Just a reminder of the Network Rail improvement works taking place in the Severn Tunnel, between South Wales and the West of England, from next week.  They will be carrying out track renewal and essential drainage works in the tunnel itself.

 As a result no trains will run between Bristol and South Wales from Wednesday 3 July to Thursday 18 July, as well as the weekend of Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 July.

 GWR services between London and South Wales will be diverted via Gloucester and as a result these services won’t stop at Bristol Parkway.  A limited number of trains will be running between Bristol Parkway and London Paddington in the morning and the evening only. GWR services from Portsmouth and the South West which usually run to Cardiff Central will instead terminate at Bristol Parkway. 

 There will only be a very limited rail replacement bus service in place between Bristol Parkway and Severn Tunnel Junction during this closure.  Customers wishing to travel between South Wales and Bristol should instead travel on trains via Gloucester, where services will continue to run to both Bristol and South Wales.

 Online journey planners have been updated, and customers have also been made aware through traditional and social media, at station posters and announcements, as well as announcements on board GWR services.

 Valid tickets between the South West, Bristol and South Wales will be accepted via Gloucester, this enables customers to make their journeys wholly by train and to enjoy all the usual on-board and at-station facilities.  Journey times are extended by around 30 minutes.

 Transport for Wales and CrossCountry train services to/from South Wales via Gloucester or Cheltenham Spa remain largely unaffected by this closure, but we would still advise checking all journeys before travelling at www.gwr.com/check, and more information on improvement works and customer advice is available at www.gwr.com/severntunnel. 

This is to let you know that in-store appointments are now available and can be booked one month in advance, stores also attend to walk-in appointments.  Expert staff will show you around the store where you can find all the necessary uniforms and accessories for Back to School.  

If you can’t attend your local store or a 1:1 appointment, you can still shop online 24/7.

CTA: Book your appointment on your school page at www.monkhouse.com. Find out more here .

We are pleased to share with you an early invitation for a three-day paid work experience with one of the UK's leading professional service firms.  For an exciting opportunity to gain valuable insight into the work of KPMG, gain valuable skills and enhance your CV, scan the QR code below or click the link HERE for further details. Our in-person session will run during October half term and will run in four locations Bristol, Manchester, London and Birmingham. 

Year 10 SELT are organising a Ice-lolly sale on Thursday 4 July

• All £1 - cash only

• Break time in the HUB 

• All money raised to St Peters Hospice.

Thank you to everyone who donated and came along to the Preloved sale.

The Year 10 SELT team were amazing, they sorted and set up the main hall for the sale.  It was good to see staff and students come along and enjoy what was on offer.  We raised over £100 for our charity St Peters Hospice.  

This may rise once all donations are in.

Congratulations to the Year 10 SELT team for putting this on and working so hard for their charity.

Last week was World Refugee Week, and as a School of Sanctuary, we ran several events to raise awareness and to show support for our students and families.  These included two workshops in the library.  One was with author Eugene (Gavin) O'Toole, who came to speak about what it is like to be a child refugee and read extracts from his book Land of Waves.

Another was an online tutorial with poet Michael Rosen, who read and discussed his poems, exploring what home means to him.  He also guided pupils on how they might use his poems as inspiration for their own creative writing for Refugee Week.  We were very fortunate to run these workshops with such inspiring authors, and the students participating showed great engagement.

During tutor time, every morning that week, all students explored the journeys and eventual successes of a famous refugee every day including athlete Mo Farah, the politician Margaret Hodge but also some local ones in Bristol such as Chef Ali Mustafaj.

On Thursday 20 June, to mark World Refugee Day, we hosted a gathering with our EAL.  They were able to enjoy cultural snacks and play a variety of cultural songs. 

The EAL team, with the help of a group of brilliant volunteers, held a cake sale on  Friday, 21 June, at break time and raised £65 in 15 minutes.  All proceeds went to Bristol Refugee Rights.

Finally, the film 'Nezouh', recommended by RefugeeWeek.org, was screened for selected Year 8 and Year 9 students with top behaviour points.  We concluded the screening with reflections and a discussion about the film.  The students showed great empathy and engagement.  Some students also expressed their willingness to become ambassadors for the School of Sanctuary, which will be advertised soon. 

Thank you, everyone, for your support with refugee week. 

A huge well done to all Year 7 students who took part in the recent Poetry by Heart competition.  It was fantastic to see how well students had done in the competition and their commitment to writing excellent poetry! 

"7LH have been absolutely brilliant in English lessons recently.  Lots of engagement and enthusiasm for learning  - they're a group that are really good at co-operating and supporting each other and are a pleasure to teach."

Mr Dignan

Please encourage your children to participate in this Year's Sports Day taking place at Golden Hill on Friday July 19 July 2024.

With plenty of options to take part in from Zone Ball, to Tug of War, to traditional track events there is something for everyone.

Please wear PE kit and/or plain house colours, bring a packed lunch and sunscreen.  We will be at Golden Hill all day.  Students must board the coach back to Cotham School at the end of the day.

There will be refreshments to purchase as well as face painting!

This week in Year 9 our girls rounders team displayed great teamwork and talent by beating trinity 31-6 in there Bristol quarter final match. 

Year 9 boys are preparing to take part in there first five aside football tournament hosted at Cotham next Tuesday.  5 other schools will be competing in the hopes of winning!

Finally over 40 year 9 students will embark on their 4 day trip to Germany.  An exciting experience including water parks, theme parks and the worlds biggest Cuckoo Clock. 

From Mr Cony: Recently, four of 10B Ma5 have been working really hard (and behaving perfectly).
Well done year 10!!!

GCSE ENGLISH SPEAKING & LISTENING: Every single Year 10 student prepared and delivered a 3-5 minute long speech for their GCSE endorsement.  They could choose their own topic and the range has been phenomenal; including walking, concrete, cats, autism, colonialism,  Studio Ghibli and perfectionism! 

Ms Papworth

The Steel Pans Summer concert takes place on Wednesday 3 July 2024.  Doors open at 6.00pm and the concert starts at 6:30pm. 

Please save these dates in your diaries!  Doors open at 7.00pm. The show will be starting at 7.30pm and the duration of the show is 70 minutes.

Wednesday 10 July 2024
Thursday 11 July 2024
Friday 12 July 2024
Saturday 13 July 2024

Tickets are now on sale via wisepay for the Whole School Show- Legally Blonde. The pricing structure is explained below:

£5- Open Concession
£8- Standard
£15 Pay It Forward.

All you have to do is select the price bracket that best suits your budget and continue to checkout. Further information about the pricing structure is here.

Synonyms:

Grow, extend, develop…