headteacherlhs

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #52

Headteachers Blog Number 52/Blog Prifathro Rhif

Monday 4th February 2019

National School Categorisation – January 2019

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

Congratulations to all on achieving ‘Green’ status

I am delighted to inform you that Llanishen High School has been categorised as a ‘Green A’ school by the Welsh Government following the latest round of national school categorisation.

A school that is categorised as Green is defined as being;

"..a highly effective school which is run well, has strong leadership and is clear about its priorities for improvement.  These schools have a track record in delivering excellent outcomes for their pupils and have the capacity to support other schools to do better."

In four years the school has moved from improvement capacity D to A and from support category red to green which is a phenomenal achievement and one which we are delighted by. We don’t know of any other secondary school that has made such rapid progress. Our outcomes in nearly all key performance indicators rank us in the top benchmarking groups. We are very proud of the increased opportunities that our pupils have with these improved outcomes.  

I would like to congratulate all stakeholders and particularly our students, staff, parents, governors and community partners, for supporting our vision to be an outstanding school, developing outstanding individuals.

We are delighted that the hard work of our students has been credited in this way. In particular, we are proud of the fact that learners of ALL ability make good progress at Llanishen High School. As one of the most truly comprehensive and diverse school communities in the region, this is so important to us.

Whilst the categorisation process is predominantly judging schools on their GCSE results, we are equally proud of the progress that we have made in KS3 and especially in KS5. Our A level results have also seen marked improvement with for example subjects such as Economics, Physics and Biology being ranked in the top 10% of schools in the UK.

Our journey over the last three years could be defined as that from ‘monitoring’ to ‘mentoring.’  In Spring 2016, Estyn placed the school into a monitoring category.   The school was removed from this category by the autumn of 2016 due to the significant improvement in outcomes by the summer of 2016. In the spring of 2019, the school is now mentoring and supporting colleagues in other schools and those who are new to headship.

It has been a privilege and a pleasure to have been part of the journey of academic progress. But this is just one part of the puzzle. The school has a clear vision, strong leadership at all levels, a strong culture of self-evaluation and improvement planning, a commitment to aspirational target setting and robust tracking, and a passion for teaching and learning.  

Over the last 18 months, one of our key school priorities has been to establish a new and positive culture for learning and behaviour.  Changing culture and ethos is often compared with the task of trying to turn around a large tanker.  Deep rooted and sustainable change takes careful planning and consistent application. In striving for excellence we are noting the positive change evidenced in the school as a result of the following:

A new vision and mission statement

A new infrastructure and new processes for positive behaviour

A new and smarter uniform

A ban on the use of mobile phones on the school site

Our move to become a restorative school and the use of restorative justice

We are also making good headway in improving the fabric of the estate.  The installation of the of 4G pitch has been a very positive addition to our facilities.  And 2019 promises to bring new toilet blocks, new provision for IT and digital competency, and a rolling programme of redecoration.

From writing my blog each week, I would also like to say that it is a privilege to work in a school community that is saturated with such a vast array of talents and interests.  From sporting successes, creative talents, work in the community and so much more.

We are also extremely grateful for the ongoing support of our community partners including the Principality Building Society, Governors, our PTA and the Rotary Club of Llanishen who provide very real and very meaningful experiences for our students to prepare them for the world they will enter in to.

We are greatly heartened by this categorisation.  We will continue to strive for excellence with each and every student entrusted in to our care.  We look forward to taking the school through the challenges and opportunities of a new curriculum as well as our plans to develop IT and digital competency. We also look forward to seeing the local authorities plans to improve our school estate come to fruition in the coming months.

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen,  

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #51

Headteachers Blog Number 51/Blog Prifathro Rhif 

 Friday 1st February 2019

 Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

 Building bridges across the generations and into our community

In assembly this week I have been talking to our students about the role of our school in our community and ways that we can build bridges in to the community but also across generations.  

There are many ways in which we currently impact positively on our wider community.  Our smarter uniform accompanied by calm, orderly and polite behaviour outside of school speaks volumes.  Equally, the very basics of respecting our neighbours property and boundaries.  Then we have specific activities that take us out into the community.  Examples of these include our Christmas hamper deliveries, our litter picks, eco-committee activities and Welsh Baccalaureate volunteering activities.

I have also emphasised that there are great benefits to our school in being part of a wider community. According to the African proverb;

“It takes a village to raise a child”

Despite the cynical expressions on some younger faces, I emphasised the importance of older wisdom.  Each of our students needs people to take of them, to teach them and to guide them.  An essential element of our community is respect between the generations.  

When we delivered our Christmas hampers in December, the majority of our deliveries were to more elderly neighbours and residents in the area.  Many of these were to elderly people who live alone.

I challenged our young people to think about how we can reduce loneliness? Loneliness is becoming a very widespread social issue.  Society has become more fractured.  People don’t tend to live in extended family settings so much anymore.  

What we expect from everyone:

We expect every member of our school community to show respect for all of our neighbours, but particularly our elderly neighbours. We want them to be aware that many people live alone and have little contact with others/generations.  Generations are becoming increasingly isolated from one another which can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness.  It can also lead to feelings of intimidation.

We want every student to think about their journey to school (whether it be by bus, car, on foot or by bicycle).  How do we impact on others during this time? How do we conduct ourselves in the village and in the shops?

But what else?

As a school community, we want to do more than just visit the local residential homes at Christmas.  We want to improve our knowledge and understanding of issues such as dementia and Alzheimers.  We want to be better educated.

The reality is that one third of our population is over the age of 60.  We are the older people of the future!

We are all living longer.  We are an ageing society.  This is not a burden.  This is something to be celebrated.  We need to think about the generation that we will one day become.  Otherwise, we are discriminating against our future selves.

So, in a fractured and increasingly angry world, what can we do?  Many of our students will be headed into caring professions and pathways.  We have a duty as a school to develop ethical and informed citizens that are healthy and confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society. This is emphasised clearly in the 2015 Donaldson Report.

So, Llanishen High School is now part of an ‘intergenerational befriending strategy.’

Intergenerational befriending is a rather syllable-laden way of saying that we are going to bring older and younger people together in purposeful and mutually beneficial activities, building upon the resources that each has to offer.

Intergenerational practice can support older people to continue to play an important role in society, sharing their knowledge and experience and helping them to feel valued and respected.  It can also reduce their fear of younger people, improve their mental wellbeing, fitness and mobility.

The benefits for our students in taking part in intergenerational practice include improved physical and mental health, social awareness, community cohesion and improved relationships and positive attitudes towards elders.

We have joined in partnership with Cartref Residential Home on Station Road (Llanishen) and Dr Pink form Llanishen Court Surgery as part of the ffrind i mi/friend of mine Intergenerational Strategy.  We are very grateful to Dr David Minton (parent of 3 students in LHS and member of the Aneurin Bevan Health Board) for his support in establishing this link.

In the first instance, we will be recruiting students from Year 12 to take part in a variety of weekly activities in Cartref.  From games and puzzles to songs and scones, to becoming digital hero’s…the activities that we can engage in are endless.  Our volunteers from Year 12 will lead the way by paying weekly visits to the care home and to the new day centre facility to help out.  We intend for this to be the beginning of a wider strategy to work with the many older and isolated members of our community and to provide opportunities for the community to come into school for events or just for morning coffee or afternoon tea.

As we establish and develop links, there will be opportunities for the younger year groups to be involved.  In the meantime, I want them to think about the elderly people who live around them. If we have snow or ice, knock on their door and see if you can help them with some shopping so that they don’t have to go out.  Pop in. Smile.  Show them what wonderful young people you are.

In the meantime, if you are interested in finding out more about intergenerational befriending, please follow the link below:

                             www.ffrindimi.co.uk

Even within our own school community, we have ‘generations.’  These photographs capture some of the youngest members of our school community with our Head Boy and Head Girl.  They encapsulate the joy of working in a school community that runs from Year 7 through to Year 13.  From left to right; Bethan (Head Girl), Dylan (Year 7), Isa (Year 7) and Hama (Head Boy):

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen,  

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #50

Headteachers Blog Number 50/Blog Prifathro Rhif 

Friday 25th January 2019

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

This week, the Senior Leadership Team and Year Team Leaders have been carrying out our half-termly formal monitoring of standards in relation to attendance, punctuality and uniform.  

Alongside this, I have been following with interest the improvement journey of a school in England cited as having ‘Britain’s strictest headmaster.’ In this school, amongst other requirements:

·       Students move silently through the corridors and are not permitted to speak while transitioning from one lesson to another

·       Mobile phones are confiscated on sight and held for one week

·       Pencil cases must be transparent, 30 cm in length and stocked according to guidelines

·       Parents of excluded students are required to attend school with them on the day of their return to sit with them in lessons and to monitor them at break and lunch time

·       Students are not permitted to push up the sleeves of their blazer or to wear coloured socks

Now this is clearly a carefully selected/edited snapshot of a school on a journey and the headlines are designed to invite sensation.  As a parent, student, staff member or governor you may have a view on these school rules!  Some of these rules may resonate well with you.  Others may not.  But I’m always interested to visit other schools and to read of different approaches.

Regardless of the different approaches, I have never visited a school with high standards of uniform that didn’t carry these high standards through in to other areas of school life.  Dressing smartly for school is the foundation for a positive work ethic and conduct in and around school.  “School uniform supports effective teaching and learning and engenders a positive, calm and respectful teaching and learning environment.” (Department for Education)

But importantly, students need to know that the rules and expectations for all aspects of behaviour will be enforced.  The example that I gave to a reluctant blazer wearer this morning was, “You do not join a football team and then decide which of the rules you wish to adhere to and whether or not you want to wear the team strip.”  In wearing our uniform, we set our identity and we are all equally valued members of this school community.  In making the choice to come to LHS, you make the choice to wear our uniform.  All of it. Not selected parts of it.

A further pearl of wisdom that I have shared generously this week is, “your parents do not work hard to pay for uniform for you to stuff it in to the bottom of your school bag.  You need to show respect for your own property and for the property of others. You need to take responsibility and take care of your own uniform.”

Equally, our expectations are not set to create an atmosphere of fear and worry. The uniform store means that we have a supportive provision for students who find themselves without full uniform for a variety of reasons.   We have high expectations but set within a context of support.  Therefore, a very small number of students have spent time in isolation this week for refusing to wear the uniform item that they have been offered by the team in the uniform store.

We would like to thank parents for supporting the school in setting and maintaining high standards for uniform.  I make no apologies for revisiting this repeatedly.  It has been a privilege to visit tutor groups this week.  We will continue to drive a strong and consistent behaviour policy in order to ensure that our students receive the education that they deserve.

Here are just a couple of snaps from my visits to classrooms this week. Let’s start with Miss Evans’ lovely Year 9 RE class:

Next door, Year 7 were thoroughly enjoying their Geography class with Mr Westrop:

Year 7 Tocyn Iaith winners

Next today I would like to congratulate our tocyn iaith winners for the autumn term. All three received vouchers for WHSmith as well as ACE points in recognition of their use of the Welsh language around the school.  Well done boys!

1st place - Isa Asif 7I

2nd place - Dylan Clarke 7D (absent for photograph)

3rd place - Morgan Howden 7D

A plethora of sporting achievement this week:

A big well done to our year 7 and 8 girls who competed in the Indoor Sportshall Competition at Whitchurch this week: Isabel Fisher, Camellia Benzaoua, Isla Howells, Chelsey Mills, Lily Morgan, Maya Ahmed, Leah Morris, Shania Price, Destiny Jones, Kiara Cachia and Katie Gill.  We also had 1st place in the sprint events for Katie Gill and Shania Price- Well done ladies!

 We would also like to extend our congratulation to former student Alex Morgan for being named in the Wales U20 squad for the 2019 Six Nations!

Alex is a role model for our next cohort of sports men and women… here are some of our Sixth Form BTEC Level 3 students completing their fitness tests on the new AstroTurf on a very cold but crisp and clear January day.

Calling all budding performers:

Finally today, an appeal to any budding performers who would like to audition for a part in our school summer production of ‘Legally Blonde!’  Make your way to the creative arts area during Monday lunch.

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen,  

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog 48

Headteachers Blog Number 48/Blog Prifathro Rhif 48

 Friday 11th January 2019

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

And we are back!  A very happy new year to all staff, students, parents, governors and community partners. As I started writing this week’s blog, I reflected back on my first blog of January 2018 and was promptly reminded of last years’ resolutions which included Mr Humphreys daily early morning swim and healthy eating.  We were not overly keen on the aroma of his mackerel lunch. But other than that, January had started well.  Well, as we move into 2019, I’m pleased to say that that the mackerel lunch has been usurped by a more sophisticated spicy meatball pasta creation.  There are no ends to his talents.  And again, we are all eating ridiculously healthy food stuffs whilst pledging our devotion to exercise and good wellbeing.  

On that note, I thought it appropriate to start this week with an inspirational story from one of our parents.  It is high time that the achievements of our parents featured alongside those of students and staff in this blog.  So please let me introduce you to Mr Mike Driscoll who has raised £220 for the Autism Base charity by completing an alcohol free month! We would like to thank him for this generous initiative and his example to us all!  He is pictured below handing over the money raised to Mr Charlie Batten who teaches in our Autistic Spectrum Disorder Base (I have no comment with regards to the jumpers…)

Before we launch fully into 2019, I want to share a few of our final moments from the end of 2018 and I hope they will prove to be good tonic for the January blues.

 Food bank

 In the last week of the December term, our Year 11 students visited Splott food bank with our sizeable contribution.  Rosie, Caleb, Sam and Jamie participated in this as part of their Welsh Baccalaureate studies. They collected 5 large bags of food to donate to help those in need over the Christmas period. They were ably escorted by Miss Gough and Miss Perry (I suspect they enjoyed the visit greatly.)

 LHS debators visit the Senedd to sort out a few national issues!

At the end of term, a group of our wonderful students from learning support thoroughly enjoyed a school trip to Cardiff Bay and the Senedd. It was a freezing Friday in December- as you can see from the photograph! However the students were a real credit to our school and the guides from the Senedd complimented them on their keenness to interact and their fantastic behaviour.  Joe Thomas wrote: “We went on two trains and we had a lovely and wonderful time at the Senedd.”  Jessica Jones told us: “ I enjoyed my trip to Senedd it was educational and interesting but we also had a lot of fun.”  The students were inspired by the Senedd building and by the debates that they observed.

 Year 12 Engineering Challenge:

 In the penultimate week of term, some of our Year 12 students spent three days at the University of South Wales developing their designs to solve a real life problem with GE Aviation Wales.  One team are developing an automated system to clean out an aircraft gearbox without dismantling it. The other are developing an automated paint spray system for the fan shaft.  Both teams worked well together and look forward to presenting their ideas to the judges at The Big Bang Fair on 10th April at RAF St Athan.  (If you are a parent of a student involved in the project you are more than welcome to attend on that day. It should be great fun!)

Dragons Den

 I would also like to congratulate all students who took part in our two breakdown Impact days in the final week of term.  Years 7 and 8 engaged fantastically in their PSE carousel and our key stage 4 students worked very hard on a range of Welsh Baccalaureate activities.  In particular, our Year 9 students are to be commended on their attitude and response during the Dragons Den activity.  We were very well supported through our business class partnership with the Principality Building Society.  

 From small seeds we can do great things! James Harper of The Principality was so inspired by one idea that he is going to bring the boys idea to life in New Year!

Community Christmas Hampers

 In the final days of term it was also a privilege to deliver our Christmas hampers to our local neighbours and community.  Here we have Year 9 delivering hampers to Brentwood Court Sheltered Housing.

 James Story – Tennis Scholarship at the University of Memphis!

All of the staff here at LHS would like to congratulate James who has achieved a tennis scholarship to attend the University of Memphis from August 2019.  He will be joining his brother there for a year.  This is an amazing achievement and we can’t wait to follow his journey. Exciting times ahead!  The photograph above is their promotion and celebration of him accepting their offer!

 Cardiff City Stadium Visit - Tuesday 18th December 2018

Now, Miss Koops had a very enjoyable experience on 18th December.  In arranging to take her fabulous Year 11 students to Cardiff City Stadium for a languages event, they enjoyed a tour of the stadium and met two of the players. All students were a pleasure to be with and a credit to the school.  I look forward to sharing hot chocolate with them in the coming weeks.  One lucky student, Grace Drysdale managed a cheeky selfie with the players!

Gabby kicks off 2019 in style!

Finally, this week, I will come full circle and end as I started.  Back to those good new year’s intentions and the new healthy LHS.

 As always, Gabby Dickinson is a wonderful role model.  Gabby participated in part two of the indoor Regional Championships held at NIAC on the 6th January where she competed in the long jump and 60m sprint. Gabby achieved a well contested second place in both events. This is Gabby’s first year in the under 17 women category, bringing her overall tally to one gold and two silvers.  A great warm up to prepare for the indoor Welsh Championships this coming February. We look forward to following her year in 2019!

After that exhausting edition, I look forward to updating you next week.

 Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen,  

 Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #46

Blog Prifathro Rhif 46

 Friday 14th December 2018

 Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

As the end of the autumn term 2018 looms into sight, I would like to thank all staff and students for a term of incredible and hard work.  It has been a long but positive term.  You know you’re running on fumes when you turn to mince pies to fuel your body on an hour by hour basis!  I dislike mince pies immensely.  But I’ve eaten approximately 11 this week.  They seem to be omnipresent.  There are boxes of them wherever I turn.  

On behalf of the staff here at LHS, I would like to extend our warmest wishes to all of our readers for a relaxing Christmas break.  Whatever your Christmas traditions, we hope that you enjoy spending time with family and friends.  Switch off the 6 am alarm for a couple of weeks and enter into that strange and temporary state of existence in which it is acceptable to eat from a selection box for breakfast.

School closes to students at 1:15 pm on Friday 21st December 2018 and reopens for students on Tuesday 8th January 2019.  

 Year 13 MAT mentoring

 In the meantime, we’ve had a busy and purposeful week in school. On Friday 7th December, our sixth form Honours Group students spoke to a group of our talented Year 11 students about how they achieved the highest grades at GCSE level. They talked about their own successful revision strategies and how this enabled them to flourish in exams. They also talked about choosing AS options subjects and what life in the sixth form is like. Hopefully the Year 11 group were able to take this valuable advice on board. I'm sure that they are prepared to emulate the sixth formers successes and excel themselves. Thanks to all our sixth formers for sharing your experiences. 

We would also like to praise our year 12 students following the Scholars Programme (Brilliant Club) as they have been incredibly committed (pictured below during a challenging debate around euthanasia). Also, the students that completed the MMI practice yesterday were a credit to the school.

It was also a privilege this week to attend year 12 assemblies to listen to the prospective candidates for Head Boy/Girl set out their manifestos.  Voting takes place next week and I look forward to introducing you to the new Head Boy and Girl, Deputy Head Boy and Girl and senior prefect team.  Donte and Hama did a superb job today and we look forward to hearing from the girls tomorrow.

Help the homeless

Over the last few weeks, year 8 have been assembling shoe boxes to support local homeless people over the Christmas period.  Mrs Medlicott has been thrilled with the amount of effort they have put into their boxes. They have done us proud!  Form tutors will be awarding ACE points, and Mrs Medlicott will be awarding the winning group with extra ACE points and an overall prize.

Christmas lunch

On Wednesday this week, our wonderful catering staff treated us to a gorgeous Christmas lunch in the main canteens:

Meanwhile, in the Flexible Learning Centre, they were keeping their Christmas standards high!

In case you think we’ve spent the entire week eating, please let me assure you that the eating has simply been fueling us through the last few weeks.  We would like to commend years 10 and 11 for the way in which they have risen to the challenge of mock examinations this week.  These will allow teachers to assess progress and support each individual student in preparing for the real thing.  

We have one more busy week ahead that includes the delivery of our Christmas hampers in the community, our wonderful Christmas carol concert at Highfields Church on Tuesday 18th December at 6 pm (all welcome) and two IMPACT days on Wednesday 19th and Thursday 20th December to deliver a range of WBQ and PSE activities.  

I look forward to updating you on all of this next week.  

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen

 Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog Number 45

Blog Prifathro Rhif 45

 Friday 7th December 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr

 It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at Llanishen High School!  First, we would like to extend our thanks to the Thornhill Farm Shop for donating this rather gorgeous Christmas tree to our Flexible Learning Base.  It was tastefully decorated by the students and has brought a beautiful pine fragrance to our nostrils (a welcome alternative to the aromas created in these damp days as we are all constantly drying out).

Year 11 into 12 Options Evening – Wednesday 5th December

It was also a pleasure to see so many of our year 11 parents and students on Wednesday evening.  Our year 11 students continue to show an excellent attitude and aptitude to their studies.  We value the value that they bring to the school and know that we can stretch them, challenge them and support them in equal measure to achieve their potential and move successfully onto further education.  If any parents have any follow up questions, please do not hesitate to get in contact. The free choice survey is now live on the school website.

During the evening, we were also treated to some festive nibbles, courtesy of our ASD bakery.  The students in the Autism base made a variety of treats including home-made gingerbread, Christmas brownies, Christmas cake and hot mulled apple juice.  They were delicious and I would like to thank our budding bakers.

As well as sustaining us during the evening, Miss Gough and her ‘team’ were also on hand to talk to prospective sixth formers about the opportunity to complete the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award through to gold level as part of their extra-curricular development at LHS.  We are delighted to have thriving groups completing the award at bronze and gold level, including students who are members of our resource bases.  

The other highlight of the evening for me was listening to Owain Taylor (head boy) and Billy Luka (deputy head boy) speaking so maturely and confidently to an audience of 300. Billy gallantly stepped into the breach to support Owain as our head girl, Leah Coulter is currently on interview at Oxford.  Please join me in sending Leah our best wishes for the interview.  She is not alone this week.  We are also very proud of Tom Jenkin who is on interview for a place at Cambridge to study veterinary science.  Also, Ben Crocker who is busy prepping for his interview to study mathematics at Cambridge next week.   Good luck to you all!

 Community Christmas hampers

 As December unfolds, we have been focusing again on the spirit of giving.  Every form group in the school from year 7 through to year 13 has been working on their Christmas Hamper and I had the very difficult task of judging the winning hamper in each year group.  The winning form groups will have a special treat delivered to them on the last day of term!  Here are just a selection of the 70 Christmas hampers that the students have put together.

A team of student volunteers will now be out and about in the school mini-bus after school next week to deliver the hampers to some of our elderly neighbours, many of whom have been recommended to us by parents.  In addition to the hampers that are delivered in our local community, we will also be holding a Christmas jumper day on Friday 14th December to contribute to local children’s charities.  

 Sustainable stockings!

 Also entering into the spirit, our year 9 GCSE textiles students have been getting festive and creative and have been making Christmas stockings out of leftover fabric remnants! #sustainability

Gabby certainly isn’t winding down for Christmas!

 We would like to extend our congratulations to Gabby Dickinson on her performance in the indoor regional under 17’s women’s championships, clinching gold in the high jump! The second part of the competition will take place in January when Gabby will take on the 60m and the long jump.  Well done Gabby!

Community links

 Finally this week, I would like to take the opportunity to let our readers know about the valuable work being carried out by a local charity.

 One of our long-serving governors, Mrs Elizabeth Taylor, is part of a group based in Llanishen which raises funds to support young people in Lesotho in Southern Africa to attend high school.  Lesotho, twinned with Wales, is one of the poorest countries in the world and for most youngsters schooling ends at the age of 12 because they cannot afford the fees and other costs involved in attending high school. 

 The registered charity Seeds for the Future (Lesotho) raises funds for young people from the mountain village of Ramabanta.  At the moment it is supporting 19 students,  all of whom are single or double orphans or from families with no income. 

 As part of their fund-raising, Seeds for the Future are holding a Christmas tea party on Sunday 9th December at 3pm in Christ the King parish hall, Newborough Avenue, Llanishen.  Tickets are £8.50 for adults with a donation on the day for children.  If you would like to support this worthwhile cause contact Mrs Taylor for tickets  on 02920 751401 or by email seedsftf@gmail.com   More information about the charity is on their website  www.seedsforthefuturelesotho.wordpress.com

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #43

Blog Prifathro Rhif 43

 Friday 23rd November 2018

 Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rieni,Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrnyr

 Children in Need

I would like to start by sharing some photographs that capture the spirit of Children in Need at LHS.  As a school we raised £1,000 by dressing up, remaining silent for up to 12 hours, and forcing down some cake.  The staff prizes for 2018 go to Miss Gough (the amazing human whoopie cushion) and to our staff ‘where’s Wally’ team (organised by Emily in year 11).  

Year 6 MAT event

On Friday 16th November it was a pleasure to host a more able talented day for Year 6 students from our feeder primary schools.  They joined us for the day to read some classic literature. They showed great enthusiasm when analysing the stories of great writers and managed to pen some classics of their own. We are already looking forward to the next MAT transition event.

3G Pitch and partnership with Llanishen Rugby Football Club

We can also now reveal some of the first photographs of the 3G pitch! The handover took place on Friday 16th November and I’m sure you will agree that it looks amazing. The students have thoroughly enjoyed their first lessons on the new surface.  It has definitely been worth the wait….  There is currently a safe temporary route to the pitch and the projected date for the completion of the car park is Christmas.

Tocyn iaith winners

I am also pleased to congratulate 3 lovely year 7 students and to invite them for hot chocolate with me.  They are the tocyn iaith winners for last term. They all received WHSMITH vouchers as a prize as well as ACE points for their excellent use of the Welsh language around the school.  They are...

·       1st place = Cauis Jenkins 7F

·       2nd place= Lucy Smith 7D

·       3rd Isa Asif 7I

Drama/Music trip to London

Finally this week, I’m delighted to share some of the photographs from the Drama and Music trip to London. The students watched stage productions of Matilda and The Lion King as well as visiting the Harry Potter studios, in order to support their GCSE studies.  They were a superb group.  The students were a credit to the school! The coach driver and tour manager both commented on how polite, kind and well behaved they were.

Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen

 Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #39

Friday 19th October 2018

 Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

 I’m delighted to start this week by commending all of the students who were recognised at our Annual Awards Evening on 11th October.  It was a pleasure to present the Headteachers Commendation for outstanding effort and achievement in all subjects.  Everyone enjoyed Mr Wilson’s time honoured and familiar jokes and the students coped magnificently with the daunting trek up on to the stage (and the descent).

I would like to thank members of our Governing Body for joining us.  I would also like to thank all of our community partners who support the school in so many ways.  In particular, we would like to thank the Rotary Club of Llanishen, the PTA and INSYNC Pharmacy for sponsoring and presenting key awards.  A huge thank you also goes to Computer World Wales who donated the student prizes for outstanding performance in each category.  

It was also a privilege for the school to present the following awards:

The Autism Base Champion Award – Ben Morgan

The Hearing Impaired Resource Base Achievement Award – Sam Jackson

Learning Support Champion Award – Harry Coles

Mary Clee Prize for Excellence in Languages – Zoe Shapcott

Jonathan Gallimore Award for Music – Hannah Hurley

Dave Phillips Award for History – Jo Radulovic 

We were treated to some superb musical performances by Sammy Wallington, Olivia Camilleri, Scott Owen and Hannah Hurley.  A phenomenally talented bunch.  

We also commend Thomas Newman on an exemplary reading of the piece of writing that gained him the Katherine Horton Prize for Creative Writing.  

Finally, Tasha Boulton melted our hearts as she received her INSYNC Wellbeing Award, and Hannah Adams received a standing ovation as she received the overall Principality Achievement Award for her services to the school community. The Principality kindly gifted her and her family a weekend trip to London to see a Westend musical.   The evening was a reflection on the hard work, determination and talent of so many wonderful students.   

Restart a Heart Day

After the success of our inaugural ‘Restart A Heart Day’ in 2017 it was fantastic to run the event again this year.  It was a huge success with our year 7 cohort along with members of our sixth form and members of staff training to be confident Lifesavers.  As this training was delivered to all of years 7 and 8 last year, over half of the school students have been taught CPR and AED awareness.   The school also houses two AED Defibrillators.

I would like to thank Mrs Adams for all of her hard work in organising the event. This is a passion that she has shared with our school community that really can save lives. The Chief Executive of WAST and the Head of the BHF Cymru couldn’t have been more complimentary about the sessions they came to see. The students really did themselves proud. 

Nuffield Research Placement Success - Year 13 

On Monday 15th October Mrs Lloyd and Mrs Wallington attended the Nuffield Research Evening to celebrate the success of Taylor Snook, Sara Alhakkak-Martinez and Dania Al-Abboodi (Year 13) who successfully completed  a 4 week placement with a research provider at Cardiff University. They are 3 of only 73 students that have successfully completed the placement in Wales and were praised for their dedication and commitment to the placement. The evening was held at Techniquest in Cardiff Bay and the guest speaker was Nobel Laureate Professor Sir Martin Evans who took the time to speak to all 3 of our students. The students presented their findings of their research projects in the style of a science fair and produced impressive academic posters to showcase their work.

We congratulate all three students on the huge commitment they made to their placements whilst many of their peers were on holiday or going to festivals! They deserve every success in the future! 

A-Level History Trip

Also this week, our A-Level History students took Mr Beck to Portsmouth to debate the reasons for the Mary Rose sinking and what we know (and don’t know) about Tudor life from the remains of the wreck and the artefacts!

Welsh Open Weightlifting Champion!

We are proud to boast that within our staff body we now have the Welsh Open Weightlifting Champion, our very own Mr Crosse!

After finishing dead last in the Welsh open in 2015, Mr Crosse was ecstatic to achieve this years’ goal of a gold medal.  Having completed a grueling training regime that saw him training at 5 am then again at 6 pm, Mr Crosse has most definitely fulfilled his aim ‘to be the best role model he can be for the pupils at Llanishen High School.’  It’s probably best that year 7 don’t mess with their Year Team Leader!

Finally this week, I thought I would share a few snaps from Mr Trelawny’s visit to Plasmawr last Friday.  He took this crazy bunch along too.  That is one steamed up bus Mr Trelawny – the smell of success?

I look forward to updating you next week with news from week 8 of this half-term!

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #38

Friday 12th October 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

Anti-Bullying initiative

On Tuesday 9th October Llanishen High School hosted its inaugural Diana Award Anti-Bullying training day.  This was described by the organisation as a ‘first and huge step in South Wales to tackle bullying for once and for all.’  

The training was initiated by Hannah Adams (year 12) who joined Llanishen High School in year 9 after experiencing bullying in her previous school.  The training day involved members of every year group being trained as anti-bullying ambassadors.  We also extended an invitation to other schools in South Wales to join us, and were delighted to welcome young people from Corpus Christi, Whitchurch High School, Cardiff High, Pen Y Dre, Lewis Boys School and Brynteg.  It was a fantastic opportunity for our anti-bullying ambassadors to network and make links with those in other schools with similar aspiration.  

The students described the day as fabulous.  In their words.. “It was a day of interactive activities designed to heighten awareness of bulling issues and to develop our skills in supporting the needs of fellow students.”  The day was enjoyed by all, with particular highlights being the freeze frame dramatic performances depicting bullying scenarios and their resolutions.  Now that Hannah has her team trained, I look forward to bringing you more news of their plans to support students in every year group in the school. Hannah was also the very worthy recipient of the Principality Community Champion Award this evening (more on this in next weeks’ blog!).  In the meantime, here is Hannah with some of her newly trained team…

Keep your heels and standards high!

Sometimes we have wonderful moments as staff when we make connections with students and find shared interests and passions.  Little did I know that I shared such a connection with some of our year 11 boys. But they have definitely given me a run for my money in the ‘high heel’ department!  Members of year 11, along with staff and members of the Powerhouse youth club successfully ‘walked a mile in her shoes’ to help raise awareness of the White Ribbon campaign.  This focuses on ‘men working to end male violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence’.

The mile walk took place in the centre of Cardiff with the young people strutting out in style in their heels!  I’m sure you will agree that they make an excellent statement…

I present to you: Jordan Edwards, Rhys Kovacks, Yasin Mankoor and Jack Whiting along with our Youth Mentor, Russell Munton.  I’m particularly taken with Rhys’ attempt to blend his sock/shoe look with his school uniform.  For more information on this campaign please see, www.whiterinbon.org.uk

Sixth form news

The sixth form charity committee have been raising money for the Wales Air Ambulance.  Our head boy and girl are pictured below presenting the cheque to Daniel Curtis from Wales Air Ambulance.  We are hoping that Lloyds Bank will Match fund before we send the real (if slightly smaller) cheque. The presentation was accompanied by a really informative and interesting assembly. 

The sixth form Duke of Edinburgh group have also been practising for their gold expedition (in true Welsh weather conditions).  They are shaping up to be a hardy group!

Story strikes again

I’m delighted to share the latest photo of James (and doubles partner Aidan McHugh from Scotland) after their first Pro Series Futures Doubles win in Barnstable last week.  James now awaits the ranking run for his points to register, but he is likely to move to within the top 1000 doubles players in the world!

And finally today, I want to congratulate all of the staff from Llanishen High School who completed the Cardiff Half-Marathon on Sunday 7th October.  We had more personal bests than ever before and many staff competed in the race for the first time.  In the midst of much sweat and determination, I would like to particularly single out and commend Mrs Purbrick and Mrs Preece for maintaining positivity and raising so much money for City Hospice.  Same time next year ladies?!

I look forward to updating you next week with the news and photographs from our annual Awards Evening, and so much more.

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #37

Friday 5th October 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

Aiming high!

We pride ourselves on being a truly comprehensive community school that develops and challenges each individual student.  This includes a strong commitment to raising the aspirations and ambitions of our More Able and Talented (MAT) learners and ensuring that our provision matches that ambition.  

The school is a well-established and active member of the Seren Network.  This was set up by Welsh Government to guide the most able year 12 and 13 students through the processes of successful application to Oxbridge and Russell Group universities.  In addition to this, the school has joined the ‘Brilliant Club Scholars Programme’ for 2018-2019.   The Brilliant Club is a charity that aims to widen access to highly selective universities with a particular focus on students from under- represented groups, including students from Wales. The programme provides access to these universities by recruiting, training and placing doctoral and postdoctoral researchers into schools to deliver university style learning experiences that equip students with the knowledge and skills to secure places at highly selective universities. 

We are delighted that Sara Alhakkak-Martinez, Donte Day, Alexander Fairhurst, Bethan Hawkins, Amy Jones, Ethan Prosser, Zoe Shapcott and Hama Sharif (all year 12), will attend the launch at Wadham College, Oxford on 13th November with Mrs Lloyd. They will meet their PhD tutor, attend a tutorial seminar and enjoy a guided tour of Oxford University.  They are all looking forward to their STEM based research project and in-school tutorials prior to submitting their final assignment, which will be graded a degree level. The students will then graduate at a different highly selective university in February 2019. 

In order to develop this provision from an earlier stage, we are developing our MAT provision in KS4.  Mr Mee (Assistant Headteacher, Director of English) is now in post and leading the whole school strategy.  This includes the Seren Network and The Brilliant Club for years 10 and 11.  Our retention of students into year 12 has increased significantly in 2018 with almost 150 students opting to continue their KS5 studies at Llanishen High School (up from 110 in 2017).  The retention and guidance of our MAT students from year 11 into year 12 is a key school priority to ensure that we give students the very best progression and opportunity.

On Friday 28th September we were delighted to host a key member of the Seren team, Dr Jonathon Padley, of Churchill College Cambridge.  In hosting the inaugural event for Cardiff secondary schools our year 11 students had the opportunity to listen to Dr Padley speaking and to meet students from other high schools.  

Duke of Edinburgh Award

The Duke of Edinburgh Award is now an active part of sixth form life.  The year 12 students below are some of the group who are working towards the prestigious Gold Award.   They are pictured below (posing appropriately with maps and trees) on a practice walk. They are currently in the process of organising their practice expedition which will take place later on in October when they will be walking between 10-18 km each day! Their expedition will be taking place around the Brecon Beacons and they will be carrying everything in their rucksacks (including tents, food, water, clothes, first aid kits and bountiful positivity).

More tennis success!

Following on from his star performance at Wimbledon in June 2018, James Story has gone from strength to strength over the summer tour clocking up success in his maiden British Tour event in Newcastle and two back to back doubles and a semi-final appearance in a Grade 2 ITF Junior event in Hungary. 

Last week James also made it to the final of a Futures Doubles event at Roehampton and in doing so picked up his first world ranking points on the men's circuit!  Another summer of great achievements with even more to come!  Poor old James will have to endure a tour to Spain with the LTA in October, followed by a trip to the US in November to visit some potential universities and colleges, rounding off nicely with a couple of ITF events in Florida!

 Kayaking success!

Next, allow me to introduce you to Rhys James in year 10 to see if you too can be tempted into giving kayaking a go! Rhys was introduced to the sport over two and a half years ago and has developed a real passion and flare for the sport.  He now paddles for an hour every Tuesday night at Cardiff Canoe Centre, for two hours every Wednesday and Friday, and four hours every Saturday and Sunday at Cardiff white water centre!

On taking up the sport Rhys won the most improved paddler of the year award.  This year he has won the "True Grit" award for commitment to the sport.  This is very well deserved after spending almost every weekend through the winter season paddling in temperatures as low as -8 degrees. Rhys regularly attends Lee Valley in London where he has passed all assessments on the "Legacy" and "Olympic" white water courses. In addition Rhys can often be seen paddling at the Welsh National White Water Centre at Treweryn in North Wales.

Rhys is now paddling at a level which many senior paddlers fail to achieve. His most recent paddles include volunteering to provide safety cover for the swimmers at last weekends’ Triathlon. This was much needed and Rhys rescued a swimmer in distress, bringing them safely back to shore.  Here he is in action!

Finally this week, I would like to share some photographs of our young year 7 players at the Cardiff Blues training session this week.  They are shaping up well for their time in Llanishen High School!

It has been an action packed and busy week in school.  We thoroughly enjoyed throwing our doors open to welcome our prospective year 5 and 6 students on Wednesday night at our annual Open Evening.  We met some fantastic young people and are very much looking forward to welcoming them into our school community.

On that note, for those of you who join us for tweeting in our Twitter community, please note that our Autism Base now have their own dedicated Twitter account that can be found under the name "ASC Base Llanishen High" or @AscHigh.  We look forward to their updates!

 Until next week…..

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #36

Friday 28th September 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

Today we bring you sunshine, Sorrento, the Brecon Beacons, a medieval masterpiece, and shoes.  I think Sorrento would be a good place to start.  Mrs Williams, Head of the Hearing-Impaired Unit, led the intrepid explorers including 8 students from our Hearing-Impaired Unit and 4 students from our Autistic Spectrum Disorder base;

“Leaving school on a rainy Friday morning, a group of twenty-nine pupils and nine staff set off for Stansted Airport. A surprisingly quiet bus ride endured where the staff were more excited than the pupils.  A two-hour delay met us at the airport.  We thought that would mean more shopping time.  In reality it meant more time to usher 29 pupils through security and passport control!  Arriving at Naples airport at 10pm it was a balmy 23⁰C. By this time, we were all tired so when we got to the hotel after midnight it was straight to bed.

 Saturday morning saw us visit the Virtual Archaeological Museum and Herculaneum where the students experienced the events of Mount Vesuvius erupting.  We then had an interesting and enjoyable afternoon visit to a mozzarella farm to see how mozzarella is made from buffalo milk. The pupils and staff loved eating the fresh bread with mozzarella and tomatoes.

A busy Sunday consisted of a visit to the Citta della Scienza Museum, which was a fantastic interactive way of learning about science.  A visit to the 3D Planetarium rounded off our visit.

We then made the trek to the top of Vesuvius (energised by a carb heavy pizza stop!). Breath-taking views met us at the large crater. The walk down was actually harder than the walk up due to the gravel slipping under our feet. An exhausted group of students rounded off the day with some shopping time in Sorrento

.After making sure that we had all suitcases and passports on Monday morning, we boarded the bus for our final stop, Pompeii.  We misplaced Mrs Govier, Mrs Facey and Mr Burrows for about an hour but Sam Jackson’s amazing map reading skills reunited them with the group.

 Another delay met us at Naples airport, but we made it back. The students were a credit to the school with impeccable behaviour throughout the four days. It was an absolute pleasure taking them all to Sorrento.  Here are some snaps from our travels…”

Our next endeavour was another serious challenge!  I would like to congratulate Emily Lambert in year 11 on completing a 12 hour sponsored silence to raise money for the Stroke Association and City Hospice.  Emily is pictured below with Mrs Herbert and Mrs Purbrick, just two of the many members of staff who benefited greatly from Emily’s silent day. Emily has now returned to her normal duties of keeping the staff in check.

Next, I would like to applaud Jack Western, Lucy Evans, Amy Jones, Alice Cuddihee, Catrin Davies, Rhys Fairbrother, Sahar Alhakkak-Martinez and Mariam Hussain who spent some of their August summer holiday completing the Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) 2018. The school is very proud of its ongoing links with the Rotary Club of Llanishen who sponsored this intrepid bunch to complete the award this year.  The each performed fantastically well and are a credit to all connected with them. RYLA challenges young people physically, emotionally and in terms of courage and social skill whilst also giving them an opportunity to test themselves as leaders in unfamiliar situations. To succeed is a great credit to all of them. The photos below show just how narrow the caving experience can be. Unfortunately, they didn’t capture the 18-foot jump into deep running water (suitably referred to as Loony’s Leap), due to camera issues.  Members of the Rotary Club will be coming into year 11 and 12 assemblies in the coming weeks to recruit candidates for August 2019!

Last week the group gave excellent presentations at the Rotary Club dinner before receiving their certificates.  It was a joy to see them speak with such confidence and energy about their experiences.

Medieval ‘More Able and Talented’ project

 Next, I’m delighted to give you an update on an English enrichment opportunity that was held with year 8 and 9 MAT English students. It was led by Dr Gossedge and Charlotte Pruce from Cardiff University ENCAP (English Communication and Philosophy department). During the session the pupils learned about the life of Thomas Beckett and the detailed and technical process of creating medieval illuminated manuscripts on vellum. They even learned about some of the secret doodles of the medieval illustrators!

 They then created their own detailed illuminations illustrating the fascinating life of Thomas Beckett, which were then made into the beautiful booklets we received this week from Dr Gossedge. Many thanks to Cardiff University and we look forward to another session later in the year.  Here are a couple of snippets from the book that is now circulating in school.  

Funky footwear

 And finally this week, a request from the Art department that I can really get behind. This year Mrs Collins-Rudys will be running a lunchtime “Surreal shoe club.”  This can be found in room 38 on a Friday lunchtime and will involve up-cycling unwanted men’s and women’s shoes into spectacular works of art using recycled materials, fabric and broken jewelry. This will culminate in a Surreal Shoe Exhibition of the students work in the spring term, with proceeds going towards a mental health charity to assist the rising numbers of young people suffering with anxiety and depression. Any donations of men’s, women’s or children’s shoes would be much appreciated and can be dropped off at room 38.  Mrs Collins-Rudys would also like to welcome any new students to the group.  Please note, there is no requirement to model or wear the shoes (although I might try a few myself!).

I look forward to updating you again next week.  

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #35

Friday 21st September 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

 Humour, Teaching, Learning and Optimism

 The autumn term is always a fresh start and an opportunity to appreciate being in the classroom with our students.  Sometimes there are gold nuggets of humour in there.  I frequently wish I’d noted down the things that students have come out with over the years.  It reminds me that we should all embrace our blunders.  Who amongst us hasn’t perched precariously on a table in a classroom that simply wasn’t designed for our weight?  Whilst we may wish these moments never happened, they are also something to smile about.  In a place of work that is about building relationships with people, these moments remind us that we are all human, should not get above our station or take ourselves too seriously.  

 I asked members of my senior team for some of their most recent examples of humour and blunder.  In the words of Mr Kiff; ‘I told a year 7 student to write on the back of his sheet. I walked around the class and went back and couldn’t see the young man. I went closer to where he was sitting to find him on the floor with his stool upside down writing on the underside of the stool. I asked him what he was doing, to which he replied “Sir, you said to write on the back of my seat.”’

 And from Mr White;  “During my first double lesson with my year 10 class I found the chair by the computer to be in the way. So I moved it and then carried on with my lesson. At the end of the lesson I declared I was so happy with how they had all worked they were all getting ACE points. So I went to sit at the computer to put the ACE points on SIMS.  Unfortunately, I went to sit on a chair that was no longer there. Cue me crashing to the floor, desperately trying to save myself but only managing to dramatically fall into the bookcase behind me to a back drop of hysterical laughter from Year 10.” This was truly the beginning of a wonderful year of mathematics.  

So, when I experience my next undignified mishap, when a malapropism that sounded so good in my head doesn’t translate so well into a telling off, when my wardrobe malfunctions or I get yet another heel stuck in a drain, I will content myself with the knowledge that I am simply doing my bit for school humour, wellbeing and improvement. 

Humour aside, teaching is the heartbeat of the school and the guts of what we do. As the new term is upon us there is a shared optimism among staff about the year ahead.  Despite the worry of external pressures, exam results, balancing the budget and sorting the roofs and toilets, there’s something very special and upbeat about the month of September.  New students, new classes, new equipment, new uniform, new haircuts, new shoes.  As we embark upon the journey, the school is taking a different approach to developing teaching and learning this year.  

In previous times, staff development has traditionally involved ‘going out on a course.’ This may well be good for a moment of wellbeing and the member of staff may be extremely enthused by the new knowledge gained.  But as they hit the ground running the following day and are immediate consumed by solid days and weeks of teaching, this doesn’t always translate into the good intentions we have to develop our practice.  

So this year, all teachers and student-facing support staff are members of ten different Action Research Groups.  Each group is carrying out classroom based action research into a particular aspect of teaching and learning.  The groups meet together at monthly twilight sessions to identity their project, carry out baseline data, conduct research into best practice in their area, take student and parental voice where appropriate, visit other schools as appropriate and then trial strategies to improve teaching and learning in the school. This will culminate in the summer term with each group publishing their action research, presenting their findings to the whole staff body, and making recommendations for wider school implementation.

Group 1 are contributing towards a whole school More Able and Talented strategy.  This group is led by Mr Mee.

Group 2 are exploring how IRIS camera technology can be used to film teaching to develop and share good practice.  This group is led by Mr Crosse.

Group 3 are developing the Digital Competency Framework and the use of IT as a pedagogy to engage learners and enhance teaching and learning.  This group is led by Mr Lloyd.

Group 4 are developing the use of Student Voice to feed honestly and constructively into teaching, learning and the classroom.  This group is led by Mr Kiff.

Group 5 are looking at Homework and how we can develop independent learners.  This group is led by Mrs Wallington. 

Group 6 are carrying out research into Pedagogy and how children learn.  This group is led by Mrs Smith.

Group 7 are reviewing Marking and Feedback and effective practice to provide diagnostic feedback to students to enable them to make progress.  This group is led by Miss Lockwood.

Group 8 are focusing on the importance of Differentiation in the classroom.  This group is led by Mrs Prosser and Mrs Williams.

Group 9 are developing structures and processes to promote Positive Behaviour in the classroom and around the school environment.  This group is led by Mr Bloor.  

Group 10 are leading plans to improve the transition process between Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 in terms of the continuity of learning.  This group is led by Mrs Harry.

Each group are focusing on a key theme from our whole School Development Plan for 2018-19.  If you would like to feed any views or experience into any of these themes, you will find staff email addresses on the school website.  Please log on to the LHS website, click on ‘Home,’ and then ‘Staff Directory.’

Every week, when I host students from year 7 through to year 13 for ‘Hot Chocolate with the Head’, I always ask them what they most enjoy about school and the one thing they would change overnight if I had a magic wand.  Invariably, the magic wand would bring new toilets (and I delighted to confirm that the local authority have made a firm commitment to upgrade our toilet facilities in 2019).  And without fail, each week, for two consecutive years, the students tell me that the best thing about school is the teaching, the lessons, the subjects and the teachers.  So, we look optimistically to the year ahead, with an ongoing commitment to delivering the very best lessons that we can.  And I look forward to bringing you updates on the Action Research Groups as we progress through the year. 

A glimpse into Year 8 and 9 Science:

This week some of our year 8 and 9 classes have been working with Mr Ben Roche from the University of Southampton National Oceanography Centre.  They have been working  on a STEMM-CCS project (http://www.stemm-ccs.eu/) which involves the development of  technologies for the safe capture and underground storage of Carbon Dioxide gas to help combat climate change. They enjoyed a lesson about the science behind this before carrying out a practical session on the measurement of the gases being captured. As you can see, the students thoroughly enjoyed the challenge.

Finally, this week, I would like to congratulate Callum Bonni, year 10, on winning one of the 8 places in the DRUM DEPOT Cardiff Regional final of #FUTUREBEAT 2018!  The standard of the competition was exceptional, so to reach the final 8 is a great achievement.  Well done Callum (and tolerant family members!).

I look forward to bringing you more stories from the classroom and from our students achievements next week. 

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher 

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #34

Friday 14th September 2018

 Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

 Student Wellbeing

 This week I’m writing my blog from the back fields of the school in a brief interlude of September sunshine.  Enthusiastic year 7 rugby trials are taking place to my right and more sedentary picnics are taking place to my left.  This seems the perfect setting for the theme of my blog this week. The support of student emotional health and wellbeing has become part and parcel of what we do.  But what do we mean by “wellbeing?”  On the one hand, the very best wellbeing we can provide for our students is the very best set of examination outcomes, because this translates directly into life chances.  But we are not an exam factory.  Our prospectus does not say that ‘we aim to squeeze students through as many qualifications as we possibly can as quickly as possible.’  It states that we aim to develop well rounded and emotionally resilient lifelong learners.

The need for schools to support children and young people's mental and emotional health is increasingly.  The anxiety of the transition from primary to secondary school, the perplexity of option choices and the sometimes overwhelming stress caused by examinations and the fear of academic failure are the backdrop. Throw in some normal teenage angst, hormones, heartbreak and the pressures associated with social media, and the impact on students can be significant and can manifest itself in many different ways.

So we invest greatly in our pastoral system, our year team leaders and form tutors.  But we also offer a range of specialist services that students and parents can access. Mrs Pearce is our Assistant Headteacher for Wellbeing and Inclusion and co-ordinates a range of support for students on a range of issues. She is supported by a trained and committed Wellbeing Team that includes Ms Hansen, Miss Preece, Mrs Purbrick, Mr Shore and Mrs Tyler. Together, they provide support for students with social and emotional needs, anxiety, issues around self-harm and other mental health and wellbeing concerns. Students can use the self-referral system as well as being referred by staff or parents.

Wellbeing - Anti-Bullying initiative

One of the most powerful interventions is a peer led support system.  I would like to update you on the work that Hannah Adams (year 12) has been pioneering at Llanishen High School.  Hannah has been working on the 'Back2School' campaign with The Diana Award.  As part of this, Hannah took the brave decision to share her story in an article that was published by Wales Online last Friday.  As well as sharing her story to support others, Hannah took the opportunity to promote the first Anti-Bullying Ambassador training event in Wales that Llanishen High School will be hosting on the 9th October.

 The ‘Anti Bullying Ambassador training day’ is an event held at a school where up to 150 students from one area will come together to be trained as Anti-Bullying Ambassadors. Students will network with other passionate young people, exchange ideas and share good practice. Hosting and attending the training day will both kick start and develop our Anti-Bullying work and allow students to creatively explore and understand the topic of bullying.

The students in our sixth form will be the first to be formally trained as peer mentors.  The scheme will then filter down through all of the year groups in the school.  The training will cover:

·       Understanding the issue of bullying; facts, the definition and the effects of bullying

·       Practical ideas, top tips and explore scenarios on bullying in groups

·       Basic training looking at the skills needed to support others and stay safe

·       Online safety and approaches students and staff can take to staying safe online and educating their peers

·       A networking session with students from other schools to share ideas

·       Video examples of schools that the Diana Award currently work with

·       Action planning – helping students to think of a plan to take back to school and set targets and aims for their Anti-Bullying work

 Please follow the link below to read Hannah’s story in full.  We look forward to bringing you more information from the training day and how the initiative will be carried forward in the school.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/education/kicked-taunted-tormented-hannah-started-15124121

                                                                 Kicked, taunted, and tormented,  Hannah started cutting herself

www.walesonline.co.uk

Hannah Adams has  taken the brave decision to tell her story. She wants young children who are  being bullied to hear it so that they can seek help

Another essential requirement for student wellbeing in our school is having clear structures and clear boundaries for student conduct.  We will have 3 simple rules for pupils to follow and these should be a point of reference at all times –

·       Be Ready

·       Be Respectful

·       Be Safe

New for this year is the expectation that all staff will give their first attention to the best conduct. In evaluating the previous academic year, we decided that the existing merit system was not sufficient in rewarding those students who deserve it.  The vast majority of students are superb.  And this can be overlooked.  This year students will receive up to 5 ACE points for the following:

Attendance – If a student completes a full week of school they will receive 5 ACE points for attendance.  This will be added to their SIMs positive behaviour log at the end of each week.  

Commitment – If a student comes to school with correct uniform, full equipment and a signed planner, they will receive 5 ACE points from their form tutor at the end of the week. These can also be awarded in lessons for demonstrating excellent commitment to learning.

Excellence – These will be granted for excellence in lessons, extra-curricular activities or good conduct around the school site. There are also worth 5 ACE points.

The number of ACE points awarded so far is as follows. But which year group will be in pole position by half term?!

 ACE Points

Totals

Year 7 - 278

Year 8 - 251

Year 9 - 232

Year 10 - 236

Year 11 - 233

 The pastoral team will be leading assemblies to promote the ACE points and outline the further rewards that they will feed in to. As the SIMs app for parents is upgraded and reissued next week, parents will be able to track these through the year.

Staff will also continue to issue Reward Notes to students who go over and above our expectations.  These are a lovely addition to any fridge or mantlepiece.  

 I also have the continued privilege each Friday afternoon this year to invite students for Hot Chocolate with the Head. Last week staff nominated students who had made an exceptional effort in their year 10 examinations.  And next Friday I will be having hot chocolate with some of our younger students who have made excellent progress in improving their reading ages.

The first fortnight back

 As we come to the end of week 2, the students have already been busy.  On the 10th and 11th September Mrs Geare and Mr Westrop took 44 “wonderful GCSE Geographers” to Margam Discovery Centre to conduct fieldwork in preparation for their Unit 3 exam in November.

 The pupils investigated the factors that make Southerndown a special ‘place’ and whether (or not) Porthcawl is a typical tourist town. They had the opportunity to develop a range of data collection techniques in the field including; sketch mapping, bipolar surveys, clone town surveys and land-use mapping. They were also given the opportunity to display the data collected using ArcGIS, a geographic information system used for compiling and analysing mapped geographic information.  Here are some photos of our budding Geographers in action:

And finally, please join me in congratulating Emily Dent for coming third in the 800m UK Nationals in Bedford last weekend with a personal best of 2.30.48. Now that is some excellent running Emily – well done!

I look forward to updating you again next week.  

 Mrs Sarah Parry

Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog No33

Friday 7th September 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students

I make no apologies that my first blog of the new academic year is devoted almost exclusively to people, because it is the people that are our most valuable commodity, our greatest asset, our greatest challenge (on occasions) and our greatest privilege.  

First, it has been a pleasure to welcome old and new students back to school this week.  We were heavily oversubscribed again this year and have welcomed 300 students in to an invigorating and exhausting first week in year 7.  We are also absolutely delighted to welcome back our biggest crop of year 11’s into year 12 as senior members of the school.  

School uniform has been immaculate this week and the students look incredibly smart.  We would like to thank the students for this.  I will be updating you in next weeks’ blog on the new positive reward system and ACE points that we have introduced this year to reward and recognise the vast majority of students who work hard and contribute positively every day.

We have also seen an incredible difference in the school already as a result of the ban on the use of mobile phones. Whilst this may be the single most unpopular decision that the school has taken from the perspective of the students, the results are transformational. Lessons and learning have progressed positively this week without the disruption of staff having to stop to instruct students to put their phones away.  Students have commented on how quickly lessons have flown by as they have been completely absorbed in tasks and not sneaking looks at phones in pockets and bags.  

At break and lunchtime we are seeing students in groups, laughing and (dare I say it) enjoying the lost art of conversation. They have been talking in groups, talking to staff, talking to our dinner ladies.  For interest, from our school community of 1,600 students, we confiscated 19 mobile phones on Tuesday and 15 on Wednesday.  Nearly all of these were from corridor use and the majority were boys. Even though we have been without the constant pinging of snapchat, the world has continued to turn between the hours of 8:30 am and 3:05 pm.  There is hope.  It is early days with regards to this initiative, but with lockable storage for confiscations in every classroom, a central safe for longer term storage, and clear procedures in place, we are confident that we will achieve a happier and healthier school environment for learning and wellbeing.  

Who’s who and who’s doing what?

As well as welcoming the students back to school it has been a pleasure to welcome back the staff, old and new.  I would like to introduce you to the following new staff:

·       Mr Andrew Mee as Assistant Headteacher, Director of English

·       Miss Cherri Parsons-Young, Mrs Hannah Card and Mr Matthew Hampton to the English department

·       Mr Jack Williams as the Numeracy lead and to the Mathematics department

·       Mr Michael Perry and Mr David Baker to the Mathematics department

·       Mr Nye Jayne as Subject Leader for Chemistry

·       Mrs Karen Bradley as a Science teacher and Chemistry specialist

·       Miss Victoria Thorne as a Science teacher and Biology specialist

·       Miss Georgia Evans to the RE department

·       Mr Jonathan Westrop to the Geography department

·       Mr Richard Shore as the lead practitioner for behaviour

·       Mr Kieron Broad as the Internal Exclusion Room Manager

·       Mrs Karen Rooney and Mr Darren Hustin as our DT technicians

·       Mrs Alison Roberts and Miss Samantha Mais as teaching assistants in the Hearing Impaired Unit

·       Mr Paul Fisher as a teaching assistant in the SEN department

·       Mr Ryan Gosling as a teaching assistant in the Autistic Spectrum Disorder Unit

In addition to this, we have a number of existing staff who are taking up new leadership posts in the school this year:

·       Mr Dan White takes up post as Assistant Headteacher, Positive Behaviour

·       Mrs Elizabeth Smith takes up the post of Subject Leader, Mathematics

·       Mr Harry Trelawny takes up the post of Subject Leader, PE

Mrs Amy Geare takes up the post of Subject Leader, Geography

·       Mr Jack Crosse takes up the post of Year 7 Team Leader

·       Miss Sophie Roberts takes up the post of Year 8 Team Leader

·       Mrs Estelle Williams takes up the lead of the Hearing Impaired Unit

·       Mr Andrew Denison-Kurg takes up the lead of Key Stage 5 Mathematics

·       Mr Josh Owens takes up the post of second in RE

·       Mrs Helen Wall takes up the post of Examinations Officer

·       Mrs Owain Mears and Mrs Julie Purbrick take up the lead of our flexible learning provision

I have much to share with parents, students and governors in the coming weeks. I look forward to taking you through our School Development Plan for the year ahead, developments in teaching and learning and improvements to our school buildings and environment.  Most importantly, I look forward to bringing you the efforts and achievements of our students.  Please be proud parents and keep us updated!  

On that note, I am delighted to finish this week by congratulating Anna Jenkins-Delf who has been selected for the GB Under 19’s women’s Water Polo squad.  Anna will be competing in the 2018 LEN European Championships next week.  This is an exceptional achievement for a 15 year old and we hope Anna enjoys every moment.

For now, well done to one and all for making it to the end of the first week.  Hopefully, the early morning alarm clock is becoming less of a shock and the students are getting back into good routines. I look forward to formally greeting each year group in assembly next week.

I’ll leave you with a snapshot our new year 7’s:

Mrs Sarah Parry Headteacher

[headteacherlhs]

GCSE Results 2018!

23rd August 2018 

Dear Parents, Guardians, Students and Governors,

We are absolutely delighted with the GCSE outcomes that our year 10 and 11 students have received today.  They should be exceptionally proud of themselves.

Setting the context for the 2018 cohort of students

Summer 2017 was a landmark year for education in Wales as students first sat six GCSEs and 14 A levels designed specifically for Wales. But what marks 2018 out is the fact that we have an even greater number of newly reformed GCSEs examined and awarded for the first time in Wales.

Rather than a continuation of previous qualifications, these GCSEs are the start of a new set of rigorous skills based qualifications that are designed to meet the requirements of colleges, universities and employers.

Students obtaining 5 or more GCSEs at A*-A

We are overawed by the 26% of our students who have achieved the 5 A*-A measure.  This is a significant improvement on 2016 (20% A*-A) and 2017 (21% A*-A). Our congratulations go especially to the following students who achieved ALL of their GCSEs (12+) at A* and A:

·       Sahar Alhakkak-Martinez, Kate Burgess, Alice Cuddihee, Donte Day, Alex Fairhurst, Alex Gale, Behan Hawkins, Tia Khimji, Lili Rainer, Zoe Shapcott, Hama Sharif, Anna Stafford, Mia West, Adam Wilson and Owen Yip

Students obtaining the Level 2+ measure

Also, 69% of our students achieved the new Level 2+ measure.  This new measure is the percentage of students that achieved 5 or more passes at A*-C, including English and mathematics, and with at least 3 of these passes being in GCSE qualifications.  We are very pleased with the progress made here against the 61% achieved in 2017.

This has also been the first set of outcomes for the new GCSEs in Biology, Chemistry and Physics (replace the old separate science qualifications in these subjects).  We are delighted to report that Biology and Chemistry have secured a 100% A*-C pass rate, with Physics at 98% A*-C.  The new double award science qualification, which counts as two GCSEs, replaces the old GCSE Science and GCSE Additional Science qualifications.

We are delighted with outcomes in English Language (75% A*-C), English Literature (88% A*-C) and Best Mathematics/Numeracy (75% A*-C).

We are especially pleased to report that the outcomes for pupils entitled to free school meals have improved for the fourth year running with over 53% of students gaining a C grade or above in English and Mathematics.

We are equally delighted to celebrate a wide range of achievement with our students.  The qualifications that they have achieved are diverse and challenging.  Our students are celebrating a range of successes in the arts, modern foreign languages, IT, humanities, social sciences, PE, DT subjects, Hair and Beauty and so much more.  

It has been a privilege for us to take this year group through.  These results are testimony to the combined hard work and dedication of students, staff and parents.  We are extremely proud of all of our students and remain absolutely committed to our aspiration to achieve the very best outcomes for each and every student in our school.

As always, thank you to our parents.  The last few months will have been hard going at times, with August proving to be the tensest month for anyone with teenagers at home.  Hopefully, this will translate into well-deserved celebrations today.

Kind regards,

Sarah Parry, Headteacher 

[headteacherlhs]

A-Level Results 2018

16th August 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians, Students and Governors,

Today, we are celebrating an exceptional set of A-Level outcomes at Llanishen High School. Here are a few of the happy faces! 

To start, we are extremely proud of our outcomes in the core subjects.  In Biology, Chemistry and Physics our Year 13 students secured 50% of all grades at A*-A.

In mathematics, 31% of grades were obtained at A*-A and 62% at A*-B.  In Further Maths, 75% of grades were A*-A and 100% A*-C.  These results were achieved with the largest cohort of mathematicians (39) that the school has had.  We are delighted that this number will almost double in September with over 70 students opting to take mathematics in Year 12.  

In English Language, 86% of grades were achieved at A*-C.

Other headlines figures include:

·       Art, Drama, French, Further Maths, German, PE, Physics and Welsh secured 100% of grades at A*-C

·       In French, 60% of grades were at A*-A

·       In Art, English Language, Physics, Politics and PE, over 70% of grades were achieved at A*-B

These results demonstrate a continuing trend of improvement against our 2016 and 2017 outcomes and are testament to the hard work of students and staff. 

We are immensely proud of every student.  Outcomes in BTEC Health and Social Care and BTEC Sport were very strong (100% pass rate), allowing students access to worthwhile vocations and career entry. Many students have successfully secured places at a range of Russell Group universities to pursue a wide range of degree courses.  For many students, their success in the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate was a contributing factor to their UCAS success with 99% of entries achieving the qualification, 40 of these at A*-A grade.

Particular recognition must go to the following students:

·       Sophie Arundel on achieving 4 straight A* grades

·       Tomos Kay, Jacob Mills and Ross Wilson on achieving 5 A*-A grades

·       Ben Fairhurst, Jennifer Ludtke & Thomas Mills on achieving 5 A*-B grades

·       Tash Briggs, Katie Evans and Gareth Proctor on achieving 4 A*-A grades

·       Nia Brace, Megan Cole, Chloe Flower, Bethan Hopkins, Carys Jones, Hannah Matthews, David Middleton, Dafydd O’Leary, Alf Reynolds, James Short and Claudia Sugarman on achieving 4 A*-B grades

Please also join me in congratulating Katie Evans who secured the 4 A*-A grades needed to study Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University.

I look forward to updating you all again in the autumn with the destinations of our year 13 students.

Year 12 also deserve significant recognition for a very strong set of AS results.  These will stand them in good stead as they go into Year 13.  Particular congratulations go to Ben Crocker (centre below) who achieved full UMS in all 5 of his mathematics exams.  A phenomenal achievement!

Finally, thank you to our parents.  The last few months will have been hard going at times. You must be so proud of your sons and daughters.  Hopefully the tears, trials and tribulations will have been worth it.

Kind regards

Sarah Parry, Headteacher 

[headteacherlhs]

Headteachers Blog #25

Friday 25th May 2018

Dear Parents, Guardians and Students 

As we approach the May half-term break, I have the most eclectic collection of student achievements to date!

First, we bid a fond farewell to our year 13 students this morning.  After 7 years in the school they saw this as a fitting way to commemorate those years…dressed to reflect ‘what they want to be when they grow up.’

This year group have given us some phenomenal memories.  They have brought incredible value, joy, humour, warmth and life to the school. It has been a pleasure for us to have been on that journey with them, and we wish them every success in the coming weeks, months and years as they leave their school days behind them.

Next, as we move into the final half-term of the school year, it is a fitting time for me to commence a blatant plug for our school show.  This year the drama studio will be alive with an energetic production of Sister Act. The show runs from Monday 9th until Thursday 12th July, starting at 7pm, in the drama studio. Tickets are £6 per person and are available from Mrs Brown, NOW!  Mrs Brown can be contacted via email:  sbrown@llanishen.cardiff.sch.uk

Here are a few snaps from rehearsals to give you a flavour of what’s to come…

As we move into the season for athletics, Gabby Dickinson, year 9, has been a busy young lady, maintaining the consistency shown in previous Championships.  In April Gabby competed in the 2018 Dorset outdoor combined events Championships, which saw the cream of English athletes battle it out in a field of 59 athletes. The events included 75m hurdles, shot putt, high jump, long jump and 800m.  Following personal bests in the high jump, shot and hurdles, Gabby managed a podium finish to come 3rd, just missing out on second place by two seconds following the final event, the 800m.

Gabby is now ranked 3rd in the UK and 1st in Wales and has now also been invited to represent the Cardiff and Vale schools in the Welsh schools combined events championships to be held at Swansea on 9th June.  And finally, the regional outdoor championships held at Leckwith Stadium in Cardiff last Saturday 12th May, saw Gabby gain victory in the 100m, long jump and high jump where she set a new championship record of 1.59m.  Fantastic achievements!

I would also like to commend Matthew James, year 9, on his achievements in field hockey.  This season he has seen him win two awards at Whitchurch Hockey Club, including ‘player of the year’ which is picked by his team player. Well done Matthew!

Our year 12 students have also had a number of recent successes.  Tom Jenkin, year 12, has successfully passed his Open University Module in Molecules, Medicines and Drugs. This opportunity was sponsored by the Seren network.  Tom has also been successful in his Sutton Trust Summer School application to Royal Veterinary College the week beginning July 23rd. He is just amazing!

Other year 12 students currently completing their Open University Modules are Ben Crocker (Mathematics), Guy O'Keefe (Engineering) and Eirian Tompkins (Molecules, Medicine and Drugs).  

Congratulations also to our year 11 GCSE Product Design students.  Their recent exhibition of their controlled assessment designs were exceptional. Here are just a few examples… The exhibition was a credit to them, and much less stressful than a trip to Ikea.

Next up, our congratulations go to our under 12’s and under 14’s squads who played at the Cardiff Arms Park on Sunday 20th May. The under 12’s narrowly lost 21-14 against a strong Pontypridd team, and the under 14’s lost in the last play of game 29-25 to Llantwit Vadre. 

Many of our students played and did us proud.  Congratulations on a fantastic performance boys.

I would like to finish this week by introducing you to an inspirational member of staff.  Mrs Julie Purbrick, a member our learning support team, will be running the Edinburgh 10k this Saturday.  Mrs Purbrick took up running to raise money for the City Hospice after losing her mum last April. Her journey from couch to 5k….5k to 10k…and by October to the Cardiff half marathon is a commendable achievement.  She has been nominated by colleagues for ‘Hot chocolate with the Head’ in recognition of everything she does for her students and for constantly going above and beyond!  We will all be rooting for you on Saturday Mrs Purbrick.  No lie in for you on the first day of the holidays then!

Finally, we would like to wish all of our students, staff, parents, governors and partners a very relaxing bank holiday weekend and half-term break. 

Best wishes until the new half-term, 

Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher