Newsletter Spring

Stretford Grammar School’s Newsletter Issue 2 | Spring 2015
Signal
Conway - Fashion Show - BBC - America - Battlefields - Library - iPads - STEM - Young Enterprise
Careers - JCB - Sport - Achievements - Sale Sharks - Investments - Houses - Charities - PTA

Welcome from the Head
It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to our spring edition of the school newsletter.
It has been a very busy few months as we have said our farewells to Year 11 and Year 13
who embark on their examinations. 2014 was an excellent year producing some of the best results in the school’s
history and I wish both year groups all the best in their endeavours. Students at Stretford Grammar School work
extremely hard and they deserve the very best. Our recent OFSTED visit commented on the ways in which our
community as a whole school strives to be successful and cooperative. They said “students show exceptional
attitudes towards their learning and are highly motivated”. OFSTED also praised the behaviour and the
interpersonal relationships of our students. Many thanks to the hard working and committed students and staff for
such an approach to school life. In this edition you will read about the fantastic opportunities and achievements that
have taken place in recent months. Our website and Twitter feed also show the most up to date news.
Fashion Show
PTA Fundraising
Mr Michael Mullins
The ever resourceful PTA has been incredibly busy lately. After another
successful couple of events in the annual quiz and most recently the incredibly
eventful ‘Ladies Night’, they have set their sights on a new challenge. On the
20th September 2015, the PTA are inviting all willing volunteers and sponsors
to take part in the Twin Peaks of Cheshire. This is a walking event that will
involve summiting Shutlingsloe and Shining Tor in the Peak District.
Participants can take part in the full day, part day or assist. It will be a great
opportunity to meet up with the school community and to support the PTA in its
efforts to raise funds for the school. In recent years the PTA has raised funds
for the library refurbishment and the development of technology throughout the
school. If you would like further information please email the school
admin@stretfordgrammar.com
The fashion show this year was an extravaganza of
colour, light and music. Organised by the ever
creative sixth form students, this year’s show was in
aid of the British Red Cross. The students and staff
got into the spirit of the event and in particular, some
of the staff got to relive the fashions of their youth!
The show was supported by parents, students and
members of the PTA and raised over £500.
School Developments
Investment in the school infrastructure continues to
improve the learning environment for our students.
Access to IT has been a major project during the last
2 years. During last summer IT3 was updated and
every classroom was fitted with new teacher PCs
and monitors. This term the remaining IT suites have
been overhauled with brand new machines. The
vastly improved performance of the solid state hard
drives means that log on times will make incredible
time savings. The machines can also handle new
software purchases such as Impero and the very
latest Adobe Creative Suite. CCTV has also been
installed to improve the security of the rooms. Many
thanks to the PTA who were able to contribute funds
to these developments.
The much anticipated suite of iPads have been
configured and installed in the MFL language lab. In
addition Apple TV will enable the MFL staff to use
the tablets to enhance the learning of our students.
The iPads will also be available for students to
conduct research and use the apps during
supervised lunch time sessions.
Brand new exam desks and chairs have
been purchased to provide students with
a much more comfortable experience
during the trials and tribulations of the
examination period. The chairs will also
be used during public events and
assemblies.
Such investments are important as the
students can take great pride in their
environment.
Many thanks to all those involved in
improving the school environment for
our students. You can get more involved
by attending the events put on by the
PTA so why not join us for the Twin
Peaks of Cheshire in September!

Library News
Harry Potter Night
In February, all Harry Potter fans were
invited to join the nationwide
celebrations for the newly published
editions of Harry Potter. We had great
fun with all sorts of wizardry games,
puzzles, quizzes and all-things-Potter.
Art Book Workshop
Book transformations specialist, Kate Bufton, came to the school just before Christmas to
show us how to make our own Christmas trees and festive decorations out of the library’s
discarded books. It was a great experience that we will surely repeat in the future.
Dan Freedman
As part of the literacy support work that
the library does with some of our Y8
students, we arranged an on-line talk
with Dan Freedman, the author of the
popular Jamie Johnson’s series. Dan is
also a sport journalist, the editor of the
FA website and also a friend of many
football stars like David Beckman,
Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand.
During his talk, he told us about his job
following the England team and how this
came to inspire a series of books which
are just perfect for anyone mad about
football. Considering that he never liked
English at school, he was bad at reading
and writing and that he claims to have
not much of an imagination, it was very
inspiring to hear how he became a
published author and how hard work
and determination will
always pay off when
you are
passionate
about anything
you like, no
matter what
anyone says.
World Record Attempt
As part of the nationwide celebrations for
National Libraries day, our students took part
in the Guinness World Record
attempt for most books
swapped in 8 hours at
multiple venues. The
students managed to do
a whopping total of 50
book swaps just during
break and lunch time (so
pretty much in about an
hour!), which will add
nicely to the rest of bookswaps
taking place in another
80 school libraries around the
country. The target currently stands at 2,868
titles. Whether we break this record or not, the
truth is that we all had a great time doing this
challenge. Now all that remains is to wait for
the official news….FINGERS CROSSED!!!
World Book Day
World Book Day was a riot across the
school as the students got into the spirit of
the day donning a variety of
costumes. At 10 am the
whole school was invited to
drop everything and read.
Mrs Sanchez-Gonzalez (our
very own Mary Poppins for
the day) led the way and
the office staff were
temporarily lost in the
wonderful world of fiction.
Library Assistants
The new term has also seen the
recruitment of a new set of school library
assistants. Joel Renjith, Kimberley Douse
from Y7 and Manam Mahmood and
Aditya Unnitahn from Y8 will be learning
the ins and outs of library work and
recommending books to anyone stuck for
a next read.

Battlefields Trip
This February students visited the monuments and sites of the battlefields of WW1
in Belgium and France. From the dark serenity of the German graves of Langemark
to the sobering scale of the British Forces graves at Tyne Cot, the sheer scale of the
‘Great War’ was evident during the whole visit. During a busy schedule over 3 days,
the group experienced the horrors of trench warfare at Sanctuary Wood, were
impressed by the understated yet magnificent Canadian site of Vimy Ridge and
took part in the emotionally charged last post ceremony in Ypres. Every year Miss
Conlin encourages students to visit the sites in order to appreciate the sacrifices of
all of the soldiers of every nation. This trip really does impress upon the students
the historical significance of major world conflicts.
America Trip
Years 10 and 11 recently flew to
Washington DC at Easter. As it is the
decision making capital of one of the most
powerful countries in the world it did not fail
to inspire SGS history and politics students.
We spent time in the Capitol building and in
the shadow of The Lincoln Memorial statue
as well as tracing the footsteps of civil
rights activists like Martin Luther King. We
visited the Whitehouse, and toured
Washington’s grand buildings, parks and
monuments. You could not escape the
grandeur of some of the old and new
façades of the world’s largest museum
complex and the Smithsonian Institute
which delighted students with natural
History and Moon Landings.
The next stopping point was our journey
to Philadelphia. There the students
learned how America was born and the
English were usurped. The history lesson
continued to put forward the heroism of
the early settlers who ‘risked everything…
their lives, their fortune and their sacred
honour’ during the blistering summer of
1776, when 56 men gathered at the
Pennsylvania State House and defied the
King of England. We even visited the
room which eleven years later was the
venue for 12 states to shape the U.S.
Constitution and saw the bell that was
rung to celebrate and symbolise that
freedom.
“The History trips are a real highlight
of the school calendar”. Emma
Finally our journey brought us to New York:
The students’ excitement was boundless
and their eagerness to shop in Times
Square, see Madison Square Gardens,
Ground Zero, climb the Empire State
building as well as see the Statue of Liberty
made the trip even more memorable. The
students’ only complaint was that it was
over too quickly and the pace of Mr.
Mullins’ walking!

Rugby Revolution
Price Cup 2015
The Price Cup is an ‘age old’ fixture that
has taken place between Mr Price-Uden
and his brother Mr Price for several
years. This year’s fixture was a titanic
wrestle involving 3 games between
squads of boys and girls. In addition to
the long history between the brothers,
the fixtures were also the first to be held
between 2 schools who have been
directly involved in the Sale
Sharks numeracy initiative ‘Number
Cruncherz’. The Sharks’ main
sponsor, the MBNA, developed the
programme to teach young people
about numeracy in the real world.
Stretford Grammar was the
launch school last year.
The Stretford girls’ squad
played 2 fixtures against the
West Lakes and after some gritty
performances from both sides - Stretford
were victors in both games! The signs are
very encouraging for a female rugby
revolution at SGS.
The boys faced a stiff challenge against a
large touring party that included some very
promising talent from the code of rugby
league. With only 15 players, Stratford
faced a long 40 minutes. After scoring first
the West Lakes dominance at the tackle
and ruck meant that they took back the
Price Cup. Mr Price-Uden is now planning
for a return fixture to bring the cup back to
Stretford!
Sharks Visit
Tom Brady and Phil Mackenzie supported
our recent awards evening. Tom and Phil
spoke about the need to focus and work
hard. Great messages for our committed
student body who achieved excellent results
in 2014.
Darren Lamon Coaching
During the Spring term our Key Stage 3 female students
took part in the Sharks’ rugby initiative to get more girls
involved in rugby. For a six week period our students
benefitted from the professional coaching from Sale
Sharks’ community coach, Darren Lamon. As an
experienced coach, Darren developed the girls’ skills and
awareness of the finer points of the game. The girls
enjoyed the input from a specialist and it is the schools
intention to develop girls rugby further.
We are also excited by the development of a new initiative
with the Sharks. Our Year 10 GCSE PE students will receive specialist coaching and
training which will lead to a sports leadership award. Simon Ogden, the Sharks’
Community Development Officer, will be leading on this initiative and we aim to further
strengthen our links.
Scott Bowerman Rugby
Former Stretford student Scott, is continuing to do very well in his
chosen career. Scott successfully gained a place at Myerscough
College to study sport and rugby. Scott currently captains the first
XV side and he has succeeded in lifting the Lancashire U18s plate.
Scott captained Myerscough to beat Liverpool Collegiate 27-6 in the
final.
In addition Scott continues to represent Lancashire County.
Recently, Lancashire played Yorkshire at Sedgley Park and
Scott played well enough to catch the eye of several
coaches. By being part of the county structure, Scott is in
the prime position to be scouted by the Sale Sharks.
We would love to hear from all former students who may
be doing well in their chosen career. Please get in touch!

JCB Trip
STEM
Chester Zoo Visit
Stretford Grammar business/economics
students enjoyed a fascinating tour around
the massive JCB Headquarters at
Rochester in Staffordshire. Upon arrival
we were greeted with tea and coffee which
was then followed by a short cinema
presentation, then, suitably equipped with
flouro jackets, safety glasses and audio
headsets, followed our guide. We started
with ‘The Story of JCB’ - importantly NOT
branded as a museum, as it is very much a
growing and evolving company.
Year 12 Biology and Psychology students took a trip to Chester Zoo in late March in order
to attend lectures related to their chosen subjects, as well as to see some of the animals.
Psychology students attended a lecture in the Education Centre about attachment in
animals, learning about many different species and how they form attachments to others
of their kind. Biology students attended a lecture on the conservation of species, and why
it is important to be careful to conserve some of the endangered species on our planet.
Mobile
Planetarium
Total
Eclipse
It took us on a journey through time, from
the 1820s when the Bamford family were
blacksmiths in Uttoxeter, to the present day
and JCB’s ECO range of fuel saving
machines. The exhibition explores JCB’s
design and innovation ethos; its growth as
an agricultural machinery manufacturer;
JCB’s worldwide service and parts
backup; the success of JCB’s military
products; the development of the JCB
engine and the record breaking 350mph
DIESELMAX ‘car’ from 2006, powered by
two turbocharged JCB diesel engines
giving 750bhp each!
The factory tour took us around the
complete ‘line’ for the famous Backhoe
Loader, from the process of how the
machine is built from the delivery of the
sheet steel, profiling, laser cutting,
welding, paint shop, assembly and finally the
finished product! More than 60 roll out per
day from the plant, joining production from
22 plants from around the world in India,
Brazil, China.
The third largest company in the world, JCB
is a magnificent example of a family-owned
British firm gone global… but still with its
roots firmly in the Midlands. During the tour
there was an opportunity to visit the JCB
shop to buy branded merchandise such as
clothing or keychains.
50 Year 7 students took part in an
enjoyable trip to the mobile planetarium.
They learnt about how the Earth formed
and developed, about the historic
perspective on naming of constellations
and looked at the planets of the solar
system. They also learnt about human
exploration of space in the future as well
as current robotic exploration.
Tommy’s Success
Year 7 maths superstar, Tommy, has
achieved more phenomenal success. In
the recent maths Olympiad he scored
57/60. Competing against the top 500
students nationally, Tommy came 3rd!
In addition he has also gained
recognition in the UK Maths Trust
Yearbook also winning a gold medal.
On the 20th March 2015 millions of people in
the UK and northern Europe witnessed the
best solar eclipse in years. A great swathe of
the Earth’s surface was plunged into darkness
as the Moon came between us and the Sun.
Our science department took on the challenge
of developing a safe pin hole camera in order
to take these incredible images. The whole
school came to a temporary standstill as the
students watched the incredible solar event.
19

Conway Year 7 Transition
An important event in helping students to
settle into Stretford Grammar School is the
annual trip to The Conway Centre in
Anglesey. Students and Year 7 Form Tutors
set off for the Menai Straits for 3 days. After
settling in and learning how to put a duvet
cover on (difficult for some!) students took
part in a programme of team building and
physical activities.
One key activity is working in small teams to
complete a range of physical challenges to
gain points to buy items needed for raft
building later in the week. It was wonderful to
see students sharing ideas, trying to convince
others and sometimes taking a leadership
role.
Rafts were then built and launched on the
water in a hilarious, but very competitive
obstacle race and most students managed to
stay dry - just about!
Other activities included canoeing, indoor
climbing, bushcraft, high ropes and zip wire
and with the expert instruction by the Centre
staff, students were soon demonstrating their
new skills. In the evening students enjoyed
orienteering, stories around the campfire and
the much anticipated disco on the final
evening. Students and teachers all returned
exhausted but very positive having learnt lots
of new things and getting to know each other
a little better.
STEM Challenge
Twelve Year 9 Students represented the school in the competition this year. They
worked with students from a range of schools to solve a number of STEM challenges,
including: programming a robot car, designing and building a bridge, designing and
building a drag racer and using team work to recall facial features and produce an e-
fit of a persons’ face.
The Stretford Grammar School team were split into pairs and soon found themselves
working with students from other schools on practical tasks against the clock. Our
students stood out as confident team players who really got the most out of the
experience that they could, despite some tough challenges. Aidan and Ismael
showed great humility as they laughed off the shortcomings of the e-fit software
glitches that left them with facial hair that could not be removed. Ahmed and Mujtaba
had a breakthrough moment in their drag racer design but it was narrowly beaten by
a rival team in the final showdown. Eloise and Jaydon showed great competitive
spirit producing a solid bridge that came very close to winning the destructive load
test. Aisha and Anab were noted for their excellent teamwork skills, being highly
commended by the judges and Sean and Amaan’s confidence attracted the attention
of the Mayor who delighted in discussing their ideas. Mr Hillary even briefly
considered a life in crime as he realised that no one could make an effective match of
his face in the e-fit challenge!
However William and Felix were victorious in the robot challenge which required
them to program a Lego Mindstorm® drone to negotiate itself around a maze picking
up points on the way. William’s ponderings no doubt led them to making the best
decisions on their journey! Well done to all for a very positive and rewarding day out.
19

This year’s BBC School Report took place in
April this year and involved the whole of Year 7
for a full day. Using lesson plans and materials
from the BBC website, with additional support
from BBC staff and support partners the
teaching staff helped students develop their
journalistic skills to become school reporters for
the day.
More than a thousand schools took part
throughout the whole country and Stretford
Grammar were one of 14 schools within the
Greater Manchester area to successfully
complete the day’s events.
Students had to research, plan, script, film and
then edit their reports. Once this process was
complete the reports were uploaded to our
YouTube channel which was linked to the BBC
school report links. You can view our reports on
our YouTube site. Huw Edwards, the BBC’s
news anchor commented that “I’m involved
because I want to give young people the chance
to make the news themselves, and I want to
share the principles of good journalism”.
Perhaps one day we will be hearing from our
very own correspondent.
BBC Filming
Drama students were given the opportunity of being
extras for the day when the BBC filmed a sequence of
interior shots for a new educational short film set in a
school environment. The students were part of a
classroom scene which took several hours to film! By
being part of the professional television drama world,
our students got a glimpse of the complex media
world. Thank you to Ms Evans and Mr Price-Uden.
Spring Concert
The Spring Concert was held on
Wednesday 29th April 2015 and we
were joined by the Choir from St
Matthews` Primary School for some
joint items. All the ensembles
performed including Fusion, Junior
Choir, Senior Choir, Folk Group,
Wind Group, String Group and
there were solo items including
Fabian Spiedel-Johnson, Year 7,
and Linn Renken, Year 10. The A
Level students left in style with a
version of “The Devil Came Down
to Georgia”. The Year 7 and 8
Drama Club also excelled in their
performances. Caleb Liem and
Peter Mitchell were awarded the
Silver Cup for Outstanding
Excellence in Music which they will
keep until next year.
Spelling Bee
Once again students in Year 7 have been taking part in the Routes into Languages National
Foreign Language Spelling Bee competition. The first round took place in forms. Students
competed against their classmates by spelling out in French and Spanish as many words as they
could in one minute from fifty memorised words. The winners and runners-up received a certificate
and were put through to the second round which took place in February where the successful
candidates were tested on a further fifty words. The winning students, Tommy Walker-Mackay 7H
and Maryam Bham 7H for French and Safa Khan 7R and Zarah Khalique 7D for Spanish were
given an additional fifty words to commit to memory.
On the 18 th March they, along with Mrs Dolphin and Madam Jourde, went along to Manchester
Metropolitan University for the Regional Finals. After enjoying our special Spelling Bee cupcakes,
it was down to business and students competed in the First Round Part A against students from all
over the region. Competition was the toughest this year that I have known but Safa and Zarah
made it through to the second half of the first round after a challenging tie break for Zarah. The
competition was even tougher in Part B and after another tie break, this time for Safa, sadly the
students left the competition. They performed wonderfully in a very close competition and should
be extremely proud of themselves and their nerves of steel!

Jamie Edwards
Former international basketballer, Jamie
Edwards, gave a series of sessions to
students from across the school. Jamie
founded the company Trained Brain after his
playing career. He spends time with elite
sports people and businesses challenging
traditional learning techniques by providing a
unique experience that develops a “think
differently” perspective.
Jamie spoke to the students about the need
to prepare for exams and life beyond. He
explained that you can train your brain to
reach high levels of performance. Having
worked with people such as Freddie Flintoff,
Darren Clarke, Jimmy White and recently
Joe Hart, his words of wisdom were keenly
acknowledged.
Islamic Art Day
Lionheart Challenge
24 th February saw Year 9 take part in the
Lionheart Challenge, a national business
and enterprise competition run throughout
the United Kingdom. Hoping to follow in
the footsteps of the 2013 National
Finalists from Stretford Grammar,
students had to develop, market and
finance business ideas with help from
business coaches. The winning team
were praised by the judging panel for the
clarity of presentation, the unique
properties of their product range and
outstanding accountancy.
Pamela Caudwell, National Lead for
Lionheart praised the excellent standard
of the work undertaken by the students
and that as always it was a pleasure to
come to Stretford Grammar where
students were an asset to the school.
Young Enterprise
March 2015 saw the Trafford final of the
Young Enterprise competition held at
Stretford Grammar School. Light Up!, our
own Young Enterprise Company were one of
six winners on the evening with Best
Company Report awarded by KPMG in
Manchester. The judges singled out the
report as being better than many KPMG
received from long established companies
and praised the language, style and layout
of the report as being exemplary.
Ameera Cheema, the Managing Director
thanked all the members of Light Up! for
their hard work throughout the company
programme.
The mayor presented the prizes and was
highly complimentary about the efforts of our
enthusiastic and resourceful entrepreneurs.
Islam and Art day for Year 7s. Year 7s took part in a creative and spiritual exploration of Islam. On the day, the workshop leader Raz Ul-
Haq, an Islamic artist, discussed Islamic practices (mainly the 5 pillars) and the concept of God as One. The students took part in some
meditation and produced some creative Islamic calligraphy.
Careers Day
The careers fair was aimed at students from Year 9
upwards. It was an excellent opportunity for students to
ask the exhibitors questions about the opportunities and
various pathways on offer. There were a variety of
visitors including NHS Futures; The Law Society;
Greater Manchester Police; Manchester Chamber of
Commerce; STEGTA; KAPLAN and the Finance and
Accountancy Careers Group.
Students received a fifteen minute talk in form groups
from Leeds University about HEI and the language of
HEI. They also listened to a fifteen minute presentation
from Apprenticeships Ambassadors about the various
routes into careers. They were then free to wander
around the stalls. Mr Nicholson was pleased to see that
the students were actively engaged with the whole
process and that the day was deemed a success by all.

Geography Fieldwork
Cwm Idwal
English Department Focus
The past term and the present:
When talking to some of the many talents the
English Department possesses, it was
evident that this time of year is a very busy
one. The build up to the Year 11 GCSE
exams seems to be taking up a lot of the
teachers’ efforts but I was glad to see that
they were all happy with the progress made
so far. Ms Yeomans, the Head of Department
said, "There's a lot of mad panic, but still
enthusiasm. We're just finalising the Year 11
coursework now." For the time being, the
focus of the English department is supporting
its pupils for their exams and getting as much
marking done as possible, which I'm sure is a
thrilling feat, but there are some exciting trips
planned for the future.
The future:
Mr Howell and Mr Crowley informed me
about two future A Level trips to Haworth and
different historical libraries in Manchester.
The departments annual trip to Haworth will
consist of a visit to the Bronte Parsonage
Museum which will give the students a
chance to look around the house, Haworth
Parsonage (built in 1778-9,) which Patrick
Bronte, his wife Maria and their six children
moved into in 1820. Students and teachers
should be excited to visit a place where
classic pieces such as Wuthering Heights,
Jane Eyre and Agnes Grey were written.
The second trip to historical libraries will
provide the A Level students with practice for
researching into the texts they are studying.
Manchester is blessed to be filled with many
libraries and the students shall be visiting a
fair few: John Rylands, People's History,
Central, Portico and Chethams. They will be
able to look at the way language has
changed from hundreds of years ago and
compare it to the modern language of today.
Our schools very own poetry nerd, Dr Quipp, is
also looking forward to studying some new
literature, such as Frankenstein (first published
anonymously in London in 1818 and then again
in France in 1823), with his future A Level
students. A quote from this text which I find
interesting is: "Seek happiness in tranquility and
avoid ambition." For anyone unfamiliar with
Frankenstein and just thinks he's a random
green person with bolts in his neck, a man
named Victor more or less made him out of dead
body parts, then made it his life ambition to bring
him to life. Unfortunately it all went a bit pearshaped
(who'd have thought it?) So in this quote
he's essentially telling everyone to have no
ambition, because he believed his failed. I
disagree - why should we listen to a man who
spent his life assembling a giant creature? Just
because he failed, it doesn't mean we will, and
even if we do, we can try again (top quality A*
analysis right there.)
Advice:
I asked our teachers for a piece of advice they
would give to all English students. I had answers
ranging from touching to practical. Dr Quipp
advises that we look after ourselves, and trust
ourselves with our future choices, which is
something I think everyone, including the staff,
should take on board, as aside from our learning
we should all put our health and happiness first;
Mr Howell suggests we stay open-minded and
try to have different perspectives on different
things, and keep reading, which is something I
personally suggest we all do our best to keep up
through the rest of our lives; Ms Yeomans
suggests we read a newspaper as it keeps us up
to date and helps when identifying language
devices; Mr Price-Uden advises that we read the
classics, as they're what got him into English;
and Mr Crowley suggests that we read... read or
die. The English Department is lovely.
To support their AS studies, Miss King and her
intrepid Year 12 students visited the stunning
Cwm Idwal to see first hand how the effect of
glaciers on our environment can be seen
20,000 years later. Lake Idwal itself, in the
Snowdon mountain range, is named after the
murdered son of a Welsh leader who was
drowned in its murky waters; local legend has
it that no bird flies over the lake’s surface and
that a wailing voice can be heard when there
is a storm in the Cwm. 6th Form Geographers
however were far more interested in applying
their fieldwork skills and observing first hand
the evidence of a glacial corrie.

Wood Street Mission
Our students and staff have been supporting
the Wood Street Mission charity for several
years and this Easter’s appeal has been one
of the most successful to date! We would like
to thank everyone who has kindly donated to
this important charity. Wood Street Mission is
a registered children’s charity based in the
centre of Manchester. They help children and
families living in Manchester and Salford with
everyday items. All the families that
get support are affected by poverty. Wood
Street’s mission is to help alleviate the effects
of poverty on local children and their families
through practical help. Wood Street’s vision is
that all children in Manchester and Salford
should live a life free from poverty.
Software Update
The IT department has been busy providing a variety of updates to the software available
to teachers and students. Mr Keating and his team are keen to provide a ‘professional’ IT
environment that mimics the IT provision in the real world beyond education. Students
have access to a new homepage that directs them to a variety of software packages.
This includes Office 365 that allows students to access the Microsoft Office package from
home. In addition the latest Adobe Creative Suite - CS Cloud - allows our students to use
the industry standard design packages such as Photoshop, Indesign and Illustrator.
Teaching staff also have access to Clickview software that allows them to set up subject
specific video resources from a wide variety of sources. Clickview records free to air
channels and teaching staff can save programmes for educational use. They can also
upload old VHS video. Miss Conlin says that “access to such a wide range of resources
really brings to life history in the classroom environment.
We continue to use GCSEPOD for students in Key Stage 4. This gives students access
to a vast library of podcasts that are written by teachers and support the GCSE courses
being studied.
Teachers also have access to the superb monitoring software Impero. This allows the
staff teaching in the IT suites to control all machines in a variety of ways. This includes
broadcasting demonstration screens to students to help them see how to use particular
packages.
Wood Street Mission is committed to helping
achieve this through offering practical help
and services to families and supporting them
as they try to lift themselves out of
poverty. The charity encourages families to
ensure their children engage in education and
develop their learning skills so they may live
an independent life in their adulthood.
House News
Students in Ashwell House have set themselves a target to raise money for the Disaster
Emergency Committee’s appeal for Ebola victims and came up with the inspirational idea of
running a photography competition. House Captain Raiyan Ahsan explained the rationale of
the House committee: “We chose the Ebola appeal because we think it’s important to have a
global issue as our first project, to reflect the school’s global identity.”
The theme of the competition is My Manchester, and entrants have been asked to submit
photos of a particular area or scene that represents their experience of their lives in our area.
The Ashwell Committee hope that anyone, no matter whether they are an experienced
photographer or taking their first steps in this Art form, will get out and about and provide them
with images which represent and celebrate what Manchester means to students of Stretford
Grammar School. The talented three entrants whose work is judged the best by the House
committee will win a workshop session with a local professional Photographer. There are lots
of exciting ideas for charity events in the future, including a project to help the homeless.
Members of Dakin house voted to choose the NSPCC as their charity, as concerns for the
welfare of children throughout the UK is a cause close to their hearts. To support their charity
they organised a lunchtime music quiz then held a cake sale. They were proud to raise £56 for
the NSPCC. Emma De Paola in Year 10 won the quiz and received a book token as a prize.
Currently on display on the House noticeboard is a letter from the NSPCC thanking all those
involved in the enterprise. Their next foray into fundraising is a ‘Copper Change Collection
Competition’ with motivational prizes being awarded for the most change collected.
Wolfendale members felt strongly that they wanted to raise money for their chosen charity -
The Manchester Children’s Hospital a group who provide specialist healthcare services for
children and young people throughout the North West. Some students had first hand
experience of the wonderful medical and emotional care which professionals in the hospital
provide. During the Spring Term they raised money through a raffle with prizes donated from
members of the house; Hasan Mobarak’s generous donation of two of his special cakes as
prizes particularly attracted a lot of attention! Wolfendale were proud to raise £84, which was
then followed by the princely sum of £73.87 raised at Easter with a chocolate raffle. There is
definitely an edible theme to Wolfendale’s fundraising!

Year 8 Trafford
Finalists
The Year 8 Football squad fell at the final
hurdle to finish their season as Trafford
Schools U/13 Runners-Up. After
sweeping past Urmston Grammar,
Stretford High, St. Anthony’s and Wellacre
in their opening matches, a narrow defeat
with a weakened team against Ashton-on-
Mersey consigned the team to 2 nd place in
the ‘North’ division.
This led to a tricky away fixture at ‘South’
winners Blessed Thomas Holford. In a
see-saw match, Stretford took a two goal
lead, only to be pegged back to 2-2. In the
dying minutes, Ahmed Isaac struck from
close range to secure a fine 3-2 victory. In
the final held at Manchester United’s
training ground at Carrington, SGS faced
Sale Grammar, coincidentally also
runners-up in their respective league.
On a sunny but breezy day, Stretford
struck within the opening minute as
James Allatt pounced on a goalkeeping
error to score his first of the season. As
the game wore on Sale dominated
possession and an equaliser arrived just
before half-time. During the second half,
Stretford defended resolutely, but as
extra-time was looming, failed to clear
their lines and Sale agonisingly poked
home the winning goal. The team is to be
congratulated this season, as they have
had to adapt to a new formation and one
or two personnel changes, however, the
future looks promising for next season as
the team will be entering both the English
Schools and Greater Manchester Cups to
develop their experience.
Girls’ Football
Bashar
Careers Day
The girls came third in the first round of the Manchester United Girls tournament narrowly
missing out on the next stage. The girls produced some gritty performances worthy of
Manchester United great, Roy Keane. As a unit, they developed some delightful passing
interplay to score some fabulous goals. Facing some very accomplished and tough
opposition, our girls can be very proud of their progress.
Bashar has reached the dizzying
heights of National Champion in
his age group for trampolining.
taking up the sport in 2004,
Bashar is currently coached by
the renowned Steve Moreton
and is in training to compete in
the 2015 world championships in
Denmark. At present Bashar is
ranked Number 1 for the
forthcoming world cup to be held
in Portugal.
Sid
Sid started playing badminton when
he was 8 years old. It soon became
apart that he was naturally talented
with superb hand-eye co-ordination.
He quickly rose up the rankings and
represented Lancashire being
coached by Colin Haughton, Britain’s
premier badminton coach. Sid soon
progressed to the full England squad
and began competing for his country.
Sid is currently ranked Number 3 in
England!