The Sixth Form College Farnborough

Students excel at Engineering

Fri, 17 May 2013 10:46:50 GMT

The College fielded a team as part of the Engineering Education Scheme www.etrust.org.uk/eese.cfm which links a team from a school or college with a local company, the College was linked with Stemmer Imaging, the UK branch of a German imaging company.

The Engineering Education Scheme Final Celebration and Assessment Day was held on 25 April 2013 and the College team’s project was marked in 13 different areas meaning the students gained experience in what it is really like to work in engineering.

Jon Vickers, Team Mentor from Stemmer Imaging said “Following the assessment day we were judged in groups of three. We were expressly told that there are no winners and losers, however, only two ‘outstanding’ marks were awarded and they both went to Farnborough (one for how they responded to being interviewed about the project, the other for their innovation and enterprise)."

The panel of judges awarded marks on technical skills, communication skills and project management: the College scored 91 out of a maximum possible of 104, the top mark in the group. The marks will now be moderated compared to all groups in the South East of England. There was a fantastic amount of work that went into the report and it really showed. The judges rated the report as “at least undergraduate level, more like professional level."

Enrichment Photography Exhibition opens at College

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:57:34 GMT

The 2013 Enrichment Photography Exhibition officially opened at the College, in the foyer of the John Guy Building, on Friday 10th May and will run until the 14th June.

Created by the students and staff in traditional & digital photography enrichment the photographs display their skills in capturing a range of subjects and environments.

The College would like to thank everyone that participated in this year's annual exhibition which is sponsored by FDR Promotion. We would like to give a special thank you to Steve Lee and FDR Promotions who kindly sponsored this exhibition for the third year running.

Student traditional enrichment:

This year’s Traditional Enrichment Course was led by A2 Photography Students Benjamin Selwyn, Melissa Winder, Stefan Voeten and Pamela Cottrell. Students that joined this course have gained an understanding in how to use a 35mm SLR camera, capture their ideas on Black & White film, process the film using film chemicals and produce prints in the darkroom. Participants have enjoyed their introduction into traditional photography and would like to share their enthusiasm through exhibiting their work.

Staff photography enrichment:

The Staff Photography Enrichment is running for a second year at College. The members of staff, who have put their images forward to be exhibited, have shown their interest and determination in improving their photographic skills.

Hanno Niemand, Photography Tutor said “Every Wednesday evening we will either have practical workshops or lively discussions about photographs. As everybody learns from everyone else, the atmosphere is supportive, warm and welcoming. I believe we have laid very strong foundations for the future of this staff enrichment course.”

Student digital enrichment:

Led by A2 Photography Students Ruby Tindall, Thomas Kemp and Amy-Leigh Bird, students in digital enrichment have learnt the digital aspect of photography. Michelle Braby, Photography Tutor said “They enjoyed learning Re-touching technique and digital manipulation in Photoshop and the studio lighting workshop in a professional setting.”

In the Harman Beauty & Beast Competition students who made it to the final judging were:
Lucy Magri-Overend (Power line beauty), Chianti St Clair (Possessed beauty) and Brooke Hunter (The wonderer).

Over 100 Students celebrate sporting success

Tue, 14 May 2013 08:58:28 GMT

The sports’ teams celebrated the end of another great season on Thursday 2nd May. Over 100 students attended to be considered for 35 awards culminating in the presentation of to the Sportsman and Sportswoman of the year.

The College has had numerous successes this season with the Badminton team retaining their National Champions title; the Hockey team and Swimming team qualifying for National Finals; the Netball team reaching the Semi finals of the National Cup; the Basketball team finishing 3rd behind Academy teams in the Hampshire League and 9 students representing the South East at the BCS National Finals held at Bath University to name a few.

The Sportsman of the Year Award went to Gavin Suen who has captained the College Swimming team to two consecutive National Finals qualifications with the team finishing in the top 8 in the country for both Freestyle and Medley. Gavin has also won individual titles in the BCS South East Regional galas to go on to represent the South East at National Finals where this year the Men’s Swimming Team were champions.

Eleanor Ward won the Sportswoman of the Year Award. Ellie has represented the College 1st Netball team and has been Captain for the 2012-13 Season. Ellie has led the team to new heights this Season.

This year the PE department introduced the London 2012 Legacy Award which went to Louise Yu. The department wanted to recognise those who contribute to sport in other capacities than performing. Louise supports both the College Basketball Teams as their Table Official volunteering her free time to run the table and record statistics.

The Team of Year Award was won by the Netball Team. They have had many outstanding achievements this season, qualifying for Regional Finals, reaching the Semi- Finals of the National Cup against many well polished academy sides, winning the Hampshire Invitational Tournament and the 2nd team have supported them all season finishing top of the Hampshire League.

The final award was the Mike Ritchie Memorial Award for Outstanding Contribution to Sport. This was won by the College Badminton Team who are National Champions for the second consecutive year. They are been described by the coach of an opposition as “A well oiled group who were tight, well drilled, professional and worthy winners."

Emma Stephens, Head of PE said, “The whole College congratulates those who have won awards this evening and a big thank you for all the efforts of the athletes who have represented the College this season with success.”

Badminton success for reigning Champions

Mon, 13 May 2013 09:29:39 GMT

In the early morning of Monday 29th April the College Badminton team congregated in the College car park to start their journey to Kettering Volleyball Centre for the 2013 British Colleges National Badminton Cup. With last year’s title to defend they had the added pressure of being a strong favourite.

The first round match was against Truro College who Farnborough had put out of the competition in the previous year. Matches consist of two men’s singles, two ladies singles, two women’s doubles, two men’s doubles and two mixed doubles games. The score was tied four rubbers all and went to countback, first on the number of games won but as this was also a tie it went down to total points scored. Farnborough were victorious by 22 points.

The Academy Coach from Truro said “Farnborough were a very tight, well drilled, professional team and worthy winners, a great team to lose to!”

With this confidence Captain Will Spreadbury led his team to a confident win in their next group match against Clitheroe Royal Grammar School, meaning the College met The Coopers Co & Coburn School in the final. Farnborough defeated them 7-3 to lift the title once again and be crowned National Champions 2013.

Congratulations to the team who all played supremely and kept composure in some close games. The team consisted of Will Spreadbury, Jack Wills, George Otuzalti, Tom Burnell, Andy Lee, Vicky Williams, Hayley Duckett, Jess Young, Steph Thomas and Jenny Pearson.

The Badminton team’s week ended on a high when they were awarded the Mike Ritchie Memorial Award for Outstanding Contribution to Sport on Thursday evening at the College’s annual Sports Awards, in recognition of the achievements over the two years. Let’s hope we can do the triple next year!

Going for the Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award

Thu, 02 May 2013 13:04:52 GMT

Eleanor Pucci and Catherine Campbell who took part in the Expedition tell us more :

“In the weeks directly before we were due to leave for our Gold Duke of Edinburgh expedition, there had been very cold weather and heavy snow in Wales and it was uncertain as to whether it would still go ahead. We had been well prepared for the worst weather as on our practice expedition back in October we experienced torrential rain and strong, bitter winds. All of us were looking forward to the challenge and were eager to complete the expedition section, not wanting the weather to prevent us from doing so. Fortunately, the weather did improve and we arrived in sunny Wales all set to give the final expedition our best shot.

Our trek started on the Tuesday morning; all the groups were slightly rusty and not so prepared for the early start but knowing by the end of the week that they’d be getting up much earlier. Our group perhaps suffered the most that first morning partly due to the early start but mainly due to a lost trangia and a Full English Breakfast to cook! After a quick pep talk by our assessors, it was bags on our backs and off into the hills, of which there were many.

The weather overall was varied with predictable rain, some unexpected and welcomed sunshine and also unusually for April, snow. Over the four days of walking we experienced many different terrains which we learnt to use in map reading, for example, being aware of contours, water features and forestry areas which we had appeared to ignore in our practice resulting in the use of the GPS. As a group, our map reading improved greatly from practice to final as we became more observant of our surroundings and more confident with our navigation skills.

Advice for future Gold Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) groups, take gaiters for boggy snowy and wet conditions, pre-sliced bread for convenience, no tins as they are both heavy and difficult to open without a can opener and double the amount of porridge in the morning for an energy boost first thing.

All of the D of E expeditions combine the challenges of strenuous physical exercise, teamwork, campsite skills and navigation but it is evident that on Gold D of E the participants are pushed to their limits and the challenges are intensified. Our group was strong in terms of physical ability and often walked faster than predicted, arriving at the checkpoints before expected. However, our weaknesses perhaps lay in campsite skills as it was sometimes difficult to be motivated to cook after a full day of walking in the hills. We were fortunate as a group to all get on really well and our friendship was strong throughout. This was particularly important and notable during the tough phases as we all continued to support each other and maintain high spirits.

At the end of the expedition we were treated to a local pub roast dinner where we also presented our aim to the other groups and staff. It was a great way to celebrate our achievement in completing the expedition part of our Gold Award and we can now all confidently say that we can survive in the wild.”

Prospect Theatre Company present 'The Way we Were'

Wed, 01 May 2013 10:17:54 GMT

The Prospect Theatre Company is comprised of thirteen members of our A2 Drama and Theatre Studies, Performing Arts and Enrichment students. The auditions are open to the entire AS year and so the competition is quite tough and the process itself is rigorous to gain a place in the Company.

Emily Tobias, Director of The Prospect Theatre Company tells us more, “From September to February the Company worked with external professional companies who instructed them in the style of Physical Theatre, in order to develop our own bespoke workshop. We then 'toured' our workshop instructing year 10 and 11 GCSE Drama students in our partner schools to inspire them to use the very contemporary and inspiring forms of Physical Theatre within their own devising experience in their GCSE Course.

Since then we have been developing our own devised performance using the very same forms as inspiration to create 'The Way We Were' a retrospective look back over three decades, the 1940s, 50s and 60s, from the outbreak of war, through evacuation, fighting on the home front and abroad, into the Coronation of Elizabeth II, immigration from the West Indies, the birth of the Teenager and Rock and Roll through to the mod cons of the sixties and ending with the ‘Summer of Love’.

The cast have worked hard to find the balance between the comic and the touching moments of our history, the incredible sacrifices made by previous generations and ultimately what shaped our nation over those decades and how they still resonate with us today.”

Oxford Professor, Richard Bosworth inspires history students

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:43:01 GMT

AS History students currently studying Fascist Italy were delighted to welcome Professor Richard Bosworth from Oxford University when he visited the College on 19 April.

Professor Bosworth is one of the world’s leading historians on the Italian Fascist period and is the author of several prominent books on the subject. Given that his biography on Benito Mussolini is seen as the best available there is no one better able to help the students understand the unique historical figure that was the Fascist Dictator of Italy.

This is the second time Professor Bosworth has visited the College and his unique lecture style never fails to both entertain and inform the students. This year Professor Bosworth lectured on the nature of Mussolini’s time in power and the extent to which Fascism had an impact on the Italian people.

David Brown, Subject Leader in History at the College said “His lecture was thoroughly enjoyed by the students and undoubtedly assisted them with their understanding on the AS History course. It was also a unique opportunity to meet one of the most important historians in Italian studies and will hopefully inspire their further studies in this area.”

Ghana Link Students cycle to Windsor Great Park (and back!)

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:58:50 GMT

Ghana Link students successfully completed a sponsored bicycle ride from The Sixth Form College Farnborough to Windsor Park (and back!) on Sunday 21 April. The team is raising funds for their trip to Ghana in June this year.

The seventeen enthusiastic riders enjoyed a positively leisurely 8am start which, together with a weather report which promised sunshine and highs of 18 degrees, meant that they couldn’t wait to hit the road.

After a thorough stretch, the team set out with two experienced riders including our leader and route designer, Lalin Pethiyagoda and expert cycling ‘supremo’ (and amazing dad), Mark Foskett. Nineteen cyclists and two support vehicles (with Dianne Reynolds and Terri-lee Feliciano) made quick work of the morning’s miles and arrived at our destination – Windsor Great Park at about midday.

They enjoyed a fun-filled and delicious picnic (thanks to mums; Barbara Lapthorn, Jackie Cook, staff and students), a well-deserved break and then, with legs already very tired, they began the afternoon – knowing that a couple of unforeseen stops, pace-hampering inclines and heavy traffic, meant they could be running behind an already tight schedule.

Even the most inexperienced of legs managed faultlessly – and after a couple of challenging hills on the ‘dreaded’ Red Road, they soon found themselves riding towards Frimley and then Farnborough. They were greeted by cheers of support from parents and staff as they reached their final destination, our College! Never have students been so happy to enter the students’ car park!

The final element was greeting parents and posing for photographs before bidding farewell to their friends with vows of a repeat adventure next year (!)

Terri-lee Feliciano, ICT Curriculum Manager, said, “I am so proud of our Ghana Link team. Regardless of a couple of breakdowns, pain and exhaustion, no one gave up. They showed endurance and sportsmanship throughout the day. A truly outstanding effort and I’m sure they all slept well that night. Well done, everyone and thank you to all the sponsors!”

The Riders: Milan Banwaith, Benjamin Cayless, James Daly, Kieran Egan, Beccy Foskett, Ruby Frost, Lauren Hawkes, Alice Hearing, Katie Heyd, Becca Howard, Megan Judd, Matilda Kimble-Wilde, Frances Matthews, Cat Prowse, Courtney Rodrigues, Tara Sanders, Adele Trevorrow, Lalin Pethiyagoda and Mark Foskett (Beccy’s dad).

Apologies due to extenuating circumstances: Megan Cook, Jasmin Lapthorn and Jo-Ann Owusu

War Retold - Media and Film Enrichment Students exhibit at Aldershot Military Museum

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:02:47 GMT

Over the past few months, Media and Film Enrichment students, from The Sixth Form College Farnborough have been working closely with the EDGE Project, a Hampshire Museums and Galleries Trust initiative and the Aldershot Military Museum, to produce an exhibition inspired by their visit to the museum. The five short films will be showcased in the foyer of the museum and will be on display for three weeks, opening on the 24th April 2013.

Aidan Hamilton, Senior Curriculum Manager of Media and Film Studies said of the project, “This has been a fantastic opportunity for our students to work on a live project, with all the pressures that entails. In addition they have had an opportunity to engage with important historical events aiding their all round learning experience, something we try to encourage here at Farnborough”.

Sophie McLean from The EDGE Project described how she has “been amazed with the imaginative and high quality pieces of work which have been produced. The students have created some stunning pieces which will engage and impress visitors. To have been put together by young people who are still learning about Media production is incredible. I think it says a lot for the dedication of the Sixth Form Media Staff that this project has been finished to such a high quality. I cannot thank them enough for all their hard work on helping the group to put together such a fantastic project.” The EDGE Project is funded by Big Lottery, and is aimed at engaging young people aged 14 to 24 with Hampshire’s Cultural spaces through youth-led projects. Visit the EDGE Project website.

The exhibition is on at The Aldershot Military Museum, between Aldershot and North Camp, on Queens Avenue and runs until 19 May. For opening times and further information visit www3.hants.gov.uk/aldershot-museum.htm

College welcomes Shadow Minister for Schools

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:30:23 GMT

On 18 April Staff and Students at The Sixth Form College Farnborough were delighted to welcome the Shadow Minister for Schools, the MP for Cardiff West, Kevin Brennan.

He spent the afternoon at the College touring the facilities and observing the College at work and was able to see for himself the variety of subject areas offered and commented on the quality of the work displayed around the campus. Students were able to talk to Mr Brennan about the topics and projects which they are currently working on. He spent time with the Performing Arts Students who were building sets for their practical exam pieces and observed the music, art and film departments at work. The outgoing Student Association had the chance to put their questions to him in a dedicated meeting.

Staff also spoke to Mr Brennan and were able to outline to him some of the Colleges unique qualities, such as its personal tutor programme and he met with the Student Services team. He also learned more about the links which the College has with the local community such as its involvement in the Community Matters Partnership, which is a social enterprise where local organisations take part in joint activities to benefit charitable organisations.

Mr Brennan was also one of the first to see the new facilities available in the three additional classrooms which have been created on the third floor of the College, which were handed over to the College from the Contractors this month. He also toured the sports facilities, was interested to hear about the College teams successes at the end of the season, in particular at Rugby and also to hear about when Dame Kelly Holmes visited the College to open the Sports Hall which bears her name.

The Shadow Minister commented on how pleased he was to have the opportunity to meet so many students and staff. He personally wished many students all the best for their forthcoming exams. He later Tweeted that he had a great discussion with Students at Farnborough Sixth Form. @KevinBrennanMP.

Mr Brennan said of this visit "I was delighted to visit Farnborough Sixth Form College and was very impressed with the students, staff and facilities. I particularly enjoyed discussing education issues with College students, who after all are the real experts on the impact of policy changes made by politicians. I was struck by their maturity and fluency. I'd like to thank College Principal, Simon Jarvis and all concerned for such a warm welcome."

Simon Jarvis, College Principal said “We were delighted and honoured that Kevin Brennan was able to visit the College and see for himself how Students are benefitting from the breadth of subjects and enrichment opportunities which we are able to provide.”

College celebrates intrepid Travel Scholars

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:12:43 GMT

On Wednesday 17 April The Sixth Form College Farnborough held the annual Presentation of its Travel Scholarships. The Travel Scholarship has been established by the Governors to encourage students to undertake foreign travel on their own initiative with the aim of broadening their experiences of the world. The Scholarships are in accordance with the Mission of the College, ‘to be a distinguished provider of the highest quality education, enriching the lives of students within a lively, caring community and enabling all to develop the skills to meet the demands of a changing world with confidence.’

Before awarding the Scholarships for 2013 the College Principal, Simon Jarvis, described the Scholars as “intrepid, fearless, bold and daring” and encouraged them to seize the opportunities which their chosen travels would afford them to “develop strategies to find solutions on your own”, “to ask questions of yourself”, “to be changed and to change the lives of others in the time you spend together”, “to immerse yourselves in different cultures and to recognise common goals”. After wishing the Scholars well and encouraging them to keep in touch with the College and report back on their adventures, presentations were made to:

Safwan Abdulwahid - Travelling to Tanzania to gain work experience at a medical centre and applying to the ‘Frontier’ organisation for a placement on their coastal teaching project.

Georgia Beech - Undertaking volunteer work on a rose farm in Kenya which has set up a clinic and orphanage for the local community.

Rebecca Daborn - Travelling to Zanzibar with ‘Gapmedics’ to undertake a premidwifery placement at the Mnazi Mmoja Hospital. The trip will help to reaffirm her career choice to become a midwife.

Max Dickens - Joining a mountaineering team, ‘Adventure Peaks’, travelling to the Tian Shan mountains of the Northern Himalayas to climb Khan Tengri. If he is successful Max will be amongst the youngest ever to achieve this climb.

Billie Donovan- Travelling to Fiji with the organisation ‘Greenforce’ to undertake a marine conservation project.

Alice Freeman and Abby Lodge - Travelling to Tanzania with the organisation ‘Original Volunteers’ teaching English at a local school, volunteering at an orphanage and undertaking community projects.

James Gibbs - Undertaking a trip to Tenerife to work as a volunteer with the ‘Atlantic Whale Foundation’ on a marine conservation project.

Edward Ives - Undertaking a gap year with the organisation ‘Project Trust’ travelling to either China or Japan teaching English at a secondary school.

Emma Taylor - Planning to travel to India for a month with ‘Real Gap Experiences’ and also to Ghana for 3 months with ‘Agapé’; undertaking a volunteer placement, working with children in the local communities and also some sightseeing in these countries.

Alexandra Weager - Travelling to Tanzania and Zanzibar with the organisation ‘Real Gap Experiences’, undertaking volunteer work at a local school and assisting with community projects.

Joseph Webster - Competing with the England team at the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) European Championships being held at Skövde in Sweden. Joseph has been selected for the team pattern event.

Francis Williams - Travelling to Cambodia, Singapore and Vietnam to undertake a volunteer placement teaching English at local schools and learning more about the cultural heritage and history of East Asia.

Following the presentation of the Travel Scholarships Valerie Boud, of Blackwater Valley Rotary Club presented the Jacqueline Findlay Travel Bursary to Georgia Beech. The Bursary is in memory of the founder president, of the then Rotary Club of Blackwater Valley (BWV), now the Rotary Club of Ash and BWV. Jacqueline was a local head teacher and a very dynamic personality who passed away about 12 years ago after fighting cancer. She had travelled extensively as a younger person and believed that travel was an education in itself.

Valerie explains that “The club decided to set up the award to remember her and hopefully to continue her work. Ideally we look for a student who is going to be involved with education and be away from home for a considerable length of time. We believe that home sickness is a challenge that they will have to face and conquer also that they will have to become self reliant, neither of these are as likely to occur if the absence is only for a few weeks. Georgia, from the brief that we had, was voted as fitting these requirements the best and having met her I am confident that we have chosen well.”

A Great End to the Season with sporting success

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 11:26:09 GMT

The winter sport season came to a close at the end of last term and the Farnborough Sixth Form teams finished their seasons in style!

The Netball teams headed to the Hampshire Invitational Tournament where the first team won all their games comfortably to finish top of the table and tournament champions. The 2nd netball team had a tough game against a strong Peter Symonds side leaving them as tournament Runners Up. The 1st team finish the season second in the Hampshire League and the 2nd team finish 1st in the Hampshire League.

The College Rugby Team attended the 7’s tournament held at Queen Mary College. We looked very strong in the pool matches and easily beat the other teams, however lost to Alton College in a very close match that had been tied at half time. This meant that we were runners up in our pool and went through to the plate competition. Farnborough Sixth Form beat Peter Symonds convincingly to go through to the Final against a strong side from Itchen College; staying calm under pressure we beat them to win the Plate Competition.

Meanwhile the Mixed Hockey team had headed to Bedford to represent the South at National Finals. Due to some issues the tournament was running massively behind schedule which meant a lot of hanging around and a very long day. We played our semi- final match against Sir John Dean’s drawing 1-1 after full time but winning 5-3 on penalties to put us in the final. We dominated in the final against Long Road with 75% of possession but unfortunately could not convert this to a goal and in the last minutes Long Road managed to score. We finished as runners up with some fantastic hockey demonstrated.

For some the season has been extended, with the Netball Team having their BCS National Cup Semi Final against Hartpury on Wednesday 17th April and the Badminton Team the BCS National Cup Finals on Monday 29th April.