Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.

• HCC Meet England Netball Team

  Sun 13 May 2018
  On Tuesday 9th January, thirty-six very excited pupils and three staff left Holsworthy to travel to Loughborough to watch the England netball team (the Roses) play against the Futures team (mixture of U21 and U19 England players). We had lots of time to kill on the way there so we created banners. Eloise and Amelia were in charge of face painting and then just before we arrived Miss Goldsworthy ran a netball quiz, which was won by Tallulah and Georgia. They each won some crazy headbands, which they wore throughout the day and the England captain Ama Agazee even complimented the girls about these.

   

  We arrived at Loughborough University (one of the most prestigious universities for sport in the country) at 2pm. We entered the netball centre and took our seats in a prime position front and centre to the court. Not long after, the players came out and started to warm up. The excitement grew as we saw our netball idols for the first time.

   

  The game was played in four quarters, each scored separately. The first quarter was won by the Roses; the score was 23-9. The second quarter was 15-13 to the Roses. The third quarter was 21-17 to the Roses and the fourth quarter was 21-8, again to the Roses.

   

  After the match all the schools were invited on to the netball court and each of the players took it in turns going around to see each school to answer questions, take photos and sign memorabilia. Amelia and Zoe both had their phones signed by their favourite players!

   

  Afterwards, as we were leaving, the ambassador for England netball came over and told us that we were the best supporters in the crowd today. She loved our face paints, pom-poms and epic Mexican waves!

   

  On the way back home on the bus, Miss Goldsworthy auctioned off the signed England netball she was given by the tournament organisers. Each pupil who went on the trip was given 5 raffle tickets and everyone waited anxiously to see who would win this amazing prize. The winner was Lucy Storry, who was ecstatic to have won. We then stopped off for some much needed food (McDonald's!) before watching a film on the coach and then singing songs all the way back home to Holsworthy where we arrived at 11pm.

   

  It was a long day, but totally worth it for the experience to watch England play and to meet all the players! A day I'll never forget! Inspired by what we had seen we copied the England netball warm up drills at our school training session on Wednesday night, which was great fun, but challenging at times!

  Georgia and Tallulah

  

• Winter Concert 2017

  Sun 13 May 2018
  It was an absolute pleasure to watch the rehearsals for this year’s Winter Concert on Tuesday 12th December. Students from Years 7 –11 performed a variety of acts—from a breath-taking solo performance from Emma singing “7 years” to “Altogether now”, sung by Year 7.

   

  It was also wonderful to witness the improvement in the students’ performances— their increased confidence and ability was very apparent and to hear this obvious progression was magnificent.

   

  Well done, guys—be very proud of yourselves!

   

  “Yet again the music students took to the stage in what has become an annual showcase of talent here at Holsworthy Community College.

   

  The students entertained the audience to a high standard with their performances and compositions with a repertoire ranging from old Christmas classics and carols to more modern music by ‘The Kings of Leon’ and Ed Sheeran.

  Lucy wowed everyone with her beautiful rendition of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Supermarket Flowers’, and Abby performed a piano arrangement of the hauntingly melodic, ‘Power of Love’. Eloise and Peter (the Music Department Prefects) took to the stage to perform at their final Winter Concert (being in Year 11) with a wonderful rendition of ‘Home’ and ‘Somewhere Only We know’.

   

  Not only do we have such a talented student body, but we have brave, confident and supportive students, and for some it was their first public performance at HCC: hopefully the first of many!

  Courtney gave a confident vocal performance of ‘Riptide’, supported by members of the GCSE class; Darcie’s emotional vocal style gave justice to ‘Jar of Hearts’, not to mention the Year 7 choir who were first up on stage. No pressure!

  I never cease to be amazed by the talent of students at HCC, so a BIG ‘Well done!’ to all for making every effort to contribute to a successful evening.

   

  It was for me, a true show of community spirit, with a wonderful atmosphere throughout. Parents and friends of HCC sang quite well too, under the watchful eye of Mr Scott!

  Merry Christmas everyone”.

   

  Miss Iles

  

• College Christmas Dinner

  Sun 13 May 2018
  A huge thank you to our canteen ladies for producing a fabulous Christmas dinner for us all to enjoy yesterday.

   

  Thank you also to our meal time assistants for decorating the hall so beautifully, to Zoe, Alicia, Lydia, Jess, Courtney and Syrah for providing some Christmas singing and for the staff who helped make the event run so smoothly.

  

• Devon and Cornwall Police Deliver Important Message

  Sun 13 May 2018
  On Monday 27th November we welcomed Devon and Cornwall Police Officers, Detective Sargent Phillip Leonard, PC Nella Barker, PC Andy Ladley, PC Charlie Northcott, PC Andy White, PCSO Emma Tomkies and PCSO Racquel Rowe to HCC to deliver an awareness session to our Year 10 and 11 students on child sexual exploitation and online grooming.

  Students were shown an impact film, ‘Kayleigh’s Love Story’ https://www.youtube.com/embed/WsbYHI-rZOEwhich they then discussed, along with their online habits and how they can stay safe.

   

  This programme is at the forefront of national policing and north Devon is one of the areas it is currently being delivered to. The message is that being exploited for sex can happen to any child from any community and awareness and knowing the signs may prevent this happening to your child. Please visit https://www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/cse for help and advice. If a child is in immediate danger call 999.

   

  The Devon and Cornwall Police website Youth tab also has lots of really good links and advice on other topics such as bullying, mental health, sexting and FRANK advice on drugs https://www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/youth/15-19/

  We would like to thank the police officers for delivering this important message.

  

• Presentation Evening

  Sun 13 May 2018

  Mrs Willliams, Head of School   In this week's edition, my article is dedicated to our ex-students and how hard they worked. We celebrated their achievements during Presentation Evening and I wanted to share with our community those who were chosen to win the awards. As ever, there were many conversations about who should receive the recognition!   Congratulations to all of our ex-students and we hope that their post 16 journey is going according to plan.   My thanks goes to Dr Michael Forster, son of our long standing teacher and leader, Geoff Forster, who gave our keynote speech as Guest of Honour. It is always a delight to welcome members of our community to share their experiences during this evening. We are also very fortunate to be supported by many local dignitaries: Councillor Barry Parsons; Mayor Jon Hutchins; Deputy Mayor Colin Punter; Mr Peter Bumby; Mr R Young; Mr C Vickery, President of Rotary Club; Mr P Brown, Holsworthy Lions and Mr Dave Fitzsimmons.   I am very grateful to Mrs Abbott and Mrs Brimacombe for their support and time in leading up to the Presentation Evening. A great deal of preparation takes place. Also, thank you to Mrs Kiff, Mrs Bottrell and Mr Lau for all of their help.   My biggest thanks goes to parents of our past and present students. Your time, effort and support is always very much appreciated. Together, we are all stronger, as we strive to do the best job that we can, to inspire our young people to aim high and work as hard as they can to reach their potential. Thank you.   Anne Betts' Award (Health and Social Care) - Mia Johns; Art Award - Grace Ross; Bumby Family Award (DT and Science) - Heidi Horn; Computing Award – Linus Carey; David Fitzsimmons Award (Co-operative Values) - Millie Moores and Kieran Fraser; Geography Award- Lucy Poole; History Award - Kayleigh Tyler; Holsworthy Lions (Service to community) - Zak Loader; Honora Broad Prize (Attendance) - Charlotte Prime; Jean Pitt Award (English) – Shannon Sutton-Watson; Maths Award - Berin Howard; MFL Award - Mae Hughes; PE Award - Kieran Langman; Principle's Prize - Charlotte Prime; Principle's Prize Runner-Up - Linus Carey; RE after school Award – Joseph Meredith; Rotary Award (Service above self) - Olti Arriku; Science Award - Hattie Oliver; Spirit of Devon Award – William Bromell; Music Award - Shannon Richards; Technology Award - Stuart Martin; Woodward Progress Prize - Holly Martin.   Photo courtesy of Dawn Bewes

  

• Presenting HCC’s Senior Pupils!

  Sun 13 May 2018
  Nearly half of our Year 11 students have either been nominated by staff or volunteered to help around the College with duties such as Parents’ Evening assistant, bus duty helper, Library monitor and mentor group supervisor.

   

  This is a new initiative for 2017 and will give Year 11 the opportunity to:

  · Achieve a position of responsibility, which they can then highlight at interview for a job/college

  · Be good role models for the Years 7 to 10

  · Encourage a positive attitude in Year 11 pupils

  · Gain ownership of the Community College

  · Elevate their positions in school.

   

  Students have negotiated their duties with the member of staff who nominated them, and suggested their roles, to ensure it is appropriate and not too onerous in a busy Year 11. They will be presented with a certificate to show they held a position of responsibility to put in their Record of Achievement for when they apply to colleges.

   

  Students currently enlisted are: George Bellew, Reece Bere, Luke Browning, Connor Bundey, Ellie Burnard, Mollie Cheshire, Harriet Cousins, Tilly Daniel, Matthew Davey, Kelly Davies, Carter Farrell, Archie Furber, Ashley Gilbert, Kirsty Godfrey, Rachel Hamilton, Elizabeth Hampton, Morris Haynes, Jamie Hunt, Kyla Ingram, Ellenar King, David Kirby, Katie-Jayne Lambe, Lydia Lavender, Jake Lee, Joe Lopez, Katy Martin, Peter McCabery, Ellie Miller, Kira Pengilly, Lee Pocock, Rachel Pocock, Mollie Rawlings, Lewis Ross, Euan Scott, Russell Sinclair, Sophie Sleeman, Joshua Smith, Mitchell Snook-Bevis, Hannah Steadman, Rhianne Todd, Jodie, Tina, Eloise Warren, Jake Willetts, Drew Williams, Ellie Williams, Luke Wonnacott, Imo Filer-Larwood, Ami May, Lauren Moon and Ursula Owen.

   

  Well done, Year 11 and thank you for your help!

   

  

• HCC Triumph in Rugby

  Sun 13 May 2018
  On the 7th November Okehampton College travelled to Holsworthy College to play some good rugby. Within the first 10 minutes Holsworthy put a lot of pressure on Okehampton, but it soon turned around with a slight mistake from Holsworthy allowing Okehampton to score and convert to lead 7-0.

   

  Twenty minutes into the game, Holsworthy were defending well and with that they had a break. Riley Orchard made an amazing run, but had to offload to Tom Simpkins-Wright, who pumped through their defence and scored; Tom Lowe converted which made the score 7-7. With Holsworthy under pressure, Okehampton scored another try to take the lead 12-7 - it was anyone's game to win! With amazing play from Holsworthy's fly half, Tom Lowe and his brilliant footwork, he was able to score a fantastic try, which made the score 14-12 to HCC! Later on before half time, Tom Simpkins-Wright scored another try, so the half time score was 19-12 to Holsworthy. With a good team talk at half time, Holsworthy were pumped up and ready for anything! With the motivation in their heads, Sam Jago took a great offload from Tom Lowe and Sam scored a try, making the score 24-12. The second half saw Holsworthy dominate throughout and play some really exciting running rugby. Sam Jago had an outstanding game and was named man of the match as Holsworthy went onto win 49-22.

   

  An incredible result, especially as they beat Launceston the day before 26-24.

  Well done, boys!

  Josh Brown

  

• HCC Students spend the day with the Marines

  Sun 13 May 2018
  Some students recently had the opportunity to meet the Marines in Plymouth.

   

  “We arrived at Stonehouse Barracks at 9:30am for an introductory talk. We were then split up into groups to rotate around four activities; a physical training session, abseiling, a static weapon and kit display and rides in an offshore raiding craft before leaving at 3.30pm.

   

  I found the day quite a challenge, the PT (Physical Training) was very demanding! They started off making us crawl up a steep hill and then we had to grab a corner of a mat which was really heavy and run with it, we did lunges, burpees, push-ups, sit-ups and squats. We did this on a repeated cycle and we had to lie on our backs with our feet about 6 inches off of the floor. I’m still aching 2 days later!

   

  I really enjoyed the boat trip – we went really fast on the river. There were 10 of us in the boat and we got splashed as it bounced up and down and also when it stopped suddenly.

   

  We also abseiled down one of the sides of the barracks – over 40 feet high! We also got to see some of their weapons and also what they use.”

  Harry Fackrell

   

  “I really enjoyed the boat trip because it was really fast and exciting! We went up and down the estuary and got a great view of the barracks.

   

  I found learning about the weapons challenging – remembering the names of all of the weapons was confusing as there is a lot of information that you have to remember, how to set them up and use them.

   

  The abseiling was fun, scary at first – but once you reached the bottom it was rewarding! I found the PT difficult, but I got through it all.”

  Richard Orchard

  

• Year 9 Battlefields’ Trip

  Sun 13 May 2018

  Holsworthy’s annual Year 9 Belgium Battlefields’ Trip has done it again. Despite the early starts everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable time! The following is a summary of all the sites we went to visit over the English Channel.   Day 1 (Tuesday 10th October 2017) To arrive there at a reasonable time, we had to set our alarms, get ready and be there for 3:45am! It was a challenge, but somehow everyone managed it. After a very long journey, we reached the euro tunnel by 11:30am and off under the sea!   Our first visit was Vimy Ridge which is a Canadian memorial and preserved battlefield site. Before getting a guided tour outside, we spent time in the visitor’s centre, reading and hearing about all sorts of things from a telephone to a razor blade. It was especially interesting as in class, we tend to focus on the English side of the story. It showed us that the life of a soldier wasn’t pleasant. We could actually see, first hand, what they had.   Next we were assigned a guide to venture into the supply tunnels. There was around seven of them spread out throughout the site, dug by Welsh miners. These tunnels stretched all the way from the reserve trench to the front line and had a light rail system on it. They were dug by hand, and the bright chalk mined had to be taken back and dumped in the bags used for the sand bags. We also explored the trenches, the Canadian and German front lines were only a matter of metres away! Unexploded bombs scatter the surrounding landscape so sheep are the preferred method of mowing the grass.   Next in our adventure, we visited the memorial built on the highest hill around. It is a large, marble masterpiece. Intricate marble statues were carved in the stone, along with the names of the dead around the base. At the back, there was a large garden and a sculpture of mother Canada weeping over an unknown soldier. It depicted the scale of loss and devastation to every country involved. Finally, it was time for bed! We drove in to the nearby town of Albert. After a nice tea out and a visit to the Golden Madonna on Albert Cathedral, somehow left standing after the war, we went to the hostel and got a good night’s sleep ready for our next adventures.   Day 2 (Wednesday 11th October 2017) We all dragged ourselves out of bed, just in time for breakfast at 7:00am. We were on the bus and soon at our first stop. This was one of the most emotional. It was the Devonshire Cemetery. There was around 160 graves at this particular site. It was small compared to some, but just as hard on us. On a stone by the entrance was an engraving of the post left by our comrades of the war, it read: “the Devonshire held this trench, the Devonshire hold it still”. People buried there were from all over Devon. Some were even from Holsworthy. It was sad, but they died for king and country. We will never forget that.   Next we went to the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing. We filled out a worksheet and did our own ceremony to the dead (but more on that later). Thiepval is a memorial to the missing, but also has many English and French graves situated at the back of the site. Seeing the graves together showed, not just the fact they fought side by side, but many lived side by side in the trenches. Just before we left, we had a ceremony where pupils, Chay and Jacca Moran, Katie Grigg and Bradley Vile, with relatives at the site, laid their poems. We also had a minute silence for their memory. “It was very emotional when we first found his name engraved in stone at the Thiepval Memorial to the missing; until you visit for yourself, you don’t realise the actual scale of death on the Somme.” Chay Moran – relative of David Underwood, who is one of those “Missing on the Somme”.   After that, we drove to Newfoundland Park (another Canadian battle site). Here we saw the trenches, the caribou of their emblem and the graveyard at the bottom of the site. The caribou is to symbolise a mother calling for its young, which is why it is used at this war site. Then we travelled down to the graveyard to have a look at the graves and their regiments. This was moving to us to see that they fought in these trenches so close to where they were buried.   Whilst on our journey to Belgium, we stopped at the Passchendaele museum. In it, we learnt about their dugouts and trenches. We also looked at uniforms, guns and a replica of the houses built after the war for the French and Belgium people left homeless. After that we went to our next hotel in Ypres, called Flanders Lodge, where we started our scrapbooks and then went to bed, for a well-earned rest…!   Day 3 (Thursday 12th October 2017) We were initially unable to go to Tynecott Cemetery, with it closed off for a visit by Prince William, who was taking part in New Zealand’s commemorations for their part in the Battle of Passchendaele. We instead went to Essex Farm cemetery, where we learnt about John McRae, who wrote ‘In Flanders Fields’, from which we get the tradition of wearing poppies on Remembrance Day. We saw where he worked as a doctor, attempting to treat battlefield injuries, and also saw Private Strudwick’s grave, who joined the war at the young age of 14, and died 15 years old.   We then went to Ypres where we saw the Brooding Soldier memorial and saw the Menin Gate memorial to the missing, for soldiers who served in the Ypres Salient. All before we went and spent a fortune in the chocolate shop! After emptying our wallets and purses, we ate lunch and entered the Cloth Hall, now a museum called Flanders Field museum. We had interactive wrist bands which we could use to explore our assigned characters on top of all the displays and films dotted around the room. One of our favourite displays was where you were walking through no-man’s land. On both sides were guns, barbed wire and mud. It was a new angle that none of us had seen before.   Later that day, we went back to Tynecott Cemetery and managed to get in this time. After having a minute’s silence at Devonshire Wall for the Missing, we passed the king of Belgium’s and Prince William’s wreaths, laid earlier that day. Then we boarded the bus, had tea in Ypres and Jaime Ley, Ashleigh Butters and Steve Kerslake, as staff Representative who served time in the army, got changed into school uniform ready for the Menin Gate ceremony.   “When we arrived, we were given our instructions; the last post was played and numerous groups laid their wreaths. We had to walk slowly in our group, lay the wreath, step back, bow our heads and then filter back in a single file line. In front of us were retired soldiers, they said that had done it multiple times before and will never forget them. I agree, I will never forget that.” Jaime Ley   "At Menin Gate we must have waited for nearly an hour, but it was worth it. The buglers, three of them, played the last post on their trumpets. The atmosphere was amazing because of the amount of people who went who probably go every night to pay their respects. Then lots of people laid their wreaths including Jaime, Ashleigh and Steve.” Lewis Andrews.   After that, we went to bed, ready for an early waking in the morning for the long trip back home. Lewis Andrews and Jaime Ley   Pictured: Ashleigh Butters, Steve Kerslake and Jaime Ley

  

• Year 7 Aquarium Visit

  Sun 13 May 2018
  Year 7 students visited the National Marine Aquarium on Tuesday 10th of October, the UK's largest aquarium, and they were looking forward to being amazed by the fascinating underwater world and learning how everyone needs to play a part in conserving it. It lived up to everyone‘s expectations!

   

  Throughout the day, different groups were involved in a lecture on the anatomy of a fish, a mackerel to be specific, and the opportunity to dissect one to have a closer look. The students‘ faces were in awe of the chance to be able to get 'hands-on' and have a go. This started with cutting the fish open and removing the guts, and stomach, including cutting the stomach to see what was being digested! It finished with the scooping out of the eyeball and dissecting it to remove the lens. Most students withstood it all to the end and found it an amazing opportunity.

   

  Whilst not in the lecture, students were exploring the wonders of the aquarium. Our journey took us across the world's oceans, from the shores of Plymouth to the coral reefs of the tropics. We had the opportunity to see over seventy sharks from more than ten different species. The sharks on display range in size from the small catfish to the large sand tiger sharks. Huge rays swimming over our heads and under our feet were a wow factor for lots.

   

  The whole day was fantastic, and an excellent time was had by all. It made for the perfect day out in stunning location.

  Miss Trainor-Roulstone

   

  Thank you Miss Trainor-Roulstone for organising this fabulous opportunity to enrich the curriculum and to all the Science staff and parents who accompanied the students.

  Mrs Storry