Summer 2008Christmas 2008Easter 2006 Summer 2006Christmas 2006Easter 2007Summer 2007Christmas 2007Easter 2008Queens Drive
West Derby
Liverpool
Merseyside
L13 0AE
T: 0151 2283772
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Headteacher's Letter, December 2006
We have had so much good news and positive comments this year that I thought it would be good to share the highlights so far.
Year 11 underwent 'Employability Interviews' during the week just prior to half term.
They were a credit to the school and their families and it was lovely to receive a letter of congratulations from Mike Corley, Chief Executive of Compact and Anne Webb, Programme Co-ordinator who said:
“The Employers who were invited into your School, were most impressed as well as being delighted with the calibre of the students and the manner in which they conducted themselves during interviews…. (they) are a credit not only to themselves but also to their schoolâ€
Executive Director, Stuart Smith, wrote to congratulate staff and students for “an amazing exhibition†at the Lord Mayor’s Annual Civic Service in the Anglican Cathedral in October.
Dr. Dominic Dickson of
Dr Dickson has been into school subsequently to present Samantha Riley with an iPod for her evaluation questionnaire and we have been asked by Dr Dickson if we, Holly Lodge, would produce the musical ourselves this year with help from the University!
This is a great honour and we are currently working to make it possible.
Last but not least I was delighted to have the news that Sarah Rostron Year 8 had won an individual and team gold medal at the International Kick Boxing Championships in Barcelona, last month.
What a fantastic start to the new academic year!
May I end by wishing you all a peaceful and happy Christmas break and look forward to welcoming back all pupils on
Our Trip to
During the time at Kingswood Centre Holly Lodge girls took part in a mixture of activities.
This was a fantastic opportunity for Holly Lodge Girls to experience a variety of fun events, which we found extremely fun and daring!! Also, it was a good chance to work with people from different schools and to learn how to co-operate and work in a team.
The activities varied from fencing to flash but were all different initiation challenges.
• Fencing - Fighting your opponents
• Leap of Faith - Jumping from a great height
• Flash - Producing your own movie
• Walking Beam - Walking on a beam in mid air
• Nightline - A blindfolded adventure
• Archery - Firing arrows at a target board
• Rock climbing - Climbing a wall with only rocks to hold on to
• Outrageous O'Neill and the Daring doctor
Throughout the trip, Miss O'Neill and Dr. Letheren accompanied Holly Lodge pupils. Despite her fear of heights, Miss O'Neill attempted the leap of faith after a huge persuasion from two pupils in her group; Maria Charous and Nahida Ullah. She was extremely successful in the event and later said ‘if I hadn’t have done it I would have been thinking whether I would have achieved the activity.’
Dr Letheren bravely decided to try the walking beam after huge persuasion, yet again, from Nahida Ullah and Maria Charous. She was brilliant and did Holly Lodge proud - teachers can do it to! She didn’t do the leap of faith but she redeemed herself with the walking beam and made her group proud;
WELL DONE TO BOTH!
By Maria Charous and Nahida Ullah
Children in Need Soup Kitchen
The sixth form Hospitality and Catering group organised a fantastic soup kitchen at lunchtime for staff.
They prepared a variety of delicious soups served with freshly baked bread. Tea, coffee and beautifully decorated Pudsey Bear cookies were also available.
Pupils and staff thoroughly enjoyed themselves and future events will be planned. £132 was donated to Children in Need. Well done and thanks for your support.
Miss Haughey
Employability Interviews
These took place in the week 16th-20th October. All of year 11 had a 20-30minute interview conducted by an actual employer.
The employers came from a wide variety of sources eg. Merseyside Police; Price Waterhouse, Coopers (accountants); John Moores University; Liverpool City Council; Ministry of Defence; Army; Royal Air Force – to name just a few.
The year 11 pupils really impressed the employers and virtually all have had a good feedback and a report with positive comments on how to improve their interview technique. This will hopefully give them all a good start to their working life on leaving Holly Lodge.
Such comments received were:
‘A very impressive individual …. Excellent communication skills, enthusiasm and willingness to learn’ from Ann Hannigan – Defence Bills Agency
‘A delight to talk to and impressed me with her all round personality’ from Jon Davis – The People Pool Construction.
‘She is a bright and enthusiastic young lady who knows what she wants and how to achieve it’ from Jenny Cosslett -St.Johns, Burscough.
‘She gave an excellent interview with interesting answers showing a depth of knowledge’ from John Bridson LJMU
Well done girls! You did the school, your parents and most importantly yourselves proud.
M.MacCoss
Goodbye
Just a quick note to say goodbye to all the Pupils and Staff at Holly Lodge – I will miss you all!
I’ve had a fantastic time over the last 3 and a half years whilst teaching, going on school trips, the university residentials and the Battlefields visit last year.
Best wishes to you all for the future and I hope that you all have a fantastic Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!
Goodbye everyone
Miss Parkinson .x.x.x.
Success of
The success of all of the pupils at Uplands is, firstly, the fact that they come into school at all, secondly, they stay with us for two years, and thirdly, they leave hopefully with some qualifications, some self belief, and some direction for the future.
That is the broader picture, however, I thought I would send you a brief run-through of what our more 'memorable' girls are up to, and their achievements to date.
Sophie Iddon - Completed a two year course in Health and Social care, achieving the top grade within her cohort. Continuing with her Advanced course and hopes to become a Social Worker.
Claire McEverley - Working full time in an Estate Agents and doing very well in her job. She has passed her driving test, has her own car and now lives in her own flat supporting herself very well.
Caroline Jennings - Currently re-sitting GCSE English and Maths to gain a place on an Access Course leading to a degree in Psychiatric Nursing.
Rebecca Dwyer - Working full time in ICT.
Sarah Redmond and Ann-Marie Campbell - Both have attended College and are working full time as Support workers in Mental Health.
Jade Gerrard - Full time College, re-sitting English and Maths and studying for a GCSE in Psychology. Hopes to do a Nursing Degree.
Vanessa Baxter - Full time College course in Fashion Design, finishes in January. Hopes to go into the Design Industry.
These are just a few, if I had more time I could list all of the girls' destinations. The real success for all of the girls who have attended Uplands is that they all engage in some post sixteen education or work, and appear to sustain it.
Christmas Disco
Years 7 & 8 had a fantastic time at their Christmas Disco on the 6th December.
They danced from 7 until 9pm accompanied by several teachers including Miss Parkinson, Miss Doran, Mr Whitty and Mr Jones!
A massive thank you to all who helped out with the face painting, photo keyrings and other activities – a great time was had by all.
Celebration Evening ‘06
Congratulations to over 200 pupils and parents who attended Celebration Evening in the Pavilion on Tuesday 12 December.
45 pupils received deserved recognition for achieving 100 % attendance in their previous academic year and Melissa Rathbone warrants a special mention for achieving 100 % attendance throughout her whole school life.
With so much work and emphasis being placed on attendance the school is looking forward to significantly increasing this Attendance Roll of Honour in time for next year’s awards.
Thanks go to Emma McHugh, Anneka Desai, Mya Davies and Amy Kehoe all Year 8 pupils who treated the audience to a reading of their poetry.
Success and involvement in individual subjects was recognised with the presentation of Effort and Achievement awards. Well done girls.
Sarah Hoare and Jennifer Parr displayed their very considerable musical talents performing a piano and violin duet.
It was great to once again celebrate the record breaking success of our previous year 11 pupils – the Class of 2005 – as they embark on their Sixth Form studies and for some their careers outside school.
Well done to our returning Year 13 students who have now completed their first term at university.
Bethany Nelson Year 7 treated the audience to a lovely rendition of ‘Let it Snow’.
Stephanie Cronin, Lauren Kemp, Lucy Scott, and Geraldine Madican received recognition through the Margaret Bryce awards as they were rewarded for their outstanding contribution to life at Holly Lodge.
Our year 10 GCSE dance class produced a dazzling dance performance followed by an outstanding solo dance from Emma French.
Special prizes were awarded to our outstanding achievers in GCSE, AVCE. GNVQ and A level examinations. Kaya Sinclair received the Kate Finnegan prize for Mathematics, Joanne Spencer the Gill Dunne prize for Art and Stephanie Gadsby and Safia Elammani the Pat Iland prizes for GCSE German/French and A level French.
Our Head Girl Stephanie Robinson gave the vote of thanks and Bethany Nelson ended the evening with ‘Save the best for last’.
Congratulations to all our prize winners and talented performers.Thank you to all staff and parents who have made such a contribution to our girl’s success.
Graham Howell
English Department News
Year 11 Poetry Conference
This takes place on
The pupils listen to the poets that they study for literature and language, as they perform their poems. They then have a Q&A with the poets. This is an unmissable opportunity to meet the writers we study and is always a really enjoyable day!
CREATIVE PARTNERSHIP PROJECT
All staff in the English Department are working on a Creative Partnerships Project aimed at raising achievement in GCSE English. We have had several days training, working with experts from a variety of fields and hope to produce imaginative resources to support our pupils with English Papers 1 and 2.
President of Interact
Congratulations to Megan Hindley who is the new president of Interact.
Nathan Visits Holly Lodge
Year 11 were treated to a performance by Nathan (a young R&B artist) on
This was arranged as a reward following the Mock Exam week. (see page 6 for Nathans interview)
Pupils (and staff) were encouraged to join Nathan on the stage whilst he demonstrated dance moves and students enjoyed judging the staff dancing competition!
The afternoon was a great success – enjoyed by all.
As usual, the staff and students at Holly Lodge have been very generous this term:
We have sent 139 shoeboxes to the Operation Christmas Child Appeal, who will distribute them to children in
We raised £19 by selling poppies to help The Royal British Legion.
£235.50 was raised by holding a coffee morning, where many Year 9 students made and sold cakes for the MacMillan Nurses Cancer Appeal.
There were cake sales, collections, a silly socks day and a whole host of other activities for Children in Need, where we raised £646.60. 7GS alone made a very creditable £170.41 and the sixth form added £111.35.
December 1st was World Aids Day and Year 9 raised £50.10 by selling ribbons to support victims of aids and their families.
One of our cleaners left in the summer and all donations for her leaving present, £90 in total were given to Zoë’s Place.
The Interact Club raised £40 for Alder Hey with Halloween face painting at break.
A very big thank you to all who took part to help make a difference to the lives of people who are less fortunate than ourselves.
Christmas Concert
The Expressive Arts Centre hosted their annual Christmas concert on
Many Holly Lodge pupils performed alongside students from the Centre for Expressive Arts.
The evening ran smoothly and was a great success. Students of all ages and abilities shared the stage to provide an evening of music.
All performers did exceptionally well and made staff and parents proud!
If you are interested in learning to play an instrument or would like to have singing lessons see any member of staff in the Music Department – it’s not too late to start!
Nathan Interview
How old are you?
20, my birthday is November 2nd
Where are you from?
I’m from
How did you get into singing?
I have always been into singing however I was 15 when I started to sing professionally. I won a competition called Rapology and received £1000 and a chance to record a song.
Have you got a single coming out and if so could you please tell us more about it?
Yes, I have a new single coming out soon, there are two songs on it, the first ‘Snatch’ and the second ‘Without My Love’.
I have written every song on my album apart from two. My ideas come from my own experiences as well as other people’s experiences.
Who do you most admire?
I really admire my mum, she has helped me loads. She is an actress and I have learnt a lot from her. She played a part in Eastenders a while back where she had a fight with Kat Slater!
I also admire Jay-Z and P. Diddy. I like the way they have not only made a career out of singing but have also made a success out of other businesses.
What’s your favourite song ever?
Thats a hard question, there’s so many. I change my mind depending on my mood, but if I had to choose at this moment in time I’d say ‘Lets Get It On’ by Marvin Gay.
Pe News
Junior Sports Leaders Award
10 girls have been working hard on this award this term and should finish it by the end of January. They have shown great commitment in the hours they have spent after school. For the last 5 weeks children from St Mary’s and Blackmoor have been coming to a multi-skills club taken by the JSLA students.
The Community Sports Leaders Award will start at the end of January. If there are any students, who are 16, and would like to take this award and have not already given in their names, then please see Mrs Thrasher.
Monday Fitness Club for
This club has been running on Mondays after school taken by Debbie Seery. Debbie has also been helping with the year 11 PE groups on Monday afternoons. It has been nice to see girls who do not usually come to a club coming along on Mondays. We are not sure yet if this club can continue after Christmas as Debbie’s services are in great demand.
Self-defence
Those year 10 girls who have PE on Friday morning have been fortunate in being able to do self-defence with Jeff Leathley. This option has proved very popular with many girls staying on to do a club at lunchtime.
Jeff has recently started a club, for year 10 and above, on Thursdays after school in Holly Lodge. If you are interested in self-defence, boxercise or general fitness work and would like to come to the club see Mrs Thrasher for details. We are hoping to keep Jeff with us after Christmas.
Debbie and Jeff are employed by the School Sports Partnership and their services are in great demand from all the schools in the partnership
Monday Night Primary Club
Emma Rogers and Laura Coggins have continued with this club this term. The focus has been basketball and the session culminated with a tournament held on Thursday 30th November when 4 schools competed for the title of Holly Lodge/West Derby family champion. Well done to Lister Juniors who were the winners.
Liverpool Schools Sports Federation Awards Evening at St George’s Hall
Emma Rogers, Laura Coggins and Stephanie Gleave won awards at the LSSF awards evening in recognition of their work with young people in sport. Congratulations to them, they devote many voluntary hours to promoting sporting activity
Dance Celebration afternoon
Children from 5 primary schools came to Holly Lodge on Wednesday 6th December to perform dances that they had learned this term in their lessons. The Year 10 GCSE group performed 2 dances and Emma French in Year 11 performed a solo.
The afternoon was a great success with many parents coming to watch their children.
Aim Higher
A big thank you and well done to all of the girls who have participated in the Aim Higher activities this year.
The whole of Year 9 attended the Science musical ‘The Big Bang’ and were a fantastic audience – some even joined in on stage!
All Year 11 enjoyed their careers performance ‘The Promise’ and I’m sure you’ll all agree that Beyonce the nurse was a big hit!
All pupils in Years 9 and 10 who went on the university residentials to Keele and
There are several planned activities throughout the rest of the year – I hope you enjoy them.
Miss Parkinson
Football News
A Big Congratulations to the Under 13s (Year 8) football team who have reached the quarter finals of the Merseyside Cup. The have managed this by convincingly beating
Good Luck Girls!!!
Holly Lodge 85th Birthday
Holly Lodge is blessed with a rich history and on
We have already started preparations and pupils are working on performances, exhibitions and other events.
Can you Help?
Current pupils would like to meet with old girls to swap stories and find out how Holly Lodge was throughout the years. We will be arranging Wednesday afternoons for you to drop in and meet our 6th form students. If you would like to come in please either call or write to Ms. Ley or Mrs Corlett. Refreshments will be available.
We would also like to establish an ‘Old Girls’ network for ex pupils to meet up and keep in touch with the school. If you are interested in helping establish this please let us know.
Our well-developed archive collection is stored in boxes and due to its fragile nature there is limited access to it. We wish to digitise this material and bring it to life through display, oral histories and the birthday festival.
If you wish to be involved in the ‘Old Girls' Network' or would like an invitation to the Birthday Party please contact Ms. Ley or Mrs Corlett on:
Tel: 0151 228 3772 / 220 4234
Holly Lodge Girls' College
Queens drive,
Christmas Magazine
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Pupils from year 7 and 8 have been busy during ICT lunchtime clubs preparing a Christmas magazine, which will be sold to pupils. All money raised from the sale will be donated to a children’s charity.
Last term £50 was raised for Children In Need.
Well-done girls!
Special thanks to
Sophie Owen
Jessica Woods
Jessica Bull
Ameera Nassir
Fatima Begum
Nina Saleh
Fenik Ghazi
Mrs Rigby
Ashley Fletcher
Stephanie Bishop
Lauren Ryan
Rebecca Grace
Jessica Ryan
Georgia Johnson
LEADING DEPARTMENT STATUS
The ICT department has once again achieved Leading Department status within the LA, this time for individualised learning. Next year we are hoping to have our entire ICT curriculum online.
TESCO FOR SCHOOLS VOUCHERS
This year we collected about 8,000 vouchers from staff and students. Last year we bought interactive whiteboard software. This year we have banked the vouchers. Our thanks goes to parents for their generous support. Thanks also goes to Amanda Cullen in Year 8 for organising and counting the vouchers.
Health & Social Care
‘A’ level Health and Social Care students were given the opportunity to present their coursework findings to the Liverpool MP Jane Kennedy.
The girls handed out over 300 self-designed questionnaires to the local population.The questionnaires assessed local people's views on health and health services.
They collated the information and presented the findings to a select group of VIPs, including Ms Tinsley, the Chair of Governors and Jane Kennedy MP. The standard was excellent and all guests were impressed with the students’ hard work and professionalism.
Jane has invited them to the
Look out for our girls’ picture in the Merseymart.
Mrs Keenan & Mr Whitty
Exams
This term has seen the mock GCSE exams. Hopefully now, along with the interviews they have had, year 11 will know what is required of them to achieve good results in the summer session of external exams.
Year 10 have also had 2 GCSE modules – Maths and Science. This is only the start girls and a lot of hard work is now needed over the next 18 months to achieve good grades in 2008.
Exams next term are:
(Years 11,12,13)
(Year 9)
Results from January exams are expected on
M.MacCoss
Examinations Officer
• Competition • Competition •
This is your chance to win a signed
To win this postcard answer the following question;
A) ScissorSisters
B) Take That
C) Westlife
All entries must be handed to Kerry Lindsay in the Multimedia Suite at Sandheys (S10). The closing date is January 31st and the winner will be informed the following week.
Good Luck!