St Brendan's News Bulletin 11.03.2022 | St Brendan's Sixth Form College

11th March 2022

Welcome!

Dear Students, Parents and Carers

We hope your second week back has gone well and that you are getting lots of feedback on your progress so far. We are planning a number of events to support students (and their parents and carers) in the run up to both internal mock exams and the external examinations in the summer. Details of an information event for Year 13 parents and carers can be found below and here is some useful information for Year 12 and 13 students who have formal assessments this summer.

Thank you to our students and staff who have donated generously to our Ukraine campaign which is being overseen by our Chaplaincy. We recognise that the Russia and Ukraine conflict may affect many of our students, parents, carers, staff and governors. At times like these our college community and ethos can be a source of comfort and support. Students may wish to speak to their peers, seek pastoral support through our teachers and tutors, speak to our mental health leads or to our Chaplain. It is really important that as a College community, we continually support everyone regardless of their background, nationality or faith. Please do reach out if you are affected in any way.

This week we have welcomed the start of our Progress to Success programme, alongside our existing academic coaching offer. This programme has started well and we are pleased to see so many students taking responsibility for their learning and outcomes by attending these sessions. The plan is for these to continue up until the exams and then, following the Year 12 progress exams, for us to work with our Year 12s on supporting post exams and as part of their transition to Year 13.

We have recently sent out 607 congratulation emails to students whose attendance was above 95% overall for Term 3, 210 of them were 100%. In addition, 18 of students were successful in our termly attendance prize draw and those students will shortly be receiving their prizes from their academic mentors. We would like to say congratulations to all students who are maintaining excellent attendance to their study programme and recognise that there others who are working hard to improve their attendance following recent meetings with senior managers. We know this will help you achieve the very best in your subjects.

Best wishes

Marian Curran

Principal

Academic

Key Assessments & Exam Results

Key Assessments – 14^th – 16^th March

Key assessments are happening next week, please check your exam timetable on student portal for dates and times.

January Exam Results Dates

To view your result, logon to student portal, exams tab, results.

Level 3 Certificate Unit 2 Criminology results were issued on 10^th March

Level 2 & 3 OCR Cambridge Technicals: Results date 16^th March from 9am

Level 2 & 3 BTEC Firsts and Nationals: Results Date 24^th March from 9am

Summer 2022 Resits

For those students that receive a U or NP (Near Pass) the college will pay for the summer 2022 exam resit. Please complete the resit form and bring to the exams office B211c (back of the LRC).

For those students not happy with their grade, and you would like to resit. Please complete the attached resit form and take the payment to the Finance Office by the deadline date as per the form (and below).

Please check your exam timetable after the 1^st April for the date and time of exam.

Deadline Dates:

All OCR Cambridge Technicals – Friday 18^th March 2022

All BTEC Firsts and Nationals – Wednesday 30^th March 2022

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact the Exams Team: examsteam@stbrn.ac.uk

UCAS Discovery Exhibition

On 28th April the college will be running a trip to the UCAS Discovery Exhibition which is being held at the SGS Wise Campus at Stoke Gifford.

This is your chance to talk to lots of different universities, colleges, apprenticeship providers and employers ready to help you discover your future.

Coaches will be leaving St Brendan's at 8:45am and we have a two hour slot reserved for our students (9:30-11:30am).

Click the link below to register your interest or scan the QR code on the posters around college.

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST HERE

Year 13 Parents & Carers Revision Event

Come and join us on Thursday 17th March for a session of tips and suggestions for ways that you can support and help your young person over the next couple of months as they immerse themselves in revision and sit their final exams.

The event will begin with an overview presentation which will run at 5:30pm & 6:15pm - book the one that is most convenient for you by clicking the button below.

After the presentation there will be a series of revision stalls set up for you to visit where you can talk to staff re anything that you would like more information on.

BOOK HERE

Progress Review Event Parent/Carer Feedback

Following on from our Online Progress Review event on the 10^th March for ATL3 and Y13 Students, can we please ask parents and carers to take a few moments to complete our survey regarding this review and also, about the College as a whole. This survey will close at 11pm on the 20^th March. Thank you in advance.

FEEDBACK FORM

Enrichment

Come and watch Superglue

St Brendan's students are taking part in the National Theatre Connections Festival 2022. They are doing two evening performances of their play here at St Brendan's on March 23rd and 24th before moving on to the competitive stage at the Bristol Old Vic next month. It would be great for them to have a full house to perform to - you can book tickets using the link below (£5 adults / £3 students).

Superglue tells the story of a group of climate activists gathering at a woodland burial ground to say goodbye to a friend who died during a protest. As they gather, they erect banners and they talk about their pasts and their futures, about peaceful action versus violent action, about how society dismisses them and undervalues their cause. Initially, we believe these activists are the age of the actors playing them. Gradually, we realise that this is the story of an elderly climate action group - elderly characters performed without imitation by young actors. Parallels are drawn between old age and adolescence in a play that gently invites an intergenerational understanding of the future of our planet.

Book your tickets here

Do you want to be part of our Student Union?

What would you change about being a student at St Brendan's? Perhaps you want more extracurricular opportunities? A stronger focus on sustainability or inclusivity?

If you think that you could represent your peers, why not nominate yourself to be part of our Student Union!

The deadline for all SU applications is Friday the 18th of March.

All students have been emailed the SU Election Information handbook which explains what you need to do to apply/what roles you can apply to. If you have any questions about the SU, these roles, or the process, just drop Lauren Riley (lri@stbrn.ac.uk) or Laura Howe-Haysom (lhh@stbrn.ac.uk) an email. If you are interested in more than one role, let them know and they can help you find the role that is right for you! 🙂

Leading the SU is a great responsibility, but an incredible experience and unbeatable development opportunity.

LRC Recommended Reads

Click here to find out more about these great reads.

Music Students Takeover @ Bristol Beacon

'Putting the spotlight on the next generation of local musicians, talented students of St Brendan’s Sixth Form College are set to take over Bristol Beacon this Spring.

The event will include performances from ensembles, bands, and young artists on stages across the venue as well as showcases of student compositions, all supported by Music Technology students.

Students will also be collaborating with Bristol Beacon Artist in Residence, award-winning sound artist and beatboxer Jason Singh.'

Book your tickets here

Game On!

Check out this week's sports results and find out what sporting activities you can join in with next week in the latest edition of Game On - the college sports magazine:

Game On #issue 9

Careers and Progression

Careers News

National Careers Week (NCW) 2022
Find out how can you participate in St Brendan’s activities for NCW 20022
Information on applying for Student Finance
Sport Masterclasses Workshops
Join Joe Wicks MBE at the Unifrog Next Steps Fair!
Working in Animal Welfare online event
UK University & Apprenticeship Search Virtual Fair
Meet the Russell Group Virtual Experience
Cyber Security: Online and Personal Safety- Work Experience
Many Accountancy and Banking work experience opportunities
BBC Production Apprenticeship Fast Track
ScreenSkills Apprenticeship Opportunities
Government Cyber Security apprenticeships
Oxford and Cambridge Student Conferences
And much more! Explore now!

CLICK HERE TO ACCESS

College Information & News

TalkCampus: Mental Health Support

We have launched a new mental health service called TalkCampus. It’s a free to download app where you can talk with other students from around the world if you’re struggling and worried about your mental health. Your student email address will give you free access.

TalkCampus is anonymous and we won’t be able to see if you are using it, you also won’t be able to see where other students are from. TalkCampus is about peer support. The platform is safe and moderated and is designed as a place where you can just be yourself and talk about how you’re feeling.

Download TalkCampus from the app stores on Google or the App Store

College Bursary

If the adults you live with earn a combined income of less than £27,000 per year you could qualify for help with the cost of travel to college and compulsory course costs. For more information and a link to the online applications system visit our website