between all the PTAs of Chepstow schools) wish to say a huge "thank you" to Mrs Anne Penn-Marriott, one of the Directors of Pro Steel Engineering, for the very kind donation of 1000 towards our mini bus fund; it is very much appreciated. This, combined with the 1429 raised in the recent raffle and other fund-raising events, Llangrannog Trip On Friday 20th March, 33 Year 7 students set off to Llangrannog for the annual Welsh residential trip with Urdd Gobaith Cymru. They enjoyed a weekend of sunshine and activities on the beautiful West Wales coast. Some of the favourite activities were horseriding, skiing, bushcraft, quad-biking and climbing. Evening entertainment consisted of a traditional Welsh Twmpath, circus skills and the very popular disco. There was an opportunity to practise conversational skills and Kevin Liu and Eloise PeachBishop were awarded Siaradwyr Cymraeg y penwythnos. Fun was had by all and the students were a credit to our school and their families. ISSUE 11 JULY 2015 Chepstow Schools Together (a collaboration Special Hello and Farewell Edition With unique pull-out poster inside Year 6 Transition means the fund now stands at just over 3000! Thank you to everyone who is sup- We have had a great time in transition fortnight with our new year 7 students. They have really embraced school life and are already settling in well with their new teachers and class mates. During transition fortnight students have been involved in a number of different skills building activities, including a very ambitious 4 hour project that culminates in the transition event on a carnival theme. Students have also had the opportunity to follow their year 7 timetable for a fortnight, and we have been impressed with the way that they have approached their learning. All of our students are really well prepared to rejoin us in September and continue to make excellent progress in all of their classes. porting us in this quest for a much needed new bus for our students. Welcome to the Class of 2020! Pupils artwork on display An eye-catching banner marked the re-opening of the Reading Garden at Chepstow Library yesterday. Designed by budding artists, now in Year 9, the banner took pride of place in the library s garden, which has re-opened following the winter. The initiative was a joint project between the Friends of Chepstow Library and Chepstow School, with funding from Chepstow Town Council s community grant scheme. Community librarian Sally Bradford explained that the pupils were asked to create a design to depict the reading journey from a child to an adult, incorporating characters from the Gruffalo to teenage favourite Harry Potter. The pupils also chose iconic local landmarks including the River Wye and the town arch to feature within the artwork. Well done to all involved. Young consumers up for national trials A team of our Sixth Form students came third in the UK Final of the Young Consumers of the Year Competition at the end of June. The Grand final of the competition took the form of a University Challenge-style consumer-based quiz and in a tense finish the Chepstow students finished a close third behind Ayr Academy from Scotland and eventual winners Porthcawl School. The Chepstow team consisted of Merrick Stanley, Clara Zorab, Eleri Williams, and James Wooster. Mr Aled Elias, Teacher of Business and Economics, said The students invested a lot of their time into this competition and it really has paid off. Coming third in the national final is a magnificent achievement. It was an unforgettable two days for the team and they also benefit from having a much greater understanding of their consumer rights and responsibilities as a result of taking part. Leon Livermore, chief executive at the Trading Standards Institute said: Chepstow School performed superbly in the Welsh and UK finals. There was a real sense of buzz and excitement at the final. The competition is getting teenagers in hundreds of schools all over the UK interested in consumer skills and knowledge that will help them start off their adult lives as informed and savvy consumers! RHIF 11 GORFFENNAF 2015 The Young Consumers competition was held in central London with the Grand final being held in the House of Commons. In the semi-final, Chepstow achieved the highest score out of all the seven schools that competed in the Grand finals. During the competition, the students were presented with a number of practical challenges on subjects such as Consumer Rights, Money Matters, Safety, Europe and Travel. Students also took part in an Apprentice style challenge around Westminster which involved them working as a team, managing their time and thinking laterally.
Pupils Hit for Six! Age Cymru Last month we were proud to raise 500 for Age Cymru - a charity we have supported for many years, who work hard to improve the lives of older people in Wales. Pictured are Age Cymru representatives with Severn Monday 18th May 2015 - London/ Chepstow, UK: Journalism students from Chepstow School in Monmouthshire had the opportunity last Friday to witness firsthand the very best county cricket as Surrey opened their NatWest T20 Blast campaign at the famous Oval cricket ground in south London. As part of Sport for Development charity Active Communities Network and their wider network work in Wales with trustee Alex Mehta and the Asda Foundation, 14 pupils from Year 7 and Year 8 made the near-300 mile round-trip to London as part of their sports journalism work. Guests of honour in an Executive Box, the Year 8s - who completed the course last year - each acted as a mentor to the Year 7 pupils and were accompanied by Assistant Head teachers Jamie Goddard and Emma Mellen alongside Luca, a Year 10 media student who filmed the visit as part of his work. Students were chosen and identified as having specific areas of literacy and skills they needed to develop and were given different roles for the trip involving instructional writing (rules of T20), researching the history of the Oval and conducting interviews which included the corporate hosts and match day stewards. It was a long day for everyone going up and coming back in a mini bus, but the feedback we have received has been excellent. The pupils will now write up their newsletters, draft the newspaper and edit their video blogs, and we hope to present these at a future PE Conference happening in Wales later this year. House Year 8 students Maisie Hatcher, Hannah Lidgett, Tom Wacey and Luke Reid, just a few of the many students who raised funds through a non-uniform day, and selling Welsh cakes and daffodils over the Eisteddfod period. Well done to you all; we are very proud to make this sizeable donation and pledge to continue the fundraising through future events. Chepstow School is a big school for cricket and cricket clubs and it was great to use this opportunity to engage those struggling with literacy to become actively engaged. Three of our students have been selected to compete in the Welsh Schools Championships on Saturday July 4th in the National Stadium in Cardiff. They are: Sarah Gibbs 100m & relay Ollie Kellar Triple jump Owen Badham Triple jump This is a fantastic achievement; congratulations to them all. ----------------------------------------------------------- Year 9 Paris Trip It was a fantastic experience and hugely enjoyable day for the students alongside the two lucky teachers who accompanied them. The students behaviour was impeccable, they really appreciated the executive box and the atmosphere of the game was incredible; a real party. The game itself was exciting with lots of runs scored. Sports News Forty Year 9 students went on a four day trip to Paris on Thursday 11th June. We travelled by coach and ferry to our destination, the FIAP Jean Monnet. After a quick snack at a local café, we took the métro to Trocadéro, from George came joint 1st in the South Wales Chess Mega Final in the U12 boys, with 5 wins out of 6. The picture shows him with his new trophy. He has also been selected to play for Wales against England at the end of May. We're very proud of him. ---------------------------------------------------------------- where we had fantastic views of the Eiffel Tower! We finished our day with a magical boat ride along the Seine! Saturday was spent at Parc Astérix followed by a walk up to the Sacré Coeur and Montmartre. Many students had their portraits done and we all enjoyed the magnificent views over the city. On Sunday, we had a tour of the Stade de France with the brilliant guide Toine. After lunch, we went to the Grévin wax museum and then took a long walk through the Tuileries gardens to the Louvre and then on to Notre Dame. Paris was as stunning and animated as ever. Another year, another challenge raising money for Ty Hafan, the children s hospice. This year s challenge was to complete the Yorkshire 3 Peaks in less than 12 hours. This consisted of climbing three mountains and walking continuously for 24 miles. Even though we were battling a 50 mph wind speed for most of the time, we re delighted with our efforts and completed it in just over 10 hours. Congratulations to our Year 8 football team, (voted Chepstow School Team of the Year!) who beat Monmouth 6:2 in the semi-final of the South East Wales Cup Final at Risca on 6th May. Well done boys - two fantastic achievements! On 30th June we hosted our first community Sports Fayre which involved over 20 clubs from both the school and community. It was a huge success, with many students have an opportunity to try out sports that they may not otherwise have access to. Thanks to all involved.