In this week’s newsletter you will find:
- Bede’s First Virtual Advent Calendar
- Festive Cheer at the Blyth Valley Disability Forum Christmas Tea Party
- Thank You From The British Legion Poppy Appeal
- Struggling At Christmas?
- Naval Section Combined Cadet Force
- Chess Tournament
- Upcoming Events
- Rock Solid
- Extra-curricular clubs
- Reading list
- Weekly menu
Bedes first virtual advent calendar
If you are following us on Twitter, you will have noticed our daily advent postings, which are showcasing some of the amazing work of our students over the course of this year, as they have worked to grow in character.
Festive Cheer at the Blyth Valley Disability Forum Christmas Tea Party
Bede Academy choir were delighted to be asked to participate in the Blyth Valley Disability Forum Christmas Tea Party. BVDF Homecare are a local Tier One Homecare Provider in Blyth Northumberland with a complement of over 100 staff and over 250 service users. They decided back in October to host a Christmas Tea Dance for some of their most vulnerable and elderly service users.
They certainly went all out to provide a most memorable occasion with a fabulous tea, and with a range of entertainment with an exciting percussion set from Rhythm Stix and the singer Eddie Shand. Mr David Bramley, the manager of BVDF expressed strong praise of those who provided the food and the entertainment. When commenting about Bede Academy Choir he writes:
‘Bring in Bede Academy Choir “Fabulous”. The Choir were so eager to go I barely had time to introduce them before they all burst into song with some of our most favourite Christmas Carols. “Angelic” springs to mind. All of our guests were in raptures and mesmerised by the performance. You could hear a pin drop at times. I must say I have been lucky enough to see the choir once before, being lucky enough to have visited on one of the Academy’s community days and once again they did not disappoint and went down a treat with everyone.’
The choir have a very busy Christmas schedule, with their next event being the first night of the Christmas Tree Festival at St Cuthbert’s, Blyth. They will also be singing at the Blyth Town Carol Service on Wednesday 14th December at St Mary’s Church in Blyth, starting 7pm.
They also sang at the ceremony for the turning on of Blyth’s Christmas Lights on Friday 19th November in the town square.
The Academy is very blessed to have such a strong team of enthusiastic singers. On December the 16th they will again be singing at the school’s Carol Services. We are looking forward to being able to sing along with them during this festive time.
Thank you from the British Legion Poppy Appeal
Struggling at Christmas?
Naval Section Combined Cadet Force – RNYT Visit to Bede Academy
On Friday 18th November a Royal Navy Youth Team visited Bede Academy to lead an Activity Day. The day had been organised in anticipation that an application for the Academy to have its own Royal Navy, Naval Section Combined Cadet Force, might be granted. We were thrilled to receive notification on the of 7th November from the Ministry of Defence – Head of Youth and Cadets and the Department for Education – Deputy Director Life Skills Division that our application was successful.
Their letter of approval provided encouragement by stating:
‘Cadet units within schools provide a unique range of activities and opportunities for personal development, for pupils and staff alike. Cadets have the opportunity to develop self-discipline and improve their social, problem solving, teamwork and leadership skills. Cadet units in schools also play a major role bringing benefits not only to cadets themselves but also to the wider ethos and performance of the schools in which they parade. Head teachers often cite the positive impact the unit has across the entire school and the improvements in leadership, confidence, resilience, and discipline within their cadets.’
The activity day provided a taster for the excellent opportunities that a Naval Cadet Section will bring to Bede Academy. The offer to join the cadets will eventually open to students from year 8 through to year 11, with the opportunity for Sixth Formers to act in some capacity as cadet leaders. We will seek to grow the cadets initially with year 8s to give us a good foundation to build on, with close to 40 students already having expressed an interest, most of them participating in the Activity Day along with 3 Year 10s, and ably supported by a few of our 6th Form.
With the numbers expressing an interest so far in our Cadet Force, students were split into two groups, each spending a couple of hours with the Team in a morning or afternoon session. Each session began for students with the Team introducing themselves and talking about the core values of the Naval Section CCF and some of the countless opportunities that will be on offer to them as cadets. This was followed by several hilarious ice breaker and warm up activities to get things going, ready for the main event. We had expected to be stuck in doors all day because of the weather forecast, but thankfully the day proved kinder then expected for us, just cold and a bit damp, and the Team took our potential recruits outside where they had earlier set up a Field Gun and Carriage.
Students were split into two Teams, Gun Team, and Carriage Team with each being taught how to safely dismantle and reassemble the equipment, before taking part in Field Gun Race Challenges based on those seen at displays by Regular Royal Navy Teams around the world and at the Royal Tournament and embedded in Royal Navy History. The Field Gun is an extremely challenging event, both physically and mentally, requiring leadership, teamwork, constant focus, attention to detail and safety, whilst handling and moving with heavy equipment.
The level of effort, commitment, dedication, and leadership displayed by all students throughout the day was beyond all expectations, with all staff involved and those coming out to see the event, singing the praises of our young people. The Royal Navy Team themselves commented on how everyone ‘got stuck in and did not shy away from the activity, unfazed by the cold and wet,’ passing on repeated thanks and praise for their ‘patience, teamwork, enthusiasm, and attention to safety during the Field Gun runs.’ This was relayed to the students at the end of each session, with all participants receiving some gifts in appreciation from the Team. All students are to be commended for their efforts during a fantastic Activity Day. They were superb ambassadors for the Academy, a credit to us, their parents and carers.
Why join the CCF?
- Personal responsibility, leadership and self-discipline
- Teamwork
- Expeditions contribute towards the Duke of Edinburgh award
- First aid training
- Vocational qualifications
- Resilience and perseverance
- Independence, motivation and confidence in their own ability
- Communication skills
- Organisation and time management
Mr Brooks is the School Staff Instructor (SSI), as well as being a Pastoral Support Worker, and is the person to speak to should a student wish to join the cadets. Students from any year group wishing to join our Cadet Force can do so by adding their name to the RN CCF Expression of Interest Forms which can be found at the Academy Reception Desk or speaking with Mr Brooks.
It will take a little while to get everything in place, but we hope to start the regular parading, get uniforms fitted and begin training for staff and students soon.
For more information about Combined Cadet Forces please follow this link:
Combined Cadet Force | Homepage
We will soon have the Cadet Page up and running on the Academy website and will provide regular updates.
Chess Tournament
96 players gathered after the school day to compete in the largest and oldest chess championship in the north east. Running continuously since 1957, the National Schools Chess Championships has quite literally never been more popular with students. Bede Academy fielded a very strong team of 6 in heat A for a chance to compete in the regional finals.
Josh, Bailey, Adam, Ihsaan, Micah and Daniel all played as a team, with the fate of whether they won or lost not determined by each individual player, but by how the team as a whole performed. At St Mary’s School in Newcastle with almost palpable silence, our valiant players castled, checked, revealed and defeated their opponents.
With courage and humility, the Bede Academy chess team won two of their three rounds (each consisting of 6 matches), and progressed to the next stage of the regional championship. You could have split the atmosphere with a knife as Joshua faced his opponent from Ponteland High School in the final match to qualify, with both players ending up with only a King and a draw being declared. This was enough to give Bede the victory and progress us to the next round of the National Schools Chess Championships in 2023. Well done everyone!
Upcoming Events.
7 December – Year 13 Parent’s Evening.
Rock Solid
Extra-Curricular Clubs
Recommended Reading
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 4
