Friday 29th April 2022
Welcome back to the start of an extremely busy term.
Please see below an important request from Sarah Busby our Trust CEO, relating to the involvement of parents in the forthcoming Head of College interviews. My PA, Hanna will send a reminder out on Tuesday to see if any parents would like to be part of the process.
In addition to the examination guide to support the revision period issued to parents and students on 7th April, you should now have received today some key guidance from Lisa Lucas our Exams Officer. She has shared with parents and students the Guide to Exams as well as the exam timetable. Please do take the time to review the document, it includes information such as ‘Meet the Invigilation team’ so that we can make the exam experience for students as smooth as possible. Please support and encourage your young person to thoroughly read the guide and help them to be aware of the times, dates and preparation they need in order to have a successful exam season.
On Tuesday this week we had our Student Personal Development Day, on Sexual Health and relationships. Students really valued the day, both its relevance and approach for their age. For full details of the experience the students received, please see the article below. It is important that students who miss these days catch up on the information that was shared with students so that they are knowledgeable and well informed. The tutor sessions and talks have been made available for students to join online if they were off college for covid reasons.
Fern our college dog has been in a number of days this week as she continues to get used to spending more time here and settling into her routine. She is very calm but absolutely loves the attention, strokes and play she gets from students and staff. She is becoming a regular visitor to Software design lessons and knitting club.
Have a wonderful May Day bank holiday weekend and we look forward to welcoming students back on Tuesday 3rd May.
Best wishes,
Louise
Head of College
S6C Head of College Interviews Thursday 12th May
Sarah Busby – CEO of Magna Learning Partnership
You will be aware that we intend to appoint a new Head of College for September to replace Louise Henderson as she moves to her new role at Wyvern St Edmund’s. We would be keen to have some parental involvement in this process so if you have availability during either the morning or the afternoon of Thursday 12th May and would like to be part of our interview panel we would be glad to hear from you. You don’t need any previous experience or specific skills, just an interest in the college and a shared desire to appoint the very best new leader we can.
If you are interested please contact us the Head of College’s PA, Hanna at hnjimgye@s6c.mlp.college by Thursday 5th May
Student Development Day
Rebecca Anderson – Pastoral Lead
On Tuesday we were so pleased to be able to run our Healthy Relationships and Sexual Health Development Day in person, having shared online resources last year. Students were all given a one hour talk on sexual health from an expert practitioner (who has been doing this job for 35 years) from Salisbury District Hospital, and is well versed in talking through issues from STDs and their prevention (ideal) and treatment (if needed), contraception, consent, and healthy relationships. Students commented that they were very glad that they had had the information, and wished that it had been presented to them in this way at school. We will follow up on all feedback, especially from our LGBTQ+ community of students.
Students also had a talk from the community police team about local risks and vulnerabilities, in the light of county lines drug dealing and local issues of cuckooing, where dealers take over the houses of vulnerable community members. The team showed how county lines are set up to draw ordinary young people in, by offering them a pair of trainers, or new phone, for what seems like a simple task – but how this is designed as a trap, with devastating consequences for young people and their families. They gave some very practical advice on how to spot the signs (increased phone use, anxiety, having a burner phone, secretive or evasive behaviour, new possessions) as those involved will usually put on a brave face and not speak out, due to fear of reprisal. They spoke about the importance of raising any concerns with a trusted adult or our college safeguarding team but also shared the website www.fearless.org where young people can let the police know information with complete anonymity.
Year 12 were given the opportunity to drop in to a couple of informal sessions of their choice – ranging from what it is like to have children, to how to travel safely, issues surrounding porn and sexting, how to party more safely, what the markers of a healthy relationship are, looking at the current range of period products on the market, and handling harassment in the workplace. We also offered a drop in safe space for our LGBTQ+ community to talk together. Students have commented how much they appreciated the opportunity to talk openly with professional and supportive staff and have also asked for resources to be shared so they can revisit material and explore more widely.
All students have access to the slides from the tutor led session – we need to know that all our students know that consent is absolutely essential, and that establishing consent is a two way conversation that can only be had between young people who are in a position to be able to think and communicate clearly. We need them to know that any harassment, non-consensual acts, or manipulative behaviour is unacceptable – and that no one is alone and that there are people to listen and support and advice 24/7 either in college or through helplines. We need to know that young people know the law about sharing nudes and semi-nudes. That they know that online abuse can be reported at CEOP. And that they know about wider issues like the campaign to put an end to female genital mutilation, how to identify and get support for domestic violence, and how to keep themselves safe, physically and emotionally. If your young person did not attend the day and so missed these resources, please encourage them to look. They have not had a rounded education if all they have learnt is knowledge in their core subjects!
Safeguarding and Mental Health Support
Rebecca Anderson – Pastoral Lead
A final reminder that the pastoral support, mental health support, counselling, and safeguarding support and advice are all available in college, and through external helplines 24/7, in a non-judgmental way, for all our young people.
Here are a couple of links useful links:
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection website
https://www.ceop.police.uk/Safety-Centre/
NSPCC for information and 24/7 support for a range of safety issues affecting young people and their families.
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/
Mental Health Matters
Catherine Pennington – Mental Health Lead
We have a new team of Mental Health Champions at college.
Hanna Njimgye Tekumafor
Sophie Bellars
Hazel Wright
Lisa Lucas
Rich Eno
Kirsty White
Steve Price
Joanne Thompson
Diane Newton
Why do our students need these Champions?
We all have Mental Health just as we have physical health and we want to be there for our students as early help. We know that 1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem in any given year. Stigma is still an issue, but at S6C we want to embrace the passion to create an environment where our students feel able to talk openly and receive support.
What do Champions do?
Our Mental Health Champions raise awareness of mental health and make it part of normal conversation. They will do this in lots of different ways. Every activity, no matter how big or small, contributes to our collective goal of tackling stigma, such as organising an event or starting a conversation about sexuality.
Celebrating Student Success
Sport – Harvey Roberts
Harvey Roberts successful Wessex League playoff final!
Year 13 Sport student Harvey Roberts capped off an incredible first season competing in men’s football by winning in the Wessex League One playoff final for Laverstock & Ford FC against Newport FC on the Isle of Wight this Saturday. It was the Bulldogs 12th successive win and confirmed their place in the Wessex Premier League for next year. Harvey played the full 120 minutes as the game went to extra time, starting the game at right back. He has played 19 times for the first team this season, which is an incredible feat in itself for a 17 year old.
For the full match report please see the enclosed link:
https://www.islandecho.co.uk/heartbreak-for-isle-of-wight-side-newport-after-play-off-final-defeat/
Harvey pictured far left (back row)
Harvey pictured in green, defending against the Newport winger.
Clubs and Societies
Online Baking Club
Sally Tye, Baking Club Lead
This week in baking club we baked some mouth watering Cherry Bakewell cupcakes.
Did you know, that Cherry Bakewells are named after the Derbyshire town Bakewell where they were invented by Mrs Greaves who was a landlady in the 1860s!
Here are Thomas Stewart’s delicious and colourful looking cakes.
Yoga Club
Hanna Njimgye Tekumafor – Yoga Teacher
This week we worked through a Yin Yoga class. With the aim of balancing out our busy Yang livestyles with a slower paced and more grounding Yin Yoga practice.
Yoga club will be running over the next term in the Gym as the dance studio is being used for Exams. Students who have not tried yoga before but would like to are welcome to join.
