Everyone is invited to come and make our school look its best for summer.  All ages and experiences welcome from beginners to budding gardeners.  We would be delighted if you could join us on Saturday 26 May any time from 9am to 2pm.  Contact Mrs Charge for more details – charges@bishopluffa.org.uk

Refreshments will be provided.

Nick Gibb pictured with staff and students

Nick Gibb MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton and Minister of State for Schools spoke at Economics Society meeting on Friday 4^th May. He spoke to Economics students in years 10, 11,12 and 13 as well as some year 9 pupils starting GCSE Economics next year and a few Sixth Formers not studying Economics.  Nick spoke about the state of government finances although often the debate concerned education and his views as Minister of State for Schools. The audience were extremely keen to question Mr Gibb about a wide range of issues ranging from turbulence in the Euro zone to the decommissioning of HMS Invincible to university tuition fees.

Mr Gibb explained that the Government was borrowing £156BN more than it was receiving from taxation in 2010 and that drastic action was required to cut this level of government overspending. The Government is currently paying £2M a day in interest on their debt.

The Economics Society led by Mr Rick West is a recent initiative at Bishop Luffa School and exists to reinforce aspects of the Economics course as it enables pupils to gain an interest in real world economics and broaden subject knowledge by drawing on the experience of outside speakers. So far this academic year pupils have been addressed by the Michael Brown – Chief Executive and a Cabinet Member from West Sussex County Council, Alan Frost a Senior Partner from Henry Adams Estate Agency and Richard Schiller Director of Product Strategy, Omatic (Sweden).

An Invitation to 'Fruition 2012'

After the success of last year’s inaugural event, we are pleased to announce ‘Fruition 2012’, an opportunity to enjoy the fruits of this year’s Bishop Luffa Arts students’ creative labours, to take place this June in the Creative Arts Centre.

You are warmly invited to drop in at any time during the evening to experience:

• The annual Art Exhibition of GCSE and A Level students’ work in the Dance Studio         
• ‘Masque of the Red Death’, short plays performed by GCSE Drama students in the Drama Studio
• Short films and video sequences produced by GCSE and A Level Media Studies students and KS3 ICT pupils in the main Arts corridor
• Musical compositions recorded by GCSE and A Level Music and Music Technology students in the Recording Studio

Live music will also be performed by the Bishop Luffa Swing Band and light refreshments provided. Formal invites will be sent out via pupils soon to the families of those pupils whose work is to be exhibited.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Mr J A Saunders (Head of Arts Faculty)

Students had a memorable trip to Washington

Over the Easter break, a group of 39 Sixth Form students and 4 staff visited Washington DC to support their study of US Civil Rights in A2 History. After a comfortable flight to Dulles Airport, the party made its way to the Windsor Park Hotel, a B&B situated in the heart of the embassy district of DC. From there it was only a short walk to metro stops, or on the first full day, a brisk walk to the National Mall. After visiting the Lincoln Memorial, site of Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’ speech, we made our way to the memorial to Dr King on the banks of the Potomac. From there, the group walked on to the Old Post Office Pavilion for lunch, via the Washington Memorial. Following on from a hefty lunch and a quick stop at the site of Lincoln’s assassination, students were able to opt for either the Air & Space Museum, National Gallery of Art, or Sculpture Garden (a popular choice, as the weather was perfect!) A metro journey took us back to the hotel, after which, a traditional burger with all the trimmings finished a tiring, but fascinating day. The next day saw us back in the centre of DC. Union Station was followed by a visit to the Capitol Building (with some students also using the subterranean link to visit the Library of Congress), and the Supreme Court. Lunch was taken in the National Museum of the American Indian (where the buffalo burger proved popular), or Air & Space Museum. This was followed by a visit to the National Museum of American History, where students saw, for example, the original ‘Sit-in’ counter from the civil rights movement. Following this, the White House was our next stop, for a photo opportunity. The day ended with a visit to the basketball – a truly ‘All-American’ experience!!

The final day saw us visit Arlington cemetery, a moving, and humbling experience. This was followed by a shopping mall, and then a journey to the airport, and home.

The whole group were a credit to themselves, the tour group, the school and their parents, and gained a valuable insight into some key aspects of their A2 studies. This is definitely a trip that will run again at some point in the future.

Mr Justin Barnett, Head of Humanities

Pupils of all ages and from various schools throughout Chichester have recently been taking part in a poetry competition set up and run by the Rotary Club of Chichester. Pupils were given the theme: ‘Sport the World Over’ to inspire their writing and as you can imagine many focused on the Olympics. The competition was judged by Stephanie Norgate, local writer and poet; who praised the winning poems and gave a dramatic reading of them.

It was a very proud moment when it was announced that all 3 of the winners in the 12-15 years age group were Bishop Luffa pupils.

1st prize Lydia Asscher 8 Ridgeway

2nd prize Emma Maynard 10 Story

3rd prize Alex Howell 8 Ridgeway

Well done to our truly fantastic poets.

Mrs A Kent, Head of Burrows House

Bishop Luffa Company 'Vibe' winners of Best Company at the Young Enterprise Awards

Yesterday the school had two teams of Sixth Form students compete in the Young Enterprise Competition Day and Awards Ceremony held at Chichester College. This is a Young Enterprise initiative, in which Sixth Form students set up their own trading companies and run them through the school year.

The scheme aims to give students practical experience of running a competitive company, complete with business plan and website and to discover the secrets of running a successful company.

James Clancy, Chairman of the Local Board for Young Enterprise announced the Awards.  Our second company Vibe won Best Website and also were awarded the trophy for the Best Company.  The company now go on to compete in the Sussex Finals in East Grinstead on 16^th May.  In recognition of their success and all of their hard work with Young Enterprise, Lord March has given the Managing Director and Deputy two tickets to the Festival of Speed event in June.

Esme Ash and Zack Carey were very positive about the value of the

Company Spire were winners of three awards taking Best Business Plan, Best Branding and Best Company Report

scheme. “It’s really helped us to understand the demands of running a business successfully, we have learned that hard work pays off and that you should always try your best”.   

Special thanks to our advisers and business people that kindly give up their time to share their expertise and knowledge with our students; Mark Barber, John Fisher, Richard Barthlomew, Mike Hughes and Allan Blamire.

Mrs B Timblick, Business Enterprise Co-ordinator

Sixth Form students with Lord Dholakia at the House of Lords

Seven Sixth Form students were given the opportunity to visit the House of Lords yesterday.  These were the students that had asked questions of Lord Dholakia during his recent visit to the school.  Sam Peake, one of those students writes…

It was a fantastic opportunity to visit the House of Lords at the invitation of Lord Dholakia. We entered Parliament via the central door of Westminster Hall, which was the only chamber to survive the fire of 1834. It is easy to tell that the past 1,000 years are preserved within these walls. The slightly musky smell; the dark timber roof; the stone floor; and the towering statues of medieval kings with faces washed smooth by the tide of history, all give the impression of a mysterious and wise place. We were greeted very graciously by Lady Dholakia in this hall. She lead us past the spot where years ago Prime Minister Spencer Perceval had been assassinated, and through to the atrium of the House of Lords. Here we watched the mace and Lord’s Speaker process into the House, and then went up to the public gallery to watch questions being put to the ministerial Lords. It was surreal to view in life the debates that usually one only has the opportunity to see on television. The House of Lords is a self-regulating chamber. It was refreshing to see the business of the House being conducted with a civility and dignity, which seems lacking in other parts of our party-political culture. We were then given a tour of Parliament by Lord Dholakia personally. We were able to gain access to many interesting rooms, such as the Robing Room and the St Mary’s Chapel. These parts of the building had been redeveloped at the pinnacle of Victorian wealth- and it certainly showed! There were paintings of many famous events such as the Battle of Trafalgar, and the overall opulence of some of the gold encrusted rooms was truly staggering. The people in Parliament were very welcoming and down to earth. Overall, and perhaps slightly ironically, given we viewed an unelected chamber, the trip to the House of Lords gave us renewed faith in the greatness of our democracy and our country.  

Ian Thomas, Assistant Headteacher & Head of Sixth Form

Waitresses one of the winning groups

Charity Week ended with a flourish as pupils came into school in all types of wonderful costumes.  The winners for the best individual costumes were 1. Robot ;   2 . Postbox;  3. Penguin & Homeless Old Men; Best group winners were  1. Save the Pandas; 2. The Waitresses; 3. The Nerds. 

Sixth Form best individual winner was Confused.com and best groups 1.  Spartacus and guards; 2.  Eygyptians; 3.  Nativiity. 

The Variety Show that took place on the Friday evening was a fantastic evening of entertainment.    The amount of money raised is £3,702 which means the Sixth Form are on target to raise £10k for thier chosen charities, Grassroots, Hope and Homes for Children and the Snowdrop Trust.

Bishop Luffa School joins the second cohort of schools in England to be granted Teaching School status

From the Summer Term Bishop Luffa School joins the second cohort of schools in England to be granted Teaching School status – a new designation that entitles us to take a leading role in school-centred training and professional development of staff.

We are at the centre of an Alliance of schools, working with other partners including primary, secondary and special schools, and universities, to deliver high quality support for teachers and further improve standards in all the schools in the area.

To be awarded Teaching School status is a tremendous accolade for our school and our partners, and it demonstrates our already high standards in teaching and learning. We are committed to further enhancing the professional development of our staff and becoming a hub of excellence in training new teachers to the profession, providing school-to-school support, continuous professional and leadership development.

Our vision states that we aspire to have “a strong, confident, outward-looking Christian ethos” and to be “a creative, dynamic, reflective learning community” that inspires all our young people.   Being a Teaching School  supports these aims and confirms our Bishop Luffa slogan, “Only the best and everyone matters”.