ALL SAINTS’ NEWSALL SAINTS’ NEWS

5050thth ANNIVERSARY ANNIVERSARY

DINNERDINNER

This year is the 50th anniversary of the opening of

All Saints‟, and the school is arranging a series of

events to commemorate this very special occasion.

One of these events will be an Anniversary Dinner,

in the school hall, on Saturday 9th October. We

anticipate that the evening will be light-hearted,

memorable and enjoyable, and after a five course

meal there will be a number of speakers, including

Bishop Brain, who has kindly agreed to attend. We

are expecting demand to be high, and places will

be allocated strictly on a „first come, first served

basis‟ on tables of 8 or 10. So if you would like to

come, please book early to avoid disappointment.

The tickets are priced at £25, and are available

through school, which you can contact on 01706

213693.

SEPTEMBER 2010

72% 5+ A*-C 53% 5+ A*-C inc English & Maths

Our best GCSE results ever!

We are absolutely delighted with what our young people achieved this year. For the second year running, our leavers have accomplished the best results in the school‟s history. Provisional figures show that 72% of pupils achieved 5 or more A*-C grades, and 53% achieved 5 or more A*-C grades, including English & maths. Both of these figures are likely to be higher than the national average.

They also achieved the school‟s best results in English, Science & Languages!

We are very proud of what they have accom-plished. They have worked incredibly hard, and have deserved their success.

None of this would have been possible, of course, without the commitment and dedication of our staff, who have done so much to help prepare them for these exams, and for their life beyond All Saints!

SCIENCE AT WORKSCIENCE AT WORK

On Wednesday 15th September, we hosted more

than 200 Yr 5 & 6 pupils from St Veronica‟s, St

Mary‟s (Haslingden), St James the Less, St Peter‟s,

St Joseph‟s, and St Mary‟s (Bacup).

The day comprised different workshops, each

exploring the role of Science in their particular

profession, and the event ended with a very loud

and exciting „Flash Bang‟ lecture, delivered by a

Professor from Manchester University. The work-

shops included the Mountain Rescue, St John‟s

Ambulance, Police CSI, a „Funmaths‟ workshop,

Classroom Medics, and „Bright Sparks‟ electricity

workshop.

The children had a great time, and particularly

enjoyed the experiments, in the school hall, at the

very end of the day

UNIFORMUNIFORM

Our pupils are now wearing the new school uniform, and we have already received some very positive feed-back about how smart they are looking. We do believe that a smart uniform helps pupils to feel that they belong to the school, and that it encourages school discipline and a more positive attitude towards work. Rightly or wrongly, we know that many people judge our school, to some extent, by the appearance of our pupils. We are determined, therefore, to create a good impression, so that our pupils (and their parents!) receive the credit that they deserve. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support in implementing our uniform policy.

SPORTS HALLSPORTS HALL

Work on the Sports Hall is now complete, and our pupils are using it for lessons and extra-curricular sport. The Bishop of Salford, Bishop Brain, will be blessing the Sports Hall during the Anniversary Dinner on Saturday 9th October, and it will be officially opened on Thursday 14th October, by Blackburn Rovers‟ footballer, David Dunn. To make the occasion even more special, we will be hosting the inaugural „All Saints‟ Anniversary Cup‟, a 7-a-side football competition or our local Primary Schools, and David Dunn will be presenting the trophy and the medals. Some of our pupils will be involved with the competition, as Sports Leaders, and the rest of the school will gather for the ceremony at the end of the school day. Our Sports Hall is a superb facility, and we are very thankful to all those people who have helped and supported us in acquiring it. Projects like this do not come cheaply, though, because Catholic schools have to find 10% of the costs involved in building and mainte-nance works. Previously, a high rate of Mass attendance ensured that weekly income was sufficient to meet the 10% contribution. Increasingly this is no longer the case and so, after a very wide consultation, the Diocese introduced the “Schools Building Fund” a few years ago, as an annual invitation to all parents and carers to share in meeting these costs.

Having discussed the situation with Governors and the Friends of All Saints‟, however, we have decided not to ask families for an annual contribution, but have, instead, come up with the following solution which we sincerely hope you will feel able to support. The current membership of the 200 Club is 70 and these 70 members, by paying just £4.00 per month, are involved in a monthly prize draw with total prizes of £80 per month. If we can increase the 200 Club membership by 130 more members the additional income will allow us to access more funding, and increase the prizes. Just think what improvements we can make to the school with this annual income. Therefore I am urging all our parents, if they have not already done so, to to join our 200 Club and support this initiative. You can collect an application form from the school office, or download it from the school‟s website.

WELCOME TO OUR NEW YEAR SEVEN!WELCOME TO OUR NEW YEAR SEVEN!

The children in our new Year 7 have settled into school really well, and are already beginning to shine! On Friday 10th September, Years 8-11 finished school early, so that the whole of our staff could spend time with the new pupils. They spent the afternoon working in small groups, preparing a special assembly, which was presented at the end of the day. It was fantastic to see so many parents here, to share in the celebrations, and to join us for the barbeque afterwards.

The slideshow, that was used during the presenta-tion, was a really powerful way of seeing just how well they have settled in, and it was lovely to hear some of the pupils‟ dreams and wishes for the coming five years - let‟s hope they all come true! We also had a special Mass of Welcome, on Wednesday 16th September, which was celebrated by Fr Lupton. It was another memorable occasion, where pupils and staff clapped the Year 7 children into the Hall, and Fr Lupton spoke about how bright and happy they all looked.

Well done Year 7 - you are already a credit to All Saints!

SHINE!SHINE!

We have recently introduced a new whole-school „Behaviour for Learning‟ policy, which aims to reward our pupils for being ready and prepared to learn, and to support those pupils who are struggling.

Pupils are rewarded for arriving to lessons on time, wearing their uniform correctly, having the right equipment, and completing homework. In class and around school, pupils are expected to SHINE!

Speak politely, Have Respect , Follow Instructions, Never say never, Engage positively

So far, the response from pupils has been very positive, and we are certain that the new system will help us, as a school, move forward even further. Education is a partnership between home and school, and to maintain high standards, it is essential that this partnership flourishes. Accordingly we will continue to involve parents at an early stage, if problems occur, and trust that parents will feel able to support us in maintaining high standards. If you want any further information about our Behaviour for Learning policy, please contact the school.

WELCOME!WELCOME!

We have had the pleasure of welcoming six new members of staff to All Saints‟ this term - Miss Laura Foster (English), Mrs Heather McKeown (Curriculum Leader - English), Miss Vicky Molyneux (PE), Mrs Lisa Mounfield (Science) Mr Martin Parkes (PE) and Miss Joanna Roddy (English)

We wish them all a very happy and successful time with us, here at All Saints‟ Catholic High School

Upcoming EventsUpcoming Events

Tuesday 28th September Open Evening Wednesday 29th & Thursday 30th September School at Work Mornings Tuesday 5th October Friends of All Saints’ Meeting 6.00pm in the Fishwick Building - All Welcome! Saturday 9th October Anniversary Dinner Thursday 14th October Opening of Sports Hall Yr 10 Information Evening 6.30pm in the School Hall Friday 22nd October School Closes at 3.30pm for Half-Term Saturday 23rd October German Exchange leaves Monday 1st November School Opens Tuesday 5th November Friends of All Saints’ Meeting 6.00pm in the Fishwick Building - All Welcome! Monday 8th November November Exam Series begins Thursday 18th November Headteacher & Learning Coach Surgeries

3.45pm in School Certificate Evening 7.00pm in the School Hall Friday 19th November Staff INSET Monday 22nd November Yr 11 Mock Exams begin Tuesday 30th November Yr 7 Parent’s Evening From 5.30pm in the School Hall Saturday 4th December Trip to Lille Tuesday 5th December Friends of All Saints’ Meeting 6.00pm in the Fishwick Building - All Welcome! Friday 10th December Yr 11 Mock Results Day Wednesday 15th December Advent Service Thursday 16th December Learning Coach Surgery Friday 17th December Last Day of Term

SCHOOL SCHOOL SPORTS SPORTS

PARTNERSHIP PARTNERSHIP NEWSNEWS

A group of 10 Sports Leaders have been selected to represent All Saints‟ in volunteering & leadership activities both in and out of school.

A group of Yr 7 pupils have been invited to Tor View School, on Thursday 30th September, for a Tag Rugby training session & tournament.

A new Basketball Club for girls has started, and has been a great success so far, with a good attendance at each session.

Rossendale Mountain Biking Club are coming to All Saints‟ on Friday 1st October, to run a free taster session for a group of Yr 7 girls.

Boys‟ Football is well underway, as our Yr 10 boys have steamed through to the next round of the Rossendale Cup, with a 5-1 win over BRGS. Unfortunately, the Yr 11 team lost to BRGS, but they pulled out a great performance, and showed great spirit in not giving up!

On 14th October, we are hosting the first ever „All Saints‟ Anniversary Cup‟, a 7-a-side, mixed Football tournament, to celebrate the official opening of the Sports Hall. Blackburn Rovers‟ Footballer, David Dunn will be present, to open the Hall and present the trophy.

The school‟s club links are further developing, as a coach from Rossendale Basketball Club has been running a Basketball Club for our boys, and this is proving to be very popular.

Girls‟ Netball is about to begin its season, with the first matches to take place at Alder Grange - Yr 9 on 30th September, and Yr 8 on 17th October.