August 08

GCSE RESULTS 2008: 100% SUCCESS

Girls at Saint Martin’s are celebrating today with an incredible 100% success rate for their GCSEs. All of the girls achieved passes in 9 or more GCSEs at Grade C or above.

Mrs Jane Carwithen, Headmistress, said “100% success will give the girls much to celebrate today. Their results are very well-deserved, resulting from their hard work in the Senior School over the last five years. Their academic success is reflected in the recent publication of our Inspection Report by the Independent Schools Inspectorate, which praised the school for the high standards achieved academically and its first rate pastoral care.”

In the core subjects of English and Maths they have done exceptionally well with an outstanding 95% of their grades at Grade B or above.

29% of all grades were awarded at A*
62% of all grades were awarded at A* and A
87% of all grades were awarded at A*, A and B
August 08

100% PASS RATE AT A-LEVEL

Girls at Saint Martin’s are celebrating today with 100% pass rate at A-Level.

These results, which included 40% of passes at Grade A, have enabled the girls to gain places at many top universities to read a range of subjects including Medicine, Engineering, Geography, Law and History.

This academic success follows on from the recent publication of the School's Inspection Report by the Independent Schools Inspectorate, which praised the school for its high standards in academic work and its first rate pastoral care.

Mrs Jane Carwithen, Headmistress, says ” We are very proud of the girls' successes and give them all our best wishes as they start out on their chosen courses. They have worked hard to achieve these results and deserve every success in the future.”
June 08

INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS INSPECTORATE REPORT

The Inspection Report for Saint Martin’s has just been published following a visit by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in March.

In its overall conclusions it is said

“Saint Martin’s School has considerable strengths and no significant weaknesses, and is successful in achieving its aims. Notable among these strengths are first rate pastoral care, the strong spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the girls, the close liaison with parents and the imaginative and far reaching links with the wider community. Excellent governance, leadership and management mean that the school has a well-articulated vision and the drive to fulfil it. Characterised by kindness, courtesy and mutual respect, the quality of relationships throughout the whole community is exceptional. Staff in all areas of the school give generously of their time and energy to enhance the educational experience of the girls. Pupils make good progress and achieve high standards in academic work and in extra-curricular activities; their attainment in national tests and public examinations is good.”

Jane Carwithen, Headmistress, said “We are very pleased that the high standards that we strive for in all areas of school life have been recognised and we are very proud of achievements of our girls.”

A copy of the report can be found on www.isi.net or requested from Ruth Iles, Registrar
at Saint Martin's.
June 08

SAINT MARTIN’S GIRLS INSPIRED TO WALK 10KM FOR WATERAID

Girls from Year 8 took part in a 10km Charity Walk in June. They were raising money for WaterAid and also for Chernobyl Children’s Charity, the School’s chosen charity. At the last count the girls had already raised £2,000.

In the early hours of a Wednesday morning, all of Year 8 assembled outside school ready to start their long 10km sponsored water walk. By the time they had walked through fields for 5km, the girls felt ready for a break but instead, to make this a genuine water walk experience, they had to collect the equivalent weight of a bucket of water to carry all the way back to school. Surprisingly, the girls arrived back sooner than expected. Though they were very tired they all felt extremely proud of their achievements.

The girls chose to raise money for WaterAid after discussing the WaterAid project in Ghana, during a Geography lesson. They were so moved by the plight of the girls and women there, who walk 10km each day to collect water, often getting up at 3am.

The girls hope that by completing this walk, they will have managed to make a difference to people less fortunate than themselves.
June 08

MYSTERY AT MALVERN HALL

As part of their Interest Week, Year 5 girls joined the Senior School Science Department to solve the mystery of Malvern Hall. The girls were given a presentation of a murder, which had taken place in the 1840s, and a list of possible suspects. The scene was set and the girls were given evidence to examine.

They used chromatography in the Physics lab to analyse ink samples and discover hidden messages. Chemistry techniques enabled the girls to analyse the composition of traces found on the suspects’ clothes and shoes. In the Biology lab, hair samples and traces of poisoned food were investigated under microscopes.

The groups of investigators gathered to consider all the evidence and were successful in identifying the murderer!
May 08

PEACH CHILD

The Year 10 GCSE drama group recently took the challenge of performing Anna Furse’s Japanese folk tale, the Peach Child. The play revolves around Momotaro, a young boy born to an unsuspecting elderly couple from the inside of a magical peach. He then goes on, with the help of some unlikely companions, a dog, a bird and a monkey, to rid the world of an ogre’s oppression, which had drained all the good out of life for the locals.

After weeks of long, hard and painstaking rehearsals, the talented cast took to the stage with both performances a resounding success. This ambitious production was undertaken with superior quality contributions from all those involved, and thanks must also go to the excellent backstage support and costume and set departments.
May 08

CELESTIAL TREASURE HUNT

Sixteen girls from Year 11 took part in an astronomical treasure hunt, exploring stars and galaxies in a remote region of space where nobody else had ever explored before. The girls were taking part in the Celestial Treasure Hunt Project, led by Dr. Richard Beare of Warwick University.

They used a range of computer technologies and networks to view images from the Sloan telescope in New Mexico. The telescope they used can detect objects which are two and a half million times fainter than you can see with the naked eye. The girls selected a particular area of the sky to study in close detail.

All of the girls wrote up their findings in detail and produced a wide range of documents, pictures and information about their research. This project has led to a subsequent visit by Year 10 girls to Warwick University to carry out another of Dr. Beare’s astronomy projects. They made a stunning calendar with great deep space images of galaxies.
May 08

SALTERS’ FESTIVAL OF CHEMISTRY

Four girls from Year 8 were victorious at the “University Challenge” they competed in during the Salters’ Festival of Chemistry at Birmingham University.

They battled against 15 other school teams from Years 7 and 8 and won by designing the best acid-alkali indicator. The girls’ secret weapon was their teamwork and good communication skills throughout the challenge. Their prize of £100 has bought an amazing Chemistry software package for students at Saint Martin’s.
April 08

CROSS COUNTRY SUCCESSES

At a presentation evening attended by the Mayor and Mayoress of Solihull, Saint Martin’s girls celebrated their success as the winners of the Team Award for the Senior Schools’ Cross Country League, as well as securing the Championship Trophy.

Teams from Year 7, Years 10/11 and Seniors categories were all league winners, with the Years 8/9 team coming third. There were also excellent individual results with Megan Blake and Jessica Duck becoming Borough champions; Vicky Cox was a runner-up and Alex Newbery and Courtney Hyde gained third places.

The final cross-country event of the season was the Championship Relay Races, where each runner had to complete a 2 km course in relay style. Again the Saint Martin’s girls excelled with the Year 7 and Years 10/11 teams emerging as winners and the Years 8/9 team finishing 3rd. This year the boys’ and girls’ teams ran in the same races, and a special mention must go to the Saint Martin’s Year 7 team who not only won the girls’ event but were 2nd overall with only one boys’ team beating them.

During this season 7 Saint Martin’s girls represented Solihull with 3 going on to earn their West Midlands vests. Well done Megan Blake, Amy Moone and Alex Newbery.
April 08

SPORT RELIEF UPDATE

Girls from Year 7 took part in the Sport Relief Birmingham Mile in March. The Sport Relief message was the theme of the girls’ form assembly last term. The girls presented a lively assembly and got the message across that supporting these events really does make a difference to those less fortunate than ourselves.

The girls also persuaded parents and friends to join them on the Birmingham Mile run. Pictured are the girls before, looking relaxed and ready to go!

The girls successfully raised £1,213.10, an amazing amount – well done to everyone who took part and a big thanks to those who sponsored the girls.
April 08

TRIUMPH FOR SAINT MARTIN’S AT NETBALL

Saint Martin’s has triumphed at both tournament and league levels in this year’s netball season.

The Year 8, Year 9 and Year 10 teams had fantastic wins in all their games, with all three teams becoming Solihull Borough Tournament and League Winners. The Year 11 team were League Runners-up.

In the South Primary Schools Borough netball tournament, the Year 6 team were overall winners at the end of April.

The Year 9 team went on to represent Solihull in the U14 Warwickshire Netball Tournament and only lost one of their matches against the eventual winners, Bablake.

The Year 7 and Sixth Form teams made it through to the semi-finals of their respective borough tournaments and played well with some close matches.

All girls competed with great determination and played some hard fought games during the season. Well done to everyone involved!
April 08

SIXTH FORM ROWING

Sixth formers have been able to enjoy a new sport this term – rowing! Girls are taking part in a four-week taster course at Edgbaston Reservoir. There has been great interest in the sport, with both Lower and Upper Sixth girls participating. The courses will be run again in September as they have proved so very popular.

Pictured is Danielle Webb on the water.
March 08

GCSE GEOGRAPHERS VISIT ICELAND

As part of their GCSE Geography studies, girls from Years 10 and 11 visited Iceland, the land of ice and fire, during the Easter holiday.

This visit was a once in a lifetime experience and the landscape of this amazing country affected the girls’ emotions and spirits as well as their intellect-true education!

A highlight for many was a visit to a glacial tongue called Solheimajökull; walking on the glacier and exploring an ice cave helped the girls appreciate glacial processes and the impact of current climate change as well as providing a great ice slide! Seeing the Northern Lights dancing across the clear night sky on Easter Saturday was an unforgettable experience as was swimming in the milky blue waters of the Blue Lagoon with the air temperature just above freezing point.

The girls worked and played hard during the 5 day action packed tour, investigating Iceland's dramatic environment of glaciers, volcanoes, waterfalls and geothermal pools. Visits were made to the plate boundary and site of the ancient Parliament at <THORN>ingvellir and further evidence of tectonic activity was seen at Geysir where the girls saw geothermally heated pools bubbling and erupting. River and coastal processes were identified as we visited waterfalls, former sea cliffs and black beaches. The girls also had a tour of Reykjavik, studied a settlement on the south coast and learnt about Icelandic culture.
March 08

UPDATE ON LINKS WITH KAMPALA CHILDREN’S CENTRE, UGANDA

The girls in Alice House have received thank you letters and photographs from the children at Kampala Children’s Centre in Uganda. The children were very pleased to receive their gift boxes, which were delivered by Ruth Coleman, Nursery Nurse in Daycare at Saint Martin’s.

The gifts made the children feel loved and cared for, something they have rarely experienced in their short lives, until moving to the Centre. They are now happy, lively children once again, full of joy and hope. This was visible in their faces when they were given their boxes full of gifts.

Ruth is continuing her work with the Kampala Children’s Centre and will shortly be leaving Saint Martin’s to return there. She is continually raising funds for the centre, and is currently organising a charity ball, which will take place in the summer. If you would like any further information about Kampala Children’s Centre or you would like to make a donation, please contact Ruth on 07752 384 482 or e-mail: typeruth@hotmail.com
March 08

DOGS FOR THE DISABLED - JUNIOR SCHOOL CHARITY

The Junior School have continued to support their charity, Dogs for the Disabled, and were pleased to welcome Pippa Mundy into school with her assistance dog, Isla.

During a very informative talk in assembly, Isla showed off her talents. Isla demonstrated how she helps Pippa with the everyday tasks which we take for granted.

The Junior School girls were able to present a cheque for £862.47 to Pippa on behalf of the charity. This money will go towards final training fees for our sponsored puppy, Gallagher, who is about to be teamed with a partner, for whom he will undoubtedly prove a friend for life.

Pictured is Gallagher proudly wearing his blue training jacket.
February 08

SIXTH FORM TRIP TO SORRENTO

Sixth Formers from Saint Martin’s travelled to Southern Italy as part of their Classics and Geography studies. The girls were able to gain first hand experience of life in a hazardous area. Ironically, it was not until a few minutes after their return that they experienced the real life terror of an earthquake-epicentre, not under Vesuvius but Lincolnshire!

Based in Sorrento the girls studied life in the region from both Roman and modern day perspectives. Amongst the highlights were taking a coastal walk and seeing limestone scenery and bright blue water on the coast of Capri; visiting Pompeii and Herculaneum; climbing Vesuvius and thinking through the potential impacts of the next eruption on Naples.

The girls visited the surreal landscape of Solfatara, with its jets of steam and sulphurous fumes, followed by a tour of Naples complete with impressive buildings - and piles of rubbish! The girls also saw the ancient settlement of Amalfi. It was a busy few days and provided significant curriculum enrichment for both subjects.

According to the girls the best bits were “Being able to apply geographical knowledge to real life”; “The view, friends and making new friends”; and the scariest part was the Amalfi coastal drive.
January 08

LEAGUE TABLE RESULTS

National school league tables were reported in the press recently and Saint Martin’s shines! Our girls’ outstanding GCSE results have ensured Saint Martin’s was the only school in the Solihull Local Education Authority, with 100% pass rate of 5 or more A* – C grades, that included English and Maths.

We are delighted that this confirms the individual support that is given to girls at Saint Martin’s, not only in these key subjects, but across the breadth of the curriculum.

Well done to everyone for achieving such a success and putting Saint Martin’s at number one!
January 08

SOLIHULL SECONDARY SCHOOLS’ SPORTS FEDERATION ROLL OF HONOUR

The outstanding sporting achievements of Saint Martin’s were honoured at a recent event attended by the Mayor of Solihull and members of the Sports Federation Committee, held at the Civic Suite in Solihull Council House.

Charlotte Ray and Megan Thomas each received an individual award for their success at rounders; they are both currently members of the England Rounders Team.

The U16 Swimming Team received a team award for their success at achieving 7th place in the national finals.

All the girls honoured at the event were also congratulated by Mrs Carwithen, in the school assembly on 28th January, 2008.

Pictured is Charlotte Ray holding her award.
January 08

JOHN HARRIS “THE STORYTELLER”

The English department invited John Harris to visit Saint Martin’s recently and talk to Years 7, 8 and 9.

John works all over the country and is one of Britain’s few full-time professional storytellers. His stories come from all over the world, and he can tell more than 350 stories off the top of his head.

The girls were mesmerised by the professional storyteller’s rendering of spooky urban legends and fascinating tales, where the boundaries between fact and fiction were blurred.

We look forward to hearing and reading some of the girls’ own tales.
January 08

PASSION FOR ART AND DESIGN AT KEY STAGE 3

Year 8 girls recently visited an exhibition at the Design Museum, London to see the work of world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid. She has won the contract to design the Aquatic Centre for the 2012 Olympics and her approach is truly innovative. Zaha’s work has been a real inspiration to the girls.

The girls also visited the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham and had a tour of the internationally acclaimed School of Jewellery.

This meeting of art, design and practical skills has led to a number of creative projects in school and new artistic inspiration for the girls. Many pieces of the girls’ work are on display at school.

Mrs Winnett, the teacher in charge of Art, Design and Technology, said “Seeing the work of a role model like Zaha has been a real inspiration to the girls. That visit, together with seeing work in the Jewellery Quarter, has led to all sorts of creative projects, as well as new artistic inspiration. In the future, design is one major way that UK industry will differentiate itself in a world economy and our girls see this as an exciting career opportunity”.
January 08

MME MIREILLE BEST POETRY COMPETITION

On Wednesday 14 November 2007, a group of 7 students from Saint Martin’s went, once again, to Birmingham University to compete in the Anglo-French Society of Birmingham’s annual poetry competition.

This involved reciting a French poem, without notes, in front of a panel of judges, most of whom were French native speakers. The finalists had to recite their poem in front of a very wide audience, made up of other students and contestants, teachers, French assistant(e)s from various schools in the area, the competition organisers and a university professor.

Stephanie Beaumont (Year 7), Rebecca Chard (Year 7), Martha Ngatchu (Year 9) and Emily White (Year 9) competed in the Under 14 section and recited the poem ‘Par dessus le toit’ by Paul Verlaine.

Katherine Atkinson (Year 11), Heather Dooley (Year 10) and Lucinda Thomas (Year 11) competed in the Under 16 section with the very famous poem ‘La cigale et la fourmi’ by Jean De La Fontaine

Marks were awarded for pronunciation as well as for delivery and command of the language. All of the girls did very well indeed, with particular successes for:

In the Under 14 section, Emily won first prize, with Stephanie third.

In the Under 16 section, Katherine won second prize, with Heather commended.
December 07

LINKS WITH THE KAMPALA CHILDREN’S CENTRE, UGANDA

The girls in Alice House are sending Christmas Gifts this year to the Kampala Children’s Centre in Uganda.

The Centre was opened in 2005, in response to the needs of children left destitute and homeless, as a result of years of conflict and the Aids crisis in Uganda. The children come from war-torn northern Uganda and the slums of Kampala. There are currently 60 being cared for and the centre has an ambitious target of supporting 1000 children in future.

Such are their needs that the gifts include basics, such as toothpaste, toothbrushes and underwear, as well as presents and treats.

The carers in The Kampala Children’s Centre, known as House Mums, each look after nine children, with the aim of creating new “families” for the orphans. In addition to Alice House girls providing boxes of presents and essentials for their counterparts, staff will also be sending gifts for the House Mums.

The link has been forged by Ruth Coleman who works in ‘Daycare at Saint Martins’. She has been to the Kampala Children’s Centre a number of times and will deliver the gifts when she visits at Christmas.
November 07

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST RETURNS TO SAINT MARTIN’S

Saint Martin’s was proud to welcome back former pupil, Rebecca Tinsley, as their guest speaker at the annual Prizegiving Ceremony on the 21st of November 2007. She was welcomed by Chairman of the Governors, Mark Hope-Irwin, who described her fascinating and varied international career, since her time at Saint Martin’s. A career that has included being a BBC politics reporter, having two novels published and working as a freelance journalist. She is also on the International Council of Human Rights Watch and was asked by President Carter to start the Carter Centre UK.

Rebecca founded Waging Peace, a London-based group campaigning for a safe and democratic world. Currently, Waging Peace’s largest campaign is for the protection and support of women and children in Rwanda. Girls, parents, staff and visitors alike were moved by her description of the work of Waging Peace with the people directly and brutally affected by the genocides of the nineties. In particular, they were touched by her story of Nadine, the only survivor when her family was wiped out in 1994; now 21 Nadine is hoping to attend University, after years of courageous effort to educate herself.

Rebecca’s message was that everyone can make a difference, no matter how large and impossible the task may seem. She wished all of the girls success in finding their own destiny.
She then presented prizes to celebrate the many and varied achievements of the girls. These included record GCSE results, with 74% obtaining A* & A grades. Five girls obtained scholarships to the sixth form and between them achieved 47 A & A* results. (see photo)
November 07

RESIDENTIAL MUSIC WEEKEND AT INGESTRE HALL

Fifty two girls, representing six year groups, had the opportunity to spend a weekend at Ingestre Hall, the former seat of the Earls of Shrewsbury, in Staffordshire. The Hall dates back to the 17th Century and features the only church outside London designed by Sir Christopher Wren.

The trip was unusual in representing so many pupils of different ages and one of the best features was the way the older girls were able to support the younger ones, many of whom had not been away from home before.

After settling into their rooms and being overwhelmed by the scale of the imposing Great Hall, the girls had an hour's rehearsal on Friday evening, before going on a scary night walk with Mrs Fowles and Mrs Jardon.

Saturday was spent preparing choral and instrumental items ranging from the Vicar of Dibley theme to the The Four Seasons.

On Sunday there was a rehearsal for the concert in school the following week, and the girls learnt to sing the opening section of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus before leaving.

Even before they left many girls said they want to go again next year, and the way they all worked and lived together, who is to say there will not be an opportunity to do this again!
October 07

RECEPTION GOES TO MORRISONS

Preparation for a busy baking session provided Reception class with an opportunity to visit Morrisons supermarket. The girls are now experts at writing lists and sticking to them!
October 07

CHERNOBYL CHILDREN’S PROJECT

Saint Martin’s Sixth Formers welcomed Catherine McElholm, National Treasurer of the Chernobyl Children’s Project, into school.

Catherine told them about the success of this Summer’s visit to Solihull by a group of Belarussian children, in spite of the weather. The girls chose the Chernobyl Children’s Project as one of their charities this year and raised over £3,000 with a variety of activities, including Saint Martin’s own X Factor Competition.