Issue 9 • June 2015

Ahead of the PackI am pleased to introduce myself as the Executive Headteacher of BCHS with Crosshill. BCHS and Crosshill are led by two Governing Bodies, but work closely together, share the same building and uniform, as well as some of the same activities.

As the Headteacher of both schools, I am committed to ensuring that all of our students achieve well, despite their prior attainment or background. My role is to work relentlessly with the leaders in both schools, to support all of our learners to achieve the best they can and to develop all of our students into well rounded and responsible young people, ready for the next stage of their journey.

BCHS have been very busy working hard to improve standards for all of our young people, particularly focussing on Literacy. Our Year 7 and 8 students are reading regularly and enjoying the Accelerated Reader scheme that we introduced at the start of the year. The exam season is moving closer for our Year 11 and 10 students and Saturday sessions, along with after school sessions, are in place. If you are a parent or carer of a young person in Year 11, please support and encourage them to attend the extra sessions and to complete their homework in order to help prepare them for their forthcoming exams.

We know that to achieve the best possible outcomes for all our students they must firstly be in school. Last year our attendance was the highest ever with some students finishing the term with 100% attendance, I thank you for your support with this. Unfortunately, this year we have been hit by some nasty viral infections. Of course, keep your child at home if they are so poorly they can’t get out of bed, but for minor coughs and sneezes please send them to school. Extended holidays are unauthorised so also affect attendance, I urge you to take them in the school holidays wherever possible. We continue to strive for the very best standards with our students, this includes: uniform, behaviour and quality of work.

This year we have seen our highest ever number of first choices made by families applying for secondary school places. We are delighted with this and continue to work with and provide opportunities for our primary school students with the aim of improving our provision and increasing the number of families who choose us as their first choice secondary school.

Throughout last term we organised a variety of trips, residential visits and visiting speakers, including: a visit from inspiring doctors, STEM events, a Lake District residential and a trip to Paris; our Year 11 students and their parents were inspired by our motivational speaker Adam Mohammed. Reports from some of these activities are included in this edition of One Voice.

In November a group of our Key Stage 4 students played a critical role in developing and disseminating information on the alcohol awareness campaign. The launch of this was held at BCHS and was organised by Blackburn with Darwen Council working in partnership with local design agency TPW and young Blackburn film-maker Aeman Ali Afzal. Not to be left out, our Year 7 students were proud and excited to appear on the Blue Peter Christmas special in December, with many of them wearing their Blue Peter badges in school.

I am always impressed with the leadership and maturity shown by our students particularly our Junior Leadership Team (JLT), who would like to see improvements made to our lunchtime menu and will work with Mrs Chester, our new school business manager, to achieve this.

Thank you for your continued support in ensuring that our young people attend and do their best in school. It is essential that we work together to give our young people the very best opportunities for success in their futures. With this in mind, all year groups will be sitting end of year examinations after the half-term break.

- Mrs Atkinson Headteacher

What’s happening at BCHS with Crosshill

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Food Poverty is Without Prejudice

BCHS recently started a fresh campaign to support Food For All Day on the 30th January. Working in conjunction with Tauheedul Charity and FareShare –charities committed to fighting hunger and tackling food waste, staff and students were asked to donate food for breakfast clubs and foodbanks across the borough. A mountainous 309.5kg of food was brought into BCHS for these charities to share amongst local families.

To raise awareness of Food Poverty - being unable to pay for food, fuel and housing costs together -Mr Farrell, and Ms Rathore (Year 8 PPC) took daily assemblies and worked with students in their PSHCE lessons.

Ms Rathore said “We were able to speak to every child in the school and highlight the very real issue of food poverty and the detrimental effect it quickly has upon families. Some students (and staff) were shocked to discover how a change in breadwinner’s circumstances can rapidly spiral the family so easily into food deprivation. Once again, we have been really moved by the staff’s support and whole school contributions from the parents and students. “

Mr Farrell explained that “Food poverty is without prejudice; it can taint the lives of anyone, regardless of their race, religion or address. The students really worked hard with the project, putting posters up around school, and buying wristbands. We would also like to thank Khandra Cash and Carry, Lomas Office Supplies, Morrison’s and Hays Recruitment for their generous donations too.”

Head Teacher, Mrs Atkinson added “It is of great importance to us at BCHS that our students are aware of not only world issues, but issues that affect our school and extended community. We are proud of the strong charity ethos that is firmly embedded within our school’s social conscience, and once again, the staff, parents and students have exceeded our already high expectations with their generosity and support. A huge Thank You again to everyone – your contributions will make such a positive difference to those who need it the most”

Animation 14

ICT teachers Mrs Smith and Mr Robertson took a number of students to the Animation Festival and Inspirational Computer Science Day held at Manchester University.

As part of the festival BCHS also had over 100 entries to Animation 14, a competition run by the University to enthuse young people about Computer Science. All students were fantastic and really stood out amongst the rest of the schools.

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Glow UK Dress-In-Neon Day

Glow UK Dress-In-Neon Day is a national event in support of The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, which raises awareness of the costs involved in training and keeping a guide dog, and to increase awareness of the enormous difference a guide dog can make to the life of someone with a visual impairment.

Allan Maynard and his guide dog Yo-Yo visited BCHS for the week’s assemblies and spoke about being blind and just how important it is for him to have Yo-Yo as a companion. Guide dogs like Yo-Yo provide mobility and freedom to blind and partially sighted people; there are nearly 4,800 guide dogs owners in the UK, and the lifetime cost of a guide dog is over £50,000. The guide dog service receives no government funding and depends entirely upon public support.

People of all ages can benefit from having a guide dog, not just adults. Children and teenagers are also allowed to have one.

BCHS with Crosshill got involved to help raise funds so that another puppy can be trained and help improve the life of a visually impaired person. Head of Science, Mrs Reeves, and others in school donate money each month to a dog called Freddie, and in return are sent photographs and video clips, so that they know how he is getting on.

A massive thank you to all staff and students for the wonderful reception given to Allan and Yo-Yo. Allan made a valuable contribution to BCHS, and is truly an inspiration. Together we managed to raise over £300 for the Guide Dog’s Association, which has been used to sponsor three puppies.

BCHS Awards Evening

Cricket Coach of the Year Qasim Ali was a busy man on Thursday 6th November, not only did he launch a new cricket academy for four to sixteen year olds at BCHS by holding coaching sessions for both primary school students and BCHS students, he was also the guest speaker at the Blackburn Central High School GCSE Awards Presentation Evening at King George’s Hall.

Qasim was chosen to speak at the awards because he is a great role model. He started out coaching as a volunteer for Burnley Council Sports Development Team, and went on to coach in local schools on a voluntary basis before continuing his coaching at university.

His address to the BCHS leavers focused on the 1% that can make all the difference to success; all it takes is 1% more effort, or being 1% more focused, or being 1% more committed to stand out and become a success, not just in sport, but in any area.

Qasim has most recently been the Lead Coach at Lancashire CCC’s Indoor Centre, as well as being an ex-Burnley, Lowerhouse, Colne, and Padiham battling star.

This year the England and Wales Cricket Board appointed Qasim as the new Head Coach of the England Physical Disability team, after eight months as Assistant Coach. Qasim was also instrumental in leading LCCC’s Asian Talent Search as part of The Lancashire Way programme, and was named Coach of the Year at the Asian Cricket Awards 2014 held at Lord’s Cricket Ground.

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Students Get Totally Wasted

BCHS played host to the launch of Blackburn with Darwen Council’s new campaign to make young people aware of the dangers of drinking alcohol. ‘Totally Wasted’ is a four-part series of short films produced to highlight how alcohol can negatively affect your life. The project was produced in partnership with local design agency TPW and young Blackburn film maker Aeman Ali Afzal.

The launch event allowed every year group to watch the film over the course of five special assemblies. Representatives from the Council, TPW and Lifeline were on hand to give the students a background to the film, its making, discuss issues around alcohol, and answer any questions that our students had.

Young people of all ages were spoken to, during the design of the film, in order to gauge their awareness of and attitudes towards drinking alcohol. These conversations helped to inform the film’s script and typical circumstances when alcohol might be consumed by young people – highlighting various ways in which lives can be ’wasted’ by drinking.

Councillor Mohammed Khan said: “This was a fantastic event – full credit to the school and all of its pupils who were really engaged by the film and clearly taking on board the messages in it. They asked lots of questions at the end of each session about alcohol and its effects.

We wanted to put together a campaign that would be influenced by and aimed at young people to let them see that if you drink alcohol too early in your life it can have a negative impact on your image, on your profile and on your health. We also wanted something that would let young people know that there are places – like Lifeline – that they can go locally if they have any questions or concerns about alcohol.”

Blue Peter Christmas SpecialA number of our younger students recently showed their “star quality” when they appeared on the Blue Peter Christmas Special. The BCHS school choir were amongst the few selected from hundreds of school choirs across the country to sing on the long-running children’s show.

Forty-eight Year 7 and 8 students travelled to Media City in Manchester, to record the show, and entertain the nation with their rendition of “O, Come All Ye Faithfull”.

Our heavenly voiced choir became the envy of their classmates (and teachers) by not only appearing on TV, but by becoming the proud holders of Blue Peter badges. However, two students, Jason and Natasha got upgraded to gold and silver as they were already proud holders of the much coveted Blue Peter emblem.

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Celebrate Diversity

BCHS have held a number of Cohesion Days, where primary school students could integrate with other students from across Blackburn, share ideas and celebrate diversity.

A large variety of activities took place including multicultural poetry, science experiments, and using sport to reduce barriers.

Miss Hussain from St. Stephen’s CE Primary commented that the students “thoroughly enjoyed themselves and loved all the sessions, in particular the baking and science sessions. All the staff and pupils were extremely friendly. We were well looked after for the whole day.”

White Ribbon Day

White Ribbon Day is a special day which is part of a campaign that is focused on encouraging men to pledge to end male violence against women. As part of this campaign students and staff pledged that they will not commit, condone or ignore violence against women or Domestic Abuse in any of its forms.

The White Ribbon Campaign is also deeply concerned about violence against children, which is committed by both women and men. They are concerned about the many forms of men’s violence against other men, whether it’s in a bar, on a playground, or in a sports arena, and whether it’s because of someone’s skin colour, sexual orientation, culture, or simply because they looked the wrong way. They are also concerned by the comparatively rare acts of violence by women against men.

Lots of Fun for the Family

Hundreds of visitors took part in a fun packed Family Funday. The Heart Space of BCHS with Crosshill was filled with stalls and activities, including workshops and sporting events.

There was also an opportunity to look around the beautifully decorated Punjabi Bus, the only one of its kind in the region. This Pakistani-style bus owned by Shazad and Imran Akhtar took 18 months to complete, and was built from scratch in Pakistan before being shipped over to Lancashire in a container. Each part of the vehicle is decorated differently, with variations depending on the regional style.

Junior Leadership Team

Last term students were invited to submit a letter of application to apply for a position on the BCHS Junior Leadership Team, an amazing opportunity for any student.

The Junior Leadership Team is the individual and group point of view of young people within a school environment, which can include active participation, knowledge, voting, beliefs, leadership and ideas. The team represents the diversity of BCHS students as they come together to share and discuss ideas about their education whilst representing our students’ interests.

The team members will be provided with opportunities to display responsibility, develop leadership qualities and their understanding of citizenship, while acting as the main body of communication between students and the school’s Senior Leadership Team.

The students selected for the Junior Leadership Team 2014-15 are:

• Year 7 Class Reps: Kasim, Zeba, Mohammed, Humaira, Sophie, Zainab.

• Year 8 Class Reps: Raessa, Sanah, Mohammed Hussain, Ben.

• Year 9: Khadijah, Yaseen. Multimedia coordinators: Attiya, Danyaal, Ruman. Treasurer: Alliyah.

• Year 10: Vice President: Mohammed Hussain, Treasurer: Yasmin.

• Year 11: Secretary: Kirsty, President: Agne.

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Four! Five! Fire!

Year 8 students at BCHS were treated to a visit from the Lancashire Fire Service in the last week of Autumn half term. The representatives from the Fire Service gave a presentation about the dangers of playing with fireworks or fire and the implications of hoax calls.

In order to illustrate the speed in which the fire fighters have to put their safety kit on when there is a call out, students were split into two teams and raced against each other in getting changed into a full kit. They then had to remove the kit and pass it to the next team member.

Carla Benaron, Community Fire Safety Officer said “In order to break down barriers between young people and the firefighters who turn out to incidents in the local area, we visit local schools. Another reason we do this is because in the past couple of years fire-fighters have experienced serious attacks whilst attending call outs around the Bonfire period. The attacks were mainly from young men in their early or mid-teens, hence why for the past few years we want to engage with students of that age group.”

We all had a lovely, informative afternoon and a number of students asked for them to come back to hopefully get to know the local fire crews a lot better.

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Maundy Relief & Nightsafe

As a welcome run up to Christmas, some of our Year 8 girls did a beautiful job of decorating the BCHS Christmas tree. As the lights and baubles twinkled away in our library, it reminded us that Christmas was just around the corner! Once again it opened up a time of reflection and giving, and thinking of others for staff and students. With this in mind, students at BCHS were once again supporting Maundy Relief and Nightsafe, two local charities that help and support less fortunate members of our communities.

We asked students and staff to donate toiletries, unwanted gifts, canned, dried or food in jars and clean wearable clothes. Once again, we were pleasantly surprised by the amounts of items donated. They were then shared between the two causes:

Nightsafe provides holistic services to homeless young people aged 16 to 24 in the Blackburn and Darwen borough. Nightsafe has four projects offering a variety of housing options and services to young people, such as facilities for laundry, storage, showers and meals.

Maundy Relief offers immediate help to anyone who needs it, regardless of race, gender, beliefs or any social barrier; This help could be in the form of food parcels or a hot meal, furniture, household goods or clothing, or in other ways such as counselling for those in mental distress, hospitality and companionship for the lonely, advice and advocacy for those who have “slipped through the net” of statutory services, activities and training for those ready to move on with their lives.

The students wrapped the donated gifts and delivered them during the last week of the autumn term. The appeal was very successful and both Nightsafe and Maundy Relief were very grateful for the gifts they received.

We are proud of our ethos of charity and community at BCHS and we are always delighted by the generosity shown by everyone in our school community at this time of year, and would like to thank everyone who donated something, whatever the size, as it will make a massive difference to someone.

Poppy Appeal

Students and staff at BCHS raised a total of £245 towards the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal.

Eddie Maxwell, Poppy Appeal organiser, said “The active support of friends such as yours helps to continue the support the Royal British Legion give to our Armed Forces both past and present.

We are most grateful for your time, generosity and most importantly, your commitment to the Poppy Appeal as a whole.”

Ladies Night

A group of young women from BCHS organised a Ladies Night to raise awareness about domestic violence. The night consisted of a fashion show, stalls selling clothing, a raffle, and also included a charity dinner.

Due to the hard work of all involved and the ladies who turned up to support this great cause, over £800 was raised for The Wish Centre and Humraaz Women’s Refuge.

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Clothes Show Live

Miss Haworth, Miss Sange & Mrs Caunce took thirty students to the Birmingham NEC for the annual Clothes Show Live exhibition.

It was a long but fabulous day, leaving at 7:00am and returning back to school at 8:00pm. The students shopped ‘till they dropped, saw a number of television celebrities and watched the largest catwalk show in the UK, hosted by Jamie Laing from the television show Made In Chelsea.

There were also a large number of amazing exhibitions from various Arts & Fashion Colleges and Universities from around the country where students could see new inspiring ranges, and were able to ask for careers and education advice to help them with their future studies. Our excited, but exhausted, students on the coach home were already planning their return visit next year!

New Delhi to Manchester

Our Year 9 students have been learning not just about numbers in their Maths lessons but also about the wider world in which they live.

The students took part in a special project in conjunction with a school in India, where they arranged a travel package for visitors from New Delhi in India to Blackburn in the UK. This included flights, hotel reservations, currency conversions, language tips, local customs and splitting the final bill.

Afternoon Tea

During their Nurture lesson 7C2 decided they would like to put on Afternoon Tea for the staff who have helped them and supported them since they started in September. The students created the invites, selected the menu and then baked the cakes. Everybody had a lovely time and commented on how delicious the cakes were.

Medals Galore

Damien, Michael, Wynkyla and Harrison took part in a Judo competition in Kendal. They all fought tremendously well and represented the BCHS Judo Club with pride and honour.

Damien and Wynkyla achieved 3rd place earning Bronze medals, Michael and Harrison achieved 2nd place earning them both a silver medal.

Important Information

Students in RESOLVE will finish school at 3:20pm, instead of the normal 2:50pm.

Energy drinks and chewing gum are not allowed in school and will be confiscated.

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Winter Art Competition

All students had the opportunity to enter their drawings, paintings, collages, and sculptures in a competition to create a wonderful visual of what ‘Winter’ meant to them.

The competition was a great success and a pleasure to judge. The students who entered the competition worked really hard and the effort involved was lovely to see.

We are pleased to announce that the winner was Mariam’s beautiful painted winter scene, and the runner-up was Amina’s wonderful Christmas tree sculpture. Congratulations!

#TEAMBCHS

We’d like to congratulate the BCHS Dance Group, who performed alongside Crosshill at the Blackburn with Darwen Celebration of Dance in March. The group put on a great performance in front of a packed King George’s Hall.

The BCHS Year 10 Boys Football team had some excellent wins against St Bede’s, Our Ladies and Saint John, and Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, before finishing runners-up and bringing home silver medals, in the Blackburn with Darwen 6-a-side tournament.

Our Year 8 Football team came runners-up in the 7-a-side tournament, losing 2-1 in a very close game against St Bede’s, and our Year 7 team reached the semi-finals of the tournament, but were knocked out after exciting sudden death penalties .

In February BCHS students gave up their own time and volunteered as Young Leaders for the Primary Schools Athletics event held at BCHS.

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GCSE Pod is a website and linked app with over 3,500 audio-visual podcasts, that contain content produced specifically for mobile devices, tablets and PCs. It has been designed to squeeze exactly the right knowledge you need for exam success into short 3-5 minutes chunks to help you with learning, homework and revision.

Students have been registered with GCSEPod, so follow these steps to activate your account:

1) Go to www.gcsepod.com and click “login”

2) Click NEW HERE? GET STARTED

3) Enter your name, date of birth and your school

4) Enter your school username and password

5) Select a subject you want to prepare for or revise

My GCSEsKeep yourself organised by viewing a list of all your exams in subject or date order. View an exam playlist to see podcasts relevant to that exam, select the areas you find tricky and download to watch on the way to school.

PlaylistsCreate a new playlist, give it a name, add some podcasts and save. Watch the playlist online to brush up on your knowledge or download it and take it out and about with you on your own device. AssignmentsView homework set by your teacher, watch the podcasts they have selected and complete questions to help test your knowledge on a topic. Results are instant so you can see which areas you still need to work on.

Sri Lanka Volunteering TripGoing to Sri Lanka for a fortnight was amazing; learning about another culture, interacting with disabled children and making new friends. We went to work in a disabled school called Blue Rose, which was an inspiring experience as we learnt to appreciate everything. I feel grateful for this experience and hope others can have the same experience.

Visiting Sri Lanka involved a change in weather, food and lifestyle (no more boring routine). With on and off weather such as heavy rainfall, extremely sunny afternoons and even mudslides (which we luckily never experienced) it was something we don’t get to experience very often in the UK. Also there were significant changes in the food: from sandwiches to rice, meat to fish and greens everyday; let’s just say we survived!

Whilst volunteering in Blue Rose, we learnt to interact with children with learning difficulties, physical disabilities and slow understanding processes. Shocked and astonished by the lack of facilities they have, we thought we would help by contributing; by providing them with the stationery, books and toys for the youngest. Blue Rose accommodates young people aged between 6 and 20, and helps them acquire life skills to support themselves in the future.

We made some of the most amazing friends of our lives, learnt about each other and had the most amazing “banter”, it was surely a once in a lifetime experience. Bonding closely as a group, it helped enhance the mind-blowing experience by a mile.

- Moaaz, 11G

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Students Show Caring Side

Families suffering the loss of loved ones can now take comfort from a caring initiative by BCHS and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust. Students in the Year 9 Textiles Class at BCHS have designed and created more than 50 comfort bags containing toiletries purchased by the school’s staff.

Each comfort bag contains a selection of toiletries including toothpaste, toothbrush, deodorant and shower gel for use by relatives who choose to stay in hospital to support a patient reaching the end of their life.

The Hospital’s Bereavement Coordinator Erin Bolton said: “ I want to say thank you to everyone at Blackburn Central High School who helped design, create and supply such beautiful comfort bags. End of life care is becoming increasingly important for the Trust. Improvements are being made to better support bereaved families and we continue to make changes to deliver better bereavement care.”

“As soon as the students heard about the idea of comfort bags, they all wanted to help families who are going through a very difficult time,” said BCHS Head of Design Technology & Creative Arts, Miss Howarth.

If you or someone you know is interested in donating Comfort Bags please email erin.bolton@elht.nhs.uk

The Mosque at the Mount

I and several other students were involved in an organised trip to Clitheroe Mosque, one of the few places of worship for Muslims in the Ribble Valley. After being greeted by Imam Ashraf, we were all asked, out of respect, to remove our shoes, and the females in our group were asked to wear headscarves.

As I had never been in a mosque before, I was astonished by its appearance, I thought that the building was very peaceful and welcoming. We were directed towards the washroom, a place where Muslims come to cleanse before prayer, and were given a demonstration of the ablution (the wash before prayer) before we entered the prayer room.

The prayer room was extremely large and had individual divides lining the carpets. Once the prayer call was projected, the divides quickly filled up with Muslims who began preparing for prayer. We were lucky enough to observe the prayers being performed, led by Imam Ashraf as he read from the Quran.

Once the prayer was complete we were encouraged to ask questions, and the group were taught about the Five Pillars of Islam. The session was very informative and focused on key points about the reasons behind the Islamic expectations.

The day was highly enjoyable and has provided an educational benefit for all the students involved. I now view the Islamic religion from a different perspective and have realised its importance to those who follow it. We also wrote to Imam Ashraf thanking him for the experience.

- Orianna, 9C

Special Educational Needs Reform

The Children and Families Act and the new Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice have set in motion some major changes to the way schools across the country support children and young people with SEN.

If you have a child with SEN we will be contacting you separately with more information about what the changes will mean for you and your child. In the meantime we would like everyone to know something of the new SEN practices.

The SEN reform means that:• Parents and students will have much greater involvement at each stage of the SEN process.• Agencies delivering services to students with SEN are expected to work much more closely together.• The local authority will publish a local offer that outlines the provision available for students with SEN.

You can view the local offer by clicking ‘Blackburn with Darwen local offer’ on our website.• Students who would currently have a statement of SEN will now be eligible for an education, health

and care plan.

Changes at BCHSAll the students on our SEN register will be reviewed and their needs will be met through either:

• Having the support they need delivered through high-quality classroom teaching.• Having targeted interventions and support.• Receiving SEN support that is additional to what is usually available.• Parents of students receiving SEN support will be involved in an assess, plan, do and review cycle.

Although the SEN reform officially began in September 2014, there is a period of transition and we will keep you informed at each step. Further information will also be available through the parent forum group meetings. We see the SEN reform as a positive development and will ensure that the needs of all our children are maintained as the highest priority.

We’d like to remind you that further information about SEN provision in our school is available:• On our website at: www.BCHS.co.uk• By requesting a summary version of the school policy at the school office.

The DfE’s information for parents can be found at https://www.gov.uk/children-with-special-educational-needs/overview. A useful website for parents with children with SEN is Special Needs Jungle - http://www.specialneedsjungle.com

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Growing up British Asian at BCHS

Award-winning playwright and actor Ayub Khan Din, who is currently on tour with the new stage version of his hit film East is East, visited Blackburn Central High School to talk to students about growing up in the North-West as a British Asian and being part of a multicultural family.

Many of the students of BCHS are of Asian heritage, and we encourage them to embrace their new culture and identity of being British Asians, and believe they face many of the same struggles growing up as did Khan Din.

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2015 Leavers’ Jackets

Our leavers’ jackets this year are different than any year previously, they really make us feel special, and for that we would like to thank Mr Chinery. These smart looking jackets attract many eyes and make us look different – in other words they make us feel incomparable.

The baseball style jackets mark us as the BCHS leavers’ class of 2015; They make us stand out in and outside of school, which means we get a lot of compliments like: “Smart”, “Outstanding” and “Unique”.

Our leavers’ jackets show people that we will soon be leaving school; just after our final exams and that we will be beginning the next stage of our lives as young adults and are ready to face lots of new challenges. They also show that we are proud to be a part of Blackburn Central High School.

- Agne, 11C

Updated BCHS Website

This term Blackburn Central High School launch their updated website, which will be located online at the usual URL - www.bchs.co.uk Our updated website features a cleaner presentation, improved navigation, better links to our social media partners and virtual learning platform, plus all of the expected content such as term dates, letters home, subject information, exam timetables, and news.

Vocational Courses at BCHS

The BCHS construction class work in all weathers, a bit of bad weather doesn’t mean that they have to stop work. BCHS provide all of the required tools and personal protective equipment that is needed, the students just have to supply the stamina, will power and the drive to achieve.

At BCHS our vocational courses give the students valuable experience, preparing them to enter work or a vocational college when they leave school.

Our students are supported by two very experienced teachers Mr Burns and Mr Donaldson, who both share their valuable working experience with their students.

Paris Belongs To All

On a cold Friday morning in March thirty-six intrepid explorers set off on a bold expedition to Paris, France. The anticipation and excitement could be felt throughout the coach, as could the smell of all the food parents had sent to sustain the travellers on their long journey to Disneyland Paris via Dover and Calais.

After an uneventful sea voyage across the English Channel, the BCHS explorers’ first stop was Boulogne-sur-Mer to visit one of the largest aquariums in Europe, the Nausicaä Centre National de la Mer. Home to about 20,000 animals, the centre focuses primarily on the relationship between man and sea. The students enjoyed learning about sea creatures such as sea lions, sharks, and the ever popular African penguins. It was late on the first night when team BCHS arrived at Disneyland Paris, so it was straight to bed.

A visit to the majestic Eiffel Tower started their next day; erected as the entrance arch to the 1889 World’s Fair, it is the tallest structure in Paris, and the students were lucky enough to see the breathtaking view from its observatory. This was followed by a Bateaux Parisiens cruise on the river Seine, including many of its amazing bridges festooned with padlocks to represent eternal love. The day concluded with a stroll down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées to see the Arc de Triomphe and an evening meal at the world famous Hard Rock Café.

Sunday started with the Louvre Museum, one of the largest museums in the world; the nearly 35,000 piece collection is split into eight curatorial departments: Egyptian Antiques; Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities; Islamic Art; Sculpture; Near Eastern Antiquities; Decorative Arts; Paintings; Prints and Drawings. Next on the itinerary was Sacré-Cœur Basilica, a Roman Catholic Church located at the summit of Montmarte. After a tour of the church and time to take in the awe-inspiring view, the students visited Notre-Dame de Paris, a historic Catholic Cathedral widely considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture.

Day four and five were all about Disneyland Paris, the most visited theme park in Europe, where the BCHS explorers got to ride on Pirates of the Caribbean, Buzz Lightyear Blast, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, and Mountains of both Space and Big Thunder variety. Unfortunately after seeing the world famous Disney Parade their time at Disneyland had to end, and so the students and staff travelled back to the UK via the Eurotunnel.

We’d like to thank parents for their support, students for their contribution and to the staff that gave up a weekend of a much needed holiday to make the trip so much of a success. The behaviour and attitude of the party was exemplary, and Miss Haworth has already organised the 2016 Paris trip.

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Mr Meanor

This term, up and coming UK and American urban-pop group Mr Meanor played an exclusive one-off set for the Year 9 and 10 students of Blackburn Central High School. Described as a mix of R&B and house music, Mr Meanor’s strong choreography and electric atmosphere during their performance explain why it’s no wonder that they’ve already gained a 31,000 strong following.

The band is made up of Jordan, Jake and Rowan from Essex and Marcel who joined them from Los Angeles. One of their original songs and also their debut single “Here With You” has just been released on iTunes, and Blackburn Central High School were able to help the lads by providing a location for their latest video for the single which featured local artist, Nathan Grisdale, with whom they performed on Nathan’s recent UK tour.

The BCHS students really enjoyed the event and the band were mobbed by new fans wanting autographs and photographs after their exclusive live set. To find out more about the band head to MrMeanorOfficial.com

Making an Impact with JudoEight students from the BCHS Judo team took part in a Lancashire training development session on a Saturday morning at St Christopher’s school in Accrington, all the students behaved impeccably and embraced the spirit of Judo by joining in with the others and making new friends along the way. More sessions are set to take place throughout the year.

Term Dates 2015-2016

Summer Term 2015Opens Monday 1 JuneCloses Thursday 16 July

Autumn Term 2015Opens Thursday 3 SeptemberClosed Tuesday 22 September or Thursday 24 September (TBC)Closed Wednesday 23 SeptemberCloses Friday 23 OctoberOpens Monday 2 NovemberCloses Friday 18 December

Spring Term 2016Opens Tuesday 5 January 2016Closes Friday 12 FebruaryOpens Monday 22 FebruaryCloses Thursday 24 March

Summer Term 2016Opens Monday 11 April 2016May Day Monday 2 May (closed)Closes Friday 27 MayOpens Monday 6 JuneClosed Tuesday 5 July or Thursday 7 July (TBC)Closed Wednesday 6 JulyCloses Friday 22 July

BCHS with Crosshill Uniform

We firmly believe that having high expectations of uniform and personal appearance helps create a greater sense of equality and personal high standards amongst the student body.

We expect all students to wear their uniform, be smart and presentable, both when on the school premises and when representing the school off site.

• Grey Blazer with purple piping. Purple BCHS logo the left chest. Flaps on the pockets.

• Purple Jumper with grey stripe around the neck. Grey BCHS logo on the left chest.

• Shirt – Long or short sleeve plain white formal school shirt with collar.

• Tie – Clip on purple & grey tie. Additional colour stripe for each year group.

• Trousers – Grey trousers with a purple BCHS logo below the left waist band.

• Skirt – Purple & grey tartan, knee length, stitched down box pleated skirt. Worn with either opaque black tights (minimum 80 denier) or plain black ankle socks.

• Head Scarf – Optional 2-piece. Purple inner & outer, plus year badge to be worn on top left lapel of blazer.

• Shoes – Plain black flat formal shoes. No boots.

• Sensible school bag to fit A4 folders.

PE Kit

• Rugby Top – Half sleeved purple and grey quarter rugby top with black collar and a black logo on the left side.

• Shorts/Skort – Compulsory plain black shorts/skort with a purple BCHS logo on the left side.

• Tracksuit bottoms – Optional plain black tracksuit bottoms with a purple BCHS logo on the left leg.

• Socks – Purple football socks with black hoops.

Hairstyles

• Should be sensible and of a natural colour.

• High fashion/extreme styles or unnatural colours are NOT allowed.

• No lines shaved in eyebrows.

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Make-up

• No make-up may be worn by students in Years 7, 8 and 9.

• For students in Year 10 and 11- Minimal eye-liner may be worn. NO other make-up, foundation etc is allowed.

• The use of FAKE TAN is NOT allowed.

Jewellery

• Students may wear one pair of small earrings – studs or sleepers and 1 small ring.

• We DO NOT allow nose studs, tongue studs, eyebrow piercings or any other piercings.

• Students may wear a wristwatch.

• No other jewellery is allowed.

Outdoor Clothing

• Scarves, hats and gloves are permitted for outdoor use and can be of any dark colour.

• Plain dark coloured coat.

School Day 2015-2016

8.00am - 8.30am Breakfast Club

8.30am - 9.00am Progress Time

9.00am - 10.00am Period 1

10.00am - 11.00am Period 2

11.00am - 11.15am Break (15 min)

11.15am - 12.15pm Period 3

12.15pm - 1.15pm Period 4

1.15pm - 1.50pm Lunch (35 min)

1.50pm - 2.50pm Period 5

2.50pm - 4.00pm Enrichment

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Our community use membership is just £15 a month on a direct debit. This includes gym facilities and group fitness classes at several sites including Blackburn Central High School with Crosshill, Pleckgate High School, Darwen Vale High School, and Witton Park High School. It also includes the gym facilities and classes at Shadsworth Leisure Centre and Audley Sports Centre.

We really are ‘The Affordable Way to Exercise’ so come down and take a look at any of our sites or for more information please contact the beeZ office on 01254 708080.

Free Court Activities

Did you know that if you are aged 16 or above and have a beeZ card you can play badminton, short tennis, table tennis, cricket or football for FREE?

For more information on times and availability or to get your free beeZ card please call 07730283721 or 01254 680012. Equipment hire charges may be incurred and child prices are applicable.

At the Heart of our Community

Blackburn Central High School with Crosshill is open for the whole community. There are a wide range of activities available including: fitness classes, gym, sport facilities, adult learning courses, conference facilities, private room hire, and much more!

Opening Times:Monday to Friday 6.00pm – 9.30pmSaturday 9.00am – 1.00pmSunday 10.00am – 2.00pm

For more information about Community Use at Blackburn Central High School contact:

Danielle Dean (BSF Community Use Coordinator): 01254 581175 & danielle.dean@blackburn.gov.uk

Duncan Carmichael (BSF Community Use Operational Manager): 01254 680012 &duncan.carmichael@blackburn.gov.uk

Information can also be found at:www.blackburn.gov.uk/blackburncentral-cu

or visit us on Facebook at ‘Community Use at Blackburn Central High School’

Adult Learning at BCHS with Crosshill

Please find below a list of courses starting from April 2015. To book a place or for more information please contact Danielle Dean on 01254 581175 or danielle.dean@blackburn.gov.uk

Course Title Day & Time Start Date Duration Price

Level 1 Internet Safety Wednesday 6-8pm 22/04/15 8 weeks Free

Cake Decorating Beginners Tuesday 6-8pm 12/05/15 6 weeks £24

Level 1 Food Hygiene Thursday 6-8.30pm 14/05/15 2 weeks Free

Family Learning Decorating Cupcakes Thursday 6-8pm 04/06/15 2 hours Free

Paediatric First Aid Tuesday 6-8.30pm 09/06/15 5 weeks Free

Simply Fitness at BCHS with Crosshill

Gym Time

Monday to Friday 6:00pm - 9:15pm

Saturday 9:00am - 1:00pm

Sunday 10:00am - 2:00pm

Standard price: £3.70 Simply Fitness / Gold Members: FreeAll gym users need an induction - contact 07730 283721 for information

Fitness Class Day Time

Yoga Tuesday 7:30pm - 8:30pm

Standard price: £5.65 Simply Fitness / Gold Members: Free beeZ member price: £5.10*

Activity Price List *beeZ Member Non Member

Badminton or Short Tennis (per hour, per court) £8.05 £8.90

Table Tennis (per hour, per table) £5.30 £5.90

Cricket (per two hours) £66.00 -

Indoor Football (per hour) From £45.70 -

Astroturf From £23.10 -

Free re:fresh activities (beeZ card holders 16 years plus) Time For a free activity

Activity beeZ card must be presented

Monday 7:00pm - 8:00pm Netball Coaching

Tuesday 6:00pm - 7:00pm Badminton Coaching

Tuesday 7:00pm - 8:00pm Badminton/Table Tennis

Thursday 7:00pm - 8:00pm Football

Sunday 12 noon - 1:00pm Badminton/Table Tennis

Equipment hire charges may be incurred and child prices are applicable, all courts are subject to availability. Refresh sessions are subject to change

*beeZ membership £10 annually

To book a class, gym induction or activity please call 07730 283721

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Blackburn Central High School with CrosshillHaslingden RoadBlackburn BB2 3HJ

Phone: 01254 505 700Email: bchs@blackburn.gov.ukWeb: www.bchs.co.ukTwitter: @BCHS_ukFacebook: BCHS with Crosshill

Headteacher: Diane Atkinson (BCHS & Crosshill)Chair of Governors: Mufti Hamid Patel (BCHS)

Deputy Head: Neil Blower (Crosshill)Chair of Governors: Roger Harling (Crosshill)

Visits to the school can be arranged by contacting Deputy Headteachers: Majid Ditta or Shanaz Hussain

Phone: 01254 505 700

Twin Valley HomesProspect HouseWharf StreetBlackburnBB1 1JD

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