Zakir Islam and Iessa Hussain have been selected to attend a once in a lifetime trip to Madrid in December as part of the Football development programme run by Inspiresport and the English Schools Football Association. They will have the opportunity to train with the expert professional youth coaches from Real Madrid Foundation at the First team training complex of the club – Valdebebas. In addition they will both enjoy a stadium tour of the world famous Bernabeu, watch Real Madrid play Real Valladolid and have the chance to visit Madrid itself.

On Monday 17 September we visited the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool as part of our A-Level History course. I had previously learnt about the conditions slaves faced, but the museum gave me a greater and unique insight into how inhumane their conditions truly were and showcased several items including tools which were used to torture and humiliate the enslaved. This made me realise how truly horrific it must have been for the slaves and why it is important that slavery is not forgotten. Watching the videos of the various accounts and personal experiences provided me with a deeper understanding that I would not have otherwise gained. (Saahil Raja 13NHA)

The trip to the Slavery Museum in Liverpool was extraordinary as we got to see great leaders, which were part of the Black Movement, achieve so much and put their life at risk for their civil rights. However at the same time it was quite heart breaking to see what African Americans had to go through. What caught me the most was the fact that the youngest person to be sold was only 1 years old and this made me realise how easy our lives are in comparison to the suffering of the slaves.  In a way, the study of History gives a voice to the voiceless.  (Sarah Younis, 13JST)

The recent trip we went on to visit the slavery museum in Liverpool was truly a riveting experience, giving us a completely different insight into how the trans-Atlantic slave trade worked.  It was more than a classroom study could offer. We experienced the cold reality of how slaves were forced from their homes and across the Atlantic to work in brutal conditions, and how cruelly they were treated by their owners, who regarded them as mere property. I found the screenings depicting what life was like for slaves on a slave ship to be particularly moving. Overall the entire experience was very touching and helped us understand much more about what life was like during the period we are beginning to study in Year 13. (Ibrahim Zia, 13KOR)

The Year 7 Cricket Team ended the last academic year on a sporting high, finishing at the top of the Aston Schools’ Cricket League. The cricket squad have been exceptional all year showing huge levels of dedication and commitment at training religiously . Mr Gallagher has been impressed at all of the boys attitude. They have improved drastically throughout the year and are shining examples of through hard work comes success.

Noah Mohmand – 8A

Balkaran Kahlon – 8A

Fajyan Khan – 8A

Sulayman Khan – 8G

Ismaeel Khan – 8G

Hashim Naeen – 8G

Riann Nawaz – 8G

Arjun Rana – 8H

Nico Gill – 8N

Abdullah Gelani – 8W

Hridik Pandey – 8W

Humzah Ghangro – 8W

Ibrahim Khan – 8W

Arshjeet Nagi – 8W

We hope to retain our league title this year.

The House trophy presentation took place on the final morning of the 2017/18 academic year with Mr Campbell’s Galahad House triumphing for the third year in a row. However, this was a very close competition this year as it was Galahad’s strength in the house events over the year which gave them victory.

Congratulations to all students and staff in Galahad and we look forward to a challenge from the other houses in 2018/19 to prevent Galahad winning for a fourth year in succession.

The final House Cup scores were:

1 Galahad 43, 501

2 William 40, 282

3 Nelson 38,771

4 Alfred 37, 897

5 Henry 34, 916

(Photos show Head of House Mr Andy Campbell with House Captain Justin Fletcher and Britney Okhiria, and then Justin and Britney with year 10 leading sportsman Francis Czech. We also see some of the year 10 Galahad athletes who did so well during Sports Day).

On 16^th and 18^th July Mr Bird (Head of Sixth Form) and Mr Conway (Deputy Headteacher) took two groups of year 12 students for a “behind the scenes tour” of the hospital.

This was arranged through Justine Davey, Head of Fund raising at the hospital, as our school has raised a sizeable amount of money over the last year for the “Heart in a Box” campaign at the QE.

Or students visited the teenage cancer ward, saw some the amazing work done in facial reconstructions and prosthetics, and saw some of the latest Cyber Knife equipment designed to scan for tumours in the body.

(Picture shows some of our students with the CyberKnife)

It was great to see some of the fantastic work done in the hospital which has a worldwide reputation. Many thanks to Justine Davey for allowing us to visit, and we will continue to have the hospital as one of our school charities.