Education

Denbigh School students have shone in their A Levels overcoming all the obstacles the Pandemic has put in their way to record wonderful results.  Nearly 60% of all A Level grades achieved by Denbigh students were the top grades of A*, A or B which is a remarkable achievement considering they faced disruption and on-line learning throughout both years of study in the Sixth Form.  There were some fantastic individual successes with eight students achieving the highest grade of A* in all their subjects.  A further 20 students achieved A* or A in all their subjects. Denbigh students have secured places at many leading universities.  Students will be studying Law and Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge, History, Spanish and Italian at Oxford, Medicine at Birmingham, Architecture at Edinburgh, Politics at Warwick, Law at Leeds and Business Management at Cardiff, to name but a few. Denbigh’s Head of School, Dr..

The Arts and Entertainment industry is one of the worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. Over the past year, creatives have had to find new ways to share their work and ideas in the absence of being able to do this in person. Milton Keynes College students have done just that by developing their own virtual ‘Summer Showcase’. The exhibition will feature talented project pieces and performances from the next generation of artists and innovators from Milton Keynes College’s Creative & Digital Arts, Performing Arts, Media & Games and Music study programmes. There will be a mix of online galleries to view on demand as well as live performances. Kate Bashford, Head of School: Arts and Media says: “I’m so incredibly proud of the work our students have put in this year and the creativity and imagination they have shown to create this showcase. As we finally start to see..

Andy Burton has been appointed as the new Headteacher of Ousedale School further to a lengthy interview process which tested the candidates using a variety of activities that showed their knowledge, skills and experience in key aspects of being a Headteacher. Dave Moulson, Chair of Governors said, “The Governing Board began the process to find a permanent replacement to Mrs Carbert in March. The process involved several members of the Governing Board, Senior Management Team and students. After a rigorous and rather demanding process I am extremely delighted that we have asked Andy Burton to be the next Headteacher, and that he has enthusiastically accepted. Andy worked at Ousedale School as Deputy Headteacher between 2006 and 2015. He then left to become Principal & Executive Principal of Kingswood Secondary Academy and City of Peterborough Academy with strong credentials in school improvement including with Ofsted. He is currently Director of Curriculum..

There is huge excitement today at Watling Academy and the Denbigh Alliance Trust as Watling students make the move to their fantastic new purpose-built school building in the Whitehouse development of Milton Keynes.   The state-of-the-art, brand new, three-storey building, which is on a 10-hectare site on Barrosa Way in Whitehouse, will allow Watling Academy to offer an outstanding educational experience to 1800 students over the next few years. Watling’s first ever cohort of Year 7 students, who joined the school in September 2020 have been in converted accommodation at Fairfields School while the Barrosa Way site was finished.  They are now enjoying all the facilities that the new building offers including classrooms, science labs, DT facilities, social space, creative arts space and both indoor and outdoor sports facilities.   They will be joined by a further intake of 300 students in September. Watling Academy is a member of the Denbigh Alliance..

The Parks Trust and Environment and Waste Team at MK Council are delighted to announce that Annabelle Rhodes from Giles Brook Primary School has won their litter poster competition for 2021. Her design will now be displayed on noticeboards across Milton Keynes to encourage people to keep their green spaces free of litter and take litter home when bins are full. Annabelle received her certificate and prizes from our new Mayor Councillor Mohammed Khan, who said “We are so lucky to have so much green space in Milton Keynes. It needs protecting and it is great to see so many children wanting to care for the environment.” Sarah Spicer from the Waste and Recycling Team at MK Council said “The Council and The Parks Trust introduced this competition after an increase in littering last year, and we are really pleased that so many primary schools and children rose to the..

In January, Stowe, Swanbourne House School and Winchester House School completed the formation of the Stowe Group    The new group will provide opportunities for sharing strategic leadership and resources for professional development and ideas, in addition to delivering economies of scale across the Group.  Most importantly, it will enable pupils to benefit from group facilities, leadership and coaching opportunities, and enhanced teaching and learning environments. Together, the schools will prepare pupils for the world they are entering, one that is changing faster than ever before, and will ensure pupils can adapt as the world evolves, as well as bringing about positive change. Anthony Wallersteiner, Head of Stowe, said: “Stowe is proud of its reputation for breaking the educational mould, and we believe we should continue to play our part in the national education debate. We believe in delivering transformative educational experiences that will shape pupils’ attitudes and behaviours and..

Barratt and David Wilson Homes Northampton is continuing its positive work to support local employment, skills and training by creating two new apprenticeship roles to develop talent across the areas in which it builds. The leading housebuilder, which is based in Northampton, aims to recruit two new trade apprentices, one specialising in bricklaying and one in carpentry and joinery, to work across its operational areas. These could include: Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire.  The vacancies come ahead of the 14th annual National Apprenticeship Week, running from February 8th to 14th, which celebrates the benefits of apprenticeships for individuals, businesses and the wider economy.  National Apprenticeship Week is a celebration of apprenticeships across England and is a time to recognise and applaud apprentices across the country.  Throughout the 14 years, the awareness week has brought together apprenticeship supporters from across the country, with MPs, ambassadors, apprentices, training providers and top employers..

Denbigh’s Free STEM Lectures offer on-line learning for all MK students during lockdown. Denbigh School is offering access to its free on-line STEM Lecture Programme to help support MK students’ learning during lockdown.   The Lecture Programme involves top academics and STEM Ambassadors from across the country talking about issues of the day in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths worlds.  One of the first lectures is on the topic of our time with a look at ‘Vaccines and the immune system in the fight against viruses’ led by Amy Napier, STEM Ambassador and Scientist at AstraZeneca, the company behind one of the COVID vaccines being used to fight the Pandemic. Other lectures in the programme, which aims to build on GCSE and A Level programmes of study but are suitable for students of all ages are ‘Mountains and Magma’, ‘GA mice in Neuroscience research’ and ‘Icy Moons of the Solar System’...

A generous gift of six Christmas trees for schools in the Kingsbridge Educational Trust by local supermarket, Waitrose, was gratefully received by the pupils and staff of Kents Hill Park, Middleton, Monkston and Oakgrove primary and secondary schools. Staff in the schools have worked extremely hard this festive season to ensure that the traditional school celebrations still went ahead in the run up to Christmas and the delivery of the real Christmas trees were extremely warmly welcomed, as the children were able to enjoy the full experience of making decorations and embellishing the trees. Thanking Waitrose for their kind support, Kingsbridge Educational Trust’s CEO, Peter Barnes said: “It is fantastic that in the spirit of Christmas Waitrose gifted our schools beautiful 6ft Christmas trees for the children to decorate and enjoy every day. It has been a real delight seeing the trees in the receptions of our schools adding to..

Mrs Sue Carbert, Headteacher of Ousedale School has announced her plans to retire at the end of December 2020 after 18 years at Ousedale School, 10 of those as Headteacher Mrs Carbert said this is one of the hardest decisions she has had to make in her time at the school, in her letter to parents and students she wrote: ‘I am very proud of the change in culture and increase in expectations embedded over the past 10 years. I was a very shy person at school, playing the piano each day for assembly and singing, but somehow and somewhere, I developed the confidence and desire to lead people. I have been a person on a mission, for now the school rightly has a strong reputation, both in Milton Keynes and nationally, and is considerably over subscribed.’ The Chair of Governors, Mr Dave Moulson said ‘During her time as Headteacher,..

Open Mornings at Swanbourne House School Fridays 9th October and 4th December. Swanbourne House School, set in 55 acres of Bucks Countryside just 20 mins from Central Milton Keynes, has been passionately creating a dynamic and progressive approach to learning fit for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century. The school is passionate about developing in the children, genuine awe, wonder and curiosity at the complexities of life and the world about us – past, present and future. This modern approach is seeing children thrive in learning the skills of independence, communication, collaboration, resilience, reflection, and leadership as part of their curriculum. Extra-Curricular, sport and enrichment are an important part of life at Swanbourne House. The traditional Saturday School has been replaced with a thriving Enrichment Programme that sees pupils take part in workshops, clubs and activities that help create lifelong passions and develop new skills. The programme has..

Thornton College students have achieved outstanding results in their A Level and Vocational Qualifications, with 100% securing their first choice university. 75% of students achieved one or more A*/A grade 75% of all grades were A* - B 92% of all grades were A* - C In seven of our A Level subjects, 100% of students achieved A*- B 100% of Vocational Awards graded at Distinction and Distinction*. 53% of all grades A*/A or equivalent Head Girl, Millie Bull and Deputy Head Girl, Saffi Breakwell have between them achieved 3 A*s and 4 As. Students all secured their first choice place, pursuing courses including Mathematics, Biomedical Sciences, English Literature, Policing, Nursing and Education at a range of institutions including King’s College London, Warwick, Loughborough, Birmingham and Manchester. Thornton College Sixth Form continues to thrive.  Our students have yet again achieved fantastic results, enabling them to fulfil their ambitions and we..

When the students and staff at Milton Keynes College realised they weren’t going to be able to put on their highly popular annual arts show in the normal way, they decided they weren’t going to let lockdown stop them from proving their talent to the city. The event is always incredibly popular having spent some years opening at Middleton Hall and more recently MK Gallery.  This year the whole show is moving to a special online production where visitors can take a virtual guided tour of the two hundred and fifty art works on show. With so much content to put on, the exhibition team has been working flat out for the past two months to make sure everything is ready for it to launch to invited guests and the students on Wednesday.  The exhibition team encompasses the technicians from the School of Arts and Media; Liam Cunningham, Michelle Lockwood..

The Lillingstone Trust and the University of Buckingham have joined together to create a £13,000 scholarship specifically for local students within North Buckinghamshire, South Northamptonshire, or Milton Keynes, who could otherwise not afford a university education, and for whom a place at the University of Buckingham will unlock life-changing opportunities. The scholarship will go towards tuition fees for those wishing to study a two-year undergraduate degree in either computing or psychology, starting at the University in September 2020. Vice-Chancellor, Anthony Seldon comments; ‘We are delighted to be able to offer this new scholarship in partnership with the Lillingstone Trust. Psychology and computing are growing areas of interest for young people from all backgrounds and are infinitely important for improving our everyday lives and the economy. We hope this will help more students get the education they desire in order to innovate and progress in these fields.’ Chair of Trustees at..

If your kids are having lessons at home from teachers doing their best to keep education going, there’s a very good chance you might have Sam Watts to thank for it. Sam is a twenty-two year old apprentice at Milton Keynes College working for Cranfield-based tech company, Partnership Education. As with all apprentices, he is learning on the job thanks to the expert know-how of his colleagues in the company which dovetails with the technical training he receives at college. Sam’s job usually entails going into schools to help them make the most of networking and cloud technologies. He’s the Go-To-Guy for when teachers aren’t quite sure how to use their software. Now working from home, he’s been deluged with calls for help, not just from teachers but from parents and students, trying to get to grips with their newly-enforced distance learning. “The take-up has been incredible in the past..