Sixth Form Reward Trip to ‘Teamworks Karting’, December 2021
The Go Karting/Laser Tag trip was arranged to recognise and reward those who have been performing consistently well in school, in terms of attendance, punctuality and overall conduct. These students are more likely to get merits, which in turn count as points towards qualification for such a Reward Trip. A total of about 60 students across Years 12 and 13 went, including a few of my friends. It was on Thursday 16th December (the day before term ended) and the venue was local, on Fazeley Street (in Digbeth), and we had to make our own way there. At the venue, as implied at the beginning, we first enjoyed Go Karting, and then later in the afternoon (after our lunch break) tried Laser Tag. In total, we spent about half an hour doing these activities, as the large group size meant we had to wait our turn. However, there was table football to play in the upper lounge/cafeteria, and watching the poor driving of fellow students was quite amusing! The trip had quite a few enjoyable moments, such as when I came first place in Go-Karting, but some students, including myself, must have had problematic equipment to achieve such appalling scores in the Laser Tag! The trip was great fun, but it would have been even better if there were more things to do on site whilst waiting our turn.
Kavish Bhopal, Year 12
Focus on Education January 2022 No. 1
I hope that many of us have become more thankful over the last twenty-two months for so much that we had previously been inclined to take for granted. Christmas is a time when we traditionally give thanks, and last year it was wonderful that we could celebrate with family and friends.
As I reflect on the last term, I am really thankful for all that we have been able to achieve and enjoy. Sports fixtures have resumed in full, I am very grateful to staff for ensuring a full programme of co-curricular activities; we have seen encouraging levels of participation and lots of fun. There have been further opportunities for charity fundraising, with more students wanting to be involved in taking a lead role. And, having been amongst the first in the queue for the 12-15 vaccine, we have been blessed with very few Covid cases since half-term and therefore undisrupted learning for most students. Nothing beats teaching and learning in person rather than via a screen.
I am grateful for the strong sense of aspiration and caring and respectful community for which HGS stands. I was asked by some students recently what I enjoyed most about my job. It was an easy answer, as it has been throughout my career: “You lot!” Our children may present us with challenges from time to time (that’s education, after all), but it’s the lively daily interaction and the differences that we see in their understanding and growth as human beings which have always made me thankful to be a teacher. And that is only possible with the teamwork of colleagues who share a common goal and common values.
So, a special ‘thank-you’ to you, our parents, for your support this past term and, above all, for entrusting us with your children’s education at the most formative time of their life. It’s a responsibility we take very seriously and will do our best to fulfil.
At a beautiful Carol service at Worcester Cathedral in the holidays, we gave thanks for the birth of Jesus, with some “upside-down” Christmas trees signifying God’s gift to the topsy-turvy world in which we live currently. I hope that, whatever your beliefs, you and family enjoyed a festive and peaceful Christmas, surrounded by love, as well as a bright New Year. A year in which we will still need to be extra careful, considerate and kind to each other so we can move out of the Pandemic towards a healthier 2022.
“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.” Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States of America and apparent Christmas scholar who we could learn from perhaps?
Stay well and safe.
Be kind to yourself and others.
Best wishes,
Dr Bird
Services to Scouting recognised by Honour for Ex-HGS student
Congratulations to Ex-HGS student Peter Oldham who was awarded a MBE in the New Year Honours list for services to Scouting in the West Midlands. Peter is the County Vice president for Tame Valley Birmingham Scouts.
Ex-HGS Student is awarded an OBE
Congratulations to Ex-HGS student Alpesh Chauhan on being awarded an OBE for Services to the Arts in the New Year’s Honours List. Alpesh is currently Birmingham’s Opera’s Music Director. To read more on this, please click the following link:
https://www.business-live.co.uk/enterprise/midlands-business-leaders-recognised-new-22615264
Trussell Trust Foodbank Certificate of Appreciation
Dear All at Handsworth Grammar School,
We would like to say a huge Thank You to your staff and students, for your Christmas donation of 656.6kg of food to the B30 Foodbank and as a token of our gratitude, I am attaching a Certificate of Appreciation which I am hoping you will be able to print out and display where those who contributed can see it.
We hope that you have had a successful term, and have all managed to stay fit and healthy. As you can imagine, this year has been a huge challenge for us, as many local families have found themselves in crisis for a huge variety of reasons, including many whose lives have been affected by the fallout from the Covid pandemic.
These past two weeks have been our busiest of the whole year and in that fortnight alone we have given out 7110kg of food to 460 people, (helping 204 families), so you can see just how grateful we are for all donations. It is solely down to the kindness and generosity of donors such as yourselves, that we are able to help bring a little relief by providing enough food to make 3 meals a day per person, for three days. So, on behalf of all the B30 Foodbank volunteers and more importantly, all our clients, we say once again a resounding, heartfelt Thank you!
Wishing you all a very happy and healthy and restful festive season , so that you are ready to start the new term full of energy and enthusiasm.
Kind regards
(On behalf of the B30 Foodbank Volunteer Team)
Trussell Trust Foodbank Collection
The Trussell Trust collected our Foodbank donations this morning. Many thanks to Ms Brown and her Form for coordinating our 2021 Foodbank Campaign. Thank you to everyone who donated – your contributions will have a positive impact on many families in Birmingham this Christmas.
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Sport has always been my biggest interest. I have been playing sport from a very young age, starting football at the age of three and cricket at the age of six, I even attempted judo, badminton and basketball to name a few. My family are huge cricket fans and they themselves have represented at local, regional and county level. I was always keen to follow in their footsteps with my love for the sport as well. Hence, I grew up watching cricket whether it was on TV or at Edgbaston cricket ground going to watch India and England international matches.
I began playing at Old Hill Cricket Club, five years ago in the under 10’s team, quickly progressing to play for under 12s, 13’s and currently playing for under 14s. My cricketing ability has enabled me to play for other clubs too such as Dartmouth Cricket Club and recently playing adult cricket with Wolverhampton Asian Sports, which is a great experience and most importantly, I am managing to hold my own against adult players.
Three years ago, Old Hill put me forward for trials at Worcestershire County Cricket Club. After a morning of challenging tasks and activities, my hard work finally paid off and Worcestershire County Cricket Club selected me for their Youth Academy. This was a fantastic achievement for me and made me and my family extremely proud as well as giving my friends a lot of inspiration.
Juggling two sports as well as my education has always been challenging. However, I know these sports are good for me both physically and mentally keeping me fit and as well as being enjoyable, I learn so many other different aspects such as team building, leading and increasing my confidence.
Captaining teams has really helped me to work together better and also become more assured in my leadership. Now I listen to other people’s opinions and try to understand their point of view which benefits the team as a whole.
All was good, until the pandemic started, and my normal routine became even more difficult: My daily timetable was work, train, eat, sleep and repeat. Balancing my time between school and cricket was hard, my county was adamant that the pandemic was not going to hinder our training and practice and even though we couldn’t meet face to face they provided regular exercises and activities to complete at home, to continue our learning. This included obstacle courses, batting, fielding and bowling exercises in addition to online learning. This was a different experience for me but fun at the same time as I enjoyed training and playing the game I love, although I was eager to get back on the field and play with my team again.
During this time, I began studying for my 11+ which was also difficult as I was home schooling and training. Fortunately, I managed to undertake all the tasks and when the news was finally announced about the place at King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School, I was ecstatic. However, I knew this also meant it would get even harder juggling my education and sport, but when you are trying to accomplish a goal, there are no obstacles or hurdles!
Gaining a place in Worcester’s Youth Academy does mean I have to continue to retrial every year to ensure I maintain my place and I pleased to say for the last 2 years I have been doing this successfully. I am looking forward to Christmas before my busy weekly training schedule begins on Sunday mornings from January-April to get ready for the upcoming cricket season in the summer.
Many say that the tasks I do at a young age are outstanding and they are amazed at of what I have accomplished. At times, even though I feel drained, I think about all my achievements and listen to my coaches, which keeps me motivated, makes me work even harder and achieve significant things.
I hope the future brings me more successes in cricket and other sports as well as successful academic achievements too.
Milan Patel (7W)
