Summer term 2013

Drapers’ Academy Newsletter Summer Term 2013

Diary Dates

6th July

Harold Hill

Festival

11th July

School Sports

Day

18th July

Sports Awards

Evening

19th July

End of

Academic Year

15th August

AS Level Results

Day

22nd August

GCSE Results

Day

Academy Life

Message from the Principal, Mr Slater

www.drapersacademy.com

For the latest news or

info follow:

@DrapersAcademy

Academy Ski Trip

This was the first ski trip for the Academy and as expected was a great success,

staying in the French resort of Risoul.

Pupils were split up into abilities, as some had

previous experience, however all groups

progressed with the beginner’s moving from the

nursery slopes onto the main slopes, having a go at

some of the tougher ski runs the resort had to

offer.

Head Boy and Head Girl Appointed

We are very pleased to announce that the first Head Boy and Girl, along with

the Deputy Head Boy and Girl of the Academy has been appointed. We

congratulate Pauline Siasat and Shawn Harvey for

being selected Head Boy and Girl, along with Emily

Maunder and Kai Kennedy for the deputy roles.

These students will officially take on their role when

they enter into Year 13, but have had already fulfilled

certain duties. We would like to take this opportunity

to wish the four students good luck in their new role.

Nelson Mandela once said;

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to

change the world”.

Well, we have made a start with Harold Hill!

The original intention of the academy was to give parents of

Harold Hill a choice in secondary education. A choice not to

leave the Hill to find an outstanding school. We believe that has now been

achieved, and almost 180 parents of next Year 7 agree. With the largest group of

children joining the school in our short history, we look forward to a dynamic

year of continual improvement.

Can I take this opportunity to thank all the staff for their dedication and hard

work.

On a personal note I want to thank and send best wishes to Mr Fanning who

moves on to a new school in September.

Wishing all of you a safe summer.


Jack Petchey ‘Speak Out’ Challenge

Hollie Keenan from Year 10 was the Academy’s representative at the

Jack Petchey’s ‘Speak Out’ Challenge this year. The challenge is an

annual event which allows pupils to publicly speak on a topic of

interest.

Hollie spoke on the topic of ‘Taking Risks’ . The challenge was hosted

by Coopers & Coburn School and Hollie was among seventeen pupils,

from schools around the borough, that took part in the event.

Year 8 Visit France

On Friday 14th June Year 8 pupils and 11 mem-

bers of staff set off at 4.45am for the Opal Coast.

Travelling via the Eurotunnel, they arrived in

the small, picturesque town of Wimereux in

time for the Friday morning market. After

touring the town, the group headed to Boulogne

-Sur-Mer for some much needed lunch.

A collection of pupils decided to hike up to the

old city whilst the others were content to visit

the new town. After lunch the pupils got the

opportunity to visit Nausicaa, the sea life centre,

which was fascinating. The final part of the day

was a visit to the Cité Europe shopping centre.

The day was a great success and allowed all

pupils to test their language skills.

Looking Ahead

As we come to the end of this academic year, we

say goodbye to those Year 11s that are leaving us

and not returning to the sixth form. We would

like to wish all pupils the best of luck as they take

the next step in their lives. We hope they have a

great Leavers Ball and wish them luck for the

GCSE Results Day which is on Thursday 22nd

August.

Students visit Birmingham City

University

The Year 12 students had an early start on Friday

7th June as they headed to Birmingham City

University to view the campus and gain an insight

into higher education. The students learnt about

the range of courses available from the traditional

Law and English to Paramedic Studies and

Horology. After observing what the University

had to offer, such as the fantastic sports facilities

and library, the students were split into specific

groups. With this they had the opportunity to

listen to lectur-

ers and students

discussing Uni-

versity life and

the areas of

study they were

interested in.


Duke of Edinburgh Practice Expedition

The Drapers’ Chicks Update

The Drapers’ Chicks are now starting to age and

are growing fast! A scattering of wing feathers had

started to emerge after the first week and over the

following two their back, head and tail feathers

appeared. These have now all started to turn

brown and the chicks are starting to resemble the

hens they will become.

After a mini-break at a teacher’s home over the

half term they have come back to a new home in

the biome, which has become their new

permanent habitiat. They will continue to be spoilt

rotten with their newly discovered favourite treats

– broccoli, which were kindly donated by the

co-operative and meal worms! You can continue to

watch the chicks develop on the webcam through

the website, or follows us on Twitter

@DrapersAcademy. Planet Drapers’ Assembly

The Planet Drapers’ team have been busy promot-

ing the school’s wildlife garden and chicken project

to primary schools in the local area. The team

devised an assembly

for Year 5 and 6 pu-

pils, during which

they presented the

development of the

wildlife garden, the

hatching of the eggs

and the future plans for our eight hens. The

assemblies were a great success and enjoyed by all.

The Principal visits Eton College

Mr Slater and Mr McGuinness were kindly invited

to spend two days in Eton as guests of Mr Sean

Lambert who is a governor of Drapers’ Academy

and also a Housemaster at Eton College.

During the visit Mr Slater and Mr McGuinness met

with Mr Tony Little the Head Master who provided

an insight into the workings of the college. They

observed a mathematics lesson and were given a

tour of the college and the sporting facilities.

A group of Year 12 students, led by three staff members, recently

completed their practice expedition for The Silver Duke of

Edinburgh Award. The 60 kilometre walk was a challenge for the

students and gave them an insight of what to expect in the

assessed expedition, which is planned to take place in July later

this year.

We wish all these students good luck as they look to complete

their silver award in the next expedition.

Drapers’ Academy

Settle Road

Harold Hill RM3 9XR

Joy in Borough Trampolining Competition


Selected pupils from all year groups were

invited to take part in a Borough

Trampolining Competition. All 23 pupils

had been training since Christmas to

perfect their routines.

Upon arriving at the competition, nerves

started to set in at the sight of the size of

the competition. Following their warm

up , the nerves subsided and the pupils

started to perform some amazing

sequences.

Special mentions go to

Year 8 who were joint 1st

and also both Year 10 and

11 who finished 2nd in the

borough.

Connor Harvey recently represented the East of England at the British Fencing Youth Championships. The day consisted of 64 contestants in each age category fighting in a knockout competition.

Connor competed at Epee in the U14 category, and he won his first 4 fights with some ease. In the last 16, he came up against a tough opponent and unfortunately Connor lost 15-14. However when points were counted Connor ranked 9th in the country!

National Success for Connor

Drapers’ Celebrate National Sports Week

Archie Represents England

Archie Edwards, a Year 11 pupil,

recently gained the ultimate sporting

honour in representing his country

with England U16s. He scored a vital

equaliser in the re-

cent game against

Holland and has also

been selected for the

Nordic Tournament

which takes place in

Norway later this

summer.

Sports Clubs

For all sports clubs

information, please visit


We have recently celebrated National Sports Week and provided opportunities for staff, pupils and

local primary schools to participate in several different sports.

Led by the schools PE Faculty, there were opportunities throughout the week to

try out numerous sports all are likely to be unfamiliar with. The highlights of the

week included Aspire Charity introducing the pupils to wheelchair basketball and

specialist martial arts and archery instructors showcasing the sports for all to try

out. The main event for the week however saw the staff take on the pupils in a

charity volleyball match in aid of the British Heart Foundation. The game saw

the staff just edge it in front of a very large crowd winning 2-1.

Documents

Summer term 2013