Cranford Review 2021

2020 / 2021

Cranford Community College
is a charitable company limited by
guarantee registered in England and Wales
under company registration number 7559818
at High St, Cranford, Middlesex TW5 9PD
Dear Reader
2020 / 2021
EDITORIAL
by Mr Kevin Prunty
Mr. Kevin Prunty
Executive Headteacher &
National Leader of Education
Jenny Lewis
Chair of the Academy Trust
Peter Stumpf
Associate Headteacher
Alan Fraser
Assistant Headteacher & Director
of Community Partnerships
Rita Berndt
Joint Head of School
Rob Ind
Joint Head of School
Maria Bramhall
Deputy Head of School
PARTNERSHIP:
Berkeley Academy - Heston West Big Local -
Hounslow Promise - Hounslow Education Partnership
I am delighted that you are now enjoying our annual publication of
the Cranford Review for 2020/21. It is a celebration of last year and
although I have been incredibly lucky that there has been so much
to celebrate over my 20+ years as a Head Teacher, I have never
been so proud, as I am now, of this school, its staff, its pupils and
its community.
There have been two prolonged periods of remote teaching and
learning over the last 18 months, yet our students recorded excellent
results across a very broad curriculum, which reflect the hard work
they put in, both in the classroom and at home.
The Teacher Assessed Grades system used in this period is, in many
ways superior to the usual terminal examinations system, in that it
credits what each child accomplishes in each course of study in an
evidential and verifiable way, rather than penalises what a child
does not know or does not remember on the day of a final exam.
Many countries credited with the highest educational performance
in Europe and across the world have a Teacher Assessed Grades
system even in normal times and it certainly merits consideration
in the U.K. as normality returns.
The examination success this year, which is in keeping with the
academy’s impressive track record in the last two decades, is also
a credit to the staff who have gone over and above throughout
those 18 months and have worked tirelessly to ensure that our
students stay well, stay safe, get a full and rounded education, are
emotionally resilient, maintain their excellent levels of progress
and that students are recognised for the efforts they have made.
The academy has also been able to exercise its role as a supportive
‘corporate parent’ for those who have been disproportionately
affected by the pandemic’s impact.
There are undoubtedly further challenges to come educationally
as well as in health, employment and the economy, but these are
challenges we will face together and we will succeed in turning
them into successes.
What is so impressive about the events, experiences, accomplishments
and activities recorded in this booklet, in the context of the pandemic,
is that the importance and value of the wider curriculum has never
been so clear.
“Cranford Review” © 2006-2021
is a publication of Cranford Community
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As some normality returns, it has become more apparent how much
we have genuinely missed being together as a school community
of students and staff, working and socialising together, coming to
school to learn, to educate, to grow and to belong, going on school
trips, visiting theatres, museums, galleries, etc. We perhaps took
some things about being together for granted before that privilege
was suspended.
We can look forward to spending more time together now that

schools and society learn to live alongside Covid-19,
doing some things a little differently but doing them,
and most importantly doing them together – ‘together
as one – together as ‘Cranford’.
We have been brought even closer together with
our wider community and partners; to overcome
adversity together, to work together to find creative
solutions to new problems, to care for and help others
in unprecedented need, and to join forces to magnify
impact. It is inspiring and heart-warming.
Cranford and its community have hardly skipped a
heartbeat during the pandemic. We have quickly adapted
to the challenges of teaching, learning and assessment
‘at a distance’, including making over 600 virtually
immediate loans of ICT and connectivity equipment for
those in need. We developed safeguarding, pastoral and
communication provision in spite of obstacles.
We have taken practical steps to ensure that no-one
goes unfed or unnoticed, to ensure that community
mental health and emotional well-being have not been
overlooked and we have connected people together so
that we all know that we are not alone, especially those
feeling most vulnerable.
We have weathered this storm well and we have
renewed optimism in the future. We have been blessed
as a community and we are grateful.
It is not just one storm, though, that helps a tree grow
deeper and stronger where it stands. It is several storms
over time, a series of torrents and gusts. All of this
rooting and growing in the face of heavy weather
protects a tree from simply blowing over. And, it
prepares a tree for the storms yet to come.
We are learning from the challenges, developing new
skills, innovating and we are incredibly optimistic
about the good things that will come from our resilient
response to adversity, including the potential to
develop positive, transformational and quantum shifts
in social mobility and community cohesion as well as
new approaches to teaching and learning.
If there are further storms ahead, we will learn more,
seek to do things better and be ever better prepared. We
value learning and its powerful benefits, and we have
ensured that every child has continued to get a full,
proper and broad education throughout. Over 90% of
our KS4 students have been able to maintain the full
EBACC range of subjects this year too.
This review of the year celebrates our values and our
curriculum. It celebrates excellence, and it celebrates
our community. It celebrates the importance that
technology has played in the continuing success of
our unique academy, and the enormous breadth of
curricular and extra-curricular provision, which is
virtually unrivalled in the state and private sectors.
At Cranford, we learn from the best in the world.
We also know that summer 2021 has been another
record-breaking year at A level, GCSE, Vocational and
Technical in terms of examination success and student
progress.
A truly special and huge thank you is owed to the
teachers and support staff who have rallied and worked
incredibly hard and diligently to, almost instantly, offer
a full-service virtual school or school for the whole of
the pandemic to date, alongside some on-site provision
and the enormous task of grading GCSE, A-level,
vocational and technical qualifications. The dedication
of Cranford staff and the high level of engagement of
students is an indicator of why the children who attend
Cranford make such excellent progress and accomplish
so much.
As an academy, we have used the time strategically
too, heavily and urgently investing in adaptations and
safety improvements to our site and premises so that
we can all be as safe at school and work as we could
possibly be, including going forward.
In addition to our commitment to all round excellence,
a key theme of Cranford’s identity has been our longterm
commitment to transforming the community.
As founding members of First Story and more recently
Hounslow’s Promise, Hounslow Education Partnership
and Heston West Big Local, partner organisations that
also focus on improving the life chances of our young
people through exciting community development
programmes, we continue to take a holistic approach
to community development, school improvement,
cultural capital and social mobility.
The astonishing range of wider curriculum opportunities
also includes specific projects that deepen and enhance
students’ learning experience through performances,
challenges, masterclasses, debates, conferences and
competitions as well as clubs, trips, visits and lectures.
A particularly relevant achievement has been to
work with the University of Oxford from September
2017 to July 2021 on the Myriad research project
to help schools prepare young people to manage
their emotional health and improve resilience to the
challenges of adolescence.
As a result, we have happy, well-educated, wellqualified,
well-rounded, well-behaved, well-motivated
and well-prepared contributors to society, good citizens
who value education, are able to enjoy it, succeed in
life and thrive in a wide range of social contexts.
Kevin Prunty
Executive Headteacher
National Leader of Education
EDITORIAL
#
1

#
GCSE RESULTS 2021
Fantastic
GCSE
results
again at
Cranford
Community
College
Cranford students have achieved another set of amazing
GCSE results, despite all the challenges they have faced
over the past two years.
Executive Headteacher, Kevin Prunty said: “We are absolutely
thrilled by the tremendous GCSE results our Year 11 students have
achieved today. We knew they wouldn’t let a pandemic hold them
back! Progress is stunning and it is particularly impressive that
over 90% of Cranford students entered all EBACC subjects with
60% passing every element.
There are so many Cranford students who have done exceptionally
well it is hard to pick just a few. Some particular stars include:
• Isra Jadoon, Heenal Mehra and Ayesha Kaur who all achieved
an incredible 9 grade 9s, with Tyisha Rebolo picking up 8 grade
9s and a Distinction* in her ICT.
• Samuel Dickson, Oliwia Bartnicka, Anix Gurung, Arushi
Varshney, Marjaan Aman, Shamila Baig, Gurnoor Singh-Kaur and
Maryam Moeen all averaged 8.5 across their subjects, managing
a breath-taking 59 top grade 9s and 23 grade 8s between them.
• Shreyas Shikare managed an incredible Progress 8 score of 4.7,
meaning he secured on average well over 4 grades better than
other students nationally from his starting point. Yasmina Del Rio
Debiche, Prableen Gurwara, Zeeshan Qureshi, Nabila Mohamed
and Hiba Raza made similarly breath-taking progress with Shenon
Dias also picking up 6 grade 9s on the way!
2
Congratulations to all our students and staff on a truly phenomenal
effort.

A LEVEL RESULTS 2021
Superb A Level Results
for a Stunning Cohort
#
Cranford’s tremendous A level success stories
this year were perhaps not that surprising if we
remember that this cohort achieved the best GCSE
results ever at Cranford in 2019.
“We are delighted with the fantastic performances of our
A level students this year” said Executive Headteacher
Kevin Prunty. “The students have worked extremely hard,
in particularly challenging circumstances, and we are
very proud of their results.”
Amongst the many students heading off to Russell group
universities, there are some real stand out high fliers:
• Warda Khalif achieved A*, A*, A* and is off to
Cambridge University to take up her place reading
Natural Sciences at Gonville & Caius College.
• Neha Hussain and Aliza Abbas will read Medicine at
Imperial College and Kings College London respectively
after gaining five A*s and one A between them.
• Warwick University continues to benefit from Cranford
students’ talent with Jack Blandford (A*, A*, A* -
Biochemistry), Brahmnoor Brar (A*, A*, A* - Computer
Science), Bhanuya Balendran (A*, A*, A – Biochemistry),
Adelaide Samgi (A*, A*, A* - Law with Humanities) all
heading there.
• Ruhaan Mughal will join them at Warwick having
achieved a perfect Distinction * in BTEC Business to go
along with his A*s in English Language and Literature
and History A levels. Ruhaan will read Law, a choice
which is on the increase at Cranford, with Inderjot Virk
(A*, A*, A*) and Phajmeet Khurana (A*, A*, A) also
being accepted to read Law at Manchester and Queen
Mary’s universities.
• Abraham Mathews scored a perfect set of A*s and has
been accepted onto a highly competitive apprenticeship
with GKN Aerospace.
• Sankavi Sivarharan will fulfil her dream of reading
architecture at Nottingham University after achieving
a double Distinction* in her Cambridge Technical IT
course to go with her A* in Fine Art.
• Special mention should also go to Kimran Virk who will
read Psychology at Kings College London after gaining
A*, A*, A*. Well done too to Namra Ansar, Warda Hashi
and Suadi Barri who also achieved straight A*s, the
maximum possible grades.
A huge thank you and well done to all of our students and
their teachers.
Rob Ind (Head of School)
3

# PASTORAL
A Year Like No Other
– Reflection –
We were overjoyed to fully reopen the Academy to all students at the start of September 2020.
Careful planning and enhanced safety protocols including the addition of masks to the uniform
policy enabled Cranford to prioritise, in highly abnormal circumstances, as normal a curriculum
as possible for the students.
Regular hand-sanitising, temperature checks, fresh ventilation and intensive cleaning practices meant that
science experiments and music classes, class debates and visual arts could all continue as close to normally as
possible. Computers had been given out to students and families to combat digital poverty and enable online
learning. Staff and students alike were resilient and thrilled to be back.
Our pastoral response mirrored the overall objectives of the school, to welcome our students back as warmly
and with as much normality as possible.
Bonds between form tutors and their tutees were immeasurably strengthened by the Keeping in Touch calls
from the first lockdown, and with the School Counsellor increasing her drop in sessions from weekly to daily
and virtual assemblies and even virtual inter-form quizzes up and running. All was going well. Then came the
second lockdown.
Knowing how much the whole community was relishing being back in school, this was of course frustrating
but it was far from unexpected and we were as ready as we could be.
The vast majority of students were already online at home with suitable devices and a crack team of volunteer
staff were on call 24 hours a day with technical support and equipment delivery services.
The academy’s investment in AnyDesk for staff and Microsoft Teams for the whole community immediately
paid dividends and, from Day One (January 5th 2021), all lessons including form time were ‘live lessons’ with
teachers on camera, registers taken and learning as interactive and dynamic as could be.
4
Thanks to the ongoing CPD programme and sharing of
best practice, innovations in virtual teaching continued
throughout the 38 school days that students and the majority
of teaching staff were at home. Assemblies and counselling
moved online seamlessly and we were even able to target
support to individuals and groups that needed it most, from
home visits to group sessions, for example, on ‘Making
space for your wellbeing in a big household’.
Nonetheless, it was a relief when we all came back to the
Academy on March 8th 2021. Students and tutors have been
incredible at embracing all of the extra routines and you
would be hard pressed to find anywhere that manages the
twice weekly lateral flow testing of 1700 people so calmly
and confidently.
As I write, our attendance since March 2021 has been above
95% whilst nationally this figure has dipped below 75%.
The last year has been full of challenges but Cranford has
stepped up and we can all be very proud of our achievements.
Rob Ind (Head of School)
Lockdown in numbers:
• Over 11,000 live lessons delivered
virtually.
• Over 350,000 messages sent on TEAMs.
• Over 1000 different online learning
communities on TEAMs.
• Over 600 parental engagement meetings.
• 247 academy PCs delivered to students.
• 276 laptops provided by DHL,
Hounslow’s Promise and the
Department for Education.
• 64 Internet dongles with unlimited data
given to households.
• 125 webcams and headsets provided to
students.
• 96% attended and engaged every day.

Cranford’s
continued
success
with
Oxbridge,
Medicine
and
Dentistry
offers
Despite challenges due to the
pandemic this year, it has
been another successful
year for Cranford Community
College’s Year 13 pupils and their
UCAS Applications to university.
This year, we have had an
overwhelmingly large number of
students that have chosen the route
of university as their next stage in
education. We are extremely pleased that our year 13 pupils have
received offers from their desired universities including a large
number of pupils receiving offers from a range of Russell Group
universities such as:
University of Birmingham - University of Exeter - London
School of Economics & Political Science - University of Sheffield
- University of Bristol - University of Glasgow - University
of Manchester - University of Southampton - University of
Cambridge - Imperial College London - Newcastle University
- University College London - Cardiff University - King’s
College London - University of Nottingham - University of
Warwick - Durham University - University of Leeds - Queen
Mary, University of London - University of York.
The year 13 pupils received a range of support and guidance from
their extremely knowledgeable academic tutors. Pupils valued how
their academic tutors guided them through deciding their next path
via university without bias. The support also included up to date
discussions on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on future
careers. The consistently strong support and guidance combined
with high expectations of year 13 pupils from all the staff pushed
the sixth form pupils to aim high and aspire to obtain places at the
top universities in the UK.
Cranford Community College has also been implementing its
Early Entry UCAS programme aimed at promoting aspirations and
access for students to apply to Oxford and Cambridge universities
along with students applying for Medicine and Dentistry. This
programme has been delivered by the school since 2017 and has
been extremely successful. Examples of events and opportunities
that the programme offers includes:
• Promoting and supporting applications and visits to university
summer schools, masterclasses and lectures.
• Delivering workshops to support pupil applications to Oxbridge,
Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Sciences.
SIXTH FORM #
• Guest Speakers from Oxford and
Cambridge universities giving lectures
to students on site.
• Supporting with interview skills with
interview coaching.
• Follow up mentoring and support after
students receive their offers.
• Support and guidance with university
admissions tests such as the BMAT,
UKCAT and LNAT.
As with every year, since the start of
this programme, we had a substantial
proportion of the year 13 cohort
applying for Early Entry UCAS courses.
However, due to challenges with the
pandemic, our programme was adapted
to give our students the best chances of
gaining these prestigious places. This
academic year, each year 13 Early Entry
candidate was paired up with a member
of the senior leadership team as a mentor
to support them through building the
perfect personal statement and guide
them with the future focus choices that
they make. In addition to this, medical
students were supported to gain virtual
medical placements and professional
courses. Collaboration between the
Sixth Form Leadership team and subject
teachers optimised the effectiveness of
experiences in mock interviews, which
were completed virtually this year.
Since the inception of the Early Entry
UCAS programme, our year 13 students
have received offers from Oxford,
Cambridge, Medicine, Dentistry and
Veterinary Sciences consistently every
year. This year was no exception and we
have received a record number of offers.
On the next page is a list of students
that have received offers from the above
categories:
5

#
SIXTH FORM
Warda Khalif
University of
Cambridge,
Natural Sciences
Haroon Lukka
University of
Cambridge,
Mathematics
The second year of A Levels is infamous for being one of the
most difficult times of a young adult’s life. Couple that with
online school and a plethora of closing deadlines and you have
a recipe for disaster. However, during this time, a highlight
was the writing of my personal statement. This was where I
have to cram all my achievements and good qualities in 500
words to be judged by universities and may well decide the
course of my life from here on out. Considering this, however,
with specialised teacher support and many mock interviews,
it was definitely the smoothest part of the past two years, and
I am now on track to study Geography at the University of St
Andrews. Having said that, it was definitely a challenge to
find the right parts of your past to include to accentuate your
character, and there is something incredibly satisfying about
seeing your final piece of work as you submit it, knowing
that it is the best that the current you have to offer as you
enter adulthood. As such, I would greatly recommend finding
opportunities to better yourself throughout your holidays
(especially summer) so you can look back and know that no
time has been wasted; volunteering or work experience can
have a great effect on your self-improvement and provides
so much to fall back to in your personal statement. In these
A-Level years, there is no time to waste! But trust in yourselves
and your work and everything will turn out just fine.
Guy Boonyarakyotin (year 13)
Rajvir Sran
Brighton Medical
School,
Medicine
Anjali Bhambra
King’s College
London,
Dentistry
Neha Hussain
Imperial College
London,
Medicine
Aliza Abbas
King’s College
London,
Medicine
Cranford Community College is so proud
of all the year 13 students aiming high and
working hard to get to their desired destination
to university, apprenticeships or the world of
work. We wish our outgoing year 13s all the
best for their future endeavours.
This October, I hope to be studying Natural sciences at
Gonville and Caius, Cambridge. I sent many drafts of my
personal statement to multiple teachers who all were all
incredibly helpful and prompt with their feedback. During the
interview process, I had attended a mock interview conducted
by Mr Shingadia and Mr Aughterson, who both had gone
through the Oxbridge process, and I received very useful
advice from both of them. For those of you who are thinking of
applying to Oxbridge, I would recommend you start revising
for any entrance exams you may need to sit at least 2-3 months
prior. In the interview, you are likely to be asked questions
about topics of which you have no knowledge, so do not worry
if you don’t get the correct answer straight away. Your thought
process is more important than your ability to regurgitate prelearnt
content. Also, start your personal statement as soon
as possible, preferably have a first draft written before year
13 starts. This means you can spend September and October
revising for your entrance exam.
Warda Khalif (year 13)
Applying to university can be a stressful experience, but the
support I received from the school helped make my UCAS
journey less overwhelming. The teachers were more than
happy to read over and give me tips on how I could improve
my personal statement. Prior to applying, we were introduced
to the entire process through period 0 meetings, which were
great opportunities to ask any questions we had and read
exemplar personal statements. Despite being in lockdown
for the interview stage, the teachers made a great effort to
stay in touch with us and even conducted mock interviews for
extra support. The overall encouragement from the teachers
Chetan Shingadia
(Assistant Headteacher Post 16)
6

SIXTH FORM #
has helped me obtain an offer to study Dentistry at
King’s College London. With regards to university
and student life, the school provided us with
financial and wellbeing tips through assemblies in
order to prepare us for the future. My advice to year
12 students who are preparing for university this
year would be to thoroughly research the course and
universities you will be applying to. League tables
and rankings are meaningless if you won’t be happy
studying the course at that specific university. It is
also worth looking at alternative routes to get to
the career of your choice, so having a plan B is key.
Lastly, if you need any help during your application,
don’t hesitate to speak to one of the teachers because
they want the best for you!
Anjali Bhambra (year 13)
The prospect of applying to study Medicine can
be daunting but the Cranford Early Entry UCAS
programme made it a lot easier with support for
booking admissions tests such as the BMAT, writing
your personal statement and the most challenging
part - interviews! I am pleased to say that the
programme aided me to gain an offer at Brighton
and Sussex Medical School where I will be studying
Medicine in September. For those looking to apply
to Medicine, I would say start early! Book the UCAT
before school starts and use the summer wisely to
study for admissions tests and get some medical work
experience!
Rajvir Sran (year 13)
This September, I hope to be studying Medicine at
Guy’s campus, King’s College London. The journey
to Medicine was not an easy one, however with
the constant support of my teachers I was able to
put forward a competitive application. In Year 13,
we were coupled up with teachers who read over
our personal statement drafts and gave helpful,
constructive criticism. I had sent my personal
statement to many teachers (who were always happy
to help) across multiple subject departments hence I
received holistic advice which enabled my statement
to become much more concise and engaging. During
the daunting interview process, I was supported by a
former Cranford student who now studies Medicine
at Imperial College London. We conducted many
mock interviews over a couple of weeks and the feedback
I received during this stage was invaluable, thus I was
grateful to have this interaction made possible through
the school network. My advice to current Year 12’s who
are going through the UCAS process would be to stay
organised and more importantly to show a genuine
passion for your subject in your personal statement. Over
the summer, you can attend lectures, summer schools,
complete a future learn course or read a book about
your subject. Specifically, for those considering a career
in Medicine, whilst it is important that you focus on
your admissions tests such as the UCAT or BMAT 1-2
months early, do not let this overshadow your A-Level
commitments. To alleviate the pressure at the beginning
of Year 13, you should aim to complete your first draft of
the personal statement during your summer holidays so
that you can focus on your admission tests. Good luck for
all your future endeavours in Year 13!
Aliza Abbas (year 13)
For students doing UCAS early entry, there is a huge
amount of support available from the school. In my case,
I was able to get a wealth of feedback from teachers
regarding my personal statement, which allowed me to
write the best possible one, helping me secure the places
I need. Moreover, the school hosts mock interviews,
which give a good simulation of the actual interviews at
universities. Due to the pandemic, university interviews
were online only, and the school prepared me for this with
an online interview that was very similar to the real thing
and gave me a very good experience of online meetings,
since I had never done anything of this nature. I was very
fortunate to gain a conditional offer from Cambridge to
study Mathematics. Thanks to the school’s outstanding
teaching standards and support for students, I feel well
prepared to go on and pursue my degree.
For current Year 12 students (who will be entering
Year 13 shortly), my main piece of advice is to apply to
study a subject you will enjoy. You will be spending at
least 3 years studying it in depth, so you want to choose
something you can end up succeeding in. Employers look
more at transferable skills as well as experience gained
beyond studying, meaning the choice of subject matters
less than some may think (with a few exceptions).
Haroon Lukka (year 13)
7

#
SIXTH FORM
Outstanding
engagement
in learning
during
school
closures
8
The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund
The
16 to 19 Bursary Fund provides financial
support to help students overcome
specific financial barriers so they can remain in
education. The Bursary Fund supports eligible young
people with the cost of food, books, and educational
visits or other course materials or equipment essential
to successfully complete their Post 16 studies.
This year, the Bursary Fund has supported eligible
young people to purchase meals at Cranford. During
periods of remote learning, food vouchers were sent
to students to support with the cost of food whilst
working at home. Students have benefitted from
support with the cost of course materials and books
to support their academic study and help with the cost
of clothing and travel. A number of students have
received laptop computers to support their personal
study, for use at school during independent study
periods and at home in order to support their academic
study beyond Cranford as they move onto the next
stage of learning or the world of work.
For many of our students eligible for Bursary Fund
support, the financial support received has been a
lifeline and has been key in allowing students to
remain in education throughout what has been a
financially challenging period for many families.
We are delighted that the Bursary Fund has enabled
young people at Cranford to remain in education, it
has provided the financial support necessary to allow
young people to reach their full potential and offer
opportunities beyond the school.
Kerry Mulhair (Assistant Headteacher)
On
the 4th January 2021, the Prime
Minister announced another
national lockdown for the UK to
slow the spread of COVID-19. This included the
closure of school to all pupils including the sixth
form.
In Autumn Term 2020, the school invested in staff
and student training along with building an online
infrastructure through Microsoft Teams to ensure
that the education of pupils at Cranford remains
of the highest quality should there be another
lockdown. This training also prepared staff for many
other scenarios, for example if a student had to selfisolate
or if a teacher had to self-isolate. Our sixth
form students engaged extremely well in this process
and gained a wealth of knowledge and experience in
using Microsoft Teams before the national lockdown
in January took place.
From January 2021, as with all pupils in the school,
the sixth form students followed their timetable
remotely via Microsoft Teams, including attendance
to form time. All pupils accessed their lessons through
live online teaching. This was extremely important
to ensure that students still maintained their school
routine integrated with their daily routines at home.
We were also impressed by the sixth form students
also attending their revision classes that usually took
place during period 0 and period 6.
The sixth form students engaged extremely well with
remote learning with attendance to online lessons
being consistently above 95% for year 12 and 98%
for year 13.
The root reason behind this impressively high online
engagement was the high quality online teaching and
learning that was taking place on Teams. The lessons
for all year groups were innovative and interactive
throughout.

Some key interactive activities that the school used included:
SIXTH FORM
#
• Breakout rooms on Teams which allowed students to participate in group work.
• Online quizzes using Microsoft forms and Kahoot which promoted recall of knowledge
and understanding mixed with light competition.
• Meaningful homework to continue to be regularly set and marked using assignments on
Teams.
• Teacher’s consistently asking students to unmute to give their responses and promoting
discussions using the chat feature in lessons.
• Teachers checking work in real time and giving feedback as it was being complete using
One Note Class Notebook.
In addition to this, the sixth form students were also fully engaged in the pastoral programme of the school
as they still virtually attended form time in the morning where they were attending virtual assemblies, taking
part in Thought for the Week, Academic Reading and VESPA. Sixth form students were also receiving support
via telephone and Teams calls to help them progress to the next stage in their education through UCAS and
apprenticeship application support. Student wellbeing was a big focus in form time and we supplemented this
through wellbeing workshops that took place weekly after school. Some topics in the workshops included:
understanding and managing anxiety, how to make space for your wellbeing in a big household, routines and
creating a productive environment, dealing with uncertainty and managing emotions and panic attacks. These
workshops had an extremely large take up and student found these workshops useful as they could apply the
practical advice into their lives straight away.
Cranford is extremely proud of the resilience, positivity, enthusiasm and determination of pupils during the
remote learning period where students continued to make exceptional progress and experience the highest
quality of education provision despite the national lockdown. Needless to say, everyone was delighted to be
able to return to on site learning on 8th March 2021.
Chetan Shingadia (Assistant Headteacher Post 16)
SIXTH FORM
Student Testimonials – Lockdown Stories 1/3
After hearing the announcement of yet another national
lockdown, it was a stressful start to 2021. Virtual school
became the new ‘normal’ and as well as experiencing
a whole new platform of learning, my teachers worked
their hardest in ensuring as much normality as possible
by delivering lessons each period via Microsoft
Teams. Although sometimes being told “your mic is
muted” when speaking, or the video suddenly freezing,
each 50-minute lesson was as engaging as it could be,
as if we were sitting in the classroom. My teachers were
proactive as I was still required to sit timed essays, go
through exam questions at the end of each lesson and
use the ‘interactive whiteboard’ feature together as a
class. I could ask my teachers any questions regarding the
content covered as they would remain online throughout the
school day. Each day felt like living the same day on repeat
and it was a challenge to stay motivated. However, I made
sure I followed a structured daily routine by following my
timetable as if I were at school. I treated ‘break 1’ and
‘break 2’ as the half hour opportunity to come away from
my laptop screen and used my ‘study centre periods’ as
an opportunity to do my own revision. I managed my
own wellbeing and positive mind set by taking my dog
for a walk after the end of the school day and spent time
with my family in the evenings; I also stayed in daily
contact with my friends. Losing my Grandma in the
midst of all of this was a difficult challenge for myself,
however my teachers and the school were very supportive
and understanding. Overall, my experience with virtual
school has definitely been a steep learning curve and
although experiencing online learning is very valuable,
it made me realise how much of a privilege it is to attend
school in person.
Gurshaan Ghattoray (year 12)
Covid-19 has bought a sense of uncertainty in our lives.
As a young person, I have had to think about things
twice before any step - not just in academia. Coronavirus
definitely has its advantages and disadvantages. During
lockdown, my lessons were online however this time
there was more effort needed than before. Teachers at
Cranford were really understanding about the situation.
For example, Ms Agarwal, my chemistry teacher was
really good at delivering lessons online but also keeping
us engaged at each point. She would actually use the
board by making annotations on her PowerPoint rather
than just reading off it. Our homework was also set and
submitted online. One thing that I have learnt from my
teachers during lockdown is that communication is key,
9

#
SIXTH FORM
Student Testimonials – Lockdown Stories 2/3
even if it’s online. In the first couple of weeks, it was
really hard to have a good routine or work during the
study centre hours. However, I downloaded a lot of apps
to maximise productivity and also made sure that I was
actively going out once a day. I have been a ward helper
in my local hospital for the last 2 years. During both
lockdowns, I started spending more and more time in
the hospital which Non-COVID patients and listened to
their stories. This would really help me calm down and
not go crazy. I also spent weeks working with the British
Airways employees to ensure they were also physically,
mentally and socially well as well as other staff members
in the hospital. Volunteering has always bought peace
to my mind and it has allowed me to ensure that people
around me have a positive mind-set. Like everyone else,
I also struggled in the first few weeks of lockdown. I am
a type of person who does multiple things in a day and
all of a sudden I was expected to lock myself in a room
for months, which was scary. But my form tutor was very
encouraging and speaking to her during this hard time
made me realise that things will be okay.
Sharanjit Kaur (year 12)
During lockdown, my learning was extremely productive, I
made sure that the classwork was completed to the highest
standard, and I sent it to my teachers after every lesson
to get it checked. My teachers, especially for biology,
made my learning interactive and engaging by using apps
like Kahoot and Nearpod to engage the class in friendly
quizzes. I created a timetable to ensure that I managed my
time well, not only for my studies but to pursue my hobbies
and passions. I managed my wellbeing by being physically
active, ensuring I did at least 30 minutes of exercise daily
to keep fit and healthy. Furthermore, I was privileged
to receive an opportunity to become a volunteer at West
Middlesex Hospital, gaining an insight into my future
career. To stay positive during these catastrophic times, I
would write a daily list of aims (career or personal liferelated)
that I wanted to achieve, to encourage myself
to stay engaged, positive and motivated. I firmly believe
creating a detailed schedule is a useful habit and you can
keep track of what needs to be done to make each day as
productive as possible.
Aryaman Dhir (year 12)
During the bizarre experience of lockdown, I ensured to
maintain a clear-cut, productive routine in an attempt to
normalise these unprecedented times. Although this was
hard to keep at times, I used numerous methods to adapt,
including a routine with a similar format to that of the
schools: waking up at regular times, eating at ordinary
schedules, and ensuring to give myself breaks - this sense of
normality really helped me in maximising the productivity
of my days. Despite some technical difficulties, my
experiences with online learning were extremely pleasant.
Although hard at first, I began to effectively engage with
all my lessons and had the advantage of using online
resources such as quizzes, chat rooms (imitating group
work) and the chat bar function - as well as adding to
my work using online resources, which I believed really
furthered my knowledge after lessons. Like many other
students, a challenge I encountered over lockdown was
maintaining positive mental health - with struggles to
adapt to change, alongside the tendency to focus on the
negatives, I made sure it was my priority to put my mental
health first. By doing so, I was able to cope with times of
uncertainty and impatience by finding hobbies outside of
school such as clay work, painting and walking (which
I’m certain my dog had no complaints about) as well
as attempting to control a healthy work-life balance.
Overall, learning through lockdown has given me the
skill of adaptation, flexibility and self-reliance which are
true life skills that will help in the future.
Kasey Childs (year 12)
Although learning during lockdown had its challenges, the
experience definitely had some positive aspects. Through
the help of my teachers who devised a range of interactive
lessons with Kahoot quizzes to help us engage with the
content, learning during lockdown became a lot easier
than anticipated. The teachers were always on hand to
answer any questions via Teams or email and provide
detailed feedback on assignments. I knew it was important
to prioritise my wellbeing during this stressful period, so I
ensured that I stuck to my school timetable whereby I went
for a walk during the breaks to stay focused and maintain
a good routine. There were times when I felt demotivated
by staying inside but talking to my friends and family
helped boost my morale.
Dua-E Zehra (year 12)
Learning during lockdown was a challenge for everyone
but a manageable one; there’s a negative stigma about
online learning however it was an experience that made
me as well as a lot of other people more independent as a
student and as a person. Learning online had its challenges
from internet issues and timing, nevertheless with a good
mind-set and attitude to learning it was actually easier.
A good attitude to learning in my case was keeping a
routine and not taking this time at home for granted, I
treated everyday as a school day: slept and did my work
the same way I would during school. Teachers put a lot
of effort into making the online lessons as interactive
as possible with lots of Kahoot quizzes and other
interactive activities. Microsoft Teams was our main
tool of communication during lockdown which worked
very well when it came to actual online lessons as well
as setting homework tasks. People may have enjoyed not
being in school but ironically lots of people longed to be
back in school for their friends. Wellbeing was brought
up a lot during lockdown where people found it hard to be
cooped up at home all day however it gave us time to try
new things, explore different options and opportunities.
10

Student Testimonials – Lockdown Stories 3/3
SIXTH FORM
#
I personally spent my time finding new hobbies and
exploring my options for the future but there were times
where I felt that my efforts weren’t going anywhere, but
by being as open as I was and talking to my peers and
teachers it made me realise that everything happens for a
reason and that this was just an example of that.
Mudathir Ahmed (year 12)
My learning experience during lockdown was a learning
curve for me. I am a very sociable person, so the aspect
of not being able to socialise was daunting. My teachers
used creative methods such as Kahoot to create a
classroom environment and keep us all socialising as if we
were in school. However, I maintained a good routine by
regulating myself to wake up every day as if I was going
to school. I kept every day as in sync as I could muster by
creating a timetable (as I would have in school) to follow
and sitting at my table to help me get in the mind-set of
wanting to work. I managed my wellbeing through a lot of
exercise and I kept in contact with people and socialised
in class and group work activities so I wasn’t secluded.
In addition, I still involved myself in activities I would
have to partake in at school. My biggest challenge was
motivating and disciplining myself to stay independent
and on top of my work. I had to go over content I didn’t
understand and reach out to teachers via Teams, who were
very helpful and supportive in answering any questions.
I have 3 younger siblings in a small home...that itself
brought many challenges as it did for many others I am
sure! Nevertheless, lockdown taught me that I am far
more resilient than I thought I was, far more disciplined
than I thought I was, and making sure I prioritise
my wellbeing above anything else.
Ruqaya Qureshi, (year 12)
When lockdown struck, I felt that the transition into remote
learning was not too disruptive. My teachers made a great
effort in adapting their teaching methods to fit the new
circumstances. Online platforms like Microsoft Teams
also made remote learning interactive and improved
communication. Occasionally, I took part in quizzes on
apps like Kahoot which made the learning more engaging
and encouraged me to be competitive. Completing and
submitting my assignments via Teams was simple as my
tasks were sorted by their due date. This improved my
organisational skills as everything was in one place and
easily accessible. Although there was a lot of uncertainty
and negativity in the media, I tried to stay optimistic with
the hope of life returning to normality.
Rohan Kapoor (year 12)
Remote learning was indeed challenging; however, I
can honestly say that my experience of online learning
during the coronavirus pandemic has been a positive one.
I found it crucial to have a structured daily routine in
order to have a sense of normality. The number one thing
I tried to do was treat each lesson as if I were physically
going to them. It was quite easy to get distracted (by
distractions such as phone), however I would try to keep
it out of reach to minimise the distractions. Moreover, I
think that sticking to the timetable helped me to insert
some structure into my working day and life in general.
It was quite tempting sometimes to miss study centre
lessons, nonetheless I tried to follow my usual timetable.
Moreover, one advantage of virtual learning was that
lessons were usually recorded which meant we were able
to revisit them and pause them in order to make notes or
to absorb what had been said, which you cannot do in
a real time lesson! Various platforms other than Teams
were used to make learning interactive and interesting.
Multiple choice quizzes on Kerboodle were an effective
way to make lessons interactive and trying to find gaps
in knowledge.
Manpreet Bahtra (year 12)
During lockdown my teachers ensured that every lesson
was interactive and engaging through the use of various
apps such as Kahoot. This helped to reduce the gap
between online learning and face to face learning. I
maintained a good daily routine by making a timetable
that helped me to stay on top of my work and it also left
me with plenty of free time. I also managed to stay positive
by maintaining an optimistic outlook on life and getting
plenty of fresh air too!
Filsan Abdillahi (year 12)
Lockdown was a very hard period for me to
stay attentive and on top of my work because we were at
the beginning of our A-level journey, with new subjects. At
first it was a struggle getting to grips with a new online
schedule not to mention using Teams for the first time. I
am grateful to my teachers as they incorporated ways to
keep the class interactive such as break out rooms or
even a simple game. I believe that over the course, remote
learning improved the quality of my work and is
evident in my current grades. I stuck to a strict timetable
that guaranteed my work to be complete. Maintaining
a healthy daily routine is critical especially throughout
that time. Constantly doing schoolwork made me feel
overwhelmed so I would use relaxation techniques
such as walks, reading or even a phone call to my
friends. It allowed me to feel ‘normal’ again under the
circumstances. To stay positive during this time, I would
remind myself of my end goal that I’m striving to
achieve. This kept me going and gave me the drive to
work harder. Demotivation was my biggest challenge
and I overcame this by re-evaluating my choices and
continuing to stay focused. Overall, I am thankful for this
lockdown experience as it taught me a lot and I doubtlessly
can say it changed me for the better.
Ramla Ali (year 12)
11

#
MATHS
12
AND ECONOMICS
In 2020-21,
the Maths department
had a year unlike any
before. We are really impressed by the resilience and
creativity shown by both students and staff throughout,
which has led to a highly successful and fulfilling year for
all.
We realised back in March 2020 that we would need to
change our curriculum plans as many of the topics due to
be taught to years 7, 8, 9 and 10 were not appropriate to
learn independently and required face to face teaching. Our
Key Stage 3 and 4 coordinators, Mr Bina and Mr Dhokia
did an excellent job of changing the order that we taught the
topics while still ensuring students had the prior knowledge
to access the work. In September further modifications were
made to ensure that the missed topics were caught up and the
structure flowed well. Still more adaptations were made in
January when we locked down for a second time, replacing
topics such as Straight line graphs and Transformations which
required printed templates with topics such as formulae and
sequences which are much more practical for online lessons.
During the January lockdown, we utilised a variety of new
resources to engage students in online learning, including
Kahoot quizzes – multiple choice quizzes where speed and
correct answer chains are key for a high score, Whiteboard
Fi – a programme which allowed students to show us their
working out in real time, google forms for students to
submit their answers for marking and Microsoft teams chat
for students to feedback their answers and ask questions.
We were very impressed with how the students engaged
with these activities and focussed during their lessons.
Some teachers also made revision videos for their year
11s and year 13s to prepare for their exams, and also prior
knowledge videos to prepare year 12s for new topics. The
students responded really well to these, and I for one was
delighted by the number of ‘likes’ and ‘loves’ given to my
Easter A level Statistics videos by our wonderful year 13
Maths students.
Our in class lessons have had to change as well, as we
have been unable to share equipment (eg. Pens for mini
whiteboards, traffic light cards and maths puzzles) and face
to face group work for students has not been possible. Mr
Dhokia came up with the excellent idea to help all students
in years 7 – 11 to be able to use their mini whiteboards in
class by donating our entire stock of mini whiteboard pens
to the Heads of Years so they could give one to each student,
eliminating the need for sharing. This year teachers have
also utilised our online Maths Homework platform, Hegarty
Maths, as well as employing Microsoft teams assignments,
to ensure students still had access to quality homework and
marking without the need to collect and quarantine their
books.
I would like to thank all of the Maths teachers for their
commitment to providing engaging and challenging lessons
during both in class and online learning.
Sarah Brackley (Head of Maths Department)
Model United Nations
Experience
The year 12 Economics cohort had an
amazing opportunity to put their economic
knowledge into practice by participating in
a Model United Nations (MUN) experience.
The MUN was organised within the school,
with each student representing delegates of
various countries: such as the United States,
United Kingdom, China, Turkey, India and
Saudi Arabia, to name a few. Their mission
was to discuss current affairs, representing
the favours and common interests of their
own ‘nations’. Key topics included how to
transform and expand their economies post-
COVID, how their countries can support the
refugee crisis, or how to tackle social issues
globally such as female discrimination.
Whilst their interests and ideas were
unanimous at heart, the realisation of putting
these into practice were proven to be difficult
due to conflicting vested interests held by
countries, as well as understanding the power
held by the UN Security Council. The MUN
also provided the opportunity for the students
to practise their communication, leadership
and presentation skills.
Alham Ahmad (Economics Department)

Sixth Form Trip
Winton Gallery / the Science Museum
After
MATHS
months of virtual learning, mock exams and UCAS applications,
20 Year 12 Mathematics and Further Maths students were
selected to visit the Winton Gallery at the Science Museum on 9th July 2021.
These students, among many others, had demonstrated hard-work, diligence and
resilience throughout the academic year. The trip provided them with an insight
about the importance and everyday use of mathematics. Some examples included
the importance of mathematics within economics, statistics, computing, philosophy,
trade, war and architecture.
#
Alham Ahmad (Mathematics Department)
On our short yet productive trip to The Winton
Gallery, we were able to witness how maths is
used in real life more often than we would imagine
first-hand. For example, we got to see the Elliott
401 computer which was used to analyse insect
damage as well as to work in the mathematics
of genetics, emphasising the limitless uses of
maths, all the way from 1954 until now. We had
the opportunity to look around the gallery at
our own pace and look at many artefacts which
extended our knowledge about war and trade, all
in relation to maths. This opportunity allowed us to expand our interest in
maths as a subject as well as give us a genuine insight into how it can be
applied to the world around us and understand why it is such an important
factor. It was also a perfect chance for us as sixth formers to see if we were
interested in studying maths in higher education and perhaps pursuing a
career in this field. Getting to visit The Winton Gallery was definitely a
valuable opportunity and further sparked my interest in going on to study
maths at university.
Athisha Sivabalan (year 12)
13

# SCIENCE
14
Challenges and Solutions in a Covid World
An
education in a COVID environment
has been an adjustment for staff and
students alike. This has been the most
disruption to a student’s education since World War
2 and it was imperative that students still reaped
the rewards from being delivered an outstanding
education. One of the challenges for science was
balancing theory with practical work which is the
heart of the subject. Through collaboration with
science technicians, teachers and external agencies
this was made possible allowing students to continue
developing their problem solving and analytical
skills which are crucial in wider contexts. This was
an important milestone this year as not all schools in
the borough had the facilities or resources to allow
practical work to occur in a COVID environment but
with the support from the school it made it possible
for students at Cranford. This meant the department
could continue to fulfil its mission statement to
“maximise aspirations and opportunity for all
students, regardless of backgrounds and abilities to
reach their full potential in mastering the skills and
harbouring the deep knowledge required in order to
become young scientists and appreciate the value of
science within society through outstanding teaching
and learning”.
Just as a sense of normality was on the horizon
the UK was hit with wave 3 resulting in a national
lockdown. The department’s vision has always been
to use research led techniques to build student’s
science capital by delivering a holistic curriculum
that; invokes an enthusiasm for science, focuses
on developing working scientifically skills and
promotes a deep understanding of scientific concepts
through links to the bigger picture. This meant the
departmental focus for this period was delivering
outstanding lessons with a focus on engagement
and informative feedback to mimic the classroom
environment. Students and staff spent the autumn
term developing proficiency in using Microsoft
teams thus our curriculum was adapted to deliver live
lessons to all classes. During the school closure, it
was important that the department was able to ensure
students continued to engage in science and reflect
the same enthusiasm they had in a classroom setting.
This meant staff were trained and confident in using
software programmes such as Nearpod and Kahoot
to model in class teaching and assessment. Staff
feedback was that Kahoot unlocked a competitive
element in students they hadn’t seen before with year
13’s looking forward to and being disappointed if
the weekly Kahoot quiz didn’t go ahead. The use of
Nearpod in a virtual environment also worked well
with students stating “it is more interactive and good
for questions” and “other teachers should definitely

use it”. To ensure students were still receiving
an opportunity to develop scientific skills the
department incorporated use of PHET and
Java simulations into lessons to allow students
to continue developing their observational
skills through these online investigations.
This allowed students to model scientific
investigations and change parameters in an
experiments just as they would do in school.
A feedback poll was completed by students
across all year groups about their experience
of science lessons in a remote environment in
which an impressive 367 pupils responded. In
this poll students voiced that they knew they
were making progress in their live lessons
as they were now able to do things that they
could not do before. They could also see an
improvement in their marks when completing
exam questions. Students enjoyed their lessons
as they were able to converse with their teachers
and they liked the use of Kahoot and Nearpod
as these allowed them to actively engage in
the lesson. These responses enthused our
staff to deliver high quality lessons where the
teacher demonstrates good subject knowledge,
highlighting misconceptions and strong use of
questioning using interactive tools. Students
were offered scaffolded tasks and given lots of
praise and encouragement to engage with the
lesson and also to work independently.
As with an ever changing COVID climate
students returned to school in March 2021 and
the departmental focus was shifted back to
creating a positive learning climate in line with
the department ethos to ensure contact time
with students was maximised whilst supporting
students with their adjustment back into normal
routines. Alongside their return to school there
were opportunities to promote science capital
that had been put on pause. These included a
national STEM week and a lecture from a guest
speaker in the medical and research field, both
designed to inspire our students and for them
to see real world impact of science.
The science department would like to take this
time to thank students for continuing to show
resilience this year and adapting to changes
in school and during remote learning. You
endeavoured to work hard and concentrate
in live on-line lessons which itself was quite
intensive. The positive attitude you have shown
this year in science is commendable and we
looking forward to building on your love for
science next year.
Amrat Atwal and Seema Mehmi (Heads of
Science Department)
Science
Testimonials
Period 0 Activity
I really enjoyed all experiments.
It was so fun and engaging. My
favourite experiment was the
rainbow boiling tube because
it was so cool to see how acids
can make a rainbow. All the
experiments were fun. It was
fun to enjoy the experiment with
many people. We learnt many
new things. Cranford Community
College is a enjoyable place to
learn new things especially doing
many experiments.
Palveer Layal (year 7)
My definition of science is the
way of learning about life. I am
grateful to be chosen as a student
to attend a morning of fun. We
did practices using acids, making
a rainbow in a test tube, and
seeing static electricity and how
colour spreads to make beautiful
patterns.
I enjoyed the rainbow practical as
it showed how 0.5 ml of salt added
to acid could make a rainbow.
Science has shown a different
perspective to what we believe.
Experiments are fun but also show
how science has evolved for us to
gain greater understanding.
Sofia Bisnauthsing (year 7)
I really enjoyed the science session
as it was really fun and was a way
to get our minds thinking. I think
my favourite experiment was the
rainbow in a boiling tube as it was
really interesting to see a rainbow
.This was so much fun and my
group made one! This has inspired
me to become a scientist and this
shows how great science is at
Cranford Community College.
Jagroop Layal (year 7)
SCIENCE
I really enjoyed the ‘Rainbow
Fizz’ practical because I got to
learn about the different acids and
how the reactions occurred. The
science experiments at Cranford
overall are really enjoyable as
they allow me to understand
science practically, as well as
have fun.
Jasleen Ghattoray (year 7)
#
15

# SCIENCE
Cranford “Innovates for the Future’’
We
have continued with the annual tradition
for the Science Department at Cranford
where British Science Week is an opportunity to
advertise the biggest and best of what Science can
do for our students. The annual theme this year was
‘Innovating for the Future’ which allowed us to offer
a range of activities harnessing on the curiosity
and imagination of our students and offering them
opportunities to be innovative in all areas of Science
throughout Biology, Chemistry and Physics. The level
of enthusiasm and participation from our students was
exemplary despite the unprecedented circumstances,
owing to the disruption caused by COVID 19, and it
being their first week back at school after almost 8
weeks of remote learning.
Mind, Body and Soul
Every year the Science Department involves the entire
school in a whole school activity for the Science
week. This year saw the Science Department join
forces with the weekly Mind, Body and Soul sessions.
Here teachers from different departments led their
groups in using technology to design a prosthetic limb
blending the empathetic aspect of human nature with
the use of technology to help people lead and enjoy
an all rounded experience with life. The activity was
equally enjoyed by the students of Year 7 to Year 9 as
well as the members of staff who led it. Well done and
a huge thanks to everyone who took part.
Key Stage 3 Science Lessons
Throughout the week the KS3 students in the Science
lessons took part in a variety of activities that
spanned across the three Sciences including Physics,
Chemistry and Biology. The main objective was to
overcome the misconception that Science works in
isolation and offer students opportunities to establish
cross curricular links with disciplines such as Maths
and Geography.
The students saw themselves being involved in
planning strategies for management of floods,
16

SCIENCE
#
including urban areas and country side as these
become more and more frequent and severe as a result
of global climate change. Students also designed their
own rain gauge to collect data on rainfall and then
present it to their peers. A session based on Biology
had students researching key features of various
biomes on the planet as well as the organisms that
inhabit those biomes. After this students were then
involved in exploring the human threats to the biomes.
They had to design and present solutions to overcome
these threats and maintain biodiversity.
The sessions were extremely valuable in further
developing the Science capital of our students while
offering them a chance to work in small teams and
demonstrate their communications skills to their
peers.
Virtual Talk - Clinical Genomics
As part of the National Science week, our A Level
Science students were offered an opportunity to attend
a virtual talk by Dr Lena Rai (Senior Clinical Scientist,
Department of Clinical Genomics, Royal Marsden
NHS Trust). It was organised virtually via Teams
focussing on ‘’Enabling Precision Medicine through
Genomics and Innovative Therapeutic Strategies.’’
It helped enrich the students understanding of how
Science has helped develop an array of applications
ranging in their use from offering an early diagnosis
of patients with rare diseases as well as facilitating
more effective use of cancer therapies. The session
helped enthuse the students and they not only engaged
with the lecture part of the session but also asked
the speaker very enriching and thought provoking
questions. Very well done!
Overall, the activities in the Science week were very
well received and helped maintain student curiosity,
motivation and engagement in the lessons even
further.
Aastha Swaminathan (Science Department)
17

# ENGLISH
When
schools closed in March 2020,
the English department rolled up
their sleeves and got to work. From the sight of Mrs
Brooks running along Cranford High Street giving
out copies of A Level texts to departing students, to
staff delivering exercise books and folders forgotten
at school, to delivering a steady stream of technology
across what felt like most of West London, the English
department have been fully committed to ensuring
that our students stay engaged in education, whether
at home or in the classroom. We were a core part
of trialling blended and online learning (creating
YouTube channels, piloting Zoom and Teams lessons
and delivering beamed lessons live to whole year
groups at the end of the summer term 2020) and this
has continued as we refine our online skills in 2020-
21.
Adopting Microsoft Teams as a medium was an
incredible asset to our department. It meant that
we were able to make resources immediately
accessible to students, uploading revision materials
and resources which would have been prohibitively
expensive to print. From the Autumn term, Teams has
been used to set and submit homework which makes
submitting and giving feedback on work much easier.
The facility to share and edit work in real time with
students is an incredible way of giving meaningful
feedback and helping students improve their skills
with individual attention. We used Teams as a way
of delivering intervention and catch-up materials,
based on our very successful “learning mat” format
which aims to summarise learning with a range of
activities in accessible, “chunked” stages of learning.
This allowed students to work through revision at
their own pace, while also providing opportunities for
stretch and challenge.
of arts material now available online while theatres
are closed: students have watched productions from
the National Theatre available free to all schools
through the National Theatre Online Library, and the
school have invested heavily in students’ access to the
Arts through our subscription to Digital Theatre Plus,
an online platform which houses hundreds of filmed
productions of plays from leading theatre companies
across the world alongside teaching resources,
documentaries, films and interviews. Students have
been able to access this from home, bringing them as
close as possible to incredible productions which they
would not have been able to access otherwise. We
continue to make use of our subscriptions to Audiopi
(a bank of podcasts on GCSE set texts, available
online and as an app) and the EMag (a magazine from
the English and Media Centre for A Level students)
to foster independence and give our students access
to the very best possible resources.
When the second national lockdown happened in
January 2021, we were able to move into full live
teaching immediately; as a department we played
a significant role in professional development of
others in the school and driving innovation. While
online lessons will never be able to fully replicate the
18
We also used this year as an opportunity to investigate
resources available online to support our students,
particularly in Key Stages 4 and 5. We now subscribe
to Massolit, an online database of short lecture series
by university professors on a range of subjects –
these include every set text for A Level and GCSE
alongside wider contextual and genre studies to
support students’ wider knowledge and to stretch
and challenge. Mrs Brooks is also working with the
site, writing questions to accompany these lectures
which will be published online in the summer in order
to provide a more interactive learning and revision
experience. We have also made the most of the wealth

classroom experience, there was a huge amount
to celebrate: staff used the time to be creative
and innovative about the way they delivered
lessons and engaged students, from interactive
activities on platforms like Nearpod, to high
energy competitive quizzes; students were able
to access individual and small group intervention
through Teams after school and during study centre
periods; staff were able to use features like “class
notebook” to track and respond to student work in
real time; teachers recorded their own audiobooks
of set texts (complete with voices!) and both staff
and students were able to bring some of their home
personas to the classroom.
As a result of our successes over lockdown, the transition
back to in-school teaching was simple. We kept the best
of online learning, and regained the in-person interaction
that we missed so much as teachers. If the past 18 months
have taught us anything, it is how much the students we
teach are the best part of our jobs.
Evelyn Brooks
(Head of English Department)
ENGLISH
#
Teachers brought atmosphere and personality
to their virtual classrooms with custom
backgrounds. Gothic Victorian houses when
studying Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, theatre sets
for lessons on plays to the White House or the
Death Star – we explored!
Being online allowed us to be more creative
with our task setting. Here, year 13 created a gif
summary of their set text Hamlet. The only rules
were – no words allowed!
Cranford English
Channel
This was created by an A Level student to
celebrate Tolkien day. Contemplating framing
it for the English office.
19

# ENGLISH
The poem “Limbo” and slavery
Limbo
And limbo stick is the silence
in front of me
limbo
limbo
limbo like me
limbo
limbo like me
long dark night is the silence in
front of me
limbo
limbo like me
stick hit sound
and the ship lie it ready
stick hit sound
and the dark still steady
limbo
limbo like me
long dark deck and the water
surrounding me
long dark deck and the silence
is over me
limbo
limbo like me
drum stick knock
and the darkness is over me
stick is the whip
and the dark deck is slavery
stick is the whip
and the dark deck is slavery
limbo
limbo like me
knees spread wide
and the water ishiding
limbo
limbo like me
knees spread wide
and the dark ground is under me
down
down
down
and the drummer is calling me
limbo
limbo like me
sun coming up and the
drummers are paising me
out of the dark and the dumb
gods are raising me
up
up
up
and the music is saving me
hot slow step
on the burning ground.
Edward Kamau Braithwaite
(2005)
20
In
this presentation I will be explaining what this
poem is talking about and how it is linked with
slavery and how the British colonized West Africa. I
will be talking about the part “long dark deck and the
water surrounding me” to “limbo like me” and how
slavery is linked with this poem.
“Stick is the whip”
I think that this part of the poem is about how the
British would abuse and hurt the people from west
Africa if they were slacking off, tried to escape or
even tried committing suicide or worse. All these
people had to go through this punishment so to punish
them the crewmembers would whip them.
“And the dark ship is slavey”
I think this quote talks about how the slaves were in a
ship that was in horrible condition and all the slaves
were in a very unhygienic place. The hygiene was so
bad that people started to have diseases like smallpox,
yellow fever, malaria and many more; which caused
a lot of people to suffer and even die because of this.
Personally, I think that the phrase “the dark ship” is
about on the lower deck people would be crammed in
a tiny place with ceilings as low as 4 and a half feet
which was horrible.
“Limbo”
Limbo is a dance that the slaves were told to do for
the crewmembers enjoyment and they thought that it
would enliven captive spirits and reduce their pain,
however it was also a form of exercise and it helped
make sure the slaves were healthy and that they were
in good condition.
Written by Edward Kamau Braithwaite (2005)

What is Love?
(TWICE – What is Love?)
What is Love?
What makes someone feel things?
That makes you fly like a dove
And make you feel like a king?
What is Love?
What makes you realises these emotions?
With a sensation of being beloved,
Like you drank cursed potions.
What is Love?
A question I ask myself every day,
Wondering if I’m enough.
I say this in May,
The day we met.
What is Love?
Something I feel whenever I see you, my crush,
With your hand around my hand like a glove,
That makes me blush.
What is Love?
Something I saw at first sight,
That made Earth throw adoration, like a shove
While the stars shone bright.
What is Love?
Something that I don’t want to believe in anymore,
You made me feel unloved,
That made me run out the door.
What is Love?
A once in a lifetime....
Alisha Pereira Habibo (year 7)
My
poem ‘What is Love?’ is based on a song
that I’ve listened to for many years. I
decided to use this song because we want to know
what is love and why we feel emotions for people we
like. I also thought why not use it near Valentine’s day
since some of us are alone, and some of us are with
someone.
A technique I’ve used are some sentences like ‘The
day we met’ and ‘A once in a lifetime’ to add emotions.
A once in a lifetime is to show that we all fall in love
really hard and that it will always feel like a once in
a lifetime because we never know if we will feel like
this anymore.
If you notice, in the beginning of each stanza I use
repetition of ‘What is Love?’ because each stanza
shows the days going by of my character wondering
what love is.
Another technique is that I’ve used some similes in
stanzas 1-5. I’ve decided to use the similes in stanza 1
‘like a dove’ and ‘like a king’ because doves are very
majestic birds that we use in weddings so a dove can
represent a very loving and beautiful bird flying around
with those flower bunches to show you are so in love.
‘Like a king’ is used to show that they are the most
important rule in life, and this character (the person
they like) feels ‘like a king’ in their life.
The simile in stanza 2 ‘like you drank cursed potions’
is meant to show that the character isn’t used to the
feeling, and it feels like they must’ve drunk something
wrong. I put potions because it is multiple feelings they
are feeling, so they might have drunk multiple potions.
The potions are cursed because when you look at love,
at first it is scary but then you realise it is very good.
In stanza 4, I put ‘with your hand around my hand,
like a glove’ because their hands fit perfectly with
their crush, and since they are holding hands a glove
description fits perfectly and mainly because when I
imagined this scene, I imagine the person they love to
have large hands so when they hold hands it’s like a
glove.
Finally, in stanza 5, I put the simile ‘that made Earth
throw adoration, like a shove’ because it’s like Earth
giving the character advice to make a move for it.
The rhyme scheme I’ve used is, ABAB, CDCD, EFEF,
GHGH, IJIJ, KLKL.
In my last stanza, I especially want people to be
sympathising with the character because it shows
rejection because sometimes love isn’t our path at the
moment.
Overall, I want to show the reader that all these
emotions have a meaning.
Alisha Pereira Habibo (year 7)
ENGLISH
#
21

#
SIXTH FORM
The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ)
All
students whilst in Year 12 complete the taught element of the Extended Project Qualification as part
of an academic programme of lessons that seek to develop their research skills, critical thinking
and academic writing ability. Alongside this, students are taught how to reference work correctly and improve
their ability to organise their time and work independently. Students then have the choice whether to use these
skills to complete the Extended Project Qualification. It is a stand-alone qualification which is worth half an
A Level and adds a further dimension to students’ studies in the Sixth Form, stretching and challenging the
“Overall, throughout the EPQ process
I believe that I learnt a multitude
of useful skills which I will be able
to utilise when undertaking my
Engineering degree at university.
This is because the learning is largely
independent and project based and so
doing the EPQ has given me the skills
I need to plan and complete a large
project. I have really enjoyed being able to undertake
research into computers and their processing power as this
is an area I am passionate about. Sourcing information
form a range of sources, I was able to extract the salient
detail and cross check these for validity. I am really proud
of what I achieved”.
Are computers
reaching their
processing limit?
Faizaan Abbas (year 13)
Why are cosmetic dental
treatments becoming more
“When I started the EPQ, I chose a
popular?
title that really interested me as I
want to study dentistry at university.
Therefore, the opportunity to explore
my prospective career in more
depth was one I leapt at. Although
I had some prior knowledge of
certain areas of dentistry due to the
university application process, I was
by no means an expert in the field. I chose to focus on
cosmetic dentistry as there is so much to explore and the
popularisation of dental procedures in the media meant
that it is currently a ‘hot’ topic. This aspect meant there
was a lot of information around the topic and so I had
to carefully refine my question and carefully plan the
research that I wanted to undertake. Writing a 5000-word essay required a lot of dedication and I had to amend
my plan several times to ensure that I stayed on track. I am really please with my finished project and the
advantage it will give me when I am writing research papers as a qualified dentist in the future.”
Anjali Bhambra (year 13)
22

SIXTH FORM
#
most ambitious by allowing students to choose a topic of their choice and study it in greater depth. As well
as developing their independent skills, the EPQ also offers students the chance to develop their creativity and
develop their hobbies, skills and talents outside of their Level 3 subjects. Students can choose to produce a
written report or to plan, organise and run an event or to produce a creative artefact. It provides an excellent
foundation for students to develop the academic skills they will need at university and beyond.
Frances Green (Assistant Headteacher)
Are there gender disparities in
sentencing within the criminal
“I learnt so many skills and a great deal
justice system in the U.K.?
about existing gender inequalities that
exist in society as a result of doing my
EPQ. Studying Sociology has made me
more aware of the role gender plays
within society and this coupled with
my ambition to study law at university
led to me choosing to research this
topic. Time management was key to
balancing my EPQ with the rest of my A levels; I have
definitely improved my skills in this area as a result of
completing my EPQ and I have also learnt to recognise
when a strategy or method is not working for me and to
respond and adapt accordingly. All of the reading and
research I have done has opened my eyes to the way the
criminal justice system operates in the U.K and has helped prepare me for my degree and future career.”
Fatima Braganca (year 13)
“During this project, I feel I have learnt
a lot and had a fantastic experience. EPQ
lessons were once a week and during
this lesson my supervisor supported
and guided me to help me understand
how I should approach sources and
how to be more critical about the type
of sources I chose to use as part of my
research. I was introduced to the idea
of a Gantt chart, which I had never used before, and this
helped me a lot with time management skills. I think that
learning organisational tools such as this has really helped
with my time management and helped me to understand
how to prepare for my A Levels. Moreover, completing
reflections was key to this project and whilst at first I did
not understand the benefit of doing this, gradually as I approached the mid--project review I grew to appreciate
the opportunity to look back on my own work and evaluate my own progress. I think the evaluation has helped
me to understand myself as a learner and I think this will be invaluable at university.”
Elina Gorjunova (year 13)
How can interior architecture
promote well–being in
residential and dementia care
homes in the U.K?
23

# GEOGRAPHY
Geography Department - A Lockdown Rollercoaster
The
Geography Department went through a rollercoaster ride during the national lockdown, gradually
migrating from Frog to MS Teams, with lessons published virtually and interactive lessons for
students to fully engage. Students managed brilliantly coming online to classes and engaging through the
various activities that were created for them. Geography lessons grew from strength to strength with various
use of quizzes, documentaries, interactive games and activities.
The Geography curriculum is designed to grow inquisitive students with a passion for the natural and human
processes on Earth. Spiralling down from Geography A Level, the KS3 curriculum is designed to give students
the foundational map and inquiry skills to better understand our planet. For example, by the end of year 7
students are able to carry out their own fieldwork and make decisions in relation to our school environment.
Year 7 students also look at local place, space and area, studying Europe and Russia through topics such as
Climate, Biomes and Resource Management. In year 8 students are able to articulate controversies surrounding
climate change and plastic pollution through debates and projects. Our year 8 students look at wider continents
such as Africa and Asia, through the formation of the Himalayas and the development indicators within Africa.
This prepares our students to be educated and engaged future citizens with an engrained love and respect for
the world. At GCSE, the broad range of themes and topics enables our students to delve further into Earth’s
processes, whilst the combination of human and physical geographies develop critical thinking skills. Thus
our students reach A Level Geography with an abundance of skills and knowledge, which are utilised through
an analysis of current political issues, such as contested borders, and enhanced during the study of Earth’s
scientific processes, such as the carbon cycle and geomorphology of the coastline.
The main curriculum is enriched by a programme of extensive fieldwork trips to Surrey, Central London and
the region of Devon. Our connections with numerous educational institutes enable us to offer enrichment
in the form of workshops to build on interpersonal skills, as well as opportunities to visit the Geographical
Association and the Royal Geographical Society. Students are directed towards a variety of local universities
and their outreach programmes, encouraging them to explore the value of further specialisation within a
geographical context.
This seven-year accumulation of analytical, mathematical and cartographical talents prepares our students for
a variety of future opportunities, including entry to Russel Group universities in both arts and science subjects.
This leads to an array of exciting careers including new fields linked to climate change, globalisation and the
management of the earth’s resources.
Aaron Lever (Head of Geography Department)
24

GEOGRAPHY
#
Geography
A-Level Trip to Slapton, Devon
In July 2021 Year 12 Geography students travelled
to Slapton, Devon to conduct research and gather
data for their Non-Examined Assessment on a five
day residential visit. Students spent 5 hours in the
minibus driving from Cranford to Slapton, through
heavy torrential rain.
One day of the residential involved our students
spending a whole day in Plymouth, observing and
collating data on regeneration within the town
centre looking at the different areas of regeneration
and how this has impacted on the local people and
the environment.
On the following day students walked along
Slapton Sands, and conducted beach profiles,
sediment size in relation to erosion rates and
enjoyed fish and chips with ice-cream!
The students enjoyed themselves thoroughly and
had a great time.
Thank you to all the staff involved in making this
trip possible.
Aaron Lever
(Head of Geography Department)
Geography GSCE Trip
to Epping Forest, Essex
Year 10 Geography students travelled
to Epping Forest, Essex in July 2021
to conduct their fieldwork on rivers.
Students collected data on Debden
Brook, by measuring the width, depth,
and velocity and sediment size. Students
used tape measures, metre sticks and
stop watches to determine whether the
flood risk increases or decreases as you
travel further downstream. Seventy-seven
students went to the rivers and enjoyed
themselves thoroughly.
Thank you to all the staff involved with
making this trip possible.
Aaron Lever (Head of Geography
Department)
25

#
MWL - MODERN WORLD LANGUAGES
Bienvenido! Willkommen!
Welcome to the MWL Department
Our Mission
At Cranford, all students have the opportunity to learn a modern
world language. They learn German or Spanish and immerse
themselves in another culture. Thus, our aim is to offer an immersive
learning environment to all our students where they feel liberated
and empowered to express their ideas and thoughts in a different
language. Furthermore, by learning a foreign language at Cranford
our students are given the opportunity to be equipped with the
necessary skills to become open, tolerant and proud citizens of the
world through a varied and diverse cultural and academic experience.
In the Modern World Languages Department we have an ambitious
and comprehensive curriculum which ensures that all students are
well prepared for the next phase in education/life. We build on
the varied linguistic skills students have learned at Key Stage 2
and use the insight they have gained in their language lessons to
cement a love and passion for language learning. We aim to make
the communication at Key Stage 3 meaningful and relevant to the
students, thus igniting a desire to communicate in another language.
We use a communicative approach where students learn and practise
the new language through the interaction with their peers and the
teacher.
Building on this solid foundation, our Key Stage 4 curriculum
enables students to further explore the depths of the language they
study. This provides students with a valuable opportunity to critically
explore the world around them and to become inquisitive and openminded
citizens of the world.
At Key Stage 5 we kindle the students’ curiosity and encourage in
depth discussions about political, historical, artistic and cultural topics
in the target language, preparing our students for their personal and
academic journey as well as a wide variety of career opportunities,
such as Languages combined with a Science, Economics, Business,
International Law or Engineering.
Finally, within the MWL department, students are given the
opportunity to express an individual voice and are encouraged to
experiment with language. Our intention is that by the end of their
last year of secondary education, all our students have understood
how to “shape” the language to create this voice and make it their
own.
In the past year, we have embraced new ways of making this
ambitious curriculum happen for our students. Our staff have been
proactive in finding new ways to teach while online from home and
still keep the spark and fluidity of language learning alive. We have
re-written schemes of work taking account of new technology, such
as Nearpod to allow students to continue to collaborate and work on
projects together. We have challenged our students to learn in a new
ways as well as challenging ourselves to deliver outstanding lessons
whatever the context we find ourselves in.
26
Ally Manole (Head of German - Modern World Languages Department)

Christmas Baking Challenge for Year 7 and Year 8
As
MWL - MODERN WORLD LANGUAGES
part of our immersive programme in German and Spanish, we encourage our students to get into
the spirit by researching and finding out more about the cultures behind the languages. What better
way to get to know a culture than through the food! Our Year 7 and 8 students rose to our Christmas baking
challenge, donned the aprons and introduced themselves to the rolling pin with delicious results!
#
John Lennon
(Modern World Languages Department)
Feeling inspired?
Try one of the recipes yourself!
LENGUAS
DE GATO
Buen tranajo! Gute Arbeit!
Receta:
Ingredientes:
• 120 gr de harina de repostería
• 100 gr de mantequilla
• 100 gr de azúcar glas
• 2 claras de huevo + 1 yema
• 1 cucharadita de esencia de vainilla
• 1 pizca de sal
• 100 gr de chocolate negro para la cobertura
1. La mantequilla tiene que estar a punto pomada, sin pasar por el microondas.
2. Ponemos en un bol la mantequilla y el azúcar molido y lo batimos enérgicamente con un batidor manual
hasta que quede todo bien integrado.
3. Añadimos poco a poco las claras de huevo, sin dejar de batir, hasta que quede todo bien mezclado.
4. A continuación pondremos también poco a poco la harina previamente tamizada y seguimos batiendo.
5. Lo mezclaremos todo con una espátula hasta conseguir una masa bien fina.
6. Pasaremos la mezcla a una manga pastelera con una boquilla lisa.
7. Preparamos una bandeja para el horno cubierta con papel de hornear y con la manga hacemos unas tiras
finas de unos 7 cms. aproximadamente de largo. Hay que dejar una separación ya que al entrar en el horno
se expanden.
8. Hemos precalentado el horno a 200º centígrados por arriba y abajo y ya las cocemos durante unos 12
minutos aproximadamente.
9. Cuando empiecen a dorarse hay que sacarlas del horno ya que después se secan. Las dejamos enfriar.
10. Derretimos el chocolate en el microondas y después le ponemos un poquitín de mantequilla para darle
brillo al chocolate.
11. Al final bañamos una de las puntas con el chocolate caliente y las dejamos en una rejilla hasta que el
chocolate se seque.
27

#
WORLD
CLASS SCHOOLS
28
Cranford continues to be
a World Class School
In
October 2019, I was on fortunate enough to be one of the staff
members going with our year 12 students to visit our partner
school in Pohang, South Korea. This is where I noticed a plaque standing
proud in the school’s English themed café. It was the World Class
Schools Quality Mark plaque. At that time I did not know that I would
be involved in the reaccreditation of this award however I realise now
the significance of this achievement for their school.
Cranford first received the award in 2015 and is one of only nine schools
in the country to have proved worthy of accreditation over a period of
five years. This is a fantastic achievement! This has only been possible
with the enthusiasm and dedication of our students who have been at
the centre of the application process. Due to the disruption of COVID
the accreditation process was very different, though this did not stop
our students showcasing the school’s ‘World Class Quality’. Students
were required to upload evidence to demonstrate the schools values on
Learning, Leading, Community to Achievement, Community, Workplace
and Knowledge and Understanding. Over the course of a term students
worked valiantly to write statements about these values. I was blown
away by the stunning things that students wrote. This re-accreditation
process reminded me of the world class students we have!
Mahavir Ladva (Examinations Officer and Careers Co-ordinator)
Students who participated:
• Prem Pun (year 10) (WINNER for the Character of the Year Award
2021 on the COMMITMENT TO ACHIEVE category)
• Victoria Albu (year 9) (Shortlisted for the Character of the Year
Award 2021 on the KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING category)
• Gurshaan Ghattoray (year 12) (Shortlisted for the Character of the
Year Award 2021 on the LEARNERS category)
• Amanjot Grewal (year 7) (Shortlisted for the Character of the Year
Award 2021 on the LEARNERS category)
• Sharanjit Kaur (year 12) (Shortlisted for the Character of the Year
Award 2021 on the LEARNERS category)
• Anajli Bhambra (year 12) (Shortlisted for the Character of the Year
Award 2021 on the LEADERS category)
• Muqadas Saleem (year 9)
• Dua Zehra (year 12)
• Jeff Mensah (year 9)
Commitment To
Achieve WCSQ
At the start of last year, I was
on a trip to our partner school
in South Korea, this is where
I noticed a plaque standing
proud in the school’s English
themed café. It was the World
Class Schools Quality Mark
plaque. At that time I did not
know that I would be involved
in the reaccreditation of
this award however I realise
now the significance of this
achievement for their school.
We first received the award in
2015 and are only nine schools
in the country to have proved
worthy of accreditation over
a period of five years. This is
a fantastic achievement! This
has only been possible with
the enthusiasm and dedication
of our students who have been
at the centre of the application
process. Due to the disruption
of COVID the accreditation
process was very different,
though this did not stop our
students showcasing the
school’s ‘World Class Quality’.
Students were required to
upload evidence to demonstrate
the schools values on Learning,
Leading, Community to
Achievement, Community,
Workplace and Knowledge and
Understanding. Over the course
of a term students worked
valiantly to write statements
about these values. I was blown
away by the stunning things
that students wrote. This reaccreditation
process reminded
me of the world class students
we have!
Mahavir Ladva
(Examinations Officer &
Careers Co-ordinator)

World Class Student:
Winner Character of the Year 2021
My
Form tutor approached me with the opportunity of being
a World Class student. ‘World Class’ was enough to draw
me in and I quite blindly put my name down for the chance and in my
defence, World Class is a seductive title. Characteristics of the ‘World
Class Student’ were organised into areas and fields which students
were put into. Each student had their respective field or several to
provide evidence in how either their day-to-day or previous actions
would suffice as proof that they have validated themselves as World
Class in their respective field. My allocated field was commitment to
achievement and that was further subdivided into several more sections
for which I had to provide evidence: for example, my ability to adapt
my strategies, being able to communicate efficiently with varying
demographics and an area of specialised talent.
This opportunity caused me to do something I have rarely ever done
before. Was it practicing the ability in proving myself and evaluating
my ability to provide sufficient evidence? Sure, in some way – but for
me, personally, this caused me to stop. To look around my room and
try to collect certificates and memorabilia that I never stop myself to
do. Though often it appears vain and narcissistic to look upon your
achievements and past glories, I believe this proved to me that it is
not the case. Being proud of your work is essential to perpetuate you
further into excellence through careful planning, re-evaluation and
determination.
I would advise all students to stop just for a moment. Take a productive
break by basking upon the fruits of your labour. Admire your work yet
know not to grow complacent and continue to strive further, continue
to aim to be World Class and continue further.
Prem Pun (year 10 - WINNER for the Character of the Year Award 2021)
MWL - MODERN WORLD LANGUAGES
Year 7
“About Me” Booklet
This summer term, our year
7s created an autobiographical
booklet in Spanish and German.
The content was based on their
learning throughout the year and
was a means of consolidating
their knowledge. Lessons took
the form of revising the specific
language and structures, which
accumulated in the production
of different pages of the booklet.
Inside, students described
themselves and their families,
both their personalities and
physical appearance, all in the
target language. They expressed
their opinions about artists and
their hobbies, using intensifiers
and comparatives to create more
sophisticated content. Other
topics included talking about
pets and their favourite animals.
Students were encouraged to get
creative and include drawings
and pictures of themselves. It
proved very popular among the
students, who were committed to
creating linguistically accurate
yet exciting target language
booklets which they can keep
forever.
Above are some examples of the
students work.
Hope Eley (Modern World
Languages Department)
#
29

# CAREERS
Careers Education
through Lockdown
During
a time of extreme uncertainty in
the labour market, the Cranford
students’ hunger and enthusiasm for opportunities has been
astonishing. Careers information, guidance and support has
transformed to meet the needs of our students. Rather than
delivering blanket guidance, we have recognised the need
to deliver individually tailored guidance and support. From
1-2-1 phone calls, virtual assemblies and meetings with
students I know how ambitious our students are to apply for
so many diverse opportunities. There has been an increased
interest in recent years in technical and vocational education.
There is a massive need to prepare our young students to
meet the current and future needs of the labour market. As
employability skills have developed, a significant number
of our Year 11 and Year 13 students have managed to secure
apprenticeships. Having secured these places before results
day proves that our students are confident in starting their
journey into the world of work. Cranford, together with
other local schools was involved in the first virtual careers
fair. This was organised by the careers professionals in the
borough and designed to meet the needs of our young people.
It was great to see Cranford alumni taking part noting the
important contribution that former students make. This is
evident in the contribution they made towards the fair. These
included Karishma Lall, Devyani Geentilal and Amrita Tarall
who all held webinars at the virtual fair to give our students
their top tips and the ‘insider view’ from the world of work.
The number of virtual opportunities companies are offering
has catapulted. There are a vast number of organisations who
are offering initiatives and experience to young people through
their corporate responsibility schemes. It has been beneficial
to engage with these companies and discover all the amazing
things on offer. It was particularly exciting embarking on our
T Level journey, especially with the industry placements.
Having spoken to a magnitude of companies, I have been
awe struck by the number of organisations that want to offer
these young people some work experience. Our current T
Level industry placement partners have demonstrated their
amazing values and commitment to students. I have been
stunned by Ajar Technology, Berkeley Pre-School and
St Mary’s University from the beginning of this journey.
This portfolio of partners is growing quickly. We are in
exciting discussions with a few international companies at
the moment. It has been great to be bold, passionate and
enthusiastic in grasping any opportunity to develop, learn
and grow. With so many positive outcomes from this year,
next year’s careers information, guidance and support will be
even more dynamic in meeting the needs of students.
30
Mahavir Ladva
(Exams Officer and Careers Co-ordinator)

CAREERS
#
ounslow Virtual Careers Event was held on Wednesday 3rd March 2021.
The HThis event was sponsored by the Mayor of London ESF Funding and
Hounslow Borough. It was the first of its kind in the London area.
First and foremost, this event formed part of the ongoing commitment to the Careers
Education Programme and supports the GCSE Options process for Year 9 students. Students
and parents found out more about the options process, GCSE courses and visited the school
booth to take part in a live Q&A session.
Students were also able to have live conversations with employers. Both local and national
businesses were represented including Heathrow, BT, Wilmott Dixon and Metropolitan
Police. STEM Careers also featured and students spoke to companies such as DreamMedic,
NHS staff and research scientists.
Our alumni were involved throughout the evening and students visited the virtual theatre
to listen to stories about their career journeys and took part in the Q&A session.
1. Senior Finance Department for American Express - Karishma Lall
After leaving Cranford Community College in 2012, Karishma went to study Economics at
UCL. Her course included a year abroad at the University of California. Since 2016 she has
worked for American Express and is now a Senior Finance Analyst. Karishma told students
about her experience of working in a huge international company
2. Network Engineer Apprentice from BT - Amrita Tar
Amrita often gets asked if her job as a Network Engineer for BT takes her out on site, even
climbing up poles! While her studies at Cranford Community College didn’t prepare her
to climb trees, however it did help her to make a decision about her post 18 course. Amrita
told students about her story discussion the daily work of a Network Engineer.
3. Apprentice from Cisco - Devyani Geentilal
After leaving Cranford Community College Devyani decided to opt for the apprenticeship
route. Students listened to Devyani discussing her training and the benefits of doing an
apprenticeship with a top company such as CISCO.
Mahavir Ladva (Exams Officer and Careers Co-ordinator)
Love
Your
Career
Virtual Careers Event
31

# CAREERS
Hochtief Murphy Virtual
Work Experience
At the start of this year,
I had the opportunity
to be a part of the
HOCHTIEF MURPHY
JOINT VENTURE
virtual work experience
programme which was
absolutely incredible.
This joint venture
construction group
undertakes large scale construction projects
in London and beyond. I was really nervous
about it during the application process but
the programme itself was extremely fun and
intuitive. I was able to learn a lot about the world
of construction which was really cool. I got to
see first-hand stories and workshops from the
perspective of different roles on a construction
project such as the CAD technician, Site
manager, environmental expert, etc. In addition,
the activities themselves were very insightful
and comprehensive. We were able to fully design
a project and create completed plans for it. We
covered a large portion of the various steps and
components of a real construction project in a
way which was easy enough to work through
for students of our skill level but still advanced
enough to properly challenge and train our way
of approaching a large scale project.
Aside from the exciting challenges we worked
on each day, the instructors really helped to
create a fun and comfortable environment for
the project, as well as help us relax and calm
down during the downtime with fun brainteasers
which really made us laugh about the obscurity
of such answers. Overall, I had a really great
time on the programme and learned a lot about
the ins and outs of the construction world in
addition to exciting projects and construction
companies working across London.
I am extremely grateful to Cranford for
organising this opportunity for me and would
highly recommend the experience to anyone
wanting to pursue a career in construction or
engineering. I promise you that you will have a
great time and learn a lot of useful things about
your career interests.
Johnson & Matthey Virtual
Law Experience
‘Our vision is for a
world that’s cleaner and
healthier, today and for
the future generations.’ –
Johnson and Matthey
Johnson and Matthey is a
global leader in sustainable
technologies. Currently,
they are trying to tackle
three major global challenges: the need for clean
air, conservation of our planet’s natural resources
and the need for more affordable and ever more
personalised healthcare.
In December 2020, I attended a virtual skills and
careers day with Johnson and Matthey. This well
structured and interactive session was led by two
female lawyers who have the same roles in their
career but having taken different paths to get
there. They both explained their journeys, which
was quite fascinating as you realise that there are
several different ways to establish career in law. As
the virtual experience proceeded, we learnt about
the different types of qualified lawyers that are
out there, e.g., solicitors (private practice vs inhouse)
and barristers, the differences that there are
within each type, their specific role and what type
of qualifications are required. The two women then
went to further describe what a typical day in their
life is like and how it varies from each other’s. This
session ended with a really useful question and
answer session on careers in law.
Personally, I think that if you are able to have as
many experiences as possible in a variety of career
talks or work experiences this is great because it
can allow you to have a greater understanding of
each career. Career talks allow you to learn that
you do not always need a law degree to qualify
as a solicitor, there are alternative routes for
every career. Despite it being virtual, I thoroughly
enjoyed this career talk, it not only allowed me
to understand what it is like to be a lawyer but
also what skills are required in a professional field,
which I believe will help me build a strong career.
Arushi Varshney (year 11)
Manav Vivek (year 11)
32

ECONOMICS
#
Economics
at Cranford
Economics is a real life subject and develops enquiring minds so students can relate what they
are learning to the world around them. The real world nature of the subject provides numerous
opportunities for students to explore and analyse significant issues such as inequality and poverty,
implications of Brexit and the need for sustainable development in the wake of global warming. Our students
are taught to examine the impact of the theories by eminent economists on the world and why they evolve
with the changing needs of society.
Economics helps students to develop an insight into current events happening nationally and globally. COVID
19 is such an event which has led to numerous economic implications nationally as well internationally
due to the interconnected nature of the world. This pandemic has taught us how Economic theories could
provide answers to the problems faced by society. The study of Economics is not only carried out through
in class learning but also through independent research tasks outside lessons. This became more evident
to the Economics department during remote teaching as a result of the lockdown. The year 13 students
carried out research tasks to assess government interventions such as the furlough scheme, ‘eat out to help
out’, stamp duty and business rates exemptions, and grants for the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors.
An education in this context has required adjustments for staff and students alike. This year was used as
an opportunity to explore online resources to support our students. We adapted our curriculum to ensure
the students were able to have good learning experiences through the use of video clips and educational
documentaries. We made use of online teaching and learning tools such Kahoot and Seneca. The Kahoot
quiz activities were thoroughly enjoyable. Seneca was a useful platform which provided opportunities
for online revision with interesting tasks. KS4 students made good use of resources available on BBC
Bitesize and Quizlet in order to consolidate and strengthen their economics knowledge. Microsoft Teams
has been an effective platform to provide live lessons to the students. To track students’ knowledge and
provide quick feedback, Teams features such as interactive virtual white board, quizzes, and class note were
extremely useful. In order to support year 11 and year 13 with their next phase of learning, comprehensive
transition packs were provided virtually with a programme of enrichment activities, careers advice and
transition sessions during the lockdown. Feedback from students on remote teaching and learning was very
encouraging.
Upon their return to school, students were presented with enrichment opportunities to promote cultural
capital. These included Junior Economist of the Year Competition organised by the Royal Society of
Economics and FCDO Next Generation Economics Competition organised by the Foreign, Commonwealth
& Development Office. Students also took part in the Model United Nations (MUN) programme whereby
they brought their economics knowledge to assess contemporary economic problems.
This past year has taught us the valuable life skill of adaptability which will serve our students well not
just in their academic endeavours but in life in general.
Ramanpreet Kaur (Head of Economics Department)
33

#
CPD
CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Teaching
and
Learning
Team
CPD 2021
At
Cranford Community College, we provide a
robust and wide ranging CPD (Continuous
Professional Development) programme accessible to
staff at all stages of their careers. With new teachers,
we not only have specific courses that address
practical strategies within the classroom, but we also
make extensive use of Mini Action Research Projects
(MARPS). These MARPs encourage our teachers to
not only reflect on their own teaching practice and
be innovative in the application of new strategies
with the use of pedagogical literature, but they also
keep the student and their attainment at the forefront
of their project. Here, staff are guided by our Lead
Teachers as well as their mentors and are expected to
present their findings to the rest of their cohort after
evaluating the data they have collected. Examples
of these MARPs include new competitive reward
strategies and investigations in to how formative
assessments can be used effectively to monitor student
progress when teaching remotely and online.
Whilst we provide opportunities for our new teachers
to engage in CPD which encourages innovation, we
also ensure that our aspiring middle and senior leaders
have similar prospects through the NPQs (National
Professional Qualifications in Senior and Middle
Leadership). Accredited by the University of London
Institute of Education, these courses ensure that our
leaders of today and tomorrow are able to develop
their leadership and management qualities through
the implementation of either a department wide or
school wide initiative. These aspiring middle and
senior leaders demonstrate their skill and knowledge
as not only strategic and effective practitioners, but
also as successful front-runners of change, always
representing the school’s ethos.
Our school’s CPD provision aims to ensure that all
staff engage with professional development together
and that they have a shared platform to share best
practice. To this effect, Cranford Community College
runs frequent training programmes that address the
school priorities as well as the emerging needs and
desires of our teaching staff. Teacher Development
Days are also similar examples of where CPD has
been provided, particularly regarding our use of
MS Teams and other creative teaching platforms as
part of our blended teaching and learning approach
thereby catering for our staff’s needs to ensure that
our students receive the best education possible.
At the forefront of Cranford Community College’s
CPD provision is the impact on our students; we are
a school that strives for excellence in all areas and
as such, we firmly believe that by investing in our
teachers’ professional development, we are investing
in our students’ success.
Sahrish Sheikh (Lead Teacher)
34

CPD
CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
#
35

#
CPD
CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Newly Trained Teachers
Speak for Themselves
As a Teaching
School, Cranford Community College has always put the training
and development of staff as a key priority for the organisation.
This includes training new entrants to the profession and 2020 – 2021 was no exception where the school
successfully trained 15 new teachers all of whom were awarded QTS (Qualified Teacher Status). Over 75%
are continuing their careers at Cranford with the others going to work in other London schools. Here are some
testimonials from this cohort of trainees:
Peter Stumpf (Associate Headteacher)
Throughout my first year of being a trainee at Cranford I
have been offered many different opportunities to aid my
development. The first of these is weekly CPD sessions, these
run weekly afterschool with all other trainees at the school.
These sessions are led be experienced members of staff
that have each offered invaluable advice on their range of
expertise. These sessions also allowed us to gain the support
of the other trainees in the same situation and offer each
other advice. As a trainee you are assigned a mentor, they
are an experienced member of your department with which
you meet weekly to discuss your progress so far and how to
take that progress even further. My mentor arranged for me
to observe members of my own department teaching as well
as members of other departments. This allowed me to take
techniques observed in other departments and adapt them to
suit teaching in science. Over the last term I have been able to
shadow a year 7 form tutor and experience the pastoral side
of teaching for the first time. In September I will be becoming
a year 7 form tutor, the experience I have gained over the last
term as prepared me with the skills I will need to take with
me next year.
I am very grateful for all the experiences Cranford have
provided mw with so far and cannot wait to start a new year
in September.
‘Throughout the course of this year I, as one
of the many trainees, have been provided with
numerous opportunities and experiences to
develop as a teacher. This has included but
not been limited to: weekly CPD sessions with
focuses such as behaviour management and
planning for progress, Teacher Development
days where training was provided to develop our
teaching skills in a Covid secure environment,
and weekly mentor meetings every Monday
morning. These meetings have allowed me to
develop my classroom presence, as well as
begin to improve my planning skills in areas
such as scaffolding and differentiation.
In addition, Cranford has provided me with
the chance to observe many fellow teachers
and incorporate some of the highly varied
methods and techniques used effectively by
others, into my own lessons. The use of many
of these strategies has allowed me to cultivate
stronger relationships with pupils and in
turn run more effective lessons. In addition,
I have particularly enjoyed the opportunity to
teach two Year 12 classes and experience the
challenges of teaching A-level compared to
those of Key Stage 3 and 4. These experiences
have all led to an incredibly busy but ultimately
hugely fulfilling first year at Cranford, where I
am very excited to continue on next year.
Angus Aughterson (Science Trainee)
Megan Jones (Science trainee)
36

CPD
CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
#
As a former Cranford student I wanted to
give back to my community and what better
way than to convey my knowledge to the
community where nearly all my teenage years
were spent.
With the pandemic surrounding us, I am
certain that this year has been vastly
different. Students wearing their masks made
it increasingly difficult to identify specific
students which may have resulted in more
efforts in managing behaviour. Furthermore,
we were restricted with many activities due
to COVID-19 rules and therefore we had to
be very innovative with our teaching. As a
trainee I would try out many different methods
to motivate and encourage students to work
to the best of their abilities.
Personally, one of the perks of going into lockdown was the ability to
create engaging lessons online. Although the first few weeks of remote
learning were difficult, as soon as both teachers and students settled
into the new format of teaching, this ironed out the initial impediments
challenges to teaching and learning. Furthermore, I realised that
providing students with these fun activities online and promoting
competition lead to students being motivated. In fact many students
produced more pieces of work virtually than in real-life. That is when
I made the biggest discovery as a trainee teacher that engaging and
competitive lessons lead to students having a very positive attitude to
learning.
When returning to school post-lockdown, I promoted a lot of competition
between pupils and this led to high levels of student engagement.
Furthermore, being involved in the marking of the Year 11 GCSE papers
allowed me to evaluate where pupils have misconceptions in mathematics.
This allowed me anticipate and clarify these misconceptions during my
final term of teaching this academic year.
I look forward to going into the next academic year at Cranford and I
hope to continue developing my skills as a teacher.
Aminul Islam (Mathematics Trainee)
Training this year at Cranford has been one of the most illuminating
experiences. I have learned so much from my department,
mentor and the students. It has been extremely rewarding
being able to train to teach in such a supportive environment.
Despite teaching being mildly uprooted this year with the virtual
learning; the whole teaching community rallied together and made
transitions as smooth as they could have been for staff and students.
I very much look forward to contributing more to the school and
continuing to develop my knowledge and skills in the coming year.
Veronica Chow (English trainee)
37

#
DUKE OF EDINBURGH
Virtual Duke of Edinburgh 2020-21
It’s
been an odd 18
months for Duke
of Edinburgh! Our
presentation evening in March 2020
was possibly one of the last events
we were able to hold in “normal”
conditions – but that doesn’t mean
Duke of Edinburgh has stopped!
In 2020 we enrolled 65 students into Bronze and Silver awards,
and the vast majority of these participants have continued with
their awards from home. Some activities needed to be changed,
and a bit of imagination was needed, but I have been blown away
by the creativity and resilience of our young people.
Shenon Dias
Gold
Arushi Varshney
Over the past year, Cranford students have logged 273 hours of
volunteering work. They have run around 300 miles between
them. They have learnt to knit, to cook, and to play chess. They
have developed their photography skills. They have tutored
siblings, neighbours and family friends. They have helped elderly
and vulnerable neighbours. This summer, many of our year 11
students will be volunteering in their communities, working
towards their awards and gaining valuable experience. Our
students have embodied everything the Duke of
Edinburgh award was created to foster in young
people and I am so proud of each and every one
of them.
The ultimate testimony to the impact of the DofE
is the number of students who have enrolled for
the prestigious Gold award this year. Through
Heathrow funding, we were able to secure places
for seven of our year 11s on the award, which
includes an extended expedition in wild country
and a residential element. The most challenging of
the DofE levels, the Gold award, is celebrated with
a presentation at St James Palace or Buckingham
Palace Gardens, and attended by a member of
the Royal Family. We are one of the only schools
in the borough to offer the Gold award, and for
these students to have enrolled and started work
during a period of such turbulence and uncertainty
just goes to show that they have what it takes to
complete the full award. I am particularly keen to
celebrate this group, as they have completed every
award level through from Bronze and were the
first cohort I worked with as Duke of Edinburgh
coordinator.
Plans are underway to get students out on
expeditions again in September, and next year I
am determined that Duke of Edinburgh will be
back bigger and better than ever.
Marjaan Aman
Samuel Dickson
Shamaila Baig
Sanjana Bhola
Evelyn Brooks
(Duke of Edinburgh Lead)
38

Silver
DUKE OF EDINBURGH
Bronze
#
Abdulla Chaudhary
Ahmad Noori
Alicia Grinhaff
Arjun Mankoo
Amandeep Thiara
Amanprit Khaneja
Amar Dhillon
Anchal Chawla
Ashveer Sidhu
Bobby Banga
Damon Szumowski
Erika Gorjunova
Angel Aiduki
Arwa Umar
Ashaani Balendran
Ayesha Kaur
Esa Rana
Hamdan Khanzada
Hussein Mahamud
Ibrahim Chaudhary
Bernice Pereira
Gurnoor Kaur
Heenal Mehra
Inderjit Singh
Ifrah Shehzad
Ines Goncalves
Ishmeet Singh
Jagveer Kang
Satnam Curry
Isra Jadoon
Jack Macmillan
Kinza Saasaa
Leroy Eshun
Jaiden Dhillon
Jasleen Sethi
Karan Sangha
Kirandeep Khurana
Murtaza Abbas
Mya Shambhi
Nadra Hassan
Navneen Awaldi
Luliya Jemal
Manraaj Khaneja
Maria Ferreira
Naiera Hussein
Rahma Suleiman
Robert Keeley
Ryan Dulay
Satnam Curry
Neel Nakum
Nihal Kang
Oliwia Dabrowska
Prashin Kumar
Shritu Singh
Sukhpreet Bual
Tyisha Rebelo
Ria Vivek
Samira Cali
Shreyas Shikhare
Sohrab Ahmadi
Urina Paudyal
Tyrone Emmanuel
Tegh Kang
Zayna Chaudhary
39

#
RE - RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
Religious Education Department Review 2020-2021
The Religious
Education Department is committed to offering an ambitious
and innovative curriculum which develops spiritual,
moral, social and culturally rich students who are equipped with the skills to think critically whilst
building religious literacy. The unique nature of Religious Education requires students to engage
in topical, controversial and often sensitive issues. Class discussions and debates are paramount to
learning and through listening and responding to their peers, students appreciate each other’s views
and also become tolerant members of society. The pandemic therefore offered a fresh challenge
for the department and we were set with the task of ensuring we protected the nature of Religious
Education despite not being in the classroom. The department was ambitious and innovative in their
approach. Through collaborative discussions and planning we all researched various virtual learning
platforms which we tested through trial and error before sharing best practice with one and other.
Some examples of good practice used and shared were:
Microsoft Teams Chat Feature
One particular benefit of online learning was the utilisation of the chat feature on Microsoft Teams.
This allowed students to contribute to the class discussion throughout the 50 minute lesson, as well
as to continue the sharing and evaluating of ideas after the lesson had finished.
I found that students that were otherwise quiet and happy for more boisterous members of the class
to take the lead in discussions, really came out of their shell and expressed their ideas in a way that
they wouldn’t have done in a traditional classroom setting.
This has inspired me to continue this practice moving forward, utilising Microsoft Teams as a
discussion forum, where students can post articles or debate issues surrounding the content covered
during lessons. This has proven very successful with many fantastic debates unfolding on our Teams
pages, ranging from discussions of the ethics of capital punishment to considering the effectiveness
of arguments for and against the existence of God.
This unforeseen benefit of remote learning allowed all students the opportunity to discuss and debate
with their peers, within the lesson and beyond, promoting personal development and ensuring that
students still feel connected to their class, in spite of the physical isolation imposed upon them.
Nearpod
A fantastic virtual learning platform used by the department was Nearpod; the website allowed for
lessons to remain interactive and student led. RE lessons place a strong focus on students working to
find out information for themselves and then to consolidate through discussions and practice exam
questions. Nearpod allowed me to take advantage of students having access to the internet in lessons
in order to research key religious teachings and beliefs. For example, students were learning about
religious teachings on the topic of exploitation and after introducing them to the topic I allocated
students a particular religion and they then had to research and share a religious view on the topic.
Students were able to share their view on the collaborative board feature and this also allowed their
peers to see the range of views collected by the class and ensure all students contributed to the lesson.
Microsoft Teams Breakout Rooms
The RE curriculum tackles a range of topics which require discussion and debate, such as abortion,
euthanasia, and LGBTQ+ rights. I found during virtual lessons many students were too shy to discuss
their views via the microphone and this made such discussion near impossible. To overcome this
challenge, I trialled the use of Breakout Rooms to allow students to work in small ‘classrooms’.
Students were allocated to a small groups of 4-6 students and given a task to do such as write reasons
for and against the use of animal testing for medical purposes or to peer-assess each other’s responses
to an exam practice questions. I was able to enter the different ‘classrooms’ and found that students
were far more confident in using their webcams and microphones in smaller group discussions.
40
Avneet Kang (Head of Religious Education Department)

RE - RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
Cranford Thought for the
Week Programme 2020-2021
#
The Thought for the Week (TFTW) programme
is delivered to all students every week through
form time. TFTW encompasses a broad spectrum
of topics and issues from current affairs to social
movements. Through exposure to topical and
important issues students can build upon their
cultural capital and be fully aware and a part of
the society they live in. TFTW continued during
virtual learning via form time and continued to
allow students to consider the morality of topics
and issues discussed. During virtual learning TFTW
covered a range of topics such as the Capitol Riots,
fear of the Covid Vaccine, Misogyny, Black Lives
Matter and the Indian Farmers’ Protest. To help
further engage students with virtual learning some
TFTW’s offered students an opportunity to take
the topic further independently. One such example
was for a TFTW on Black Lives Matter where
students were offered a range of extension tasks
to pick from. Miadeep Sahota 8T chose the task of
choosing a British Black photographer and created
a stunning collage.
Avneet Kang
(Head of Religious Education Department)
“I have always had an eye for photography and
diverting this task to my life I believe a collage will
pose as the ideal way to capture the significance of
black lives noticeably and hurriedly.
I chose the Black-British photographer Raphael Albert
owing to the fact that he was a good-hearted, righteous
and extraordinary individual who made it apparent that
black is beautiful. Indisputably, black is stunning and I
am eternally grateful that he emphasised this.
When racial tensions develop, they don’t just affect one or two of
us — they affect us all… as neighbours, workmates, friends and
fellow individuals. Racism creates a society where people don’t
trust and respect each other. When it’s allowed to flourish, it lessens
us as people. We are all equal; that’s how it should be. This is a
basic human right. Finally, by guaranteeing life, liberty, equality,
and security, human rights protect people against abuse by those
who are more powerful. We should all be equal, irrespective of the
pigmentation of your skin. At the end of the day we all bleed red.
The colour of your skin should not deprive you of human rights.”
Miadeep Sahota (year 8)
41

# MUSIC
Keep the Beat Music Club
Making a difference to young people’s lives
“The music club is fun and
I look forward to it. Instead
of doing silly things or
wasting time, I practice in
preparation. It’s a great
way to channel energy that
I would otherwise have used
in a negative way.”
Rayan Ali (year 9)
“It’s really helped with my
confidence and thank you sir
for believing in me.”
Dontae Anyia (year 7)
42
‘Keep the Beat’ music club was set up
as an intervention in June 2021 as a
platform for students’ self-expression through music.
The aim was to creatively channel students’ energy
through music therapy and to demonstrate that through
hard work and pushing past our own limitations that
we are able to feel a sense of accomplishment and
confidence in our abilities.
The club ran once a week after school and was very
much student led. During our first session we spoke
about what our end goal would be and discussed a
strategy for ensuring that the end goal was met giving
students a sense of ownership and responsibility, not
only to the project but to each other. The end goal was
to put on a small performance for a select number of
teachers. The group were fully committed and worked
diligently supporting each other to create their own
songs as well as working as a group to create a free
style and student voice.
With the periods of remote learning and various
lockdowns due to the pandemic, this academic year
has been challenging for so many of our young people.
Through music, they have been able to connect with
each other and reflect on their own well-being and have
had the opportunity to share their stories, celebrate
their identity and express themselves through music.
We were very lucky to have use of the fantastic
resources and equipment in the music department
which contributed to the sense of professionalism
and really helped with engagement. The group gave a
mind-blowing performance at the end of the summer
term and did themselves proud. ‘Keep the Beat’ are
now aiming to continue next year and to hopefully
record some of their original material.
Kerry Mulhair (Assistant Headteacher and SENDCo)
“The music club boosted
my confidence to perform in
front of actual people. It was
something to look forward to
and it was a reward. Overall
I really enjoyed it and hope
to be in it again.”
Matthew Akinmuleya
(year 9)
“I am so proud of all three students and the amount of hard
work that they put into their music, they should all be so
proud of themselves and what they were able to achieve. I
really loved how they all worked together and supported
each other with their performances, you could see how they
have worked hard. They are all so talented. The sky is the
limit for these students and I hope to continue to work on
their music with them in September”.
Jake Fernandez (Teaching Assistant)
“The music performance was a lovely example of the bond
between our three students. It was great seeing their hard
work pay off.”
Faisa Hassan (Teaching Assistant)
“I was really impressed with the music performance! I
loved each performance and was so proud of all of them.
Thanks to Rayan for kicking off the show, one of her raps
really touched my heart and made me quite emotional.
Matthew is definitely on his way to making it big because
the talent on that stage was honestly impressive (should
he wish to do so). Well done to Dontae for closing the
show! His own performance was amazing and is definitely
one I want to see and hear again! As each performance
happened, it was lovely to see their confidence develop!
Well done to them all.”
Sabine Geister (Three Bridges Twilight School Manager)

The
A zooming
good Christmas
for Cranford and
Berkeley Staff
afternoon of Friday
18th December 2021
provided a wonderful opportunity for
staff at Cranford Community College
and Berkeley Academy to get together
virtually and wish each other a Happy
Christmas. By now we were all experts
in using Zoom for virtual meetings and
so like ducks to water we donned our
Santa and elf hats and enjoyed some
Christmas songs and an eventful game
of online bingo.
#
In recognition of all the hard work
staff have been doing and to provide
some Christmas cheer, staff were
given a Christmas grab bag to enjoy
over the festive season. A fitting end
to a busy year.
Rita Berndt (Head of School)
Santa Claus Came to
Cranford Virtually
At
Cranford Community College
we always endeavour to send our
students off for the Christmas festivities with
an upbeat message, and this year it seemed
even more appropriate to send the message
of good will and good health to our students,
even though we could not come together to
celebrate. This year we sent a virtual message
to them all via a Christmas classic with
many familiar faces rocking along to “Santa
Claus is Coming to Town”. A definite upbeat
moment at the end of a challenging year.
Sharandeep Saroya
(Assistant Headteacher – Sixth Form)
43

REQUIRES GREAT AMOUNT OF PASSION AND HEART BEAT
SOME HEARTBREAKING SCENES AND GREAT LOVE STORIES THAT WILL MAKE
YOU DREAM AND ESCAPE REALITY.
#
MEDIA STUDIES
Media Studies
Finding
New Ways
Through
Professional
Technologies
44
The
modern world is all but
consumed with Media, we
experience it in every aspect of our daily
lives and in the year in which Covid meant
‘normal’ didn’t exist the multitude of
media platforms that we are exposed to
became even more pertinent and essential
to our connection with the world. The
Media Studies Department at Cranford
Community College believe it is essential
that students are given the tools to explore
and engage with a multitude of media
platforms. Television, radio, newspapers,
magazines, advertising, film, music and
the internet – media is now both produced
and consumed in more forms and quantities
than ever before. We used these to our
benefit as we found new ways of engaging
our sixth form students with the A level
curriculum using Nearpod, MS Teams,
Kahoot and Socrative.
While the Eduqas specification was adapted
to allow students to submit ‘mock ups’ of
their final NEA products we continued to
promote high expectations and supported
our Year 13 Media students in completing
their coursework projects whereby they
responded to the exam board brief to create
marketing campaigns for original films
including a theatrical release poster, teaser
poster, Blu-Ray cover and website. During
the period of lockdown we developed
focussed research and planning activities
which would allow our students to gain an
in depth knowledge of industry standard
marketing materials to inform their own
development of ideas and final products.
One student even drew inspiration from
the pandemic and developed her ideas
around an original film which followed
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MEDIA STUDIES
the narrative of a trio trapped in a
global pandemic. Our students became
resourceful and photographed family
members, friends and even teachers
once they returned to school in order to
credibly cast their marketing material.
#
VIDEO COPILOT
REQUIRES GREAT AMOUNT OF PASSION AND HEART BEAT
SOME HEARTBREAKING SCENES AND GREAT LOVE STORIES THAT WILL MAKE
YOU DREAM AND ESCAPE REALITY.
n Caine had just started his
to become a private detecad
zero cases, at a crime
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f: No Escape
“NO ESCAPE” dETECTIVE MILTON FERREIRA two brothers Atanas aleksanrov and daniel collay
michael fox Design Team Rocco ltd Music by JASHEH ONFFROY special vfx OSCAR MORENO
ted by diogo rafael Filmed on Location at Lonon
WW.NOESCAPE.COM
UR PORTABLE PLAYER!
O INCLUDED
ITS EASY - TRANSFER THE DIGITAL
FILE TO YOUR MAC, IPHONE, PC OR
OTHER COMPATIBLE PLAYER FOR
VIEWING ANYWHERE, ANYTIME
Atanas Aleksandrov
Milton Ferreira Daniel Collado
Directed by
Diogo Atouguia
NO
ESCAPE
Media at Cranford offers a broad
and balanced curriculum with ample
opportunities to explore social and
cultural capital through our exploration
of set texts as well as wider analysis.
We aim to enlighten a spark of
curiosity in our students where they
delve beneath the surface to analyse
the complexities of media texts, be it
through the political contexts or social
and historical backgrounds which
inform the content an audience views.
While in lockdown we taught our Year
12 Media students through Nearpod in
order to ensure all students were able
to engage with the set text and share
valuable opinions. As we studied issues
surround industries and audience in
Black Panther (2018) we were able
to encourage the enquiring minds of
our Year 12’s to carefully consider
the representations they are offered in
media texts, through use of sophisticated
and technical media language and the
application of theoretical perspectives.
We support students in developing
an awareness of how the media
constructs representations of reality
and unravel the stereotypes of gender,
race, ethnicity, disability and sexuality
that are both reinforced or subverted
through technical codes.
The media is a powerful entity
which plays a significant role within
society as audiences growingly
move from passively receiving
messages to actively participating in
the construction of media. We offer
students the opportunity to turn the
spotlight back in the medium itself as
they investigate exactly how and why
the media functions. Throughout the
curriculum we teach students to apply
their knowledge whilst expressing their
creativity and developing their use of
new and professional technologies.
Sharandeep Saroya
(Assistant Headteacher - Media Studies)
.
.
45

#
IT & COMPUTING
The
past 18 months have been like
no other at Cranford and yet the
students have been able to demonstrate how
amazing, adaptable and resilient they are. The
curriculum at KS3 was drastically changed
as students did not have access to PCs in the
classroom, some units were adapted where by
students were covering theory and skills during
the lesson and then completing the practical
tasks at home. The use of MS Teams allowed
students to then showcase their work during
lessons to gain feedback from both peers and
their teachers. The second lockdown worked as
an advantage, as students were able to work on
practical tasks at home during the lesson. One
aspect that students enjoyed was that they were
able to showcase and present their work in class
to others online.
IT & Computing Department
Our Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 curriculum remained the same, however as a department we had to adopt
different styles of teaching. Both students and staff pulled together making sure disruption was kept to a
minimum to ensure that students were able to progress. Where trips and visits had been planned, these were
adapted to virtual workshops for example the Game Design workshop delivered by Brunel University and Ajar
Technology also delivered a workshop on The Business Environment.
Overall students and staff have developed
through making use of different technologies to
help collaborate and teach, truly appreciating
the importance of IT and Computing in the
ever changing world we live in today.
Sukhjeet Kudhail
(Head of IT and Computing Department)
46

IT & COMPUTING #
On line Game Design Workshop with Brunel University
Students had an exciting opportunity to take part in an online workshop delivered by Lecturers
from the Gaming Department at Brunel University. The timing of it was great as students
had just started a Game Design and Prototyping Unit as part of their Cambridge Technicals
Diploma in IT course. The initial arrangements were to go and visit the university, however due to
the restrictions the workshop had to be conducted online. The students found it very engaging and
thoroughly enjoyed completing the challenges set during the breakout sessions. The experience
allowed students to gain an understanding of a career in Gaming, where some came away from the
session wanting to explore the option further and potentially make changes to their UCAS options.
Sukhjeet Kudhail (Head of IT and Computing Department)
The experience was exceptional and eye-opening as my fellow peers and I have learnt many aspects within
the gaming community ranging from the physical production of the games to the concept and audience
behind it. The tasks and activities that we undertook were very amusing and really involved us within the
program. I would recommend anyone who is looking into creative software or any IT related career to
look into the Brunel University Games Design unit.
Anas Abdirasaq (year 13)
My experience with the Brunel Meeting was really good as I enjoyed how much depth they went in to when talking about
games development. Other interactive activities such as group work and the Card game were also really fun to play
and be a part of as well finding more about the course from the actual lecturers. Their engagement really inspired me
and it has made me reconsider my course choices for university. I would definitely recommend this meeting to anyone
who is interested in games development or other type of computer projects.
Palakjot Singh (year 13)
The workshop was very useful and interesting as it allowed us to gain information and knowledge about a course that I
was interested in but didn’t know much about. The teachers interacted with us a lot which made it interesting and gave
us activities that allowed us to understand the course and what we would expect at university if we took the course. I
would recommend this workshop to anyone who is interested in game developing as a career or to study at university
as it helps to understand what the course is about and what to expect.
Ashvin Kapoor (year 13)
The work shop was very interesting in that it gave me more knowledge about game design. Part of the session involves
groups sharing ideas. Two random words are picked which you have to make a game about. It was challenging and fun.
Nalen Gurung (year 13)
I came into the online workshop with an open mind and I believe that it was very helpful. This is because it actually
helped me widen my viewpoint of gaming as a career. I have learnt many things about games and believe that this
workshop is perfect for anyone who may be unsure what they want to do after year 13.
Yahya Ishaq (year 13)
My experience with Brunel University
was fun and enjoyable as we did a lot
of activities and we learnt a lot about
games, the processing time, and money
that goes into game development. I
was quite surprised to see that GTA
(Grand Theft Auto) took only 7 years
to make £700 million. I also enjoyed
the card activities where we would
pick two cards that have random words
and then we would have to think of a
gaming concept that links those two
words. This activity really challenged
and spiked my creativity and that is
why I really enjoyed it.
Sankavi Sivaharan (year 13)
47

# T - LEVELS
T Levels Programme 2020-2021
September 2020 saw the launch of Cranford Community College’s new T level programmes.
Inspired by our collaborative international projects with colleges in Norway and the Netherlands
and a constant openness to new and exciting curriculum opportunities, 29 of our sixth formers
began their studies in Digital Production, Design and Technology, and Education and Childcare.
As well as providing our students with the amazing opportunity of 45 days industry placement, these
first T levels provide academic and technical skills in key shortage areas for the local economy. For the
Social Sciences and IT and Computing departments delivering them, it has been a whirlwind year and
the Minister for London, Paul Scully MP, waited only three weeks before he wanted to see some of the
new T level learners in action. Naturally, his first port of call was Cranford and, as Secretary of State for
Business, he was wowed by the students’ and staff’s enthusiasm, aptitude and vision for this new course.
The Member of Parliament for Sutton and Cheam was greeted by our Sixth Form Leadership team and
toured the academy before his entourage were joined a selection of our potential digital industry partners
to visit a T Level Digital lesson. Students impressed the visitors by showcasing their programming skills,
working in groups to develop some existing code to meet some requirements. They also met with a range
of teaching staff who were involved in the planning and delivery of the course. Overall, the Minister was
very impressed with the course and was excited about the opportunities and skills the young people will
gain from the work experience. The students were far from overawed and spoke fluently and thoughtfully
about T levels and wider issues in education with one enterprising young man even asking the MP if he
would personally mentor him! We are still awaiting a response on this but were told:
“The Minister really enjoyed the visit and found it very helpful. It was useful for him to get a sound
understanding of how T Levels fit in to the skills agenda; he also particularly enjoyed engaging with the
students.
Thanks to you and the college for all the work on pulling the visit together. It was very much appreciated!”
Cranford is proud to be at the forefront of changes to the post-16 curriculum. We will continue to work
tirelessly to equip our students with the knowledge and skills that will help them succeed in the 21st
Century economy and plan to expand our T level offer in 2022 to include Construction, Healthcare
Science, Business Improvement and Laboratory Science. The T level cohort of 2020/21 are pioneers and
their successes this year are a huge testament to their own hard work, the dedication of Cranford staff and
a range of fantastic new partnerships we are developing with local industry. A particular thanks to Ajar
Technologies, St Mary’s University, IAG and Berkeley Academy.
Rob Ind (Head of School)
48

T - LEVELS
#
The T
Level Digital students have
made a great start to the
course this year, albeit through these unusual
circumstances. I have been especially impressed
with their continued motivation and adaptability.
This cohort are some of the first ever students
to start this new and exciting course. Students
have covered a range of theory; The Business
Context, Emerging issues and impact of digital,
Problem Solving and Programming. Students
have been working on tasks within the class both
independently and in groups, with an emphasis on
presenting their findings back to the whole group.
All of these are key skills that will help them in
their work placements and beyond. Where possible
we have tried to incorporate workshops with our
partners like Ajar Technology. These have focused
on The Business Environment and Work Readiness.
Sessions were delivered by the London Enterprise
Advisor Network mentor, Christine Osgood who
has a professional background in HR.
Students have already gained many transferrable
skills that they will be able to use while out
on industry placement and in readiness for
employment. From their knowledge and
understanding of the Business Environment, they
will be able to decompose problems and provide
solutions based on given requirements. Students
have grown in confidence and have developed their
communication skills. This has been evident from
their interviews and the feedback received from
the employers and students currently on placement.
Students adapted with ease to the online learning
during the lockdown and isolation periods.
However they are very happy to be back in the
class with their peers and teachers.
At first I was quite sceptical at choosing
the T level Digital course but after looking
at the specification and the experience I
would gain, I am now looking forward
to completing this course. So far I have
learnt and developed valuable skills
such as being able to programme/code.
I was also given the opportunity to have
an actual interview with the companies
that have offered us work placements, I
found this very beneficial as it helped me
prepare and have a feel for what it’s like
going for an actual job interview. I have attended
workshops with a former HR member where we
discussed the workplace. I now feel prepared for the
work placement which I will be attending during the
second year of the course.
Harsh Jeintilal (year 12)
Within this course of unforeseen ups and downs I
believe I was able to make the most of what was
on my plate with the help of my teachers, which in
my eyes, were always putting me first and helping
me to achieve what I didn’t expect of myself at the
beginning of the year. As it was my first year within
the course and not having a lot of experience, I can
confidently say that I am more knowledgeable and
more aware of what my future could entail, and how
I should act and behave with the experience I have
gained for the second year of the course thanks to
my teachers and peers.
Emmanuel Adebowale (year 12)
My T Level journey has been fun and also complicated.
At the start of the course my python skills were not
the best but with time I got better by continuously
practising at home and in supervised study. I really
enjoy the business side of the course because i got to
see how organisations operate and what they do to
be able to reach client needs and reach their goals.
I’m really looking forward for my work placement
but i am a little bit nervous because I want to impress
the people at the work placement and potentially
get an apprenticeship. The interview I had with Ajar
Technology and St Mary’s University made me very
nervous but in the end I think I did well and now I
know how to prepare for an interview so next time
I’m sure I will do better than before.
Octavio Rodrigues (year 12)
Sukhjeet Kudhail
(Head of IT and Computing Department)
49

# T - LEVELS
“One of our key initiatives this year
which focuses on our local community
in Hounslow is the partnership
with Cranford Community College.
Cranford is one of only around 50
education settings in the UK to be
delivering Digital T-Levels. We
identified this as an excellent new
pathway for young people to move into
technology industries and way for us
to get involved and develop our home
grown talent while increasing our
commitment to social value and the
local community. In September 2020
our team joined the launch at Cranford
with Paul Scully, MP and Minister
for London to look at the impact of
introducing the Digital T Levels in our
local community and London.
Since then we have worked with
Cranford to create suitable placements
for their students and support their
learning journey. Three students finish
their first work placement with us
today and this has been so successful
that one of the students will actually
be staying on with us for her first ever
summer job!
By working with Cranford and
the students, Ajar Technology has
been able to give back to our local
community and disadvantaged young
people in our borough, develop new
talent and hopefully future proof our
business with young people interested
in our industry. It has also allowed our
teams to develop their mentoring skills
by working with these young people.
As we all work to recover and
regenerate workforces across our
borough, this work with Cranford is
pivotal in providing opportunities
for the young people in our area. I’d
encourage more local businesses to get
involved and support Cranford with
work placements where they can”.
T Levels
Placement Interviews
In
class students have
spent all year learning
about the digital curriculum
and the knowledge gained
prepared them for their industry
placements. Students in the
class were commencing their
first four-week placement in
June but first they needed to
work for their place. Students
took part in a rigorous
recruitment process which
involved applications, C.V.s
and interviews. They were
very nervous however with
preparation and determination
they did themselves and
everyone proud. It was lovely
to see how they were very
supportive of each other
throughout the process. Tara McLaughlin, Bid Manager at Ajar
Technology, and Ben Henderson from St Mary’s University
conducted the interviews as both these organisations were
going to be offering the placements. The students came suited
and booted and conducted themselves very professionally
throughout the process.
Sukhjeet Kudhail
(Head of IT and Computing Department)
“Thank you all for coming along
to the interviews on Monday.
You did a great job of presenting
yourselves and representing
your school in a mature and
professional manner, you should
be very proud! From meeting
you it is clear to see that you
all have a great future in digital
industry and being the first
group to take the Digital T-Level
course, you really have taken on
the challenges of the past year,
approached your learning in a
positive way and excelled. I wish
you all the best as you continue
with the course, and look forward
to hearing how you get on with
your placements either at Ajar
Technology or other companies
working with Cranford.”
Tara McLaughlin
(Ajar Technology)
Tara McLaughlin (Ajar Technology)
50

T Level in Education and Childcare
The T
Level Education and Childcare
students have had an exceptionally
challenging yet rewarding year with their progress and
achievements. Students embarked on a professional
journey learning the ways of the education sector
with the support of fantastic teachers at Cranford
Community College and the splendid work
experience opportunity at Berkeley Academy. These
experiences nurture our budding T Level students
to learn theoretical as well as practical elements of
the education field. These included elements such
as child development, working with parents, carers
and families and reflective practice to name a few.
In addition to these very attractive attributes of the
course, students have gained training in safeguarding
children, prevent training and gained a DBS
certificate too. Accompanying the theoretical and
practical skills was the employer set project module.
The employer set project is an assessment where
students complete different tasks for education and
childcare which include completing an intervention
plan and an activity plan in response to a child profile
giving information on a specific child. The employer
set project is a perfect example of the skills that are
applied by students and the excellent opportunities
that students are given for readiness in a career in the
education and childcare sector.
How do T Level students achieve success in the
employer set project I hear you ask?! Well, this is
by the consistent and frequent work experience at
Berkeley Academy that students complete alongside
their theoretical studies. Here at Cranford students are
lucky to have many doors open for them to transfer
their skills from the T Level course directly to the real
life workplace environment. At Berkeley Academy
students invest a certain amount of hours a week
where students work with a range of children from
Early Years to year 6. T Level is unique in giving
students the ability to work with different age groups.
Our T Level students gain confidence, explore their
interests, improve their CV and learn networking
skills with other professionals. Students have shared
that they have gained social skills too such as empathy,
patience, communication skills and listening skills.
The qualification is equivalent to three A levels whilst
also providing students with incredible employability
skills.
Sunaina Nayyar (Second in Social Sciences)
T - LEVELS
#
“My favourite part of T Level in Education and Childcare
is the work experience. This I because it allows me to
interact with children and apply it to my T Level. It also
gives me an idea of the real world”.
“Work experience allows us to interact with the children
and experience life in the workplace. I find it useful
because it helps me apply my knowledge to real life and
gives me a taste of what it’s like in the real world. I mainly
find it enjoyable and a great way to encourage me to take
my course seriously. Moreover, work experience is a great
opportunity to test ideas into practice and it also provides
an excellent look at my CV” .
“The employer set project provided me with the opportunity
to acknowledge the different activities that are suitable
for different ages and what type of planning it takes to
make activities like resources, risk assessment and how it
links to the national curriculum of early years”.
“The employer set project was a great opportunity to
help me understand what it takes to create activities for
children which will give them the opportunity to develop
in many ways. It also helped me understand the different
milestones of children’s development at work”.
51

# T - LEVELS
Education
and
Childcare
Reflections:
Reflection 1
In the employers set project I found it useful to explore my creativity and ideas as it gave me a look into how
much planning is really needed in work situations. It allowed me to use my knowledge and form ideas of how
to work towards my targets for the children. For example if a child was struggling with social development/
social skills, I would base my ESP on this issue and search for ways in which I could support the child. This
is useful because it allows me to explore options and different approaches I could take to not only engage the
children but make sure they reach their target successfully.
How have the teachers helped?
Our teachers are incredibly experienced and therefore they have more knowledge and expertise in this specific
field. They have helped us through telling us about the Dos and Don’ts in work placements. They have
supported us through our elements of learning and made sure it was well structured ensuring that we learn in
the best way possible.
Maysa Mearlin (year 12)
52

Reflection 2
T - LEVELS
#
The employer set project was a wonderful opportunity to help me understand what it takes to create activities
for children who are behind in their developmental milestones. It helps them in the moment to develop in
many ways possible, with the help of the support. It also allows me to incorporate play in their activities which
allows me to see the child’s interests and help me to understand them and do intervention plans to support
them further, so they can reach their full potential development.
I personally believe that I have progressed in this course, and have achieved a lot of confidence. Throughout
this course I have filled the gaps in my knowledge. In T- level Education and Childcare I have learnt behavior
management for children and different educational theories. I have studied how to be approachable to EAL
(English as an Additional Language) and SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) children and
help them by creating activities to support them. Safeguarding was in element 3, where I learnt different laws
and legislation to protect children from harm. In element 5 I have been taught how to communicate with
parents and other professionals. I have excellent teachers who helped me during this time in the course, they
all helped me to do well and provided me with different opportunities to progress in the course. I have studied
most of the content by creating and learning through PowerPoint slides, creating leaflets, and undertaking
independent research. I have completed two exams along with employer set project which tested all the work
we did independently and studied in lessons. I also do work experience as part of my course; it allows me to
use my knowledge of what I have studied and apply it to the work setting. Throughout this T-level course we
have been given training such as the prevent training which helped me acknowledge how to act in a situation
that requires me to prevent an incident from occurring. I have also received a DBS certificate which qualifies
me to work with children. I enjoy this course because it teaches me how to work with children and to support
them if they have any additional needs. T-level is interesting because it provides industrial placement and helps
me learn and understand children.
Wolisha Fernandes (year 12)
Reflection 3
Over the course of this year, T-level Education and Childcare has taught me numerous things and has also
given me the opportunity to place what I have learnt from my teachers into my work experience at Berkeley
Academy. We are given the chance to experience what life is like as a teacher by going to our placement in a
primary school once a week. At Berkeley Academy we are assigned with year groups from pre-school (ages
2-4) till year 2 (ages 6-7), which changes after every half term. Since taking part working with children has
taught me many aspects within myself and within my course. It has taught me many social skills, such as
patience, empathy, communication with the children and my colleagues. It has also allowed me to develop
confidence within myself.
Ms Dosanjh, Ms Nayyar, Miss Campbell and Miss Forbes are our 4 teachers who teach us this subject. All
together we cover elements 1-12. For example in element 3 (Safeguarding, Health and Safety, and Wellbeing)
we have covered the importance of safeguarding and protecting children from harm or maltreatment. This has
allowed us to think like professionals and be aware of how the children in our settings can be in harm and
ways we can prevent that. Another element that we cover is element 5 (Parents, Families and Carers). In this
element we focus on the advantages of working with parents, carers and wider families to support children
and young people, the different contexts in which children may grow up and the importance of being sensitive
to this. We have learned various techniques such as making PowerPoints, note-taking, exam questions, group
discussions and group activities. This is an advantage as it allows us to take on many skills that we can use in
our exams and employer set project.
So far in this T-level I have completed 2 internal exams, an employer set project that lasted for 2-3 weeks and
topic tests for each element. The exams have allowed me to reflect on my practice and take from my mistakes
and improve for year 13. I have loved the T-levels so far as I have gotten all the support from all of my teachers
and peers. I hope the new year 12s will enjoy this subject as my peers and I do.
Harsimran Kaur (year 12)
53

# T - LEVELS
Reflection 4
I personally feel that I’ve done well and made a lot of progress during this course. We have covered a lot of
different throughout the course. In element 9 we have been looking at reflective practice and how beneficial it
is and what type of impact it has on us and why it is important. In element 12 we have looked at EAL (English
as a second language) and we have looked at some strategies which will provide help to support students that
have English as an additional language. In some of our lessons we created PowerPoints which helped us build
up confidence by presenting to our class. We have also done a lot of active learning which helps us receive
a better understanding of the work and provides us with the opportunity to link it back to our placement
at Berkeley Academy. I have found this course to be very enjoyable as it has adapted my knowledge of an
individual’s developmental milestones and how theories are linked to my work placement.
The employer set project provided me with the opportunity to acknowledge all of the hard work that goes into
every activity in every single lesson and how a lot of different aspects are taken into consideration such as
planning, risk assessments, and if a child has any type of disability or requires additional support. I was also
able to see how the activities would link to the national curriculum and Early Years’ Foundation Stage.
Simone Mandall (year 12)
Reflection 5
For task 1a I made an intervention plan for Amelia to show
the different strategies that I would use to her meet expected
milestones for her personal, social and emotional aspects of
development. Through the intervention plan I stated what
strategies I would use to achieve this. After stating what my
strategy was I linked it to an educational theory. After linking a
theory to my strategy I stated what my intended outcomes were
for Amelia after the strategy had been used.
When completing my activity plan I felt very confident as I
understood what I was being asked to do and had enough time to
do everything that I needed to. Overall, I think my intervention
plan went well as I wrote down everything that I had in mind
and completed it to the best of my ability.
Task 1b was the activity plan. I used the activity plan to establish
what activity I thought would help Amelia to meet her expected
milestones for her personal, social and emotional development.
The activity that I chose was a role-play and I picked it because
it would encourage Amelia to communicate and interact with
her peers. As she socialises with her peers it will make her more
confident in herself and make her feel more confident to form
new relationships with her peers or other practitioners in the
setting.
I felt confident when I was completing my activity plan as
I understood the task and was able to complete and include
everything that I wanted to write. What I thought went well was
that I completed the task to the best of my ability.
Keiria Ahmed (year 12)
54

T - LEVELS
#
Reflection 6
T Level has taught me how to be confident and believe in myself, allowing me to express my inner character
throughout the course and gave me the opportunity to interact with all different types of people.
I found the programme challenging at the very beginning however I soon got the hang of it and now it is very
interesting.
Zuhur Osman (year 12)
Reflection 7
Throughout our first year we have completed all our content which we needed for our employer set project as
well as our end of year exams. This content included topics on behaviour, safeguarding, child development,
working with parents and professionals and many more.
One of the things we learnt was that everyone learns differently, through different ways. Hence why our teachers
changed our learning strategies all the time. For example, even though some of the students struggle with doing
a PowerPoint presentation in front of the class and the teacher, we still did them from time to time. As a result,
pupils have gained confidence in presenting in front of people which is an essential skill.
As a retake student, who was doing A-Levels last year, in my experience, T-Level has been more impactful.
One of our tasks was to create an activity plan for a child. We were given a child profile which told us what
her interests were as well as her struggles and home situation. This is similar to coursework. However, it was
under timed conditions and also allowed us to apply our work experience.
Another benefit of T Level is that we were able to do work experience which allowed us to practically learn,
apply our knowledge and be prepared for our future roles. This is because students in my class and I want to
go on to being Nurses, Social Workers, Occupational Therapists etc. This will allow us to transfer our skills
like interaction with children onto our future jobs. Furthermore, next year our main focus will be on our
work experience. This will include completing three assessments as well as being observed all on our work
experience.
Jessica Singh (year 12)
55

# T - LEVELS
Minister
Skully’s Visit
56

T - LEVELS
#
Cranford Community College is one of a few
schools nationally delivering the new T Level
qualification in Digital this year. As part of
this the Parliamentary Undersecretary for Business
and Minister for London, Paul Scully together with
some of his Westminster staff visited Cranford
in September 2020 to see first-hand how the new
courses were going. Minister Skully was interested
to see how Cranford was delivering the Digital and
Education and Childcare T Level courses.
The Minister was given an introductory debrief by
our Sixth Form Leadership team and went on a tour
of the school. He met with potential partners for the
industry placements to get a better understanding of
the practical aspect of the course. Students impressed
the visitors by show casing their programming skills
through working in groups to develop some existing
code to meet some requirements. He met with a range
of teaching staff who were involved in the planning
and delivery of the course. Overall he was very
impressed with the course and was excited about the
opportunities and skills the young people will gain
from the work experience placements.
Sukhjeet Kudhail
(Head of IT and Computer Studies Department)
57

#
SUMMER SCHOOL
2021
Cranford has been a very busy place
over the summer with 6 major
summer school activities going
on. At our busiest there were nearly 450
children taking part in a variety of different
activities run by Cranford Community
College, Creative Spaces, Heston West Big
Local, Smart Learning and a football camp
run by the Youtuber SV2.
We felt it was important after the past
18 months to give children the chance to
engage in fun activities where they would
learn important life skills and to be more
confident about starting the new academic
year.
At
Summer School, we have had lots of fun
learning new things, making new friends,
and getting ready for next year. Some of us are new
to Cranford and some have been here before, but we
have all enjoyed the games, activities, and challenges;
in physical, we’ve played games like rugby, football,
cricket and had competitions in ultimate frisbee,
archery, and dodgeball. In creative, we’ve improved
our confidence and creative skills through drama,
discussion, and crafts - we made some amazing artwork,
origami, friendship bracelets, and more! There
have been many highlights to Summer School - not
least the delicious free lunches - and there have been
many moments to shine. I would like to congratulate our
winners for being most helpful, improved confidence,
community minded, and outstanding contribution -
there have been prizes including Fit-Bits, a Nintendo
switch, and iPad! Thanks to all the teachers, support
staff, canteen workers, and students who made this all
possible!
Katherine Pederson (Summer School Lead 2021)
58

SUMMER SCHOOL
#
2021
A big thank you to all the Cranford staff
who were involved in the design and
delivery of the summer schools and the
other organisations for providing much
needed opportunities for the children from
our community.
We had activities for 6 to 16 year olds
helping to make it a summer of fun and
learning.
Alan Fraser
(Assistant Headteacher - Director of
Community Partnerships)
C
reative
Spaces London are thrilled to be back at Cranford
Community College offering children and families a chance
to connect, create and grow together again.
With over 140 applications from children ranging from 6 to 10
years, 2021 has been CSL’s most popular year to date and thanks
to HAF they have been able to offer free school meals to all
participants to keep tummies full and faces smiling.
CSL have been running their usual wellbeing programme, keeping
communities well through play, drama, art, cooking and much
more. The children have been thinking about everyday little
changes that they can make that will help make a difference to their
own wellbeing and that of those around them. As always, CSL are
keeping it local by employing some of Cranford’s amazing young
people and a handful of fabulously talented Hounslow mums.
“After a tough year, being able to reunite as a community has been
an absolute joy. We are so pleased to hear laughter in the corridors
and to see creativity and friendship thriving together once more.
It is during times of hardship that we are able to see just how
valuable local projects and networks are to local families and we
are incredibly humbled to be part of such a wonderful community.”
CSL hope to be back running a range of Creative Wellbeing projects
for Local Mums, Teenagers and Children in September. Please visit
Creativespaceslondon.org to find out more.
Rachel Doherty
(Artistic Director - Creative Spaces London)
59

#
REMOTE LEARNING
Remote Learning
at Cranford Community College
September 2020
When students and teachers returned
to school in September 2020 there was
an enormous amount of enthusiasm for
teaching and learning and excitement
at being able to socialise and reconnect
with friends and colleagues.
It was also clear that the way teachers
teach and the way students learn
needed to be responsive to a range
of situations that we were are likely
to find ourselves in over the coming
weeks, months and potentially years.
We knew that teachers and students
needed to be agile enough and
competent enough to switch from one
mode of teaching and learning to a
different mode seamlessly.
Microsoft Teams training was
delivered to teachers and students
so that everyone was confident in
delivering lessons remotely, attending
lessons remotely, completing
classwork, homework, catch up work
and handing it in remotely. Teachers
were marking, giving feedback and
monitoring student engagement. We
were ready for whatever Coronavirus
was going to throw at us.
September 2020 to December 2020
proved to be a challenge but the
training and confident use of Microsoft
Teams ensured that students were
able to learn from home if needed
and teachers were able to teach from
home. Teachers isolating were beamed
into lessons and students isolating at
home joined their classmates via a PC,
laptop or tablet. It wasn’t at all unusual
for a student in the classroom to be
doing pair work with a student at home
using Teams on an Ipad.
At this time we also continued to ensure
that everyone was connected at home
and able to access Teams. To date we
have loaned out to students 247 PCs
276 laptops, 64 internet dongles, and
over 100 headsets and cameras.
60

January 2021
The lock down in January 2021 tested the whole
school community’s IT skills, adaptability and
resilience. It also offered an opportunity for teachers
to be extremely creative and use a range of teaching
strategies and resources to ensure that lessons were
engaging, interactive, curriculum focussed and
enabled students to learn and make excellent progress.
During the second lockdown Cranford continued to
deliver a full curriculum and full-time provision, with
‘live’ teaching and learning predominantly through
Microsoft Teams, with some use of Zoom. These live
face to face lessons allowed students to interact with
the teacher and other students, work in small groups
and have learning opportunities as close as possible
to learning in school. The provision extended to
include homework and some extra-curricular clubs
and activities.
Remote education provision at Cranford continues
to evolve and improve as teachers explore new
technologies and software and incorporate innovative
practices into their lessons.
REMOTE LEARNING
#
March 2021
On the 8th March 2021 all students returned to school.
Where students and teachers have been required to
isolate they have continued learning and teaching from
home. When this happens students still attend their
timetabled lessons live using Teams which ensures
that they are able to access the same curriculum
as their peers. Teachers isolating at home are still
beamed into classrooms to deliver their lessons which
ensures as little disruption to learning as possible.
The whole school community from parents and
students to teaching and non-teaching staff should
be applauded for their commitment to ensuring all
students have access to a full and engaging curriculum
whether they are in school or learning remotely at
home.
Blended learning, the combination of face to face
learning, classroom based learning and on line
learning will continue to be a feature of the curriculum
at Cranford Community College.
Rita Berndt (Head of School)
61

# BUSINESS
Business Department
Remote Teaching Dream Team
While
we were remote teaching from January to March 2021, the Business Department used this
as an opportunity to reflect on our ability to provide accurate feedback to the A-Level
Business students, that was also motivational and facilitated their development.
To give the project a starting point, we conducted a focus group with our students to identify what they liked
and disliked about our current approach to assessment. Based on the results, our students were satisfied with
the consistency, transparency and accountability of assessments and feedback. However, students disliked it
when they felt their work was compared to others, had limited guidance of when an assessment would happen
and what would be covered. They also said that they wanted more informal assessment opportunities, and
exemplar materials for post assessment reflection.
The department also analysed the expected outcomes for this cohort in January and identified that zero students
were exceeding their target grade, only four students were performing at their target grade, and on average
students were performing three and half sublevels below their target.
After completing this primary research, the department used secondary research to identify suitable theorists
and current best practice to enhance their remote teaching provision. Key theorists and approaches identified
were; Herzberg’s seven Principles of Motivation, Keeley’s guidance on formative feedback and Lemov’s
approach to delivery.
Following this research, the department implemented the following changes to our remote teaching provision;
embedded high challenge/ low stake testing using applications such as Quizlet, Nearpod and Kahoot; removed
names from tracking sheets and encouraged students to use appropriate nicknames during activities; produced
a timetable for assessments; allowed students to have bespoke assessments based on their own areas for
development; and contacted the examination board for additional exemplar materials as well as starting a bank
of our own outstanding student work.
To assess the impact of our intervention, we completed another focus group and analysed the latest data entry.
The students now said they felt reduced pressure, a greater sense of ownership and autonomy, and really
enjoyed the gamification of activities and revision. The data for the cohort showed that, four students were
now exceeding their aspirational target grade, only one student was not performing at their aspirational target
grade, and the average achievement level had increased by just under three sub levels.
In summary, we believe our department, practice and students have thrived during lockdown. We appreciated
the opportunity to combine our own research with the latest pedagogical theory, in order to transform our
students’ virtual teaching experience. Moreover, we plan to keep progressing with our action research, so that
the school can remain ‘beyond outstanding’, we lead from the cutting edge and continue to transform our
community.
62

BUSINESS
#
BTEC Business – External Assessment Champions
In
January 2021 at the start of the
second National Lockdown for
schools, three of our students made the very
brave, mature and amicable choice to attend
school in order to complete their BTEC
Business external assessments. As a school,
we gave all our students the choice to sit these
assessments based on their personal situation.
If students decided to attend, they had to wear
PPE and arrive early to complete a lateral flow
test and temperature check, which no doubt
added to the stress of the situation.
Junaid Mussa and Jithwin Lalel Venkata sat
a 2 hour examination for Unit 3 Personal and
Business Finance. This unit required an understanding of why money is important and how managing your
money can help prevent future financial difficulties. It was vital they understood the financial decisions you
need to take throughout your life and how risk can affect you and your choices. The business finance aspects
of the unit introduced them to accounting terminology, the purpose and importance of business accounts and
the different sources of finance available to businesses.
Nyat Btomlak sat a 3 hour controlled assessment for Unit 6 Principles of Management. This unit examined
how businesses adapt their approaches to management, in response to challenges in their environment. It also
covered the roles and responsibilities of management and the skill sets they require to work effectively in
areas such as the management of people, financial, resource and quality management, and the management of
change. This unit helps students to progress to employment, by considering a career working in supervision
and management.
The students received their results from the examination board in April, with all students achieving a Merit and
Jithwin scoring the highest points with 26/ 32. Nyat’s outcome contributed to her being predicted a Distinction*
and Distinction for her Diploma. Jithwin’s outcome has contributed to him being predicted a Distinction* for
his Extended Certificate and Junaid’s result has led to him being predicted a Distinction* and Distinction for
his Diploma.
Gurpreet Patel (Head of Business Studies Department)
63

# SEND
SEND
Remote working
We
are incredibly proud of how well our SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) and
vulnerable students adapted to the periods of remote learning. One of our main concerns during this
period was that our SEND and vulnerable students would be at risk of falling behind due to problems accessing
remote learning independently. Our main priority as a SEND team was to provide quality pastoral and academic
support to young people to enable them to engage with their remote learning and continue to make progress.
Whilst the majority of students accessed remote learning from home, there were a small number of students
who engaged with their remote learning on school site.
During the periods of remote learning, all students with SEND, students with Education, Health and Care Plans
(EHCPs), those known to SEN and other vulnerable students, were allocated to a teaching assistant to provide
both pastoral and academic support during this period. Teaching Assistants were available to offer pastoral
support, ranging from: a friendly voice on the end of the phone or on TEAMs to promote well-being; wake up
calls to ensure students were up and ready to join their lessons remotely, and ensuring that students had the
right resources and equipment to work effectively at home.
Teaching assistants also supported academic progress in lessons and were quickly able to share innovative
strategies to effectively work with individual or groups of students on TEAMs to maximise progress. There
were some excellent support channels in place on TEAMs where TAs were able to share differentiated materials
and to provide one-to-one or small group support to ensure young people were able to access the curriculum
whilst working remotely.
Maintaining lines of communication between school, students and parents was essential in enabling us to
provide quality support to our young people. Parental questionnaires were sent out and provided us with
necessary information to ensure that we were dynamic in meeting the demands of remote learning and able to
support and meet the needs of our young people.
Staff and students adapted very quickly to remote learning. Students showed admirable resilience in how
quickly they were able to adapt to this new way of working. Together, staff and students found innovative
ways to ensure that Cranford was able to provide the best SEND provision possible during these difficult
circumstances.
64

Curriculum:
AQA Unit Award Scheme
This year, students at Cranford have been working
towards achieving certificates through the AQA
Unit Award Scheme. The Unit Award Scheme is a
unique recording of students achievement rather
that a qualification. Students have the opportunity
to study a range of engaging units which can be
tailored specifically to their personal needs. The
scheme allows students to receive accreditation
for their achievements across a broad range of
units accessible to students regardless of ability.
The Unit Award Scheme offers students the
opportunity to have their efforts and achievements
formally recognised with a certificate for each
unit they successfully complete. The Unit Award
Scheme has an ‘Achievement for All’ motto, the
scheme encourages students to celebrate what
they can do, rather than what they can’t and has
been hugely successful this year.
The Unit Award Scheme offers an important
pathway in the development of our students’
social, emotional and mental well-being as well
as focussing on some more practical, hands on
components. Students this year have studied:
Emotional Wellbeing, Awareness of Bullying,
Building Healthy Relationships, Social Media
and Staying Safe Online. All these units have
had been central to the development of social and
communication understanding as well as helping
to prepare young people for adulthood.
‘This year students from years 9, 10 and 11 have
taken part in the scheme. The students have
really enjoyed working on the different units.
The lessons are very interactive and often include
independent research, making and presenting
PowerPoints, creating posters/leaflets and
group work – all necessary skills when working
towards greater independence and preparing for
adulthood in the wider community.’ (Mrs Tutt,
Lead Teaching Assistant)
The Unit Award Scheme is a really nice way of talking and
gathering others opinions. I really liked the Emotional
Wellbeing and Awareness of Bullying units. During the
lockdown we all made a PowerPoint about Bullying and
presented it to the rest of the group over Teams, we all did
well with this. My presentation techniques have improved
and I felt confident and my voice was loud.
Avneet Sandhu 10U
In Unit Award Scheme we learn new things including
presentation skills – where we made a PowerPoint and
presented it to the rest of the group. I like Unit Award
Scheme and have enjoyed doing it as it is interesting to
learn new things. It feels like a free lesson as its fun, I
learn things and contribute and discuss with everyone
around me.
Chester Aitken 10Y
My favourite unit was Awareness of Bullying because we
learnt how you can be better and kind. In lockdown we did
a presentation. We talk about how you can stay healthy. I
like learning about real life things.
Ryan Arnold 10T
We have only just started Unit Award Scheme this half term
but I think I will enjoy it as I like presenting my ideas and
developing better understanding of certain topics.
Warda Abdillahi 9U
I really like doing the Unit Award Scheme programme
because it gets me to learn about interesting topics such as
Knife Crime and Awareness of Bullying. I really felt happy
for myself because I have got two AQA certificates and by
the end of Summer I will have three more. When I started
doing this course it made me really happy because I like
the group and Mrs Tutt really makes things interesting.
Thank you for letting me do the course.
Aminah Yousuf 8T
SEND
#
The students were all very happy to receive their
first two AQA certificates in the post over the
Summer half term break and I am sure will be just
as happy to be awarded a further three certificates
before the end of this year. The Unit Award
Scheme motivates and encourages students to
become independent learners as well as giving
their self-esteem a boost when they see what they
can achieve.
Kerry Mulhair
(Assistant Headteacher and SENDCo)
65

#
SOCIAL SCIENCE
Fostering Strong
Attitudes to
Learning
Sociology is the study of human social relationships and institutions. Sociology’s subject matter
is diverse, ranging from crime to religion, from the family to the state, from the divisions of race
and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture. Sociology offers a distinctive and
enlightening way of seeing and understanding the social world in which we live and which shapes our lives.
Sociology looks beyond normal, taken-for-granted views of reality, to provide deeper, more illuminating
and challenging understandings of social life.
Lockdown uncovered numerous challenges and barriers with online learning, but it also proved how
effective it can be. With the Sociology department, it was extremely important to us that we fostered strong
attitudes towards online learning and providing students with the resilience to overcome any potential
challenges posed by online learning such as, for instance, remaining focused during online classes or
maintaining sufficient motivation. We achieved this by incorporating various medias in our lessons such
as quizzes through online learning platforms (Kahoot, Quizlet). We also used video chat on TEAMS rather
than basic instant message when interacting with students as well as times using non-verbal communication
such as emojis.
Sarah Campbell (Head of Sociology Department)
66
In
- Social Sciences -
Student Well Being at the Forefront of Learning
Social Sciences we put a huge emphasis on
student wellbeing. We sent all of our students
wellbeing questionnaires to complete in order to give
us a better idea of how our students were coping with
their remote learning. It gave us an opportunity to
identify areas for improvement in our online approach
so that we could provide our students with outstanding
teaching and learning opportunities remotely and also
to be prepared to continue with this practice once we
were all back in the classroom.
Following on from the responses we got from the
questionnaires, huge emphasis was placed on student
mental wellbeing as well as academic wellbeing.
Contact was made regularly with parents to inform
them on progress students were making and ways
in which they could support their online learning
for Social Sciences subjects. As a department, we
supported and taught each other how to use interactive
platforms such as Nearpod, Quizlet, and Kahoot
so that we could embed these confidently into our
lessons in order to make the lessons more engaging
and challenging for our students. More focus was
placed on completing exam questions under timed
conditions and then sharing answers with each other
so that students could gain an in depth understanding
of ‘how to think like an examiner’. Students fed back
that this was a huge help, allowing them to understand
the requirements of Assessment Objectives more
clearly and how these are applied to their answers.
To assess impact, we challenged students with timed
exam questions. We got them to peer assess answers
as well as critically evaluate and reflect upon the way
in which they worded their own answers in order to
gain maximum marks. We found that students started
to gain higher marks and a deeper understanding of
how to answer questions.
Lockdown itself helped our students to gain a more
in depth understanding of how our subjects work

SOCIAL SCIENCE
#
“Ripper Street Tour”
supports Psychology Students
in the ‘real world’. In Psychology, students got to
explore how psychological concepts apply to mental
wellbeing especially during times where aspects of
our lives may be more out of our own control as they
were during the lockdown. In Sociology, students got
to experience first-hand how social policies shape our
lives and gain a more critical understanding of how
these social polices impact on their lives as students.
Our CPLD and T level students had to stop their
work placements for the duration of the lockdown
but continued to apply knowledge and understanding
of work expectations through observation videos
and simulated activities that would be required of
them as Early Years Professionals. The effort and
enthusiasm of the students during these activities
exhibited their professional attitude toward learning
and understanding the need to care for children
especially during such uncertain times.
Barinder Dosanjh
(Head of Psychology and Social Sciences)
Just before the first lockdown in March 2020, the
Psychology Department and year 13 students were
lucky enough to take in a trip to London for The
Jack the Ripper Tour. The tour, undertaken in the
darkness of a cold winter evening, set the scene
for what was to be a very interesting experience
for all of us. Students got the opportunity to gain
a deeper understanding of the topic ‘Aggression’
which we study in year 13 and how it may have
played a part during the murders. We journeyed
back into time and followed in the footsteps of
Jack the Ripper to gain a deeper understanding of
his gruesome crimes in order to try and discover
who he was and try to delve deeper into the mind
of the infamous serial killer. The students loved
the tour and fed back how it solidified their
understanding of the topics we study in Year 13
for Psychology and how the tour exceeded their
expectations.
Barinder Dosanjh
(Head of Psychology and Social Science)
67

# HISTORY
History Curriculum
History
is a part of our fabric as a society – the past is all around us, embedded in every nook
and cranny of our local area and is deeply rooted in our cultural backgrounds and
experiences. For this reason, the History department’s curriculum at Cranford
Community College is not only full of depth and variety, but it is also
all encompassing. Our students are taught to explore their local History
and consider how it was impacted by global events such as World War I.
They are also equally taught to question the exchange in power between
individuals who governed the state and the people who worked the land.
With all of its beauty and variety, History is something to be experienced
and not just read. This became even more evident to the History Department
when remote teaching and learning as a result of the pandemic lockdowns.
We very quickly adapted our curriculum to ensure that students were able
to experience History and still gain the benefits of a broad curriculum
through the use of documentary clips and videos, engaging with recorded
eye witness accounts and testimonies of the Holocaust. Our students were
also directed to involve their family in their learning by enquiring about
their migration stories and experiences of living in the local area during the
British Civil Rights
movement. Where students were exploring life in Tudor England, they were given a Tudor biscuit recipe to
try! The results were interesting to say the least! Our KS4 students in year 9 and 11 were exposed to current
medical developments and asked to produce time capsule pieces of their own – they all were, of course, living
through a historical event itself. Despite these adaptations, the department endeavoured to ensure that students
developed their historical skills – critiquing source materials, understanding how to write historical narratives
as well as apply second order historical concepts such as significance.
Whilst we adapted our curriculum activities to become more explorative for
students, we wanted to retain the feel of historical narratives and studentteacher
engagement. Therefore, the History Department was very quick to try
out new remote teaching and learning apps and platforms – two of which was
Kahoot and Nearpod. The quiz activities here were thoroughly enjoyable and
a clear indicator of how competitive our students really are! To be able to
track our students’ work, the History Department also implemented the use
of OneNote – an online notebook linked to MS Teams. This was a fantastic
live way of monitoring student work and providing feedback in real time,
almost replicating entirely for staff and students the experience of being
in a real classroom.
Our students at Cranford Community College have experienced History
in its purest form by living through global events that we often only read
about in textbooks. They have been fantastic at adapting to the changes that have
taken place and out of it all, they have learnt so much which will only serve them well in their future
endeavours.
68
Sahrish Shaikh (Head of History Department)

HISTORY
#
Year 7 - Tudor Biscuits
In an attempt to learn what life was like in Tudor England, year 7 students in History were encouraged to have
a go at baking some biscuits using a traditional Tudor recipe. Ms Shaikh had a go at baking them along with
her year 7 class and suffice to say, they all very soon realised that Tudor biscuits are not suited to 21st century
taste buds. However, the results for students such as Divya Sareen and Lina El Jamiy in 7W were far better
than the results for Miss Shaikh. It was a fantastic way to engage with History through remote teaching and
learning during the lockdown of Summer 2020. Check out some of the photos of their Tudor home-baking.
The recipe is here for you to have a go at baking too if you like!
Sahrish Shaikh (Head of History Department)
Year 8
100 Great Black Britons
In
the summer term of 2020, Year 8 students explored
the development of Civil Rights for minority
groups in Britain, post-1945. Part of this unit was a
national competition: ‘100 Great Black Britons.’ Students
were asked to complete a mini research project on their
selected individual from the list (nationally compiled:
https://100greatblackbritons.com/list.html) and
present their ideas in any form they wished, celebrating
the life and achievements of their chosen individual. Here
are some of their examples – many very thoughtful and
celebratory pieces! Their sentiments couldn’t be more
relevant to society now, more than ever before. Well done
year 8!
Sahrish Shaikh
(Head of History Department)
69

# HISTORY
The Holocaust Explained: Freddie’s interview
Freddie’s story makes me feel really upset and sad as from a young age, Freddie was faced with anti-
Semitism; he was beaten up and described as a “dirty Jew” when he was in primary school. This shows
that from a very young age, many Jews had to face rude and offensive comments which could have affected
them mentally. He also mentioned that under Nazi occupation, life for Jews were very hard. Shops owned by
Jews had signs outside them saying, “Do not buy from Jews,” written by the Nazis. When Freddie reached
Auschwitz, he said that he saw, “officers with whips and dogs on a lead.” Via a speaker, they announced that,
“young men shall walk to the concentration camp, but the elderly, women and children will be taken to them
concentration camp via trucks and cars.” They also mentioned, “not to worry as all will be reunited.” Freddie
mentioned that when they reached the camp, they were given numbers and they were now only going to be
called by the number and not their name. This makes me feel very downhearted as their basic human right of
being called by their name was taken away.
Additionally, in the concentration camp, they had to do very hard labour. An example of this is carrying a 25kg
bag from one place to another and they were not allowed to walk but had to run. This makes me sympathise
with all the Jews and others who were in the concentration camp as they had no choice but to do the hard
work. I feel really upset as they already were separated from their family and friends but now also had to do
hard work while being alone without any of their loved ones. Also, after hearing Freddie’s story it makes me
want to raise more awareness about the Holocaust and educate the people around me about what genocide is
in order to prevent history repeating itself.
Divya Sareen (year 8)
70
Year 11
National Army
Museum
Online Workshop
The
COVID 19 pandemic meant that the History Department’s
planned trip to the National Army Museum in Summer 2020
could not go ahead. However, we managed to find a solution to this problem.
The NAM was absolutely amazing in offering to run an online workshop
for us in December 2020 for our year 11 students. This workshop could not
have come at a better time – right before year 11 were due to complete their
mock exams for History. The workshop was based around the British Sector
of the Western Front 1914 – 1918 and addressed the treatment of wounds
and illnesses experienced by soldiers at the Western Front. The workshop
was interactive and students were able to learn from the museum experts
what life really was like in the trenches and how medical advancements
were made.
Sahrish Shaikh (Head of History Department)

Year 11
COVID
History Curriculum
Summer term 2020
If
we had to narrow down why History
is important to one simple statement,
it would be foolish for that statement not to
be: ‘Those who do not remember the past are
condemned to repeat it’ (George Santayana).
The world experiencing a pandemic in the
year 2020 and living life in lockdown was
a perfect example of History repeating
itself and so, it was the ideal opportunity to
encourage our year 11 students to become
true historians. As part of our end of year 11
History curriculum, the History department
created a Pandemic Project in which students
were asked to reflect on their knowledge of
plagues and pandemics from their study
of Medicine Through Time, c.1250 to the
present day. Here, they explored the trends
and patterns of the Black Death 1348, the
Great Plague 1666 and the Spanish Flu
1918, as well as how the world responded
to these. As part of this project, students
were encouraged to engage with a number
of source based activities – the creation of
materials that one day, will become historical
sources documenting their experience of
the COVID-19 Pandemic. One such activity
was a ‘time capsule’ activity where students
were asked to document their experiences of
the Pandemic in the form of a letter to their
future selves. Here are two examples which
we thought were particularly poignant and
indicative of how much we have all been
impacted by the Pandemic and what our
hopes are for the future.
To Future Self
Being in quarantine feels normal. I still have the same
schedule however it feels a little weird as even summer
holidays are not this long. The impact coronavirus has
had on my education is that my GCSEs are cancelled, and
I no longer go to school. School is done online, it’s weird
but I’m also happy about it as I won’t have to wake up
early until September (hopefully!). I recently heard that
Slovenia is the first European country to completely wipe
out coronavirus – some hope that it is possible. Countries
such as USA are bad, they have over 1 million cases.
If you do read this in a couple of years, remember to
appreciate and be grateful to the little things in life.
Sometimes humanity forgets to be so appreciative to be
able to go to things such as restaurants or parties and I
think it is important that we just be grateful about it.
Kareena
May 21st 2020
23/05/20
Hi Iman.
It’s you... Or me... It’s us!
Only I am slightly younger (and probably dumber) than you.
I just survived day 63 of the coronavirus lockdown and sadly haven’t really
achieved anything. Despite having all this free time, I’ve failed to learn a new
skill or discover a hobby or even manage to get my school work done before its
deadline. The complete opposite to you, of course. I hope...
Depending on when you see this letter again, you could be at university, married
to some loser with eight kids together or you could be 70 years old and barely
able to move - remember that 16 is the age when you first started experiencing
back pain. You did this to yourself.
Also, please don’t have eight kids.
On another note, I thought I’d remind you of what you were doing during the
famous COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 that swept across the globe and pretty much
changed everyone’s life. It’s surreal. And not necessarily in a good way, though
there were benefits for some people. Including you. I’ll explain how.
1. You spent more time with your family. Although there were a fair share of
arguments, you still stayed up until the early hours of the morning with them
having plenty of good fun together.
2. You had a super-long holiday off of school. This was needed after the weight
of revision that was on your shoulders (which you didn’t even attempt to decrease
by the way - something that I hope has changed by year 12).
3. You got to know people better! In particular, someone who I hope becomes
the loser you could potentially be married to in ten years’ time. Again, please
don’t have the eight kids.
4. The lockdown made you realise how many things you’d been taking for
granted. I’ve always been content with sitting quietly in my room and not
bothering to leave the house yet now I find myself craving fresh air and just
wanting to go somewhere. Anywhere!
Cranford is also something I miss: coming late to form almost everyday, laughing
like a maniac with my friends and enjoying the canteen food. Oh the canteen
food! Delicious.
When I first heard that Friday the 20th of March would be the final day of year
11, I can’t say I was surprised. With the pandemic worsening it was bound to
happen. Nonetheless, the reality of the situation is much bigger than we could’ve
imagined; it’s all about finding a way to cope now.
I hope that upon coming out of lockdown, life returns back to the way it was,
with a few alterations. Perhaps 20 years from now we’ll be living in an advanced
society, where people are more tolerant and kind, where we do more for those who
are putting their life on the line for our protection, where we are considerate of
what other people have had to go through in this time. I also hope that sometime
soon the salons open so I can get my eyebrows done!
See you in the future,
From past you/me/us
HISTORY
#
Sahrish Shaikh (Head of History Department)
71

#
FIRST STORY
Summer
2020-2021
seemed very far away when we began our First Story sessions at Cranford Community
College. We joined a Teams call in January 2021, in the middle of a deep lockdown,
dealing with technological difficulties from a variety of different houses. In these dark afternoons, writing was
perhaps a particularly useful escape and students travelled backwards and forwards in time as we wrote about
spring and summer, remembering or anticipating the smell of barbecues or the sounds of bouncing basketballs
or the feel of a bike ride in a park on a breezy day. Much had changed by our final session a couple of months
later. Restrictions had eased enough so that students could return to school and I could appear in person instead
of as a discombobulated head projected onto a whiteboard. The weather even co-operated so that one of our
later sessions could take place outside in the school grounds. As well as the welcome move towards summer
in tone and temperature, it was great to see how the students had developed as writers over the eight sessions,
despite some of the challenges that the pandemic created. This anthology showcases some of the work that they
were able to produce under difficult circumstances and is a great testament to their tenacity and commitment.
The first section of this anthology, ‘Perspectives’, explores how this group of writers see the world and are
seen by others. From powerful provocations about prejudiced gazes to more playful explorations about which
creatures are appreciated, these pieces pose questions to the wider world and demonstrate the power of writing
to engage with social justice.
The second section, ‘Memories’, explores a range of different moments from the writers’ lives, from heroic
climbs up hills to tense missions to detonate virtual bombs. Relationships are at the heart of this section, with
pieces showing the intense intimacy that can define encounters with other people – from the joy of spending
time with friends and family to the jagged feelings left after a break-up.
Intense emotions also drive the final section, ‘Definitions’, which brings together some of the students’
explorations of ideas. Among the nouns that are under their magnifying glasses are ‘spring’ and ‘summer’,
with a variety of details and feelings evoked by these seasons. Other pieces here build on exercises we
did to imagine abstract nouns through
concrete imagery, with some delightful
analogies emerging to showcase the
writers’ imaginations.
This collection wouldn’t be possible
without the generous support of staff
at First Story and Cranford Community
College. We owe huge thanks to Emma
Leahy, Jay Bhadricha, Charlotte
Prendergast, and all the tremendously
supportive and enthusiastic First Story
team. Staff at Cranford College have
also been supportive and flexible in
this challenging year, and Aisling
McConville and Robert Ind have
been brilliant at ensuring the smooth
continuation of the programme.
As the lead teacher working on the
programme, Conor Campbell has
offered extraordinary levels of support,
deftly navigating any technological
and logistical hurdles and always
being willing to share words of
encouragement and his own writing
with the students; we couldn’t have
asked for a better teacher to guide us
through this year.
Writing is often presented to young people as a form of escape. Many
of our young authors were glad to take it as just so and have produced
some wonderful and evocative works, pointing towards past meetings
and future hangouts (restrictions permitting!). As Darragh rightly
points out in his introduction this year the opportunity to escape
was more valuable than ever. But as you consider the perspectives
presented in this volume, I hope you will also note how our students
here at Cranford Community College have approached serious and
personal topics, expressing themselves and their identities with a
deftness and confidence many professional authors would envy.
This volume as a whole speaks to the ethos of Cranford Community
College: being optimistic and positive while also encouraging our
students to engage with and explore the larger issues in the world
around them. You will, I trust, find the pieces as interesting to read
as they were to encourage.
The challenges of the ongoing pandemic have affected all of us, but
thankfully they have not affected the brilliance and generosity of the
staff at First Story. Emma Leahy has been fantastic in organizing all
aspects of the volume’s administration, while the students could not
have hoped for an author better suited to meeting the challenges of
the pandemic than Darragh Martin. The energy he brought to the
online meetings ensured the students pushed through the additional
after-school screen time, and his diligence and thoroughness in his
feedback has helped shape the students’ work into the compelling
writing you will find in this volume.
But Darragh and I could only encourage, and ultimately the work
speaks primarily to the inspiration and talent of the students who
took part. This book is their canvas – enjoy their work.
Conor Campbell (First Story Lead)
72

Cover design by First Story
FIRST STORY
One of the pieces in the final section likens happiness to music on a rainy day and I hope that this collection
can bring music of a different kind to what has been a rather rainy year so far. The summer activities mentioned
in this book should become possible again and, hopefully, these adventures will also include more writing
from this brilliant group.
#
Darragh Martin (Writer-in-Residence)
Pigeons Talk Back
Message to My Hair
Our Canvas is an anthology of new writing by the First Story
students at Cranford Community College who took part
in creative-writing workshops led by Writer-in-Residence
Darragh Martin. First Story believes there is dignity and
power in every person’s story, and here you’ll find young
people expressing themselves in their own unique voices.
The questions you ask are annoying.
Long strands of messiness Featuring writing by: make me
Abdulrahim Awal•Arnav Mehta•Azhar Abdi
Blue•Brian Basaj•Hamail Afzal
tired.
Harshika Sarna•Iman Kabanda•Maria Ferreira
Nancy Harkous•Nihal Kang•Prashin Kumar
Samira Cali•Waa’il Ali•Zahra Sarwar
Tangling feelings stress me out.
Uncomfortable pigments of red
disappoint.
Every day, knots twist me up.
Why make me feel uncomfortable?
What happens next?
Do I cut you off?
Hamail Afzal (year 10)
Spring Snapshot
‘First Story is a very exciting idea –
writing can liberate and strengthen
young people’s sense of themselves
as almost nothing else can.’
PHILIP PULLMAN
Author of His Dark Materials
www.firststory.org.uk £10.00
Our Canvas
The First Story Group at Cranford Community College
OUR CANVAS
An Anthology by the First Story Group at
CRANFORD
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Edited by
DARRAGH MARTIN
Our Canvas is an anthology of new writing by the First Story
students at Cranford Community College who took part
in creative-writing workshops led by Writer-in-Residence
Darragh Martin. First Story believes there is dignity and
power in every person’s story, and here you’ll find young
people expressing themselves in their own unique voices.
Featuring writing by:
Spring smells like fresh chicken
and chips,
And the burning of barbecues.
Spring feels like a cool bath,
Or the uprising of a solar
system,
After a cold supernova
degraded our souls.
In the park, young girls and
boys avoid each other like
criticism,
As a newlywed couple stare at a blue sky.
The beating of a basketball and the striking of nets,
Almost reminds me of a perfectly ordered orchestra.
Prince and Michael Jackson play,
While parents reminisce about a ‘perfect’ 90s
childhood.
Spring is just a favourable time.
Abdulrahim Awal•Arnav Mehta•Azhar Abdi
Blue•Brian Basaj•Hamail Afzal
Harshika Sarna•Iman Kabanda•Maria Ferreira
Nancy Harkous•Nihal Kang•Prashin Kumar
Samira Cali•Waa’il Ali•Zahra Sarwar
‘First Story is a very exciting idea –
writing can liberate and strengthen
young people’s sense of themselves
as almost nothing else can.’
PHILIP PULLMAN
Author of His Dark Materials
Cover design by First Story
www.firststory.org.uk £10.00
Hello there, young lad,
It’s me, the Pigeon, the spectacular
Bogeyman!
Now listen, I promise I won’t be mad,
And with the rest of my tragically short
lifespan,
I’d like to know why exactly
You humans treat us like trash!
You shun us,
You poison us,
You laugh when we’re in pain,
You shoot us all the time,
And don’t give us the time of day!
Now I’ve stopped to wonder,
To think, reflect and ponder,
What exactly have we done
To be bullied by everyone?!
We clean up all your gutters!
We clean up all your streets!
We keep away the dirty rats!
And eat up all the bugs!
Yet, for some unknown reason,
We’re hated, shunned and beaten.
All we wish for is to be loved…
To be treated with kindness and
respect,
like you do to the
noble dove.
Why must OUR you CANVAS humans always disgrace
Those who differ from what you view
An Anthology by the First Story Group at
as okay?
CRANFORD
Surely,
COMMUNITY
this isn’t
COLLEGE
the way things should be,
A world of hatred and separation,
Our Canvas
The First Story Group at Cranford Community College
Edited by
Where man goes against man,
DARRAGH MARTIN
Pigeon goes against pigeon,
A world of pain and segregation.
Surely, aren’t we both meant to be free?
So please, humans,
Stop killing us for your twisted amusement!
But wait, do not despair,
For there is, of course, a silver lining.
All you have to do
Is feed us, like the old men and ladies!
Then, there is a small chance,
we may forgive you.
Made by the Pigeon Gang,
keeping it real since 1983.
Waa’il Ali (year 10)
Abdulrahman Awal (year 10)
73

#
FIRST STORY
Hands off my Hijab
The blistering sun scorches my back
as I scramble away,
Scurrying to escape the hateful glares
directed at me.
Their judgemental eyes are fixated upon me,
I don’t feel like I belong in my own community.
Run, Nancy – they don’t want you here.
They don’t like you and your identity.
Run, Nancy – you don’t belong here.
They don’t want you and your individuality.
Fear and anxiety overwhelm me,
I ponder: What have I done wrong?
My frightened legs begin to flee,
I wonder: What’s to hate about my hijab?
In the day and age where modesty is to be feared,
I question the world I live in.
The world in which covering your body
results in sneers
Is a grotesque reality full of misery?
Society’s expectations pressure me to veer
From my faith and the beliefs which I hold dear.
To be frowned upon and despised by peers
Makes practicing my religion hard to bear.
To conceal my hair and body empowers me,
However, mankind paints a contrasting image
Of oppression, restriction and captivity.
But this is not what the religion of Islam preaches!
Freedom and liberty are the sensations I feel
when wearing my hijab:
Freedom and liberty from the barbaric beast
of body criticism,
Freedom and liberty from the sadistic swine
of sexualisation,
Freedom and liberty from the pernicious predator
of patriarchy.
How can a civilisation be so corrupt?
To transform a symbol of peace into one
so malicious?
The ignorant view the hijab in disgust –
But how can something so innocuous be viewed
as flagitious?
I scurry until my legs can bear no more,
The booming sun strangles my trembling skin,
Familiar shrieks and howls of ‘terrorist’ roar,
I cry – this is a war us Muslims will never win.
Nancy Harkous (year 10)
Summer Memories
I remember,
The scorching sun trickling its rays across my body,
The sounds of birds singing their cheerful melodies,
Flowers which were painted
all the colours of the rainbow,
The still, glass lake decorated
with lily pads and leaves from trees.
I remember,
I raced with Maria on the obstacle course,
And felt afraid when we reached the top.
The refreshing feeling of the orange flavoured
ice-lolly,
And the sweet tingles it brought to my taste
buds with each bite.
I remember,
We climbed up the lush, green northern hills,
The sun’s heat pulled me back and
made it harder to climb,
I almost slipped many times,
But when we reached the top,
the view was beautiful.
I remember,
The warm grass welcomed our picnic,
We laid food on a brightly coloured blanket,
And ate sweet strawberries and savoury burgers,
Tangy juice exploded with flavour.
I remember,
The towering trees which brought us shade,
Their lush arms made roofs over our heads,
Emerald leaves danced in the wind,
Some fluttered down onto the ground.
I remember,
The sun beginning to set,
The journey back with the new memories
we’d made,
How tired I was after such a long day,
And how excited I was to finally get some rest.
That was in summer 2020 and now we’re in 2021,
I can’t wait to get another summer
away from school,
So I can relax and have some fun,
It might take a while, but it’ll be worth the wait,
With the pandemic taking over the year,
Hopefully, summer won’t come too late.
74
Iman Kabanda (year 10)

My Point of View
FIRST STORY
#
‘You’re craving attention by showing those
shoulders, don’t you lie.’
When I just saw a shirtless boy walk by.
Boys will be distracted by the shortness
of my dress.
But tell me, can’t they just stare at me less?
‘You’re overdressed, stop trying so hard.’
‘You’re underdressed, now try harder.’
I’m hearing their voices, not taking it in.
My patience has scraped thin.
‘You’re a woman, don’t you raise your voice.’
As if speaking my opinion can’t be my choice.
I try to speak normally but I’m just not heard,
I get pushed away and told it’s absurd.
Put yourself in my shoes,
Remember everything women go through,
Having to deal with people like you.
Please, just look from my point of view.
Into the Linguistic Loophole is an anthology of new writing
by the First Story students at Cranford Community College
who took part in creative-writing workshops led by Writer-in-
Residence Ross Raisin. First Story believes there is dignity and
power in every person’s story, and here you’ll find young
people expressing themselves in their own unique voices.
Featuring writing by:
Adelaide Samgi•Aliza Abbas•Angel Aibuki
Anjali Bhambra•Arwa Umar•Kimran Virk•Mahira Butt
Manav Vivek•Maryam Moeen•Nadra Hassan
Raisa Hassan•Syed Jaffery•Tara Rooprah•Zena Rehmamn
Into the Linguistic Loophole
The First Story Group at Cranford Community College
INTO THE
LINGUISTIC LOOPHOLE
An Anthology by the First Story Group at
CRANFORD
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Maria Ferreira (year 10)
Edited by
ROSS RAISIN
Unravelling
‘First Story is an inspiring initiative.
It’s a joyful project that deserves as
much support as we can give it.’
ZADIE SMITH
Author of White Teeth
and Swing Time
The trees have life again.
Nature crawls out from the shadows.
The blazing hot sun blesses us with its power.
Baby foxes scurry out of their dens.
Daisies sprout out of the ground.
Busy bees buzz around the emerald grass.
The sky covers us with its turquoise painting.
The smell of barbecues comes from
neighbours’ gardens.
Hedgehogs unravel from their hibernation.
Spring looks like merriment.
Azhar Abdi (year 10)
First Story 2020 Open House:
Delving into the Linguistic Loophole
On
Cover design by First Story
www.firststory.org.uk £10.00
Wednesday 4th November 2020, the
First Story cohort 2020 were finally able
to share their anthology readings at the First Story
Open House in the Cranford Suite. This was a long
awaited event, originally planned for July 2020 but
through the challenges of the pandemic, like many
other events it had to be rescheduled. But the wait
was definitely worth it.
The event was attended by students, parents and staff.
Together we ventured into the Linguistic Loophole
witnessing an array of diverse storytelling full of
imagination, creativity and empowerment by their
own authentic voices.
Ross Raisin, resident author, reflected on the schools
continuing support and encouragement for Cranford
students to be part of this wonderful initiative. He
spoke of how these writings reflected Cranford’s
continuing inclusive approach, fostered by staff and
the Executive Headteacher Kevin Prunty, since its
first cohort.
It was certainly an afternoon of inspiration, humour
and imagination as together we delved into the
Linguistic Loophole.
Aisling McConville (First Story 2020)
75

#
SPORTS / PE
Physical Education
during Remote Learning
Remote learning was a challenge that all staff had to adapt to. In
PE we had to adapt and think outside of the box on how to keep
students engaged in a practical subject now being completed via
computer screens without creating any online unease.
When adapting to remote learning it was a priority that the quality
of PE education was not to be compromised, so we used this as an
opportunity to try something new. Lessons were delivered with a
theory and practical split. Students continued with the sport they
would have been doing if it wasn’t for lockdown. Adaptations were
made for them to be able to practise at home by using items such
as using frying pans and sock balls. In this way we ensured that the
curriculum was still followed. The second part of the lesson had
a theory focus allowing the department to promote healthy active
lifestyles with topics such as nutrition, psychology and sports and
how the human body works during sport.
In order to further promote physical activity to ensure student
wellbeing was at the heart of our “lockdown’’ curriculum we ran
weekly competitions with winners having medals posted out to them.
I am very proud of my team as it was not an easy transition for such
active teachers, but they displayed the right behaviour and attitudes
which reflected on students in order for online PE lessons to be
successful.
Hamesh Rattu (Director of Sport and Community Wellbeing)
Divya Sareen (year 8) Ravrahet Singh (year 9)
PE in
in lockdown sounded to
P.E. me like an old riddle. I was
perplexed about the logistics behind it
and the notion of P.E. in lockdown was
amusing. Were we to do star jumps
and burpees for the fifty minutes or
dance along with our teachers on call?
Well, the inevitable time came that
we had P.E and I was thrown into a
completely different side of Physical
Education that I never really realised
was a discipline.
Diet was a key topic. Although
intuitively intertwined with sports
I never saw this as a topic to be
covered. It wasn’t just the traditional
pie-chart diet plate of veggies, cheese,
meat and a sliver of sugary snacks and
confectionary. Instead lessons delved
into a lot of biology I was unaware of. I
was introduced quite comfortably into
buzzwords I had heard before, calories,
macros, micros, and this established a
foundation of knowledge. Alongside
my own curiosity, which acted as a
catalyst of sorts, this caused me to do
further research and finally apply the
learning to my life. Measuring what
I eat helped me control my weight to
my needs – whether it was to add on
a little more lean-mass or to lean out
after a binge weekend, having that
knowledge of diet radically improved
my training and mental health.
Alongside watching my calorie intake
and my macros, I was soundly retaught
the importance of sleep and
how essential sleep is to my training
Abd El Rahmane Brik -
Chaouch (year 9)
Rianna Lukka (year 7)
Yunnus Sheikh (year 7)
76

Lockdown
A student’s
reflection
and to my everyday commute from
my bed in the morning back to my
bed at night. I gave myself a regular
bedtime and a time to get up in the
morning and though I do not have a
one hundred percent track record of
sticking to this, my quality of sleep
has increased exponentially.
The final aspect was an area of
sports psychology that I was already
aware of – ‘crash cutting’. This is
the process of trying to lose as much
weight as possible in the shortest
amount of time. Whether it be through
dehydration, starvation or sitting in
saunas in a bin-bag, this lesson in P.E
provided me a new angle on sport and
the willingness some athletes have to
resort to such measures.
The lockdown lessons provided me
with a fantastic perspective on how
everything from sports psychology,
diet, and sleep all impact upon physical
and mental health. I attempted my
hardest to heed what was taught and
have now applied my knowledge to
my daily routine.
Coming back to the astro-pitches and
kicking a football is enjoyable as
always, but those lockdown lessons
were arguably more fundamental to
my involvement in sport than scoring
any penalty I could dream of pulling
off.
Prem Pun (year 10)
Sunny Sports Day July 2021
SPORTS / PE
This year we decided that after all the ups and down with COVID-19
and sports the students deserved a sports day. With restrictions
still in place we had to keep it safe and maintain bubbles which
meant a traditional whole school sports day was not possible but
we adapted and moved forward. Forms in year 7, 8 and 9 selected
athletes to take part in track and field events which they came out
to participate in during lessons. This was followed by the year
group coming together for the final races so everyone was able to
cheer on friends to gold!
The 3 days of sporting events, including events in track and
field, were a great success in the sunshine, with students coming
together enjoying healthy competition, socialising, having fun and
supporting each other’s accomplishments.
As with previous years, form groups in each year competed against
each other and the results contributed to the overall result in key
stage 3.
The sports days wouldn’t have been possible without the fantastic
help from the sixth form sports committee and I would like to give
a special mention to; Sean, Tara, Karolina Mucko and Yaseen Khan
who did an excellent job helping to organise and manage events
on the day.
#
77

#
SPORTS / PE
Sunny Sports Day July 2021
Well done to all athletes, forms and teachers who were
involved in 3 successful sports days. The results were
at times really close.
Key Stage 3 Winners Table:
• Year 7 Winners 7T
• Year 8 Winners 8X
• Year Winners 9T
• Overall Key Stage 3 winner T.
There are so many stand out athletes from sports day.
Special recognition goes to:
• Tanvir Sahota 9W
• Amani Salim 9W
• Tyler James 9T
• Ravrahet Singh 9V
• Harith Sheikh 7Z
• Anshveer Chugh Chawla 7X
• Kirsten Woodward 9U
• Radwaan Mohsin 8V
• Renu Begum Da Fonseca Hossain 8U
Hamesh Rattu
(Director of Sport and Community Wellbeing)
“Year 8 loved it and the buzz created was
lovely to see after a hard year. I have to
say thank you too to the sixth formers
involved. They really gave it their all
and I was happy to see them engaging
well with the younger students”.
Milton Venancio Ferreira
(Head of Year 8)
“A Huge thanks to the PE department
and the 6th form students who supported
them for a smoothly running afternoon
which was really well planned and
carried out. Well done”.
78
Mehmoona Yousaf
(Senior Teacher – Pastoral)

SPORTS / PE
Competitions
and Inter-forms
in Sport
#
Competition should not
be feared, it should drive
us to learn at a faster rate
and perform at a higher
level. Competitions
and inter-forms are put
on by the PE department
because we want to help students
learn this, have fun and install resilience on how
to win and lose gracefully.
Lockdown did not stop us from doing so. We carried out many
at home competitions which students had to enter online ranging
from physical challenges such as the plank or how many steps you
can do in one day. The final lockdown competition we had was an
‘Express Yourself’ challenge encouraging students to be creative
and express what makes them happy which was run during children
mental health week. Students created videos, wrote articles or
sent images in as entries. In school we ran inter-forms in football,
running, athletics and dodgeball. Winners received medals for
their efforts.
We hope to continue our extensive competition approach and will
be using the new online format a lot more in September 2021.
Dodgeball Review
Students in year 7 and year
8 took part in an interform
dodgeball tournament
after school. The students
played within their form
in an exciting round robin
tournament. Due to COVID
the tournament was played
outside on our astro
pitches. Throughout both
tournaments, all students
showed a great amount
of passion, resilience and
respect towards one another.
After some fantastic
performances from both
students and teachers who
took part, on the first day
8X came out as the winners
and 7Z on the second day.
Congratulations to both
forms who are currently reigning
champions for interform dodgeball
at Cranford.
Basheak Bussue (PE Department)
Rebecca Carter (PE Department)
Express Myself
I express myself by
playing sports. I love to
play many sports but I
love one particular one and that is
netball. Netball to me is my passion
and I believe that I can express
myself in many ways through it.
Express
Myselft
Netball makes me happy and I believe I can be
myself and become a better person. Netball helps
me to take things off my mind and lets me be
myself. It makes me become more confident and
determined. Netball makes me feel resilient and
I can really show my true colours by showing
people what I love. Netball is in my comfort zone
and makes me feel stronger and it tells me that I
am ready to do anything I want but I just have to
be resilient and I have to persevere. In year 6, I
was in a netball team and that is where my passion
for netball started. I started in an afterschool club
then I slowly got into mini tournaments and then
I was chosen to go to this big tournament. It
showed that I need to be patient and it takes time
to achieve your dreams and goals.
Jagroop Layal (year 7)
79

#
SPORTS / PE
One
World
Marathon
How Far Did
We Go Together?
Following the success of One World Marathon
2019 where over 7000 people participated
in 63 different countries we had big plans
for 2020. Unfortunately, due to Covid we were not
able to build on the success of 2019 but we did
manage some events across the world including
at Cranford. We held the event in October with
students completing at least a mile while for the
first time staff also contributed miles by either
walking or running. Although One World Marathon
is not meant to be competitive there were some
great rivalries individually and by department. We
are hoping that the 2021 event in autumn will be
able to go ahead with very little restrictions.
Alan Fraser (Assistant Headteacher -
Director of Community Partnerships)
80

SPORTS / PE
#
Staff
Sports
Friday
In
October 2020 105 staff took part
in our One World Marathon event
alongside all Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4
students. A fantastic effort from all led to staff
accumulating 138 miles, meaning we logged
5 full marathons as a staff team.
As a partner of the One World Marathon, the
students and staff at Cranford Community
College have really promoted and encompassed
the core values of the One World Marathon of
collaboration, unity and working together in
our efforts to complete miles.
My aim this year was simply to beat last year’s
total of 33 student marathons but also to use
the event for staff to promote wellbeing, create
new role models for students and a reminder
that during these un-precedent times we
can still have fun (social distancing & rules
considered). This shows how much of a team
we are at Cranford.
The team and I appreciate that not all staff
were 100% comfortable running or walking
around the field but without sounding cheesy
they have broken a barrier and potentially a
barrier that was stopping many other students
from getting involved in Physical Activity.
They now have 99 other roles models in school
to help promote the importance of physical
activity and wellbeing.
A truly outstanding effort from us all has led
to a staff and pupil total of 1184 miles and 45
marathons – Simply Amazing! A BIG Thank
You from all the Sport Team.
Hamesh Rattu
(Director of Sport and Community Wellbeing)
Staff
sports runs every Friday after school.
The focus of Staff Sports is wellbeing
and staying physically active while also socialising with
teachers across departments promoting the community
aspects of our school. A range of sports and activities is
on offer so anyone can get involved including fitness,
football, tennis and badminton.
The Friday sports has made finishing busy weeks much
more enjoyable allowing for a good mental break before
heading into the weekend alongside some friendly
rivalries as staff challenge others to games of short tennis
and table tennis outside, badminton and Tennis.
Below are some quotes from staff who have taken part
on a regular basis:
“I have really found the after school sports sessions played
a huge role in helping me take better care of my physical
health. I got advice on how to work out and how to improve
my form during the exercise. It’s been really useful and I am
very grateful to the team for helping us prioritise fitness”.
“It was fun and a chance to engage with colleagues over
something other than teaching”.
We hope to continue with more sports in September!
Jescynda Savige (PE Department)
81

# PSHCE
PSHCE - Supporting Students during Lockdown and beyond
What a strange time it has been for us all! Here in the PSHCE department we have spent our time
ramping up our education on mental health to support the students during lockdown and coming up
with some innovative projects and leisure time ideas to engage our students and help them to thrive.
You might remember some of them featuring in our last publication.
This year we have also enhanced our curriculum to focus on supporting students to become more critical
thinkers, in both year 8 and year 9 we’ve added more content to our lessons on disinformation, misinformation,
fake news and conspiracy theories. We want to help our students to develop their skills at spotting deliberate
and dangerous information as well as helping them to identify trustworthy and reputable sources.
We have also introduced new units to teach students about dangerous online behaviours and how to spot red
flags in potentially unhealthy relationships. As always we provide an emphasis on where to get help and
support with any matter they feel concerned about. Keeping our students safe and teaching them strategies to
do that with has always been a priority.
Students continue to report a high level of enjoyment of their PSHCE lessons, stating that they find it very
helpful in their day to day lives. We believe that PSHCE plays a vital role in supporting students with their
non-academic learning and the way in which they navigate and interact with the world beyond our school gates.
Barbara Lodge (Head of PSHCE)
82

PSHCE Statistics
Internal Review from Students:
PSHCE
In a survey from last year (March 2020):
#
• 75% of students rated their enjoyment of
PSHCE lessons as 8 out of 10 or higher.
• 85% of students said that PSHCE challenged
their thinking and helped them to form opinions
about a wide range of topics.
• Over 85% of students reported feeling that
they felt secure in knowing where to access
help, advice and support if they need it.
• Almost 100% (97%) of students said that
they were encouraged to share their views and
opinions.
• Almost 100% (98%) of students agreed that
what they have learnt in PSHCE could make a
real difference to their life.
“For me PSCHE has changed my lifestyle
in a good way its taught me how to manage
anger which I needed and I enjoy every
lesson”.
year 7 student
“I think PSHCE education is important
because we are learning about everyday
life and how we should control our
lifestyles”.
year 8 student
“I think PSHCE is a good subject because
every lesson you have a wide variety of
things to do and every lesson we talk about
the subject and it is fun to hear everyone’s
views and to learn different ways of
looking at things”.
year 8 student
“PSHCE has really helped me to become
more confident in sharing my opinions.
I don’t worry about what other people think
as much as I used to”.
year 9 student
“PSHCE really helps you understand what
goes on in society and helps stop you from
making stupid decisions”.
year 8 student
“The lesson topics help me become
a better person”.
year 7 student
83

#
MIND, BODY & SOUL
Mind, Body & Soul 2020-2021
Mind
Body
Soul
Learning a new skill or
taking up a challenge
can give you a sense
of achievement and
increased confidence.
Being physically active
is good for your overall
physical fitness and also
has a positive effect on
your mental health.
Choose something you
like to do and share
this with others. As
shared interest helps
build friendships and
positive relationships.
84

MIND, BODY & SOUL
#
It is
always exciting to create the Mind, Body and Soul curriculum at
the start of the academic year. The curriculum offer aims to provide
students with a range of exciting opportunities that will develop
a range of skills, broaden their knowledge and understanding and increase their cultural
capital. The teachers at Cranford have an amazing array of passions, interests and hobbies
and it is from our talented teachers that we get the inspiration for the Mind, Body and
Soul curriculum.
Debating, STEM activities, Shakespeare in Schools, Chess, Italian, Korean, Art and Craft
and a range of sporting activities have been popular sessions for the last few years. This year
we further expanded and enriched the offer with Yoga, Philosophy, Mandarin, Enterprise,
Journalism, Boules, Music Technology, Situation Ethics and Wellbeing groups.
In September the students made their choices and embarked on a voyage of discovery
enthusiastically learning Mandarin, practising Yoga and contemplating philosophical
questions. In January 2021 we were not deterred by the second lockdown and continued to
deliver the same curriculum to the students through face to face lessons on Microsoft Teams.
Sports activities became Joe Wicks style with the teachers leading practical sessions from
school encouraging students to use household implements as a bat and rolled up socks as a
ball. Teachers and students were very resourceful with the STEM sessions, and art and craft
sessions using whatever was available in the home and raiding the recycling box. Students
and teachers continue to enjoy the benefits of the Mind, Body and Soul programme whether
we are in school or learning remotely.
Rita Berndt (Head of School)
85

#
Year 7
A Plethora of Talent
Year 8
Adapting to the Challenge
86
Every year Cranford Community College
welcomes a plethora of new talent through its
doors and this Year 7 cohort has been no exception.
To showcase their talent, our Year 7 form time
programme included competitions and challenges
including the Year 7 Microsoft Paint Competition
and the Screen-Free Bingo Challenge. The talent,
effort and attention to detail on display in the Paint
competition amazed form tutors and classmates
alike.
The Screen-Free Bingo Challenge encouraged
students to get away from their computers during
lockdown by pitting forms against one another to
complete as many challenges as possible. Tutees
challenged themselves to learn new skills such as
photography, cooking, baking, and handicrafts to
mention but a few. Participants showed hard graft
too: helping with the housework and even getting
out to wash the family car.
Year 7 students exhibited critical-thinking through
form time discussions on wide-ranging themes
such as social injustice, coronavirus, the dangers
of social media and the climate emergency. At
Cranford we strive to foster autonomy amongst our
cohort and currently our very own Environmental
Protection Agency has come into its own in this
regard, taking responsibility for environmental
awareness campaigns and fact-finding missions
to inform their classmates.
Mindfulness has been a core focus of Year 7
and will continue as such in each year to come.
Looking after ourselves begins with the mind.
During form time, we facilitate student reflection
and a moment of calm to begin the day at school.
Students have engaged with activities such
as mandala colouring and watching slow-TV,
while being guided towards self-reflection and
contemplation, invaluable life-skills.
As we hope and pray for a much more “normal”
school year, we know that whatever life throws at
us, our current cohort of Year 7s has already shown
the ability to turn challenges into opportunities
for growth.
John Lennon (Head of Year 7)
It is still hard to believe that our year group is now in year
8. It has been a year and a half that we will all remember
for many years to come. We have had to adapt in ways
that we never thought possible, get used to technology
like never before and depend on one another not just as
classmates but also as friends. At the start of the pandemic
we were stripped of our regular pastoral routines. Form
time, assemblies and regular tutee ‘check ins’ were all
taken away from us. We suddenly found ourselves in the
position of having to be very creative- and fast.
To substitute form times, form tutors called their tutees
during the morning to check in with them and see if they
needed support with anything. As time progressed this
went from individual calls to group calls, to whole form
class Microsoft Teams calls.
Suddenly, we saw a spark of ‘normality’ in our daily
morning routines. Although this was great, I was still
missing one of the highlights of my week: assemblies.
I started to record my assemblies for tutors to show their
form classes. This was often a labour intensive process
of planning, recording and then editing. If you have ever
had to listen to your voice playback from a recording,
you will share my pain. Thankfully, I came across Loom,
a software that supports people who need to record
presentations but also want to have their face recorded
so people can see them too. This helped break down the
barriers that learning from home created.
Recording assemblies was interesting and for a while,
filled the gap but I wanted more. Once the year group
were stable with their use of Microsoft Teams, I wanted
to experiment with a whole year group LIVE assembly:
210 students and 9 members of staff, all online with
participation. The first assembly filled with many
unknowns, but Year 8 made me incredibly proud. They
were there, on time, attentive and wanting to participate.
I left that assembly beaming, proud of what a big group
of young people had accomplished.
There was a quote circulated that has stuck with me
throughout: “There is a strength built in those who
overcome adversity”. This year group is made of
resilience, compassion, creativity and determination and
I look forward seeing them through another year and see
them grow in these traits.
Milton Venancio Ferreira (Head of Year 8)

Year 9
Up for the Challenge
Year 10
Displaying Impressive Resilience
#
With the first national school closure and period
of remote learning behind us, Year 9 returned to
school in September ready to push on with all of
the challenges that Year 9 brings. Whilst school
was different with the new safety and procedural
routines that Covid brought, such as lessons in tutor
bases, wearing masks and increased sanitisation on
the entry to school, Year 9 students quickly adapted
and before long it was like we had never truly been
away for so long.
The beginning of Year 9 also saw the start of GCSE
learning in some subjects. Year 9 have proven
themselves more than up to the challenge, leaving
their class teachers extremely impressed with their
resilience, determination and will to succeed,
particularly throughout the second school closure,
where remote learning returned with a vengeance
to form another barrier for Year 9 students to
successfully overcome.
As national restrictions began to ease we saw many
of the highlights of the year take place. Amani
Salim made her national TV debut on Football
Focus, showcasing her football skills as she had
a kick around with retired professional footballer
Marcus Bean; Matthew Akinmuleya and Rayan
Ali displayed the wealth of musical talent at their
disposal when they hosted their own music concert;
and a larger group of Year 9 pupils represented
Cranford with pride during an Amazon technology
workshop.
I have never been prouder of my year group and I
have extremely high hopes for them as they move
on into Year 10.
Bradley King (Head of Year 9)
The Year 10 cohort have shown such impressive
resilience in the face of extreme adversity this year.
They have made the safety advice implemented by
the school seem like an easy to follow habit, which
has helped keep us all safe. They have mastered the
art of lateral flow testing very quickly and seamlessly
and have incorporated this process into their tutor time
routines. In most tutor groups, it was students who
maturely oversaw the procedure and made sure that
everything was done properly and hygienically and
that the classrooms were left tidy for the next lesson.
They also had their first GCSE style internal exam
experience this year, for which they received glowing
feedback from the exams coordinators. It was a great
chance to become more familiar with the exam
process so that it is not too overwhelming next year
and although it was stressful at times, they all came
out of it stronger and better prepared.
Year 10 have worked with restrictions and found ways
to keep connected and stay creative. I have received
lots of videos on Teams of students playing musical
instruments and I have also received lots of pictures
of drawings that they have been doing. I had no idea
just how original, imaginative and artistic some of the
students in the year group are.
In assemblies and form time Year 10 have tackled
mental health issues, learned about Chinese
philosophy, and competed in current affairs quizzes.
They are an extremely passionate group and engage
keenly in debates. Working with these brilliant young
people has enriched my experience as a teacher at
Cranford immeasurably.
Matt Nation-Tellery (Head of Year 10)
87

#
YEAR 11
88
Year 10 July Return
Brings Happy Sunny Days for All
After a very long time away from school and lots of Frog based
learning we were all super excited to get back into school on
Monday 6th July 2020 for two weeks of long awaited time with our
teachers and friends. We were organised very safely in Covid secure
tutor group bubbles, which we soon got used to and before long it
was like we hadn’t been away. At the end of the two weeks we had
had some great fun doing some really interesting activities and even
more importantly been given the skills and knowledge we needed
for all our subjects to make sure we were all back up to speed and
ready to hit the ground running in September.
How to do a public speaking challenge virtually
In the February 2020 we got the chance to do the Jack Petchey Speak
Out Challenge in school. Little were we all to know that this would
be the last time we ever had a live event in school in our year group.
I was lucky enough to win the challenge that day and was excitedly
waiting for the final in March. Well we all know what happened
next! Fast forward a few months and at last the Challenge Final
came around! It was all very different on Zoom but I did my speech
on Racial Stereotyping and my solutions to it. Although I didn’t win
I got really good feedback and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Ahmed Mumin (year 11)
Future Leaders
Programme
In
February 2021, ten well
motivated and excited year
11 students became part of the
excellent KPMG girls Future Leaders
programme. This is what they had to
say about it:
The programme was interactive and
provided new and better understanding
of the KPMG workplace in the form of
activities set up to be easily accessible
for the participants. In the short time
we spent under their guidance, we
learnt how the staff worked together in
groups to complete complex projects.
Mentors were assigned to help us decide
what careers we are interested in and
introduce us to further opportunities in
the future.
Marjaan Aman (year 11)
The work experience with KPMG not
only gave us a new perspective of the
work world but also guidance. We
were assigned mentors who check in
with us regularly and are always there
for when we need them. They give us
advice for our future careers, education
and everything in general. The work
experience was really interactive as we
got the opportunity to speak to a variety
of people in different departments and
have a go at fun activities. Despite
it being virtual, we still were able to
obtain an understanding of how different
departments work together to complete
projects. Overall, the work experience
was really great and I am grateful to
have been a part of it.
Arushi Varshney (year 11)
Simon Watton
(Assistant Headteacher Year 11)

In Loving
Memory of
Aaron Singh Matharu
Year 11
End of Year
Celebration
The
YEAR 11
celebration events for Year 11
completing a very important
milestone in their education lives was very
different this year owing to the obvious
restrictions due to Covid.
The event kicked off with a virtual assembly,
something that students were all too familiar
with in lockdown and since returning to
school in March. Mr Watton and Ms Bahra
took everyone down memory lane reminding
them of all the wonderful things the year
group had achieved since Year 7 and how
much they had all grown and developed as
individuals. Ms Sidhu even managed to send
a message to students expressing her sorrow
at not being able to attend the celebration
but reminded them that she would see them
very soon. Each Tutor then said a few words
about their tutor group and wished them well
for their future endeavours, even though we
know we’ll see them back in September as
Year 12.
Aaron Singh Matharu was paid tribute to
through the virtual assembly and I know
each and every student took a moment to
remember him and his infectious personality,
all the while wishing he could have been
here with us all on this day to celebrate.
The second part of the celebration was a
little less formal where students and staff
were able to say good bye, socially distanced
of course and wearing masks, in person on
the back field and sign shirts & folders. It
was lovely to see so many staff that have
taught Year 11 come along to say their good
byes and congratulate students in managing
to get through what has probably been the
toughest year for them. Ms Prunty had kindly
organised refreshments for the celebration
which went down really well with staff and
students, and coupled with the beautiful
sunny weather it turned out to be a perfect
celebration.
#
Deepak Bahra (Head of Year 11)
89

#
YEAR 11
11T what a phenomenal tutor group you have been, you
have made me laugh and smile every day this year and
I am missing you very much. Although I haven’t​been
lucky enough to be your tutor all the way through I have
known you all for many years as your teacher and I am
grateful I got to spend this last year with you. I hope you
do incredibly well in the Summer, you have all worked
so hard this year and coped well with all the uncertainty
and disruption. I wish you every success in your GCSEs
and for your future.
Barbara Lodge (Tutor 11T)
11U have had a successful 5 years here at Cranford and
have shown they have a positive and caring attitude,
getting involved in a variety of activities. They organised
and successfully ran a charity event, they donated and
wrapped Christmas presents for children staying in
hospital for an extended period and every year collected
a large haul of items for the food bank. The year group
competed in a variety of interform competitions showing
great sportsmanship when 11U were given their podium
positions every year. They have shown great resilience
these last two years with COVID impacting their studies
but they did not let this impact their academic successes
and continued to work hard until the end of the year.
The growth and maturity they have developed across the
years has been a pleasure to see and this will serve them
well in any milestones in the future.
Seema Mehmi (Tutor 11U)
In the face of what can only be described as a
tumultuous year, 11V have shown admirable maturity
and perseverance. Every single morning has been full
of optimism and it has been an absolute pleasure to be
their form tutor even if only for a short while. During
times of high pressure, looming exams and assessments,
and the stresses of a never-ending pandemic, 11V never
ceased to find reasons to smile and laugh, and to make
me smile and laugh too. Our form room was a place of
solace and comfort, where each individual and their
unique, brilliant character contributed over the past five
years to making 11V the brilliant form that it was. I have
no doubt that their futures will be bright, and most of all
that they will continue to mature into kind, conscientious
individuals.
Kulsoom Raza (Tutor 11V)
90

YEAR 11
#
I am so lucky to have been with such an awesome group for
five years. It’s been an incredible journey from year 7 to 11
with our ups and downs but I’m hoping we had fun along the
way too. I am so proud of each and every one of you and
the progress you have made especially overcoming all the
obstacles in lockdown. You have shown great determination
and perseverance. As your form tutor I’ve always tried to
be as honest, real and supportive to each of you and tried to
have a positive impact on your lives by making registration
meaningful and thoughtful. I hope you can take with you all
my advice, quotes and most importantly my best wishes for
your future.
Gurpreet Patel (Tutor 11W)
It has been an absolute pleasure and privilege to be 11X’s
form tutor and seeing them go from strength to strength. They
have come a long way with their perseverance, hard work and
commitment despite being in unusual times in the past year.
They have made the most of every opportunity that came their
way. I have to say how impressed I am seeing them to be such
incredible young mature people and I am grateful to be a part
of that journey with them. As now they are about to achieve
an important milestone in life. I am confident that they will
achieve the best grades in their GCSEs. To 11X - I would like
to send my best wishes for your next academic endeavours.
I look forward to seeing you in the Cranford Sixth form. You
will always be part of the Cranford family.
Ramanpreet Kaur (Tutor 11X)
It has been a rollercoaster 5 years, with many ups and a fair
few downs in between, but we have all made it in one piece!
I am so proud of you for showing true grit and determination
to succeed in your GCSE year despite the once in a century
challenges you have faced with the lockdowns! I could not
be happier with the people who have made up our form and
I hope that as a form tutor I have given you the advice and
support you have needed and made your time at Cranford
as enjoyable as possible. I wish you all the best in the next
chapter of your lives and all the successes you deserve.
Vinay Dhokia (Tutor 11Y)
I may have only been their form tutor since year 9 but they
will always be memorable. The first 6 months of being their
form tutor was challenging but I know that is because they
were all learning to trust me. 11Z have always been honest
and accepted challenges when they needed it and this has
helped them become the amazing people they all are now. I
am so happy with them as a form and I could not have asked
for a better group of students.
Jescynda Savige (Tutor 11Z)
91

#
YEAR 13
The year 13
Cranford
Community
College’s
Spectacular
Year 13 Leavers Event
Celebration event took place on the
28th May 2021 on a bright warm
morning in the school’s beautiful memorial garden. This was to celebrate
the end of a chapter in their school lives and wish them best for the next
stage in either education, training or employment. The year 13 students
arrived after their final form period and dressed up extremely well for
the occasion. They arrived at their round tables, sat with their form tutor
with a grand selection of pastries, sandwiches, cakes, fruit, soft drinks
and also extremely delicious cupcakes made by our year 13 baking expert
Sara Majothi.
The celebration event kicked off with speeches from the Sixth Form
Leadership Team to say how exceptionally proud they were of the year 13
students in regards to putting their education and future first despite the
disruption that the pandemic has caused. This included having a positive
and upbeat mindset and role modelling resilience to the rest of their school
peers. The Sixth Form Leadership Team also spoke about how Cranford
would be there for them even after their school life ends and continue to
support and advise them should the year 13 students need it.
The event in itself was organised by the Student Leadership Team. They worked tremendously hard with the
Sixth Form Leadership team to ensure that the event was successful and memorable.
During the celebration there were pastoral awards presented by the form tutors. Each form tutor said a few
words about their tutor group to reiterate how amazing they have been during the year including sharing many
funny anecdotes and moments. There were also department awards to recognise students that were beyond
outstanding and showed exceptional effort during the year in each subject area.
The student leadership team ended the event with their final speech. This inspiring speech described the
academic journey that they have all been on and that there are more great things to come in the future.
The end of the event gave time for form tutors, subject teachers and students to say their final farewells in
school, take memorable photos, and finish eating the amazing spread of food that was on offer.
Year 13 truly deserved to have the best event possible to celebrate their formal end to school and the Sixth
Form Leadership Team were tremendously delighted to provide it.
Good luck year 13! You have been an absolute pleasure to have in the sixth form and give the world all you
have got.
Chetan Shingadia and Sharandeep Saroya (Assistant Headteachers – Sixth Form)
92

YEAR 13
#
Year 13 Celebration Event
Message to Year 13
As we have come to the end of the celebration event,
we would like to take a moment to think about the past
two years. We’ve all spent a significant portion of our
time at Cranford and there is probably a mixture of
unprocessed emotions in this crowd. Some of you may
be excited to start the next chapter of your life, whereas
others may be finding it harder to say goodbye.
But for us personally, there was far more fear in this
final week than anticipated. The idea of leaving school
probably seemed so easy and exciting all those months
ago, but as the time approached, it became a lot more
real and hard-hitting. The time spent at Cranford is
unforgettable in many ways and we’re sure that you’ll
be leaving with fond memories just like us.
We would like to congratulate us all for reaching this
major life milestone, as well as the teachers for helping
us come so far. For now, the toughest times are behind
us and we can begin to look forward to enjoying this
summer and our lives ahead. No more Teams lessons, no
more thinking about coursework, and no more gathering
of evidence. This might be the freest you’ll be in a while,
so make the most of it! Take this opportunity to pick up
that hobby, get that job or be more active. From today,
you will virtually be a blank page; the responsibilities
you had as an A-Level student will no longer hold you
back, and you will have the chance to re-evaluate and
redefine your identities.
I’ve learnt that being able to embrace your individuality is an important
asset to have. I found that the common attribute between many successful
people is the appreciation of their individuality and the ability to love
themselves harder every time they develop further. You define your own
success and you will set the standards for yourself that you know you’ll
be proud of.
You may have heard that after the age of 18, life goes downhill and that
your school days will be the best time of your lives, but we hope you
realise that life is what you make it. Look around you and appreciate
the presence and support you’ve been given by your peers and teachers
because it’s undeniable that you have been influenced by the environment
around you, and hopefully you have made a positive impact on someone
else too. But ultimately, you are the one who decides how to react to
changes and take them in your stride.
No matter what you decide to do, life will be hectic and things may
seem overwhelming, so we want to remind you to reflect on yourselves
from time to time. Check in with yourself to make sure you are content
with what you are. Don’t think less of yourself, but think of yourself
less. Ground yourself in the present moment and enjoy life as it happens
because it will only happen once. And the same thing goes for this
celebration event. So let’s take a moment to take this all in and simply
enjoy it. Stay safe this summer and we wish you all the best in your
future endeavours, and don’t forget to be kind to yourselves!
Guy Boonyarakyotin & Anjali Bhambra
(Head Boy and Head Girl 2020-2021)
93

#
SIXTH FORM
As
some of the key issues our students were facing I worked
with our School Counsellor, Nisha Benning to put together
a programme of online workshops to support students in
four key areas. All workshops were recorded to ensure
they were accessible to students who were unable to join
sessions and also after the sessions so they could reflect on
the strategies shared by Ms Benning. We received really
positive feedback from students and parents
Sharandeep Saroya (Assistant Headteacher - Sixth Form)
a school this year we were particularly aware
of the immense impact of the pandemic on
our students physical and emotional wellbeing and we
proactively implemented a range of supportive strategies
to meet the needs of students in what was challenging
circumstances. We committed to ensuring that all students
were in daily contact with their form tutors and partaking
in a daily routine with registration, thought for the week
and assemblies in the morning but we were keen to gain a
greater insight in to the individual impact on wellbeing and
surveyed students across the entire school. In response to
“The wellbeing workshops were delivered online,
exploring different topics to help students think about
their mental health during lockdown and support
attending online lessons. The topics included:
understanding and managing anxiety, how to make
space for your wellbeing in a big household, routines
and creating a productive working environment,
dealing with uncertainty, and managing emotions”.
Nisha Benning (School Counsellor)
Fund
Raiser
This
year the Sixth Form Committees were
determined to ensure that the pandemic
would not stop them from raising money for Children
in Need and that Covid Safe measures could be put
in place to ensure that a range of activities could be
organised to support the charity.
The traditional bake sale wouldn’t be possible so the
charities committee got creative and worked with Ms
Prunty to produce ‘sweet treat goodie boxes’ which
were sold in advance via the online school shop and
then pre-packed for a collection only service. The
beautifully packaged treat boxes went down a storm
and meant that although we missed the masses of
students gathering to take a peek at the array of cakes
on offer, the committee were able to arrange a safe,
well organised and well managed ‘covid friendly bake
sale’. Teachers were delighted to find their goodie
boxes delivered to their desks and students were
pleased to find additional boxes had been prepared
for those who suffered with ‘treat box envy’ having
not pre-ordered.
The STEM committee organised a series of three fun
workshops for Year 7, 8 and 9 where students were
able to participate in exciting experiments including
Methane Bubbles, Screaming Jelly Beans and Van der
Graff generator. The committee limited the number of
students in each workshop to ensure safety procedures
could be followed so the lucky students that were able
to take part were able to gain a really engaging and
practical experience.
The Sports Committee organised a football tournament
for each year group which was so popular that many
year groups sold out of places by the end of the day on
which the signup sheet was released! Teams competed
against each other with great spirit and the Sports
Committee worked well to run the matches and create
a positive atmosphere for the competitions.
The Wellbeing, Arts and Culture Committee worked
together to run a series of three Origami workshops for
Year 7,8,9 in which some real talent was discovered
and we found some Origami masters who ended
up modelling techniques within the sessions. The
workshops were so calming and inviting that even
the supervising teachers got involved and learnt to
create some mini Origami pieces.
In total the committees were able to raise a
tremendous £370.76 for Children in Need.
Sharandeep Saroya
(Assistant Headteacher - Sixth Form)
94

SIXTH FORM
#
Sixth Form
STEM Committee
This
year as Head Girl and as STEM committee leader, I led STEM club for Year 8s which took
place in a Covid friendly manner. The aim was to increase socialising skills but also to allow
students to gain communication skills. The first session consisted of students carrying out a crystallisation to
make blue crystals, the aim of this session is to apply the chemistry in a familiar context. The second session
consisted of students carrying out methane bubble experiment; the solution was prepared by the committee
members due to safety issues. The third session involved students building and launching a water rocket. The
last session consisted of students assisting dissections of the heart and a squid; the committee members were
present at all times and looked after the students. This club was put together by STEM committee members
and each and every one of them showed great leadership and communication skills. We hope to replicate this
for other year groups in the future.
Sharanjit Kaur (Head Girl 2021-2022 - STEM Committee)
95

#
SIXTH FORM
Sixth Form Committees Summer Fair for Young Minds
On
Wednesday 14th July 2021 the Sixth Form
Student Committees hosted a very popular
Summer Fair on the concourse to raise money for the
charity ‘Young Minds’.
The various committees organised a range of stalls
including;
• Wellbeing and Arts and Culture Committee –
Decorating Biscuits, Wish tree, Sweet Cones,
Guess the Jelly Beans
• Environment Committee – Tombola
• Charities Committee – Popcorn, Ice Pops,
Cakes, Samosas
The concourse was buzzing with activity and brimming
with smiles and the sound of joy as teachers could
be seen standing back to take in the small glimmer
of normality resuming at Cranford. The committees
were proud to have raised £565.77 for a charity
they feel passionately about.
Sharandeep Saroya
(Assistant Headteacher – Sixth Form)
96

The Summer Fair was a very
educational experience for me. It
boosted my confidence in leadership,
and within my committee. I feel
that it achieved my aim of getting
students across all year groups
involved and integrating as a
Cranford Community. I was quite
anxious about our ideas but as a
committee we decided to run an
activity in which students decorated
leaves with wishes, and hung them
on a tree. To my amazement this was
quite popular, and the sixth formers
helped immensely in promoting the
stall which contributed to drawing in
the younger years, as they wanted to
be involved. Overall, this experience
taught me to believe in myself more,
and if you are able to speak, and get
the right people on board with your
ideas, the execution of them will be
easy and enjoyable.
Ruqaya Qureshi (Deputy Head Girl
- Arts and Culture Committee)
SIXTH FORM
#
This term the Charities Committee
were keen to run a Cranford
Summer Fair which took place
on Wednesday 14th July 2021 to
raise money for Young Minds, after
what had been a very stressful and
uncertain year for everyone during
this ongoing pandemic. Each
Committee had their own stall,
making the market a success ranging
from: tombola, decorating your own
biscuits, cupcake and samosa stall
(which sold out very quickly) and
a popcorn and ice pop stall. Within
minutes the Concourse was packed
with excited students; it was very
heart- warming to see the Cranford
Community come together once again
and enjoy the afternoon and was a
great way to end the academic year.
Gurshaan Ghattoray (Deputy Head
Boy - Charities Committee)
It’s Coming Home… Maybe
Euro 2020 was finally here and it wouldn’t have been football
fever if we didn’t have our very own Cranford Euro’s tournament
organised by Sean Udott and the sports committee for the 6th
formers. Teams signed up and entered paying a small sign-up fee
which was donated to the Young Minds charity as all committees
looked to raise money towards one good cause.
The tournament was a great success with a mix of students and staff
enjoying themselves and socialising after school. The winners on
the day were Belgium which was made up of Prabhjot Bharaj, Endri
Basaj, Mark Lowis-Naya, Ali Firdous Sadiq, Jack Talla, Hanad
Hassan and Taranjeet Bharaj all in Year 12. Well done boys.
A special shout out to Karolina Mucko, Akshra Bhati and Arshnoor
Gill for managing the tournament on the day.
Great work!
Sean Udott (Head of Sports Committee)
97

# ART
Art & Design
March 2020
saw the start
of the first
national lockdown for the students however the
Art Department had already prepared for this. Art
equipment packs had been ordered so that students
were able to have resources at home and they
could continue to do practical work whilst online
at home during the first lockdown. In addition to
this school staff delivered sketchbooks and some
additional equipment that individual students had
requested that assisted with personalised learning
and ensured that students continued to produce
creative and individualised work.
The Art department were innovative and tried
different delivery methods to see what worked
well for students including using Google Docs to
upload evidence of sketchbook pages and utilising
Teams for lessons and sharing of ideas. There were
structured learning activities for GCSE students
which linked to the equipment they had been given
and individualised written feedback helped them
to further refine work. This worked in line with
the curriculum plan as students were developing
the skills they were being taught. A Level students
were also able to continue working on their own
portfolio project. This worked well, students were
making very good progress and were also able to
continue with creative exploration in their work.
Students at this uncertain time were very engaged
and receptive to online learning although they did
miss having the time and space to work in the art
room which they referred to as ‘home’.
On return to school in September 2020, teaching
Art to GCSE & A Level was challenging as social
distancing rules in Autumn prevented sharing
of resources and avoiding cross contact across
bubbles. The curriculum plan was adapted to take
into consideration health and safety however,
98

GCSE & A level
ART
#
this did not deter the students and they were keen
and eager to learn and to be back in a conducive
work space. Using a visualiser during lessons also
helped to demonstrate techniques so that students
could observe the technique and interact and ask
immediate questions.
During the second lockdown Nearpod was used
online to involve students interactively. They
then produced work that they regularly uploaded
through assignments in Teams. Students were
given verbal feedback on a one to one basis online,
which was done whilst the rest of the group was
working. This meant that students were able to
listen in to advice that would also be applicable
for them such as ideas for techniques, skills
and processes. All students attended all lessons
while online which is a great testament to their
commitment and work ethic.
On return to school students were able to continue
with their work after review and feedback was
given to refine their work. The students were
extremely pleased when they were once again
allowed to come back and work in the Art rooms
making the most of the opportunity for practical
independent learning.
All students at Cranford have worked extremely
well during these unprecedented times. Their
dedication, commitment and perseverance have
been outstanding! They continued working hard
even though there were elements out of their
control and have made us very proud. There has
been some excellent creative work produced this
year, students have explored, experimented and
created some lovely personalised and meaningful
work.
Pam Hunt (Head of Art)
99

#
DIGITAL & VISUAL
100
Digital
& Visual:
An Innovative
and Creative
Curriculum
Digital and Visual is an innovative and creative
curriculum. The effects of lockdown and the
Covid pandemic has not hindered students’
ability to design or be creative. The pandemic meant
that the teachers had to adapt the curriculum plan and
they were still able to implement both Digital and
Visual learning.
The subject teaches students about designing on a
Digital and Visual platform using iPads and PCs as
well as traditional drawing techniques to focus their
designs in response to an industry standard brief.
The students work collaboratively within projects
and develop skills in problem solving and critical
thinking. The curriculum is planned to be skills based
and industry focused to develop our students so that
they are skilled for careers in the future.
2019 was the first year of the Digital and Visual
curriculum and students began building up their skills
following the exciting curriculum plan and then in
March 2020 lockdown hit. The Digital and Visual
staff were quite responsive to this by creating a bank
of online lessons in line with the curriculum plan.
Students were given a choice of digital or visual
responses to the brief depending on the resources that
they had available to them. As a result they were very
creative.
We were lucky that the students could continue
with the creative curriculum on their return in the
summer. Teachers had to implement health and safety
protocols and students were good at following the
new guidelines. The curriculum plan again had to
be amended slightly due to health and safety but
remained innovative and interesting for the students.
During the second lockdown, lessons were taught
through Microsoft Teams using Nearpod. This is
an app where presentations that are creative can
be interactive and allow students to participate and
contribute to class discussions. We also made small
collaborative working groups within Microsoft Teams
which was monitored through channels. All groups
produced creative drawings which were submitted
through assignments in Teams and were given
feedback.
Students worked on Teams remotely to learn about the
main genres in films and conventions of film trailers.
We watched film trailers for Disney’s’ Mulan and The
Lion King and tried to identify the key conventions
in each trailer. The 2nd half of the term we were back
in school and students explored conventions of film
poster which culminated in each student working on
their own theatrical release film poster on the iPads
(using Autodesk Sketchbook). For some students this
was the first time they’d used iPads to create a poster
in a digital format and created some really exciting
posters using the iPads.
Students have learnt a lot about industry and covered
a range of different skills in the Digital and Visual
curriculum even through the pandemic. They have
learnt about careers, marketing, branding, creating a
brand identity, film production, genres, conventions
of a poster, presentation of ideas, story writing,
storyboarding, games design, games mechanics,
drawing features of characters, avatar creation,
Coding, app design, poster illustration, photography,
artist’s analysis, poster analysis, Augmented reality,
collaborative working.
Students have really enjoyed the creativity and
relevance of the Digital and Visual Curriculum and
the department would like to thank the students for
their enthusiasm, continued efforts and excellent
work this year!
Pam Hunt (Head of Art)

DIGITAL & VISUAL
#
We get to use lots of technology which gives us the
opportunity to portray art in real life. It was really fun
to use the AR technology.
Krish Sidher (year 9)
The best aspect in my opinion about Digital and Visual
is how we learn new and exciting extra ordinary
subjects- unlike normal school subjects. We experience
new and interesting activities while learning using
technology and iPads.
Abdullah Faisal (year9)
I think a good aspect about Digital and Visual is that
we learn about more options for the future and also we
get more experience.
Pranav Bhandare (year 9)
In Digital and Visual we designed
a game and this was really fun and
we got to use iPads.
Richa D’Cruz (year 7)
The best thing in DV is using the
iPad to help us work.
Amal Mumin (year 7)
A good aspect is the creativitywe
are allowed to produce work
from our own ideas, which makes
it more interesting and enjoyable.
Teamwork is also a good thing.
Jaskiran Bhullar (year 8)
The best thing about Digital and
Visual is being able to use your
imagination to make amazing things.
Eve Aibulxi (year 8)
The good thing is that we can learn
new things like coding and AR. So
very good to learn these skills as it
can help in the future.
Mylene Fernandes (year 8)
101

#
PERFORMING ARTS
102
Performing Arts
A Year Like No Other
A
single light placed at the centre of a darkened
stage denotes that theatres across the world
are closed. A ‘Ghost Light’ as they are
referred to is placed to remind the theatre ghosts of
the past that they will be remembered and the stage
will be full of light again. Not since the Second World
War have theatres been closed on such a scale. But
the Arts industry is not unused to these kinds of
challenges. Throughout history they have had to live
through closures, disease, war, Puritan outrage and
now a pandemic. Each time the industry’s resilience
and determination has resulted in a reinvention and a
creative brilliance which has brought to many much
needed joy and entertainment.
At Cranford, we work with industry professionals who
know what it is to reinvent themselves. Improvising
and adapting is an integral part of the creative process;
it is the nature of the subjects we teach. When the
pandemic hit we had to move from a wholly practical
learning experience, where “doing” and being with
others, working in groups, having physical contact,
playing instruments, singing and performing was
no longer allowed, to an online remote learning
experience, in isolation, with no instruments and
limited interaction.
The first lockdown was a real challenge finding new
ways of engaging students by trying not to deliver
a dry, uninspiring curriculum. Design elements and
storytelling, poetry and lyric writing became the
focus. Learning about the music industry and music
genres. Testing knowledge through quizzes. It was a
learning curve for everyone.
When school returned in September 2020, the team
were determined to get students back into learning
practically. Students worked in bubbles and respected
the boundaries. A new project emerged, Humans and
Humanity, based around the experiences of the first
lockdown and the pandemic. Each year group focused
on one aspect and the work culminated in some kind
of performance, depending on what was allowed. It
was not long before confidence began to build and
although limitations were in place, students need for
creativity was on the road to recovery…. then the
second lockdown happened.
Undeterred the practitioners regrouped their ideas
and adjusted their plans feeling better placed to build
on the experiences of the past. By this time the Arts
industry, primarily theatre, had created many more
online resources allowing for greater opportunities
for creativity. It was still a challenge, a challenge
which the team rose to by drawing upon their passion
for the arts, their extensive knowledge and their
determination.
The Music department wanted the students to be able
to still create their own music, to feel that music
making was still at the heart of their learning. Band
Lab proved to be invaluable in this purpose as was
Nearpod. Both platforms providing real learning
remotely.
The Drama department also drew upon online
platforms to engage the students in Drama and Theatre
Craft. The National Theatre, the Old Vic, RSC,
Chichester Festival Theatre etc, released a plethora of
pre-filmed live performances free to schools to help
bring live theatre to the students learning. Productions
of “WarHorse”, “Medea” and “Wonderland” inspired
students not just on performance elements but on
learning about the technical side of theatre including
set design, lighting and costume.
School re-opened on 8th March 2021.Much had been
achieved in building material for the Humans and
Humanity’s project. Students worked on putting into
action the written aspects and finding new ways of
presenting ideas practically. Theatre Craft lessons
had a two pronged approach using performances
of “A Monster Calls” to inspire animation using
digital software and practical activities building sets,
experimenting with stage makeup, costume design
and storytelling. In music they focussed on developing
playing skills, for year 7 the first time of actually
playing an instrument, before coming together in their
bands.
When Executive Headteacher Kevin Prunty introduced
the Arts Practitioner vision for teaching drama and
music, the fundamental idea was for it to be fun. The
past 18 months has tested this vision, but as we come
through the other side and things begin to return
to some kind of normality, there is a sense of hope
that the Ghost Light will soon disappear from stages
across the world, including those at Cranford as we
launch four new performance projects in 2021-2022.
A Christmas concert and “BadTimes” Stories studio
performance in December, Shakespeare in Schools
Festival “The Tempest” in the Spring and an original
school production to be developed across key stage
3 in July 2022. There are exciting times ahead with
much to look forward in the next academic year.
Jessica Joyce (Head of Performing Arts)

PERFORMING ARTS
#
Theatre Craft
Post Lockdown
During the summer term, with the threat of another lockdown receding, we were able to move some of
our theatre craft studies offline. This gave the students a much needed break from computer screens,
and a return to the more practical side of the subject. Working in pairs and small groups, the students formed
production companies devising and designing their own original shows, inspired by some aspect of life during
the pandemic, whether personal to them or drawing on wider world events during the last year. We followed
the same creative process used by professional production companies and the students developed their ideas
from the ground up, beginning with initial inspiration and research, through to the planning stages, before
realising their ideas as detailed costume designs and set models. I was delighted by the level of engagement
shown by the students and the care and thought they put into their work. It was also fascinating to witness the
wide range of subject matter the students chose to draw upon as inspiration for their stories.
Tom Daplyn (Performing Arts – Drama Department)
Year 7 - Set Designs
Anish Subramanian (7U) and Natanial Myszakowski
(7U) built this scene of a road block for their piece
about the farmer’s protests in northern India.
Ritika Vohra (7T) and Beyoncé Lobo (7T) created
a double sided set model for their production about
racism set in an American high school, inspired by
stories of the BLM movement.
103

#
PERFORMING ARTS
Humans & Humanity:
Creative
Responses
to
COVID
Key stage 3 students have been using their
Drama and Theatre craft classes to reflect on
and respond to their experiences of lockdown
and world events over 2020/2021.
Exploring a practical subject like drama through
Teams was quite a challenge! Rather than developing
performance skills such as voice work and physical
theatre, during the spring term our drama students
considered how different theatrical conventions can
be used to enhance the audience experience, wrote
their own original scripts and investigated the nonacting
roles within the theatre industry. Students
also enjoyed live recordings of theatre productions
through the National Theatre Live at Home provision
In Drama year 9 explored political theatre, using
plays by Anna Deaver Smith and Katie Mitchel as
inspiration before creating their own pieces of political
theatre imagining what a post-pandemic world might
look like. Year 8 focused on choral performance,
studying the National Theatre’s production Medea
and learning about the creative potential and uses
of Greek chorus before writing pandemic inspired
choral pieces. Meanwhile year seven focused on their
non-verbal performance skills and were inspired by
WonderLand to adapt existing stories with a modern
twist, including mime and tableau to share stories
based on their own experiences and to adapt existing
stories to set them in the pandemic.
Adapting an extremely practical subject that requires
participation and teamwork seemed impossible at first.
However, we quickly found that our young people
had ideas to share and using a few easy resources we
still managed to share and develop those ideas. Using
sharable whiteboards on Microsoft Teams, Kahoot
quizzes and interactive suggestion boxes on Nearpod
students were able to make unique creative writing
pieces and innovative designs.
In Theatre craft students developed their visual skills.
In year 7, students created fictional sketchbooks
inspired by “War Horse” and learnt about the various
off stage roles and careers within the theatre industry.
Our year 8 students practised their photo-shopping
skills by editing new ‘pop art’ realities whilst year
9 imagined what they would like their community’s
future to look like and replicated it through animations
made in adobe after effects.
The work created ranged from humorous to thought
provoking, satirical to deeply personal and we
were blown away by the creativity and resilience
demonstrated in Performing Arts lessons during this
unique year.
104
Laura Rae, Tom Daplyn and Daniel Ramsden
(Performing Arts Drama Department)

PERFORMING ARTS
#
Inside These Four Walls
Inside these four walls:
a single daisy in a huge field,
Inside these four walls: a lone raindrop in a storm,
Inside these four walls:
a fox separated from its pack,
Inside these four walls: a duck away from the pond.
Inside these four walls: as open as a labyrinth,
Inside these four walls:
as calm as an airport in a blizzard,
Inside these four walls:
as empty as a five-star restaurant,
Inside these four walls: as free as a prison.
Inside these four walls:
some were marching in protests for a change,
Inside these four walls: some were voting
in politics and elections,
Inside these four walls:
some were stopping bushfires,
Inside these four walls: some were evacuated
due to floods and landslides.
Inside these four walls: longing to dress up,
Inside these four walls: longing to touch,
Inside these four walls: longing to see faces,
Inside these four walls: longing to go out.
Inside these four walls: sick of covered faces,
Inside these four walls: sick of constant sanitizing,
Inside these four walls: sick of two-meter signs,
Inside these four walls: sick of computer screens.
Inside these four walls: soon there will be a party,
Inside these four walls: soon there will be hugs,
Inside these four walls:
soon there will be school corridors,
Inside these four walls:
soon there will be crowded places.
Inside these four walls: not for much longer.
Time Always Getting Slower
Every day, time’s always getting slower
Is the clock even moving?
Every time passes by
It’s getting slower
When was the last time
I was surrounded by people?
Time is always getting slower
My brain slows down
as the hands make a click
Wondering when the next one will occur
Am I crazy or has time slowed down?
I’m on an endless loop
Cycling
Repeating
Life will never be the same again
I used to go shopping every week
It’s been 6 months
Having to wear a mask
Keeping hand sanitiser and
staying 2 meters away
Family, friends have been separated
Will normality come?
Shops are closed
Markets are down
Businesses have run out
Online is the new life
Shopping, eating, watching and communicating
Are all reliant on technology
Shops are empty
Soap and shampoo and tissues have run out
Never thought this would happen
It has been so long
Feeling like 1000 years
But now it’s finally coming to an end.
Aaron Mankoo, Aisha Ansari and Abid Akhan
(year 8)
Jaskiran Bhuller (year 8)
105

#
PERFORMING ARTS
Music
Curriculum
Developments for
Live Remote Learning
In
September 2020 we were delighted to receive the
Music Mark Award for the second year running.
This award recognises the high quality music education at
Cranford. We have always been very proud of the range of
music opportunities we have been able to provide students
and we had plans to continue this even when the challenge
of the pandemic interrupted our plans. During lockdown
we were forced to re-invent our music syllabus to be
able to run the lessons remotely and without instruments
or music technology facilities. We split our lessons into
two different foci: firstly; ‘interactive learning of music
theory’ and secondly; ‘music technology’ using an online
accessible platform.
Music Theory
Although this can often be a dry topic to learn, we used
the amazing features available on Nearpod, the online
platform that allows teachers to run lessons in real time
along with students. Students can interact with questions
in various forms such as words, pictures and sounds. The
lessons feature engaging videos and clear information
on a range of topics. We ran lessons covering ‘Melody’
‘Tempo’ ‘Dynamics’ ‘Rhythm’ and ‘Harmony’. These
lessons proved very successful in engaging our classes
during lockdown and helped to build our students
knowledge and understanding of music terminology as
well as grasping new skills through the various activities.
Music Technology
We discovered the excellent online platform ‘Band Lab’.
Students were all able to sign up and use the digital audio
workstation via their P.C or device. As music teachers, we
were able to set assignments and check students’ work in
real time, as well as make changes and giving feedback.
The website includes an amazing array of modern
electronic music loops that the students had access to,
including EDM, Hip Hop and Grime. We even managed
to use it as part of our RSL lessons for key stage 4, as the
website allows you to use your computer keyboard as a
midi controller. This online platform was a game changer
for us and the students as it made it more possible for
real music making to continue and we saw some amazing
creative work being produced across the year groups. It
really empowered and engaged students and gave them a
real sense of achievement and a feeling of being part of
a live music lesson.
106

PERFORMING ARTS
#
Music Curriculum Developments
Summer 2021
We recently chose to update our live music curriculum
at Key stage 3 in order to help students develop their
individual musicianship skills. After creating new
resource sheets for each instrument, we looked at how we
could change the music spaces and put them to better use.
We have now created separate areas for each instrument
group in the band – Drums, Keyboard, Bass, Guitar and
Vocals. Students spend the first half of term practising
alone using headphones, with MP3 players for backing
tracks and newly created resource sheets. This takes place
in the designated instrument areas. Our goal is to give
more opportunity for students to get familiar with playing
the instruments and focus on their musicianship skills in
a non-distracting environment before working in their
bands
Drummers can now follow basic drum notation sheets,
keyboard players are given sheets with triad chords,
guitar and bass players learn using TAB chord sheets and
vocalists have time to develop techniques such as correct
breathing and voice projection.
After half term the students move into their bands,
and by this time are a lot more confident playing their
instruments. The focus now becomes learning how to
work in a group, how to keep in time together and how to
develop an appropriate arrangement of their song ready
to perform at the end of term.
Luke Joyce and Rory O’Hare
(Performing Arts – Music Department)
107

#
PERFORMING ARTS
Much Ado About Nothing
Shakespeare in Schools Festival 2020
Every year Cranford Community College has seized the opportunity to bring their fresh take on the
classics of Shakespeare. From gritty portrayals of King Lear to the party town in the Merchant of Venice,
the students and directors have reworked life into these productions.
Cranford’s keen drama group were excited to start on another Shakespeare production again this year but we
were all faced with a challenge. With restrictions in place for people being close and performing to an audience
we quickly realised we wouldn’t be able to perform our finished play to a live audience thanks to the ongoing
pandemic.
Not willing to let our performance go we looked at how we could still capture and share the hard work of
the company. During lockdown many theatres had tapped the power of film and the Shakespeare in Schools
Festival agreed this would be a great option and opportunity.
Over the autumn term our outstanding company worked hard every Mind, Body and Soul session to build their
vision. We boiled the story of Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ down and quickly realised that a
farcical love story shared many of the same stories today about gossiping crushes. The students came up with
great suggestions, transposing soldiers to the football team and rival groups to teachers and staff.
Whilst not only constructing a great story and improvising the original dialogue, the group then had to take on
the task of learning to shoot for film. Through a crash course of skills the crew learned all the basics of film
making, turning into distinguished film directors and the actors refined their acting for the camera.
Shakespeare in Schools Festival
also worked round restrictions by
providing a useful workshop from
one of their directors over zoom. Even
though we were many miles away the
company director could still feel the
energy and creativity of the students
over the zoom call.
We ended up having an exciting term
of drama at a difficult time thanks
to all the young people’s hard work
and adaptability, alongside amazing
support from Shakespeare in Schools
Festival.
Dan Ramsden (Performing Arts
Drama Department – SSF Director)
108

PERFORMING ARTS
#
Students
feedback:
As part of the
Shakespeare project
I was a part of the
Beatrice group. We
had to portray them as
a group of mean girls
within the school. My
favourite part of the
project was to be able
to learn how to film at
different angles. Another time I enjoyed was at the guest
workshop. In the guest workshop we had to play many
interactive games. Even though this was via zoom, it was
an amazing experience. In this project, I think I overcame
things such as public speaking and was more comfortable
and confident in speaking and acting in front of everyone.
Ashvika Jaitly (year 8)
Throughout the term of doing the Shakespeare play I had
so much fun. I was the camera woman. I found it quite
easy to get the hang of it and ended up falling in love
with the concept. I still needed a bit of assistance here
and there but for the most part I was quite independent
and I liked having the freedom to use my imagination
throughout the term. Alongside this, I also learnt many
skills throughout and loved developing my skills more and
more each lesson.
The guest workshop was a little bit out of my comfort zone
as I had never really acted in this kind of way, however I
found it very useful. After the workshop I found it easier
to do my job as the camera woman as I could assist the
“actors” with what I thought looked nice based on the
skills that the practitioner had taught us.
Overall my experience was very positive and I enjoyed
learning the new skills each week. The skills which
I learnt will also help me in the future too. It was an
amazing opportunity and would recommend to anyone
who gets the chance to take it, it’s a lot of fun!
Caitlin Pyatt (year 9)
I played the role of Don Pedro, Prince of Aragon. My
favourite part was when we used to film separately. I
developed the skill of improvising as we didn’t have a
set script. I can use that now as in future auditions I
can improvise without a script. My favourite part of the
workshop was when we were thinking about what happens
next in the play.
Lakshay Mehra (year 8)
For this Project, year 8 and 9 students worked together to
perform Much Ado About Nothing for the Shakespeare in
Schools Festival. It was quite challenging to do so in the
middle of a pandemic yet it still was an enjoyable project.
My favourite part was working with my friends to plan
and film different scenes in the show. I think I developed
different skills revolving around acting and coming up
with new ideas. The workshop was very enjoyable and
helpful despite it being done virtually. My favourite part
was working with my friends on each of the different
scenes.
Syed Hassan (year 9)
I took part in the Shakespeare School Festival; the whole
experience was amazing and different. Our performance
was based on one of Shakespeare’s famous plays: Much
Ado About Nothing. As a part of this project, my teammates
and I worked on acting out and filming a modern version
of Benedict and his love for Beatrice. My favourite part
of this project was when we used the hot seat and asked
questions to really think about what our character’s
motive in the play was. I learnt many skills from being
there such as becoming more confident in myself and has
been very helpful to me. The guest workshop was such a
great time, even though our practitioner was teaching us
online. My favourite part was when we played all the fun
games and activities.
Tashmin Kaur (year 8)
I really enjoyed this experience because it has taught
me how to bring out my inner-self and my creativity.
My role in this particular project was mainly being the
camera woman. The reason why I really liked this job was
because I filmed the people who were in my group and it
was really fun. Being the camerawoman was awesome.
My favourite part of the project was when we reviewed our
videos and discussed them at the end of each lesson. The
skill that I developed was not to be nervous easily because
now I do not become shy whilst performing. My favourite
part of the workshop was the zoom call with Louie Keen
because he wanted us to unlock our creative mindset. I
really liked it because we had fun challenges, scenarios,
and little plays with our groups. But all together I really
liked the Shakespeare Festival because it was so much fun
and I learnt new things in drama. This is really a once in
a lifetime opportunity and I am hoping to do this again in
my life…….. ‘To Be, Or Not to Be? That Is the Question’.
Warda Abdillahi (year 9)
109

#
SIXTH FORM
Sixth Form
Prefect Team
2020-2021
The
prefect team at Cranford was set
up in 2019 to give recognition
to students in the sixth form who regularly
volunteer to support at important school events
from engagement evenings and transition events
to performances and Open Evening. Not only
did they support these events as ambassadors
of the school, they took on a range of roles
including welcoming students and parents at
‘sign in desks’, acting as car park attendants
and tour guides. Their role was expanded as
they took on a weekly break duty joining the
staff duty teams to engage with students in
the lower school, manage queues, supporting
staff in reinforcing expectations and Cranford
policies around the site.
This year has been unique and much of what
students once knew to be normal came to a
halt as we adhered to a range of COVID safe
measures. There was no more moving around
the school from lesson to lesson as the year
group bubbles were formed, each year group
was given a designated entrance/exit to the
school and their own eating space and time to
maintain the bubbles during lunch breaks. All
of this meant the prefects role this year had
to be adapted so they could continue to work
alongside staff and students without breaking
bubbles and supporting staff in our enhanced
COVID measures. The sixth form student
leadership team led their five prefect teams in
duties positioned outdoors where they helped
sanitize hands, ensured students kept masks
on within 2 meters of each other and keeping
group sizes below six.
Our prefects embraced all the changes and
also took the opportunity to support student
wellbeing by using their duty positions to
actively engage in conversations with students
across the school and even fed back to student
committees on ideas for events and activities.
Sharandeep Saroya
(Assistant Headteacher - Sixth Form)
110

SIXTH FORM
#
Student
Leadership
Team
2020-2021
Farewell
Despite being cut short, my experience as Head
Girl has taught me many things such as thinking
outside the box, managing and prioritising my time
efficiently, and being a positive role model. I was
fortunate enough to be working closely with the
student leadership team, teachers and the Charities
Committee members in order to collectively organise
a ‘Children in Need Week’, whereby we sold prepackaged
sweet treat boxes to raise money and
awareness for Children in Need. In the period of
remote learning, the student leadership team and I
set up a page on FROG for students to participate in
weekly challenges for each of the six committees.
Creating such events and challenges became much
more rewarding when I saw everyone at Cranford
getting involved. The role of Head Girl has been a
massive privilege, and I am thankful for the lifelong
lessons that I am taking away.
Anjali Bhambra (Head Girl 2020-2021)
Paradoxically, the past year has been both eventful
yet serene as our lives were reduced to simplicity by
lockdown after lockdown. My role in the leadership
team also faced this duality; the work piled on as new
responsibilities surfaced, but I also felt as if a lot of
time was spent deciding that some things cannot go
through in light of new safety precautions. Overall,
the STEM committee put together a charity event for
students to take part in science demonstrations outside
of the curriculum, as well as providing activities and
competitions throughout the year. A highlight of this
year was definitely the moment I overheard a student
tell their friend that our event was the ‘most fun thing
they’ve done in a while’. It is difficult to not label the
past year as a bad one, but moments like this go a long
way in making it memorably fun.
I’m not sure how long the current state of affairs will
last, but I would greatly encourage any of the younger
students to aim for this position. I was blessed with a
good team of fellow students to work with and both
the role and my ordinary student life was a lot more
enjoyable because of it; you get to talk to people you
wouldn’t normally get a chance to, both students and
teachers alike.
Harit (Guy) Boonyarakyotin (Head Boy 2020-2021)
111

# COMMUNITY
One World
Football
Cranford is leading on the
development of a new One
World initiative. In the autumn
we teamed up with three countries in
Western Africa; Niger, Cameroon and
Ghana, to run a pilot football tournament
bringing people together from across the
world.
The rules are that you play two games
in your own country with one team
representing the home country and the
other team representing another country.
The games take place simultaneously
in each country and then the scores are
aggregated to see which team has won.
The pilot proved a great success
and there are plans to hold a bigger
tournament in the autumn involving
more local schools teaming them up
with other countries around the world.
Alan Fraser (Assistant Headteacher -
Director of Community Partnerships)
Football for Peace
Over
the past year Cranford Community College has worked with Football for Peace (FfP)
on a number of food initiatives. Football for Peace is a global foundation co-founded by
professional footballer Kashif Saddiqi with the aim of using the power of football to tackle many of the world’s
problems. Sara Vite, a former Cranford student and a Special Envoy for FfP and got in touch with us about a
new food initiative they were looking to run in December 2020.
The Christmas food initiative saw Cranford and Heston West Big Local deliver 500 meals to our local
community. A big thank you to the volunteers for helping to organise and deliver the food.
In April 2021 we worked with FfP on another food initiative delivering food to families in the local community.
The food was sourced by FfP from Wembley Stadium. It was frozen food which because of the pandemic would
have just gone to waste but was rescued by FfP and distributed across the country. Volunteers from Cranford,
Berkeley Academy and local football team Hounslow Wolves came together to deliver the food to the local
community.
The BBC heard about the story and asked if they could do a piece for their flagship football programme Football
Focus. So we arranged for a camera crew to follow Kash and Marcus Bean, a former Brentford player as they
made deliveries. We were delighted to be able to share this great community initiative across the county.
112
Alan Fraser (Assistant Headteacher - Director of Community Partnerships)

COMMUNITY
#
Cranford Community College becomes
a designated Vaccination Centre
Since the start of the pandemic, Cranford Community College has played an
important role in supporting our community in difficult times. In March 2021
we were approached by Bhogal Pharmacy Hounslow about using Cranford as a
vaccination centre. The school was very keen to support the vaccination role out
and help our community be safe against Covid 19.
Following an inspection and a long meeting with the pharmacy regulating board it
was agreed that we would become a vaccine centre starting in April. Unfortunately
due to the vaccine shortage at the time we did not finally open our doors until May.
Since opening our centre has delivered to date over 20,000 jabs to members of the
community, Cranford staff and Sixth Form students.
Officially, the centre will be open until the end of September but we are waiting to
find out if we will be involved in the Booster Jab rollout in the autumn.
Alan Fraser (Assistant Headteacher - Director of
Community Partnerships)
113

# COMMUNITY
Walking Football
It’s the beautiful game
without the running!
Since 2016 the Big Local have been running weekly Walking Football sessions aimed at all ages and abilities.
The project, originally a brainchild from two former Cranford Community College students – (Kulbir Maras
and Baljinder Padda), has since grown in strength and in numbers. The sessions are a great way for parents to
come together with their children for a kick about and a chat. The sessions have proven to be hugely popular
with local residents. Big Local board member and volunteer Layba Nisar, 17, said: “I love coming to Walking
Football, it’s a great way to get some exercise and fresh air, but also get to know my local community. I have
made so many friends attending these sessions and it’s really nice to see everyone play regardless of ability. I
would encourage you to come along, you won’t regret it!” Sessions are fully inclusive and open to all in our
community.
Big Local Christmas Hampers Surprise
A
few days before Christmas the Big Local in conjunction with Cranford Community College delivered
festive hampers to 50 families in our local community. We focused on families and residents
who previously received our Covid-19 essential food parcels during the first lockdown and a few
volunteers. The Christmas hampers were kindly donated by Sapna Dhall and Mimi’s Coffee and Dessert Lounge
in Hounslow. We also prepared our own hampers supported by chef and author Manju Malhi.
Watch the film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHA6vJCGdMU
114

Success at our
Socially Distanced
Community
Clean Up Day!
After
COMMUNITY
nearly six months of lockdown, we
finally got together to run our Big
Local Socially Distanced Community Clean Up Day
on Saturday 26th September 2020. In partnership with
Hounslow Highways and Keep Britain Tidy campaign,
we collected over 25 bags of rubbish. In total, we had
20 volunteers (including local MP Seema Malhotra),
4 groups of 5, staggered throughout the morning and
afternoon. The Clean Up was an opportunity to trial
our new Covid-19 secure measures to ensure the
health and wellbeing and safety of our volunteers
and the public. We would like to thank our brilliant
and amazing volunteers for their incredible dedication
and support and our partners Hounslow Highways,
Keep Britain Tidy and Cranford Community College.
#
Cranford Community College is proud to
continue hosting the Big Local Youth Film
Club for over 5 years alongside experienced
filmmaker Blaise Singh. The sessions provide young
people an opportunity to learn the art of filmmaking
and an opportunity to get creative. Pre-pandemic
we have worked on a number of exciting projects,
including Hounslow Council’s Young People’s Voice
documentary and anti-knife crime awareness films
in partnership with the Mayor of London. Many of
our young participants have since gone to university
to study either film, drama or journalism and a few
have already secured employment in the industry. The
Youth Film Club equips young people with the skills
required to get into the industry and nurtures local
talent. Cranford student and film club participant
Sanjay Suresh, 14, said: “Since coming to film club
my confidence has grown, I have made new friends
and learned new skills working with the camera and
also acting. I love attending every Sunday and look
forward to working with my team”.
Making a
difference
through film
If you would like to get involved or would like to learn more about
what we offer, please go to our website: www.hestonwest.org
Taz Virdee (Heston West Big Local – Project Manager)
115

#
SIXTH FORM
Introducing
The Student Leadership Team 2021-2022
My role as Head Girl is to contribute to supporting the social, physical and mental health of Cranford students
while also making sure that they are achieving academically. My manifesto was to encourage students to work
with the local community in order to enable students to achieve a greater sense of community. I decided to
this by increasing the number of youth-led activities and clubs to help students gain transferable skills and
improve work ethic. My goal and ambition is to provide support and give every student an opportunity to leave
an everlasting legacy in Cranford and to inspire others to get involved with the local community.
Sharanjit Kaur (Head Girl - STEM Committee)
During this academic year I didn’t really plan on applying and becoming Head Boy however it became clear
that not only would this benefit me, but I could help my peers and other students get the most out of their
time here at Cranford. The application made me super nervous, making me go outside of my comfort zone
doing things like videos and interviews; however, it built my foundation and boosted my confidence to where
I can be comfortable in those kinds of environments. During the school year in my role as Head Boy as well
as leader of the Environment Committee I have put together and helped plan a successful Summer Fair and
other projects, involving other younger years. Through all of this and with the help of the other members on
the student board, being Head Boy has been a big learning curve and has taught me things like leadership and
how to persist during tough times. My main aims are to make school a place where students enjoy succeeding
both academically and mentally no matter what. In the near future I also plan on making big events involving
all years and other fun surprises to come.
Mudathir Ahmed (Head Boy - Environment Committee)
The process of becoming Deputy Head Girl involved two main steps. These were the letter of application and
the interview process. During the interview process I was asked questions such as how I would represent the
student body or how I planned on leading a team of prefects. This was a lengthy process but I felt relieved and
proud when I was chosen to be Deputy Head Girl and the leader of the Wellbeing committee. The Wellbeing
committee believe that the wellbeing of each individual in the school is extremely important, especially after
the pandemic. We aspire to host workshops and intervention sessions next year to embed effective wellbeing
strategies into all year groups. One of our core aims for this year is to create a safe space for all students to
go to. This space would be surrounded by positivity and people to talk to. We aim for this to be completed in
the near future and have spent time carefully planning and finalising the details.
116
Alisha Meaney (Deputy Head Girl - Wellbeing Committee)

SIXTH FORM
#
Sharanjit Kaur
(Head Girl - STEM Committee)
Mudathir Ahmed
(Head Boy - Environment Committee)
Ruqaya Quereshi
(Deputy Head Girl - Arts and Culture Committee)
Alisha Meaney (Deputy Head Girl -
Wellbeing Committee)
Sean Udott (Deputy Head Boy –
Sports Committee)
Gurshaan Ghattoray (Deputy Head Boy
- Charities Committee)
Dua E Zehra
(PSHCE Ambassador)
Being appointed as Deputy Head Boy is a position I look forward to fulfilling. Having studied at Cranford
Community College since year 7, I have appreciated the support from the school and would like to contribute
back, before completing my final year. I am also the chair of the Charities Committee and as a team our core
aims are to involve the school community in supporting smaller local charities and to raise money for mental
health charities. We are keen on bringing the school community together by delivering exciting opportunities
for the students. To conclude my Cranford journey as Deputy Head Boy is a privilege and I look forward to
the responsibilities that lie ahead.
Gurshaan Ghattoray (Deputy Head Boy - Charities Committee)
As the head of the Arts and Culture Committee, my main aim is to bring together the students from Cranford,
through creativity and diversity. I want to celebrate the arts at Cranford, as there are an amazing bunch of
talented individuals amongst the students. I would like to set up workshops helping student’s wellbeing
through art. I am currently planning on organising a cultural fashion show for next year to promote diversity
at Cranford, and help students enjoy, and appreciate the diversity at Cranford. Overall, this role is enhancing
my leadership, organisation, and team working skills, and helping me learn many new things.
Ruqaya Quereshi (Deputy Head Girl - Arts and Culture Committee)
As Deputy Head Boy my aims for this year are to create a platform for sixth formers to have their opinions voiced.
As Head of the Sports Committee my aims for this year are to increase female participation in sports and to
make sports and active lifestyle integral to the routines of all Cranford students. As a committee we assisted the
PE department with extra-curricular events running after school for KS3 and 4 and set up after school events
for sixth formers allowing them to relieve stress from the usual school day. After expressed interest we started
a girl’s only basketball club which runs on a Monday at break time which provides a safe space for female
participation in sports. Also this year we had great success with a Euro themed football event for sixth formers
and staff which raised money for the charity ‘Young Minds’. It has been a great experience thus far and with
the support from the rest of the leadership team it’s exciting to see what we can achieve in the upcoming terms.
Sean Udott (Deputy Head Boy – Sports Committee)
When I first stepped into my new role as a PSHCE ambassador at Cranford Community College, I knew
that it would be challenging and balancing my A levels with this may be difficult. However, my passion for
positive wellbeing amongst students eliminated any challenges that this role initially posed. My role as PSCHE
ambassador involves delivering educational assemblies to students regarding topics such as mental health,
wellbeing and student finance. Some of my core aims as PSHCE ambassador for the following academic year
include: raising awareness of social issues such as gender discrimination and introducing self-defence classes
for all students.
Dua E Zehra (PSHCE Ambassador)
117

#
CRANFORD ALUMNI
Magic Singh
makes his
West End debut
On
Thursday 22nd July 2021, I had the privilege
of attending the West End debut performance of
Cranford’s own ‘Magic Singh’ as he took to the stage alongside
renowned magicians and illusionists in ‘Wonderville’ at the
Palace Theatre in London’s West End. ‘Wonderville’ brings
together some of the greatest illusionists live on stage in a
breath-taking display of magic and illusion that will electrify,
surprise and leave theatregoers in awe at what they are seeing.
The electric excitement of returning to theatres after the
pandemic was felt by the audience and performers alike
but for me there was also an overwhelming
sense of pride as I watched a fellow alumni
Amardeep Singh Dhanjal accomplishing such a
well-deserved achievement. As Magic Singh was
introduced and took his place on stage with an
air of sophistication and confidence in his stride,
he emerged from the smoke as a true gentleman
cloaked in green velvet wearing his turban with
pride. I was transported back to a time 18 years
ago when crowds of students gathered around
Amardeep on the Cranford Concourse all gasping
in amazement as they got a glimpse of the latest
magic he had learnt with coke can in one hand, and
a deck of cards in the other. He was always able
to engage, mesmerize and astound audiences and
this night was just as spectacular, as a young girl
from the audience volunteered to take part in the act
and made her way to the stage neither she nor the audience
had any idea of the astonishing, nerve wracking magic she
was about to be part of as Magic Singh’s performance got
underway!
I felt a real sense of pride seeing a fellow Cranfordonian
achieving his ambition on a London Stage.
Sharandeep Saroya (Assistant Headteacher)
118
“Cranford Review” © 2006-2021 is a publication of Cranford Community College, distributed in printed copies,
either available in PDF (digital format) to be downloaded from our school website: www.cranford.hounslow.sch.uk