Latest News BMW Mini Factory Tour

by Year 12 student Deniz P

I think this tour was eye-opening more than anything else. We toured around the production line in Body in White (BiW), in awe of the scale that these twisting and sliding robots worked at. Then we went to the Final Assembly where more workers were employed. We saw, in action, the very things that we are learning about in our Business A level such as mass customisation of cars produced just-in-time and how to motivate workers.

One surprise was the use of ostrich feathers to remove static before the paint is applied. Each car is then delivered to the customer who ordered it, mostly in the UK, USA or China.

We saw lean production with a global supply chain which gave us a better understanding of the concepts we write about in our essays. It was highly informative, it felt like an interactive episode of ‘How It’s Made’ as a rough comparison, and I’d wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who is curious about tech, design, business or engineering.

Outdoor Education and DofE update

by Russell McAlinden, Head of Outdoor Education

DofE has been thriving throughout the school in the past 12 months, with more students completing their awards than ever before. This summer, we have had 94 Year 9 students embark on their Bronze Expedition training weekends, which will be followed up by their qualifying expedition in September. 53 Year 10 students will be stepping out on their Silver Expedition along with five Year 12 students undertaking the Gold qualifying expedition at the end of this term. Another really powerful part of the DofE programme is the Volunteering section. As a school, we have students doing a range of really beneficial things, from supporting local charities to helping the local community. The DofE has recognised our efforts through the presentation of a certificate which shows that our students have contributed over 2700 hours of volunteering time.

Adventure Learning News

Sailing, paddlesports and bushcraft have all been on offer this term, with students making the most of the warmer weather and having the opportunity to get out onto the water.

Sustainability at Stephen Perse - Reuse of ‘Old’ Science Textbooks

With the constant updating of education curriculums Stephen Perse often finds itself in a position where there are textbooks that no longer meet the specifications of a curriculum. With recent updates to the science curriculum(s) there were approximately 1,000 science textbooks that no longer meet our needs. Rather than these books being recycled, Stephen Perse has partnered with Books2Africa to provide a ‘second’ life to these books.

Books2Africa is a UK registered charity that promotes ‘readcycling’ and improves the quality of education in Africa by collecting, processing, shipping and distributing quality donated books, computers and educational materials that would otherwise go to landfill. Instead, these materials equip institutions and community libraries.

The Sustainability Section of Stephen Perse worked with the Senior School Student Sustainability Committee, headed by Audrey S (Year 12) to sort and pack these books into 41 boxes.

Teen Tech Awards Finalists

The TeenTech Awards are for UK students from 11-16 (Years 7 to 11) and 16-19 (Years 12 to 13) working in teams of up to three to look at problems large and small to see if they can find a better way of doing things.

This year around 15 Stephen Perse students took part, developing a diverse range of projects. There was a project to investigate sustainable energy options at the school and a fidget pen designed for SEND students. Molly R, Carys W and Millie K in Year 8 submitted a project on their idea for a new hand balm to reduce student stress. The aim of the project is to create a scented balm which can be sold from a vending machine in school.

Julie P and Mouboni D are also interested in student stress. Their idea is to increase the number of plants in schools by making them portable for students to be able to take them to class. Both projects have been selected for the finals and they will compete against other students by presenting their work to judges at the Institute for Engineering and Technology in Central London.