It’s been a jam packed term… from a mock election to pyjama day!
Welcome back Callum & James
We started the term with visits from two past students. At the beginning of April Callum spoke to a number of our current students who are all interested in a career within the healthcare sector. After gaining a wealth of experience working within a hospital, Callum is off to Oxford Brookes in September to continue his journey into Paediatric Nursing. He shared his experiences with our students and talked about the different routes available.
James left us in 2018 and since 2022 has worked for British Airways. After initially working for TUI after leaving CCS, James then pursued a career with BA. He spoke to students about the interview and training process, the salary and hours, as well as the many benefits of the job including free parking at Heathrow and discounts on standby tickets.
Staff vs Students 2024!
Forget the Euros, the biggest head to head to happen this year was the staff vs students netball, football and rounders matches 2024! A good time was had by all and overall the staff came out victorious!
PJ Day
This year all proceeds from our PJ Day went to the Anthony Nolan Trust (a charity close to our hearts in Sixth form). Over £350 was raised for this fantastic cause!
‘Boost’ Success
Back in September we were delighted to launch the ‘Boost Programme’ which is run by Gloucestershire Constabulary. The aim of the programme is to “provide a flexible transformational self-leadership and empowerment programme that equips young people with the essential life skills they need to deal with challenges now and in the future.”
A group of Year 12 students volunteered for the programme which focusses on helping and improving mental health in young people. They were trained as mentors and then delivered the programme to Year 7 pupils. This term Mr Steeds awarded them their completion certificates; congratulations and thank you to all the students involved.
Top of the class!
It is not about the A*s in History, it is who wins the Smartest Historian 2024 quiz! The quiz covers questions from Year 7 to Year 13 History. Winners of the coveted cup this year were:
13A Emma Musgrove, Daisy Loveridge, Lucy Knights and Ben Campbell
13C Malachy Jones and Archie Kemp
Congratulations to you all!
Year 13 Nostalgia Day
Year 13 stepped back in time and celebrated their ‘Nostalgia Day’. Dressed in their old uniforms they enjoyed a day of reminiscing with fellow students and staff.
Year 13’s Final Day
On May 10th we bid farewell to our Year 13’s; the day included signing of Yearbooks, a final assembly of memories, photos, awards and superb student performances, as well as a BBQ.
Year 12 Assembly – Resilience
This term we welcomed Will Van der Hart who spoke to our Year 12 students about resilience. Will also delivered a speech at the Campden Literary Festival and has recently co-authored a book with Bear Grylls on ‘Mind Fuel’, building resilience in young people.
A trip to the palace!
Past Sixth Form students Amelia and Bella enjoyed a day at Buckingham Palace to collect their Gold Duke of Edinburgh awards. As you can see from the photos the weather was very kind and they had a fantastic time enjoying the palace gardens in the sunshine. Huge congratulations to Bella and Amelia on this fantastic achievement.
Lessons from Auschwitz – Student Assembly
Year 12 History students Annabel Oliver and William Barnes visited Auschwitz earlier this year as part of the Holocaust Educational Trust’s ‘Lessons from Auschwitz’ programme. While on the trip they were confronted with many difficult concepts and learned much about how the Nazi regime was carried out. To complete the experience, they presented an assembly to Year 9 in which they communicated some of the common misconceptions of the holocaust as well as reinforcing the importance of the Holocaust in the modern world.
Congratulations Sophia!
Year 12 student Sophia had reason to be celebrating this term as she was chosen as one of the winners of the Peterhouse Kelvin Biological Sciences Essay Competition 2024!
‘The competition aims to give students the opportunity to explore scientific concepts and topics beyond the classroom, and to engage with scientific research.’
In order to enter students had to compose an essay (no more than 2,000 words) based around one of the following four questions:
- Why do duckbill platypuses fluoresce under UV light?
- Mitochondria are always shown as ovals; in reality they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Why?
- Why are there so few venomous mammals and no birds, whereas there are so many venomous reptiles?
- Reintroduction of ecosystem engineers (e.g. beavers) can have major impacts on the environment. What species would you reintroduce (or introduce) to the British Isles and why has this not been done already?
Sophia was one of two winners who answered question two. You can read all the winning entries here:
https://www.pet.cam.ac.uk/essay-competition-winners-2024
She was then invited to a prize-winners’ day at Peterhouse in July where she was able to collect her award. A huge well done to Sophia! What an amazing achievement!
Debate Club
One of the many extra-curricular clubs for students that has run this term is Debate Club, and a number of sixth formers regularly attend. The picture below is from a session this term where Year 12 students Gwilym and Annabel were debating the differences between Capitalism and Socialism.
HE & Apprenticeship Day
In June, it was the Year 12 Higher Education & Apprenticeship Day. Representatives from the University of Bangor, Oxford Brookes University, University of Gloucestershire, University of Coventry and Workpays (Apprenticeships) delivered sessions covering a range of topics including ‘How to choose the right course’, ‘Personal Statements’, ‘The Application Process’ and ‘Apprenticeship Opportunities’. We also welcomed Rob from Projects Trust who spoke about taking a gap year and the opportunities it can bring.
Head Prefect Team 2024-25
After a student and staff vote, we were delighted to award the positions of Head Boy to Luke Wilson, Head Girl to Evie Grover, Deputy Head Boy to George Swayne and Deputy Head Girl to Georgina Jackson. With the help of the other senior prefects the team have a busy year ahead organising charity events, representing the school and helping out at school events such as our Sixth Form Open Evening. We know that they will work hard and make us and the school proud.
Charlie ‘treads the boards’!
Year 12 student Charlie is a keen performer and recently took part in a production at the theatre in Chipping Norton. Here, Charlie tells us more:
“This is a photo of me from a recent production at the Chipping Norton Theatre called Lark Rise. I played the characters of Fisher and Old Postie and appeared consistently throughout the play. This production was community focussed and took in actors from local groups such as choirs, Morris dancers and other members of the local community. We as actors were placed amongst the audience, and I was able to greet them as they arrived, in character as Fisher and hand out letters while I made my rounds as Old Postie. It was an absolutely wonderful time working on this play, though sometimes a tad packed, but some of the most fun I’ve ever had with a performance.”
Charlie Martin – Year 12
Sixth Form Induction Days
We were delighted to welcome all our Sixth Form Applicants for their Induction Days this term. During their time with us they were able to meet their fellow applicants, attend taster A Level lessons, chat to staff, and get a feel of what life will be like as part of our Sixth Form. We look forward to seeing them again on Results Day in August.
Year 12 Biology Trip
Year 12 Biology students enjoyed a trip to the University of Worcester this term; during their visit they had the opportunity to extract DNA from a banana and identify genetic diseases using PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and gel electrophoresis. Both of these techniques feature in Year 2 of the AQA A level course.
CCS Mock Election
Sixth Form politics students got involved in the school mock election 2024 by producing a series of PowerPoint presentations outlining the policies of the various parties which were viewed by lower school students. They also then presented these policies to their peers in Yr 12 during an assembly; they were delivered in an extremely articulate, and in some cases passionate, manner, which was particularly pleasing as many of them were putting forward policies they did not necessarily agree with!
On election day students helped with the smooth running of the election by manning the ballot boxes and then ensuring that a fair and accurate count of votes was carried out. It was clear from fairly early on in the count that there was only one party in it, and for the second consecutive running of the event the Green Party ended up on top. Turnout was 50%. Many thanks to all the students and staff who participated and facilitated this important part of civic education.
Mr Banwell
Duke of Edinburgh – Going for Gold!
Sixth Form students are currently undertaking their Gold D of E assessed expedition in the Isle of Skye; we wish them lots of luck for the remainder of the expedition!
Year 13 Dinner Dance
On Friday 10th July Year 13 students and members of staff gathered at The Stratford Manor Hotel for the Leavers Dinner Dance 2024. Despite the rainy weather a fantastic night was had by all and included a three course meal and disco. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Year 13 students Ashley, Tilda, Abi and Elsie who organised the decorations for the room and tables. The evening was the perfect way to commemorate their time at CCS. Good luck Year 13!
And finally…
We would like to wish all our readers a restful and enjoyable summer!