Wilnecote Warbler April 2017 Issue 1

Wilnecote Warbler
ENSURING EXCELLENCE
Issue 1
6th April 2017
Year 9 County Futsal
CHAMPIONS
2017

Welcome
Welcome to the first edition of ‘Wilnecote Warbler’, our new
school newsletter. Each half-term this will be issued in order to
give students, their families and our local community important
information about the life of the school. It will also celebrate the
many and varied activities, events and achievements of the
young people who attend our school. As Headteacher it has been
an honour and a privilege to watch the students, staff and
parents embrace the changes that The Wilnecote School has
made since joining the Community Academies Trust in September. These changes – to school
uniform, to the school day, to implementing the consequences system to name but a few –
are moving the school forward and creating a strong and aspirational culture. They are
having an impact because of the hard work and cooperation of all of our school stakeholders.
I would like to thank you for your support. This newsletter is part of our improvement
journey as we seek to improve communication with our community.
One of the key aspects of change in our school is a growing role for student voice – for
seeking the views of our young people, listening to them and, where possible, acting on
those views. We asked them to come up with names for our newsletter and ‘Wilnecote
Warbler’ was the most popular choice from a range of suggestions.
I’m sure you will enjoy reading this newsletter and hope that it will give you a real flavour of
life at The Wilnecote School.
Have a Happy Easter.
Stuart Tonks
Headteacher
April
7
April
24
April
25
May
1
Dates For Your Diary
Last Day
of Spring Term
Return to School
for Summer Term
GCSE Music
Creative Task
May
Bank Holiday
May
2
May
3
May
11
May
26
Year 8
Parents' Evening
GCSE Drama
Performance Exam
GCSE Art
Exam
Last Day
of Half Term

Heads of House
Mr
Grant
Mr
Herbert
Mr
Simpson
Wow, what a year it has been so far! In this secon we would like to take this opportunity, in the first ever
edion of the new Wilnecote newsleer, to say a massive congratulaons to all the students.
This year has seen some massive changes at The Wilnecote School, with students embracing those changes
in a really posive way, such as: new Houses, new uniform, new rewards system, new form groups, new school
day, new behaviour policy, new assemblies…. to name but a few!
Students have seen the importance and relevance of what we are trying to do as a school and have played an
acve role in making those changes work. With our ever increasing student council and student voice we feel
that students at The Wilnecote School are able to make real decisions in the school and community we all
share. Students were part of the interview process in appoinng our new deputy head, they have chosen the
names of our Houses and are currently drawing up plans for inter-house compeons.
We have come a long way this year but we are sll on a journey to constantly strive to make our school a
beer place to learn, grow and thrive. Thank you for all your hard work and keep it up!
Year 9 Students Inspired!
A group of Year 9 students from The Wilnecote
School attended BMET Sutton Coldfield College
to participate in a series of science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) activities.
They explored a variety of small research topics
including: dissecting a heart and identifying the
main functional chambers, testing nonflammable
liquids and how these might be used
in the home, piercing a balloon with a skewer
without it deflating and looking at electrical
circuit safety in the home.
“The students really enjoyed the activities with
comments such as; ‘Amazing’, ‘Brilliant’, ‘So
informative’ and ‘I now know why we need to
be aware of safety in the home’,” commented
Mr Upton, Careers Adviser at The Wilnecote
School.

Safeguarding Children at
The Wilnecote School
At The Wilnecote School we of course recognise that our primary aim is to help our students
achieve to the very best of their ability. However, unfortunately for some students, circumstances
which are often outside of school can affect their health and happiness, making it increasingly
difficult for them to gain the most from their school experience. In rare cases, students may be
considered to be at risk of serious harm and on these occasions the school is obliged to intervene.
Our Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy, which is available to download from our website,
outlines our aims of providing a safe, secure environment for our students and of ensuring our
students know that there are adults in the school who are there to help them if they are worried
about their safety or the safety of others.
In order to meet these aims we have a number of staff who are Designated Safeguarding Leads.
These are the key members of staff who students, parents, other staff members or anyone in the
community can turn to if they have a safeguarding concern about any student in our care. Each of
these individuals have received full training on how to deal with Child Protection concerns and will
liaise closely with the student and whenever possible, their families, to deal with emerging issues
sensitively and confidentially.
Sometimes it is necessary to refer a case to Children and Family Services, if we feel that a student
is at risk of serious harm. On these rare occasions, we follow Staffordshire’s Local Authority
guidelines on how to make a referral. This process is outlined in more detail on the Staffordshire
Safeguarding Children’s Board website at www.staffsscb.org.uk. Throughout the entire process
we work closely with the student, their family and the Children’s Services Team to help resolve the
issues of concern.
It is our aim to communicate fully with anyone who raises a safeguarding concern and ideally both
parties will be in agreement about the best way to proceed. However, on occasion, a person
referring a concern may disagree with the way we have handled the situation. In these
circumstances the following conflict resolution procedure should be followed:
1. Contact the member of safeguarding staff concerned to see if a resolution can be
reached.
2. If still unhappy, contact the Designated Safeguarding Lead, Miss Howell, to discuss y o u r
concerns. If the initial disagreement was with the Designated Safeguarding Lead, or if
the situation is not resolved after discussion with the Designated Safeguarding Lead,
contact the Headteacher, Mr Tonks, to raise your concerns.
3. In the event of unresolved conflict, Children’s Services should be alerted and a referral
can be made to them directly. They will in turn investigate the concerns with the school
directly. Staffordshire County Council’s First Response Servce can be contacted on
0800 13 13 126. Lines are open Monday – Thursday 8.30 – 5pm and on Friday 8.30 – 4.30pm.
Their emergency out of hours number is 0345 604 2886 or alternatively they can be
emailed at firstr@staffordshire.gov.uk Please note that if you believe a child or young
person is at immediate risk of harm, do not delay – dial 999 to contact the Police.
My hope is that through excellent communication and by working together we will always be able
to rapidly resolve any potential safeguarding issue that may arise, in order that every student can
feel safe and happy, better enabling them to focus on enjoying life and achieving.
Miss Howell – Deputy Headteacher
Meet our Designated Safeguarding Team
Miss Howell
Deputy Headteacher
Designated
Safeguarding
Lead
Mr Hargreaves
Inclusion Manager
Deputy Designated
Safeguarding Lead
Mrs Taylor
Student Support
Co-ordinator
Deputy Designated
member of staff for
Safeguarding

Working in Partnership
Students and staff from The
Wilnecote School and Longwood
Primary School have been working
together for World Book Day.
This year The Wilnecote School chose Alice in
Wonderland for their annual production and as luck
would have it Longwood Primary School also chose
the classic tale to study for World Book Day. This gave
Mrs James (Head teacher of Longwood) the brilliant
idea that the schools could work together.
Students from Longwood Primary School came to
watch a dress rehearsal performance of Alice in
Wonderland on Tuesday 14th February as part of their
World Book Day preparations. This helped students
develop their understanding of the play and gave
them some fantastic ideas for dressing up on World
Book Day.
It was great to see students from reception right
through to Year 11 working together and inspiring one
another. The experience really helped the Wilnecote
students prepare for opening night and definitely got
students from Longwood excited about World Book
Day.
Hopefully, this will be one of many projects on which
the two schools will be able to work together in the

Year 9 Wilnecote Boys Crowned
County Futsal Champions!
Having reached the last 32 in the country in the ESFA
Schools' Cup earlier in the season, the Year 9 football
team continued their superb form this week in the
indoor football format of Futsal.
Last November they won the district Futsal competition
which meant they qualified to represent Tamworth
schools at the County Finals in Stoke. There were 10
other district winners, from all over the county, with the
competition played on a league basis over an afternoon.
“The competition was fierce and the quality was
exceedingly high,” commented Mr Handford, PE
Teacher and coach for the Year 9 Football team.
“The Wilnecote boys acquitted themselves brilliantly;
they were organised and disciplined but also passed the
ball incredibly well – which you have to do in this format.
To add to that they had flair and creativity in the right
places. We scored some superb goals and battled really
hard, all afternoon,” he continued.
By the end of the tournament Wilnecote had played
nine games, won six, drawn one and lost two. “We knew
we were in with a chance of finishing in a decent
position and perhaps even a top three place, but to have
won the whole thing is fantastic!” commented Connor
George, from the team.
Mr Handford went on to say, “The Year 9
team are well placed in the district eleven
a side competition and we hope to
progress to the final in May. In terms of
Futsal, a massive well done to all the boys
for their performance, they should feel
incredibly proud of their achievements and
hard work.”

Red Nose Day 2017
This Half Term one of our Year 11 students, Liam
Edwards, organised a cake sale in aid of Comic Relief.
Liam had lots of help, with a friend's relative making lots
of different and tasty treats, along with other fellow
students helping with the cake stall. We are extremely
proud of the students involved and would like to thank
Poppy Guilder, David Goodvin, Hannah Stringer and the
organiser Liam Edwards, along with Conner Handley's
relative for providing the cakes.
The sale raised £63.27. A huge well done !

GCSE Exam Timetable
Date Start Length Board Component Code Component Title
Mon 15 May 9:00 1:00 OCR B603/01 Rel Studs: Ethics Wrien
Mon 15 May 9:00 1:00 OCR B604/01 Rel Studies B: Ethics 2 Wrien
Tue 16 May 9:00 0:35 AQA 46551F French Unit 1 Tier F
Tue 16 May 9:00 0:45 AQA 46551H French Unit 1 Tier H
Tue 16 May 9:00 0:30 AQA 46552F French Unit 2 Tier F
Tue 16 May 9:00 0:50 AQA 46552H French Unit 2 Tier H
Tue 16 May 13:15 1:00 AQA BL1FP Biology Unit 1 Tier F
Tue 16 May 13:15 1:00 AQA BL1HP Biology Unit 1 Tier H
Wed 17 May 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 5IT0101 Living in A Digital World
Thu 18 May 9:00 1:00 AQA CH1FP Chemistry Unit 1 Tier F
Thu 18 May 9:00 1:00 AQA CH1HP Chemistry Unit 1 Tier H
Fri 19 May 13:15 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 5PE0101 Theory of Physical ED.
Mon 22 May 9:00 1:45 AQA 8702/1 English Literature Paper 1
Mon 22 May 13:15 1:30 OCR B561/01 Geog B: Sustain Dcsn Mkng Wrn Fnd
Mon 22 May 13:15 1:30 OCR B561/02 Geog B: Sustain Dcsn Mkng Wrn Hgh
Wed 24 May 9:00 0:45 EDEXL/GCSE 5BS0101 Intro.to Small Business
Wed 24 May 13:15 1:00 AQA PH1FP Physics Unit 1 Tier F
Wed 24 May 13:15 1:00 AQA PH1HP Physics Unit 1 Tier H
Thu 25 May 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 1F Non Calculator (F)
Thu 25 May 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 1H Non Calculator (H)
Fri 26 May 9:00 2:15 AQA 8702/2 English Literature Paper 2
Mon 05 Jun 9:00 2:00 OCR A017/01 Hist B: ASP INT Rltn Usa Freedom Wrien
Mon 05 Jun 13:15 2:00 AQA 45451 D & T: Food Technology Unit 1
Tue 06 Jun 9:00 1:45 AQA 8700/1 English Language Paper 1
Tue 06 Jun 13:15 1:45 OCR B563/01 Geog B: Geogrphcl Key Thms Wrtn Fnd
Tue 06 Jun 13:15 1:45 OCR B563/02 Geog B: Geogrphcl Key Thms Wrtn Hgh
Wed 07 Jun 9:00 0:35 AQA 46651F German Unit 1 Tier F
Wed 07 Jun 9:00 0:45 AQA 46651H German Unit 1 Tier H
Wed 07 Jun 9:00 0:30 AQA 46652F German Unit 2 Tier F
Wed 07 Jun 9:00 0:50 AQA 46652H German Unit 2 Tier H
Wed 07 Jun 9:00 1:30 OCR A451/01 Compung: Cmptr Sys & Prgmng Wrn

Date Start Length Board Component Code Component Title
Thu 08 Jun 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 2F Calculator (F)
Thu 08 Jun 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 2H Calculator (H)
Fri 09 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA BL2FP Biology Unit 2 Tier F
Fri 09 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA BL2HP Biology Unit 2 Tier H
Fri 09 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA BL3FP Biology Unit 3 Tier F
Fri 09 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA BL3HP Biology Unit 3 Tier H
Fri 09 Jun 13:15 1:30 OCR B354/01 Music: Listening Test Wrien
Fri 09 Jun 13:15 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 5BS0301 Building A Business
Mon 12 Jun 9:00 1:45 AQA 8700/2 English Language Paper 2
Tue 13 Jun 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 3F Calculator (F)
Tue 13 Jun 9:00 1:30 EDEXL/GCSE 1MA1 3H Calculator (H)
Wed 14 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA CH2FP Chemistry Unit 2 Tier F
Wed 14 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA CH2HP Chemistry Unit 2 Tier H
Wed 14 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA CH3FP Chemistry Unit 3 Tier F
Wed 14 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA CH3HP Chemistry Unit 3 Tier H
Wed 14 Jun 13:15 1:30 OCR A021/01 Hist B: Brt Scty Chngd 1890-1918 Wrtn
Thu 15 Jun 9:00 1:30 AQA 8360/1 Further Mathemacs Paper 1
Thu 15 Jun 13:15 1:00 OCR B601/01 Rel Studies B: Philosophy 1 Wrien
Thu 15 Jun 13:15 1:00 OCR B602/01 Rel Studies B: Philosophy 2 Wrien
Fri 16 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA PH2FP Physics Unit 2 Tier F
Fri 16 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA PH2HP Physics Unit 2 Tier H
Fri 16 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA PH3FP Physics Unit 3 Tier F
Fri 16 Jun 9:00 1:00 AQA PH3HP Physics Unit 3 Tier H
Mon 19 Jun 9:00 2:00 AQA 8360/2 Further Mathemacs Paper 2
Tue 20 Jun 13:15 2:00 AQA 45501 D & T: Graphic Products Unit 1
Mon 26 Jun 9:00 2:00 AQA 45551 D & T: Product Design Unit 1
Individual timetables with room and seat will be given to the students after Easter. Seating plans will also
be put up in the Common Room.
If you have any questions regarding exam entries or room arrangements please see me as soon as
possible, in reception.
Please look carefully over the Information for Candidates form which you received on the Year 11
Conference day and which is also available on the school website. This form outlines all the rules and
regulations of the exams.
Good luck in your exams!!!
Miss Brolan
Message from the Exams Manager

On Tuesday 28th March our colleagues Mr Pfahler and Ms Heimann and students from
Bad Laasphe, Germany arrived at The Wilnecote School for the English side of this year’s
exchange programme. Students and staff were understandably excited for the week
ahead; for some students the week was an opportunity for reunions with old friends, for
others it was a chance to meet new people and explore England and its culture for the
first me.
On Wednesday Bad Laasphe students experienced a typically English school day by
spending the day in lessons and around school with their partner. On Thursday it was a
chance to experience culture and history in Straord-upon-Avon, amongst many things
the birthplace of William Shakespeare. On Friday students worked together in teams on
‘project day’ in the style of "The Apprence". Students had to decorate a cake
and a cake box celebrang the friendship between both
schools. Prizes were awarded for; the cake which best
celebrated the exchange; best teamwork; the most creave
design; and the team who had the most professional
presentaon.
“At the weekend it was a chance for the German students to
spend me with their host partner and their family. From
speaking with students and parents it is clear that families
had made a huge effort during the weekend with their
exchange partner with trips as far and wide as Birmingham
and London,” commented German teacher and exchange coordinator
Miss Blake.
She connued, “On Sunday evening, it was lovely to see
how much our German friends had enjoyed their stay this
week but, as with all good things coming to an end,
unfortunately we had to say our goodbyes. I would like to
take this opportunity to thank everyone involved in the
exchange (parents, students, Mr Pfahler, Ms Heimann
and The Wilnecote School staff). This year has been a great
success and this is all thanks to the support from students
of The Wilnecote School and their parents. I am
already looking forward to our return trip in September!”

Wilnecote Community
Leisure Centre
FITNESS SUITE OFFER
Pre-pay for three
months in May
Get 1 Month FREE!
Ask staff for details

The Wilnecote School
ENSURING EXCELLENCE
Contact Us
The Wilnecote Schoo0l
Tinkers Green Rd
Wilnecote
Tamworth
Staffordshire
B77 5LF
Telephone Number
01827 831300
Fax Number
01827 831314
School email for general enquiries
office@wilnecotehighschool.org
Student absence email
pupilabsence@wilnecotehighschool.org