S T MARY’S Hair & Beauty Academy is now in business! Wirral’s Mayor, Councillor Adrian Jones, has

declared the state-of-the-art facility in Wallasey Village officially open in a special ribbon-cutting ceremony. He also unveiled a plaque in the smart foyer of the brand new Academy, which is a working replica of a real hair and beauty salon, right down to the last hairpin and cotton bud. As a City & Guilds registered centre, St Mary’s is now training students in qualifications directly transferable to the hair and beauty industry. Full story: See pages 2 and 3.

Left: Wirral’s Mayor and Mayoress, Councillor and Mrs Adrian Jones chat to Sixth Former Danielle Kavanagh. Above: Cutting the ribbon to declare our Health and Beauty Training Academy officially open.

Mayor launches unique Hair & Beauty AcademyMayor launches unique Hair & Beauty Academy

PICTURE SPECIAL INSIDEPICTURE SPECIAL INSIDE

newsletter A Specialist College for the Arts

Easter 2009

S T M A R Y ’ S C AT H O L I C C O L L E G E

Open for Open for business!business!

IT was another smash hit for St Mary’s Theatre St Mary’s Theatre

Company!!Company!! Our fifth major production

since becoming a Specialist Arts College, Disney's High School MusicalHigh School Musical ran for four nights to sell-out audiences. See pages 12 to 18

Academy Academy of styleof style

T HE ribbon has been cut, the plaque unveiled and St Mary’s Hair and Beauty Training Academy is now officially open to

the public! The Mayor and Mayoress of Wirral, Councilllor and Mrs Adrian Jones, were guests of honour at the opening ceremony along with representatives of education and the hair and beauty industry. They toured the state-of-the-art facilities and chatted with students. St Mary’s is now a City and Guilds approved centre, so the qualifications our students achieve at Key Stages 4 and 5 are directly transferable to the hair and beauty industry. The Mayoress, Mrs Christine Jones, enjoyed the benefits of a hand and arm exfoliation massage, a small sample of the services that will soon be available to paying clients. But for now, a limited number of appointments with hair trainees are available to members of the public. If you are interested in having your hair washed, coloured or styled by students under supervision, please ring 0151 201 4509 in school hours.

The Mayor and Mayoress toured the Academy and chatted to students about their City & Guilds courses. Right: With the head blocks used as ‘models’

Mayoress Mrs Chris Jones had a hand and arm exfoliation treatment from Year 10 student Francesca O’Donnell

Year 10’s Demi o’Quigley shows off her creation

Page 2

St Mary’s attic ‘find’ is part of St Mary’s attic ‘find’ is part of 125 years of hair journal history125 years of hair journal history

Fascinating past of a Fascinating past of a Wallasey Village shopWallasey Village shop

THE Hairdressers’ Weekly Journal started life in 1883 as a trade magazine for hairdressers. It was an early attempt to regulate the hair and beauty industry, which was notorious at the time for burning and poisoning its clients! We are glad to say that things have changed much since then! Hairdressers’ Journal was-and still is–regarded as the bible for hair and beauty professionals. It now boasts an interactive website, but copies are still posted out on subscription, just as the ones to Mr Maddocks of Wallasey Village were in the 1920s. Check the website: www.hji.co.uk

M AGAZINES from the 1920s were found during last year’s refurbishment of our Hair & Beauty Training Academy ~ an amazing time capsule of a world long gone.

The copies of The Hairdressers’ Weekly Journal (price threepence, annual subscription 15 shillings, pictured) are a fascinating record of The Roaring Twenties, complete with tips on how to create the perfect Marcel Wave and, though primitive and a bit scary to our eyes, which of the latest perming, colouring and styling equipment no self-respecting stylist could possibly do without. And it was very tempting to believe that perhaps the building, now an ultra-modern, 21st Century training environment, might once have seen the early stages of today’s sophisticated hair and beauty industry. Well, after a little research, we know that it did! According to local trade and land use records, the Academy, comprising 253 ~ 255 Wallasey Village Road, was made up of three businesses in the early 20s: 253 was a hair salon owned by one Mr P Maddocks; 253A was Pullers’ Cleaners and Dyers; and 255 was a café in the name of Mary Jane Morris. The magazines will join an existing set of artefacts from the period, safely stored by

Wirral Museum. Mr Colin Simpson, Principal Museums Officer, said: ‘We are delighted to add these magazines to our existing collection of barbering and hairdressing equipment. They are a valuable part of our local history.’

Wallasey Village as it looked when Mr Maddocks had his hair salon opposite the church

Mr Heitzman presents the magazines to Mr Colin Simpson of Wirral Museum watched by the Mayor and Mayoress

Glimpse of Glimpse of the’Roarinthe’Roaring g Twenties’Twenties’

Page 3

W HO said romance was dead? They were definitely wrong, as our Year 10 BTEC Business students found out in the

lead up to St Valentine’s Day earlier this term. They went into production and sold a range of love tokens including heart-

shaped photograph frames, heart-shaped boxes each containing a Love Heart sweet and a Rolo (the last one, from dozens of tubes, of course!) They did a roaring trade among students and staff.

C AREER-minded students considered life after St Mary’s at our annual Careers Fair when employers from the region converged

on the Sports Hall. It was a golden opportunity to ask the experts all those burning questions. Above left: Learning about a career in television at the Wirral TV stall. Above right: Getting into gear for a career in the police, underneath a metal detecting arch. Below left: finding out about the Army game. Below right: Flying instructions from the Royal Air Force.

Career Career

movesmoves

Romance dead? Romance dead? No way. It’s a new No way. It’s a new business opportunity!business opportunity!

Page 4

Page 5

Right: ‘Head Teacher’ Rachel Mason played by Eva Pope

J AMIE Toner has been wearing a different uniform of late, swapping the familiar (and subtle) blue

and gold of St Mary’s for the rather more colourful shades of BBC TV’s Waterloo Road! The Year 11 student, preparing for his GCSEs, has been on our screens this term in the long-running school soap, appearing as an extra alongside the programme’s stars Eva Pope, Neil Morrissey and Steph Haydock. He was even chosen by the directors to sit in between two of the main characters, Bolton Smilie and Phillip Ryan in classroom scenes,

and given lines to say. Jamie, aged 16, joined a Warrington theatre agency in August and within weeks was on his way to Rochdale for filming. It meant 5am starts and most days it was 10pm before he got home. Jamie’s mum, Mrs Lynne Toner, and his Nan, Mrs Doreen Anderson also went along to give moral support. Said Jamie: ‘It was really tiring, but it was really interesting too, and it was great meeting the actors. Neil Morrissey is really nice and very down-to-earth.’ Jamie, who is hoping to

take A Levels in Drama, Music and Psychology, was able to keep a little memento of his ‘term’ at Waterloo Road ~ one of the ties worn by the cast. It was only when he got a closer look at it that he saw the name marked on the back was

‘Chlo’ ~ the character played by young actress Katie Griffiths. Waterloo Rd is the first professional acting experience that Jamie has had, but the keen arts student, who also plays the piano and saxophone, is currently rehearsing for Birkenhead Operatic Society’s production of 42nd Street in which he sings and dances tap. The original Broadway musical is based on the 1933 film of the same name, choreographed by Hollywood legend Busby Berkeley. It is to be staged at the Liverpool Empire in May.

ANSWER: It’s Mr Webster! St Mary’s Head of RE taught her when he was at his first school, St Peter’s, High School, Orrell, in his home town of Wigan. And incidentally, since the young Eva’s dad had a landscape gardening business, her dad actually built Mr Webster’s first garden fence.

Jamie Jamie meets meets his his WaterlooWaterloo

Jamie with his Waterloo Rd ‘stripes’: a tie worn by ‘Chlo Grainger’ the character played by Katie Griffiths, pictured below

Life among the Waterloo Road students

And earnsAnd earns some some ‘stripes’!‘stripes’!

Guess which member of staff at St Mary’s used to teach Waterloo Road star

Eva Pope?

Answer below!

Right: Denise Welch played by Steph Haydock

Above: Neil Morrissey as teacher Eddie Lawson

Page 6

T HIS stunning picture of two of our A-level Dance students, Richard Squires and Rachel Webster,

was taken by Tony McArdle in the Dance Studio. It will be part of the masthead for St Mary’s brand new website due to be launched next term. Go to:

www.stmaryscollege.wirral.sch.uk

Picture Picture this!this!

G OOD pictures don’t just happen! Great skill and patience goes into achieving that

special professional look. Photographer Tony McArdle recently spent four days in St Mary’s setting up shots and producing a portfolio of impressive photographs for use in all our publications, from prospectuses to the new school website. You may already have seen some of his work on banners for Parents’ Evening and our Sixth Form Open Evening. Tony, who is also Everton Football Club’s official photographer, had help from Sixth Former James Blackmore who assisted with reflective equipment.

And And how how it was it was donedone

Pictured: Top left and below: Drama in the Dining Room. Left and right: Our Lady’s Hall . Main picture: Flames under strict supervision in Science 1

EVERTON mascot Josh Eastwood was snapped by the club’s official photographer Tony McArdle before last term’s clash with Portsmouth at Goodison Park. Josh (above) is in Year 8.

Page 7

C ARELESS talk could have cost the lives of countless Allied troops and civilians in the Second World War. No one knew that more than teenager

Ruth Roberts who worked at top secret code-breaking centre Bletchley Park. As a member of the Wrens (Women’s Royal Navy), she helped the country’s best brains to decipher the complex codes of the German Enigma machines. And the work of protecting our island nation from attack was so secret that it was only when she had been married for 25 years and no longer bound by the Official Secrets Act that she was able to tell her husband exactly what she had done during the war! In fact, all soldiers, sailors, aircrew and workers in military establishments were forbidden to discuss their work for fear of enemy spies. Ruth, who became Mrs Perry in 1950, and fellow war veteran Mrs Norah Hayes, came to St Mary’s to share their fascinating and exciting war stories with some of our Year 9 History students. Both women were junior secretaries at the then Lever Brothers factory in Port Sunlight, Wirral, when the outbreak of war with Germany changed the lifestyles of every man, woman and child in the country. Mrs Perry was selected to go to Bletchley ~ made famous by Robert Harris’s bestselling novel Enigma and the award-

winning film by the same name, starring Kate Winslet. But, as Mrs Perry told our students, the reality was a lot more humdrum! However, it is a fact that the Bletchley code breakers managed to shorten the war by several months, saving millions of lives. Only the quickest brains made it through the strict selection procedures. ‘At school I suppose I was quite good at Maths’ said Mrs Perry, modestly, a former student of Wirral County Grammar School for Girls. After three years at Bletchley, she went back to her job and met Albert in 1947. Mrs Norah Hayes was in the WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force), working for a time at a radar station north of John O’Groats in Scotland, the purpose of which was to monitor the movements of shipping, including German destroyers and U-boats, in the Scapa Flow and

North Atlantic. Mrs Hayes’ work as a shorthand typist, handling sensitive information, was essential for the smooth running of the station. Mrs Perry’s husband Albert and Mrs Hayes’ husband Richard both saw active service, first at Dunkirk and later in the Eighth Army at the Battle of El Alamein in the North African desert. Both men were also part of the invasion of Sicily and Italy, where Albert Perry was wounded. Said Mrs Hayes: ‘It was an absolute pleasure and a privilege to come and talk to the pupils at St Mary’s. They were really interested in our experiences.’

Women of warWomen of war

Pictured far left , above right and top: Typical wartime posters reminding people not to talk about their work

Kate Winslet as Hester, the code breaking heroine of the award-winning film Enigma

Year 9 students with Mrs Perry (left) and Mrs Hayes. The visit was arranged through Learning Officer Clarinda Fidler of the Port Sunlight Museum (far right)

Secrets Secrets that that

saved saved millions millions of livesof lives

Page 8

Pauses Pauses for for thoughtthought

T AKE it as read: St Mary’s English students have been brought to book in a Year 7 and 8 Reading Challenge! They are working on a one-to-one basis with

teachers and teaching assistants to improve their confidence. Mrs Karen Rogan, who runs the challenge with Miss Laura Reynolds, said: ‘Meeting the Reading Challenge helps St Mary’s pupils progress in all subjects.’

I N DAYS OF OLD, when knights were bold...they all got together in their medieval castles for a good old banquet! And what was good enough for them was good enough for students and staff in our Literacy Suite

who summoned the serving wenches and dressed for the occasion. They ate typical medieval foods of meats, bread and fruit to give their project on Norman Castles that extra taste of reality.

Bringing English Bringing English students to bookstudents to book

T HEY think, therefore they are*, and they are...all members of our

Philosophy Film Club! The club was started last term by Sixth Formers studying Philosophy and Ethics who meet regularly to

watch thought-provoking films.

Their first sharing was Dead Poets’ Society starring Robin Williams and other films have included a special pre-Christmas showing of It’s A Wonderful Life starring James Stewart and, earlier this term, Leo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond. NON-TRIVIA: *Cogito ergo sum, (I think, therefore I am’) was the famous statement of 17th Century French philosopher René Descartes.

A right royal banquetA right royal banquet

Thoughtful : Leo DiCaprio

Page 9

The baroness and The baroness and Anthony’s African Anthony’s African artart

We Are One…We Are One… and St Mary’s and St Mary’s artistsartists are many!are many!

A NTHONY Greenwood’s African-inspired GCSCE artwork has been

framed and presented to a baroness! W i r r a l E d u c a t i o n

Authority chose the Year 11 student’s work as a special t o k e n o f t h e borough’s Gifted and Talented cohort. Along with other pieces from St Mary’s students, it has been part of the We Are One Exhibition at the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool, celebrating the museum’s inauguration and focusing on anti–racism messages. Baroness Estelle Morris, who was guest speaker at a North West education conference in Chester said she was thrilled to receive the gift, and Anthony received a book token and a thank you letter from the House of Lords for his ‘outstanding contribution’. Baroness Morris is a former Secretary of State for Education in Tony Blair’s Cabinet. Her full title is Baroness Morris of Yardley (the name of her former Birmingham constituency) and she is a member of the House of Lords.

Natasha Heaney’s painting of a leopard (pictured centre below) was the feature work for Black History Month at Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum last October. Natasha is also in Year 11.

T HE display of African-inspired

slave art has been displayed in the Anthony Walker R o o m i n t h e International Slavery Museum, Liverpool. Teenage student Anthony Walker was murdered at a Huyton bus stop in a racist attack in 2005. A local 17-year-old white teenager and his 20-year-old cousin were found guilty of his murder. Anthony’s mother, Mrs Gee Walker, has refused to condemn t h e m u r d e r e r s , saying: ‘I have to forgive them. I refuse to feel anger or hatred, because that is what killed my son.’

Below: More St Mary’s artwork as featured on the museum website. Other Year 11 art displayed in the Anthony Walker Room includes the work of Natasha Heaney, Katie Daniels, Rebecca Reed, Nichola Squires and Jessica Herndlhofer.

Right: Baroness Morris of Yardley with Year 11’s Anthony Greenwood

In memory In memory ofof another another Anthony...Anthony...

Page 10

Left: The President of the Nuwara Eliya Lions presents knitted gifts to a

It’s kids’ It’s kids’ play…!play…!

Right: Report from our last Newsletter

Where our Where our blankets blankets went went B LANKETS knitted in St Mary’s are keeping

children warm in Sri Lanka and Romania, thanks to West Kirby Lions Club. This year’s consignment broke all previous records and 56 blankets left school just before Christmas and arrived in the town of Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka and Romania’s capital, Bucharest.

Right: A baby in Bucharest, Romania with blankets from St Mary’s

Right: A poor family in Bucharest, Romania are glad to receive the gifts from Wallasey

T OYS donated by St Mary’s staff went to local children in need

courtesy of Shrewsbury Diocese Catholic Children’s Society. Support Services Manager Mr Peter Gordon received them on behalf of the society from members of our office staff (pictured right).If you want more information about the work of the society, please ring their head office in Farmfield Drive, Beechwood on 0151 652 1281

Right: Mr Gordon with members of our office staff

Page 11

T HE questions certainly taxed a few brains, but this term’s Quiz Night was a great success and

raised £200 towards the purchase of a new school minibus. Pictured left: Some of the valiant contestants who survived the demon brainteasers compiled by Mr Malcolm Charles (back, centre).

THANKS to all parents who responded to our recent HSA survey. The results have been very helpful! If anyone has any further comments to make, we are

always keen to hear from you. Please ring school on 0151 639 7531

or email eweb@stmaryscollege.wirral.sch.uk

W E’RE on the road to a new minibus, thanks to members of St Mary’s Home School Association.

But more help is very much needed! Our old minibus (pictured right) has given us 10 years of reliable service...and is still going strong! But since our school has got bigger, and the trips more numerous, another minibus is now essential. If you are interested in joining the HSA, you don’t have to ~ because you’re already a member! But please come along and share your fundraising ~ and any other ~ ideas at our monthly meetings. The next meeting will be in school on Monday April 20th at 7pm.

It all adds up for It all adds up for World Maths DayWorld Maths Day

S T MARY’S Maths students made a

calculated move this term ~ they did their sums right and competed with young mathematicians from all over the world! It was World Maths Day and more than a million students from 160 countries took part in the event, adding to the fun and subtracting nothing from the day’s success! St Mary’s answered 15,466 questions correctly and the average improvement in Mental Arithmetic by our students was 105.477%! Our top mathematicians turned out to be Year 7’s Daniel Broeders, Jessica McCarthy and Year 9’s Lisa Pearson!

Project Minibus!Project Minibus!

Boy racers Boy racers get BMX get BMX WORXWORX

BMX racers from Years7,8 and 13 visited Rampworx BMX course in Aintree for a reckless night of skids and stunts. The trip was organised by Mr Colin Archer for St Mary’s Youth Club.

Our fifth major Arts Our fifth major Arts productionproduction

And it’s another

And it’s another

roaring success!

roaring success!

Page 12

Page 13

Four sellFour sell--out out performances

performances

Page 14

The Jocks led by Jimmy Murray as Coach Bolton

Elisha Carter and Aaron Faulkner as Troy and Gabriella

Page 15

David Noone as Mr Darbus

Olivia Mason and Stephen Pollard as Brainiac and Jock

Matthew Peters and Charlotte Chrystal’s duet

Page 16

Sean Jones as Jack

Lucy Griffiths as Kelsi with Brittany Taylor as Sharpay

Luke Bennet asks:

Where’s Bolton?

The Wildcat Cheerleaders

The Thespians share another dramatic moment

Geeks and Brainiacs

Page 17

Natalie Taylor’s dance solo

The Brainiacs

‘Bright and buzzing talent’‘Bright and buzzing talent’

Page 18

Left: Jack bravely acquires cerise eye shadow for his

part as outrageous Thespian Ryan Evans. Hair, wigs and makeup for the

production came courtesy of students and staff of our

Hair and Beauty Training Academy

Right: ‘Ryan’ in typical pose

Danny’s flip for top magDanny’s flip for top mag

Jack in costume as Ryan

F ORMER St Mary’s student Danny Bradford has danced his way onto the pages of a top

magazine. Danny, aged 19, was going through his paces at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts when a photographer for Marie Claire snapped him in perfect motion. Danny, also pictured left, has thrilled St Mary’s

audiences over the years with his stunning dance ability. Readers may remember him as the Toy Soldier in our very own version of The Nutcracker ballet, and in the many displays by our company of break dancers. Since beating 6,000 applicants to his degree course at LIPA, he has appeared in dance spectaculars at the Liverpool Style Awards and at Olympia, London.

‘W E’RE all in this together!’ went the finale’s giddy chant. It was a fitting end to a musical saga that spread across five months and provided more colour, more

excitement and more laughter than any other St Mary’s production. A theme of togetherness was evident from Day One of the rehearsals for High School Musical: a

comradeship built on mutual love for all things humorous and Disney meant that every person involved (from student to teacher) was intent on making a glittering , shiny performance to please all ages. And now it seemed, as Jocks, Brainiacs and Thespians sang with glee and pride, that the line-learning, the late nights in school and the lonesome humming of each and every song was paying off. Smiles on the audience’s faces, genuine smiles of enjoyment, filled our humble theatre and made our little school production seem much more than a re-run of High School Musical. It was ours, our special project of

bright and buzzing talent, our dream and our realisation. Bowing for one last time,

a cast of tired students glanced at each other as if to say:

‘We were all in this together!’

Sixth Former Sixth Former Jack Murray Jack Murray (aka Ryan)(aka Ryan) shares his shares his High SchoolHigh School Musical Musical experience experience

Page 19

Tutti frutti!Tutti frutti! I T was the apple of their eyes...and

the grapes, bananas and oranges! Healthy Eating Week had hundreds of St Mary’s students eating extra fruit at break and lunchtime. We also looked at Healthy Eating across the curriculum: History students studied trench rations from World War II, the Biology Department ran a healthy

diet poster competition, Physics focused on energy in foods, Hair and Beauty had an exotic fruit taster-session and DT

Food held special demonstrations for Year 7 classes (pictured below).

Burger Burger funfun B URGERS need not always

be the baddies of the food world! So, giving these Year 7 students (right) the lowdown on how to make their own delicious, healthy burgers was Alex Henners of The LowDown RoadShow, an educational workshop for schools. She really knew her onions, and she didn’t mince words, either, as she explained just exactly which tasty things can go into burgers, keeping salt and fat extremely LowDown on the list of ingredients.

Don’t get Don’t get in a flap, in a flap, Jack...Jack... Y OU wouldn’t normally

associate word games with yummy oaty biscuits, but that’s exactly what these Sixth Formers and Year 7s were doing in a cross-curricular activity between A level Health & Social Care, English and Food DT. The Sixth Formers focused on how to build positive relationships through playing Boggle and Scrabble with the Year 7s, then designed step-by-step recipe cards for delicious flapjacks!

Page 20

F ORMER student Becky Perry has been to India to support the Christian mission of our former Teaching Assistant Alison Pidugu. Becky, who is currently on a gap year before university, spent three months with Alison

and her husband Francis working with the Untouchable Dalit people, who are the poorest of India’s poor. Becky’s parents joined her (pictured above right with a baby elephant). Mr and Mrs Perry are also well known at St Mary’s; Gill is a former member of the RE Department and Rob is an exams invigilator.

For information or to donate, you can contact Alison in India at : alisonpidugu@googlemail.com

S T MARY’S has been full of cultured students this term! And that’s because

we’ve been focusing on multi-cultural themes across the curriculum. So how much have YOU learned? Try your hand at our quiz and you could win a £20 first prize. Two runners-up will win £10 each! Write your answers on a sheet of paper and hand them in to the Main Office. Winners will be announced next term.

Culture has been popular this term! This is our display in the school foyer

Visit EUROPE on the two display boards outside the MFL Rooms and answer the following:

1. What’s the capital of Romania? 2. When did Cyprus join the EU? 3. What are the three official languages of Luxembourg? 4. When did Finland win the Eurovision Song Contest? 5. Which country does the baguette come from? 6. What is the main religion of Slovenia? 7. Which Brigade uses the Maltese Cross as its badge? 8. Latvia was famous for which precious stone? 9. Name the traditional hat that comes from Turkey. 10. Which famous writer was born in Denmark? 11. Where were the Greek gods said to live? 12. Who is King of Spain? 13. What is Medugorje in Slovenia famous for? 14. Where would you find the Blue Grotto? 15. What is the currency of Estonia? 16. What river flows through Dublin? 17. When did Latvia first become independent from Russia? 18. What is the national dish of Bulgaria? 19. Which famous pop group comes from Sweden? 20. Which horror character comes from Romania?

Points win prizes...so how good are you?Points win prizes...so how good are you?

Culture Culture Vultures!Vultures! COMPETITIONCOMPETITION

IInnddiiaann ssuummmmeerr

Remember to include your name and form. Good luck!

Page 21

Lauren’s ‘best in the Lauren’s ‘best in the North West’North West’ H AIR student Lauren Evered has styled her way to

success in a national competition. The Year 10 student came first in her category at the 2009 North West Regional Competition hosted by the Association of Hairdressers and Beauty Therapists at Blackpool’s Winter

Gardens. She then went forward as one of the top 35 student stylists in the country to compete in the final. Mr Barrie Vallance, Director of training provider Wirral Tech, said: ‘I am very proud of Lauren’s success and achievement and congratulate her on her outstanding performances. She is an absolute shining example of what hard work and determination can achieve’.

F ORGET the credit crunch, forget getting into debt,

and start saving for your future...with the help of St Mary’s School Bank! Our students could help you to organise your finances, put money away for a rainy day, spend a little when you need to, and earn interest at the same time. St Mary’s has teamed up with High Street Bank NatWest to launch our very own School Savings Account from April 2009. The bank will be run by students, for students with supervision from teachers. And soon there will be situations vacant for those students interested in having hands-on experience of banking. If you would like to apply for a job with the School Bank, please contact Miss Qasam. Watch this space for more details! AND...coming soon...THE ENTERPRISE CLUB!

You can You can bank on bank on St Mary’sSt Mary’s

Fair Fair fruifruit t funfun

M ANY of us went bananas for a day! Lots of people were seen munching yellow fruit in all corners of the school

as part of the world’s biggest banana-eating record attempt, organised by ethical trading company Fairtrade. These students (pictured) volunteered to sell the bananas at break and lunch to help farmers in developing countries. St Mary’s already works hard to get the Fairtrade message across: both students and staff buy regularly from the Fairtrade stalls in school.

We went bananas!We went bananas! Mr Heffernan went bananas with Year 7 students

Lauren shows her winning style with Mr Barrie Vallance of WirralTech

Page 22

Strike up the band!Strike up the band! O NCE in a while we need to blow our own trumpet...or, as you can see , quite a

few trumpets, actually, and trombones, tenor horns and tubas too! St Mary’s Brass Band is going from strength to strength, conducted here in English Martyrs’ Church (great acoustics) by Sixth Former David Garnett.

S T MARY’S has received national

a c c r e d i t a t i o n f o r commitment to ICT Excellence. The Next Generation Learning Charter is part of a project sponsored by the Brit ish Educational Communications and Technology Agency and leads towards the prestigious ICT Mark w h i c h r e w a r d s ‘ o u t s t a n d i n g a n d innovative ways of using technology’.

Mark Mark of ICT of ICT successsuccess

It’s their Wonderwall...of wordsIt’s their Wonderwall...of words W ORDS, words, words, everywhere! The

astounding, exhilarating, fascinating, scintillating, spontaneous outpourings of St Mary’s students and staff now adorn the interior of our hallowed building. We were all invited, nay, encouraged and induced to add bricks to the wall of words encircling our school thoroughfares. Who said we’d consumed a dictionary for breakfast? Pictured right: Year 11 students with more bricks for the educational edifice.

Y EAR 7 DT students don their aprons for

twice-weekly fun in Miss Morris’s lunchtime DT Club (pictured left). Their first projects have focused on techniques in wood, including lap joints, hinging and waxing their final products.

Wooden Wooden Club?Club?

Page 23

Uganda giftsUganda gifts B OXES of gifts are on their way to Africa thanks to St Mary’s students. Operation Uganda is run by King’s Church, Frodsham, and the charity Just Care, sending container loads of essential medical supplies and toiletries. In Uganda they are shared between patients in three hospitals.

THE AFRICA SHOW ran for two nights and was produced and choreographed entirely by Sixth Form students.

It was the next best thing to a trip to the African continent! It featured performances by students of St Alban’s Primary School and St Mary’s.

Students have raised more than £1,000 in the last year for our partnership school in Nigeria, Maryland School.

It was the original idea of Stephanie McGinley and Tania King aided by Myles Hunter, Thomas Mannion and Rachael Squires.

Remember, this copy of Remember, this copy of Newsletter Newsletter is not just for you, it’s for your friends and family too!is not just for you, it’s for your friends and family too!

St Mary’s Newsletter is published by St Mary’s Catholic College, Wallasey Village, Wallasey CH45 3LN. Tel: 0151 639 7531

email: schooloffice@stmaryscollege.wirral.sch.uk

J OIN our new Girls Get Active Club on Monday and Tuesday lunchtimes! Activities to choose from

include badminton, skipping, netball, football, dance and step aerobics. No need to bring PE kit ~ trainers will do! Just turn up, eat your lunch and play.

WE’RE COLLECTING SCHOOLS VOUCHERS FROM BOTH TESCO AND SAINSBURY’S!

PLEASE HAND IN TO THE SCHOOL OFFICE.

Visit our website: www.stmaryscollege.wirral.sch.uk

F ULL of the joys of spring...St

Mary’s Trampoline Club meets twice w e e k l y a f t e r lessons in a special part of our school with a very high ce i l ing. . .Eng l ish Martyrs’ Church. Why not bounce along fo the free s e s s i o n s o n Wednesdays and Thursdays!

Netball championsNetball champions

Girls Get Active!Girls Get Active!

Members of St Mary’s champion Netball Squad have given it their best shot

O UR Year 8 netball team is one of the best in Wirral! The goal-seeking girls recently came top of the Emerging Schools

League, beating South Wirral High School 15-3 in a blistering final. Earlier in the season they also had impressive wins over Upton Hall, Wallasey, Oldershaw and Bebington High Schools. Sadly further success narrowly eluded them in the Wirral Schools’ netball semi-final against West Kirby Grammar School. Meanwhile, St Mary’s Netball Squad needs YOU! We’re planning to add to an already strong netball tradition and enter a third team to the Birkenhead league, so mums, aunties and friends aged 14 and over are invited to join our Sunday evening training sessions! Don’t worry if you haven’t played netball since school. Our squad is very friendly and the emphasis is on enjoyment! So if you’re interested, please contact Miss Nicola Lam on 639 7531.

Jumping for joyJumping for joy

Sport power! Sport power!

Year 7 PE students walked, jogged or ran for a whole lesson to celebrate Red Nose Day and raise money for Comic Relief.