School & Sixth Form College SchoolA Catholic& Sixth Academy Form College A Catholic Academy NEWS ISSUE SIX • SUMMER 2013 ©Photo Lacaze IN THIS ISSUE • Focus On: MFL LOURDES • A Snapshot of this Year’s Photography Success • SJR’s Live Lounge Rocks! PILGRIMAGE • St John’s Takes the University Challenge! A Learning Community Guided by Gospel Values A Learning Community Guided by Gospel Values 01 By the time you read this newsletter we would Rainforest. Students spend 2 weeks helping imagine that many of you will be preparing to those less fortunate than themselves by ST JOhn’S nEwS wELCOME enjoy the Summer holidays; an opportunity to building classrooms, and by working in local TO OUR nEwSLETTER relax and enjoy the company of friends and schools and orphanages within an area where family. 46% of the population live in extreme poverty. YEAR 8 STUDEnTS ATTEnD This has been a busy term at St John’s, This experience of a lifetime deepens our particularly for our KS4 and KS5 students who students’ social understanding and has a COMMOnwEALTh DAY ObSERvAnCE have faced the challenges of exams with great profound effect on their lives, inspiring them determination. As they prepare for the next to do more for the world around them. AT wESTMinSTER AbbEY hOME stage in their education or career, we wish As we draw to the end of this busy year we bid them every success and look forward to our a fond farewell to the staff who are moving on COOking Year 11 students returning to St John’s Sixth to pastures new. We wish them every success Form in September. and happiness in their new roles and we SkiLLS For the rest of our students it has been an thank them for their hard work and dedication exciting term of extra-curricular activities, whilst they have been members of St John’s sporting achievements, liturgical experiences, community. musical extravaganzas, celebration days and We would like to give a special mention Catholic Partnership events; opportunities to 3 members of staff who are retiring at which have encouraged our students to live the end of this academic year: Steve Lang gERARD MORAn life to the full, developing their own unique (Assistant Head Teacher), John McDonnell talents. Our newsletter gives you an insight (Director of Sixth Form) and Owen Smith Headteacher into the wonderful experiences enjoyed by our (Site Manager). Between them they have students, events which have enabled them over 90 years of service at St John’s, working to shine both within St John’s and within tirelessly to ensure that students achieve the wider community. As always, we are their full potential within a safe and supportive extremely proud of what our young people environment. Their commitment to St John’s have achieved and their enthusiasm and has been remarkable and their dedication commitment to do their best never cease to has ensured that St John’s continues to amaze us. be recognised as an outstanding centre of From the Sciences to the Arts and everything excellence. We would like to say thank you Congratulations to Aidan Steel- in between, we have provided opportunities to on behalf of the school community and wish Hunt and Fiona Ramage on suit everyone’s interests, needs and abilities. them a happy, healthy retirement when they their successful completion of can enjoy a well-earned rest! Eight students from Year 8 were Yet as “A Learning Community Guided by B-tec Level 1 in Jamie Oliver Gospel Values” we strive to develop the whole selected on the basis of excellent person, providing experiences that can be Finally, we wish you all a safe, achievement in RE to attend the Home Cooking Skills. Aidan and truly life-changing. enjoyable and relaxing Summer Commonwealth Day Observance Fiona have learned a variety of As you read the newsletter some of our Sixth skills, throughout the course, LiSA bYROn Form students are taking part in “Project holiday and we look forward to ceremony at Westminster Abbey which they have used to create Head of School Peru”, a fundraising expedition to the remote seeing you again in September. in the presence of Prince Philip, healthy breakfasts, lunches and town of Iquitos in the middle of the Amazon Duke of Edinburgh and a number dinners. The course culminated of other dignitaries. Taking advantage of being in London, in the students making of a students also visited the Science balanced, nutritious meal for Unfortunately, due to illness, The Museum and saw Buckingham Palace elderly people as part of their Queen was unable to attend this year's and the Houses of Parliament. ceremony. assessment. LOURDES Pilgrimage The eight selected students were Students watched performances by also required to participate in the Well done Aidan and Fiona! On Friday 24th May 5 students from years 8 and 10 along with 6 Beverley Knight and The Noisettes, Commonwealth Essay Competition members of staff set off on a week-long pilgrimage to Lourdes, and Sir Richard Branson gave the 2013, the chosen topic being ‘Change’. France with the Middlesbrough Diocese. Here is Nisha Woolford’s address, speaking on Enterprise and the We await the results with great interest! reflection on an amazing week: Commonwealth. The pilgrimage to Lourdes had a number of great experiences, such as meeting the VIPs (the sick people), STEPhEn hUghES MEP getting to know them, looking after them and exchanging viSiTS ST JOhn’S gifts with them. Also we went into the baths where you Students from Years 9 and 12 had the opportunity to listen to feel amazed and in awe afterwards, walking through the Stephen Hughes, a member of the European Parliament speak on grotto and simply just sharing kindness with everyone his own career and role in local and European politics. Born and raised in East Durham and now the Labour representative for the that was there. At first we did not know what to expect, North East region, Mr Hughes gave students an insight into the it was almost like walking into the unknown but we way in which he first became interested in politics and described were so grateful to be part of something which is so great, his weekly duties in Brussels and Strasbourg. Mr Hughes responded to a wide range of questions from students regarding so powerful and so big! We will remember the memories, his role at an international level. emotions and people and we will treasure these forever. Could it be that in the future we will see some young politicians emerge from St John's?? ©Photo Lacaze 02 www.stjohnsrc.org.uk A Learning Community Guided by Gospel Values 03 ST JOhn’S nEwS PRODUCT DESign The AS and A2 Level Product Design students have produced some inspiring and challenging work this year. Each iCE CREAM AnYOnE? student has been responsible for choosing their own design brief and developing each project towards their own individual outcome. Some of the outstanding projects this year have included a stool made from recycled motorbike parts, small scale storage and children’s furniture. STUDENTS HAVE DESIGNS ON UK MANUFACTURED WASHING MACHINES St John's students stepped up to the Pamela added: “It has been exciting to see challenge of producing designs for the UK’s the enthusiasm of the students who have only manufacturer of washing machines. taken part in this project. Having attended Ebac, which is developing a production the recent EEF conference and heard line to start manufacturing the appliances politicians such as Vince Cable, Ed Balls and from Spring 2014, invited our design and Michael Heseltine talking about girls being technology students to come up with their less engaged in mechanical engineering, own designs. The project resulted in 12 year it was particularly pleasing to see the way 8 students visiting Ebac in Newton Aycliffe female students embraced the project. to present the results of their work to It is also important that young people do management and designers from the County get enthusiastic about engineering, to Durham manufacturer. Among the panel ensure there is a strong pool of talent for the industry in the future. “When it comes Year 10 Food Technology and Level 2 The students were taken on farm were designer Clyde Pittaway, who trained as a design and technology teacher at the to making products, ideas can come from Catering students recently embarked tours, meeting the dairy herds, school, and managing director Pamela Petty. everywhere and from anyone, and what we on educational visits to Archers Ice young calves and also the Jersey have seen from these students could well Cream Parlour near Heighington, and bull! Afterwards, the ice-cream Clyde said: “Young people’s creative work feed into that process.” tends to be a lot less prohibited by potential Wheelbirks Farm in Northumberland manufacturing process was explained practical barriers, so it has been hugely Miss Hillyard added “It has been a great to observe first-hand how ice cream to the students in detail, including CREATivE interesting to see what they have come up experience for the students to learn more is manufactured. Students listened the sourcing of some ingredients with and to consider how the designs could about manufacturing and engineering from with interest as staff at both sites from Italy, and they were able to fully CRAFTS translate into reality. “Ideas have ranged this project. They have seen what goes on explained in detail how changes in understand the requirements of milk from some interesting aesthetic designs to behind the scenes to make a product work, Shaun Baird and Liam Smart (year 9) and that has been very inspiring for the agriculture over the last 15 years, production in terms of hygiene and were commissioned by Father Tindall to such innovations as using Smart Phones to set programmes.