West Academy Spring Newsletter 2019 ISSUE 4 Student Leadership Message from the Student Leaders Head Teacher Petition Coventry Year 9 Leaders Primary Charity Project We have had an amazing winter term at West Coventry Academy, following City Council for on from excellent exam results in the summer. All the students have been working incredibly hard, particularly Years 11 and 13 who sat their mocks in December. I am sure the Christmas holiday was a welcome break for School Safety at everyone. WCA Our students have also been working hard on our charity projects; Rosie’s Rainbow Pantry, Myton Hospice and Children in Need. Student Leaders have been very busy during their first term in office this The student leaders have also taken a lead role in engaging Coventry City year. Council to look at our traffic concerns outside the school. They attended a Council meeting to support the petition they submitted to the Council The Head Boy and Head Girl last year. We are pleased to announce that the Council have agreed to team met with the Deputy Chief look into traffic calming measures on Tile Hill Lane and will undertake an Commissioner for West Midland's assessment in Nutbrook Avenue. Police, Councillor Lynette Kelly in Our College system is working well, with a myriad of competitions that took place throughout the winter term including football, netball October to discuss their concerns and a geography competition called “Geography of my Life” to find the best photograph of places students and staff have visited. about road safety on Tile Hill Lane and Nutbrook Avenue. March sees our annual musical production ‘The Addams Family’. There is a matinee on Wednesday 6th March for our Primary partners before the opening of the show which runs from Thursday, 7th March until Saturday, 9th March starting at 7pm. Tickets are on sale at school. Since this first meeting, they have Year 9 Student Leaders have been working hard on a joint charity project with Allesley also met with local resident Nobby Primary School. Student Leaders came to visit WCA and speak to our Student Well done to all our students for their hard work and commitment to the school. Clarke, in order to utilise his health Leaders about the Raise for Rosie charity appeal. Leaders from both schools planned and safety knowledge from years in an assembly together and our students travelled to Allesley to help deliver it. The G O’Connor the Fire Service as well as Councillor project is well underway now and Allesley Primary is busy filling boxes for the Charity. Headteacher Pete Male. All of these meetings have been extremely useful and have provided the Student Leaders with plenty of ideas to improve the safety Duke of Edinburgh Awards for our students. MIND Charity Presentation Staff and students spent a lovely evening at Coventry Cathedral celebrating the Duke of Edinburgh achievements of our Bronze and Silver After the initial meeting with A cheque for £2,178 Award students. Along with other Coventry schools, there was a fantastic turn out with our school having one of the largest cohorts from Councillor Kelly, the Student Leaders was presented to all the schools in Coventry. created another petition and gathered Dee from the Charity Gold Duke of Edinburgh students have been busy fundraising to support their Expedition to Norway. They are half way to their target of over 400 signatures supporting the MIND to support the £18,000 with the support of a philanthropist in Coventry who has pledged £4,000. The students have held a number of events including a need for the implementation of great work they do. pop up restaurant, cake sales, quiz night, a primary school sleepover, a Christmas wreath sale, raffles and a bag pack at Tesco Arena. safety measures on Tile Hill Lane. @cwmind This was presented to Coventry City The raffle raised a fantastic £1,200 which was in part due to the wonderful support from many local businesses including Bosworth Butchers, Council and students were given This is the result The Manor Hotel, The Village Hotel, Nailcote Hall, West Midland Safari Park, North Warwickshire Golf Club, BBT, The Quicken Tree, Just the opportunity to discuss their of pure student Keepers and The White Lion who all donated raffle prizes. We would also like to thank the Heart of Conference Centre who not concerns. The council has promised effort and brilliant only donated prizes but let us borrow tableware for our pop up restaurant. to look into installing safety measures achievement. Thanks to ensure the safety of our site. again to all who We also have a number of brand new Prom dresses and evening dresses for sale between £25 and £35. You can find them on our school helped in any way! website or alternatively you can contact Mrs Powner if you are interested in purchasing one. All proceeds from the sale of the dresses will A huge well done to all involved. go towards the fundraising. If you would like to support these students in any way including donating unwanted Christmas presents, raffle Watch this space! Read on for more prizes or sponsorship for kit please get in touch with Mrs Powner – [email protected] information... A reminder that by using the following EasyFundraising link for your online shopping it will help us raise even more funds: https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/wcovacadofe

Many thanks to everyone who has supported our students and please keep an eye out for future events. Macmillan Coffee Afternoon In September the Head Boy and Girl team worked with the Sixth Form Student Leadership team to organise a Macmillan Coffee afternoon for Year 7 parents. This was really well attended and over £200 was raised for this worthy cause. Page 2 Issue 4 Page 3 Issue 4

Celebrating Achievement Fundraising for Local Charities Keira Kirby at Chelsea Football Club Staff and students have had a very busy year so far fundraising for many good My Experience at Chelsea Football Club... causes. These include raising £815.24 “Going to Chelsea was a great experience; I really enjoyed my day. I was very lucky to be for Children in Need and £556.07 for involved as not many other people would get this opportunity. I met lots of the players and Acorns Children’s Hospice and walking out onto the pitch to thousands of football fans was an amazing feeling!” Written by Keira Kirby, Year 7 collecting 42 bags/boxes of donations for the Cyrenians.

Collection for Local Page 6 Issue 3 Foodbank Last term College Leaders organised a whole school food bank charity appeal for staff and students to collect food for our local foodbanks including St Oswalds Church and Bethesda food bank. County Recognition Many boxes full of non perishable food items were delivered to be used over Two students from West Coventry Academy Sixth Form the Christmas period. Thank you to all are enjoying great success in Rugby Union. Jack Sarjeant those who generously donated. (Head Boy) and Jay Lewis (Student Leader) have been representing their County playing for Warwickshire U18s.

Our congratulations go to both the boys for their fantastic achievement!

Scarlett Garner Shooting Success Sukhi’s Canine Rescue Appeal Scarlett was selected for the U16 Laser Run team for England Midlands at the 2018 UK School Games held at Loughborough Alongside the food bank appeal the University representing WCA and England Midlands. With an opening Student Leaders launched the Sukhi’s ceremony and a series of educational experiences for the athletes Canine Rescue appeal. Students were the School Games were arranged to provide an experience that asked to bring in dog food and other the athlete might face in an International competition, so a great doggy items to support this local learning experience. She had also competed in the GB Junior charity who work to rehome dogs and International Shooting Competition at Bisley as an Individual and in also offer respite care for dogs whilst Team competitions. their owners are sick or in hospital. Scarlett represented West Coventry Academy in the qualifier at the British Shooting Schools Pistol Championships where The charity popped in to school with she shot 171 and was joint second-best score by 2 points and qualified some canine friends to collect our for the final of the day. Scarlett then came 4th and missed out on a donation. bronze medal by only 2 points but still qualified to represent WCA at the Nationals Final at Stoke Mandeville Stadium in Buckinghamshire. A big thanks to all those involved. We are immensely proud of her achievements. Well done Scarlett! Page 4 Issue 4 Page 5 Issue 4 Rocking around the Christmas Tree! In December, whilst everywhere else people were enjoying a silent night, at West Coventry Academy we were rocking around the Christmas tree with our annual Christmas Concert. This year saw a large variety of singers, musicians, performers and collaborations from a range of year groups sprinkling some Christmas magic over a packed out crowd.

Up and coming rock band, A Necessary Evil, led the evening and proved to be a real prospect for the future; made up of Mia Popsys on lead vocals, James Brookes on guitar, Dom Stone on bass and Lauren Hunt on drums, the band – plus various special guests, had people out of their seats with ear blistering performances of rock classics, including Back in Black (AC/DC), We Will Rock You (Queen) and Beat It (Michael Jackson). Once again, the stage was brought to life by a very creative and hard-working crew, and the WCA staff who also got involved again this year – there was even a cameo performance from our very own Headteacher Mrs O'Connor!

Mrs Cambridge commented “It was a great night, and a brilliant way to end a busy term. Our students never fail to stun crowds with their amazing talent and the Music staff would like to thank everybody who worked so hard to make it a success”.

Page 6 Issue 4 Page 7 Issue 4 Travel & Tourism students visit Coombe Abbey Hotel Year 12 Travel and Tourism group were treated to the amazing expectations. The talk was then followed by a comprehensive hospitality of Coombe Abbey Hotel in January. On arrival they tour of the hotel’s facilities. Students came away excited to Geography were wowed by the quirky and historic entrance and grand complete their assignment with the wealth of information they furniture.They were then met by Claire Kreigenfeld, the hotel’s had gathered and all wishing that they could have stayed for Training Manager, who delivered an extremely informative afternoon tea! News and Events presentation on how an organisation exceeds customer The Geography department has been out and about once more this year visiting various sites which will help to put the students’ learning into context and enhance their experiences in a practical way.

They visited stunning local attractions which included Kenilworth Castle and the beautiful Coombe Abbey.

Kenilworth Castle Visit Year 13 BTEC Level 3 Travel and Tourism students visited Kenilworth Castle on a beautiful sunny afternoon in October to benefit from an in-depth talk delivered by Retail Manager, Steve Spacey.

Kenilworth Castle, owned by English Heritage, ensures that future generations benefit from our Year 7 put their country’s historic sites and as a result they have always been extremely supportive of the learning of our students. map skills to the test

Year 7 young Geographers have been putting their map skills to good use by creating contour models to display in school.

Page 8 Issue 4 Page 9 Issue 4 Careers Focus Japanese Exchange Visit 2018 Girls Enjoy Spaghetti Challenge at the Ricoh STEM Event A group of Year 7 and 8 girls expressing an STEM-related careers as they are seriously Corporation who design and manufacture interest in STEM subjects were offered the under-represented. The girls took part car seats was to assemble electric plugs to chance to partake in STEM activities at the in the Spaghetti Construction challenge demonstrate the importance of preparation, Ricoh organised by The Wasps Community and designing a t-shirt to encourage more logistics, management and team working. Development alongside employers Ricoh & girls into STEM careers. The winning team They also had the opportunity to have a tour Lear Corporation. A variety of careers were will have their design printed on t-shirts around the Arena and behind the scenes at introduced to encourage more females into courtesy of Ricoh. The activity led by Leah Wasps RFC.

Students go east for a taste of Japanese culture

Engineering Experience Over the October half-term in 2018, five Year 11 students took part in the second leg of their exchange trip between West Coventry UK Skills Show Catering Careers Academy and Izumi High School in Osaka, Japan. During their stay, students shared meals with their Japanese family and attended high-school Fifty Year 10 students had the for Year 11 with their exchange friends. They joined in with after-school clubs and visited the sights around Osaka and Kyoto. opportunity to attend the UK in the As part of the Warwick University Outreach Skills Show held at the NEC where Royal Navy Programme, Year 11 students who had expressed Our students also delivered English lessons at Izumi High School and visited a local Kindergarten where they enjoyed giving an English lesson exhibitors attended from all areas of an interest in Engineering, visited MGTS – (Midland to the little children. This exchange taught them about each other’s culture and the differences between the two cultures. However, most work and explained possible career Year 11 students undertaking Hospitality & Group Training Services) and MTC Academy who importantly they made life-long friends and had a great time. routes. Catering were treated to both a Cookery both offer Apprenticeships in Engineering. They and a Career Presentation/Workshop. had a tour of both premises watching current Professionals from the Royal Navy showed apprentices in their practical learning environment. them how to prepare, cook and deliver a They were also given information about what is chicken dish whilst explaining about all the expected from an Engineering Apprenticeship, Japan Foundation Funding varying careers and expectations within the skills shortage and the application process so the Navy. hopefully we may see some budding Engineers in This year we are delighted to report a fantastic boost for West the future. Coventry Academy from the Japan Foundation. The Japanese department has taken delivery of a range of resources for the new GCSE and A level courses as well as for use in Key Stage 3. Thanks to these new resources, Cultural Club will now offer more opportunities to explore Japanese skills and crafts such as ‘soroban’ which is Japanese abacus, origami and calligraphy.

All Year 7 - 9 students are welcome to attend so speak to Miss Uhara in the Languages department for more information.

Page 10 Issue 4 Page 11 Issue 4 History Students visit the Year 7 & 8 Literary Wizards Black Country Museum Students attended the National Lit Quiz with two teams of Year 7 and 8 students. They competed against seventeen local teams and accomplished second and ninth place. All students are keen readers and had trained exceptionally hard in the weeks prior to the quiz. An amazing achievement!

Students were: Humaria Bibi, Beth Kingham, Daniel Coupe, Masseh Wali, Tegan Austin, Aya Azeem, Aoife Kinsella, Laurence Willcox and Charlotte Bull.

Debating Competition In November, a group of Year 8 students visited the Black Country Congratulations go to Isabelle Corrigan, Charis Harding and Malek Museum for their work on the Alhagagi who took part in the Rotary Debating Competition on Industrial Revolution in History Friday 1st February. Eight Coventry schools entered and the girls lessons. spoke tremendously well and held their own.

They went down into the mines, Our team was last to go which meant they had a good look at the watched a blacksmith at work, competition but also their nerves grew! Most other schools entered visited the workshop where parts pupils from Year 12 and 13, so our Year 10 team did feel quite daunted. for the Titanic were made, and much more! We were so proud of them as they spoke with confidence and passion about their chosen topic; “Social Media diverts our attention from the Art Department News... real world!” In December, fifteen Sixth Form students from Textiles, Art & Photography took a three day trip to the heart of Paris. Seeing all the sights they visited The Eiffel Tower, The Louvre and many more attractions for just a quick visit! They all had a great time, taking in all the sights and viewing a whole range of art work from seeing the Mona Lisa to contemporary work too. The group walked a huge amount between attractions, doing over 20,000 steps each day - but it was definitely worth it! They felt Science Excitement as students very festive with all the Christmas lights on display and really enjoyed taking in the French culture. learn to make a Bionic Hand!

Science Christmas Lecture is a Huge Success! Students were rewarded by their Science teachers with golden tickets enabling them to attend a Science Lecture. It created huge excitement amongst our staff, students and parents. The lecture enabled students to build their own bionic hands and to question who is stronger, man or the chimpanzee! Well done to all the students that attended and enjoyed the Page 12 Issue 4 invaluable opportunity to build a bionic hand. Page 13 Issue 4 Football EFL Cup KS3 & KS4 Badminton

Year 7 and 8 The Key Stage 3 Girls Badminton team entered the West Coventry Area School Games in January and competed in a mixture of singles and Success doubles games against Westwood and Finham Park. The girls played very well and came out second beating Westwood Academy. Our Year 7 and 8 Girls Football Team have been victorious in the local round of the EFL Cup. They The Key Stage 4 girls Badminton team entered the same tournament stormed through the group stage with an unbeaten even though they were missing a player, all the girls had the chance record and then went on to win in the final which to play some singles and doubles. The girls fought hard and played took place at Coventry City FC training ground. extremely well to come second even with a player down. They celebrated their win with a pitchside seat at the Coventry vs Peterborough match. The Key Stage 4 Boys Badminton team also went to the West Coventry Area School Games the week before the girls. The team then progressed to the regional round There was a lot of strong competition of the cup in January which was held in Oxford. during this year’s tournament with They came 3rd overall, so again a great result. lots of talent on display. The boys had a few tough games but The girls have grown as a team with a fantastic tactical managed to shine through outlook on their gameplay as well as developing some taking second place. great friendships. Everyone showed great sportmanship and were a credit to the school. WCA students from all Team: Georgia Davies, Georgia Poole, Scarlett Sutton, Key Stages are welcome Rhia James, Kelsea Kirby, Kiera Kirby, Brooke-Ann Hornsby to attend the extra- and Kiara-Lea Wright. curricular badminton club - contact Mrs MacNeill for Great Victory and a Clean more information. Sheet for Year 9 Rugby

What a Christmas Cracker! Year 9 were in action for the final time of 2018 and what a game it was! The boys showed a fantastic work rate and commitment to the match and played some outstanding rugby. WCASF Charity Rugby Match

With several players playing out of position, the they really stepped up and earned a fantastic 27-0 win against President In November West Coventry Academy Sixth Form arranged a rugby match against a Barbarians team from Cardinal Newman and Kennedy. Well played lads! Ash Green Sixth Forms in aid of the charity MIND. The event was organised by charities member Jay-Alfie Lewis and Head Boy Jack Sarjeant. The pair organised the whole event and managed to sell over 400 tickets before the day. Despite the temperature being just 4°C the event was a huge success with an exciting match watched by over 500 spectators. The final score was 17-7 to WCASF who sealed the victory with a fantastic try by James Keay set up by Jake Venables. The match raised Sports News... a fabulous final total of £2,178.71.

Page 14 Issue 4 Page 15 Issue 4 Making Music with Nationally Acclaimed Jazz Orchestra

In November West Coventry Academy was the origins, diversity and credibility of recognise the talent and hard work of our selected as the school of choice for a visit the genre. The students were then taught students. It was nice to be able to reward from the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. playing techniques independently which the students for the time and effort which The much distinguished group came to eventuated in a mass performance together. goes into developing skills on an instrument deliver a fun and educational workshop to Mr Goodier, a devoted Jazz fan, commented in a fun and practical environment. the talented music students and staff, who “It was a great honour to have a nationally were treated to performances showing acclaimed group choose our school and

Page 16 Issue 4 Page 17 Issue 4 Budding Mathematicians at Work

Interactive Calendar Design a postcard Sixth Form Recruitment Senior Maths Challenge Competition Challenge Once again our 6th Form mathematicians did very well Congratulations to Josh Pearson who Maths Competition Students in Year 7 were in the Senior Maths Challenge set by the UKMT. The won the 6th Form Recruitment Evening set a challenge to Year 13s gained two silver and two bronze certificates A ‘Design a well done Postcard’ competition for Year 7 and prize. The Maths stand was busy all answer questions from with Mathussha Mahendra scoring the best in Year 13. 8 produced some great designs for us to use on postcards evening. A challenge competition an interactive Advent Year 12 students gained one silver and three bronze, to send home from the Maths department. There were six with two puzzles was given out to all Calendar and then submit with the impressive achievement of Best in School winning designs that will be made into postcards. interested students, with the promise their entries to their maths belonging to Year 12 student Aleks Wrighton. Well done Huge congratulations to everyone who entered. of a prize for any correct entry teacher. They made paper to everyone who took part, this will look great on your The Winners were: Jack Tupman, Charlotte Bull, selected from all the entries received. UCAS Personal Statement! Winners were: chains with maths questions Ruby McKinney, Tima Jureviciute, Ameera Hashimi Josh was presented with his prize of Hikmah Nazmee, on them and produced and Ellie Elves. a Maths Puzzle Book, at the Year 11 Kalina Rodak, answers to lots of puzzles to achievement Assembly, just before Abbie Millerchip, an incredibly high standard. Christmas. Jack Podmore and Zara Ali. Maths Senior Team Challenge Aleks Wrighton, Rosina Crabb, Mathussha Mahendra and Manpreet Galsinh all spent a mathematical evening at Warwick University by representing the school at the annual Senior Team Challenge. The team were competing against other schools from Coventry and the surrounding area in a regional heat, as part of the National Senior Team Challenge competition. The evening was taxing, and rewarding and despite not winning they worked very hard and did really well.

Page 18 Issue 3 Page 18 Issue 4 Page 19 Issue 4 Year 5 Open Mornings w/c 24th June 2019 Details to follow

We are delighted to invite you and your family to come and see us in action

Year 7 Admissions 2020 West Coventry Academy

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