Newsletter Summer 2019

July

The

Birkenhead Park School

2019

NEWSLETTER

The latest news and activities from The Birkenhead Park School

YEAR 11 AWARDS AFTERNOON See Page 3.

Also featuring...

‘BE THE DIFFERENCE’ AWARDS Page 4.

RITA & RORY THE READING DOGS Page 5.

PARALYMPIAN VISIT Page 6.

TERM DATES

Page 7.

Ambition AND EXCELLENCE FOR ALL

Headteacher’s WELCOME Finally, I am delighted to share that, once again, we will be welcoming record numbers into our new Year 7 cohort and we are working hard as ever to make sure that their transition to secondary school is as successful as in previous years.

With my thanks for your ongoing support and my very best wishes to you for a wonderful and relaxing summer holiday.

The end of the school year is almost upon us and what an incredibly busy and successful year it has been here at The Birkenhead Park School!

Helen Johnson Headteacher

Our values of Positivity, Ambition, Resilience and Thoughtfulness are at the heart of everything we do as we strive to make our school even better and achieve excellence for all. Our staff and students have certainly lived out these values throughout the year and it gives me great pride to share with you some of our most recent highlights from the summer term.

Our Year 11 students demonstrated great ambition and resilience throughout this year and, most importantly, during the recent GCSE examination period. They have been a credit to themselves, their families and our school and we wish them all the very best for the future. We have already enjoyed sharing an afternoon of celebration with the Class of 2019 in our recent awards afternoon as you will see in the coming pages.

Achieving academic success for all students will always be our priority but I believe that education is about providing a broad and rich school experience.

You will certainly see many examples of this in the coming pages, ranging from student performances to visits from sporting stars and welcoming our very own reading dog!

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Year 11

AWARDS AFTERNOON whether that was through academic success or their reflection of our school values and desire to achieve, with teachers from each department giving a short but touching reflection on why each student was receiving their accolade.

The subject awards were followed by five special awards, celebrating students who had gone above and beyond the call of duty during their time at school. Each award demonstrated one of our school values of Positivity, Ambition, Resilience and Thoughtfulness.

The grand finale was an amusing but emotional look back at pictures and memories from the students’ younger years – some fairly embarrassing but all good humoured, and some special cheers and laughs were reserved for the crowd’s favourites.

It was a fond farewell at last week’s Awards Afternoon as Year 11 students returned to The Birkenhead Park School for an afternoon of celebration.

The event began with a special message from Headteacher, Mrs Helen Johnson, and a farewell tribute from Head of Year, Mrs Gidman.

We wish each and every one of our Class of 2019 success in their future endeavours and we are proud of everything that they have achieved, which we are sure is just the start of their very happy and successful futures.

Subject awards were presented to students who performed exceptionally while at the school,

Year 11 PROM Year 11 students swapped their school uniforms for ball gowns and suits to celebrate in style at their leavers’ prom held at Leasowe Castle.

The evening was a great success with the former students and members of staff coming together to celebrate their time at The Birkenhead Park School, ahead of receiving their results in August.

Head of Year 11, Mrs Galer, said; “Prom was a fantastic celebration for both the students and staff who have worked so hard together over the past 5 years. We wish all our former students the very best of luck with their upcoming GCSE results.”

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Winner

BE THE DIFFERENCE AWARD

Assistant Headteacher and SENCO lead wins Wirral Council award.

The Birkenhead Park School’s Assistant Headteacher and Special Educational Needs Coordinator has won an award that recognises her commitment to going above and beyond in safeguarding students.

Miss Weekes was among those nominated in Wirral Council’s inaugural ‘Be The Difference’ Awards, celebrating the fantastic difference that people are making to the lives of children and families in Wirral, and the awards ceremony highlighted the colleagues who go the extra mile to support their students.

Miss Weekes’ good practices have been shared with other schools, agencies and the local authority.

On receiving the award, Miss Weekes, said: “I feel very lucky that I work in such a caring school with staff that are committed to social justice and securing good outcomes for all children but especially those who are at an increased disadvantage.”

Paul Boyce, Corporate Director for Children and Young People, said: “Congratulations to all those who were nominated, you are doing a fantastic job, keep up the good work.”

4

Rita & Rory

THE READING DOGS A group of Year 7 students had the opportunity to meet Rita & Rory the reading dogs.

Rita

Rory

We have introduced a Reading Dog programme in school as part of our commitment to help develop literacy skills. Rita visited the school with her owner in April and since then Rory has started to visit every week, sitting with the students as they read.

The sessions are designed to help students develop an enthusiasm for reading and to bring on their confidence as they read out loud to a Reading Dog. Our Year 7 students took part in one of these reading sessions with Rita, choosing a Tom Gates book and then taking it in turns to read the story to her. Rita is trained to fall asleep while the students read to her and follows the Kennel Club Good Citizenship’s scheme in which she is close to completing her gold certificate.

Year 7 student, Logan, said; “Rita is so lovely and very calming, I think she really enjoyed the story we read to her.”

Rita and Rory’s visits form part of an ongoing school strategy to encourage independent confidence in reading and to assist in increasing reading abilities.

5

Medal Winning

PARALYMPIAN VISITS SCHOOL A renowned medal winning Paralympian came to school to talk to students about her experiences and hold an interactive fitness session. Sporting champion Beverley Jones, a sprinter turned discus thrower, held a short fitness circuit session for groups of Year 7 students. She then spoke to the students about her career and achievements to date and even handed round the discus she used in the London Paralympic games!

Beverley, who was born in Queensferry, Flintshire, North Wales, has Cerebral Palsy and first began playing representative sports when she played cricket for Wales. Since then she has gone on to win bronze at the 2006 Commonwealth Games for sprint and bronze in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London for discus throwing.

After Beverley took the students through the fitness circuit, which included push ups and star jumps, she went on to talk students through her sporting career. They then had the opportunity for a Q&A session before Beverley passed around the discus she used in the 2012 London Paralympics.

Year 7 student, Isobel, said: “It was great to be able to hold the actual discus which Beverley used in the Paralympics. It made me realise that with hard work and dedication you can achieve anything you set your mind to.”

Mr Gauntlett, who organised the visit, said: “I heard of the ‘Sports for Champions Programme’ and was excited for the school to host Paralympian Athlete Beverley Jones who has represented Team GB at five different Paralympic games including London 2012. It was an opportunity for students to meet her and see her medals, learn about how she has had such a successful career and the sacrifices and hurdles she has had to face to overcome Cerebral Palsy and achieve all she has.”

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Term Dates

2019 - 2020 | For Students

Autumn Term 2019 Open: Wednesday 4th September - Friday 25th October 2019 Half Term: Monday 28th October - Friday 1 November 2019 Open: Monday 4th November - Friday 20th December 2019 Christmas Holiday: Monday 23rd December - Friday 3rd January 2020

Spring Term 2020 Open: Monday 6th January - Friday 14th February 2020 Half Term: Monday 17th February - Friday 21st February 2020 Open: Monday 24th February - Friday 3rd April 2020 Spring Break: Monday 6th April - Friday 17th April 2020

Summer Term 2020 Open: Monday 20th April - Friday 22nd May 2020 Easter Bank Holidays: Friday 10th April - Monday 13th April 2020 May Bank Holiday: Friday 8th May Half Term: Monday 25th May - Friday 29th May 2020 Open: Monday 1st June - Monday 20th July 2020

INSET Days Autumn Term: Wednesday 11th September 2019 & Wednesday 6th November 2019 Summer Term: Monday 29th June 2020 & Monday 20th July 2020

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The

Birkenhead Park School

Ambition AND

EXCELLENCE FOR ALL GCSE Results Good luck to our Year 11 students receiving their exam results.

Results will be available from school reception at 9am on Thursday 22nd August 2019

www.

birkenheadparkschool.com thebirkenheadparkschool BPSWirral

The Birkenhead Park School Park Road South, Birkenhead Wirral, Merseyside CH43 4UY Tel: 0151 652 1574