Mrs K. Coldwell, KS5 and G&T Leader, Maths, writes;
A team of six Year 12 students from Stanborough have been working intensively on a real-life engineering project for the last six months and their efforts were recognised last week at the regional Celebration and Assessment Day at the University of Hertfordshire. Tawsif Chowdhury, Callum Elliott, Hamzah Hussain, Christopher Illes-Wilbourn, Hannah Imafidon and Joseph Lowton began working on the Engineering Education Scheme when they attended the launch event at BRE in Watford back in October. BRE also sponsored their team project which was based on “Automated House Construction for the Future.” The team worked tirelessly from that point, researching existing products, generating new ideas and analysing the effectiveness of their proposed solutions. They met three times a week in addition to giving their own time to work independently in between meetings.
In December, progress on their project was given a boost at the residential workshop in Cambridge. Over the two days (one of which was a snow day for the rest of the school), they had focused time in the University’s Faculty of Engineering to construct and test models and then they experienced student life staying in halls at St. Catherine’s College overnight. This time allowed them to finalise their design as well as bonding as a team.
The spring term saw a sustained and concerted effort to complete the final model for the team’s chosen design as well as the report, presentation and display stand ready for the Celebration and Assessment Day. The team even spent two days in school during the Easter holiday in their herculean final efforts. The hard work paid off and the assessors were full of praise for the team’s innovative concept, their comprehensive report and their confident presentation. As well as presenting formally to a panel of assessors, Stanborough’s team talked knowledgeably to a wide variety of guests who visited their display stand and they also had the opportunity to view other school’s projects. The day finished with their graduation as Gold Level Industrial Cadets. This outstanding achievement has been beneficial to them personally and will also help them to be recognised by universities and employers.
Mrs E. Ahmad, Student Career and Enterprise Leader, writes:
Success for some may mean making lots of money, or winning an award but for this year’s Dragons’ Apprentice challenge success was much more than this.
The Dragons’ Apprentice challenge aim was to raise money for their allocated charity (Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline) through the guidance of their business mentors (PayPoint). Students met weekly and gave up their free time in the evenings and weekends to organise and attend planned events showing determination and dedication.
On Friday 23rd March 2018, the Stanborough Saints team were invited to attend the Barclays HQ office in Canary Wharf and were given the opportunity to showcase their efforts throughout the year to a panel of Super Dragons. They were there to hear what the teams have done and what they had learnt.
Our students this year individually have developed through this journey. Their efforts and abilities determined their success and any failures they faced rather than giving up they used them as an opportunity to learn and develop. They overcame fears of speaking to large audiences through their planned quiz night, developed team working skills with people they were unfamiliar with through their Bunnings sausage sizzler event and understood and practised communicating with various people through the planning and running of other events ranging from Tesco bag packing, attendance at the Dickensian Ware Christmas fair, Starbucks coffee stall and Waitrose green token scheme. Throughout all their events they maintained fantastic communication and cooperation with their dragon and Charity.
A big thank you to George Hammond and James King from PayPoint and our charity Volunteer Fundraiser Mr Kevin Bates for their continued support, guidance and belief in our students.
“It was a great insight into the apprenticeship opportunities at Barclays.” Scott Boyd
“It was a great learning experience as I had to learn and use a variety of new skills which I’m sure will be helpful in my future career path.” Nathan Curtis
“This challenge has been a great journey, many learning opportunities along the way, to strive to be the best we can be.” Arfahna Alom
“This challenge has been a good experience and has allowed me to broaden my skills and my abilities to work in a team and be work ready!” Tobey Foskett
“I am proud of us as a team and the challenges that we have overcome and the achievements we have had. I have learnt how to organise an event and work as a team. I really enjoyed doing it and it will help me in the future with the skill I have learnt .”Patsy Smith
On Friday 23rd February we welcomed back Dr Stephen Pam and Denise Powell from Hertfordshire Magistrates who delivered an extremely interesting assembly to our Sixth Form on the five main reasons for road accidents. This included the consequences for those who have caused them, considering how courts reach their decisions and examine the different sentencing options available to magistrates.
The aim of the assembly was to ensure that students are safer on the roads and they understand how different sentences could be passed. Dr Pam discussed the role of a Magistrates’ Court and the variety of cases that they would see and how sentences would be decided by which band the incident fell into with the points and fines attached. She also discussed how they consider aggravating factors and mitigating circumstances.
The students set up their own court room and took on the roles of those who would attend court. They looked at a case of a young female driver who caused a motorbike driver to come off of his bike causing severe injury. During the performance the students had to decide if the young lady was guilty or not guilty, explaining their decision and what the consequences would be. The magistrates explained how they would reach their decision, looking at all the different factors, including witness statements and the weather. They then had to decide the appropriate consequence to fit the offence. In this role play the young lady was found guilty of careless turning across traffic, insufficient attention and using her mobile phone.
We hope that all our students continue to be happy and safe drivers.
“The presentation was really informative and now I feel much more aware of the implications of dangerous driving for myself and others.” Joe Davis, 12S
“The assembly was informative about not only a career in law and what that entailed, but also the dangers that come with driving and the consequences you could face.” Chloe Crellin, 13K
