Celebrating Success at the Principal's Garden Party

Newsletter: Issue 6 End of School Year Summer 2017 Celebrating Success at the Principal’s Garden Party

From the Mayor of Bideford to the Chair of Governors, hundreds arrived at the Devon Hall on the 20th July for the Princi- pal’s Garden Party to celebrate a year of students’ outstanding achievements. It was a wonderful way to finish the year. Guests enjoyed delicious canapés and were able to watch students perform throughout the evening; whether it was the BideBelles, or the Sixth Form Folk Band everyone was entertained—the evening showcased much of Bideford College’s outstanding talent. During the evening certificates were presented by Heads of House to the students who really had gone above and beyond throughout 2016-17 at Bideford College. Mrs Kane had the pleasure of again congratulating our new House Captains and awarding certificates. Our new Houses Leaders were also presented with their leaders badges which they will wear on their blazers with pride.

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 2 Lyndsey Kane - Principal

I cannot quite believe that we are at the end of the 2016-2017 academic year. What a year we have had - as you will have seen from the contents of our Newsletters this year. One of the most important aspects of our work at Bideford College is ensuring that every young person who attends is happy, responsible and successful. We are continually working hard to ensure that every second counts and that all lessons are exciting, engaging and contribute to your son or daughter’s future success. We want all of our students to be the very best that they can be and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the teachers, parents and magnificent students of Bideford College for all of their hard work, determination and enthusiasm this year. The progress we have all made towards improving the College is immense and we will continue on this journey in September. I hope you will enjoy reading about all of the fantastic successes, events and experiences of the students at Bideford College in the final Newsletter of the year. Thank you to all of those who have provided articles for it. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy, relaxing and safe summer holiday and I very much look forward to welcoming all of our students back on Tuesday 5th September.

Lyndsey End of year House Cup winner…. Arthur!

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 3 After 29 years, we say good-bye to the inimitable Mrs Langford

It is with much sadness that we say good-bye to our wonderful Head of P.E Shirley Langford. Mrs Langford has inspired thousands of young people (and adults!) in her 29 years here at Bideford College. I don’t believe there is anyone who doesn’t have a fond or humorous recollection of time spent being taught by her.

Her tireless enthusiasm and positive influence has changed many lives. We wish her all the very best that life has to offer in her retirement.

To form a lasting legacy we thought it only fit that the annual sports day cup should be renamed The Langford Cup.

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College Car Parking Policy

Our College site has a limited number of parking spaces. There are not enough spaces for the volume of traffic that comes on to site at the end of the school day. The safety and welfare of our students is our number one priority, and it has been noted that dangerous and inconsiderate parking is putting student safety at risk.

Please note the following:

 Only parents’ or carers with a blue badge can park in the clearly marked disa- bled parking bays.

 Strictly NO double parking

 No parking on the double yellow lines

 Drive slowly

 No parking in the bus bays at any time

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Uniform Shop

Our uniform suppliers will be in college between 3pm - 6pm on the following dates:

Thursday 17 August Monday 21 August Wednesday 23 August Thursday 24 August Wednesday 30 August Thursday 31 August

Please be aware that only cash or cheque payments made out to In Stitches can be accepted

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Summer Safety poster designed by Daria Acatrinei and Megan Athey

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 9 The importance of sleep For teens and pre-teens

The Importance of Sleep Following on from a recent student voice activity, we, as a college are concerned about the amount of sleep some of our students are getting, or not as the case may be. Some claim that they are still awake in the early hours of the morning when everyone else in their homes are fast asleep. Many are on gadgets playing games, watching YouTube, communicating with other awake teens on social media or watching TV. They are too exhausted to attend school the following day and look genuinely poorly due to this lack of sleep and so parents phone into college and inform us that their children are too unwell for school. Sleep is food for the brain. During sleep, important body functions and brain activity occur. Skipping sleep can be harmful. It is vital to your mental health and well-being, as important as the air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat. It can even help you to eat better and manage the stress of being a teen. Biological sleep patterns shift toward later times for both sleeping and waking during adolescence -- meaning it is natural to not be able to fall asleep before 11:00 pm. However, teenagers need between 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night to function best. Most teenagers do not get enough sleep and it is having a huge impact on their attendance and attainment. Teenagers tend to have irregular sleep patterns across the week — they typically stay up late and sleep in late on the weekends, which can affect their biological clocks and hurt the quality of their sleep. Some teenagers do suffer from treatable sleep disorders, such as narcolepsy, insomnia, restless legs syndrome or sleep apnea and we would encourage you to consult a doctor if you think that this is the case. CONSEQUENCES: Not getting enough sleep or having sleep difficulties can:  Limit your ability to learn, listen, concentrate and solve problems. You may even forget important information like names, numbers, your homework or a date with a special person in your life  Make you more prone to pimples. Lack of sleep can contribute to acne and other skin problems  Lead to aggressive or inappropriate behaviour such as yelling at your friends or being impatient with your teachers or family members  Cause you to eat too much or eat unhealthy foods like sweets and fried foods that lead to weight gain and low self- esteem. This can also make you more prone to having spots. Lack of sleep can contribute to acne and other skin problems. Top ten tips for improving sleep patterns 1. Make sleep a priority. 2. Make your room a sleep haven. Keep it cool, quiet and dark. If you need to, get eyeshades or blackout curtains. Let in bright light in the morning to signal your body to wake up. 3. No pills, vitamins or drinks can replace good sleep. Consuming caffeine close to bedtime can hurt your sleep, so avoid coffee, tea, fizzy drinks and chocolate late in the day so you can get to sleep at night. Nicotine will also interfere with your sleep. 4. Establish a bed and wake-time and stick to it, coming as close as you can at the weekends. A consistent sleep schedule will help you feel less tired since it allows your body to get in sync with its natural patterns. You will find that it’s easier to fall asleep at bedtime with this type of routine. 5. Don’t eat, drink, or exercise within a few hours of your bedtime. Don’t leave your homework for the last minute. Try to avoid the TV, computer and telephone in the hour before you go to bed. Stick to quiet, calm activities, and you’ll fall asleep much more easily! 6. Get an alarm clock and leave your phone and any other digital gadgets downstairs. The wavelength of light given off by these devices will interfere with your sleep. You may also be tempted to keep checking them meaning you will never get into the deep sleep cycle your body needs. 7. If you do the same things every night before you go to sleep, you teach your body the signals that it’s time for bed. Try taking a bath or shower (this will leave you extra time in the morning), or reading a book. 8. Try keeping a diary or to-do list. If you jot notes down before you go to sleep, you’ll be less likely to stay awake worrying or stressing. 9. When you hear your friends talking about their all-nighters, tell them how good you feel after getting enough sleep. Most teenagers experience changes in their sleep schedules. Their internal body clocks can cause them to fall asleep and wake up later. You can’t change this, but you can participate in interactive activities to help counteract your sleepiness. Make sure your activities at night are calming to counteract your already heightened alertness.

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 10 New Snapchat feature Snap Map raises safeguarding and security concerns

This location-based map allows users to see where in the country their Snapchat contacts are, as well as seeing location based photos and videos. The Snap Map shows a user’s Bitmoji, their cartoon avatar within Snapchat, pinpointed on a world map. Users can then zoom into the map to see the exact location of their friends.

How to access Snap Maps To access the Snap Map in the latest update of the Snapchat app, users need to go to their camera screen within Snapchat and zoom out using two fingers. This will then launch the Snap Maps screen and will allow a user to see their friend’s locations. Choose who can see your location It is important to be careful about who you share your location with, as it can allow people to build up a picture of where you live, go to school and spend your time. Given how specific this new feature is on Snapchat - giving your location to a precise pinpoint on a map - we would encourage users not to share their location, especially with people they do not know in person. There are three settings for sharing your location on the map, these are; Ghost mode, My Friends, and Select Friends. But what do these settings mean?  Ghost Mode Ghost Mode means that you are the only person who can see your location on the map. Within Ghost Mode you can still see the locations of your friends but they will be unable to see you. This setting will ensure that you have complete control over who knows your location.  My Friends My Friends means that all of your contacts on Snapchat can see your location. If turning on this setting then it would be important for users to review their Snapchat contacts and also make sure that they never add someone they don’t know in person onto Snapchat.  Select Friends This setting allows users to look through their friend list and then decide which of their friends they want to be able to view their location. This setting gives users the opportunity to control who can view their location. Changing settings When first opening the Snap Map users get to make a decision of who they want to be able to view their location. Once these settings are in place they can always be changed in Snapchat’s settings. This can be done in two ways: 1. In the Snapchat settings In the Snapchat screen click on the Settings (cog) icon> click on ‘see my location’ > Choose the setting which suits you 2. On the Snap Map Click on the setting button in the top right of the map > choose the setting which suitsyou Our top tips: Sharing location can be a risky thing to do. Our tips for location sharing are:  Only share your location with people you know in person. Never share your location with strangers.  Don’t add contacts to Snapchat if you don’t know them in person.  Regularly review your settings and take an active decision about whether you want people to know your location. Remember you can switch this off at any time. Think about where you’re sharing your location. Location services such as Snap Maps can lead people to your house. Think about what times you’re on the app and whether these are locations you want to share – if not, then turn this off within your settings.

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Regular attendance at school is vital to help children achieve and get the best possible start in life. Encouraging regular school attendance is one of the most powerful ways you can prepare your child for success—both in school and in life.

Please support the college in its ethos that every lesson counts by ensuring that medical and dental appointments are made outside of school hours where possible and where not provide evidence that students have been attending such appointments. From September we will be asking for appointment cards or letters following on from medical appointments for our attendance records.

Also from September, we ask that whenever possible, known absences are communicated to the college via an absence request form at least two weeks in advance of the absence. These forms can be downloaded from the website or collected from reception.

When students are ill and unable to attend college please ensure that this is reported on the school absence number before 9.30am; and always ask yourself, do you really need the whole day off?

The new Attendance Officer, Mr Roger Bonaparte, has been working with many students to improve their attendance over the last half term and there have been many success stories. However, too many students are still absent on too many days and there are a number of students who are identified as persistently absent. There are exceptions where we know and understand the reasons behind the absence but there are many students who do not have good enough reasons for not attending college.

We have developed a robust attendance monitoring system which will go live in September– the details of which are below;-

If a student’s attendance falls below 95% the Attendance Officer will alert the tutor and communicate home via letter. There will be a follow up communication from the tutor and the student’s attendance will be monitored closely for two weeks.

If a student’s attendance falls below 92% the Attendance Officer will inform the parents and invite them in for a meeting with their child to discuss the issues surrounding attendance and put in place interventions and strategies in order for attendance to improve.

If a student’s attendance falls below 90% the Attendance Officer will alert the Head of Houseo wh will invite parents and the student to a meeting to discuss the barriers to attending college and put in further interventions to support the student to attend college more regularly. Parents at this stage will receive a third attendance letter.

If attendance continues to stay below 90% a Penalty Notice warning letter will be sent home to parents. Parent’s and the student will be invited to a meeting with Mrs Jewell or Mrs Vowles to see if anything additional can be put in place to support an improvement in the student’s attendance.

If attendance improves at this stage no further action will be taken but the student’s attendance will be monitored closely. If attendance still does not improve all documentation will be sent to Devon County Council who will issue a Pen- alty Notice and take over proceedings from that point. The fine associated with the penalty notice is currently £60 per child. All of this money is taken by Devon County Council. No money comes to Bideford College or the Multi Academy Trust.

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At Bideford College we are always reviewing ways in which to support our students so that they can be their best and achieve their true potential. We have been looking at how we can make our pastoral system more effective in identifying the barriers to students’ success and then facilitating strategies and interventions to address these problems and find both immediate and long-term solutions. We have also been looking at how we can increase the support we give to parents and families when challenging situa- tions arise by working with a range of multi agencies who have different foci.

To this end we have developed a new pastoral system whereby staff who were previously linked to a Head of House in a Home School Liaison Officer (HSLO) capacity are now redeployed in different areas of the college to ensure an even more effective pastoral system. Should parents wish to contact college regarding a pastoral issue they must contact reception in the first instance where you will be advised of the appropriate person who will deal with your enquiry.

From September there will be a pastoral office staffed by Mrs Julie Eastman and Mrs Sandra Ohlson. This will be the first port of call for any student who requires pastoral support which cannot be provided by the tutor or the Head of House. The student may then be signposted to other places where that support can be given.

There will also be a Student Support Centre (SSC) where students experiencing difficulties with certain aspects of college may spend some time. Students will receive support from Mr Shaun McNulty and Mrs Loraine Staddon. The aim of the centre will be to provide short-term support for students as well as keeping them up to date with their learning.

We will also be establishing a pastoral link at the Off Site Centre (OSC). We feel that expertise in the pastoral aspect of the students’ welfare is key in ensuring that the OSC is a short-term strategy where students can reflect on ways to meet the expectations on the Bideford College main site. This may require support from external agencies but with early identification, timely referrals and appropriate signposting we are hopeful this will make a difference to the students who find themselves being educated there. Mrs Marilyn Trott will be working with Mr Boyne at the Off Site Centre.

The Internal Exclusion Room (IER) will remain as it is, staffed by Mr Gary Jewell.

There will also be a more robust student monitoring system and students failing to meet college expectations may be placed on report. A green report card will be monitored by tutors and students will be placed on this for punctuality, lateness, lack of homework or other persistent minor concerns. A student being placed on an amber report card, monitored by the Head of House, will be the result of multiple vis- its to the IER, failure to succeed on green report and other serious concerns that staff may have. A red report card will be monitored by Mrs Jewell or Mrs Vowles and will be for students returning from the OSC or an exclusion or students who have not been successful on amber report.

All reports will need to be signed daily by the member of staff who has put the student on report. The report must also be signed by parents. Reports are for two weeks. If students are successful they work down through the colours, if unsuccessful in meeting their targets they will work up through the colours.

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 13 Get Set for Bideford Year 5 takeover!

Every year, Year 5 students from primary schools across Bideford and surrounding areas take part in our early transition support sessions ‘Get Set For Bideford’. The students enjoy taster lessons which are fun, and informa- tive. These sessions help students to form new friendships, reduces transition anxiety and help students and families make an informed choice on their choice of secondary school.

This year our Get Set Media students documented the process and produced a newsletter. Here we have excerpts from this years’ students and the newsletter they produced.

The Get Set Media Team “Welcome to Bideford College, this is a place where children learn new things. It has been a dream of mine to come here and take advantage of my brain and master some skills. Get Set For Bideford helps you achieve this goal and has definitely assisted me on this journey through this heavenly college. Today I am writing this article on the 26/6/17 and this newspaper tells you what we get up to every week on a Monday afternoon at 3:30-5:30 with a whole two hours of computing at the library’s station! We get up to a load of things such as computing, art, music, media studies and science.” ~ Charlotte

“I think that Get Set for Bideford is a great idea because it gives us the chance to get a heads up on choosing the College. We get “In Science they are experimenting with the Bunsen to meet the teachers because you could be in their classes some burner; this student is testing chemical reactions. “~ time” Holly Pearce

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 14 Arthur House News

As the first year of the House system draws to a close, I feel there is a real sense of belonging developing amongst those students who are in House Arthur. This was clearly evident at Sports Day where the silver (grey) t-shirts were out en masse and the team spirit was superb as we cheered on those students representing our House.

There were some excellent performances from Arthur students; notably Martha Andrews being named Sports Day champion for Year 8 and the Year 10 boy’s relay team (Ollie Andrews, Tom Picillo, Curtis Wilford, Igor Su- choki) not only winning, but breaking the school record in 4x100m. Overall we placed fourth in a very tight event where only fifty points separated all five houses. The last two weeks has seen us roll the timetable so students have been working through their new timetables for the following year. This is a tremendous opportunity for all our students to make sure they are ready to hit the ground running on the first day back in September, all the usual teething problems will have been ironed out and we can really focus on both teaching and learning and looking for every student to make as much progress as possible next year. With five and a bit weeks to yourselves make sure you make the most of the time available to you. We live in a beautiful part of the country and don’t take it for granted; go on bike rides, go swimming, go to the beach, meet up with your friends down the park, have bbqs, spend time with your family, have fun. Don’t sit indoors on social media and games consoles; there are plenty of dark winter nights looming around the corner to do that!

Have a great summer Mr Skinner Head of Arthur House

Hello, I am Lydia Bray-Smith, House Arthurs new Journalist/Photographer.

Taking on this role has changed my responsibilities here at Bideford College. Although it is the end of the academic year, there have been a lot of new changes. We held our first House Sports Day and introduced the Year 6s to Bideford College.

One of my favourite parts of this role was helping out at Transition Days where the Year 6s explored Bideford Col- lege as Year 7s. During these two days, they met with their new tutors and tutor groups, and also got to experience some of the College life.

On the first day, they were introduced to their tutors and had fun taking part in team building exercises. On the second day, they got to experience some of the lessons and met with some teachers. In their tutor groups, they also did some orienteering where they got to navigate their way around the school to find letters. It was an action packed, fun-filled two days and I am sure they can’t wait to start in September.

Bideford College held its first House Sports Day and it was a great success and luckily the weather was on our side! It was a great atmosphere within Arthur House as most of the students turned out in their new silver t-shirts to support our competitors. Although we didn’t win it this year, everyone tried their hardest and supported one another.

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Wow! What a way to end the College year! Sports day was a great success and a real bonding moment for Bru- nel - it was fabulous to see the house come together and work as one to produce some outstanding results. For the House Captains, Erin and Jack, and for our Sports leader Charlie it was a busy but productive day. It was also the real start for our new house leaders and Lola Olde (journalist) was working hard with Aimee Williams to produce the report and photos below.

We also welcome Molly Munro as our Competition leader, Holly Burrow-Bryan as Social leader and Megan Hare as Charity leader. We have big plans for next year!

Sadly, we are saying goodbye to Mrs Twyble who has been co-Head of House this year as she moves on to work in the Sixth form, but we are excited by the transfer of Mr Nias into Brunel to job share the role of Head of House with Mrs Bourke from September. Mrs Jones is retiring to follow her heart and do many interesting things. We are also losing Mrs O'Donnell as a Brunel tutor and thank her for her time with Brunel's Year 11. Mr Henshall is also moving on, and we thank him and wish him well.

Mrs Bourke.

Sports Day, written by Lola Olde

Bideford College's Sports Day was blessed with good weather and competitive houses showing support for their athletes.

Brunel came together and produced a lovely outcome of 2nd. Students from Brunel said, 'I was supported by my friends and Brunel to do my best'. This shows us what a friendly and supportive community Brunel is. We cer- tainly had colours of gold, silver and bronze floating about throughout Brunel with a huge array of talented students representing Brunel.

A few people showing their ability were Zoe Cross and Koby Dymond who both won their 300m races. Koby said afterwards 'I didn't find it very hard but I was nervous beforehand'. Other successes included Finn Davies winning bronze in the 1500m who was very happy as it was his first medal and Flynn Jennings winning gold in the same event and the 200m for Y 9.

At Sports Day Brunel showed their talent and effort. It was also a sad day as it was Mrs Langford's last Sports Day. Brunel would like to thank Mrs Langford for all her hard work and effort she put in for 29 years and so Bideford College have named the Sports Day House Cut the 'Langford Cup'.

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This has been another brilliant half-term at Bideford College, with the students in Coleridge House yet again wowing me with their attitude and commitment to school. The highlight was undoubtedly Sports Day where it was really enjoyable to see the excitement and enthusiasm of all the students in competing for, and supporting Coleridge. I must mention how proud I was of the Year 7 students who scored more points than all the other Year 7s in the five Houses!

Since I last wrote in the College newsletter, Mrs Kane and I have been busy appointing a new House Leadership team to work alongside Chandler and Lauren, the Coleridge House Captains. This has been another really enjoyable process and it was extremely hard to appoint just one students to each post. After much deliberation we finally appointed the leaders below. Congratulations to all! The field of Coleridge students was so strong that Mrs Kane has decided to create other student leadership posts within the school, to ensure that these students are involved in moving the school forward. As you know, my main focus as Head of Coleridge is academic achievement and I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the vast majority of students in Coleridge House who have made excellent progress this academic year and who are now proudly sitting on their target grades in many of their subjects. This success is a joint effort between the child, Bideford College and parents/carers so thank you for all the help and support you offer your child with their learning. I wish you all, parents/carers and students a restful holiday so that we can all come back in September ready to do it all again! Finally, it is with a heavy heart that I am writing this, my last newsletter article as Head of Coleridge. Next year Mr O’Dono- ghue, a highly experienced Head of House from our partner College in Launceston, will be taking the reigns as I have been asked to work with a different House. I would like to take this opportunity to firstly to say how sorry I am to no longer be working with the absolutely fantastic students in Coleridge House, and secondly to thank them for the commitment and enthusiasm that I have seen, and to parents and carers for the support that you have offered as we all work together to ensure that young people leaving Bideford College have the best possible outcomes in life. Mr Nias.

Sports Day 2017 On Wednesday 5th July, Bideford College held its first whole school Sports Day where Years 7 to 10, in all Houses, fought for the Langford Cup.

The commitment of students to cross the finish line in a top three place spread throughout all the Coleridge year groups as students unleashed their competitive spirit and partisan support at Moreton Park. The majority of the students proudly represented their Coleridge House by wearing a Gold (yellow!) t-shirt which showed their dedication to the House, even if they weren’t competing that day. The day ended with the relays and, with the Coleridge House area right on the finishing line, Mr Barnes, tutor of 8AB, whipped Coleridge House into a frenzy with his noisy chanting and cheer leading. This level of team spirit and support had not been seen at any previous sports day and our students all gave their absolute maxi- mum effort to secure as many points for Coleridge as possible.

Student Leadership Team for 2017-18

Competition Leader – Hannah Esau, Social Leader – Chloe Beer, Charity Leader – Chloe Hold, Sports Leaders – Sammy Stannard and Sam Wright, Journalist - Tamzin White

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Pictured: Jill & Eddie Farwell and their children It’s hard to believe, that just 12 months ago, we were still working as year teams and that the colours and names of the new houses were still being finalised. The way in which the students have bonded together to work and support each other cul- minated in a fantastic sports day, where everyone cheered and supported each other leading Farwell on to victory! The atmosphere was amazing and the students pushed on despite the soaring temperatures to clinch the cup by an impressive 17 points in front of second place Brunel. Justifiably, Farwell staff and students are very proud to have secured both the House cup and Sports day cup within the first year of introducing the House system. Everyone should be very proud of the work that they have done and the progress made throughout this year. This has been a foundation for us all to work on throughout the next academic year. Again, our main focus will be attendance and achievement.

Elsewhere in the Farwell news, you will see details of our new student leaders. These guys are highly enthusiastic and will be working with fellow Farwell students to ensure success next year. So finally, please enjoy the well-deserved summer holidays. Don’t forget to put on the sun cream and we will see students back at school on Tuesday 5th September.

Mr Gibbins.

First, I am your new journalist, but more about me in the next newsletter!, I will be informing you on what Bideford Col- lege and Farwell will be doing for the next year or so, (and hopefully longer! ) Your new competition leader is Emma Bro- mell, a friend of mine, she is in my tutor group and a keen learner. She is 14 and has a twin sister, she will be doing Dra- ma and Child Development for GCSE as she loves Drama and describes herself as confident, intelligent, likeable, and re- lentless; all of which are good features for a leader. She loves dogs and animals, like me so we are very similar! Your new Sports Leader is a girl named Mirran Weir, who is 15 years old. She is good at, and is into, sport, which is very handy if she is going to be the sports leader! Her favorite lessons are Maths and P.E. both of which bring out her confidence and her intelligence. She loves animals and has two dogs. Also joining, joining her is Harry Gale, another Sports Leader, whose confidence and intelligence reach nearly as high as him! He also has a great sense of humor, making him very approachable. Chloe Hewitt will be handling the social side of things, as she is the social leader, she loves Drama and is very confident, she describes herself as smart, which I think is a very apt description, both physically and mentally. She is in year 10. Finally, Rhys Wassall has joined the team. Being both clever and interested in many things makes him the perfect charity leader, with a brain filled with great ideas and plans for future events. He is into all things super; Iron Man, Captain America and so on, (I am a big fan of Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man myself!) With his wacky ideas will come some great opportunities to raise money for charity.

This hopefully sums up a little bit about us, and we will hopefully help to keep the cup! Your House Journalist—Fran du Cros

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News

It is nearly a year after starting the House system and there have been many high points . The Residential, the House Cap- tains and the success we have had in Competitions in particular have been superb and made me very proud. The sports day was awesome I have to say I was astounded and delighted to witness the athletic feats of some members of Hepworth. Students of particular note were: Cory Guppy Gold in the 100m, 200m - Year 9 Sports Champion Molly Harris Gold in 1500m, 800m and Shot - Year 9 Sports Champion The Gold and Record Breaking Year 9 Boy’s Relay Team of Jack Johns, Matt Sutton, Cory Guppy and Liam Stone.

The Principal's Garden Party had a huge turnout from Hepworth with Sylvia Wheeler, Cameron Randen, Nathan Colley, Billy Heard, Ellen Macdonald, Harry Croker, Molly Harris, Sam Popham, Matt Parkhouse, Tendai Marozwa being involved for excellent performance with their academic data, attendance data and general excellent attitude to their time at College. I am confident that we will use this year as a basis to launch forward to greater success in 2017-18 and I hope you have an enjoyable, relaxing summer. Best wishes and I look forward to seeing you all on September 5th.

Mr Cope

Sports day races by in a blur of sun and sport By Samantha Hinson

As we quickly approach the end of Summer 2 and the summer holidays, that one day filled with sport, celebration and plenty of Hockings ice cream has also come: Sports day. And on the 5th of July, staff and students alike gathered at Moreton Park, sun cream applied and hopes held high for the day ahead.

The day began with the whole school gathered outside, with almost everyone sporting a House themed T-shirt. Soon after, House by House, we made our way to Moreton Park. Once every house had been settled, the competition for the title of Sports day champion commenced.

For Hepworth, Sports day was success after success. Grace Synnott, one of our House Captains, came 1st in the 100m, Cory Guppy (Year 9) came 1st in the 100 and 200m, and Molly Harris (Year 9) won the 1500m, 800m, shotput and came 2nd in the girls relay, coming away with four medals. There were of course many other successes, ranging through Year 7 to Year 10.

Despite the sweltering heat, the level of motivation and enthusiasm stayed strong throughout, congratulating those who succeed- ed and cheering on the ones who didn’t quite make it to the top spots. The House system has had a definite impact on this. No matter who you were or what year you were in, there would be a huge group of people cheering you on and from my experience and that of others, there is nothing better when you are struggling or thinking of giving up, then to round the corner and hear a chorus of cheers and applause all for you. Everyone excelled in giving those competing in events the motivation they needed to continue and in some cases, go for the win.

The day soon came to a close, finishing with the teachers relay and the announcement that the Sports Day Cup will now be named the “Langford Cup”, after Mrs Langford who is sadly leaving the school after 29 years of teaching. Finally, the winner was an- nounced… However, Hepworth were not the champions this time, coming in third in front of Coleridge and Arthur, with Brunel taking second and Farwell taking first place.

Despite not becoming school champions, big congratulations to Cory Guppy who grabbed the Year 9 boys Sports Day champion award. No matter whether you competed in an event to win Hepworth vital points, or whether you stood on the side and cheered till your throat was sore, you played a crucial role in getting your house to the 3rd spot.

Well done to everyone and good luck for next year.

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 19 Sixth Form News

Goodbye to our Year 13s On Wednesday 5th July the Sixth form Year 13 students had their 'Summer Ball' at the beautiful Hallsannery House. Once all of the students had arrived, they were greeted by the teachers and a welcome beverage to begin the evening. After photos were taken outside in the exquisite garden everyone headed inside for a delicious sit down meal, followed by a disco that included a lot of dancing and even more fun!

It was the perfect way to celebrate an incredible two years at Bideford College Sixth form, and also the perfect opportunity to say goodbye to each other and the teachers before all the students head their separate ways for either university, apprenticeships or any other path they have chosen to take.

Bideford College will be with us for the rest of their lives, as will the memories of the Summer Ball.

Finally, on behalf of all students it is with great pleasure that we thank every one who contributed their time to organising this memorable event, especially Mrs.Gilbey and Mrs.French. With also a huge thank you to Han- nah Evans from Hallsannery House who continues to support Bideford College and Bideford College Sixth Form. A beautiful evening for beautiful people

New student’s get a taster of life in the Sixth Form On Monday the 3rd of July, Bideford College Sixth Form opened its doors to over one hundred prospective year 12 students, all of whom were eager to get a feel for the Sixth Form and have a genuine experience.

The welcome morning was an opportunity for the new students to get a taste of life as an A-level student. After signing in and having an assembly with Mrs French, the new year 12s split into smaller groups for some getting-to- know-you tasks. These sessions gave the students the opportunity to meet others in their year and some of the tutors for next year.

Many of the year 12s who came from the college were already familiar with those in their year, but for those who had come from outside schools, it was an important chance to make new friends. At break, cookies and drinks were enjoyed in the common room by new and current students alike. After devouring the complimentary snacks, everyone headed to the sports hall where a mass game of dodgeball took place. Everyone got stuck in and thor- oughly enjoyed themselves, including some of the teachers who jumped at the chance to hurl balls at their students!

The second part of the day consisted of taster sessions in a variety of subjects where everyone had the chance to experience lessons that they are interested in taking next year. This was useful as those who were undecided on their A-level options got a feel for all the possibilities and have until enrolment day to confirm the choices.

Overall, the day was a huge success, the prospective students left feeling excited and confident about attending the sixth form in September.

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Sixth Form News

Fun in the sun at the Sixth Form sports day.

On Wednesday 5th July all Year 13 students and teachers took part in an alternative sports day which involved a variety of activities such as, an egg and spoon race, wellie wanging, 80 meter dash and a mixed relay. As always, every student gave all the activities 100%, resulting in a lot of competitiveness and a close call when it came to deciding the winning house.

The leader board was as follows

1st - Hepworth 2nd - Brunel 3rd -Arthur 4th - Farwell 5th - Coleridge

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English and the Library

Rewarding Readers - celebrating success at the Library’s Tea Party with our Patron of Reading Tanya Landman

Our students had a wonderfully creative day with our Patron of Reading, award winning author Tanya Landman on Thursday. They took part in creative writing sessions and how to write a murder mystery. It was a great opportunity for the students to unleash their inner creativity!

At lunchtime, we held a tea party to celebrate the many fantastic achievements of Year 7 & 8 in Accelerated Reader this year. Tanya handed out certificates and prizes to all those in attendance.

We have to give a very special thank you to Free Cakes for Kids North Devon for making a spectacular book worm cake for the students to enjoy as part of the celebration.

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English and the Library

Accelerated Reader and Big Up a Book Year 7 & 8 Student Successes! Accelerated Reader - Word Millionaires Books Read This Year: Keira Connolly 6,149,089 Kai Connolly 5,555,824 Ella Barton 4,775,447 Niamh Ramsay 3,868,384 3,830 Megan Hare 3,479,076 Josie Robinson 2,328,639 Barney Evans 2,111,271 Words Read This Year: Libby Shambrook 1,863,642 Phoenix Prior 1,861,469 Anthony Walton 1,779,650 143,821,890 Thomas Williams 1,720,532 Seth Bennett 1,607,141 Alice Allebone-Parish 1,594,089 Liam Elkins 1,289,607 Ellie Smale 1,176,225 Emily Anderson 1,146,403 Ella Tomlinson-Bowden 1,145,136 Gemma Cleave 1,109,356 Keira Fowler 1,066,167 Sean Sykes 1,059,965 Harvey Bowden 1,027,402

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The Library

Carnegie Book Group performs at North Devon Event

In June thirteen Year 8 & 9 students travelled to Park School to take part in this years' Carnegie Book Award student event.

We have been meeting since Easter to read the shortlisted books, and for the students to create a presentation on one of those books. This presentation was performed in front of nine other schools from across the region.

What proved to have been a challenging read, the students presented a mature, thoughtful and creative account of the story. They were eloquent and confident - an absolute credit to the College.

It was a great opportunity to meet with other students and to meet the wonderful children's author Emma Carroll - in fact our very own Megan Hare took the hot seat to ask her the first question of the Q&A.

A special mention must go to Keira Connolly, who wrote two incredible poems in response to the book. Author Emma Carroll was so impressed that initially she thought the poems were actually part of the book!

So, a big thank you to: Keira Connolly, Megan Hare, Molly Munro, Megan Thomas, Rebecca Taylor, Niamh Ramsay, Freya Crawshaw, Izzy Richards, Sam Hinson, Sadie Kingston-Ford, Victoria Smith, Ocean Thompson and Ella Barton for all their hard work and dedication.

Overall we came third - a worthy result.

The final rehearsal.

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The Library

Big Up a Book competitors battle it out!

Every year there is strong competition between Year 7 tutor groups for the glory and title of Big Up Tutor Group of the Year. This year however two groups stood out from the crowd - Mrs Powell’s 7EP and Mr Muir’s 7MM. From the start of the year it was clear that the friendly rivalry between the two classes would make for an interesting result at the end of the summer term.

With extra tutor sessions booked into the Library by both groups the race found the lead changing week to week. The final push in the last week resulted in a both classes coming in at a draw! Two recounts ensued, and there was found to be no discrepancy . Both classes came in on 104 reviews! We are proud of all the students and teachers across the year group that have enthusiastically supported Big Up, and they continue to earn themselves rewards for their reviews. However a very big congratulations to 7Ep and 7MM for a very entertaining and year and for all their great reviews.

7EP 7MM

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Science

KS3 Science Club wow judges at Science competition

Our KS3 Science club entered 'The Big Bang' science competition at Exeter University on 21st June with 'Tooth Phairy.' Cavities and decay are caused when a tooth is exposed to an acidic environment of pH 5.5 and below. The initial idea was a tooth cap that you could put into your mouth that would show when the mouth was too acidic. We tested a number of different pH indicators. We decided to use red cabbage as it gave a clear colour change between acid and alkali (red and green). We then used filter paper to soak up the indicator and dried it so we had our indicator strips We decided that edible paper would be a better idea then you could put it in your mouth without fear of con- tamination or toxins. We researched the recipes and came up with an edible paper made of corn starch Using edible corn starch paper and red cabbage indicator our product is totally biodegradable We thought from a manufacturing point of view it could even be used to tackle some local food waste issues for farmers. By Niamh Ramsay, Elysia Webb, Samuel and Billy Heard and Alfie Douse.

On the day the competitors were grilled for 20 minutes by the judges and on their project. I was very proud of all the students who answered very calmly, eloquently and intelligently. The judges feedback was excellent. Mrs Cooper. www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 26

Year 7 and 8

Thursday 3-4pm

Room G13

Come up with an idea.

Carry out the investigations.

Complete a presentation including a display board.

Enter the Competition.

Go to The University of Exeter to be judged on your work

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Whizz-poppingly good cakes for House Science baking competition

Students were initially challenged to design a science themed cake . The Science Department had some fantastic entries to judge, but only the best design from each house could go through to the final. The finalists then baked their cakes in time for 'The Principal’s Garden Party', where they were judged .

1st Coleridge: Woody Wenman- Hyde 10KH (49 votes) 250 House points

2nd Farwell : Jessie Wood 8KT (43 votes) 200 House points

3rd Arthur: Christina Bryant and Rebecca Taylor 9WF (30 votes) 150 House points

4th Brunel: Lolah Olde 9CA (28 votes) 100 house points

5th Hepworth: Shakira and Georgia( 50 house points

The Winning cake!

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Science

New arrivals at College!

We have had 3 new additions to the Science De- partment born 12th July. After incubating chicken eggs for 21 days, we hatched out 3 little chicks. The students had the opportunity to learn about chick-rearing and the process of incubation. We have had many visitors at break and lunch to see them and some students even got to hold them. They have been named by Mrs Cooper’s tutor group as Stormzzy, Steven and Frankenstein! Special thanks to Esme Eiserbeck for the photos.

Stormzzy, Steven and Frankenstein!

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 29 Modern Foreign Languages "Bonjour de France”

It happened again! Our French students have been in correspondence with our partner school in Péronne in the North of France. Mrs Powell and Mrs Robinson’s year 8, 9 and 10 students have been exchanging letters back and forth discussing life on both side of the channel. Les Français wrote to their counterparts in English and Bideford students wrote back in French. Friendships were made and they are now free to correspond via the social media of their choice to their greatest delight. These letters have created a real enthusiasm for the language and huge interest in the French way of life. For some it was the first time they had received a hand-written letter, for others it was the novelty of talking to a complete stranger and finding common grounds, but no matter what, the excitement on letter opening days was amazing! We are looking forward to seeing these relationships evolve and who knows where the next penpals will take us!"

Bien Jouè to our Year 7 languages students! Students were recognised for their outstanding achievements in French.

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As an end of year treat for being a particularly lovely class, Mrs Robinson's 9L1 group and Mrs Powell’s Year 9s went to the food technology rooms to combine languages and technology with the preparation and eating of French crêpes. The recipe was given in French and students tried to use as much French as possible. There were some impressive crêpes produced and even some flamboyant flipping! Miam-miam!!

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 31 Expressive Arts - Art

The Art Department are very pleased to announce the success of one of their A level student's Alice Guymer, whose work was short-listed for the Royal Academy A Level online summer exhibition.

This is a fantastic achievement, and one which we believe highlights some of the amazing talent within our sixth form. Alice, along with others in the A level group were able to submit up to three original pieces of art work.

Alice's piece 'Full English Breakfast', was short listed from over 2,400 entries nationally, into 120; of which only 49 made it to the exhibition stage.

Alice's work can be viewed via: https://www.flickr.com/…/352199…/in/album-72157684967321605/ and the Royal Academy A level exhibition can be viewed until the 20th August https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/…/a-level-exhibition-online…

The curators of the exhibition commended all the artists that entered and that the breadth and diversity of the work highlighted the clarity of vision, thought and intuition that a young mind has.

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‘Summer Spectacular’ - the Music Department’s Charity Showcase

The Music Department held their fourth annual Summer Showcase concert which raised another £500 for the Children's Hospice Southwest. In the past four years, the Music Department have helped to raise £2000 for the Children's Hospice South West. Well done to all of the soloists, ensembles, BIDEbelles and BIDEband who performed - you were astonishing! We very much look forward to next year's event!

Miss Betambeau

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Maths House Challenge - from awesome algebra to perfect primes students’ achievements are celebrated!

A big congratulations to all those Year 7 students who took part in the Maths challenge competition. They were all awarded House points and certificates. A special mention must be made regarding Thomas Williams who won the house competition and has also been offered the opportunity to join the Exeter Mathematics School Year 8 forum in September. This is an opportunity to work with other students across Devon

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Sports Day in full >>>>>>> Farwell House sprints to victory!

These are the Sports Day results broken down into year totals and a reminder of the students who were Sports Day Champions.

Arthur Brunel Coleridge Farwell Hepworth Year 7 157 168 183 182 169 Year 8 215 183 139 192 172 Year 9 145 220 210 185 210 Year 10 185 164 147 193 172 Total 702 735 679 752 723

Year 7 - Caitlin Sargent and James Evans Year 8 - Molly Watts/Sophie Evans/Martha Andrews and Ollie Haste Year 9 - Sammy Stannard and Cory Guppy Year 10 - Hannah Neve and Charlie Colwill

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Students are bowled over at becoming North Devon cricket champions

Congratulations to Bideford College Year 7/8 cricket team who became North Devon outdoor cricket champions in June they beat Park School in the final by 15 runs. This adds to their indoor North Devon champion success in January.

Sports Updates - news in brief...

We have had the results of the North Devon Athletics League Finals. The girls teams in year 7 and 8 came 2nd. The competitors will receive silver medals which were presented on Sports Day.

Well done to Fran Sayer who came 4th in the National Schools' Surfing competition.

Congratulations to the year 7/8 boys' tennis team who yesterday beat Coombeshead in the division 2 county final 10-2. All the matches were close but they won all except one so they will now go on to the re- gional finals in September. Well done to Ben Seaman, James Hayter, Nathan Colley and Adam Leworthy.

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North Devon Victory for College Rounder's team

The Year 9 Rounder’s team were triumphant in the North Devon Schools’ tournament in battling through the group to win, with great partnership between Charlie Mallaband and India Tomlinson, Bowden at bowler and back stop, precision batting from Aimee Williams, Mia Davies and Laura Blake.

We went on to face Pilton in the semi-final, winning 7.5 to 4 thanks to Ellie MacDonald and Sammy Stannard in the outfield, and some superb catches from Sophie Fewings.

The team then took on Holsworthy in the final, where a great performance was shown by the whole team, especially Olivia Taylor with her long range batting, as well as Ellen Keirle persistence in stumping out on second base. At the end of the match scores were tied; after a tense wait Bideford went on to win on overall rounders difference throughout the tournament.

As a team, we would like to thank Mr Skinner for his coaching. We are now hoping to go forward and represent the college in the Devon Schools’ finals.

Charlie Mallaband – Year 9

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 37 Physical Education

Game, Set and Match to Girls’ Tennis Team

Well done to Katie Rowe, Niamh Ramsay, Molly Watts and Gemma Cleave who in July won the county final of the tennis division they are in. They played Kingsbridge away and they won all their singles and doubles comfortably.

www.facebook.com/bidefordcollege www.bidefordcollege.org 38 Green Power Team

In June the college Green power team took the car to Newquay airport where they competed again 49 other teams in what was the first meeting of the season.

This year we had a nearly new racing team of Year 7,8 and 9 students who, during the day had to learn pit stops, track rules, time keeping and strategies to help the car make it to the end of two 90 minute races.

In the first race, they found themselves in second place but then there was a battery issue. But by the second race after frantic fixing, and working out team strategies, the team came third.

The following boys need to be congratulated, Harry Dean, Jack Branch, Harvey Cottle, Ben Cook, Danny Cashmore, Ben Quance, Zack Rucki and Callum Deemer. They all left with medals and a trophy for the cabinet!

Big thanks go to Mr Bradley for turning this bunch into a fantastic team and making sure they all knew their roles.

J Cook.

A special thank you to In Stitches for donating the fantastic Green Power overalls!