AGS Life, Autumn edition 2016

Allerton Grange Life Issue 4

December 2016

Year 11 boys are ‘all fired up’ Ten students from Allerton Grange School were the first to take part in a brand new course offered by West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue’s Youth Intervention Team. The programme, called Fire Work, which aims to teach employability skills in a fun, practical and disciplined way, ran between 14 – 18 November at Killingbeck Fire Station and culminated in a demonstration of a rescue situation at the school as part of the graduation ceremony.

The course is aimed, primarily, at disadvantaged or vulnerable young people and is designed to improve life chances by boosting confidence, strengthening resilience and providing practical support. By intervening early on, the team believe they are also helping the region to become safer, by targeting those most likely to use the service in the future. The team’s mission is to be a catalyst for change in the lives of young people and get them #FiredUp for their future.

As part of their duties pupils stuck to a routine of parades, kit inspections, training scenarios and drills, and were led by a duty shift officer throughout the week. The team put on a demonstration at the end of the week at Allerton Grange School, in front of family and staff who have supported the initiative, wearing full firefighters clothing and breathing equipment, putting into practice what they had learned.

Headteacher, Mr Roper, said “Our school motto is Aspire, Grow and Succeed and our students have certainly been inspired this week by working with West Yorkshire Fire Service. Overcoming challenges during the course, they have kept up with the physical demands required by our brave and hardworking fire officers and have come together to work as a team and as professionals. We are immensely proud of their achievements and have seen them develop skills that will benefit them in school and beyond.”

Deputy Chief Fire Officer for West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (WYFRS), Dave Walton, said “The teamwork seen today was absolutely fantastic; you wouldn’t know that this group of young people have only been training for a week.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is about so much more than fires and road traffic collisions, we are committed to making West Yorkshire safer. One of the ways in which we do that is by working with young people and giving them skills that they can use to make them and the communities they live in safer.”

Student Ibraheem A said, “We’ve been treated like we’re professionals and it’s helped us develop skills like leadership and teamwork.”

“Instead of learning about it or reading a book about it, we actually got to learn skills by doing it ourselves, hands-on.

We’ve learned how to help people and how to give first aid”, said Ibraheem R. Muzakhar M said, “Getting our certificates from the main man (of WYFRS) has meant a lot to us. I’m proud of myself.”

From the Head

I am always blown away by the wonderful talent and leadership that our students possess. This term has been no exception. I have been privileged to see some amazing performances and witnessed outstanding student leadership: • The Taming of the Shrew. It was great to see students from all age groups tackle a very difficult Shakespeare play

with such confidence and expertise.

• KS4 and 5 Musical showcase. The musical talent on display was wonderful and the performances were some of

the best I have had the privilege of seeing at Allerton Grange.

• The World of Music performance. It was so wonderful to see our rich diverse culture represented through music.

Also great to see our Music leaders working with local primary school students to put on such a memorable

piece of Samba music.

• Children in Need. Our Y10 student council demonstrated superb leadership skills in organising the week long

fundraising for Children in Need. Their leadership secured a fund raising total of £1300.

Well done to every student who has contributed through leadership, performance or sport in supporting Allerton Grange.

Finally, I wish all our students and families a very happy and safe Christmas holiday.

Allerton Grange Life

Taming of the Shrew On Thursday 23 November, Allerton Grange School performed their annual Shakespeare production which, this year, was The Taming of the Shrew. For those not familiar with this early Shakespearean comedy, the play was revamped for the 1999 film ‘Ten things I hate about you’ and the Musical ‘Kiss me Kate’. It tells the story of two sisters, Katherina and Bianca, who live in the Italian town of Verona. Bianca is sweet and good natured and loved by all the men, whereas Katherina is bad tempered and stubborn, in every way the Jacobean Shrew. Their parents decide that no man will get to marry Bianca until someone agrees to marry her sister. It is up to the bullish Petruchio to ‘tame the shrew’ by whatever means he deems necessary.

Allerton Grange has gone for its own unique take on this tale, with the boys playing girls (complete in wigs and dresses) and the girls playing the domineering men. Mr Hasselgreen, acting head of Drama and director, explains this decision. “When I first read the play, I was struck by the thought that, whilst undoubtedly funny in Shakespeare’s time, the moral of the play

in this day and age would be seen as incredibly sexist. By having the boys play the girls, it ceases to be derogatory to one particular gender, whilst maintaining the original gags, of which there are many!” Far from being worried about labelling Shakespeare a sexist, Mr Hasselgreen continues. “We have to remember the time Shakespeare wrote the play was even more male dominated than today. Not long before the play was written, a queen had been beheaded for only producing a daughter and women were not even allowed to be in plays. Shakespeare was merely expressing the ideas popular at the time and the fact that he wrote about so many strong women, e.g Lady Macbeth, Beatrice and, to a certain extent, Katherina herself, proves that he was actually quite forward thinking when it came to his views on women.”

For this production we have seen Keira Murray Sharpe play Petruchio and George Fothergill Pounder donning a frock as Katherina. They are amongst several young people predicted to have a big future within theatre.

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Tickled Pink Sixth Form’s Student Council coordinated a fundraiser in the first half term to raise money for Breast Cancer Now. Members of Allerton Grange Sixth Form wore pink to school and donated £1, raising a total of £150 for the charity.

A week of fundraising

Allerton Grange School’s Year 10 Student Council delivered a range of events between 14 – 18 November 2016, to raise money for Children in Need and to replace our school minibus. Activities cost 20p-50p to enter and included name the teddy bear, guess how many sweets in the jar and a chocolate and sweets tombola, ending the week with a non-uniform day which was £1 for all who took part.

Students could also pay to nominate a member of staff to get soaked in assemblies over the week. Progress and Welfare Manager for Year 7, Miss Green and Progress and Welfare Coach, Miss Smith, faced their soaking together, having been nominated by Years 7 and 8. Next up was acting Head of Drama, Mr Hasslegreen who, dressed in a full wet suit, had an entire bucket of water thrown over him. Key Stage 4 Progress and Welfare Leader, Mrs Davies, was soaked in Thursday’s assembly after kindly being nominated by Year 10. The final soaking on Friday saw Headteacher, Mr Roper, take his turn in the Year 11 assembly. Well done to all staff who were good sports and agreed to take part to help raise money for a good cause.

Special thanks are extended to Ms Smith and Miss Radford from the PE department who supported the Year 10 Student Council in organising the activities across the school. Donations for the tombola were received from Sainsbury’s Local and The Cooperative on Street Lane and Tesco on Roundhay Road.

Anti-Bullying Week 14 – 18 November Allerton Grange supported national Anti-Bullying Week with a series of events. Health Officer, Emma Johnston, ran a pop-up advice stand in the cyber café raising awareness of the campaign and sharing its key messages, including where to go for advice and promotion of our Zee Tee Ambassadors within school. Students and staff showed their support by having their photograph taken holding up a message of support which was then shared on social media with the hashtag #AntiBullyingWeek

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Students link up for Road Safety Week

Students from Allerton Grange School joined primary school students from nearby Talbot and Moor Allerton Hall in a week of action as part of Road Safety Week. This year’s campaign was run by the charity Brake who were asking supporters to make the Brake Pledge.

Allerton Grange School’s Safer Schools’ Police Officer, PC Brown, was joined by 6 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) from the local area to support the roadside action events, as well as Becky Murray, Project Assistant, from Leeds City Council’s Influencing Travel Behaviour team. A speed gun was borrowed from West Yorkshire Police, along with a ‘SID’ machine, or speed indication device, from the council, which displays the speed of travel back to vehicles along with either a happy or sad face. Displaying signs designed and created

by Allerton Grange students, the teams took to the streets to spread road safety messages far and wide.

The roadside events took place on Tuesday 22 November on Street Lane, which has a speed limit of 30mph, between Talbot Road and Talbot Gardens and Thursday 24 November on Lidgett Lane, which has a speed limit of 20mph, just outside the student entrance to Allerton Grange School and Moor Allerton Hall Primary School. Students joined Police Officers in talking to motorists who had been stopped and were actively involved in asking them if they were aware of the speed limit in place, as well as asking them to slow down to make our local community a safer place for everyone.

Safer Schools Police Officer, PC Brown, said “Road safety is something that staff at Allerton Grange School, and I take very seriously all year round, however Road Safety Week is a really good time of year to bring attention to some of the key messages we are trying to get across. For example, ‘slow down’, ‘wear a seatbelt’ and ‘don’t use a mobile phone whilst driving’, even if it’s a hands free device, because it can distract your attention away from the road. We are working with our local community and parents to encourage the use of the turning circle drop-off facility we have on site, accessed from Lidgett Lane, to park sensibly and consider residents and other road users.

During these roadside events we have had a number of members of the public expressing their thanks for raising awareness of issues surrounding road safety, in particular speeding, which has been fantastic as the community can see what we are trying to do and is supporting us.”

In addition to these roadside events, Allerton Grange School have supported Road Safety Week by joining the @Brakecharity social media campaign on Twitter and Facebook, getting followers to make the #brakepledge. Years 7, 8 and 12 took part in special assemblies this week delivered by Leeds City Council’s Influencing Travel Behaviour team and West Yorkshire Police on topics surrounding road safety.

Further plans are in place for the summer term for students to take part in workshops and an incentivised Walk/Cycle to School Day. Leeds City Council’s Influencing Travel Behaviour team provide a range of educational activities with both primary and secondary aged students across the city. These include lessons, assemblies and practical training sessions to improve road safety and increase the use of sustainable travel. Becky Murray, Leeds City Council Project Assistant, said “While we know that most drivers act safely and responsibly, there were still over 250 young people injured on the roads in Leeds last year. By supporting activities in schools such as these, we can remind drivers and young pedestrians about good behaviour that will help to keep us all safer”.

Allerton Grange Life

‘Outstanding’ performances at Key Stage 4-5 & ‘World of Music’ Concerts On Thursday 10 November Allerton Grange School presented an outstanding music concert, bringing together performances from students across Key Stage 4 and 5. The concert featured an eclectic mix of popular music from the 60s, 70s and 80s, as well as current chart music.

The World of Music Concert took place on Thursday 8 December and started with an opening performance from Big Samba, made up of music ambassadors from Allerton Grange and pupils from nearby primaries Talbot, Gledhow and Moor Allerton Hall. The rest of the evening saw a range of performances from piano pieces, dhol, brass and steel pans to haunting vocals and a rock band.

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Aimie is a Poetry winner

Award winning poetry for Year 8 student Talented poet and writer, Aimie Baxter, has won 1st place in the Leeds Peace Poetry Competition. Her poem, which is about the life of a refugee, was up against other entries from across the district. Well done to Aimie for the incredible achievement of securing the coveted winning spot. Her poem, ‘He is Fear’, will now be published online and will feature in the Yorkshire Evening Post.

He is Fear Engulfing me in suffocating arms, He screams such harsh warnings and alarms.

My mind is racing like a cheetah – My mother is lost and I cannot see her.

He whisks me up and takes me away; This is country where I mustn’t stay.

Sprinting through my fragile body, He reminds me that I am precisely nobody.

He tells me I’ll be lost – I won’t live a good life, I’ll never find my parents, or my uncle and his wife.

I will always be alone (if I don’t die at sea), Why is the war in the country that holds me?

I’m terrified, I’m terrified.

He’s been with me since this dreaded fight all began, Temptation and horror – all part of his clan.

He knows how to fool me so I won’t go on, The fact I’m still here is quite a phenomenon.

He tells me once more; these are my last days, And I’m trapped in an immortal, terrible maze.

This wasn’t my choice, I never told him to come, Yet now all my feelings, beside devastation, are numb.

I know he won’t leave but I have to move forward, As our small, wooden boat, slowly drifts shoreward.

AGS Sport takes a lead Over the past half term our Level 2 Sports Leaders have been going to local Primary Schools to lead sports sessions. As part of their qualification they must lead sessions in the community or in primary schools.

A group of students have been going to Talbot Primary School and Moor Allerton Hall Primary school to lead years 5 and 6 in progressive activities. At Talbot Primary school their theme has been Wartime Britain, with this in mind they have been completing fitness sessions including drill sergeant exercises, circuit training and many other activities showing their awareness of what is needed to follow a school’s theme. Moor Allerton Hall has been coming up to school on Friday mornings to use our facilities with the help of another group of Sports Leaders. This opportunity has given real life experience to the Sports Leaders and has allowed them to develop their skills to a deeper level. They have represented Allerton Grange to the highest standard and, come rain or shine, the students have led some outstanding sessions, where the primary students were fully engaged and had lots of fun.

This is my life now – no turning back, As he floats far away, Freshness hits with a smack . . .

Aimie Jayne Baxter

Year 13 mentors inspire young students Boosting Reading Potential As part of our drive towards improving literacy for all and developing student leadership, we have begun a reading mentor scheme.

Eight sixth form students spent two days formally training to be able to assess younger students’ reading abilities and identify areas of improvement. They learnt how to apply a variety of strategies to help readers improve their confidence and their accuracy over a period of 10 weeks.

Three times a week, our Y13 mentors meet with their Y7 reading buddies and work on their skills. Progress is monitored and tracked over time; we can already see how much their confidence and reading ability is improving.

We’re looking forward to being able to train up more sixth formers in the Spring Term so that more students can benefit from this reading scheme.

Allerton Grange Life

Beckett praise for year 7 and 8 Students College of Art for Year 9 photographers 14 year 9 students, who are considering studying photography at GCSE, were lucky enough to be included in a fantastic trip to Leeds College of Art earlier this term. The day out focused on learning to use SLR cameras, exploring 35mm film and darkroom development. The facilities at the art college were wonderful and every student was provided with a booth to work at within the darkroom itself.

Making a change from looking at photographs on the back of a camera or our phones, it was really exciting to see the final prints emerge from the chemicals.

65 Year 7 and Year 8 students have participated in a morning of workshops delivered by students and lecturers from The Law School at Leeds Beckett University.

Students worked in small teams under the guidance of the Law students to investigate the issues surrounding child labour around the world. Short films were used to promote group discussion and case studies were examined before AGS students presented their thoughts to the class.

Following the workshops, Senior lecturer Teresa Aksamit-Hollingworth commented on the positive attitude of students taking part and was impressed by the clarity and detail in which students in Year 7 and 8 can communicate ideas.

Students explore police options Well done to 6 of our students who have been successful in their applications to join the West Yorkshire Police Explorers programme. The programme, which starts in January 2017, will enable successful candidates to explore the dayto-day work of police officers on the streets of West Yorkshire, as well as the work of specialist departments including Crime Scene Investigation, Safeguarding Units, Roads Policing, Crime Prevention and the National Police Air Service. They will also be given the opportunity to learn about the work of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, as well partner organisations such as the Magistrates Court and the Fire Service.

World Mental Health Day

In support of WMH day a range of activities took place across school with the aim of removing the stigma relating to mental health and sharing information about where to access advice and support.

Staff were given a yellow badge in the briefing meeting at the start of the week and were made aware of the range of resources and services available. Year 7 received a special assembly whilst other students could access an advice and information stand ran by our Health Support Officer. Throughout the week we supported Young Minds’ social media campaign, #HellowYellow, sharing key messages about mental health amongst young people. We also became the first school to sign the Time to Change pledge, showing our commitment to change perceptions of mental health.

Allerton Grange Life

Students were also treated to a tour of the college, which has the most fantastic facilities ranging from traditional photography and rooms full of computers to 3D and printmaking studios.

I felt so proud of our students, who were a real credit to the school and were on task all day long; the lecturers were delighted at their achievements and how quickly they picked up so many new skills.

Open events showcase school to prospective students and parents The start of term was extremely busy as the school provided a range of open-door events for prospective parents. At the end of September the annual whole school Open Evening took place, followed in October by a series of Open Mornings which allowed local primary parents and children to look around the school and interact with teachers and students. Here are some of the things parents were most impressed by.

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More Tea Vicar?

Mr McCall, Deputy Headteacher, was invited to afternoon tea at the House of Commons earlier this week. Attending with Stuart Andrew MP, he represented Allerton Grange School as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of Leeds Trinity University.

After studying for a BA (Hons) in French and Public Media and a PGCE in Secondary Education at the University, Mr McCall returned for a third time and graduated last December with an MA in Education. His dissertation was a piece of narrative research into the experiences of some deaf students, allowing close working with Allerton Grange School’s own Deaf and Hearing Impaired provision, for which he achieved a Distinction and the Secondary Education Departmental Prize in recognition of his academic excellence. Not content with his recent achievements, Mr McCall has now embarked upon a PhD in Educational Philosophy which he plans to complete in the not too distant future.

The prestigious event was attended by many dignitaries and celebrities, including The Reverend Kate Bottley, from Channel 4’s Gogglebox, pictured below with Mr McCall on the terrace pavilion of the Houses of Parliament.

Allerton Grange School’s Headteacher, Mr Roper, said “Mr McCall has over 30 years’ experience in Education and is a greatly respected and valued member of the senior leadership team at Allerton Grange School. As part of the school’s development plan, investment in staff professional development has been a priority and Mr McCall’s commitment to his own extended academic studies will no doubt serve as inspiration for others.”

Attendance at the Great North Run Congratulations to Mrs N Harris, Attendance Officer, who completed the Great North Run on September 11th 2016. After months of training for the half marathon, Natalie did herself proud by completing the gruelling 13 mile run, raising £385 for charity Scope. She now has had her place confirmed for the London Marathon in 2017 – good luck Natalie from all staff and students!

Years 12 and 13 look at industry Year 12 and 13 went to look at how ICT is used in manufacturing. They also saw production lines where bottles were made, labelled, cleaned, filled and capped all on 1 line. The factory makes 4 billion fizzy drinks for the UK every year.

Carillion CEO gives a boost for the Engineering Industry On Friday 14 October, Allerton Grange School was extremely pleased to host Richard Howson, Chief Executive Officer of Carillion plc, who presented to Year 10 students about careers within the engineering industry. Following the assembly a group of More Able students took part in an interactive workshop, led by Richard, which focused on the range of skills required in different roles.

The guest appearance was organised by Mr Tom Hanson, Lead Teacher of More Able Students, who secured the well sought after booking of the CEO of such a large international business and industry leader, in partnership with Speakers for Schools. Taking time out in between travelling to London, Dubai and Madrid, Richard inspired students to pursue careers in engineering and its support services after the industry has seen a decline in people choosing to study engineering following the recession.

Richard Howson said “Contradictory to popular belief, it is actually a really good time to follow a career in engineering because, as an industry, we are crying out for skilled and trained professionals. As the government focuses on growing the economy, money is being invested in infrastructure, which means more jobs in the engineering sector and further opportunities. It’s so important for young people to have an understanding of the range of careers available, the many opportunities to travel the world, as well as the salaries involved and what steps they need to take in terms of Higher Education or Apprenticeships to get where they want to be.”

Richard lives in Skipton, North Yorkshire, with his wife and two sons aged 11 and 13. He has worked for Carillion for over 23 years, first as an Engineer, after getting a degree in Construction Management at Leeds Polytechnic (now known as Leeds Metropolitan University), he has worked his way up the company to Executive Director responsible for Middle East, North Africa and UK Construction and finally Chief Executive Officer in 2012.

Carillion plc employ 50,000 people world-wide, with 26,000 jobs here in the UK, as well as providing 18,000 Apprenticeship places. Richard chairs ‘Business in the Community’ and champions community links across the industry. Carillion have appointed over 400 homeless people into full time work over the last five years, work closely with ex-offenders and allow their employees to take up to 6 days each year to volunteer in the community.

Allerton Grange School’s Headteacher, Mr Roper said, “We have high expectations for all of our students and want to not only provide an excellent teaching and learning environment, but also pathways that lead them to achieve their full potential through school and beyond.”

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Chapel Allerton School - students take over Congratulations to Chapel Allerton Primary School students who took part in Takeover Day during November. Year 6 children (aged 10/11) applied for jobs in school including Headteacher, teacher, ICT Technician, Office Manager and teaching assistant. Children said why they thought they would be good at the job and what they hoped to learn. Following a formal job interview, children were appointed to a post for the full day. They were allowed to wear their own clothes, and even had access to the Staff Room for the day!

As Headteacher for the day, Miss Hylton did a whole school assembly in front of 450 children all about helping others and made sure behaviour in school was up to scratch. Mr Khan O’Connor took a whole computer apart as the ICT Technician and rushed around school helping to resolve lots of laptop problems. Miss Cela worked hard in the School Office – laminating, photocopying and collecting children. She was very fierce on the telephone!

Skye Marshall, who was being a Year 2 Teacher said ‘Everyone in my class was lovely and I really enjoyed choosing Star of the Week’ and Vanshika Bhogal, who was being a Year 1 teacher said ‘I loved testing the children on their spellings because the children listened to every word I said and the children were absolutely lovely’.

Mrs Johnson, Year 6 teacher said ‘When Miss Meadows was teaching it was hard not to chip in - she was a good teacher, but very strict!’

Headteacher Mr Sykes said ‘Takeover Day brings pupils and staff together. Every child gained confidence, appreciated the school staff’s daily work and we all had fun’.

AGS sixth form win University awards for excellence and progress On Friday 11 November a group of Year 13 Sixth Form students attended a formal ceremony at Leeds Beckett University, Headingley campus, to receive their certificates in recognition of completing the Progression Module run by the university.

Over the past year the students have taken part in workshops lead by staff from Leeds Beckett and worked independently to complete four separate units which make up the Progression Module. The units included creating a CV and writing a covering letter, selecting their choices for university courses and money management on a student budget, as well as interview skills and writing personal statements.

Participation in the course encouraged the students to develop their research skills and earned them each 12 UCAS points, as well as providing them with a structured way to tackle what can seem a daunting task of applying for a university place.

Well done to Muhammed A, Zakee A, Sanaa Am Thamanna B, Harkiran B, Alezandre H, Abbas H, Aleesha H, Tavinder L, Mujammil M, Ajay R, Sam T and Linet W. Special awards were announced at the end of the ceremony when Zakee A was presented with the Excellence Award for Allerton Grange School and Thamanna Begum received the Progress Award.

Hope University professor praises ‘energetic’ and ‘thoughtful’ sixth formers Allerton Grange School Sixth Form students were invited to take part in interactive workshops aboard the Liverpool Hope University (LHU) branded bus that visited the school in November, as part of an initiative in partnership with Bauer Media. Students received a talk and took part in a debate led by Mr John Sawyer, Head of LHU’s Department of Law, linking in with students studying social sciences courses at A’ Level. They also worked with staff from Bauer Media on producing promotional clips about LHU and the bus tour.

Mr John Sawyer, said, “I had the pleasure of joining in on a small group debate and discussion with students from Allerton Grange. I found the students energetic, combative and thoughtful. The discussions dealt with legal, political, moral and philosophical issues and I found that the students were able to bring to bear many aspects of their current teaching and learning.

Shanna-Kae is a British Champion

Shanna-Kae Grant competed against the best 1213 year olds in GBR at the British Championships on 3rd – 4th December. After qualifying for the vault final on Saturday, Shanna-Kae performed two excellent vaults, to become British Champion on this apparatus. It is believed she may be the first female gymnast from Yorkshire to have achieved this in over 20 years. A huge well done to Shanna-Kae for this fantastic achievement!

Allerton Grange Life

Boys & Girls join other schools for Rugby Project This term has seen our students take part in a number of initiatives as part of our involvement with the CBRE All Schools programme in partnership with RFU’s Rugby Development Team. The initiative was launched in 2012 and aims to introduce the sport’s core values and increase the number of secondary state schools playing rugby union.

In September 6 Allerton Grange students joined Roundhay and Carr Manor schools at a rugby training session with coaches from RFU. In October 4 students attended a kit design workshop at Wetherby Rugby Club to design a new school rugby shirt incorporating our school history and brand. In November 10 boys were invited for an evening of rugby which included a training session with Yorkshire Carnegie players and the chance to see the Yorkshire Carnegie vs Doncaster game at Headingley stadium. Finally, it was the girls turn to get stuck in as part of a girls’ skills session in conjunction with Moortown Rugby Club.

Scott is runner-up in National Tennis Finals Year 7 student, Scott Hillerby, travelled to Raynes Park in London to take part in a national tennis tournament for Under 12s, run by David Lloyd gyms, on 4th December.

Following older brother Adam’s lead, Scott has risen through the ranks of competitive tennis and can be seen as a promising new talent in his own right after beating 3 others regionally to secure his place in the tournament, representing the North of England. Well done to Scott who came runner up in the final.

Scott, who started playing at the age of six, enjoys all aspects of training and competing within the sport and counts his all-time tennis hero as former world No1, Rafael Nadal. Older brother Adam Hillerby, who is in Year 10 at Allerton Grange School, played for Yorkshire in the Under 14s category over the summer before taking a short break from the demands of playing tennis at that level.

Headteacher, Mr Roper, said “Having not just one but two promising tennis stars in our student cohort is absolutely fantastic. As a school we support and encourage our students to reach their full potential both academically and in the pursuit of other interests whether that be in sport, music, drama and so on. It is so vital that we nurture passions and talent that can set our students up for their futures. Who knows, the Hillerby brothers could be the next Jamie and Andy Murray?”

‘Karate Kid’ Luciano enjoys European Championships Year 10 student, Luciano Zanuni, travelled to Greece to compete for England in the Euorpean Shotokan Karate Association Championships for a week in November.

It was an early start on the first day; rising at 2.30am to get to the airport and meet his team mates from across the country. After a long day of travelling they finally reached their hotel in Chalkida, a city two hours outside of Athens, by early evening.

The following day the team started training ready to compete in their various different categories. Luciano, who was the youngest competitor out of all the countries attending, competed in the Youth Team (13 – 15 year olds) firstly against a boy from Northern Ireland and then a Russian. Luciano received shouts of support from his team mates and held his own against opponents nearly twice his age, beating Northern Ireland initially, although eventually conceding defeat to the Russian after a questionable points decision.

The following days saw the Juniors (18 – 20 year olds) and Seniors (21+) categories compete, with the later winning Gold for both male and female teams. Team England were included in the formal ceremony where Greece handed over the Championships to Portugal for ESKA 2017.

Hashim joins FA ‘emerging talent’ Programme Allerton Grange School’s Year 11 student, Hashim Mahmood, has been selected to join the Football Association’s Emerging Talent Programme. Hashim, who is profoundly deaf, travels from his home in Leeds to attend the Newcastle United Foundation’s Deaf and Partially Sighted Regional Talent Centre since being referred earlier in the year after being spotted by a talent scout.

The young footballer will attend specialised weekend training camps run by the FA in Hereford this month and next year in February, April and May, with the aim of making the progression to training with the England Development Squad.

Newcastle United Foundation Disability Coach, Reggie Dornan, said “Hashim is a very committed and talented footballer with a hugely supportive family. The travel involved in attending our sessions throughout the year quickly mounts up. Their commitment to his aspiration to progress on the FA Disability Talent Pathway has been rewarded with this fabulous news. Hashim has worked so hard and it’s great for us to see all of his efforts pay off.

We are extremely pleased to see another player progressing along the pathway, taking that next step. These achievements are great for the individuals but also offer huge inspiration to other young people getting involved in the game.”

Kim Davis, Lead Teacher of the Deaf in Allerton Grange School’s Deaf and Hearing Impairement Team, said, “We are delighted with the news that Hashim’s footballing talents have been recognised and all the dedication and hard work is paying off. He is leading the way for other deaf and hearing impaired students to achieve and excel in whatever area their passions lay.”

Allerton Grange Life

Season’s Greetings

Allerton Grange Life wishes all our readers a safe and happy holiday Work Experience Could you offer a work placement to our skilled and hardworking students?

At Allerton Grange we pride ourselves on our ability to give our students the best opportunities to help them develop personally and professionally. As part of our careers support, we are liaising with a variety of employers and organisations to provide our students with a range of work experience.

If you own your own company, but not as a sole trader, or know someone who does, could you take on one or more of our Year 10 or Year 12 students for a week long work placement? Please note you are required to have employment liability insurance.

If you would like to support our work experience programme please contact our Work Experience co-ordinator, Shireen Christie, by email Shireenchristie@allertongrange.com or telephone 0113 3930304.

Coming soon - Allerton Grange Summer Fair

Would you like to hold a stall or put on a turn at our Summer Fair event? Or would you like to volunteer your services to help us on the day? Please email beckyfinch@allertongrange.com or come and see Becky in the Main Office for a chat.

follow us on Twitter - @Allerton_Grange like us on Facebook- Allerton Grange School Coffee Mornings for Local Parents

Home made chilli jam Available in three sizes Small £2 Medium £3 Large £4

18 January 8 February 15 March 9.10-10.10 am An informal opportunity to chat to some of our students and staff over coffee and cake.

Delicious with cheese boards, Christmas ham, leftover turkey, pork pie, pate, bacon sandwiches and so much more. Makes a great present for friends and family.

Please purchase from the SEND office. If we have sold out please place an order and I will make more.

All profits to purchase equipment for Games and Strategy Club

Have your say through Ofsted’s Parent View facility

www.allertongrange.com

Allerton Grange School Talbot Avenue Moortown Leeds LS17 6SF

Phone:0113 393 0304 E-mail:agadmin@allertongrange.com Allerton Grange Life

Parent Forums

Tuesday 7 February 6.00-7.00 pm An informal opportunity to chat to some of our students and staff over coffee and cake.