Last weekend, the Cadets from across the Trust came together at Barr Beacon School to practice their Leadership Skills. Working collaboratively, they completed challenges while their skills were formally assessed.
Sixth Form Open Evening 2024
Thursday 28th November 2024 - 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Former Student Achieves PhD
We are delighted to share the news that one of our former students has successfully completed her PhD with the University of Birmingham.
Sandeep, now known as Dr Sandeep Shirgill, completed her A level studies with us in the summer of 2015. She achieved a fantastic set of results: three A* grades in Mathematics, Further Mathematics and Physics as well as a grade A in AS level Psychology.
Her next steps took her to the University of Birmingham where she studied Theoretical Physics and Applied Mathematics. She graduated in 2019, achieving an MSci with First Class Honours. She continued her studies with the university and embarked upon a PhD titled ‘Unravelling the Effect of Metal Ions from Bioactive Glasses on Wound Associated Biofilms.’ In simpler terms this translates to Mathematical Biology! Sandeep’s research focused on developing a system of differential equations to predict the behaviours of biofilm constituents.
Huge congratulations to Dr Shirgill – we are exceptionally proud of her and all that she has achieved since leaving school.
We are looking forward to welcoming Sandeep back as our guest speaker at our annual awards evening in November.
Blue Peter Book Badges
As a part of our commitment to reading in Barr Beacon School, we encouraged our year 7 pupils to fill in an application form for BBC’s Blue Peter Book badge. The Book badge was designed by one of the UK’s best-known illustrators, Sir Quentin Blake; who you might know from bringing to life characters such as Roald Dahl's BFG and Matilda.
In the application form, pupils had to tell us about a book they have read and what they think about it, what other books and authors they have enjoyed reading and why; and they had to draw an illustration of a character or a scene from a book.
We collected 135 forms over the first 3 weeks of September and we sent them to BBC. Due to extremely high volume of applications BBC receives every month, it may take 8-12 weeks for the badges to be delivered to children’s home addresses. Thank you to all pupils who participated and we hope you’ll wear your brand-new badge proudly!
Year 7 - Settling In Evening
Year 7 settling in evening will be on Wednesday 25th September 2024
- Start time: If you child is in Malvern and Wrekin house parents are to attend at 5.30pm
- Start time: If your child is in Bredon and Clent parents are to attend at 6pm
- Location : Barr Beacon School
Notices: This is a parent event only. No pupils are to attend.
International Day of Democracy
Schools across Matrix Academy Trust have been recognising the International Day of Democracy (15th September).
International Day of Democracy began in 1997 and it is based on the principles of equality, liberty, and justice. Democracy is essential for human rights and development.
Schools will be considering the meaning behind the international day, but also our modern British values – democracy and individual liberty.
We practise democracy in all of our schools by electing pupils to take on various roles and responsibilities on behalf of their peers including Form Captains, School Council Representatives, Personal Development Ambassadors, Anti-Bullying Ambassadors and Careers Champions.
We will be celebrating democracy in our schools across the week by voting for our peers and encouraging our pupils to take on these fulfilling roles for the academic year ahead.
Open Events 2024
Barr Beacon School will be holding a series of Open Events for prospective pupils and parents to come and visit us. At our Open Events you will have the opportunity to tour the school and find of what it means to be a pupil at Barr Beacon School.
Open Evening will take place on Thursday 12th September 2024 5.30 - 8.30pm
Open Mornings will take place on Friday 13th September 2024 9.10 - 10.00am and Friday 4th October 2024 9.10- 10.00am.
There is no need to book.
GCSE Results 2024
Congratulations to all of the pupils receiving their results today. We are incredibly proud of their hard work and commitment to their studies, which has paid off.
Our pupils have made some exciting choices for their next steps. We are looking forward to welcoming many into Sixth Form to continue their studies with us and wish others continued success on their chosen pathways.
Year 12 Mock Interview Day
Our Senior Team came up with a new idea to support their whole year group with their upcoming career applications. They requested that volunteers from local businesses visit the school to give mock interviews to everyone in Year 12. This was a big task, as it relied on people giving up their time to support a very large cohort of students. However the local community did not disappoint and we were pleased to welcome 14 very generous volunteers to Barr Beacon School.
The idea behind this was to help student’s become more familiar having formal interviews and help them to learn how to make a good impression with real employers from the world of work. Where possible we tried to match pupils up with an employer from the industry they were thinking of pursuing. Our volunteers were from backgrounds in an array of professions, including engineering, IT, construction, HR, education, psychology, business and finance.
The event received very positive feedback, with over 98% of students saying they found it helpful and 100% of students saying it made them feel more confident about the real interviews ahead of them.
Some of the student feedback included:
“I was able to get feedback from an actual employer within the field that links to the career option I've chosen and gain an insight of the genuine expectations and requirements to work in that career.”
“Not knowing the interviewer made the interview more realistic.”
“The interviewer was very friendly and gave a lot of information and feedback.”
“I was given tips and tricks for future interviews.”
“The mock helped me to think on the spot about any questions future employers may ask me, improving my critical thinking skills.”
BCU Climania Game
Year 9 pupils with an interest in construction, property and design were given the unique opportunity to take part in a workshop led by Birmingham City University. As well as learning about careers within the built environment, pupils were introduced to the influence of sustainability on these future professions. However, this wasn’t any ordinary presentation; representatives from the university had brought along their own board game to teach pupils in a much more fun and interactive way. The Climania game was created by thirteen young people from Birmingham, working with two Birmingham City University staff and external collaborators. They developed the board game to inform people of the role of the built environment in the climate emergency, hence their strapline: “CLIMANIA: The Climate Action Game”. With a focus on urban planning and retrofitting, pupils were able to play their way through the construction process and learn as they went along.
Our pupil feedback was very positive:
“I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but that was actually pretty fun.”
“I have learnt about new things I didn’t know before, like retrofitting.”
“I don’t think my home is that environmentally friendly, but I’ve got some ideas now on how to improve it.”
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Barr Beacon School
Old Hall Lane
Aldridge, Walsall
West Midlands
WS9 0RF
T: 0121 366 6600
postbox@barrbeaconschool.co.uk
Monday - Thursday: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Friday: 8:00 am - 3:30 pm
