Term Two 2017-2018 Newsletter – Issue 1

Extra, Extra...Read All About it!

Our school is a wonderful place - wonderful pupils, with the support of wonderful families and carers and wonderful staff - all of us working together with the same wonderful goal: to ASPIRE!

We all know that part of our ASPIRE goal involves working hard in order to get those academic results that will open the right doors for each individual's right future. Learning well is at the heart of this.

However, learning does not just happen in the classroom AND it is not Students, per House, with the just about GCSE results. We do not just strive to do better... we strive most House Points from to Be Better People. September.

This supersized, bumper, edition newsletter is a celebration of how we do this every day. It's in the extra opportunities that our pupils take Bronte part in and, even more impressively, the extra opportunities that our Aamena Patel (10B/FAH) 3629 pupils create. That is why our school is so extraordinarily wonderful - it is full of ordinary people, going the extra mile and becoming Pankhurst extraordinary in the process. So, my advice is this: take a moment, Chloe Rahman (9P/HCR) 2778 treat yourself to a cup of tea or coffee and read all about it!

Royce Mrs. Doward Azhar Ahmed (11R/AHA) 3370 House News Turing Term One saw Bronte walk away as House leaders, but which House Laurence Ryan (8T/AKY) 3427 has come on top this term? With all the points since September added up I can say that, despite it being one of the closest races to top spot that we have ever had, the House winners at the end of Term Two are Royce House, just ahead of Turing by a 359 points House Points, per House, at

Remember it is your hard work and perseverance that reward your the end of Term Two. House with points. If you are ready, show respect and are safe then you are doing everything you can to make your House the best! 1st Royce 369774 Over the last few months we have had two politicians turn up to SHS, whilst they may have generated local and national press, it isn’t 2nd Turing 369415 anywhere near as important as the achievements and contributions you have made. 3rd Bronte 368924

Enjoy your Easter break, relax and if you’re in Year 11 make sure you 4th Pankhurst 325703

spend time revising. Remember to do something special next term to get your name and story in the next edition of the newsletter.

Thank you

Mr. Freedman

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What have you been up to since September?

The Hub team, including Mr. Devine and Mrs. Lee along with Miss Students, per Year, with the Edwards and Miss Hudson, have been working hard throughout the most House Points From September. year ensuring our newest students can hone in on their cooking and baking by offering a weekly cooking club for six weeks. Year 7

The students have produced everything from pizza to curry and Akeel Hussain (7T/CMC) 3151 cookies to cakes – every time the smell from the kitchen has been Year 8 amazing. If you want to try to cook or bake then speak with Mrs. Lee, I am sure there will be a new club opening soon. Laurence Ryan (8T/AKY) 3427

Year 9

Abdul Nabi Ashraf (9T/KPI) 3028

Year 10

Aamena Patel (10B/FAH) 3629

Year 11

Azhar Ahmed (11R/AHA) 3370

Top Form, per Year group, from September.

Year 7

Miss. Robinson’s Form (7P/KRB) 45,114

Year 8

Mr. Kyrcyz’s Form (8T/AKY) 56,683

Year 9

Mrs. Pixton’s Form (9T/KPI) 44,245

Year 10

Mr. Ahmed’s Form (10B/FAH) 55,143

Year 11

Mr. Hakiman’s Form (11R/AHA) 35,908

Remember if you would like anything including in the next edition of the newsletter email me (Mr Freedman). [email protected]

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STEM

Ms. Latif took the STEM team down to take part in robotics. The interactive robotics day introduced young people to the exciting world of STEM, focusing on engineering. Hosted by a Small Piece Trust trained educator and designed to complement the national curriculum in Science, Technology and Maths, this fun and exciting day demonstrated the link to the wider world, enhancing our students’ understanding and aptitude for problem-solving, creativity, design and engineering.

In March, three of our Year 8 girls delivered a STEM lesson to Year 6 students in Seymour Park Primary School. The girls outstanding performance and confidence not only brought tears to Ms. Latif’s eyes but the primary schools teachers were impressed with their professionalism, confidence, content knowledge and patience with the primary students. Well done Girls!!

The STEM club and Ms. Latif also arranged for the Samsung VR Bus to land in our school yard to allow students and staff to experience Tim Peake’s decent to Earth from the International Space Station in the Soyuz capsule. Using VR technology the experience left students and staff alike feeling like they had travelled the real journey back to Earth. I am sure that there will be another visit of this nature in the near future!

If you are not a STEM ambassador and would be interested in becoming one next year, then let Ms. Latif know either in person or by emailing [email protected] and she will give the details you need.

Well done to Ms. Latif and the amazing STEM ambassadors for all their hard work this year.

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Student Council Mission Christmas Tesco Bag Pack

On Friday 24th November 2017, Student Council members took time out to raise some money for the Key 103 Cash for Kids Mission Christmas charity. It was an eventful day as we saw many happy faces willing to give money for such a wonderful charity. We are very lucky to have people around us who love us and we are very blessed to have items many unfortunately do not have. However, we have the chance to do good things and allow innocent people to have a happier life because we as a community do give. This has clearly been shown on Friday as we raised a massive £422.26! We completely smashed our target which was £200. This meant that there would be many more happy faces at Christmas. Imagine how many gifts could be provided with the amount we have raised. It is little things like this that can create the massive positive impact we are looking for to better our world.

Remember, we are all different individuals but ultimately we are all equal to each other. No one is better than anyone in this world which clearly shows we should be there for one another. Imagine this, if someone was hurt you would go and help them immediately wouldn’t you? Well there are people starving, cold and in constant pain but how much do we really help those people?

On the day Mr. Freedman was ready and was happily asking everyone constantly to do jobs. Happy Student Council members bag packed for as many people as they could. Happy faces appeared everywhere on the customers, workers and Student Council member’s faces. Key 103 appeared to be quite popular among all the customer’s because when someone would see the buckets or ask about which charity we are raising for they would always smile as they heard our answer. Even though Student Council members started at 4pm and finished at 7.30pm time flew right as bag packing was actually quite fun and eventful! Many teachers came along to show their support which motivated the Student Council members. Many thanks to all of the teachers and staff who came to show their support. Special thanks to all the Student Council members for taking their time out to raise so much for the Key 103 Cash for Kids Charity!

Mavish Razza 11B/SSM

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Debate Mate

Mr. Kyrycz has been organising a large group of students, who are attending Debate Mate each week. There is a fantastic mix of students from Year 7-9 and debates are now beginning to get heated!

There is usually chocolate and some form of drink for those who attend. Our Debate Mate students are building in confidence and are becoming rather skilled at taking down the opposition.

If you are interested, it is still not too late to join. Come on down and watch a Debating Session or send an email to Mr Kyrcyz - [email protected] if you want more information.

RISE

The RISE team helped to raise awareness for Anti-Bullying week by speaking in assemblies and running a cake sale to raise money for 'Ditch the Label', an Anti-Bullying charity. They also organised a 'Wear Something Blue Day' for 17th November. They did a fantastic job and managed to raise £203.77!! They are always there to listen to students if they have any concerns about bullying in school and work really well as a team. They should be really proud of all their hard work.

Ms. Jakubiel-Smith

Community Leaders

A huge well done to all the Year 8 Community Leaders for their hard work, enthusiasm and drive collecting food donations for the homeless at Christmas time. Your efforts ensured that the homeless had food, drinks and clothes over the cold Christmas period. Thank you.

Ms. Sheldon

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Remembrance Day

Our school was represented at the Remembrance Day service by three Year 9 students. Ameera Ali and Janithi Silva presented the wreath and read the act of commitment (they represented the school beautifully and the reading was very moving). Yaseen Ahmed also represented the school. There were also several of our students and staff present representing other local organisations. It was lovely to see such a brilliant turn out!

Mr. Hirst

Centenary Celebration of the Defence of Hill, France

In March, Granada Reports reported on a service on the commemoration events that have been happening in France to remember the valiant efforts of the Manchester Regiment to defend 'Manchester Hill' near St Quentin, France on the 21 March 1918. Myself and two year 10 pupils, Shiraz Hussain and Kyle Bromley spent a few days retracing the steps of this regiment in Belgium and France culminating in a service of remembrance with representatives from the army and twenty-two Manchester Schools together with the local French people.

Our students made me incredibly proud with the mature and respectful way in which they represented High School throughout some 'arctic' conditions at Ypres and on the Somme and at the very poignant service yesterday.

Ms. Lee

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Most Inspirational Young Person

Kate Green, MP for Stretford and , welcomed Stretford High and students to parliament to present them with a ‘Most Inspirational Young Person’ Award for their work helping refugee children. Following a tough selection process, Ajai Singh, Danish Amin, Aimee Monaghan and Sania Muhammed from Stretford High and Lauryn Duncan-Rouse, Dylan Holden-Sim and Adeel Anwar from Stretford Grammar travelled to Dunkirk in July 2016, together with some of their teachers, to work in a refugee camp school.

While at Dunkirk, the students worked full time with the refugee children – doing everything from organising and throwing an Eid party to helping the children with their English, Maths and Art. The students also helped the children develop "soft skills" such as sharing, helping others and teamwork. The work undertaken by the Stretford students was very challenging. The refugee children had very little experience of school and even sitting at a desk presented a challenge for them. However, the students maintained a calm professionalism throughout and were a credit to their schools and their communities.

On returning to the UK, the students addressed a Council meeting to let councillors and the Mayor know about the work they’d done and implored the local council officials to do their part in helping to alleviate the refugee crisis. Kate was really impressed to hear about the students work and therefore nominated the students under the category ‘Most Inspirational Young Person’ for a 2017 Kids Count “Inspire the House” Award.

Against a record number of nominations and a very high standard of entries, the Stretford students were awarded ‘Highly Commended’ in the Most Inspirational Young Person category. Kate presented the students with their award at a special reception in the Terrace Marquee of the House of Commons on Tuesday 5th December.

Kate said, “I was incredibly proud to present the Stretford students with an award for their work helping refugee children in Dunkirk. Their award is thoroughly well deserved and it’s great that they’re getting recognition for their inspirational work. With so much division and uncertainty in the world today, the future of our community certainly seems bright when our young people take such positive action helping others”

Mr. Hirst

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Year 7 Temple Project

Year 7 have been studying Buddhism last term in Humanities. They were given a project to create a Buddhist temple; we were overwhelmed with the fantastic temples we received – some of them are shown below. Thank you to students and parents for all your hard work

Ms. Khaliq

University of football stars, project UA92

Meeting Gary Neville was a spectacular experience, as too was listening to him talk about the history changing “Project UA92”. What is UA92? University Academy 1992, its full title, is to be a university based in Stretford. 1992 comes from the year of the Manchester United football class that the founders were in. Who are the founders to be exact? Star football players Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and, last but not the least, Phil Neville - the class of 1992. After leaving the pitch they decided they wanted people to excel and learn in the warm, welcoming, area of Stretford. Connecting with the University of Lancaster and other sponsors they have created UA92. By now you probably have many questions, as did the Year 8 students on the morning of Wednesday the 22nd. Mr. Neville did answer them in great detail- this is the idea behind UA92.

Standing at the front of the class Gary Neville was ready to take on the challenging questions Year 8s had prepared for him. The first question was asked by one of the students sitting right at the back. “Why

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Stretford?” he shouted out with a positive attitude. From Gary Neville’s long speech about ‘Why Stretford?’ we can conclude that he believed the following. Firstly, it is the connection that he and his co-workers (the Class of 92) had with the area. They played for the very successful club of Manchester United and that gives them enough of a reason. However, it doesn’t finish just there. He said this, “Stretford is the only area without really a University. There is a University in Bury, Salford, and Altrincham but where is the University in Stretford? There isn’t… yet.”

The questions escalated very quickly from the inquisitive minds of the students. Another one was thrown at the star of our little show, “We heard that you want to destroy buildings important to us? What are they and why?” This really shocked some of us especially since some of the local businesses we still use every week are to be closed and destroyed! These buildings included the Stretford Leisure Centre, Stretford Mall, Essoldo Cinema and many more that make up Stretford as we know it. Changes, however, can sometimes be good for us. Will it be good this time? From Mr. Neville’s point of view, these changes are to bring life, positivity and a modern vibe to Stretford. “More people in Stretford means more business for the local shops”.

Stretford Leisure Centre is to be renewed and have more options to it, not only for students but for the whole community to use. A part of Stretford Mall is to be turned into a student block where they will be able to live and most importantly, right across from our lovely school, the University is to be built. How will this affect us? Our school? These were questions floating around our minds. On the other hand many people from Stretford believe UA92 is a catastrophic idea and it will only influence us in a bad way. Who is right?

Striking off another question a student asked about the studies and subjects that will be at the University. This turned out to be Business, Media and Sport. Gary Neville revealed to us that maybe it does not seem like a lot of subjects but it is expanding within the subjects. He added that he wants to make sure the teachers give you the right support and that he wants the experience to feel professional but friendly and fun. If you are going to this university Mr. Neville will make sure that you get the right job after it so you are using the skills you have gained and not be something irrelevant that you don’t achieve anything in. The environment he wants the university to be is somewhere where you can excel to the maximum of your ability surrounded with local and international students. It is to be a life changing experience.

Towards the end of the questioning a very important and needed question was asked, “How much will the university cost?” I believe the answer to this was very generous of Mr. Neville. He said he doesn’t want us to pay as much. We are all aware of the fact that higher education is expensive which, I believe is simply idiotic because we have to pay for knowledge but that is a whole other topic to talk about. Neville said this, “We are aware of the fact it is hard to pay for university and we want to make it easier by decreasing the amount paid and giving student loans. The student will only have to pay when actually attending a job and being able to pay for themselves.” He also spoke about putting lots of extra experiences into the degree, thereby making it better value for money. One of his ideas

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was to offer two year degrees instead of three year degrees so that you wouldn’t have to borrow so much money. I believe it is a very good idea because not everyone has money not only for education but for actual survival. Also, how are they going to get any money without education and a job? They won’t. Overall, the Year 8 students and I were thrilled to hear this.

To conclude, listening about UA92 and Mr. Neville’s views on the changes that will happen in our local community was an amazing experience. It allowed us to see how little things may have an impact on communities and the ideas behind all of the project. What are your views on the project of UA92? Don’t forget to join in the local debate. Everybody's views matter!

Oliwia Felinska. (8T/JED)

Mayor of Manchester with City Year

On Thursday 1st February, had the pleasure of hosting the Mayor of , Andy Burnham, and the Leader of Trafford Council, Sean Anstee, for a visit to see the school’s City Year team in action.

The visit involved having a sit down Q&A with some pupils and the mentors so they could gain more understanding of what impact City Year has in the school. As well as dropping into a Year 11 Geography lesson which was focussing upon the growth of Manchester, where the students were able to put both of our visitors on the spot by asking them to give their take on what needs to be developed to enable growth across Greater Manchester. All involved did a fantastic job representing the school and both Andy and Sean left inspired by what they saw during their visit. Thank you to all of the pupils and staff that supported both on the day and on the lead up to the visit.

Mr. Freeman

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World Book Day

World Book Day was an amazing day for me since it turned out better than I thought it would.

Many teachers dressed up in different costumes. I could NOT believe that they put so much effort into their costumes, for example we had a Miss Trunchbull and a Matilda. We had a Mr Bump and a Sherlock Holmes. We had a Paddington giving out Marmalade sandwiches. So there was a variety of characters walking around that day. Personally, it was really exciting to guess what the teachers were dressed as.

At break time, we all gathered in the library, talking about our favourite characters from our favourite books. We had time to read our books and eat some biscuits. It was a very sweet and lovely event to be at.

That wasn’t the end of it. After school we had a ghost writing competition and a book mark competition. The ghost story writing was to make a story about ghosts. We could either pick a story line or create our own. I made one from the ghost’s point of view; it really got me thinking about what to write and to structure it. The National Book Token competition was all about being arty and creative. It was excellent to see the amount of entries and what they drew. We also got to do some origami book marks which was complicated but practice makes perfect.

In the end that was one of the most exceptional days I have ever had.

Aisha Mukadam (9T/KPI)

Year 10 Football

The students in the picture represented our school in the quarter finals of the Trafford Schools Cup against St Antony’s.

Even though they lost the game 5-3; Mr Fielding, who attended the fixture, was extremely complimentary to the students and the way in which they showcased us! Like all our students representing our school, they did us proud!

Goal scorers were Mohammed Riaz, Suleiman Hassen, and Sulaiman Nadeem

Mrs. Robinson

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Year 8 Football

A huge well done to the following students for representing our school in the home fixture against North Cestrian Grammar School.

The students played amazingly against a physically bigger side. The level of skill and effort from our students was brilliant to watch and they all listened intently to any feedback I was giving them.

Even though the end result did not go our way, the entire team showed what SHS is all about. Well done.

The goals were scored by Dovonte Sutton-Reid and Jaheim Nelson. The team who did us proud are Dovonte Sutton-Reid, Jahiem Nelson, Ryan Crook, Romaan Horne, Luke Bingham, Hashim Hussain, Dana Murray, Remi Harrison, Amir Sama, Baseer Ahmed, Umer Butt, Sunil Singh, Sukdhev Singh, Raphy Thomas. A big thank you also to Haamiz (Year 11) for refereeing! He did a brilliant job!

Mr. Fielding

Champion of Trafford!

The Year 10 and 11 basketball team attended Altrincham Boys Grammar School to play in the final of the Trafford League, facing a very tall, well-structured, Alty Boys team.

The team was chasing the lead all game and with 4 minutes to go, they were 9 points down. At this point, they could have given up. They could have admitted defeat. But that's not the Stretford Way. They dug in, pushed themselves and won the game by 1!

The boys involved in this team are something to aspire towards. They commit to training EVERY week, work together and work hard! And that is why they are Champions.

Well done team! The following students all played a part in getting to and winning the final. Harris Hamed, Ire Soyemi, Bavneet Singh, Kyas James, Muhommed Chunara, Hasnain Ahmed, Sunny Singh, Bayram Sonmez, Khalid Azeemi, Nathanael McPherson, Tom Challenor, Sulaiman Nadeem, Mohammed Latif, Ryan Valente, Mohamed Alarakhia, Syed Shah, Ceejay Hanson. We are Trafford Basketball Champions!

Mrs. Robinson

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“Rome”ing around

On Friday 9th March Manchester Airport witnessed a gathering of Stretford High School staff, students and parents at 6am. We may have been sleepy but everyone was excited as we were due to depart on the 10th Annual Rome trip for Year 7 students. We cleared customs, passport control and security in record time (giving us more time than usual to browse the airport shops that are located flight side). The flight took off right on time and we enjoyed the superb views of the Italian Alps outside the window en route to Rome.

Upon landing we took the Leonardo Express train to Termini in the centre of Rome. After checking in at the Youth Station Hostel we set off walking through the historic centre of this beautiful city. First stop was a Pizza restaurant where the students were introduced to thin and crispy “Roman style” pizza. We always eat well on the Rome trip and this year was no exception. Indeed, if it wasn’t for the fact that we walk about 24000 steps a day I would seriously put weight on from this weekend alone. Once we were full we took in the sights. The Trevi Fountain was as beautiful (and busy) as always (we stopped to throw a coin in the fountain, as custom dictates). From there we moved on to my favourite building in the world, the 2000 year old Pantheon (the oldest dome building in the world). Finally (for Friday) we stopped in the Piazza Navona for a gelato ice cream. The students enjoyed bartering with the street traders and just watching Rome life in the evening (many people come out to parade up and down on a Friday night). Everyone was pretty exhausted by this point so we turned in for the night.

Saturday started with breakfast at the Garden Cafe (served by Vincenzo and Alyseo, who have been making us breakfast for 10 years now). We spent Saturday morning at the ancient Roman ghost town of Ostia Antica. This year the students were especially excited to see a real snake resting in the ruins. All those years of warning students about the snakes when we never saw any and this year we finally saw one. Fortunately the snake was more interested in having a nap than in anything that we had. After Ostia we travelled back into the centre of Rome for a walk around the inside of the Coliseum. This structure is truly amazing. It’s hard to believe that it was still all complete until about 500 years ago. Then, because no-one was using it, somebody had the bright idea of using the bricks as building materials. From that point on if anybody wanted bricks in Rome they just went to the Coliseum and took what they wanted - a bit like at B and Q! This is a real shame because if the building had still been complete it would still be a viable location for events rather than a derelict historical site. Saturday was rounded off with the annual race to the top of the Spanish Steps. I know I’m getting old because, even though I cheated as normal, this time I came in third. A sad day indeed!

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On Sunday we battled through the crowds into the Vatican in order to hear the Pope’s Sunday speech at midday. This is still a thrill (even though I can’t understand Italian!). Just being present at such a special event is enough, you get a real buzz from the crowd. Once the Pope had finished speaking then St Peter’s Square cleared very quickly. We had brought a picnic with us and it was glorious to sit in the middle of the square on a sunny day soaking up the sun and eating fabulous fresh food. After dinner we looked around the majesty of St Peter’s in the Vatican. Once we had picked our jaws up from the floor we split into two groups. One group went souvenir shopping in the Vatican with Ms Howarth and Mr Cooke. The other group took the 551 steps up to the top of St. Peter’s basilica with Ms Latham and I. This is a gruelling physical challenge but our students managed to complete this easily and were rewarded with the best view in Rome from the top. There is nothing like looking at a 360 degree panoramic view of Rome from the top of St Peter’s on a still Sunday evening. It is very special. Once we had come back down we all went souvenir shopping before lunch (where we celebrated Leah’s 12th birthday in true style!). The evening was capped off with another gelato ice cream before bed in the hostel.

On Monday we experienced the usual crazy race through Rome to the airport in order to catch the plane home. It was an excellent trip this year. Our students were a credit to the school and I hope that they all enjoyed the trip and got some special memories from it.

Mr. Hirst

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Disneyland Paris

Students from Year 9 and 10 spent their half term at Disneyland Paris. Whilst there, students attended seminars and completed workshops to enhance their knowledge of GCSE Science (they may have had a little bit of fun on the rides too).

Staff from Disney commented on the wonderful behaviour and attitude of our students. They also noted how confident our students were when contributing to scientific discussions. Students were excellent ambassadors of Stretford High and gained a lot from the experience.

Mr. Moloney

Question Time at Stretford High School…with Jeremy Corbyn

On Thursday 22nd March the Labour Party launched their National Campaign for the Local Elections in Trafford. There are not many venues in Trafford that can accommodate about 800 people and so this is why Stretford High School was chosen as the venue for this prestigious event. The campaign launch seemed to go very smoothly in the morning and the main event for the cameras was all over by about 11.30am.

Meanwhile, over in the main body of the school, we were getting ready for a very special event. The email from Jeremy Corbyn’s office a week before had been very clear. He wanted to do a question and answer session with a group of about 25 to 30 students between 1.30 and 2pm. Our students in Year 9 study politics at Stretford High School. They had recently completed their politics Learning Logs and many in the year group had been on the annual trip to the Houses of Parliament in London (hosted by our very own Kate Green MP). Therefore, we decided that the group should consist mostly of Year 9 students but we also included some Year 8 students from an English class who had been studying journalistic writing techniques.

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About an hour before Jeremy Corbyn was due to appear the room that we had selected (my room!) was ready. His office had asked for all the desks to be removed and for our students to be sat on chairs in a circle (which is the best format for a Q and A session). Once we had done this we were visited by Jeremy Corbyn’s PR team and it was fascinating watching them in action, choosing where he should sit in the room (they were looking at the posters on my wall trying to spot what might be seen as controversial in photographs. For instance, they didn’t want to put him in front of my Manchester United display because he is an Arsenal fan!). Once a suitable spot was selected (for the record, it was directly under the Tony Walsh poem about Manchester which had been painted into a heart!) a cushion was placed as a marker on the chair so that it could be left empty for when he arrived.

At 1.25pm all of the students who had been selected arrived. I’ve worked at Stretford High School since 2005 and we have had loads of amazing guests in that time (Sir Bobby Charlton, Denis Law, Wilf McGuinness, Paddy Crerand, Patrick Viera, Lemn Sissay, Ian McShane, Ian McMillan, Caroline Lawrence, Dickie Bird…the list goes on and on) but I have never seen so many students as excited as this. For some reason Jeremy Corbyn speaks to young people and they listen. All morning I had been hearing the odd outbreak of “Oh Jeremy Corbyn!” on the corridors. Now that he was actually about to make his entrance you could tell that students were nervous. They had been told about a week beforehand that he was coming in (we wrote to the relevant parents because they needed to give their permission for photographs to be taken). In that time I had been encouraging them to watch the news and to compose at least a couple of killer questions. After all, how often in life do you get to actually do something like this?

I was outside my room waiting to greet him when what looked like a rugby scrum appeared at the bottom of the corridor. The corridor lit up with flash bulbs exploding everywhere. Photographers walking backwards managed to completely push me out of the doorway and I had to squeeze down the side of them in order to welcome him to the class. This was my moment to say something and what did I choose to speak about? The recent transfer of Alexi Sanchez from Arsenal to Manchester United! I’m rubbish at seizing my moment!

Once inside the class he was wonderful with our students and they were hanging on every word that he said. The first question was regarding student fees (followed up quickly with one on apprenticeships). Jeremy Corbyn confirmed that he would abolish University fees (to huge cheers from the room!) and that he would expand the apprenticeship programme. He confirmed that he intended to pay for this by increasing the rate of tax for the top earners in society.

The next question he faced was regarding politicians not keeping promises (an excellent question). Our students asked that if he were to come to power what would their lives look like in ten years’ time?

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Mr Corbyn said that politicians do actually change lives all the time and he used the example of the Labour Partly setting up the NHS as an example. It was interesting that in his answer he focused very much on how a Labour government under him would prioritise the environment. He mentioned legislation regarding single use plastics as an example.

These opening questions were followed up with one about how he responded to all the negative press he received (he said it didn’t bother him but he was upset when it was about his family. He mentioned that his wife was Mexican and that the British press had flown out to Mexico in order to door step his in laws to get a story). The next question was about how staff in the NHS and schools were being overworked and under staffed. He agreed and said that staffing in the Public sector was a priority he intended to address straight away if he were to become Prime Minister. A follow up question mentioned the “Northern Powerhouse” and what Labour would do about that. Mr Corbyn admitted that the government had gone very quiet on the “Northern Powerhouse” since the election. He said that he would be increasing investment all around the country, not just the North, in order to stimulate growth and get Britain manufacturing and innovating products.

A Brexit question came next and he answered this as well as anyone can at the moment. He mentioned links within European education and how he wanted to keep the ERASMUS exchange programme as an option for British University students. Finally, he left us with a thought…”Whatever you get from education, give back double!”

With that he got a rousing round of applause before posing for a number of photographs with the group. He signed a few photographs and then the person with the hardest job in politics (that is his PR person, a lady whose name I didn’t catch but she had black hair and a red jacket. It is her job to get Jeremy Corbyn to stick to his schedule!) practically bundled him out of the room and off to his next engagement. We all, teachers and students, just stood there looking at each other for a moment before collectively saying, “Did that just actually happen?” It was such a privilege to spend 30 minutes in the company of Jeremy Corbyn and I’m very proud that our students asked such amazing questions and that they had made the most of the experience that had been given to them.

Mr. Hirst

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory School Production

After months of after school rehearsals, prop making sessions and costume fittings, students in Drama Club performed this year’s School Production 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' on the 30th and 31st of January.

Both evening performances were well received by the audience made up of family and friends to the school, with some students playing more than one character in the cast. Many thanks to all staff involved in putting on the production and all students who committed to the lengthy process of rehearsing and performing in such a humorous play!

Miss. Crabtree, Miss. Ellis, Ms. Shelmerdine and Miss. Murton

Hootenanny

Students wowed the audience with an eclectic mix of music and musical genres overt the holiday. Singers, pianists, drummers and the school band all came together to celebrate their hard work and achievements in 2017's Hootenanny.

Mr. Woolham

Hospitality Events

GCSE Hospitality was introduced as a qualification in Stretford High School in 2016 to encourage and facilitate KS4 students to achieve a GCSE in food. It combines a wide variety of practical cookery skills with events organisation and planning. The course is made up of 60% coursework and 40% examination and placed a lot of emphasis on students working together as a team to research, plan and host an event of their choice for a minimum of 10 guests.

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To date, we have held four very successful and varied events. The themes have included; Chinese New Year, Hollywood, Miami and most recently, Moroccan cuisine. To prepare for an event, the students begin at 9am and do not finish their ‘shift’ until 6pm! They are fully kitted out in chef’s whites and each have a particular job for the day, ranging from Head Chef to Restaurant Manager.

Prior to the event day, students work together to decide on the theme, location, guest list, decorations, menu and invitations. They must pay very close attention to detail in order to successfully design and create everything, including a restaurant sign, place cards, comments cards and room/table layouts.

Students also carry out risk assessments and analyse any hazards, which could occur during the day and they all must pass their basic food and hygiene examination before being allowed to take part in an event. Teamwork is essential to the success of the day and our students have shown that they are more than capable of this.

During the planning of the events, the students set themselves difficult targets by choosing dishes that require high level skills and creating a set menu with a wide variety of choices. Some of the dishes that the students have made include; Steak with Peppercorn or Diane sauce, Mozzarella Bites, Mississippi Mud Pie, Moroccan Spiced Pie and Meringue. In all of our events so far, students have chosen to invite members of staff to enjoy a three course meal. The staff have always given very positive feedback about their experience, which has really served to build the students’ confidence and even inspired some to pursue a career in this industry!

The event day gives students a real insight into what it is like to work in a restaurant kitchen and gives them an opportunity to work independently and demonstrate the many skills that they have learnt in food lessons. It teaches them that organisation is key in a hospitality environment and shows them how it feels to work under a great deal of pressure. Our students have shown real professionalism and maturity in the execution of these events and have greatly benefitted from this type of assessment.

Well done Year 11 Hospitality students for all your hard work.

Miss. Edwards

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