10 April 2025
Dear Parents, Guardians and Students/Annwyl Rhieni, Gwarchodwyr a Myfyrwyr
Making big decisions….
The last week of the spring term has not been quiet or dull in any way. On Monday 7th April Year 12 went to the annual UCAS exhibition where they had the opportunity to speak to well over 100 universities and apprenticeship providers. They have been prepping for this during registration periods and it is such a valuable day (not just for the free merchandise…but that is an added bonus!). Such exiting times for such an amazing bunch of students.
Regeneration!
After resting from the UCAS convention, it was straight out again for some of our Geographers! On Wednesday, Miss Geare took a selection of Year 11, 12 and 13 Geography pupils to visit one of Cardiff’s newest regeneration sites, Central Quay. Facilitated by Legal & General and Watkin Jones, the pupils got the rare opportunity to network on-site with real-estate and construction industry professionals. The day involved a tour of the completed build-to-rent property, Wood Street House, as well as a tour and hoist to the top of one of the capitals newest build-to-rent properties, which is located on the Tai Afon development site. It was a fantastic and inspiring day for the students, the views were pretty spectacular too!! Here’s what the students had to say;
The visit to Wood Street House and the ongoing Tai Afon Development was not only an opportunity to explore these exciting projects on our doorstep, but also to gain a better understanding of the vast range of jobs available in the planning, surveying, development & property sectors; You often don’t realise just how many jobs there are related to Geography! The speed Q&A gave a great insight into the plethora of different avenues into these sectors, from apprenticeships & on-the-job learning to hundreds of university degrees there really is something for everyone.
Ruben Kelman
We found the trip to Wood Street House and Tai Afon really useful, Legal & General gave us a valuable insight into the world of real estate. We visited Wood Street House where we had a presentation on the new waterfront regeneration project, Central Quay and we learned how the build-to-rent business model works. The Q&A event with 6 industry professionals in the real estate and construction industries was inspiring. There are so many job opportunities and career/educational pathways into the industry. It also gave us first-hand experience of urban regeneration and planning, for example it helped us to better understand sustainable strategies for reducing flood risk.
Amelia Reed & Ryan Wong
All three of us loved the experience and found it very eye-opening, it made us realise that there are so many opportunities within the construction and real estate industry. It was refreshing to see that there are more opportunities out there other than university and college, such as degree apprenticeships. We found it inspiring to see and chat to so many women working within the industry, from construction workers, to surveyors, to asset managers. It has made us feel less pressured to know what we want to do when we are older, the Q&A highlighted that there are so many different options and pathways into the job market. Overall, we are fulfilled from our experience and have taken everything on board!
Megan Hembury, Emily Bartlett & Evelyn Ingram
Cue some photos from the visit….
Learning Support storms Cardiff Met!
Last Thursday, students from our Learning Support base threw themselves with gusto into an alternative sports day at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Each and every one of them participated with energy and enthusiasm and the smiles on their faces were infectious. Here are a couple of pictures from the day. Well done everyone! The medals are well deserved.
Our LHS football stars
Next today, Mrs Birch-hurst is extremely proud of the great success that our 7A and 8B teams have had in the Semi Finals! In particular, she is really pleased and very excited to let us know about the double fixture last Tuesday against Glantaf.
Our Year 7 A Team played against the Glantaf A team in the semi-final of the Cardiff And Vale Tournament. LHS won 2:0 and had excellent performances from every single girl. All players contributed to at least half a game. Alicia was picked out as an excellent player by the Glantaf member of staff who coaches Wales. Mairin was on fire in defence and didn’t let any of their larger players through at all. Maisie and Chloe were great in goals being helped by Lily, Eden and Summer in defence. Amalie’s speed when chasing amazing balls from Alicia and Lucia was also outstanding. Well done to the 7A team including Lucia Lillywhite, Maisey Lillywhite, Alicia Brodie (Capt), Mairin Anderson, Eden Idowu, Amalie Scourfield, Summer Beadle, Chloe Moss and Lily Jones.
Our Year 8 B Team are a fantastic team with great team work and always seem to have amazing games. They beat Glantaf 6:0, with a hattrick from Grace and Opal! Simply off the scale in a semi-final and so exciting. Sienna joined in at the last minute in case we were short and was fantastic. Angel in goals had a clean sheet and fantastic defensive work from Phoebe, Lilly and Fiona. Opal, Emily and Grace just had a ball upfront displaying some fantastic skills and team work! Well done girls!!!
Our Year 8 Team included Grace Lily Jones, Phoebe Innes, Opal Dickinson (Vice), Emily Dando (Capt), Lilly Cotterall, Fiona Phillips, Angel Giles and Sienna Jones.
The finals will be held on Thursday 8th May at Cardiff West at 3:15pm.
More preparations in the school garden…
Over the last week, preparations for pumpkin planting have been getting underway ahead of October! It starts with Year 7 raking the ground ready for planting. Also, the above ground pond is taking shape. Many thanks to Year 7 for clearing the base! They’ve worked really hard to get this unglamourous work done!
Treading the boards in the Old Vic!
Next today, congratulations to Ruth Gattenberg who recently performed at the Old Vic in Bristol with the National Theatre!
‘Connections’ is the National Theatre’s annual youth theatre festival. It has been established for 30 years with a celebrated history of championing the talent of young people from across the entirety of the UK. This is Bristol Old Vic’s twelfth year participating in the festival. Each year it is a uniquely transformative experience for the young people who are placed centre stage! Ruth was able to gain first-hand insight into the way Bristol Old Vic works.
We are delighted to share some of Ruth’s photos. As she was part of a team, we can’t share the photos from Ruth on stage but she loved it and nailed it!
The National Theatre are seeing 10 drama groups from around the country. Fingers crossed that Ruth’s group will be able to go to the finals on the South Bank in London in June!
Learning Support ‘Star of the Week’
This week, the Learning Support SOTW is Amelia Cleaver in Year 7.
During the LS trip to Cardiff Met this week Amelia’s enthusiasm was fantastic to see.
She threw herself into everything with a huge smile on her face and was a great support to her peers.
Well done Amelia! And there is the cheeky smile!
A solution for a shoe storage problem!
Finally, today, on a personal note, I would like to commend Ben Pink in Year 11!
For his Product Design GCSE, Ben designed and made this amazing shoe storage solution. Where better for him to road test his work than my office!
Ben’s innovative design featured angled slats to allow for maximum storage for up to size 14 shoes! The execution and finish to the product are faultless. Thank you Ben – keep designing!
So, that’s a wrap for the Spring term 2025. It’s been an incredibly busy term with too many highlights to list. But the Merchant of Venice and the school Eisteddfod certainly stand out.
With such a busy term, it’s easy to find yourself running on empty. So, the Easter break is an important opportunity to rest and reset in preparation for the Summer term. I hope our readers find time to catch up with friends and family, get outside, and enjoy a slightly slower start to the day.
If you are preparing for exams, remember that progress is about doing what works and keeping balance. A little each day beats last-minute cramming as a strategy.
We will look forward to welcoming everyone back to school on Monday 28th April. Until then, have a good break.
Thank you for reading/Diolch am ddarllen,
Mrs Sarah Parry, Headteacher