Beechwood Lion Michaelmas 2018

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The

Beechwood Lion Michaelmas 2018

A Collaborative Christingle: Years 3 and 4 joined with Markyate Village School to celebrate, see page 4

From the Headmaster Dear Parents, This term has overflowed with the extraordinary as over the past 15 weeks your children have illuminated Beechwood with their character, confidence and creativity. What a wonderful thing, to be able to empower children of such ability and talent across a wide range of academic, co-curricular and pastoral adventures, to remove the handbrakes, take away the scaffolding (!) and see what they can create. Your children are extraordinary; extraordinary in their brilliant and genuine engagement; they are life’s enthusiasts, who, amidst the gloom of political machinations, understand how to work with others for the common good, whose glasses are (always more than) half-full and who radiate an extraordinary enthusiasm and joie de vivre every day.

Watching Year 5 children volunteer to sing ‘Il est né, le divin enfant’ with such conviction

and without accompaniment in front of 400 spectators is extraordinary; watching pupils tussle with their consciences as they decide whether they vote for their Headmaster to wear a sensible BPS burgundy Christmas jumper or an outrageous fluffy Santa dress has been a joy. Our pupils have extraordinary grit and intelligence and creativity and confidence because of your investment in them and because of the truly child-centred education that Beechwood provides which talks children up, empowers them to think, speak and act in and out of the classroom as if they were older than they are, celebrating their individuality, whatever their talents or abilities.

The best encapsulation of our ethos is on our beautiful Wow! Board which currently creaks under the weight of 125 Headmaster’s Commendations, celebrating not only the growing confidence of our pupils to explore and develop new skills, but also (and more importantly) to develop independence, extending learning beyond the curriculum / co-curriculum, reaching out and exploring, not because they have been told to, but because they want to. This more respectful and empowering approach is the hallmark of a Beechwood education; children who nurture the School Values in our community, engage whole-heartedly in our educational challenges and who inspire us day in and day out.

I owe a huge debt of gratitude to all of our staff, who have worked behind the scenes, (not least carefully documenting our developing School practice into a series of handbooks). I owe particular thanks to the Senior Leadership Team for their mammoth efforts this term, thank Hannah Gray our BPSPA Chair who steps down at the end of her tenure this January and welcome her successor, Sarah Woodruff.

Thank you, as ever, for your extraordinary support of our winter matches, plays, Crackers, concerts, fayres, charitable activities and other events in support of your children and all that Beechwood is and does.

It only rests for me to wish you all a very happy and restful Christmas with your family and friends. We look forward to seeing you at the start of a bright new year, in January!

With best wishes, Yours,

EDWARD BALFOUR HEADMASTER

SATIPS Success Over the years, Beechwood Park has enjoyed considerable success in the SATIPS National Handwriting Competition, and we are delighted to announce that 2018 is no exception.

A Christmas Cracker!

This term saw the first ever Middle Department Christmas Cracker performance. The children amazed their parents and grandparents with singing, playing recorders, cheerleading and drama performance to name but a few. The children always love sharing and performing to their families especially at this special time of year. We hope you enjoyed it as much as the children did and that you found their jokes hilarious…!

HELEN SEWELL

We were thrilled to learn that from over 3,000 individual entries from more than 90 schools, not only from all over the UK but from the Far and Middle East, the following pupils achieved top places in their age category, putting the School firmly on the map! Arisa (3M) came 2nd in the 6 year old category, Otto (3S) came 3rd amongst the 7 year olds, Amelia (6DJ) came 3rd amongst the 9 year olds and Cecily (7LD) achieved 1st place in the 10 year old category! Furthermore, as a School, Beechwood Park School came second in the overall competition. Many congratulations to everyone who took part and contributed to these exceptional results.

GRAÍNNE WILKINS

The newsletter of Beechwood Park School, Markyate, Hertfordshire AL3 8AW

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From Our Youngest Pupils Family Forest Fun On a glorious late summer morning, more than 20 families joined us to experience a Beechwood Park School Forest School session. Parents arrived with pre-schoolers in tow and ready for fun! Magnifying glasses aided the hunt for ‘interesting things’.

A hive of activity ensued; from the fairy house to the tepee and the hammock to the dinosaur’s house! We got messy with paint, looked for bugs, played the drums, made mud soup, collected things using the wheelbarrow, read stories, built structures using sticks and finally enjoyed a well-deserved drink and snack!

BECKY LE BAS

Aux Magasins This term Year 2 enjoyed a French shopping and café experience, without even having to set foot out of the county - let alone outside Beechwood Park!

In preparation for this exciting day, the children had spent several weeks learning the names of key shops and associated food items.

They had also been practising how to greet people politely (depending on their gender), how to ask for something politely and how to say thank you. On the day, equipped with a shopping list, a shopping bag and a purse containing (pretend) euros, the enthusiastic shoppers set off on their mission. Working in pairs, the children had to buy two items from each of the four shops available; namely la boulangerie, la pâtisserie, la charcuterie and le supermarché. These shops were under the management of Madame Fairburn, Madame Greenwood, Madame Bliss, Madame Balfour, Madame Breheny and Monsieur Sheridan, to the delight of Year 2. And with their shopping complete, as French music played in the background, the boys and girls were able to retire to the café and order a croissant and a drink from a selection on the menu. What a civilized day!

Not only did the children really enjoy this hands-on experience, but they were thrilled to be able to use some of the French that they had learnt so far this term in a real-life setting. An amazing all-round experience!

Year 2 Visit Windsor Castle When we saw the Union Jack flying above the Castle, we knew that Her Majesty wasn’t ‘at home’, but despite this initial disappointment Year 2 were still able to act out their own coronation, troop inspection and knighting ceremony during a workshop about her life.

We explored the State Apartments and St George’s Chapel and enjoyed finding the shields of the naughty knights, locating the portrait of Elizabeth I and finding Henry VIII’s memorial stone and rather large suit of armour.

YEAR 2 TEACHERS

Focus on Diwali Diwali is a five-day festival of lights, celebrated by millions of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world. The festival, which coincides with the Hindu New Year, celebrates new beginnings and the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness.

At Woodlands Nursery we took every opportunity during the week to find out as much as we can about this important celebration.

We made delicious samosas and some special mummy visitors shared stories of their family traditions and brought in some of the amazing sweets and cakes they had made for Diwali.

One of the visitors read a book about Diwali and spoke about the temple they visit. Another mummy brought in some beautiful clothing, and everyone learnt about the meaning of lights and Rangoli patterns. The highlight was at break time, when the children had the opportunity to taste some Indian food for their snack. Happy Diwali!

SHIRLEY HAYMAN

Grandparents' Day

KRISTINA FAIRBURN

Alien Day The aliens have landed! In preparation for Alien Day, when Reception children and teachers came to School dressed as aliens, the children were busy designing and making alien pictures, using a variety of media. Alien Day itself was great fun, with alien writing, alien stories, alien party games, alien biscuits and alien jelly! Thank you parents for the enormous effort you went to in providing the children with such fantastic costumes!

PIPPA ROXEN

We were delighted to welcome a number of enthusiastic grandparents to the Nursery this term, for Grandparents’ Day. They enjoyed participating in a variety of activities with their grandchildren (and the Woodlands Nursery teachers) to the delight of everyone involved.

Cooking and decorating biscuits, planting bulbs and making playdough were just a few things on the agenda and the grandparents entered into the spirit with great enthusiasm.

We were very flattered when we learnt just how much effort many of the grandparents had made to be with us. Many had driven to Hertfordshire the night before, others had taken a 3-hour train ride. Arthur’s grandad had even flown over from Italy to join him!

SHIRLEY HAYMAN

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PAGE Our X Juniors at Christmas What a Show!

Once again Woodlands Nursery and the Junior Department Christmas productions did not disappoint! It is always astonishing to see how these young children rise to the challenge and perform so splendidly for their audiences. Woodlands did indeed give us ‘the Greatest Show’, Reception presented a very touching re-telling of the Christmas story, Year 1 entertained and amazed us with ‘Jesus’ Christmas Party’ and Year 2 sang and danced and acted their socks off with their rendition of ‘Baubles’. My thanks to all the children and staff for their hard work, energy and enthusiasm.

HELEN DALKIN

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Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter

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Hands-On Learning Year 4’s Saxon Quest

Venturing Back in Time

Year 4 visited the Chiltern Open Air Museum on a quest to find out more about the Anglo-Saxons.

“We began the day finding out about Anglo-Saxon life by working with quills, learning how to make a thatched roof and finding out what clothes were worn. We were lucky enough to have a go at some archaeological digging and dug, scraped and brushed to find objects that we could then piece together again to make an artefact.

Year 3 were transported back to Ancient Egypt, well actually to the British Museum, to discover more about the Ancient Egyptians and to visit the Egyptian galleries.

The children really enjoyed their ‘Decoding the Rosetta Stone’ workshop in the Samsung Gallery, and they all used coding to write their own initials. Then they set eyes upon the actual Rosetta Stone, where they saw for themselves the same piece of text written in three different languages.

In the Egyptian Galleries, the children encountered a variety of Egyptian artefacts which provided clues about how people lived in Ancient Egypt, and the things they took with them into the afterlife. Everyone enjoyed looking at the linen-wrapped Mummies and they even discovered a Mummy where the hair and skin was still visible - fascinating stuff!

We looked at timelines and put objects from history into time order. We also explored different artefacts and decided which era they came from.”

JACOB 4K

Christingle Years 3 and 4 hosted another enjoyable collaborative Christingle Service. We invited the Year 2 and 3 children from Markyate Village School to come and celebrate with us in our preparations for the Christmas season.

The children made their Christingles together, celebrated with hymns, readings and prayers, and lit their candles during the service. It was a pleasure to host Markyate Village School and to make some new friends!

YEAR 3 TEACHERS

UNA OATHAM

Strings Concert Well done to all 74 pupils who took part in this concert! One of the many highlights of the evening was an impressive rendition of ‘Despacito’ by the massed ranks of guitars, led

by Mr Gambrell, who proved they are a force to be reckoned with! Huge thanks to all involved for a wonderful evening.

JANE LODGE

Chilling Creativity

Wise Up To Owls Year 3 had a very special visit from Falconry UK. The children met a wide variety of owls and other birds of prey, including Liberty, a very rare Verreaux 'Milky' Eagle Owl, a Kookaburra, a Tawny Frog Mouth, a Pygmy African Falcon and a Tropical Screech Owl. They learnt about ‘imprinting’, where

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the bird’s first experiences are with humans, making them extremely tame - the affection between the bird and the handler was evident.

Year 2 were introduced to real ‘Wise Owls‘ and learnt how well the owls were adapted to survival. The children even had a chance to hold an owl!

Year 5 also enjoyed a visit from these wonderful birds of prey. They will be studying ‘adaptation’ in their Science lessons and so the chance to meet some highly specialised and beautiful creatures with some very impressive adaptive traits was just too good an opportunity to miss! The pupils learned about the eyes, skeleton, hunting habits, habitats and indeed TV appearances of these remarkable birds.

LOUISE PAGE

Beechwood Park’s very own Patron of Reading; renowned children's author Jonathan Stroud, led a creative writing workshop for Years 3 and 4. In the atmospheric Library, Jonathan inspired the children to write their own suspense and spooky stories using effective descriptive writing.

Then, with a palpable chill in the air, the children recounted their fearsome stories to an eager audience!

The children were fascinated to learn that Jonathan wrote his first detective book when he was only seven years old and that he has now published nearly 30 books, one of which 'The Empty Grave' has recently been nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2019. What fantastic inspiration - I think we may have some budding authors in our midst!

GRAÍNNE WILKINS

Maths and Morpurgo Introducing Mrs Wright…

Mrs Wright joined the teaching staff at Beechwood in September 2018 as our new Head of Maths. I had the opportunity to ask her some questions, so that we can get to know a little bit more about her.

Mrs Wright was a structural engineer, working on developments in London before retraining to be a maths teacher. She had always taught at secondary schools before coming to Beechwood Park. Her first impressions of our School were the mathematical 20 mph signs on the School drive – a great start! The giant bell (pictured) which she keeps on her desk doubles as a lucky

mascot and is a great method for keeping her classes in order - 3, 2, 1, ding!

Mrs Wright’s favourite book is the mathematical ‘Zero: Biography of a dangerous idea’ and, whilst on the subject of dangerous things, one of her hidden talents is that she has a black belt in Karate. I think we had all better make sure that we behave in her lessons! Her favourite place in the whole world is Ayrshire in Scotland. She returns to the west coast with her family every year. She loves the peace and quiet.

I asked about a favourite joke. She says that she has such a huge repertoire of mathematical jokes, it is difficult to choose a favourite…

Q: ‘Why is the corner of the room the warmest place?’ A: Because it is 90 degrees!

HENRY (TOP GW)

Primary Maths Challenge

More Challenging Maths

Many congratulations to our Primary Maths Challenge certificate winners. Three pupils gained a bronze certificate, 14 gained silver and one, Ben M (5R) gained gold. Well done to all the pupils who took part.

Some eager mathematicians from Year 6 took part in the Aldwickbury Maths Challenge. This is an annual challenge with up to 40 schools taking part.

The competition consists of three parts: Find the Values; Counting Down; and The Big Event. Our teams performed really well in all three rounds and our young mathematicians really enjoyed the atmosphere as well as the maths!

MARION WRIGHT

MARION WRIGHT

Focus On War Horse

Year 7 had the opportunity to develop their puppetry skills with National Theatre actor and ex-War Horse performer Joe Richardson.

They learnt about the key elements of breath, focus and weight and explored the seven levels of tension through puppets made from their hands and a piece of newspaper. The workshop culminated in the creation of brown paper puppet people.

The War Horse focus intensified as Year 7 enjoyed a trip to see the acclaimed National Theatre stage production of Michael Morpurgo's War Horse at Milton Keynes.

Max (7LD) reviewed the experience as follows. "It was an amazing production and I recommend that you see it, especially if you

have read the book. It really brings the story to life and I found it uplifting, spectacular and dramatic.

I particularly enjoyed the puppetry because they were human sized puppets which made them seem very real. Even though there were people controlling the puppets, you didn’t notice them as the puppets came to life and you were drawn into their story.”

LAURA HEGARTY

Remembrance We marked the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day across the whole School. And this particular milestone made our study of War Horse, and the poetry of World War 1 extraordinarily poignant. Year 7 produced superb dioramas using the text and themes of Michael Morpurgo’s novel as their base. The children saw War Horse live on stage at Milton Keynes and were also thrilled by the visiting performance of Mr Owen’s Pocketbook. They then studied the works of Alfred Lord Tennyson, Jessie Pope and Wilfred Owen, comparing and discussing the poems. It has been a truly immersive experience for both staff and pupils.

BRIDGET MANTON

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Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter

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Teamwork!

Anti-Bullying Week

Tsunami Appeal Congratulations to Will in Year 5 and his team of Year 5 helpers for taking the initiative to raise over £220 for the Indonesia Tsunami appeal - an amazing amount. Will, Carlotta, Adam, Annabelle, Nia and Lucy shared information about the disaster at a Middle Department assembly and organised and ran a cake sale to raise money.

Freya (Top GW) also took the initiative to raise money for this worthy cause. She placed a large jar of sweets in the Great Hall at lunchtime and encouraged her fellow pupils to pay £1 to guess the number of sweets within. The winner was able to go home with the entire contents of the jar and Freya’s efforts raised an amazing £125. Well done to all!

BRIDGET MANTON

In support of National Anti-Bullying Week and to raise awareness of this very important message, the children (and their teachers) at Beechwood Park wore odd socks to School.

Addressing the Junior Department children in their Assembly, Headmaster Mr Balfour provided the opportunity for some interesting discussion about why wearing odd socks symbolises support of anti-bullying. Our youngest children came up with some excellent suggestions. 'Just like socks can be odd or different, we are all different too', 'we all have different talents', 'we look and think differently', 'it would be boring if we were all the same'.

And they were spot-on! 'Odd Socks Day' is a national initiative to allow children to express themselves and celebrate their individuality and what makes us all unique, in a fun way.

These messages were reinforced across the School, and at the start of the week pupils from Year 5 to Top Form had the opportunity to see a production entitled 'Hope' by the Take Away Theatre Company on the topic of bullying.

This was followed by a series of workshops for senior department pupils.

A Middle Department Assembly drew together some powerful messages about kindness, tolerance and resilience, focusing attention on the difference Our newly appointed Heads between the very of School take the lead in serious matter of their odd socks bullying as opposed to rudeness, unkindness or a loss of temper.

The pupils were articulate and mature in the way that they presented their ideas.

So all in all, wearing odd socks provides a fun way to address a serious issue, but it certainly hasn't overshadowed the significance of the message.

LOUISE PAGE

Radio Verulam Evie and Quinlan, both in Year 6, had the wonderful opportunity to 'appear' on Radio Verulam's popular weekly 'Parent Show', joining Radio Hosts Kathryn Weston and Lydia Elkhouri and be part of the Parent Show's discussion on the best books for Christmas!

Evie and Quinlan love reading books by New Zealand author Stacy Gregg, which combine adventure, historical fiction and horses and so they were understandably over the moon to have the chance to interview Stacy live on air!

The time difference between the UK and New Zealand meant that it was already 7am the following day when they began their telephone interview. Stacy explained that, like Evie and Quinlan, she was 'pony mad' as a young girl and always aspired to be a famous rider.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, for their final question the girls asked Stacy if she would consider writing a story based on them. Stacy suggested they write the story themselves and send it to her. Inspired by such an insightful chat with their favourite author, they may do just that!

LOUISE PAGE

160 Rotary Boxes!

As part of the Rotary Shoebox Charity Scheme, organised by Dunstable Downs Rotary Club, Beechwood Park Junior Department families have returned an impressive 160 shoeboxes (accompanied with £295 to cover postage costs), filled with useful items and small gifts for needy children in Eastern Europe. For many, it will be the first present that they have ever received and it lets them know that somebody cares about them.

ZOE CANTLE

Cornwall Year 7 had an enjoyable, if rather wet(!), stay in Cornwall this term for their Geography and Team-Building trip. Braving the elements, they visited Boscastle to study the 2004 flood (nearly re-enacting it…) and bonded during canoeing and teambuilding activities. Ironically, the skies cleared during their surfing session, so they were only wet whilst in the water! Fun times, in spite of the weather.

JAMES BARRINGER

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Sport

Saracens School of the Year!

We are delighted to report that Beechwood Park has been awarded ‘School of the Year’ by the Paul Davis Fencing Academy. Many congratulations to our 63 young fencers.

This well-deserved award was collected by William, Edie, Joshua and Ava.

KYLIE-PAUL LE BAS

County Cricket Congratulations to Henry P and Henry S (both Top GW) who have been selected to play for the U13 Hertfordshire County Cricket team. This achievement continues Beechwood Park’s tradition of having county players in our 1st XI for the past few years.

KYLIE-PAUL LE BAS

East Region Championships Well done to the U11A hockey team who competed in the East Region Championships.

The girls played against schools from all over the East of England. The girls finished third in their pool and went on to play Stephen Perse, Felsted and Ashford, eventually finishing 12th in the whole East Region; fantastic!

ALEXIS HAMILTON

ISGA Schools' Cup Well done to George and Eddie (both Year 7), who competed in the ISGA Junior School Cup at Sunningdale.

Both boys scored well on many holes with Eddie finishing 6th out of 37 competitors.

Overall, the boys came a commendable 10th out of 19 U13 teams. This looks good for golf at Beechwood in the future!

MARK RIDLEY

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We welcomed Saracens rugby coach, Sid Young, to Beechwood Park for a rugby session with Years 3 and 4. The boys and girls had great fun and worked very hard on their game play - there were lots of opportunities for teamwork, ball handling, evasive skills, communication and problem solving!

KYLIE-PAUL LE BAS

Guard of Honour!

A group of boys and girls from Beechwood Park had the amazing opportunity, at the beginning of a Saracens v Sale game, to meet the up and coming Saracens Academy players and also to form a ‘Guard of Honour’ to welcome the players onto the pitch at Allianz Park before the match.

The pupils, who ranged in age from Reception to Year 4, entered the field to a full crowd and received a superb reception as the spectators cheered enthusiastically for their teams. Then, as the sun shone down, the children enjoyed a great game of rugby, with

Saracens eventually winning by 3 points as the Sale Fly Half missed a kick in the last minute to draw the game. It was a fantastic game to be a part of, as well as an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.

IAIN GRIFFITHS

BISS Indoor Ski Congratulations to the Beechwood Park Ski Team who competed in the prestigious 2018 BISS Indoor Ski Championships at The Snozone, Milton Keynes.

Special mentions go to Maggie (Y5) who competed in her first ever race and Jack (Y6) who placed 4th in the U12 Boys event. Our U12 Boys team finished in equal 5th out of all the boys' teams, meanwhile we were delighted that our girls’ team finished in equal 6th overall in their category.

ALEXIS HAMILTON

ESSKIA Success

Netball v Berkhamsted

We were delighted that our U12 Boys’ Ski Team qualified for the English Schools’ Ski Association National Finals having come second in the regional competition - amazing as this was the first time we have entered!

The Finals, held in Norwich, were a fantastic experience for them. Well done!

And, many congratulations to Jack D (Y6) who has been selected for the ESSKIA Primary Squad following some great competitive performances recently! He has been invited to take part in some squad training camps abroad, and we shall enjoy watching developments.

Our U11s are fully decorated after a fantastic performance at the Berkhamsted tournament! The Bs came 1st in their competition and the As came 2nd in theirs! The hard work is paying off - well done girls!

ALEXIS HAMILTON

ALEXIS HAMILTON

IAPS Regional Hockey Our U11 team competed in the IAPS Regional Hockey competition at Haileybury in a really competitive tournament against many new teams.

They qualified for the cup competition by achieving 2nd place in their pool and played a strong Bedford side in the quarterfinals, narrowly missing out on a place in semis.

What a great effort and in true sporting style, they stayed on to cheer on our friends from Chesham who went on to win the tournament.

Beechwood Park School’s Newsletter

ALEXIS HAMILTON

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BPSPA and Alumni

BPSPA, Alumni and House News

House Matches Weather conditions were not ideal, but the Beechwood Park sportsmen and women were undeterred. After some exciting matches and close-fought play, Tudor House emerged victorious!

Overall House Match Results 4th Sebright 3rd Saunders 2nd Stewart 1st Tudor

From the BPSPA One minute ago it was the start of a new term and now we are hurtling towards Christmas after a busy Michaelmas term.

We kicked off the academic year with our Quiz and Curry night – thank you to last year’s winners led by Bex Bellis for hosting the evening. Our family photo shoot with Ian Scott Photography magically coincided with some glorious weather enabling Beechwood families to take full advantage of our school’s beautiful grounds.

Half term was rapidly followed by Bonfire Night – thank you Jeroen Hasenbos and Sarah Bremner and the team for organising a magical evening and how lucky that the rain stopped for just long enough.

Most recently we have hosted our Christmas Fayre with an incredible array of stalls from our junior classes, young entrepreneurs and local businesses. Thank you to Christmas Elves, Louise Lynes and Sarah Woodruff, for all your hard work making the magic happen. Congratulations also to all of the Young Entrepreneurs for their original, creative and very successful stalls. Thank you to Carly Jacques for organising. Together they raised a record-breaking £1,775.90 for the Luton and Dunstable Hospital Children's Christmas Wish List. Thank you to all the staff, class reps and families who volunteered their time to help make the Fayre such a wonderful success.

We have our junior and middle school discos to look forward to next term.

The summer term will bring the delights of Fun Night and our bi-annual Summer Ball – a team, led by Katey Wells and Sally MacArthur, is already planning this spectacular event - Saturday 29th June, save the date!

January will mark the end of my two years as Chair – I couldn’t have got through this last year without my wonderful committee. Thank you so much to Pippa Ridout (secretary), Sarah Davies (treasurer), Adele Raynes and Jenny Guise (communications) and Jena Hockley (events liaison). I’m sad that my term as chair has come to an end but delighted to have volunteers for the committee and future events in place and to have seen the BPSPA continue to flourish.

The BPSPA AGM will be on 22 January – everyone is very welcome to join us as we review our performance over the year and look forward to our next challenges; as well as to vote in the new chair, communications and secretary roles.

All that remains for me is to thank everyone who has given their time so generously to support us during 2018 – we rely entirely upon our school community to be able to run the events that create the vibrant social life we are so lucky to have here at Beechwood.

On behalf of the committee and I would like to wish you all a peaceful and blessed time this Christmas and our best wishes for a very happy New Year! See you all in 2019!

At the end of the summer term, a group of Beechwood Park School parents initiated a truly impressive charity collection of old-style and outgrown school uniform. A massive total of 184 bags of clothes and 23 bags of shoes were distributed amongst local charities and schools, and some further afield in Zimbabwe.

Twelve bags of uniform were sent to The Level Trust Uniform Exchange which supports the 11,000 children who live below the poverty line in Luton. Another seventeen bags went to Maryland Primary School in Stratford, East London for their pupils from under privileged families.

155 bags of clothes and 23 bags of shoes were shipped to Zimbabwe in aid of the charity Hope for African Communities (HAC), which aims to rebuild the lives of widows and orphans by providing resources and programmes to help those affected to become self-sustainable.

JULIA ROUSE

HANNAH GRAY, BPSPA CHAIR

Celebrity Masterchef

Alumni News Award-winning Photography Congratulations to Old Beechwoodian Adrian Bliss (1994-2003), finalist in the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. Adrian’s photograph entitled ‘School Visit’ was awarded ‘highly commended’ in the Urban Wildlife category of this year's competition and was selected from over 45,000 entries. It is one of just seven British entries to receive an award.

His magnificent photo depicts a fox had which trotted into a derelict classroom in the ruined and looted city of Pripyat within the

Uniform Donations Change Lives

Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, where Adrian was filming at the time. The fox stopped briefly on the carpet of child-sized gas masks just long enough for Adrian to capture the image.

Chosen by expert judges, the images are awarded for their creativity, originality and technical excellence.

Congratulations to Old Beechwoodian Martin Bayfield (1975-1980) for reaching the finals of this year’s Celebrity Masterchef. The final challenges included cooking an Afternoon Tea and producing a two-course menu for restaurant critics before taking on the legendary Chef’s Table – where the hopefuls had to present a three course meal in two and a half hours. An impressive achievement!

Please check the School’s website for more information: www.beechwoodpark.com

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