Weekly College Update

Friday 17th June

You may well have heard in the media, there are rail strikes due next week which could affect attendance to exams or lessons; I have the following details from the rail company to share with you;

South Western Railway announces strike timetable

·   Due to the planned national strike, SWR customers are urged only to travel by rail if absolutely necessary between 21 and 26 June 

·  SWR will run a severely reduced timetable on strike days (21, 23, 25 June), with significant parts of the network closed 

·    A severely limited service will run between 07:15 and 18:30 on some routes for those who have no choice but to travel 

·    SWR will run a late-starting Sunday level of service across the network on 22, 24 and 26 June

South Western Railway (SWR) is urging customers only to travel by rail if absolutely necessary on the planned strike days – Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June – and throughout that week.  

As we have both year 12 and 13 exams next week, it is important that students plan/ amend their journeys if they usually travel to college via train.  If you have any concerns about your young person getting to their exams on time due to these rail strikes , please inform reception, and we may be able to advise you further. It may be useful to consider a car share if travelling with another student from the same locality, or staying in Salisbury with a friend or relative. 

Looking forward to some key dates ahead this term:

We are looking for S6C Student Ambassadors to join us in college on Thursday 30th June from 9am – 2pm to support the new Y12 intake for their Freshers Day.  Students will guide our visitors to classrooms, the cafe etc and answer any questions.  Students will need to contact Teresa Salmon, our Admissions Officer  on Chat to confirm attendance. I would like to thank our students in advance for helping with this event.  This day will be set as a reading day for current year 12 students.

Our S6C careers development day takes place on Wednesday July 6th for Year 12. This is a really important day and all students will be in college from 9am – 4pm. In the morning there are practical talks from experts about applying to employment, apprenticeships and university. In the afternoon, teachers are working hard to arrange guests for students to meet, either in person or live online, who are studying or working in a related field. They will have the afternoon to build their own programme, meet as many people as they can across as many sectors as they can, and try to get something (knowledge, information, inspiration, tips) from everyone they meet. Students must make sure they are not working or having driving lessons that day.

If any parents or family contacts would be willing to come into college and share their expertise and experience with students then please contact Rosie Roberts or Rebecca Anderson and we would be very interested in welcoming you to the event.

Thursday 7th July is a normal college day, then on Friday 8th July is Reference Registration and Entry to Year 13 Day. Everyone will need to register with UCAS, in order to get a reference from college, even if they are not applying to university. We will meet in the theatre to do this. Students will then need to register for entry into Year 13 with their tutor – some students may need longer appointments than others, or meet with Faculty Leads, depending on whether their mocks or attendance figures show that extra summer work and expectations are needed. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend enjoying the sunshine. 

Regards

Louise

Year 13 Examinations

The Year 13 exams next week are; 

Please continue to assist your young person in getting into college on time, calm and ready for their exam.  Please ensure they have a bottle of water with no label, a clear pencil case and wear something that is comfortable. Students will be supported by staff beforehand to prepare for their Energiser session.   If students are ill or late please ensure parents phone reception as soon as possible. 

Year 12 Examinations

We wish year 12 students good luck in their Mock exams starting on Monday.

Welcome to the new Student Union 

Hazel Wright – Receptionist and Pastoral Administrator

Our aim is to develop the previous Student Unions progress while also bringing together the college and making the community more close knit between all staff and students.  Developing the Life Skills Programme and opportunities post College is also one of our top priorities in helping students achieve the best version of themselves. 

As a Union we will involve our students and staff in setting goals and trying our absolute best to reach and support these goals and show the student community that we support them throughout the college journey.

Introduction to our  SU Team: 

I’m Nick and I am the College Community Officer. My role is to work with our staff and students to support local and global charities through fundraising and events within our college. My aim is to make sure our students are aware of current events and get them involved in supporting our local community.  I will be talking to students about parts of life that not everyone is affected by, to spread awareness and to educate them now and in future, while also directing them to where support can be accessed inside and outside college. 

I’m Immy and I am the Mental Health Officer. My aim for my role is to reassure the students to know the college is a safe and welcoming space and to promote students’ well-being as it plays a very important role in our lives and how we perform in college. I wish to talk with students, gaining their feedback and support them in college and with future steps. 

I’m Abi and I am the Equality and Diversity Officer. My aim is to ensure the college is a welcoming and safe environment for everyone and make sure every member of the S6C community feels included and valued. 

I’m Chloe and I am the Eco and Sustainability Officer. Within this role I plan to work with the staff, students’ and wider MLP trust in developing the positive use of sustainable techniques to encourage the whole community and to educate everyone further on current issues like fast fashion, diet and other methods to help the climate recover. 

Pride Month

Rebecca Anderson – Pastoral Lead

June is Pride Month and an amazing opportunity to celebrate and support our S6C, local, national and global LGBTQ+ communities. 

• Whether you are celebrating and standing in solidarity with each other as part of this group, or as an ally, it is an excellent opportunity to translate our values of individual liberty, mutual respect, tolerance (‘tolerance’ really should be a bare minimum – what we are aiming for is active solidarity and celebration), and equality, into positive actions. Let’s stand together to make ideals a reality! 
• Students are talking about Pride Month in their subjects, and there will be weekly posts in the Information Classroom, and on the plasma slides.
• If anyone wants to talk about equality and diversity in college, or has suggestions for our celebrations and activism this month, please do come and see me. 
• Our first clip is a Happy Pride for All video, and a link to the Pink News online events. There is also a link to The Proud Trust, who have lots of excellent information on LGBTQ+ issues and identity and also have an online chat line and links to further support.

Pride month in Psychology

Kirsty White – Faculty Lead for STEM

As part of our celebration of Pride month, Psychology students in Year 12 have been looking at how social influence processes can contribute to social change. This forms part of the topic ‘Social Influence’. We discussed how the views of the LGBTQ+ community have changed over history and why this has happened. We talked about the Stonewall riots and how a minority standing up against prejudice and discrimination can cause a radical change in societal views. Students were able to apply their knowledge from across the topic, drawing on historical changes such as homosexuality beign removed from mental health diagnostic manuals and changes to legal rights, such as sexuality and gender identity becoming a protected characteristic and same-sex marriage being legalised. It has been amazing to see our students embracing the importance of diversity and acceptance as part of their curriculum!

S6C Careers Partnership with Foray Motor Group (FMG)

Steve Price, Teacher of Business 

As part of S6C’s work to develop career pathways for our students at Post-18 and have the opportunities to fulfil their potential, we have created a partnership with FMG. This is focussed on students who may not want to take the university route. It will provide our students with the chance to explore a wide range of possible careers in the car industry.

FMG are a local business, who have had a Ford Dealership in Salisbury for over 20 years. The business operates across the South West with over 350 plus employees. They are very diverse with apprenticeship and employment roles across Digital Marketing, Engineering, Administration, Accounting, Sales, Fleet Services, Body Repairs and Marketing.  

The initial steps are for FMG to provide work experience for three of our students interested in the car industry and support with our careers day on Wednesday 6 July. They will also join us for our careers fair in February 2023.

We really appreciate the time they have taken to provide opportunities for our students and look forward to a long and productive relationship. 

Year 12 Art 

Laurence Rushby, Teacher of Art 

This week, we have welcomed the external moderator for Year 13 Art and Photography. On this occasion, an exhibition of the works was laid out in `college for all to see, celebrating the incredible achievements of no less than 22 artists from this years’ cohort. We will look forward to results day in August and in the meantime we feel very proud of all the art students. A large proportion of the students are now due to move towards further creative studies at the Universities of their choice.