Over the last four terms all students in years 7, 8 and 9 have completed several different enrichment activities in their regular Monday afternoon slot. These enrichment activities offer a diverse range of experiences.

• Year 7: Ballroom & Latin, Puzzles, Ready, Steady Cook, Social Strategy, Mindfulness, Robotics, Music, Wellbeing Toolbox, Murder at Twilight, Touch Typing.
• Year 8: Film Club, Ecology, Upcycling, Outdoor Ed, Dance, Life Skills, Illustration, Climate Action, Puzzle Mania, Chess Club.
• Year 9: Inspiring Physics, BSL, Knitting, Juggling, Natural History, Resilience Lab, Puzzles, Yoga, Philosophy & Film, Chess Club.

We have identified twelve key employability skills that all students should develop and we ask them to reflect upon how they are improving these skills through their work in lessons and enrichment activities. We encourage all students to access UniFrog regularly and record their activities outside of school as well as those that we have been able to provide. This record will then stay with them through the school and beyond, creating a valuable database of experience on which they can draw when making future applications for higher education or employment.

In the summer term we will recognise the engagement and reflection of students in the first presentation of the St Katherine’s Youth Awards - SKYwards. Students who have recorded the development of each of the twelve skills to an age appropriate level will be eligible for the award at Bronze, Silver or Gold.

This video explains how unifrog supports SKYwards.

During the penultimate week of term there were a range of activities across St Katherine's to mark Science Week 2023. Key Stage 3 students were challenged to think about community sustainability and write proposals to make our school community even more sustainable. Meanwhile, Key Stage 4 and 5 enjoyed powerful conversations about how their learning is linked to cutting edge research about climate change. 

We were privileged to host Stephanie Martin, Climate and Conservation Influencer, into our community to inform students about how the online community is fighting climate change by raising awareness of good sustainability practices, as well as holding people and companies to account in their environmental actions.

We were honoured to host Jonathon Allen, Tanya Kendrick, Max Kroker, Stephanie Martin, Peter Nethsingha and Kevin Sudlow for our evening careers workshop: Tea with a Scientist. Students were thrilled to ask our guest scientists about the work and expertise, as well as having the opportunity to field their most intriguing questions. One empassioned student noted “nuclear engineering, conservation bloggers AND cookies… What a night!”.

As part of Science Week we held some house competitions: 

Climate Chefs Challenege: students were challenged to submit a photo of a sustainable meal with a brief description of how it is sustainable. Well done to:

• 1st Place - Lili Solymosi, 7T1
• 2nd Place - Ludo Fishbourne, 7S2
• 3rd Place - Eddie Handcock, 7S2

For the Climate Creatives Challenge competition students were challenged to submit a piece of art or literature that encapsulates this year’s theme: Together for our Planet. Congratulations to:

• 1st Place - Eve Ward, 7S2
• 2nd Place - Evie Sell, 7P
• 3rd Place - Reuben Arnell, 7S2

All students that completed the challenges have been awarded a praise point and a sustainable chocolate treat!

Whilst we are currently reflecting on the rich opportunities Science Week 2023: Together for our Planet provided our learners, we are already excited for Science Week 2024 - theme yet to be decided!

Mr Sugden, Science Teacher 

With Mr Davies recently away on paternity leave, the briefest of updates on this term in the Sixth Form block. As ever, we have worked hard to deliver a broad and enriching experience for all our students over the last six weeks, with presentations from Mercer Marsh, KMPG and law firm Michelmores as part of our Careers Week offering as well as visitors from the NHS. Year 12 conducted themselves superbly on a whole year group trip to the National Universities and Apprenticeships Fair at Ashton Gate, and we look forward to taking them away again in Term 5 with scheduled trips to UWE and the University of Oxford. 

Mr Davies, Head of Sixth Form

Year 11 are quickly approaching what will be the most challenging and rewarding period of their time at St Katherine’s School. We would like to share with you some key information on how you can best support learners over the coming weeks.

Mental health and wellbeing

Effectively managing the anxiety and pressure of the coming weeks is as important to a young person’s outcomes as revision and retrieval practice. Here are some links to local services who offer support to those who might be struggling to regulate their anxiety levels through this period:

Young Minds - A guide for young people: Exam stress

UCL - 7 tips to help you cope with exam stress

MIND - Exam stress – for 11-18 year olds

We also have a series of videos recorded by Mrs Robinson in which she talks through some coping strategies:

Session 1 - 15 minutes (3 pillars of wellbeing)

Session 2 - 9 minutes (Working smarter not harder)

Session 3 - 11 minutes (How to increase motivation / breathing)

However, and most importantly, if a learner is struggling with anxiety please let us know. At St Katherine’s we have an on site counsellor, a team of mental health first aiders and a group of sixth form peer listeners who can offer understanding, support and tips on how to navigate the challenges ahead.

Calendar

Key dates: Whilst some MFL, Philosophy & Belief and Engineering papers are slightly sooner, the first whole year group exam is Biology on Tuesday 16th May. The final whole year group exam is Physics on Friday 16th June. All students are expected to attend school as normal until Friday 16th June, with lessons and booster lessons structured to best support students prior to their exams. As a result, the timetable will look a little different during the exams period, with booster lessons taking place prior to each exam. From Monday 19th June, students are invited to attend school for their booster lessons and remaining exams. 

Use this link to help plan revision for the next two terms. 

Whilst the scheduled exams finish on Wednesday 21st June, exam boards schedule a national contingency day in case any exam needs to be rearranged. This year, the national contingency day takes place on 28th June and students must be available for this date if their exam is rearranged nationally.  

The results are in for the end of the Term 4 and Stephenson have regained their lead in this year's House Championship competition. We have yet to add the results for the final spring sports competition that take place in the last days of this term, but even with these yet to come, Stephenson House can relax into their Easter holidays with clear blue water between them and the other three houses. 

It must be said however that Pankhurst House have had an excellent term and there are signs that, for them, the tide is beginning to turn. The ethos competition this term - which carries the greatest number of points - was won by Yousafzai House whose students were on time to lessons the most often. Pankhurts House finished second in this competition and secured a much needed 150 points. Crucially Pankhurst finished ahead of Stephenson and Turing meaning that they were able to close the gap somewhat. This coupled with some excellent results in the spring sports competitions and an overall win in 'The Cube'  competition mean that Mr Murdoch has much to celebrate.

So, as we look ahead to the final third of the school year, it is very much all to play for and we wait to see whether Pankhurst's resurgence will continue and create a very interesting final two terms in the House Championship. Our new House Leaders will be announced at the start of next term and we will look to them to guide their students to continue to represent their house in the best way possible.

Well that was a term that just kept giving weather wise! We had wind, ice, snow and plenty of rain. It has been wonderful over the last couple of weeks to see some tentative sunshine return along with the new buds and blossoms. The fortunes of Pankhurst House mirror this somewhat, with the opportunity to celebrate some successes where previously we have come up slightly short. We were second in the Ethos competition around punctuality which is a clear improvement on the fourth place we gained in term one in the same competition. I have emphasised to the House, punctuality is a basic matter of manners and is a key quality that employers look for, so it is heartening when that message is taken on board and we persevere to make improvements.  

Although not all of the results are in for the Spring Sport we have had some sporting success with victories for the year 9 girls, year 8 boys and most pleasingly our year 10 boys who were absolutely delighted to have won their competition having never done so before. It is fair to say that the highlight of the term so far was the delight on the faces of the boys who turned up outside my classroom to tell me they had won. We also have had success in ‘The Cube’ competition where students were set a series of physical and mental challenges to solve. Long may this continue! 

7P continue to be the jewel in the Pankhurst crown finishing top of their year group for their praise/negative proportion. Once again they are the tutor group of the term, well done to them! 8P2 also deserves a mention for closing the gap on 8P1, as do 9P for maintaining their improvement from term 1. Well done both. Leading the way in terms of praises are the following students who were the top ten praise earners for Pankhurst House this term:

• Alexa Barnard, 159
• Morgan Temple, 159
• Solomon Shilton, 142
• Ryan Rice, 139
• Mavis Tsang, 134
• Seb Hutchins-Davies, 127
• Jessica-Jade Cowley, 127
• Agate Domingas, 125
• Hannah Green, 125
• Zac Evan, 125

An excellent effort from all of them to set a really high bar for others to try and match. 

Next Term sees us return with lighter evenings and longer days and hopefully some warmer temperatures. The Ethos competition is based on our attendance figures which is an area in which Pankhurst has shown real improvement over the course of this term. I think this competition is going to be close next term and it’s one we will be trying to win for the first time!

Mr Murdoch, Head of Pankhurst House

The term has flown by and there have been lots to celebrate in Stephenson House with lots of sports competitions, science week and an opportunity to learn and celebrate the different cultures and beliefs that exist within our school. It has been lovely to see students in tutor time deep in conversations about Easter and Ramadan as well as neurodiversity week. Equality and respect are two of our values in Stephenson House and this is certainly an important feature of our school as well as our house. 

We have continued to flourish on the sporting field and it is great to see so many students taking an active role in house sport and representing Stephenson. Spring house sport including hockey and football was enjoyed by many and Stephenson House dominated by winning the overall girls competition and finishing second in the boys. Once again thank you to the house captains who managed to get teams out for all year groups. 

The Ethos competition for punctuality saw Stephenson finish in third place. This has always been a strong area for us as a house so therefore it is disappointing to see us drop away and the students need to share our vision of ‘the power of we’ to ensure the ethos competition is closer next time. It has also been great to see the love of reading shared amongst students in the house with Stephenson finishing in first place for both reading logs and accelerated reader.

It is always a pleasure to go around tutor groups on Friday and award the Stephenson Stars for students that represent our RED values of Respect, Equality and Determination. I know this is always a challenge for our tutors because so many deserve the prize. A big well done to these students for their outstanding efforts: 

• Y7: Marcel Maciol, Charlie Long, Freya Beck, Louis Bulmer, Grace Elliott, Isabelle Turner, Riley Talbot, Charlie Fernihough, Freddie Hayes, Eve Ward.
• Y8: Maisie Thorn, Katie Buschenfeld, Eloise Brochot Sharpe.
• Y9: Ashton Taylor, Tyler Cavalho, Jack Lawrence, Jett Marlow.
• Y10: Charlie Mason, Ezekiel Pinkney, Jack Palmer-Givan, Lauren Weeks, Oliver Hecker, Riley O'Brien.
• Y11: Noah Pearson, Sam Wright, Alice Brochot-Sharpe, Joe Crawford, Ethan Garbutt, Sam Peacock, Polly Cole, Mya Morgan, Maddie Price, Ruby Fowler. 

Year 11 students in 11S1 and 11S2 have continued to show determination during their mock exams and I have once again been impressed with their dedication to their studies. It is not long now until their summer exams and I urge them to keep going in the final stretch.

Next term will see the election of the new house leaders from year 10 and I am excited to see the applications from students in 10S. Leadership and student voice is critical in driving improvement within the house and I am looking forward to interviewing students about what they can bring to the role. I would like to thank Charlie and Sophia who have been fantastic ambassadors and role models for our house and shown our RED values in true abundance.

The House championship saw us at the end of last term in second place just behind Turing and I have challenged the house to see if they can retain their title for the second year in a row, something that has never been done at St Katherine’s. Some strong performances have put us at the top of the championship once again. This is a testament to our strong culture and ethos of working together as a team. Our motto ‘from adversity comes progress’ is something we regularly talk about and our icon Paul Stephenson inspires us in everything we do as a house.

Finally a big thank you to my tutor team this term who had to cover my absence for two weeks due to illness. We have a strong tutor team in Stephenson House who provide excellent pastoral care to our young people.

Mr Thomas, Head of Stephenson House 

The Easter Holidays are upon us, which can only mean the end of Term 4! We are two thirds of the way through the school year, where has the time gone? 

The end of term is always a good time to showcase success, but also to focus on areas of improvement. Turing House members have made every effort in trying to move Turing House forward collectively, but at the same time, not forgetting the importance of personal achievement. Well Done and thank you everyone for your continued efforts as valued house members.

The House “Core Values” are central to the recognition of achievement. They should be the driving force behind everything that house members do in school. It gives true meaning to the students who perform so well in these identified areas. Here are the fantastic achievements by Turing Students.

Spring Term Inter House sports competitions focussed on football and hockey. Turing students displayed commitment, team work, unity and fairplay. The sporting highlight for the Year 7 boys, was first place in football, with excellent participation levels. Year 8 boys finished in a commendable second place, which was also mirrored by the Y10 Girls hockey, who performed amazingly for their second place positions.

As a result of the efforts of all of those who participated, Turing House has found themselves in a very credible third place. The aim for the summer term should be to turn this into a second place or higher. 

“The strength of the team………The strength of each member is the team”

In recognition of  the weekly Tremendous Turing students. I would like to draw your attention to the students listed below. Each student has demonstrated one or more of the core values of Turing (Unity, Acceptance and Determination). Their attitude and behaviour during the term are an example to all students at St Katherine’s. Well done to all of you:

• 7T1: Isla Powell, Olivia Parsons, Leo Richardson, Layla Kendall, Erin Whitfield, Ziggy Gardner.
• 7T2: Ben Waddams, George Gittoes, Sam Sims, Oscar Packham, Michal Spurrel, Elsa Fiedor.
• 8T: Jake Robson, Oscar Thomas, Harvey Bambury, Mabel Challice, Emily James.
• 9T1: Oscar Lamb, Matei Achim, Cody Gallagher, Grace Jenkins.
• 9T2: Zakaria Ahmed, Thomas Earle, Bella Perales- Morris, Oliver Morgan, Oliver Roper, Sam Mwawangi.
• 10T: George Wilkinson, Daisy Finlan, Cos Antonios, Sofia Hawkesby, Fern Clarke, Victor Achim.
• 11T1: Lucy Holloway, Hector Mackenzie-Andrieux, Grace Lowther-Harris, Sean Kaithakkoden, Patrik Miles, Nas Gyimah-Sarpong
• 11T2: Isaac Bowers, Solanah Morgan, Toula Hudson, Paige Welsby, Winnie Fey, Maddy Thomas.

I would now like to shift the focus from the superb weekly student achievements, to the dedicated and sustained termly achievements. Two areas that showcase this remarkable effort are the Highest Praise Earners in each tutor group and the Magnificent Termly Turing. 

Well done to the highest praise earners for leading the way:

• 7T1: Erin Whitfield - 118
• 7T2: Walter Rogers - 115
• 8T: Emily James - 144
• 9T1: Matei Achim - 143
• 9T2: Luke James - 122
• 10T: Sofia Hawkesby - 78
• 11T1: Gabriella Marcovitch - 43
• 11T2: Leo Oakman - 67

Lastly, but by no means least, are the Magnificent Termly Turing students. These students have once again consistently demonstrated one or more of the core values of Turing (Unity, Acceptance and Determination) and sustained this over the whole of Term 4. Their attitude and behaviour are an example to all students at St Katherine’s. Congratulations to:

• 7T1: Leo Richardson - Leo has consistently worked hard in every lesson this term and he has accumulated over 100 praise points. Keep up the great work ethic Leo! Well done!
• 7T2: Elsie Caton - Elsie has set a great example to her tutor group. She always comes into school with a smile. She can be seen holding the door in the hallway for her classmates and does anything she can to help. She has entered many competitions and is a fine artist who always tries her best.
• 8T: Sam Oakman - Sam has been extremely helpful this term organising the sports teams and has really excelled with this responsibility. He is also contributing regularly during citizenship which is excellent to see!
• 9T2: Luke James - Consistently demonstrates the core values of Turing House - Determination, Unity and Acceptance. Luke is dedicated to studies and is always kind and generous to his peers. We could all learn a lot from Luke.
• 10T: Alice Clarke - Alice has consistently set high standards for herself this term and met them with ease. She can always be relied on to coordinate and participate in house sport events as well as making significant progress in her GCSE studies. Well done Alice!
• 11T1: Herbie Challice - Herbie sets an example to the tutor group by his mature attitude to the challenges of school. He quietly works very hard to achieve well across his subjects, and also gets involved in wider school life, such as Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and the Morocco trip. Well done Herbie!
• 11T2: Navigating the choppy waters of Year 11 with all of the maturity, calm and determination that has come to define him over the last 5 years. Leo's achievements are significant and sustained - consistently our highest praise earner, Grease star, competition winning artist, future Moroccan adventurer, school work machine ... is there anything you can't do, Leo?

I am already looking forward to the Term 4 Turing Celebration Assembly in the first week of Term 5.

Mrs Price, Head of Turing House

I'm sure these terms keep getting quicker and quicker, - how is it that we are two thirds through the year already?! I am so proud of Yousafzai House this term - big headline is that we won the ethos competition of punctuality gaining 200 points! 

We have some other real wins this term as well in terms of house competitions. We won the world book day competition of dressing up a potato as a character, a big up to 10Y2 who had lots of entries. We’ve made some real progress in reading competitions and have come second for accelerated reader. What students need to continue to focus on is to log what they are reading - we came last in the reading log competition! Please encourage your child if they are in year 7-9 to complete their reading log daily, this will help us hugely! There has been house sport this term and I will update you next term with results from them. These successes mean that we remain in third but only 60 points behind Turing who are in second. All to play for next term!

At the beginning of the term we had our celebration of achievement assembly for term 3. This is always such a great opportunity as a house to celebrate our individual students. Charlie Carkeek, Emily Brosa, Aidan Richards and Kieran Mclean were celebrated as having the highest number of praise points in the house for last term. Each term tutors nominate a superstar in their house, well done to: 

• 7Y - Leo Thomas and Emily Brosa 
• 8Y1  - Rhia Black and Charlie Burr  
• 8Y2  - Darci Allison and Toby Foerster
• 9Y - Sam Jones and Hannah Broadbent
• 10Y1-  James Slade and Zik Muhammed
• 10Y2 - Millie Horn and Tom Smart
• 11Y - Alfred Gisborne and Maya Churchill

Due to mocks and school closures we have missed seeing each other in assemblies. Year 11 had their last assembly with us and we took the opportunity to reminisce about those good old days with photos from when they first joined us. They are a wonderful group and we wish them all the best as they begin exams next term. A huge huge shout out to Leah Wardingley and Sienna Mclearly for being excellent house leaders - leading assembly, speaking to tutor groups and keeping me organised. Thank you so much to you both - you have been fantastic! 

Thank you as always to you as parents and carers of our young people and your ongoing support with their education, which as we all should be doing, treasuring it like a diamond! 

Miss Andrews, Head of Yousafzai House

• This term has been a busy one for house sport where we have enjoyed several competitions including St Katherine's own 'The Cube' event which was for students in Years 7 and 8. We also ran our annual football, hockey, Ninja Warrior, indoor rowing and basketball competitions. In total there are almost 500 students who have represented their houses this term alone. Their combined efforts have left the standings really close between the four houses as we head into the Easter break.
• Cup football continued this term for our Year 11 boys and Year 8 boys. The Year 11 boys enjoyed their best ever cup run before suffering defeat at the hands of Castle School from Taunton in the quarter finals. The Year 8 boys went one better and contested a tough semi-final against Worle School. The Year 8 game was incredibly close with the boys narrowly missing out on a spot in the finals - arguably the toughest stage to exit a competition. Congratulations to both sets of players.
• SK Seals were in swimming action at the Portishead Rotary Club Swimathon earlier this month with the team of Year 7 and Year 8 girls swimming 77 laps in their allocated time raising money for two great charities. Emmie Bobby, Willow Griffiths, Amina Kiss-Vass, Maisie Thorn, Erin Whitfield and Sophia Wilkinson all did a fantastic job and represented the school brilliantly. 
• St Katherine's students were in short mat bowls action in the first ever North Somerset friendly fixture against Clevedon School this term. The fixture was the culmination of lots of hard work done by the English Short Mat Bowls Association and the North Somerset Schools PE Association and it was fantastic to see SK students competing in this new school sport. 
• We've had all of our normal sporting fixtures and events with lots of students representing the school on football pitches, rugby pitches, netball courts and hockey pitches this term. All told we've given almost 250 students caps since the start of term 4 and it has been great to see everyone working so hard. Special mention to the Year 9 girls for their hockey tournament win just this last week - a fantastic performance for two years running from this bunch!
• One of the real highlights this term has been the continuation of sportshall athletics. Lots of our students were selected to represent the historic county of Avon at the South West Sportshall Championships where they represented the area with real distinction. The county team is representative of all secondary schools in Bristol, BANES, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset and to have so many St Katherine's students involved is something we are hugely proud of. Half of the Avon U13 boys team was made up of St Katherine's students and this team were crowned South West Champions and now go on to represent the South West at the National Finals which are taking place in Stoke at the start of the Easter holidays. Huge congratulations to Celvin Barbosa-Goa, Kameron Bragg, Connor Chick, Luca James-Neale, Zack Khodja-Smith, Shay Melias, Bence Sandor, Shantajah Simmonds and Oscar Warren for their efforts. 
• There are also lots of students who have been working hard and enjoying great sporting success outside of school too which we're really excited to share with you in our PE newsletter. If you haven't done so already, you can subscribe to the PE newsletter by completing this form which is the best way to get your termly fix of all things PE and school sport. 

Mr Cook, Head of PE

• 17 April: Students in school for Term 5
• 20-21 April: Waterstone's Book Fair
• 21 April: D of E camp
• 25 April: D of E Bronze route planning
• 26 April: Coffee with the Headteacher
• 26 April: Festival of Music, Trust Concert
• 01 May: Bank Holiday
• 03 May: D of E Bronze route planning
• 08: Bank Holiday to mark King Charles III's coronation
• 10 May: Year 7 Virtual Progress Evening
• 12 May: D of E Bronze Expedition
• 16 May: D of E Silver route planning
• 18 May: D of E Silver route planning
• 23 May: D of E Silver route planning
• 26 May: D of E Silver practice expedition
• 26 March: END OF TERM 5
• 05 June: Students in school for Term 6

We need examinations invigilators during exam seasons (including 'mocks') through the year. Hours are flexible between 8 am and 4 pm and can vary according to your availability and the examinations timetable. 

Contract: Casual, required as soon as possible.

Further information about the school, the post and how to apply can be found on the school website, please contact Mrs Bean, Exams Officer, with any queries.

St Katherine’s is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The post is subject to DBS Barred list and Enhanced Disclosure checks.

There isn’t enough space here to showcase the huge variety of student experiences and achievements this term. Keep up to date by visiting the ‘News and Events’ section on the school website, check the school Facebook page or follow us on Twitter (@stkathsschool)