarrassment at having to buy such an item but could not escape the store without bumping into two ex-colleagues and their raised eyebrows. However, all in a good cause.

For a week or more, members of 11U diligently sold raffle tickets to make the most of the hashtag #SaveSven. For those of you who have not been immersed in the “Frozen” experience – Sven is a reindeer from that film. The winning ticket holder, and proud owner of Sven, is Kacey from Year 7. When interviewed after the presentation, she stated her love of the film but refused to comment on the possibility of sharing Sven with a younger sister. Thanks, Casey, for supporting our cause and thanks to all pupils who purchased tickets. 11U helped to raise over £50 for Save The Children and their appeal for Syria.

110 - Charity Run: 21 members of 11O teamed together with Mr Holloway, Mr Harwood, Mrs Nicholls and Mr Campbell and ran 5k after school on Friday, 25th September for Save the Children of Syria. The runners were all of different abilities and it was a great achievement by all. The form

managed to raise £450. Well done, 11O!

School Council 2015-2016

Congratulations to the following pupils who have been elected School Council representatives for this academic year: Year 7: Talia Knight-Farman, Millicent McIvor, Naomi Britt, Oliver Peachment, Kacey Wolecki, Ben Simmons, India-Cleo Stevens, Ryan Segal & Sophie Taylor Year 8: Christian Whiteley, Kiara Sendhilkumaran, Joseph Castle, Carl Gonzales, Joseph Neilan, Xavier Ralph, Trinity Funnell, Brett Shanahan-Smith, Ashlin Davidson & Eleanne Robinson. Year 9: Sebastian Smith, Simna Sabu, Wiktoria Leszczynska, Benedict Satow, Ma Shaina Mallorca, Jake Ludlam & Chris Varghese. Year 10: George Kee, Dawid Opalka, Louise Wilson, Edward Ball, Conall Doidge, Chikondi Sakala & Christine John. Year 11: Katie Jones, Stephanie Deans, Gabriel Goncalves Balde, Matthew Ennis, Alex Beal, Vicky Murphy, Samuel Ward, Matthew Shaw & Cora Spencer.

Priorities identified by School Council include: more sports equipment, more cultural experiences, fundraising across the school, meet with the Canteen, play time equipment, improve Peer support, links to careers (further experiences/weekend opportunities), music equipment, transport issues around capacity, use of gym equipment for after-school clubs, eco-garden and astro-turf/drainage.

Attendance levels can sometimes be regarded in the same way as examination results. In an examination, 80% would be a very positive result. In attendance terms that would mean that you missed 40 days of education, just over 1 day per week. Therefore if your attendance remains at 80% for the whole of your secondary education, you will miss more than a full year of education.

Attendance Rates 95%+ = Excellent chance of 5 A*-C Grades 92.5% to 94.9% = Fair chance of 5 A*-C Grades 91.5% = Possible chance of 5 A*-C Grades 90% = Less than 50% chance of 5 A*-C Grades 88% = Less than 35% chance of 5 A*-C Grades Less than 88% = Less than 30% chance of 5 A*-C Grades In order for you to achieve the highest possible grades, attend school regularly

Approximate Days Absence in a School Year

Attendance Rate By End of School Year

100% 0

95% 10

90% 20

85% 30

80% 40

PLEASE REMEMBER EVERY SCHOOL DAY COUNTS

Privacy Notice

A reminder that the Privacy Notice, including the Privacy Notice for Year 11 pupils, can be found on the college website.

Mobile Phones Pupils with permission to bring in a mobile phone must hand it in at Reception at the start of the day and collect at the end of the day. The pupils concerned must not be using the phones travelling to or from school.

Regular school attendance is important in order that a child reaches his/her full potential. The information below is taken from the DfE National Strategy and demonstrates the possible impact of attendance upon attainment.

You will see from the graph

how drastically attendance

affects attainment

Anti-bullying Week is week commencing Monday, 16th November During this week, pupils will take part in assemblies and have opportunities to hear guest speakers talking about bullying. There will also be a range of activities across the curriculum to help pupils recognise and tackle bullying.

What small actions could we take to make our school a happy and safe place for everyone?

If you are interested in becoming part of a school working party to tackle bullying or have any questions or concerns regarding bullying, please contact mrshillsa@strichardscc.com

Safer Schools Survey During term two, all pupils will have the opportunity to take part in a Safer Schools Survey. This report provides a summary of pupils’ perceptions and experiences of bullying behaviour in schools across East Sussex, together with a range of other well-being indicators. The survey asks a broad range of questions about:

Pupils’ friendships in schools.

Pupils’ perceptions and experiences of bullying in the last 12 months.

The types of bullying behaviour encountered.

What pupils believe to be the motivation behind the bullying.

It is recognised that bullying behaviour remains a key concern for pupils and parents and in the last six years the Safer Schools Survey has provided valuable information to enable schools and the Local Authority to address these concerns, by targeting support and resources where they are most needed.

Safeguarding and Child Protection

Each school has a Safeguarding lead teacher who deals with disclosures of a nature which

requires referral to Social Services. At St Richard's we have a team of trained staff who carry out

this important duty.

The Safeguarding lead teacher is Mrs Bligh. The deputy Safeguarding lead teachers are Miss

Cronin, Miss Easton, Mr Bligh, Mrs Hoyle and Mr Doherty.

The Safeguarding and Child Protection policy can be found on the school website. If you have a

concern about the welfare of any child at St Richard's that you believe falls under the category of

child protection, please contact one of the above members of staff.

Congratulations Congratulations to: Maria Crowter (10R) who recently passed her London College of Music, Musical Theatre singing grade 3 examination with distinction.

Maisy Adams (9S) who has just started attending the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London once a week. She successfully auditioned against 200 people and is studying professional contemporary dance.

Charlotte Greenlees (11S) who has been selected for the U16 Sussex Girls Football squad for the 2015-2016 season.

BIENVENU/BIEVENIDOS/WILKOMMEN Improve your language skills and have fun too!

MFL Club When: Monday 1pm

Where: B13, B14 and B5

Well done to our friendly team of Year 9-11 helpers who have started running the clubs. Why not join us and expand your language vocabulary through fun games, quizzes and music. You could even try a language that you are not currently studying at school. Here are photos of pupils enjoying some of this week’s activities.

We will also be featuring some fun facts for you in the newsletter. Here are some to get us started…

The highest volcano in the world is in Chile, Latin America. It is called Ojos del Salado and stands at 6,893 metres (22, 614 ft)

The world’s narrowest street is in Reutlingen, Germany. It is called Spreuerhofstrasse and is 31 cm (one foot) wide at its narrowest point.

France is also known as ‘the hexagon' – because of its six-sided shape, France is sometimes referred to as “l’hexagone”.

Special Educational Needs

SENCO Surgery The first SENCO surgery will take place on Wednesday, 21st October from 3.30-5.00pm in the library. This is an informal opportunity to discuss your child and to meet Mrs Tadros and Mrs Clifford and the Teaching Assistant Co-Ordinators who help support pupils with SEN in the college. All parents and carers of pupils with SEN or those entitled to Pupil Premium are welcome. Mrs Clifford and Mrs Tadros can be contacted by telephone or email should you have any concerns about your child. Mrs Tadros, SENCO

Classics and Latin Clubs

We may have been back only a few weeks, but already the Classics and Latin clubs are a hive of activity. Classics club members have made good progress with their model Colosseum. I am looking forward to seeing it complete and on display. Latin club members have refreshed their knowledge of basic grammar pertaining to nouns and are making good progress with their vocabulary. A particular ‘well done’ to Thomas

Bocon; despite attending for the first time this year, Thomas has grasped the main concepts and caught up with his peers, proving that there is still plenty of time for new members to join. Thank you to Alexandra Williams, Chloe Wheeler, Dilys Cornford, Grace Buchanan and Anna Donald who assisted me at the Year 6 Open Evening: your enthusiasm and knowledge was invaluable. On Saturday, 3rd October Mr Roadknight, Mrs Britt, Miss Wood and I ventured into London with Year 9 and 10 pupils to visit the British Museum and London Covent Garden. We were blessed with beautiful weather and had a terrific time, as can be seen from the pictures below and the following pupil reflections:

“The Classics trip was a great experience because there was so much variety. There were Corinthian and Athenian pots, stunning mosaics and Roman tombs. The highlight of our trip was exploring the museum in our free time and looking at all of the artefacts. The day ended with some shopping in Covent Garden!” Annabel Field & Emily Wheeler “Today we visited the British Museum in London. We learnt a lot about vases and the letters that the Greeks and the Romans used. I was interested to discover that the Romans lived for 30-40 years on average. They also wrote a lot about taxes and prices.” Alex Field

The pupils applied themselves enthusiastically to the activities and diligently completed the booklets. Congratulations to Isobel Corbin who takes first prize and has won a Classics Champion badge for her booklet. Runners up include: Jill Sarmiento Julio, Stephanie Puri and Emily Wheeler. Thank you to all who made the day such a success.

Miss Soan, Classics & History

Careers Information

APPRENTICESHIPS An apprenticeship is a job with training which allows individuals to earn while they learn and gain nationally recognised qualifications. An apprenticeship enables a young person to enter the job market and develop their skills. With over 250 different types of apprenticeships covering over 1,400 job roles, Apprenticeships provide a route into training in the skills employers want in a variety of industries and sectors, from Nursing to Graphic Design, Horticulture to Electric Vehicle Engineering. There are over 100,000 employers offering Apprenticeships in the UK.

The National Apprenticeship website: www.apprenticeships.org.uk houses the on-line vacancies system. At any time there are up to 15,000 apprenticeship jobs being advertised on the website. Pupils can search for vacancies on this site or they can register and set up to receive alerts informing them of new vacancies that might interest them.

If you require any further information about apprenticeships please contact me.

CALLING ALL EX PUPILS I am currently putting together a series of inspirational careers, information, advice and guidance posters for the pupils and for this to continue I need your help.

Can you please email or send me a photo of yourself, details of what you have done since leaving St Richard’s and any words of wisdom that you would like to pass on to future generations.

WORK EXPERIENCE MOCK INTERVIEWS Year 10 pupils will go on a week’s work experience in June 2016. In preparation for this the timetable is suspended for one morning of activities. The activities include writing a curriculum vitae, role play and health and safety whilst in the work place. Each pupil also attends a 20 minute one-to-one interview.

I am looking for volunteers to act as interviewers for this morning, which will take place on 7th June 2016. Each interviewer will see approximately 3-4 pupils over the duration of the morning. Feedback will be given to the pupils in terms of their CVs and any tips or advice for the future.

If you are interested in being involved in this event or would like further information please contact me at the email address below.

WORK EXPERIENCE Year 10 pupils will go on a week’s work experience from 27th June to 1st July 2016. This week is particularly valuable as it really gives the pupils a chance to experience the world of work. This week should not necessarily be thought of as a ‘Career Taster’ week, as there are some organisations that will not take pupils under the age of 16.

All placements are selected through an online database, Aspire. This can be accessed by entering the following website address: https://aspire.eastsussex-brighton.org.uk/wexpupilchoiceslogin.aspx?aspirenetview=student Each pupil will be issued with a username and password to use this system over the next few weeks. If your son/daughter does lose or forget their username and/or password then please let me know and I will reissue them. All pupils must pick 3 possible choices for work experience from the database or put in the information of an own placement by Friday, 29th January 2016. From experience I have found that own placement finds tend to be a more valuable experience, as these are usually in the field that the pupil wishes to pursue in the future.

Once the placements have been selected we can then start to contact employers and place the pupils at a suitable placement, this will work on a first come first served basis. If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact me.

Mrs C Adams, Careers and Work Experience Coordinator (mrsadamsc@strichardscc.com)

Year 9 Curriculum Options

During term 3, year 9 pupils will be selecting their remaining GCSE options for study in the Upper School. In order to provide the maximum number of pupils with their first preference, we will be conducting a series of option choice surveys during term 2. The surveys will be held during form time and the data collected will be used to develop and refine the option model. The purpose of the option survey is to gain an understanding of the pupils’ subject requirements during Upper School and plan staffing and timetabling needs. As a result, some of the option combinations used in the survey models may include subjects that do not appear in the final option choices.

The curriculum booklet, describing each of the subjects currently on offer at St Richard’s is available from the college website under the ‘Parent Information’ tab. We recommend discussing the options choices with your child as term 3 approaches, and attending the Curriculum Evening on 7th January 2016.

Literacy across the Curriculum

Extreme Reading Year 7s were encouraged to participate in our extreme reading competition over the summer holiday. Entries this year were ‘extremely’ good. Mrs Midghall, Subject Leader for English, had a hard job in choosing the winners. After much thought the following was decided: 1st prize: Niall Shimmons Runners up: Malachy Skilton and Caitlyn Jenner Prizes were awarded in the Year 7 assembly and the photos are now on display. Have a look; you’ll see people in many fun locations. Many teachers also took part. Surely the winner here is Mr Steele, who is seen reading whilst being eaten by a shark!

Postcard Book Review Competition Well done to all the Year 7s, who entered the postcard book review competition. Congratulations to 7F who entered the most reviews. First prize goes to Melissa Hunter (7L) for her review of ‘It’s a Kind of a Funny Story’ by Ned Vizzini. Second prize goes to Emma Folwell (7L) for her review of ‘My Friend Flicka’ by Mary O’Hara. Third prize goes to Talia Knight-Farman (7F) for her review of ‘Life on the Refrigerator Door’ by Allie Kulpers.

National Poetry Day Thursday, 8th October was the 21st National Poetry Day. The theme this year is light. All pupils are invited to compose their own poem on this theme for our National Poetry Day competition. Submit your poems to Ms Westwood or your English teacher by the end of October. There are prizes to be won, so get creative!

Why not share what you are reading with your family this week? Reading is one of the key criteria for success across the curriculum. You never know, your children might even be able to tell you what their teachers are reading as we all display this information outside our rooms.

For Year 7s – Once you receive your BookBuzz Books in the coming weeks, why not share them with others – once you have read your book pass it on. Have a reading group with friends so you can get through all of the books.

Ms Westwood, Literacy Co-ordinator

Duke of Edinburgh DofE season is upon us again. The current Year 11 Bronze group are finishing off their Award and looking forward to receiving their certificates at the Hastings & Rother Area Presentation which, incidentally, will be hosted at St Richard’s next February.

Due to continued high demand we decided to increase the number of participants accepted onto the Award and 42 of our current Year 10 pupils enrolled this September. These pupils will shortly be going on their first expedition practice walk, taking place in November and covering an exposed, and no doubt wet and chilly, 14 mile route on the South Downs; we like to start as we mean to go on!

The DofE staff team welcome a new addition in the form of Mrs Gaines, who has past experience with DofE and is a qualified expedition leader, a rare creature indeed, so we are extremely lucky to have her expertise available to us this year. Mrs Nicholls, Mr Padgham, Miss Machin and Dr Durkin all continue to give their time and expertise to making DofE at St Richard’s possible, we really appreciate all you do and the huge commitment you show.

So, off we go again, looking forward to another memorable year of weather, hills, blisters, aches, pains, teamwork, friendship, laughter, determination and, at the end of it all, a sense of satisfaction and achievement.

Mr Harwood (DofE Coordinator)

MUSIC DEPARTMENT

Induction Mass: A very big well done to all of the Year 7 pupils who are helping with the Music, Dance or Drama for what will be a really lovely celebration.

Glyndebourne Trip: At the time of writing, there are a few unsold tickets to see Mozart’s ‘Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail’ at Glyndebourne on Thursday, 22nd October. The coach leaves school at 1.30 pm, and returns at 6.45 pm. The total cost, including travel, is £18. Pupils who would like to go should, in the first instance, collect a letter from me in the music department.

Secondary Schools’ Prom, Winter Garden, Eastbourne: We will be taking choir, orchestra and dancers to this annual event on Monday, 9th November. Rehearsals will take place at the venue in the afternoon, and performances from various schools during the evening. If you are able to come along and enjoy the event with us, tickets are on sale at the Eastbourne Theatres Box Office. 01323 412000 – Adults £6, Concessions £4.

Parish Mass at Christ the King, Eastbourne – Sunday, 22nd November: Any musicians able to help should see myself or Mrs Byrne as soon as possible.

Music clubs: It has been good to see so many Year 7 pupils joining music clubs, and hopefully more will sign up before the end of this term. The following activities run weekly, and are open to all. NEW MEMBERS ALWAYS WELCOME!

Day Lunchtime After School

Tuesday GCSE ‘catch up’ 3.15-4.15pm Choir

Wednesday 3.15-4.15pm Rock School (alternating weekly with Classical Guitar club from next term)

Thursday GCSE Choir/Drum Club 3.30-4.00pm Orchestra

Friday String group

Additionally, from next term we will be running ‘Share my Skills’ sessions one lunchtime per week, where pupils share a skill with others. Lined up for next term are Computer Music sessions and Ukulele workshops.

Mr Roadknight, Subject Leader – Music

DRAMA DEPARTMENT

CLUBS: The drama clubs have started off well, and the Year 7s are about to perform their first piece in the Year 7 Induction Mass on 15th October. They have been rehearsing at lunchtimes and frantically learning lines, so please come to the Mass, if you can. It promises to be a fantastic celebration of the Year 7s and all they have achieved this term.

LITURGICAL LIFE: I am always looking for volunteers to be involved in the liturgy here at St Richard’s. Drama is a big part of our Catholic celebrations all year round, and it would be great to build up a team of liturgy performers. Come and see me in the drama studio if this is an area of interest.

THE ARTS AWARD: Next term, myself and Mr Peachment plan to offer the Arts Award to those pupils who would be interested. Please see the flyer (left) for more information.

TRIPS: The Performing Arts department are very excited to be offering a trip to see the fantastic show ‘Wicked’ next year, and I am also about to release details of a trip to see ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’ for our Year 10 and 11 drama pupils. Please book early to avoid disappointment, letters will be distributed soon.

THE DRAMA STUDIO: The drama studio is currently under-going a facelift, and I am aiming to build up a stock of props and costumes. If anyone has any good quality

clothes which you think would be of use to us, please bring them in. All donations welcome!

Mrs Dunster

ART DEPARTMENT

In Year 10 the pupils of Mr Peachment’s GCSE Art Group engaged in the Assemble project which sought to combine artistic creativity with scientific discipline. All pupils were subsequently awarded a CREST Award (Creativity in Science and Technology) at either Discovery or Bronze level. As they explore their creative potential in pursuing GCSE in Year 11, there will be further Science and Art Enrichment opportunities to experience. We began the year with an after-school trip to the Science Discovery Centre at Herstmonceux. As can be seen from the following quotes, the pupils really enjoyed it and got a lot out of the trip.

‘I really enjoyed the Art and Science trip. I really liked seeing all the ways paint was created and how they made it in the past. We also saw a lot of light perspective and took a lot of photographs for our coursework. It helped us see how Science can mix with Art.’ - Daisy Millar

‘It helped us to see how Science and Art work together to make something wonderful.’ - Tiegan Caulfield

‘We used different activities to do with Science and Art. It was very interesting and fascinating how they were made and worked. I enjoyed this trip.’ - Phoebe Driver

‘It was very helpful and gave me plenty of ideas. It was interesting to see how Science and Art are so closely related.’ - Shanty Marks-Farquhar

‘The Art Exhibition was really amazing and interactive. It was really interesting to look at the different types of Art and Science.’ – Tara Willis

‘We looked at different art pieces including the use of light and sound technology. The use of science was clever and added something else to make the art more interesting and practical.’ - Tabitha Portch O’Neill

‘It was really fun because everything in the exhibition was interactive so it was much more engaging.’ - Joseph Newing

‘I enjoyed the Science and Art trip because it was really interesting how they brought the two different topics together. I learnt a lot from my time there. I managed to take photos while I was there which I’m going to use for my art project.’ – Amelia Marsh

‘It helped us to see how science and art could link together and gave us

inspiration for our art work.’ – Josephine Lee

Mr Peachment - Art and Design

History Department News

KEY STAGE 3 HISTORY CLUB The Key Stage 3 History Club is returning this term and will now be held on a Tuesday lunch time in A9. New and old members are welcome to attend and we will also be joined by trainee teacher, Miss Beadle. We hope to carry out a number of fascinating projects and are looking forward to sharing these with the school. See Mrs Campbell or Miss Beadle for more information.

WWW BATTLEFIELDS TRIP, 20-23RD SEPTEMBER 2015 Florence Forde and Dawid Opalka took part in the four day residential trip to Belgium and France this term, gaining a huge amount of knowledge and experience of life during WW1. The trip was fascinating for all who went and our pupils were a credit to the school, well done Florence and Dawid. We now plan to share this learning with the school community to support Legacy 110, a government led initiative to commemorate 100 years since the First World War. Look out for more information via the college website soon.

GCSE HISTORY YEAR 10: Our new GCSE cohort have begun the year extremely well and are fully immersed in their unit on Medicine Through Time. We have three more assessments before the end of the unit in December and I am confident that pupils will work hard to achieve or even exceed their targets.

YEAR 11: All Year 11 pupils are well underway with the new Nazi Germany unit, and many are looking forward to their impending trip to Berlin to experience a real taste of History. Pupils should be reviewing classwork regularly and ensure that they catch up on any work missed through absence. The Controlled Assessment is complete but there will be the opportunity for pupils to re-sit parts if necessary. If you would like more information regarding this please contact your son/daughter’s class teacher.

OUR WORLD WAR ONE EXPERIENCE Florence Forde 10H: The trip was a fantastic opportunity and really helped to widen my knowledge on the First World War. Going to the different battlefields really helped me understand just how many soldiers died and the impact it had on their families and fellow soldiers. I don’t think anyone actually realises the full extent of how many soldiers died but going to the different memorials and cemeteries really put it into perspective. I would say it was the most moving part of the entire trip! The trip was a great way of remembering the war and we were privileged enough to be led by a First World War specialist, which made it even more realistic. I definitely would love to discover more about World War One and I can’t wait to achieve the goal of legacy 110.

Dawid Opalka 10L: I think that the trip was a great opportunity to explore the topic of the First World War, and the fact the government funded it really shows that they believe that the topic is a really important part of our history. I found that the trip was a moving experience, because of all of the lives we learned about that were lost while attempting to fight for their country. I really enjoyed the experience and would recommend it to anyone interested in WW1 history.

Pupil Profiles

During the course of the academic year it is important to keep parents and carers informed

of progress being made across the curriculum. This can take the form of summative reports or

pupil profiles. The college will communicate progress through profiles four times per year to allow

the assessment to be based on reliable data such as an exam or moderated assessment. The

pupil profiles are designed to monitor progress for each subject indicated by one of three codes:

+ Exceptional progress towards target

= Expected progress towards target

- Inadequate progress towards target

Where a ‘-‘ code is awarded there will also be an indication of the intervention strategies put in

place to help the pupil get back on course. There is also summary information on effort, attitude

and homework.

If you, as parents and carers, require clarification, particularly with regard to under-performance,

then please contact the subject teacher via email or telephone.

Mr Tadros (Assistant Principal – tracking and intervention)

Geography News

In Key Stage 3, it has been a busy time for those studying Geography this term. Year 7 have been raiding food cupboards to make their 3D models from cereal packets and some of the results can be seen here. In the coming weeks, pupils will embark on understanding the local area and how it has developed and

changed over time. They will also draw their own maps to a set location and they will walk these to check them for accuracy. Let’s hope we have some great cartographers.

Year 8 have been to the beach and worked with a range of field equipment to understand the coastal processes at work as well as to understand the range of engineering schemes used to protect Bexhill. They are now in the process of writing up their findings.

At Key Stage 4, we are grappling with some serious issues. Year 10 are having to think through population growth and its consequences for the world as well as the impact of an ageing population on our societies. “Will we really have to work longer?” and “What will happen to our taxes when I start working?” are some of the questions that pupils have been asking us. Meanwhile, Year 11 have moved on to look at tectonic activities and the consequences for those living in vulnerable locations.

Isle of Wight Residential Trip Would you like your son or daughter to explore the world with us? Come to the Isle of Wight on our next residential trip 8-10th July 2016. Following the success of last year’s Geography fieldtrip to Dorset, we will be running another

residential trip but this time to the Isle of Wight. The trip is open to anyone in Year 9 and those taking Geography in Year 10. This trip gives pupils the chance to learn about actual examples in the UK and abroad first hand rather than just through a text book or computer screen. We will visit the Needles, understand coastal processes and management schemes. We will look at how tourism has impacted on the area and learn how the towns have developed and changed in recent years. We even have a fossil hunt planned.

There are 30 places available for pupils, who will be accompanied by three experienced members of staff. This year we are staying at the PGL centre in Little Canada and, in the evening, PGL staff will run adventure activities with the pupils from abseiling, challenge course to the zip wire, subject to availability. This will prove to be an action packed break! The cost of the trip will be £210 which includes: transport, accommodation, all meals, travel and medical insurance, and all materials used on the trip and the activities at the PGL centre.

If your child is interested in participating in this trip, please complete the form below and return it with a deposit for £50 made payable to St Richard’s Catholic College by Monday, 19th October 2015 to the Finance Office. The remaining payments details will be issued after booking has been confirmed. If you would like more information about the trip, financial concerns or have any queries regarding the trip please email me at the college: mrshoylep@strichardscc.com

Please return to Finance Office by 19th

October 2015 - Dorset Trip Friday 8th - Sunday 10th July 2016

Pupil’s Name:………………………………………………………... Form:…………….

I would like to book a place on the Isle of Wight trip for my son/daughter and enclose a deposit of £50. Signed:………………………………Parent/Carer Date:…………………………………………………

Numeracy at Home

Try one of the activities at home, ask a family member to help, take your answers to Miss Gallagher in B6 and receive a raffle ticket to win this month’s box of chocolates!

Activity 1 Try the Great British Bake off Challenge.

Scones - follow a fairly basic recipe.

Ingredients (to make 8 sweet scones)

8 oz Self-raising flour

2 oz Butter

1 oz Caster sugar

5 fl oz Milk

Pinch Salt

1 Egg (Beaten to glaze)

Can you convert all these imperial units into metric units? Use the measurements here to help. Activity 2 Use the formula to change the temperatures from centigrade to Fahrenheit.

Miss Gallagher, Numeracy Coordinator

This September, 40 Year 7 pupils began their John Muir Award which aims to give young people an opportunity to explore, discover, undertake conservation work in a wild environment and share their experiences. To achieve the award at discovery level, participants must

undertake these activities over a period of 4 days. Since the beginning of term, the two groups involved have been trekking down to our nearest ‘wild place’, the beach, once a week for their JMA sessions. So far the activities have included: a beach clean during National Beach Clean week, a scavenger hunt, a meditative/reflective session using the beach environment as a stimulus for making changes in our personal lives, and a beach games session.

Future sessions will include producing beach art and a seashore safari which will be led by the Marine Conservation Society. Participants are asked to keep a journal of their activities and to share their experiences with others. To help them do this, a webpage, with a blog, has been set up on the college VLE. If you would like to find out more about the award, see photos of our sessions and read some of the pupils’ personal reflections on their activities you can visit the webpage from within the college VLE by clicking on this tab and searching for John Muir Award.

Later in the new year, more Year 7 pupils will have the opportunity to do their JMA and all involved will take part in a day of discovery, exploration and

conservation in a woodland environment.

Imperial units Metric units

1 fluid ounce 28.4 millilitres

1 ounce 28.3 grams

Library News

Southern Schools Book Award 2015 The Southern Schools Book Award has begun, and is being promoted to Year 9s due to the content of the books – some of them are very scary! I still have places available for keen and interested readers, with the possibility of a trip to Roedean School in Brighton for the Awards evening and the opportunity to meet the authors

of this year’s books. If your child would like to be involved, ask for a permission letter in the Library. The books are:

Film Club News Film Club will run on Monday, 19th and Tuesday, 20th October, showing ‘The Monuments Men’, Certificate 12. It’s about the task of restoring art works stolen by the Nazis at the end of World War II and is both exciting and educational – a rare combination for Hollywood! If your child is interested in

joining Film Club, they would be most welcome; ask for more information and a permission slip in the Library.

Shop-in-a-Box now stocks small staplers (75p) and boxes of staples (30p), useful for older pupils writing longer essays and controlled assessments. We also stock pocket packs of tissues (10p) as the season of colds and sniffles approaches.

Library Cards and Locker Keys I have replaced more than 50 Library cards during September. Mrs O’Brien and I are constantly replacing cards and locker keys which go adrift too easily. We are now trialling a new system with Year 7s: each pupil in Year 7 has been issued with a key ring to attach to their locker key – the Library barcode with their name is on one side, the school crest and name on the reverse. We hope that should a key be lost, that it will quickly find its way back to the pupil, reducing the need to cut additional keys or make new Library cards. All pupils need to have a Library card in order to borrow books, CD-ROMs, DVDs and laptops from the Library. Should your child in Year 8, 9, 10 or 11 not have a Library card, please ask them to see me – replacement cards are £1. The new Locker Key/Library barcode key ring combination will be £4 to replace.

Magazines The Library has invested in subscriptions to 8 new glossy magazines: ‘Elle’, ‘Octane’, ‘Games’, ‘Empire’, ‘Q’, ‘Delicious’, ‘All About History’ and ‘Lonely Planet’, in addition to the ‘Geographical’, ‘Society Now’, ‘The New Scientist’ and the ‘Phoenix’, which we already hold. We hope that these resources, covering subjects across the curriculum and outside hobbies, will boost interest and provide inspiration for all. Back numbers are available for staff to use as a class resource.

Open Evening was, as always, tremendously busy, with prospective parents and pupils engaging in a Library activity and asking myself and the pupil librarians all sorts of questions about the Library. My thanks go to Helena Hudson of 9I and Katie Nash of 9S, both pupil librarians, for their excellent assistance on the night.

Quote of the month: ‘Google can bring you back 100,000 answers. A Librarian can bring you back the right one.’ Neil Gaiman, author.

Ms F Tocknell, Librarian

Good Neighbour Schemes - Volunteering Opportunities for Parents

East Sussex has one of the largest populations of people over the age of 85 in the country, with around 10 per cent of older people saying they feel lonely. The Good Neighbour Schemes are playing a vital role in tackling the growing problem of social isolation. Do you have a bit of time that you could use to help others? Are you interested in being more involved in your local community? Would your neighbourhood benefit from a Good Neighbour Scheme? Would you volunteer to help?

Good Neighbour Schemes link people who need some support with volunteers from their community who are able to help. The support includes befriending and can include practical help such as collecting shopping, pensions or prescriptions, small household jobs, helping with pets, letter writing and form filling. To find out more about volunteering opportunities visit: new.eastsussex.gov.uk/community/volunteering/good_neighbour_schemes/

The CILIP Carnegie

Congratulations Congratulations to: ● Louis Byrne and Archie Connor in Year 8 who cycled 29 miles to help the children of Cambodia at the weekend. They started at 8.00am on Saturday morning and finished at 11.30am. They organised this charity event themselves and raised a whooping £500! One child needs just £1 to be fed for a week. More details can be found at: http:// www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/

● The following boys who attended the SE Sussex Schools Area football trials on Saturday and were successful in being selected for the different Year Squads for the season. They are: Quincey Gilbert, Reuben Kudjo, Hugo Corbin, Baxter Orchard, Oskar Lockyer, Callum Buchanan, Aidan Aspinall and Harry Loates. This is the largest number of boys that St Richard’s have had in the area teams which take players from 16 different secondary schools from Eastbourne, Bexhill, Hastings, Battle and Rye.

Theatre Trips The English department have been frequenting the theatre of

late!

On Thursday, 10th September, Miss Wood and Mrs Midghall

accompanied KS4 pupils to see an impressive performance of

the American classic, The Great Gatsby at the Devonshire

Park Theatre, Eastbourne. A small cast made effective use of

lighting, costumes and fantastic music in a unique reimagining

of the 1920s tale of love, loss and the jazz age.

“This adaptation in Eastbourne was performed by a highly skilled multi-character musical cast. The plot had plenty of comedy and drama. The 1920s references were perhaps a little heavy but reinforced the feel of the era, and an IKEA-style stage had infinite use. Overall, a brilliant experience to be recommended.” Harry Hawkins, 10H

“…one person and one line of enquiry at a time…”

Saturday, 12th September saw us travelling to the

Orchard Theatre, Dartford for a highly acclaimed

National Theatre performance of An Inspector Calls. 49

pupils in Years 10 and 11 took the opportunity to see one

of their set texts brought to life on stage. All agreed

the adaptation was close to the text and provided

spectacular insight into the characters and their

motives in this war-time ‘whodunit’.

KS4 pupils were also encouraged to watch the recent

BBC adaptation of the play, which provided an

interesting comparison to the stage version and

provided lots of opportunities for further discussion.

“So we beat on, boats

against the current, borne

back ceaselessly into the

past.”

Keep your eyes peeled for further trips and don’t forget that the newest film version of ‘Macbeth’ is currently showing in cinemas!

Show My Homework- Update for Parents/Carers

As you are aware, we launched 'Show My Homework' in September. This is an online homework setting and tracking tool that helps pupils keep on top of their workload.

All pupils have their own personalised account that consists of a ‘To-Do’ list recording all of the homework that they have been set. Parents/carers also have an online account to help them support their child’s learning by monitoring the details of the tasks set, as well as their submission dates and other information.

Both pupils and parents can log on to their account via the school website or on: https:// strichardscc.showmyhomework.co.uk. If you have any difficulties logging on to your account do not hesitate to contact one of the team at ‘Show My Homework’ by email: help@showmyhomework.co.uk or call them on 0207 197 9550.

In the letter that I sent out to parents earlier this term, I did mention that the college is happy to run workshops for any parents who would like help logging on to 'Show My Homework’ or shown how this can be used to support your son/daughter. Feel free to contact me about this or any other related matter at the college on 01424 731070 or by email: mrbyrnep@strichardscc.com.

Mr Byrne

Enterprise Day

Our Year 9’s recently took park in a Green Dragon’s Enterprise Day. The day was run by external

company, Bright Green Enterprise, who talked to the children about environmentally friendly business ideas and inventions. The pupils then had to go off in teams and create their own business ideas coming up

with a company name, a design, a marketing scheme and a prototype. At the end of the day, 12 teams got

to present their ideas to the year group and the winners who had the best overall idea were chosen.

Our winners this year were ‘Waves’ who consisted of

Amina Bastante Pain, Jake Ludlam, Isobel Corbin,

Hannah Austin, Isabelle Angel, Rachael McCarthy,

Mikey Gentry and Richard Lloyd who came up with

the idea of a water backpack that filters your water as

you move using kinetic energy. A great day was had

by staff and pupils.

“I really enjoyed Enterprise Day because it made people

work together and come up with ideas to better the

community. It was very fun creating the models and

building the newspaper towers. The people who ran it did

a good job of keeping everyone on task and making it new

and interesting after every break.” Louis Lipsham

CERTIFICATE & PRIZE EVENING

Thursday, 12th November 2015

Our Annual Certificate and Prize Evening will shortly be upon us when our leavers will be receiving their GCSE certificates and prizes will be presented to pupils still at the college based on their endeavours and service in the academic year 2014-2015.

In previous years, the response to our appeal for financial support has been excellent. If you would like to make a financial donation towards the prizes for this event, please complete the tear off slip below and return it to Miss Cronin with your donation. This support is greatly appreciated and contributes to the success of the evening.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please return to the Principal PRIZE EVENING

Pupil's Name: ........................................................................................ Form: ………………………………………………………..

I enclose ..................................... as a donation towards the cost of prizes for Prize Evening.

Signed: ............................................................ (Parent/Carer) Date: ………………………………………………………….

Dragonflies - pre and post bereavement service supporting children and families

Who is Dragonflies for? Children and young people aged 5-18 years and their families who are experiencing pre-bereavement or are bereaved.

When do groups run? Most weekdays after school (unless specified) with age appropriate children and young people. Family events are held monthly.

How do we help? We offer free peer support groups in schools/community venues which allow children and young people the opportunity to access support from our qualified and experienced team.

What do we do? Group sessions include a variety of therapeutic art and play activities to encourage children and young people to talk and share emotions, feelings and thoughts. What do bereaved children and young people need? Support: Children and young people need support from their family and friends and from important people round them. Information: Children and young people need to receive clear, honest and age appropriate answers to their questions. Routine: Children and young people need to continue with established activities and interests in order to keep at least part of their life ‘normal’. Meet others: Children and young people benefit from meeting others who have been through similar experiences. Enjoyment: Children and young people have the right to enjoy their lives without feeling guilty.

For further information please contact 01424 438254 or visit www.fsncharity.co.uk

Calling all Knitters A good friend of mine sent me a link on social media. It was a request calling all knitters to knit or crochet purple coloured new-born baby hats for The Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).

Why purple? The Period of PURPLE Crying is something that many babies experience and is characterised often by periods of inconsolable crying. The purple hats remind parents and caregivers that babies cry, sometimes for hours and that this is normal. The hats will be given out in hospitals during November.

I am going to embrace this challenge and ask any of you to join me in this quest. If you would like to be a part of this worthwhile cause please send the hats into college by 23rd October so that I can post them by their deadline of the end of the month.

I look forward to seeing all your beautiful handiwork

Mrs Nicholls (Tech 2)

The link for more information is http://www.lhsc.on.ca/About_Us/LHSC/Publications/Homepage/PURPLE2015.htm

Parents, Teachers & Friends Association PTFA NEWS.................. PTFA NEWS....................

Chair: Vice-Chair: Treasurer: ALL POSITIONS FILLED, SEE UNDERNEATH Secretary: Amanda Isaacs amanda.isaacs@btinternet.com & Carole Clifton cazzapeasmarsh@hotmail.com

Hello all,

I would like to say a huge thank you to all the new members of the PTFA who came along to our welcome meeting. It was a great success with an amazing atmosphere, full of energy. Having said that, there is always room for more so please feel free to come along to any of the meetings. The next one will be held on Monday, 2nd November at 7pm.

We also held our AGM following the welcome meeting. Marina Matassa has stood down as treasurer and was replaced by Carina Hilton. Thank you to Marina for all of her hard work over the years. I didn’t have a Vice Chair to replace, but Nicky Cave and Karen Marsh now fill the position. I stood down as Chair and was replaced by Natalie Gaymer and Fiona Connor.

I would like to thank you all for your support over the last four years and thank you for taking the time to read my articles in the newsletter. I feel thrilled that four people have taken over key roles; four people that are full of enthusiasm, being able to bounce ideas off each other and drive the PTFA forward, so that it enables the children to carry on benefiting from what the PTFA does.

THE QUIZ The annual Quiz is in the process of being organised, and is on 20th November, so please put this date in your diaries, as there will not be another newsletter before this time.

Once again, on behalf of all the PTFA, thank you for your support.

Lisa Driver ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

YEARLY DONATIONS When joining the school, quite a lot of parents/carers fill out a standing order form to donate £10 per child per year to the PTFA, which is greatly appreciated. Those of you who donated via cheque or cash in that first year and not Standing Order, may not have donated since, as this would never have been mentioned to you again. Although not compulsory, if you have simply forgotten and would like to continue with this, please fill out the slip below and send it into the college for the attention of Carina Hilton (treasurer of the PTFA).

I/We would like to make a £10 contribution to the PTFA (cheques made payable to St Richard’s Catholic College PTFA) I/We would be happy for you to send us a reminder on a yearly basis. I/We would like to contribute via Standing Order £10 per year, please send a mandate form home via my child. NAME ................................................................................................................................................................................ EMAIL and TEL NUMBER..................................................................................................................................................... PUPIL’S NAME and FORM...................................................................................................................................................

Reception, please hand to Carina Hilton Treasure of the PTFA

Science News ARISS Competition The final selection news for hosting an amateur radio contact with British astronaut, Tim Peake, is still to be announced with St Richard’s still one of only 10 schools across the UK to make the shortlist.

Tim will be the first British astronaut to live and work on the ISS. Tim’s mission is named Principia to honour the great work of Sir Isaac Newton, which laid down the laws of gravity and motion that are key to the world of spaceflight. When he reaches his temporary home in space, Tim will start his

own programme of scientific discovery. With the ISS being first and foremost a place of science, he will be working on experiments that cannot be done anywhere on Earth.

Most of the projects running alongside Tim’s mission have some element of science or technology in them, cover a range of curriculum-linked activities and use the mission to inspire young people and increase interest in STEM subjects.

Regardless of ultimate selection or otherwise, the StAR Club (St Richard’s Amateur Radio) has started its training programme to allow pupils and staff to qualify with a Foundation level amateur radio licence. Having listened in on a Russian radio exchange using an adapted walking stick as an aerial we are all keen to see what other bizarre objects we can use next!

Year 11 GCSE Art Trip to Herstmonceux Science Centre Mr Peachment’s Year 11 GCSE Art group paid a visit to the ‘Arts of Art’ exhibition at Herstmonceux Science Centre. Shanty reported ‘We went to Herstmonceux Observatory and it was very helpful and gave us loads of ideas looking at perspective and lighting. There were lots of little experiments around the area and it was very interesting. It helped us to see how Art and Science are so closely related.’ Joe added, ‘It was really fun because everything in the exhibition was interactive so

everything was much more engaging. It was interesting to have the Art and also the Science. Overall it was a fun and interesting trip as there was a lot to do.’ Josie and Amelia both felt inspired by the trip, commenting that, ‘The Art exhibition looked at light and the way we could use that in our own artwork, while also looking at perspective work. It helped us to see how Science and Art could link together and gave us inspiration for our art work.’

Year 7 Block Day Year 7 enjoyed their first block day with a sunny day trip to Port Lympne Animal Park. Pupils learned about the conservation programmes the Park has successfully undertaken as well as meeting an exotic array of animals. Mr Holloway demonstrated how to eat a banana properly but highlight of the day was without a doubt the African Adventure - a tour of the park in tractor trailers with amazing views of the black rhino herd, giraffes and zebra amongst others.

STEM trip to London A small group of MAD (More Able and Determined) Year 9 pupils combined an astronomy-based visit to the Royal Observatory at Greenwich with an afternoon at Canary Wharf at the Bloodhound Expo. Pupils were excited to have a go on the 1000mph simulator, build model rockets and meet both Richard Noble, the project director and former land speed record holder and also Andy Green, the RAF pilot who will attempt to reach 1000mph in the Bloodhound Super Sonic Car in South Africa next summer. Andy currently holds the land speed record for being the fastest man on Earth (in Thrust 2 SSC in 1997 reaching 763 mph). The trip was a definite success with pupils divided in opinion as to which part of the day was best. Amina said, ‘I really enjoyed the Greenwich experience, especially the

presentation about dark matter which inspired us all.’ Mia-Bella agreed, adding that she had ‘never been to a planetarium before so it was a new experience for me. The animation was mind-blowing and I got an idea of how big

space was.’ Edvards deemed the planetarium was ‘cool and wicked’, but Angel’s highlight was the Bloodhound Expo reporting, ‘I really enjoyed the Bloodhound – it has encouraged me to take engineering. I got to meet Andy too.’

Space Week at St Richard’s National Space Week commenced on 5th October and to celebrate Year 8 enjoyed an enrichment afternoon including a talk and workshops on a space theme. Dr Das Baskill from the University of Sussex talked about ‘Extreme Astronomy’ giving pupils an insight into some deep sky mysteries as well as the joys of working as a research astronomer. Each pupil also attended three workshops. In Lab 2, pupils were asked to identify an element by observing the emission spectra of light. This is just like a fingerprint for each element and it is this technique that astronomers

use to identify the chemical composition of stars many light years away. In Lab 4, pupils were able to log onto a NASA website which monitors the Sun’s activity at many different wavelengths of light. In addition to being able to visualise the Sun’s active surface, pupils were able to make a short video of the Sun’s activity on the day they were born! Lab 5 played host to high definition Infra-Red Thermal imaging – with most pupils being fascinated by this technique which, on a much larger scale and from high above the Earth’s atmosphere, allows astronomers to identify ‘invisible’ IR radiation in seemingly unexciting areas of space. Lexie and Archie said that they ‘had a lot of fun and learnt a lot of new stuff’. Dan, Harry and Ollie stated, ‘we all enjoyed it!’ and they echoed the majority of Year 8 when they said that they wanted more

time at each activity.

After school, Year 9 astronomers joined visiting teachers, here for Stimulating Physics Professional Development, in a show in the inflatable planetarium. This year’s show was entitled ‘We Are Astronomers’ – a fitting end to the day’s fun.

Blood super moon Science’s fabulous Mrs Elson snapped this amazing image of the rare blood Moon over Hastings on September 28th. The full Moon was a Super moon and occurs when the Moon is closest to the Earth. This proximity makes the Moon appear larger and brighter than normal to spectators on Earth. This rare event occurred only 5 times in the 1900s according to NASA and will not be seen again until 2033.

Herstmonceux Telescope Supper Tour Pupils from all year groups are invited to join the Year 9 astronomers as we take over the Herstmonceux Science Discovery Centre for our annual Telescope Supper tour. The evening includes a guided tour of the telescopes in the domes, full access to the Science Centre facilities and supper. Letters are available from Dr Durkin in Lab 4 from Monday 19th October.

*** Sussex & Surrey Police Forensics Open Day – Saturday 14th November at the Amex Stadium, Brighton *** Anyone who wants to attend must book a place by emailing days@sussex.pnn.police.uk . Parents welcome!

Chaplaincy News

Regarding chaplaincy activity, September and October have been busy months. Pupils, parents, grandparents and staff have got involved in the various aspects of spiritual life at St Richard’s with commitment and enthusiasm, for which I am most grateful. Term 2 promises to be just as full.

Church Visits Year 7 pupils all visited St Mary Magdalene’s Church in Bexhill in Term 1. The RE Team led them in exploring the church and all the things they had been looking at in lessons. They then experienced some stilling meditation with me in the presbytery prayer room. A lovely experience was had by all. One pupil remarked, ‘It brings all we did in class to life to see the objects for real.’ My

thanks to Fr David Parmiter for allowing us to visit St Mary Magdalene’s.

Youth Gather For many years, the school has participated in Youth Gather in the Diocese. This year, Jack Regan, the Diocesan Youth Advisor, has revamped the event and he sends this message to all pupils.

“We can now confirm that the Diocesan Youth Festival will be on Saturday, February 27th at St Joseph's Church, Redhill, 6.30 to 10.30pm. Expect an exciting new format, including live music, exciting speakers, workshops and much more. Bishop Richard will be with us for the evening, and we are hoping it will be a great chance to celebrate young people and young adults in the Diocese.”

Please keep an eye on the Newsletter and Liturgy board for further news regarding this.

Grandparents Event in School – Thursday 8th October Our Grandparents Morning on 8th October was enjoyed by everyone: visitors and the college community alike. I would like to express my sincere thanks to all the grandparents who visited, and to the many pupils and staff who were involved in the Mass, in providing refreshments in the library, and in the tours of the school after break. We have received some very kind messages from grandparents who attended and we welcome any feedback to make the event even better for next year.

Whitstable Retreat for Year 9/10 – Friday, 23rd to Sunday, 25th October 2015 Letters for this Retreat are available from the Chaplain’s office now. The deadline is Friday, 16th October to return the slips and payment. The weekend will include prayer, discussion, quiet time, bowling, a quiz on Saturday evening and great food!

Rome Trip 15th-20th February 2016 Preparations are well under way for what promises to be a wonderful trip to the ‘eternal city’ next year. Can I request that any medical forms, photocopies of Passports and EHIC Cards that have not already been given to me be brought in as soon as possible. Thank you.

Friday Morning Mass for Staff and Pupils The early morning Mass on Fridays, at 8.10am, has been well supported this term, with pupils of all ages contributing to the liturgy in the readings and the offertory. It is at this Mass that we include prayer intentions for those in, and connected with, the St Richard’s community. If you have someone or something you would like us to pray for, then do let me know. Everyone is most welcome to attend: pupils, staff and parents.

Liturgy Reps The first meeting of the Liturgy Reps was held in September and our new Reps were presented with their badges. Our discussions included looking at the new role of liturgy rep which now includes the Fairtrade and Eco team, introducing our new Liturgy captain and deputy. Next week, we have our first meeting in our teams. We also aim to create a Mission statement for the liturgy reps, which will be devised by them in this meeting.

Fairtrade The group has now come under the umbrella of Liturgy Reps but we would like to extend to all pupils the invitation to join the team also. The first job this year will be to update our Fairtrade status and begin to

devise a fundraising/awareness event for term 2. Keep an eye out on the Liturgy board for events.

With every blessing for a restful October holiday and for the exciting prospect of Term 2!

Jo Doyle, Lay Chaplain (missdoylej@strichardcc.com)

RE DEPARTMENT NEWS It has been a busy term in the RE Department and pupils in all years have made an excellent start to their studies and are making good progress.

The RE Curriculum In KS3, Year 7 have been focusing on ‘New Beginnings,’ while Year 8 are studying ‘Church History’. Year 9 have begun their study of St Mark’s Gospel and have really enjoyed mapping out all 93 stories in this Gospel. This really gives a sense of how nearly half of St Mark's Gospel is devoted to the last week of Jesus' life, emphasising the importance of Jesus death and resurrection.

In KS4, Year 10 pupils have begun the GCSE course and are looking at the different ways Christians make moral decisions. Year 11 are studying ‘Matters of Life and Death’ and have examined a number of ethical dilemmas including abortion and euthanasia. I know this can be an upsetting and challenging topic but we are always impressed by the sensitivity and maturity that our pupils show when approaching such topics.

Year 11 Revision Guides The current Year 11 pupils are the third cohort in recent years who will have to sit both exams at the end of Year 11. To help with this, the college has purchased revisions guides at a reduced price of £2 each (£4 in total). If you would like to purchase these, please make a cheque payable to St Richard’s Catholic College for £4 and hand into the Finance Office in an envelope marked ‘GCSE RE Revision Guides’. I strongly recommend the purchase of these as revision will need to begin much earlier than in previous years. Certainly, it helped last year’s Year 11 achieve outstanding results in their RE exam.

Year 7 Church Visits All pupils in Year 7 have visited St Mary Magdalene's Church in Bexhill as part of their RE lessons. They spent half of their time having a tour of the Church and the other taking part in a guided meditation. All pupils should have completed their Church booklet which provides a record of their visit.

Online Lesson and Revision Resources The RE Department has transferred all of its lesson resources onto Google Drive. This enables pupils and parents to access any lesson that they may have missed or need more time to reflect on. We are also in the process on setting up an RE website. Please visit https://sites.google.com/a/strichardscc.com/st-richard-s-re-site where you will find revision 'padlets' on all of the GCSE topics that are studied. This website will continue to be developed over the next term.

Finally, please do not hesitate to contact me or Mrs Mead if you have any questions or concerns relating to RE.

Mr Byrne, Vice Principal (mrbyrnep@strichardscc.com)

St Richard’s Equestrian Team

St Richard's Equestrian Team are looking forward to the first competition of the season which will

see them representing the school showjumping at Petley Wood Equestrian Centre in Battle on

18th October.

The school team are all members of the National Schools Equestrian Association, which see the

teams competing against other schools from East and West Sussex, the aim being to try and

qualify for the National Championships which are held annually. Any pupil at the college can join

the team.

This year the team welcomes two new members in Year 7: Amber Townshend and Emma Folwell.

The other members of the team are Duncan Morgan in Year 8, Megan Bassett in Year 9,

Alexandra Williams and Angus Morgan in Year 10 and Saffron Townshend and Rachel Olivier in

Year 11.

The team is run by a parent and former Foundation Governor, Charlotte Williams. If you would

like further information, please email her at cia@btinternet.com or have a chat with any of the

team members.

PE Department News

DANCE

Congratulations to all those pupils who

successfully auditioned for the Dance

Company. It is lovely to see so many new faces

and everyone is working towards several up

and coming performances.

On October 8th

, the Dance Company took part

in the Grandparents’ Mass. Well done to all

those who participated and thank you for your

hard work.

The junior team are currently busy rehearsing

for their Induction Mass taking place on

Thursday, 15th October and are working

extremely hard. The senior team will be performing alongside the choir at the Winter Gardens,

Eastbourne on 9th

November in the annual music proms. Tickets are available from Eastbourne

Box Office.

On the Year 8 Block Day, Cheerleading workshops were run for the ‘Be the Best You Can Be’

programme. This was a great opportunity for the Year 8s to try something different. Rosa Cave in 8O commented, ‘I really enjoyed taking part in the workshop. It was really fun to try something different and be able to perform trick and lifts.’

Mrs Knight, Dance Teacher

GIRLS' FOOTBALL

There have been large numbers of pupils regularly

attending after school football club this term. It is

still not too late to join! Year 9, 10 & 11 on Tuesday

and Year 7 & 8 on Wednesday, both 3.15-4.15pm.

Results

U13 (Year 7 & 8) v Causeway School (H) ESFA Cup 1.

Won 5-0.

An excellent team effort. Well done to the girls

involved: Stephanie Bone, Pamela Busuego, Kiera

Davey, Amber Pisani-Cleland, Aliyah Almelor,

Maddie Baszczak, Lucy Boreham, Ciara Chicken,

Esme Reyaz-Comer, Isabella East, Izehi Ebhohimen,

Jasmine Moulding & Charlotte Power.

U14 (Year 8 & 9) v St Gregory’s – ESFA Cup (H). Lost

1-3. The team were: Isobel Corbin, Georgina

Coulter, Poppy Derhun, Chantelle Fullam, Khushi

Gupta, Ma Shaina Mallorca, Mikaela Rodriguez,

Reinah Ruiz, Olivia White, Stephanie Bone, Pamela

Busuego, Abbie Pinnington & Amber Pisani-Cleland.

Fixtures

DATE TEAM AGAINST VENUE

Tuesday, 13th

October

U16 (Years 10 & 11) St Paul’s Home (COUNTY CUP)

Wednesday, 14th

October

U14 (Years 8 & 9) Seaford Head Away (COUNTY CUP)

Thursday, 15th

October

U15 (Years 9 & 10) Bede’s Home (ESFA CUP)

Tuesday, 3rd

November U13 (Years 7 & 8) Bede’s Home (ESFA CUP 2)

BOYS’ FOOTBALL RESULTS

Year 7 ESFA v St Gregory’s – Lost 2-5

League v St Leonards Academy – Won 4-0

Friendly v Battle Abbey – Won 5-1

Year 8 ESFA v Ifield Community College – Won 5-2

League v Bexhill Academy – Won 4-1

Sussex Cup v Longhill HS – Lost 1-2

Year 9 League v St Leonards – Lost 3-4

Year 11 ESFA v Bede’s – Lost 2-7

League v William Parker – Lost 1-4

NETBALL

Year 10 v St Leonards Academy won 13- 11 (see team photo

right) and Year 10 v Helenswood won 10-6. The team were:

Elizabeth Godson,

Hannah Heggie,

Serena Coyle,

Amy Tattersall,

Megan Tattersall,

Aiste Urbutyte,

Alexia Rodway,

Ciara Farrell &

Lorna Davis.

Year 11 v Helenswood won 8-7. The team were:

Tabitha Portch O’Neill, Katherine Pickup, Angelica

Rodriguez, Tara Willis, Vicky Murphy, Megan

Stubbs, Ma-Joie Poliquit, Moira Mendoza, Munashe Makwiramiti, Sasha Bradley and Alexandra

Hellicar (see above).

Fixtures

DATE TEAM AGAINST VENUE

Tuesday, 20th

October Years 7&8 St Leonards Academy Home

Wednesday, 21st

October Years 9&11 Robertsbridge Home

Thursday, 22nd

October Year 8 Rye Away

Monday, 9th

November Year 9 Bexhill & Hastings Academy Away

Tuesday, 10th

November Year 7 Helenswood Away

Tuesday, 24th

November Years 7&8 Claverham Away

Wednesday, 25th

November Years 10&11 Claverham Away

There will also be end of season tournaments for all years.

SUSSEX SCHOOLS SWIMMING RELAY CHAMPIONSHIPS - HORSHAM

Well done to our four teams who competed in the championships, competing against many of the

county’s top private and sports schools. The teams achieved some excellent performances.

Junior Girls

Freestyle Relay: A Team 7th

and B Team 15th

out of 23 Teams

Medley Relay: A Team 8th

and B Team 12th

out of 23 teams

Junior Boys

Freestyle Relay: 6th

Medlay Relay: 5th

out of 17 teams

Inter Girls

Freestyle and Medley Relay: 8th

out of 20 teams

P.E. DEPARTMENT - CLUBS/PRACTICES (November - December 2015)

Boys Girls

MONDAY BADMINTON BADMINTON

TUESDAY FOOTBALL MATCH NIGHT YEAR 9 - 11 FOOTBALL

YEAR 7 and 8 NETBALL

WEDNESDAY FOOTBALL MATCH NIGHT

RUGBY YEARS 7 - 11

YEAR 9 - 11 NETBALL

YEAR 7 and 8 FOOTBALL

THURSDAY

FOOTBALL MATCH NIGHT

MATCH NIGHT

SUSSEX BASKETBALL CLINIC

FRIDAY ALL YEARS FOOTBALL

UPPER SCHOOL BASKETBALL UPPER SCHOOL BASKETBALL

St Richard's Catholic College Calendar Academic Year 2015/2016 (as at October 2015)

Please keep this sheet in a safe place and replace when updates are provided.

Terms 1 and 2 Last Day of Term One & Non-Uniform Day Friday, 23rd October

End of Term Holidays Saturday, 24th October to Sunday, 1st November

First Day of Term Two for pupils & staff Monday, 2nd November Parental Focus Group meeting (pm) Thursday, 5th November (6.15pm)

Prize Evening Thursday, 12th November (7.00pm) Parental Focus Group meeting (am) Wednesday, 18th November (9.15am)

Mock Examinations Wednesday, 25th November to Friday, 4th December

Year 7 Consultation Evening Thursday, 26th November (5.00-8.00pm) Non-Uniform Day for Surviving Christmas Thursday, 17th December

Christmas Dinner Day Thursday, 17th December Advent Service Thursday, 17th December (7.00pm)

Last Day of Term Two Friday, 18th December Christmas Holidays Saturday, 19th December to Monday, 4th January (plus

Inset Day on Tuesday, 5th January) Terms 3 and 4

First Day of Term Three for staff Tuesday, 5th January - Inset Day

First Day of Term Three for pupils Wednesday, 6th January Year 9 Curriculum Evening Thursday, 7th January (7.00pm)

Parental Focus Group meeting (pm) Thursday, 14th January (6.15pm) Parental Focus Group meeting (am) Wednesday, 20th January (9.15am)

Year 9 Parent Consultation Evening Thursday, 21st January (5.00-8.00pm) Year 11 Parent Consultation Evening Thursday, 11th February (5.00-8.00pm)

Last Day of Term Three for pupils Thursday, 11th February Last Day of Term Three for staff Friday, 12th February - Inset Day

End of Term Holidays Saturday, 13th February to Sunday, 21st February

First Day of Term Four for pupils & staff Monday, 22nd February

Parental Focus Group meeting (am) Wednesday, 2nd March (9.15am) Year 10 Parent Consultation Evening Thursday, 3rd March (5.00-8.00pm)

Parental Focus Group meeting (pm) Thursday, 10th March (6.15pm) Last Day of Term Four Thursday, 24th March

Easter Holidays Friday, 25th March to Sunday, 10th April

Term 5 and 6 First Day of Term Five Monday, 11th April

Year 8 Parent Consultation Evening Thursday, 21st April (5.00-8.00pm) Parental Focus Group meeting (am) Wednesday, 27th April (9.15am)

Parental Focus Group meeting (pm) Thursday, 28th April (6.15pm) INSET Day (school closed to pupils) Friday, 29th April

GCSE exams start Tuesday, 3rd May

Last Day of Term Five Friday, 27th May End of Term Holidays Saturday, 28th May to Sunday, 5th June

First Day of Term Six Monday, 6th June

Parental Focus Group meeting (am) Wednesday, 15th June (9.15am) Year 7 Parent Consultation Evening Thursday, 16th June (5.00-8.00pm)

Summer Fayre Saturday, 25th June INSET Day (school closed for pupils) Monday, 27th June

Year 10 Work Experience Week Week commencing Monday, 27th June Parental Focus Group meeting (pm) Thursday, 30th June (6.15pm)

Block Day Thursday, 7th July Sports Day Wednesday, 13th July

Last Day of Term Six Friday, 22nd July

Non-Uniform Day

The last day of this term, Friday, 23rd October, will be a Mufti Day. The fee to participate will be £1 and, as always, all pupils are encouraged to dress 'down' rather than 'up'. All proceeds will go to Save the Children to help the children of Syria and to the HCPT to provide disabled children with a holiday to Lourdes.

Newsletter Acknowledgement Don't forget to sign the Newsletter acknowledgement located in your son/daughter's journal.