Educate 25 jan 2015

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Educate educatemagazine.com

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The Magazine for Parents and Pupils January – April 2015

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+ Positive Progression Meet the headteacher

Reflecting on success All the worthy winners

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Contents 8

Welcome...

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Welcome to the first edition of 2015 and the January issue of Educate.

The highlight of last year for all the team at Educate was 21 November when we honoured schools across the region at the annual Educate Awards 2014 ceremony at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral. The glittering event recognised achievements of schools, pupils, and staff across 16 categories and was attended by 350 guests. We celebrate all the worthy winners once again when we re-visit each school to find out what winning an award has meant for them.

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Features

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Thoughts worth sharing Bitesize thinking in education

Reflecting on success Educate Awards 2014

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Educate plus A year of triumphs

Meet the headteacher Phil Lloyd, Liverpool Life Sciences UTC (University Technology College)

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72-75 All the worthy winners Schools honoured at Educate Awards 2014

41-43 Quality Control The value of teaching provision for schools in Merseyside

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Meet the headteacher Heather Duggan, Archbishop Blanch

Book review This season’s must reads

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A week in the life Helen Tantouri, headteacher at Valewood Primary School

Where can we go?

Our pick of what’s happening

School eco news Sowing the seeds…

98 54 Viewpoint Is 2015 the year technology will really impact on education in our schools?

My school days Levi Tafari

Published by Mersey Mirror, 36 Henry Street, Liverpool L1 5BS. Tel: 0151 709 7567 Fax: 0151 707 1678 Email: post@merseymirror.com Executive Editor Kim O’Brien Advertising Sales Manager Andy Rogers Tel: 0151 709 7567 Photography Liam Deveney Editorial Alan Birkett, Natasha Young, Stephen Hurrell Design & Production Mersey Mirror, 36 Henry Street, Liverpool L1 5BS. Tel: 0151 706 7411 Email: post@merseymirror.com Distribution Barbara Troughton Tel: 0151 733 5492. Printed by PCP. Educate magazine is published by Mersey Mirror.

The contents of this magazine are fully protected by copyright and nothing may be reprinted or reproduced without permission.

Disclaimer The information contained within Educate we believe to be correct at the time of printing, no responsibility can be accepted for errors or omissions. © Copyright Mersey Mirror 2009.

Now in its fourth year, the awards are set to grow even bigger! We announce our expansion plans and new award categories for 2015 in the news section. Entries are now open and more details on how to enter can be found on the website www.educateawards.co.uk.

The dedication and leadership of great teachers was highlighted in each of the winning entries at last year’s awards so it is fitting that we look at how Merseyside’s education sector is working to ensure that children across the region have access to top quality teachers. We talk to three leading teaching professionals from St John Bosco, Liverpool Hope University and the Liverpool Learning Partnership.

Gamification of learning was a feature in our last issue; our panel of experts in Viewpoint predict if 2015 will be the year that technology will really impact on education in our schools.

We always finish with wonderful school day memories and Levi Tafari, Liverpool writer and poet, allows us to put pen to paper to share his.

@EducateMag www.educatemagazine.com

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News

Schools’ success celebrated by sponsor Agency show off their creative flair An Educate Award sponsor honoured the 2014 winners by sending a commemorative video book to every winning school.

The Foundry Agency, which sponsored the Communication Award, is a multi-discipline communications agency based in Liverpool city centre.

The team showed off their creative flair and digital expertise by producing an innovative video book which played highlights of the night’s ceremony and congratulated the schools on their prestigious accolade.

Fiona Barnet, director of The Foundry Agency, said: “We wanted to create something unique and memorable to honour the amazing winners of this year’s Educate Awards. The book is a huge

congratulations from us and a wonderful way to sign off an impressive 2014 for the schools.”

Fiona visited Whitefield Primary, which won the Communication and Most Inspirational Primary School awards, and its headteacher, Nadine Carroll in the same week they received a personal letter from MP David Laws congratulating them on being amongst the top 100 performing schools in the country in terms of the progress their pupils make between key stage 1 and the end of key stage 2.

Fiona adds: ‘The response we’ve had has been great, we’re so thrilled that schools are displaying the books pride of place and sharing them with pupils and parents.

Visiting the inspirational Whitefield Primary today has highlighted how important the awards are for this area

Fiona Barnet, director of The Foundry Agency and Nadine Carroll from Whitefield Primary and we’re so delighted to be supported the Educate part of this event celebrating Awards since its inception, the best of education.” and will be returning as an The Foundry Agency has awards sponsor for 2015.

Educate Awards 2015 announce expansion plans The Educate Awards have announced it will now accept entries from schools in the boroughs of Lancashire, West Lancashire and Cheshire West and Chester, in addition to schools in the Liverpool City Region (Liverpool, Sefton, Knowsley, Wirral, St Helens and Halton).

Now in to its fourth year, the awards are growing due to the volume of entries and increased demand from schools to take part and win one of the prestigious education accolades.

Kim O’Brien, executive editor of Educate Magazine, said: “Last year’s Educate Awards was a huge success, we saw a big increase in not only the number of entries but the standard too; the ceremony at Liverpool Cathedral really showcased the innovation, creativity and passion that is evident throughout the Liverpool City Region.”

“We’ve had schools outside of the Liverpool City Region express great interest and are keen to be involved in 6

the awards, so with this in mind, we’re thrilled to announce we will now accept entries from schools and colleges in the boroughs of Lancashire, West Lancashire and Cheshire West and Chester. This expansion marks an exciting time for the awards, we hope this will again raise the bar in terms of entries and make 2015’s awards the best yet.”

With this expansion also comes three, brand new award categories for 2015.

These are the Leadership Team of the Year, Outstanding Teaching of Life Skills and Innovation in Education awards.

An expert panel of judges are already confirmed for this year’s awards, which takes place on 20th November at Liverpool Cathedral, with more to be announced soon. Joining the panel for 2015 is Olympian and managing director of Raise the Bar, Steve Smith. Raise the Bar works with different organisations to deliver cutting edge learning solutions and Steve has had the opportunity to work with some of the leading businesses in the country, he hopes to bring this

Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

unique insight to this year’s panel.

Returning once again are Councillor Gary Millar, Liverpool’s cabinet member for business, enterprise and investment; Chris Walker, regional managing editor of Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales; Lesley Martin-Wright, chief executive of Knowsley Chamber; Mark Beedles, managing director of Connex Education; Fiona Barnet, director of The Foundry Agency; Andrew Pimbley of Claremont Farm and Wirral’s Farm Feast; and the education team at the respected Everyman and Playhouse Theatres.

The sponsors already confirmed for this year’s awards are Connex Education, returning as a title sponsor, alongside the associate sponsors Adlib Solutions, The Foundry Agency and Carillion plc all have supported the awards since its inception in 2012.

Entries are now open. Closing date for entries is Friday 10th July 2015.

For a full list of award categories and more details on how to enter, go to: www.educateawards.co.uk.

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Educate Awards 2014

In November schools from across Merseyside came together to celebrate a year of success in truly spectacular style, as the third annual Educate Awards took place.

Words by Natasha Young

1. Career Aspiration Award, Liverpool Life Sciences UTC

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2. Communication Award, Whitefield Primary 3. Outstanding Commitment to Sports (Secondary), Rainford High Technology College 4. Outstanding Commitment to Sports (Primary), Valewood Primary

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Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

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Actor, writer and comedian Neil Fitzmaurice returned to host the glittering event at Liverpool Cathedral, which recognised the 2013 - 2014 achievements of schools, pupils, staff and projects in categories ranging from the SEN Provision Award, Career Aspiration Award and Teacher of the Year to Community Partnership, Innovative and Creative Literacy and Spirit of Enterprise.

The winners were decided by an esteemed panel of judges including Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for business, enterprise and investment, Councillor Gary Millar; regional managing editor for Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales, Chris Walker; chief executive of Knowsley Chamber, Lesley Martin-Wright; managing director of Connex Education, Mark Beedles; Andrew Pimbley of Claremont Farm and Wirral’s Farm Feast; director of The Foundry Agency, Fiona Barnet and the education team at Liverpool’s Everyman and Playhouse.

Now that the worthy winners and shortlisted schools have had time to reflect on their victories and recognition, we caught up with them to find out what it now means to have been awarded the prestigious accolades.

Career Aspiration Award sponsored by GMLPF The 2014 Educate Awards provided a particularly memorable night for Liverpool Life Sciences UTC, as it picked up not one but two prizes.

Lyndsay MacAulay, director of enterprise at the city school which is only in the midst of its second academic year, explains that the Career Aspiration Award indicates that the UTC is succeeding in one of its key focuses.

“Delivering the Life Sciences UTC promise for all of our students is the driving force behind everything we do so we’re delighted with the progress we have made in introducing innovative, sector focused careers education to our students,” says Lyndsay. “Winning the Educate Careers Aspiration Award in just one year is testament to the hard work by the team and students and the different approach we have taken, brokering student aspirations rather than just raising them.”

Outstanding Commitment to Sports (Primary) sponsored by DCM Surfaces Winning the award in the sports category certainly brought celebration at Valewood primary, as headteacher Helen Tantouri says: “It’s been amazing to win the award, our Year 6 football team has been absolutely phenomenal. However, we need to thank all of the staff because it’s not just football; we do cross country, swimming and lots of sports go on. The staff ensure every child exceeds in sport across the whole school from reception to Year 6.”

Outstanding Commitment to Sports (Secondary) sponsored by The National Citizen Service Following its victory at the 2013 Educate Awards, Rainford High Technology College held on to the secondary school sports accolade and head of PE, Gary Makin suggests that winning for a second consecutive year “helps the whole school community and beyond to recognise and celebrate the outstanding achievements of students, as well as the time, energy and commitment of the staff in providing numerous opportunities beyond the school day for students to participate and achieve fantastic levels of success.”

He adds: “Winning the Educate Award is a direct reward for the outstanding breadth and quality of provision for sport at Rainford High.

The PE department is committed to providing opportunities for students of all abilities to flourish in both recreational and competitive sporting environments that complement and directly link with the excellent PE curriculum provision.”

Communication Award sponsored by The Foundry Agency Whitefield Primary was another double winner at the 2014 Educate Awards, with the first of two awards on the night being for communication.

Following the ceremony, the school’s awards were welcomed with a celebratory assembly in which they were displayed and discussed, before the accolades toured the school to ensure that all children enjoyed a closer glimpse.

The Communication Award has raised the

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

5. Innovative and Creative Literacy Award, Alsop High School

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6. Most Inspirational Primary School, Whitefield Primary 7. Eco School Project of the Year, Calderstones 8. Most Inspirational Secondary School, Notre Dame Catholic College 9. Outstanding Arts in Primary School, Netherton Moss Primary

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Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

profile of the school in the local media,” says headteacher Nadine Carroll, who explains that it comes as a result of team members contributing a range of skills and expertise.

“The most important thing is the fact that the way our school communicates on all different levels and mediums has been recognised. We see the school as the centre of the community and we have a duty to communicate well.”

Innovative and Creative Literacy Award sponsored by Educate Magazine For winner Alsop High School, the award success marked the start of an encouraging few months for its work on literacy. The school has since won a bid for £1,000 to run a ‘young journalists’ programme, which assistant Claire Madeloso says is “another innovative way of improving levels of literacy for many students across the school”.

Reflecting on the Educate Awards victory, she adds: “Students are immensely proud of the award, and they have already started to generate new ideas for literacy projects to start in 2015.

They are keen to hold on to the award next year, and their love of reading and writing has continued to develop.”

Eco School Project of the Year sponsored by Carillion Plc Calderstones School was recognised for its Green Corner allotment, which has become part of the PSHE KS3 curriculum, enabled outdoor learning lessons, provided transition opportunities for feeder primary schools and allowed involvement in numerous community projects.

“We were delighted as a school to receive The Eco Project of the Year award,” says teacher Emma Taylor. “Staff and pupils were very kind in their praise of the Green Corner and have enjoyed the many opportunities our school allotment has brought over the last two years.

“Recycling, food produce and sunflower growth were our main tasks last year. This year we are fundraising for our own onsite apiary and are currently working on our newest project #CaldiesNatureWatch. We have another exciting year ahead with an energetic, creative eco team watch this space!”

Most Inspirational Primary School sponsored by Arvato UK Whitefield Primary went on to pick up the coveted title of Most Inspirational Primary School

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and is certainly keen to shout about its achievements, with plans to adorn the exterior of the school with signage highlighting its Educate Award-winning status.

According to headteacher Nadine Carroll, the news that fellow Everton-based Notre Dame Catholic College was scooped the Most Inspirational Secondary School title made the win “extra special”.

“It was a great award to bring back to the local community of Everton, and it’s fantastic that both the inspirational primary and secondary schools are both in Everton.”

Most Inspirational Secondary School sponsored by Liverpool Hope University For Notre Dame Catholic College, taking away the accolade highlighted the “truly inspirational times” the school is currently experiencing.

“The reaction of the school community to the award has been tremendous,” explains deputy headteacher Andy Rennard. “The staff were thrilled when we told them the day after and there was a spontaneous cheer in the staffroom.

Likewise, many parents have been in touch in person, by phone and on Twitter to congratulate the school. The governors have asked for the

whole community to be thanked on their behalf.

However, it’s the students who are most delighted that 'their school' has won such a prestigious award and there is a real sense of pride for this recognition.

“It has further galvanised us all as we continue upon the wonderful and exciting journey of Notre Dame, as we settle in to our new school building and see our surrounding area undergo such a major and exciting regeneration.”

Outstanding Arts in Primary School sponsored by Adlib Solutions With work already underway for the next muchanticipated annual school performance of ‘War Stories’, winner Netherton Moss Primary School has hailed its 2014 Educate Award as “wonderful” recognition of the whole school’s hard work when it comes to producing its performances.

“Thrilled and delighted” headteacher, Fiona Wood says: “The award has made everyone feel very proud of themselves, and the children were thrilled to be presented with it in our family celebration assembly. They know that they all played their own special part in winning the award for the whole school. A huge well done to our Netherton Moss family!”

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

Outstanding Arts in Secondary School sponsored by Adlib Solutions News of Gateacre School’s achievement in this category was welcomed with excitement when it was reported back to pupils who participated in the winning Charlie and the Chocolate Factory production.

“The youngsters involved were genuinely delighted and the timing of this award was ideal in that it has given our students a real confidence boost in terms of their ability to perform and see a project through from start to finish,” says head of drama, Helen Williams.

“We are sure that the youngsters involved in this production will take away many fond memories of this experience and a sense of both a personal and team achievement.”

Spirit of Enterprise Award sponsored by the City of Liverpool College When the accolade was brought home to the winning Evelyn Primary School it was greeted with a celebratory achievement ceremony, attended by 300 pupils staff and parents.

As the school now proudly displays its prize, and also plans to promote its award-winning status on paperwork branding, headteacher Carol Arnold highlights the confidence boost the win has given to its enterprising work.

“We were doing entrepreneurial work which is unusual for a primary school and it’s convinced us we were doing the right thing so we’ll continue,” she says.

10 10. Outstanding Arts in Secondary School, Gateacre School 11. Spirit of Enterprise, Evelyn Primary School 12. WOW Recognition Award, Calderstones

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WOW Recognition Award sponsored by Paul Crowley & Co Calderstones School’s winning Tower2Tower bike ride from Liverpool’s Radio City tower to Paris’ Eiffel Tower saw the school and its wider community come together to raise awareness of mental health provision following the tragic death of staff member Phil Gibbons.

“Calderstones was thrilled to be shortlisted against such high quality nominees, so to be eventual winners is a real honour,” says maths teacher Stephen Duffy, one of the organisers behind the challenge. “The word has spread rapidly throughout the school and local community and even managed to impress OFSTED during a recent inspection.

“The idea of a ride to remember Phil and raise awareness started small and grew immeasurably as the concept gained momentum. The WOW award is aptly

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

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@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

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13. Community Partnership Award, Gateacre School 14. Science Project of the Year, Liverpool Life Science UTC 15. Teacher of the Year, Rainford High Technology College 16. SEN Provision Award, Summerhill Primary

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named as there are few other words to describe the personal and team achievements of those who helped the ride to France become a reality.”

Community Partnership Award sponsored by Vivark Ltd This award was presented to Gateacre School for the third year running but, according to community co-ordinator Lisa Mitchell, it’s still “an honour to even be shortlisted”.

She adds: “We have a silver surfers’ IT group where we teach people with the average age of 70 everything from using the internet to social media. They were the first people to see the award and they were made up – as far as they are concerned they are award-winners!”

Science Project of the Year sponsored by Liverpool John Moores University Highlighting what it means for specialist science

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and healthcare education provider, Liverpool Life Sciences UTC to win a second award that underpins its key aims, Professor David Hornby, director of research and innovation, says: “Winning the Science Project of the Year Educate Award is vindication for us that the risks we are taking in bringing contemporary science to a UK school have paid off. We now have huge confidence to break more boundaries in the future.”

Teacher of the Year sponsored by Connex Education For Rainford High’s Jo Burgess, being named teacher of the year was a “touching” win, made all the more special as she discovered that she had been nominated by a parent in recognition of her work.

“I was very surprised to have actually won the award and I was really touched by what came up

on the screen with why I had been nominated,” she says. “It was very kind of the parent to have taken the time to put my name forward, it really means a lot to me.”

SEN Provision Award sponsored by Liverpool City Region Apprenticeship Hub Winning the award for SEN provision has delighted the team at Summerhill Primary, and the school’s deputy head and SENco, Yvonne Gleig says: “Raising aspirations and hopes for all our pupils and enabling them to realise their strengths is very much a part of our inclusive practice and ethos.

“This is a very welcome accolade from a respected panel of judges against some very strong competition from other schools and one that we the staff, governors, parents and pupils are very proud of.”

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Educate Awards 2014

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SEN Provision Award

17. SEN Provision Award, special commendation Kilgarth School 18. SEN Provision Award recognition, Bebington High School

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special commendation The team at Kilgarth School is still riding the wave of success since receiving a special commendation from the judges in the SEN Provision Award category.

“It means a lot to us to have our hard work recognised and staff were keen to celebrate this fantastic achievement,” says headteacher Steven Baker. “A total of twenty staff and governors attended the fabulous awards ceremony and the celebrations are still ongoing - I'm sure the boost that this recognition has given us will continue well into the new year.

“Looking to the future we are hoping this award will raise our profile, help us to continue developing the capacity within our staff team and allow us to expand our provision to support more young people in the region.”

Educate Awards isn’t simply about the winning…

Each year judges face to tough decision of whittling the ever increasing number of high quality entries down to a competitive shortlist, and to feature amongst the nominations

on the night can also provide a welcome boost for schools.

“We were really pleased to be shortlisted in this category because we believe that we give students the opportunity to access different career paths that are outside of their social norm,” says Peter Fearon, the land-based sciences co-ordinator behind the successful farm at Bebington High Sports College.

With the project, which is now an “integral” part of day-to-day school life and is set to develop further in 2015, Peter adds: ”Many of our students have progressed to study further in the vocational subjects offered through the farm, with many of these gaining employment in the land-based sector.”

Preparations are now underway for the 2015 Educate Awards, which is already shaping up to be bigger and better than ever when it returns to Liverpool Cathedral on 20 November.

A full list of categories and details of how to enter will be available online at www.educateawards.co.uk soon.

Watch this space!

Categories announced for 2015 | www.educateawards.co.uk |

@EducateAwards

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Categories Announced Enter now www.educateawards.co.uk

t Most Inspirational Primary School t Most Inspirational Secondary School t Community Partnership Award t Outstanding Commitment to Sport in a Primary School t Outstanding Commitment to Sport in a Secondary School t Eco School Project of the Year t The Communication Award t Teacher of the Year t Spirit of Enterprise Award t Innovative and Creative Literacy Award t SEND Provision Award t Science Project of the Year t Outstanding Arts in a Primary School t Outstanding Arts in a Secondary School t Career Aspiration Award t WOW Recognition Award t Leadership Team of the Year t Outstanding Teaching of Life Skills t Innovation in Education Award

Title Sponsor

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Primary News

Celebrating top billing School among the top one per cent of all schools in the UK Pupils and staff at Halewood C of E Primary are celebrating after once again being named among the top 200 performing schools in the country.

Figures released by the Department for Education place the school among the top one per cent of all schools in the UK for attainment.

For the last four years, Halewood C of E Primary has also been named in The Times list of the best schools in the UK, thanks to its outstanding teaching and learning, and a culture in which children are encouraged to meet high expectations.

Headteacher Dave Smith is delighted that the school has been recognised again, putting the success down to the school’s culture, ethos and strategic direction, fully supported by parents, governors and staff - “Where children believe, achieve and succeed”.

He said: “It is really important to us as a school to have a positive and encouraging environment, for both staff and pupils. We have high expectations of our children and we all work very hard to help them achieve those expectations. We know each and every pupil very well and rigorously track their progress - no child is left behind.

“We are delighted to have been recognised as a school for the high performance that we have achieved over many years and in particular for last year’s outstanding SAT’s results. Our

Cllr Gary See, Knowsley Council’s cabinet member for Children and Family Services and Dave Smith, Headteacher of Halewood C of E Primary, with students celebrating their inclusion in The Times list of top 200 Performing Schools.

children work so hard to attain such highly standards and this is a celebration for the whole school community, staff, parents and governors that work together to maintain our positive and encouraging approach to learning.”

Cllr Gary See, Knowsley Council’s cabinet member for Children and Family Services, said: “Halewood C of E is a lovely school with strong leadership, outstanding staff and a very positive, encouraging atmosphere that clearly benefits all pupils.

“To be consistently recognised among the top performing schools in the country is a fantastic achievement and the school are rightly proud of this latest honour.”

Being ranked 126th for the attainment of Year 6 pupils caps a fantastic year for Halewood C of E Primary. In the last 12 months they have also gained a Leading Aspect Award for their Foundation Stage practise, Governor Quality Mark, CPLD Quality Mark for the continuous professional development of staff and Church School Partnership Award 2.

Double take Austrian pop singers The MonaLisa Twins visited St Luke’s C of E Primary School in Formby to meet pupils and share their love of music.

Headteacher Sharon Cowey, said: “They came to inspire our Year 4, 5 and 6 students and were impressed with the amount of our children who play an instrument.

“Their own instruments of choice are either guitar or ukulele”.

“They are one of the very few modern bands who write original songs in the 60’s beat music tradition, reviving the genre with a fresh twist without sounding pop-ish or trivial. They were huge Beatles fans”.

The core of the band are the 20-year-old actual twins named Mona and Lisa.

Originally from Austria, they recently moved to Liverpool, UK, their musical home.

But even before that they have travelled extensively, performing in the USA, Australia and UK in their teens.

They started out with cover songs on YouTube and released two CDs with covers in 2007 and 2008.

At 16 they decided to go for a professional music career and began to record their debut album ‘When We’re Together’ which got released in 2012.

The girls have been singing since the age of five and formed their band at the age of 14. They found their most recent band member – the drummer, busking on the street in Liverpool!

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Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

The MonaLisa Twins pictured with St Luke’s very own twin girls!

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Primary News

Heart of the community School welcomes back former pupil

Bishop Vincent Malone; Miss P Mullin OBE, chair of governors; Mayor Joe Anderson and headteacher Phil Stewart

Staff and pupils at St Vincent de Paul’s Catholic Primary School, Liverpool welcomed back a former pupil to open their newly extended hall.

The special guest was none other than Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson; Bishop Vincent Malone also officially blessed the school hall.

Headteacher Mr Phil Stewart, said: ‘We were very honoured to have Joe open the hall as he has played a major part in providing the funding, in recognition of this fact we have named the hall the Anderson Hall.

“We would also like to thank the Archdiocese for their help especially Bishop Malone who agreed to give the official blessing and to Chris Williams for his much valued help and guidance.

“To think that we were close to closing down a number of years ago to where we are now is indeed a credit to the teaching staff and community.

“The original hall, transformed from a building that was not fit for purpose, is now a focal point for the school, children can now eat together, we can hold assemblies and hold indoor activities as a whole school.

“It is a wonderful resource for pupils, staff and the whole community.”

Joe Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool, said: “I’ve been a governor at my old primary school, St Vincent de Paul’s, for 25 years and I love the school which is at the heart of a great community.

“It is a brilliant success story with three outstanding Ofsted inspections, a fantastic head in Phil Stewart, a dedicated staff and pupil roll that has risen from 80 to 270.

“I have fond memories of my time and it was a real honour to officially open Anderson Hall and receive such a warm welcome, as always”.

Take it as read The children of St John’s C of E Primary School, Crossens, were lucky enough to welcome a real-life author/illustrator team into their school for the grand opening of their brand new library.

Peter Lynas and Charlie Roberts, who wrote and illustrated ‘Madeleine Goes to the Moon’ delivered a book reading before they officially opened the library.

Mr Phil Thomson, headteacher at the school, said: “It is a fantastic opportunity for children to increase their love of reading for pleasure.

“Children will now be able to borrow from a range of fiction and nonfiction books.

“A huge thank you goes to our English subject leader, Michelle Cross who, together with a team of volunteers, has created a space in school where children can get lost in a book and then have it stamped out by one of our Year 6 librarians to enjoy further, at home with their family!”

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Primary News

A new chapter for youngsters

And the beat goes on at LIPA Primary School

Everton star helps to launch city reading scheme

Everton football start Samuel Eto’o joins pupils at Gwladys Street Primary School

Everton star Samuel Eto’o has given his backing to a book donation scheme delivered in partnership with Liverpool City Council’s City of Readers initiative and Everton in the Community.

Champions League winner Eto’o visited Gwladys Street Primary School to kick off the book donation campaign.

He donated copies of his own book, Birth of a Champion, and gives his backing to the scheme with the hope that thousands of books will be handed in and distributed to children across the city to improve literacy levels and create a new generation of readers.

Miss Nicola Booth, headteacher of Gwladys Street School, said: “We are delighted that Everton in the Community have joined with Gwladys Street Community Primary and Nursery School by using football as a tool to excite and stimulate the children to read for pleasure.

“It supports our school’s aims as we continue to create and inspire environments for learning. We know with this partnership the children will develop a love for reading and a lifelong skill.”

Councillor Lana Orr, who is the Mayoral lead for reading performance, said: “Sometimes books can get overlooked as presents, with children favouring the latest electronic trends or the must-have toy of the moment.

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“Getting in to the habit of reading at a young age is massively important – not only does it vastly improve literacy skills but it fires children’s imaginations and makes them more creative individuals.

“We’re hoping that people give generously to this scheme – whether it’s a well-thumbed story in good condition or a completely new book – so that we can engage with as many youngsters as possible and encourage them to make time for reading in their lives.

“I’m delighted such a high-profile star as Samuel Eto’o will be joining us for the launch, and I’m sure his support of the scheme will inspire people, young and old, to get involved.”

The book donation scheme is being organised in partnership with Everton in the Community who are currently delivering a reading project in Gwladys Street Primary School after receiving funding from the City of Readers.

Jackie Twort, from Everton in the Community, said: “We are proud to be involved in the City of Readers project.

Gwladys Street School is delighted we are supporting them, and the volunteers are so enthusiastic.

“It is such an easy project to deliver; however the benefits for the children are enormous, and it’s pleasing to have the football club, and such a high profile player on board. I really feel this project will be a great success”.

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Pupils of the newly-opened LIPA Primary School celebrated a cultural exchange with a Staffordshire school with a stunning display of drumming.

Led by the teachers and supported by parent and community musician Joe Wilson, the colourful event saw 20 Year 6 pupils from St Luke’s in Newcastleunder-Lyme joining the 52 LIPA reception year pupils in a riot of drumming, costumes, singing and samba as part of a celebration of both the completion of building work on the school’s brand new city centre facilities and of the children's achievements so far.

Greg Parker, headteacher at LIPA Primary School, said: “Not only were we delighted to play host to Joe and his wonderful drummers, but we were also delighted to celebrate the positive start our pupils have made to their school lives, as they begin to use project- and event-based learning to help them understand the world around them.”

Having opened its doors to its first pupils in September, LIPA Primary School is unique among schools in Liverpool and beyond in its combination of learning through the creative and performing arts to enrich teaching and learning in the early development of literacy and numeracy.

LIPA’s CEO and founding principal Mark Featherstone-Witty said: “Our primary youngsters learn by doing which is what our undergraduates do.

“We can now witness, in our own institution where, how and when the skills and attributes of a life time begin”.

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Primary News

Hats off to star Wayne Rooney returns to his old primary school Footballer Wayne Rooney paid a visit to his Croxteth primary school ahead of being presented with his 100th England cap.

The England captain surprised excited pupils at Our Lady and St Swithin’s Catholic Primary School – and gave each one an England shirt.

Teachers said he spent four hours at the school talking with youngsters, signing their shirts and Match Attax cards and listening to their hopes for the future.

Headteacher Sandra Hamilton said: “He was so easy to talk to and he wanted to spend as much time as possible with the kids. He said he loved the fact that the children looked so happy.”

“He has got every value that we value and he gives the kids belief.”

Sandra said the footballer’s visit was kept a secret from pupils – but they were given a hint about who their mystery guest might be.

She said: “He has sent us things like footballs, pictures and shirts but this is the first time he’s been in the

building since he left.

“He arrived, said hello to me and I felt like he took a little bit of a deep breath! He went into the hall and everybody just gave him a huge round of applause.

“It was emotional when he walked into the hall. He sat in the middle of them and it was like he’d never been away – he still looks like a schoolboy in his cap!”

Sandra Hamilton said the children – many of them aspiring footballers – wanted to talk to their idol about scoring goals and playing for England.

She said: “One little lad said to him “I play for Wigan so you’ll come back and ask me to sign your shirt!” and because he’s a lovely guy he said “I hope so”.

“He was very keen to talk

to them and he didn’t dampen the children’s ambitions or dreams.

“A lot of the kids are signed to different football clubs and if they tell me they want to be England captain I say “you can say that at this school!”.

“We’re really proud of Wayne. We think the world of him and we wish him well for the future.”

School children learn dog safety awareness Pupils from St Joseph the Worker Catholic Primary School, Kirkby were paid a visit from the Naturewatch Foundation as part of a dog safety workshop.

The workshops were carried out by a professional theatre-ineducation company and presented the children with a variety of everyday scenarios where they are often in the same vicinity as dogs.

The children acted out the characters and learnt how to safely interact with a dog and how to recognise when a dog is calm and happy.

Jennie Rudd, from Naturewatch Foundation said: “Children are being nipped or, worse, bitten by dogs due to a lack of knowledge about dog safety and dog behaviour.

“We visit primary schools to assist them with providing life-saving safety lessons to those most vulnerable to dog attacks – under 10 year olds. The lessons can be used in everyday life around pet dogs, friends’ and family’s pets and unknown dogs in public.

“For children who love dogs, it will make them think twice before cuddling every dog they see. For children who are afraid, it will equip them with knowledge to take control of situations without fear.

“Ultimately, children are taught to recognise risks and not put dogs into a position whereby they feel the need to protect themselves and potentially bite. The workshops will save children from severe injuries and even death.”

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Primary News

St Nicholas meet namesake A special honour for primary school On the eve of the feast day of St Nicholas, children attending St Nicholas Primary School, Mount Pleasant, were the first to see Liverpool John Moores University's new facial depiction of the saint.

St Nicholas was an historic 4thcentury Christian saint and Greek Bishop of Myra (Demre, part of modern-day Turkey) in Lycia.

He had a reputation for secret giftgiving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him, and so he became the model for Santa Claus.

In 1087, the relics of St Nicholas were transported to Bari Cathedral, in Italy.

Professor Caroline Wilkinson and Mark Roughley of the new Face Lab at LJMU's School of Art and Design have created a new facial depiction of St Nicholas using the latest 3D interactive technology, which depicts the face of a middle-aged man with a long grey beard, round head and square jaw.

St Nicholas also had a severely broken nose, which had healed asymmetrically, giving him a characteristic nose and rugged facial appearance.

Professor Wilkinson said: “This is the most realistic appearance of St Nicholas

based on all the skeletal and historical material. It is thrilling for us to be able to see the face of this famous 4th century Bishop.”

Deputy headteacher of St Nicholas Catholic Primary, Angela McKenna, said:

“The Year 5 and 6 children are very excited about seeing a reconstruction of St Nicholas, who obviously has great importance to all of us at the school.

“We are we were chosen to be the first to see the facial depiction”.

Hamlet comes to Prescot Pupils join in UK’s largest youth drama festival Our Lady’s Catholic Primary School in Prescot, performed two special performances of Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ in school at the end of November.

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During October, the same Year 6 children performed this specially abridged version of our most celebrated bard’s tale, at Liverpool’s Epstein Theatre as part of the National Schools

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Shakespeare Festival.

The Year 6 pupils from Our Lady’s joined 1,000 other schools both primary and secondary by performing to a paying audience in one of 150 theatres across England.

Having received rapturous applause at the Epstein the children had to wait patiently, due to regulations, for more than a calendar month before they were allowed to perform the play for a second time.

Headteacher, Haydn Boyle, enthused: “How wonderful it is to be part of the UK’s largest youth drama festival which empowers our children by raising their self-esteem, develops our teachers’ skills and attracts new audiences to Shakespeare’s works.

“This was a fitting tribute in 2014 as it marked the 450th anniversary of the “Bard’s” birth”.

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Secondary News

High flying pupils sample secondary life ‘Flight Day’ at Prescot school An uplifting day of fun experiments and new experiences gave primary pupils a taste of life at secondary school when they spent a day at Knowsley Park Centre for Learning.

More than 500 Year 6 children from schools across Knowsley and surrounds enjoyed a ‘Flight Day’ at the Prescot school, during which they made their own parachutes, designed beautiful butterfly wings, got up close to barn owls, and even tried out their own ‘flying’ techniques.

The day saw primary and secondary students working together on mini projects, and was a chance for the Year 6 pupils to see the fantastic facilities that Knowsley’s secondary schools have to offer.

The pupils were thrilled at the chance to get into a real science lab and find out more about the science behind flight, using the unlikely combination of nappies and feathers!

There were plenty of other activities, also based around the theme of flight in the drama studios, humanities and English departments. They even wrote their own poignant messages on ‘Doves of Peace’ in PSHCE (personal, social, health and citizenship education).

In technology, pupils labelled balloons and filled them with helium for a great balloon race. And the whole day was covered by students in the journalism

Yasmin, Year 11 prefect at Knowsley Park, with Sharna Lewis, (left) and Natalie Rigby, 10, from Prescot Primary making paper balloon cut outs team, who reported the highlights as the activities progressed.

Judy Walker, headteacher of Knowsley Park Centre for Learning, said: “Once again, flight day was a great success. It is always lovely to welcome in pupils from neighbouring primaries and let them find

out first hand what it’s like to learn in a secondary school like ours.

“All the subjects took a really imaginative approach to the theme of flight, and the result was some really fun sessions which I’m sure the children learnt an awful lot from.”

A year of celebration Students from Archbishop Beck Catholic College attended the most recent Roscoe Lecture at St Georges Hall. The speaker was Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, leading barrister and human rights expert.

The lecture formed part of Liverpool’s John Moores University Roscoe Lecture series and was also part of the Archbishop Beck Catholic College “Year of Celebration” commemorating the opening of the new college campus.

Two debating society members Jon-Joe Walsh and James Murray 26

represented the college.

Speaking after the event, assistant headteacher Bruce Hicks, said: “This was a very engaging, hard hitting and emotive presentation, we actively encourage our young people not only to develop excellent standards in their academic life but we also provide opportunities for them to develop into and have a clear understanding of what a good citizen means in the Britain of today” The title of the Lecture was “Searching for justice in an unjust world”

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Students with the Baroness at the statue of William Roscoe in St Georges Hall.

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Secondary News

Well spotted!

Liverpool school break world record

A Liverpool secondary school successfully set a new Guinness World Record for the most number of people dressed as a dog at one time.

Staff and students from North Liverpool Academy, in Everton took part in the fancy dress event hoping to beat the previous record of 275 people. In total, 455 people gathered in their onesies and black and white face paint to participate in the world record.

Karen Walker from Liverpool Schools Sport Partnership was on hand to officially count the Dalmatians and ensure all participants qualified – all outfits had to have a nose and ears.

The event, attended by Lord Mayor councillor Erica Kemp, raised an impressive £1,000 which will be split amongst many local charities, including the Benevolent Fund for Merseyside Retired Police Dogs, Changing Lives on Our Door Step (CLOUD) in Widnes and the Missionaries of Charity Homeless Shelter in Liverpool city centre.

Andrew Devey, the school’s extended services co-ordinator, said: “Pretty much every pupil has dressed up and most of the teachers have participated – so we’ve had classes with everyone in their Dalmatian onesies.

“It’s been an amazing day. Everyone has been very excited about it and they have really got into it.”

Rebecca Jones, marketing manager at North Liverpool Academy, added: “It’s great for our kids that they will be able to say they’re world record holders. It has been such a fantastic end to a great year for the school”.

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A sister act with distinction

Three sisters at Merchant Taylors’ Schools have each received Distinctions in their LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts) examinations.

The Clark sisters Christie, 17, Evie, 6, and Verity, 5, are at varying stages of the LAMDA syllabus which is designed to develop an appreciation of literature and drama and support creative, social and intellectual development.

Youngest sister Verity has just begun her journey after completing the Introductory Award, whilst eldest sister Christie is at the end following her final Grade 8 examination.

Earning a Distinction means that Christie now has a perfect set of results and has obtained the highest level possible for every grade (1-8).

This success follows Christie winning a place at world-leading youth arts organisation the National Youth Theatre in 2014.

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Secondary News

Life changing Ghana trip School help those in need

Rainford High Sixth Form focused their annual volunteers visit to Ghana on building libraries and also presenting ten schools with a class set of geometry equipment which had been sent as a gift from the Friends of Rainford High.

Rainford High group leader Hazel Duffy said: “The staff and students at the schools were very grateful, they expected us to come along with other Thrive Africa volunteers to build and paint the libraries but the gifts from The Friends of Rainford High meant that we didn’t just leave them with the resources to improve their English, but also their maths as well”.

As well as working in schools, the team also visited Kamasi Orphanage to donate the colourful bedding that they had collected to brighten up the childrens’ rooms.

Hazel said: “Some of the children there had no bed or mattress and so had to sleep on the concrete floor but they were very happy to be given the bedding with popular cartoon characters on them”.

A donation of £70, raised by one of the teaching assistants Lesley Smith, was spent on baby formula for the new born babies at the orphanage.

Lesley gave the money to the team to spend on whatever they thought would be most useful.

After a week of being in Ghana the students decided that the immunity the babies would gain by having the formula instead of just milk would help to stop them from getting ill.

Lesley was delighted to hear what the money was spent on and the students have come back with some ideas for next year’s team.

Students from Rainford High Sixth Form with pupils from one of the Ghana schools they visited

Foundation stone ceremony for new St Hilda’s Staff and pupils from St Hilda's were delighted to welcome some very special visitors to the site of their new school.

Bishop of Warrington, the Right Reverend Richard Blackburn and Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, joined governors, local councillors and the building team from Morgan Sindall as honoured guests at the new school building.

The sun shone as the Bishop said a prayer of dedication for the new site and the foundation stone was laid.

St Hilda’s have retained their leafy location next to Sefton Park, with the new site opening in September 2015.

Right: Bishop Richard Blackburn, Eleanor Benson, headteacher and Mayor Joe Anderson.

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Secondary News

Liverpool school welcomes US Embassy Students from a Liverpool school and sixth-form college picked the brains of representatives from the Embassy of the United States of America during a recent visit to Merseyside.

Economic counsellor, Kelly AdamsSmith, and colleagues from the Embassy recently met with students from The Studio school for a frank question and answer session to explore students’ opinions of the U.S. The state-of-the-art school that specialises in creative media, gaming and digital technology was hand-picked from thousands of schools and

X-Factor star visits school

St Ambrose Barlow Catholic High School welcomed singer Katy Brucknell to the school.

Katy who qualified for the XFactor finals in 2011 spent an afternoon at the school where she treated students to a variety of songs and she also took the time to play games and sign autographs.

One student commented: “It was great to have an X-Factor finalist sing live in school. She has done really well and I hope her new single is a hit”.

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academies across England to celebrate British-American relations.

Naomi Roose-Lloyd, cultural assistant, said: “It was great to listen to the thoughts and opinions of the sixth form students. We were very impressed by the topics of discussion and very much look forward to continuing work with the school moving forward.”

The event at The Studio school was part of a two-day visit to Liverpool for the Embassy of the United States that included meetings with key-figures from the University of Liverpool, representatives from the city’s museums and Everton Football Club.

The team, comprising of Kelly, Naomi Roose-Lloyd and Paul O’Hagan, economic analyst, will continue to visit Liverpool as part of the Embassy’s

outreach program.

Jade Parkinson-Hill, director of enterprise at The Studio school, said: “It was a delight to welcome representatives from the Embassy of the United States to the school, and a privilege for The Studio school to be selected from thousands of schools from across England as a site for their visit.

“We actively encourage our students to be self-aware and proactive, enabling them to explore positive mind-sets that are essential for the industries of tomorrow.

“The inter-personal skills our students exhibited in this Q&A session with the Embassy of the United States showcase them as mature young adults who are excited by a digital, entrepreneurial future.”

(From L to R) Representatives from the United States of America, Naomi RooseLloyd, Culture Affairs Assistant, Kelly Adams-Smith, Economic Counsellor, Paul O’Hagan, Economic Analyst.

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Secondary News

Pupils reach new heights Academy pupils break geography mapping world record Geography students from The Belvedere Academy became record breakers when they took part in the world’s biggest data mapping event.

The project, supported by the Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST) in conjunction with Esri UK, involved geography students from the 24 GDST schools and two academies plot location data on a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) map alongside answers to questions about life in their local area.

In total, over 11,500 students took part, including 200 from the Belvedere Academy and is a new Esri world record.

The event was organised by GDST / Royal High School Bath geography teacher, Raphael Heath.

Having received confirmation of the world record, he said: “This is a fantastic achievement which wouldn’t have been possible without the support of pupils from The Belvedere Academy.

“Just like the world around us, geography teaching is constantly evolving. By inputting their own data,

students were able to see how their location and viewpoints form part of a wider pattern. We’re all connected – GIS mapping helps us see that.”

In addition to anonymously plotting their own location, students were asked questions about their quality of life and local environment, all of which were inputted on a live, online map.

Once all the data has been submitted, students will be able to use online GIS mapping applications to examine the patterns which emerge.

They will also be able to compare

these results with other sources, for example the UK Census data, to explore why there may be variations in quality of life in different parts of the country.

Jason Sawle from Esri UK, said: “I would like to congratulate Mr Heath and all the students who were involved in this world record.

“It is a fantastic achievement that just goes to show how useful and informative GIS mapping data can be.”

The live map, which includes data from students around the world, can be viewed at: http://bit.ly/1H8UlNG

RAISING ASPIRATIONS MILITARY STYLE A group of our Year 9 pupils at Calderstones School have been working on a weekly basis with a UK military School.

The aim of the project is to raise each pupil’s self esteem and personal expectations.

The former soldiers have delivered challenging activities to enable the

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pupils to develop individual strengths such as confidence, leadership and team working expertise.

So far the pupils have engaged in classroom and practical activities, learnt numerous new skills and are thoroughly enjoying every minute!

Although early days, the impact of the work by the team is vast and the boys

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are eager to succeed in the challenges of the programme and already a noticeable improvement in their aspirations is apparent.

The pupils involved are extremely excited about a residential which will held in February, where they can put all their new skills to the test!

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Secondary News

A life of ups and downs A big future lies ahead for Samuel Ramos Student life can be full of ups and downs and that is definitely the case for Sacred Heart High School pupil Samuel Ramos.

Samuel looks to have a massive future ahead of him in the sport of trampolining, as he is already ranked number one in Britain for double mini Trampoline.

It is a fantastic feat for the youngster, who beat the current 2014 British champion out in Daytona, USA, to claim pole position.

As if that was not enough, the talented young gymnast is also ranked number 2 in Britain for trampoline in his age group, number 10 in the world for double mini trampoline and number 13 in the world for the Olympic sport trampoline in his 11-12 age group.

Proud mum, Anita, said: “Samuel has had a wonderful 1st World age competition, competing for GB out in Daytona Beach. This was an amazing achievement and one he has been working hard for all year.

“The competition was fierce, with 33 elite gymnasts competing from all over the world.

“In a sport such as gymnastics, at junior elite level, a gymnast that has one more year’s experience has an advantage, so it is fantastic that Samuel is already ranking so high up at 11.

“His GB coaches and all his family are so proud of him. He held his nerve completing in all four of his routines, which can’t have been easy in such a big arena.”

Samuel already has his sights on further glory in next year’s World Championships. He said: “After competing in America, my goal was to come home, get straight back into training and then focus on competing at the 2015 World Championships.

“My aim is to make the finals, which is the top eight scoring gymnasts, which would put me in contention for a medal.”

What makes Sam’s achievements even more impressive is the fact he only started competing in the sport two years ago.

Prior to that, he was coached from the age of three by his father and has attended the prestigious City of Liverpool Gymnastic Club since he was nine.

Mum has been quick to recognise the support Samuel has received at Sacred Heart and has thanked the College for the help and backing he has received, adding: “Samuel has been at Sacred 36

Trampoline champ Samuel Ramos ranked number one for Britain

Heart only a short while and his father and I are extremely grateful for the immediate interest and support the school has shown in Samuel.

“Without the school’s support and allowing Samuel to train in school time,

it would make it almost impossible for him to reach his goals “At junior level in any elite sport, it is all about keeping the person focused, interested and motivated so they can stay in the sport for as long as possible”.

School wins major design award

Notre Dame Catholic College has won an award at the inaugural Education Estates awards, which recognise excellence in education built environment.

The college was the first to benefit from Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson’s £169 million education investment programme and was officially opened in October 2013.

The £15 million building on Great Homer Street in Everton beat off six other shortlisted schools from across the UK to be named the ‘Project of the Year’ by Cities Minister Greg Clark MP. Notre Dame was also shortlisted in the Innovation in Delivering Value category.

Mayor Anderson said: “I am delighted that Notre Dame has won this award and testament to all those involved in my plan to invest in the city’s schools to deliver a first class education for generations of children.”

“Our children deserve the very best facilities, and this school showcases some of the latest technology to make sure pupils receive the most from their learning.”

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www.fazakerleyhigh.org

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Meet the Headteacher Phil Lloyd, Liverpool Life Sciences UTC (University Technology College)

When Liverpool Life Sciences UTC (University Technology College) opened in September 2013, it became the UK’s first school to specialise in science and healthcare for 14 to 19-year-old students. And whilst the prospect of setting up a whole new school from scratch, let alone one that’s venturing into new territory, may seem bold; to principal Phil Lloyd it posed the perfect opportunity.

Positive progression

by Natasha Young

P

hil Lloyd had already achieved a long and varied career in education before his current position at the helm of Liverpool Life Sciences UTC brought him to the city, as he’d spent around 20 years fulfilling both school and local authority roles across the West Midlands with a particular focus on his subject area of science.

“[Life Sciences UTC] was a pretty unique opportunity in terms of developing a new school, which I’d done previously so some people would say I’m a little bit addicted to that kind of thing.

But starting a new school from scratch, focusing on opportunities in science for young people, was too good to miss really,” says Phil.

“Science education and teaching were my passions and combining the two, the Life Sciences UTC struck a chord,” says Phil, who had also developed some previous experience in working with new models of schools.

Having moved to Liverpool in December 2012 to begin laying the foundations of Life Sciences UTC, Phil’s task hasn’t been without its challenges.

As he recalls, the first was being faced with the prospect of having to “prepare the pupils and the parents with the vision and ethos of the school” before it had any physical presence in the city.

For instance, he began his career as a newly qualified teacher at Shropshire’s then new Thomas Telford School – one of the original city technology colleges which were a “precursor” to UTCs; and before eventually becoming part of a project team setting up the Thomas Telford-sponsored Sandwell Academy in 2006, where he took the role of deputy head.

“The first students to join the school in September 2013 had taken a risk,” says the principal. “They’d joined a new unproven establishment, they bought into the philosophy, they bought into the vision, they bought into the idea of what we were about and the links with the industry there; but I think that will continue.”

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Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

“

Science education and teaching were my passions and combining the two, the Life Sciences UTC struck a chord

”

Then there’s the new concept of pupils changing schools in Year 10, which Phil understands will “take a while to establish” amongst both parents and pupils.

As Liverpool Life Sciences UTC sits alongside existing schools and academies though, offering an early pathway for young people who “have a passion for science and healthcare and see the opportunities with links with industry as a mechanism for building their future,” it appears to be successfully making its mark amongst the area’s educational offering.

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In November last year the UTC was awarded two prestigious accolades at the 2014 Educate Awards – the Career Aspiration Award and Science Project of the Year.

“The Educate Awards for the science project and career aspiration are probably the two most important strands for the school and so that meant a great deal for the work that the team has done over the first 18 months, recognising that we’ve still got a long way to go but underpinning what we’re about,” says Phil. “We’re about specialising in science but also healthcare, and that career aspiration in terms of the end goal for students, the positive progression.

“We make a promise to students that if they work with us over two or four years there’ll be an apprenticeship, a job or a higher education place. With that end goal in mind we build the curriculum around students, we give them a wider range of opportunities whether it’s through our culture and enrichment programme or whether it’s through the science projects and work placements, and it’s about enhancing the opportunities for them to move onto their next steps.”

Looking ahead to the summer, when the Liverpool Life Sciences UTC will see its first students complete Year 12 and take their next steps towards careers, Phil says their destinations are where the school’s “success will be measured”.

However, he suggests there are already signs of a “very good start” for the school.

“What’s great to see is things like the university offers coming through now, and unconditional offers from some universities based on personal statements and projects that students have produced. Students applying for medicine and biochemistry and healthcare related courses like nursing and midwifery are receiving successful offers so, for me, that’s an indication of where students will be in the summer.”

year as the specialist school recruits students from across Merseyside. From 170 pupils in its first year to 450 in the current academic year and expectations of just over 600 in the next year, it’s nearing closer to its full 800-student capacity and Phil remains dedicated to ensuring it achieves its goals.

With Year 12 of the UTC already oversubscribed, the rest of the school’s population is said to be growing year on

“When this school is successful or has the proven track record and is oversubscribed, that’ll be the most

significant thing for me in my career,” adds Phil. “At this point in time I’m very proud of the fact we’ve established an extraordinary team of staff who are working with an exceptional cohort of students.

“My focus over the coming years is this school and making this as exceptional as I can, and I haven’t looked beyond that at this point.”

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Training new teachers

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-------------------------------------------Words by Natasha Young

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Training new teachers

So how is Merseyside’s education sector working to ensure that children across the region have equal access to top quality teachers?

Darren Gidman

Dr Jane Moore

Paul Daniels

St John Bosco, Teaching School Director

Liverpool Hope University, Head of School Teacher Education

Springwood Heath Primary School, Headteacher & Joint CEO of the Liverpool Learning Partnership

And how can we ensure that talented trainees remain in the area once they have qualified?

According to educational equality charity Teach First, the experience of quality teaching can help set a child off on the path to a promising future.

“We know it takes time and persistence to change the story of a child’s lifetime,” states the organisation, which works to recruit and support new teachers to serve low-income communities, adding: “We believe that this can start with the dedication and leadership of a great teacher who inspires a child to work towards the future they want.”

With this in mind, the charity has spent the past decade helping to enhance teaching provisions in schools across England and Wales, and Merseyside has been among the areas to reap the benefits.

In November 2014 Teach First published its nationwide Impact Report, looking back at the effect it has had on education since it placed its first secondary school participants in London in 2003.

The publishing of the report coincided with Teach First’s milestone achievement that the 6,000 teachers who had been trained and supported via its two-year programme – all of whom matched the strong academic criteria for the scheme including a 2.1 degree or above - had now taught more than one million pupils in disadvantaged communities in total.

The report hailed the impact of the Teach First

“We want to get those at the cutting edge of teaching and develop those who really want to be in the profession and really want to make a difference in young people’s lives…”

Darren Gidman St John Bosco Teaching School Director

partnership at one Liverpool school – Dingle Vale’s University Academy - as particularly positive.

With 75% of the school’s 700 pupils receiving free school meals – the highest proportion of any school in the country, according to the study – its first four years of partnership with Teach First is said to have seen the total of pupils receiving five A*-C GCSE grades rise from 40% to 72%.

“Teach First graduates have been at the

forefront of everything we have achieved in recent times; from the cohort of Year 9 pupils who have already gained an A*in maths GCSE and who will be starting their A-level course two years early, to the Year 10s who are being coached for Oxbridge entry,” said Larry Wilson, a vice principal at the school in 2012 in a quote highlighted from The Times.

Another Liverpool school which is training teachers through the Teach First programme is St John Bosco Arts College, a school which is also working collaboratively to develop quality teachers across the city and beyond as part of its role as a teaching school.

The teaching school was formed in 2013 after St John Bosco received two consecutive ‘outstanding’ Ofsted inspections, therefore positioning it well to offer guidance and training to new teachers and fellow schools on what makes an outstanding teacher.

“We want to get those at the cutting edge of teaching and develop those who really want to be in the profession and really want to make a difference in young people’s lives,” says Darren Gidman, St John Bosco’s teaching school director.

St John Bosco Arts College itself is welcoming newcomers to the sector through a range of channels as well as Teach First, including PGCE training courses and the more “in-house” style school-led School Direct programme which provides work-based training throughout.

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Training new teachers

“Our belief is that every child, no matter what their background and the other factors in their lives, should have access to the very best education…”

Dr Jane Moore Liverpool Hope University, Head of School Teacher Education

The latter is an initiative which Darren says the teaching school is heavily involved in, and is now working collaboratively to help provide trainee teachers for schools right across the area.

“One of the things we’re doing is recruiting for all schools across Liverpool so we’ll collaborate with other schools and they’ll be involved in the interview processes,” says Darren.

Such a focus on collaboration appears to be a common key factor of improving and maintaining teaching standards.

Phil Daniels, headteacher at Springwood Heath Primary School, is also joint CEO of the Liverpool Learning Partnership – an organisation which he says supports in the region of 60,000 learners as it brings together local primary, secondary and special schools as well as academies, free schools and private and voluntary nurseries.

“Liverpool is a very fortunate place for teachers to work because of the support mechanisms,” says Phil. “Not only is it through normal teaching programmes but through school to school support and the desire of the universities and the schools to work very closely together.”

Liverpool Hope University sees around 400-500 trainee teachers graduate each year, as it delivers an undergraduate programme for primary school teachers, PGCE courses for secondary school teachers and it also runs School Direct routes into the profession.

The university’s head of school teacher

education, Dr Jane Moore also suggests that working closely in partnership is important when it comes to not only ensuring that the expected standards are being achieved, but also to enable that a child’s education is consistent from primary to secondary school .

“Schools come together at Hope for steering meetings, for example,” says Dr Jane. “In some groups there’ll be networks of primary and secondary schools working together in alliance.”

According to Dr Jane the university also works closely with schools in its aim to provide them with the “best possible trainees”; trainees who have made it through Hope’s “very robust selection procedures” to ensure they become the best teachers.

“Our belief is that every child, no matter what their background and the other factors in their lives, should have access to the very best education and our latest Ofsted report says that’s what we do,” she adds. “Our teachers go out with that distinctive quality of teaching the whole child.”

But it’s not just down to the initial training of new teachers to ensure that high quality education is delivered to pupils. Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is also important to success.

Whilst Liverpool Hope University offers CPD provisions at Masters level, Darren at St John Bosco believes that a teacher’s training should be “lifelong”.

“We’ve got something called succession planning and leadership, which is another area of the teaching school,” he says. “We’re really trying to hone in on the talents of our staff, and develop those talents so that it supports them for that next step on the career ladder.”

He goes on to explain: “Research and development is another area of the teaching school, and what we’re trying to do all the time is look at new and innovative ways to ensure that teaching and learning is as outstanding as it possibly can be.”

But once city schools and organisations have invested their resources into creating the best teachers, what can be done to encourage those professionals to remain in the local area’s education sector?

Whilst Dr Jane Moore once again points to the university’s strong partnerships which schools, as successful placements can pave the way for job opportunities for the best trainees, and also an onging network of support for qualified teachers spanning beyond the early

years of their career, Phil Daniels is optimistic about a new Liverpool teacher charter mark.

He says the Liverpool Learning Partnership is currently working with School Direct trainees through the teaching schools in delivering the initiative, which came about as a result of the Mayor setting up an education commission two years ago.

It’s a module which Phil explains is “preparing teachers to be aware of the advantages of working in the Liverpool area with a view to keeping the talent that exists within the training establishments within the city”.

Although the initiative is in the prototype stage, he adds: “It’s a very exciting development, one we feel will go a long way to making sure Liverpool does retain a high proportion of a very large number of teacher trainees it actually produces.”

“Preparing teachers to be aware of the advantages of working in the Liverpool area with a view to keeping the talent that exists within the training establishments within the city” Phil Daniels Springwood Heath Primary School Headteacher & Joint CEO of the Liverpool Learning Partnership

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Secondary News

New look for Girls’ College

Starbooks at Litherland High School

Delivering a modern curriculum

Headteacher Julia Tinsley looks around the new buildings with pupils

Work is complete on the construction of the new £7 million Holly Lodge Girls’ College in West Derby in Liverpool.

The scheme has seen a new main teaching block built comprising new humanities classrooms, arts, music and drama spaces including an activity hall, and a Sixth Form centre with a central atrium and café area.

The aim at Holly Lodge has been to reduce the number of school buildings, some of which were over 100 years old and unsuited to delivering a modern curriculum.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said: “This is great news for current and future pupils at Holly Lodge and will help transform their education.

“This investment in Holly Lodge Girls’ College is much needed to make sure pupils get the most out of their learning, as the old school had simply become unmanageable in terms of the number, quality and location of the buildings.”

There is also a new half-sized floodlit

artificial grass pitch which will be made available to the local community.

Headteacher Julia Tinsley said: “Our pupils and staff absolutely love our new buildings and we simply can’t wait to start teaching in them.

“We have been really anxious to make sure that the new buildings enhance the beautiful campus on which the school is built, and maintain the unique character of Holly Lodge.

“As well as getting much-needed new accommodation and ICT facilities, it will also be a much more environmentally friendly school and will cost us less to heat, maintain and repair.”

The new building is arranged in proximity to the five buildings which are being retained, greatly reducing lost teaching time as a result of pupils having to walk long distances between lessons.

Around a third of the existing site at the front nearest Queens Drive will be sold when the work is complete, to help contribute towards the costs of the Schools Investment Programme.

History comes alive Year 9 students from St John Bosco High School visited the Museum of Liverpool to take part in a World War One Event.

The students took part in a number of different educational and engaging activities including a drama performance, handling artefacts and questioning sources sessions and a World War One tour.

Students really enjoyed the range of activities they took part in, enjoying trying on uniforms and equipment like gas masks and making a poppy for remembrance. It was particularly poignant as the event took place on Armistice Day. The trip provided the students with the foundation knowledge in preparation of the World War One key stage three topic they are going on to study, giving them a practical introduction to the subject.

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Millionare - Olivia Preston, Year 8

The new ‘Starbooks’ resource area at Litherland High has become the control centre for their brand new Accelerated Reader scheme!

Accelerated Reader is a new reading programme that all students in Years 7 and 8 are following.

The programme encourages students to read books which are specially selected for them whilst allowing teachers to monitor students’ vocabulary growth, literacy skills and reading.

At Litherland High they have more than 6000 books for students to choose from so there is always something for everyone!

Once a student has completed a book, quizzes help to check comprehension and encourages them to read more books. For every 100% scored a certificate is awarded and they are entered into a prize draw!

Special rewards are given to those students who are in the Millionaires’ Club. Members of this club are students who have read over a million words!

This club has just welcomed its first member, Olivia Preston in Year 8.

So far, Accelerated Reader has been a great success and their aim is to improve reading levels across the school, however more importantly they want to encourage a love of reading in students which will stay with them throughout the rest of their lives.

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Meet the Headteacher Heather Duggan, Archbishop Blanch School

Some teachers can go an entire career without being given the chance to help design and implement an entirely new school.

At Archbishop Blanch, headteacher Heather Duggan is experiencing it for the second time in as many years.

Building for the future

by Stephen Hurrell

H

aving left her role as deputy head at St John Bosco, where she was also lead on the new school build, Heather Duggan took her first headship at Archbishop Blanch in the city centre, a school with an enviable reputation but a lack of space in its cramped current site.

Luckily for its pupils, Heather has arrived in the final year at its site. In September 2015 the pupils will decamp to a new £16m purpose built facility a short distance away on Earle Road.

“It would be wrong to say the new school wasn’t a draw,” she says, speaking on the day she was due to attend a meeting where many of the interior aspects of the school will be signed off.

“It was something I did enjoy and it’s not something that would normally fall into the portfolio of teachers. I always said that when you go to teacher training college you’re not taught how to design and build a new school. The experience that you do get going through the process is immense and it really does

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help to address what it is that you believe is right with respect to teaching and learning and then reshape what that can look like in a new build.”

Heather says dealing with new architects and contractors mean the experience is completely different to St John Bosco, and much of the work had already been done. However, she was still able to put her mark on the build during her first term at the school.

“I was able to come in at the exciting bit when we’re starting to discuss the interior design and the colours and the furniture. I have been able to have an input and so the leadership team and I along with the staff and a lot of the children, particularly through the student council, have been in regular discussions with regards to the new school.”

The new school will be ‘light and airy’ with classrooms and open spaces, including large spaces for assemblies and drama events. Catering for children from 62 feeder schools, the facilities will be extensive – a far cry from the current setup that requires a minibus to fields if the school wishes to do outdoor sports.

Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

“

I think the girls are more comfortable in a single sex environment – not always – but that’s been my experience here

”

It will include a new gym and sports hall, dance studios and a full performance theatre with a proper rig and lighting. “If you’re going to teach drama you should teach it properly in an environment that should be industry standard, “ says Heather. “We’re going to have a brand new 3G pitch outside and playing fields and we’re going to be right in the heart of the community as well.”

However, Heather insists the new school was not the main draw when it came to taking the role of headteacher.

She says: “Archbishop Blanch has a fantastic reputation anyway in the city.

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It’s an all-girls’ school and I do really believe that children do excel in single sex education. I’ve seen that at Bosco and I’ve seen that here. So I suppose it was the whole package of where the school was currently at really sat with my vision for education and my ethos in terms of what I believe.”

Archbishop Blanch is a Church of England school, although students from multiple faiths attend. The school is big on community values, with a community aspect to the curriculum and the chance to learn about different faiths.

Heather says the school also has one of the strongest science departments in the city and this is backed up by the number of children that go on to engineering and science courses at university. Putting it down to ‘good science teaching’, she believes the

same-sex philosophy of the school is reaping benefits in every area.

“I think the girls are more comfortable in a single sex environment – not always – but that’s been my experience here and in my previous school as well. From year 7 children are exposed to high quality science. We’re doing lots of practicals and they enjoy it. They’re not exposed to this idea that women don’t go into science so they don’t see it as the issue. Girls can do it if they believe they can.”

The school is not entirely same-sex; the thriving sixth form is mixed and this means extra planning when it comes to a new school build to ensure study rooms, breakout areas and classrooms are able to continue its success.

“One thing we have done is to make

sure we plan in sufficient space for the sixth form. Because it’s big, full and healthy and because it’s successful we thought it was important that they’ve got their own identity and space in the heart of the new school.”

Spending two days a week on a new school build, getting to know the staff and pupils and getting to grips with school policies is keeping Heather busy but she is relishing the role.

She says: “Obviously the previous head had been here a long time so with change brings apprehension but the staff and children have welcomed me.

They’ve been very open about wanting to move the school forward and I’ve not come up against any negativity at all. If everybody is working for the same goal then we can all move forward and the new school will be a success.”

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News

Primary school places set to be increased Increase in birth rate results in shortfall Plans to expand the number of primary school places in six areas of Liverpool to deal with increased demand are set to be approved.

The city faces a shortfall of up to 300 reception class places by September 2017 due to a growth in population and an increase in the birth rate. By 2019, the total primary school population in Liverpool is expected to have risen by around 4,400 pupils.

The city council has received £15.4 million of funding from the Government to help address the issue, and the cabinet is to consider proposals for phase one of an expansion that will create an additional 150 places by September 2015 in the areas facing the greatest demand.

The primary schools chosen in Church, Picton, Princes Park, Riverside, Wavertree and Belle Vale meet the Government’s strict criteria for funding to expand each over the next seven years.

They are judged ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’

by Ofsted, have consistent and sustainable demand and are unable to serve the local area because demand for places outstrips supply.

Dovedale Infant and Junior Schools in Church will be amalgamated on their existing sites and an additional form of entry will be created to take its admission intake up from 90 to 120 pupils, providing more places for local families and meaning brothers and sisters don’t have to attend separate schools due to a lack

Councillor Jane Corbett, Cabinet member for children’s services of places. For the September 2014 intake, the school had 55 children on its waiting list.

In Picton, St Anne’s Catholic Primary which has 24 children on the waiting list, and Smithdown Primary, which has 44, will see an increase in intake from 30 to 60.

In Princes Park, St Silas Church of England Primary will see its intake increased from 30 to 45, as will St Cleopas Church of England Primary in Riverside which had 54 applications for 30 places.

Christ the King Catholic Primary in Wavertree, which has 23 children on its

waiting list, will see its reception intake increased from 45 to 60 pupils, as will St Paschal Baylon Catholic Primary in Belle Vale, which was oversubscribed by 58 applications.

Councillor Jane Corbett, cabinet member for children’s services, said: “The expansion is good news as it is indicative of the successful regeneration of Liverpool which means the city’s population is growing again for the first time in many decades.

“Combined with the increased birth rate, there is additional demand for school places and we need to take action to make sure parents and carers are able to secure a place at their local primary school.

“This is about taking action now to tackle the areas where we know there is the greatest demand, to alleviate some of the pressure. The schools that we have identified meet the Government’s very strict criteria for this funding.

“We know from the consultation that some local residents are concerned about the knock on effect for parking and traffic and we will be looking carefully at this as part of the process.”

If approved at Cabinet, a further period of consultation will take place following the publication of a statutory notice and a final decision taken in March 2015.

A second set of proposals to create a further 150 reception class places will be announced in spring 2015.

SCHOOL CYCLING AND SCOOTING COMPETITION RETURNS The UKs largest inter-school cycling and scooting competition, The Big Pedal, is set to return in 2015 the charity Sustrans announced.

The Big Pedal (March 2 – 20) is open to nurseries, primary and secondary schools and challenges them to compete against one another to make the most journeys to school by bike and scooter over 15 days.

Run by charity Sustrans and funded by the Bicycle Association on behalf of the cycle industry through its Bike Hub scheme, The Big Pedal has become the UK’s largest cycling and scooting competition.

Last year over 1,500 schools signed up to take part and pupils, teachers, 48

parents, and siblings made over a million journeys (1,142,374) to school on their bikes and scooters in just 10 days.

Ben Merry, Programme Development Officer at Sustrans said: “The Big Pedal is fun, inclusive and it helps schools to encourage whole families to lead more active lives, as well as reducing car traffic and pollution around the school gates.

“Although the competition runs for three weeks, it has a lasting effect on the way that the school community travel to school; last year 76% of schools who took part in the Big Pedal said that pupils continued to cycle and scoot to school following the event.”

By signing up to The Big Pedal schools

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will receive a wall-chart to record their progress, whilst a range of resources designed to support schools are available in the teachers section of the Sustrans website.

Winning schools will receive prizes including bike and scooter stunt shows and equipment.

Phillip Darnton, executive director of the Bicycle Association, said: “The Big Pedal, now in its fifth year, is three weeks of fun – and a lot more besides. I hope that schools will sign up right now and be ready for The Big pedal when it starts on 2 March”.

To register your school go to: www.bigpedal.org.uk

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News

£23 million boost to primary school sport Extra funding to transform PE lessons Primary schools across the north west were given a fresh £23million funding boost to transform PE lessons for tens of thousands of pupils.

Headteachers have already used the PE and Sports Premium – a fund worth more than £150million a year - to recruit hundreds of extra specialist PE teachers, buy new equipment and offer a wider selection of sports and free after school clubs.

Research has shown that nine out of 10 schools have already improved the quality of their PE lessons as a result of the funding – and more than 90 per cent reported improvements in children’s health, behaviour and lifestyle.

As a result, figures show that on average primary schools pupils are spending more time in PE lessons. Last year pupils spent an average of 122 minutes every week doing PE – up 13 minutes on the previous year.

Minister for children and families Edward Timpson said: “As part of our plan for education, we want all children to get into the habit of playing and enjoying sport in primary school as it can help instil confidence, discipline and determination.

“Whether a child is a potential future Olympic champion or a keen amateur like me – I want them all to be given the chance to fulfil their sporting potential.”

The funding, introduced in 2013, goes directly to primary school headteachers so that they can decide how best to use it to provide PE and sporting activities for pupils.

Delamere Church of England Academy in Kelsall, Cheshire, has used the PE and Sports Premium funding to appoint a specialist PE teacher so every pupil has two hours of high-quality PE classes each week.

The school holds daily ‘wake and shake’ classes and there is an exciting

Edward Timpson - Minister for children and families

after school PE programme – including classes in yoga, boxercise and ju jit su every day of the week.

Headteacher Steve Docking said: “We have always invested heavily in PE at all levels to encourage all children to have a healthy attitude towards sport and competition.

“The additional funding ensured that we were able to employ a full-time sports specialist fully qualified teacher who has taken sport at our school to the next level.”

ARCHBISHOP OF LIVERPOOL VISITS CARMEL Staff and students at Carmel were delighted to welcome His Grace Malcolm McMahon into college.

During his visit the Archbishop took a tour of the college where he had the opportunity to talk to staff and students in the Foundation Learning Department as well as visiting an ethics and values class, a philosophy and religion lesson and a Year Zero tutorial.

He was very interested in what the students had to say and was extremely impressed with the positive attitudes and enthusiasm of everyone he met.

After the tour, His Grace held Mass in the Chaplaincy.

This was followed by lunch and the opportunity to address all staff in Carmel’s Dalton Theatre.

He said his visit had been extremely enjoyable and he 50

thanked everyone for all that they do for students.

Principal, Rob Peacock, said: “We thank His Grace for taking the time out of his busy

schedule to visit us. He is extremely interested in what we do here at Carmel and it was great to see how well he got on with students.

“The young people themselves were delighted that he took the time to listen to their point of view”.

Archbishop is pictured with teacher Paul Griffiths, assistant principal Susanne Maher and students in a philosophy lesson

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Helen Tantouri A Week in the Life of... Helen Tantouri, headteacher at Valewood Primary School Valewood Primary School in Crosby was a winner at the 2014 Educate Awards, as it won the Outstanding Sport in a Primary School. But there is more to the school than just excellent sports teams, as we found out when we caught up with headteacher Helen Tantouri after the awards.

Monday Monday morning assembly is led by me at 10.15am and is generally a time when we set the scene for the forthcoming week. This week, I shared some poems with the children as it was our ‘Everybody Writes Week’. I reminded the children that when we write, we write for a purpose and for an audience. The children all love listening to stories and poems and their enthusiasm for writing has shone through in their work.

This week is also our pupil progress meetings’ week. We look at pupils’ attendance, books, assessments in reading, writing and maths as well as overall in other subjects. As the reporting systems have changed this year with the implementation of the new National Curriculum, all staff are trialing a new system.

Tuesday Tuesday continued with many meetings, some with parents and carers. As we are approaching the end of term, our parents who have pupils with special educational needs are invited in to school to meet with our Inclusion Manager so that we can review their progress to date and agree targets and plan ahead for them for next term.

Tuesday was our full dress rehearsal of the Infant department’s ‘Time Travelling Christmas’ production. Nowhere else would you find an acapella ‘Silent Night’ being sung alongside ‘The Turkey Jive!’

We are so proud of all our pupils at Valewood, who all take part and give 100% in all their work and play.

Wednesday I started my day with Year 6, who were having their World War II Day. All the staff and pupils came in dressed in their 1940s costumes, complete with evacuation cases and homemade gas masks. It always amazes me how much trouble our pupils, parents and carers go to when we have our themed days.

Whilst in Year 6, the air raid siren sounded and bellowed us out of class and 52

towards our very own school Anderson Shelter. The children were then evacuated and sent off to the countryside. I love days like this at Valewood!

Staff meetings at Valewood fall on a Wednesday and this week we discussed and refined our new assessment and target setting procedures. Straight after our staff meeting, we invited our families back into school for the Infants’ evening performance at 6pm.

Thursday Every year we support our local Hospice, St Joseph’s Hospice and on Thursday I walked up to Crosby Village with the children and staff to sing carols whilst the collectors were shaking their collection tins. Our School Choir sang beautifully!

Once back to school, there were more pupil progress meetings with class teachers. Teachers took great pride in showing the progress their pupils had made over the past term. After lunchtime, my senior leadership team met to discuss our training agenda for the Spring term.

We always set and share our staff meeting agendas a term in advance. Of course, if things crop up they are subject to change.

Friday Friday is Headteacher Newsletter day.

Sharing with parents and carers our achievement news always gives everyone a boost and it’s a great way to end the school week on a high!

Friday was ‘Wear Your Christmas Jumper to School Day’ in aid of Save the Children.

We always couple this with our annual Valewood Santa Dash! Everyone turns up in festive head gear and Wellingtons. It was also our Christmas dinner day in school with hot roast turkey and all the trimmings on offer. Once the morning is over I endeavour to post up the photos taken during the day on to our school twitter feed @ValewoodPrimary. The parents and carers love to see what the children have been up to.

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Viewpoint

Is 2015 the year technology will really impact on education in our schools?

Probably the biggest change in education over the last decade has been the introduction of new technology in the classroom. We ask our expert panel to consider if they believe the ubiquitous nature of that technology, is set to deliver real transformation for all learners in 2015 and whether we will now begin to see its true impact.

Dr Owen Barden Lecturer in education at Liverpool Hope University

Dr Owen Barden

Some significant current developments in technology focus around learners being creators rather than simply consumers of ready-made content. Over recent years we’ve seen the shift towards Web 2.0, with more and more people becoming accustomed to contributing to what’s published online, often through social media, rather than simply reading webpages and clicking links.

Social media will continue to be important potential learning tools, but the capacity to create will increasingly extend to other ways of learning. 3-D printing, having computer-programming on the national curriculum, and the proliferation of tablet and smartphone apps, for example, all offer opportunities for learning by making, doing and

expressing. The potential for creativity and production also lends itself to increased personalisation and interest-driven learning.

Gamification and augmented reality are other hot tech topics, but probably present more challenges for most teachers and schools. On the other hand, widespread tablet and smartphone ownership might encourage more Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives. On a more cautious note, widespread concerns about online privacy and big data may well be reflected in schools, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see things like Whitfield Primary’s eCadet scheme, featured in September’s Educate, spreading.

Jade Parkinson-Hill Director of enterprise at The Studio School

Jade Parkinson-Hill

As a specialist in gaming, digital technology and coding, we prepare our young people for the opportunities of tomorrow by integrating our curriculum with support from the tech leaders of today. The Studio’s close partnership with Sony and local technology experts allows our students to create, rather than consume technological advancements and explore their potential within the emerging digital sector. We have consistently invested in the advancements of our student’s learning experiences by providing state-of-the-art

equipment including; virtual reality technology, 3D printers, games development software and film equipment. Digital technology will be one of the cornerstones for jobs of tomorrow and I believe it is important to embrace this in order to deliver a future-proof educational experience. We want our students to grow into future leaders and entrepreneurs in a digital world – by harmonising with technology we can encourage students’ growth.

Mike Jones Head of design technology at Archbishop Blanch School

Mike Jones

Design and technology is at the forefront of developments in the classroom. ICT based technology software and hardware such as iPads and mobile technology are making education more accessible to pupils who have specific learning needs. At Archbishop Blanch I have witnessed how well designed apps are enabling pupils to access detailed research and subject specific based knowledge through their smart phones and tablets.

Developments in manufacturing technology such as laser cutters and 3D printers motivate students to produce high quality products due to the speed of

manufacture and enable them to understand how the manufacturing world is changing due to new technology. The implementation of Google glasses into the classroom seems like a distant dream at the moment, but increased pupil awareness of the virtual world is dictating that the pace of change is also radically increasing. I believe that any new technology that can inspire and motivate young people to engage in educational activities should be integrated into classroom practice by all teachers who are aiming to challenge the young people that they teach.

Have your say: To suggest or contribute to a topic for debate in Viewpoint email us at: educate@merseymirror.com www.educatemagazine.com 54

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News

Design success for school “To be highly commended is a real honour” A Liverpool school has been recognised nationally for its architectural credentials.

The Society for Construction and Architecture in Local Authorities (SCALA) award ceremony highlights excellence in design and construction across the UK and Four Oaks Primary School has topped the list.

Four Oaks Primary School in Everton was highly commended with judges saying: “The bold use of natural light floods the reception area and sets an uplifting tone for the whole school.

“At its heart there is a unique cone shaped hall which is surrounded on two levels by innovative teaching and recreational spaces. “ The first floor play decks and external landscaped courtyards complete the creation of a safe and uplifting learning environment.”

Assistant Mayor, Councillor Wendy Simon, said: “Four Oaks Primary is a brand new building, opening only three years ago in 2012, and gives pupils the opportunity to learn in state of the art surroundings which has been making a positive difference to their education.”

Four Oaks Primary School was formed from the federation of Hope Valley and Breckfield Primary Schools. The two storey building was designed by the city council’s design joint venture

partnership, 2020 Liverpool.

Outside there is an extensive play area providing a “park like” setting, and the first floor has access to an internal “play deck” with large roof lights to let in large amounts of natural light and sunshine.

Four Oaks headteacher, Sara Robinson, said: “We are over the moon, firstly to have been shortlisted, but then to go on to be highly commended is a real honour.

“We’re massively proud of our school and both the staff and children find it an inspirational and enjoyable place to work and learn.

“When the SCALA judges came to the school for a site visit a couple of months ago they could clearly see the impact this new building was having on everyone which is why we received such a commendation.

“Since the accolade, we have been approached by another local authority which was so impressed by images of the school, their team want to come and see it for themselves and maybe look to replicate the model in their own area which is hugely rewarding for everyone connected to the school.”

OUTSTANDING ONCE AGAIN Everton Nursery School and Family Centre has once again been judged ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted, marking a national landmark for the nursery school, which is one of only a handful to achieve the standard for four consecutive inspections.

Staff, parents, children and volunteers are celebrating after government inspectors gave it a glowing report.

Under the four key areas of inspection, which include, achievement of pupils, quality of teaching, behaviour and safety of pupils and leadership and management, Ofsted upheld the highest outstanding accreditation.

Dr Lesley Curtis, headteacher at Everton Nursery School and Family 56

Centre said: “We are of course delighted to have been awarded Outstanding again, which formally recognises the commitment and hard work of all of those involved in the

school who together uphold the highest standards of teaching.”

“We will of course continue to strive to maintain our high standards and ensure we give

Glowing Ofsted report for Everton Nursery

Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

our nursery children the best start possible in terms of education before they begin their next journey of education within primary school.”

The Ofsted report summarised its key findings with the following: “Children make an exceptional start to their school life because teaching is outstanding and they make outstanding progress.”

“Children’s behaviour is outstanding. They become more confident and selfassured because they are held in high esteem by all staff.”

“Leadership and management are outstanding.

This starts at the top with the headteacher’s resolute determination to prepare children exceptionally well for their future.”

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PROMOTING SPIRITUAL, PHYSICAL & MENTAL HEALTH

GCSE Results 2014

• 11% Improvement at 5 or more A* - C E/M • 16% Increase in English, now above national average • 10% Improvement in Mathematics Small class sizes ensures • Children make good progress • Staff know each child personally • High levels of support are provided

New facilities include: 2 Football Pitches 1 Rugby Pitch Mountain Biking Track

Fitness Suite 2 ICT Suites ECO Garden

St Ambrose Barlow Catholic High School

sabchs

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Thoughts Worth Sharing

CURRICULUM VITAE

EDUCATION STATS

James H Beaton headteacher, Fazakerley High School

What are your main duties: When I look at my job description, the first thing that I see is that I have ‘overall responsibility for leading and managing the school’. Although this may seem like a cliché, it is indeed my responsibility to do everything possible for the benefit of the school, for the children of the school.

Your Education: I was very fortunate in my education. I went to a local traditional comprehensive school, very similar to Fazakerley High. My school was in my hometown of Glasgow and was just across the road from the house I grew up in.

From school I went to Glasgow University, where I completed my science degree. I knew from the age of twelve that I wanted to be a teacher, so after University I completed my teacher training qualification in chemistry, science and mathematics.

First school: The first school I taught in was actually the same school I attended as a pupil.

What’s the secret of your success: That’s easy. I always make sure I am really enjoying doing what I am doing. I thoroughly enjoy working with people who understand the complexities of the job and who strive to get the best possible educational outcomes for the pupils in their care.

What advice would you give to somebody starting out in education: I would offer two pieces of advice that have served me well.

Firstly be aware that whilst working in an educational setting can be exhilarating and enjoyable, it can also be equally challenging and frustrating at times. Secondly they should never lose sight of the fact that children come to school to learn and that the quality of teaching that goes on in a classroom has lifelong implications.

What makes Fazakerley High School different: Good question. Fazakerley High is full of very real people, I mean pupils and staff, looking out for each other, encouraging one another, helping one another, motivating one another and fundamentally wanting the best for one another. It is the closest thing to a real family school I have ever seen.

Tell us about Fazakerley’s plans for the next 12 months: I am sure you are aware that Fazakerley High has two specialisms: Engineering and Creative Arts.

Over the next year we are keen that these specialisms really evolve and umbrella all areas of school life and beyond. The expertise we have amongst pupils and staff in these two areas is phenomenal and we have the potential to do great things both in the school and beyond.

We are also developing our Sixth Form.

We are expanding it and making sure all pupils leaving Y11 and moving into Sixth Form are catered for at all levels.

Tweet all about it The five best educational tweets @CaldiesCom The pupils of @CaldiesECO were excited today to get their photo taken with Miss Taylor and the @EducateAwards

@EnglishMartyrs What a HUGE amount! Over £20,000 raised for @WaterlooPartner

@matthaig1 Read books. Always read books. Every time you can. It makes the world better. It is how humans merge. Empathy. Reading is love in action.

@BebingtonHighSC A big hello to our two new baby goats @BebingtonHighSC Isn’t nature wonderful.

@KnowsleyCouncil Congratulations to Halewood C of E Primary who have been named in the Top 200 performing schools in the UK!

£42.7bn

The total aggregate expenditure for education, children and young people’s services for all local authorities and schools in England. The total expenditure falls into three high level categories: the ‘Total School Expenditure’, ‘Other Education and Community’ and expenditure on all ‘Childrens and Young People’s Services’.

£30.6bn

Total school expenditure on all local authority maintained schools.

1,229,910

3 and 4-year-olds taking up funded early education - a rise of 1.3 per cent from 1,283,500 in 2013 and a rise of 9.6 per cent since 2010 (1,186,370).

32,543

New entrants have started, or expected to start, a primary or secondary initial teacher training programme in England in the academic year 2014 to 2015.

9.9 million

Full-time and part-time pupils in around 32,300 schools in the UK in 2013/14 compared with 9.7 million pupils in 33,100 schools in 2009/2010.

70 per cent

Of all full time teachers are female.

In secondary schools 40 per cent of all teachers are male compared to 16 per cent in nursery and primary schools.

16:3

Is the pupil teacher ratio for all schools in the UK, this has remained constant for the past four years.

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Thoughts Worth Sharing

Headteacher Talk

Greg Parker from

LIPA Primary School

One thing I wished I had learned at school: I didn't have the opportunity to learn a language in any depth. One of our aims at LIPA Primary School was to introduce a language into our reception curriculum. Fortunately, we have had the opportunity to do this and already the children are showing a real desire to learn new words and phrases. They are learning in a fun and interactive way through songs, rhymes and games, which is hopefully providing a good base on which to develop.

The education story that has caught my eye: Given that we have only recently opened with two reception classes, the Early Years Foundation Stage is a primary focus for us.

Currently, there is significant discussion around the process of baseline assessment.

Accurate baseline assessment underpinned by rigorous teacher assessments allow schools to set targets for individual and groups and children which in turn allow us to track progress.

The book I haven’t read that I must: I usually have three books on the go at any one time. One is usually something linked to education, one something linked to sport (currently Neville Southall's autobiography) and also something from the crime genre on which I'm keen. Given our focus on creative approaches to teaching and learning, I am a fan of Ken Robinson, and I'm sure his latest book ‘Finding Your Element’ will be on my list.

What I am most proud of about our school: I'm most proud about the two classes of children we have in our school. We have recruited our teaching and support staff very carefully to develop a broad a balanced curriculum with the creative and performing arts as a key driver.

Our main aim in September as a new school was to ensure our children and families settled in very quickly. Even though we’re only one term in, seeing them grow and progress in a brand new school has been an undoubted highlight.

My Favourite

and why Paul Massey Area Manager | Connex Education

“ Sometimes My favourite quote is: “Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn” Dr John Maxwell John Maxwell believes that the greatest lessons we learn in life are from our losses. Everyone experiences loss, but not everyone learns from it. To me it refers to the fact if you make mistakes don’t view them as a negative, it’s all a learning curve.

you win, sometimes you learn.

”

Dr John Maxwell

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EDUCATE PLUS Sponsored by Greater Merseyside Learning Providers Federation (GMLPF)

A year of triumphs Edge Hill University has rounded off a year of triumphs by securing the coveted University of the Year title in the 10th annual Times Higher Education (THE) Awards, and achieving a pleasing set of ratings in the Research Excellence Framework (REF).

As well as achieving the highest accolade in higher education, the institution was also named as the top diversified university according to the Graduate Social Mobility Index, gained the north west region’s highest rating for student satisfaction across all 23 questions in the 2014 National Student Survey and was rated as a top 20 university for making a great first impression by YouthSight.

Edge Hill University has performed strongly in the national Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014, with all subject areas featuring ‘internationally excellent’ or ‘world-leading’ research.

The REF assesses the quality of research at universities across the UK and informs research funding allocations from the Higher Education Funding Council for England, HEFCE. The year started with the department of sport and physical activity winning a prestigious mental health first aid champion award for becoming the first university in the country to provide sports students with the chance to gain a qualification to help spot the early signs of a mental health issue.

Excitement started to build around the Label Recordings, Edge Hill’s new notfor-profit label set up to promote unsigned local music and to give students experience of working in the music industry.

And the year also saw the official launch of a five-year partnership between Edge Hill and Everton in the Community, focussing on student-led initiatives in the areas of public health and physical activity, sport policy and community sport development to help overcome a variety of social challenges

facing those across Merseyside.

The largest ever cohort of almost 4,000 students graduating in 16 ceremonies across five days took place in July 2014.

Honorary Doctorates were also awarded to eight inspirational figures including legendary singer and composer John Foxx, philanthropist Barrie Wells, women’s sport campaigner Sue Tibballs OBE and comedian and author Michael Pennington (Johnny Vegas).

Edge Hill vice-chancellor Dr John Cater said: “2014 has proved to be one of our most successful years and not just because of being awarded University of the Year and recognised for a number of

outstanding accolades.

“Our research base continues to grow, with an impressive set of results in the REF across all our faculties, with all featuring research scored as world leading and internationally excellent. Our high levels of graduate employment and social mobility show the focus we put on equipping our students with the skills they need to make those vital first steps on the career ladder and our beautiful campus has proved a welcoming and nurturing environment. Together this has encouraged our students and staff, partners and friends to strive for excellence in everything they do.”

New Football Studies programme Progress Sports have launched an exciting new course in football studies which is currently attracting much interest.

The Level 3 BTEC course is designed for 16-to-19 year olds who want to develop comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the sports industry, but with a specific focus on football. It combines academic sporting qualifications with practical skills development, coaching and competitive fixtures.

The course incorporates a mix of practical work, classroom lectures, industry visits and case study exercises. It provides the learner with real life work experience coaching at soccer school academies, holiday camps, after school clubs, community events and Saturday soccer schools.

Students will also undergo trials for selection to play for Progress Sports in the 11 aside English Colleges Football Association League (ECFA).

10 YEARS CHAMPIONING PROFESSIONAL LEARNING ON MERSEYSIDE

www.gmlpf.net

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SIXTH FORM SUCCESS…

Brian Quinn, director of tpm

Director appointed to Chair Brian Quinn, director of tpm has been appointed chair of the Dyslexia Foundation.

Currently, almost 90% of tpm students with dyslexia and other learning differences achieve their qualifications. This figure exceeds the success rates for tpm students without learning differences which reflects the organisational emphasis on supporting these young people.

Brian explains the significance of tpm’s collaboration with The Dyslexia Foundation: “Up to 25 per cent of the young people recruited onto our training programmes are dyslexic.

Our organisational culture is such that we insist on providing them, like all our students, with everything they need to fully develop their skills and potential. But we can’t do this on our own.

“The relationship we enjoy with the Dyslexia Foundation provides us with the insight, best practice and knowledge to enable us to meet our students’ needs as effectively as possible.

“Working with agencies like Dyslexia Foundation is an approach tpm embraces, particularly in areas as important as supporting students with learning difference. It gives us access to expertise which consistently raises the bar of best practice within tpm, and in turn nurtures inclusiveness which benefits our students.”

Brian takes up the position of chair at the foundation after a year serving as a trustee on the board. The announcement of his appointment coincides with the success of tpm’s bid for funding from the GMLPF challenge fund to run a project which will enable more learning providers to identify and support students with dyslexia.

Thirty keen and career focused sixth formers will be hitting the streets of Liverpool as they ‘go to work’ with a wide variety of employers, learning about the jobs they do!

The students from Holly Lodge Girls’ College and Bellerive FCJ College are undertaking three months work experience, half or one day a week, each with a local employer in a career area of choice.

The Department for Education has stated that as part of the 16-19 study programme, sixth formers must participate in ‘substantial and meaningful’ work experience linked to their vocational studies or career aspirations. Schools will be inspected on this.

This is time consuming and often difficult for schools to organise so Liverpool Compact EBP has taken up the challenge. They have links with over 6000 companies.

Sixth Formers studying A Levels, BTECs & applied subjects including science, health & social care, business studies and travel & tourism are working in the NHS, The University of Liverpool Laboratories, nurseries, hotels, local businesses and the media, to name but a few workplaces, each week.

Learning ‘on the job’,

Natasha from Holly Lodge Girls’ College with Chandani Shah and Dave Evans, Mersey Care NHS Trust.

students are developing their employability skills, character and resilience, as well as career specific skills that will prepare them for future study or work, as advised by Ofsted and the Secretary of State for Education.

Natasha from Holly Lodge Girls’ College is studying for a BTEC Level 3 in applied science and last year worked with a specialist neuro physiotherapist, Chandani Shah for three months within Mersey Care NHS Trust.

She said: “I loved being at my placement as I observed and had the privilege to participate in physiotherapy sessions.”

Holly Lodge’s head of sixth form Chris Finnegan

said: “Last year’s work placements organised by Liverpool Compact EBP were invaluable and stretching – and linked to their qualifications. The students loved going out each week and learnt so much. So, we decided to offer it again to this year’s students.”

Louisa Allerston, deputy head and head of sixth form at Bellerive FCJ College has high hopes for her 17 students who go out on placement this month.

She said: “We value this programme hugely. We have one student working with a dentist and another with a vet, each week for three months. How beneficial will that be on their C.V. or UCAS application!”

Broadening perspectives GMLPF member Morthyng Vocational College has secured funding from the GMLPF challenge fund to provide students with the opportunity to gain new experiences and broaden their perspective through European travel.

The project will fund up to 10 students on GMLPF’s Key To Apprenticeships programme to spend a week in March investigating how training and apprenticeships work in Ghent, Belgium. As part of the trip, they will also undertake visits to local industry and colleges.

Prior to the visit the students will be working on projects about training in Belgium and researching the First World War in preparation for visits to the war cemeteries at Ypres. They will also be visiting the European Parliament in Brussels.

Students who are selected to go on the trip will deliver a presentation about their experiences at the GMLPF summer forum.

The aim of the project is to give students a valuable insight into how European countries ensure their young workforce have the right skills to meet industry demands and to provide them with promising career paths. It also aims to widen students’ perspective and help them appreciate that mobility of labour is available as a result of our European Union membership. It will also contribute to their qualifications and functional skills.

Educate Plus sponsored by GMLPF

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Working with Merseyside’ s Schools and over 6000 businesses to prepare young people for a successful working life.

We are passionate about developing the Career aspirations and employability skills in young people aged 8 to 18 years! We do this through organising: ✔ Business & Enterprise Workshops ✔ Career Fairs ✔ Inspirational Employer Talks ✔ Sixth Form Work Placements ✔ Work Experience ✔ Employability Interviews And much more….

How can we help your School?

Activities are motivational, character building and support pupil achievement and behaviour, increasing the quality of your CEIAG, meeting DfE/Ofsted requirements.

Please call Maria Hart on 0151 298 9454 www.liverpoolcompact.org.uk email:info@liverpoolcompact.org.uk

@LpoolCompact

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£200K earmarked to improve skills in the region Greater Merseyside Learning Provider Federation (GMLPF) has now chosen the winning bids that will share the £200K Challenge Investment Fund.

Seventeen learning providers across the region will use the funds to improve the quality, effectiveness and accessibility of their training programmes.

Examples of how money will be spent range from establishing a social media centre of excellence to an initiative dedicated to helping students with dyslexia.

James Glendenning, chief executive of GMLPF said: “The GMLPF Challenge Investment Fund forms part of our drive to invest in the long term future of Merseyside, specifically in the development of its skills landscape.

“It’s also about supporting our members, the local learning providers who are committed to helping Merseyside’s young people

build successful futures.

James said: “Priority has been given to proposals that are clearly innovative and will increase young people’s participation in training, including those with additional needs.

“We’ve also awarded funding to proposals that will clearly raise the quality of provision, and enrich the student experience”.

Applications for the GMLPF Challenge Investment Fund were invited from GMLPF members in August 2014.

Winning bids include: • Establishing a community cafe – ‘Wheatland Community Cafe’ – where students will cater for students and the local community to get real world experience of everything from cash handling to food preparation.

• Winning bid by: The Vocational College, Bootle.

A social media centre of excellence – a hub in the local community working

Mapped Out Online GMLPF has developed a live online directory of apprenticeships and other training opportunities available for young people aged 16 to 18 in the Merseyside area.

Mapped Out Online (www.gmlpf.net/mappedout) has been designed to help young people explore the training options available to them when they leave school, or if they drop out of college. These include apprenticeships, traineeships, study programmes and NVQs, searchable by industry sector.

The directory provides useful information such as the location of training providers and colleges who provide the courses, transport routes, and details of additional support available including financial support.

James Glendenning, chief executive of GMLPF said: “Mapped Out Online is one of the projects that GMLPF is investing in to help Merseyside’s young people start successful careers by developing their skills. Sometimes the first step in this important journey can be the most difficult – researching the options and just finding out exactly what courses and opportunities are out there.

“Mapped Out Online, which once launched will list courses from over 60 Merseyside training providers and colleges, will go some way to overcoming this first hurdle”.

Mapped Out Online directory is a web version of the printed fold-out poster of apprenticeships provision which has been widely distributed across Merseyside for the last three years.

Educate Plus sponsored by GMLPF

with young people, adults, employers and schools.

• Winning bid by: Joint Learning. A programme dedicated to helping students with dyslexia. In collaboration with Dyslexia Foundation, the scheme will provide a free and reliable on-demand dyslexia screening service.

• Winning bid: tpm, Liverpool.

A learner enrichment programme to fund ten students on a visit to Belgium so they can experience different cultures and approaches to learning.

• Winning bid, Morthyng Vocational College, Birkenhead. A pilot project to site a mobile unit in a school to break the cycle of 14-16 year olds falling into the so-called NEET group (not in employment, education or training).

• Winning Bid: Oakmere Community College, Walton. Other winning bids include the development of a suite of digital resources for promotion and teaching of Barbering NVQs (Herbert of Liverpool), and a new Wirral training centre (Asset Training).

Setting the standard Riverside Learning & Education Centre has been awarded the unique Matrix quality standard in recognition of the advice and support they offer students.

The award underlines how Riverside goes above and beyond in helping individuals with career choices, learning, work and life goals.

Paul Feaver, who heads the charity, said: ‘Many people first approach Riverside when their future is uncertain, often they are suffering exclusion or are disadvantaged in some way. These people, many teenagers or single parents, need wrap around care to get their foot on the career ladder.

“Winning Matrix recognition confirms that we are experts at meeting their needs. Since 1979 Riverside LEC has helped thousands of people take the first steps towards a meaningful career.

“The organisation puts building confidence and selfworth on an equal footing with gaining qualifications, so that the future prospects of vulnerable students are boosted.

“They develop personal skills alongside vocational ones, so that they are not only ready to work, but to make a real difference for the employer too. That means they and their family have a more secure future, and that is what we’re all about – providing a positive future where there previously might not have been one”.

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Prioritising student health & wellbeing Students taking part in Key to Apprenticeship programmes run by GMLPF member, Mode are benefitting from new wellbeing aspects that have been added to their training courses.

Mode is piloting the initiative with students on both its key to apprenticeships programmes: music and hairdressing. The two-phase approach to improving students’ self-awareness includes firstly helping them to gain a better understanding of their own health and wellbeing, and then to help them develop increased mindfulness – a

meditation technique that is increasingly popular and has shown to help young people manage stress.

Mode have always recognised the importance of promoting healthy lifestyle choices to young people. This project is laying the foundations that good physical and psychological wellbeing has a positive impact on achieving goals and ensuring success. At the end of the sixweek programme, students progress to weekly mediation sessions to continue their wellbeing development.

Debbie Tagoe, director at Mode, said: “It’s clear to me that the extra support

we’re providing to our students by including these wellbeing modules is really worthwhile. When you look at statistics like Childline’s recent figures showing that they had 34,000 consultations with suicidal children last year, it’s obvious that any measures that we can take as training providers to maximise our students’ wellbeing can only be a good thing. Since the start of our pilot we have seen a positive change in attitude from our students – they are a lot more relaxed and want to participate in group activities more.”

Speaking about the pilot, student Tia Johnson, said: “The sessions with Saeed are awesome – I loved the mediation part the best, it made me feel much calmer and also think about how I can improve my wellbeing.”

Creator of the programme, Saeed Olayiwola from SO Health, said: “Training providers have a captive young audience and this programme presents an ideal opportunity for them to support young people to lead a healthy lifestyle physically and psychologically. By being the first training provider to embrace this programme, “Mode has sent a positive message to their young people that they are committed to their overall health and wellbeing and are making them feel more valued, as well as helping to support the national government vision for a healthier nation.”

Vivark bolsters team with apprentices Facilities management company and social enterprise, Vivark has opened opportunities for those starting their careers, with the creation of four new apprenticeships, as part of its drive to make five per cent of its workforce apprentices.

Vivark’s new apprentices comprise four Knowsley residents: Dominic Hughes and Nick Poole, both aged 19, who will work as an apprentice gas engineer and a multi-skilled operative respectively and Jordan Parvin, 20, and Joe Dooley, 16, who will both work as apprentice joiners. Jordan and Nick will both work as part of Vivark’s responsive repairs team, dealing with ad-hoc and emergency applications.

Dominic and Joe are both from West Derby while Nick and Jordan are both Huyton residents.

Executive director at Vivark, Tony Cahill, said: “The creation of apprenticeships is part of our role as a social enterprise, which includes our promise to create viable job opportunities for those living in the communities in which we operate.

“We’re passionate about offering real career prospects for young people and have pledged to make five per cent of our workforce apprentices to demonstrate this.

“Apprentices are a real asset to any business, often bringing a new perspective or solution to existing challenges. What’s more, apprenticeships present opportunities to change lives, by giving people who may not otherwise have had the chance, the skills to

gain long term employment.

“Our staff are very important to us, and our continued investment in them will ensure they have the skills and abilities to deliver excellent service and be the foundation for Vivark’s future growth.”

Vivarks new apprentices Dominic Hughes, Nick Poole, Jordan Parvin and Joe Dooley

www.gmlpf.net

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Platform for voice of local apprentices Apprentice graduate, Poppy Wolfarth is raising awareness of the National Society of Apprentices (NSoA) appeal for current and previous apprentices to help continually improve the apprenticeship experience.

Poppy, 21, who recently completed an apprenticeship in team leading, is a member of the National Society of Apprentices. She works as ESF project officer at Asset Training who she also undertook her apprenticeship training with.

Asset Training are very supportive of Poppy’s involvement with the NSoA as it is of benefit to their other

apprentices and indeed all apprentices across Merseyside.

Poppy said: “Being a member of the society has provided me with a wealth of experience that is helping me grow both professionally and personally.

“I have shared my experiences with other exapprentices at meetings of the society both in Liverpool and London, and I’ve been invited to numerous training sessions including one for further education leaders and a conference on women leaders. It’s great to be able to use my experience to help improve the apprenticeship experience for others.

“The NSoA are looking for another 30 apprentices and ex-apprentices to contribute to a Liverpool group. I wholeheartedly recommend that GMLPF members encourage their apprentices to get involved.

“Not only will it help the apprenticeship programme as a whole, but the individuals themselves will benefit and grow. Individuals who join the group may also consider putting themselves forward for election to the society.”

Members of the society meet three times a year.

Benefits include the chance to really make a difference; training and workshops; opportunities to meet with

Poppy Wolfarth - apprentice graduate

key decision makers; full expenses and accommodation paid for meetings.

Skillbuild silver for College A St Helens College student is celebrating his success after scooping second place in the national heat of a prestigious competition.

Skilled tiling student Malcolm Worley, 19, from Sutton Leach, won the regional heats of the Skillbuild Tiling Competition and then went onto secure silver at the highly-anticipated national final held at Birmingham NEC. The three-day event was held in front of an audience of around 200,000 people as gifted tilers from around the country displayed their talents under the watchful eye of competition judges.

The competition which is in its third year was held in conjunction with the nation’s largest skills and careers event, The Skills Show 2014.

The event, designed to shape the future and transform the lives of those who attended, ensured that visitors of the show could view the handy work of the WorldSkills UK competitors as the competition took centre stage at the highly-anticipated event.

Competitors were judged on their tiling techniques and ability over the three day event, which saw students being set tiling challenges including a complex design incorporating the Brazilian flag and a visual depiction of the famous Rio De Janeiro statue, Christ the Redeemer.

The former Sutton Academy student said: “It has been an incredible experience to participate in such a prestigious industry competition. The standards of other contestants are very high and it was an honour to compete against other talented tillers.

“I appreciate all the time my tutors Barry and Liam have dedicated to help me advance in the trade. My family have also been extremely supportive and proud of my achievement. It was a

St Helens student Malcolm Worley with his eye-catching design

privilege to be awarded second place.

“I prepared with the help of my tutors, practicing with all the possible tools the competition may incorporate. Thanks to competition I could be included in the WorldSkills national team who are heading to Brazil in 2016.”

St Helens College tiling tutor, Barry McDermott said: “I am incredibly proud of my students, there were a lot of talented competitors performing under

Educate Plus sponsored by GMLPF

tense conditions and St Helens College shined under the spotlight. This is a fantastic platform for the students and will be a great addition to their CV”.

Malcolm was presented his silver medal at a glittering awards ceremony hosted by TV presenter Will Best and is now waiting to find out whether he has made it into the team to represent the UK at WorldSkills 2016 being held in Brazil.

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Apprentices honoured at glittering awards night

New recruits to the Pre-Apprenticeship Programme with Cllr Nick Small

The apprentices moving on to the Advanced Apprenticeship Programme with Cllr Peter Mitchell

Graduating apprentices with Glendale managing director Andy Corcoran

Glendale Liverpool manager Peter Cosgrove

Employees from Liverpool city council’s green service provider were joined by esteemed guests as the fourth annual Glendale Liverpool Recognition Awards took place.

The glittering event, held at Liverpool Town Hall, saw a host of employees, from new recruits and apprentices to team leaders recognised for their achievements over the past 12 months.

Guests included Cllr Steve Munby, city council Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, who opened the ceremony and Olympic bronze-medallist turned motivational speaker Steve Smith, who addressed the employees with an inspiring presentation.

Glendale Liverpool currently looks after all of the city’s parks, cemeteries and recreational spaces, around 170 sites and 14 million square metres of green open space.

The ceremony began with the 11 young people who are set to begin a 12-month pre-apprenticeship programme with Glendale Liverpool receiving certificates from from Cllr Nick Small, city council Cabinet Member for employment and skills.

The pre-apprenticeship programme is open to 16/17-year-old young people that are registered within the city as NEET

Educate Plus sponsored by GMLPF

(Not in Education, Employment or Training).

Adam Ryan, 25, was one of the apprentices graduating on the night.

He says: “Coming from a disadvantaged background, I had nothing really going for me. When I jumped into this job it kept me on the straight and narrow, it sorted me out and gave me confidence. It turned me into a man.

“Now I’m a mentor for the younger apprentices. The young lad I’ve got now reminds me of myself a little bit when I first started but he’s really taken to it and done a lot in his first year. You look at them and you feel proud that they’ve done so well.

“Without the guidance of other people within Glendale I don’t think I would have turned out as well. It has given me confidence; I’ve turned my whole life around.”

Peter Cosgrove, manager of Glendale Liverpool says: "I am so proud of each and every member of my team here tonight.

From the pre-apprentices right through to the top tier employees, they all deserve this recognition and a huge round of applause for their commitment, dedication and hard work. Over the years we have worked hard to instil a sense of civic pride in our workforce and we now have a team

of employees who are proud to look after the city's green spaces and are passionate about what they do. I'd like to congratulate them all on a fantastic achievement.

Our apprentice programme, in association with Myerscough College and with the full support of Liverpool City Council, allows us to give opportunities to young people who may not o have many options open to them. Seeing these young people grow, develop and become successful in their careers has been incredible. They amaze me every day and I'm proud to call them Glendale employees."

Cllr Munby says: “It’s now 15 years since Glendale and Liverpool City Council started working together and it has proved to be an excellent partnership. Not only do they maintain the city’s green spaces and facilities, but they also share our commitment in motivating and training young people and their apprenticeship scheme is helping to transform lives.

“The one year pre-apprenticeship programme and the three year bespoke apprenticeship programme with Myerscough College delivers on a key pledge of the Mayor of Liverpool by targeting young people who are ‘Not in Education, Employment or Training’.”

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Happy New Year from Connex Education Paul Massey, Area Manager

Did everyone have a good break? The Autumn term went in the blink of an eye and here we are…2015!

With July in sight, we know how quickly this term will also pass us by. At Connex we start receiving enquiries from NQTs finishing their courses by June/July time, and other supply staff looking for more work. Last term supply staff familiarised themselves with a good number of schools from working through Connex. As they are now known to Headteachers, a great deal have managed to secure longer term positions for January. Supply staff that were nervous/worried about working in schools on a temporary basis, now walk confidently into schools for a day’s supply, drawing upon their experiences of last term.

January is always a busy time for Connex supply staff. From SATs booster classes, to planned course cover, our teachers and teaching assistants are kept busy. We cover all of Merseyside, so there are plenty of opportunities for teachers/teaching assistantsfrom Sefton to St Helens, from Knowsley to the Wirral…and of course, Liverpool and surrounding suburbs.

The Spring term always feels like we are coming out of the Dark Ages. As we are in the office from 7.30am to take calls from schools, it’s nice to see the mornings gradually become lighter and the summer is on its way. This time of year we often have various fund raising events so look out for the Connex crew dressing up in the coming editions of the Educate Magazine.

As demand for temporary staff increases, we are always happy to hear from anyone looking to work in schools that we supply. If you are a supply teacher yourself, or know of anyone looking to work in their local area, then we would be more than happy to discuss how we can help.

Compton House, School Lane, Liverpool L1 3BT (off Hanover Street) TEL: 0151 329 2727 FAX: 0151 329 2728 liverpool@connex-education.com

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News

Making the most of February half term The new year often heralds a fresh start, which is why it’s the perfect time to complete any repairs or maintenance works which may have been on the radar or to work on improving facilities for everyone who uses the premises.

It can be difficult to conduct many maintenance jobs during term time. Jobs such as painting, plastering and decorating aren’t easy to complete when a school is working at full capacity, likewise, refurbishing a classroom is rarely a viable option when the space is required for learning.

Tasks such as adapting a school’s heating or electrical systems, replacing flooring or modifying reception areas and washrooms also aren’t possible when the building has a constant stream of visitors and users during its day to day

operations.

Tony Cahill, executive director at Liverpool-based facilities management company, Vivark, said: “Half term aligns itself in a prime spot at the end of the financial year, allowing for the final use of any surplus budget for work which will genuinely benefit the school in the long run, especially if the task required is in any way essential.

“Take a look at the premises and think about the adaptations that could be made in a short space of time. It may be useful to consult an external facilities management company which can provide a tailored approach to improving a school, be it a primary, secondary or FE establishment.

“Utilising the services of an experienced team of professionals can also add value to long-term

Hillside celebrate achievement with style

Headteacher Amanda Ryan addressing staff, students and parents

Staff and pupils at Hillside High School always look forward to their annual presentation evening and none more so than in November.

Headteacher, Amanda Ryan said: “We reward our most outstanding students and this year was even more exciting as we decided to hold our ceremony in the quite grand setting of Bootle Town Hall”.

Headteacher, Amanda Ryan and chair of governors, Jim Rimmer gave out prize after prize with the most prestigious award of the evening, the G A Rogers prize for outstanding performance in external exams, going to Amy Scott and Piotr Pawlowski.

Amy gained 11 A* – C grades at GCSE, 10 of which were A*/A and Piotr achieved 9 A* grades. The entertainment by Hillside students was superb and staff, students and parents agreed that the awards ceremony had been the best ever.

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Tony Cahill - Vivark

sustainability.

“Small refurbishment projects to meet current needs can have a much reduced environmental impact, delivering ongoing energy efficiencies and reduced maintenance costs”.

Kickboxing club moves to new school venue Swift Kickboxing Club has recently moved to All Saints Catholic High School in Kirkby, with the new venue providing a dedicated sports room.

Equipped with a mirror room for sparring, the space is said to have a much better set up and layout for the club.

Following the move, Sensei Swift said: “I felt like it was time for a change for the club and the school’s facilities suited the club much more than our old venue.”

Sessions at Swift Kickboxing Club are designed towards adults and children above five, catering for all ages and abilities. The club also has families who train together and parents can train with their children.

Sensei Swift adds: “Our syllabus covers kickboxing, Ju-Jitsu, Kung Fu and boxing. As individuals we learn in different ways and at different speeds, and we follow a grading system from white belt through to black and beyond.

“What you can expect during a typical training session is a warm up, some cardio fitness, work on your grading and some bespoke self-defence moves. The class will aim to achieve improved fitness, the ability to defend yourself and improved self-confidence.”

Classes take place every Monday and Wednesday from 6-7pm, although places are limited due to the capacity of the room.

Participants will receive the first session free with no obligation, and should attend the school reception off Roughwood Drive for 5.55pm.

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■

SCHOOLS HONOURED AT EDUCATE AWARDS 2014 The Educate Awards 2014 sponsored by Connex Education and The Liverpool City Region Apprenticeship Hub took place on 21st November at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral. The awards celebrated the very best in education across Merseyside, showcasing the dedication, passion and innovation in our schools. Hosted again by actor Neil Fitzmaurice, guests were entertained by various school performances including The Belvedere Academy Chamber Choir who performed during the main reception, while Halewood Academy performed a moving portrayal of the Hillsborough tragedy; The Blue Coat School thrilled audiences with a duet from ‘Into the Woods’ and Formby High School wowed audiences with their award winning Mundo Afrika choir. In total there were 16 awards presented on the evening, covering a diverse range of school activity.

■ Host for the evening Neil Fitzmaurice

■H

The

■ Sponsors Mark Beedles managing director of Connex Education and Siobhan Saunders chair Liverpool City Region Apprenticeship Hub

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■ Belvedere Academy Chamber Choir

■ Formby High School

Mundo Afrika Choir

■ The Blue Coat School Into the Woods

■ Halewood Academy -

The Hillsborough tragedy

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Teacher of the Year Award Sponsored by Connex Education Winner: Jo Burgess, Rainford High

Community Partnership Award Sponsored by Vivark Ltd Winner: Gateacre School

Science Project of the Year Sponsored by Liverpool John Mores University Winner: Liverpool Life Sciences UTC

Eco Project of the Year Sponsored by Carillion plc Winner: Calderstones School

Career Aspiration Award Sponsored by GMLPF Winner: Liverpool Life Sciences UTC

Communication Award Sponsored by The Foundry Agency Winner: Whitfield Primary School

SEN Provision Award Sponsored by Liverpool City Region Apprenticeship Hub Winner: Summerhill Primary

Innovative and Creative Literacy Award Sponsored by Educate Magazine Winner: Alsop High School

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Outstanding Commitment to Sport in a Primary School Sponsored by DCM Surfaces Wnner: Valewood Primary

Outstanding Commitment to Sport in a Secondary School Sponsored by The National Citizen Service Winner: Rainford High

Outstanding Arts in a Primary School Sponsored by Adlib Solutions Winner: Netherton Moss Primary School

Outstanding Arts in a Secondary School Sponsored by Adlib Solutions Winner: Gateacre School

Most Inspirational Primary School Sponsored by Arvato UK Winner: Whitefield Primary School

Most Inspirational Secondary School Sponsored by Liverpool Hope University Winner: Notre Dame High School

WOW Recognition Award Sponsored by Paul Crowley & Co Winner: Calderstones School

Spirit of Enterprise Award Sponsored by The City of Liverpool College Winner: Evelyn Community Primary School

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School Ec News Sponsored by

Colourful future for eco garden Pupils from Oakdene Primary School in Rainhill have helped to add this year’s colour to a new ecogarden in the village.

Members of the school’s eco-council helped to sow wildflower seeds in the garden – which by summer 2015 will be creating a colourful backdrop for visitors and helping to attract wildlife.

The garden has been created using materials destined for landfill sites.

The hard landscaping, sculpture, mosaic sundial, benches and planters are all made from recycled and refurbished materials, while many of the plants have been grown and donated by local people.

The community came together to help develop many aspects of this garden, from the initial designs, planning applications and securing funding, to organising events, participating in artist’s workshops and planting wildflowers, hedges and trees.

New opportunities for the community Activate, a registered charity based in Knowsley, are offering education programmes for young adults with disabilities, and has recently opened a small animal centre, community café and horticulture base at the Bracknell Centre.

The facility not only provides hands on learning opportunities for students, but also introduces exciting new prospects for community involvement including the local schools in the area.

Both the café and horticulture base are social enterprises run

by Activate students. The café is open to the public Monday to Friday from 12pm-1pm term time only.

Community growing spaces are available free of charge to groups, including schools, who are interested in growing their own produce and equipment is available for hire if required. The centre also has tutors available to lead group sessions at a cost.

The animal care centre is home to a range of critters from a miniature horse to a tarantula. Community groups and organisations such as schools can book a visit to meet the animals for a small fee.

If schools are unable to make a trip to the centre, Activate can bring some of their small animals directly to the school instead.

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Sowing the seeds…some of the Oakdene pupils who helped out at the eco garden.

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Sponsored by

Gardeners get greener

MRWA chief executive Carl Beer and Waste Strategy Manager Stuart Donaldson with Halsnead pupils visiting the allotment site.

Pupils from Halsnead School, Whiston and the Friends of Halsnead Allotment Group are getting to grips with polytunnels and rain butts after winning funding from the region’s waste and recycling authority to improve their eco-credentials.

The Friends of Halsnead Allotment Group in Whiston were given £1,500 from the Community Fund operated by Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority (MRWA).

The Halsnead site was previously an unused, overgrown and derelict area next to current Halsnead School in

Pennywood Drive before being transformed into allotments.

The Friends, who work closely with the school, using the allotments as an education tool, ultimately hope their recycling efforts will find new uses for around three tonnes of allotment waste that would otherwise have gone into landfill.

They are using the money to capture and recycle rainwater, create new paths from shredded hedge cuttings, improve composting and repair their old polytunnel so they can continue growing organic vegetables.

Tina Cinnamond, of the Friends, said: “It’s a small amount of money but makes a big, big difference because we are all volunteers. We’re very environmentally conscious as a group and the grant gives us funding to pursue some of our ideas.”

MRWA chairperson Councillor Graham Morgan said: “The Friends of Halsnead are a dedicated team who work very closely with the rest of the community so we know our modest investment will have an impact both within the allotments themselves and in the community further afield, it is also a great resource for Halsnead School.”

2015 is the year to be green!

During January and February the Recycling Discovery Centres (RDCs) will be helping schools prepare for Waste Week, which is taking place on 2-6 March.

Visitors will learn about how much food waste and packaging gets thrown into landfill and take back tips and ideas, to help them plan their own Waste Week.

If you’ve got plans let the RDC know via Twitter @MerseyRDC. In March, the RDCs will be going the eggs-tra mile for easter and getting stuck in making easter crafts and showing visitors how to be an eggscellent recycler this easter!

Starting in April the RDC will be launching their WEEE Man competition, with a cash prize for winning schools.

Schools will be invited to design their very own WEEE man to be made out of old, unwanted or broken electrical items.

Kirsty Martin, education officer said: “With the average person throwing out

Recycled Reindeer by Reception at Broadgreen Primary School, Liverpool

190 items of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in their lifetime, it’s important we raise

awareness that these can be recycled or repaired and shouldn’t be sent to landfill.”

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Sponsored by

Crafty way to reduce, reuse and recycle

Recycled Christmas bags made by the Eco Council

In the run up to Christmas, the Recycling Discovery Centre had help from Santa’s little helpers to decorate the Centre.

Children from Longmoor Community Primary School got crafty by re-using materials that would usually be thrown away to

make recycled Christmas decorations.

During the workshops, pupils had a chance to go on a tour of the materials recovery facility where they saw what happens to recycling after it has been collected from homes.

Education officer at Veolia, Kirsty Martin, said: “Christmas is a busy time of year, when recycling might not be a top priority. The Christmas workshops are a great way to get children thinking about what they can recycle and how they can reuse everyday items at home.”

Regional eco schools ambassador role Everton Nursery School and Family Centre, an ecoschool ambassador for the North West, are leading the way in education for sustainable development.

The Nursery School is part of a small number of ecoschool ambassador schools in England. The aim of Everton Nursery School when working within environmental education is to inspire children to understand and protect the world that surrounds them from a very early age.

Achieving ‘Outstanding’ in both of their recent Ofsted reports (May 2014 for the School, September 2014 for Daycare), and three-time recipients of Keep Britain Tidy’s coveted Green Flag award, Everton Nursery School has chosen and adapted the European Eco Schools project as an integral part of their curriculum.

The programme aims to empower children to become more sustainable in and out of the classroom and to realise the value of their environment through engaging teaching methods 78

and investigative play.

As a key part of the school’s approach to learning, children are encouraged to explore environmental issues including citizenship, health and energy conservation.

The school has a wealth of resources to support the children's learning including a wide range of outdoor spaces with rich greenery, allowing children to explore a natural habitat and appreciate the

importance of conservation.

Children are taught the significance of recycling and the impact that littering and energy consumption has on the ecosystem.

The children are even afforded key responsibilities such as caring for their own plants in the outdoor area in order to raise awareness of wasting water.

Jamie Wilson, deputy headteacher of Everton

Children from Everton Nursery School learn about the importance of water to the garden

Educate The Magazine for Parents and Pupils

Nursery School and Family Centre said: “We are really proud to be forerunners in the eco school field. This work is really important to promote the importance of the natural world to our children from a very young age so that they grow to become environmentally aware adults.

“As a nursery school, we have embedded what we consider to be ‘inspirational principles’ in the heart of our school life to promote environmental awareness in the children’s everyday lives.”

He added: “Children are encouraged to discuss some of the most important issues affecting our natural world including littering, energy consumption and the dangers of waste.

“These group activities encourage the social development of the children as well as raising their awareness of current ecological issues.

“Environmental education is integral to understanding citizenship and our children are taught why this is important for the natural environment.”

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Here to help!

We’re here to tackle all your repairs and maintenance jobs when it suits your timetable.

Vivark is a Liverpool City region based social enterprise, so your local communities will benefit every time you work with us.

Services we offer include: - Plastering, painting and decorating - Electrics and heating - Classroom refurbishment - Window and door installations - Flooring replaced - New reception areas fitted - Washrooms refubishment

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Contact us now to Tel: 0151 290 7888 discuss your repairs enquiries@vivark.co.uk and maintenance needs www.vivark.co.uk Let us know you saw us in ‘Educate Magazine’

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HIGH SCHOOL WELCOMES ZIGI Powerful reminder from Holocaust suvivor Students, staff and parents from Alsop High School together with community representatives heard testimony from Holocaust survivor, Zigi Shipper, as part of a visit organised by the Holocaust Educational Trust (HET). The testimony was followed by a question and answer session to enable students to better understand the nature of the Holocaust and to explore its lessons in more depth. The visit is part of the Holocaust Educational Trust’s extensive all year round outreach programme, which is available to schools across the UK. Mr Joe Mangan, headteacher at Alsop High School said: “It was a privilege for us to welcome Zigi Shipper to our school and his testimony will remain a powerful reminder of the horrors so many experienced. We hope that by hearing Zigi’s testimony, it will encourage our students to learn from the lessons of the Holocaust and make a positive difference in their own lives.”

Zigi is welcomed to Alsop by Year 13 students: Josh Ferris, Leah Dodenhoff, Amy Adamson and Daniel Metcalf

Holocaust survivor, Zigi Shipper

The Bishop of Liverpool, The Rt Rev’d Paul Bayes opens the exhibition

Zigi views the Anne Frank Trust Exhibition

Rev Dr Ellen Loudon, Priest in Charge of St Luke’s Church, Goodison

Zigi delivers his powerful ‘Survivors Testimony’ to 350 young people

King David Primary School Choir perform during a short act of worship

Professor Julian Verbov, JP and President of the Merseyside Representative Council

Zigi with John Bligh, an ex- Alsop student. John is a music practitioner with Liverpool Youth Service

Mr Joe Mangan, headteacher thanks people for making this initiative possible

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Sixth Form Open Evening Thursday 29th January 2015 6.00pm - 7.30pm Why choose Alsop Sixth Form?

• Record number of students achieving 3 A’ Levels.

• Record number of students continuing to “top universities”.

• Superb pastoral support.

• Alsop Sixth Form sent 14% more students to universities than the national average in 2014.

Because your future starts here...

Please come and look around at the fantastic facilities housed in our Sixth Form Centre.

Queens Drive, Walton, Liverpool, L4 6SH Telephone: 0151-235 1200 I Web: www.alsophigh.org.uk

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FURRY FRIENDS VISIT SCHOOL Pupils take a walk on the wild side Queen’s Park Primary School, St Helens found out why so many schools visit Knowsley Safari as a field trip and why it is a popular destination with pupils and teachers. Learning and Discovery Officer Nikki Mallott from Knowsley Safari Park said: “Learning is a big part of life at Knowsley Safari and we have a dedicated learning and discovery team for schools that come to visit us. Visits to the park obviously encompass the safari drive and seeing the animals but we also deliver workshops for pupils that fit in with the national curriculum to complement a teachers learning mix. The same team that host the workshops also go out to schools as part of an outreach programme and use relevant learning aids to engage with the pupils. This outreach programme was tailored to suit the pupils and their current topics and we hope that the children from Queen’s Park Primary had a wonderful day finding out about all the different creatures”.

Spike the giant spiney stick insect meets the pupils

Meeting nature up close for Year 5 pupils

Spike makes new friends

Yoda the tree frog meets his princess

Meeting Millie the Millipede

Bud the walking stick insect gets some affection

Some pupils were still unsure about meeting some of the insects

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Diary from Sierra Leone

Helping our neighbours 3,000 miles away

by Joan Maguire, assistant headteacher - All Saints RC Primary School, Anfield ‘If your next door neighbour was dying of Ebola you would do anything you could to help.

Well our friends in FANO are our neighbours, but just a bit further away.’

It was when nine year old Melissa with the honesty of a child, casually uttered these words that I realised that the children of our school were way ahead of the staff in understanding the impact of Ebola and how we were being called to help.

Our school, All Saints Primary School, Anfield first visited Sierra Leone in 2010 to meet with our partner school FANO, a small school of 120 pupils in a corrugated iron shed.

Life was incredibly difficult for them, but we were moved by their zest for life and the joyfulness of the partnership soon spread back to school.

Over the last four years there has been a visit to Sierra Leone and a return visit by one of their teachers each year.

As a result our children have learned an incredible amount about the lives of children in Africa: not just the sad things, but how they play, pray and spend time with their families.

As the news began to filter through about the horror of Ebola (one of our teachers, Frank, lost his wife and young daughter to the disease and had to spend three weeks in quarantine with his other daughter and young baby who had still been

breastfeeding), it was the children who led the charge to fund raise.

They organised themselves into little groups who baked cakes to sell, made bookmarks or jewellery, ran raffles, spot the ball and even a guess the pop star as a baby competition.

One girl, Emily, ten, spent her full pocket money every Saturday buying cakes at discount shops to sell in school, handing over all profits over to ‘help our friends in Sierra Leone’.

A local charity, the Waterloo Partnership works directly in the town where FANO is situated and is helping to feed the quarantined, like our teacher Frank, and support the thousands of Ebola orphans. Any money we raise is distributed by them to help those most in need.

As the weeks passed and the situation worsened, the children realised they would need more help.

Each year our visits to Sierra Leone had taken place with several other schools from across Liverpool and Sefton.

We joined with them to make a video, which the children starred in, to ask other schools to help. It can be viewed on the internet at: http://vimeo.com/109508987 It was hoped that across the schools we could raise £10,000 by Christmas.

With that the schools worked together in a way rarely seen before. Each

Children enjoy a break

Joan Maguire at FANO International School

school is fundraising in school, but then coming together for big events that we hope will publicise the difficulties Ebola is causing for our partner community.

St Robert Bellarmine arranged a sponsored Fun Run which 350 school children took part in. We all dressed in white, blue and green, the Sierra Leone colours, and tried between the five schools to run the distance between here and

Joan takes an English class

Sierra Leone, a distance of some 3,000miles.

At a time when people accuse our young people of being selfish and lazy; at a time when we seem to care less and less about each other, it has been a privilege to work with a group of children who have worked so hard to help their neighbours, even those who just happen to live 3,000 miles away.

Pupils held raffles at All Saints to raise funds

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EBOLA APPEAL Liverpool primary schools charity run Primary school children from five Liverpool schools took part in a charity run to help fight the spread of Ebola and raise funds for their partner schools in Waterloo, Sierra Leone, West Africa. The 360 pupils, from St Robert Bellarmine, All Saints, Rimrose Hope, St Monica’s and English Martyrs primary schools took part in the charity run at Silcox Park, Bootle to help raise money for the Ebola crisis. The aim of the run was to collectively run the distance between the two Waterloos, which are over 3,000 miles apart.

Together, the children ran 9,000 laps around the park, while parents and teachers cheered them on. Headteacher of Rimrose Hope, Lawrence Crilly said: “It is not just the medical aid but the humanitarian aid and support that is needed. We are doing our bit to ease the difficulties right now, but it is going to take a long time to overcome this. We are so proud of our children for wanting to make a difference.”

Pupils are ready for the off

Pupils show their support for Sierra Leone

A triumphant finisher

Running in solidarity

Flying the flag for Sierra Leone

The run included parents and teachers

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OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE A seasonal treat for parents and the community Parents and the community were treated to an evening of entertainment at All Hallows Church for the Calderstones School annual carol service. There were fabulous performances by the school choir and orchestra, numerous ensembles such as the string group, brass ensemble and junior woodwind, as well as the sixth form vocal harmony group who sang a wonderful version of ‘Oh Holy Night’ and a violin duet by Robyn and Miss Langford. Even the staff choir took part and sang ‘Stille Nacht’ in 4-part harmony. Many soloists impressed during the evening. The evening was led by Reverand Alan Kennnedy who, in his speech at the end of the evening, expressed how impressed he always is at the amount of talent at Calderstones School.

Members of the choir (Jodie, Emily, Ellie) sing I believe in Father Christmas

School choir perform ‘Carol of the Bells’ acappella

Talented 6th form music student Dan Pye sings ‘The Christmas Song’

The Mystery of the Incarnation read by Headteacher Elizabeth Russell

The brass section of the orchestra entertain the audience and accompany the carols

Senior Woodwind perform ‘White Christmas’

Head of department, Mr Sheard, conducting

6th form vocal group, Chris, Georgie, Claudia and music teacher Miss Rimmer sing ‘O Holy Night’

6th form student Claudia sings ‘When Child is Born’’

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The Christmas Truce Statue, created by artist, Andy Edwards

A SPECIAL JOURNEY Commemorating the World War One centenary Staff and pupils from St Michael in the Hamlet Primary School, Liverpool have been holding events in school to commemorate the WW1 centenary and even held a Christmas Truce football match as part of the commemorations.

One of the school’s parent governors, Tom Calderbank, the project leader for the creation of the Christmas Truce Statue created by artist Andy Edwards, had arranged for the statue to visit the school on the morning of 19 December before its journey to Flanders, to be unveiled at Messines, the town of the Christmas Truce football match.

Headteacher Ruth Town, said: “This was a wonderful opportunity for our school community to be part of the very special journey and was a memorable experience for our children and their families. Parents and carers were invited to join us for a hot drink and a mince pie, before joining all for a Christmas sing-song on the yard. As well as our Christmas songs, we sang ‘All Together Now’ by the Farm, which was composed in memory of the Christmas Truce. We also paid our respects to expupils from our school who were ‘fallen’ servicemen during WW1”.

The statue is presently on display at Liverpool Cathdedral until 30 January.

St Michael-in-theHamlet headteacher Ruth Town with Tom Calderbank and pupils

Pupils from St Charles School with Tom Calderbank, project leader for the Christmas Truce statue

Pupils, parents and carers gather in the school yard

Pupils remember their ex-pupils who died in the war

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WHOVILLE IN KNOWSLEY

The full cast during the finale

A seasonal tale of The Grinch proves a hit Knowsley was transformed into the city of Whoville as Knowsley Community College’s Performing Arts department presented a magically unique musical and dance adaptation of Dr Seuss’ Christmas classic – The Grinch. The audience followed this tale through a physical theatre and contemporary dance journey along with a glass of mulled wine and unexpected snow and glitter storms.

The college are now planning their next performance and will be presenting their summer show in June.

Sophie Summerfield as Cindy Lou-Who

Thomas Dalton as The Grinch

Joseph Draper as The Cat in The Hat

Kieran Kettle and Alice Croft as Thing 1 and Thing 2

Amy Dalton as The Mayor

Megan Sullivan as Max the Dog

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Job vacancy Advertising sales executive Salary ÂŁ14k + very attractive bonus package with on going sales incentives.

Due to rapid expansion CPMM Ltd has a position available for an advertising sales executive within

Our sessions are designed towards children and adults (aged 5+) and cover all abilities. We have families who train together and children can train with parents.

The training also covers aspects of other martial arts including Ju-Jitsu, Kung Fu and boxing but we specialise in kickboxing. You will follow a grading structure from white belt through to black belt and beyond!

ALL SAINTS HIGH SCHOOL Roughwood Drive, Kirkby, Merseyside L33 8XF FREE CAR PARKING

Classes take place every

MONDAY & WEDNESDAY

their highly successful sales team.

Working using a mixture of telephone and face to face contact, your role will consist of negotiating optimal advertising packages across our portfolio of publications including Educate Magazine, and associated events. You will develop existing accounts whilst also proactively establishing new business sales.

Previous sales experience is desirable although candidates without this experience will be considered. More importantly, you will be able to prove yourself to be a highly driven, hard working individual with a natural drive to succeed. Impeccable customer service skills are essential as is a strong work ethic, punctuality, reliability and an excellent telephone manner.

between 6-7pm LIMITED PLACES

If you think you have something to bring to this successfull sales team please send your cv to andy@merseymirror.com

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ENTERPRISING PUPILS Budding young Alan Sugars in Park View Pupils from Park View Primary School, Huyton started up their own small businesses during their Enterprise Week. Children worked in year group teams to design their business model with one main objective in mind – making a profit! Their start up fund was only £20 per year group. Before the children were allowed to sell any of their products, they had to present their business idea to the Park View Dragons Den Team of Miss Harrison and Ms Walker. Headteacher, Ms Ruth Harrison said: “The children and staff worked hard all day selling their products. Each year group started with £20, the total start up fund paid out by the school was £120. We still have orders coming in and some payments still to be made, however the children have managed to turn £120 into £1400.

Year 4 children – Molly, Billie Jo, Jonjo, Daniel, Leah, Tom, Scarlett and Liam prepare for the day

Lewis, Ben and Abbie

Megan, Year 6 and her plate of delights

Carly and Abbie with their candy stall

Tray of cakes – Connie Year 6

Scarlett, Year 4 with her delicious chocolate fountain Tom and Liam show off their treats

Trade is busy for the Year 4 children

Carly and Tom – Year 6

Mrs Tattan with Year 1 children – Jasmine, Renee, Lily Mae

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Book Review

In association with

5-8 Years Dragons at Crumbling Castle: And Other Stories by Terry Pratchett £9.99 A beautifully illustrated collection of short stories by master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, featuring dragons, dinosaurs, cavemen and car races! Dragons have invaded Crumbling Castle, and all of King Arthur's knights are either on holiday or visiting their grannies. It's a disaster! Luckily, there's a spare suit of armour and a very small boy called Ralph.

Esio Trot by Roald Dahl £5.99 This is the wonderful and warm-hearted Roald Dahl classic, ‘Esio Trot’. Mr Hoppy really loves his neighbour Mrs Silver, and Mrs Silver really loves her tortoise, Alfie. One day Mrs Silver asks Mr Hoppy how to make Alfie grow, and suddenly Mr Hoppy knows the way to win her heart. With the help of a magical spell and some cabbage leaves, can Mr Hoppy be happy at last?

Annual 2015 - Horrible Histories by Terry Deary, Martin Brown £7.19 Packed with foul facts, gory games, dreadful jokes, quick quizzes and putrid puzzles - it's the annual with rat-itude! Discover all the dreadful details about your favourite eras of history from the Rotten Romans, to the Terrible Tudors and the Gorgeous Georgians to the Woeful World Wars. History has never been so horrible!

9-12 Years Fiction The Wolf Princess by Cathryn Constable £6.99 Alone in the world, Sophie dreams of being someone special, but she could never have imagined this. On a school trip to Russia, Sophie and her two friends find themselves on the wrong train. They are rescued by the beautiful Princess Anna Volkonskaya, who takes them to her winter palace and mesmerises them with stories of lost diamonds and a tragic past.

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green £6.39 When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail and an overweight Judge Judy - loving best friend riding shotgun - but no Katherines.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J. K. Rowling £4.99 As featured in the first year set texts reading list in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is an extensive introduction to the magical beasts that exist in the magical, non-Muggle world. Some of the animals featured in the A-Z you will have already met in the existing Harry Potter books.

Teenage Fiction Girl Online by Zoe Sugg (aka Zoella) £9.99 Girl Online is the stunning debut romance novel by YouTube phenomenon Zoe Sugg, aka Zoella. Penny has a secret. Under the alias GirlOnline, she blogs about school dramas, boys, her mad, whirlwind family - and the panic attacks she's suffered from lately. When things go from bad to worse, her family whisks her away to New York, where she meets the gorgeous, guitar-strumming Noah. Suddenly Penny is falling in love.

Picture Perfect - Geek Girl 3 by Holly Smale £5.59 "My name is Harriet Manners, and I'll always be a geek." It's the hilarious third book in the bestselling award-winning GEEK GIRL series! Now in paperback. Harriet Manners knows more facts than most. She knows that New York is the most populous city in the United States. She knows that its official motto is 'Ever Upward'.

Timeriders: the Infinity Cage by Alex Scarrow £6.99 Get ready for the incredible 9th book in Alex Scarrow's number 1 bestselling time-travel adventure series. Liam O'Connor should have died at sea in 1912. Maddy Carter should have died on a plane in 2010. Sal Vikram should have died in a fire in 2026. But all three have been given a second chance - to work for an agency that no one knows exists.

Are you a librarian, teacher or purchasing manager? Do you buy books for your business or institution?

Waterstones Liverpool offers a comprehensive account sales service. Contact Sarah Hughes, Children's Department, Liverpool ONE, 12 College Lane, Liverpool, Merseyside L1 3DL. Tel: 0151 709 9820

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FASHION Adidas Originals Stan Smith junior boys trainer from £38 Very

Skechers multi skech appeal Serengeti girls trainer £19.99 (sale price) Schuh

Nike Air Huarache girls trainer £84.99 Office

Varsity lace-up silver girls pump £22 Office

Nike Free 5.0 junior boys trainer from £42 Very

Stockists next.co.uk, very.co.uk, schuh.co.uk, office.co.uk

Adidas CC Fresh trainer boys trainer £56 Next

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FASHION

Puma suede classic girls £32 Schuh

Adidas Originals Gazelle mid junior boys trainer £40 Very

New Balance girls trainer £64.99 Office

HIT THE GROUND

RUNNING

Kick-start 2015 and put your best foot forward in a pair of trainers. From old school

classics such as Adidas Stan Smiths to Nike neon brights, sneaker style is here to stay.

White unisex Vans junior £30 Schuh

Bubble runners boys trainer from £17 Next

Vans navy Atwood Deluxe boys £33 Next

Nike Free 5.0 junior girls trainer from £42 Very

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WHERE CAN WE GO? Our pick of what’s happening out & about in the region

-time Nighetnture adv

Night Run

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

Saturday 28 March The Walk, Speke, Liverpool L24 1XD 0151 427 7231

Pe rfe c schfor t o g 30 March-4 April rou ol ps Liverpool Playhouse, Williamson Square, Liverpool L1 1EL 0151 709 4776

This is your chance to discover Speke Hall in a different light and explore its grounds and estate in the dark. Night Run will give you the opportunity to run in this beautiful setting with routes for all abilities and ages.

The Explorer race is approximately 2km in length and will take your running route past the glorious gardens, before continuing on the edge of our enchanted woodlands, past the airport. This is a route that simply gives you a small flavour of Speke Hall and suitable for junior runners and families.

The Adventurer run is approximately 7km and starts with the twilight descending, you set off from the old maze field before heading off into Stockton Woods. Expect good underfoot tracks and trails as you head back in the direction of the house before embarking on a second lap of the Explorer route – this time in the dark.

This is a Night Run so first and foremost bring a HEAD TORCH and check it has fully working batteries. Good quality hand held torches are an option too. www.nationaltrust.org.uk/article-1355866173511/ Registration opens 5.30pm event starts 7pm

Based on the best-selling novel by John Boyne, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a heart-wrenching tale of an unlikely friendship between two innocent boys.

Set during World War II, the story is seen through the innocent eyes of Bruno, the eight-year-old son of the commandant at a concentration camp, whose forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence has startling and devastating consequences. Bruno's friendship with Shmuel takes him from innocence to revelation, revealing the poetic irony that through a child’s eye everyone can appear the same. Brought to you

by The Children’s Touring Partnership who have previously produced Swallows and Amazons and Goodnight Mister Tom, this world premiere of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas on stage, promises to be a deeply moving and thought provoking production.

Friday 13 March

Sleeping Beauty r Easteo pant

The fairytale princess in the most spellbinding panto of them all Sleeping Beauty at St Helens Theatre this Easter holiday.

The star-studded cast includes Radio City’s Leanne Campbell and Claire Simmo as well as the hilarious Liam Mellor.

Sleeping Beauty tells the enchanting story of the Princess Aurora who is cursed by the evil fairy Carabose after the King and Queen fail to invite her to the royal christening. Aurora pricks her finger on a spinning wheel on her 16th birthday and is destined to slumber forever unless a handsome prince arrives to break the curse.

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Wind in the Willows Knowsley Leisure & Culture Park Longview Drive, Huyton, Liverpool, Merseyside L36 6EG. Tel: 0151 443 2200

FUTURE EVENTS

Friday 3 - Sunday 12 April Theatre Royal St Helens Corporation Street, St Helens Merseyside WA10 1LQ 01744 756 000

Award-nominated Immersion Theatre and the criticallyacclaimed Cambridge Touring Theatre join forces to present a spectacular musical adaptation of the classic, "The Wind in the Willows". Join the boat-loving Ratty, the sensible yet curious Mole, wise old Badger and the fantastically irrepressible Toad as they embark on the adventure of a lifetime culminating in a colourful battle with a pair of pick-pocketing weasels to save Toad Hall!

The perfect treat for all the family!

Tickets: Adults £12, Children £10, Family £40

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12-13 February

Teechers The Atkinson Lord Street, Southport 01704 533333 Blackeyed Theatre revives its highly-acclaimed production about life at a modern comprehensive for Mr Nixon, an unsuspecting new drama teacher. Fast-moving, inventive and highly entertaining, Teechers brings to life an array of terrifying teachers and hopeless pupils. Suitable 12+ Sunday 22 March

14 March

Family Science Fair Ness Botanic Gardens Neston Road, Ness CH64 4AY 0845 0304063 Take a trip over the water to the beautiful botanic gardens and have some free family fun in the world of science. Drop in, take part in hands-on activities and meet some true science boffins, in fact turn into a boffin yourself!

27-29 March

Sing-a-Long-a Frozen The Brindley Theatre, High Street, Runcorn, Cheshire WA7 1BG 0151 907 8360

Artistic Gymnastics British Championships 2015 Echo Arena Liverpool Kings Dock, Liverpool L3 4FP 0844 800 0400

A screening of Disney’s Frozen with lyrics on screen to help you sing along with Elsa and Anna, together with live host and magic moments prop pack so that you can interact with the movie. Sit back and 'Let it Go'!

YOU the audience are the stars!

From the powerhouses on the rings to the grace and beauty of the floor routines, the explosive power of a vault to the nervewracking routines on the beam, you will be treated to a great exhibition of awe-inspiring performances showcasing the greatest talents in Britain.

Wednesday 1 April

FILM and APP REVIEW

Strange Magic Directors: Gary Rydstromi adapted from an original story by George Lucas Stars: Evan Rachel Wood, Elijah Kelley, Kristin Chenoweth Release date: 11 February 2015 Verdict: ★★★★✩ By Andy Kelly A madcap fairy tale musical inspired by William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night Dream", with popular songs from the past six decades used to help tell the tale of a cast of goblins, elves, fairies and imps, and their hilarious misadventures sparked by the battle over a powerful potion. The story of two seperate kingdoms the magical and the mysterious, when one animal passes the border it starts war between the two kingdoms.

The Bog King of the mysterious kingdom realizes there is a potion that can destroy order, eager to get it the magical kingdom keeps it from him so that they can maintain peace. Frustrated he kidnaps the princess's sister. Is the only way to get these two sides to get along to use some strange magic.

Just Dance 2015 Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Wii U, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii. Verdict: ★★★★✩ By Andy Kelly

Saturday 25 April

Macbeth Floral Pavilion Theatre New Brighton, Wirral CH45 2JS

Ugly Duckling Edge Hill University St Helens Road, Ormskirk L39 4QP. 01695 584480

Shakespeare’s darkest and most powerful tragedy. This radical reimagining of the Scottish play is suitable for both school and general public audiences and utilises the original text in a bold reimagining of Shakespeare's chilling tale of desire, ambition, and the supernatural.

Join in the adventures of this famous under-dog in Hans Christian Andersen’s muchloved tale of transformation, brought to you in Thingumajig’s house style – beautiful puppet characters, live music, captivating story-telling and a generous sprinkling of theatre magic.

Having a party or a sleep-over? Then this is definitely one to include. With Just Dance 2015 you take to the stage and enjoy new and improved visual effects, strong character designs and even crazier moves than ever before! Just Dance 2015 has more than 40 all-new tracks including 'Happy by Pharell Williams', 'Love Me Again - by John Newman' and 'I Love It - by Icon Pop Ft. Charli XCX' - One Direction - 'Best Song Ever' and many more. Even when you've burnt through all the songs on offer in Just Dance 2015, ongoing support means you'll have access to regular releases of new songs and choreographies for every platform so players will always be able to enjoy new content. Your friends will love it!

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My School Days Levi Tafari - Writer, poet, performer and “Urban Griot”

My schools: I attended Granby Junior Mixed and Infant School and Arundel Comprehensive School which is now a Tesco.

My favourite teacher: I had two really, John Rennard who took me for PE, he was a great guy who you could talk to and have a good laugh with and Peter Casey my English teacher.

Favourite subject at school: I was really into art and PE as I played in the school basketball team. Cookery was also high on my agenda as I was a chef for five years.

Were you streetwise or a bit of a geek?

Definitely streetwise - my first years at secondary school I messed around a bit much to my parents annoyance but that soon changed at the end of my school years.

My favourite childhood band/singer: There are so many; I loved the Jackson Five, James Brown and Bob Marley, anything with a bit of funk! I have two favourite songs, Redemption Song by Bob Marley and Imagine by John Lennon, these two I like to think sum me up as a person.

My favourite extra-curricular activity: My English teacher Peter Casey used to write plays and we - the students - loved to act them out.

He wrote one called the ‘Grimbarian’ and I was a wizard.

The moral of the story being about people working together to overcome the ‘Grimbarian’. I was also very much into my sports, basketball, football and athletics.

Do you remember your first school crush?

Yes, Carol Skeet, she always said she liked me but thought I was a bit immature.

My favourite book: I have many being a writer but I love ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ by Maya Angelou and ‘The Isis Papers; The Keys to the Colors’

by Frances Cress Welsing - a powerful book which made me understand the dynamics of racism, she just explains it so well.

School dinners: I didn’t like them at all, they were just plain and horrible, with my parents being from Jamaica we were used to spices and such, not plastic liver.

My ambitions at school: I always wanted to travel and see the world. I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do until my careers teacher suggested cookery, it was my passport to travel.

Levi Tafari was born and raised in Toxteth by his Jamaican parents. He attended catering college, where he studied classical French cuisine and graduated with distinction. In the early 1980s, while working as a caterer, he started attending the Liverpool 8 Writers Workshop and decided to become a performance poet. Tafari was a firm member of the Rastafarian movement and although his early performances were in that community, he saw it as his duty to reach a wider audience and began performing overseas.

Tafari often runs creative writing workshops at schools, colleges, universities and prisons. Most recently he has applied his work to working with the British Council, undertaking tours to the Czech Republic, Jordan, Portugal, Germany and Singapore.

He was Writer in Residence at Charles University in Prague and has also appeared in many television programmes including Blue Peter and Grange Hill. He also made a film about Rastafarianism for BBC television's Everyman program.

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