The Wheatleyan 2013-14

TheWheatleyan www.bablake.com

Issue 200 | ISSN 1759-0302

80

%

70

ARTSmark

%

gold award

Record gcse

A*/A grades

24,802

£

A Level

shine ‘media ’ awards

charity A*-B grades national best ever total 19% record A*s winner

edinburgh

‘fringe’ 28th year

Celebrating the record-breaking year 2013/14 with our 200th ‘Oscar’ Edition...

chess

treble winners

“Amply and joyously reflected between these vibrant pages, 2013-14 gave much cause for celebration! Inspectors conducted a thorough audit in March and recognised the school’s many outstanding strengths, fully appreciating the ambitious and self-reflective nature of our community, as well as pupils’ myriad opportunities.

These high expectations led to record GCSE results (70% A*/A) and a record proportion of A* grades (19%) at A level. Alongside these accolades, we were awarded Artsmark Gold status for our contribution to the Arts both in school and the wider community, in addition to national recognition for student journalism.

Our emphasis on good communication meant that we retained our top place nationally for independent schools in the ‘social authority’ (Twitter) league, and the Headmaster’s weekly notes to parents will soon become a ‘blog’ on our new website.

These multiple achievements stem primarily from the joint endeavour of pupils, staff, parents and governors, and from our determination to build a happy and outward-looking school of unique individuals who enrich the life of the whole community. We have therefore continued to enhance links with former pupils, were given International Cross of Nails status by Coventry Cathedral for our commitment to peace and reconciliation, and raised nearly £25,000 for charity.

Many congratulations to our Wheatleyan editors, who have again produced a magnificent school record, conveying the energy and dynamism of a school forever on the move!”

John Watson, Headmaster

http://www.isi.net/schools/6217/ has the ISI full inspection report.

Student Editorial Team Editor: Becky Williamson Deputy Editor: Connor Putnam

Photography: Mariona FoguetGonzalez, Amy Lilly, Hollie Molloy

News and Features: Becky Williamson, Connor Putnam

Production Design: Mustard Design www.mustardhot.com

Beyond the Classroom: Jonathan Porter, Keisha Simms, Hayley Smith Flair – Art and Design: Matthias De Veer, Kate Edmiston Flair – Literature: Amy Kuner, Alice Ryan Performing Arts: Morwenna Hocken, Rubi Ingaglia Sport: Georgina Lloyd, Bradley Pinkham Former Pupils: Francesca Bellingeri, Beckie Carter, Georgia Clarke

Technical Assistance: Dan Cotton

Print: W&G Baird Acknowledgements: Preet Chahal, Paul Cleaver and the Art department, Hannah Corden, Matthias De Veer, Kate Edmiston, Mariona FoguetGonzalez, Amy Lilly, Hollie Molloy, Bethan Mordey, the PE department, Alison Tumber, Mark Woodward (photography); Terry Patchett, James Ross, Millie Ross, (proof-reading); staff and pupils (articles).

“I am always overwhelmed by the positive comments every issue receives and the profuse praise for last year’s edition gave the 2013-14 editorial team a very difficult challenge in seeking to improve upon it! Increasingly this is a yearly dilemma, however a pleasant task to solve.

Editor Becky Williamson has been superb – as is evident in the excellent Charity evenings she has organised, she is highly efficient. Her leadership is firm, but warm and encouraging, thereby always inspiring her team to enjoy working with and for her. Deputy Editor Connor Putnam, similarly altruistic, has worked brilliantly with Becky, keeping a keen eye on the reporters’ deadlines.

His own brilliance and generous spirit have also ensured the team has been very happy to work with him on the edition.

Both Becky and Connor are destined to achieve so much beyond Bablake and it has been a pleasure to work with them in our weekly meetings and online over the last 12 months. The full editorial team has proved itself similarly talented and also a privilege to work with. The innovation shown makes me confident that this, the 200th edition of The Wheatleyan, is the best issue yet!” mark woodward, staff editor

mgaw@bablake.coventry.sch.uk

TheWheatleyan Bablake School, founded in 1344, is a school within the Coventry School Foundation (registered charity No 528961) and exists to provide quality selective education for boys and girls. The senior school of around 750 pupils shares the site with the Bablake Junior School of some 230 pupils which now includes a pre-prep, with a capacity of around 120 pupils, located near Coventry railway station at what was Cheshunt School (founded in 1909). King Henry VIII School, founded in 1545, is also part of the Foundation.

Coundon Road, Coventry CV1 4AU t +44 (0)24 7627 1200 f +44 (0)24 7627 1293 e info@bablake.coventry.sch.uk w www.bablake.com f www.facebook.com/bablakeschool i www.instagram.com/bablakeofficial p www.pinterest.com/bablakeschool t www.twitter.com/bablakeschool A Bablake mobile app is available for both Android and Apple platforms.

The Wheatleyan is printed on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests.

In this issue...

The ‘Oscar’ Issue Highlights 4 News & Features 10

Top Tweeters 5 Headmaster’s Review 6 Prize Giving 2014 8 Hong Kong Summer 10 Final Destinations 12 Staff News 14 Supporting Science 24

26 Beyond the Classroom 14 24 69 76

Memories of a Bablake Weather Girl 27 A Night at the Oscars 30 In the Face of the Volcano 32 Bablake Action 36 Offering Enrichment 38 House Activities 2013/14 42

53 Flair

Stretch 54 Art Through the Ages 56 Arkwright Scholarships 61 Is it a Book or a Film? 68 Platinum Readers 69 Lessons from Auschwitz 70

72 Performing Arts A Level Theatre Studies 74 The Crucible 76 The Musical Year 78 Artsmark Gold Status 80 Musical Shells 82

84 88 The Wheatleyan celebrates the best of the academic year it represents, complementing the material published in our excellent termly newsletter The Lion and the daily news posted on our website, official Facebook page and Twitter feed.

Sport

Sporting Honours 2013/14 86 Sri Lankan Adventure 88 Sports Focus 90 Sports Talk 100

102 Former Pupils

Back Together 103 Old Wheatleyan Sport 104 Grapevine 106 ... and finally! 110

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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News & Features Edited by Becky Williamson and Connor Putnam “Editing the Wheatleyan has been a fantastic experience! I have thoroughly enjoyed working on it, especially as this year’s copy is the 200th edition. Obviously last year’s excellent issue was a hard act to follow, but I believe our hardworking team has created the best edition yet and really showcased the vast array of talent at Bablake.

Everyone involved will agree being part of the team of journalists has been a worthwhile experience and the final product is something to be proud of. I have felt very proud seeing the edition come together and I'd like to thank Deputy Editor Connor for all his hard work and for being genuinely enthusiastic 100% of the time! Lastly, I'd like to thank Mr. Woodward for giving me the opportunity of being Editor, which has been an honour, and for guiding us all throughout the year we could not have done it without him!”

Becky Williamson, Editor

Editor Profiles Passions: Charity work, dancing, music, organising events and people!

Ambitions: To study event management at university and travel the world - possibly at the same time!

2013/14 highlight: Organising the Love Africa Live gig and supporting the T.E.A.C.H. (Tura Earthly Assistance Care & Help Group) charity.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

“It has been an honour and a privilege to work on the 200th edition of The Wheatleyan. As Deputy Editor, planning the issue has really highlighted the plethora of exciting activities Bablake students take part in both inside and outside the classroom.

Working with Becky, the section editors and Mr Woodward has been a pleasure and everyone’s commitment has been second-to-none. It is amazing that our small team has transformed articles from draft to this polished product!

To those entering the Sixth Form, I strongly encourage you to express interest in joining The Wheatleyan team! I have learnt skills not only applicable to journalism, but also to any future career and team exercise I may pursue.

I wish next year’s editorial team all the best and suspect you may find it as difficult to improve on this edition as Becky and myself when we saw last year’s magazine!”

Connor Putnam, Deputy Editor

Passions: Biochemistry, Chinese food, ‘Holby City’, ‘Star Wars’ films.

Ambitions: To study medicine at university, travel the world and win a Nobel Prize in Science.

2013/14 highlight: Spending two weeks at Cardiff University doing original cancer research, as part of my Gold CREST Science Award.

Top Tweeters!

Bablake has held onto its number 1 ranking in the Interactive Schools’ ‘Social Authority’ league table for UK independent schools during 2013-14, although it cannot be long before a school with the resources to have a dedicated team looking after social media platforms will charge past us.

The advantages of Twitter are many and what is particularly pleasing is the news we now have over 20 individual Bablake related Twitter accounts, which celebrate achievements by pupils (current and former), offer extension tuition for pupils eager to go beyond the examination specifications, develop staff knowledge in their specialist areas, engage with other enthusiasts worldwide and offer gentle humour and entertainment.

Headmaster Mr John Watson (@BablakeHead) has also joined this Autumn.

Bablake Top 5 Twitter sites* (via www.socialcandy.co.uk as of October 2014) 1 42/100 Modern Languages @bablakegerman 2= 29/100 6th Form @bablake6thform Weather Station @bablakewx 4 21/100 Cricket @bablakecricket 5 19/100 Careers @bablakecareers

Social Media

Mrs Helen Billings explained why Twitter works for the Modern Languages department: “It’s a great way to connect with other professionals and share ideas and resources. Staff keep up-to-date with trends in education and gain a new perspective on current educational issues.

We steer pupils towards user-friendly material rather than have them lose interest searching for something appropriate. Our feed develops not only linguistic understanding, but also helps to promote better cultural awareness which can lead to greater tolerance.”

Most pleasingly our 6th Form runs its own account as do all 4 of our Houses; here we have young learners using social media responsibly, reversing the roles, teaching the teachers, another way where teaching and shared expertise are so rewarding.

Simon Noakes (@simonnoakes), MD of Interactive Schools (@intSchools), praised our use of Twitter: “Bablake continues to lead the UK education sector with its positive approach to social media. People are driven by the need to be happy, part of a community and the desire to share good news. Social media is the best conduit for delivering those stories around the world, and it’s wonderful to see a school do it so well. #inspiringschools” *Those not in the Top 5 = Business Studies and Economics, CCF, Charity, English, Food, Geography, Hockey (boys and girls), Houses (Bayley, Crow, Fairfax, Wheatley), Macmillan, Music, Netball, Outreach, Rugby, Stretch, Textiles, Theatre, The Wheatleyan.

“Bablake continues to lead the UK education sector with its positive approach to social media.” www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Headmaster’s Review

Headmaster’s Review

Highlights from the Headmaster’s Review for 2013/14 at Prize Giving

Our young people have only one chance at education, and that ‘moment’ will determine not only their life-chances but also their fulfilment as human beings whatever life should send their way. As parents and teachers, we share that responsibility of education, and our hope and expectation are that our children will grasp all the opportunities it brings.

The most significant and most confusing examination reforms for many decades are almost upon us, and we shall do our best to maintain an even keel as we navigate our way through those choppy waters. As a community we shall embrace change, but the bedrock of our education will remain those enduring values, which mould our pupils into the gifted and generous young adults who leave us at the age of 18.

So my message to pupils is always to make the most of their gifts and their opportunities, to make the most of every moment, as is reflected in our motto, ‘The Spirit of Opportunity’. Alongside their numerous successes, which we celebrate tonight, we also want them to be happy. In philosopher Omar Khayyám’s words: ‘Be happy for this moment.’ And in the words of a recent leaver: ‘Bablake is a very special place, and while I look forward to what lies ahead, I will never forget the experiences and relationships from my time at school.’

Of course those experiences were not necessarily always happy, and I am always amazed by the stoicism of some of our pupils in the face of adversity and the tragedies which may befall them. And that’s when those relationships, and the support of friends, staff and family are so important.

It’s why our inspection recognised the contribution of an ‘excellent rapport between teachers and pupils’ and the ‘self-confidence and resilience’ developed by pupils ‘within a culture of care and consideration for others’. And whilst inspectors found that ‘the overwhelming majority of parents expressed extremely high levels of satisfaction about all aspects of their children’s education’, they also judged that we were a school which was forever looking to do things even better: ‘The school has made significant progress since the previous inspection, underpinned by a culture of self-reflection and the desire for continuous improvement.’

Yes, we do a fair bit of navelgazing, and it’s therefore very pleasing to have our qualities formally recognised in such a report.

It’s healthy to be sceptical about statistics, but it’s also pleasing to break records according to objective measures. We were therefore delighted that our candidates obtained a record proportion of A* grades at A level, and of A*/A grades at GCSE – both measures used to judge the success of academically selective schools. And this was achieved in the first year without January modules and at a time of downward pressure on GCSE grades. Our encouragement of scholarship was perhaps best expressed by one of our Extended Project Qualification students in her presentation when she was asked what part of the project she had most enjoyed: ‘Sitting in Warwick University library and simply enjoying researching and reading about the Ottoman Empire.’ Or the comment made by a parent to me after they had transferred their child from another school: ‘He says that he can walk out of a lesson into break still discussing the lesson topic or the quadratic equation – which simply wouldn’t have been the cool thing to do in his last school.’

An unprecedented four of our pupils were selected for interview for the prestigious Arkwright Scholarship, and two of them won this award. (Award winners James Horton and Adam Keir spoke about this.)

It’s been a remarkably full and successful year for the Arts. Over 100 pupils participated in a slick and entertaining production of Bugsy Malone, whilst senior pupils have just returned from our 28th consecutive year on the Edinburgh Fringe. Music, Art, Drama and Dance were all included in an audit of our provision, which resulted in the award of Artsmark Gold status by the Arts Council England for our outstanding contribution to arts and cultural education.

Pupils enjoyed workshops through our partnership with Orchestra da Camera, one of them led by renowned guitarist Craig Ogden, and House Music, the Cathedral carol service, classical concerts, the National Festival of Music for Youth and three charity concerts all provided further opportunities for harmonious performance. (Enya Bowe and Joshua Lowe then spoke about their musical year.)

Record results again, with 70% A*-A grades at GCSE and 19% A*s and 80% A*-B at A2.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Headmaster’s Review

Sport and co-curricular activities remain a very strong feature of Bablake life, and it was a joy to see so many former girls from as far back as the 1970s attending a charity netball reunion just before term began – handsome testimony to the enduring fun of playing sport at Bablake.

Even if victory is sweet, I often say that we are not a ‘win at all costs’ school and that we place the emphasis on healthy and enjoyable teamwork. Well, there weren’t quite so many wins as some years, although several teams won through Coventry and Warwickshire finals to Midlands competitions, and there was notable success for our cross-country and athletics teams, as well as our senior chess players, who took all three local titles; the shelves of the trophies cabinet still sag beneath the weight of silverware! We have several pupils playing in Warwickshire’s elite cricket programmes, and some have just returned from a cricket and hockey tour of Sri Lanka.

We had three pupils competing at international level, in wheelchair athletics, sailing and show-jumping. Whilst we can’t claim direct credit for nurturing their skills in these sports, it was surely Bablake which gave them that competitive spirit! Current Paralympic and world champion Hannah Cockcroft recently tweeted about Kare Adenegan: ‘Kare is a superstar! She’s going to be a champion one day very soon.’ (Kare spoke of her exploits, and Ellie Lowson described life in the CCF this year, at its strongest numerically since its inception at Bablake.)

Mrs O’Neill took over the school’s charity fundraising, setting the school the ambitious target of exceeding previous records; and remarkably we did, raising £24,802.46 for local, national and international causes.

A group of Sixth Formers was particularly active raising money for Macmillan, and received this eulogy from the local organiser, ‘I am going to miss them like mad; they are the best fundraising school group I have ever had in Coventry and Warwickshire.’ We have been increasingly active with our outreach programmes, with staff teaching music, science, design technology and language master classes in local primary schools. At the same time, we have sought to further improve the pastoral and spiritual nurture of our pupils and to celebrate the rich diversity of our community. We were awarded our International Cross of Nails in recognition of our commitment to peace and reconciliation both in and beyond school, and a Sikh and Hindu society as well as a Muslim Prayer Group have been established. (Simran Bansal and Sian Brahach, leading lights in the Sikh and Hindu Society, said more.)

The success of our school community is underpinned by the dedication of support staff and teachers, committed to the progress, care and happiness of our pupils.

Inspectors recognised excellent teaching and pastoral care and said that ‘the extensive range of extra-curricular activities is a key factor in the development of pupils’ outstanding personal qualities’. Perhaps the highlight of the whole inspection for me was when an inspector passed me in the corridor on the last day and said simply: ‘I do love your school!’

We bade a fond farewell to several outstandingly loyal colleagues who have loved Bablake and its pupils and retired in the summer: Mrs Gail Timothy, Head of

Modern Foreign Languages since 1998, was particularly keen to ensure that pupils enjoyed a ‘living’ experience of language-learning, and her form-members always benefited richly from her outstanding care. Mr Chris Mellers, Head of Religious Studies from 1992, saw the subject go from strength to strength. Beyond the department, he played a very significant role in the spiritual and pastoral life of our community. He organised community service, law extension, assemblies, the carol service and supported the Parents’ Association. In his final year he established the role of Chaplain. Mrs Chris Scott, teacher of Girls’ P.E. since 1988, always insisted on high standards and healthy participation, and was notably successful with her netball teams; she supported the work of the Careers Department, and as, Head of Third Year, worked tirelessly towards positive and practical outcomes for those in her care. Mr Simon Timothy joined us in 1987 to teach Mathematics and Computing. Asked to co-ordinate IT in 1993, he oversaw the school’s provision of computing courses during a time of exponential technological change. He was also a House Head, and latterly a highly respected Sixth Form Tutor. Mr Steve Jackson completed a remarkable 39 years’ service - a very successful career characterised by a passion for Geography and for the British weather. Establishing the Bablake Weather Station in 1977, he achieved national recognition for his expertise in this area and for his unique work with young weatherforecasters. Head of Geography from 1992, he was also involved in numerous other aspects of school life, including once bearing the enigmatic title Master i/c vehicles on school premises!

We wish all of these colleagues happy and healthy retirements, and I would ask you to join with me in showing your gratitude not only to them but to all the staff, teaching and support, whose relentless aim, with me, is quite simply to give our pupils the best possible preparation for life. I would also like to thank our Governors, who give generously of their time and expertise to advise us and to ensure the current and future well-being of the Foundation schools, especially Mr Atkins. He has somehow managed to maintain at least a modicum of sanity whilst juggling the demands of his work as a QC, of his own family and indeed of the family of Foundation schools, which he has served with great dedication and, I should stress, even-handedness despite his own mis-spent school days nearby. Mr Atkins, we are particularly grateful to you and hope that life will be just a little bit quieter next year! And a final ‘thank-you’ to you, our parents, for your tremendous support, and our Parents’ Association whose enthusiasm and hard work enable us to enhance the education we offer and to ensure that all parents are made to feel a part of our extended family.

The Headmaster’s Prize Giving speech from 2014 and previous years may be found in full on our official website, where his weekly bulletin to parents is also published.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Academic Achievements

“Ben’s message was clear and inspiring: Bablake gives you the self-belief to succeed in life and to make the most of extraordinary experiences.”

Headmaster, Mr John Watson

Prize Giving 2014 There are very few leading broadsheets and tabloids that have not called upon the photographic ability of Ben Duffy (1986-1993), who presented the prizes. His work still takes him to all corners of the globe, to cover Lions rugby tours, the Ashes or track days in the Mojave Desert. A 24 hour round-trip to Jamaica to photograph sprinter Usain Bolt in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics is one of his most recent significant assignments, but there are few sporting legends of the modern era that have not been the focus of Ben’s lenses. He even has discussed the merits of Caecilius (a Cambridge Latin Course stalwart) with Frank Lampard on set.

Very supportive of Bablake’s pupil and staff photographers, Ben’s client list is immensely impressive, including Adidas, EA Sports and the Premier League.

Humbled to have been asked to return as Guest of Honour, Ben’s speech, richly illustrated with amusing anecdotes and a powerful photographic portfolio, was inspirational; he spoke with great affection about the friendships made for life at Bablake and the self-belief he gained in his education.

The music before the ceremony was performed by Aron Sood, while Hannah Calderbank, Beth Carter and Hannah Jewkes played Mozart’s Andante from Divertimento No 2 during the Interlude.

Prizes Awarded

The most prestigious of over 200 individual prize-winners this year included: Shell Scholars 2013-14 Academic: Alexander Cox, Georgia Gamble, Jasmine Harrison, Dominic Reeves, Atsayan Sachchin, Nithisa Sivaruban, Jacob Swales, Jhodi Thandi, Harry White.

Art: Namuun Batkhishig, Toby Harkin, Ria-Jasmine Ladva.

English: Namuun Batkhishig, Zara Richards.

Music: Harry White.

William Townsend Form Prizes Shells Attainment: Fiona Chung, Tim Henderson, Alex Hyde, Henry Pilley, Kogulan Vipulan.

Progress: Siddhant Chohan, Khushi Dhadda, Shane Siwela, Daniel Welch, Harry Williams.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

2nds Attainment: Amrit Gill, Rhea Hindocha, Harry Menashe, George Parker, Ayesha Riaz.

Progress: Kare Adenegan, Molly Harkin, Emmanuella Kamara-Musa, Joshua Lowe, Karum Somal.

3rds Attainment: Shivani Bodalia, Olivia Kelly, Jakevir Shoker, Leshanth Uthayanan, Julian Wreford.

Progress: Rumnique Bains, Anna Elkins, Jacob Henderson, Martin McKenna, Ovraj Sidhu.

4ths Attainment: Beth Carter, Imogen Hayley, Kate Henderson, Katerina Jackson, Beth McCormick, Lauren Putnam.

Progress: Lydia Bruton, Nikita Ermolenko, Unmohl Gill, Ashni Hindocha, Hannah Jewkes, Simika Tugnet.

5ths Form Prize: Sonia Dhillon, Mantaran Dosanj, Anna Knight, Manvir Thandi, Ruth Truslove, Jake West.

Excellence at GCSE: Nivaran Aojula, Thomas Betts, Roisin Bowe, Kirsty Cattell, Madison Cotteret, Hannah Davies, Sonia Dhillon, Mantaran Dosanj, Alesha Gibbs, Ruby Griffin, Josha Hundal, Ben Jones, Rory Kenney-Herbert, Eva Klesnik-Edwards, Lawson Moore, Arun Nahar, Emily Poole, Matthew Rowlands, Manvir Thandi, Ruby Thandi, Christopher Tuttle, Ciara Wyman.

6th Form Scholarships, awarded on entry to the Lower Sixth Academic: Nivaran Aojula, Thomas Betts, Roisin Bowe, Edward Collier, Madison Cotteret, Hannah Davies, Sonia Dhillon, Alesha Gibbs, Georgia Gunson, Ben Jones, Eva Klesnik-Edwards, Anna Knight, Liam Meechan, Billy Moore, Lawson Moore, Arun Nahar, Emily Poole, Matthew Rowlands, Emma Smallwood, Emily White.

Music: Roisin Bowe, Benjamin Powell, Christopher Tuttle.

Sport: Thomas Betts, Ali Hijazie, Liam Meechan, Hannah Mordey, Chimdi Ogbuneke, Emily White.

Whitehouse: Kirsty Cattell, Rubi Thandi, Ciara Wyman.

Lane Scholarships awarded to L6th Formers for outstanding academic achievement: Elaine Chen, Jake Dolphin, Pamilla Kang.

Academic Achievements

Best Contribution to Magazines: Becky Williamson.

Felicity Chapman Poetry Prize: Cherie Ng. Philippa Chowne Prize (Music/ Charity): Beth Carter.

Former Pupils’ Association For Merit: Jess Betts, Daniel Brett, Katie Carlson, Joyce Du, Kate French, Austin Gahrs, Harry Gao, Kathryn Jones, James McAllister, Aaran Patel, Kalika Puri, Erica Tang, Elaine Zhang.

The Jenkins Cup (Shells): Sophie Arora, Ben Harrison.

TW Patchett Scholarship and Courtesy Prize: Francesca Bellingeri, Connor Putnam.

Pembroke Award: Kate French.

The J V Rattigan Cup for Merit in the L6th: Rubi Ingaglia.

The Chris Ashworth Trophy (Outstanding Achievement): Aaron Patel.

Best Contribution to the School by students new to the 6th Form: Hope Hughes.

The Jackson Progress Prize: Andrew Judge.

The Seaborne Trophy for Sportsman of the Year: Chris Sewell.

The Leonard Ward Trophy for Sportswoman of the Year: Jenny Tasker.

The H Curt Prize for Service: Kate French.

The Hawley Cup for Service: Robert Faulkner.

The Humberstone Prize for Character and Scholarship: Jessica Betts. (This prize is awarded each year by the Trustees of the Humberstone Memorial on the recommendation of the school staff, in memory of F W Humberstone, Headmaster of Bablake School 1870-1890.)

Achievements

Congratulations: Army 6th Form Scholarship: Jonathan Porter.

Arkwright Scholarship: James Horton, Adam Keir.

Arts Award: Level 3 – Gold - Beth Carter; Level 2 - Silver - Emma Blackett, Enya Bowe, Elizabeth Hayes; Bronze Ellie Aitchison, Emma Blackett, Enya Bowe, Jessica Brake, Elizabeth Hayes, Joshua Lowe, Harriet Morris, Darya Sutton.

Bablake Christmas Card: Molly Harkin, Rhys Hayden.

Cambridge Chemistry Challenge: Gold - Alex Towlson; Copper – George Esworthy, Connor Putnam, Danujan Sivanesan.

Cicero Concordia 2014: Cultural Competition UK Fran Bellingeri commended.

Combined Cadet Force (CCF): NCOs - Blake Hatfield, Katie Hodge, Josie Hyde, Jonathan Porter.

Could IT Be You (Network Rail) Finalist: Katie Carlson.

CREST Awards: Gold - George Esworthy, Connor Putnam; Silver – Tom Betts, Nia Gripton-Crockford, Anna Knight, Vikesh Puri, Surajan Singh; Bronze - Amrit Gill, Katerina Jackson, Georgina Owen.

Engineering Education Scheme Team (EES): Jake Dolphin, Jake O’Sullivan, Jonathan Porter, Sivarjuen Ravichandran.

Extended Project Qualification (EPQ): Katie Carlson, Austin Gahrs, Harry Gao, Bradley Gill, Alexa Goodyer, Kathryn Jones, Sepi Latifi, Gabriella Moss-Lawton, Kate Ross.

Grade 8 Music: Cello - Anna White.

ICAEW BASE: National Finalists - Jack Broad, Daniel Cotton, Joseph Fry, Elise Morgan, Bradley Pinkham, Hayley Smith.

Make It With Mince (James Martin): National Semi-Final – Olivia Byrne, Beth Carter.

Maths Challenge: Senior Gold - Elaine Chen, Joyce Du, George Esworthy, Robert Faulkner, Kate French, Harry Gao, Amy Kuner, Joshua Rowe, Elaine Zhang. Intermediate Gold - Samuel Cranage, Jack King, Anna Knight, Jawad Miah, James Moffitt, Raajun Nagra, Thomas Nelson, Vikesh Puri, Jakevir Shoker, Aiden Thomas, Matthew Thomas, Julian Wreford. Junior Gold – Sophie Arora, Enya Bowe, Liam Duggan, George Evans, Amrit Gill, Ted Larkin, Tess Lillicrapp, Angel Ma, Arjan Manoharan, Gurpreet Sahota.

Media: 6th Form leaflet - Katie Carlson, Anna Knight.

National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain: Anna White (Cello).

Physicist of the Year (University of Warwick award to local schools): Alex Towlson.

Senior Prefects: Jessica Betts, Robert Faulkner (school captains); Kate French, Matt Payne (vice captains); Aniruddha Bose, Daniel Brett, Katie Carlson, Kara Dosanj, Charlotte Loasby, Aaran Patel, Kian Patel, Kalika Puri.

Shine 2014 School Media Awards: Stretch - student magazine. Most Outstanding Pupil - Charlotte Loasby.

Runners up/ Highly Commended at National Final: Best Magazine, Best Overall Editorial Content, Most Inspirational Teacher - Mr Mark Woodward (Staff Magazine Editor).

Shortlisted for 3 other categories: Best Business Strategy, Best Community Initiative, Best Environmental Strategy.

Warwick Group Essay Competition: Winner – Madelaine Scott; Commended - Connor Putnam.

Spotted on/at: BBC 1 Inside Out - Aniruddha Bose appeared in a feature discussing the merits of jobs with steam engines and engineering as a whole.

Midlands Today - Bablake Weather Station.

ITV Central ‘The People’s Millions’ - Peter Cusack.

Public Examination Fact File 2013-14 A2 • 115 pupils: 100% pass rate.

• 80% of all grades were at A*, A or B grades.

(National average: 52%) • 52% of all grades were at A* or A. (National average: 26%) • 36% of all pupils achieved all A* or A grades, with 13 pupils achieving 4 A* or A and 6 with all A* grades.

• 19% of all grades were at A* - a school record.

(National average: 8.2%) GCSE • 127 pupils: 99% achieved at least 5 A* - C grades.

• 70% of all grades were at A* or A – a school record. (National average: 21.3%) • 38% of all grades were at A*.

• 54% of all pupils gained 8 or more A* or A grades.

• 7 pupils gained 10 or more A* grades. www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Summer School

Hong Kong

summer

Rubi Ingaglia

L6th pupil Rubi Ingaglia was one of just five UK secondary students to win a trip to Hong Kong and the chance to study at a university summer school. This opportunity was offered by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, in association with the British Council and sponsor Cathay Pacific. To be selected, Rubi submitted a fantastic video which she researched, scripted, filmed and edited. Here Rubi reports on her experience.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

I

was enrolled onto Summer Institute 2014 at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

This consisted of an Orientation and Graduation Camp, and six days of academic study, where each student takes two academic modules taught in on-campus classrooms and lecture rooms by CUHK teachers. Although I plan to study languages at university, I took the ‘Criminal Law’ and ‘Accounting in Business’ modules, as I wanted to expand my knowledge in other areas.

I was pleased I did as I found them engaging, interesting and constructive. This programme also gave me the freedom and opportunity to explore new subjects before making any decisions about university applications as well as offering a taste of university life. ‘Criminal Law’ really did spark my curiosity and could be a possible study option after my initial degree, while the ‘Accounting’ module was useful as it showed me that I am not destined to be an accountant!

The CUHK campus is truly a place where students are motivated to study. The distance

Summer School

“I now have contacts in Hong Kong and a wealth of international and independent experiences that I would not have gained if I hadn’t thrown myself in at the deep end with an open mind and a positive attitude.”

from the hustle and bustle of city life, together with the modern and comfortable buildings and breath-taking views create a surprisingly focused environment. The atmosphere in the classroom is very different from the UK, and there is a real sense of mutual enthusiasm and motivation amongst students in Hong Kong. British students should be inspired by the passion and determination Hong Kong students have for learning and acquiring knowledge and the work ethic is something I have certainly brought back with me.

The on-campus MTR station facilitated easy access to the city and the affordability of public transport and eating out, along with the safety I felt while off-campus, allowed me to enjoy high-quality but extremely affordable food not only in college canteens but also in local restaurants with local fellow students. My meals were a range of Chinese, Japanese, Thai and Korean food, but western influences were also very noticeable in Hong Kong, so there were European food options as well.

To really gain a taste of Hong Kong’s universities, I was lucky to study at CUHK and then stay at and explore the campus of HKU. While I spent a lot of time on-campus during the evenings of my programme, I discovered there is also a lot to do in Hong Kong at night-time for groups of young students.

During my time at CUHK I volunteered to help at a British Council event aimed at Hong Kong students who are interested in considering higher education in the UK. Held at the Regal Hong Kong Hotel in Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island, this was my first time off the CUHK campus on my own.

Though initially daunting and disorientating, I soon found my knowledge as a British student going through a similar process to the prospective Hong Kong students was useful to the event, and I found it interesting to gain an insight into the process of university application for international students.

Although I visited many of the typical tourist attractions, I am so grateful all my friends from Summer Institute were locals and I felt I got a real sense of the real Hong Kong. Having a group of native guides made a huge difference in making the most of my limited time in Hong Kong and of course helped me overcome the language barrier. I did attempt to learn some Cantonese and mastered a few basic phrases, but I have come away encouraged and motivated to learn more of the language as I believe it really changes your experience of a place when you can immerse yourself fully into local life. I now have contacts in Hong Kong and a wealth of international and independent experiences that I would not have gained if I hadn’t thrown myself in at the deep end with an open mind and a positive attitude.

I am currently applying to UK institutions to study for a degree in Spanish and Beginner’s Italian, however, after this positive university experience abroad, I am impatient to return to Hong Kong. I am definitely considering developing my language skills further to incorporate Chinese studies, with a view to studying at one of Hong Kong’s universities sometime in the future. www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Final Destinations

Beyond

Bablake

The talented Class of 2007 leaves Bablake to enjoy an impressive range of challenges presented by first-rate establishments and top employers, with record A*/B grades.

UK UNIVERSITIES 18 Birmingham* 9 London (2 - Imperial, King’s College (KCL)*, London School of Economics (LSE), University College (UCL); 1 - Queen Mary).

6 Nottingham 5 Leeds 4 Cardiff, Coventry, Sheffield* 3 Durham, Exeter*, Liverpool, Manchester, Oxford 2 Brunel, Leicester, Loughborough, Newcastle, Sheffield Hallam*, Surrey, York 1 Aston, Bath, Bath Spa, Birmingham City, Brighton, Bristol, City, College of Law, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Heriot-Watt, Hull, Kent, Lancaster, Leeds Metropolitan, Leeds School of Art and Design, Liverpool John Moore, Nottingham Trent, Oxford Brookes*, Portsmouth, Reading, Roehampton, Royal Agricultural College, Southampton, St Andrew, Warwick *= a place deferred until 2015

1 Classical Civilisation 1 Drama & Theatre Studies and Italian 1 English and Spanish 1 Fashion 1 Film Studies 1 Flexible Combined Honours 4 History (inc. Politics 1, Professional Development 1) 1 History of Art 1 Modern Languages 1 Music 1 Spanish Studies and Psychology 1 Stage Management 1 Theology Engineering, ICT, Health & Medicine, Natural & Physical Sciences, Sports Science - 54 1 Agricultural and Crop Sciences 2 Biochemistry 4 Biology (inc. Animal & Conservation 1, Human 1, Medical Sciences 1)

GAP YEAR 20 17 - Mix of paid and voluntary work plus independent/arranged travel, 2 – employment, 1 - au pair work in Paris) (6 have places at university deferred) DEGREE DISCIPLINES (inc deferred places) The Arts, Humanities & Languages - 19 1 Ancient History 2 Architecture

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One of Mrs Tumber’s Upper 6th heroes

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

4 Biomedical Science 1 Chemistry 1 Computing Science 6 Engineering (Chemical 2, Chemical with International Business 1, Civil 1, Civil & Structural 1, Electronic with Nanotech 1) 1 Environmental Science 3 Geography (inc. Economics 1) 2 Geology 4 Mathematics (inc. Applied & Theoretical 1, Business & Statistics 1, Financial 1) 7 Medicine 1 Nursing (Adult) 8 Pharmacy 2 Physics (inc. Study in Europe) 2 Physiotherapy 1 Product Design 3 Sport and Exercise Science 1 Veterinary Science Social Sciences - 30 3 Accountancy (inc. Financial Management 2) 2 Business (International Management 1, Management 1) 12 Economics (inc. Business 1, Finance 1, Management 2, Mathematics 1, Political Science 1) 8 Law (inc. Criminology - 2) 2 Marketing (inc. Retailing & Marketing 1) 2 Psychology 1 Social Policy

Outreach

Outreach ...

As well as organising our Enrichment and overall Outreach programme, Music teacher Mrs Cathy Scott-Burt is in charge of expanding our Outreach activity in local classrooms. Editors Becky Williamson and Connor Putnam investigated the 2013-14 Outreach diary and future plans.

2013-14 Activity September 2013 Planning the teaching programme for almost 20 local primaries, offering French, German, Music, Spanish and Science. This was then delivered in topic based sessions over the year through to June 2014. Emily Robinson and Honor Klesnik-Edwards taught German at St Osburg’s as part of our CSV programme.

October 2013 Our Shell pupils wrote a postcard to their old school, telling them about their secondary school experience.

November 2013 Activity morning for Languages, Maths and Science.

March 2014 Rugby and Hockey afternoon for Year 5 boys and girls respectively.

May/June 2014 Staff visited our prospective Shell pupils in their primary schools.

June 2014 A successful Musical Theatre day, involving Art, Dance, Drama and Music was held in our Theatre. Pupils from four local primaries were taught by L6th pupils and staff from the departments linked to the day.

July 2014 Two primaries each spent a week in our Theatre preparing and then presenting a Year 6 end of year production.

Outreach team with resources

Plans for 2014-15 Expand the teaching programme for local primaries to include Design Technology, Geography, ICT and Sport.

Since Bablake has been awarded the Gold Artsmark status, invite local Artsmark status primary schools (Berkswell, Coundon, Hollyfast, Meriden and Park Hill) to an Artsmark celebration event in our theatre, as well as act as a ‘champion’ school to provide performances and support for our feeder schools who wish to undertake their own application.

Test pupil mentoring for Year 7 – a few pupils will help with Mathematics at Coundon Court.

Expand activity afternoons for girls’ sport - adding hockey and opportunities to use the climbing wall.

Address the ‘fair use’ of popular resources (e.g. our theatre at the end of the school year; any vacancies in the swimming pool or sports facilities) to give as many of our feeder schools as possible an opportunity to benefit from them.

Offer curricular support in music to our nearest primary school, St. Osburg’s, as it is losing its Performing Arts Service music teacher but needs to plan for new National Curriculum guidelines at the end of the year.

Organise an Orchestral Day with the Bablake Orchestra, Coventry Youth Orchestra and others.

Host further Arts Award moderations, with local schools bringing their work to us as a centre.

Mrs Scott-Burt commented: “2014-15 promises to be an exciting year. As well as these plans, we are looking to extend participation in the Coventry University Phoenix Partnership programme and establish further links with local businesses.” www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Staff News

“The staff are all so friendly and are always pleased to offer help whenever we need it.”

Elaine Zhang, Sixth Form pupil 2012–14

Valete Mr Steve Jackson Adapted from Mr Simon Enstone’s leaving speech Steve left the Ministry of Defence for a teaching career at Bablake in September 1975, before half the current body of staff was born, sharing the dawn of his career with John Drury and Dave Prescott; it was also the year Bablake opened its doors to girls.

His 39 years’ service has been characterised by his passion for Geography, high expectations and dedication to all that he undertook. Dynamic for many in the classroom, made Head of Department in 1992, his passion for the subject has inspired many pupils to study it beyond Bablake and indeed many of these have gone on to teach Geography. With a knowledge second to none and infectious enthusiasm, particularly for physical geography, Steve has inspired generations of pupils. Former pupils often refer to his desire to uphold high standards of ‘academic rigour’ and he never just taught what pupils needed to pass exams, but covered wider aspects to develop enquiring and healthily sceptical minds. Many would say “Mr Jackson marks really harshly” and others were on the receiving end of his razor sharp wit, but he did not peddle mediocrity, demanding the same high standards of pupils that he expected of himself. Always positive and willing to embrace new ideas, technology and change, most of all he believed in doing the absolute best for pupils to help them to succeed.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

He had a natural ability to spot real academic brilliance, and to nurture and guide these individuals to realise their own potential. At the same time he had the ability to spot the rogues and show a great empathy towards them, usually through a shared love of football. One colleague even described him as an older version of the naughty but nice child that you could not help warming to.

Steve is famously passionate about the weather and few, bar Governor Mr Terry Proctor, would ever dare nickname him Bablake’s Michael Fish! One of the first teachers to establish a Weather Station in a school, its 37 year operation must surely be unique. Since humble beginnings in 1977, Bablake's Weather Station and Steve have achieved national recognition for this professional Met Office ratified operation - a collaborative venture run with enthusiastic young weather-forecasters. As a result, Steve has been a celebrated figure in the local media, invited onto local radio shows to review the Sunday papers, quoted in the local press, and interviewed on regional television from time to time. Correctly, his dedication to this field was recognised with the Michael Hunt Royal Meteorological award in 2008 and honorary life membership of this esteemed body.

Steve gave so much to Bablake’s co-curricular programme. A man of many sporting talents, he coached cricket, cross country and hockey (despite football and Aston Villa being his first love). He was the school’s Gifted and Talented Co-ordinator, Energy Warden and co-ordinator of Greenfeet, and ran a number of hockey and ski trips. As well as fondly remembering hockey tours of the 1970s to destinations such as Holland, former pupils from that era have a clear respect and fond affection for Steve.

His love of skiing, hampered only recently by the impact of years of running, allowed many hundreds of

Staff News

pupils to reap the benefit of school ski trips. The early days of staying in very basic European youth hostels with poor food, icy ski conditions, and a local petrol station that happily sold vodka to our 13 year old pupils, were latterly swapped for trips to the USA and Canada, amazing tours with many happy memories for both staff and pupils, and stricter alcohol laws!

Steve’s career has had its moments! Forgetting important things has definitely been a theme. One colleague remembers Steve warning the members of his overseas trip in no uncertain terms not to forget their passports, before making a red-faced dash home to collect his own! A pupil was left in a pub after a talk in Birmingham by weather man Ian McCaskill, while the tactical omission of a box of A Level field trip resources allowed Steve to indulge in his love of bacon rolls at an M6 service station, as he awaited an emergency delivery to save the day.

Latterly, his trademark youthful exuberance for the annual A Level pilgrimage to the Welsh mountains dwindled the more he missed wife Lynda and her wonderful cooking.

There were, though, wonderful times in Snowdonia, with the exceptional company of our pupils, studying a landscape that has inspired Steve to convey his passion to so many pupils over the years. Field trips were however not always exclusively to Wales and a Wheatleyan account of the 1986 trip to Devon, an age ignorant of risk assessments, makes interesting reading: “The soils day proved to be one of the more memorable and eventful of the trip. The task was simple enough: given a map and compass, groups were placed on Dartmoor, instructed to take 25 soil samples at selected points, and meet six hours later at the rendezvous point. There were three groups with the dubious delight of having to cross the River Dart in flood to complete the task.”

Steve claims that one of his proudest moments at Bablake - apart from meeting and marrying Lynda - was going to watch Aston Villa win the European cup final in Rotterdam. Yes, he bunked off school to watch a game of football, arranging his friends to cover his classes on the quiet. How times have changed!

We are very pleased Steve will maintain his links with Bablake through the Weather Station as our self-titled 'Climatologist'! He loves nothing more than pottering in his beautifully manicured garden, feeding his koi carp, so we wish him a very happy and healthy retirement, much of which will be spent on the terraces at Aston Villa or in the company of his beloved grandchildren.

Mrs Chris Scott Mr Mark Woodward A dear friend to many staff and a true agony aunt blessed with wise and sensible advice, Chris (or Scotty) primarily taught Girls’ PE at Bablake for 26 years from January 1988. Her unwavering insistence on high standards meant pupils made great progress, often far beyond their own expectations, when under her guidance, especially in netball and tennis. Determined to ensure our girls enjoyed healthy participation in a range of sports, her time at

Bablake concluded with her coaching the 1st VII netball team - a role she enjoyed immensely, not least when reunited with the players she had coached successfully at junior level.

Thoroughly professional, Chris was a dedicated teacher, whose lessons were always delivered to perfection. As a team coach, she took our U14 and U19 teams to the National Schools netball finals, a tremendously impressive feat. She was involved with annual trips to Wimbledon, was an excellent colleague on sports tours abroad, led trips to Fousseau and Yorkshire for our younger pupils and raised an impressive amount of money for the British Heart Foundation.

Her trips abroad with the PE department were never short of drama: in South Africa, she came very close to a lion, in St. Lucia she declined being whisked off by a very wealthy man to his yacht, and in Sri Lanka, she was nearly converted to Buddhism. Her colleagues shared much together over the years: a lot of laughs, a punnet or two of strawberries at Wimbledon, several jiving lessons and many more special memories!

Chris ably assisted me in our Careers Department for over 15 years, having started in the department run

by Mrs Sue Sutton in 1995. She ran our Work Experience programme for a number of years, attended to our younger pupils’ early enquiries and delivered the Careers PSHCE material to the Shell, 2nd and 3rd year pupils. Bringing an expertise in the sciences and a very impressive network of local contacts, just as with her teaching, she insisted pupils showed the highest of standards and professionalism in whatever path they pursued. Bablake's own Ant and Dec, Little and Large, Laurel and Hardy or Morecombe and Wise, namely Scotty and Woody, has sadly been pensioned off, but her outstanding support for so many of our pupils has left a super legacy. C for Careers really did cover so much… care for the community, chaos, crises (for staff as well as pupils), computers, nice cop nasty cop, comedy, clutter and so much more.

Exemplary work as a firm but sensitive form tutor, always concerned for her tutees’ best welfare, led to her appointment as Assistant Head of 2nd and 3rd Years, and latterly, Head of 3rd Year. She never believed in ‘quick fixes’ and worked tirelessly in this role towards positive and practical outcomes for those in her care. Her outstanding work in such a key aspect of school life was much appreciated by staff at all levels, parents and pupils.

We wish Chris a very happy and healthy retirement, much of which will be spent profitably, purposefully and competitively on the golf course or tennis courts. She will www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Staff News

spend much of her retirement travelling the world, enjoying time with her family and, if her youthful vigour is ever diminished, we suspect she will take recourse to her love of singing and prodigious soup creations. Her singing in the confines of the Careers Office may not be missed, but we suspect she will not miss the tuneless whistling that emanated from the other side of the room!

I apologise for openly suggesting PE teachers had no feelings and rudely suggesting Chris had instilled a love of sport in many girls but a hatred of team sport in hundreds more! This could not be further from the truth!

Chris will surely return to Bablake for events like the inaugural 2014 Charity Netball tournament, which she supported as an umpire this summer. She may also correctly insist though that she is ineligible for a place at our biennial Senior Citizens' Party for a very good number of years yet, as she is taking early retirement much to the horror of one SMT member who assumed she had reached 60!

Mr Simon Timothy Mr Mark Woodward “Books out, bags away” is the command recalled by many of his pupils as Simon Timothy arrived at Bablake in January 1987 to teach Mathematics and also Computing.

His enthusiasm for the latter was soon recognised, and in a rapidly evolving technological world, he was asked to co-ordinate IT in 1993. Since then, the school’s provision of computing hardware and courses has changed exponentially and he should be proud to have stood at the helm of a department at the centre of such exciting changes.

As Head of ICT, Simon always had the best interests of his pupils at heart, a trait also evident in his time as Head of Crow House and as a highly respected 6th Form Tutor. Hannah Alderson - Fletcher (formerly Sheard) describes her tutor as a kind, caring man ,with an impressive ability to ‘guesstimate’ accurately the grade of an AS level ICT folder by weight! She also cherishes his speech to the 2nd years present - on a French trip she was assisting with - about how hard you have to work for a degree and how she had proved Bablake's education. He also offered excellent assistance with the many such Shell French trips and (formerly) visits to Fousseau that his wife Gail was involved with.

Sarah Brown, while praising him for somehow steering her to an A grade in GCSE Maths, recalls him chastising one of her peers. Upon spotting they were listening to a pivotal session at a Test match, he told them off, not for listening to it, but rather for not having it turned up loud enough for everyone to hear!

Others fondly remember his acronyms (e.g WISIWIM - “What I see is what I mark” and BODMAS, the order of Mathematical calculations) and the fictional characters (e.g.

Theresa Green et al) in his worksheets. Being ambidextrous, he also amazed pupils like Dr Allison Jones, who remembers him standing at the middle of the board starting his notes with his left hand before deftly continuing with his right

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

hand once he felt the need!

Colleague Mr Terry Patchett praises Simon’s inexhaustible supply of patience and kindness while helping him learn how to use his computer. In fact the only fault he would find would be Simon’s support for Liverpool FC. We wish Simon a happy and healthy retirement with Gail in England and France, and look forward to welcoming them both back to future school events.

Mrs Gail Timothy Mr Mark Woodward Gail has the particular distinction of 16 years’ fine service after arriving in September 1998 from Tile Hill Wood. Always keen to ensure pupils enjoyed a ‘living’ experience of languagelearning, her organisation of many Shell French trips ensured memories lasting long beyond pupils’ departure from Bablake. The popular Eurocafé on Open Morning was always especially enticing, and those pupils lucky enough to be members of her form benefited richly from her care. As a talented musician too, Mrs Timothy has enjoyed playing her viola and singing in the school choirs. This year’s involvement in the successful charity evening, A Night at the Oscars, was also a particular highlight for her.

The importance of language skills has always been fully evangelised by employers and academics, but as a nation, the argument has never quite been fully embraced.

We, however, have been so fortunate that Gail has been steadfast over the last 16 years in showing Bablake's pupils how vital these skills are and promoting the learning of all languages. She has overseen numerous examination and curriculum changes, the introduction of Spanish, and both the triple linguist and dual linguist options. This is a fantastic legacy for her to feel proud of.

Mrs Sarah Harris’ A-Z sums up Gail A Allotments, with the fruits of her toils generously offered to staff.

B Devotion to Bablake. A fine teacher!

C Home-grown Chutney or Controlled assessment?! Both favourites!

D Immaculate Displays.

E Endless Energy. Gail didn’t do days off!

F French - an amazing knowledge of both the language and the culture, and passionate about her teaching.

G Golf, of the Frisbee variety.

H Husband. Gail & Simon, Simon & Gail, the most compatible, together couple, fantastically supportive of one another.

I I will miss you.

J Jacuzzi - happy memories of the Shell French Trip.

K Incredible Kindness.

Staff News

L Lots of Laughs.

M Music - a big part of Gail’s life at Bablake.

N Dr Nuttall - soaked on the afore mentioned Shell French trip at the water park.

O OMG! How much change in 16 years to the teaching specifications!

P Pas-de-Calais – an area close to Gail’s heart.

Q Que sera sera, as she likes to say. A great approach to life!

R Redbush tea.

S Shell French trip – happy memories for all.

T An excellent Tutor - loved by her tutees, she always had time for them.

U Unwaveringly modest.

V The Viola - a passion.

W Where did those 16 years go?

X X-tra special member of staff.

Y Young at heart.

Z Time for some Zzzs - no more burning the candle at both ends?

We wish Gail a very happy and healthy retirement, and thank her for her unstinting commitment to Bablake and its pupils.

Mr Chris Mellers Mrs Alison Tumber This is one of the greatest challenges of my Bablake career, because for the past 16 years I have listened to Chris’ erudite, insightful and entertaining speeches and know I cannot begin to emulate his engaging and forthright style.

Stuart Nuttall stated in a recent letter to Chris, that in 1992, he made one of his best management decisions during his time at Bablake when he appointed Chris Mellers to the position of Head of Religious Studies, joining from Woodway Park. Chris inherited from his predecessor, Reverend William Kelly, one set of Bibles, a box file containing two sheets of paper (blank), a ruler and a key ring (but no key).

Over 20 years later he will hand over substantially more to his successor: a thriving academic department with a strong local and national reputation, held in high regard by both pupils and staff; a well-resourced teaching area and secure foundations for a bright future, whatever the Governors and Government have in store.

There were no exam groups when Chris arrived, but soon there was a small GCSE class and Mary Musson from KHVlll and Pat Flynn from St. Joseph’s were brought in to help with the additional teaching. A department rather than a one-man-band was beginning to emerge and with the introduction of A Level, Mrs Lynda Scott (now Jackson) joined as a full time member of staff in 1995. With increasing numbers at GCSE and A Level, I got my foot in

the door in 1997. Under Chris’ thoughtful, supportive and enthusiastic leadership, the department now sustains one part-time and three full-time members of staff with over 40 A level and 100 GCSE students. The core teachers have remained consistent, but Chris has been proud of the way he has brought Classicists, Linguists and Mathematicians into the Department and given them a new perspective and an experience of the joy that is teaching Religious Education at Bablake.

Although delighted with the academic success of the department, targets, exam analysis and Bablake scores are not what motivate Chris. He is the most pupilcentred teacher I have worked with. As we work in the R.S. department, we may gain some extra support from on-high, but Chris really does work miracles. He has great insight into the needs of each individual and in a calm, gentle, supportive way, has enabled each and every pupil under his care first to recognise and then to realise their potential. He really does epitomise our old motto of ‘Excellence Through Care.’ A frequent refrain when talking to former pupils about Chris is “Without Mr Mellers’ guidance, I wouldn’t be the person I am now.”

As a 2nd/3rd year tutor for many years, Chris engendered an excellent form dynamic and identity and many of his tutees have kept in touch, still grateful for his wise counsel and guiding hand. Fousseau was always a highlight and staff were delighted to be picked to go with 2M for the Kir Royale, and it would undoubtedly be a well-organised and enjoyable trip with the right balance of humour and memorable moments.

Pupils, staff, parents and friends have also had the opportunity to participate in the Theatre Trips, easily over 500, that Chris and partner David have run for nearly 30 years. Chris makes things happen and gives opportunities to the majority of us that sit and talk about what show we’d like to see but don’t want the hassle of online booking or organising how we’re going to get there. ‘Les Mis’ remains Chris’ personal favourite, but many an excellent RS lesson has been built around a trip to see Blood Brothers.

In recent years Chris has been an exemplary 6th form tutor – it is no accident that I put my son in his form. Once again, his sensitivity and understanding of the needs of young people have been his great strengths and he has an excellent knowledge of the whole person. The ‘after sales service’ Chris gives is phenomenal – it is never just talk with Chris, there is always action and therefore there are thousands of individuals and families that are so grateful for his kindness, compassion, generosity and steadfast love.

Assemblies also underwent a revolution in 1992. Rev Kelly gave the prefects a rota of 31 prayers, hymns and reading from the lectionary at the start of the academic year, and that was that. The introduction of non-Biblical readings, and OHP for songs not in the hymn book and more than one person reading at the podium was too much for some staff; but Chris fights hard for good causes and generally wins. Whatever our background or belief system, I am sure that we have all been educated, informed, entertained and challenged by Chris’ assemblies and we are very fortunate to have had someone so willing to dedicate such a great deal of time and thought to this aspect of www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Staff News

school life. Chris may be good at recycling books, but his assembly material was always fresh, pertinent and pitched at just the right level.

It is not just in assemblies that Chris has enhanced the spiritual and community life of the school. As CSV co-ordinator, he has enabled hundreds of pupils to engage with a range of voluntary activities in the wider community and he has also forged excellent links with schools, churches, nursing homes, hospitals, refuge centres, charities and charity shops across the city and beyond.

Chris both knows and understands Coventry and has done a great deal to promote Bablake in a positive light. I hope for the future of Bablake that there is someone to take his place in this regard.

Other innovations that we are grateful to Chris for are the Carol Service – always a joyous, meaningful and memorable occasion, wherever the location; the donkey walking down the aisle in Coventry Cathedral will be difficult to top. Many pupils enjoyed Youth Afloat in Poole and the Christian Union weekend at Kingswood in Wales. Chris has also masterminded many school trips which often make it into Year Books as ‘Golden Memories’, including the Police Museum in Coventry with the Law group which Chris has expertly run for many years; the Galleries of Justice and his most recent innovation which was enjoyed by so many – the City Trail. Chris’ attention to detail means that he is often working late into the night, perfecting the programme and this is certainly true of the preparation that goes into International Week, five of which he has organised since 2000 with consummate skill, staying focused, positive and in good humour throughout the process, despite the inevitable hiccups and grumpy staff.

Once more, these have been life-enhancing events for all that have participated and the positive rapport Chris has built up with parents as well as pupils is something the rest of us must work hard to maintain. Chris’ commitment to the Parents’ Association has been outstanding. I am an employee and a parent having benefited from the fee discount and have given back in time and expertise a small percentage to the Parents’ Association; Chris is an employee without children but has given more to the P.A. in terms of time and energy than the majority of parents. With regard to the Christmas Fayre, he has been unstinting in his dedication, time-commitment and again innovation; can we imagine a Christmas Fayre now without the live reindeer!?

I might have raised Chris to the status of a saint, but like all good Christians from the Anglican tradition, he has his failings. Homework setting was rather sporadic – there is not much to report on marking either, and fastidiousness is not always a positive attribute as reports were invariably finished after the appointed deadline. I think that one of the reasons for Chris’ retirement (certainly a year earlier than I wanted) was to avoid having to put anything onto the new VLE. We are going to miss you as a Head of Department and your day to day presence: your words of support and encouragement; the hand on the shoulder when words were not enough; your optimism; your advocacy as a union representative and as a friend; and your humanity and common sense. I am sure that you will quickly fill the

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

‘spare’ time you’ll have – just make sure that you allocate some of it as Chris and David time; visiting the theatre midweek, enjoying your new kitchen and escapes to France. I doubt very much that Bablake will ever drain from your veins. You like many of us came into the independent sector worried that you had ‘sold out’, but quickly realised that all children have an intrinsic value, no matter what their background. Bablake is special because of people like you, who see each individual for what they are, those who can make the most of the spirit of opportunity that they have been given as a result of the excellent care that you and others have given them: God bless you Chris.

Mrs Suzanne Webley Mrs Sue Smith Suzanne Symonds joined Bablake as an NQT in September 2008. It was clear she had the potential to be an excellent teacher and she did not disappoint. Suzanne had a professional and conscientious approach to her work and proved to be a tremendous asset to the PE department.

Her intelligence and enthusiasm to develop enabled her to learn quickly and she comfortably sailed through her first year of teaching. At the end of August 2009, Suzanne married and became Mrs Webley… or Webberly or Wembley, depending on which pupil was asking after her!

Suzanne worked hard to develop her knowledge in the activities taught at Bablake. She had realistic expectations of her pupils, but her enthusiasm and high quality teaching gave the girls greater self-motivation and belief. She developed positive relationships with her pupils and was very caring in her role as a form tutor. She was confident and well organised and took on the responsibility of the girls’ hockey and netball tour to Singapore and Malaysia 2011. It had a full itinerary and was a most enjoyable and exciting tour for all those involved.

She knew the commitment and expectations required of her at an independent school as she had attended Bromsgrove School as a pupil. Her teams flourished under her guidance, as she was fully committed to the improvement and success of girls playing sport at Bablake.

Suzanne’s main sport is hockey and she took teams to the Midlands finals in both indoor and outdoor hockey. She was also a keen athlete and spent time encouraging and developing the technical aspects of the individual events with the girls.

Suzanne was eager to contribute further to life at Bablake and became Head of Crow House, then Head of Girls’ PE & Games when Miss Wilson went to live in USA in January 2012. She was very effective in both roles, but she was eager to start a family and in March 2013, Alfie Webley was born.

Staff News

Suzanne had also taught the year 5 & 6 girls of Bablake Junior School each week. She loved teaching this age group and we knew one day she would move into teaching younger pupils on a more regular basis. She has now followed in her mother’s footsteps and is teaching at Bromsgrove Preparatory School. We wish her and her family all the very best in the future.

Miss Hannah Moseley Mrs Sue Smith Hannah joined the PE department at Bablake in September 2012. She is a talented all round sportswoman, with her main strengths being netball, athletics and swimming.

Hannah is also a very bright young woman and she brought new ideas and energy to the department.

Hannah quickly settled into the busy life of Bablake and proved herself a committed and determined young teacher.

Her organisation, communication skills and keenness to do more, meant she was the ideal person to become acting Head of Department during Mrs Webley’s maternity leave and this post became permanent in January 2014 when Mrs Webley resigned. She not only coped admirably in the role but went the extra mile to bring in additional elements to enhance the department: entering girls into some competitions, promoting the use of Bablake’s fixture lists via the School Sports website, tentatively trialling Twitter, putting questionnaires on the VLE for pupils in relation to their involvement in sport, strongly supporting Bablake’s Gold Artsmark application, and setting up the Sports Awards Presentation evening. She also led the way on the greater school usage of SIMS. She had a very good rapport with the pupils and her discipline was strong, showing consistency and fairness.

The pupils respected her and enjoyed her company, sense of humour and her lessons. She had a keen interest in the pastoral role of a teacher, was an inspiring form tutor, and made a significant contribution to PSHCE lessons.

Hannah also taught Anatomy and Physiology for AS level Physical Education. The pupils enjoyed her teaching, especially the practical tasks given to develop their understanding and the revision techniques she showed them.

Inevitably, as a PE teacher, Hannah was heavily involved in the co-curricular programme, particularly in netball and hockey teams and athletics squads, as well as accompanying the girls on tour to Sri Lanka and Malaysia. In her last term, parents, teachers and friends of the Bablake community were also coached by Hannah as she was involved in promoting ‘Back to Netball’ in the area.

Hannah was a superb addition to the Bablake teaching staff and she will be missed by staff and pupils. However,

despite all that she has achieved in two years, it is important to remember that she is still young and her desire to travel and explore the world and life beyond teaching is to be respected. We wish her good health and happiness in her future.

Mr Rod Prime Mr Terry Patchett Rod’s father Bill Prime attended Bablake from 192732 and was a regular at the annual Former Pupils’ Dinners.

His two sons, Jonathan and Rodney, were brainy students who somehow ended up taking the KHVIII entrance exam rather than following to their father’s alma mater.

Rod was an all-action lad who made every House sports team and enjoyed basketball, rugby and cricket in the inter-school competitions. Academically Rod excelled in the humanities and his O Level Latin results made him a must for the highly successful VI Classical – two years studying Greek, Latin and Ancient History. His A level grades then more than qualified him for a place at Oxford to read Classics.

Rod joined the Bablake staff in 1968 and he quickly made his mark both in the classroom and in the extracurricular sports activities. He excelled in basketball, cricket and rugby in never-to-be forgotten staff teams which proved a social triumph. How ironic then that fate decreed that a sport so loved by him should, in September 1975, almost cost him his life: whilst playing for the Old Wheatleyans rugby team, he was short-arm tackled and he banged his head on the rock-hard ground that put him in a coma for several days. Those of us who visited were convinced he would never recover but he survived with many of the familiar signs in those who have suffered a severe stroke – loss of movement down one side, memory loss, then the gradual onset of further debility. There was no chance of a return to the classroom and understandably he often expressed bitterly his dissatisfaction with the medical treatment that had failed a hoped-for recovery.

Ever since that sad injury, Rod has found solace in the companionship of his friends and acquaintances at both KHVIII and Bablake, busying himself with photocopying and some library supervision. Never shy of expressing his strong views, whether on key figures of days gone by - nationally and related to Bablake- or on the merits of local stores, Rod deserves the very best in retirement, as he moves to sheltered housing in Meriden. We are hugely proud of the response of the Foundation Governors who continued daily to welcome Rod into Bablake for the last 39 years for social chat and a school lunch which have kept Rod going. Present staff too have shown admirable compassion towards one who is to them a complete stranger. Rod will miss Bablake and we shall miss him. www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Staff News

Mr Mark Taylor

Mrs Barbara Bennett

Mr John Watson

Mr Mark Woodward

Mark came to Bablake as Audio Visual Engineer in April 1991. In this role he was responsible for the maintenance, safety and operation of all audio visual equipment in our Senior, Junior and Pre Prep Schools. He had encyclopaedic knowledge of this equipment, and adapted his skills over time to more ICTbased and digital technologies.

He installed and maintained the school’s many interactive projectors and whiteboards, supported teaching staff in the operation of the digital languages laboratory and adeptly operated video and sound systems for a range of school events, including those where a specialist input was required and valued. He was also responsible for the school’s extensive telephone network and satellite- based systems, as well as the videoing and film-editing of school occasions.

He displayed considerable independence in his varied roles, but also worked frequently alongside support staff, teaching staff and pupils. He was invariably conscientious, meticulous and reliable, took great pride in his work, and willingly offered imaginative but realistic suggestions for new uses of technology. As a member of the school’s Health and Safety Committee, he was also acutely aware of safety for pupils and staff throughout the school.

Mark will be especially remembered for his unassuming yet invaluable role in school assemblies. He advised pupils, supported rehearsals, chose introductory music for Monday mornings and ensured the seamless operation of sound, video and PowerPoint presentations – thus considerably enhancing the spiritual and cultural life of our school community.

We wish Barbara both good health and happiness in retirement as she leaves us, after 10 years’ loyal service as Catering Assistant in the Staff Common Room and, before that, time spent with our 6th Form pupils in their own Coffee Bar. Kind-hearted Barbara took a pride in her kitchen and woe betide anyone, but especially yours truly, stepping foot in there!

Leaving Bablake at the end of December, at our staff Christmas Meal, Mrs Bennett was presented with a lovely flower arrangement (crafted by RS teacher and Head of PSHCE Mrs Lynda Jackson) and an exquisite teapot cake (made by Spanish teacher Mrs Rosie Bilsland).

Mr Mark Woodward added: As we approach the 10th anniversary this November of our first major Charity concert, which was headlined by KT Tunstall, we also acknowledge Mark’s excellent contribution to many of the musical events at Bablake in Enrichment and after school, where he was both a supporter and an expert technician on the recording desks.

We wish Mr Taylor the very best for his career beyond Bablake, which may well lead him further into the political arena where he has been a passionate campaigner locally for a number of years.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Miss Dionne Crosdale Mrs Elizabeth Hollick Dionne joined Bablake in September 2011 as both a Learning Support Assistant and PE Technician. This could be seen as quite a daunting combination, but she rose to the challenge without hesitation. Always enthusiastic and hard-working, Dionne quickly fitted into busy school life with ease, becoming a popular member of the community with staff and pupils alike. She became involved with a number of co-curricular activities such as netball and the CCF - a particular favourite for her! As PE technician, she had a good knowledge and expertise in athletics; she also helped with training and athletics events. She was also keen on netball and played a dynamic part in the ‘Back to Netball’ sessions held at Bablake.

Always sensitive, professional and good-humoured, Dionne established an excellent rapport with the pupils to whom she gave classroom support on a daily basis. She has moved to a very different but equally challenging role in a Primary setting in order to extend her skills and experience before applying to complete a PGCE. The profession will be very lucky to gain such a teacher! We wish Dionne all the luck in the world, and thank her for all she brought to Bablake during her time here.

Staff News

Mr Andrew Solomon

Mr Duncan Bevis

Mr Mark Woodward

Dr Louise Greenway

Andrew leaves us after four years’ service as our Design Technology technician. He was a much valued and popular member of staff, gaining the affection of staff and pupils alike as a result of his good humour and unruffled character! He was also a tremendous asset for the Boys’ PE department with his assistance on the rugby field.

He still plays for the successful Broadstreet RFC, so his current playing experience proved most beneficial, especially for our forwards.

We wish Andrew all the very best for his future beyond Bablake and wish him and Miss Joanne Price (former Art technician) all the best for their future together. We also congratulate them both on the birth of their first child.

Duncan, a key figure in the Bablake Old Boys cricket club, joined us in October 2013 to cover for Mrs Hollick’s maternity leave. From the start, he proved to be a real asset to the department.

Together, we embarked upon the year, neither knowing quite what we would encounter along the way as we were both new to Learning Support at Bablake and had no one to show us the ropes. His wealth of experience, calm and knowledgeable approach, and willingness to just get on with it, helped us come to terms with the mind-bending 5th year access arrangements and exam timetables, the complex end of year examination arrangements and their rainbow coloured papers, and the expanding numbers of pupils needing our support.

Duncan was particularly skilled working with our more vulnerable pupils, providing them with the constant presence and familiar face in Learning Support for when it just became too much in lessons or when there was nowhere comfortable to hang out during break times.

His experience of working with students on the Autistic Spectrum has helped the school develop an increasing awareness and tolerance, which will have a lasting impact for these pupils in our care in the future.

As an experienced PE teacher and coach, Duncan contributed much to school sport. He taught games, coached the basketball club and acted as umpire for several cricket matches. He supported many of the school’s co-curricular activities and enjoyed being back in the fold of his former school.

For the short time that he was with us, Duncan made such a positive impression on many students and colleagues. He is a wonderful friend and colleague and I will sorely miss his companionship. I wish him well in his new full-time post in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Mr Allan Mansfield Mr Mark Woodward We say goodbye to Allan who came to teach Physics at Bablake for one year. Of course, Mr Mansfield was no stranger to Bablake since his sister Victoria was a former pupil and we trust he enjoyed his year with us. We also thank him for his excellent support coaching hockey for both our girls and boys, and wish him the very best for the new post he takes up, teaching Engineering at Aston University Engineering Academy.

Ms Sarah Hodgkinson Mr Mark Woodward Sarah completed cover for regular members of staff in our English department this year.

Of course, she was no stranger to Bablake since she offered invaluable cover for the History department a few years ago.

We wish Sarah all the very best for her future beyond Bablake and thank her for her unstinting dedication to our pupils this year. She has been fully committed to the life of the English department and made quite an impression on all her pupils.

Thank you also to: Miss Charlotte Marti (French Assistant), Miss Johanna Raue (German Assistant) and Mr Fernando Serrano (Spanish Assistant) for their enthusiastic preparation of our linguists and being excellent colleagues. We wish them every success for the future.

Mrs Jenny Blyth (Food and Textiles Technician), Mrs Pam Marchant (Geography), Mr Mike Masters (Chemistry) and Mr Martin Rhodes (Geography) for their excellent work covering staff illness or maternity leave.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Staff News

Salvete

“A warm welcome to the following highly-talented new members of Bablake’s staff.”

Mr Michael Bull (Director of ICT) Mr Bull attended Bablake before studying for his Masters in Information Systems Engineering at the University of Surrey and training as a teacher via the University of Warwick. He has taught ICT and Computing at Coundon Court since 2003, as an Advanced Skills Teacher and with responsibility for E-learning and training. He was also Assistant Headteacher with responsibility for Teaching and Learning, but joins us keen to spend more time in the classroom, whilst also leading the development of whole-school ICT. He enjoys sport (especially cricket), singing and drama, and will play a full role in the co-curricular life of the school.

Mrs Jennie May (Head of Modern Languages) Mrs May studied French, Spanish and Russian at the University of Nottingham. She worked in business before becoming a teacher, and has an MAEd in Teaching and Learning from the University of Leicester. She was Director of Learning for Modern Foreign Languages (including EAL) at Kingsthorpe College, where she also had whole-school responsibility for Gifted and Talented pupils. She has worked in several schools, including two years as Deputy Head of Modern Languages at Rugby School.

She is keen to become involved in the wider life of the school, including the Duke of Edinburgh Award and netball.

Miss Lauren Mullan (Girls’ PE) Miss Mullan was educated at Coleraine High School and is a graduate of the University of Ulster, where she studied Sports and Exercise Science with a Diploma in Business Studies. She has played hockey to a high level, and has also represented Ulster in badminton. She trained as a teacher at the University of Bath.

Miss Jade Payne (Girls’ PE) Miss Payne is a former pupil and a very strong all-round sportswoman. She proceeded from Bablake to the University of Leeds, where she studied Sports and Exercise Science. She joins us from The Whitby High School in Cheshire, where she has been Head of Girls’ P.E. and Dance since 2012.

Mr Matthew Rushton (English) Mr Rushton, who was educated at King’s College, Taunton, and studied English and Related Literature at the University of York, where he also trained to be a teacher of English with Drama, joins from Tudor Grange Academy in Solihull where he was Lead Teacher of English. He will be Second in English, and support our Games programme (rugby/hockey and tennis), the CCF and drama.

Reverend Sacha Slavic (Chaplain and RS) Revd Slavic was educated in France, where he studied Law and Russian at Nancy University. Having qualified as a teacher in this country, he has worked at President Kennedy School and the Westwood Academy. At the latter, he has been Head of Modern Languages and Head of Religious Education and Philosophy, as well as a Pastoral Director, with associate membership of the senior leadership team. He was ordained as a Minister in Secular Employment in 2012. Whilst his main role will be to teach Religious Studies, Reverend Slavic will also teach in the Junior School, co-ordinate Community Service, organise Law extension classes and make a significant contribution to the pastoral and spiritual welfare of our school community.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Staff News

Welcome also to ...

From top left: Miss Rachel Hollinrake, Mr John Pakeman, Miss Rebecca Priest, Miss Laura Watts, Mr Paul Wilkes, Mr Robert Shiers

Frau Vanessa Beck (German Assistant), Senora Isabel Cowell (Spanish Assistant), Mrs Julie Griffiths (temporary Psychology cover), Miss Rachel Hollinrake (temporary Alumni Database Clerk and PE Technician), Mlle Lamia Loukil (French Assistant), Mr John Pakeman (Minibus driver), Miss Rebecca Priest (Geography, maternity cover), Mr Robert Shiers (DT Technician) and Mr Paul Wilkes (temporary Learning Support and PE Technician).

We are delighted that Miss Laura Watts (Girls’ PE), who has completed a second fixed-term contract (latterly a maternity cover), now joins Bablake on a permanent basis.

New Arrivals

Congratulations ...

Electrician Mr Tony Jones was nominated and admitted to the City of Coventry's Freemen's Guild.

New responsibilities

Mr Shoyeb Memon led a workshop on using graphical calculators with A2 and AS Mathematicians at the 2014 Mathematics in Education and Industry conference.

Mrs Kate Duke, Head of English Mrs Lisa French, Head of 4th Year Mrs Elizabeth Hollick, Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Co-ordinator Mr Inderpal Kalsi, Head of Fairfax House Mrs Jo MacGibbon, Assistant Head of Fairfax House Mr Shoyeb Memon, Second in Mathematics Miss Kelly Ormsby, Head of 2nd Year Mrs Sue Smith, reassumes Head of Girls’ PE Weddings Mrs Lynsey Lawrence (formerly Miss Cheffings) Mr Andrew Phillips

Mrs Elizabeth Hollick, Mrs Suzanne Webley 25 years’ service Mr Malcolm Duerdin, Madame Marine Field, Mr Simon Timothy, Mr Mark Woodward (1987-2012); Mrs Chris Scott (1988-2013).

50 years’ service Mr Terry Patchett (1964 – present) Miscellaneous We welcome Mrs Elizabeth Hollick back from maternity leave.

The PE Department arranged on another successful Winter Sports Awards Evening.

Martial Arts teacher, Mr Anthony Pillage, won the 2014 Pride of Coventry and Warwickshire Community Awards ‘Sporting Hero’ category.

Miss Sam Holyman arranged a ‘Chemistry for the Brave’ session for technicians and a workshop for Chemistry teachers with Bob Worley, one of the country’s leading safety Chemists.

Mr Mark Woodward had photographs printed in two issues of Photography for Beginners, CREST literature and the local press. He also won a Social Media Police #FabTeacher award (November 2013), and was invited on to the panel of an online CV clinic for The Guardian. www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Meet the Team

“I enjoy the variety of the job, trying out new experiments; also the interaction with pupils and staff.”

Supporting

science

Connor Putnam & Becky Williamson

Bablake only operates so smoothly because of the crucial expertise and enthusiasm of the teams of people who, behind the scenes, offer excellent support to the academic staff. After last year’s interview with our Ground Staff (messrs Cregan, Goodwin, Lucas and Ward), we turn to our Science Technicians.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Meet the Team

Would you mind stating your roles?

Mr Ken Binsley: I am Physics’ technician and Duke of Edinburgh Gold coordinator.

Miss Ruth Case: I always say I move things from place to place and wash up. At worst, Mrs Overall from Acorn Antiques, at best Gromit, but frequently Wallace unfortunately!

Mrs Ann Fisher: I work part-time, term-time only as a Biology technician.

Mrs Bev Lewell: I am a senior Science technician based in Chemistry.

Mrs Ruth Selby: My role is as Chemistry technician, part-time and term-time only.

(The skeleton remained silent!)

How long has this current team been working together?

Mrs Lewell: I am the newest member of the Chemistry team and am currently in my 5th year.

Miss Case: Ann and I have been working together since 2004.

Mr Binsley: I am a one man band in Physics but we have been together for just over four years.

What changes have you seen, and perhaps been involved with, since you have been here?

Miss Case: Our Prep room was refurbished when I arrived in 2004.

Ken, Ann and I did the planning, Neil Kimber did the work and we have enjoyed the results!

Mr Binsley: Two new labs arrived at the end of my first year: Sc17 and Sc18.

Mrs Lewell: Every year, one or two labs are being completely refitted. It’s great to see the Science department being modernised, but even better to find old equipment, long forgotten, hidden at the back of cupboards!

Mrs Selby: The Chemistry teaching staff have come and gone over the years, but now look younger than ever. (Dr Knight will be pleased to be included in this!)

Bablake’s science support staff

Mrs Fisher: The school atmosphere is far less formal than over 20 years ago, possibly as the staff have become younger – or is it that I am older?!

We asked what the best part of the job was.

Mrs Fisher: I enjoy the variety of the job, trying out new experiments; also the interaction with pupils and staff.

Mr Binsley: For me, it is the people I work with as the technicians and teaching staff in Science are very closely knit.

Mrs Selby: Even though the curriculum stays roughly the same, our day-by-day work is always different and sometimes challenging.

Not knowing what lies ahead is exciting!

Mrs Lewell: Yes, every day is a challenge. I still love Chemistry and enjoy nothing more than trying to make new experiments work.

Miss Case: For me, it’s the pupils who come to the Prep room, the pond area and its newts or to look at a drop of the water under a microscope.

Impressed with the team’s love of its work, we then asked what the strangest thing to have ever happened in a working day had been!

Miss Case: Taking a sick Angel fish to the vets?! Or removing a tower of glue sticks from a sink drain in Sc13, with blu-tack on the end of a broom handle!

Mrs Lewell: Seeing two foot flames coming from the top of a pumpkin!

Mrs Fisher: I put a box of maggots in the fridge ready for the next day’s experiment, only to arrive in the morning and find the lid mysteriously removed and maggots everywhere.

We kept on finding them in strange places for weeks!

Mrs Selby: Again, every day is diverse. For one lesson, you can be preparing chlorine gas, for another, it may be garden soil.

Mr Binsley: A Welsh farmer’s dog being sick on a school minibus! A long story, but strange things happen on Duke of Edinburgh treks.

Brilliant! Finally, do you have any secrets to tell?

Mrs Selby: I’ve done three parachute jumps - two as tandem and one on a static line.

Mrs Fisher: It’s been my dream for many years to trek in Nepal and will be doing that this February!

Mr Binsley: Not long before I started at Bablake, I was offered a job as a postman, so I could have been delivering post to the school instead of equipment for practicals!

Mrs Lewell: In 1983, a local software company published a game I had written for the Dragon 32.

Miss Case: (We know she is a very talented horse rider.) I always forget the washing-up bowl but that’s no secret!

Please let us know who you would like to be featured in future issues.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

25

Beyond the Classroom Edited by Jonathan Porter, Keisha Simms and Hayley Smith “These few pages cannot fully convey the rich programme of co-curricular activity on offer, but when added to the features in The Lion - our termly newsletter - and the news coverage on our school website every day of the year, even holidays, you will have a super image of the range of opportunities available for every pupil.”

Editor Profiles Name: Jonathan Porter Passions: Physically demanding outdoor sports, seeing new countries, meeting new people, the CCF and the Armed Forces.

Ambitions: Spend a gap year gaining work experience and travelling, study for my degree, then attend Sandhurst, before eventually being deployed overseas with the British Army.

2013/14 highlight: My successful experience at the Army Officer Selection Board.

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Name: Keisha Simms Passions: I’ve played Netball for seven years at Bablake and hope to continue playing at university.

Ambitions: My main focus at the moment is receiving offers from universities to study Economics.

After that, I just hope to be happy and fulfilled in whatever career I choose.

2013/14 highlight: Finding out I was Head Girl!

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Name: Hayley Smith Passions: Reading, writing (especially short stories), travelling, discovering new cultures and new peoples.

Ambitions: To write a book when I'm older, however I also want to travel the world, see as much as I can and learn new things. Spending time working in Africa, as well as going on safari there, also appeals.

2013/14 highlight: There have been so many to choose from, but the Classics trip and then the Love Africa Live and One Peace charity concerts stand out most.

Beyond the Classroom

Memories of a Bablake

Weather Girl

Bablake’s Weather Station, now in its 37th year of operation, has been providing professional readings for so many individuals and organisations.

With the retirement of Mr Steve Jackson however, while the equipment remains on site, readings will be taken remotely which means the direct involvement of our pupils, sadly, will be less obvious. Hayley Smith, who, along with her brother, has been a key volunteer for a number of years, reflects on her experience as a member of the team.

“My most memorable experience from a really enjoyable five years working with the Bablake Weather Station was when a film crew actually came to the school and interviewed Mr Jackson, quizzing him about when the games pavilion at the school’s playing fields was set on fire because of a lightning strike,” said former Bablake Weather Girl Hayley Smith.

“I remember being asked about my role in the weather station by Shefali Oza, a BBC weather reporter/ news presenter. I also felt as if I was going to faint then, not because of the dizzy heights of success we had reached with the BBC, but merely the heat on a particularly glorious summer’s day!

The weather station is not always all about analysing current data and making forecasts. Another highlight occurred recently when it was involved in the police investigations to date bones and search for burial sites in two chilling and tragic criminal cases, the first from 2009 and the latter way back in 1991. From my experience, we often had people ringing up and asking for information on the weather for insurance claims, but never before had I had the police on the phone asking for data from our records and diaries about weather conditions for their forensic investigations! It certainly will not be a call the Weather Station will be forgetting in a while!

While being involved with recording living Geography, we all had a lot of fun and laughed a lot, and I am sure I speak on behalf of the former Weather Station members when I say it really will be missed as part of my day to day life at Bablake.”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

27

Charity Report

£24,802 John Willis – Power 2 Inspire

Both staff and pupils were generous with their time and donations, above and beyond expectations, and the U6th and L6th pupils were once again excellent role-models for our younger students.

A newly established Macmillan team was proactive in organising many events: an after school quiz, the Macmillan World’s Biggest Coffee morning, the Bablake 2014 calendar and church cake sales raising in the region of £4000. Becky Williamson’s concert for TEACH raised over £1400 while Josh Rowe and Aron Sood raised over £2000 for Zoe’s Place.

Also, with the knowledge that students and teachers from Harrismith will be coming to Bablake in October 2014, the school community did a brilliant job of raising money for the bench in remembrance of the late Nelson Mandela. Visitor John Willis inspired our 2nd year students with a motivational talk before completing 50 lengths of our swimming pool as one of his 50 1000m swims in 100 days.

Finally, it is pleasing to see that 20 L6th pupils have volunteered to help with the charity for 2014-15, and we look forward to establishing new fundraising groups for Cancer Relief UK, CRY, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Zoe’s Place, as well as continuing to support many local, national and international charities.

Remember, together we can make a difference!

Keisha Simms

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Love Africa Live

“Mrs O’Neill’s first year as Charity Co-ordinator saw Bablake raise a record total of £24,802.46 – a phenomenal sum.”

Rainbow for Harrismith

Charity Report

Harvest Festival food bank contributions

A week’s baking, advertising and preparations really paid off as our Main Hall, converted into a giant cafe for Macmillan World’s Biggest Coffee Morning, was packed with Senior school pupils at morning break. Despite cakes and drinks being devoured eagerly by the crowds of pupils and staff, there was still plenty left for our Junior School pupils to enjoy during their lunchhour.

Bethan Mordey, one of our Macmillan Charity prefects, commented, “We were stunned by the response from everyone! We were inundated with cakes that people donated and then there were so many people buying them. We thought we would make around £200, so this figure is beyond our dreams!”

Charity co-ordinator Mrs Maria O’Neill thoroughly endorsed Bethan’s comments, adding“I have especially enjoyed working with such a devoted team of Macmillan representatives. They all showed fantastic initiative and enterprise with the event.”

A superb cake, baked in the shape of a giant Macmillan coffee cup by U6th pupil and baking supremo Shiksha Gill, was raffled and won by L6th pupil Jake Burgess.

Bablake's staff also raised another £500 from its own Coffee Morning!

Macmillan Coffee Morning

Macmillan Charity Prefect Team

“I am going to miss your Macmillan ambassadors like mad; they are the best fundraising school group I have ever had in Coventry and Warwickshire.”

Mandy Spraggett, Macmillan Cancer Support

Keisha Simms www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Charity Report

Oscars

A night at the

Joshua Rowe and Aron Sood’s ambitious plans for a red carpet ‘A Night at the Oscars’ evening to raise over £2000 for Zoe’s Place were a phenomenal success. The evening of entertainment was a major highlight of the 2013-14 calendar. Thanks, as ever, go to the Music department and Mr Malcolm Wyatt (Theatre Technician), who offered so much support and advice in rehearsals.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Charity Report

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

31

Home and Away

2

“I’ve always wanted to go to Iceland, after seeing so many beautiful images of the Northern Lights and the vast expanses of ice that shroud the country, but not to satisfy the urge for lobster soup which two of the Bablake party tracked down with a trek. Even with a picture postcard image in my mind, I was surprised, from the photos mailed back, just how beautiful the landscape was; there was so much green space, some stretching as far as you could imagine seeing in England, but then there were acres of ice surrounding this terrain,” writes Hayley Smith, who asked Mr Simon Enstone to file a report on the trip.

5 intrepid pupils, a mixture of Geographers & photographers departed, destined for colder climes, a couple of degrees south of the Arctic circle, swapping 64 degrees heat for 64 degrees latitude.

Everyone was excited at the prospect of exploring this wild and untamed island sitting astride the mid-Atlantic ridge where two of the earth’s giant tectonic plates drift slowly but inexorably apart at about the speed your fingernails grow.

We had an action packed itinerary that promised to be a tiring but rewarding experience. After landing in Keflavík, the first stop was the Blue Lagoon just outside Reykjavík. Set amongst a landscape of black lava, the water temperature averages between 30-40 ºc. The water is drawn from a depth of around 2000m and is rich in unique natural minerals such as silica and blue green algae. The dip proved wonderful while basking but a shock upon exiting to the cold.

Iceland experiences almost permanent daylight at the time of our visit, due to the tilt of the earth, so sleep was always going to be hard

In the face of the

volcano 32

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Home and Away

to gain before day 2, which began with a trip to a geothermal power station to learn more about how Iceland harnesses this valuable and free source of renewable energy. A drive across the vast outwash plains formed in the recent eruption of the Eyjafjallajókull volcano in 2010 (not that tricky to pronounce when you know how) and a visit to Skógafoss, one of Iceland’s most impressive waterfalls with a wide, thundering curtain of water 60m high, led the group to a stunning glacier walk.

Kitted out with crampons and ice axes, an experienced guide led us on an exploration of the frozen glacier tongue of Sólheimajökull - a wonderland of ice sculptures, ridges and deep crevasses. The potent smell of hydrogen sulphide in the air was a timely reminder that much of the vast expanses of ice that cover Iceland - the Vatnajökull ice cap is the largest ice cap in Europe and about the same area as Cyprus - are underlain by active and potentially deadly volcanoes. An eruption under the ice would unleash vast quantities of meltwater in the form of a glacial outburst flood known as a jökulhlaup but fortunately the volcano stayed quiet that day!

The following day our journey took us through a 560 square km lava flow from the Laki eruption of 1783, believed to be the largest ever worldwide, which today is covered by moss in places 30cm deep. Our destination was Jökulsárlón - the glacial lagoon, which featured in the James Bond film Die Another Day. This is Iceland’s most famous and photographed glacial lagoon and also one of its deepest lakes. Enormous icebergs, some the size of houses, break off the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier tongue as it retreats and drops into the lagoon, creating a spectacular sight. As they drift slowly towards the ocean, they occasionally break up in the process, and some are washed ashore on the black sand beach nearby. Pupils enjoyed eating cubes of 1000 year old ice, as the boat picked its way through the log jam of towering walls of blue ice.

Our accommodation that night at Vatnsholt farm was ‘interesting’ to say the least, shared with a menagerie of animals including an Arctic fox cub, a dancing goat, a talking raven and a pig called ‘Bacon’! The following morning, our journey took us past the imposing volcano Hekla, which is not alone in being long overdue an eruption. A welcome mid-afternoon

y by Hannah Photograph

“As the Iceland tourism information website says: ‘It’s not a destination, it’s an adventure’!”

Corden

snack consisted of eggs boiled in the geothermal river water at Hveragerdi, where curiously there were also bananas, peppers and grapes being grown in geothermally heated greenhouses. The day finished with a visit to Perlan - a Reykjavík landmark.

This futuristic building comprises large circular tanks which hold the city’s naturally heated water reserves, above which sits a glass dome. Pupils then enjoyed Reykjavík’s finest hamburgers & an evening swim at the geothermal open air swimming pool.

Thingvellir national park is where Iceland’s parliament was established in 930AD (the oldest in the world) – it is also scoured by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and rift valleys are clearly visible where the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates pull apart.

On Friday this cultural experience was an appetiser to the main activity of the day - lava tube caving. Donning helmets and headlamps, we were soon plunged into darkness navigating our way along a lava tube containing magical rock formations left by the last major eruption. The cave was actually one of the safest places to be during one of the 30 or so earthquakes that happen every day in Iceland, although it didn’t feel it when you were underground.

Once back in daylight, the next stop was the famous geothermal area at Geysir - one of the trio of natural wonders on the well known ‘Golden Circle’ that all geysers around the world have their name derived from.

A surreal world of spouting geysers and hot springs captivated the pupils, some erupting every 5 minutes to heights of nearly 30m, with an unfortunate gust of wind completely drenching onlookers. Our ‘Golden Circle’ tour was completed with a visit to Gullfoss waterfall - a thundering mass of foaming glacial melt water plunging over a double drop into a mile long gorge.

Before heading to the airport the group enjoyed a whale-watching experience in Faxaflói Bay, sighting white-beaked dolphins, minke whales and puffins - a perfect way to end a thoroughly inspiring expedition to an amazing country.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Home and Away

Greece

© Thermos

is the word!

When I asked my friends about the top places they visited on the most recent Classics trip to Greece, they seemed baffled that they had to choose between all the wonderful ancient wonders they encountered. On further prompting, some chose the first Olympic stadium, far different from the modern plot and wonders built in London for 2012 but the group had enjoyed running on the track and discovering the history behind the Olympic Games. They seemed relieved to find out some events, such as naked wrestling, were no longer included!

Another ancient wonder that was mentioned a lot was the Parthenon, regarded as the most important surviving building in Ancient Greece, and the group had had a guided tour walking amidst the surviving history. They had stood in awe as they realised this was built over 2000 years ago, or as someone said “probably when those dinosaurs were around”! So not quite as accurate with the educational knowledge as tour leader Mr Dan Menashe (Head of Classics) might have hoped!

Speaking to many of the group that had the fortune to enjoy the ancient sites and even relax in the Mediterranean sea as part of their Autumnal break, they all made sure I knew exactly how much fun they’d had and how much they learnt while they were there. Many were looking forward to the next Classical trip to Italy in Autumn 2014.

Hayley Smith

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Home and Away

The Finland trip this year sounded like the most adventurous excursion the Combined Cadet Force had planned in a while, and I don’t think I was prepared for just how hectic their itinerary had been!

The group started with sledge rides being pulled by reindeer, a true Santa experience, exactly as portrayed last year on the questionable cult TV series The Only Way is Essex. The sledges were also pulled by huskies which the party was able to meet afterwards. This was the relaxing part of the experience and the tone for the rest of the visit was very much action-packed and exhausting, as many of the group had to learn to ski for the first time soon enough to go down the snowy slopes of Finland, which proved more of a challenge than was expected.

Some activities, such as survival training, saw the boys and staff show a very competitive side! The group stayed at a hotel called the Crazy Reindeer, and if that’s not the best start to any trip, then I don’t know what is!

A particular highlight I heard of was Ice Lake fishing where they had to make a hole in the ice before attempting to catch some fish, which sounds like a lot of effort for fish and chips, but I’m sure was worthwhile!

Overall, the CCF’s week in Finland sounded like a really funfilled and adventure-packed trip, certainly one that will go down in the memories of a few of my friends as they hope to return to see those huskies again.

CCF ‘Finnishing’ School

© Bönisch

© Baviere

Hayley Smith

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Bablake Action

CCF

lowdown

6th Form Army Scholar Jonathan Porter writes about his appreciation of the Combined Cadet Force and his Cadet Leadership Course at Langley Lines.

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CCF isn’t just big kids running around with bigger toys, even if it may seem that way. Instead, it’s actually a way to bring people from all walks of school life together to build character and realise who they are as a person. The fact that it is fun too is an added bonus.

For Bablake pupils, it begins in our 3rd year: getting your greens, learning the ropes with all these people you never had a reason to talk to before, and figuring out what’s what. You do military activities like drill, fieldcraft and weapon handling – adding an extra element to your academic portfolio that will help you grab that dream university placement or career because that’s all that matters.

When you reach the 5th year and you are a bit higher up the ranks, maybe a corporal or sergeant, subject choices are bearing down on you and you start taking interviews for colleges or jobs, possibly travelling with different organisations to see the world.

Then, soon after, you’ve left school and all the friends you made. This is maybe when you rack up the experiences you’ve had in life and realise how much more the CCF gave you than just a good time on camp every holiday.

The confidence to set up and take full advantage of opportunities, the people skills for interviews, the smarts for effective independent living, the ability to plan your time and manage money, the fitness for the best healthy lifestyle and much more. This is what the CCF is all about! In fact, you never know when the CCF might come in handy!

Bablake Action

“...we were all desperately tired yet had lived one of the best weeks of our lives!”

2014

Cadet Leadership Course

Upon arriving at the training centre with approximately 300 other cadets, we were issued our platoon, section and rifleman numbers before heading to the accommodation to find our racks.

We dropped our kit, changed into combats and were briefed in the open order on the parade. Following this, we had our ranks stripped and commanders were appointed, randomly and switched every day - ready for our platoon photograph.

After mess that evening, our kit was issued by members of the Royal Gurkha Rifles, ready for the week’s exercises, that began with a section map and compass competition for the quickest time over all terrains, quickly setting the pace for the days ahead.

We continued with small exercises, lessons and lectures to prepare for the main event of staying out in the field for 48 hours. We conducted tactical manoeuvres, with full kit and weapons, such as different types of patrol, closing and engaging with the enemy in both platoon and section attacks, and brushing up on harbour drills to sleep out safely in a combat area of operations.

Over the course we became used to very late nights and very early mornings, waking at around 5am, yet when the pressure was on, we all put in 100% effort.

There was also a section competition throughout the week, based around aspects like volleyball, tug of war, weapon handling, marksmanship, combat drills, dealing with a medical emergency in a fire fight situation and an assault course (including a six mile log run) to mention but a few things.

The Gurkhas drove us to each stand on Troop Carrying Vehicles (TCVs), whose engine noise and flapping canvas drew some interested looks on the motorways. However bumpy and loud these journeys were, we somehow all managed to sleep in the TCVs. This rest helped my team of eight, and our report said we performed outstandingly working to our individual strengths but fully cohesive in all operations.

The showers on the last night were the most appreciated luxury of the camp, possibly second only to the hot meals served in the mess. Personally, a cup of coffee drunk from a mess tin at 4am during a lightning storm, while on duty, was my most welcome perk.

It was soon apparent that the only way to get through the course with any form of achievement was to work well with your section; in fact, by the end of the week section members probably felt closer to one another than to friends known for ages. We depended on each other! With social media and online connections, these friendships have also lasted.

The end of the week was both a relief and a shock; we were all desperately tired yet had lived one of the best weeks of our lives. With Pass Out parade in mind, I prepared my best uniform, bull polished my boots to the point of seeing my reflection staring back at me, handed back my bergen and helmet, after the inspection, to the stores, returned my rifle to the armoury and turned in for a good night’s sleep.

An early start ensured the barracks were swept and mopped, the sheets folded for laundry and the footlockers cleared for handover to the accommodation staff; after a shower and shave, we were all well prepared for inspection. At the parade, we had a speech from the top brass and a uniform inspection, as well as the presentation of ‘best section’ medals and prizes for ‘top cadets’. Six names were called out to receive medals, including mine; we marched proudly and formed at the front with perfect drill to collect the medals. A perfect finish to an excellent week! www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Offering Enrichment

Our annual record can only record a selection of Bablake’s co-curricular highlights. Termly newsletter The Lion, the daily news online, and our many official social media platforms document the opportunities offered in societies run by staff and pupils, and the endeavours of those working towards the Gold, Silver or Bronze Duke of Edinburgh awards. The next four pages capture a few of the highlights!

Enrichment and extension

There is a broad programme of ‘Extension Lessons’ that take L6th pupils beyond the A Level course in subjects they are keen to study beyond Bablake. These cover all subject areas as well as the vocational directions such as Law and Medicine. There are also opportunities to mentor younger pupils at Bablake, our Junior School and local primaries: e.g. Emily Robinson and Honor Klesnik-Edwards offered German instruction to Year 5 pupils at St. Osburg’s; also as ‘Symposium’ establishes itself, we are able to help the younger Gifted and Talented pupils.

Some extension work led to new societies being created, one of which is featured on the opposite page: the re-established Political Society, which meets weekly after school and generates additional time for debate on current affairs, arranged a very successful Euro Debate around the MEP elections.

To complement the L6th PSHCE Life Skills challenge, Friday afternoons continue to offer our U6th a unique opportunity to learn valuable life skills as part of Enrichment. From cookery to home improvement and woodland management to Italian, there are options for everyone, even those who have never wielded a musical instrument in anger. There is

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also training for the Extended Project Qualification, an academic exercise where pupils develop a detailed understanding in a subject area not taught at A-Level. This culminates for some in delivering a lecture at the EPQ Evening - indeed Kathryn Jones and her peers delivered for many the academic highlight of the year at the 2013-14 evening - but everyone involved develops valuable referencing and presentation skills. Prospective future medics are also offered the opportunity to prepare for the BioMedical Aptitude Test (BMAT).

Enrichment also offers the 6th Form full year group sessions: in 2013-14, talks by explorer Alex Hibbert, and author and inspiration Laura Bates, the Christmas gig with Wes Finch and Ellen Miller, and a Question Time - chaired by Mr Woodward with a panel of Mr Cleaver (Head of Art), former pupil Caitlin Edwards and Coventry University Journalism student Alex Maidment – were clear highlights.

We look forward in 2014-15 to the return of Laura Bates, another Christmas gig, an election special Question Time and a talk from the inspirational John Willis (Power2Inspire).

Connor Putnam

Offering Enrichment

Talking Europe

Bablake was fortunate enough to host a political debate between five prospective and current MEPs for the West Midlands. Chairing the debate was Chairman of the Coventry School Foundation board of governors Richard Atkins QC, who ably controlled the more passionate panel members and ensured every politician spoke for their allotted period of time without too many of the inevitable interruptions that are commonplace amongst eager politicians.

Representing the Labour Party was Siôn Simon, a member of almost 30 years and former MP for Erdington from 2001-2010. After stepping down from Parliament, he made a bid for Mayor of London, before moving on to be the top Labour MEP candidate.

The Liberal Democrats were represented by Phil Bennion, a farmer from the region, who served as a councillor in Lichfield from 1999 to 2001. He was a European Parliament candidate for the Lib Dems in the 1999, 2004 and 2009 elections, eventually being elected in 2009.

Alex Avern, the Conservative representative, was significantly younger than her opposition at only 23 but already with seven years' political experience, since she joined the party at only 16. She is currently a trainee accountant and was campaigning strongly for the Tories in her local area, the Black Country, whilst seventh on the party list of MEP candidates.

Representing the UK Independence Party was Phil Henrick, a multilingual account manager who chairs the party in his local Solihull and Meriden area and there was also a former UKIP member, Mike Nattrass, who left the party in 2013, having been their main MEP representative since 2004.

After an initial five minute speech where each candidate outlined the reasons why they should receive the vote of the audience registered to

vote, the chair then took questions from the floor and debate between the politicians really began to heat up. Arguably the most entertaining part of the evening, this saw a delightfully outspoken Mike Nattrass argue passionately with each other candidate, even on matters he agreed with!

Topics covered focused on the European Union, with much audience interest in the arguments for the UK's position within the EU in the future, and this invoked strong opinions at each end of the scale.

Many candidates also gave particular emphasis to Britain's position within the world trade market, and how this was likely to change if we were to leave the EU. There was no clear winner of the debate, nor was any of the representatives any less eager to present his or her views when the evening came to a close, but nonetheless the members of the audience left both much clearer on the politics of the EU and undoubtedly with a firmer idea on which party would receive their vote come the MEP elections on May 22nd.

Beckie Carter For Beckie’s full report, published on our website, see www.bablake.com/newsroom.php?item=1564

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Offering Enrichment

New

Societies

Last year saw the arrival of a wave of new clubs and societies at Bablake: e.g. Dr Toby Smith (Head of RS) started meditation sessions for pupils and also staff.

Some of the new clubs were run by pupils, inspired by Richard Coton’s instigation of the Flight Simulator club. Some were run by and aimed at just the 6th Form, such as the Roots Environmental Group and Politics Society; others were open to all years, such as the Cake Decorating Club run by Mrs Rosie Bilsland, which gave different age groups in school the chance to interact.

One of the most successful newcomers was the Sikh and Hindu Society, set up by Mr Atwal. He was strongly supported by 6th Formers Sian Brahach and Simran Bansal throughout the year, particularly during the Diwali Concert which brought Sikh and Hindu culture to Bablake – offering food and musical entertainment to staff and pupils alike. Sian Brahach commented: “We wanted to create a society that celebrated diversity and maximised the full potential of all in a cultural context where everyone benefited.”

The start of 2013-14 saw Bablake’s first co-curricular fair in September, so we look forward to even more pupils enjoying the broad, ever-expanding range of societies available.

Keisha Simms

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Celebrating

Diwali

With a musical concert and traditional food, our Sikh and Hindu society paid tribute to the Diwali festival of lights, that marks the end of the harvest season and the onset of winter, and is generally associated with the worship of Goddess Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth and prosperity, as well as reminding us of the story of Rama and Sita, where goodness overcomes evil.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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House Activities

House Activities 2013/14 Through the words of Keisha Simms and the House Heads

Bayley

House Officials Staff Mrs Lynsey Lawrence Mr Clive Mohamed Captains Daniel Brett Kate French

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

“The Shell girls dominated their competitions this year winning everything from Scrabble to swimming, with their only defeat being in the Olympics where they came a narrow second. The Shell boys have also had a strong start to the year placing either first or second in all of their events.

This drive to win was clearly led by the 3rd and 4th year girls’ teams who each won all of their events. The individual 3rd and 4th year boys’ teams have not had as many opportunities to show their talents, but, when given the chance to work together, they managed to secure a victory for their House in badminton.

Arguably, Bayley’s best success this year came in its outstanding contribution to the House Music Festival. This was a real case of all year groups

House Activities

working together highly effectively and the end result was a triumph. The staff officials were hugely impressed with how well the 6th form prefects oversaw the event - see the following comments.

They would also like to thank Dan Brett and Kate French (House Captains) for their excellent support with all House matters.

Throughout the year Bayley has performed well, taking second place in a variety of competitions, demonstrating the broad ability of the students within the House. Since the only way is up, Bayley is guaranteed success in the future!”

Keisha Simms

Head of Bayley, Mrs Lynsey Lawrence’s highlight: “My favourite event was House music; although Bayley did not win, we did exceptionally well to produce a range of acts. Molly Griffin and Nick Evans did a fine job as cultural captains overseeing everything, and Dan Brett and Hope Hughes were such good compères that an extra category was added to recognise this, which they won!

Ruby Griffin, Philippa Morris and Grace Wye (all in the 5th year) did a brilliant job mentoring the Shells, as well as performing themselves. The Shell choir performed two songs including Jessie J’s Price Tag with great confidence. We even had Lauren Cox performing modern interpretative dance to a rendition of Read All About It performed by Georgia Ementon and Eve Lapworth.”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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House Activities

Crow “Throughout the year Crow has maintained a high level of achievement and the House hopes to continue to become even stronger.”

House Officials Staff Mr Andrew Phillips Mr Sam Williams Captains Katie Carlson Kian Patel

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“This year the Shells made their mark by placing first or second in the majority of their competitions. Their talents were not only shown in sport, but also in the annual Ready Steady Cook competition which they won, suggesting that Crow may be housing the next Gordon Ramsay.

The 2nd year boys also proved they can perform as top sportsmen or academics by winning the swimming competition and placing second in Scrabble. The 3rd and 4th years seemed to work better as a team than as individual years, as together they took first place in both the Intermediate quiz and girls’ netball. They did however win their respective Ready Steady Cook competitions, and it would appear that impressive culinary skills are a common occurrence in Crow.

House Activities

The Senior boys and girls clearly set a good example for the younger year groups by taking first or second in six of their events and fourth in just one. Hopefully next year's Senior team can replicate their success or aim to do even better. Throughout the year Crow has maintained a high level of achievement and the House hopes to continue to become even stronger.”

Keisha Simms

Head of Crow, Mr Andrew Phillips’s highlight: “Crow’s finest hour was the House Music festival.

With the same unruffled demeanour seen weekly pitch side by members of our valiant 3rd XI hockey team, Assistant Head of House Mr Sam Williams skilfully deployed Cultural captains, Aniruddha Bose, Bradley Gill, Lara Morley-White and Stuart Robinson to organise an ambitious set of scenes from Les Miserables. The performance on the night was outstanding and very much a team production, entirely in the spirit of the festival. Katie Carlson and Kian Patel were another tour de force as Crow captains; I would like to thank them and their full team for the excellent support, leadership and enthusiasm over the year.”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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House Activities

Fairfax

House Officials Staff Miss Kelly Ormsby Mr Inderpal Kalsi Captains Huw Edwards Beth Starkey

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“The Shell girls made an instant impression winning their Olympics and coming second in the rounders and swimming competitions, so Fairfax hoped this was a sign for future success, especially after winning the House trophy the previous year. As a group, the Shells managed to continue the girls’ winning streak in Spelling Bee and table tennis, but sadly could not stand the heat in the Ready Steady Cook kitchen where they came fourth.

Fairfax had varying success in the quizzes. There was a victory in the Senior quiz thanks to a strong team led by Matthias De Veer and the Junior quiz team almost repeated this success by coming in second place. Fairfax hit the mark in badminton with wins for mixed teams across the year groups and we cannot forget to mention the fantastic performances from the 2nd year and 4th year at Sports day, as

House Activities

“I would like to say a special thank you to the House captains, Beth and Huw, and the prefects for supporting Fairfax during my last year as House Head.”

both came first in their year group to make Fairfax the overall champions.

Special congratulations also go to James Moffitt (4th year boys’ captain) who won everything he took part in, both individual and team! As a House, Fairfax aims to continue to work hard in the future as our new House Head, Assistant Head of House and House captains bring out the best in everyone – and remember, it is not about winning in Fairfax but about taking part, so if you have not already done so, be involved next year.”

Head of Fairfax, Miss Kelly Ormsby’s highlight: “I would like to say a special thank you to the House captains, Beth and Huw, and the prefects for supporting Fairfax during my last year as House Head. House music was my highlight of the year, with Fairfax opening the show. Our rendition of Never Forget and the choreography for Walking on Sunshine (created by Beth Starkey and Charlotte Loasby) were performances never to be forgotten along with Liam Moore's last minute cameo. Thank you, Fairfax, for putting on an amazing show!”

Keisha Simms (a Fairfax girl herself!)

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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House Activities

Wheatley

House Officials Staff Miss Jayne Simmons Miss Rachel Young Captains James Faulkner, Kalika Puri, Pavesh Sehmar, Priya Virdi

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“When it comes to Wheatley, the facts speak for themselves. The House’s 17 wins came from such a variety of sources, whether photography or chess, and there seems to be no limit to what this House can do. Last year it would appear that the 2nd year boys and Senior girls made the biggest impact by winning all of their events, a substantial contribution to Wheatley's list of victories.

The Shell boys also hit the ground running, coming first in both the Olympics and football to show that they are going to be strong competitors in future sport competitions. The Senior Dodge ball team also deserves recognition for rising to the challenge and coming out on top, mastering a very new but popular event.

House Activities

“It was inspiring to see Wheatley’s performers come together as a House and put on a show-stopping performance – they really made me proud!”

Each year group contributed strongly in every competition so, with just a handful of losses over the year, Wheatley's hard work paid off with it becoming the proud winner of the House Trophy 2013/2014.

Congratulations, Wheatley!”

Wheatley wins the 2013-14 House trophy!

Keisha Simms Head of Wheatley, Miss Jayne Simmon’s highlight: “The House music festival this year was amazing and I have to give a special thank you to the 6th formers who were so supportive throughout the night, especially towards the lower years. It was so inspiring to see Wheatley’s performers come together as a House and put on a show-stopping performance – they really made me proud!'”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Beyond the Classroom

Reading

week

Mr Alistair Hopkins (Deputy Head - Academic) reflects on the success of our inaugural Reading Week, that ran alongside a very well-supported Scholastic Book Fair.

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We are always looking at ways that further enrich our pupils’ education and enable them to encounter challenging ideas. Reading Week was an opportunity to do something a little different, while highlighting the importance of literacy, encouraging directed wider reading and looking at some of the openended questions where there is not always an obvious answer. We were keen to promote the Library as a fantastic resource for research as well as non-fiction, encourage wider reading beyond the syllabus, plus develop higher order thinking and speaking and listening skills - an important strand of pupils’ literacy development.

Improving the quality of internet use by highlighting the wealth of useful academic articles online and the need to select sources from reputable websites was also possible.

In Physics pupils wrote speeches for their greatest invention of all time; in ICT they looked at the rapid evolution of technology; in Home Economics it was recipes from around the world. There was an exciting co-curricular link, intriguingly titled Singing for Science, between Music, PSHCE and Science, instigated from a poem about States of Matter. The successful outcome with the latter proved the importance of wider reading and how people can have different perspectives even when they have access to the same evidence.

Other departments delivered material that used their Twitter feed to publish work, involved independent research with some form of creative outcome, worked with assessment objectives decided upon by the pupils, or had some form of competition within the class via quizzes set by pupils or an emphasis on creativity: e.g. pupil generated films, sketches or presentations; working models; posters.

It was brilliant to see teachers setting the bar even higher than normal and witness the pupils respond with more than their usual enthusiasm and exceed our own high expectations.'

Beyond the Classroom

Rainbow

Nation

To show our support of Harrismith Secondary, our partner school in South Africa, Nelson Mandela’s ‘Rainbow Nation’, on the final day of the Spring term each of our year groups was asked to dress in a colour of the rainbow. Then, in beautiful Spring sunshine perchance, pupils flocked outside to form a rainbow on the school playing field. Bablake’s emerging paparazzi pack was at hand to take photographs of this spectacle from the School Tower.

Mrs Helen Skilton (Head of History), who organised the event, including directing the formation of the rainbow by mobile with staff on terra firma, commented: “The view from the tower was amazing, and I was so impressed with the support and co-operation from all our pupils and staff. We raised over £700 for our Harrismith fund to finance projects in our partnership school and help to pay for two teachers and two pupil ambassadors to visit Bablake in October 2014.”

Mr Mark Woodward

“Each of us is as intimately attached to the soil of this beautiful country as are the famous jacaranda trees of Pretoria and the mimosa trees of the bushveld – a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world.”

Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) RIP

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Flair

‘The Claw’ by Jess Betts, A* A Level Art student and 2013-14 School Captain.

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F lair

Edited by Matthias De Veer and Kate Edmiston

Art&design Editor Profiles Name: Matthias De Veer Passions: Drawing, reading, listening to music.

Ambitions: To study Architecture at university and learn more foreign languages.

2013/ 14 highlight: Actually finishing an Art project on time, Bugsy Malone and the Art trip to Oxford.

Name: Kate Edmiston Passions: Photography and drawing (especially portraiture), English Literature, playing the piano and ‘cello.

Ambitions: To study English Literature at university, go skydiving in the next year and visit Asia.

2013/14 highlight: Visiting Cape Town, in South Africa.

The spectacular scenery was brilliant inspiration for my A2 Art coursework.

“Please enjoy this year’s Flair, as we present a selection of some stunning Art and Design work, in a variety of media from 2013-14 by pupils from the Shells through to the U6th. As always, examination pieces were displayed at our annual Art, Design Technology and Textiles exhibition evening that celebrated the best of Bablake’s pupils’ creative work.”

Please submit your best creative work (poems, stories, drawings, photographs) for future editions of Flair via mgaw@bablake.coventry.sch.uk www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Art & Design – GCSE

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Art & Design – GCSE

Respect!

Charlotte Loasby, Editor of Stretch 10 – The Respect Issue proudly led her team to seven nominations for the 2014 Shine School Media Awards and attended the National Final with Katie Carlson, Rory Dulku, Anna Knight and Bethan Mordey.

There she won ‘Most Outstanding Pupil’ and Stretch received three Highly Commended/Runners Up awards for ‘Best Magazine’, ‘Best Overall Editorial Content’ and ‘Most Inspirational Teacher’ (Mr Mark Woodward).

The other three categories where the magazine was shortlisted were: ‘Best Business Strategy’, ‘Best Commercial Initiative’ and ‘Best Environmental Strategy’.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Art Through the Ages

Young A RT From the ‘miniature worlds’ created by our Shells, to the ‘veiled and robed’ photography and pottery by our 2nd years, and the Pop Art painting of our 3rd years, the standard of our young artists is outstanding.

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‘Pages’ Robbie Stowers

G CSE

‘Metals’ Grace Wye

‘Milk’ Kirsty Cattell

Art Through the Ages

Prime GCSE final pieces - a mere selection of the work on show at our annual Art, Design Technology and Textiles exhibition.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Art Through the Ages

AS

‘Africa’ Georgia Clarke

‘Numbers’ Kate Edmiston

‘Espresso’ Matthias De Veer

‘Fish’ Eva Tite

Once again our A Level Art pupils produced some stunning final pieces.

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‘Ink Face’ Seth Hillyer

Below:‘Scream’ Charlotte Loasby

‘Constructions and Buildings’ Betty Boo

Art Through the Ages

A2

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Design Technology

Design Technology - A Year in Review “This year, our GCSE pupils produced the best ever set of results, no surprise to those who viewed their outstanding coursework projects. Tom Betts, Rachel Faulkner and Ruby Griffin represented Bablake in the Coventry Rotary Club exhibition of Design Technology work and were highly commended for their work, while Huw Edwards’ A2 coursework - a butcher’s block and cabinet received a prize for outstanding craftsmanship.

Andrew Haughian continued the tradition, among our A2 pupils, of seeing who could produce the largest project, producing a superb garden swing for two people. Many pupils explored different design eras and made imaginative use of the CNC laser cutter to cut veneers into elaborate patterns on their box lids or doors.

In the lower school the use of 3D modelling software is starting to gain momentum and we look forward to more 3D printing of models next year.

The Formula 1 Challenge team is starting to mature with experience and results are improving every year, while the introduction of a scale modelling club proved popular with some interesting test flights of aircraft.

With a new crop of GCSE projects under way, and our largest ever AS group, we are on course for more outstanding pieces of work for 2014-15.”

Mr Chris West

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Hollie Molloy

Dan Williams

Georgia Gunson

Tom Betts

DT

Arkwright Scholarships

A rkwright Arkwright Scholarships As well as celebrating A* GCSE pupils, Mr Chris West (Head of DT) and his department have immortalised two new Arkwright Scholars - James Horton and Adam Keir – in the now traditional manner, namely laser etched wooden floor blocks!

Adam Keir explained more about the awards, “The Arkwright Scholarships Trust is a charity scheme that offers prestigious and highly sought-after engineering scholarships to school students across the UK. The awards are aimed at students excelling in Design Technology at their schools, who also have an interest in studying Maths and Physics at A Level.

Students must submit a written application describing their interests and experiences with Engineering in and out of school. They must then sit an examination based on solving engineering problems by designing

a number of solutions. The final stage is an interview in which the applicants try to prove themselves to two interviewers from the field of engineering.

I am now sponsored by Coventry University - one of the best engineering universities in the UK, whose most impressive features include a Harrier Jump Jet, and a wind tunnel built and tested by Mercedes PETRONAS AMG Formula One team.”

James Horton added, “I have been sponsored by The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE). All of the sponsors committed to the charity donate their time and a small portion of their funding to help the scholars achieve their goals. The company donates £1000: £600 to the scholar who can spend the money on what they wish

providing it is relevant to his or her studies, and £400 to the school’s DT department for equipment, software and materials.

Most scholars are also assigned a mentor from their sponsors who remains in contact with the student over the two years and helps develop knowledge of a particular branch of engineering. The Arkwright Scholarships Award is recognised and appreciated by universities and employers because of its reputation as a challenging but rewarding scheme for young engineers of the future.”

Tom Betts and Madison Cotteret were invited to interview alongside Adam and James. To have four pupils invited to the interview stage is an excellent achievement.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Textiles

Textiles “During the last two academic years, the Textiles department has had a strong intake of dedicated pupils who have selected GCSE Textiles.

Following an informative visit to the ‘Sewing for Pleasure’ show at the NEC where pupils researched various new materials and decorative techniques, they worked to create some exciting responses to the design briefs set by the examination board for their controlled assessment. Themes included: a children’s toy, a costume for the stage, cultures and vintage.

Alongside their practical work, pupils had to produce a support folder covering such aspects as design, methods of decoration, industrial practices, health and safety and quality control.

The pupils worked with dedication and their outcomes were completed to a very high standard. The year culminated with their work being shown at the Art, Textiles and Design Technology Exhibition where both parents and pupils were able to celebrate their work.”

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Emily White

Shannon Hasan

Jessica Hunter

Philippa Morris

Mrs Carol Davey

House Photography

‘Spirit of Bablake’ Bethan Mordey

‘Spirit of Bablake’ Mariona Foguet-Gonzalez

‘Nature’ Amy Lilly. Photo of the Year

‘Nature’ Phoebe Brook

Photography

Photographic Excellence The increasingly popular House Photography competition returned this year, and the standard of entries was very high. After much deliberation, the judges chose Amy Lilly as winner of the ‘Nature’, ‘Relationships’ and ‘Using a Zoom’ categories, whilst selecting Bethan Mordey as winner of ‘The Spirit of Bablake’ section.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Celebrations

Crystal Ball Our 9th Crystal Ball, organised once again by the Senior Prefects for our 5th Year pupils, was another success. Photographer Hollie Molloy set out to capture all the guests in a selfie, and created this dramatic collage.

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Celebrations

Leavers’ Ball A pictorial record of the evening enjoyed by our Class of 2007 at Nailcote Hall Hotel, Berkswell.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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F lair

Edited by Amy Kuner and Alice Ryan

Editor Profiles Name: Amy Kuner Reading speed: 704 words per minute.

Favourite book: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J K Rowling.

Currently reading: A Dance with Dragons by George R R Martin.

Favourite childhood book: The Roman Mysteries by Caroline Lawrence.

Top reading tip: Always read the book before you see the film; things are so much easier to understand.

Name: Alice Ryan Reading speed: 243 words per minute.

Favourite book: Matilda by Roald Dahl.

Currently reading: A Buzz in The Meadow by Dave Goulson.

Favourite childhood book: Malory Towers series by Enid Blyton.

Top reading tip: Always remember to try and read lots of different genres!

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Literature

and creative writing

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Creative Writing Competition

Readers of The Wheatleyan are asked to submit a 200 word creative piece based on the title below. Please email a photo of your written work completed on this page, a photocopied page, or a Word file of the piece to mgaw@bablake. coventry.sch.uk by March 31 2015. The entries will be judged by an external author and the winning pieces will feature on our website and in next year’s edition.

Because I'm a Girl...

Name

Form www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Commentary

Is it a

book or a film?

You may not have realised that many of the most successful film releases have been based on books: e.g. Gone Girl, The Great Gatsby and The Hunger Games to name just three.

Here is a Top Five chosen by Amy Kuner and Alice Ryan!

1. Clueless

Clueless is a loose adaptation of the Jane Austin classic Emma. The book is best known for its unlikable protagonist, represented in the film by Cher as similarly shallow and self-absorbed. The film brings the 1815 book into a 1995 setting, with iconic images and costumes for the entire cast.

2. Forrest Gump

This film is based on Winston Groom’s original. The author said the film “took some of the rough edges off" Forrest, also changing various other aspects of the book. While the movie was a massive box office hit, the biopic, now considered a timeless classic, only sold 30,000 copies before the film’s release.

3. Jaws

This terrifying film was actually based on Peter Benchley’s equally terrifying book with the same title.

The producers clearly saw the potential of the book because they bought the rights to it before release.

The book was actually based on real life events too mainly the Jersey Shore shark attacks of 1916.

4. Jurassic Park

Stephen Spielberg action-packed film was based upon Michael Crichton’s novel of the same name.

Crichton actually helped write the screenplay for the 1993 film, ensuring the film adaptation bore the same pace, plot points and general feelings. Again this tome attracted the attention of film-makers before it was even released, with Spielberg securing the rights to production for $1.5 million!

5. Mean Girls

Now 10 years old, this film is still so relevant to school life and people find it so easy to identify with.

It is based on Rosalind Wiseman's Queen Bees and Wannabes, a non-fiction self-help guide about her experiences of high school life.

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Commentary

“It is my favourite book because it is written in a unique style and from a unique perspective!”

Platinum

Readers

Some senior Bablake pupils and members of staff share their favourite reads with Flair Editors Amy Kuner and Alice Ryan.

Pupil Recommendations Fran Bellingeri recommends…

The Hobbit J R R Tolkien “This classic transports you into another land and keeps you on the edge of your seat. There’s great character development and you really root for them during their adventures.”

Sam Griffiths recommends…

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Nagaru Tanigawa “This light novel series follows the school life of a deadpan, snarky, self-proclaimed ‘ordinary guy’ and his reluctant adventures with an eccentric girl, interested in nothing except ‘aliens, time-travellers and espers’, who just happens to have the powers of a goddess.

Exceptionally translated from the Japanese original, the witty, surprisingly philosophical narration, coupled with the girl’s ‘bored-with-life’ outlook, makes for a hilarious, gripping read.”

Matthias De Veer recommends…

Pigeon English Stephen Kelman “It is my favourite book because it is written in a unique style and from a unique perspective. Related through the voice of an 11 year old Ghanaian immigrant living on a London council estate, the story is an emotional rollercoaster, which keeps you captivated until the riveting climax.”

Staff Recommendations Main School Librarians, Mrs Julie Needham and Mrs Lucy Ryan recommend…

Postcards from No Man's Land Aidan Chambers The Maze Runner James Dashner Fault in our Stars John Green Blood Red Road Moira Young Book Thief Markus Zusak Mrs Kate Duke, Head of English, recommends…

Knife of Never Letting Go Patrick Ness Noughts and Crosses Malorie Blackman Oranges in No Man’s Land Elizabeth Laird

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Reflection

Lessons from

Auschwitz

Moni Dhariwal visited Auschwitz at Easter 2014 with fellow 6th form pupil Paul Lilley, as an ambassador from Bablake with the Holocaust Educational Trust. Here are her sensitive reflections on this lifechanging experience.

The photos in this article were taken by Moni during her visit to Auschwitz.

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F

or many years I have wanted to visit AuschwitzBirkenau to gain a first-hand insight into the horrors of the Holocaust and the impact on victims during such a dramatic period in history. I had experienced previous school trips to Beth Shalom, and a History visit to Berlin, including the Berlin Holocaust Memorial and the site of the Wannsee Conference where the Final Solution was decided.

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

This visit to Auschwitz therefore extended my knowledge of World War II and the Holocaust.

The ‘Lessons from Auschwitz’ journey with the Holocaust Educational Trust included a four-part course exploring the universal lessons of the Holocaust and its relevance for today. The aims of the course were to expand knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust for young people and to clearly highlight the consequences, if prejudice and racism become acceptable.

Reflection

The Holocaust was the state-sponsored persecution and murder of Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators, a plan to systematically eradicate the Jewish population through genocide. The Nazis, who came to power in Germany in January 1933, believed that Germans were ‘racially superior’ and that the Jews, deemed ‘inferior’, were threatening to the German racial community.

The Nazis also targeted other groups during this era because of their perceived ‘racial inferiority’ and their potential to undermine the desired ‘Aryan’ Race. This included gypsies, the disabled, and Slavic peoples such as the Russians and Poles. Other groups were persecuted on political, ideological, and behavioural grounds, including Communists, Socialists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and homosexuals.

It is estimated six million Jews died during the Holocaust, with a proportion of 1.2 million people dying at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

One of the key lessons I took from the course was that statistics are impersonal. Behind the six million who perished, are individuals who lived life across Europe, not remarkably different from our own set up.

This particular lesson was reinforced in our Next Steps follow up project. The visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau rehumanised the experiences of Holocaust victims and ensured we should not just cite statistics, but focus on promoting that each figure of those lives lost at Auschwitz-Birkenau was an individual person like ourselves.

Having met and heard from Holocaust survivors Rudi Oppenheimer and Kitty HartMoxon, it is evident that they believe this also.

This is why I would like to emphasise that a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau is highly educational and meaningful as we can learn from the behaviour of humans in the past. By definition, the term ‘perpetrators’ consists of not only those who committed murder, but also those who played a part in the complex mechanism of genocide, even being silent and not standing up against it.

We should therefore endeavour to challenge acts of prejudice or discrimination in our communities and society as a whole, even when this may be unpopular or inconvenient, to prevent such a tragedy from happening again in the future.

I know there are arguments made for not visiting AuschwitzBirkenau: e.g. over 60 years have elapsed, so it is time to move on, forgive and forget; life is already complex and complicated enough without having to face the past; people may not want to deal

with the Holocaust; individuals may seek to commemorate and remember the past in alternative ways. While I understand a visit to the death camp is not for everyone, the experience was thought-provoking and emotionally challenging in bringing the past to life.

Lessons from Auschwitz provided me with an unforgettable and remarkable experience. I hope that the Lessons from Auschwitz course and independent visits to Auschwitz-Birkenau carry on well into the future, to continue making forthcoming generations aware of the importance of challenging prejudice, promoting tolerance and preventing hatred from poisoning society in the future.

“To consider: Why does society still repeat the mistakes of the past?

Will our generation ever learn to speak up against discrimination?” www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Performing Arts Edited by Rubi Ingaglia and Morwenna Hocken

Please note the online portfolio for the Performing Arts: www.bablaketheatre.com www.facebook.com/BablakeTheatre @bablaketheatre @bablakemusic

Editor Profiles Name: Rubi Ingaglia Passions: Theatre (esp. Shakespeare), travel, languages, performing, 50s and 60s music.

Ambitions: Become fluent in as many languages as possible, travel as much of the world as possible.

2013/14 highlights: Combining my love of theatre, Shakespeare and Spanish by watching a Spanish production of Lope de Vega’s ‘El Castigo Sin Venganza’ (‘Punishment Without Revenge’) at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London – my first time visiting this spectacular theatre. Also winning a university summer school place in Hong Kong.

Name: Morwenna Hocken Passions: I have always loved acting and being involved with the theatre. I am a very creative person, so also love singing, baking and painting.

Ambitions: To keep the performing arts always as a part of my life and gain an English Literature degree at a good university, before studying for a postgraduate degree in acting and hopefully breaking into the industry. One day I may also flip pancakes and beat my cousin at FIFA! 2013/14 highlights: Starting in Bablake’s 6th Form and making new friends in Drama and other areas, being bombarded with custard pies by an army of Shells during Bugsy Malone rehearsals, and producing and performing our AS piece ‘Blithe Spirit’.

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

On Stage

Bugsy

Malone Emily Robinson

For our main full school production, the harmony between the principal cast, creative team and orchestra presented the audience with a tremendous, professional production that was great to watch and also fun to be involved with. Fat Sam’s Grand Slam was most definitely the place to be!

Bugsy Malone involved one of the largest casts in the history of Bablake drama, with many pupils from each year group keen to get involved, and productions were sold out. A fabulous job was done

by Ms Caroline Farmer in the direction of such an enormous cast and everyone’s favourite moment was most probably being able to ‘splurge’ Ms Farmer, especially after a tough afternoon of rehearsing!

“The strength of the team is each individual member.

The strength of each member is the team.”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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On Stage

A Level

Theatre Studies Our AS and A2 Drama students produced three excellent pieces for their practical examination.

“For our practical element of AS drama, we had to perform a 15 minute extract from a play. Sam Griffiths, Rory McDermott and Alex Murray (with myself as an extra) performed Terence Rattigan’s Ross, about Lawrence of Arabia.

Morwenna Hocken and myself performed a short extract from Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit, playing Charles and Ruth, aided by Lara Morley-White as Elvira. We had an audience of friends and family (plus an external examiner) to perform to and it was an exciting time. We would like to thank Ms Farmer for remaining calm and reassuring throughout the exam period!”

Ryan Cornall

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

On Stage

A2 Level

“Part of the A2 course includes devising and performing your own piece of theatre, to be performed for a practical exam. Megan Evans, Rachel Hepworth, Lara Morley-White and myself decided on creatively adapting Daphne du Maurier’s novel Rebecca.

Creative adaptation as a style relies on using multirolling of cast and set, and the inventive use of sound, light and projection to fully immerse the audience in the world being created.

Adapting the novel was a challenge in itself, firstly because there was so much content to read through, and secondly because we had to condense a 300 plus page novel into a 20 minute performance. Due to our small cast size of four, we had to use multi-rolling, where Lara, Rachel and myself all played a variety of characters, in order to incorporate the elements of the novel we felt were necessary for our piece.

A device we included that was well received with our initial audiences, was our use of a red book, passed between the characters for narration in order to progress the plot of our piece. It gave the impression the entire play was a series of flashbacks, told from the viewpoint of Megan’s character - the unnamed heroine of the novel. This, coupled with a multi-purpose set, lighting and sound, all led to a performance we felt was of a high standard.”

“A device we included was our use of a red book, passed between the characters for narration...”

Rory Dulku

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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On Stage

nal” ofessio and pr k c li s “ “suitable gravitas and emo tion”

The

ressed sion… d n e im d g ther ded ano with disturbin orus ad n h o c ” d e e ts th k o “ en ck, it lo lding ev all in bla cy to the unfo n ce compla “extrem ely stron g portra yal”

Crucible

the 17th ay tells the tale of Arthur Miller’s pl chusetts. h Trials in Massa itc W m le Sa y ur cent

ces” performan “standout

“the cos tumes w ere stun ning”

“outstanding characterisa tion througho ut” ects” e-up eff k a m d ir an ssive ha “impre “the sou nd made effective use

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The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

ls” l skil voca erful “pow

licity” k simp r a t s had taging “the s

of disson ant tone s”

10

On Stage

reasons to visit the Fringe

This summer Bablake’s Drama department took a new version of The Picture of Dorian Gray to the Edinburgh Fringe as its 28th consecutive production at the world famous festival. We asked Rory McDermott, one of this year’s cast, to explain his Top 10 reasons for being part of the Fringe.

1 The amount of shows you see is incredible.

2 You experience exactly what taking a show to the Fringe is really like.

3 Your confidence and social skills are increased by the bond you have with your fellow actors while advertising the show and engaging with the public.

4 It looks really good on a CV for any job, let alone one connected to the theatre!

5 It proves to universities how you can successfully take a show to the Fringe.

6 You meet fantastic, inspirational people who can help you with career paths in the future.

7 You gain skills that you can use in later life and future jobs.

8 You have the chance to thoroughly explore Edinburgh, and discover what an amazing city it is.

9 As the accommodation is in a university, you gain a glimpse of university life!

10 It’s a fantastic week and such great entertainment!

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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On Song

The musical

year

Bablake’s Director of Music Mr Tim Crompton reports on another excellent year, full of fantastic opportunities for Bablake’s musicians.

Autumn

This term was tremendously busy, with many pupils in all year groups participating in a wide range of activities and concerts. We performed two concerts at St. John’s Church - one with our 6th Form music scholars, the other with our choirs, and held our very popular Autumn concert with an eclectic mix of music from Elgar to Lady Gaga.

Bablake once again hosted the Rotary Young Musician of the Year competition, and Chris Tuttle (piano) was joint winner for the instrumental section. Our Orchestra da Camera link continued with a Margaret Cookhorn Woodwind day. The Bablake CSV music group began a great year putting on a variety of well-received concerts and workshop-based activities on Wednesday afternoons, at a diverse range of locations, including local primary schools, day care centres, Walsgrave Hospital, special schools, and a pensioners’ lunch club.

The Arts Award group organised a very successful Arts Afternoon for Year 4 Junior school classes in both dance and music activities, while December saw 42 pupils take their Associated Board exams. To bring a packed programme of events to a festive close, the combined choirs sang their hearts out at the annual Carol Service which took place for the second time this year at Coventry Cathedral.

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Spring

The spring term started with a busy schedule of rehearsals for the big event of the term: performing at the Adrian Boult Hall at the Birmingham Conservatoire as part of the National Festival of Music for Youth. The Junior Choir and Brass Ensemble performed very well and thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere created by so many passionate young musicians and their supporters.

In Half term, a group of senior music scholars performed at Allesley village hall for The Allesley Village Women’s Institute. The audience included several former pupils who enjoyed the high standard of performance by our students.

Our successful Piano-a-thon raised money for a new Baby Grand, classical guitarist Craig Ogden led a successful Orchestra da Camera workshop, and the Easter concert was once again the high point of the musical year, with numerous superb performances by the co-curricular music groups under the direction of Mrs Cathy Scott-Burt and Mr Steve Cooper.

The Wheatleyan 2013/14 @TheWheatleyan

Summer

After Bradley Gill had arranged a choir for two former pupils’ wedding, the Summer term began with a fantastic concert showcasing fine performances from the Junior Choir and other instrumental groups.

A large number of students took Music exams early in the term and the results were excellent; special mention goes to Avni Kant who scored 134/150 for her Grade 5 harp.

Mrs Scott-Burt had great success with her Arts Award students this term. Well done especially to Beth Carter for achieving her Gold Award, and Enya Bowe, Liz Hayes and Emma Blackett for achieving Silver. All our 2nd years enjoyed drumming workshops with In2cultures as part of the ‘Activities Week’.

The Choir and Wind Band then enjoyed a very successful concert tour to Germany, staying in the beautiful town of Boppard on the River Rhine and performing concerts in local churches, a concert hall and band stand, all of which were enthusiastically received by local audiences.

On Song

“... thanks go to the House Heads for organising the series of rehearsals that led to such a brilliant evening’s entertainment.”

This year’s House Music festival was another fantastic display of the school’s musical talent.

As usual, there was a variety of acts, from singers to saxophonists to harpists, but for the first time we all knew there was a competitive element added to the show, since there were to be awards for the best Solo, Group and overall House performances.

The evening began with Fairfax and Crow: the former excelled in their dance finale, while Crow’s tour de force was a spectacular series of songs from Les Miserables, directed by Bradley Gill and accompanied on the piano by Mr Julian Bunce.

Bayley, adopting a more classical route, and Wheatley, with a ‘mash up’ of popular songs, with Rory Dulku at the helm, maintained the standard after the interval.

Special mention should go to Sam Lowe for an excellent rendition of Skyfall on the saxophone and to his brother Josh Lowe, who sang Walks like Rihanna

by The Wanted. Ryan Cornall, Jeeves Sahota and myself were delighted to win the group award for our improvised instrumental Fusion.

While Wheatley won overall, the standard of the Houses all round was excellent and thanks go to the House Heads for organising the series of rehearsals that led to such a brilliant evening’s entertainment.

House music

festival

Aron Sood

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Artsmark Gold

Artsmark

Gold Status

Mrs Cathy Scott-Burt

B

ablake was awarded Artsmark Gold status for the first time in March.

Artsmark is Arts Council England’s flagship programme to enable schools to evaluate, strengthen and celebrate their arts and cultural provision, and in the latest round, I am proud to say we were recognised as an outstanding school for our commitment to music, art, drama and dance. Only around 15% of schools nationally gain this recognition from the Arts Council, and it was exciting to be recognised as one of those schools, with the top level Gold award.

Achieving Artsmark status demonstrates Bablake has a number of very special qualities. It recognises our excellent provision for the arts in curriculum lessons, additional learning opportunities and co-curricular activities. It demonstrates we have an excellent arts and cultural provision, are forward thinking and open to development and are committed to investing in our staff and pupils, to listening to our students and to providing opportunities for our community to see our work as well as to engage with us in artistic projects. In addition we have an effective approach to building sustainable relationships with arts and cultural organisations, and fully value the arts and culture through a broad and balanced curriculum that reaches beyond our arts subject classrooms.

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To achieve Artsmark, we had to undergo a rigorous application process, followed by a validation visit from a professional arts consultant. The consultant who visited the school works in visual arts and photography, and was especially impressed by the breadth of opportunities for visual art which exist in the school, with many of the facilities being more common in foundation year degree courses, not a school context. Music drew much praise for the consistent way in which we work with visiting professional musicians and our ongoing partnership with the Orchestra da Camera. Drama’s regular productions and their unparalleled work at the Edinburgh Festival again drew much positive notice and the dance studio and our developing work with dance impressed our assessor with our commitment always to improve our offer to pupils. The Outreach programme to local Primary schools and the local children who present their summer show in our theatre, as well as the music and art work we do with our own Junior school, came in for much praise for the way our community is included in our arts offer as well.

Putting together the application was time consuming and somewhat bureaucratic! I was amazed at what I found going on in and around school. I thought I had known quite a lot about

Gold Arts Award

“I hope parents and pupils will share our pride in being nationally recognised for our arts and cultural provision.”

My path to the Gold Arts Award

arts provision in school from running Arts Award, but I just kept uncovering amazing opportunities for our children to be creative, to develop as artists, to extend themselves by thinking in a new way and to build their skills and confidence in a supportive, challenging and often fun environment. We have our ‘flagship’ pupils in the arts, children who have been in the National Youth or Children’s Orchestras, our star painters whose work we admire in the summer exhibition, our pupils who go on to further study in the arts, and make successful careers in music, drama, creative writing, illustration and so on – but what I was thrilled to find was just how much pupils throughout the school gain from their everyday arts activity and learning.

I hope parents and pupils will share our pride in being nationally recognised for our arts and cultural provision. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff and pupils who helped me with the application process, and who constantly give so freely of their time and talent in order to build the wonderful provision we offer here at Bablake in all our arts subjects and activities.

Towards the end of the year, I completed my Gold Arts Award, a qualification that proved my ability in the Arts, testing skills in art, dance, drama, music and photography.

For my portfolio, I took on a new skill – combining it with one I was already confident of, to produce a display related to what I had learnt. I wanted to try photography and so, initially, I interviewed a few professional photographers. I set up a photo-shoot with my friend, Imogen, who is a ballet dancer, to show the visual aspects of dance and what I had learnt in my photography research. I then displayed my work in the school’s summer Art and Design exhibition.

I also reviewed a few theatre shows, such as The Nutcracker and The Lion King, and investigated different career pathways connected with drama as another research aspect of my work.

For the final part of my application, I needed to help organise a concert or show a development of my teamwork and organisational skills. Along with a team of other pupils, A Night at the Oscars took place in the Spring Term and we managed to raise over £2000 for Coventry’s Zoe’s Place Baby Hospice.

Beth Carter

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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On Song

Musical

Shells

Ellie

Hattie Darya

Rubi Ingaglia met Bablake’s new Shell Music scholars, Ellie Aitchison, Hattie Morris and Darya Sutton and found out a little more about their skills and love of music.

Which musical instrument do you play?

Ellie: The violin.

Hattie: The clarinet, but my voice is my main instrument as I am a singer.

Darya: The violin.

How long have you been playing your musical instrument?

Ellie: Six years.

Hattie: I’ve been playing the clarinet for three years and singing for two.

Darya: Five years.

What grade are you at?

Ellie: Grade 5 and I am currently working towards Grade 6.

Hattie: Grade 5 in clarinet, Grade 6 in vocals.

Darya: Grade 6.

What made you choose this musical path?

Ellie: My mum brought a violin home one day. I asked whether it was for me, it was, and it all started from there!

Hattie: I have been in choirs since I was little and really like operas. I really enjoy my clarinet lessons and my teacher has always encouraged the singing too.

Darya: When my sister started playing the violin, I was inspired by her to give it a try as well!

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Do you have a particular piece you like to play at the minute?

Ellie: It’s a Grade 5 piece called For Latin Covers. It has a quick pace and I enjoy practising it.

Hattie: On the clarinet, I’m playing Ma Poupée Chérie which has ranging dynamics. I’m singing The Romantic Song which has a story and a different language, so is easy to put expression into.

Darya: A Hungarian Dance by Brahms because it’s fast, exciting and fun to play.

Do you have a favourite band/singer at the minute?

Ellie: Stringfever and Ellie Goulding.

Hattie: Beyoncé.

Darya: Ed Sheeran.

What’s your favourite song at the minute?

Ellie: Burn by Ellie Goulding, and Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings.

Hattie: All About That Bass by Meghan Trainor.

Darya: Pompeii by Bastille.

What’s your favourite genre of music?

Ellie: Pop and classical.

Hattie: Hip-Hop and classical.

Darya: Pop. If you had the opportunity to learn another instrument, what would you choose?

Ellie: Oboe.

Hattie: Violin or Guitar.

Darya: Guitar.

On Song

New

performers

Upper 6th pupils learn to play new instruments in Enrichment.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sport Edited by Georgina Lloyd and Bradley Pinkham

‘2013-14 saw www.bablakesport.com take off with information on our fixtures and team selections. All our major sports also developed their Twitter accounts: @bablakecricket, @bablakeghockey, @bablakehockey, @bablakenetball, @bablakerugby.’

Editor Profiles Name: Georgina Lloyd Sporting passions: Netball, Hockey.

Ambitions: To study English at the University of Exeter and learn to play rugby.

2013-14 highlights: Memories of our Netball and Hockey sports tour to Sri Lanka and Malaysia in the summer before this academic year. The weather was stifling, but the tour was so much fun.

Name: Bradley Pinkham Sporting passions: All sports, especially Rugby.

Ambitions: To study Economics at university and play 1st XV rugby by the time I finish my course.

2013-14 highlight: Our 22-0 win v KHVIII at Coventry RFC, the largest points difference ever.

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Sporting Focus

Mike Hibbert Trophy 2014 Parents, pupils and teachers - both current and former – proudly witnessed Bablake retain the Mike Hibbert Trophy at Coventry RFC’s Butts Park Arena, beating KHVIII 22-0 in glorious sunshine.

The match, usually played under floodlights on an icy February evening, had a definite festival atmosphere this year with weather more suited to July’s T20 cricket tournament than the traditional bruising encounter between Coventry's keenest rugby rivals.

As Huw Edwards received the shield from Scotland U20 international and former pupil Ben Cooper, 1st XV coach Mr Rob Burdett paid tribute to his side: “I felt it was a well-deserved win for Bablake's 1st XV who had a dominant first half and scored two well-executed tries, one via the pack and the second a fine finish from Lewis Marshall.

Some excellent work at the breakdown presented us with numerous turnovers which led to some promising counter attacks. In the second half we lost our structure and were not able to keep the ball long enough to take advantage of some good individual breaks, with the exception of another excellent breakaway try from Chimdi Ogbuneke.

KHVIII's 1st XV played some very good rugby especially in the second half but our defence held firm and, in the end, it was a good win for a fantastic set of players who have been a real pleasure to coach.”

Another proud parent and teacher was Head of 6th Form Mrs Alison Tumber, for whom the win was not only a fine Mother’s Day gift but also, in her own words “the best birthday gift ever”!

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sporting Honours

Sporting Honours 2013/14 International Representative Honours

Ashleigh Stonier

Conor Jelley

Sophie Price

Daniel Mousley

Ellie Faulkner

Ireland Horse Riding: Lucinda Roche.

Team GB Athletics: T34 Wheelchair Racing - Kare Adenegan. U23 IWAS World Youth Championships Silver (100m, 800m), Bronze (400m); IPC Grand Prix 3rd and 4th.

Biathle: Conor Jelley.

Sailing: RYA National Youth Squad - Nia GriptonCrockford.

Lucy Farrington and Lucinda Roche both took part in the British Show Jumping Championships, while a Bablake swimming team was invited to swim at the Olympic Pool.

Regional Representative Honours Midlands Rugby: Lambs U18: Andrew Haughian. U18: (Trial) James Faulkner.

Hockey: Junior Regional Performance Centre.

U16: Thomas Betts, Rory Kenney-Herbert, Sophie Price.

Netball: U19 Regional Academy: Mollie Sargent.

U17 Regional Academy: Aimee Piercy, Mollie Sargent.

Swimming: U15 Midlands Championships: Alex Carroll, Georgia Ementon, Lucas Williams.

Suren, Daniel Williams. U15: George Bayliss.

U14: Alex Hamilton, Sophie Hollinrake, James Sawyer, Julian Wreford. U13: Amrit Gill.

Warwickshire Netball: Satellite Academy. U14: Jasneet Grewal, Sophie Hollinrake.

Warwickshire Rugby: U18: James Faulkner, Robert Faulkner, Liam Moore. U16: Chimdi Ogbuneke.

U15: Harry Garforth (Leicester Tigers Academy).

U14: Daniel Smith.

Warwickshire Table Tennis: U13: Jack Green.

Team Achievements Athletics: Boys - Super Sixes U13 winners; Girls- English Schools Track and Field: Intermediate Girls ‘C’ winners, Super Sixes U13 winners.

Cricket: Warwickshire Cup - U19s runners up.

Hockey: Boys - U16 Warwickshire Cup semi-finals; Girls – Warwickshire Tournament: U18 and U12 runners up, qualifying for Midlands Zonals.

Netball: Dominique Matthews Tournament - U19 winners.

Rugby: 7s - Rosslyn Park: U18 2nd in group; Warwick: U14 Quarter Finals.

Congratulations also to: West Midlands Athletics: U14s: Ashleigh Stonier (Javelin). Juniors: Eleanor Faulkner (Multi Event).

Cross Country: (inc. Inter County) Olivia Kelly.

County ECB: Daniel Mousley, Ross Parnell, Daniel Smith Emerging Players Programme.

Leicestershire Cricket: U15: Cameron Park.

Warwickshire Badminton: U15: Jasmine Hundal.

Warwickshire Cricket: U19: Matthew Clements.

U16: Ross Parnell. U14: Daniel Mousley, Daniel Smith.

U13: Daniel Mousley.

Warwickshire Hockey: Junior Academy Centre U16: Mantaran Dosanj, Aidan Johnson, Jake Sargent, Iain

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Kare Adenegan: selected for the British Athletics Futures Programme, and winner of the U15 Girls London Mini Marathon (one of 8 national titles), is ranked in the world Top 6 female T34 wheelchair racers over 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m.

Bablake Cricket Scholars: Matthew Clements, Daniel Mousley, Ross Parnell, Matthew Payne, Daniel Smith.

Daniel Mousley (U14 Bowler of the Year, Neal Abberley Young Player of the Year) and Ross Parnell (U16 Bowler of the Year) who collected awards at the Warwickshire Annual Cricket Awards. Daniel also scored an unbeaten century versus Holland.

Sporting Honours

Junior Winter Sports Awards Evening Mr Rob Burdett (Head of Boys’ PE) and Miss Hannah Moseley (Head of Girls’ PE) and the PE department organised the second Bablake Sports Awards Evening, covering our Junior Winter Sports. Guest of Honour was former pupil Mr Paul Best, Warwickshire CCC 1st XI squad and former England U19 captain.

High Level Achievement The following were recognised for sporting achievement outside school.

Athletics: Kare Adenegan.

Badminton: Ayman Farid.

Basketball: Kogulan Vipulan.

Biathlon: Sophie Arora, Lucas Bennett, Conor Jelley.

Cross Country: Lucas Bennett.

Horse Riding: Emily Beaty, Lucy Farrington, Lucinda Roche.

Swimming: Alex Carroll, Georgia Ementon, Lucas Williams.

Players of the Year

Danika Patel

Daniel Smith

Anna Price

Emmanuella Kamara-Musa

George Bayliss

Harry Garforth

Conor Jelly

Charlotte Allitt

Hattie Morris

Thomas Rouse

Iz Hemus

Paul Best

Year group and major sport awards for those who have stood out in a number of different activities, and demonstrated good practical and personal qualities throughout the season.

Shells: Conor Jelley, Hattie Morris.

2nds: Iz Hemus, Thomas Rouse.

3rds: Charlotte Allitt, Daniel Smith.

4ths: Harry Garforth, Danika Patel.

Boys’ Rugby Player of the Year: Harry Garforth.

Boys’ Hockey Player of the Year: George Bayliss.

Girls’ Hockey Player of the Year: Anna Price.

Girls’ Netball Player of the Year: Emmanuella KamaraMusa.

Teams of the Year Girls U12A Hockey 2nd in the Warwickshire Tournament, gaining a place in the U12 Midlands finals.

Boys U14 Rugby Our most successful rugby team and Coventry Schools champions.

Girls U12 Hockey

Boys U14 Rugby

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Abroad

Sri Lankan Adventure

For the first time in Bablake history, the boys’ hockey and cricket teams embarked on a combined tour to Sri Lanka writes Mr Andrew Phillips.

O

nce Tom Hingston’s two week supply of Pringles had been loaded into the baggage hold, we set off on our 11 hour flight. Everything seemed to be going smoothly when we landed in Colombo, until Arjav Patel was found sitting in the baggage collection area pulling women’s underwear out of a suitcase. After several minutes he decided it was not his ‘large and navy’ suitcase.

Airport security were quickly called in an attempt to find the person who had taken his suitcase. After much commotion, they found a ‘small and black’ suitcase which was still going round and round on the baggage carousel, almost directly in front of Arjav. Despite the bag having his name on it, it took some time for Arjav to accept that his suitcase was not ‘large and navy’!

Once through passport control and warmly greeted by our Gullivers Travel representatives, an evening of relaxation awaited us at the Jetwing Lagoon Hotel, which had an impressive 100m swimming pool! The following day we made our way to Kandy, negotiating the roads of Sri Lanka, which made the ring road in Coventry look simple. Our driver did well to dodge the odd cow wandering in the road and pulled off a few impressive triple overtakes. Our first stop was Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage which was home to around 50 elephants. We were fortunate to watch them bathe in the local river before returning through the town centre back home! At the Millennium Elephant Foundation, the boys had the opportunity to ride and wash these incredible animals.

One of the Mahouts (elephant keepers) looked incredibly like Sri Lankan cricketer Lasith Malinga, who obviously used the extra work to supplement his IPL salary. Several tourists booked themselves on the ‘long ride,’ however, they returned looking rather uncomfortable and found it difficult to walk for the rest of the day!

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Our next excursion was to Sigiriya Rock, the ‘8th wonder of the world.’ Most countries claim to have the ‘8th wonder’, however, this was truly spectacular! We negotiated the over friendly monkeys, several large hornets nests and Mr Phillips’ fear of heights to climb to the top where we were greeted by breath-taking 360 degree views of the surrounding plains. It was certainly a ‘Canon/ Nikon’ moment; Mr Atwal was in his element and took over 100 pictures, including 30 of the same monkey.

The next morning started with excitement as two miles down the road from the hotel our driver realised the baggage door of the coach had sprung open. He kindly sprinted back down the road to check whether our suitcases had become road kill. Fortunately, none had escaped and we made our way to Dambulla International Cricket Stadium for our first fixture. It was an incredible venue, which had the potential to hold 50,000 people.

Our supporters numbered 15. This included three cows, appropriately tied up at ‘cow corner’, and 12 ground staff who kept the 6 storey scoreboard updated. The 1st XI batted first scoring 226-6 off 40 overs with Ross ‘Mr Cricket’ Parnell scoring 96*. We then bowled North Central Province Academy out for 174, Chris ‘The Wobbler’ Sewell picking up 5-23.

The following day we played Kurunegala District Academy U15s who gave us a lesson in cricket, chasing down our total of 206 with 7 wickets remaining. Our tour wicketkeeper, Rory ‘Symbols’ Kenney-Herbert did a fine job, but unfortunately the bowlers got carried away with a hard flat pitch. Their captain, half the height of our own captain Matt Payne, readily dispatched the short buffet bowling we offered up on a plate. The only real highlight of the day was Ross Parnell’s 68. However, our spirits were lifted when the tour company managed to book us an air conditioned hospitality box at the Sri Lanka vs.

Sports Abroad

“The tour finished with an awards ceremony on the beach, whilst the sun set on the horizon ....”

South Africa International game that evening. We were treated to a fantastic evening surrounded by cricket mad Sri Lankans!

Our first hockey fixture was a truly ‘cultural’ experience, playing on grass at Kandy University.

After the ground staff had soaked up the puddles from the morning’s thunderstorm with giant sponges, the game got underway. Mr Atwal rallied the team with his excellent knowledge of a surface the boys had never experienced before. Despite losing 4-2 it was a thoroughly enjoyable game, which was followed by an equally competitive game of one-hand, one-bounce cricket with our hosts in the car park.

The Randholee Hotel was the venue for Mr Benfield’s ‘Srilympics’. It was a sporting event to rival the Commonwealth Games. The teams battled it out over table tennis, badminton and pool. Competitors were required to wear their own choice of team kit. This brought about much amusement, particularly to the local monkey, who tried to climb through the window to get a better look much to the hotel manager’s horror. The evening was spent watching a cultural show in the centre of Kandy and a man walk through fire. Mr Benfield also purchased enough animals carved from coconuts to fill a small zoo. Thankfully, they were sold with a reassuring ‘lifetime guarantee.’

The following morning we enjoyed a visit to a traditional Sri Lankan spice garden on our way to Colombo where the boys were treated to an impromptu massage. This set them up for their second hockey fixture against Ananda College which they won convincingly 7-2, Chris Sewell scoring 4 goals. With performances like this, perhaps we should employ this ruse at the Bablake Playing Fields? We played in another high scoring game the following day, narrowly winning 8-6 against Nalanda College. The tour goal scoring machine, Chris Sewell, casually bagged a double hat-trick. The evening was spent at the Cricket Club Café, a shrine of International Cricket memorabilia from around the world.

Unsurprisingly, ‘Mr Cricket’ was in his element and Mr Atwal took a photo of all 1000 pieces hung on the wall.

We headed down the coast towards Galle, stopping for our next cricket fixture at Surrey Village Cricket Ground where we played Palink Cricket Academy in a T20. The 1st XI successfully chased down 119 losing only 1 wicket, Parnell 58* and Betts 58. The evening was spent at the Sands Hotel where the

traditional tour water polo game was held. Talent was low but enthusiasm high as the two teams battled it out.

However, the teams rapidly reduced in number as the ‘cramp shark’ picked off its victims. The following day we played our final hockey fixture against D. S. Senanayake College who treated us to a tribal dance before the game!

A very competitive and physical game finished 3-3 with fantastic hockey being played by both sides.

As we approached the end of the tour, we visited a turtle sanctuary and enjoyed a river cruise in a soft-top convertible boat. Unfortunately, the engine was so loud it scared off all the wildlife within a mile radius! Our cruise stopped at an island where the locals explained how they made cinnamon sticks. This promptly followed them doing a roaring trade in the aforementioned sticks after the staff indicated they would make an excellent present to take home! On the way back we were treated to a fish foot massage, strongly against the advice of tour doctor Monty Dosanj. However, everyone came away healthy and with beautifully smooth feet. Dan Williams even made friends with a baby crocodile. We then continued down the coast to the Foundation of Goodness, an inspiring project that started after the devastating Tsunami hit in 2004. This was an incredibly moving visit and the boys got a real sense of the impact this had on the local community as well as the country as a whole.

Our final cricket fixture was against the Foundation of Goodness (FOG). Many of the opposition had lost their parents and other family members in the Tsunami. FOG posted an impressive 288 off 40 overs and despite a solid start, Bablake 1st XI ended up 67 runs short; Payne 4-50, Sewell 3-49, Payne 47, Parnell 39, Betts 36 & Sargent 35.

The tour finished with an awards ceremony on the beach, whilst the sun set on the horizon; a fitting end to a memorable and successful tour in a truly spectacular country.

“Sri Lanka – we will be back in 2017!”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus

CricketReview Mr Andrew Phillips

Bablake’s Cricket Twitter site is always likely to entertain as well as inform!

Here are some of this year’s highlights:

Today we welcome @CricketingBears U13 Girls to @ bablakeschool for their fixture against @TrentBridge U13 Girls. Good luck to both teams!

Bablake T20 2014: Teams - Geelong College (Aus), @ bablakeschool, @WarwickSchlCrkt, @CricketingBears U16s, @Sheriff_Sport & KE Aston #t20

Our new cricket pro Alex Phillips oversaw a fine 6 wicket 1st XI win v KES today @CompleteCricket @ cricketcovwarks

Dambulla International Cricket Stadium - similar to Bablake Playing Fields just a bit hotter #BablakeTourSL

We'd heard, @bablakecricket, Mr Benfield's bowling had gained pace, accuracy & swing over the winter. Secret's out! [@bablakeschool RT]

Amazing night at the cricket in our corporate box watching #SLvSA #BablakeTourSL #VIP #Malinga #Amla @bablakeschool

HUGE!! Parnell sticks it over the 6th form block for 6! #spareball #boomboom #1stXIBablakevsSolihull

Half way around the world and still glued to #MarioKarts! #BablakeTourSL #culture #tripofalifetime #prideinourpupils

One in the car park required... #1stXIBablakevsSolihull 2nd XI was at Camp Hill this afternoon for a T20. Time to call it off when there are ducks on the outfield #wet #quackquack Fantastic bowling from Tom Rouse in the U13s who returned figures of 6-7 against BVGS in their 27 run victory! #talent In the U14s, Sher Saghir bowled a triple wicket maiden, finishing with figures of 3-8. Julian Wreford also scored 36* in their 7 wicket win.

Coventry Foundation Cricket Cup: @bablakeschool are the 2014 winners beating @KHVIIISchool 10-6! Well done to all teams!

Performance of the day came from Cameron Park (U15 captain) who scored 98 off 69 balls (12x4, 4x6). Great innings, well done! @bablakeschool An amazing spell of bowling yesterday in the U13s from Prabhjote Sahota: 2 overs, 2 maidens, 0 runs, 5 wickets! @KWardens @bablakeschool WICKET! After ordering a taxi to collect his previous delivery, M Payne gets a wicket. M Clements almost swallows it at short mid-wicket.

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#BablakeTourSL finished with awards on the beach this evening. An amazing 2 weeks in #SriLanka! Long journey home!

Start the washing machine...we're coming home with a LOT of dirty kit. #BablakeTourSL Once again, exam results have shown that our top sportsmen have achieved some of the best results! #worklifebalance [@bablakehockey RT) For current news, please follow @bablakecricket.

Sports Focus

“Start the washing machine... we’re coming home with a lot of dirty kit.”

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus

Boys’HockeyReview Mr Andrew Phillips

This season was another exceptionally busy one with a record 185 boys’ hockey fixtures! While extremely wet, we were fortunate to avoid the snow and frost that severely disrupted the last two seasons.

The 1st XI was superbly led by Matthew Payne and Chris Sewell. A young side, consisting of a large number of U16s, it performed above expectation before Christmas, securing a series of wins against Loughborough Grammar School (3-2), Solihull (4-2), Camp Hill (5-1), Lawrence Sheriff (4-1), Adams’ Grammar School (3-2), Bishop Vesey’s (5-0), Nottingham HS (3-0) and KE Aston (5-0). A shock league defeat against KHVIII just before the festive break preceded a dip in form in the New Year. However the team finished the season in fine form with a string of wins, including setting the record straight against KHVIII with a convincing 3-1 win.

The 2nd XI was a little inconsistent, securing wins against Camp Hill (2-1) and Lawrence Sheriff School (2-1) before slumping to 5 successive defeats. However, it returned to form with excellent victories against KES Stratford (2-1) and Princethorpe College (3-2). There is plenty of potential in the 2nd XI and many players should be setting their sights on representing the 1st XI in the immediate future. Hard work and dedicated training will give the springboard for playing at the highest level.

Captain Rory Dulku praised the team’s midfield, and Mr Atwal’s hard work and enthusiasm at team training.

The 3rd XI, once again managed by ‘Coach’ West and ‘Waterboy’ Williams, has become something of a cult team and the squad has enjoyed the trials and tribulations of weekly fixtures against schools located across the Midlands. Everyone has enjoyed Mr West’s match reports, posted on bablakesport.com each week, detailing their rollercoaster ride of a season. Having spent many months and seasons unable to taste victory, captain Aaran Patel proudly led his men to victories against Queen Mary’s (42), King Edward’s Aston (5-0) and KHVIII (1-0).

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“... all our teams will be looking forward to playing hockey on the fully refurbished Astroturf next season, which promises to be one of the best hockey facilities in the Midlands.”

The U15s started the season excellently with victories against Lawrence Sheriff and Warwick School. A series of difficult fixtures followed before comprehensive wins against KHVIII (6-2) and Newcastle-under-Lyme (6-0).

The U15s worked hard throughout the season and are a tight cohesive unit with much promise.

The U14s are one of the hardest working squads of recent years with record numbers of boys in this year group attending training on a Thursday evening.

Highlights of their season included excellent wins against Newcastle Under-Lyme (6-0) and Camp Hill (7-0).

The U13s were a hard-working squad, gradually learning the physical demands of the sport. The learning curve was steep but significant progress was made over the season. The last minute goal against Newcastleunder-Lyme to gain a victory was a key highlight.

Our U12s really enjoyed the first taste of hockey and developed quickly. They, as well as all our teams, will be looking forward to playing hockey on the fully refurbished Astroturf next season, which promises to be one of the best hockey facilities in the Midlands.

For current news, please follow @bablakehockey.

Sports Focus

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus

Girls’HockeyReview Georgina Lloyd

Through the Captains’ Eyes – comments on the girls’ successful Hockey season compiled by Georgina Lloyd.

U12A Sophie Arora We won 10 of our 17 games this year, showed a lot of character after our 4 defeats, learnt many lessons and are ready to take on the competition next season. We scored 44 goals and conceded only 22.

We were pleased to reach the semi-final of the Solihull tournament, but our most significant achievement was qualifying from the Warwickshire tournament for the Midlands round. Despite trying our hardest, we did not reach the semi-finals but it was a great learning experience.

U12B Alice Weaver We bounced back from a defeat in our first game with a 4-0 win versus Kenilworth. Some of our team had not played hockey before, but, with regular training, we improved our skills and understanding of the game. Our biggest win (6-2 v Princethorpe), gave us the confidence to win our final two games.

U13 Ellie Herniman Stepping up to our first season of 11 a side hockey was always going to be a challenge. Our results were a mix of clear wins, a number of no score draws and a few heavy defeats. Highlights included wins against Moreton Hall (3-0), and a couple of wins (Princethorpe 2-1, KHVIII 2-0) at our own 7 a side tournament. Although we were not always on top form, the season was enjoyable, there is great potential and we are determined to improve.

U14 Charlotte Allitt After a testing start to the year, our best results came against Kenilworth, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stafford GS. The team made excellent progress over the season and won the Coventry Schools trophy.

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U15 Hannah Allroggen We began the season with a number of impressive wins but we showed true mettle reacting to defeats against Loughborough and Princethorpe. Miss Watts made us work hard on our fitness and this determination paid dividends, no more so than when in the last match of the season, the Coventry Schools Cup Final, Anna Price scored the winning goal from a late short corner. We improved hugely over the season winning or drawing over 65% of our matches, enjoyed training as a team, relished our victories and look forward to developing further next season.

U16 Emily White We had a strong start to the season with three consecutive wins over St Martin’s, Newcastle-underLyme and Tudor Hall and battled to the bitter end in the Warwickshire Tournament only narrowly missing qualification for the Midlands round, on goal difference.

Scoring 25 goals and conceding fewer, our tactical understanding has increased throughout the year.

Many of us now look forward to contesting for 1st and 2nd XI places.

1st XI Anna Knight Victory against Newcastle-under-Lyme (8-0) gave us confidence for the Warwickshire Tournament, where a victory over Rugby School (2-1) and our teamwork secured runners up position and a place in the Midlands Finals. Although missing the road to the Nationals, we finished the season winning eight of our last dozen fixtures.

Over the season we saw clear improvement in the team’s performance. Every individual played a key role and further emphasis on fitness allowed us to work at higher levels. This year’s players of the season were Becky Timms and Jenny Tasker.

For current news, please follow @BablakeGHockey

Sports Focus

“Every individual played a key role and further emphasis on fitness allowed us to work at higher levels.�

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus

Girls’NetballReview Georgina Lloyd

U12 Captain Hattie Morris congratulated her teammates for tremendous performances throughout the season, saying it was a privilege to captain them. There were many nail-biting fixtures but 12 wins, 2 draws and just 4 defeats suggests this squad has the skills, capability and commitment to achieve great things next year.

Winners of the Loughborough High School tournament and runners up in the Coventry Cup, this season the team adapted to injuries well. The final words go to Hattie: ‘This is still work in progress and we will go as a team from strength to strength.’

U13 The team had a successful September, winning the Loughborough High School tournament, struggled a little in October, but had a tremendous November with wins over King Edward’s High School (17-8), Wolverhampton GS (16-11), Loughborough (17-11) and Stratford GS (30-6). Winning the Coventry Schools cup ended the year perfectly.

U14 A challenging season saw a mixture of outcomes, although all their games were extremely close. Remy McNamara and Ellie Edmiston are strong in defence, Eleanor Faulkner and Baht-Ammi Francis impressed in attack, Sophie Hollinrake showed exceptional skills as centre and Hannah Sweeney offered excellent shooting.

A final match win in Wrekin College was a fine final tonic.

The U14 B team also had a challenging season, but excelled towards the end, developing better skills and having more of a flow through its play. Mollie O'Sullivan played a huge part in the team with exceptional goal scoring and Lucie Barnes showed very keen defence skills.

U15 Despite a mixed season, performances were generally of a good standard. The morale and team spirit meant the team always had an environment which was enjoyable to play in; even in defeat, the players were gracious, but still hungry to improve. A severe defeat against KHVIII by 10 goals in the first game of the season, was turned into a draw just two months later as the girls worked hard in training.

Astute defence then brought a narrow win against Solihull but the Christmas holidays saw fitness levels drop. The Coventry Schools tournament saw a renewed determination as the team finished runners up. A promising tournament at Uppingham School and a single goal defeat against a very strong Wrekin School bodes well for next year too.

U16 Runners up at A and B team level in the Coventry Schools competition, progress to the Nationals ended with a 3rd place in the Warwickshire round. Some of the U16 players had the opportunity to play for the senior teams and should be praised for their performance in these matches.

Chloe Mason and Hannah Mordey were selected for the 1st VII and many others represented the 2nd and 3rd VIIs. 1st VII Overall the team had a successful, pleasurable year.

Rebuilding a dynamic team took time but a convincing win against KHVIII early in the season boosted confidence and a short run of victories. Runners up in the Coventry schools tournament meant they progressed to the Warwickshire section where despite some strong performances, the march to the Nationals was halted.

Both the 1st and 2nd teams finished on a high, coming 2nd and 1st respectively in their West Midlands Tournaments. Following the 2013 tour, the squad bonded well all year and away matches always ensured a lively coach journey.

The leavers will very much miss netball at Bablake and special mention should be given to 1st VII coach Mrs Chris Scott whose expertise will be greatly missed by all Bablake’s netballers.

For current news, please follow @Bablakenetball.

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Sports Focus

“Overall the team had a successful, pleasurable year. Rebuilding a dynamic team took time but a convincing win against KHVIII early in the season boosted confidence and a short run of victories.�

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus

RugbyReview Mr Rob Burdett

The 1st XV put in some outstanding performances in the Autumn term. Wins against Nottingham High and an agonising last minute loss to King’s Worcester stood out. Andrew Haughian was the first Bablake pupil to be selected for the Midlands Lambs, whilst James and Rob Faulkner helped Warwickshire U18s win the County Championship. James received a Midlands trial; Chimdi Ogbuneke and Liam Meechan represented Warwickshire U16s. The 1st XV finished in style with a 22-0 win over KHVIII, whilst the 1st VII won the Princethorpe 7s and excelled at Rosslyn Park.

The 2nd XV had a disappointing season, despite showing great promise. Hope springs eternal and two late season wins may signal a much improved 2014-15! The squad, drawn from all Senior year groups, played with high levels of commitment and determination. Thanks go to coaches Mr Andy Hall and Mr Andrew Solomon, whose training improved the squad throughout the season.

The U15 team had a fine season. A fantastic performance versus KES Camp Hill in The Nat West Cup was just one highlight. Harry Garforth was selected for Warwickshire and the Leicester Tigers Academy. In the Autumn term we beat Princethorpe convincingly, and won the Coventry Cup with a convincing, though hard fought win, over local rivals KHVIII. The 7s team also reached the Plate quarter final in the Warwick 7s.

The U14s were certainly one of our most successful rugby teams. Two early highlights were wins against Nottingham High and Bishop Vesey. There looks to be real promise in this squad as highlighted by 12 players being selected for the District squad. Dan Smith was also invited to train with Worcester Warriors Academy. Although the rain reduced the number of fixtures played in the Autumn term, the team did win the Coventry Cup with a very convincing victory over KHVIII, so we look forward to a bright future with this group of players.

The U13s tough season did not prevent them excelling in the latter weeks of the Autumn term where a fantastic win in the Coventry Cup versus KHVIII was followed by a convincing semi-final victory over Coundon Court.

This saw them contest the final versus Woodlands. After a shaky start, they competed extremely well but were narrowly defeated. However their performances at the end of the season mean they should look forward to next season with great enthusiasm and excitement.

The U12s have made real progress during the year with a large number of boys training regularly, ensuring that there is good competition for places.

They have had a number of very good wins and were Coventry Cup runners up. The future is very promising since they have a strong squad of players.

For current news, please follow @bablakerugby.

“There looks to be real promise in this squad as highlighted by 12 players being selected for the District squad.”

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Sports Focus

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sports Focus Talk

Sportstalk Staff and students share their experiences and views on another exciting year of sport at Bablake.

Rounders

The Bablake girls gained their greatest success on the athletics track with many achieving personal bests in their events. Both the Junior and Intermediate teams won the Coventry Championships, qualifying for Midlands Finals. The Intermediate team performed very well and won the Midlands C Final, with the Junior squad placed 5th. The Shell team also won the Super Sixes competition and was selected to represent Coventry in the Regional Schools Games Finals. Our 2nd years won the City Championships.

Special congratulations should go to the girls selected to represent Coventry at the West Midlands Athletics Championships: Lucy Farrington, Ellie Faulkner, Alex Hamilton, Isabel Hillyer, Olivia Kelly, Anna Price, Ashleigh Stonier and Hannah Sweeney. Ashleigh Stonier won the girls’ javelin competition and competed for the West Midlands team in the summer: an excellent achievement.

Ellie Faulkner has also been busy competing in pentathlon events (high jump, long jump, 75m hurdles, 800m and shot putt). She was also a member of a team of four girls that won the ESAA Midlands Regional Combined Events Championships at the end of June. She finished 7th out of 28 girls competing and secured a place as part of the West Midlands team at the English Schools’ Athletic Association Combined Events Championships in Boston, Lincolnshire at the end of September.

Congratulations, Ellie!

Kare Adenegan, who won her London Mini Marathon category, continues to star in T34 Wheelchair racing and has a real chance of future medals on the world Paralympic stage. She has been selected for Team GB programmes and we look forward to reporting on her future successes.

Georgina Lloyd

All the teams performed well at the Coventry Schools Tournaments. We were victorious at U12 level and narrowly pipped to the post in both the U15 and U13 finals and U14 semi-final. The U12 A team lost only two games this season and the U13 team had a number of close contests some of which they won or lost by only one rounder.

Georgina Lloyd

Photo: Jamie Gray

Girls’ Athletics

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Girls’ Tennis As always, the season was challenging, competing against strong and talented teams who are training regularly for club, county and beyond. Despite strong opposition, the girls improved and played with real determination.

Georgina Lloyd

Boys’ Athletics There was huge enthusiasm and effort from the boys’ athletics teams this year. Highlights included the Shell boys reaching the Warwickshire Games Super Sixes final and both the Junior and Intermediate boys reaching the Midlands 3 finals.

Conor Jelley competed in the GB Biathle Series held in Blackpool and won his age group. He was selected for the GB Biathle team that competed in Germany and the European Biathle Championships in Portugal.

Bradley Pinkham

Sports SportsFocus Talk

“Not since 2004 has Bablake's Chess club been anywhere near as successful as the 2013-14 squad.”

Cross country winners

Boys’ Tennis The U13, 14 and 15 teams all recorded victories against both Warwick and Princethorpe, though lost against KES Stratford. The numbers at Shell practice sessions have been most encouraging.

A big thank you and well done to all those who have participated in sports throughout the summer and we look forward to more successes next year.

Bradley Pinkham

Chess Not since 2004 has Bablake's Chess club been anywhere near as successful as the 2013-14 squad. Wins in the local A and B league, Coventry Schools Cup and the Lightning Chess Tournament have brought the players what we believe is an unprecedented quadruple triumph.

At Coventry’s 2014 Lightning Chess, George Esworthy collected the A team's League and Cup trophies, Lucas Zhang was presented with the B team's league trophy and Rajan Parekh proudly retained his Lightning Chess trophy that he won for the first time last season.

We are also delighted that former pupil Paul Lam, an ex-England international for chess, was able to present all of the trophies to the Bablake winners. Paul, who is currently developing a Chess Academy in Coventry, is also offering some coaching to our pupils.

Mr Andrew Chowne and Mr Inderpal Kalsi

Cross Country This year 33 pupils have represented the school, with 12 of these qualifying to run for Coventry. The Shell boys were very successful: Lucas Bennett won gold and silver in Coventry League and City championship respectively; Conor Jelley won silver in the League; as a team, they won the Relay and gold in both the League and City Championship.

Olivia Kelly performed with distinction; unbeaten in her races, she won the U14 Coventry League and City Championship.

Mr Jeremy Hobday

Football Football, famously outlawed by Henry VIII, continues never to be the sport of kings, or independent schools. It may be the beautiful game, but our 6th Formers would have benefited from more ugly resilience this season. The team squandered winning positions on several occasions.

In fact, both our games against Lawrence Sheriff saw victory transformed into defeat, after some defensive and goalkeeping blunders. The squad will need to defend more stoutly next season.

In front of goal we also had issues with Luke O’Neill scoring more goals in his own net than our striker did in any of the opposition’s. Sid Saje captained Bablake to our only but notable victory against Camp Hill - it was a game full of drama, which saw two players sent off.

Next season we hope to score more than 5 goals, tighten up the leaky defence and enjoy the fact that our team’s future is still bright… in maroon and gold.

Jake O’Sullivan www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Former Pupils Edited by Georgia Clarke with assistance from Francesca Bellingeri and Beckie Carter Editor Profiles Name: Georgia Clarke Dream job: Travelling author writing fantasy, dystopia or apocalypse fiction.

Future ambitions: To have a book published, own a VW Campervan, go on an American road trip, meet J K Rowling.

Hobbies: Harry Potter, films – Sci Fi and action .

Favourite subject: Art - it’s an underestimated subject; it gives you so much scope to explore something you find interesting and develop research and presentation skills along the way.

Name: Francesca Bellingeri Dream job: Currently uncertain, but I would like a job that makes me happy and I find interesting. Working in a lab would be great!

Future ambitions: To study Chemistry at university, travel the world and take part in some volunteer work in a lesser developed country.

Hobbies: Reading, climbing, Coventry Cathedral choir, flute, kittens.

Favourite subject: Chemistry.

Name: Beckie Carter Dream job: Leader of the universe! Failing that, second female Prime Minister.

Future ambitions: To study Economics and Politics at Bristol, before moving to London or the States to be a banker.

Hobbies: Dancing, debating, watching musicals, shopping and socialising.

Favourite subject: Economics.

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Let us know your news Alumni Relations Officer Mrs Sylvia O’Sullivan (sosullivan@ bablake.coventry.sch.uk) would be delighted to receive news of former pupils, for her biannual newsletter.

There are Bablake Alumni groups on LinkedIn and Facebook (a closed group at https://www.facebook.com/ groups/bablakereunited) and a new register for Former Pupils at http://bablake.web-intouch.com.

School Visits Former Pupils and staff are warmly encouraged to visit Bablake on an informal basis by school archivist Mr Peter Burden (pfb@bablake.coventry.sch.uk) and Alumni Relations Officer Mrs Sylvia O’Sullivan. There are numerous concerts, drama productions and sports fixtures, where former pupils are also very welcome!

Sage and Wyley Scholarships The Trustees of the Coventry School Foundation Prizes Fund invite applications for: • The Sage Scholarship: tenable in any subject by a former pupil of the school at any university, college or other institute of further education (including professional and technical education) approved by the trustees.

• The Colonel Sir W F Wyley Scholarship: available to former pupils but restricted to those studying science subjects.

The Trustees envisage offering assistance towards cost of projects, expeditions or travel relevant to an applicant’s subject of study. Application should be made in writing to Headmaster Mr John W Watson, giving full details of the purpose for which a scholarship is being sought.

Interview

Back together Georgia Clarke asked key personnel involved with our Alumni reunions for their highlights of such events.

“A lot of work and preparation goes into organisation of reunions, from locating and contacting the former pupils to the actual logistics and planning on the day. To see it all come together is a justifiable reward!

Each reunion is very different as year groups differ considerably.

The ‘older’ generation of former pupils have great memories of how the school was under different Headmasters; also, they all have interesting stories to tell about how the school has evolved through the decades to become the Bablake we know today.

It is always gratifying when former pupils write to say what a wonderful time and trip down memory lane they had returning for their reunions; when the photographs of the day are published, the enjoyment is always apparent.”

Mrs Sylvia O’Sullivan, Alumni Relations Officer

“The Old Boys were delighted to see one another again, catching up with news over mugs of tea and coffee. Throughout the tour of the school, they reminisced about their time at Bablake and their memories, sharing their stories whilst also trying to figure out why the school looked so different. One gentleman found himself hovering where the old Headmaster’s garden had once been, explaining that he would have received a Saturday morning detention had he taken this shortcut to lessons.

When we mentioned the amount of Drama now, we found out there was less emphasis on that type of activity in the 60s. Most of the visitors were surprised that not much really had changed, bar some obvious differences. We actually felt that we all had so much in common despite the age gap and, although we were many years apart, we were not that different.

Hearing the stories shared made us think about what our reunion in 50 years time is going to be like.

It was really nice to speak to the former pupils and hear their stories. We felt the spirit of community had lived on.”

Matthias De Veer and Aimee Piercy, both Senior Prefects, attended the 1960-64 reunion

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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Sport

Old Wheatleyan Sport ‘Back to Netball’ This year England Netball has been promoting ‘Back to Netball’ throughout the country with immense success and Bablake has been delighted to help host sessions in Coventry, writes Mr Mark Woodward.

To tie in with this resurgence and also to recognise the number of former pupils who are still playing competitive netball at all levels, including in the case of Melissa Croxall in the National League, former Deputy Head Mrs Gill Thomas and Head of Girls’ PE Mrs Sue Smith organised an inaugural Charity Netball tournament for former pupils.

Around 50 former pupils returned and we were able to compile six teams from scratch to participate in a round robin competition. The quality of the netball was of a high standard, an immense tribute to our games staff (past and present)!

As well as a chance for former pupils to catch up with their peers’ news, the most rewarding part of the day was being able to report that we were able to raise £450 for Breast Cancer Care and Cancer Research from the raffle proceeds and voluntary donations for cakes and drinks.

Mrs Smith, herself an Old Wheat (see p110-111), thanked everyone for their support, adding: “The ‘old’ girls and their families had a lovely day and this event would not have been possible without everyone’s support.”

The final words go to Mrs Thomas, who said: “Everyone was so generous with their support, with donations and their time, and it was lovely to see so many former pupils and their families. It is great to keep links with former pupils and I hope many of those who returned were also able to re-establish connections.”

There are tentative plans to include hockey in a repeat of this reunion either in 2015 or 2016, but we will keep everyone updated as soon as the final details are established. www.englandnetball.co.uk/my-game/back-to-netball

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Sport

Old Wheatleyan Sport ‘Old Wheats’ Mr Adam Mason describes the massive strides made by Old Wheatleyans RFC during the 2013-14 season.

The 1st XV achieved its highest ever league position, finishing 3rd in Midlands 3. The team also ended up runners-up in the Warwickshire Shield Final. Led by skipper Ben Craig, this side produced some scintillating rugby and scored many tries – Rich Drury once again topped the charts. Most notable performances were a 50 point victory away to Shipston, and putting perennial rivals Ledbury to the sword, also on the road.

The Stags, or 2nd XV, finished second in its first season in the leagues. Its performances were sufficiently impressive for the Warwickshire RFU to promote the team two divisions into Warwickshire 2 where we will rub shoulders with the major clubs in the County. Led by the evergreen Greg Weaver, the side’s mix of youth and experience produced some great running rugby and, on two occasions, we scored 80 points.

The number of former pupils involved in the Club continues to grow and recent Bablake leavers Ben Dale, Ronan Jones and Dan Rowlands all represented the Wheats throughout the season.

If you are interested in joining the Old Wheats, then please contact Adam Mason (amason115@hotmail.com).

Off the Pitch As well as an 85th year anniversary dinner, with former Lion Tim Stimpson as guest of honour, the Old Wheatleyans RFC celebrated its 2013-14 campaign with the traditional End of Season Awards at Coventry RFC. There was plenty of hearty reflection on the first season under the care of a new coaching and physio team, led by Steve Clarke, and the traditional end of season awards were very well received.

For further news, see @oldwheatleyans or www.facebook.com/OWRFC.

“Led by skipper Ben Craig, this side produced some scintillating rugby and scored many tries.” www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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News of Former Pupils

Grapevine News in brief about former Bablake pupils and staff Marc Day

Abhimanyu Bose (2003-2010) Excellent timelapse video for Bablake.

Josh Buggea (2005-2010) Signed for Bedford Blues RFC – hoping Coventry RFC gains promotion next season and we may see a clash of the Bablake Class of 2005 with Ben Cooper.

Ben Cooper (2005-2010) Presented the Mike Hibbert Trophy to 1st XV captain Huw Edwards; selected for 6 Nations Scotland U20s; signed for Coventry RFC. Marc Day (1989-1996) Founder of ‘Kujali’; designed a protective iPad mini cover and with every purchase of this item, his company gives a mosquito net or a life-saving treatment to protect a child in Africa from malaria.

Max Field (1961-1968) Published Sacred Connections of the Holy Blood – unsolved mysteries of centuries-old enigmas from Shugborough and Rennes-le-Château giving connected solutions.

Wes Finch (1989-1994) Played his second Bablake Enrichment gig and supported Billy Bragg at the RSC; new album on way via Kickstarter.

Karen Fraser (1975-82) To be Guest of Honour at 2015 Prize Giving.

Brian Greenhill (1938-1945) Placed Bablake poppy at Bomber Command.

Melissa Kite (1983-1990) Articles in The Spectator and Daily Mail. Published first novel and The Art of Not Having it All is on the way.

Jonny Lawrence (2005-2012) A double distinction in his Prelims at Oxford for French and Arabic; awarded Pope Exhibition award; year out spent in Jordan.

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Katie McDermott

Katie McDermott (1997-2004) A year of fine enterprise: Countdown Keeper app released; Not Dogs (on behalf of Quorn) toured Festivals; won social media training contract for Virgin Trains.

Rachael Mohomed (now Arkell) (1995-2002) Appointed Director of Music at Trinity School, Teignmouth.

Isabelle Moran (2001-2008) Graduated from Birmingham’s Dentistry School with a 1st Class degree with honours and distinctions; also awarded the Carlton Gold medal for being the top student on her course.

Uma Raman (2003-2010) Bharatanatyam performance for the Uttarkhand Flood Relief fund; winner of 2014 Yuva Nritya Ratna Award.

Alex T Smith (1996-2003) 2014 World Book Day official illustrator; filming of Claude, the TV series, began; nominated for Red House Children’s Book award; Foxy Tales and new covers for Eva Ibbotson’s full back catalogue published; Sochi protest illustration.

Lorna Syson (1997-2004) The face of a national campaign for Sage and its business benefits as well as being featured in the Saturday Daily Telegraph supplement.

Kate Townshend (now Bradford) (1992-1999) Kate currently spends half of her week as a teacher, and the other half as a freelance journalist. She's been published in The Guardian, the Times Educational Supplement, Teach Primary, Teach Secondary, Britain Magazine and a range of women's magazines including Top Santé and Grazia.

News of Former Pupils

Alex T Smith

Katie Ingram

Congratulations to the following: Anniversary 85th – Old Wheatleyans RFC. Births Lauren Grey (1996-2003).

Lizzie Sara (now Hollick) (1996-2003).

Former Head of PE: Miss Wilson (now Mrs Gibbs).

Degrees Harriet Carter (2003-2010) Fine Art & Education Studies (Worcester).

Shannon Easterlow (2004-2011) Biol. Sciences (Warwick).

Martyn Gray (2003-2010) French & German (Nottingham).

Kirstie Logan-Townshend (2006-2008) (Coventry).

Isabel Meyrick (2002-2009) Equine Sport Science (Nottingham Trent).

Millie Ross (2004-2011) PPE (Oxford).

George Skalka (2003-2010) Biol. Sciences (Warwick).

Jemma Williams (2004-2011) Geology (Imperial).

Weddings Kayleigh Mullarkey (1998 -2005) and Ross Lacey (1998-2005).

Spotted in/on at: Ace – Youth Employment magazine – Josh White re IBM/ apprenticeship benefits.

Adidas window displays – Ben Duffy’s photography.

Area 11 – Alex Parvis.

Bablake Alumni Reunions – Nottingham.

Bablake Art Department – Georgia Edmiston, Rebecca Garforth (work featured in Anthropologie, Bath), Bethany Gaunt, Dan Jack (also featured in Autodesk Computer Graphic student awards), Eve Kershaw, Isobel Lindsay.

Bablake Staff – Duncan Bevis.

Bablake Website – Interviews with Olivia Broadfield, Katie Ingram, Jack Kelly and Katie McDermott.

Brian Matthew

David Hill

BBC 1 – Citizen Khan Christmas Special – Adam Fray as a ‘Brummie tree seller’; In the Club – Ray was John Marquez; One Show – Darren Carnall.

BBC 2 – 37 Days, via Lucy Bassnett-Maguire.

BBC News – Martine Croxall. (Martine continues to be asked to host debates for the Royal Geographical Society et al.)

BBC Radio 2 – Brian Matthew, still hosting the Saturday Sounds of the Sixties at 85.

BBC Radio 6 – Beth Rowland (also Huffington Post, Impact – 2014-15 News editor - and Student Beans).

British Library Voices of Science – aeronautical engineer John Coplin.

Business Wire – Jim Darragh quoted in Ipanema Technologies and Zscaler partnership.

Cage Warriors – David Hill.

CERN – Rebecca Lane.

Channel 4 Dinner Dates – Richard Drury.

City Fibre – gigabit city developers - Rob Hamlin, Director of Business Development.

Coventry Chess Academy – Paul Lam, founder.

Coventry Telegraph – Zain Ali as reporter; TE Dunville tribute; Emilie Gould – ‘Tin Angel’ retrospective; Alan Harris (sub editor); Danny Lightfoot (Halfords community story); Sukhjeevan Nat, Business Awards nominee for Emerging Professionals category; John Nollett re enterprise; Old Wheatleyans RFC (matches and anniversary dinner); Jaspal Phull (prodigious bowling); Hannah Sugrue, Warwick Uni Engineering team; Phil Townshend (Coventry City Council matters and Coventry FC’s return to the Ricoh).

Crossfit – James Przybek, Melissa Walton (now Wells) and Ryan Wells.

CWR – Marc Day re Kujali.

Daily Mail online – Paddy Hyslop; Aleem Iqbal (fleet of cars vandalised).

Daily Telegraph – Sachin Tendulkar tribute by Ian Chadband; Tour de France podcast/ Mountain Higher – 10 European rides - Daniel Friebe; quoted in articles on the economy – Paul Hollingsworth.

Downing Street – Lorna Syson.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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News of Former Pupils

Class of 2006 with Mr Drury

Dragons’ Den – Manu Bhardwaj Hot Pink jewellery.

Edinburgh Fringe – Guy Lewis (with The Beta Males).

EnDearing Minds anthology – Kim Jamison’s writing.

Facebook – Matt Galloway.

Free Radio – Jenny Roche (now Newman) re X Factor.

Geocaching – Adam Redshaw.

Graze – Siobhan Robinson.

Guardian – Alex T Smith (‘How to draw a Knight’ with Hector).

Guest of Honour – Ben Duffy (Prize Giving 2014); Paul Best (Winter Sports Awards Evening).

Gym – Paul Lam, West Midlands Under 74kg Bench Press champion. iTunes – Olivia Broadfield, new album; Tara aka Nayantara Sriram with photography by Abhimanyu Bose.

ITV – Text Santa! – Melissa Walton.

Lightning II jets vertical night landing tests – Robin Trewinnard-Boyle.

Local politics – Faye Sweet (now Abbott), Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner.

London Irish RFC – Shane Geraghty.

London Marathon – Marc Rubery.

Loughborough MCCU winter squad – Mark Best.

Med School Music – Whiney (Will Hine).

Midlands Today – Liz Copper reporting on Bablake Weather Station.

National Youth Theatre (Summer) – Sachin Sharma.

Nibfest Write-a-thon nominee and National Lottery Holiday winner – Cassie Leedham.

Not Dogs stalls – Chris Campbell, Katie and Stacie McDermott.

One Direction concert (Manchester) – Tom Hine (in his Medical capacity).

One Peace concert – with Emma McGann, James Plester and Rich Overton.

OUWRFC calendar for Mind Your Head – Millie Ross.

Oxford University Alternative Prospectus cover – Oliver Robinson.

Pantomime - Tingewick (Oxford Medical Students’ charity) – Tom Hine.

Pure Beauty magazine – Becky Viner.

Queen’s Scout Award – Daniel Rowlands.

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Olivia Broadfield

Andy Monaghan

RSC (Billy Bragg support) – Wes Finch.

Run and Ride – mountain-biking blog by Victoria Jones.

Sage adverts – Lorna Syson.

Scoop.it - Catherine Russell page on Geology.

Sky – Secret Dance Crew – Emma Fairclough; football coverage – Stacie McDermott.

Sky News and Microsoft (on placement) - Zain Ali. St James’ Palace – Gold D of E – Cameron Grant, Adam Simmonds, Sophie Tumber.

Sunday Assembly and The Times – Michelle Beckett.

Swan Lake National Tour – Andy Monaghan.

The Comedian – Josh Sood’s new musical.

The Superheroes – Mac, Birmingham – Laura Weaver.

This Morning – Kate Byrne.

U6th Question Time panel – Caitlin Edwards with Mr Paul Cleaver (Head of Art).

Various magazines: Michelle Beckett (BQ magazine); Ben Duffy (photographer); Lorna Syson (interior designer); Melissa Wells (model, writer – Body Fit, Cosmo); Alex T Smith (Artists & Illustrators et al); Ryan Wells (writer – Obstacle Race); Will Hine (drum ‘n’ bass artist).

West End – Darren Carnall (Associate Choreographer) and John Marquez in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

WH Smith Children’s Books Chart – Alex T Smith, Mark Walden.

White Ribbon Campaign volunteer – Sarah Thompson (now Brown).

Xyra and national media in build up to X Factor and Judges’ Houses – Beth Mills.

Y20 Summit (Sydney) – Kirstie Logan Townshend was selected to attend.

Former Staff Mr Rob Dougall’s photographs featured in coverage of storms in the South West.

Mr Mark Warner completed his 365 day sketch project.

News of Former Pupils

Shell P, 1964

Reminiscences

In Memoriam

Bablake Film Society (1960s) – Geoff Palmer.

Former Pupils and Staff We are very sorry to inform readers of the deaths of the following:

Reunions Armistice/ Remembrance Day: Peter Adams, Peter Amery, Ken Ball, Peter Burden, Geoff Eames and John Greenhill joined our assembly in the Main Hall.

Charity Netball Tournament.

Class of 1993.

Classes of 1960-1964.

Coffee Morning for those who attended 2012-13 reunions.

Coventry School Hockey Club.

Graduation for the Class of 2006.

We were indebted to Sarah Brown, Will Chamberlain, Katherine Cooke, Matt Davidson, Faith Hannon, Chris Harding, Thomas Hine, Alexandra Mawn (now Moore), Mark McKelvie, Chris Starkey, Cara Thompson, Sophie Tumber, Pam Uppal, Alex Walsh Atkins for returning for the U6th Mock Interview Morning.

Kevita Bains, Luke Bennett, Sam Brown, Peter Corrigan, Tom Curtis, Matt Davidson, Paul Freeman, Rebecca Gibbs, Michelle Hancox, Chris Hollis, Rikki Hundal, Lijana Kaziow, Richard Lowe, Inderjeet Nagra, James Parsley, Daniel Poole, Sarah Potter, Chris Pritchard, Khaleeq Rehman, Catherine Russell, Howard Skipp, Sophie Staniforth, Gary Strain and Lucy Williams (now Jones) joined us for the 2014 Careers Convention. 20 more, inc Dr Carolyn Brinkworth (NASA), offered e-assistance.

Local Bablake business/ related café of the year (unofficial award from Bablake Careers Department): Kendall’s in Earlsdon run by Marcus Kendall.

Miscellaneous thanks Andrew Harvey, Geoff Palmer, Lawrence Pavey and John Rushton – photographs of Bablake’s campus, drama productions and tutor groups.

Mr John Davies (1952-1957) who opened the first video rental library in Bedworth.

Mr Dick Edmonds (1967-1974) Mr George Jones (Chemistry 1965-1993) Mr Don Kendrick (1940s) Roger Worrod writes: “Don Kendrick passed away on the 27th December 2013, aged 79. During and after WWII he had lived near me in Cheylesmore and 'took me to school' on my first day.”

Mr Derek Over (1953- 1958).

Professor Kenneth Stephens (1942-1949) Guest of Honour at Prize Giving in 1993, formerly Dean of the Engineering faculty at the University of Surrey.

As we went to print, we heard the sad news of the deaths of Cameron Grant (2005-2012), former Chairman of the Governors Trevor Webb (1938-1941) and Hayley Wilkinson (1994-1999).

Please submit news for inclusion in the 2014-15 Wheatleyan by email (mgaw@bablake.coventry.sch.uk) to Staff Editor, Mr Mark Woodward,

by September 1 2015.

www.bablake.com @bablakeschool

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... and finally!

You can check out any time you like... (but you can never leave!)

Georgia Clarke decided to interview Head of 5th Year Mrs Louise Alderson (1976-1983), Director of Marketing and Admissions Mrs Sarah Harris (1981-88), Head of Wheatley Miss Jayne Simmons (1995-2002) and Head of Girls’ PE Mrs Sue Smith (1977-1984), once pupils at Bablake but now teachers here.

How has Bablake changed since you were a pupil?

Miss Simmons: Not a lot has changed, apart from the new Science labs and some new painting.

When I started teaching here, most of the staff were the same and all my colleagues in Physics had taught me at some point.

Mrs Alderson: Bablake is a lot how it used to be – supportive and caring. I think the pupils are under more exam pressure now though.

Mrs Harris: Yes, the warmth and sense of community have not changed and that is probably what I love most about the school. The sense of belonging stays with you for life!

What was your favourite subject at school?

Miss Simmons: History was my favourite up until GCSE, and then I loved Physics and Chemistry at A Level.

Mrs Smith: PE, closely followed by Maths, hence doing a BEd (Hons) degree in specialist Secondary Physical Education and second subject Mathematics.

Mrs Alderson: All sport, especially Hockey.

Mrs Harris: I have to say French, don’t I, especially as I gained my first ever commendation in the subject… for saying a French tongue twister in front of the class!

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What was your favourite moment(s) at Bablake?

Miss Simmons: Fousseau and Duke of Edinburgh are some of my strongest memories as well as Mr Masters setting himself on fire in one of his end of term Chemistry ‘specials’!

Mrs Alderson: There are too many to recall: from representing the school and county at hockey, to appearing in Godspell and going on trips including the Geography field trip to Torquay, where I may have helped Mr Jackson fall into the river! (Keep that quiet, as he still does not know it was me!)

Mrs Smith: Having Easter breakfast with my friends in a clubhouse in Holland whilst on hockey tour. Also, winning the Coventry doubles finals with my friend Melanie Flinn; I still have the medal, and Mel and I are still friends today. Plus coming first in the Maths exam and finally beating Neil Briggs!

If you want a not so favourite moment at school, I don't think I will ever forget Mr Masters giving me three ‘no throws’ in the javelin competition one Sports day!

How did Bablake set you up for the future?

Miss Simmons: It provided an atmosphere where I could really achieve my best academically, as well as giving me lots of opportunities to experience things outside the classroom.

Mrs Alderson: It gave me confidence and what I call a ‘can do attitude’.

Mrs Smith: Bablake gave me a strong set of values and encouraged me to work hard: I have carried these attributes with me into every teaching post. Bablake instilled in me the importance of commitment. There were no excuses for missing matches and practices. I always wanted to play sport and hated it, if I got a call from Mrs Thomas to say a Saturday morning match was cancelled.

Mrs Harris: I gained in confidence and learned to believe I could achieve what I wanted. I did not follow the traditional path of heading off to university straight after A Levels and needed guidance the following year when wondering what to do. I came back to school and was given good advice by Mr Galsworthy, Head of Careers then, enabling me to gain university entrance and do a degree that I loved.

“Make the most of every moment at Bablake because it’s probably only when you have been away for a few years that you realise just how special a place it is.”

Did you think you would come back to work at Bablake?

Miss Simmons: No! I didn’t even decide to become a teacher until really late on at university.

Mrs Alderson: I never thought I’d come back to work here, but when I was ready to move schools, I wanted to work for the best - so that was obviously Bablake.

Mrs Smith: Yes, but I was not sure it would happen.

Third time of applying, I eventually had an interview and was offered the job! When I started work at Bablake, about 40% of the staff had taught me as a pupil. They were all very nice and welcomed me onto the staff. Now Mr Drury is the only teacher left that taught me as a pupil and he has not changed at all!

Mrs Harris: No! I had never even considered teaching as a profession. I started out in banking! I really didn’t know which direction to follow for a career, so decided to do a PGCE after my degree, simply as something to do for a year. This made me realise that teaching was something that I enjoyed.

Is there anything else you want to include?

Mrs Smith: It is a privilege to be part of the Bablake community. Myself, my brother and sister and my own two children have been educated at Bablake.

My mum tells me she has been doing school runs to Bablake for 45 years now! Bablake is a great school, filled with dedicated teachers, enthusiastic pupils and supportive parents. I am very fortunate to have been a pupil, teacher and parent at the school.

Through these roles, I have gained many friends and am very grateful to Bablake.

Mrs Harris: My friends have always thought it funny that I have ended up back here and when they discovered that I was called ‘ma’am’ at school, they thought it was hilarious. Make the most of every moment at Bablake because it’s probably only when you have been away for a few years that you realise just how special a place it is.

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