The Christmas Issue | 2023-2024 KING’S
The Carol Service
THE HEAD MASTER Dear Students, Parents and Carers, As 2023 comes to an end it is a wonderful opportunity to look back on the Christmas term and reflect on the incredible achievements of our students The term was rounded of with the fantastic announcement in the Sunday Times Parent Power that The King’s School was rated as the Best State and grammar school in East Midlands, for the second year running. We are all very proud of the current Year 12 (last year’s GCSE students) and the Year 13 leavers last year and wish them every success in the next exciting phase of their careers. A new Academic Year Our current Year 13 are starting to receive their university offers as they prepare and send off their UCAS applications. It is also very pleasing to report that we have a record number of students applying to Oxford, Cambridge, Veterinary and Medical courses. It brings great pleasure to see all of the new Year 7 students settling in well. It has been wonderful to see them enjoy the many opportunities available to them and start to integrate into life at school. The most recent building project, a Conditions Improvement Bid from the Department for Education to replace the roof on the Castlegate building that houses Music, Business, Economics, Food and Religious Education has now come to an end. Finally, the vast majority of the site is now watertight. Thank you for your continued support and we are all very excited about the next term as we run up to Christmas. Simon Pickett - Head Master
PTFA Happy Christmas from the PFTA The ‘Parents, Teachers, Friends Association’ actively supports the school and the staff by organising events to raise funds for the school community, specifically the ‘fun stuff ’ which wouldn’t otherwise be easily funded. Items that the PTFA funds have helped fund include: • Outdoor table-tennis tables • Languages Competition Entry Feeds • The Library • Warhammer club for additional kit • Chess Club for clocks and chess sets • Benches for Year 7s in Head Master’s Garden Every parent/carer is automatically a member of the PTFA and is welcome to attend any or all of the meetings and contribute to the decision-making process. All members of the PTFA are volunteers with Committee members volunteering for the roles and elected at the AGM. Without being a Committee member, there are still plenty of opportunities throughout the academic year to work alongside the Committee or to attend PTFA events, and we would be delighted to welcome you as an active ‘Friend’ at any of our events. CHOCFEST TOMBOLA The ChocFest Tombola in December is very much one for the boys! This chocolate and confectionery-themed tombola takes place during lunchtime and the boys flock to it. This year was great fun yet again with boys rushing to take part. We aim for 500 tombola prizes to raise £500 in 40 minutes! We would be delighted if you could volunteer to help on the day. Please message the PTFA via their Facebook page or send an email to PTFA@kings.lincs.sch.uk. GOLD CARD CLUB The King’s Gold Card Club scheme is a monthly cash prize draw that helps support the work of the King’s PTFA, which in turn supports the school in various projects. The Gold Draw is open to anyone over the age of 18, not just parents/carers – so grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends and former students are welcome to participate too - this is an easy way to make a difference to the school. An annual payment of £10.00 entitles participants to be included in the ten monthly prize draws, which currently stand at £60.00, with two prize draws of £450.00 each year. Check out Gold Club Card details in the PTFA section of the school website and please remember to keep the PTFA updated on any change of address/ bank details for use in case you are lucky enough to win! SECOND-HAND SHOP FOR UNIFORM AND PE KIT The PTFA manages the school’s secondhand uniform and PE kit sales, and especially welcomes donations of King's School badged uniform and games kits. Items for CCF and football / rugby boots are also welcomed. Currently we do not need trousers or shirts. We have placed a yellow donation bin outside of W101 and W102 where the students can drop off clean bagged uniform donations. To buy or donate, contact the PTFA via the email address, PTFA@kings.lincs.sch.uk. KEEPING IN TOUCH You can look up information on what is happening or get in touch with the PTFA via: Facebook - @KingsPTFA E-mail – PTFA@kings.lincs.sch.uk We look forward to seeing you at one of the meetings or events and would like to thank you again for your support.
Obituary Mr Gerald Dyer It was with great sadness that I informed the King’s family of the death of Gerald Dyer former Deputy Head Master and Head master from September 1981 to August 1982 died in October. Gerald began teaching Physics at The King’s School in Grantham in September 1978. He retired in August 2000 having risen up the ranks to become a Deputy Head Master who was highly respected by staff and students alike. His formal no-nonsense manner belied a genuine concern, compassion and a dry sense of humour which was never far from the surface. In his younger days, Gerald was an accomplished all-round sportsman and a particularly good footballer who was always keen to participate in the staff student matches. Whilst he demanded high standards from staff, students, and himself, he was also an incredibly kind man who was always willing to listen, advise and praise. He will be sadly missed but fondly remembered.
The Sixth Form Harlaxton Manor We have been delighted to develop a super working relationship with Harlaxton Manor over recent months to further enhance the opportunities for our students. This term saw the first Wednesday enrichment group begin their 12-week placements in various job roles around the Manor ranging from gardening to social media and events. The work experience placements will be available again next term as we continue to build the enrichment offer.
MMI To support our Year 13 medical applicants with the challenges of their very challenging interview task, we have run our own MMI interview in school this term. Students were put their paces on 5 quick fire and demanding stations including Data Interpretation and Calculation; Medical Ethics; Motivation and commitment to medicine; Insight into NHS and Communication Skills. Thank you to staff who gave up their time to support the students. To y Ba n k The Toy Bank has once again been the pinnacle of the school charitable efforts this term. The Sixth Form Leadership Team have excelled in their enthusiasm and organisation, harnessing both the support of our school body and that of our the wider Grantham community. 100’s of toys were collected in school and at our local partner stations, Price & Sons, Rocket Exhibition Services, Cliffedale Primary, Gonerby Hill Foot Primary and Grantham Prep School. Our collective efforts have enabled 179 children to experience the joy of unwrapping presents this year but perhaps more importantly, a large number of families have felt the hand of support when they need it the most. Students arranged a shop premises in the George Centre and were visited by the Mayor of Grantham who opened the shop on our first day. The students were also visited by our Local MP who thanked them for the charitable efforts. Mr Whales - Assistant Headteacher
Oxbridge 19 of our 26 Oxbridge applicants have been called for interview this term. Students have been supported with practice interviews by several of our Alumni who are either current Oxbridge students or Oxbridge graduates. Our thanks go to Ollie Jakes, Ed Johnston, Alex Pay, Farhan Ali, Tim Mallinson and Ned O’Malley. Students have also been put through their paces by a number of our Subject Leaders. University of Cambridge English, Natural Sciences (6), Engineering (2), Mathematics, Computer Science, Law and Music University of Oxford Physics, History, Mathematics/ Mathematics and Statistics, Chemistry, History and French and Philosophy, Politics and Economics UCAS 125 students have sent 320 offers back 166 offers from Russell group 4 students exploring applicants to America MOOCs A MOOC is an online course aimed at unlimited participation and open access via Unifrog. If students are unsure of what they want to study at University, they’re a great way of trying out a subject areas and they are a superb way of supporting personal statements with evidence of knowledge and commitment to learning in the subject area students are applying to study. 87% of our Year 13 students have referenced at least one MOOC in their personal statements. It is pleasing to see a high number of Year 12’s engaging in focussed independent studies too with titles some of the interesting titles listed below. • Fundamentals of engineering design • Moons of the Solar System • MRI in cancer study • Medical Terminology – complete & Cardiovascular and Respiratory Systems • Increasing diversity in the learning environment • The Fundamentals of Market Structure • Architecture • Sustainable Energy) • Diabetes EtonX How to study effectively and efficiently in order to achieve your academic goals. Students have been enrolled on and encouraged to complete an online Study Skills course during their study periods. The course helps students to unlock the full potential of their study time, which has become crucial in today’s fast-paced and distracting world. It is vital to comprehend how people learn and to use evidence-informed techniques for academic success. The Study Skills course aims to equip students with the best strategies to become a more engaged and efficient learner and fulfil your academic potential. Careers Talks To further support students with their future career choices we have maintained our commitment to provided a diverse range of visitors throughout the term. We have been delighted to hear from Bird and Co, Reflect Recruitment (Thank you to , member of the Alumni) and AstraZeneca (thank you to Anders Fitzpatrick, member of the Alumni) during Term 2.
The King’s School Chess Team recently participated in the qualifying event for the National School Chess Championship (NSCC) at Nottingham High School. After three rounds of difficult games, the team came away with two wins and one draw. Beating Bourne B team 4.5-1.5 in round 1, Priory A team 6-0 in round two, and drawing to Bourne A 3-3 in round 3 after a very close match. The team came first in the qualifying event overall, narrowly beating Bourne B in the final tiebreaker, repeating our successful campaign from last year. Very well done to Oliver Beard and Jack Smith for stepping up from team B to team A on short notice due to vacancies caused by the year 11 mock exams, and Alexander Cant for winning all 3 of his games. Oliver Beard later said “It was a great experience and I’m very happy that I could take part. Definitely hoping to repeat this success in the regional stage.” This secures King’s place in the regional stage of the tournament, which will take place in the spring term. Hopefully, the team can progress to the National finals this year held at Nottingham University Mr Davies - Teacher of Mathematics. Formula 1 ESports s - Williams Student Racing League Alfie Smith & Edward Vickers (Y11) represented the school in the first round (Abu Dhabi) of this national Esports competition. Alfie finished in 2nd place, scoring 18 points in the Championship. Edward suffered an unfortunate DNF after being taken out by another driver. Alfie Smith & Cameron Fuller (Y11) represented the school in the second round (Qatar). Alfie finished in 2nd place after a hard-fought battle and a photo-finish, earning another 18 points. Cameron finished in 7th place, scoring another 6 points for the school. That places Alfie in 2nd place for the Drivers’ Championship. The King’s School is currently 3rd place in the Constructors’ Championship. Mr Clack - Teacher of English Chess and Formula 1
Departmental News Mathematics Inspiration Trip Forty Six eager A level mathematics students were taken to the Nottingham Playhouse to watch a series of lectures about the applications of mathematics in different areas of everyday life. The trip was a massive success and showed pupils a wide range of topics that they had never previously considered. The lectures were hosted by Yolanda Ohene, A neuroimaging scientist who utilises mathematics to help convert frequency images from MRI machines into intelligible and accurate images of brains. The first lecturer to enter the stage was Rob Eastaway. Well known for his puzzles published ‘New Scientist’, Rob pitted the students present against A.I. programs to see who was better at solving complex problems such as the one below. The second, Aoife Hunt, works in a sector deal with human evacuation mechanics. In simple terms, she solves what are initially quite simple problems such as “How long would it take for everyone to evacuate from a packed stadium?”. She demonstrated how the mathematics students are currently learning in A level help her analyse these problems; taking into consideration things like average walking speed of groups, number and proximity of exits and so on. The final, Hugh Hunt, is a well-known professor from Cambridge. Hugh spoke on all manner of spinning objects. Boomerangs were thrown, wheels were spun and balls were bounced to demonstrate the conservation of angular momentum. Problems such as “how does the Hubble telescope turn itself round in space?” were posed to students. In all the lectures provided an excellent window into the world of mathematics in careers that students did not initially imagine existed! Mr Davies - Teacher of mathematics
Departmental News Ph y s i c s Y7 Ogden Trust Quiz The Ogden Trust aims to increase the uptake of physics for all at post-16, particularly for those from under-represented groups. The Trust supports schools, projects and programmes that are committed to enhancing physics teaching and learning. Through collaborative partnerships, enrichment and enhancement activities, working with families, developing career awareness and supporting teacher CPD, the Trust wants more students to develop a physics identity – to believe they can be a scientist and to see what studying physics can mean to them. The Physics department at King’s is working in partnership with the Ogden Trust and the other four secondary schools in Grantham. The first partnership activity of the school year is a Physics Quiz and we are inviting all of Y7 across the 5 schools to take part. The quiz had two parts, a more serious scientific knowledge section and a dingbat’s section. The results of the quiz will be announced in January but thank you to all those students and their families who take part over the Christmas holiday, the deadline is Monday 15 January 2024. The next activity will involve year 8 and will be a photography competition, the intention is to involve all year groups during the school year. Miss Jones – Head of Physics Here are two of the dingbats for you to try: STEM DAY CHALLENGE On Wednesday 8 November 2023, The King’s School hosted an Ogden Trust STEM Day entitled ‘Skeleton Bob - Athlete or Machine?’. Thirty Year 10 students from across the Grantham Ogden Trust Partnership schools (The King’s School, Priory Ruskin Academy and West Grantham Academy) participated in what evolved into an exciting and rewarding day. The day began with students being assigned into teams, building a model skeleton bob, and then launching it along the floor of the Main Hall to measure how far the model went. Each team were then given a Barbie Doll as a passenger for their skeleton bob to see how this affected their results. The final practical task was to remodel their bob to maximise the distance it travelled with Barbie on board. Students then undertook an IT activity where they investigated the forces and energy changes as the skeleton bob travelled down the track. The last activity involved the students working in groups to tie all the observations, measurements, and IT work together to produce a poster and presentation to answer the original question ‘Skeleton Bob - Athlete or Machine? The two winning teams were made up of 2 Priory Ruskin female students and 2 King’s School students - Jamie West and Alex Reidy, and a group of 5 King’s Students - Samy Al Merie, Cyprian Gacki, Osayd Hasan, Harry Orme and Pranav Palla.
Departmental News
Departmental News P H Y S I C S The Physics department has started entering students for the British Physics Olympiad Competitions again this year. The first of these started in November and was the Junior Astro Challenge (online). Sixteen Year 10 and Year 11 students sat the Junior Astro Challenge in November. This was a 2hour and 25 minute online competitions that were 30 questions in length each and these had been set by a team of staff based at Cambridge and Oxford Universities. We would like to congratulate all students who took part as they gained 4 Bronze awards, 10 Silver awards and particular mention should go to the 2 Gold award winners: Joshua Cotter and Olly Fawke. Well done to all students who took part. The second competition took place the following week and involved fourteen challenge hungry Year 13 physics students who chose to sit the British Physics Olympiad Physics Round 1 papers, these are a 2 hour 40 minute paper full of long answer open ended Physics questions that cover all topics. This paper is sat internationally by about 5000 students and it is assessed by a group of staff at Cambridge and Oxford Universities. We are awaiting the results for this paper and they should be back early January. Miss Jones - Head of Physics Hi s t o r y On 13th December, Year 11 historians visited Thackray Medical Museum in Leeds. They enjoyed a workshop on the history of surgery and a tour of the Museum, with a focus on the development of Public Health. This will support students with their study of Britain, Health and the People in preparation for their GCSE History exam this summer. Mrs McKenna - Head of History
Departmental News
Fr e n c h - Ne w s p a p e r Co m p e t i t i o n Students in Year 10, 11, 12 and 13 had a fantastic opportunity to compete in a national competition to write a newspaper article and communicate this in French. 2 of the student groups won! Well done to everyone who took part. The morning began with an icebreaker, introducing us to the language we would soon be encountering, as well as previous Olympic Games, and where they had been held. Immediately after, we engaged in a listening exercise, which outlined the activities we would be participating in, which turned out to be lots of fun! First of all, we used our creative abilities to create online versions of Panini cards of three athletes from our given French-speaking country (for example, Switzerland, Belgium, France, etc.) Soon after, a couple of us per team formed a script, which we could read (in French, of course!) to give us a video promoting the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which was the theme of the competition itself. Obviously, in the video, we had to do some acting out for example, Roger Federer just had to swing his racket back and forth, did he not? Towards lunch break, and when everything was submitted through the pre-designed system, we sat down and enjoyed the videos submitted by the other teams. What was interesting was that every team approached this task in a different way. For instance, one team staged an interview with the “athletes”, another went for a video similar to a television advert, and so on. Overall, the morning was extremely entertaining, and I, for one, feel as though I have improved my French-speaking skills off the back of these various, enjoyable activities. Harry Orme, 10 More Departmental News
Sc h o o l Sc i e n t i s t o f t h e Ye a r 2 0 2 2 - 2 0 2 3 , Un i v e r s i t y o f Li n c o l n Year 10 and 12 students from 2022-2023 were recognised by The King’s School as top achieving in their year and put forward for the School Scientist of the year award by Lincoln University. Our Year 10 award winners were: Hadi Al Sheikh Ali (Biology), Zikiu Ho (Chemistry), Morgan Arrowsmith (Computer Science ) and James Beard (Physics). Our year 12 award winners were: Pádraig Cunningham (Biology), Jason Zhuo (Chemistry), Victor Rijnoveanu (Computer Science) and George Taylor (Physics). The boys enjoyed an awards ceremony evening in at Lincoln University with keynote speaker Dr Phil Sutton, Senior Lecturer in Astrophysics, giving his illuminated keynote talk on “ Interstellar Interlopers”. Dr Sutton explored the hypothesis that the moons, asteroids and comets that make up the Solar System may have an interstellar object origin. Science Achievement
SPORT It has been a very busy half term for sport, with several notable performances in National competitions in both football and rugby. In total, at the end of this half term alone there have been over 40 different competitive fixtures played across the sports, dominated by rugby and football but also including basketball, water polo and cross country. Fo o t b a l l Both the Year 7 and Year 8 teams have been awarded Byes into the second round of their county cup competition therefore, only the Year 9 team have been in action this half term with a 10-0 win against Spalding Academy in the county cup seeing them safely through to Round 2. The goals were scored by Hector Parker, Laurie Mills (3), Davis Baker (2), Josh Hall, Leo Harness (2) and Elliot Ward. In the middle school, King’s went through to the second round of the County Cup after beating Priory Ruskin 1-0. Henry Thomas scored the only goal of the game. Year 11 also progressed to the next round of their county cup following a very tight match vs Boston Grammar. Having finished 0-0 after extra-time King’s were victorious 4-2 on penalties.
The senior sides have been very busy, with almost weekly fixtures. The 1st Team have performed exceptionally to reach the last 32 of the National Cup, we wish them all the best for their fixture against King Edward VII Kings Lynn. They have also recorded some solid results in the Lincolnshire Schools Senior Football A League, with wins against QEHS Gainsborough and Bourne Grammar, their only loss coming to Boston Grammar. Their excellent cup run has meant that their league fixtures are backing up and we look forward to a flurry of win after the Christmas break. The 2nd XI have recorded 3 wins (Priory Ruskin, St Georges, Carre’s) and 2 losses (Spalding Grammar, Bourne Grammar) to date and remain in a strong position to make the finals of the Lincolnshire Schools Senior Football B League. Cr o s s Co u n t r y The 1st Round of the National Cross Country event took place at Belton House on 14th November. King’s performed well overall with the teams finishing in 3rd place for the Year 7 and Junior Boys teams and 2nd for the Intermediate Boys team. The following individuals have qualified from this event to represent the District in the County Round in January: Year 7: Noah Marriot, Dominic Pope, Harrison Pope, Jack Kirkham Junior Boys: Toby Gaul, Theo Bacon, Oscar Lond, Harry Watson, Luca Miotk Intermediate Boys: Leo Dudman-Millbank, Will Rose, Oliver Bailey, Jamie Neece Senior Boys (By Nomination): Jasper Adamson, Archie Bradbury, Joe Monk S O C S Once again, we are reaching the time of the year where we ask pupils to sign up for their extracurricular activities for the forthcoming term (January 2024 – Easter 2024). The sign up window will go ‘live’ on 18th December and will remain open to the end of the third week of January 2024. Boys wishing to take part in an extra-curricular activity should ensure they are signed up before this date. SPORT
SPORT Ba s k e t b a l l Basketball continues to progress as one of our newer sports on offer competitively. Year 7 lost their first match 11-20 against Spalding Grammar. The U14 team lost 19-45 to a very strong William Farr team. However, the U16 team showed the way with a 43-42 win over Boston Grammar; Nebin Babu scoring the decisive basket for King’s with only 3 seconds of time remaining. Wa t e r p o l o The U16 team are currently winless having twice lost to Queen Elizabeth’s Barnet and once to Haberdashers Elstree. The 1st team have thus far performed exceptionally well and are currently undefeated. They have recorded wins against Queen Elizabeth’s Barnet (twice), Northampton School for Boys and Bedford School. They have scored an impressive 26 times across those four matches. We look forward to further success in the remainder of the season. Gy m n a s t i c s King’s finished 2nd in the Lincolnshire Schools Gymnastics competition on 10th December, narrowly missing out on the gold medal to Stamford School. Ben Szekely won gold in the individual competition and Zak Walker won his Vault competition. We look forward seeing how the team performs in the East Midlands competition in the new year. Mr Hume - Head of Physical Education
SPORT Water polo Sam Leveridge, in Year 13, attended the EU Nations Water Polo Cup tournament in Brno, Czech Republic playing for the British Barbarians Junior Men’s team. The players had been brought together from clubs across the UK to take part in this prestigious tournament. The team fought hard and came away with the Bronze medal....which is a fantastic achievement. Sam trains 6 days a week at Hucknall WPC and Calverton and Bingham Swimming and Water Polo club - the hard work and dedication is certainly paying off.
RUGBY This year was an exceptional year of rugby for the King’s teams. The highlight was our 1st XV’s remarkable run all the way to the quarter-final of the National Vase competition. This ties a school record and is the only game that either of our senior teams lost all season, demonstrating the strength in the depth in this age group. Our U15’s are still in their version of the National Vase competition following several nail-bitingly close victories in the competition. The latest of these was a narrow win away to Wrekin College and the team will now travel to Liverpool to face Calday Grange Grammar School in the Last 16 of the competition. Year 9 continued their impressive form following on from last year and won every game they played in. Year 8 finally won their first game ever away to Leicester Grammar and have improved immeasurably since Year 7. Finally, Year 7 have been fantastic in every game since they have joined the school. The highlight of the season was a very convincing win away to a good Leicester Grammar team. Rugby will now take a short break and will resume after February half term for the 7s season. Sam Parker and Nikaash Dinesh represented Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire and Derbs (NLD) in rugby fixtures against Leicestershire. Both boys are part of the Leicester Tigers DPP set up and played very well throughout. Mr C Lindsay Head of Rugby and Head of Year 8
RUGBY
MUSIC The Michaelmas term is again full with activity as the students prepare for the numerous concerts and performances. The Year 7 Concerts All six of the Year 7 forms have been involved in a project run by Lincolnshire Music Service called Mash Up. During this project all students have been learning an instrument as part of their class music lessons. The students have either learnt the clarinet, trumpet, trombone or Saxophone during this term. The project has been celebrated with the first of two concerts. Thank you to the parents and carers for the very successful and well attended first concert with each form performing 3 pieces of music. General Reminders from the Music Department • Please remember that students are expected to provide their own headphones (with a 3.5mm jack) for class music lessons. • When bringing in your own instrument for instrumental lesson please make sure the case is labelled.
MUSIC Ca r o l s b y Ca n d l e l i g h t St John’s the Baptist’s Church in Londonthorpe was the surprise hot ticket of the Christmas build up as it was the venue for the new festive event of Carols by Candlelight by The King’s School. The event was a sell out and the audience were entertained by the newly formed King’s Singers, they were also joined by soloists and the Saxophone Ensemble. Ch r i s t m a s Co n c e r t The Christmas Concert was another sell out event and full of Christmas music as it rounded off the Christmas build up. The concert featured performances from the Concert Band, Big Band, Senior Choir, Saxophone Ensemble, Clarinet Ensemble, String Ensemble, Brass Ensemble, Percussion Ensembles and soloists.
J a z z Ni t e 2 0 2 4 On Friday 26th January, members of The Music Department with be performing in the highly renowned annual Jazz Nite. This year we return to St Wulfram’s Church in Grantham as this allows us a much larger capacity, so more people can attend the event. The venue will open its doors at 6.30pm and music starts at 7.00pm. Jazz Nite is the most popular event in the music department’s calendar, for which the students work very hard to put on a concert of a very high musical standard. It includes performance from the school’s big bands, soul bands, and many student led ensembles. It is always a fabulous night and we will be creating the atmosphere of a jazz club for this event, not a school concert with all profits going to the school music department. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased from the School Website for £15:00. https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/booking/select/UeScgPMNajHR
Combined Cadet Force Dear Students, Parents and Carers, The months of November and December have been a busy time for the Contingent. We have achieved a “Master Cadet”, an Army Scholar, and for the first time in King’s history, a Cadet Under Officer. Well done, Charles Stephenson; he now has an army commission awaiting him after his degree and a place at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The Contingent attended Remembrance Day activities both at School and the Grantham Town Parade, culminating with parading at the Cenotaph in London on 11 November 2023 at 11am; following a 2-minute silence, wreaths were laid. Thank you to the Western Front Association. Next, was a training day at Wyville for our “Basic” cadets, over 70 cadets attended, learning how to build Basha’s and cooking from the infamous 24-hour ration pack, tasty !! Then on to a navigation exercise and a little bit of Fieldcraft. These skills will be tested in the new year during our Stoke Rochford exercise. The Contingent is hoping to develop an Archery skill for our cadets, 1 instructor is as I type qualified, 2 more Instructors hopefully will be in the new year. Finally, we are also in the process of buying 2 flight simulators to benefit our RAF CCF cadets. This will enable cadets to go flying with a lot more skills learnt at the Contingent level, therefore maximising the training outcome towards their wings, when they actually go flying at RAF Cranwell. Ray R M Ogg BEM Lt Col CCF Contingent Commander.
CCF Cenotaph 2023
Remembrance 2023
Student Achievement Year 07 Form Attendance – Autumn 2023 Highest form attendance this term goes to: • 1st – 7 Foxe – 98.5% • 2nd – 7 More – 97.7% • 3rd – 7 Newton – 97.4% • 4th – 7 School – 97.2% • 5th – 7 Curteis – 97.1% • 6th – 7 Burleigh – 96.7% Student Form Awards – Autumn 2023 These awards are given to those individuals who have shown themselves to be exemplary members of the school. Criteria: • No negative behaviour points in Term 1 or 2. • Excellent attitude towards learning, collaboration and organisation. • Exceptional performance with regard to the school’s core values: Courage, Friendship, Honour, Humility, Perseverance, Responsibility. • Involvement in the wider life of the school through participation in extra-curricular activities or representing the school in public. • 7 Burleigh – Oscar Bruce • 7 Curteis – Alex Corol • 7 Foxe – Stanley Chapman • 7 More – William Laird • 7 Newton – Johan Joseph • 7 School – Anurag Sahu Accelerated Reader Award – Autumn 2023 These awards are given to individuals who have put great effort in the completion of their Accelerated Reader Challenge. Criteria: • Full engagement with the Accelerated Reader Programme. • At least 10 quizzes passed. • Accelerated Reader – Word Leaderboard 1st – Michael Wong 7 More – (3,249,860 words) 2nd – Dominic Pope 7 More (2,838,047 words) 3rd – Adrian Chan 7 Foxe (2,357,599 words) 4th – Oliver Dobb 7 Foxe (2,148,394 words) 5th – Muhammad Nawaz 7 Curteis (1,709,058 words) 6th – Sam Wildt 7 Newton (1,562,964 words) Accelerated Reader – Form Leaderboard • 1st – 7 More (11,727,093 words) • 2nd – 7 Newton (7,507,989 words) • 3rd – 7 School (7,362,713 words) • 4th – 7 Foxe (6,505,068 words) • 5th – 7 Burleigh (3,966,983 words) • 6th – 7 Curteis (2,851,649 words) I n d i v i d u a l Ac h i e v e m e n t s Dylan Rees Dylan captained the Edwinstowe Under 11’s team to a second-place finish in the highly competitive Bassetlaw Junior cricket league. He finished the season as the second highest run scorer in the entire league (only 7 runs behind top spot). Dylan was recently awarded the batting and bowling awards at the end of year presentation. Harvey Hallam On the 11th of November Harvey was the mascot/match day sponsor for Cottesmore Football Club. He met the team, chose man of the match and presented the match ball.
Student Achievement Eliott Brown Competed in his first gymnastic competition and came 1st Thomas Maxwell, Harvey Powar, Isaac Salt, and Dominic and Harry Pope all play for Radcliffe Olympic football team and have finished joint top of their winter league in the Nottingham YEL this season. Adam Lesundak Has achieved the best player of the match title and medal in one of his football team matches. Reuben Squire Reuben has achieved his Black Belt grade in Kickboxing Joshua Kapoor Joshua achieved a blue belt in Taekwondo. Leo Parnaby Passed his black belt in kick-boxing.
Student Achievement Local Rugby Oliver Pogson, Stanley Chapman, Charlie Bartlett, Nathan Ward, Oliver Dobb, Dylan Rees and Digby Graham was they all played in the Newark Under 12 rugby team that recently beat the Bingham Under 12 rugby team 40-0. William Savidge William has been selected to play for the Leicester City Development Academy again this year. Also, William has captained the Year 7 King’s School Rugby team. Oscar Bruce Oscar played the title role of Oliver! in the late summer during MJH Productions’ run of the show in Grantham. Joshua Saunt Exam success! Joshua passed his Grade 3 LAMDA acting exam with Distinction. LPrayan Sandip Achieved a certificate with distinction for playing guitar Isaac Salt Plays 1st violin for the Nottingham Youth Orchestra Dominic Pope Passed his drums grade 2 assessment with merit
Student Achievement Keiran Hart Recently achieved grade 6 on guitar Domantas Dusevicius Is teaching himself to play piano and is writing music on computer programs Sam Storey The flag bearer for his Scouting group – 1st Flintham Scouts Eric Newton Member of 1st Bingham Scouts, and recently achieved his Level 5 “Joining In” badge. This is in recognition of Eric having played an active role in Scouts for 5+ years. Fergal Giltinan Fergal won 3rd prize in the Civic Society photography competition Igi Rutowski Supporting a community group called Polish Village UK. Igi works with polish families in Newark, organising run stay and plays and after school clubs to promote bilingual education supporting learning about polish culture and heritage. Afshar Faisal In his spare time Afshar enjoys drawing and writing comics and stories. He wrote a story when he was 8. He is using his free time currently illustrating this story and hoping to publish it with the help of us in the near future. Aayaan Arsheen Moved up a level in his swimming lessons. He swims at Level 6 now. rStarted teaching himself Arabic calligraphy. Started to teach himself to read and write Urdu language. Photograph by Fergal Giltinan
Student Achievement Year 08 Form Attendance – Autumn 2023 Highest form attendance this term goes to: • 1st – 8 Curteis – 96.8% • 2nd – 8 More – 96.2% • 3rd – 8 School – 96.1% • 4th – 8 Foxe – 95.1% • 5th – 8 Burleigh– 94.4% • 6th – 8 Newton – 94.47% Student Form Awards – Autumn 2023 These awards are given to those individuals who have shown themselves to be exemplary members of the school. Criteria: • Excellent attitude towards learning, collaboration and organisation. • Exceptional performance with regard to the school’s core values: Courage, Friendship, Honour, Humility, Perseverance, Responsibility. • Involvement in the wider life of the school through participation in extra-curricular activities or representing the school in public. • 8 Burleigh – Dougie Howes • 8 Curteis – Nitheesh Pathirana • 8 Foxe – Rylan Stevens • 8 More – Rory Mullally • 8 Newton – Khaled Elhaddad • 8 School – Jack Thompson Accelerated Reader Award – Autumn 2023 These awards are given to individuals who have put great effort in the completion of their Accelerated Reader Challenge. Criteria: • Full engagement with the Accelerated Reader Programme. • At least 10 quizzes passed. • Accelerated Reader – Word Leaderboard 1st – Ethan Ikpasaja (1,169,015 words) 2nd – James Rimmer (1,119,880 words) 3rd – Tom Liu-Child (765,654 words) 4th – Callum Thomas (177,227 words) 5th – Aiden Pringle (178,449 words) 6th – Oliwier Kownacki (175,628 words) I n d i v i d u a l Ac h i e v e m e n t s Jake Johnson Jake was awarded the batsman trophy and joint wickets trophy for Grantham U12’s cricket team. He also successfully graded for his blue belt in kick boxing. Oscar Savidge Oscar has been selected as the year 8 Kings rugby captain (and his younger brother, William has been selected as the year 7 rugby captain).
Joel Stephenson Joel has achieved his brown belt in pka kickboxing this term. Joel also plays for Grantham Water Polo Club who came first in the Matlock tournament this term, beating 3 other teams to win gold! Tumi Olaiya Tumi completed his level 8 swimming class in October 2023 after 6 years of learning to swim. Tumi achieved his green belt in Kick boxing 6 weeks ago and now going for his blue belt grading . Maxwell Berry Maxwell was 5th in the 70cm show jumping at NAF 5 star British Riding clubs Summer Championships on 3rd September. He also competed at the Area 16 British Riding Clubs Show jumping Qualifier on the 11th November. His team won the 70cm class qualifying for the Winter Championships and Maxwell was individually 4th. In the 80cm class Maxwell was individually 2nd. Student Achievement
William Bramhall William was involved in the Lincolnshire Junior Championships team golf earlier this term playing for his local club Belton Woods. He and the team played several matches to reach the regional finals where they came runners up. William was the youngest player and played against many 16-18 year olds including other Kings pupils. Jeremy Chan Jeremy came 5th place in the Newham U14 for fencing. Silver in the U14 northern challenge at Wetherby Silver in the LPJS Cambridge U13 Champion at the East Midlands U13 competition Theo Bacon Theo has passed his Grade 4 drums with Distinction and Grade 5 clarinet with Merit this term Jai Pryke Jai enjoys drama outside of school and has taken LAMDA exams over the last two years , and this September he was awarded a Distinction in his grade 3 and he now working towards his grade 4 . Josh Scott Josh took his grade 6 trinity college rock and pop guitar exam over the summer. He had to play Johnny B Goode, smooth criminal and Rope and he passed with a distinction earning 12 UCAS points in the process. He is now working towards his grade 7. Up to this point, Josh has been learning guitar for 3 years and has become quite an accomplished young guitarist. Over the summer his band also performed at Knipfest a local annual music festival, helping to raise money for local cancer charities. His band performed amazingly and they were asked to perform an encore. Student Achievement
Year 09 Leo Price Leo played in a golf competition on in September and he won the scratch cup. He played against golfers aged 17 and 18 but kept focused, a fantastic achievement. Leo also completed 100 miles of walking golf courses too. He won the Junior Scratch Cup competition at Radcliffe on Trent Golf Club in September. This was a great achievement, playing against various other golfers under the age of 18. Leo scored 75 and was very happy to finally have his name on the board in the Clubhouse as Junior Champion for 2023. Daniel Gardner Daniel achieved a Distinction in the recent IPQ3 he took with the ISEB. Daniel has also passed and been awarded the RSCM (Royal School Church Music) Gold Award (equivalent to Grade 8 singing exams). This exam is offered to experienced choristers who can demonstrate their skill and musicality in solo singing, together with their effective leadership and stylistic awareness as choir members. Earlier in the year Daniel competed in the Grantham Music Festival winning three trophies as well as being presented with the overall Virtuoso Trophy in the vocal category. Ben Foster During the summer of 2023, Ben successfully completed a Level 2 NCFE certified Survival training course. Over 3 days he undertook wild shelter building, water purification, knife skills and knife law, foraging, wild cordage, wild navigation, fire by friction and game prep, including the hands-on processing of rabbits, fish and pigeons. He also slept on the forest floor, and cooked all meals on the camp fire. This course is normally for adventurous adults with a minimum age of 15 years, so to complete it so successfully at 13 is quite an achievement. Jude Walker Jude was awarded the Silver medallion in the category of Survive and Save. This has been awarded from the Royal Life Saving Society. Jude was also awarded the Core Elements Silver award. Student Achievement
Thomas Jeffrey Thomas has completed his Red Belt in Karate. Thomas has shown great determination, commitment, and diligence to learn the new sport and discipline. Olly Kingham Olly Kingham was selected to represent the East Midlands regional water polo U14 squad to play at Walsall in November. Olly Parr Olly has been selected to represent U15 county hockey for Nottinghamshire and U14 county cricket for Lincolnshire this year. Tobias Bruce Tobias played the Artful Dodger in MJH Productions’ season of Oliver! towards the end of the summer break. Student Achievement
Year 10 SAm Kirkham Sam completed his 100th Parkrun whilst volunteering as a visual guide. He has continued to be a regular volunteer at Newark Parkrun, volunteering a total of 39 times covering 17 different roles and is a valued member of the team. Sam also helps at Whist Club this year has been invaluable. He has proved himself to be reliable and loyal and of great assistance in the running of the club. Joe Boyle Joe plays golf for Belton Park juniors and was recently involved a tournament with other Lincolnshire golf clubs where Belton Park came first. Mathematics recognition The following boys have been recognised for their contributions to mathematics. They have all put significant effort into homework and independent practice on DrFrostMaths since September. Owen Liu • Mrinal Bhargav • Pranavkiruthik • Babukuma Leicester Tigers U15 Junior Academy Alfred Arlando, Oliver Bainbridge, Ben Doubell, Robert Halsall.and Thomas Mahoney have all been selected for the Liecester Tigers U15 Junior Academy. Student Achievement
Student Achievement Year 11 George Unwin George appeared as a feature in FlyPast magazine. He also plays for Thurlby Tigers U16 football team who remain unbeaten this season.
Student Achievement Year 11 Zak walker. Congratulations to Zak who achieved his Silver Survice and Save qualification from the Royal Life Saving Society.
Co r p o r a t e b a n k i n g Corporate banking allows you to put your excellent number-crunching skills to good use while earning an impressive salary. It is a competitive industry and having relevant work experience is crucial for breaking into the career. What is involved? The role is very client-focused and the aim is to help raise capital to fund your clients’ activities. You will connect with many types of businesses while assisting them with their financial needs. You will normally work in a bank and a typical day could include: • Meeting and interviewing customers and their representatives to discuss their financial requirements. • Advising clients about mergers, acquisitions, shares and other large scale financial activities. • Outlining the impact of products such as treasury services, loans and credit. • Preparing lending agreements. • Promoting the bank’s services and products. • Producing reports and other documents. • Managing and growing relationships with clients. • Supervising and training junior bankers Most jobs are in London and major UK cities. You will be expected to work long hours and stay away from home regularly. High levels of stress are common in this profession. However, in return, there are high levels of responsibility, good promotional prospects and impressive financial rewards for the most successful employees. Key skills for corporate bankers • Analytical ability • Numeracy skills • Verbal and written communication skills • Very good interpersonal skills • Negotiation skills • Discretion • Attention to detail • The ability to prioritise, manage time and work under pressure • Willingness to work long and unsocial hours It is worthwhile undertaking a gap analysis of your personal skills and qualities to identify any areas requiring development. An early approach will allow you to expand your skills by utilising appropriate strategies in preparation for the application process. Careers
Routes into corporate banking Graduate training schemes are the most common entry route into corporate banking. All the major banks and financial institutions run general finance, accountancy or banking graduate schemes. With few exceptions, a minimum of a 2:1 classification will be required, with some also stipulating UCAS points. For example, the Bank of England specify 120 UCAS points in addition to a 2:1. The minimum UCAS tariff points to study Finance ranges from 96 (CCC) to 144 (AAA) with the average requirement being BBB Deloitte also asks for GCSEs in English language and maths at grade 4 and 5 respectively. A level maths is usually a requirement or at least desirable. Graduates from all disciplines are considered but degrees that may be particularly useful include: • Accounting and finance • Business management • Economics • Mathematics • International business Other things to be aware of Work experience and internships Most banks and large financial services companies offer formal internship placements to university students, usually during the summer of their second year of study; this allows students to gain first-hand experience of working full-time in the industry while enabling the company to see how students cope with a high-pressure environment. Students who successfully complete a summer internship are often offered a graduate role upon completing their degree. Apprenticeship Some banks offer degree apprenticeships in corporate banking for students with A levels. In addition, many banks offer apprenticeships starting at level 3 in other financial areas. You can find out more from the Apprenticeships website: www.apprenticeships.org.uk https://www.cv-library.co.uk – examples of degree apprenticeships and job vacancies Other things to consider Pursuing a finance degree requires a strong mathematical aptitude. From understanding financial markets to evaluating investment opportunities, math is at the core of finance. Not studying maths A-level will limit your university choices. Although a maths A-level is not required for entry onto all finance degree courses, you should seriously consider studying the subject. If you are unable to do this, it may be worth considering some form of tutoring to help refresh and extend your maths knowledge. Are you interested in corporate banking but worried you don’t have the necessary qualifications? Some universities offer a foundation year (or access course) as part of their finance and accounting courses. These one-year programmes are designed for students who have shown the ability but do not possess the necessary qualifications (with respect to either grades or subjects) for direct entry into BSc courses. After completing the foundation year you should be eligible to progress, as appropriate, onto the university’s BSc course. Useful links https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/corporatebanking-salary-SRCH_KO0,17.htm – for information on salaries https://www.ucas.com – for information on courses Careers
Ne w s f r o m t h e Li b r a r y It has been another action-packed term in the Library. Here’s a snapshot of the last few months: Some of our new fiction purchases: • The Trials of Apollo: The Tower of Nero, by Rick Riordan • Dragon Mountain, by Katie and Kevin Tsang • The Nowhere Emporium, by Ross MacKenzie • The Explorer, by Katherine Rundell • By Royal Command, by Charlie Higson • 21% Monster, by PJ Canning • Dog Man, by Dav Pilkey • Bleach Omnibus 1, by Tite Kubo Some of our new non-fiction purchases: • Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm, by Jeremy Clarkson 630 • Heroes, by Stephen Fry 398 • How to Play Chess, by Claire Summerscale 794.1 • Play Like Your Football Heroes, by Matt Oldfield 796.334 • 100 Things to Know About Music, by Jerome Martin 780.2 • History of Rock, by Rita Nabais 782.4 • How to be an Art Rebel, by Ben Street 701.1 • How to be a Gaming Influencer, by Anita Nahta Amin 794.8 Books and Biscuits: At our weekly Books & Biscuits Club, we’ve kept well and truly busy! Beside eating lots of biscuits, we have been: • Learning about Remembrance – including hearing some war poetry and creating poems and pictures for display • Watching a video about Diwali and creating colourful paper lanterns for display • Taking part in a book/author quiz to see if their book knowledge rivals Mrs Hobbs’ • Playing board games and chess – including trying to beat Mr Kearney (which they did!) Displays: We have continued our rolling programme of displays, which have included Halloween, Remembrance, Diwali, A Christmas Carol and Accelerated Reader. You can also take a look at our displays on our @libraryatkings Twitter (X) page! Halloween Writing Competition: In October, we ran a popular Halloween Writing Competition in collaboration with the English Department – who could turn The King’s School into the scariest place through their creative writing? Some superb entries were received, and after much deliberation, Mrs Hobbs and Mr Kearney selected William Hewitt’s story as the winner. Take a read on the next page. Mrs Hobbs and Mr Kearney, Library Team News from the Library
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