|
 We
look forward to welcoming the children who will be joining Wellsway
in September in Year 7 when they come on Thursday for the induction
day. They will be spending one lesson with their new tutor group and
I know that I can rely on our students to remember what it was like
for them and really help make Year 6 feel welcome on Thursday.
We
are all looking forward to the Year 11 Prom this evening which is
definitely one of the best events in the school calendar. Many thanks to Mr Page, Mrs Frost and the Year 11
Tutors for all their hard work in organising it.
» Ammonite
for 25th June »
Comment
This week has been an incredibly busy one with a
whole host of wonderful events taking place. The World Cup Week
diversity project has been an absolute triumph and it has been
fantastic to see how much the students have got out of the project,
not to mention the staff! All Year 10 students took part in the
Buddy Training conference with Mrs Smith and me. We were
incredibly impressed by their engagement with the process. They
certainly proved that they are absolutely ready to take on the
responsibilities that they will be given as the oldest students in
the new vertical pastoral system.
Year 8
students took part in a World Cup Enterprise day on Wednesday,
organised by Mrs Anderson and her team. Their task was to brand and
market their country and explain why they should host the World Cup.
They came dressed in business attire and, in my view; we certainly
have some budding Junior Apprentices! The A Level Art Show on
Thursday night was a joy to behold. The quality of work on display
was amazing and the variety and creativity on display was very
strong.
A reminder to students in Year 10 that the deadline for
receipt of applications for the post of House Captain is Monday 21st June.
The students should have an application form in their Buddy Training
conference pack, but it can also be downloaded from the website.
» Ammonite
for 18th June »
Comment
I hope that everyone enjoys the week break and I
look forward to seeing you back in school on Monday 7th June. I am
sure that students taking exams will make the most of the time to do
their revision and exam practice.
I would like to wish all our Year 13 Students all
the very best in their exams and for the future. They had a
wonderful leaving day on Friday 28th May and we will miss them. I
would like to thank the students and their families for everything
that they have contributed to Wellsway School in the time that they
have been here.
I had three really enjoyable visits this week to
St John’s Primary School, Marksbury Primary School and Chandag
Junior School. The purpose of my visit was to make a DVD with Year 6
pupils on their thoughts about moving to secondary school. I will
use this DVD as part of the training with Year 10 Students, after
the holiday, who will be buddies for the new Year 7 students in
September. I am very grateful to these schools for organising this
for me and it was an absolute delight to meet the pupils.
Details of the Year 7
Buddy scheme are
available in the
Vertical Tutoring section of this website and this will be
launched to Year 10 Students following the holiday as will the
appointment of House Captains.
This
week we had great excitement with the live televised
World Cup Draw.
Every tutor group has drawn one of the 32 teams in the World Cup and
will be following their progress over the course of the tournament.
This is part of a whole school diversity project
that we are running and the children will find out about the
different countries and cultures as part of this work. Many thanks
to Mr Lofkin who organised the draw and who was ably assisted by
Jack Dancey 8HBC and Emily Knight 10LBR.
» Ammonite
for 28th May »
Comment
The
public exams begin in earnest next week and I would like to wish all
our students all the very best of luck. Make sure you get plenty of sleep and have a good breakfast.
The third and final public meeting will be taking
place at St Keyna on Wednesday 26th May, 7pm. Judging by the huge
attendance at Broadlands this week I would advise that you get their
by 6.30pm to be sure of getting in.
» Ammonite
for 21st May »
Comment
I would like to wish all our Year 11 students the
very best of luck in their examinations that begin next week. They
have been a fantastic year group and I would like to take this
opportunity to thank them and their parents for everything that they
have contributed to our school. I look forward to seeing them
dressed up in their finery at their Prom Ball on Friday 25th June.
Congratulations to Yumi Naito, George Tantram and
William Tavener who completed the 35 mile Ten Tors Event last
weekend on Dartmoor and to Brice Hill and Elliott Taylor who
completed the challenge of the 45 mile course with 2386 Squadron Air
Cadets. Well done to all of them on the very demanding physical
challenges of this event and the energy, determination and teamwork
required to complete it successfully.
I am delighted to announce that Mr Saundry has
been appointed by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust to be a
Lead Practitioner in Science. This is a very competitive position
and one that recognises Mr Saundry as being one of the leading
Science teachers in the country. This is a fantastic achievement for
Mr Saundry and a great honour for Wellsway School.
» Ammonite
for 14th May »
Comment
 The
first of three public meetings will be taking place at Wellsway in
Mendip Hall on Tuesday 11 May at 7pm. We are expecting it to be a
busy meeting, so please arrive in plenty of time as the capacity is
limited and will be strictly observed. There is also limited
car-parking available, please consider our local residents when
parking in side streets. The other two meetings are at Broadlands
School on Tuesday 18th May at 7pm and St Kenya Primary School on
Wednesday 26th May.
As a result of recent elections the school is
delighted to welcome to the Governing Body: Mrs Nicky King, Mrs Lisa
Fisher and Mrs Jane Ware, new Parent Governors. Mr Mark Gill, Mrs
Irene Arnold and Mrs Sue Netherton, re-elected Parent Governors. Mr
Stuart Bradfield and Mr Ian Carter, re-elected Community Governors.
Friday 14th May Parents/Carers of Year 11
students are warmly invited to attend the Progress File Presentation
on Friday 14th May at 12.50pm. Please be seated by 12.40pm. This
event is a formal recognition of the progress students have made in
education. If you wish to attend please complete and return the
invitation slip of the letter your son/daughter brought home this
week.
Many thanks to Mr Tanner who organised the
Wellsway Student Parliamentary Election this week, giving every
student the opportunity to consider the issues and cast their own
vote. We were delighted to see so many students across all year
groups so engaged in the election, both at a local and national
level. The buzz around the school certainly reinforced the view that
young people as politically aware and want to be involved in many
issues. The results will be fed into a national data base run by
Google that will produce a UK Student result.
» Ammonite
for 7th May »
Comment
World Book Day was absolutely fantastic, once
again, to see so many people entering into the spirit of World Book
Day by dressing up as their favourite book character. The creativity
never ceases to amaze me and well done to everyone who made the
effort.
» Ammonite
for 5th March »
Comment
Over the February holiday the year 10 Ski Trip
went to Saalbach in Austria where fantastic snow and weather
conditions helped to make it a brilliant week. Mrs Tabor and I led
the trip accompanied by Mrs Allez, Mrs Cheshire, Mrs Cox, Mr Evans,
Mrs Frost, Mr Harris, Mr Ive, Mr Kemp, Mr Mann and Mr Price. We took
80 year ten students who were a pleasure to spend the week with and
who all came back in one piece!
 I was delighted to hear that this inaugural trip,
led by Mr Chart over the February holiday, was such a success. The
trip was also accompanied by Miss Edwards and Ms Thompson. My thanks go to
all the staff who made both these trips possible. A report and photographs are
available here.
The staff training day at the end of Term 3
focussed on the introduction of vertical tutoring and we were very
grateful to colleagues from St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School and
John Cabot Academy who joined us to share their experiences.
Information from the training can be viewed on the
Vertical Tutoring
section of this website.
At the Academic Review Day next week there will be a stand in
Lansdown Foyer where you can get an update on the introduction of
vertical tutoring; progress and plans. Members of the School
Leadership Team and I will be available to answer questions. We will
also be using this to consult with parents over the naming of the
four houses so please do come along and give your views.
» Ammonite
for 26th February »
Comment
Huge congratulations to Stefan Di-Finizio
in Yr 9 who has been elected as the Bath and North East Somerset
representative on the UK Youth Parliament. This is not only a very
courageous thing to do but also a huge achievement as Stefan will be
one of the youngest members of the Parliament. He is a dedicated member of DAFBY (Democratic
Action for B&NES Youth) and we are very proud of him.
I have been absolutely delighted by how our
students have responded to the call for fund-raising for the victims
of the earthquake in Haiti and this week I would particularly like
to mention Andrew and Chloe Clifford who have raised £25 through
selling sweets. Well done!
» Ammonite
for 5th February »
Comment
I would like to thank staff and students for the
way they responded to the incident last Friday. I was very pleased
to receive a phone call on Monday from the Chief Constable, Gary
Davis, who congratulated us on the calm and efficient way in which
we responded. I also very much appreciated the letters and emails of
support I received from parents. It was a great example of the
community pulling together.
I have been delighted at the response of Wellsway
students to the call for fundraising to support the dreadful
situation in Haiti. This week there has been all sorts going on
including car washing, cake sales and a tombola. It is great to see
young people taking such a supportive and caring attitude towards
the plight of others. Well done everyone!
Students have this week been given a letter
concerning Academic Review Day 2010. This will be held on the
evening of Thursday 4th March (4.30-7.00pm) and on the day of
Friday 5th March (8.30am-12.30pm).
Fifteen minute appointments will be made with
your child/children's tutor(s) to discuss in depth your
child/children's progress with the aim of supporting him/her
academically and pastorally, both at home and at school. All
students will participate in a Learning Day at home on Friday 5th
March as school will be closed and there will be no school
transport. Please see the letter for further details. The reply slip
should be returned to Student Support by Friday 5th February.
Additional copies of the letter and reply slip
are on the school website and returns can be made electronically by
following the appropriate links. Parents will be informed of their
appointments via the students nearer the time.
» Ammonite
for 29th January »
Comment
Many
thanks to everyone for making the effort to get into school today
and to the Premises Team who did an amazing job in making sure that
the site was safe to open. More snow is forecast for next week and
should it be necessary to close the school again we will follow the
same procedures and post a notice on this website.
With the cold weather set to continue I would
urge all parents/carers to check that your son/daughter is coming to
school dressed appropriately. I am concerned that a number of
students are still coming to school without a coat and in
inappropriate footwear.
Finally, I would like to thank all
parents/carers for their support and understanding at this difficult
time. We have endeavoured to keep Wellsway School closure to a
minimum and I hope that this has not caused you too much disruption.
Next
week there are A Level and GCSE module exams taking place and we will make
every effort to ensure that these can go ahead, even if the main school is
closed. Again we will use the school website to inform students of these
arrangements. If this does not prove possible, or if students cannot get
into school themselves, it will mean that they will have to take the exams
during the summer as nationally there are currently no arrangements in place
to either postpone or reschedule these examinations.
» Ammonite
for 8th January 2010 »
Comment
I would like to take this opportunity to wish all
our students and their families a very Happy Christmas and Peaceful
New Year. We look forward to seeing students back in school on
Monday 4th January, 2010.
 The Christmas concerts this week were an absolute
joy, and I would like to thank everybody who took part and helped
for their contribution.
The programme was beautifully put together
and once again I was absolutely blown away by the range of talent
that we have in our school. To see so many young people taking part
and having a fantastic time making music is a real joy and I am so
grateful for our music team Miss Dennis, Mr Page and Mr Mills for
all the hard work and inspiration that they put into Music at
Wellsway. I would also like to thank Mrs Anderson and her Enterprise
students who organised refreshments and donated their profits to the
Jack Boulton Memorial Fund.
» Ammonite
for 18th December »
Comment
Please see the attached
letter from the Chair of
Governors detailing the decision of the Governing Body that was made at
their meeting on Wednesday.
» Ammonite
for 11th December »
Comment
The Governing Body met last night and listened to
all of the evidence that had been gathered through the consultation
about vertical tutoring. This included student presentations and the
results of the student and parental surveys. After a full debate on
all aspects of the proposal, the Governors were unanimously in
favour of the introduction of vertical tutoring for years 7 to 11 at
Wellsway School with effect from September 2010.
The School Leadership Team and all staff
will now be working alongside governors, students and parents to
implement the new system. In order to do this, consultation will
continue across years 7 to 10 on how the system will operate. As
this decision is about the future of the whole school, years 11,
12 and 13 will also be asked to contribute their ideas to this
process.
A full and detailed letter from Mr Chris
Trout, the Chair of Governors, will be handed out with the
Ammonite on Friday 11th December. It is very important that you
take this home and read it with your parents/carers.
Today's paper version of the Ammonite was sent
home with a parental questionnaire and an explanatory letter
attached. These are both also available on this website. This is an
important part of the consultation process and it would be
appreciated if you could complete and return the questionnaire to
Student Support by Friday 4th December.
» Ammonite
for 27th November »
Comment
I am delighted to report the judgement of the
Ofsted Inspection of PE that took place this week, by the Chief HMI
Inspector for PE. The inspectors were very impressed with what they
saw and graded the work of the department to be good overall with a
number of outstanding features, notably the achievement of the
students which they considered to be outstanding. I would like to
thank all the students who took part so brilliantly in the
inspection and to pass on the inspector's thanks to them. She said
that they are a credit to themselves and to the department. The
inspectors were particularly impressed by the progress we have made
as a Specialist College in the two years since designation and by
the range of extra-curricular and enrichment sporting opportunities
on offer to the students.
Congratulations to the whole of the PE Team
for this achievement and in particular to Mrs Riddoch, Director of
Sport and Mr Thomas, Head of Boys’ PE for their strong leadership.
» Ammonite
for 20th November »
Comment
 A
huge thank you to the Friends of Wellsway (PTA) for the mammoth
amount of organisation that went into the Craft Fair last weekend.
It was a very successful event with a lot of lovely things on sale.
We do not have a final figure yet, but are hopeful that it will have
surpassed the amount made last year.
The whole school came out on the Lansdown court
on Wednesday 11 to join in the National Act of Remembrance. It was a
lovely service and I was so proud of the students who behaved
appropriately and showed great respect. I would particularly like to
thank Matt Edmond in Year 11 who bravely played the “Last Post” at
the end of the two minute silence. It is a rare occasion to have the
whole school together like this and it was yet another reminder of
what a brilliant school Wellsway is.
I was delighted to hear that the football game
organised by Keynsham Football Club in memory of Jack Boulton was a
great success, raising over £8,000 for the charity CRY (Cardiac Risk
in the Young). I have been asked to pass on thanks and
congratulations from Keynsham Football Club to those students who
played in the match, helped out with organisation and came along to
support the event. Well done to everyone concerned.
HMI Inspection We will be visited on Tuesday 17th
and Wednesday 18th November by two HMI inspectors who are carrying
out an inspection survey of PE. Their particular focus will be the
transition from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 and they will also be
working in Chandag Junior School.
» Ammonite
for 13th November »
Comment
By the end of this week all four student visits
to schools operating Vertical Tutoring will have taken place. I
would like to thank all the students who took part for the way they
have engaged in the process. They were excellent ambassadors for
Wellsway and represented their fellow students brilliantly. You can
read the reports of these visits on the website in the Vertical
Tutoring section. The students will now be preparing their
assemblies so that they can feed-back their findings to the Student
Body.
I would like to thank to all the students who
took part in the Sixth Form Open Evening in various ways. They were
fantastic ambassadors for the Sixth Form and I appreciate their
support very much.
» Ammonite
for 6th November »
Comment
I had a very interesting experience this week
taking part in a BAFTA Jury. I was invited to judge in the category
"Secondary Learning" which involved viewing a wide range of
extremely interesting educational films and interactive DVDs. It was
a great experience going to the BAFTA headquarters in London and to
get an insight into the world of the Media.
Congratulations and well done to Louise Baker,
Year 12 who along with other Circuit 16 choir members came second in
the Good Housekeeping Choir of the Year competition. There were over
80 choirs entered from all over the country and the top five went to
London for the finals on Friday 9th October where the judges were
Suzi Digby (BBC’s Last Choir standing), Jane Asher and Jonathan
Ansell (ex G4).
Many thanks to those parents who attended the PTA
AGM this week, and to Roy Lofkin, Assistant Headteacher, who gave a
very interesting presentation on the Qualifications Frame-work. We
are hoping to recruit some new PTA committee members this year to
replace members whose children have left the school. If you are
interested in finding out about the PTA please come along to the
next Committee meeting on Monday 16th November at 7pm in the
Conference Room in the Administration Block.
Last Saturday the Year 11 netball team competed
in the U16 County Finals at Clifton College in Bristol. They beat
Bristol Grammar School in the final to qualify for the regional
finals in the new year.
» Ammonite
for 16th October »
Comment
 Congratulations!
We are delighted and very proud that two of our colleagues have been
recognised through the National Awards for School Support Staff.
Our Premises Manager, Mr R.Brimble has been
awarded Premises Worker of the Year and our Deputy IT Manager, Mr
C.Leader, the Technician of the Year Award. This is a tremendous
achievement and both colleagues came through an extremely strong
national field to win. We are very fortunate at Wellsway to have an
excellent Support Staff Team and we are delighted that their
contributions have been recognised in this way.
The PTA Annual General Meeting is taking place on
Tuesday 13th October at 7pm in the refurbished Sixth Form Common
Room in Mendip Building. Drinks and nibbles will be served before a
short business meeting and then Assistant Headteacher, Roy Lofkin,
will give a presentation on the curriculum at Wellsway and the
National Qualification Framework. So if you want to find out about
Diploma, BTECs, APP and lots of other things you don’t understand
about the curriculum and testing then this is your chance! Please do
come along to support the PTA which does a fantastic job throughout
the year.
Last Saturday the Year 11 netball team competed
in the U16 County Finals at Clifton College in Bristol. They beat
Bristol Grammar School in the final to qualify for the regional
finals in the new year.
» Ammonite
for 9th October »
Comment
The Vertical Tutoring consultation area on the school website is now up and
running and we will add to it as the consultation progresses. Members of the
School Leadership Team will be visiting every tutor group over the next two
weeks so that the students can ask any questions they might have about the
proposals. The first of the students’ visits will be taking place on Friday
9th October with a group of students going to John Cabot Academy to meet
with students there.
» Ammonite
for 2nd October »
Comment
I hope that you have received the letter sent out this week
about the Pastoral Review proposals. We have begun the consultation
process this week with students via an assembly and an extended
tutor period. Tutor group representatives will be representing the
views of their groups at Year Council meetings next week and the
School Council will be visiting other schools to talk to students
about their experiences of vertical tutoring as part of this
process. If you are interested in finding out more, please come to
the presentation on Monday 21st September
in Mendip Hall at 7pm. If you are
intending to come please return the reply slip to the Student
Support Office.
I would like to thank
all students in Years 7–10 for putting forward their views this
week. I would like to remind them that at Wellsway School their
views are listened to and taken very seriously. This is the
beginning of the process and they will have many more opportunities
to find out more about the proposals and to put forward their views
and ideas.
»
Letter describing the proposed
changes
I hope that as many Year 7 parents and students as
possible will be able to join us on Thursday 24th September
for the PTA Beetle Drive, which starts at 7pm in Lansdown Hall. It
is always a fun event and excellent way for us to start to get to
know each other.
Congratulations to Conor Hill of 12GHT and Brice Hill of 10ASN
who completed A Wainwright’s Coast 2 Coast Walk in the summer
holidays in which they walked 192 miles in 12 days and camped on the
evenings. They averaged 14-20 miles a day – a great achievement for
them both. Conor also navigated the walks every day. Well done to
you both.
» Ammonite
for 18th September »
Comment
Farewell to Staff Leaving
Five permanent members of staff are leaving Wellsway at the end of
this year:
- Miss Nicky Aitken (Joined 2007 as a part
time teacher of PE) is getting married and moving to Essex.
- Mr James Johnson (Joined 2006 as
Subject Leader for History) is moving to Deer Park School in
Cirencester to a promotion as Head of PSHE and Citizenship.
- Ms Lois Frith (Joined 2005 as a teacher
of English) is moving to Portugal.
- Mr Chris Sherring (Joined 2004 as a
teacher of PE, now Key Stage 3 Co-ordinator for PE) is moving to
Priory School in Weston-super-Mare to a promotion as Head of
Boys’ PE.
- Miss Kate Whitehead (Joined 2004 as a
teacher of English/Drama, now Sixth Form Personal Tutor) is
moving to Brimsham Green School in South Gloucestershire to a
promotion as Head of Drama.
All have made a tremendous contribution to
Wellsway; we are very sorry that they are leaving and we wish them
all the very best for the future.
The following colleagues have been with us
this year on a temporary contract. We thank them for their
contribution and wish them well: Mr Dave Cash (PE), Mrs Jacqueline
Durston (Part-time Maths), Ms Ellie Steedman (Part-time English),
Mrs Anne Sweeney (Science Technician) and Ms Elonor Tivey (Music
and Drama).
Colleagues changing roles within Wellsway
in September
- Mr D.Bird and Mrs J.Curran - Acting Joint
Subject Leaders for History
- Mrs S.Cartwright -Year Team Leader for
Year 7
- Mr C.Cooke - Assistant Year Team Leader
for Year 7
- Mrs Y.Gravell - relinguishes her post as
Year Team Leader to concentrate on her Art teaching
- Mr S.House becomes a full time member of
the support staff as Information and Exams Manager
- Mrs B.Little moves from the role of Sixth
Form Assistant to that of Student Support Office Co-ordinator
- Mrs S.Reeve is relinquishing her post as
Curriculum Team Leader for Maths and becomes a teacher of Maths
and an Associate Tutor in the Sixth Form
- Mrs J.Smith will be the Pastoral Manager
for Year 10
As the year draws to a close and I look back over
the year, I am reminded of how much has gone on and just how many
successes and highlights there have been. This has been a great year
in which our school has gone from strength to strength. I would like
to thank all our students and parents for their contribution to this
and thank the staff for the hard work and dedication that makes
Wellsway the fantastic school that it is. I hope that you all have a
wonderful holiday and I look forward to seeing you back in
September.
Due to an extra staff training day at the
beginning of next term, the first day of school for Year 7s will now
be Thursday 3rd September, not Wednesday 2nd September as
originally stated in our letters to new parents. Year 12 also return
on Thursday 3rd September. Years 8 to 11 start on Friday 4th
September.
» Ammonite
for 22nd July »
Comment
Congratulations to Andrew Smith of 12KWT who was recently
awarded a runner up certificate for the Bath’s Young Citizen of the Year
2009/2010 for Voluntary Services to the Community and Personal Development.
Andrew recently attended a celebration of the Armed Forces Day at Timsbury
and also visited France for ceremonies marking the 65th anniversary of D
Day.
Can all parents/carers who have not already done
so please ensure that they complete and return the survey that was
attached to last week’s Ammonite. You can also complete the survey
online.
» Ammonite
for 10th July »
Comment
 Last
Friday, we officially opened our new cricket square with the
assistance of Steve Kirby, Gloucestershire's fast bowler. Despite
early morning heavy rain, the event was marked by a match against a
touring Australian team from Mornington Peninsula. Everyone had a
thoroughly enjoyable day and the match was played in great spirit by
both teams. Our thanks go to the MCC Foundation who generously paid
for the new square to be installed.
»
More information and photographs available here
You can also read about our pitch opening on
www.lords.org which is itself a significant honour for the
school.
 Two
days later, Mr May took the 1st XI away on tour to the south coast
including games against Lord Wandsworth College, Christ's Hospital
and Portsmouth Grammar. The results didn't go Wellsway's way this
year, but I hear that all the boys were a credit to the school and
really enjoyed themselves in fantastic weather. Reports and
photographs from the tour will be available here soon.
Many thanks to Mr May for all the hard work he
has put into both events.
» Ammonite
for 2nd July »
Comment
 The
examination season is now at an end and this year was our largest
and most complicated to date with students in years 9, 10, 11, 12
and 13 all doing external examinations. I would like to congratulate
the students on their superb conduct throughout this testing time
and I hope that they all get the results that they deserve.
My thanks go to Mr House, our Examinations
Officer for his excellent organisation and administration. I look
forward to seeing students on the two results days during the
holidays and to celebrating their successes.
Congratulations to Mr Sage who has been given a
Good Citizen award by Keynsham Town Council for all the fantastic
work that he does on the environmental front in the local area.
» Ammonite
for 26th June »
Comment
It was a privilege this week to attend the Art Private View on
Wednesday evening, which show-cased the ‘A’ level students’
examination work. The quality of the work on display was absolutely
staggering and it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening. Examples of
some of the work will be available here next week.
I was really impressed with Year 9 students
this week who threw themselves into their Charity Week with gusto.
Fund-raising activities included
face-painting, hair-straightening, cake selling and ferret racing!
Well done to all the students who took part and, on their behalf,
thank you to everyone who supported them.
Many congratulations to the following
Wellsway students who represented B&NES at the Avon Championships
last Saturday at Yate: Tom Bennett 100m, Alex Dudbridge 1500m,
Andy Minchin 400m and triple jump, Rhys Messenger 400m, Millie
Ollis-Olds javelin, Andy Strachan long jump and Jack Evans
javelin.
Congratulations to Alex and Jack who both
came 3rd in their events which is a great achievement against very
strong opposition but special mention to Andy Minchin who came a
close 2nd in the 400m and comfortably won the triple jump event.
Andy now represents Avon in both events in the South West
Championships in Exeter this Saturday. We wish him every success.
» Ammonite
for 19th June »
Comment
Maths Weekend for Year 7 Students takes place this week-end and next
and I hope all the Students who take part have a fantastic time. I
would like to thank all colleagues who have given up their weekend
to make this possible.
» Ammonite
for 12th June »
Comment
 I
am delighted to announce that we have been given an award by the
Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) for last year’s GCSE
results. The award is given to schools who achieve excellent value
added using the JVA scale for five GCSE’s at grade A* - C including
English and Maths. This measure has been developed by Professor
Jesson, an expert in performance evaluation at the University of
York, and it is being put forward by the SSAT as a more reliable
measure of added value than contextual value added (CVA) which the
government currently uses. Last year 76% of our students achieved
five of more passes at grade A* - C including English and Maths
which is significantly above the national average of 45% and the B&NES
average of 57%.
Elizabeth Reid, Chief Executive of the SSAT,
said:
"Schools that add value demonstrate the
difference that schools can make by giving more young people the
opportunity to fulfil their potential and succeed in the 21st
century. I congratulate these schools for their achievements, which
are the result of hard work and commitment."
Needless to say we are delighted to receive
this award and will display it in our reception with pride.
» Ammonite
for 22nd May »
Comment
After
a gruelling 9 training sessions on Dartmoor, 2 teams (35 milers and
45 milers) walked across Ten Tors in the vast open space of
Dartmoor.
The 45 mile team consisted of
Conor Hill (11AFL), Jonathan Steel (11BKN), Ben Norcott (11JDN),
Marcus Poulston (10DTY), Jun Naito (10FHG) and Alex Hawkins (10DBR)
who joined another 45 mile team. The 35 mile team consisted of Brice
Hill (9ASN), Elliott Taylor (9SWN), Harry Lovell (10FHG) and
Jonathan Dick (10DBR). Well done boys on completing the event.
» Ammonite
for 15th May »
Comment
 Many
thanks to all parents who attended the Year 11 Progress File
Presentation to recognise the success and achievements of our Year
11 students before they begin their exams on Monday.
We were very pleased to be joined by guest of
honour, Tim Stuckes who is the police Inspector for Keynsham. I would
like to take this opportunity to wish the students all the very best
for their exams and I look forward to seeing them all dressed up for
their Prom Ball on 25th June. This year students are remaining in
school until 22nd May and a full programme of study/revision support
is in place for the exams.
» Ammonite
for 8th May »
Comment
Many
Congratulations to the Year 11 boys who won the Somerset U16 cup
this week. This is a fantastic achievement that you can read
about in the Sports Section of the Ammonite. Congratulations
also to Mark Holloway and Ryan Ellett
of 11ETV who were runners up in the Avon Schools' Tennis doubles
held at Clifton last weekend.
Please read the advice about
Planning for Flu and we would
appreciate your support in helping us to implement the basic health
procedures as outlined.
» Ammonite
for 1st May »
Comment
I would like to wish everybody a very Happy
Easter. Good luck to students preparing for exams in the summer who
we hope will be using the Easter holidays for some serious revision.
School will re-open after the Easter Holidays on Monday 20th April.
The whole-school production of West Side Story
that ran for four nights was absolutely amazing. The quality of the
performances was breathtaking and the whole production was put
together with such flair and imagination. It has got to be one of
the most difficult pieces of Musical Theatre to stage and perform
and to see it performed to such a high standard was an absolute
privilege. The singing, dancing, acting and music were all superb
and the raw emotion of the piece left me quite speechless. The
strength of performing arts at Wellsway is amazing thanks to the
incredibly skilled and committed team led by Mr Psirides, Performing
and Visual Arts Team Leader. My thanks and admiration go to everyone
involved in this wonderful production for the inspiration,
commitment and sheer hard-work that made it such a wonderful
experience for all of us who had the pleasure of watching it.
Congratulations to Mrs Hilliar's singing students
who took part in the Mid-Somerset Festival last Friday. They all
performed very well with Annabella Grant and Amy Parfitt both coming
second in their respective classes.
» Ammonite
for 3rd April »
Comment
Good Luck to Charlie Gill 7LFR who will travel to
Wolverhampton this weekend as part of a team representing Avon Scout
Rifle Club in the National Shooting Championships to shoot rifle and
pistol. This is a result of months of training and a qualifying
shoot held at the National Shooting Centre at Bisley in Surrey on
the 15 of this month.
School will re-open after the Easter Holidays on
Monday 20th April. I hope you all enjoy the Easter break.
» Ammonite
for 27th March »
Comment
 Good
Luck to Netball Girls at the National Finals
This Friday the U16 netball squad travel to Oundle School near
Peterborough to compete in the National Schools’ Netball Finals on
Saturday. Although we are going as County winners and South West
runners up to Millfield we will be up against some very tough
opposition. We will be playing 7 of the winners or runners up from
each region in the country in our pool with the top 2 teams going
through to the semi finals. There is no doubt it will be a
challenging day but we wish the girls the very best of luck and wish
to show our appreciation to the large numbers of family members who
are making the long journey to support the team.
 Congratulations
to Sarah Riddoch who plays Goal Attack for the team. Last
Sunday she was invited to attend England trials at Loughborough
University along with 36 girls from across the country. After an
intensive day of drilling and matchplay led by the Senior England
coach, Sarah was delighted to be successful in being selected to
be a member of the England U17 squad. She will now attend a camp
in Loughborough at Easter before competing in matches in the
autumn.
The Whole School production of West Side
Story is being performed from Wednesday 25th March – Saturday 28th
March, 2009 - Starting at 7pm. Tickets can be purchased at
lunchtimes in Lansdown Foyer £8 for adults and £6 for concessions.
It promises to be a fantastic show so please do try and join us.
» Ammonite
for 20th March »
Comment
Congratulations to Hatty Campbell 8WNV who
has been accepted by the BBC as a stand by drummer for the CBBC
programme ‘Clash’. This was a national competition so Hatty has done
extremely well to get this far.
Congratulations also to Emily Peters who
will receive her Grand Prior Award from HRH The Princess Royal at
Buckingham Palace on 11th March in recognition of her voluntary
achievements within St John Ambulance. This marks four years of
sustained effort from Emily together with over 100 hours of
voluntary first aid duties within the locality. Well done Emily!
» Ammonite
for 13th March »
Comment
Congratulations to Sarah Riddoch in Year 11 who
attended a Regional Screening day for netball held at Bath
University a few weeks ago. This was for girls from across the south
and southwest who had been put forward from the High Performance
Centres in their regions. As a result of her performance on that day
she was one of only 9 girls to be selected to attend England U17
trials to be held at Loughborough University next Sunday 15th March.
This will be a very challenging and exciting experience for Sarah
and we wish her every success.
» Ammonite
for 9th March »
Comment
 Congratulations
to all the students who took part in the Evening of Dance before the
holiday. It was a wonderful event and it was lovely to see so many
young people taking part and having fun. I would very much like to
thank Miss Barker, lead teacher for dance, whose hard work and
inspiration through the year made it possible. This was her 10th
Evening of Dance at Wellsway and it is fantastic to see that dance
is going from strength to strength. My thanks also go to all the
staff who supported the event and to the brave few who performed the
Bollywood Extravaganza!
The Year 9 Enterprise day on Thursday was very
successful. Students took part in a range of business/enterprise activities
and had a lot of fun doing so. The Year 9 Subject Choices Evening which
followed it was very well attended and we were very pleased to receive so
many positive comments about the new Key Stage 4 Curriculum. You can see the
outline of the Curriculum via the online ammonite. It now includes a much
wider range of courses and qualifications that will enable us to provide a
much more personalised learning experience for students in Key Stage 4.
» Ammonite
for 27th February »
Comment
I am delighted to announce that we have been successful in bidding for
government funding towards the cost of a sports hall and have been awarded
£400k.
This money, alongside our Specialist School Capital Project grant, will
enable us to erect an aluminium framed sports hall on the site that will be
4 badminton courts in size. This will be a fantastic resource for the school
and for the community and it will enable us to realise the exciting plans we
have for developing as a Specialist Sports College. This is brilliant news
and we will be working very hard to get the project underway as quickly as
possible.
Thank you all for your support over the
course of the term; I hope that everyone has a great holiday next
week and enjoys the break. My thanks to all colleagues who are
giving up their holiday to accompany Year 10 on the Ski Trip and I
hope that the trip is a great success. We look forward to seeing
students back in school for the start of term 4 on Monday 23rd
February.
» Ammonite
for 13th February »
Comment
The weather conditions this morning were much
worse than expected and road conditions were treacherous. The school
will remain closed today as it is not advisable to travel.
I hope that things will be back to normal on
Monday but the long term forecast is showing some snow for our
region. If this is the case, I will make the final decision on
Monday morning and will post a notice on the school website as soon
as possible. As always we will make every effort to open the school
providing it is safe to do so.
I am sorry that we have been unable to open the
school today because of the weather and its impact upon transport in
the region. The decision was made when it became apparent that a
significant number of staff were unable to get into school, despite
their best efforts. This meant that we were unable to provide an
adequate staff/student ratio, which compromised health and safety.
We hope to be open tomorrow but if this weather
continues please check the school website and/or listen to a local
radio station (GWR or BBC Bristol). We will make every effort to
open the school and will make a decision as early as possible, in
the light of conditions or as soon as we have a clear picture about
staff attendance. Can I thank you in advance for your support and
forbearance at this time.
Students have this week been given a letter
concerning Academic Review Day 2009. This will be held on the
evening of Thursday 5th March (4.30-7.00pm) and the day of Friday
6th March (8.30am-12.30pm).
Fifteen minute appointments will be made
with your child/children's tutor(s) to discuss in depth your
child/children's progress with the aim of supporting him/her
academically and pastorally, both at home and at school. All
students will participate in a Learning Day at home on Friday 6th
March as school will be closed and there will be no school
transport. Please see
the letter for
further details.
The reply slip should be returned to Student
Support by Friday 6th February. Additional copies of the letter
and reply slip are on the school website and returns can be made
electronically by following the appropriate links. Parents will be
informed of their appointments via the students nearer to the
time.
Congratulations to Tom Parkinson 8CPR who has
been chosen to represent England Ice Hockey U13s in Canada. Saltford
Primary School is holding a coffee and cakes fund raiser on Friday
30 January at 3.30pm to raise funds to help Tom. All are welcome.
Congratulations also to Summer Hall 8LHL who has raised £220 for
Dorothy House Hospice, where her Grandfather had been looked after,
by taking part in a sponsored swim. Well done Summer.
» Ammonite
for 23rd January »
Comment
Congratulations to Simon Clarke, Louise Mead,
Nathan Moore and James Mould who are amongst the first students in
the country to receive A* grades in a level 3 qualification. The
extended project is A level standard and required each student to
write a 5000 word essay, keep a detailed research log and give a
presentation on their project to an invited audience at the
University of Bath.
Project titles
varied from "Why has it proven so difficult to man a mission to
Mars?" to "How has the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall affected
Germany?". This is truly an outstanding achievement and we are
extremely proud of the maturity, independence and creativity they
have shown throughout the whole process. Youngest
siblings have today been given a ballot paper for parents/carers to
elect a new Parent Governor. Each parent/carer with a child
registered at this school is entitled to ONE vote. Please ensure
your voting papers are returned to the ballot box in Reception or
posted to the Presiding Officer, Mrs Andrea Arlidge, by 12 noon on
Monday 2 February. Further information and election guidelines are
available on this website.
» Ammonite
for 16th January »
Comment
Welcome back to the start of Term 3 and Happy New
Year to students, families and friends. I would like to take this
opportunity to wish students in Key Stage 4 and 5 all the very best
for the module examinations that are taking place during January.
Well done to Jonathan Steel for being awarded his silver
wings after attending a residential ATC Glider Pilot course over the
Christmas break at RAF Lyneham and Hullavington. He has also been
recommended for advanced glider pilot training and the Air Cadet Pilot
Scholarship which will set him on his way to achieving his Private Pilot
Licence.
» Ammonite
for 9th January »
Comment
All of us who attended one of the Christmas
Concerts this week were privileged to watch yet another fantastic
show with outstanding performances. This year over 150 students took
part and it was fantastic to also see staff and parents getting
involved in the Community Choir. Music at Wellsway is definitely
going from strength to strength and I would like to pay tribute to
the hard work and commitment of the music team who make this
possible. Well done to everyone involved. I would like to wish
everyone a very Happy Christmas and Peaceful New Year. We look
forward to welcoming the students back to school on Monday 5th
January, 2009.
» Ammonite
for 18th December »
Comment
A big thank you to everybody involved in the
joint Wellsway/Broadlands Carol Service that was held on Monday 8th
December in the Methodist Church. It was a lovely occasion, marked
by fantastic performances and we very much enjoyed working with our
friends and colleagues from Broadlands. My thanks also to those of
you who came along to support this event.
» Ammonite
for 12th December »
Comment
On Tuesday 11th November the whole school went
out onto Lansdown courts to take part in Wellsway’s Service of
Remembrance at 11am. Head Boy, Simon Clarke, gave a very moving
reading and Matt Edmond (Year 11) brought the ceremony to a poignant
end by playing The Last Post. It was a wonderful occasion and I was
very proud of how respectful the students were throughout.
The
annual PTA Craft Fair on Sunday 9th November was a huge success. It was very
well attended and there was an even larger number and range of stalls than
usual. Thanks and congratulations to the PTA for the incredible amount of
hard work that they put into the event, which looks to have raised nearly
£4,000 for PTA funds.
We also received help from
a range of newcomers, not least our hardy group of Sixth Formers who were
exposed to the elements for large parts of the day. Thanks also to our
Premises Team who gave of their time before, during and after the event.
» Ammonite
for 14th November »
Comment
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