Celebrating Success

December 2016

James Partridge OBE visits GFS On Tuesday 23rd November, James Partridge OBE visited GFS to speak with the schools RAG (Raining and Giving) committee about fundraising and then to all students about his personal story and the work of his charity, changing faces. James story began when, at the age of 18, he was involved in a car crash and a resulting fire. Over the next six years he was involved in a series of major surgeries and skin grafts which made him question every value he had ever held dear. Through excellent medical treatment and support he has gone on to learn from the situation and lead a truly inspirational life. His charity, changing faces, seeks to both help those who go through similar situations but to also increase public awareness of facial disfigurement. Rashida Iscandari, the Leader of RAG, said that "Listening to James was very inspirational and I am sure we will all learn a lot from him. He taught us a lot about how to lead a campaign and how the reason 'why' is so important to a successful campaign". If you would like to know more about the charity please visit https://www.changingfaces.org.uk/

A Note from the Headteacher….

It often feels like the Autumn term never stops. It is an extremely busy time of year for schools and even more so for us this year as we help our inaugural Year 11 cohort begin the final run into their GCSE exams We held a full practice round of mock exams at the end of November and I want to publicly congratulate the Year 11 pupils for the manner in which they conducted themselves during the mocks and for how hard they worked in getting ready for them. At the end of a term it is often a natural time to reflect. There is a lot in the news lately about cuts to school funding and the difficulty that many London schools will face as they see their funding drop over the next few years. These cuts have inevitably led to most secondary schools doing two things: increasing their class sizes and reducing the number of subjects they offer. At GFS we are planning hard to ensure we can continue to afford to deliver the school experience we believe in and ensure all of our pupils leave equipped to lead happy and successful lives. It is with this point in mind that I also wanted to talk about a recent article written by professor Stephen Hawking. In it, for the World Economic Forum, he spoke about the increasing automation of the workplace and the decline in jobs this has resulted in and will result in across the globe. He is quoted as saying “the automation of factories has already decimated jobs in traditional manufacturing, and the rise of artificial intelligence is likely to extend this job destruction deep into the middle classes, with only the most caring, creative or supervisory roles remaining.” In the article he quotes a report put out in February 2016 by Citibank in partnership with the University of Oxford that predicted that: • 47% of US jobs are at risk of automation. • In the UK, 35% are. • In China, it's a whopping 77% • while across the OECD it's an average of 57%. Added to this, the Mayor of London’s office recently stated that By 2020, 60% of all available jobs in London will require a University degree. So our young people are no longer just competing to get a job with the people who live near them, or who live in London; they are now competing with young people who live all over the world for a pool of jobs that is diminishing and becoming more specialised. Unfortunately for this generation, more than ever their GCSE results will determine what jobs they can access. This is why we maintain a focus on academic success and the behaviours that go along with this and we will never alter from this or shirk from our responsibilities in ensuring that every student at GFS leaves with the currency they need to access the job market.

Greenwich Free School tire out the opposition for the 3rd time running at London Schools BMX Championships with 2 Golds and 3 Silvers.

After lunch, the finals began and Alimamy Mansaray was up first in the Year 9 boys race. Having won 2 Motos and 2nd in the other, we were hopeful of a great result. Folllowing a blistering start, Ali was unsportsmanly almost knocked off his bike and dropped from 2nd to 4th. His class and outstanding technique won through however and he managed to weave his way through back into 2nd to take the silver medal. Well Done Ali. The year 8 girls were up next, with all of our competitors into the A final which in itself is an amazing achievement. Kristina Broeren pushed Yasmin all the way to the line but Yasmin pipped her at the post to finish in 1st,with Kristina a very close 2nd. Agnesa Biqliki improved on her 9th place in the summer to finish 4th in the A final this time around. Well done all. Our final 2 races of the day came with the year 9 girls A and B final. GFS dominated the B final, taking up 6 of the 8 spots, Miah Juman finishing in the highest position. In the A final, it was a close call between our fantastic 4, Amelia Lloyd, Kate Kabangele, Valentina Hadome and Jaime Walker. All 4 could have taken the top spot with very different skills and attributes, Jaime the natural rider with a high level of skill, Amelia the speed queen who at times looks like her bike is about to run away with her, and Kate and Valentina, 2 of the most competitive people you will ever come across! In the end, Valentina sped to victory, Jaime 2nd, Amelia (always the bridesmaid) 4th and Kate 5th. We all had a fantastic day and it is heart warming to hear that some of the girls have already joined a club outside of school and have started to train at the weekend. Again, well done to every one of you who took part.

Last Wednesday saw GFS PE take its third consecutive team to the bi-annual London Schools BMX Championships held at the Olympic BMX Track in Stratford. Previous competitions have brought us winners in one individual year group, but due to the increasing depth of coaching across a number of year groups, we were able to take both Years 8 and 9 girls and one Year 9 boy. Yasmin Novais was looking to defend her title won during the summer whilst the Year 9s were competing for this first time. Following 12 weeks of intensive coaching from Sarah at GLL and funded by AccessSport, dismantling and rebuilding bikes and learning the necessary skills for competitive racing, the time had come to put it all into practise. The Olympic BMX track is 430m long, with an 8m high starting ramp and is known as being one of the most challenging tracks in the world to date. Even the most experienced of our riders felt the butterflies and Miss Gould and Mr McCabe were quaking in their trainers in anticipation of the staff race. The Motos (heats) gave our riders the opportunity to learn the track and finish in the highest place possible and earn points to put themselves into the A, B or C finals. Whilst everyone was nervous, the attitude with which they approached their races must be commended, especially with a fair few falls, scrapes and grazes. We had magic sponges at the ready! All those who fell got straight back onto their bikes, finished the race and then raced again. Special mention should go to Valerie Chuke for falling (quite badly) twice in one race but showed incredible grit and determination to finish for the team. It was one of those moments that brought a tear to the eye and makes teaching so worthwhile and rewarding! Ruqayyah Osho also deserves recognition for riding the course, despite being a non rider little over 10 weeks ago. With the Motos done, it was time for the teachers race. Mr McCabe recovered well from a very early stumble to overtake Miss Gould on the first berm and finished a respectable 3rd, with Miss Gould behind in 5th. As she was the only female competitor, Miss Gould is officially claiming to be London's Schools BMX Female Teachers Champion!

Intermediate (Year 8 / Year 9)

Ranking

Name Certificate

1 Diarmid Sisauri-Masters Best in School

2 Amelia Lloyd Distinction

3 Amris Dhell Distinction

4- Hershveer Bahra Distinction

4- Terrell Clayton Distinction

4- Shanice Williams Distinction

7- Reese Maleking Distinction

7- Stanley Reading Distinction

9 Reminie Spence Distinction

10- Arnas Baladinskas Distinction

10- Joe Silvester Collins Distinction

12- Thomas McCarthy Distinction

12- Lia O'Gorman Distinction

14- Rion Gredley Distinction

14- Dylan Woodhams Distinction

16 Owen McCarthy Distinction

17- Keeno Fleary Distinction

17- Emily Guy Distinction

19- Falcon Page Distinction

19- Grace Stafford Distinction

19- Jude Taylor Distinction

Senior (Year 10 / Year 11)

Ranking

Name Certificate

1 Kyle Torpey Best in School

2 Joshua Love Distinction

3 Callum O'Neill Distinction

4 Jacob Parkes Distinction

5 Nathan Dancey Distinction

6 Ashleigh Powis-Frost Distinction

7 Juliusz Podbielski Distinction

8 Joe Conteh Distinction

9- Charlie Hills Distinction

9- Joy Maton Distinction

11 Ryan Smith Distinction

12 Alina Gordey Distinction

13 Jessica Contento Distinction

14 Seyi Ogunleye Distinction

15 Connor Walsh Distinction

16 Roan John Distinction

17- Sam Bridgeman Distinction

17- Nicole Rumsey Distinction

17- Khan Stewart Distinction

20- Isabella Broeren Distinction

20- Zakaria Jama Distinction

20- Hamza Jama Distinction

20- Meah Materego-Wardeck

Distinction

Oxford University’s Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge A record number of GFS students entered Oxford University’s Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge in November. Every pupil that participated will be awarded a certificate from Oxford University. The top students from each year group will be awarded “Best in School” certificates and will also receive a prize in the new year. Here are the top 20 for each year group:

Juniors (Year 7)

Ranking

Name Certificate

1 Danny HUYNH-NGUYEN Best in School

2 Renjie LIN Distinction

3 Kevin BUI Distinction

4 Muhammed ASARE Distinction

5- Destiny ADEKUNLE Distinction

5- Niamh HENNESSY Distinction

7 Holly REDFERN Distinction

8- Effraim BEESLEY Distinction

8- MacFarlane-Purcell Jaydan Distinction

10- Christian MASON Distinction

10- Drew SOWDEN Distinction

10- Yotov Svetoslav Distinction

13- Lucie DEBENHAM Distinction

13- Eugene DIANGANA Distinction

15- Rhiyah DIXON Distinction

15- Aisha OSHIKOYA Distinction

17 Ryan WALSH Distinction

18 Brooke PEDDLE Distinction

19 Alistair KHAN Distinction

20- Rhema MANANGA Distinction

20- Sidra RADMAN Distinction

Tia Hurst and Louise Williams in Remembrance Day Parade

Tia Hurst and Louise Williams from Year 11 were part of the Remembrance Day parade in Lewisham last month. These photos of them marching down Lewisham High Street were sent in by Simon Hurst; Tia’s father.

Careers A number of Year 10 students have already begun the search for their own work experience placements and it has been incredibly encouraging to see how proactive they have been. Our aim is to make sure that students get access to the highest quality, most relevant placements for their needs. If you are interested in hosting one of our students for a 1 week placement from 5th-9th September 2017, please let us know. Contact us at info@greenwichfreeschool.co.uk

A Career in Medicine We are aware that a number of our Year 10 students are looking for medical related work experience placements at the moment. This guidance from The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health may be really useful for parents: Gaining work experience in hospitals directly

with children can be difficult. However, contact

hospitals, hospices, GP surgeries, etc with

plenty of notice and see if they can offer you

some opportunities. Even if this is not with

children it is all valuable experience on your

journey to becoming a doctor.

Volunteering in a medical centre gives the

opportunity to be involved with non-clinical work but you will be providing a valuable service

for patients, families and other health professionals. Contact the centres directly and see if

there is anything you can help with.

Try and get involved with children's clubs in your local area, after school or at weekends or

volunteer at a summer school. Contact local nurseries and see if you can get some work

experience. All of these opportunities although not medical will give you great experience

working with children. Look into gaining some first aid skills. Organisations such as St

John's Ambulance have programmes for young people. The following websites may help you explore volunteering opportunities: https://www.ncvo.org.uk/ncvo-volunteering https://do-it.org/ ‘ Work experience in a hospital is a good way to establish your interest in paediatrics - but it can be hard to come by. Lots of paediatricians spent some time before university volunteering with children's charities or helping on summer camps - I think it helps to know that you enjoy working with children.‘ For more information, visit: http://www.rcpch.ac.uk/training-examinations-professional-development/careers/school-students/school-students

"Showmyhomework has never made homework easier! Dear Parents. We hope that you have found the new showmyhomework website a huge improvement on previous approaches to homework. Feedback from teachers and students has been hugely positive. Deborah in Year 10 said: "It's a big improvement from last year. My English teacher, for example, is able to circulate relevant video clips which link to the text we're studying. This has been hugely helpful." Both parents and students can access the website. Please speak to your child in the first instance who can then speak with their tutor should you need help on the site“ https://www.showmyhomework.co.uk/login

Upcoming Dates for your Diary Year 10 Parents Evening A letter has gone out regarding the forthcoming Year 10 Parents evening. The link to book is: http://greenwichfreeschool.simplybook.me/index/about Alterations to the timing of the day: School will close at 13:50 Tuesday 10th Jan School will open at 09:00 on Wednesday 11th Jan Tuesday January 3rd INSET Day Wednesday January 4th Normal teaching day SAVE THE DATE 30th January – Year 9 Options Launch Parent Event – please save the date

Year 11 Exam Centre

Date Event Additional information 16/5/17 – 22/6/17

Main public examination timetable

Full provisional timetable available on the main school website under ‘Exams Centre’

24/8/17 National GCSE results day

Students are invited into school to collect their GCSE results.

Examination Rules It is very important that all students adhere to the examination rules as set out by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) and understand the potential consequences of failing to do so. In particular, the rules around the use of web enabled technology such as mobile phones during written examinations. Please take the time to review the information for candidates which can be located on the main school website as follows ‘our school’ - ‘exams centre’ - ‘year 11’ or via this link: http://www.greenwichfreeschool.co.uk/Year-11-Revision

GFS Sharp System Mr Rhys Spiers, Designated Safeguarding Person

The Greenwich Free School (GFS) Student Help Advice & Reporting System is to be used by all stakeholders for logging a concern about a child's safety or welfare and for learning more about the common safeguarding issues that affect young people today. This site contains a whole range of useful information including links to external organisations which will help our community to become more aware and ready to support our young people. This site contains a range of educational videos and useful information on common child safety and welfare issues. We invite you to view these pages and become informed about the challenges facing young people today. If you have a child safety or welfare concern please click on the 'Make a Report' link and complete the referral form in order to inform Our Safeguarding Team of your concerns.

Join us each month for an exploration of the Gallery's Collection with professional artists through a variety of art forms.

Be inspired by the Gallery's Collection and Picasso Portraits to create a narrative comic strip working with artist Marc Woodhead and special guest, comic and Manga artist

Karen Rubins.

Activities for the Family

Peter Pan – the Pantomime

Presented by: Greenwich Theatre http://www.greenwichtheatre.org.uk/

Performance times: Times vary - click [here] for details Prices: Adults £29 (£28 ticket plus £1 booking fee)

Concs £20 (£19 ticket plus £1 booking fee) All children's tickets half price!