General School News
Alert -Jequirity bean bracelets
We have received an alert regarding the sale of the following bracelets that have been on sale at Eden Project in Cornwall and another 36 retailers across the UK; urging customers to return the red and black bracelets made from the Jequirity bean, the deadly seed of the plant abrus precatorious. It contains the toxin abrin, a controlled substance under the Terrorism Act that if swallowed can kill in doses of just 3 micrograms.
Abrin is chemically similar to ricin, a chemical warfare agent. People who have bought the bracelets are being urged to bag them and then wash their hands and avoid touching their eyes. The Eden Project alone sold 2,800 bracelets over a year. I If you attend a patient known to have been in contact with one of these bracelets please treat as per poisonous substances and be aware of the imminent risk to the patient.
Should you require any further information please contact one of the clinical team
Roger Watson - Deputy Clinical Director
East Midlands Ambulance Service
Message from the Headteacher 3-2-2012
I am sure that some students caught the weather headlines about predicted snow. As I write this I am pleased to note that we are likely to miss out on any significant falls. Should the School need to close for Health and Safety reasons this information will be displayed on the School website, broadcast on Heart and Three Counties radio and on the School’s answer phone message. I stress that at this point in time it seems unlikely that we will be forced into this position.
Since I last wrote the School has held the Year 9 Parent consultation evening. I would like to thank all the parents who attended and discussed their child’s progress with their teachers. Education is most effective when there is a partnership between home, school and students, all working to the same ends.
Year 9 are entering an interesting stage as they finalise their option choices, decisions which will shape their school experience for the next two years and indeed to a certain extent the rest of their lives.
I hope that students in Years 11, 12 and 13 need no reminding that the examinations are fast approaching. I wish them well in the build up to them and urge them to take full advantage of the support offered in School by the teachers and others.
Mr D Stevinson
Headteacher
Network Issues
We have been experiencing some ICT Network issues during 26th and 27th January. As a result, electronic communication between school and parents has been difficult.
If you believe you have communicated with us by phone or email, it would be worth checking that your message has been received. If you were expecting a text message or electronic letter/newsletter, these will be delayed until the problem is resolved.
Many thanks for your patience.
Message from the Headteacher 20-01-2012
The Christmas holidays now seem a faint distant memory, the spring term has started well and been busy for staff, students and parents.
Thursday 12th January saw the Year 11 Mock Results Assembly. Several students informed me that they felt we had created a very real experience, they really felt the pressure as they opened the envelope. My thanks go not only to Sandy Upper School staff, who gave up the time to support the students, but also to all the teachers from schools within the Pinnacle Trust who joined us, as well as School Governors. The behaviour of the students was impeccable and made me proud. This year we modified the programme slightly by asking two students from the Sixth Form to talk to the Year group, my thanks go to Katie Doran and Ashley Boness who spoke honestly about their experiences. Mrs Bernard made it abundantly clear that all the students could improve their performance in the summer; the School would provide support in many different ways, but there was no short cut to hard work. I reiterated that I would not wish them good luck, relying on luck is not the way to secure success! I would like to thank all my colleagues who worked hard to mark the examination papers and enter the grades in time for this event to be run.
On the same day as the Mock Results Assembly we ran the Year 11 Parents’ Evening and a week
later the Parents/Student’s Workshops on revision and examination techniques. I would like to thank all those parents who supported these events and to the staff and Sixth Form students who volunteered to help run the sessions.
As staff, we started the year with an Inset day and one of the first things that I had the pleasure to relate to colleagues was that Mrs Hammond is now a proud mother, so our congratulations to her.
I then welcomed two new colleagues to the Sandy Upper School team: Mr S Burrows is the new Subject Leader for Geography. Mr D Burrows (no relation) joins the ICT department.
I wish both these colleagues well as they start their career at Sandy Upper School; I have to say that both have made great impressions.
Throughout this year I have been focusing with staff on improving teaching and learning; as a result, it is becoming increasingly common for colleagues to be observing the progress students are making in lessons. This drive will be continuing throughout the rest of this year, I hope that your son/daughter is noticing an improvement in their learning.
Mr D Stevinson
Headteacher
Energy Drinks
We are aware that a number of students are drinking caffeine rich fizzy drinks on a regular basis in School and, in some cases, in quite alarming quantities. For students who are already finding difficulty in managing their behaviour the energy boost may be the last thing they need! On a more serious note, I’m providing links to research evidence that they are not advised for young people and certainly shouldn’t be necessary if they have an otherwise healthy diet. Please encourage your child to bring bottled water to drink instead – there is plenty of evidence that brains hydrated in this way are more effective!
http://www.nhs.uk/news/2011/02February/Pages/study-examines-energy-drink-risk.aspxhttp://www.mistakenforadhd.com/tag/energy-drinks-and-behavior-problems/
Ms A Twiggs
Former Students
We are currently celebrating the successes of some of our former students with a Wall of Fame. The first batch of photographs have been put up along the main entrance corridor and we hope to add to these over time. If you have a son/daughter who attended the School before 2008, they are likely to have some achievements of which they are rightly proud (job, family, academic career). We would love to hear from them, letting us have the following information accompanied by a suitable photograph in portrait format:-
1. The years during which they attended Sandy Upper School (e.g. 2003-2008).
2. Their most significant achievement (their job, their education, their personal achievements).
3. What they are doing now.
All responses should be emailed to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
