It is the timeof yearwhen eventsflow ʻthickand fastʼ

and the number of visitorsto the academy risessignificantly. The AcademyAwards Evening was ahuge success and Iʼmgrateful for the tremen-dous support of parents.Year 11 students have, onceagain, entertained, funded,cared for and designed theSenior Citizensʼ Party, whichtook place on Thursday 10thDecember. Our two CarolServices have also beenvery well supported and helpto really reinforce the sea-sonal spirits. The year endswith the Sixth Form pan-tomime – an experience thatshould never be missed!Finally, we will be sayingfarewell to Mr Wickstead,a long-serving and valuedmember of the teachingstaff, as he will be retiringthis term. His contributions,over many years at deFerrers, have been signifi-cant. He will be missed andIʼm sure you would want meto wish him a long andhappy retirement.I would also like to thankgovernors and staff for theirsupport during this interimperiod.All that remains is to wishyou all a Happy Christmas,a very Happy New Yearand an enjoyable holiday.

M S HulcoopActing Principal

DearParents

PPRRIINNCCIIPPAALL’’SS WWOORRDDM S Hulcoop Acting Principal

C O M M U N I Q U ÉC O M M U N I C A T I N G T H R O U G H O U T T H E D E F E R R E R S A C A D E M Y

Congratulations to the Under-13s Girls ̓Football Team - See page 3

Number 061 Christmas 2011The

de Ferrers Academy

Season’s Greetingsfrom Governors,Staff and Students of the Academy *

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Academy AwardsThe de Ferrers Academy held its first

ever Academy Awards Evening to high-light the progress and successes of its

students over the past year on Friday 2ndDecember. Mr R Fraser, Chair ofGovernors, said, “TheAcademy Awards Eveningis a wonderful way to cele-brate our outstanding stu-dents and acknowledgethe hard work and effortthey put into their studiesand extra-curricular activi-ties.”Awards presented includ-ed Overall Achievement,Service in the Community,Subject Awards, Sportsand Extra CurricularActivities. Throughout theevening, awards were pre-sented to one hundredand twenty eight currentstudents and twenty sevenpast Sixth Form students.The evening also includeda presentation from guestspeaker Ben Robinson,Chairman of Burton AlbionFootball Club, and SixthForm Head Students,Connor Elliot and LauraJacklin.Mr Steve Allen, PrincipalDesignate, also addressedstudents and parents. Hesaid, “I very much enjoyedthe evening and look for-ward to finding out moreabout the successes of thestudents and theirachievements.”

The audience was alsotreated to entertainmentfrom the academyʼsnationally renowned JazzOrchestra, DeFJO, andthe de Ferrersʼ acapellachoir, the ʻA Ca Ferrersʼ.

de Ferrers Academyand gameswearalways in stock

Clothes Show Classic

Design and Technology Textile studentshad great fun on Monday 5 Decemberat the NEC in Birmingham where they

had first-hand experience of the professionalworld in the fashion industry. From highstreet fashion to haute couture, studentswere inspired by the creativity at every level.The afternoon finished on a high at the fash-ion theatre where they were treated to a fan-tastic professional catwalk. A memorable dayfor all!

ATTENDANCE ATTHE ACADEMYTHE FACTS:� Every child has the right to be educated� Parents have a legal duty to make sure their child attendsschool regularly and on time

WHAT YOU CAN DO:� Avoid taking students out of school unnecessarily – appoint-ments should not take all day!� Contact the school if your child is unable to attend and pro-vide a written note on their first day back� Avoid taking family holidays during term time� Encourage your child to attend daily, on time and appropri-ately dressed� Talk with your child about school and report any concerns toa member of staff� Support your child’s education by helping with homework,coursework or preparation for exams� Request permission for absences relating to religious obser-vance, family bereavement, medical appointments or holidaysby giving a detailed explanation

WHAT THE ACADEMY WILL DO:� Aim to provide a safe and secure environment for students tolearn� Be open and welcoming to parents/guardians and offer oppor-tunities to be involved in your child’s education� Monitor attendance and punctuality and notify par-ents/guardians as soon as possible of concerns� Recognise that students may need to attend medical appoint-ments and will provide an off-site pass for doing so� Authorise absences for religious observance, family bereave-ment, illness (if note is provided)

RREEMMEEMMBBEERR,,TTHHIISS IISS YYOOUURRCCHHIILLDD’’SS FFUUTTUURREE!!

BURTON CO-OPERATIVELEARNINGTRUST LAUNCHDAYAt the beginning ofNovember our studentswere invited to take part inthe launch of “The BurtonCo-operative LearningTrust”. The event wasbased at Burton Albion inconjunction with the mainprimary schools within thecatchment including theFountains School.The day involved over Seventy de Ferrers studentswho took on the role ofambassadors. Our studentsfrom Years 7, 9 and the SixthForm were based in schools

and at Burton Albion. Thefeedback from the schoolswas that our students had rep-resented the academyextremely well and had been acredit to us throughout theday. Also in the schools and atBurton Albion were our Year10 GCSE Dance students whodelivered workshops andassisted visiting artistes.

The events of the day werefilmed by a selection of ourYear 11 and Sixth Form Mediastudents and they are in theprocess of producing a promo-tional DVD of the launch.Whilst lunch was taking placeat Burton Albion, the guestswere entertained by a group ofmusicians from the academy.To commemorate their involve-ment, all of the students havereceived certificates and let-ters of thanks from the Trust.

ANTI-BULLYING EVENTOn Friday 18th November 2011 four de Ferrers stu-dents, Roslyn Boddy, Alexandra Dolman, JakeCampbell and Jamie Atton, travelled to Stafford withMrs Tunstall to take part in an anti-bullying event.

ACHIEVEMENT AND GUIDANCE –

KEY STAGE 4 Students and staff have again raised a fantasticamount of money for the Senior Citizens ̓Party.Activities included: ʻLucky Dipʼ; ʻGuess theTeddyʼs Nameʼ; a Sponsored Silence and a non-uniform day, where students and staff raisednearly £500.

The Key Stage 4 Achievementand Guidance team wore fullacademy uniform for a dayand raised nearly £200

Year 11 students dressed up for the day to raise money for theSenior Citizens ̓Party

MusicCONGRATULATIONS TOTHE UNDER-13s GIRLS’FOOTBALL TEAM!The Under-13ʼs Girls ̓FootballTeam is through to the sixthround of the English SchoolFootball Association (ESFA)National Cup.The academyʼs team of fourteen girls,from Years 7 and 8, will play WoodheyHigh School, Bury, or North LiverpoolAcademy, Liverpool, to gain a place inthe ESFA National Cup quarter finals.Team Captain, Maya Kyriacou-Moyes,aged 13, said: “Weʼre really happy tohave come so far in the competitionand we canʼt wait to play again andhopefully get through to Round Seven.”Maya added, “Iʼm really proud to becaptain of the team – we all love foot-ball and getting this far in a national

competition proves weʼre just as goodas the boys!”The team has played four matchesagainst other schoolsʼ football teams toget to round six. Out of three hundredand ninety nine teams that entered thecompetition, only sixteen teams, includ-ing The de Ferrers Academy, remain inthe running.Top scorer of the team, Kira Rai,scored four out of the six goals in thelast match against West Park HighSchool in Spondon. Kira said, “The competition is a greatway to keep fit and have loads of funwith my friends at the same time!”Gemma White, Girlsʼ Football Managerand PE Teacher at the academy, said:“All the girls on the team have workedincredibly hard to get to this stage inthe competition and they fully deservethis achievement.”Mrs White added, “I wish the teamevery success for the next round and,win or lose, Iʼm incredibly proud ofthem all.”

It was a day of inter-activeworkshops, discussions and adrama performance all focus-ing on the effects of bullying.There was also a competitionto design an anti-bullyingposter and out of the appropri-ately sixty students who tookpart, it was the design ofRoslyn Boddy's which took firstplace. The poster will be repro-duced as a flag and hung out-side the County buildings inStafford.Roslyn was also presentedwith a digital camera by CllrMike Lawrence who is the

Cabinet Member for ChildrenʼsWellbeing.It was a very proud day forThe de Ferrers Academy.

As usual, it hasbeen extremelybusy on the run-

up to Christmas.Following an extremelysuccessful Evening ofthe Arts, where a widerange of performancesentertained a sold outTrent Hall, DeFJO andthe Sax Quartet per-formed at the BurtonMail's annualCelebrating Musicevent at the Town Hall.The Academy AwardsEvening saw the debut of anew vocal ensemble 'A CaFerrers', and the Braxgroup provided carols forthe recent Christmas Fayreand Senior Citizens' Party.All that was left were theCarol Concert in Trent Hall,in conjunction with our part-ner primary schools, andthe annual Carol Service inSt Johnʼs Church,Horninglow. The musiciansthen get a couple of weeksrest before we start all overagain in the New Year!

Goes to our ex-Year 13student, Tom Lofts,who secured a 3 for hisInternational

Baccalaureate DiplomaProgramme core pro-gramme. This means that he securedthe very highest marks in his4000 word Extended Essayand in his Theory ofKnowledge essay and pres-entation. To put this intocontext, only 5000 candi-dates worldwide (approxi-mately 11% of studentsstudying the IBDP) managedto secure a 3 for their EEand TOK, which makesTomʼs achievement evenmore noteworthy.

Congratulations

SIXTH FORMMATHEMATICIANS

SHOW THEIRSKILLS

de FerrersclimbersOver the last ten

weeks studentsfrom de Ferrers

have been tying in andgoing climbing at theAlterRock climbingwall in Derby. Duringthis time they havelearnt the use ofclimbing equipment,belaying skills, had ago at abseiling andalso done plenty ofclimbing on an indoorwall. These sessions have beenfocused on helped the stu-dents achieve their Level 1NICAS (National IndoorClimbing AchievementScheme) Award. So con-gratulations to BenCrighton and Tom Burkefrom Year 9, Sam Knightand Tom Bridge from Year10, and Dan Smith Year12, who all achieved Level1 and will be continuingwith Level 2 in the NewYear.If you are interested injoining the climbing ses-sions from de Ferrers thenplease look out for the let-ters and posters inJanuary.

ExaminationPreparation –Key Stage 4It is scary how fast the

first term has gone andexaminations will soon

be upon us. Studentsneed to ensure that theyare fully prepared for anyfuture examinations(January, March andMay/June). ExtendedLeaning opportunities(ELOs) are running ona regular basis forCurriculum Areas, preand post academy, aswell as lunch time ses-sions. These are a perfectopportunity for studentsto catch up on, andimprove work.ABSENCE NOTES ANDPARENTAL APPOINTMENTSA reminder to all par-ents/guardians that is a legalrequirement for students tobring a written note for anyperiod of absence. A reminder that if par-ents/guardians want to visitthe academy for any reason,they must make a priorappointment with Reception orAchievement and Guidance.

Once again thede FerrersSixth Form

have shown thequality of its A LevelMathematicians.Eighteen studentshave recently takenpart in the UKMathematics TrustSenior Team andIndividual Challengeswith notable suc-cess.The de Ferrers team camea close second behindRepton School in theregional heat of the SeniorTeam Challenge at DerbyUniversity and are hopingthat their score will be goodenough to take themthrough to the NationalFinal in London inFebruary.The UKMT Senior Team,comprising of RossMcQuillan, Robert Stanyon,Mitchell Taylor and KaustavDutta are seen belowreceiving their certificatesat Derby.

The Individual Challenge isa very demanding competi-tion and to gain one GoldAward, five Silver Awardsand three Bronze Awardsis an outstanding achieve-ment, again showing quali-ty of our senior mathemati-cians.

UKMT Senior IndividualChallengeGold Award - Ross McQuillanSilver Award - Robert Stanyon, SamMoorcroft, Alex Parker,Becci Burt, Mitchell Taylor.Bronze Award - Hannah Thompson, CalvenLee, Sarah WilkinsCongratulations to all ofyou.We look forward with confidence to our youngerstudents achieving similarsuccesses in theIntermediate and JuniorIndividual Challenges alongwith the Junior TeamChallenge over the nexttwo terms.

Ski America 2012

It seems not that long agothat we were just dis-cussing the possibility of

running a skiing trip to themountains of NewHampshire and then com-bining it with sightseeingand shopping in New York. Now the trip is in final stages ofplanning and it is only fifteenweeks away. The excitementamongst the students and staff ison the rise. However, there ismore discussion about the colourof the trip hoodies than the excit-ing prospect of visiting America.

We have been very fortunate tosecure excellent flights with BritishAirways travelling into Boston andout of New York.Already the students are asking ifthere will be another trip. So weare in the process of planning atrip to the ski resort of Bansko inBulgaria for Easter 2013. This tripwill be all inclusive and we will bestaying in 4* accommodation withluxury spa facilities. Once the let-ters have been finalised they willbe released and deposits will becollected. A low deposit with thecompany has been negotiatedprior to Christmas. They have alsoinformed us there is no limit onnumbers.

MR PEARSON GETSTOP SPORTS AWARD

Mr Pearson has just been presented with the SouthDerbyshire Sports Person of the Year award. MrPearson was presented the award by the Mayor of

South Derbyshire in November. Mr Pearson won a num-ber of English and British Championship titles for both pis-tol and rifle shooting over the last year. He has beenselected to represent Great Britain at the WorldChampionships to be held in Germany next year. MrPearson is wanting to add the World Championship title tohis European Championship title and maintains that he isthe one everyone else has to beat!

DE FERRERS DUKE OFEDINBURGH CANDIDATES

HELP SANTA ON HIS SLEIGH

Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke ofEdinburgh candidates are looking for-ward to taking part in the annual fund-

raising events over the Christmas period. Santa braved the elements on his sleigh last weekendoutside B & Q in Burton and is preparing to take his sleigharound Stretton, Rolleston, Branston, Hilton andStapenhill over the next few weeks. We also are lookingforward to our usual Bag Packing days at Sainsburyʼs,where busy Christmas shoppers are very grateful for D ofE candidates packing their shopping bags for them. Santa will also be making a special appearance on hissleigh outside Asda on Thursdays for late night shopping.All the money raised will be used to buy expedition equipmentfor candidates to take out on their summer expeditions.

HEN HAO!WELL DONE!

Duke ofEdinburgh SilverAward candi-

dates Emily Jacklinand Hannah Matleyhave been learningconversationalChinese for their Skillsection over the lastsix months. They arepictured at the KweiPing restaurant wherethey had lunch withtheir tutor, ChristineBinding, and prac-tised speaking andordering food inChinese with the wait-ing and kitchen staff.

ENGINEER I.T. TRIPOn the 14th October a group of twelveDesign and Technology students wereinvited to spend the day at NottinghamTrent University to explore the linksbetween Design and Engineering.During their day at NTU students tookpart in three workshops: SmartMaterials – using polymorph and ther-mocolour sheet; Photoshop manipula-tion and an Engineering challenge.The two de Ferrers teams were com-peting against eighteen other teamsfrom nine other schools during theEngineering challenge. Well done to the two de Ferrersteams who came First and Fourth!

Montel Richards and MichaelForryan (Year 10) have takenpart in a twelve week studentfirefighter course at BurtonFire Station. Students workedwith local firefighters andlearnt a wide range of skills.The course teaches studentsmany of the same skills that afirefighter would use on a typi-cal day on duty. Both Monteland Michael learnt how to use

Fire & RescueService visit

FIRE SAFETY…. A LESSON WE WILL NEVER FORGET!On Thursday 24thNovember, BlueWatch from BurtonFire Station spoke tostudents from KeyStages 3 and 4 aboutthe dangers of an oilpan fire and theimportance of havingsmoke alarms in thehome. Students weretaught how to dealsafely with oil panfires and later wenton to watch anincredible demon-stration on theeffects of adding atiny bit of water toburning oil….a les-son we will all trulynever forget.

JESSICA LOFTSAWARDS CEREMONY

Since being invited to joinPublishingHouseMe inYear 5, I have LOVED writ-ing. PublishingHouseMe isa site where talentedyoung writers AND artists(song or drawing) can goto show the world theirwork. I knew I was good atwriting, but I never reallyhad enough motivation todo anything. My class-mates and I were chosento go on the website andpublish our work.Someone from the websitewould come in everyFriday to do differenttasks, and develop ourskills. After the first fewmonths my classmatesslowly stopped submittingwork, which was a shameas I enjoyed reading it. I carried on and eventuallysubmitted a piece of workcalled 'Ghost Ship ̓whichawarded me with'Submission of the Month'and the administrator fromPHME came into anassembly to give me myaward.By the time I was in Year 6, I started submitting longerand more mature pieces tothe site. I was particularlyinterested in horror/mystery.Halfway through Year 6, I was nominated for my firstPHME- ʻOscarsʼ, atWolverhampton SciencePark. This was the secondʻOscars' they had. Overall I

was nominated for KevinCrossley-Holland 11 andUnder Story, Most submis-sions (award for the school)and the overall PHME Writerof the Year. I wonʼt go intotoo much detail in this onebut I won two little plaquesfor being runner up in theUnder 11's and Writer of theYear although there are a lotof talented people so it wasan honour to be nominated.I also won the school awardfor most submissions.This time being nominatedcame as an even bigger surprise mainly because I hadn't been submitting asmuch. I got nominated for aquest story called ʻTheGolden Bracelet,ʼ which issomething we had to do inYear 6, which I decided tosubmit, although I was inYear 7 when I was nominat-ed. The category was onceagain, the Kevin Crossley-Holland 11 and Under Story.When we got there(Wolverhampton SciencePark) I collected a notepadthat they give you everyyear and then my mum andI, my granddad and grand-ma, made our way into theauditorium. The spokesman,Roy Mitchell, introduced theevent and the 11 and Underaward was up first! My heartwas racing and I had butter-flies in my stomach all of asudden. He read out thenominees, then the runnersʼup. My heart sank a littlewhen I was on the runnersup list, but I was so glad andproud of myself to even benominated. He called me upand awarded me with aplaque and then read out abit of my story, commentingthat he liked my use ofaccents in the way peoplespeak. A girl called Matildawon and her story wasVERY good so she deservedto win. The day went alongwith lots of different awardslike: Best Script, Best Poet,and, for the first time, draw-ing awards, which I enjoyedbecause some of them wereextremely good.

After the ceremony finished,we went to have somethingto eat then made our wayhome. I was feeling veryproud and happy withmyself.

Jessica Lofts

a range of firefighting equip-ment including hydraulic cut-ting equipment, hose andsafety gear. On their passingout parade, both studentsshowcased their firefightingskills in front of an audienceincluding the Mayoress. Bothstudents received certificatesfor their efforts, with Michaelwinning the Star StudentAward. Well done, boys!

PSFAPUPILPREMIUMDid you know that justregistering your childfor free school mealsmeans that de Ferrersgets extra money?The Government is giving moneyto schools to help children fromlower income families do theirvery best. For every child regis-tered de Ferrers get £488 thisyear.As well as making sure that yourchild eats well at lunchtime, withthis money we could subsidiseactivities such as trips and pro-vide help with transport and uni-form.Please register before Christmasto make sure your child and oth-ers in their class don't miss out.You can claim free school mealsfor your children if you are eligiblefor or in receipt of any of the following:� Income Support � Income Based Job SeekersAllowance � Income Related Employmentand Support Allowance � Child Tax Credit but notWorking Tax Credit and thehousehold income is not morethat £16,190.Please note anyone receivingWorking Tax Credit, regardlessof Income, will not qualify� The Guarantee element ofState Pension Credit (from 30thApril 2005) � Support under part VI of theImmigration and Asylum Act 1999 If you would like to apply forfree school meals please con-tact Staffordshire CountyCouncil on 01785 278928 or01785 278966 or emailfreeschoolmeals@staffordshire.gov.uk

LAND OF FIRE AND ICEIn October half term, twenty one studentsfrom de Ferrers went to see the natural won-ders that Iceland, the land of fire and ice, hasto offer. On our first day in Iceland, our won-derful tour guide, Hilda, took us on a tour ofthe south shore of the country. We visited waterfalls, blacksand beaches and volca-noes, including the famousEjyafjallajökull. We evengot to venture inside ahuge glacier, and seeGeography learnt in theclassroom in reality. Thefollowing day, we visitedthe Blue Lagoon, a spawhere you can bathe ingeothermal water whilstsurrounded by the ruggedlandscape. After a morning of pamper-ing, we went to the PerlanViewing Platform for fan-tastic views acrossReyjavik, before going onto explore the city. Thatevening we all experiencedwhat had to be the mostmagical moment of the trip,

as we witnessed theNorthern Lights. Although itwas absolutely freezing,the green lights that lit upthe night sky is somethingweʼll never forget. On our final day, we wenton a tour of the GoldenCircle to see geysers, thecontinental plates and themagnificent waterfall,Gulfoss. After celebratingour final night in Iceland byeating enormous hamburg-ers and visiting a localwater park, we set offbright and early the nextmorning for our flight backto England. Thanks to allthe staff that made this tripsuch a brilliant experience!Laura Jacklin

IMPORTANT REMINDERTO ALL PARENTS

IF YOUR CHILD IS ABSENTFROM SCHOOL, OR HAS AMEDICAL APPOINTMENT, YOU MUST IN THE FIRSTINSTANCE NOTIFY THE ACADEMY BY PHONE. ON THEIR RETURN TO

SCHOOL, A NOTE SHOULDALSO BE PROVIDED TOCONFIRM THE ABSENCE,

EVEN IF YOU HAVE ALREADY TELEPHONED. THANK YOU

Our MurderMystery Nighton 18th

November saw a greatperformance from thePhoenix Theatre Groupas they painted a pic-ture of intrigue, jeal-ousy and murderousintent. The sandwicheswere good too! Wednesday 7th Decembersaw our annual ChristmasFair – with the fabulousChristmas Hampers onceagain, the auction and lots ofside stalls and crafts withmince pies and hot chocolatein the dining room.

All winners were announcedon the night and we will begetting in touch in due course.The winning programme wasNo 24 – please bring yourprogramme to DoveReception to claim your prize.One pink raffle ticket prizewas also unclaimed – No 310(AD963815) - again call atReception with your ticket.

Thanks to: Mr OʼHare for tak-ing up the gavel and conduct-ing the auction which raised£172.50. Thanks also to MrAston and his musicians whoturned up to play in the visi-tors. Thanks to Santa and hissleigh courtesy of the D of Eteam and to Paul Laffey, CEOof the YMCA who opened thefair for us. Thanks to all themembers of staff who helpedout including Mr Griffiths, MrsTunstall and Mrs Isaacs whohelped on stalls; Irene Dooleyand Fran Strange on refresh-ments; Mr Woolley for theChristmas Quiz and to PierreCourt for Mr OʼHareʼs allsinging dancing PP presenta-tion for the auction. Thanks toall the PSFA members whohelped out both in advanceand on the day - to Adil,Michael, Emily, Nadia andmany more students whohelped and finally to all of youwho came along to support .If I have missed anyone out –I did not mean to – thank you.Have a wonderfulChristmas and a Happyand Prosperous NewYear.Anita McLean

TRENT CAMPUSSt Maryʼs Drive, Burton upon Trent DE13 0LLTelephone: 01283 239936 Fax: 01283 239950

e-mail: office@deferrers.com www.deferrers.comDOVE CAMPUSHarehedge Lane, Burton upon Trent DE13 0ASTelephone: 01283 239961 Fax: 01283 239971Acting Principal: Mrs M S Hulcoop MA

The

de Ferrers Academy

CHAMPIONSLEAGUEManchesterUnited 2 v 2BenficaForty students from KeyStages 4 and 5 and ten staffattended the ChampionsLeague group match betweenManchester United andBenfica at the Theatre ofDreams (Old Trafford). Thegame finished 2-2 and theexcitement was just too muchto handle for two Year 11 stu-dents.

Bradley Shaw (Year 11) andDaniel Spencer-Smith (Year 11)overwhelmed by the excitementfrom the Man United vs Benficamatch.

FootballThe unquestionable highlight ofthe term has been the remark-able achievement of the Year 7/8Girls ̓Football Team in reachingthe last sixteen of the ESFANational Cup, in a competitionwhich started out with threehundred and ninety nineschools. We are all delightedthat they have been drawn athome in the last sixteen againsta school from either Bury orLiverpool. Good luck to the girlsas they continue to make histo-ry, not just for the academy, butthe district with their progressthis year.There have been a number ofother phenomenal achievementsthis term. None more so than theacademy competing in a veryimpressive one hundred and thirtyone fixtures across all sports sincethe start of the academic year inSeptember. Congratulations to allwho have represented the acade-my in such a positive way thisterm.The Year 7/8 Girlsʼ Team has alsobeen sweeping all opponentsaside to reach the semi final of theCounty Cup, most recently with a12-1 win over Blythe Bridge. Thegirls also won the NPower Cup 6-a-side competition and now go onto represent Burton Albion in theregional finals at Coventry City inJanuary. Aside from the remarkableachievements of the Year 7/8 GirlsʼTeam, there have also been anumber of other fantastic perform-ances on the football pitch thisterm. Our progress in the CountyCups has been very positive. Year7 have reached the semi finalstage after coming through apenalty shoot out against CheslynHay and a 5-0 win over BlytheBridge. Year 8 fell at the quarterfinal stage, losing 2-0 to WaltonPriory. Year 10 and the Sixth Formboth also fell at the quarter finalstage, losing 7-3 to Wolgarstonand 7-1 to Codsall respectively.Year 11 have yet to play theirquarter final tie against ThomasAlleynes at the time of writing.The District 7-a-side Competitionswere again a big success for thede Ferrers teams. This competitionis for B team players only so givesa number of students who do notplay in the first team on a regularbasis the opportunity to representthe academy. The highlight from all

age groups that competed were MrBaxterʼs Year 8 side who remainedunbeaten and won the competition.Both Years 10 and 11 lost in thefinal to claim the runners-up spot intheir competitions.At the half way point in the districtleagues, Year 7, 8 and 11 all leadtheir divisions comfortably and lookwell set to hopefully go on andclaim the league title when theleagues recommence in March.RugbyThere have been some veryimpressive performances fromall of our rugby teams who havebeen training hard each week.The Year 11 side beat SirGraham Balfour 29-5 before los-ing a very hard fought encounteragainst Thomas Alleynes 24-10.The outcome was much closerthan the final scoreline sug-gests. The Year 9 and 8 sidesboth lost their first County Cupmatches but now drop into theShield competitions where theyboth play again beforeChristmas.All of our sides have also compet-ed in the District 12-a-side devel-opmental festivals at Burton RFCwhere the massive progress beingmade by all of our players is evi-dent for all to see, with the Year 9side finishing third and the Year 8side losing in the final to claim therunners-up spot.Not to be outdone by the boys, ourU15 Girlsʼ Team competed in theirown festival at Peel Croft. After sixweeks of coaching from the RFU,our girls who were all new to thesport performed fantastically well towin all of their matches and claimthe District Girls Tag Rugby title!

Cross CountryThe District Cross CountryChampionships took place onTuesday 15th Nov at the Dunstallestate with de Ferrers represent-ed in all age groups. The high-light of the afternoon was proba-bly in the Under 16 Girls racewhich was won by Lucy Roach.She was ably supported by DaniColtman (4th), Brownwyn Martin(8th) and Sophie Richardson(9th) to complete a very strongteam performance. Other notable performances on theafternoon came from Ben Ward(Year 11) – 8th, Ryan Brogden(Year 9) – 4th, Megan Parker (Year7) – 3rd and Miles Margetson (Year7) – 6th.

Table TennisThe traditional strength of theacademy in Table Tennis wasonce again evident at theCounty Team Championships. De Ferrers entered teams in threeof the four age groups and won allthree of these competitions! Allthree of these teams now qualifyfor the zone finals in Bradford onSunday 15th January and will belooking to progress from this to thenational finals later in the year. Under 16 Boys: Edward Freeman,Joe Byrne, Andrew Heathcote,Liam Burt.Under 16 Girls: Bekki Lycett, MillyBowring, Holly Webster, BeckyKendrick.Under 13 Boys: Lewis Acton,George Hodson-Walker, EdwardWatchman, James Hackett.

BasketballThe de Ferrers BasketballAcademy is now into its fourthyear and is continuing to growand produce very promisingbasketball players. It is open toYears 7,8,9 & 10, both boys andgirls. It is launched each year inthe September and runs in twoblocks, September to Christmasand then January to Easter.Places are still available for stu-dents to join for the January toEaster sessions. It is a greatopportunity for students toimprove their basketball skillsand have some fun. We hire an experienced qualifiedbasketball coach to take the ses-sions, all at a small price of £1 asession (£12 payment needed inadvance). The sessions run everyMonday 3.45pm to 5.30pm. Wehave coming up two tournamentsfor Years 7 and Year 8 so it wouldbe great to see some of ouryounger students coming alongand progressing through the acad-emy ready for the school team inYear 9.A result of our Basketball Academyis our Year 10 Girlsʼ team. Thegirls played their first National Cupmatch on Tuesday 29th November2011, against Thomas Telford athome. Although the girls lost thefixture, it was a very physicalencounter. The girls have a fantas-tic work ethic and are continuing toimprove their individual skills aswell as team work. They have avery positive attitude and as theycontinue to attend the BasketballAcademy on a Monday night, theirperformances and score rates willimprove, making us believe thattheir first win is only round the cor-ner! Year 10 Girlsʼ Team: KiraBanham, Courtney Barlow, MillyBowering, Tamikah Campbell,Megan Reavill, SophieRichardson, Fiona Valentine andHolly Webster (C)

Key Stage 3Drama ClubIt has been an extremelybusy period for Key Stage 3Drama Club, as the studentsperformed a selection ofWorld War I poetry for theacademy's annual perform-ance 'Evening of the Arts'.Their work, which was basedaround the remembrancetheme, was both imaginativeand thought-provoking. Well done!We are now embarking on ournew performance challenge:Rats the Musical, will be per-formed as part of the primaryschool transition programme.The students and staff are veryexcited about this performanceand auditions were very suc-cessful. We will keep you updat-ed on the studentsʼ progress!