Spring Newsletter Dear reader, Although the Spring term has been short, there has been a flurry of activity across the Trust. The term began with the first Trust-wide CPD event at the Etihad Stadium, with the Manchester Poet, Tony Walsh, as our inspirational keynote speaker, reminding us of the importance of education and its place in supporting our students to realise their ambitions for the future. Students from both Longdendale and Rayner Stephens High Schools attended Trust events at Ashton Sixth Form College, focussing on preparations for choosing options in year 9 with an introduction to the realising aspirations programme which asks students to consider their futures and helps to lay the foundations for future success. Year 10 students participated in a STEM day which gave them the opportunity to work with A level science and math's teachers for the day. In addition, students at Ashton Sixth Form College participated in our Speaker of the Month programme, hearing presentations from professionals in fields as diverse as palaeontology and law. And the second cohort of Stanford Park Trust Academic Mentors completed their training and will begin to support younger students at both Longdendale and Rayner Stephens High Schools with their school work after the Easter break. A real sense of community and identity has now developed across the Trust as we work more closely together for the benefit of all. As we approach the summer and the summer term, the focus for a significant number of our students switches to final preparations for the summer examination series and the completion of coursework for non-examined qualifications. As the parent of a current year 11 student myself, I understand all too well the challenges students and their families and carers face at this time. Whilst it is important to be prepared for the next few months by working with teachers and others to build confidence through effective revision and examination practice, it is also important to maintain balance across the week, building in time for family and friends, for exercise and sport and for a little downtime in between your preparations. I would like to wish all students entering their final examination phase all the best for this period. We are looking forward to celebrating your success in August. Anton McGrath CEO
Bringing staff together across the Trust In January, we brought together all staff from across Stamford Park Trust for the first time for a collaborative CPD event. The day started with CEO Anton McGrath setting the scene for the day, reiterating our shared vision and purpose and some of our achievements since forming Stamford Park Trust. Mark Storie then introduced Stamford Park Trust Sport, Community and Leisure which will create even further community provision across the academies, benefiting students and sports teams through the proven positive benefit of dual use facilities. Curriculum and support areas then came together with their counter parts to discuss how they can collaborate and support each other. We’ve seen many positive outcomes from this session, from staff visiting other academies to share best practice to forming partnerships across departments to benefit students. Finally, Tony Walsh (Longfella Poet) joined us as our keynote speaker to share some of his poems and life experiences and remind us as educators why we do the work that we do. It was a great day enjoyed by all, a huge thank you to all staff for participating, collaborating and setting the priorities for the rest of the year. We are excited to see what this year brings.
Tony Walsh visits Ashton Sixth Form College Following his talk to staff, Tony Walsh delivered a special talk to a selection of students from Rayner Stephens High School and Ashton Sixth Form College. Tony read a selection of his poems about growing up in Tameside and becoming a poet as well as a question and answer session. Students loved the talk and really impressed staff with all their questions and interest. A huge thank you to Ashton Sixth Form College for hosting, to Tony Walsh for an amazing talk and to students for all their participation.
Welcoming Year 6 into our Trust family We are so delighted to welcome our newest members of the Stamford Park Trust family as places at our academies – Longdendale High School and Rayner Stephens High School – are allocated. We can’t wait to meet students over the coming months as we prepare them for the next steps in their education. This is the start of a real partnership as school and home work together to ensure the very best education and opportunities we have to offer at our fantastic schools. Our vision of ‘Excellence and Ambition for All’ underpins everything we do and we are so proud of the progress the academies have made since becoming part of Stamford Park Multi Academy Trust. The class of 2028 will be joining both schools at a very exciting time; investment continues to happen across our academies, in facilities, staff, and the opportunities offered to students. Students will have access to a bespoke aspirations programme designed to help students develop both academically and personally and prepare for a bright future ahead. Students will also benefit from the use of our fantastic facilities across the whole Trust, including state-of-the-art academic facilities at Ashton Sixth Form College and sports facilities of unrivalled quality at Astley Sports Village. We would like to take this opportunity to formally welcome students to the Stamford Park Trust family and we can’t wait to meet you!
Chris Ashworth awarded British Empire Medal in New Year Honours Head of Estates, Chris Ashworth has been awarded a British Empire Medal in the King’s New Year honours for his services to further education. The British Empire Medal is an award for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown. Chris was nominated by his colleagues at Ashton Sixth Form College for his outstanding contribution to the college and the community during the pandemic. Chris is a long-standing member of the college team and is the sort of person every organisation needs. He is hardworking, caring, innovative and is able to rise to the challenge. Chris was on site every single day of the lockdown, making sure that the site was secure. Once decisions were made about our return to work, he single-handedly sourced the required PPE and cleaning equipment and worked tirelessly with one other member of his team to make the necessary changes to classrooms, removing furniture and reconfiguring classroom layouts to meet COVID requirements. He did all of this with his customary cheerfulness. Alongside this, Chris supported the NHS and local people, assisting his wife, a nurse at Tameside Hospital, to source valuable PPE and helping elderly local residents with shopping and errands alongside his job. He took time to learn how to correctly use PPE to train all the cleaning team and the first aiders so they were comfortable in its use. Nothing was too trivial or too small; Chris did it all and we could not have prepared for our return to work without him. In other times, Chris single handedly saved the college hundreds of thousands of pounds through the renegotiation of contracts, all of which could them be spent on teaching and learning. He is a shy and modest person, but the work he does shows his measure. He deserves this recognition for the work he completed during COVID-19, but also for the work he always does for the community. He is an example to us all. Anton McGrath, CEO of Stamford Park Trust said: “Congratulations to Chris on the award of the British Empire Medal (BEM). Chris is an outstanding member of staff and fully deserves this recognition for the many years of service he has given to the Trust and to the college. This was exemplified by the way he managed the estates and facilities during the Covid pandemic; his 'cando' attitude and willingness to find solutions to problems was essential to our successful return. On behalf of the Members, Trustees, members of staff and students across Stamford Park Trust, well done! We're all immensely proud that you are part of our community.”
Chris himself, added: “It's an honour and a privilege to have received this award, especially for just doing my job. I’ve worked at Ashton Sixth Form College and now Stamford Park Trust for 18 years and have loved every second of it, it’s amazing to work for an organisation that values and recognises achievements.” But Chris was amazed to discover that he is not the only member of his family to have received a royal honour from a king. For his great grandfather Charles Ashworth received a royal honour from King George VI for saving the life of a young boy from a Dukinfield lake back in 1947. Chris said: “I only found out this week when my aunt contacted me and she had the paperwork of my great grandfather’s honour - it seemed surreal that he had received an honour from the king and now I am receiving an honour from the king too.”
Making Prom inclusive for all With the current difficulties many families are facing and our commitment to the environment, Longdendale High School and Rayner Stephens High School are asking for donations of pre-loved prom items for their students. After Easter, students will be invited in for a prom shopping experience at their school where they can choose their pre-loved items if needed. We’ve had an amazing response and lots of donations so far and we would like to thank everyone for their contributions. As well as pre-loved items we are also appealing to local businesses and the community who can assist on the day of prom to help students get ready or a discount or voucher for services including hair, make-up, nails, and barbering. If you are able to offer a service, please contact us at: Longdendale High School - admin@lhs.spt.ac.uk or call 01457 764 006. Rayner Stephens High School - admin@rshs.spt.ac.uk or call 0161 338 2374 Thank you in advance for your support in making prom an inclusive experience for all and look out for more details coming soon!
Year 9 enjoy flagship aspirations programme Year 9 high achieving students from Longdendale High School and Rayner Stephens High School paid a visit to Ashton Sixth Form College as part of the bespoke Aspirations programme exclusively available to students within Stamford Park Trust. CEO Anton McGrath kicked off the day by reiterating the importance of working together across the Trust to make our vision of ‘Excellence and Ambition’ a reality. For the first session, Ashton Sixth Form College XL Manager had students working on their critical and analytical thinking as well as their resilience, a taster of the skills needed to join the XL Programme and their further education. Next up was a taster of the ASFC Realising Aspirations Programme, which prepares students for life after college through university-level teaching and explores the opportunities at degree-level. Asking students ‘why can’t it be you?’ when it comes to university. Finally, students got a taste of college life with a tour of the college campus and our shared facilities across the Trust. There is real strength in our collaboration, that’s why we encourage all students to participate in our flagship Aspirations programme, exclusive to the members of our Stamford Park Trust Family. Designed to help students develop both academically and personally, and prepare for a bright future ahead, whether at university, in higher-level apprenticeships or in the world of work. All students, from year 7 to year 11, have the opportunity to work with the college, local universities and prestigious employers to help them become the very best version of themselves. CEO Anton McGrath said: “It was fantastic to see year 9 students from both Rayner Stephens and Longdendale High Schools at Ashton Sixth Form College today to learn about their options post 16 and beyond. Our Realising Aspirations programme supports our core ambition of education and ambition for all, and helps students think carefully about their futures. By working together across the Trust, we can provide truly collaborative support for all students, assist with crucial
transitions and help students to develop the confidence to strive to reach their goals. I'm sure today was a useful and exciting day for our visitors, providing answers to questions and opening new avenue of possibility.” Students were great and very engaged on the day, with many saying they are now starting to think about life after school and college and what the future holds.
Rugby Opportunity for Jake
Christmas Card competition winner
Rayner Stephens Year 9 student Jake has recently been put forward to go to Sale Shark development squad training by his own rugby club Aldwinians.
You may remember in our last edition we launched our Annual Trust Christmas Card competition where we encouraged students across the Trust to design a card to be sent to partners, stakeholders and staff.
Out of about 80 players Jake has been given the opportunity to continue training with Sale Sharks for a few weeks, after which he will take part in a festival against other regions, from that festival he may be selected to join Sale Sharks Academy. Jake said "I have been working hard this last year to build up my strength, speed and stamina getting help and advice from Sam and Leighton at Astley Sports Village." We look forward to hearing about Jake's continued development over the coming weeks. Good luck Jake!
We received some great entries from across the Trust. A huge well done to Holly in Form 7A at Longdendale High School who won the competition! Thank you to all who entered and we look forward to seeing this year’s entries!
Eve scores with Dementia Awareness Longdendale Year 7 student recently met with the England Women’s Senior football team, the Lionesses, to create a video that will help raise awareness of dementia. Eve, who plays football for Manchester United, was nominated after raising in the region of £1,500 for the Alzheimer’s Society after running 100km in memory of her Grandad. Eve interviewed three of the Lionesses during their meeting, sharing stories of their own personal experiences with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. We would like to congratulate Eve for her fantastic fundraising achievements and also for her bravery in sharing her own experience to help others.
Year 10 STEM Conference
In aid of British Science Week, Ashton Sixth Form College recently held a STEM Conference for Year 10 pupils from the local area. We welcomed over 60 students from Tameside schools to take part in the conference including students from Rayner Stephens and Longdendale High Schools. The day consisted of a welcome from Centre Principal, Lisa Richards and talk from the Ashton XL manager, Damian Windle about progression routes to universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge. The introductory talks were followed by taster sessions in Maths and Science. The sessions were tailored to match with British Science weeks theme for 2023, which was 'Connections'. Students then received a talk from Professor Julie Gibbs from the University of Manchester. Professor Julie explored her own work and research on the human body clock, the immune system and inflammation pathways. Students found the talk fascinating and came away with lot's of new knowledge gained! We are pleased to be able to offer events across the Trust that meet the schools value of Aspiration and our Vision of ‘Excellence and Ambition for all.’
Rewarding students across the Trust We want to make sure students across the Trust are rewarded regularly for their work, whether it be inside or outside lessons. This term there has been lots of celebrations for students who have gone above and beyond! At Rayner Stephens, teams in Key Stage 3 collect points for positive choices made in lessons, with a reward for the winning team each week. This week the 'Scarlet Red' team won our Excellent Choices competition and received a special breakfast. Well done team! To support and recognise young carers, Rayner Stephens High School also held a celebration breakfast and an arts and crafts morning in school on Young Carers Awareness Day. This was a chance for carers in school to take some time out and socialise and for school to show support for young carers.
At Ashton Sixth Form College, Centre Principal Lisa Richards, held the third recognition lunch for nominated students. This half term, each department nominated 1 student and each support area nominated 2-4 students who have stood out to them throughout the term. Well done to the following students who received nominations Weronika Wilczek Elliot Davey Tilly McConnell Nicole Ma Jed Solomon Priya Mistry Arlo Turner Lucas Habgood Amelia Blow Katheryne Paloma Viraj Parmar Khdeeja Ahmed
Zack Rahman Abdullah Qureshi Kia Parekh Amy Ley Jess Moody Kiera Myatt Tom Keogh Khadija Jannah Amber Jones Ethan Priest Kartik Joshi Alisha Broomhall
Hannah Corbett Beth Turner Aisha Amin Amelia Kerr Sadia Kamagate Gomes Beth James Neah Jesuthasan Jacob Colville-Mace Esther Kabwika Jess Pugh Natasha Mutopo Katie Grafton
Millie Sigley Bayo Folami Shazeb Akbar Max Pelling Sarah Standley Katherine Axon Freya Fineran Caitlin Higginson Charlotte Walton-Thorpe
At Longdendale High School nearly thirty students have been given Headteacher awards since the start of the academic year for showing fantastic examples of one of our school core values; Respect, Resilience or Aspiration. We would like to congratulate the following students for this achievement. Year 7 Joel (Respect), Holly (Aspiration), Lucas (Aspiration), Ben (Aspiration), Eve (Aspiration), Jackson (Respect and Aspiration), Megan (Respect), Eve (Resilience), Megan (Aspiration), Isobella (Aspiration), Josh (Aspiration), Elizabeth (Aspiration), Robyn (Aspiration), Lucy (Aspiration), Ava (Aspiration), Marty (Aspiration), Ben (Aspiration) Year 8 Charlotte (Aspiration), Annie (Aspiration), Nathan (Aspiration) Year 10 Isobel (Respect), Ruby (Respect), Lottie (Respect) Year 11 Jackson (Aspiration), Isabella (Respect), Katie (Respect), Aimee (Respect), Charlotte (Aspiration), Jack (Respect) Well done to all students!
Students proudly showcase EPQ projects On 23rd March 2023 students at Ashton Sixth Form College took part in their Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) presentation, where they had a chance to showcase their research and findings after undertaking their EPQ. Ashton Sixth Form College offers the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) as part of their curriculum. The EPQ is an additional qualification, equivalent to 1 AS Level, that allows students to develop a personal interest in a topic or area that interests them. Completing the EPQ allows students to carry out independent research and a level of commitment that universities and employers look for. Students who complete the EPQ are often at a distinct advantage in their Personal Statements and university interviews which can help them to stand out. 16 students from our academy schools took part in this year’s cohort with subjects ranging from serial killers to neuroparasites. Alisha Broomhall from Longdendale High School told us “ I focused my EPQ on whether serial killers are innate or manufactured, with a specific focus on UK serial killers. I was initially interested in this topic because I wanted to go into forensic psychology but through doing my EPQ have decided on a career in social work after my findings about dysfunctional childhoods.” I felt my presentation went really well, I enjoyed speaking to people and enjoyed writing my essay. I gained many skills from doing the EPQ including time management, academic writing, research skills, referencing, and writing a large piece of writing.” Grace Appleby also from Longdendale High School added "I think EPQ has helped me with confidence in my work. During the presentation we had to speak for a few minutes and be able to answer questions on our project/ topic. The process seemed daunting, but being well prepared and confident in my work helped me enormously." Centre Principal, Lisa Richards said "The event held in the sports hall had a real buzz, students took pride in their presentation and could talk through their findings with ease and should be extremely proud of themselves."
Culture day at Ashton Sixth Form College Ashton Sixth Form College's student council recently hosted a Culture Day for students and staff across college. The priority for the Student Council this year is to enhance diversity and equality throughout all aspects of college. From their plan, they decided to host Culture Day. The idea came from the Council's Equality and Diversity Officer, Zedan. The aim was for students to celebrate their differences and the wide range of cultures that we have in college. Throughout the event, there was a range of activities offered such as, henna, bracelet making and face painting. Students also participated in a fashion show, providing a demonstration of folk costumes and traditional dances. A lot of students wore their culture's traditional clothing to demonstrate different cultures. There was also a range of foods from various countries and cultures! The event had a huge turn out. Both students and staff had an incredible afternoon and the Student Council did a great job of preparing and executing the event! Student Council President, Claudia said: "The Student Council is very pleased with all the great feedback received so far. We are very grateful as well for all the students that helped to prepare and decorate the room next to the Student Council. Finally, a big thank you to all the amazing people that showed up." Centre Principal, Lisa Richards said: "The half term is ending on a high note following the Culture Day organised this week by the Student Council. Many of our staff have reported feeling "quite emotional" on seeing the Lecture Theatre decorated with flags and emblems representing our students' varied heritage, and the students themselves looked fabulous in their cultural clothing. I am so proud of the college's diversity and the respect our students show to each other. Well done to our student council on a lovely event!"
Longdendale Climate Summit Longdendale High School hosted their first ever Climate Summit (COP1) on Friday 24th March 2023. Invited to the event were children from local primaries and key guest speakers; Jonathan Reynolds MP, Councillor Dan Costello, Councillor Janet Cooper and Councillor Lee Huntbach. Head Boy and Head Girl, Seb and Charlotte, introduced our guests who all gave informative talks regarding the complexities around climate change and what we can do about it both collectively and as individuals. The day then moved onto practical workshops. Children from the local primaries were grouped with select Longdendale students for the activities. Sydney Jones, Geography and Geology teacher from Ashton Sixth Form College led the first workshop around ‘Mining’. The groups learnt about why mining is carried out and what the environmental impacts are. They then had to decide what to do with the waste products (rocks) left over from mining. The groups came up with some great ideas, including using the waste rocks to build habitats for wildlife, creating coastal defences and turning them into car park extensions! The second workshop was led by Head of Humanities, Ruth Kerfoot. The groups were tasked with deciding upon 3 pledges for their school to help reduce waste, save energy and reduce their carbon footprint. Students were encouraged to think about the financial costs of their choices and then signed their ‘Charter for Change’. They explained their pledges to everyone and finally, they were given an oak tree sapling to take back to their school. Thank you so much to Longdendale staff, guest speakers, workshop leaders and local primary schools for attending the day. All guests taught us something new about climate change and left us all with a lot to think about. We were so impressed with the children from local primaries, we hope they found the day both enjoyable and informative. We can’t wait for next years summit to find out how the children got on with their pledges and discover how much their trees have grown!
Rayner Stephens celebrate British Science Week British Science Week is a ten-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths which took place from 10-19th March and Rayner Stephens marked the occasion with many events across school. This year’s theme was connections; by exploring the importance and joy in connections between individual scientists, research groups and institutions, you could discover the different ways connections appear across all areas of science. To get ready for the week, students were tasked with finding some missing equipment needed for science experiments. Ten pieces of science equipment were hidden around school for students to find. Well done to all students who used their detective skills and received a prize: Cameron (Year 8) Rydell (Year 8) Alfie (Year 7) Dylan (Year 8) Logan (Year 8) Hassan (Year 8) Lilya (Year 8) Thomas (Year 7) Abbas (Year 8) Minami (Year 8) Once the equipment was found we were ready to start activities! Medical Mavericks delivered some great virtual sessions in lessons, including The Senses Show and The Human Guinea Pig. Students also explored their connection to science by finding what careers in science they could go into. Students also looked at different ways we can connect, including communicating through morse code. All classes also took part in building and testing Brooklands gilders, Year 7 then finished off the week with a glider competition in the courtyard to see how long they could stay in the air. A huge well done to Lilly-anne who came first and Gohar and Darcy who came 2nd and 3rd. Rayner Stephens were also excited to welcome partner primary school, Broadbent Fold, into school for different activities. Year 5 and 6 students investigated acids and alkalis and used their knowledge to make sherbet. We loved seeing how engaged students have been during Science Week, a huge thank you to our staff for arranging great activities!
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