Colton Hills School Bulletin

Website: https://www.coltonhills.co.uk/highperformancelearning

Welcome to the latest Colton Hills School bulletin! It has already been an extremely busy first half term with lots going on! It has been lovely to see Year 6 students in the local community attend our Open Evening and Open Mornings and see the fantastic provision we offer here at Colton Hills.

Our Year 12 students have now settled into Sixth Form life and have already experienced exceptional opportunities that will stand them in good stead. We had three Year 12 students attend an Oxbridge Open Day event a few weeks ago! You can find their blog about the experience below in the bulletin.

Over the summer we had several of our Sixth Form study spaces revamped with professional looking furniture and artwork. There are several study spaces for students to use during their study periods to ensure that they are maximising their time in the Sixth Form. Many of our Year 12 and 13 students are already accessing opportunities of our additional offer by attending university open days, Masterclasses or completing online courses. It is also a busy time for our Year 13 students who are applying early for university whether it be for medicine, veterinary or dentistry.

If your child is in Year 11 and would like to see all of our exceptional Sixth Form facilities and curriculum offer for yourself, please book in for our Sixth Form Open Evening on Thursday 24 October, 4:30pm – 6:00pm via the school website.

The open day was a great opportunity for us to learn more about the courses we are interested in from others who were doing those courses, telling us their firsthand experiences and what we should do to ensure we have the best possibility of gaining a place. Furthermore, through this open day we were able to learn more about the courses, what they entail and whether or not the course is for us or if something else would be a better fit for us.

Throughout the day we visited many of the colleges such as Baliol, Trinity, Pembroke, Christ, Jesus, Exeter and St Johns, and gained more information about the experience at Oxford in general as well as about the courses we want to pursue. We were also able to attend talks at the Faculty of Law which went through copyright law using examples of Sherlock Holmes and Mickey Mouse as well as what the admission process entails, gaining more information about the LNATs and the two law courses on offer.

We also attended a talk at the Department of Medicine, where leading professionals in the field talked through the application process and conducted a mock trial to observe. Key points such as it being a 6 year course and the fact that only 2% of all the medical students in the UK go to Oxford, highlighting its prestige. Furthermore, a tour of the department and an opportunity to speak to current students and admission tutors was also possible.

Furthermore at Pembroke College, we were able to talk to the English and medicine tutors, who talked to us about our interests in the subjects as well as give us more insight to the respective courses. The whole day was full of discussions and information which has helped us gain a clearer understanding of courses at Oxford as well as how teaching differs there, compared to other universities, due to the tutorial system they have in place. Overall it was a great experience, we gained a lot from the experience and couldn’t thank Trinity College enough for providing us with this opportunity.

We held our school's annual Open Evening last Thursday, 3 October. It was a delight to host all the potential students, families and show them round our school premises. Our student tour guides did a fantastic job showing visitors around the various rooms, chatting with the parents and answering their questions. We are still running our Open Morning events for the rest of this week, every morning between 9-10am for any families who missed our Open Evening.

On Monday, 30 September, we took our Year 11 Geography students to Carding Mill Valley to complete the physical component of their GCSE Fieldwork. They spent their morning measuring the width, depth and speed of the river, as well as pebble shape and size.

The opportunity to do this will support them to successfully write about their data collection and methodologies in their exam, and they will now analyse and present the data now we are back in school to form their conclusions. Despite the rain, the students showed impressive levels of enthusiasm and resilience, safely entering the water and using the equipment professionally to collect their data.

Their dedication, demonstrated through their team work and communication skills, we were all incredibly proud of. We then spent the afternoon walking up to Lightspout Waterfall, which the students really enjoyed seeing and was a first for many. This also helped bring their learning of river landforms to life, proving why Geography is so important and really is everywhere in life; an opportunity I'm sure they will remember for a long time.

Check out our new #6thform study rooms & Oasis Cafe which were re-vamped over the summer with new paint and some new smart furniture. We have just added some finishing touches and we are delighted with the outcome! Headteacher, Ms Hunter said: "The new rooms are airier, brighter and now feels more suited for young adults."

Our honours boards have been updated in time for this evening's Open Event with 2024 top award students as well as this year's Head and Deputy Head students for Sixth Form. The students should be very proud of their achievements and we hope they will inspire other students.

Our school's charity, founded in memory of two ex-teachers, Mr Graham Birch and Mr John Thompson, who both sadly died of heart attacks in 1980, is hosting their annual fundraising charity event this November. Their 44th charity dance event will be supported once again by Todd Miller and the Joe Loss Orchestra. All monies raised will go towards The Birch Thompson Memorial Fund that maintains our residential centre in Porthmadog, Wales. The residential centre enables our school to offer trips to our students at a lower cost and we are very fortunate to provide them the opportunity year after year. Tickets for this event are prices at £45 which includes a dinner, or £27.50 without the dinner. To book tickets, please email jkumar@coltonhills.co.uk.

If you suspect or believe a child is suffering or is likely to suffer Significant Harm, including any form of mistreatment or abuse, you should report your concerns on the following numbers:

Monday to Thursday 8:30am to 5pm,

Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm on 01902 555392

Outside of the above hours for emergencies on 01902 552999

If the child or young person is at immediate risk of serious harm dial 999