Out of the Blue - Winter 2017

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The Blue Coat School Founded by the Church of England in 1722

Awesome Aztecs

Strides ahead

Fascinating facts bring Aztec world to life

BCS Cross Country team success

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Head First As we reach the end of a busy year, we eagerly look forward to building on recent change and innovation. The introduction of our Academic Development programme shows promising early results, and the new leadership team is bringing added dynamism to daily life at BCS. With the speed and sheer intensity of children’s lives these days ever increasing, the addition of Emotional Logic onto their timetable is going to prove such a boon. Our Chaplain will be hosting workshops in the New Year, and parents will have the chance to see the virtues of a course that supports well-being and clarifies the understanding of important issues.

Meanwhile, I am delighted with the level of achievement in both Sport and Music. In so many cases, children are exceeding our high expectations, and the new AstroTurf surface is proving a resounding success.

Year 6 Entrance Exam results are coming through even as I write. I must tip my proverbial hat to the children for their hard work and commitment. These pupils are being given the greatest possible support and guidance by my staff.

Senior Schools will be lucky to have them, happy in the knowledge that their foundations, academic and social, are so secure.

Have a great Christmas holiday!

Noel Neeson, Headmaster

Term Round-Up Everyone was excited to return after the summer holidays to see the area of grassland by the main car park transformed into a new AstroTurf pitch. By October we were ready to start using it in earnest and what better way than to run our first BCS Hockey camp during Half Term. Mr Harrison was delighted that both the camp and the new after-school training sessions with Edgbaston Kestrels have been oversubscribed. Provision has been adjusted accordingly for the Lent term to allow even more children to participate.

BCS Hockey is definitely creating a buzz!

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Just one year ago, Ritisha Baidyaray lifted the Junior Language Challenge trophy. Once again Blue Coat was well represented at this year’s semi-finals. Four children travelled to Loughborough to demonstrate their knowledge of Japanese, and Caitlin Liew managed to make it through to round two and finished 8th overall. The finals were just out of reach this time but to have made it to this stage out of 2000 participants was a great achievement – well done Narayan, Henry, Lemuel and Caitlin.

Following on from a successful ISI inspection last term we found ourselves under the looking glass again, as we were joined by Sarah Evans, a reviewer for The Good Schools Guide. At the time of her visit, Year 2 were engrossed in the Great Fire of London workshop and turning their hand to a number of trades of the time, whilst learning about how the fire started and the devastation it caused. If Sarah had visited a few days later she might have been alarmed to see White Watch arriving in their fire engine, but luckily this was just an opportunity to learn about modern day fire-fighting rather than to put out any real flames! These activities form part of our ‘WOW days’ which are linked to each topic that the children study. Others during the term have included a Roman Soldier visit, Anglo-Saxon Day, Aztec experience and a St. Lucia afternoon. It was pleasing to hear that Sarah found our children “confident, open and highly engaged in school life”, we look forward to sharing the updated review shortly, but understand that there is currently a backlog in publishing.

In the Spotlight In September we welcomed Miss Kavanagh, as our new Year 2 Class Teacher.

Q. What were your first impressions of Blue Coat?

A. Blue Coat is a wonderful school! The staff, children and parents have all been extremely welcoming: I already feel like part of the family.

Q. What do you like the most?

The Blue Coat community is something to be proud of and this term we have seen all members of this special place mix together as one.

Our current parents have worked tirelessly for The Friends to arrange a Fireworks Extravaganza, uniform sale, fashion evening, carols and fizz and a Christmas Fayre with a grotto to rival many a department store! Our governors have been ever present and enjoyed their link visits to school to see life in the classroom. Mr Cotter has been heavily involved in the construction of the AstroTurf and we thank him for his numerous visits to school over the summer holidays.

Beyond school but still very much supporters of Blue Coat, the John Avins Trust have made a generous donation to the School to support Foundation Awards. The Loppylugs and Barbara Morrison Trust have also been extremely generous in their support of School and we are currently working on a project to put their kind gifts to good use. We were blessed with a legacy from the late Mr Reginald Hodson Farrar to the Maths department. We have now purchased a giant 100 square mat which the children have been using in lessons and having lots of fun with! (See front cover).

A. I have had a tremendous amount of support from the leadership team and my colleagues. It also helps having twenty fabulous children in my class, who are all very eager to learn. A smaller class size, has enabled me to get to know the children well and to build a good rapport with them all.

Q. Have you always taught Year 2?

A. No, I have also taught Years 1, 4 and 5. In addition, as an English leader in several schools, I have led greater depth reading and writing intervention groups (from Reception to Year 6). I have always enjoyed collaborating with colleagues; leading INSETS; planning workshops; moderating writing; and team teaching with colleagues.

In the past, I have supported trainee teachers and mentored their professional development. However, I really do love to teach KS1!

Q. What has been your favourite activity so far?

A. Topic launch days are always great fun: the children learn so much through practical investigation and problem solving activities.

Q. Did you always want to be a teacher?

A. Before becoming a full-time teacher, I was an event manager (for eight years) while I was living in Ireland and Australia. It was great fun, but teaching is certainly a more enriching career.

Q. What would you like from Father Christmas?

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A. As my class well know, I am getting married in April, so I certainly need to make some healthy choices in the New Year and try to attend a few extra yoga classes!

I hope that 2018 will be a very happy and healthy year for us all.

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The end of term witnessed a flurry of Christmas events, following in quick succession of each other. This year the arrival of a 25-foot tree outside Viney was greeted with lots of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ by the children. The Head Boy and Girl and their deputies enjoyed decorating the trees in the Sports Centre and the Boardroom but left the outside one to the Estates Team who battled high winds in the boom to give us a fitting centrepiece for the front lawn.

Q. Do you have a New Year’s resolution?

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We welcomed back Old Scholar, Molly Griffith, to share her journey in sport. Molly was a pupil from 2003-2011, and now competes for Great Britain in their Parasnowsport Development Team. Towards the end of term past heads, Mr Bissell and Mr Browning, and a number of ‘veterans’ joined us for Christmas lunch. One of the guests, Mr Webb, an old boy who left in 1943, still loves to come back when he can. It was a treat for our Year 6 to give some of the veterans a tour of School and to swap stories. There is so much history since our foundation, and we look forward to reconnecting with our early days as we look ahead to our 300th anniversary in a few years time.

A. Well, I have been quite good this year, so I have politely suggested to Santa that a new camera would be very useful, since I love to travel and I enjoy photography. My parents will be coming over from Ireland, so it will be special sharing Christmas with them here.

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Classroom Connection

Exploring Winter Children in Buttons enjoyed their topic ‘Winter’, they handled ice and talked about its texture and how it felt and what it was made from, they watched as it slowly melted away just leaving their toy penguins and polar bears behind!

Live Nativity In a Blue Coat first, Chaplain organised for a live nativity to visit Forest School. Transition were among the lucky ones to visit Anthony the donkey, Punch and Judy the geese, and

their friends - sheep, hens and two pygmy goats. The children then had fun colouring in nativity characters which they were able to take home.

Toy Box As part of their half-term topic “Out of the Box” Reception have been looking at toys from the past and comparing them with the things they like to play with nowadays. Whilst having fun sorting the toys into old and new sets on the carpet they quickly spotted that the older toys were less technology based. Using the Chromebooks, the children had a go at designing a teddy bear using 2Paint software, one of our many online resources available through the School’s subscription to Purple Mash. They listened to the story ‘Clown, Bear and Rabbit’ by Tony Maddox, in which a group of old toys wake up in Grandma’s house to find they are being thrown out as rubbish. Luckily, they find their way back to the house and the children living there want to keep them.

Stop, Look and Listen Year 1 had an exciting start to their Road Safety topic. A working pelican crossing and zebra crossing were set up in the Pre-Prep gym for the children to use. The only thing missing was the traffic!

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The children talked about how to cross roads safely at these two types of crossing and about the right and wrong way to behave on all roads.

Caribbean delights Year 2 have enjoyed learning all about the Caribbean. In a carousel of activities, they learnt about the influences that have shaped Caribbean dance and whilst listening to Caribbean steel drums, they mastered a few quick-steps from the Moulala, the Schottishe and they practised the mirrored moves evident in the Kwibich.

Another group tasted exotic fruit such as mangoes, bananas, papayas, passion fruit and pineapple. They learnt why these fruits are able to grow in hotter climates and the children thought about how fruit farms and plantations provide employment to many of the islanders living in St. Lucia.

Finally, the children had a wonderful time making some vibrant Caribbean jewellery that would be worn during carnivals.

Ready to do battle!

Year 3 were drilled by a Centurion and shown what they would be expected to wear as a soldier and the amazing benefits of joining the Roman Army. They also discovered what life was like off the battlefield and how the Romans influenced many parts of modern life; they were particularly interested in the Roman toilets and underfloor heating!

For their first foray off-site, Year 3 visited The Barber Institute. They dressed up as famous artists and were transported back to the time when the paintings in front of them would have been completed. It was then time to get ‘hands-on’ and take part in a printing workshop based on portraits.

Awesome Aztecs A firm favourite in the BCS calendar saw Year 4 drawing upon the amazing wealth of knowledge of the Mexicolore company and their collection of stunning Aztec artefacts.

The children learnt some Aztec numbers, the importance of precious stones and feathers to the Aztecs and looked in detail at the Aztec Sunstone. They also learnt about the ancient percussion instruments and even played some of them. The morning concluded with an exciting Aztec ball game called ‘Ulama’ which involves passing a ball using your hips rather than your feet!

The children have continued linked activities and were challenged to make a model of an Aztec temple out of different materials. some examples are pictured here but unfortunately Hector’s brownies’ version didn’t survive long enough to be captured on camera!

Fortune-telling and sonic vibrations!

Year 5 were visited by an Anglo-Saxon lady called Ethelind.

Ethelind was a ‘churl’ (a worker) with no high position in society. The children learnt all about life in Anglo-Saxon times such as what food they ate, how they paid taxes in goods, their gods and goddesses and how they entertained themselves.

Ethelind described ‘runes’ to the children and how they were used to tell fortunes. At the end of the session, the children re-enacted the legend of Beowulf, the great warrior, complete with music and sound effects.

Très chic!

A speaker of French, Italian and Spanish, Mrs Newman has been focusing on establishing a sound understanding and use of French language from Year 3 upwards. Years 1 and 2 have been offered a Spanish club, whilst our TED group have relished the opportunity to learn Italian. The TED group particularly enjoyed a tasting session where they were able to eat a wonderful array of food after learning how to ask for it in Italian. More recently Year 6 have taken inspiration from the catwalks of Paris Fashion Week and put on their own fashion show. They used some superb descriptive sentences in French to describe their outfits, and worked hard to use connectives, adjectives and opinions. Fantastique!

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As part of the Art curriculum, Sound Artist, Justin Wiggan inspired Year 5 with his thought provoking talk and activities encouraging us to use our imagination to create pictures in our mind. They particularly loved working with a ‘subpack’, a type of sonic vest that transfers sound.

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Christmas Productions Transition and Reception – “A King is Born” The six Transition and Reception classes worked extremely hard learning songs, actions, dances and speaking parts for their Christmas production, “A King is Born”. The story revolves around some very excited children on Christmas Eve. Their mother reads them a bedtime story about the first Christmas. The children enjoy hearing about Mary and Joseph travelling on a donkey to Bethlehem, discussing why they didn’t go by aeroplane or car and whether or not they used a sat-nav! The audience were treated to dancing donkeys, sheep and angels from the Transition classes. The performance ended with a rousing song called “Thanks and Praise” which was enthusiastically performed by all the children. Many thanks to all the children and staff involved for their huge effort in producing such a marvellous Nativity.

Year 2 – “Are we nearly there yet?”

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Are we nearly there yet? In a very short time, but quite a journey, the Year 2 children managed to pull off an incredible Christmas performance! The Walker family, took us all on a humorous expedition; passing Mary and Joseph, en route to Bethlehem. During their family excursion, they encountered stunned shepherds, celestial angels, rapping angels, an über cool Gabriel – the master M.C. - some very wise men and, of course, the baby Jesus. We are so proud of the children and all of their hard work this term. They truly captured the Christmas spirit, as the audience cheered them along. Well done, Year 2!

Year 1 – “Penguin Peter” If you noticed the children in Year 1 flip flopping and waddling around this term, it is because they have been practising their songs and moves for their Christmas production! They worked diligently to perfect their songs, lines and choreography, and transported the audience to the frozen landscape of the South Pole to meet the Penguins and their Christmas. The children did themselves proud with a delightfully wintry spectacle: they presented toe-tapping traditional and new Christmas songs, icy snow dances and confident chilly characters.

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Our hearts were warmed and glowed as we listened to bright singing, expressive speaking and viewed outstanding dances. We followed Penguin Pete as he cheerfully searched until he finally found Santa.

We were reminded of the Christmas message - to be grateful for all that we receive in this wonderful season. Year 1 certainly delivered a real treat and everyone left the Hall all the richer for having witnessed this magical presentation. Well done, Year 1!

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Sports Round-Up The school is growing in its reputation for sport with pupils competing at regional and national levels, but we firmly believe that sport is for everyone. We aim to ensure that children of all abilities and aptitudes have a positive experience and gain an appreciation of the enjoyment and benefits to be gained from physical activity. The addition of the new AstroTurf to our sports facilities has been a further spur to progress in BCS Sport.

We made our mark with our U9 boys and U11 girls running exceptionally well, leading from the front and both teams managing to get four of their runners to finish in the top 10! No other school came close to us and both the U9 Boys and U11 Girls were rewarded with the team trophy. Noticeable performances on the day included U9s: Will Smallwood (1st), Evan Tomlinson (4th), Oliver Almond (6th), Freddie Trevis (9th), Indira Singh (8th), Oliver Smith (3rd); U11s: Poppy Couzens (1st), Oliver Smith (3rd and competing a year young), Bea Neeson (3rd and competing a year young), Skye Henshaw (4th), and Phoebe Jones (10th). Mr Neeson, who took the teams that day was extremely proud of the children’s fantastic performance. To hear spectators remarking “Blue Coat are cleaning up today” was music to his ears!

Hockey We have partnered with Edgbaston Kestrels to run after-school hockey training and a half-term Hockey Camp. Thank you to Mr Harrison for leading on this. Fixture-wise, the girls’ hockey sides have experienced a range of tough games this term, but they have always fought valiantly and been a great credit to themselves and the School.

The U8s only have played one inter-school fixture against Winterfold, but despite this they have progressed significantly since the start of term. With many years of play ahead on our all-weather surface, the future looks promising!

The U9A and U10B teams have remained unbeaten all term. Their ability to push themselves and demand of each other has been rewarded with great wins over Hallfield, Solihull and Winterfold Schools. The U10As only suffered defeat in their last match.

The U11s faced strong opposition at the IAPS Hockey Tournament, but we were proud to be the only Prep school locally who were able to field five U11 sides with competitive experience.

Cross Country It is clear that pupils’ dedication to the early morning sessions with Miss Crews and Mr Harrison, as well as individual park runs, are paying dividends. Blue Coat is setting the standard in Cross Country!

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On Friday 17th December, the U9 and U11 teams travelled to RGS. Thirteen schools were in attendance with over 140 pupils competing in each age group. It was a hard course, large fields, a few long hills and some slippery, muddy patches. Our U9s ran a 1.5km course and the U11s ran 2.1km. All our pupils ran exceptionally well, pushing themselves to the limit to try and get the best possible placing for their team.

Rugby A largely successful rugby season has seen the majority of boys representing the School in fixtures ranging from U9 to U11 level.

Coaching of teams has focused around small-sided, conditioned games, which has allowed pupils to find solutions to problems, improve decision making, as well as improving their core rugby skills.

As we go to print the U9A and B teams are undefeated this season; the highlight being the U9A game against Solihull School, which was played in the right spirit and with both sides producing rugby of the highest quality.

The U10A rugby squad has improved immensely. There have been excellent performances as a team especially against Warwick and Solihull Schools. In addition, it has been pleasing to see the development of individual performance: James Scurlock, Luca Romano and Jake Meyer have all come from the B team and performed well alongside the likes of AY and Ashley Jindu who have provided much needed physicality. Whilst not many boys play outside of school, we have a very athletic team and have tried to capitalise and play a fast-paced off load game, which has really suited their skills.

The U11s have played with much determination and increased ambition. It has been encouraging to see them use the full width of

the field to their advantage and appreciate how much easier the game is when passing quickly out of contact or before contact. Congratulations to all the boys who have worked hard with their teachers and have represented the School so well.

A trip to Twickenham to watch the first of the Autumn Internationals between England and Argentina provided a chance for pupils to see the professionals at work. When a certain tall customer arrived in the shop ahead of the game, Miss Crews, swiftly joined by Mrs Barrowclift and Miss Patel were quick to grab a selfie with England legend and 2003 Rugby World Cup winning captain, Martin Johnson CBE! BCS then cheered the England players into the ground as the team bus drove towards the Rose and Poppy Gates. The game was not a classic encounter, although it was very exciting in parts, with England winning 21-8. It was certainly a memorable experience and clearly enjoyed by everyone.

Swimming Reception children were extremely excited to start their new weekly swimming lessons after half-term. The enthusiasm shown by the children has been fantastic and it was wonderful to see them having fun and learning new skills. Higher up the School, the TED Swimmers have covered Diving Skills, Water Polo, Synchronised Swimming and Life Saving.

The introduction of a Development, as well as a Performance squad has enabled our swim teams to get additional practice in the pool.

The teams have been fine tuning race skills and improving speed. In the last few weeks of the term we have also introduced an invitational session on a Friday evening.

Galas against Warwick School and Bromsgrove School produced strong results across all ages. This was further backed up by the swimming at the King Henry’s and Saint Martin’s Invitational Galas, where we witnessed outstanding individual and team performances.

Football

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Mr Kelly has been most impressed with the commitment levels of our swimmers, and would like to thank them for their dedication and enthusiasm. He would also like to record his appreciation to parents for their support. We are now preparing for the IAPS and ESSA qualifying rounds in March 2018. We hope there is lots more exciting news to follow!

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We were delighted to host the Aston Villa Tournament again this year, and there was a classic tournament feeling about the day, with small pitches and plenty of football to be played. It took 30 seconds for our first goal to be scored, Alex Bryans hounding the opposition’s defence and getting a lucky deflection. However Blue Coat then switched-off to goal side marking, resulting in an equaliser from Harborne Primary.

The boys then had a tough match v Chad Vale who took an early 2-0 lead. With drive and determination, they managed to pull two goals back, only to concede late in the game to a very well worked goal to the eventual winners of their group. Finishing third in the group, the boys are to be commended for their efforts. Luke Dolan and Ashley Jindu should have a special mention for playing a year up at short notice - lots of experience to be gained! Well done, boys.

As we go to print we have just returned from the prestigious West Midlands Schools’ Invitational Gala at King Henry VIII School.

Competing against Warwick, Bablake, Solihull, Balsall Common and King Henry’s, this was the first-time Blue Coat have entered this event. In an adrenalin-filled afternoon, our swimmers showed great teamwork and supported one another on the poolside. We had individual wins from Storm Henshaw, Kieran O’Reilly, Skye Henshaw, Gracie Roberts, Poppy Couzens, Alex Bryans, Alex Forty, Neave Rees, Maya Hart and Milo Dowling, as well as relay wins from the U10 and U11 Girls, and U11 Boys. It was a proud moment for the School to come away with 5 trophies, winning the U10, U11 and Overall Girls, followed by the U11 and Overall Boys. Congratulations!

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The U8s have played football rather than rugby this term. They have shown a real thirst to learn and improve. The boys have played a number of matches with some excellent performances along the way. The standout performer has been Jai Lewis who has shown great skills coupled with a real understanding of the game, however all of the boys have progressed throughout the term especially with their game understanding.

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Musical Notes During the term, more than 130 pupils from both Pre-Prep and Prep, have performed in one of our Morning Recitals.

These concerts provide an invaluable opportunity not only to ‘concert-harden’ a piece of music one might be learning, but also to provide the chance to share music with a friendly and encouraging audience. Overcoming nerves (we need some nerves to play well) is always important, and the more opportunities the pupils get to do this the better.

We are very proud of our pupils: their commitment, enthusiasm, and dedication to their music-making, is outstanding. In a busy world, taking time to be still and listen seems like a luxury but it is a great pleasure to take time out to listen to our pupils play.

A number of our more advanced instrumentalists and singers performed in a public lunchtime recital at St Philip’s Cathedral in November. The standard of performing was quite exceptional and it was a superb venue to showcase such wonderful talent. Mr Hardie, acting Head of Music at the Cathedral (and our School Organist), was full of praise!

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Reflecting on a very busy term it is hard to believe that Christmas is already upon us. Since our Probationers were given their surplices and made fully-fledged members of the Chapel Choir, it has been non-stop!

As well as squeezing in a guest appearance on Nick and Becky Drake’s Christmas release, “Hear the Bells”, the Chapel Choir joined forces with the Choral Society and the Cathedral Choir for the landmark, Advent Processional Service in St. Philip’s Cathedral. It was a time to come together in a celebration of the true meaning of Christmas.

The Chapel Choir also helped to raise vital funds for the tireless work of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. A light-hearted sing-a-long brought lots of festive cheer to patients, visitors and hospital staff. Thank you to the many parents who took time out of their busy schedules to support the children.

The festive spirit continued with the Prep Christmas Concert featuring our ensembles and music groups. The mulled wine reception beforehand (for the adults of course!) helped to get everyone into the swing of the evening. As ever, a big set-piece concert like this is a team effort. The Visiting Music Teachers, along with Miss Akehurst, ensured the children were in the right place at the right time and were playing the right bar of music at the right time as well! The Music department’s events culuminated in the Prep Carol Service, a splendid occassion to bring the School community together one last time before Christmas.

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The Friends of The Blue Coat School

What an action packed Michaelmas Term it has been!

It started with a cake sale (where would we be without cake?!) raising £355 for Macmillan Cancer Support, a very worthy charity. Then followed the Fireworks Extravaganza with its usual fizz, sparkle and fun for Blue Coat families, with the popular addition of the Disc-glow.

The Christmas Fayre was another lovely family event, enjoyed by young and old. Never before have we had to ask Santa to return for a second sitting in the Grotto, such was his popularity! And rightly so - many, many hours go into the preparation of this truly magical experience for the children. The Secret Room where children are able to choose a present for their parents also continues to grow beyond expectations. This year in Prep we had to introduce an Amazon style ordering system! A night of carols and fizz, brought a busy few months to a close as parents, staff and friends enjoyed the ‘Jingle and Mingle’ evening.

As always, thank you to our wonderful Friends for all their work and organisation and of course to all parents and staff who have supported them in so many ways.

A well-organised secondhand uniform sale raised an amazing £2,094, 20% of which was donated to the Logos Empowerment Girls High School, Gokwe, through the Community of the Holy Fire. The Friends are currently setting up a permanent stockroom of nearly new uniform adjacent to the Estates’ Office. Please contact Rhoda Fraser via thefriends@thebluecoatschool.com, if you would like to purchase any items. The Friends will also be selling BCS large umbrellas (£20) and reusable shoppers (£2.50).

Beyond the classroom!

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Year 5 and 6’s Friday enrichment programme (TED), has seen many exciting opportunities for the children this term. You will have read earlier about our Italian food tasting, but in other options, pupils have been learning knife skills and how to light a fire in Forest School; our Arts Award group have welcomed artist David Walton RBSA, to deliver a water colour workshop; and our Mediamania journalists have enjoyed a trip to the BBC studios in the Mailbox. Who knew Friday afternoons could be so exciting!

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Charity Check “To infinity and beyond” It might have been November, but Christmas came early to Blue Coat as the Sports Hall was packed with festive cheer and laughter as Pre-Prep and Prep joined together to launch this year’s Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Appeal - “The Magic Shoebox”.

Little did everyone know that hiding inside the giant magic red shoebox were some toys desperate to come alive. The children heard how our shoeboxes can bring a little Christmas Magic to many children who otherwise will have nothing this Christmas.

And come in they did! An incredible 513 filled shoeboxes were assembled by Blue Coat children. Our Chapel Monitors spent a morning helping OCC volunteer, Janine Hall, and her team sort through boxes at a local warehouse.

Pounds for Pudsie On 17 November, the children enjoyed a non-uniform day in aid of Children in Need. The day began with a whole school assembly led by the Swimming department on the theme ‘Overcoming Obstacles’.

Could our pirates make their way across the tricky obstacle course and fight their way through the sumo wrestlers back to base? The assembly received great feedback and Mr Newman even managed to squeeze in a classic joke… ‘Why are pirates called pirates?… Because they arrrrrrr’.

Amid thoughtful conversations about children’s difficulties in life, pupils enjoyed a day of cookie-decorating, Pudsie Maths, sticking spots on a giant pudsie jigsaw, and many other linked activities. We raised a total of £483.22 this year, thank you for your support.

Macmillan Coffee Morning Starting in Buttons nursery, then the staff rooms and culminating with The Friends’ cake sale and a silent cake auction we ate our way through mountains of cupcakes, brownies and biscuits to support this year’s Macmillan Coffee Morning.

Thanks to the many generous donations a wonderful £651.52 was raised.

Key Dates for Lent Term 2018 Term begins Monday 8 January Open Morning Saturday 27 January 9.30am to 12.00noon (Registration at 9.30am and 10.30am)

7+ Entrance Test Tuesday 6 February Application deadline 30 January

Half-Term holiday begins Friday 16 February

8+ Entrance Test Tuesday 27 February

Term ends Thursday 29 March

Term resumes Monday 26 February

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The Blue Coat School, Somerset Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B17 0HR S

The Blue Coat School Founded by the Church of England in 1722

Telephone 0121 410 6800 Email info@thebluecoatschool.com Website thebluecoatschool.com

Follow us on: @bcsbirmingham @bluecoatbirmingham

The Blue Coat School Birmingham Limited is registered in England, Registration No. 8502615 and is a Registered Charity No. 1152244