Highlights autumn 2015

Croydon Highlights

Autumn 2015

CROYDON HIGH SCHOOL Old Farleigh Road, Selsdon, South Croydon, Surrey CR2 8YB Tel: 020 8260 7500 Fax: 020 8260 7461 E-mail: info2@cry.gdst.net

CHS GIRLS SHOW THEIR SUPPORT FOR THE NEW 5p A BAG LAW!

Welcome to the 2015 Autumn Highlights

W

e have now reached the second half term of the academic year and, as usual, I cannot believe how quickly the first half term has gone and how much activity there has been around the school over the first seven weeks of the year. The school is characterised by an energy and purpose both in and out of the classroom and I hope you will enjoy reading about some of the girls’ many achievements in this issue of Highlights.

The new paths and landscaping at the entrance of the Senior School is looking very smart and welcoming as you can see in the photo above. This work took place over the summer holidays and represents our commitment to maintaining the appearance and the safety of the school and its grounds for the girls and all who visit us.

In October I entertained the Mayor of Croydon. She was a special guest at our Prize Giving evening and expressed a very real interest in establishing links with the school for mutual benefit, commenting warmly on the fact that such an excellent school is flying the flag for her town. There are a number of initiatives where links with the local political and business community will create more opportunities for our girls in the future and where the school can make a difference locally.

We are always delighted to welcome visitors to the school and run regular Open Door events offering opportunities to see the school in action. There are some dates for your diary on the back page of this publication, and if you are interested in visiting us, or getting involved with the school in any area, please do not hesitate to contact us via the ivylink@cry.gdst.net email address.

With best wishes Debbie Leonard, Head

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JUNIOR LAMDA SUCCESS

fter a long wait over the summer holidays, girls in Y3 and Y4 were delighted to receive the results of their Speech and Drama exams taken last term. The results were certainly worth waiting for, as every girl was awarded either a Merit or Distinction grading.

Taking their first ever solo Drama exams, the Y3 girls performed a piece of poetry from memory and held a confident discussion about a book they had read with a visiting examiner from LAMDA. She was impressed by their poise and ability to hold a conversation with an adult.

Two groups of girls from Y4 entered group performances and were both awarded the highest grade possible. Taking the themes of School and Space, these groups each performed a five-minute recital showcasing poetry, prose and linking material scripted by themselves. Very hearty congratulations must go to all the girls. Well done!!

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GRANDPARENTS DAY

randparents are special people in our children’s lives and in the Junior School we held our inaugural “Celebration of Grandparents’ on the Friday before half term. All girls in the Junior School were able to write personal invitations to their Grandparents or special older people in their lives and we also invited other local grandparents. The event was held in the Senior School Hall with beautifully decorated tables, homemade CHS cakes and plenty of tea and coffee. Our special visitors were welcomed by Mrs Bradshaw who talked about the invaluable role her mother plays in her busy life and how much the school appreciates the role of the modern grandparent. Entertainment was provided by a selection of performers throughout the afternoon and at the end of the afternoon, grandparents and granddaughters met in the Junior School and our girls shared a special piece of work or showed their guests to their classroom.

GIRLS SHOW SUPPORT FOR THE NEW 5p A BAG LAW

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t is of course the youngest in our communities who will be affected most by the long term effects of our disposable lifestyle and on 5th October, some of our youngest were demonstrating their commitment to all things eco-friendly. At Croydon High the girls run a whole school Eco-committee, looking at ways in which they can play their part in local and global eco issues and a NOAH club which promotes issues surrounding endangered species. We also produced our own ‘bags for life’ in the week that the 5p charge for plastic bags has been introduced. Visitors to the school’s Open Day all went away with one of the new bags, and they are also proving a hit with the girls!

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IVY LINK ALUMNAE MEET YEAR 6

inks with former pupils of the school continue to strengthen under the auspices of the Ivy Link, and in September Mrs Leonard was delighted to entertain a number of our alumnae and show them around the refurbished Year 6 classrooms.

This refurbishment was funded by a bequest from a former pupil and member of staff, Margaret Walker, who taught here for many years and left a sizeable amount of money in her will to enable us to speed up the process of redeveloping the teaching spaces in the Junior School.

We planted some rose bushes and spent a moment of reflection to remember Margaret and her contribution to the school past and present.

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ALUMNA HELPS CELEBRATE GCSE AND A LEVEL SUCCESS

he hall was packed to capacity as we celebrated this year’s GCSE and A Level successes. There was a marvellous atmosphere of pride and anticipation as girls received their certificates and awards in front of an audience of parents, grandparents, relatives and friends.

We welcomed back Hamida Ali who left CHS in 1994 to study History and Sociology at Warwick University. Since leaving Warwick Hamida has pursued a career in tackling inequality and discrimination in public services and their workplaces; she has worked for such organisations as Portsmouth City Council, the Crown Prosecution Service, the Metropolitan Police Authority, the BBC and currently Equity. Having been elected as a councillor for Woodside Ward in Croydon she was appointed Deputy Cabinet Member for Safety and Justice in 2014 and Deputy Cabinet Member for Finance and Treasury in 2015. She has certainly been busy since leaving CHS! Mrs. Leonard was supported in her annual report with accounts from Tanya and Jessica on the achievements of the Music and Drama departments in the past year. We also enjoyed some excellent musical contributions from Tanya and Fariah on the clarinet and Abigail who sang “Music for a While” by Purcell. A touch of drama was added with Carol Ann Duffy’s take on the old favourite “Hansel and Gretel” performed by Rose, Katie, Gabriella, Jessica and Lucie.

We wish the class of 2015 the very best as they move on to the next exciting stage in their education and look forward to welcoming them back to hear all their news at the Ivy Link Christmas reunion on 14thDecember.

SPORTING SUCCESS Congratulations to...

e plac d r n - 3 mini e r u le La n Y13 he doub petitio in t ine com tish Bri pol tram the DMT ships n at mpio a h C

Y10 Canice - won the Championship at Croham Hurst Golf Club

Y11 Erin - part of the welcoming ceremony for the French National Rugby team to the 2015 World Cup

1st place Y6 Amelia ools Croydon Sch y Cross Countr

Francesca (45th), Amelia (10th) and Amy, completed the largest children’s triathlon in the world at Hever Castle

Y13 Lau ren, G and Sha abriella kira winners of the S u Tumblin g Comp rrey etition

f Croydon o s r e n in w Y7 team ss Country Schools’ Cro

RECENT TRIPS

EDINBURGH FRINGE

FLORENCE, ITALY

CÓRDOBA, SPAIN

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"AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE LIFE-LONG FRIENDS"

ear 7 visited Skern Lodge in North Devon for a week of outdoor activities…

“I loved the surfing; we got to help each other improve.”

“I loved rafting as I got to push Miss Austen off the boat”.

“It gave us the chance to do things we would never normally have done”.

“It gave us the opportunity to make lots of new friends” “We had to look after ourselves, lots of us for the first time!”

“Abseiling down a cliff was like abseiling into a new life”.

MENTAL ILLNESS AWARENESS

by Y13 Honor

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n October assembly marked the beginning of a new tradition for Croydon High: Mental Illness Awareness week. As pastoral prefect, I thought this was an important topic because our school is more than a factory that churns out fantastic exam results; it’s a safe, accepting and supportive environment.

With the help of Cara Scott from MIND, we discussed how detrimental the stigma of mental illness is to those suffering. The quality of our girls is such that they are curious enough about the world to not view tabloids about the ‘violent’ mentally ill at face value. Instead, the assembly encouraged the girls to talk freely about mental illness, as this is the only way for the stigma to be banished.

Our girls know that one in four suffer from mental illness, and it’s up to us to ensure CHS remains a stigma free environment.

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LIFE DRAWING by Y12 Blanche and Caroline

n Wednesday 14th October, girls from years 10-13 took part in a day of Life Drawing run by Royal Academy tutor, Jeanette Barnes (http:// jeanettebarnesart.co.uk/.) The day was a great experience for all girls and some fantastic studies were produced.

Jeanette Barnes was very inspirational and introduced the girls, particularly those who were new to life drawing, to exciting and experimental drawing techniques that can be applied to the girls’ coursework. Jeanette encouraged the girls to produce work outside of their comfort zones in terms of scale and use of material. By doing this she encouraged the girls to broaden their horizons and think more freely about how they draw.

HSBC LEADERSHIP AND DIVERSITY EVENT

by Head Girl Tanya

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n September, four GDST students and I attended the HSBC Commercial Banking Diversity event at HSBC’s Head Office in Canary Wharf. The glass elevator took us up to the 6th floor, where we were warmly welcomed

by Simon Cooper, Global Head of Commercial Banking for HSBC. The focus of the event was Leadership in Business and Sport and we had the pleasure of listening to two inspirational speakers; former England rugby coach, Sir Clive Woodward and an Olympic rower, Caryn Davies, who both shared their personal journeys and achievements with us.

During the networking session I was lucky enough to speak to Caryn Davies and hold her Olympic medals! I also met some incredibly successful people from HSBC who kindly gave me some greatly appreciated advice, which I will definitely use in the future.

I feel privileged to have attended such a fantastic, professional event!

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HSBC BALANCE UK by Y13 Hannah

he HSBC Balance UK event in October was really interesting to be a part of and opened my eyes to both the steps that have been made to reach gender equality in the workplace, and the road still to travel. All the GDST girls invited congregated in the magnificent reception of the HSBC headquarters in Canary Wharf before being whisked to the top 43rd floor for the event (the views over London that high up were stunning).

After a really interesting talk from the head of Balance UK and the Chief Executive of the GDST Helen Fraser about the experiences that many women face as they leave education and join the work force, a Q&A session commenced and an interesting debate took place over how women should continue to improve their status in the workplace.

The GDST girls discussed how enlightening they found the event and after being escorted back downstairs we were treated to a very lovely lunch together with Mrs Fraser and got to know each other better.

Overall, a very interesting and enlightening event!

REIGATE MODEL UNITED NATIONS

by Y12 & Y13 Fariha, Carlotta, Hannah, Larissa &Ysabel

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n October, 18 Croydon High girls congregated at Reigate Grammar School for the 19th annual Reigate Model United Nations (ReiMUN). We had a wide range of experience, with Reigate for some being our sixth conference and for others the first.

After being organised into our respective delegations (United Kingdom, Iraq, Luxembourg, Zambia and the Philippines) and attending an inspiring opening ceremony, we departed to our committees to begin the day, debating topics ranging from the question of equal rights for the LGBT community to the increase in international military spending. At the awards ceremony at the end of the day, four of us received individual delegate awards within our committees and, most thrillingly of all, our CHS UK delegation was awarded outstanding delegation!

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THE CLASS OF 2005 REUNITE

he class of 2005 organised a 10th anniversary reunion and asked to hold the event at school. On Sunday 11th October girls arrived at the year 11 common room with their ‘picnic’ lunches, some with family in tow. For the majority, it was the first time they had returned to school since 2005 and the photos and magazines from the archives brought back many memories. Former Deputy Head Mrs Stainbank joined the reunion and later Mrs Leonard came to meet the girls and brought them up to speed with all the latest Croydon High news. Their afternoon would not have been complete without a tour of the school and all were impressed by the many areas of the school that have been developed.

Each and every one was buzzing after the tour as they bid farewell and left with their goody bags with promises and plans of meeting again at Ivy Link (CHS alumnae network) Summer Lunch.

Ivy Link Dates for your Diary 2015-2016 For more details please contact Karen Roe on 020 8260 7531 or email ivylink@cry.gdst.net Friday 13th & Saturday 14th November 7.00pm - CHS Fashion Show Saturday 5th December 12.00pm - CHS Winter Fair Thursday 10th December 1.30pm - Ivy Link Open Doors Monday 14th December 6.00pm - Class of 2010 and 2015 Christmas Reunion Tuesday 15 December 7.00pm - CHS Carol Service at All Saints, Sanderstead Friday 5 & Saturday 6 February 7.00pm - CHS production - Oliver!

Thursday 10th March 1.30pm - Ivy Link Open Doors Thursday 10th March 7.00pm - CHS Careers Convention Tuesday 15th March 7.00pm - CHS Chamber Music Festival Saturday 16th April 1.30pm - Ivy Link Netball Challenge Thursday 5th May 2016 3.00pm - Ivy Link Tea Party (Class of 1964 and all years prior to this) Thursday 19th May 7.00pm - CHS Summer Concert Wednesday 15th June 6.00pm - CHS Art Exhibition Friday 17th June 7.45am - CHS Golf Morning (venue tbc) Saturday 18th June 12.30pm - Ivy Link Summer Lunch Thursday 30th June 1.30pm - Ivy Link Open Doors Thursday 30th June & Friday 1st July - CHS Summer School Production

Ivy Link Netball Tournament Lunch Tea Pa r e m rty Sum The Ivy Link is a way of bringing together the alumnae, parents, teachers and other friends of our school.

Whether you join to make new friends, to reconnect with old friends or just to keep in touch with what is happening, we hope that The Ivy Link will help you stay involved in the life of Croydon High School.

If you have email and do not already receive news emails from the Ivy Link please contact Karen Roe - ivylink@cry.gdst.net