October 2007 - Littleover Community School

CL
S
Littleover Community School
& Millennium Centre
Newsletter
October 2007
BSF is Not a Disease!
You may have read recent articles in the local press about a project
called “BSF” or “Building Schools for the Future” and the impact it may
have on some city schools. Here are some facts:
Derby City has been allocated funding of approximately £150
million to modernise its secondary schools.
In addition there will be a sum of £20 million to upgrade ICT
systems in secondary schools.
Before the money is made available, all secondary schools must
produce a “Strategy for Change” which must link in with a similar
document to be produced by the City Council.
This will involve a lot of staff time and a lot of money being paid to
consultants and middlemen.
No building work will actually take place before 2012 at the
earliest.
There are thirteen secondary schools in the City. Two have
already been completely rebuilt and a third is currently being
rebuilt.
The three rebuilt schools will not have a share of the £150 million,
but will benefit from the £20 million for ICT.
Of the remaining ten schools, two or three will probably be
completely rebuilt, several will get major building works and the
rest will receive some refurbishment.
Decisions as to how much work/money individual schools will
receive have not yet been taken.
Some schools may be turned into “City Academies”. This will
NOT apply to Littleover Community School.

Our priority at Littleover will be to use our share of the cash to
provide the best possible facilities and to develop and improve
the quality of what we offer our pupils.
We will not embrace change for change’s sake or damage any of
the aspects of our school which currently work well.
We will keep parents and pupils informed of developments and
consult them over any future proposals.
David Nichols – Headteacher
Head in the Clouds
As a reward for winning the RAF Headteacher of the Year Award, (East
Midlands) Mr Nichols was invited to take a party of Year 10 pupils to
RAF Cranwell, the Training College for the RAF.
They were given a tremendous reception at the College and the pupils
enjoyed a morning of team building activities, followed by a chance to
experience the flight simulators.
Meanwhile Mr Nichols, dressed in full RAF flying kit, including
parachute, was taken up in a dual control training and aerobatic plane
and was able to fly it for 30 minutes, including looping the loop three
times. He even managed to retain his breakfast and did not need to
bale out.
Lunch was served at the huge top table in the York Officers’ Mess,
under the gilded portraits of Air Chief Marshals. This was followed by a
very informative tour
of the College itself,
after which the pupils
asked to be shown
how to march. Sadly
their attempt was not
up to RAF standards.
As a follow-up, the
RAF Motivational
Outreach Team have
offered to come to
Littleover to do some
activities with our
pupils.
Ready for take off

Winston Churchill Casts An Eye Over Our Pupils!
Mr J Wilding – Deputy Head (Pastoral)
Forthcoming INSET Days
Just a reminder, that there are 2 INSET Days this month on
Friday 12 th October 2007 and Monday 29 th October 2007.

SUNRISE STUDY CLUB
Sunrise Study Clubs take place
Tuesday – Friday mornings
7.30-8.30am
There are clubs for English, Maths, Science and ICT
We currently have 15 volunteers working with small groups of pupils,
and are looking to recruit more parents or friends who might be
interested in helping out at the clubs.
Do you have a higher qualification in maths, science or
computing?
Do you enjoy working with young people?
Can you spare one hour per fortnight 7.30-8.30am?
If you feel you would be able to help at any of the clubs, or would like
more information on how the clubs are run, please contact the Sunrise
Co-ordinator Mrs Pell on: Tel 01332 513219 Ext 169.

Press Release – Arkwright Scholarships
We are delighted to advise you that two of our students who have just
started in the Millennium Centre 6 th Form have been selected to receive
an Arkwright Scholarship. David Gell and Jason Walker had to
successfully pass the Arkwright Aptitude Paper, demonstrating flair
and originality in solving Engineering Design problems and presenting
GCSE work to a panel of interviewers in March and April this year.
The selection process culminated in an interview for shortlisted
candidates at one of 6 universities. A team exercise presented by the
university provided the interviewees with an experience of the
challenge and excitement of engineering related careers. Parents and
young people toured the university and explored the diversity of
engineering and the rewards of a career in the sector.
Scholarships are sponsored by Industry and Charitable Trusts and will
be formally presented at a ceremony hosted by The Institution of
Engineering and Technology, Savoy Place, London, on Friday 26 th
October 2007. During the day Scholars have an opportunity to meet
their sponsors and other Scholars.
I am sure you will agree that this is a remarkable achievement for both
David and Jason, as there were only 170 Scholarships awarded out of a
total of 743 applicants.
Mr C Simmons (Co-ordinator ordinator of Technology)
Duke Of Edinburgh Award Evening
On the evening of Wednesday 3rd October 2007, a total of 91 pupils
from Littleover Community School and the Millennium Centre
will receive their Duke of Edinburgh awards, (Bronze, Silver and Gold).
These awards will be presented by the Mayor at The Guildhall in Derby.
In total there will be 138 pupils from schools and organisations across
Derby. 91 of these young people are from Littleover Community
School. This is an incredible achievement for both the pupils and staff
involved.
Mr G Moses

New ICT Facilities
The big event this term has been the opening of D8 as the Mathematics
ICT Room. D8 now has a full class set of brand new PCs, linked to the
school network and the Internet. The use of this new facility will not
only help pupils do better in Mathematics, but will also allow D7 to be
used for English lessons all the time. At last, we are in a position where
each of our core subjects has a dedicated ICT room, allowing pupils to
benefit from the latest learning software and web-based resources. We
hope to extend our ICT facilities even further over the next few years,
making ICT an integral part of teaching and learning across the whole
curriculum.
Students at Work in the Newly Refurbished D8
Mr A Venkatesh – Deputy Head

Creative Arts & Drama
Rehearsals are now underway for the school production. This year we
are presenting "Oliver" on 5th, 6th & 7 th December.
The principal parts were auditioned at the end of the summer term and
the chorus has been gathered from those who did not quite make the
principals but were keen to be involved, and our new Year 7s. The
major rehearsals take place on Wednesday evening with the band
rehearsing after school and the actors from 6.30pm-8.30pm. Tickets
will be on sale in November. Keep a space in your diaries!
This year for the first time we have 25 students who have registered to
gain a bronze Arts Award. Certificated by Trinity Guildhall, London,
most of the candidates are now finishing their arts tasks and the
external moderation is set for November 7th, when an examiner will
come from London to check out the pupils' work. We wish them luck
with this new enterprise.
Mrs M Bucknell – Co-ordinator ordinator of Creative Arts
Fundraising for Relay for Life
Once again a staff team is taking part in the annual Cancer Research
UK 24 hour Relay for Life, at Moorways Stadium during July. As part of
the ongoing fundraising toward this event we are holding a raffle within
school, which will be drawn at an event at Pride Park Stadium on 3 rd
November.
The tickets are £2 each and are available from Pupil Support and the
Library.
We have a selection of prizes for the raffle including:-
• A pair of tickets to a Premiership game at Pride Park during
November.
• A large home football shirt signed by the first team.
• A Derby County football signed by the first team.
• A number of gift vouchers and tickets for a variety of events.
• Numerous other prizes.
During the last two Relays we have raised £7865.31 plus Gift Aid and
this year we are well on our way to our £4000 target for Summer 2008.
The team greatly appreciate the support of staff, pupils, parents, family
and friends.
Mrs K Simpson – Pupil Support Office

4th October is National Poetry Day.
National Poetry Day
Every lesson in school on that day will commence with a poem.To help
us celebrate, on 5th October we have a performance poet in school
who will be reading his poems and working with some of the pupils.
Watch this space for lots of reviews and pictures...
Happy Reading!
Mrs L Pell - Librarian
Littleover Environment Group
Littleover Environment Group was established in 2004. Since then the
small group of volunteers has completed numerous activities including:
Planting over 150 trees, a hedge row, shrubs and bulbs
Designing and installing the steps on the Fresco Drive playing
field
Installing decorative panelling at the School entrance
In addition various walks in the local area have been organised on a
regular basis.
We are looking for more volunteers to join us in continuing our
excellent work. Further activities have already been planned as
follows:
Saturday 3 rd November 2007 – 9.30am (Meet at the Sports Hall)
A working morning to plant more bulbs, hedgerow and shrubs.
Saturday 24 th November 2007 – A Walk in Bradgate Park
If you are interested in joining the group and taking part in the
activities, please email me at: m.gosal@littleover.derby.sch.uk
Mr M Gosal – Assistant Head & Co-ordinator ordinator of Science/Chemistry

PSHE / Citizenship News
Every term is busy in the Department but this is an extra busy time for
us in helping the new Year 11 pupils to start focussing on which
pathway they are going to take after their GCSEs next summer.
Eleven pupils from Year 11 went to the University of Derby on 13 th
September to attend a careers fair linked to occupations available
within the broad field of health. This is an interactive event in which the
pupils can get involved in a range of activities and role plays to learn
more about specific jobs. Those that attended felt that it had been a
very worthwhile visit and that they had learned a lot.
It has also been the two separate weeks for work experience for Year
11. As always, and with your help, the pupils have found a huge range
of placements from which to gain experience of what it is actually like
to spend a week at work and, for others, the chance to experience the
realities of a possible future career. There have been some notable
individual successes but all of our pupils are returning to school with
increased confidence and with the knowledge that they need to
achieve the best possible results in their forthcoming exams in order to
be competitive in the labour market.
Finding the quality of placements which we need and offering job
opportunities which meet the rigorous health and safety standards and
risk assessment procedures of the Derbyshire Education Business
Partnership, becomes an increasingly difficult task. We are already
building up a database of placements for 2008 and if you could help in
any way, either by offering a placement to a pupil for a week or by
suggesting a friend or relative who could help, please contact Miss
Simpson or Mrs Dyg via Pupil Support.
On Thursday evening 4 th October we shall be holding our annual
Options 16+ information evening for parents on the opportunities and
choices available to our pupils next year. Year 11 parents should have
had a letter inviting them to this and outlining the choice of workshops
available for the evening. If you have not seen this letter and require
further information, please contact Mrs Butler or Miss Came via school.
The evening starts at 7:30 in the School Hall.
During the first week in October, another letter will go out to all Year 11
parents with the dates of all local Open Evenings for Sixth Forms and
Further Education opportunities. Do look out for this and take the
chance to compare what courses are on offer in the Derby area which
match the personal skills and interests of your sons and daughters.
A group of pupils from Years 10 and 11 have also been working with the
University of Derby on the creation of a new prospectus designed to
appeal to a range of abilities and also the younger age group.
Following an initial consultation in the late summer term, a team of
researchers from the Marketing department returned to school with
the proofs incorporating the young peoples’ original ideas.

Lively discussion and lots of constructive criticism came out of the
meeting and the team left impressed with the quality of comments that
they had received. We are all looking forward to seeing the finished
product.
The photos below show some of Year 11 hard at work during work
experience.
Mrs M. Butler – Co-ordinator ordinator of PSHE
Pupils At Work

NHS Careers Taster Event at Derby University
By Hannah Foxon 11GHS
On Thursday 13 th September a group of Year 11 pupils successfully
applied to attend this event, which aimed to give an insight into a
variety of careers in medicine. On arriving at the University we were
given a brief tour of the campus. We were then taken to the Medical
Suite where we followed the course of treatment of a patient who had
‘broken her hip’. We followed the patient through Accident and
Emergency assessment and treatment, through to Radiology, Surgery,
Physiotherapy and to her treatment at home by Social Care Workers
and Occupational Health Workers.
During the course of the event we met many different health care
professionals and students who were actually training to be Doctors
and Nurses. We also attended a careers fair. This gave us the
opportunity to ask questions about qualifications and working
conditions and take blood from a fake arm! It was an interesting and
insightful afternoon.
The trip was organised through the Derbyshire Education Business
Partnership and NHS. Miss Came accompanied pupils as the member
of school staff. The pupils involved in the event were -
Sonia Sohal DTB
Tom Willmott DTB
Hannah Foxon GHS
Catriona McCartney GHS
Karina Sharma SHM
Nikita Rai PJM
Priya Dutta PJM
Francis Okoroh PJM
Arnold Gangaidzo JJC
Nikolas Medgyesy JJC
Chandni Thakar TPB

Gifted and Talented News
Parents whose sons and/or daughters are members of the National
Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY) may or may not be
aware of the recent changes to this programme.
Warwick University recently lost the contract to run the academy.
However, the programme will now be run by the CFBT Education Trust
under the title “Young, Gifted and Talented” which is part of the
National Programme for Gifted and Talented Education.
All members of the new Learner Academy, INCLUDING CURRENT
NAGTY MEMBERS, will have access to a vast range of activities,
events, products and services, all of which are available from an online
catalogue.
One particular aspect of the YG&T is the regional Excellence Hubs,
which will provide activities and events for the new Learner Academy.
These may include residential summer schools and subject/skillsspecific
master classes.
New information about YG&T is arriving all the time. If you wish to know
more, the web address is www.cfbt.com or alternatively I can be
contacted at school on TEL: 01332 513219
Mr D Bisset (Co-ordinator ordinator for Gifted and Talented pupils)

Schools ols Fantasy Football Competition 2007/8
Littleover Community School has been running a Fantasy Football
League for the last three years as part of the National Schools Fantasy
Football competition. The rules are very similar to the leagues run by
National newspapers (£70million to spend on Premiership players in a
4-4-2 formation, maximum three players per club). Each year, over a
hundred students and staff take part, winning certificates, medals, t-
shirts and trophies during the season. This season, there is an
opportunity for parents to have their own league.
Entry is £3.50 per team which covers: administrative costs, medals,
certificates, trophies, weekly prizes, Manager of the Month awards,
website administration and so on.
If you wish to take part, please pay £3.50 to Mr Bisset at the Sports
Hall, via your son/daughter. They will then receive an entry voucher
which has a unique code that you use to enter your team online.
The teams will start scoring points from Saturday 20 th October, so get
your entries in as soon as possible.
Mr D Bisset (League Chairman)
Iceland Trip
This trip departs on 18th October 2007, returning on 22nd October
2007. Pupils in Years 10, 11, 12, and 13 are going with Mr Bowler.
Future Dates for Your Diaries
In addition
to the INSET days in October already mentioned above,
there is one further INSET day before we break up for Christmas:
Friday 30th November 2007
…………………………………………………………………………………………

LATEST SPORTS NEWS
Football
These are the latest results for our school football teams:
Week Commencing 10/9/07
Year 8 LCS vs Ecclesbourne - Won 3-2
Year 9 LCS vs Chellaston - Won 2-1
Year 10 LCS vs Sinfin - Won 5-3
Year 11 LCS vs Woodlands - Won 4-1
Week Commencing 17/9/07
Year 7 vs West Park - Lost 3-1
Year 8 vs West Park - Drew 3-3
Year 9 vs Sinfin - Won 4-0
Year 10 vs Woodlands - Lost 4-3

Netball Results – 20/9/07
Year 12 Netball vs Derby High Won 12-5
Basketball Results – 20/9/07
Littleover Year 10 girls vs Da Vinci Year 10 boys - lost 28 - 42

RECRUITMENT
MIDDAY SUPERVISORS
LOCATION: Littleover er Community School
HOURS: 6 hours 40 mins per week
PAY: £5.93 per hour (plus lunch allowance)
We are looking to appoint friendly, outgoing individuals to work as part of a
team of Midday Supervisors at Littleover Community School.
The hours are worked over the lunchtime period.
No previous experience is necessary
but good communication skills are required.
Further details and application forms are available from:
Mrs. J. Page,
Littleover Community School,
Pastures Hill,
Littleover,
Derby.
DE23 4BZ
Tel: 01332 513219

A number of our pupils have been involved with the South Asian Arts
Festival that took place on August 26 th , 2007 at Normanton Park.
Kite Making Competition
At the end of last term, in July sixteen Year 9 pupils took part in a Kite
Making Workshop. Their kites were then displayed, and entered into a
competition at a local community event in August.
Congratulations to Jill Kasule 10GMW for winning the competition, she
received a prize of £25. Her winning kite is shown below.
Amrita Shanker 10CMC
Hemani Bubber 10MEH
Manisha Pannu 8JER
Omraj Kainth 10MEH
Asian Dance Performance
Dhol Playing
All pupils enjoyed the experience very much and look forward to taking
part in another similar event.
Mr S Modhara – Community Links

Exam Results Update
Further to the headline figures from our excellent examination results,
sent home at the start of term, we can confirm that Littleover
Community School and the Millennium Centre achieved the best results
in Derby at A Level, GCSE and Key Stage 3 SATs in 2007.
The A Level results, in particular, were stunning with 58% of all entries
achieving A/B grades and a 100% pass rate. Two national newspapers
have rated us in the top 50 Sixth Forms in the country.
We are still awaiting some remarks and appeals, which we have
requested for individual pupils, and will send all parents a full set of all
results by the end of October.
David Nichols – Headteacher

Uniform Prices – Good News!
Following discussions with Morley’s at Chaddesden, our uniform
supplier, we are pleased to be able to confirm that they will be
dropping the price of our sweatshirts and polo shirts from 8 th October.
The new prices for the current, top quality range are:
Sweatshirt:
Polo shirt:
Size: 9/10 11/12 13 14/15 L-XL
Price: £10.99 £10.99 £11.99 £12.99 £13.99
Size: 26-34 36-46
Price: £8.99 £9.99
In addition, Morley’s will also now stock a second, cheaper range,
complete with logo, which, although of lesser quality, will give parents
another option.
The prices for the alternative garments are:
Sweatshirt:
Polo shirt:
Size: 9/10 11/12 13 14/15 L-XL
Price: £8.99 £8.99 £9.99 £10.99 £11.99
Size: 7/8 9/10 11/12 13-15 L-XL
Price: £6.99 £6.99 £6.99 £7.99 £8.99
David Nichols - Headteacher