Birchwood Update 24/6/2019
- Josie Evans
- Jun 24, 2019
- 10 min read
Birchwood Update week Commencing 24/6/2019
Important dates for your diary:
27 June – Year 9 Performance Review Evening, 3.30pm – 7pm
28 June – Inset Day (Warrington Walking day) SCHOOL & COLLEGE CLOSED TO LEARNERS
1 & 2 July – Year 6 Induction days at BCHS
2 July - Year 6 Induction Evening, 4.30pm – 7pm
3 July – Sports Day
4 July – Year 11 Prom at Hallmark Warrington
4 July – Year 10 Taster Day at Birchwood College
9 July – Year 7 Celebration Evening, 6.30 – 7.30pm
11 July - Year 8 Celebration Evening, 6.30 – 7.30pm
16 July - Year 9 Celebration Evening, 6.30 – 7.30pm
17 July – KS3 show – Matilda, 7pm, Performing Arts Centre.
18 July - Year 10 Celebration Evening, 6.30 – 7.30pm
An important reminder for parents and carers
Please be aware that school and college will be closed to learners and students this Friday, 28 June for staff training. We are sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause you.
We look forward to welcoming next year’s Year 7 to sample a typical day at BCHS
On Monday, 1 and Tuesday, 2 July we will welcome Year 6 learners who have chosen to join us in Year 7.
The children will meet their form tutors and other form members, have plenty of time to get to know each other, and follow a typical timetable to give them the opportunity to really feel what it is like to be a member of Team BIRCHwood.
There will also be an opportunity for parents and carers to find out more about our school as they are invited to our Induction Evening which will take place after the second day on Tuesday 2 July between 4.30pm and 7pm.
With exams out of the way, throughout July BCHS will celebrate Pride
Every year, during the month of June, the LGBT community celebrates in a number of different ways. Across the globe, various events are held during this special month as a way of recognising the influence LGBT people have had around the world. BCHS this year will make July our Pride Month!
Pride celebrates sexual diversity. For lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people it is a way of protesting about discrimination and violence. It promotes their dignity, equal rights, self-affirmation and is a way of increasing society’s awareness of the issues they face.
At BCHS we celebrate the values of liberty, diversity and respect, so throughout July we will be supporting Pride Month by offering a series of activities and events including a poster competition film night, bake sale and a key stage 3 Pride party.
Fantastic after school football opportunity for Year 8
On Thursday, 11 July Birchwood College BTEC Sport students are organising a Year 8 Football Tournament which will take place after school on our new 3G astro pitch.
This is part of their Unit 23 assessment, where they are tasked to organise a sports event
The tournament will be open to both boys and girls and may give some learners the chance to play football for the first time.
If your child is interested in participating, there will be an assembly in the coming weeks about how to get involved in this fun event.
I would be fantastic for our students’ portfolios if as many year 8s as possible took part in the event
BCHS is amongst 3% of the best eco- friendly schools in the country
Well done to our Eco-committee who met with an external Eco inspector last week to assess how eco-friendly our school is.
After a tour of the school from Pedro Santos and Luke Richardson showcasing our eco-projects, the whole Eco-committee gave a presentation about their achievements this past year. The inspector then asked some questions and was really impressed with the answers the committee gave. He thought our learners showed excellent commitment, leadership and passion towards the eco-schools project and as a result we have been awarded the Green Flag Award, which is the highest award which only 3% of schools hold.
What wonderful progress in such a short amount of time.
Pride in our staff too!
Every week we share good news stories about our learners but we are also proud of our teachers’ achievements, particularly when their passion enables them to meet VIPs.
Mr Ben Coulson, music teacher at BCHS really does have a passion for his subject, not only teaching here but also playing in a renowned brass band and just lately doing lots of work as a musical director.
His latest project, which played at the Royal Hall Theatre in Harrogate in March was a musical based on a Nepalese fairy tale called ‘Monkey Boy’ performed by children from North Yorkshire and Nepal. The event was part of the Harrogate Rotary Club’s annual charity concerts to raise money for international causes. This concert helped provide aid for schools in the poor and remote Panchamul Valley in Nepal.
The UK Ambassador to Nepal was so impressed with the performance and the work that Ben had put into its musical direction that he was invited last weekend to the Nepalese Embassy to meet the Prime Minister of Nepal in person.
Well done Ben your dedication is a credit to you, and we are so proud to have you as a member of Team BIRCHwood.
Birchwood’s Matilda, Wednesday 17 July, 7pm
We have a few tickets remaining for the Key Stage 3 performance of BCHS’s take on Roald Dahl’s Matilda. The show will be in our performing arts studio at 7pm on Wednesday 17 July. Tickets are £5 for adults and £3 for concessions available from the office.
Our uniform Suppliers
As many of you may now be considering purchasing uniform for the next academic year, please find a reminder of our local suppliers
Touchline UK
Unit 2 Kerfoot Street
Warrington
WA2 8NU
Warrington Schoolwear
50-54 Buttermarket St
Warrington
WA1 2NN
Also there are some deals on at high street suppliers at the moment that you may like to take advantage of:
Marks and Spencer have 20% of school wear.
Sainsburys are offering free click and collect on orders over £15.
Asda are 3 for 2 on school wear.
Keeping your child safe
June is officially Pride month, though due to exam stresses we will be celebrating Pride and diversity at our school throughout July.
It seems appropriate therefore over the coming weeks to look at some issues that may be worrying your child regarding their sexual and gender identity
Sexuality
Sexuality and sexual orientation is about who you're physically and emotionally attracted to. Everyone is different, and sometimes understanding your sexuality can be confusing. For advice on what sexuality and LGBTQ means, please see the guidance from Childline here
Extra-curricular timetable
Please take a look at our extracurricular timetable to see what great activities are available for your child to take part in both after school and at lunchtime .
Learners of the Week
Well done to the learners below who were selected Learners of the week for week commencing 17 June by our science, languages and English department.
Year 7 - No specific Information
Year 8
Year 8 Girls HPV vaccination
All girls in Year 8 will receive a permission slip in their form box for the HPV vaccinations that will take place in school in June. Can you please check that your child has handed this to you and please read and return your permission for your child to receive the vaccination immediately please.
The documents can also be found here
More details regarding the date for vaccination will follow shortly.
Year 9 -
Year 9 Performance Review Evening Thursday 27 June, 3.30pm – 7.00pm
Don’t forget that this Thursday is Year 9 Performance Review evening. This valuable event gives you the opportunity to speak with subject teachers to discuss progress and achievement at a vital stage in their school life. Your child should have brought home a letter regarding booking an appointment, which you can also find here. If you haven’t booked your appointments, please do so immediately. Any problems please contact our office for assistance.
We hope to see you all on the evening.
Year 10 - No specific information
Year 11
Year 11 Leaver’s Prom, Thursday 4 July 2019
This year the Year 11 Leavers’ Prom will be at the Hallmark Warrington on the evening of Thursday 4 July 2019. We will be leaving school at 6.15pm and returning late (approximately 12.30am).
All learners going to the prom must travel on the coaches provided. Arriving together on the coaches is an integral part of the evening. It also enables parents/carers to take photographs at school before we set off if they wish.
The Warrington Guardian photographer will be taking photos at school before we leave as will Mrs Evans, our Events Manager so make sure that you arrive in plenty of time for photographs.
We look forward to a special evening.
Looking to the Future and next steps for Year 11
Young people must stay in education or training until at least the age of 18. See the information here
They must do one of the following:
stay in full-time education, for example at a college/6th form
start an apprenticeship or traineeship
spend 20 hours or more a week working or volunteering, while in part-time education or training
If your child is considering the apprenticeship route please be aware that many apprenticeships are now being advertised for school leavers on the gov.uk site, Find an apprenticeship, which can be found here
Results days 2019
A level/BTEC - Thursday 15 August 2019
GCSE/BTEC – Thursday 22 August 2019
More details will follow with regard to collecting your child’s results nearer the date.
Birchwood College
Cieron takes gold at the Brazilian Jiu Jitzu British Open
Well done Ceiron, a student at Birchwood College, who took a gold medal in the Brazilian Jiu Jitzu British Open at the NEC in Birmingham last week.
Ceiron, a member of the Warrington Gracie Barra Dojo, was delighted to be part of a team that took four gold, seven silver and four bronze medals in the competition.
Results days 2019
A level/BTEC - Thursday 15 August 2019
GCSE/BTEC – Thursday 22 August 2019
More details will follow with regard to collecting your child’s results nearer the date.
Other School information:
Please support us in ensuring that our facilities are the best they can be
Please be aware of rules regarding learners being on the school site outside school hours.
Some damage has been caused to the site and a learner has been hurt trying to climb over the fencing. We would like to remind you that learners are not allowed on the school site at any time unless they are with a member of staff. The rule about this is below:
Unless there is a member of staff running a special extra-curricular activity, the school site is out of bounds for all learners on weekdays after school clubs have finished (usually after 4.30pm) and at weekends and during school holidays.
Please support us by making you child aware of this rule so that our facilities are the best they can be for us to use in school time and for the community to book and use out of school hours.
Thank you for your support in this matter
Keeping in touch gets even easier with the introduction of the Xpressions website
We are pleased to announce that Groupcall Xpressions is now available to access on your computer via a website. The login page can be found here.
This gives you a further way, as well as accessing the APP on your mobile phone and tablet, to view information about your child
Once you are set up you will be able to see information such as:
Free messages sent by the school delivered to the app
Attendance and absence information
Attitude to learning (“ATL”) scores for each lesson.
Daily/Weekly timetable information
Xpressions is completely free of charge to you and supports Apple iOS, Android devices and now Windows operating system.
In order to use the Xpressions, school must have your correct mobile number and email address on our school system. Forms are available from the school office to check and update your details or you can simply email them to the school. You will need to make sure you keep these details up to date in future to maintain access to the service.
We hope that you take advantage of this new service, which has replaced our ParentsLive system. If you have any issues or need to know more please contact Mr O’Reilly here at school on aoreilly@birchwoodhigh.org
Mobile Phones, Earphones and Speakers in school.
Phones and headphones may be brought in to school but must be kept in bags or zipped in blazer pockets out of view at all times. Learners must not use phones at any time on the site between the bells at 8.50 and 3.00pm unless they are asked to do so by a teacher in a lesson for a reason that is related to learning. In this case, the teacher will issue instructions on the use of phones or headphones, which must then be followed. If a phone is out during the school day, even to check the time, this will be confiscated. There is a staged system of sanctions and mobile phones, earphones and speakers are counted as identical items. If you think a learner is using a smart watch in the same way as a mobile phone, please speak to their Year Team Leader or Year Team Officer.
If a learner is concerned about an issue at home and feels they need to speak to a parent, they need to go to the Year Team Office and discuss this with Year Team Officer. Staff should confiscate mobile technology items that are visible and in use during the times specified. They should be taken to the school office. The system of sanctions are:
Stage 1 - First offence
The item is confiscated and locked in the school safe
The item is collected by the learner at the end of the day
One behaviour point is issued by the Office
Stage 2 - Second offence
The item is confiscated and locked in the school safe
The item is collected by the learner at the end of the day
One behaviour points issued by the Office
Stage 3 - Third Offence
The item is confiscated and locked in the school safe
Parents/carers are informed and asked to collect the phone at the end of the school day
One behaviour points is issued by the Office.
Children on site out of school hours
As a Community School, we welcome clubs and booked activities to use our facilities and school grounds outside the school day. We have become aware though that there are groups of both learners and ex learners on site in the evenings. Please make your child aware that learners are only allowed on site after the school day, if they are part of an organised and booked group. Thank you for your co-operation.
School Nurse: Please note that the school nurse comes into school every Wednesday from 12.15- 1.30pm and is available in the BSR Mentoring Room if any learners or students have any health related issues they would like to discuss.
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