I S S U E 1 OCTOBER 2016

Dear Parents and Carers 89% of pupils with 91% - 95% attendance achieved 5+ A*- C HIGHLIGHTS What a fantastic start to the including English and Maths term we have had! p.3 Welcome Year 66% of pupils with 86%-90% 7! Our Year 7 pupils are set- attendance achieved 5+ A*- C tling in well and quickly be- including English and Maths p. 4 Meet the new coming part of ‘Team St School Council Michael’s’. They look ex- 14% of pupils with attendance tremely smart in their new below 85% achieved 5+ A* - C p. 6 Results Day uniforms, are trying many including English and Maths question and answer session Celebrations of the extra-curricular en- with some of our Year 11 richment activities on offer We are looking forward to pupils in their Religious Edu- p.7-8 Christian and making new friends. celebrating with Year 11 on cation lessons. We will end Values Enrichment Wednesday 30th November our term on Friday with a Day Pupils in other year groups when Mrs Julie Heaton, for- Eucharist service available for are responding to the chal- mer headteacher, will be pupils in addition to our usual p.11 Visit from the lenges of their studies: Year our principal guest at Worship services. Bishop 11 commencing their final Awards Evening, when year with us, both Years 9 GCSE certificates and prizes Mr Chadwick and Miss p.13 The Breck and 10 embarking on their will be distributed. Sephton have embraced their Foundation GCSE courses and Year 8, new roles as Deputy who will begin to start It is such an honour to lead Headteachers. Supporting the p.15 Watersports thinking about their future this wonderful school and I senior leadership team, we 2016 option choices in the next have been extremely also have a temporary few months. touched and greatly en- ‘extended leadership team’ p.16 Children of couraged by the support I comprising of Mr Allcock, Mrs Eden rehearsals Once again we were all ex- have received in my new Clapp, Mr Kirkpatrick, Mrs tremely proud of last year’s role as Headteacher. It was McCaffrey and Mrs Rackstraw p.17 World Smile Year 11 who gained out- a real privilege to welcome and hope to be able to ap- Day standing GCSE results. the Bishop of Blackburn, point a permanent assistant Overall, 89% of all pupils The Rt Reverend Julian headteacher later in the p.18 Lancashire achieved 5+ A* - C grades Henderson to school, along school year. Book of the Year including English and with representatives of the Maths, the best results in diocese, local authority, Mrs Amanda Ferguson and the school’s history. These governors, parent repre- Mrs Hannah Bain have re- results show just what can sentatives and pupils for turned from maternity leave be achieved when pupils, my commissioning service and we also welcome several staff, parents and carers at the start of term. This new colleagues to St work together. was followed by a visit from Michael’s: Miss Sophie White- another Bishop, this time ley and Miss Sarah Howard to I would also like to share The Rt Reverend James the Science department, Miss with you the following fig- Newcome, Bishop of Car- Jade Carter to History, Mr ures in relation to these lisle who visited school as Paul Topping, Mrs Lynn results, which highlight the part of the Diocese Cross- Catell, Mrs Kathryn Stansfield importance of good attend- roads Mission. Bishop and Mrs Alicia Moreno to ance in ensuring success: James led our Eucharist Modern Foreign Languages, service where he spoke Mrs Victora Finch to the PE 94% of pupils with attendance about ‘Happiness’ and the department and Mrs Christine above 96% achieved 5+ A*- C source of true happiness Maxwell to the Food and Nu- including English and Maths and was then involved in a trition department. P.T.O. P A G E 2 Mrs Jenks continues…

Mrs Jill Sanderson (administrative St Michael’s Close, adjacent to I am sure that if our pupils con- staff) has left the school following the school, has now been des- tinue to approach the year in the 11 years of dedicated service and ignated as ‘residents only positive way in which they have Mrs Liz Sumner (our catering man- parking’. Please also remember started the term they will reap ager) will leave school at the end that parents should not access the benefits of success in so of term. We wish them well in their the school premises to drop off many areas of school life. They new roles. Our best wishes also go or pick up pupils at the start are a credit to you their parents to Miss Sephton and Mr Hooley and end of the school day. and carers and to our school. who are getting married at half term. We wish them every happi- Please would you help to rein- Yours sincerely ness. force safety messages with

your son/daughter as there J Jenks Thank you for your support with have been several instances our uniform, especially in ensuring recently of pupils stepping out that girls’ skirts are of the right into oncoming traffic because length (no more than 3” from the Mrs Jayne Jenks they have been using their Headteacher knee) and that boys’ trousers are phones or listening to music. I of a traditional style and not am extremely grateful for your ‘skinny fit’; we do feel that our pu- support in these matters which pils look really smart and present a help to ensure the safety of all positive image of St Michael’s in our young people. the local community. I hope the contents of our Please may I ask for your coopera- Newsletter will give you a fla- tion in relation to the one way sys- vour of life here and an insight tem we encourage parents to use into the range of life enriching outside school (i.e. travelling up extra-curricular activities and Millfield Road to reach school and events that have been taking then using Astley Road to depart place during this action-packed from school). Also, if I may remind half term. We are so proud of you that pupils should be dropped the way in which our pupils off away from school to enable embrace the myriad of opportu- them to walk a little way and also nities available to them. ease congestion.

OVER 970,000 young people across Britain have recently decided what members of the UK Youth Parliament should debate and vote on in their ‘Make your Mark’ campaign for 2017 and this term Saint Michael’s pupils played their part.

Recently, our local representative from Young People’s Services, Clare Smith, came into school and with the fantastic help of some of our pupils who are members of the local Youth Council (Luke Abbott, Luisa Higham and Amelynn Saaiman) they delivered an assembly to each year group explaining the ‘Make your Mark’ Campaign.

Each pupil was then given the opportunity to vote for the issue they felt was most important so that the National Youth Council can make it the focus of their campaigning this year.

This campaign supports our work in Citizenship at Saint Michael’s, and Mrs Brotherton commented that campaigns like this ‘help young people to feel valued as part of a dem- ocratic society’ and helps them ‘to understand better how democratic processes can affect them’.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 3

TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY new, eager (and slightly nervous) faces entered the school hall on the first day back after the sum- mer holidays. Welcomed by Year 7 Pupil Manager Mr Gow, the pupils started the day with a worship led by Mrs Jenks, before being whisked away to their new tutorial rooms with their tutors, for a crash-course introduction to life at Saint Michael’s.

Year 10 Peer Mentors were also on hand to share their inside knowledge of the school and act as guides to show our new pupils the ropes (and their way around the school!)

Seven weeks on and most of our fabulous Year 7 pupils seem to have settled in wonderfully and are already a vital part of ’Team Saint Michael’s’. Mr Gow said that he has ‘felt inspired’ by his new cohort and is ‘incredibly proud’ of the fantastic start they have made.

Next term, parents and carers will have the opportunity to meet and speak with Year 7 tutors about how their child has settled in to life at Saint Michael’s at the Tutors’ Evening on 9th November.

A CAREER IN FARRIERY is calling Year 11 pupil Dylan after he recently completed the first year of a two year course in Land-Based Studies and Horse Care at Myerscough College.

Dylan spends every Wednesday at Myerscough where he completes a mix of theory, portfolio and practical work which all contribute to his NPTC Level 1 Diploma.

And he hopes this will all lead to a very specialised and well- respected career in Farriery—otherwise known as equine hoof care. Myerscough is only one of four colleges in the country which offer this prestigious course so Dylan hopes that his diploma will stand him in good stead for earning a place there when he finishes Year 11.

Dylan with his certificates

YEAR 7 pupils have spent this half term studying the story of Saint Michael in their RE lessons.

They have been reflecting on the battle between good and evil and were asked to create something creative at home to demonstrate or symbolise the meaning of the story.

The amazing creations were all very different and original. RE teacher Miss Tremlett said, the examples ‘reflect the fantastic effort Year 7 have made in their home learning’. What a superb start to their time at Saint Michael’s!

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 4

MRS JAYNE Jenks was formally commissioned as Headteacher of Saint Michael’s at the start of term by the Bishop of Blackburn.

Pupil representatives, governors, staff, parents, guests from the Local Authority and Diocese and members of Mrs Jenks’s family attended the poignant ceremony in the school’s Armstrong Centre, led by the Rt Revd Julian Henderson.

The singers of Hughes tutorial and the newly formed Worship Band played their part in enhancing the ser- vice, as well as readers from all year groups.

Mrs Jenks spoke of how ‘humbled’ and ‘honoured’ she felt to be step- ping into the role of Headteacher and how learning and teaching and the wellbeing of the pupils would always be at the heart of her vision for school improvement in our Christian school.

She was presented with a Bible by Mrs Freda Armstrong, Chairman of the Governing Body.

Mrs Jenks takes over from Mrs Julie Heaton, who retired in July after four and a half years as Headteacher.

DEMOCRACY was in action at Saint Michael’s this term as tutorials across Years 7-11 voted in their new School Council Representatives.

Individual pupils in each tutorial nominated themselves and after speeches and hustings, sharing their views on school improvement, members of each tutorial voted for their tutorial representative for the year ahead.

Being a School Council Representative at Saint Michael’s often gives young people their first taste of leader- ship. As part of their new role they will be expected to put forward agenda items, attend meetings on a termly basis and participate in wider campaigns on issues affecting school life.

Mr Neville reminded pupils at their recent training that leadership in a Christian context is all about service. ‘What pupils do should benefit their tutorials and the school as a whole’. He added that, ‘it will take time and effort but anything worth doing always does!’

Suggestions made by last year’s School Council have made a huge difference to Saint Michael’s—from the new outside shel- ter adjacent to the canteen, to the refurbishment of toilets in the Dance and PE blocks and the establishment of a garden- ing club after school in the school’s very own allotment.

The first School Council meetings for upper and lower school will be held next half term.

A small selection of this year’s School Council Representatives from Year 7-11.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS

P A G E 5 RISING STARS in the sport of triathlon, Daniel and Lydia are now competing at the highest levels in their very demanding sport.

Year 8 pupil Daniel Lilley has been competing in Year 11 pupil Lydia Wilcock turned 15 in July and the North West Junior Triathlon series now for two this year has been her first triathlon season in the years in the T2 level. In his first year he finished Youth (under 17s) category. in ninth position and this year he has progressed impressively and has actually won a number of Lydia has turned her hand to several sports in the events in the series past and so when she was given the opportunity to join Chorley Tri Club she went from strength to In July this year Daniel was strength, enjoying the fantastic camaraderie the selected, with two other boys, team shares. to represent the North West at the Inter Regional Champi- Lydia only started competing in triathlons for the onships which were held at first time last Strathclyde Country Park in year and came Glasgow (the same venue as from nowhere to the Commonwealth Games). win the 2016 NWJT series The event took place on the 3rd-4th September with a maximum and was a fantastic experience for all involved with score of 600 hundreds of competitors taking part over the two points. The days. youth category varies but usually consists of a 400/500m swim, The actual race consisted of 10km cycle and a 3-4km run. a 200m open water swim in Strathclyde Loch, followed by Following on from this fantastic success, Lydia is a 4.5km cycle and finally a hoping to enter triathlons in the British Super Se- 1.8km run. Against the best ries next year which will probably mean some in the country, Daniel man- open water swimming. aged a magnificent 20th out of 39 in a time of 21:59. Training is very rigorous and Lydia trains five times a week with Chorley Athletic and Tri Club Daniel said he has been under the direction of coaches Richard Farron and ‘inspired’ by the Brownlee brothers and even has Katie Hewison (former World and European Du- high ambitions himself of taking up the sport pro- athlon Champion). fessionally and making it to the Olympics. He said that triathlon really ‘tests your ability and endur- Lydia said she ‘loves the challenge’ of triathlon ance’ and he recommends others to take up the and hopes to join the Academy next year, before sport. aiming for the Junior Olympics.

Parents are welcome to browse the school's Moodle at http://moodle.saint- michaels.lanc.sch.uk

Click on Parent Zone > Log in as Guest User > Agree Site Policy > and there you are! Parents do not need a username for the public areas of Moodle.

The areas accessible to parents include weekly prayers, worship, weekly listings of clubs, re- vision advice, technical support and occasional questionnaires to give feedback on events.

Pupils can visit Moodle Club in H7 on any day of the week at lunchtime throughout the year for advice, support in accessing home learning, and the resolution of password concerns.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS

P A G E 6

OUR AMAZING YEAR 11 SUPERSTARS wowed us once again with their superb GCSE results on the 25th August.

Despite reports of a drop in examination results nationally, results day at Saint Michael’s was, once again, a time of great celebration as 89% of our pupils achieved 5 or more A*-C grades (including English and Mathematics), with 84% achieving at least 8 A*-C grades and 31% achieving at least five A*-A grades.

It was a special time for the hardworking students, staff, parents and carers to celebrate their amazing achievements and reflect on all of their accomplishments over the last five years of their education at Saint Michael’s.

Well done to all our Year 11 leavers! We are so proud of you and we wish you all the very best for what we hope will be a very bright future.

THE STAFFROOM was packed to the rafters at break time on Friday, 30th September as staff took part in the Macmillan Coffee Morning, raising vital funds for Macmillan.

Cookies, cupcakes, brownies and an epic cookie dough chocolate cake (made by Miss Carter) were all on the menu as staff brought in their home-made goodies and every- one opened their pockets to donate to the worthy cause (and enjoy the delicious cake).

Organiser of the event, Mrs McDermott, said: “thank you to all the staff for taking part—and eating so much”. The event raised a fantastic £172.97 for Macmillan.

The Immunisation Team work for Lancashire Care Foundation Trust and they are responsible for deliver- ing school based immunisations at Saint Michael’s and all other high schools in Lancashire.

Immunisation Programmes

Year 8 & Year 9 girls only: HPV Immunisation - 2 dose programme Year 10 boys & girls: DTP/Meningitis ACWY Immunisations

Consent forms will be sent home with your child prior to these immunisations and must be signed and returned to school as soon as possible.

If you have any queries, please contact the Immunisation Team on: 01772 644499.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS

P A G E 7

TO CELEBRATE Saint Michael’s Day, pupils across the school took part in various activities as part of our Christian Values Enrichment Day on Monday, 26th September. Alton Towers, Character Education and British Values, STEM activities, Human Rights and Good vs. Evil were all on the agenda as pupils explored different Christian Values including compassion, endurance, trust and service, as they worked together to look at some challenging and thought-provoking issues.

As a special treat for our hardworking Year 11 Pupils in Year 8 pupils, they spent the enrichment day at Alton spent the day Towers theme park. looking at the theme of ‘Human Staff and pupils had a fun- Rights’ through filled day, despite the con- the Arts. stant drizzle and pupils declared the day a The day began resounding success and a with a short film welcome break from the pressures of Year 11. about Charlotte Saloman, a Ger- man-Jewish painter who died in Auschwitz con- centration camp in 1943. This poignant film uses a Year 7 pupils ex- clever combination of animation, film, original mu- plored the themes of sic and stage craft to tell Charlotte’s story and ‘good’ and ‘evil’ with demonstrated to pupils how the arts can integrate activities based to communicate a powerful message. around the school motto, ‘Therefore Choose’. Pupils then spent the remainder of the day in They were involved in activities like creating a Dance, Art and Music comic strip and dramatic role-plays and the day pursuing different activ- culminated in a massive fashion show, with tuto- ities all exploring the rials working together to dress up volunteer pu- theme of ‘Human pils in costumes representing ‘good’ and ‘evil’, Rights’. made out of tin foil and bin bags!

Through a carousel of exciting activities, pupils in Year 9 spent the day considering how STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) play an essential role in the development of society and technol- ogy.

Pupils used a simulation programme to reduce the impact of a natural disaster and provide resources for a local community; they worked in teams to purchase, design, build and test an oil rig and in green living they had to design, build and reduce the impact of development of their own new housing estate.

With the assistance of Year 9 STEM ambassadors, teams had to also complete challenges on solar panels, wind turbines and even growing tomatoes!

Curriculum Leader of Science, Mr Allcock said the day was a ‘great suc- cess’ and hopefully inspired some pupils to look into different STEM courses and career options in the future.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 8 YEAR 10 PUPILS explored character educa- tion, enhancing their social, moral, cultural and spiritual understanding, in a newly in- troduced series of activities for our Chris- tian Values Enrichment Day.

They took part in a variety of activities aimed at provid- ing them with lifelong values to better equip them for life in the 21st Century, underpinned by the Christian values of community, compassion, service and justice.

They completed online questionnaires, discovering about their own personality and investigated how they would react in situations which involved moral thinking.

Pupils studied ‘Britishness,’ exploring the British Values and reflecting on what it means to live in a multi-cultural society.

They looked at immigration and the plight of Syrian refu- gees from the empathetic viewpoint of what it would be like if they were actually the refugee.

They studied social diversity, taking part in a session on extremism, how a person is ‘radicalised’ and looked partic- ularly at how this could happen to anyone, regardless of religion, colour or background.

To enhance their own spirituality they had a ‘Mindfulness’ taster session, looking at coping strategies and ways they could become mentally stronger and more in control.

Similarly pupils spent one session of the day in the school gymnasium, undergoing a ‘relaxation’ programme which included yoga and pilates techniques.

And motivational speaker, former pupil Tom Melody, led them through a session aimed at encouraging them to strive for success.

One of the organisers, Deputy Headteacher Miss Sephton, said: ‘Year 10 pupils are just beginning to embark on their GCSE courses and are facing some stressful times ahead.

‘We wanted our SMSC day to predominantly help them cope with this, making them strong, resilient citi- zens but also to give them a better understanding of the world around them, studying aspects of society from perhaps viewpoints they have never before considered’.

‘It was a very successful day and thanks go to all the staff involved in putting this day together.’

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 9 THREE BUDDING MOUN- TAINEERS from Year 10 reached the summit of Snowdon this summer in a bid to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society.

Liam Kearney, Oliver Cummins and Christopher Ball took off on their epic expedi- tion in August and took the Pyg route up the mountain (the most rugged and challenging of the six paths). The 11km climb, with a 723 metre ascent took them six hours to complete.

The boys said they enjoyed the expedition and even took a break half way up to have a swim in a lake - although apparently it was “freezing cold”.

Liam said he decided to take part in the event for the ‘experience and chal- The boys setting off on lenge’ and also ‘to raise money for a good cause’. their expedition.

After a relative was diagnosed with the illness, this prompted Liam (and his dad, who is travelling to Tanzania on Boxing Day in order to climb Kilimanjaro for the charity), to raise funds to help find a cure for the disease.

Together with the rest of the team (including those scaling Kilimanjaro in December), they have so far raised over £2000 for this very worthwhile cause.

According to the charity, there are 850,000 people with dementia in the UK, with numbers set to rise to over 1 million by 2025. Hopefully, the funds and awareness raised by the boys will go some way towards finding a cure for this terrible disease.

If you would like to contribute towards the fundraising effort you can find more information at https:// www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Ian-Kearney4mymum

Many thanks for your ongoing support with our uniform policy, with particular refer- SUPERSTAR SAMMI wowed everyone at her ence to the length of skirts. Shotokan Karate grading over the summer and received a prestigious black belt. The policy clearly states that skirts should be no longer Black belt grading is notoriously challenging than three inches from the and Year 10 pupil Sammi was graded by a knee. panel of four high-ranking Red Sun Shoto- In order to be fair to everyone kan Karate Grades. The panel was overseen by Sensei Phillip Handyside who, at 8th we will continue to work with Dan, is pretty much the highest rank our young people to ensure a achievable in Shotokan Karate here in the consistent approach. UK. This makes Sammi’s achievement all Sammi with her Sensei the more special and the panel praised her superb skill, technique and strength.

Sammi said the grading was really ‘testing’ but she is ’very proud’ of what she has achieved. She will now have to train for another two years before she can go for her second black belt.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 0 Please can you remind your sons and daughters to take extra care when walking to GCSE GEOGRAPHY stu- and from school. dents from Year 10 and 11 spent the weekend in There have been a few near misses this term, the stunning Lake District mainly as a result of children concentrating on to take part in a range of their mobile phones or listening to music fieldwork activities. through their headphones. We will continue to advise them of the dangers of not remaining 45 pupils studying GCSE Geography, along with vigilant and if this message can also be shared staff, travelled to Blencathra in Cumbria over the at home then it will have a greater impact. weekend of the 23rd-25th September. With this in mind, please can we take this op- portunity to remind all parents/carers to try During the trip they took and avoid the section of Astley Road outside part in low ropes courses, school at busy times, particularly at the end of orienteering, canoeing, a the school day. There are over 1100 pupils flooding case study in exiting the grounds over a period of a few Keswick and a beach study minutes resulting in the road becoming at St. Bees. extremely congested, thus increasing the risk of accidents. Head of Geography Mr Clark said that the week- end provided pupils with For updates and reminders or the opportunity to develop just to keep in touch... their ‘team work’ skills and felt that the trip really benefitted their GCSE stud- Why not follow us ies, encouraging pupils to see ‘geography in the real world’. @SaintMichaelsCE

Holly Macgregor from Year 9 is the winner of the ‘Artwork of the Month’ for creating this beautiful design. Holly has just started on the GCSE Art & Design course.

This piece has been produced in charcoal, which is a very tricky medium to manage and control.

It was chosen because of the artist’s use of tone and creative mark, resulting in a really successful piece. Super job, Holly!

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 1 SAINT MICHAEL’S opened its doors on Wednesday, 14th September to hundreds of prospective pupils, parents and carers for our annual Open Evening.

Year 6 pupils from all over Chorley and beyond enjoyed taking part in a wide range of activities, from biscuit-making in Food Technology to scaling the climbing wall in the Sports Hall, taking part in experi- ments in Science and sampling pain-au-chocolat in the Languages department.

Our Year 11 prefects played the part of tour guides for the evening, escorting our visitors around the school and answering their ques- tions. They received high praise from the parents for their ‘informative’ and ‘enthusiastic’ comments about the school and many said what great ‘ambassadors’ they were for Saint Michael’s.

However, it wasn’t only Year 11 who leant a hand. Pupils from right across the school, Years 7-11, gave up their time to assist in depart- ments, speak to pupils and parents and help show Saint Michael’s off at its very best. These pupils were a real credit to the school and we thank them wholeheartedly for everything they did to make the evening a success.

The final deadline for admissions is the 31st October, though please remember school is closed for the half-term break on 21st October and therefore if you have any queries or questions, please try to con- tact school before the end of term.

ST MICHAEL’S pupils and staff felt both honoured and humbled when the Bishop of Carlisle held the first of this term’s Eucharist services.

And the Rt Revd James Newcome even stayed behind for a question and answer session with Year 11 pupils.

The Bishop was visiting Lancashire as part of the ‘Crossroads’ initiative, organised by Blackburn Diocese as part of Vision 2026.

Twenty three Bishops from around the country came to the re- gion during this time, including the Archbishop of York, uniting churches together in local mission.

More than 100 pupils attended the Eucharist service in the school’s Armstrong Centre.

Four Year 11 classes then had the opportunity to ask him questions about his work, life and the Christian faith.

Headteacher, Mrs Jenks, said: ‘ We were absolutely de- lighted to welcome the Rt Revd James Newcome to Saint Michael’s. The Bishop led our Eucharist service where he spoke to pupils and staff about the source of true The Bishop of Carlisle pictured with Mrs Jenks, our Chairman happiness in our lives.’ of Governors Mrs Armstrong and the Head Boy and Head Girl, Callum and Rebecca.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 2

FOLLOWING TEAM GB’S success in the sailing at this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio, Year 8 pupils Chloe Whitman and Daisy Royle have followed in their footsteps with huge success in sailing.

Both Chloe and Daisy sail at the Bolton Sailing Club at Belmont reservoir and meet there every Friday night between April and October.

Chloe has been sailing for just over two years and has gained her RYA Level 3 award. Daisy then followed suit and has been sailing for just over a year and gained her RYA Level 1 award.

Chloe also races at the club and has also competed in her first Topper Sailing Championships for the Juniors in August this year and came 16th.

Chloe said she took up sailing after her dad got a boat and said she likes the sport because it really ‘builds your confidence’ es- pecially with deep water. Both girls said they would recommend it to anyone and everyone—but they have to be prepared to get ‘very wet’!

SPEAKING OF GETTING WET, this summer 42 Year 10 and 11 pupils spent a fun-filled eight days in northern Spain on the biennial Saint Michael’s Watersports holiday.

Pupils and staff sampled an exciting range of watersports at the PGL camp in La Fosca, including windsurfing, kayaking, snorkel- ling, paddle-boarding and a wealth of competitive beach games. Not to mention, the evening discos and vast amounts of shop- ping, all topped off with a good dose of sunshine.

Assistant Head and group leader Mr Kellett said that the staff and pupils all had a ‘fabulous time’ and a highlight was visiting Waterworld, Europe’s largest water park.

A quick reminder of our policy on the use of mobile phones in school…

Pupils who choose to have their mobile phones switched on during normal school hours (either in the building or grounds) are choosing to have their phones confiscated. They will be returned the following day upon receipt of a letter signed by parents/carers.

Inappropriate use of mobile phones to film, record or text during the school day is totally prohibited, and will not be tolerated. The consequence for this will vary according to the severity of the incident.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 3

BRECK BEDNAR was a 14 year old boy from Surrey who loved technology and on-line gaming. He was groomed via the internet by a 19 year old man and was sadly murdered on the 17th February 2014.

At Saint Michael’s we continuously strive to make our young people aware of the dangers they face when socialising and gaming online.

On 23rd September, Lorin LaFave (Breck’s mother) joined us in school to speak to pupils in Years 7-10 about Breck and the need to stay safe online. The presentation Lorin gave to our students highlighted the dangers, whilst sharing Breck’s tragic story. It also informed our young people about what to do if they are talking to someone they don’t know online, as well as an array of reporting strategies.

Breck’s mother, Lorin, has set up the ‘Breck Foundation’ which has been established in his memory to help other young people enjoy gaming and socialising online, whilst at the same time making them crucially aware of some simple rules to stay safe.

Lorin highlighted to our students, ‘remember that the friends made online are not like your real friends’.

The importance of this has now formed the Breck Founda- tion slogan: ‘Play Virtual, Live Real’.

The presentation had a huge impact on both pupils and staff and many felt that they had ‘learnt a great deal’ about the dangers associated with online gaming and most importantly how to keep them- selves as safe as possible online.

As seen above, Lorin LaFave visited Saint Michael’s this term.

The ‘Online Safety Tips of the Term’ are based on the name of her son, Breck.

Beware - Opening files, accepting emails, IM messages, pictures or texts from people you don’t know or trust can lead to problems - they may con- tain viruses or nasty messages. Report - Remind your children that if there is someone or something that makes them feel uncomfortable or worried they should report it to you or their tutor/Pupil Manager. Educate – Constantly reinforce to your child that people online might lie about who they are and infor- mation on the internet may not be true. If they are socialising or gaming online, it’s best to only chat to their real friends and family. Communicate – As Years 7-10 heard in Lorin’s talk, meeting up with someone they have met online can be dangerous. It is vital our young people realise that online friends are strangers, even if they have been talking to them every day for years. We learnt that Breck talked to his groomer every day for three years. Keep Safe - Keep safe by being careful not to give out your personal information when you are chatting or posting online. Personal information includes your email address, phone number, password or loca- tion. Photos of students wearing their uniform can give online friends clues about what school they at- tend.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 4 A PROMOTION to Deputy Head Chorister at Blackburn Cathedral was the lovely news received by Year 9 pupil William at the start of this term.

William is in Hughes tutorial and regularly sings with the Chapel Choir at Saint Michael’s and this marks his fourth year in the choir at Black- burn Cathedral.

Over those four years he has had lots of wonderful opportunities such as singing in front of the Queen, singing in the magnificent cathedrals and churches in Paris, performing solos, singing amazing pieces of choral music each week and making lots of new friends.

William said he was ‘thrilled’ to be promoted to Deputy Head Chorister at Blackburn Cathedral and looks forward to all the ‘new opportunities’ this will bring.

YEAR 11 pupil Olivia ARNSIDE AND SILVERDALE was recently selected to were the location of this take part in the 2016 term’s Duke of Edinburgh School Games at Lough- ‘catch-up’ session organised borough University in by Lancashire County Council September. on 1st-2nd October.

She represented the Students from Saint Michael’s North West in ambulant joined others from Clitheroe shot put and the ambu- Royal Grammar School and lant discus category. Burscough Priory who had missed the original expedition. Olivia, who trains with Preston Harriers, said she was ‘excited and proud’ that she managed to win a Over the course of the weekend pupils gold medal in the discus and a silver in the shot demonstrated their map reading skills, camp- put. craft, teamwork and organisational skills. She said she was ‘inspired’ by the athletes at this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio All students completed and enjoyed seeing their success. the expedition, a little tired, but still smiling. Well done Olivia!

The 200 Club now includes over two hundred parents and carers, meaning a bigger prize share this academic year.

Could all existing members please return their subscription payments as soon as possible and please note that all the winners will be published on Moodle each month.

Anyone can join the 200 Club for just £12.00 a year and this allows us to raise a substantial amount of money for the school and gives you the chance to win a prize each month.

Please contact Mrs Dean, via the front office, for more information.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 5

NETBALLERS from Year 8 and Year 11 visited Shropshire over the weekend of the 30th September for a netball residential trip. The girls were entered into a national competition playing against schools and clubs across the country.

PE teacher Mrs Brunsden said, ‘We all had a great time and both teams showed massive progress in their performances as they played against some tough teams’.

Amazingly, both teams came away from the tournament as champions with the Year 8 team winning every game they played and Year 11 only losing one game in the whole tournament.

It was an excellent performance from both teams and both Mrs Brunsden and Mrs Dempster were ‘very proud of their skill level and attitude in competition’.

FRONT ROW SEATS at the Lowry meant that Dance pupils in Years 10 and 11 really felt like they were part of the perfor- mance when they went to see Britain’s leading contemporary dance company ‘Rambert’, recently.

The company performed three different dances but our pupils were most excited to see A Linha Curva by Itzik Galili, a dance which is fea- tured on the new GCSE specification.

This exciting and enthralling piece is packed with energy and drama, exploring Brazilian culture.

The pupils enjoyed the experience and were awed by the ‘flexibility, strength and athletic ability’ of the professional dancers.

RESILIENCE, resourcefulness and good team work were the focus of several Learning to Learn lessons this term.

For the last two weeks, Year 7 pupils have been using their Learning to Learn lessons to practise good team work skills by designing, creating and producing a structure which would protect an egg when dropped from a great height.

Pupils selected a range of materials, from plastic cups, to rubber bands, lolly sticks and paper to make their design and their inventive structures (from parachutes to extreme padding) were then tested - with some mixed results.

Subject Leader of L2L, Mrs Haworth said that pupils really enjoyed the activity and had lots of fun in their teams, but the task also really tested their ‘creativity’ and ‘ability to work as part of a team, taking on different roles and coming to mutual agreements’.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 6 CONGRATULATIONS must go to our fantastic PE department this term for maintaining their Sports- mark Gold Award.

The School Games Mark is a Government led awards scheme which was launched in 2012 to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and the com- munity. Schools in England are able to assess themselves across bronze, silver and gold levels.

The Mark is a retrospective award which validates the department’s success over the ongoing academic year.

Much of the criteria is based on student lead- ership through PE, success in PE, a range of levels of competitions in a variety of sports and of course the number of young people participating in PE and Dance activities in school.

Curriculum Leader for PE, Mrs Dempster said that the department are ‘delighted’ to have maintained the award and commented that they are ‘very proud of every person that has, is currently and will in the future represent our school on the sporting field. It is never too late to join one of our teams!’

EXCITEMENT is growing as the rehearsals for this year’s school production are now in full swing.

Before the summer it was announced that this year’s production will be a musical called Children of Eden.

Children of Eden re-tells the story of the book of Genesis from the Old Testament, starting with the story of Creation and the Garden of Eden and moving on to the famous narrative of Noah and his ark. The musical was written by John Caird, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, who also wrote the popular West-End show, Wicked.

Over 150 pupils are involved in the production, including pupils from Years 7-11 in the cast, orchestra and backstage. And pupils and staff are working extremely hard to ensure that this production will live up to the high standards set by its predecessors. Dance teacher, Mrs Burgess said, ‘rehearsals are going really well’ and the staff are very pleased with the ‘enthusiasm’ and ‘energy’ that the pupils are bringing to the rehearsals.

Year 10 pupil Ted Slorick, who plays the role of ’Father’ said that he is ‘excited but nervous’ about the production as it is still in its early stages but that the cast are really looking forward to performing in February.

The production will run from 1st-4th February 2017 and information on tickets will be available later in the year.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 7 ‘SMILE and the world smiles with you’ was certainly true on Friday, 7th Octo- ber at Saint Michael’s.

Students and staff spent the day celebrating World Smile Day by, you guessed it, smiling! The thinking behind the day was all about encouraging people to smile and aiming to make others smile through acts of kindness.

We all know, one of the best - and easiest - ways to improve your own happiness is to do something for someone else. So pupils spent some time in tutorials thinking about what random acts of kindness they could perform on Friday.

On the day itself a noticeboard was put togeth- er of the smiling faces of pupils and staff and everyone shared their random acts of kindness on post-it notes on the noticeboard.

Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing. ~Mother Teresa

ACTS, chapter 20, verse 35 tells us, “we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’”.

Pupils and staff spent the final few weeks of the term collecting non- perishable food to donate to Chorley Food Bank, in celebration of the Harvest Festival.

The boxes were taken to the Living Waters Church in Chorley, who then distributed the much-needed items to members of the local community.

Thank you to everyone who generously donated to this year’s Harvest Appeal.

GCSE FOOD PREPARATION and nutrition students have been busy on their new GCSE course.

In the first part of the course, students study fruit and vegetables. They have learnt a wealth of new skills and methods, enjoying practising their newly ac- quired knife skills and how to use new equipment.

Take a look at some of their fantastic—and delicious— results.

Amazing knife skills from Year 9

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 8

OUR GREEN FINGERED gardeners have been busy this term in the Saint Michael’s allotment.

After already lifting potatoes in September, the gardeners harvested leeks and kale last week. The lucky pupils—and their families—got to enjoy the harvest at home.

The gardening club consists of ten regular members who meet every week during the warmer weather to maintain the garden and plant (and harvest) a range of fruit and vegetables. And they have seen great success over the last year with raspberries, strawberries, beans and lemon sorrel.

The club will close down at half term, making way for the colder—and darker— winter months but will start up again in the Spring. Any pupils who might be inter- ested in joining should speak to Mr Whiting or Mr Neville for more information.

SAINT MICHAEL’S has once again been selected to participate in the county’s prestigious young adult fiction award.

Along with 14 other high schools located throughout the north-west, St. Michael’s pupils will cast their votes in deciding which title will receive the 2017 honours.

From September of this year a select group of Year 9 pupils have been tasked with read- ing their way through a long list of 96 books. As the year progresses, the field will be narrowed until the 10 most popular titles are selected for the final judging session in June 2017.

As an outstanding opportunity to encourage a lifelong love of reading, pupil judges must be open to reading novels that they might not normally read. The selection of books range across the literary genres, with each being read, discussed and individually re- viewed on the Lancashire Book of the Year official website.

Joshua Saaiman, a St Michael’s finalist judge who cast one of the final votes in the 2016 award said, “It was a fantastic experience to meet other pupils from all over the north- west who also share a passion for reading.” He also added,” The Lancashire Book of the Year Award is special because it’s the only young adult fiction prize that is judged by its intended readers – the teenagers!“

‘BUSKING’ was on the agenda when David Price from ‘Science Made Simple’ visited us on Friday, 16th September.

David was at Saint Michael’s to train our new Year 8 Science Ambassa- dors on a range of activities and demonstrations that pupils will then use when they go into local primary schools next term.

The pupils really enjoyed taking part in the activities on display and Mrs Ashurst said that the session helped improve the ambassadors’ ‘confidence’ when delivering the demonstrations and they are now really looking forward to their primary school visits.

S A I N T M I C H A E L ’ S NEWS P A G E 1 9 CROSS COUNTRY RUNNERS from Saint Michael’s took part in the first round of the English Schools Cross Country Cup on 5th October.

The event, which took place in Formby, was attended by Year 7 and Year 8 pupils, entering the ‘Junior’ competition.

Both teams did amazingly well and qualified from Lancashire. They will now go on to compete against qualifiers from each county in the North West finals, which will take place in No- vember.

Notable mention goes to Olivia Lee in Year 8 who did particu- larly well, finishing second place against strong competition from all over Lancashire, Merseyside and Greater Manchester.

MORE SUCCESS on the sporting field came from our fabulous Year 7 netballers.

Saint Michael’s recently hosted the Year 7 Netball Skills tournament where our netball teams were given the opportunity to compete against Year 7 teams from all the other Chorley schools.

This was the team’s first chance to represent their school in competition and they certainly rose to the occasion, with Mrs Brunsden describing their performance as ‘outstanding’.

Both Year 7 teams performed brilliantly with both the A team and B team in their separate competitions coming away with the trophies.

Mrs Brunsden said, ‘This has been a great start to Year 7’s netball experience and I am really looking forward to teaching them the positions and strategies in their training sessions to ensure more success in the future’.

STARTING after the October half term, the Saint Michael’s library is offering the chance for three lucky book borrowers to each win a £10 Scholastic voucher.

In order to enter the book voucher draw, which will be held at the end of every half-term, pupils simply have to take out a book from the Armstrong Centre, fill in their raffle ticket and drop it in the box!

The three lucky winners will be selected at random from the collected tickets.

Librarian Mrs Hull remarked, “Our school is fortunate to have such wonderful library facilities and we’re always seeking new ways to encourage reluctant readers to visit and borrow from our collection of exciting books.”

The Armstrong Centre is open every break and lunchtime as well as before and after school for pupils to use as a quiet zone to study or read.

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