Punctuality Matters
In the last edition of the parental newsletter I brought to you news regarding our concern about our students’ “attitude to learning.”
As I stated it had manifest itself in lateness, unpreparedness and a malaise towards positive learning. Since our last edition we have endeavoured to raise awareness of the need to improve upon attendance, punctuality, readiness to learn and attitude.
Our motto “Learning to Succeed” is our everyday mantra and we encourage all young people to strive towards success in all they do at the College.
The most recent message we have shared with students in our teaser campaign ...punctuality matters is:
5 minutes late to every lesson...
5 lessons a day x 5 minutes = 25 minutes
25 minutes x 5 days a week = 125 minutes
125 minutes x 39 weeks a year = 81 hours
81 hours = 3 weeks, 1 day and 1 hour of lost learning
This is equivalent to an attendance figure of 92%
reducing your chances of getting A* - C by at least 1 grade per subject
When the minutes for lost learning are added together it demonstrates how the odd five minutes here and there accumulate to a significant total.
Throughout this half term we will continue to strive to improve. Our efforts will be focussed upon Year 10 and Year 12 students in getting them to registration and lessons on time.
With effect from Monday 6th June all latecomers after 9.00am will have received both a warning and a letter home. It’s good news to you as parents if you have not received a letter, please make sure you praise your son/daughter for being on time. If you have received a letter, please support us in sharing our message that ...punctuality matters.
Attendance Matters
We continue our drive to improve student attendance at the College and are investigating ways to encourage our students to understand the importance of high attendance. Our current attendance is a disappointing 92% which we are striving to increase through a series of measures.
We were delighted to receive 30 vouchers from Leicestershire County Cricket Club for attendance at either a 40 overs game or a 20:20 match.
The opportunity to attend a fixture at Grace Road during this summer’s cricket season has been offered to all those students who have achieved over 99% attendance during this academic year in Years 10 and 12.
We are proud of the attendance record of the students listed below all whom were offered one of the 30 vouchers on a first come first served basis.
Year 12's
Rhianna Batting, Joel Fergusson, Karan Mangal, Rae Stephenson, Scott Bird, Ant Flude, Daniella Matra-Grano, Naomi Surrell, Rebecca Borrows, Thomas Gilbert, Jamie Mullineaux, Roop Tara, Amy Brown, Benjamin Glover, Richard Owers, Bill Vincent, Thomas Carlin, Naomi-Ruth Green, Bethan Phillips-Macdonald, Adam Welborn, Benjamin Cluskey, Daniel Harrison, Eilish Pick, Danielle Wetton, Matthew Degnan, William Haston, David Rup, Matthew Willemsen, Jaideep Dhaliwal, Lucy Henshaw, Samuel Shawley, Owen Williams, Kuldeep Dhiraj, Mark Jones, Jamie Smith, Charlotte Winkley, Samuel Dunkley, Harmeet Kaur, Jade Soper, Jamie Wright & Joseph Everington.
Year 10's
De Montfort: Georgie Bailey, Rachel Borrows, Harriet Clay, Rose Dunmore, Callum Fothergill, Joel Ghilotti, Kate Greengrass, Dominic Harrison, Emma Henshaw, Ruman Hundal, Katie Iliffe, Sadie Parry, Adil Rashid, Angelos Rizoyannis, Aadim Saleem, Katie Shepherd & Jake Urry
Glenne: Andrew Booroff, Megan Colford, Francesca Corby, Nancy Cox, Jess Deacon, Taran Dhillon, Oliver Dovey, Callan Hansrani, Thomas Henshaw, Jessica Holland, Charlotte Holyoak, Oliver Howard, Jake Hubbard, Demi Hughes, Oliver Joyce, Charlotte Lineker, Simian Meah & Bethany Parker-Hayes.
Herrick: Ruth Cogan, Harry Cooper, Simran Gill, Matthew Groves, Harry Jenkinson, Amrit Jhita, Charlie Johnson, Samuel Keizer, Sophie Lee, Joseph Mesvania, Chloe Oliver, Christian Patrick, Harvey Royle, Michael Saliba, Corinne Sinclair, Kyle Smith, Nathaniel Smith & Jake Van-son.
Wistan: Jenny Daja, Sarab Dhiraj, Ellie Dixon, Jack Elliott, Josh Ewen, Alex Fergusson, Benjamin Fisher, Matthew Hruszka, Nathan Hunt, Joel Inchley, Aadil Saleem, Andrzej Szydlo, Xander Tansey & Reece Williams.
This reward is part of a package of sponsored opportunities to recognise outstanding students for their attendance and punctuality. We are grateful to Leicestershire County Cricket Club for their support. Those students in Years 11 and 13 who have achieved over 99% attendance will be rewarded at the annual Student Award Evening.
Station Road Railway Bridge Closure
We are alerting you to the news that with effect from Friday 8th July 2011 the railway bridge on Station Road will be closed for essential repairs.
The work is expected to take eight weeks... please be warned and make sure your child arrives at College on time.
Wigston Arts Federation of Schools Arts Festival
The second Wigston Arts Federation of Schools Arts Festival is about to commence. The programme of activity begins on Monday 20th June with over 45 different activities across the schools in the borough.
The four week long event promises to be an Arts extravaganza which showcases the Arts Specialism of the four secondary schools of Abington, Bushloe, Guthlaxton and South Wigston. It is a kaleidoscope of productions, performances, exhibitions, concerts and workshops across the cluster of schools.
There is something for everyone from traditional to modern, and from home to distant shores featuring the wealth of talent and enthusiasm which characterises our Family of Schools.
We are proud to bring this extensive programme to the borough and hope you can sample the delights and find both participation and entertainment.
Superstore Vouchers
Once again this spring we have been colleting the Sainsbury’s and Tesco schools vouchers. These have been available since February in stores across the country. We are grateful to all parents, staff and friends of the College who have once again contributed to this worthwhile scheme.
We look forward to placing our orders for sports, dance, ICT and food technology equipment.
Calling All Year 9 Prospective Students and Parents
...dates for your diary
A reminder that the Year 9 Induction Days are almost here. The dates for Year 9 parents and pupils to remember are:
Monday 4th July at 7.00pm – Parent Information Evening – Guthlaxton College Hall
Tuesday 5th July at 8.45am – Induction Day 1
Wednesday 6th July 8.45am – Induction Day 2
Thursday 7th July 8.45am – Induction Day 3
We look forward to welcoming all Year 9 to the College and working with you as students and parents.
The start of the Autumn term date for students is Thursday 1st September 2011.
The Art of Brilliance
The student consultants are working with Andy Cope and Tony Seymour to develop a programme to support our young people in striving to become brilliant. The students are leading staff training on Thursday 23rd June and a day of workshops for their peers on Monday 4th July.
Young Americans 2012
The Young Americans 2012 European Tour is visiting Leicester on Friday 16th – Sunday 18th March to be jointly hosted by Guthlaxton College and Sir Jonathan North.
The exciting news is that on Sunday 18th March we are hoping that the workshops and performance will take place at the prestigious De Montfort Hall.
Watch this space for news.
Two Spires Film Festival
Ken Loach and Shane Meadows both hail from the East Midlands....who will be next?
With advances in technology it is now easier than ever to film and edit your own short films. This film festival aims to provide a platform for young people aged 14-19 to showcase their filmmaking talents and enthusiasm in front of an audience.
“Two Spires Short Film Festival” is aimed at 14-19 year olds across Leicestershire and will be an open competition to showcase the best talent in the county. The main competition is the Two Spires Prize, which will award prizes for achievement in different technical categories as well as for performers. For this competition there will be a criteria of what to include – such as a title or a prop. There will also be an “open” category competition for any type of film you may have made.
The festival is inviting young people from across the county to submit their work, whether it is something they have made at school or college or a project they have done in their own time.
The festival will take place on Thursday 7th July at Guthlaxton College and everyone is welcome to attend and see the shortlisted films and be there for the announcement of the winners. This festival will be part of the Wigston Arts Federation of Schools Arts Festival. Please support this event.
Year 9 Able & More Able
The annual Year 9 Able & More Able programme is coming to an end with the visit to Cambridge University on Tuesday 28th June. We are looking forward to our visit around St Catherine’s College, punting on the River Cam, climbing St Mary’s Church tower and famous people spotting. We just keep our fingers crossed for a bright and sunny day.
Wigston Family of Schools Music Day
On Wednesday 22nd June we host the final day of the cross-phase music making which has taken place throughout this academic year. It has been a brilliant project in which talented musicians across the four secondary schools have worked together to make music.
We wish all the musicians every success.
Non Uniform Day
On Friday 8th July 2011 we are holding our final non-uniform day of this academic year.
The purpose of the event is to support one of our ex-students, Jenny Carter, who has been selected as a volunteer on the VESL Summer Programme. Her role will be to help support local English teachers within schools in Chiang Rai area of Northern Thailand. She will also be involved in a “Water for Life” project in the area.
We admire Jenny for pursuing this adventure and wish to support her in this charity work. The funds raised by the non-uniform day will go towards her work and the four House charities:
De Montfort House – Gorse Hill Farm
Glenne House – Cancer Research
Herrick House – Marie Curie Cancer Care
Wistan House – Oadby & Wigston Age Concern
Wigston Family of Schools Scholarship “Platform”
The launch of the Wigston Family of Schools Scholarship took place in February. We received a number of applications for the scholarship. Four of which were shortlisted to be judged by our sponsors the Rotary Club Blaby and Citizen598.
The Wigston Family of Schools Scholarship has its second event on Thursday 14th July at Guthlaxton College from 7.00pm. This second event is being organised by students and this unique approach is a testament to the creativity and commitment of young people determined to make a difference for themselves and their community. Please put this date in your diary, it promises to be an excellent evening and tickets only cost £3.00.
The Ambition AXA Awards
We all dream of being the best at something. The Ambition AXA Awards are searching for the UK’s most gifted and driven young people aged 11-18 years old.
Please encourage your son/daughter to apply for these awards. They have been created to help Britain’s youth achieve ambition.
Whatever the chosen field – sport, the arts, enterprise, science or in the community these awards are an opportunity to make young peoples dreams come true.
Please support your son/daughter in considering this award, which, if they are a winner, would be worth up to £40,000. It would be a bespoke programme of mentoring and support reflecting their particular ambition and talent.
If you son/daughter is interested please encourage them to send for a postal application by emailing enquiries@ambitionaxaawards.com or writing to Ambition AXA Awards. P.O. Box 64189, London WC1A 9EJ.
In Memory of Dan Shirley
Dan Shirley, a former student at Guthlaxton College (1990 - 1992), was killed in Afghanistan in 2008. We were proud that Dan had joined the Parachute Regiment and sad to hear of his death.
In his memory the College in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011, through the initiative of Glenne House and the Sixth Form Management Team, led by Jack Vardy, has been involved in fund raising for Help for Heroes. We have raised over £1500 for this worthwhile cause.
There is a sponsored parachute jump being organised on Sunday 26th June 2011 as a tribute to Dan. The monies raised will be for Help for Heroes. If any of our readers wish to contribute towards this fund raising event could you please forward donations to the College for the attention of Sally Cox with cheques made payable to Help for Heroes and we will forward them to the organisers of the jump.
With many thanks.
Sally Cox
Deputy Principal
Published on Wednesday 22nd June 2011 at 09:00