Latest News Stories from Brooke Weston Academy
Brooke Weston Trust’s CEO, Dr Andrew Campbell, visited Brooke Weston Academy on the last of his tours of all the Brooke Weston Trust schools. He spoke to students and staff about all aspects of the academy and visited a range of classrooms.
Brooke Weston’s guitar teacher Mr Paul Balmer is searching for more students to become involved in his youth projects in music and creating podcasts and short films about Corby.
Brooke Weston’s restaurant manager, Christine Gray, is retiring after 25 years in the role, having worked with thousands of our students over the years.
Christine started working at Brooke Weston as a general assistant in the restaurant and has seen a lot of changes in the school. ‘When I first began working here 25 years ago there were only 350 students, since then the restaurant has been extended, the library has been built and we have had a brand new extention for performing arts.
‘Brooke Weston has been really good to me during my time here. I left school when I was 15 and since working here I have completed my Level 3 NVQ management course and learnt how to use a computer, which terrified me at first! My role here is slightly different to other catering managers within the trust I do all the finance myself, which includes bacs runs, ensuring suppliers get paid, and reconciling the students lunch money. I used to do it all in books but now it’s done on the computer. I have a fabulous team of 18 who have all worked with me a long time, some of them 15-20 years and I will miss them all so much.
Brooke Weston’s careers adviser, Andy Primmett, is retiring after 20 years in the role, having worked with thousands of our students to help them form their career ideas.
'There have been major developments in the world of work during this time: a dramatic rise in self-employment, zero hours contracts, outsourcing, fixed-term contracts, off-shoring and a huge increase in university applications. Young people can also now consider the new Higher Apprenticeships which have been developed by leading employers, and these offer well-paid professional careers without incurring large debt.
Year 8 students have been spending time with Careers Advisor Mr Primmett to help them decide which subjects to choose for Year 9.
Brooke Weston’s senior team got in the festive spirit by serving 1,100 turkey dinners over the past two days. Executive Principal Trish Stringer, Associate Principal Peter Kirkbride plus Vice Principals Simon Underwood and Cristina Taboada-Naya and Business Manager Chris Stewart donned Christmas hats and attire to dish out the festive fare.
Brooke Weston computer science teacher Ray Chambers has been named as one of four UK teachers to be included in the top 50 shortlist for the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2017. Now in its third year, the US $1 million award is the largest prize of its kind.
Alishia Read has recently taken up the post of media officer for Brooke Weston and two other schools in the Trust. She has had a career in media sales and advertising and, after running her own business with young people, she wanted to make the transition to a school environment.
Alishia said: ‘I have generally worked in media, sales, advertising and PR. I was working in London in a magazine company before moving up to the area and becoming manager for Image magazine in Northampton for around seven years. I also did marketing in an estate agency then started my own business teaching baby massage, baby yoga and children’s yoga for those aged from three to 12 years so I have a varied skill set that I bring to the job.
Computer science teacher Ray Chambers is being interviewed by national media about the imminent release of an educational version of Minecraft. The game, which allows users to construct virtual structures, is already popular with students, but the new release is specifically aimed at school use. Mr Chambers has been approached by The Sunday Times and TV show Good Morning Britain to talk about how the software can be used to enhance lessons.
The telephone interview with the Sunday Times should appear in this weekend’s paper and Mr Chambers is due to be live on ITV some time between 06:30 and 08:30 on Tuesday morning.
In celebration of the Duke of Edinburgh Scheme’s Diamond Anniversary DT technician Mr Darren Hooper has recently completed a 12 hour mountain bike race plus a separate cycling expedition up Mount Snowdon to raise funds for local D of E projects.
Mr Hooper completed the gruelling 12 hours of mountain biking around Minley Manor in Reading, only stopping for one or two minutes every lap, and later went on to bike to the top of Mount Snowdon, raising £150. He said ‘I didn’t get the chance to do D of E when I was at school. So when I heard about the Diamond D of E challenge I knew it was something I wanted to do. I love challenging myself and pushing the boundaries of my comfort zone.
After 14 years at Brooke Weston Academy art technician Susan McAlpine is retiring. She has been fundamental in helping teachers organise their lessons, makes sure students have the equipment they need and carries out a host of other duties that she has been doing so long that it’s just second nature to her.
Susan, originally from Glasgow, moved to Corby 44 years ago. This meant that she had to leave her apprenticeship as a window dresser with House of Fraser that she had started aged just 14 and a half.
She came to Brooke Weston as a part time cleaner and four years later went on to the role of technician.
As part of a national initiative to increase awareness of STEM careers, science teacher, Ms Reynolds, recently took part in a trip to Iceland.
Organised by the National Science Learning Centre, 15 teachers nationwide applied to go to Iceland to learn about its diverse landscapes and provide their students with varying contexts when teaching.
During the trip they took part in a 185-mile golden circle tour, when they experienced waterfalls, lava fields, volcanoes and geysers, where the power of the water and steam erupting from the ground due to the extreme heat is incredible.
Coomb Road , Great Oakley, Corby, Northamptonshire, NN18 8LA
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