Artwork by Reeya ghadialy brentford art & design student
Brentford school for girls
brentford 6 form th
spring highlights 2018
IMAGINE THE FUTURE BRENTFORD GIRL... she thrives on challenge and has a desire to fulfil her learning potential. she is able to think independently and is confident in her social and academic capability. she is emotionally aware and emotionally intelligent. she is capable and dependable. she is resourceful and inquisitive. she embraces the technological world as a global village and is ready to interact with others in the local and worldwide community. she accepts the welfare of others as her responsibility. she understands the need for sustainable living both locally and globally. she is ready for life in the future - whatever that may be. She is the centre of our vision and will remain the very core of our being and purpose.
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Head teacher’s welcome
Chair of Governors’ Message
Dear Parents / Carers, Happy spring term! It has been another busy and vibrant term with all sorts of activities taking place across the school. The annual school performance was weeks ago now, but I still cannot get the catchy tunes out of my head! What a fantastic performance it was. The girls did a brilliant job and it was such a pleasure to see so many girls involved in the play from all age groups across the school. Thank you to the girls and their teachers for keeping us thoroughly entertained over a few dark nights in February. During the months of February and March, we also ran two jam-packed weekends to promote Arts provision in the local authority. Our staff ran photography, arts, drama, media and music workshops across two weekends and invited students from schools across the borough. Arts provision is sadly being eroded in many schools across the country, but at Brentford, we know how important the Arts are to our students and we will continue to promote them. Thank you to all of the staff and students involved in the workshops, giving up your weekends to support the students and celebrate the Arts within our school and community. As we move into the summer term, students in Year 11 and the 6th form will be sitting their exams. This will be a stressful time for the students and their families, and our thoughts and best wishes are with them. Finally, I would like to welcome our soon-to-be Year 7 students to Brentford, who are joining us in September 2018. Welcome to our Brentford community: I know that you will be very happy here. Wishing you all a peaceful and restful Easter break.
Dear Parents / Carers and Staff, The snow, and the challenges it brought, are thankfully now no more than a memory as we approach what is always a busy time of year for the girls. All too soon the GCSE and A Level exams will be upon us and I know the girls are already studying hard to achieve their goals. It is never too early to start revising as May will be here before we know it. Good luck to you all girls. I know many of you saw the girls in their amazing production of Hairspray back in February (I am still singing the tunes!). What a truly brilliant night and yet another demonstration of the talent that we are lucky enough to have at Brentford. I am already looking forward to next year and what Miss Marsh has planned for our entertainment. Huge congratulations to everyone that was involved for a truly professional show. On a personal note, I am planning to do a tandem jump from 12,000 feet for a charity that I have supported for many years. We have so far been rained off, then snowed off but are now hopeful that Sunday 22nd April will be clear and fine. Along with some colleagues I will be able to launch myself into the sky! The charity is Dreams Come True and you can find more information on their website. I have also cheekily included the web address to our sponsorship page for anyone who may feel they would like to sponsor me. Our target is £4,500 but obviously the more we can make for the charity the better. If you do decide to sponsor us please leave a message so I know who you are and can thank you personally. I will post some pictures on the school website after the event, fingers crossed for a blue sky. https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/leaping-lecturers I will close by wishing you all, students, parents and staff, a very relaxing, and hopefully warm and sunny Easter break. I look forward to seeing you at the summer fair next term.
Best wishes,
Regards Terri George - Chair of Governors and soon to be parachutist!
Ms M Leenders Head teacher
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christmas fayre Although it took place right at the end of the winter term, it is important to look back on the success of our Christmas Fayre. We welcomed, for the first time, Soho Pizza Ltd, who use a traditional Italian recipe and their own unique range of custom made wood burning ovens. Their pizzas were a hit with everyone and, fingers crossed, they are joining us for this years Summer Fair. We were delighted to welcome so many community stalls, new and returning, including Popcorn-box, Neal’s Yard products, homemade beauty products, Phoenix cards, icing on the cake face painting, and henna tattoos. School and parent led stalls included a very busy hot chocolate stall run by students for our school charity of the year ‘Teenage Cancer Trust’ to home-made bath bombs, traditional tombola, candy floss, popcorn, a waffle stall run by the Year 11 students who were raising money for their school prom, hand-made christmas decorations, cards, and homemade breads. It was a lovely afternoon attended by lots of staff, students, parents / carers and may others from the local community. Our local businesses were once again incredibly generous with prizes for the raffle. A massive thank you to Teapigs, Maids of Honour, Helen Argyle, The Griffin, Tesco, Novotel (Brentford) and United Living. The whole event would not have been possible if it had not been for the generous sponsorship from Julia Quilliam and her team at Qulliams Estate Agency, we feel very fortunate at Brentford School to be surrounded by such a supportive business community. A date for your diaries is the Summer Fair on Saturday 30th June. It promises to be another fantastic community event; if you would like to secure a table at this summer’s event please email me on lgers@brentford.hounslow.sch.uk 4
oxford outreach
hairspray primary performance
Our Year 10 and 6th form students were delighted when a On Wednesday and Thursday 7th and 8th February we were team of four students visited us on Monday 10th March from thrilled to welcome over 400 Year 5 students from Isleworth Somerville College, Oxford University. Town, St Pauls C of E, Green Dragon, Springwell Junior Unfortunately, Oxford has a lot of myths and stereotypes and Worple School. We were so impressed at the behaviour attached to it, which are largely untrue, and as a result many of all the schools who came to visit us, and the children very talented and capable students do not apply. The ‘Access were delighted when they spotted former pupils from their Roadshow’ aims to change this view and show students that, school in the cast. Even an impromptu fire drill didn’t affect if they wish, Oxford is very much for them. There is no one the Thursday show. We had some wonderful feedback. Ms type of ‘Oxford student’ and it is not as different from other Whittaker of Worple Primary said: “congratulations to all the students and staff on such a wonderful performance for the university experiences as some may expect. Year 5s. Our children were buzzing all the way home! It’s lovely for them to be so inspired by older students!”
Fundraise fridays We have held three Friday Fundraisers this year. Once a month on a Friday, students can sell sweet treats including cakes, crisps, drinks and more, raising money for their chosen cause. The recent good causes chosen by the students have been: The Teenage Cancer Trust (our school charity of the year), the ‘Year 11 Prom Committee’, and the wonderful charity Halo Children’s Foundation. A massive well done to all the students from across the year groups that are raising money all year round, and thank you to all of that have bought things and helped towards raising money for lots of great causes. The next fundraise Friday will take place on Friday 20th April.
The presentation covered many different aspects of studying at Oxford, including some facts: Oxford is one of the oldest Universities in the world, is world leading and number 1 in the UK. One of the questions put out to the students was how do you choose a subject? Choose a subject you are passionate about. Make sure you visit any University for an open day, to get a feel for the atmosphere, the location, the societies and clubs that you can join: will it be somewhere you could be happy ?
Brentford school for girls brentford 6 form th
Alumni
if you are an alumni of our school then become a member of our network and help inspire our future brentford girl
Oxford University open days are on Wednesday 27th, Thursday 28th June and Friday 14th September. Ms Giddens Head of Year 10 added a massive thank you to the ‘Access Roadshow’ team who delivered a very informative and entertaining presentation.
To find out more information or to sign up, visit our website: www.brentford.hounslow.sch.uk/community/alumni vision | creativity | Excellence 5
written by Liz gers
world book day Despite the freezing temperatures, blustery winds and snow, the Year 7 pupils did not disappoint when astounding us all with their fantastic costumes on World Book Day! Hetty Feather, Little Red Riding Hood, Hagrid, Geek Girl, Alice in Wonderland and Malificent were all strolling around the school, reminding us all of the joy and excitement pupils have when they open a book. Not be out done, the 6th formers, led by an Oompa Loompa, organised book quizzes and cake decorating for all Year 7 pupils to enjoy. Despite the weather, the Year 7 were exceptionally competitive and engaged with the fun and activities! Even an early finish did not dispel the competition and creativity of World Book Day! Thanks to all the 6th formers, Sherlock Holmes (aka Mrs Baker) and Queen of Hearts (aka Mrs Sullivan) who organised the activities in the hall! Finally, a big thanks to all parents and carers for your support in making World Book Day a success.
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written by joy ev
Bali Rai: Author visit
Hounslow author event
On Tuesday 30th January Bali Rai visited our school. He was talking about his road to being an author, his family and growing up in Leicester. His family roots originate in Bali and Punjab, and he talked about the difficulties he encountered living in a multicultural, multi-racial city community.
A group of Year 8 students whose progress in Accelerated Reading has been exceptional were awarded with a trip to hear Patrice Lawrence speak about her writing. Patrice Lawrence is a British writer and journalist, who has published fiction both for adults and children. Her book Orangeboy won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for Older Children and The Bookseller Young Adult Book Prize.
Bali talked about expectations his family had and his strains fitting in as a young student. His inspiration to become an author came from reading modern fiction and he practiced writing by copying the style of others in order to find his own.
Patrice comes from an Italian-Trinidadian family and now lives in East London. Her books Orangeboy and Indigo Donut reflect the real situations faced by many black teenagers in Britain. Both books represent contemporary accounts of the lives and hopes of young people in East London, growing up among violence and family loss. Patrice promises to be a contemporary YA fiction writer whose books will be very popular with her audience. Books by Patrice Lawrence are available in the school library.
love literacy event This year’s Love Literacy event was wonderful, and it was fantastic to see so many people attend the morning session at the end of February. The Year 7 students were delighted to spend time with their parents and carers and they enjoyed the opportunity to share their Accelerated Reader dashboards, bookshelves and their reading successes. We had some very positive feedback; Ms Baker and Ms O’Sullivan did a wonderful job of hosting the whole event He was successful in publishing his first novel (Un)arranged and there was a lot of interaction that took place between marriage and from then on he embarked on the career of the students, the parents and the staff. Some feedback we received said: “very informative, and I was able to get answers being a full-time author. to my questions”, “I enjoyed the opportunity to discuss my Year 8 students highly enjoyed Bali’s talk and engaged in a daughter’s reading with her Librarian”, “both Librarians are lively discussion about writing and themes of his books. Bali’s very helpful” and “The workshop has encouraged me to sit books are available in the school library and students were down with my daughter and listen to her read”. eager to read them all. Thank you for all your support and keep reading!
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written by Katarzyna baker / love literacy by liz gers
Careers to success paving the way
year 8 careers event On Wednesday 18th January, Year 8 pupils had a day off timetable so that they could consider their option choices in the context of the world of work. The sessions involved students considering a number of different careers and writing a CV tailored to their chosen field. Students took part in an entrepreneurial activity where they used crucial employability skills including team work, presentation and research skills. Pupils particularly enjoyed the business speed networking event in the afternoon, meeting 21 professionals and talking about their careers in an informal environment, developing their ideas of what jobs are available to them in the market place.
Pupils explored some of the possible career paths by speaking to professionals like Amy Horton, Schools Liaison Officer at Kingston University, Marie Anderson, a local independent Business Consultant and our own alumni, Amy Paterson, a Junior Science Apprentice at the National Physical Laboratory and Nadia Haq, a local qualified Solicitor. The event was supported by school governors, local businesses and alumni. It was wonderful to see how many professionals gave up their time to visit the school for the event. The students asked a wide range of interesting questions (from the hours worked to money earned!). It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and inspired some of the students to consider a variety of careers. The students found the whole experience invaluable and of very much help in supporting the process of choosing GCSE options.
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implications and graduate destinations) when making a decision about post-18 options.
‘So You Want to be a …’ lunches In January, we were delighted to welcome Patricia Wrobel from Discovery Networks International as part of this term’s ‘So You Want to be a…’ lunch time speaker programme.
The students also had chance to question current university students about what A levels they sat and how they were enjoying their degree courses at Reading. For anyone wishing to explore the university and the Whiteknight’s campus independently, they can take a self-guided campus tour. The university has an open campus policy during working hours (Monday – Friday, 09:00-17:00) and invites the general public to explore the beautiful award-winning campus and get a taste of what the university has to offer. Tour maps are available on the University of Reading website.
Patricia, who has worked in the Media industry for over 20 years and started out as a Runner, gave an insightful talk about her career to date and her latest role as a senior manager responsible for reversioning and editing media content for broadcasting around the world.
vinspired Congratulations to the following students who started volunteering as Assistant Librarians in the school library at the end of the autumn term. Lola Quemeneur, Holly Brace, Nora Ashani, Mahi Patel, Maryam Dust, Roda Abdi, Clarisa Pereira, Denvi Rodrigues and Saba Wahid have already clocked up an amazing 15 hours each. Students who have received volunteering awards this term are:
In February, we were joined by Sarah Roots, from the housing association United Living, who talked to students about her interesting and varied role as Head of Marketing and Communication. Sarah has overall responsibility for United Living’s brand awareness, public relations, social media, events organisation, design and advertising. In March, Lucy Partis, a final year Midwifery undergraduate at Oxford Brookes University, gave a talk to pupils about training towards this rewarding career path.
v10 Ariana Milhailov Yohanna Pereira Noor Ashani
reading university trip On 6th February, a group of 6th form students were given the opportunity to visit the University of Reading, as part of the school’s Newnham project. The University of Reading ranks as one of the top 30 universities in the UK (according to league tables produced by the Guardian, the Complete University Guide and QS) and offers over 350 undergraduate and post-graduate courses. The students enjoyed a morning of lectures as well as a tour of the university’s facilities.
v30 Sanjana Kaur
v50 Erica Miller v100 Shanna Mestidio
The vInspired awards scheme is a respected way for 11 – 25 year olds to get official recognition for their volunteer activities so if you haven’t done so already and want to create an account, click on the vInspired logo on the school’s intranet or see Ms Brown in Careers for further information.
The lecture on ‘How to choose a university and a course’ informed students about how to research degree content and the importance of considering a range of factors (including geographical location, career progression routes, financial 9
written by Emma Brown
money charity event
debate event
‘The Money Charity’ visited some Year 8 and 10 Mathematics lessons this term.Their aim is to help students think more about the benefits of saving for the future and to be aware of the different financial opportunities available.
As a school we have been working with an organisation called Debate Mate. Debate Mate run after-school debating clubs and currently work in 250 primary and secondary schools throughout the UK. Students have been learning the art of public speaking and how to debate in a formal setting for one hour from 3:30pm to 4:30pm every Wednesday afternoon. The club has be run by specially trained university students and the techniques are delivered through a series of fun and interactive exercises and games.
The Year 8s had already received a workshop last year (in Year 7). This further session helped students to understand savings and consumerism. They learnt about the importance of saving to achieve life goals and the hazards of unmanageable debt.
Recently we hosted several West London schools at Brentford for the Urban Debate League. We are delighted to report our girls have had great success.
Aiyani Kaur Oberai referred to the workshop as “highly educational and beneficial as I learnt about money and the difference between debit and credit”. An interesting point was made by Jodie, saying “it really made me understand how something that costs so little can be so expensive if you borrow money for a long time”.
Currently we are ranked: 15th in the country (Novice debaters) and 8th in London (Novice debaters). Well done to all girls who have attended the club or have competed in the competition. We are very proud of their achievements!
The Year 10 workshop helped students to understand the importance of planning ahead with their finances in order to help achieve their goals. The students commented after the workshops that they felt more aware of the way money was spent and how to save money. ‘The Money Charity’ will be returning in the summer term to deliver more workshop to these students.
6th form re day On Thursday 12th February Year 11 and 12 took part in the annual 6th form RE day. The aim of the day is to explore philosophical, moral and ethical questions surrounding spirituality. Students explored St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tate Modern Gallery to ponder questions like:
Textiles trip The 6th form textiles students went to the Balenciaga exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum to gain inspiration for their coursework. The exhibition highlighted the work of one of the most innovative designers of the 20th Century, and pieces from other renowned designers that were influenced by Balenciaga. The students appreciated not only seeing the work, but the opportunity to try on some of the items of clothing for themselves.
• What are the benefits of spirituality? • Is religion needed to be a spiritual person? • How can people gain spirituality through art? • How can building design enhance spirituality? The day was a success, despite complaints about having to walk up all those stairs to the top of the cathedral! The picture left shows that it was worth it.
“I didn’t know anything about Balenciaga before coming to the exhibition, but the work is really fantastic, I really like the way he makes really interesting shapes with clothes. It was fun to try on the skirt that turned into a cape!” - Maria Adeniran 10
money charity written by sameem malek/ textiles trip written by gillian Welsh / debate event and 6th form re day written by aaron McInness
Sports at BSFG
Clubs update Once again, we had an excellent range of clubs and activities running over the spring term. Students participated in a variety of academic and sporting clubs. Highlights of the term included, once again, the ‘Michael Jackson Experience’ (has to be seen to be believed!), Science Club and a brand new debating club run by university students called ‘Debate Mate’. All clubs had high weekly attendance and students no doubt benefitted pastorally from them. A big thank you needs to be said to all staff who gave their time to run clubs this term.
cross country event A massive congratulations to Isabel Rodgers and Zakia Mossi who competed for Hounslow in the Middlesex Cross Country Competition. They travelled to Harrow with the team, where they competed in wet, muddy and cold conditions. Both girls did fantastically well! Zakia Mossi came 1st place in her race and has gone on to represent Team Middlesex. Well done girls!
Please have a chat to your daughter about which clubs she attends. We would like her to take full advantage of the clubs we run because there are many benefits to participation including exercise, stress relief, meeting new people and the development of confidence. Most importantly participating in a club is just downright fun!
netball
Your daughter can attend clubs by registering with CHQ and submitting her choices though mychq.net. Look out for the Summer club timetable out soon!
Teams from each year group have been busy playing their league matches. A special mention to the Year 7 team who won their first match against Lampton School! Well done to Nasri (7AM) for excellent shooting!
house competition updates
sports leaders
House Competitions have been very closely fought so far this year. The first competition took place at the end of the first half term. All of the students in each of the houses came up with ideas about how they would raise money. At lunchtime the hall was full of students across all year groups and there was a lovely atmosphere. We had popcorn, candyfloss, cakes and lots of other fantastic stalls and activities going on. The whole day was a real success with the lunchtime activities and mufti money raising over £800 for Breast Cancer Awareness, Confident House raising the most.
In January the Year 10 GCSE PE class helped lead the Primary School Sports Tournament. They refereed matches and helped organise the teams. Well done ladies!
Duke of Edinburgh The Duke of Edinburgh Award has started well this year, the current bronze cohort is almost complete as it stands with a 92% pass rate. The awards ceremony for this cohort will be at Heston School on Wednesday 14th March with other girls from Brentford School performing at the event. Next years numbers are increasing, with 47 signed up, so keep your eyes peeled for information about a meeting in the upcoming weeks. Well done ladies.
The Interhouse Quiz took place at the end of last term and all of the pupils competed as tutor groups to see whose general knowledge was the best in the school. Well done to the winners – Reflective House. Inquisitive House are currently leading with 18578 points. clubs update written by aaron mcinnes / house competition updates by nicola garrett
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written by jess ashworth / Duke of Edinburgh written by sian giddens
school production: hairspray On Friday 9th February we wrapped up this year’s musical romp, Hairspray. Thank you to everyone who helped put on an amazing show that was our best yet, filled with stunning singing and compelling acting.
Tracey attempts to use her new-found status as a teen sensation to topple Corny’s reigning dance queen and bring racial integration to the show, and perhaps influence everyone watching at home. Miss Marsh said: “when it has been a busy week, seeing the girls perform makes me grateful that I get to work with them and create these performances”.
Director and Head of Drama, Miss Marsh said: “We are incredibly lucky that Brentford sees the value in Drama and the Arts. So thank you for also being supportive!” Secondly, I want to say how immensely proud of the girls I am. They are incredibly talented, resilient and hardworking; and watching them perform fills me with a huge sense of pride.” Hairspray revolves around a dance loving teen Tracy Turnblad in 1960s Baltimore. Tracy, masterfully played by Jodie Vale, auditions for a spot on ‘The Corny Collins Show’, taking her on a journey all about love and tolerance. Backed by a live band, featuring Mr Mudie on drums, every girl gave a spectacular performace. 12
written by kirsty marsh & connor cochrane
Through the lens at watermans Through the Lens, our first all-digital exhibition, was created by our amazingly talented 6th form students. They skilfully developed their personal work, and responded to the work of other artists and photographers while exploring a chosen theme. The exhibition ran from January 10th till February 26th. The opening of the exhibition was well attended, including many members of the local business community. The work covered themes such as portraiture, human-made versus natural, and moments in time. Students interrogated
the flexibility and constraints of the medium of photography, using digital and hand manipulation. The diverse selection of photographs and videos demonstrated the versatility of the digital age. Watermans is West London’s leading arts centre and an independent charity. As well as an independent cinema theatre, they have two galleries with free exhibitions. We thank them for annually hosting the work of our students.
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written by Lynsey storer
borough arts festival Over the course of two weekends, Brentford School for Girls hosted the Hounslow Borough Arts Festival at Redlees Studios in Isleworth. The event had two purposes: to showcase a selection of the amazing art, design, photography and textiles work from all the secondary schools in the Borough, and to run workshops in the various disciplines for students from years 9 to 12. The exhibition was a phenomenal success with more than 200 works of art from nearly every secondary school in the borough on display. Students, parents and teachers came out on the Saturday after the extreme weather snap to celebrate the talents and skills of the young people. This was the culmination of two weekends of workshops run by Brentford School’s creative, technical and performance arts Teachers. Art and photography work created during the workshops was also displayed, a short documentary of the festival shot by the students was screened and Jodie Vale, a rising music and drama star at Brentford, sang beautifully.
The workshops were well attended both by Brentford Students and many from Cranford, Kingsley Academy, Heathland, Gumley, St Marks and Reach Academy. This joint event between art, technology, music, drama, film and media departments across the borough was the first, but we hope it will not be the last. At a time when Arts subjects in many schools are facing mounting pressures from government policies, it is sanguine to reflect on the value the creative subjects bring to our civilised society, as well as to the UK economy. We at Brentford are very fortunate in our arts provision; the school celebrates all the arts subjects throughout the year and the Arts provision produces outstanding results for the students in public exams, extra curricular activities, post-school destinations and personal development. When nearly 1 in 5 jobs in London are in the creative sectors and growing 10% a year, why would not all schools want to be art schools? 14
gender equality forum The work of the Future Youth Schools Forum has been extensive this term in preparing for International Women’s Day when we hosted our second major forum. This year our topic centred on the issues around Gender Equality. A highly committed group of 20 students worked every Friday after school researching the topic, increasing their awareness and knowledge of the causes and effects of gender inequality both globally and locally.
The contributions from all the students present really impressed the visitors who commented on their knowledge and understanding of the issues, as well as their readiness to try and find solutions. The Forum continues through the summer term on Fridays at 3:20 in C1. New members are welcome. We will be planning and delivering a programme to raise awareness of issues relating to gender equality and stereotyping.
There was lively debate and lots of collaborative planning for the day-long forum on the 8th of March 2018 when we welcomed 40 delegates from four schools to join us in the theatre. The Green School and Springwest along with Charter School, East Dulwich and Fulham Boys were represented and the buzz created was palpable. Our girls ran thought provoking activities to incite discussion about the topic including Equality Speed Dating, Gender Fact Musical Chairs, The Job Interview, Power Walk and others. We had speakers from Oxfam UK as well as our local MP Ruth Cadbury, who answered some very searching questions about how parliament was addressing the issues of inequality.
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written by tim holloway
sister helen scullion An extraordinary person is one who has lived a remarkable life. Sister Helen Scullion (1929-2018) was indeed an extraordinary person. Born in Lanarkshire on the 7th of January 1929, she was destined to live an impactful life worthy of praise. Dedicating her life to God, she joined the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa, a missionary society founded in 1869 that operates in Africa. A dozen students from Brentford School for girls, of which I am one, had the privilege to pay her six visits over the winter term to learn about her incredible life. Through her entertaining and inspiring stories, which she so openly shared with all of us, it was apparent to us that Sister Helen served wholeheartedly in her various nominations. After joining the congregation as a novice in 1956 and embarking on an international year to Algeria at the age of 27, Sister Helen undertook on one of her greatest missions to Ghana where she worked as a secretary in a Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa hospital, the Navrongo War Memorial Hospital in Navrongo in Northern Ghana. In 1962, Sr. Helen came back for a time of rest, health care and studies and returned to Ghana again in 1964. This time she was in charge of a community in Navrongo. She was the Bishop’s secretary and did the accounts and various other tasks such as running the Parish book store and teaching catechism. It is evident through her plethora of postings that Sister Helen was incredibly talented.
which Sister Helen assisted with. The government wanted the opinion of the church in the situating of the Health Centre. The church had identified a site by the White Sisters convent for the building of the proposed Health Centre/Hospital. After that, she worked in administration again in another hospital called St Theresa’s Hospital in Nandom, Ghana. It started off as a clinic set up by Sr. Annette Mercure, helped by the Sisters of Mary Immaculate (SMI), their sister congregation in Ghana. Sr. Annette Mercure soon saw the need to add a maternity unit, and quickly converted some old abandoned classrooms into an improvised maternity unit. Hundreds of mothers delivered safely. The Ministry of Health became aware that this maternity unit was saving the lives of many mothers and babies and quickly gave it official
For about a year, Sr. Helen was in Burkina Faso where she taught English. In the early 1960s, the Government of Ghana, under the leadership of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, felt a great need for a Health Centre. The Bishop of WA, Rt. Rev. Peter Porekuu Dery was consulted on the issue since the Church was already operating a maternity home in Nandom
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recognition. A new government hospital was built in 1961, and four sisters took over its operations and lived there as a community, one of which was Sr. Helen. There was only around 10 staff in the hospital. African nurses were trained by members of the community. Serving in the poorest part of a foreign country, albeit immensely fulfilling, did come with a variety of challenges. In many instances, Sister Helen, who suffered from Malaria herself, aided many locals who suffered from the disease back to health. Moreover, she persevered despite the lack of staff in these hospitals and even had to endure a death of a close friend through this. It is apparent that the impact that Sister Helen has left on the communities she served in her life will be everlasting. It is because of extraordinary people like her that many get to have a chance at a better life. As a result, we thought that the least we could do as students was to showcase to our school the extraordinary life that she lived. We were privileged enough to have three dear friends of Sr.Helen: Scottish Former Superior General, Marie McDonald, Sister Margaret Kennedy and Sister Marion Carabott join us for our presentation on Tuesday, the 30th of January. The famous treasured words of Cardinal Lavigerie, who endorsed the foundation of the Missionaries of Africa, perfectly encapsulates the sacrifices that Sister Helen made: “I have made myself all to all, because I have said to the God of all, ‘I am all yours’”.
In 1974, Sr. Helen returned to Europe and after that she was given the task of a Treasurer. She only returned briefly to WA-also located in Northern Ghana at the special request of the local bishop who needed someone to do some work as his Secretariat, before returning to the UK. Since then, St. Theresa’s hospital in Nandom has established a health link partner with the Northampton General Hospital in the UK. Today, the Sisters of Mary Immaculate are still administering the hospital. The Nandom Hospital has developed even more and today it runs a Nursing Training College. The hospital celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2017.
Our dear Sr.Helen passed away Wednesday 31st January, 2018, at the senescent but venerable age of 89 years. Her solemn funeral service took place on Friday 23rd February at the Maryville Care Home in Brentford and then later at the Powder Mill Lane Cemetery in Whitton. Sister Helen’s life will forever be cherished and commemorated by everyone around her. 17
written by sophia louis
spring Gallery
carol extravagnaza
talent show
year 8 picnic SCience week activity - CSI
production rehearsals
SCience week activity - CSI
rockshcool roadshow
prom healthy snacks
access roadshow speakers
astronomical soc speaker
speak out challenge 18
science week chicks
Brentford school for girls
brentford 6 form th
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STUDENT TERM DATES summer term 2018: monday 16th april - friday 20th july • 16th april: inset day • 17th april: return to school • 23rd april: year 8 informed options choices, year 9 pre-public examinations begin • 26th april: film screening • 30th april: year 12 Pre-public examinations begin • 04th may: year 10 pre-public examinations begin • 07th may: may day, school closed • 08th may: hpv vaccinations • 18th may: year 13 graduation • 24th may: year 7 parents’ evening • 28th may - 04th june: half term • 04th june: inset day We will notify you of any changes throughout the year. These Dates can also be found on our website.
Brentford School For Girls, 5 Boston Manor Road, Brentford, TW8 0PG Tel: 020 8847 4281. Web: www.brentford.hounslow.sch.uk Email: general@brentford.hounslow.sch.uk 20