THERFIELD NEWS Issue No.143, May 2006

My congratulations go to Cathy Hudson, the Year 10 Drama students and all who helped to make the production of Grimm Tales such a tremendous success at the Leatherhead Drama Festival. It is a wonderful achievement for Therfield to win three of the four awards: Year 10 for the Best Performance in the Junior Competition, Joe Newton for Best Actor Award and Cathy Hudson The Richard Houghton Award for her innovative directing. [See below for more details.]

I understand that the local media have approached the police for information on crimes committed in the vicinity of Mole Valley Schools. This has been requested under the Freedom of Information Act. It is uncertain at this point what use journalists will make of this information although one experience of schools in other parts of Surrey where this request has been made is a less than positive one. Suffice to say the information released makes no distinction between incidents reported at weekends and in the evenings or occasions when the school is a 'Victim' of unwelcome visitors. At Therfield we believe that it is important to work with the police in the best interests of all members of the school community.

Goodbye and Good Luck The Year 11s had their leavers' assembly on Monday 8th May and it was a very emotional affair! They spent time with Tutors in the morning taking photos and swapping gifts. They then went to their Leavers' Assembly. There Mr Tuck wished them well as an 'outstanding Year group' and I was glad to have the opportunity to let them know how great they had been and that they really will be missed. I am very grateful for all the cards and presents that I received that day and am so proud of the way in which everyone handled themselves. It was a great atmosphere. Obviously now the hard work has begun. I wish all the Year 11s the best of luck in their exams and look forward to hearing about their fantastic results in the summer. Good luck Year 11. Miss Wraight

Winning Ways Following on from their success in the earlier round of the SATRO problem solving competition our sixth form team of Paolo Condello, Paul Williams, Chris Woods and Oliver Dixon went on to represent Therfield in the finals at the BP offices in Sunbury on Thames. Here they were given the task of designing a vehicle that would travel one metre, hit a wall and then propel a teabag as far as possible. The team won the event with their vehicle which was the best designed, travelled the required distance and propelled the teabag the furthest, reaching a distance of one and a half metres. The winning team collected a cheque for £250 for Therfield and received medals and certificates.

Sailing Success Well done to Michael Laverty (10JMS) who won the Fast Fleet series of races at the Surrey Schools' Sailing Association Regatta on Saturday 13th May 2006. Michael changed to a Laser dinghy in the autumn and he has been training hard all winter so this is well deserved after all his hard work.

Oh What a Night! [Leatherhead Drama Festival] We are thrilled to have won the Junior Competition and I am very proud of the commitment and focus shown by all our students. I am also delighted that Therfield School has been awarded The Richard Houghton Award for the second year running. Last year our Year 10 cast of Blue Remembered Hills won it for the accuracy of their West Country accent and the high energy of their performance. This year's cast has been a delight to teach, their wildly creative Monty Python style humour has meant directing them in Grimm Tales has been loads of fun and it is so nice to have an award for directing great students. Joe Newton is a very talented performer who really deserves his Best Actor Award. He also makes short animation films in his spare time and we hope that if his future doesn't lie on stage or in front of the camera he might one day become the next Nick Park at Aardman Productions! Cathy Hudson, winner of The Richard Houghton Award

Additional Drama Festival Photos

But what is probably most amazing, is the fact that we received two other awards as well, The Outstanding Contribution award, which went to our director and the Best Actor Award which went to me.

I would like to say that performing in the Festival and receiving the award from Sir Michael Caine were the best experiences in my life so far. I will always remember them. Joe Newton, Best Actor

The British Open Championship is awarded at the third round of the CIMAC super league, of which there are five rounds. Steve is also set to do very well within this league as he is currently positioned number one, following third, second and first placings to date.

Japan Day On Thursday 11th and Friday 12th May, Year 9 students were involved in the Japan days run by the Geography department. Students took part in activities including; martial arts, baseball, the history of Samurai, lantern making and Japanese art. On Thursday, four Japanese volunteers visited the school to support the activities, and students were encouraged to wear authentic kimono outfits and were taught how to write in Japanese. A fun day was had all!

Pasta Challenge Update Jennie Sanders the Personnel Officer at Waitrose in Cobham will be presenting vouchers to the Year 8 winners on June 5th!

Active Citizenship Using information studied in their Citizenship lessons, Year 8 students wrote to Tony Blair to voice their opinions about Fox Hunting. We have received the following reply:

Mr Blair would like to thank students for their letters. He would also like to reply to the students himself, however, his many commitments make it impossible. He appreciates the time and trouble the students have taken to write to him with their concerns. A careful note has been taken of their views.

Lester Bowden will be selling the shirt priced at £9.95 for sizes up to 34" and £10.95 for sizes 36" and above, after half term. These prices are the same for long and short sleeved blouses. We would like to stress that girls choosing to wear an open necked shirt without a tie must wear the regulation shirt only, plain white open necked shirts without a tie will not be permitted.

Sixth Form Rag Week This year's Rag Week was a fantastic success. Through a variety of fund-raising activities, organised by the Sixth Form committee, a massive £4,565 was raised for charity. The events included themed dress - up days, lunchtime talent shows, a quiz night, street collections and a Rag Ball. There were also many individual sponsored events, including Mr Knowles shaving off his moustache in front of a large audience in the Sixth Form Common Room!

The students chose three charities to support; Macmillan Cancer Relief, Practical Action (a charity which aims to alleviate poverty in developing countries through the use of sustainable technology), and Rianna’s Fund, a local charity the intention of which is to help underprivileged children around the world to reach their full potential.

The Current Year 12 students have already started planning next year's Rag Week, determined to top this year's total. Watch this space!

Activity Days For summer 2006, Mole Valley Leisure are running activity days for young people aged 11-16. If you fancy mountainboarding, snowboarding, rock climbing or taking part in high ropes and zip wires or a trip to Thorpe Park please telephone 01306 879178 to be placed on the mailing list for further information.

Year 7 Africa Evening 29th June Preparations are well underway for this exciting Year 7 annual event. All Year 7 parents should have received a letter (via student post) in the week before half term giving details of performance times and how to purchase tickets. The days leading up to the event are so hectic in the design Technology Faculty that we must ask you to PLEASE purchase your tickets by 19th June AT THE LATEST

Readathon Fund Raising A big thank you and well done to all students, parents and staff who took part in the Readathon event. £213.22 was raised and will be given to the CLIC Sargent and Roald Dahl Foundation charities.

The price includes travel to La Plagne, full board accommodation in apartments which includes three meals a day in the local hotel, rental of ski/snowboarding equipment, the weekly ski pass, five hours of lessons every day, winter sports insurance and all evening activities. If you are interested in taking part more details and application letters are available from Ms Buckell or Mr Batchelor. Deposits and application forms should be returned as soon as possible to ensure a place on the trip.

Family Links Parenting Classes The group is a small one - newcomers are most welcome. We meet in W2 at 6.30pm every Wednesday up to 5th July. For further details please contact L Noble on 01372 814431.

Parking near Therfield Please could all parents and Sixth Form students show consideration for our neighbours when dropping off or picking up students and parking.

Parents Prayer Group The group meets twice a term and the next meting is on Monday 26th June at 8pm at the school. A warm welcome is extended to all. Further information from J Poole on 01932 865476.

Parenting Workshops Partnership With Parents are holding a Workshop on Anti-Bullying. For further information please call 01737 737300.

Letters Home Please find below a list of recent letters sent home. If you would like a copy please contact the Main Office on 01372 818123:

Ski Trip to France for current Years 9,10,11 and 12 (ref 69)
Details of study leave, examinations and Clearance Forms for Year 11 (ref 71)
Duke of Edinburgh's Award Training session (Bronze) (ref 72)
Dive Trip meeting for students who went on the trip this year (ref 73)
Letter from Mr Tuck regarding articles in the press (ref 74)
French exchange (13th - 20th June) information pack for all students on this year’s trip. (ref 75)
Year 9 Skills course - contraception letter. (ref 76)

Dates for Your Diary