Students from years 7 – 10 at Felpham Community College are celebrating a successful ‘Dance House’ performance, held at the Alexandra Theatre, Bognor Regis.

The extra-curricular team took part in the event along with 7 other local schools, performing to a packed audience on Monday 23^rd January. The FCC dance was titled ‘Game Over’, with the storyline of the group being trapped in a video game. The piece explored the impact digital games have on our society.

Miss Crocker, Teacher of dance commented:
“I am so proud of the team. They have worked extremely hard on the piece, putting in lots of hours of practice! It was great to see them on a professional stage showcasing their talents to a paid audience. We are now busy rehearsing for the ‘FCC Move It!’ Summer show, which will be a mixture of solos, duets and bigger group numbers. Our Blake building has an excellent studio for students to use for all the performing arts courses and extra-curricular clubs we do, and dance is going from strength to strength. We are also now offering Dance for the first time as a GCSE option from this September which is exciting.”

Students from years 9 upwards were invited to attend a careers event at Felpham Community College, held on Wednesday 18^th January at the school. The event was an opportunity for students and their parents/carers to talk to employers, educational establishments and training providers to find out more about what is on offer locally and nationally post 16.

Year 10 students attended the event within the school day, with year 9, 11 and sixth form invited to attend with their families in the evening. There was a wide range of people presenting including local businesses, universities and public sector organisations.

Mrs Woodman, Careers Leader, commented: “It is great to be able to offer this event to our students as there are so many opportunities and different pathways after school out there. We have grown the event since last year and would like to give a massive thank you to all the individuals, businesses and educational establishments who attended. It was great to see so many students and their families mingling and asking questions. Next year we plan for it to be bigger again!”

Thank you to the following for attending:
Barfoots of Botley Ltd, Innovate Tax, Strohacker Design School, GTR, Rolls-Royce, Royal Navy, Thakeham Group, Sussex University, Brighton & Sussex Medical School, Bay Tree Estates, Seal Bay Resort, Saab Seaeye, Vertical Leap, N A Colgate Property Maintenance Services, Allied Healthcare, BIMM, Chestnut Tree House Hospice, Chichester University, Plumpton College, Felpham Sixth Form

Year 11 students at Felpham Community College attended their mock results presentation assembly on Wednesday 11^th January.

Supported by their Form Tutors and Year Office, it was an opportunity to reflect on what they have achieved so far in their final year of key stage 4 education, as well as identifying what they now need to do before the Summer exams.

Mock exams were held before the Christmas holidays, in strict exam conditions. After presentations, results were distributed at the assembly in the same style of final results, so that students can experience the whole process and know what to expect in the Summer.

Miss Greenland, Year 11 Leader commented: “It was great to look round the hall as students were opening their envelopes and see so many happy faces. Students worked really hard preparing for their exams, we are proud of the effort they have put in with revision and planning. The following day, we had our parent and student consultation evening, to discuss action plans and get everything in place to keep year 11 motivated, focused and calm in their final term of FCC.”

Adam Francis and Imogen Orde, year 11 students commented: “Between us we received 11 grade 9s and 3 grade 8s as well as some 7s and 6s – when we opened the results we were so pleased! We both worked hard with revising, we found watching video clips and online apps our best methods, and doing it in small chunks. The teachers have been good supporting us through the exams and how to prepare. We want to improve on our grades for the summer and then come back in September in the sixth form. I want to study chemistry, maths and further maths (Imogen) and go onto to study engineering. I want to have a career as a software engineer (Adam) so hope to study maths, computer science, physics and further maths.

Your son/daughter is approaching the important time in their education where they decide what option subjects they would like to study in Year 10 and 11.

To make the process as informative as possible, we have created a timeline of activities for you to engage in, with your child, in order to select the correct options.

Our Year 9 Consultation Evening is on Thursday 2nd February from 4.00-7.00pm for parent/carers and students. It is important to note that this evening is face to face at the school and we ask that students attend alongside parents/carers so they can participate and benefit first hand from the appointments and the presentation regarding KS4 Options.

I will be making three 10-minute presentations with Mr Whiffin (Deputy Headteacher) to outline the move to Key Stage 4 (KS4) and how to choose GCSE/Level 2 options. Presentations will take place at 4.30pm, 5.30pm and 6.30pm; space is restricted, so please email fcc@felpham.org.uk by Wednesday 1st February 2023 with your child’s name and which presentation you will be attending.

You will be sent a link from school cloud to book your face to face ‘in school’ consultation appointments. Please ensure your appointments are booked around the presentation you may be attending.

Teachers of option subjects new to students, such as psychology, media studies, health & social care and business will be available in the cafeteria before, between and after the presentations.

Please find below the timeline for the Options process:

1. Students will receive an options assembly on Wednesday 18th January.
2. The Key Stage 4 Options booklet will be emailed to students and parents/carers on Friday 20th January and will also be on our website, along with subject videos.
3. The option choices Cognito form will be emailed to parents/carers on Friday 27th January.
4. Consultation evening at FCC is on Thursday 2nd February.
5. The deadline for option choices is Thursday 9th February.

If you have any questions about any of the above please contact me, or Mrs Wilson (Year 9 Manager).

I look forward to seeing you at the evening.

Mrs Reeves
Year 9 Leader

Felpham Community College ended an incredibly busy term by hosting a non-school uniform day on the last day of term, to raise money for Stonepillow, a local homeless charity.

Students and staff were invited to wear what they wanted for the day, for a £1 donation, with sixth form students getting involved and wearing their PJs to school. Staff and Sixth Form students also got festive on the 8^th December, taking part in the national Save The Children Christmas Jumper Day.

Georgia Robson, Student Leadership in charge of charity commented: “It has been a busy autumn term for charity at FCC,  we have raised funds and donations for My Sisters’ House, The Royal British Legion, UK Harvest, Stonepillow and Save the Children. We have also raised money to improve outdoor recreational facilities for students at school, and at the annual FCC Christmas Carol Concert held at St Mary’s in Felpham village, there were collections for The Snowdrop Trust, Stonepillow and St Mary’s Church. Everyone is feeling the pinch this year so it is great that as a community we can still fundraise and help others less fortunate than ourselves.”

On the afternoon of Wednesday 7^th December, Felpham Community College celebrated one of their main fundraising achievements of 2022, by holding their cheque presentation ceremony for the  annual FCC youth action week.

Youth Action Week was held at the end of the summer term, with the final event taking place in October. Activities included a 10-mile sponsored dog walk, a sponsored swim, various sporting events such as football, basketball and rounders tournaments, a year 7 summer fayre, gaming workshops, a week-long tuck shop, a colour run, and the always popular sponge a teacher. Students across year groups were invited to take part in the activities and the programme was co-ordinated by the Sixth Form Charity Committee and the Student Leadership Team.

Students and staff voted for what charities to support with Youth Action Week 2022, with Macmillan Cancer Support, Blue Cross for Pets and Chestnut Tree House being chosen, along with improving outdoor facilities for students at FCC. These charities were invited to attend the event on the 7^th December, to receive their cheques and to explain what the money will go towards. Students across year groups who have put in particular efforts with their charity work were invited to attend, as a celebration of success for what they have helped achieve.

Ms Kelly, Deputy Headteacher commented: “It was great to give our students some recognition of the hard work they have put in with helping us raise this money. This week of activities alone raised well over £4500 which was incredible. Thank you to the students who attended, and also to all the students at FCC and their families who support us with the charity fundraising we do throughout the academic year.”

Ryan Howarth, from Macmillan Cancer Support commented: “It has been lovely to attend and meet with the students and to hear about the various activities they have taken part in. The money they have raised is brilliant and thank you for choosing us as one of the charities to support.”

Over 30 students, mainly from key stage 3 with 4 from older year groups, have worked incredibly hard this term in their extra-curricular drama club at Felpham Community College.

Held each week since the Autumn, the group have learnt the West End junior adaptation of ‘Matilda the Musical’. As well as being the cast, they are also in charge of the lights and music for the production and have developed both their creative and technical skills considerably since they started learning the musical back in September.

They showcased their performance to year 5 students from Downview Primary School on the 7th December, and then to a sold out (paying!) audience on the evenings on the 7th and 8th December.

Miss Coney, Curriculum Leader for drama, commented: “Well done to all the students who took part – their enthusiasm, hard work and dedication has been a credit to everyone who has been involved. It has been hard work and a lot of work! However it has all been worth it to see how the students have thrived over the term. Thank you to everyone who has supported them and come and watched the show.”

Mason, year 7 student, commented: “I didn’t really do drama at primary school but I joined the drama club at FCC as it looked exciting and it has been great fun. I have made new friends, some in other year groups as well, and although it has been hard work learning it all we have had fun doing it. I was really nervous when we did the first performance but now it is just exciting. The drama theatre at FCC makes you feel like you are in a proper theatre in London, it is awesome!”

Felpham Community College have hosted successful taster days for year 5 students from across the locality for over 10 years. This year, for the first time, instead of taking place solely in the Summer Term, the ‘Magic Day’ events will run across the academic year, with the first event taking place in November.

90 year 5 students from Downview visited FCC on Wednesday 23^rd November, with each class taking part in a different activity. Some students developed spells in drama, whilst others reached for the heights and tried trampolining. The final group looked at ancient magic – what will you wish upon a stone?

Supported by FCC students, it was a great opportunity for the year 5’s to see what secondary school is like, how facilities and lessons are different and to ask older students any questions they have.

Mr Whiffin, Deputy Headteacher, commented: “It was great to welcome Downview and see them getting stuck in to the activities – their enthusiasm was brilliant. Thinking about secondary school is often quite daunting for younger students, so these events are a chance to let them see that the next stage of their education shouldn’t be something to worry about, but to be excited about. Our FCC student helpers were a credit to us on the day supporting the younger students. We are now looking forward to running more days next year for other local primary schools.”

Student comments:

“I really enjoyed the drama, the studio we got to use is huge and has loads of special effects”

“ We saw how big FCC is, the students who helped us said it soon becomes easy to find your way around”

“My brother comes to school here so it was nice to come and see what it is like. The FCC students were nice.”

Zalia Ali and Connor Gillam, both year 13 A Level Business Studies students at Felpham Community College, were successfully chosen recently to work with the Senior Management Team at Portsmouth Water, as part of their ‘Future Customer Panel’.

This is the first year the panel has been recruited, to bring in the views of young adults into the decision making the company do to plan their future operations. The initiative is being run by Blue Marble Research –  a specialist research and engagement agency.

Portsmouth Water recruited 20 individuals from a mix of schools and colleges within the Portsmouth Water region. They received a huge number of applications with successful applicants going through a vigorous selection process to be chosen.

Since being successfully appointed as consultants, Zalia and Connor have attended two workshops at Portsmouth Water, seeing first-hand the workings of the business and receiving briefings from senior executives about the company and the challenges it faces to facilitate problem-solving exercises.  They have also had time for networking with the other students who are part of the committee and taking part in workshops to gauge opinion and customer value on decisions Portsmouth Water currently face. On the second event day they also presented their ideas to a panel of judges comprising senior executives from the company.

Zalia Ali, year 13 student commented: “I am part of the Student Leadership Team at Felpham, I am Deputy Head Student, and this gave me the confidence to apply for this position. I wanted the chance to voice opinion for young adults in local issues and initiatives. It has been a great opportunity to see how a large company operates and networks and to meet students from around the area. I am doing my A levels and finishing my university applications so this is a good thing to be able to use as evidence. I was the leader of my group on the second workshop day and had to delegate tasks within my team which was really good for improving my leadership skills.”

Co-ordinated by the Sixth Form Charity Committee and supported by the Student Council, Felpham Community College collected in over 20 crates of donations for UK Harvest.

Students across year groups and staff had 3 weeks to bring in as many donations as they could, with each form group being given a bag to fill. Food and toiletries were donated, with UK Harvest coming in to collect the crates on Monday 28^th November.

Georgia Robson, Student Leadership Team in charge of charity commented: “we do a collection each year for UK Harvest, we start after October half term. Student Council Reps help us promote it with students and our charity committee (some of whom are in the photo above!) helped us pull it all together. It is great to see all the donations going off to a really worthwhile cause – UK Harvest donate out to the local foodbank and homeless charities and to local people in need.”

UK Harvest are a food and education distribution charity based in Chichester – for more information please visit UKHarvest food rescue and education charity