Seven students opted to do the 1st round of the RSC Chemistry Olympiad, which involved them taking a very challenging two hour written paper. Congratulations go to Wui Lam Chan who achieved a Silver award, while Evie Button, Tom Jackson and Chun Kit Yuen all achieved Bronze awards. Matt Castle and Sam Bolitho achieved Commendations, while first year AS student, Peter Hammond achieved a Bronze award.

Lesley Owen, Subject Leader for Chemistry, was delighted with the success: “The paper was incredibly demanding and I’m extremely proud that our students can now rightly describe themselves as among the best in the country. All of our students achieved Commendations, Bronze or Silver awards, which is fantastic.”

Collyer’s Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston was delighted: “We have a superb Chemistry department and these talented Chemistry students and their teachers have worked really hard to be competitive on the national stage. Their efforts have clearly paid off!”

Dr Rob Hussey, Chemistry teacher at Collyer’s, explained: “Diamond Light Source is the UK’s national synchrotron facility, a particle accelerator not dissimilar to the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. Measuring 1 km in circumference, the stunning doughnut shaped machine looks like it has landed from outer-space!”

Diamond is the premier synchrotron in Europe and within the top five globally. By accelerating electrons to near light speed Diamond generates brilliant beams of light across the electromagnetic spectrum from infra-red to powerful X-rays a billion times brighter than the sun. These X-rays are used to determine the structures of massive range of materials and structures at the atomic level.

Students enjoyed a fascinating lecture describing the science behind Diamond and wide-ranging applications, followed by a thorough tour of the facility itself. Fortunately the beam was down during Collyer’s visit, allowing students to walk right into the centre of the machine, an area that would normally prove fatal within seconds if the beam had been operational!

Dr Rob Hussey added: “Our students thoroughly enjoyed the experience and realised that if they play their cards right they too could be working at Diamond pushing the boundaries of science within a little over 3 years!”

Collyer’s Assistant Principal, Melanie Russell, was delighted: “This was a unique opportunity for our students to see cutting edge research at work. We’re hugely grateful to all at Diamond Light Source for their incredible hospitality.”

The students also attended the Valentin-Heider Gymnasium School with their exchange partners and enjoyed trips to Ravensburg, the famous home of the puzzle, and nearby Bregenz, a stunning Austrian town, home to the famous open air opera stages on the lake.

Collyer’s Vice Principal, Steve Nicholls, said: “The exchange has become a fantastic part of the German course at the college as it offers both the English and German students the chance to improve their spoken German and English, whilst experiencing one another’s culture and making life long friends. The exchange is an important part of learning German for the students and I’m pleased that they have thoroughly enjoyed their visit.”

The students have just had the opportunity to return the favour to the German students, by welcoming their exchange partners to Horsham for a week. The German students attended lessons at Collyer’s and enjoyed trips to Brighton, Kensington Palace, the Globe and of course Harrods!

Kasia Chapman, who ran the four day trip, was delighted that the students could benefit from this wonderful opportunity: “This trip enabled 26 students to appreciate the historical context of the developments in psychological investigation championed by Sigmund Freud. The students also realised that the way we study human behaviour is inextricably linked to the ideology and economy of the times.”    

Assistant Principal, Melanie Russell, was thrilled: “This is the first psychology trip abroad and it has proved to be a resounding success. We have a great psychology department at Collyer’s and I’m delighted that for the first time we have been able to offer the students this great opportunity to travel to Austria and enhance their studies of Freud.”

Kasia Chapman added: “The substantial educational content was supplemented with a ride on an antique Ferris wheel (made famous in the film ‘The Third Man’ starring Orson Welles), and an evening spent trying to stay upright in a beautifully lit, snowy, ice-skating park of unparalleled sophistication and beauty.” 

Joe Brock, Head of Faculty for Science and Maths at Collyer’s, said: “The students really enjoyed the visit.  It was a real treat for our budding engineers and physicists to see how the theory taught in class is applied to a real world situation.”

Students were also given a unique opportunity to visit an anechoic chamber, where cars are tested for noise and sounds are engineered.  

Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston, was thrilled: “We have an outstanding faculty for Science and Maths at Collyer’s and this was a great opportunity for our students to get out into the field and see cutting edge engineering at work. We’re hugely grateful to all at Ricardo for this fantastic opportunity.”   

Subject Leader for Media Studies, Jonathan Nunns, found the visit thrilling: “The ‘Big Apple’ felt like the most energized city you could imagine, a real metropolis.”

The packed itinerary included a visit to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens and a guided tour of film and TV locations across central Manhattan.

Jonathan Nunns added: “The Museum of the Moving Image is simply the best media and film museum I have ever visited. I wish we had something similarly outstanding in the UK!”

The students also enjoyed a morning’s tuition at the prestigious New York Film Academy and a behind the scenes production tour of the world famous NBC Studios at the Rockerfeller Centre.

Subject Leader for Politics, George Lear, was delighted with the trip: “The students responded to the different cultures impressively and there was a real sense of achievement when a group reach the tallest point on the Great Wall”.

Within a packed itinerary, students visited historic and political sites such as the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace and the Forbidden City, Chairman Mao’s Mausoleum in Tiananmen Square and the ‘Birds Nest’ Olympic Stadium.

Student Emily Gardiner said: “I was struck by the differences in China which demonstrated the effects of people of living under a communist regime”. 

George Lear added: “The highlights of the trip were the exhilarating climb of the Great Wall of China at the incredibly steep Juyongguan section, and haggling for a bargain in the Silk Alley market. The students also had plenty of opportunities to savour traditional Chinese cuisine and other cultural experiences. Everyone undoubtedly returned with a new awareness of life in a communist country!” 

Student Jennie Simmonds explained: “We felt it was really important to raise awareness at Collyer’s by supporting International Women’s Day. Staff and students were really interested in our displays and were incredibly supportive”.

Glenda Stone, founder of the internationalwomensday.com website that has served as a global hub for International Women’s Day events, said: “Activity on International Women’s Day has skyrocketed over the last five years. This is due to the rise of social media, celebrity involvement, and corporations taking on the day sponsoring and running big events. Our twitter.com/womensday community with around 10,000 followers is phenomenal for sharing videos, information and news as it happens. Offline large scale women’s rallies have become even larger through the use of social media. It would be hard to find any country that did not celebrate the day in some way.”

Collyer’s Student Aqsa Rafiq, was thrilled: “In addition to raising awareness we also managed to raise almost £100 for Oxfam, which was a fantastic effort”.

Melanie Russell, Assistant Principal, was delighted with the event: “The Collyer’s community have really embraced International Women’s Day. Huge thanks must go to all of the students who have worked extremely hard to make the day possible”.    

Recently lucky AS and A2 Spanish students journeyed to the stunningly beautiful town of Hellin’ near Alicante, as part of an exchange link between the College of Richard Collyer and the Instituto Cristobal Lozano.

The Mayor of Hellin was delighted to personally receive the English visitors and invited Collyer’s teachers and students to enjoy their stay in the historic Spanish town. The visit generated so much interest that the students even found themselves on the front page of the local newspaper! They also featured on Spanish television and radio, who broadcast the Mayor’s warm welcome to the English visitors.     

During their stay, the students enjoyed two full days of lessons with their new Spanish friends at the college and were also given guided tours of local historical sites.

Margarita Mortimer, who is Subject Leader for Spanish at Collyer’s, was delighted that the students could benefit from this wonderful opportunity: “They were able to get a valuable taste of the culture by staying with Spanish families and sampling the everyday life of people their own age in Spain. This is a vital part of their AS and A2 study. We are hugely grateful to Instituto Cristobal Lozano community for their incredible hospitality.”   

The students visited the Old town of Cartagena, full of Carthanean and romans archeological ruins. They also dropped in on the ‘Oceanographic’ centre in Valencia, which features over 45,000 samples of 500 different specimens from under the sea.

Margarita Mortimer added: “Our students were superb ambassadors for Horsham and the Spanish students are looking forward to visiting us at the end of June. We all have our fingers crossed that our visitors will at least have a glimpse of the English sun!”

Joe Brock, Head of Faculty for Science and Maths at Collyer’s, said: “The students really enjoyed the visit as they were able to see science at work in the real-world. It’s been a fantastic opportunity directly linked to the Physics and Chemistry A-levels they are studying.”

Students were shown a plethora of ground-breaking developments and different applications. They also witnessed Physics and Chemistry perspectives being used in the research and development labs.

Assistant Principal, Melanie Russell, was thrilled: “We have an outstanding faculty for Science and Maths at Collyer’s and this was a great opportunity for our students to get out into the field and see cutting edge research and development at work. We’re hugely grateful to all at Ceres Power for their kind hospitality.”   

A teacher and four students from Collyer’s visited the Gambia during half-term, along with the charity PAGEANT (Projects Aiding Gambian Education and Natural Talent). The charity is run by Pippa and Ian Howard from Southwater and is aimed at helping to develop education in The Gambia. The students trip was kindly part funded by the Jephcott Trust.

Student Jayson Probin explained: “Currently much of the teaching in The Gambia, as in many African countries, lacks the depth required to apply the knowledge to new situations and is hindering the development of science and engineering at a later stage. Many students give up science as soon as they can, as they see it as a difficult and abstract subject that has little to do with their lives.”  

To respond to this issue, students from Collyer’s have spent the last three months developing equipment and a training book to teach electricity anywhere. This was then put to good use by the Collyer’s Gambia team, which comprised students Dan Mannion, Jayson Probin, Katie Bashford, Ian Groves and teacher Joe Brock (Head of Faculty for Science and Maths).

The trip was based around four workshops and aimed at training teachers to use practical methods in their science teaching. In all, 80 teachers were trained in two main workshops at the Teacher Training College at Bricama, on the outskirts of Banjul. One included the electricity model, developed by the students and various Physics experiments, including models of radioactivity, rocket science, hydraulics and sound and light. The other was based around microscopy and looking at images from both the man made and biological worlds. They also benefited from some simple but effective Chemistry experiments. 

Joe Brock said: “The students acted as trainers, having developed their practical experiments before going out. Through funding from PAGEANT and the Institute of Education we were able to donate 30 science kits and 30 electricity kits to college and trainee teachers about to embark on their teaching careers.”

Dan Mannion was delighted with the project: “It was a brilliant trip. I found the experience emotional as there is a big difference between reading about things and then actually experiencing them for yourself.”

In another branch to the project, students Fred Golding, Ashleigh Robinson and Lucy Barnett visited the Institute of Physics in London to present the electricity project to all of the Africa coordinators. The hope is that resources developed by Collyer’s students will be used all over Africa and possibly in China and India.

Joe Brock added: “It’s been a fantastic opportunity to support such a worthwhile project. This is the first time I’ve allowed students to take such hands-on roles and I would certainly do it again, as the teams at home and in the Gambia have been incredible ambassadors. The week long trip was exhausting, but hugely successful.”

Collyer’s Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston, was thrilled: “The level of planning required was extraordinary and I’m really proud of Joe Brock and these talented students. They are a credit to Collyer’s and Horsham.”

Michael Sherrin, Henning Falloon and Ben Balla-Muir gave fellow students a first hand account of a visit to Auschwitz concentration camp. The students visited the camp in the Polish town of Oswiecim in November 2011, in a trip organised by the Holocaust Educational Trust.

The group created a “pledge against prejudice” in a bid to encourage the Collyer’s community to make their mark against such crimes. Students and staff signed cut-out paper hands and pinned them to the board to show their support. 

For Ben Balla-Muir, who is an active member of the colleges Equality and Diversity Committee, the trip was particularly poignant as he is the descendent of two survivors of the Nazi regime. He said: “I feel extremely lucky that I am alive now, so will not let the efforts of my grandparents’ fight against such hate, be in vain. We must learn from the past and pledge together to combat prejudice as a society”.   

At the indoor finals in Worcester, Collyer’s saw off Millfield 4-0 (I. Wood; L. Wood; Knight 2) and demolished Cheltenham 9-2 (L.Wood 5; Dean 4). However, defeats to Cooper and eventual winners Repton, shattered their dreams of a National Indoor Championship title.        

Hayley Worman, who along with Jane Burroughs, coaches hockey at Collyer’s, was philosophical in defeat: “The experience at the indoor tournament has been an extremely valuable one. The team are battle hardened and determined to push even harder at the national outdoor championships in March”.  

James Gordon, Head of Faculty for Business, Sport and Social Sciences added: “We are incredibly proud of this talented hockey team and I know the squad simply can’t wait for a crack at the national outdoor title in Staffordshire.”

Hayley Worman added: “A huge well done must go to all the team: Priya Bhogal, Autumn Bowden,  Jess Dean (Captain), Sophie Knight; Carolyn Watson (GK), Izzy Wood,  Lucy Wood and Manager Ita Lawton. They have been brilliant throughout a tense indoor championship.”

Free School Update

Following the publication of our joint statement relating to Southwater’s Free School proposal, we believe that it is important to further update you on this issue.

First and foremost, thank you for your interest in our correspondence.  We are pleased that our recent intervention has successfully stimulated further debate and discussion.

Some parents have requested a meeting with Heads/Principals in order to enhance their knowledge about key issues and concerns.  In the timeframe currently allowed by the HCT/Oasis proposal (31st January), we do not feel that it is possible to organise a meaningful/representative meeting.  The difficulty of doing so merely underlines our desire to see a “pause” in the process in order to allow everyone’s questions to be answered in a broad and balanced manner.

We are increasingly hopeful that such a delay will be widely supported.  In due course, full consultation and debate about educational provision across Horsham and Southwater would then take place.  Further potential developments in North Horsham make the case for a wide ranging discussion even more important.

In the meantime, we hope that our “Frequently Asked Questions” document is helpful to you  (this can be found under the Sixth Form tab > Current Parents page on this website) – it is by no means exhaustive – and we are, as ever, happy to respond to any direct questions.

Yours sincerely,

Siobhan Denning                                                                     Jackie Johnston
Headteacher – Forest School                                                  Principal – The College of Richard Collyer

Julia Slocombe                                                                        Leon Nettley
Headteacher – Castlewood School                                          Headteacher – Millais School

Jules White                                                                              Sue Winn
Headteacher – Tanbridge House School                                   Headteacher – Southwater Infant Academy

Peter Woodman                                                                      Tony Mason
Headteacher – The Weald School                                           Chair of Governors – Southwater Junior Academy

Canon Guy Bridgewater was extremely impressed: “It’s been a fantastic evening. The students have once again demonstrated their outstanding creative talents for us all to enjoy”.

Parents, friends, staff and the Horsham community were treated to superb dramatic readings from Nick Henman, Johnny Fenton, Izzy Nomkuca, Jess Jackson, Patrick Riley and Anya Saternus. The congregation enjoyed performances of ‘Please Come Home for Christmas’, sung by Gemma Surridge; ‘Fairytale of New York” sung by James Hepher and Izzy Nomkuca; and ‘O Holy Night’ sung by Chloe Miles. 

Musicians on the night were: Chris Henman and the Music Technology Department (for pre-recorded music); Dan Mannion and Aiden Scanlon (Sax); Annie Nye (piano); George Murrell (Drums);  Kieran Carter (Cello); Nick Collins (bass guitar); David Buchanan (accordion); Christian Machin and Joe Seal (guitar); The Collyer’s Sinfonia and the college Choir were conducted by Head of Music, Dominic Leitner; the congregation were also treated to wonderful performances by the college’s superb New Ground Dance Company.  

Melanie Russell, Collyer’s Assistant Principal, was ecstatic: “I’ve attended some excellent Collyer’s Carol concerts over past couple of decades and this was without doubt the best ever. What a night!”

The evening closed with a beautiful performance of ‘Silent Night’ by the Choir, Collyer’s Sinfonia and the congregation.

The Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston was thrilled: “Huge thanks must go to Canon Guy Bridgewater and all at St Mary’s for hosting the event. We are also extremely grateful to the students and staff who have made the festive occasion possible. Three hundred pounds has been raised tonight to support Help for Heroes and our charitable projects in Tanzania – which is a fantastic effort!”

An ergonomic shopping bag handle which stops you forgetting your shopping has won first prize in this year’s “Designing for the Future” competition run by Horsham business, The Future Perfect Company and The College of Richard Collyer.

This popular competition, which is now in its second year, encourages young designers to think about the challenges that an ageing population presents – and to create innovative, attractive and aspirational designs that allow people to continue to live enjoyable, active and independent lives as they get older.

The winning design by AS level student, Alex Francis is an ergonomic handle designed to hold a number of shopping bags with a unique reminder ring which makes sure you never leave your bags behind again.

The runners up were no less ingenious. Mike Davies designed a vibrating pillow alarm clock ideal for deaf people and also considerate spouses not wanting to wake their partner; Isabelle Parker devised an elegant heated back support and Sam Hammant came up with toast tweezers – perfect for extracting annoying pieces of toast stuck in the toaster.  Aston Cheesman’s design was a clever chair port with adjustable tray table and Ben Palmer took the idea of long handled back brushes a stage further with his shower aid which is pre-loaded with shower gel.

Philippa Aldrich, founder of The Future Perfect Company comments: “We are delighted to be running this competition for a second year with Collyer’s.  The Horsham district has one of the fastest ageing populations in the UK and there is a real need for designers to think about the challenges that will bring.  Alex’s shopping bag handle allows you to carry more than one shopping bag comfortably. And the reminder ring makes sure you never leave your shopping behind. Although designed with older people in mind, this product has universal appeal and would be really useful for Christmas shopping!”

Judge Craig Barrow comments, “The students showed a high quality of research and development within their chosen areas of work producing a wide range of ideas and interesting concepts. Congratulations to the winners."

The competition was open to Collyer’s students on the GCE Advanced Subsidiary Product Design course and judged by Denise Stephens (co-founder of online design community Enabled by Design), Craig Barrow (former winner of the Designing for the Future Competition at University of Brighton), and Philippa Aldrich (founder of The Future Perfect Company). Tutors Kate Sharp (Faculty leader – Arts and Communications) and Hari Atkins (Subject Leader – Product Design, Materials) acted as advisors to the judging panel.

The Future Perfect Company was born in 2009 when owner Philippa Aldrich was looking for ways to make life easier for relatives and friends facing the challenges of later life.  When investigating what products could and should be available to help the over 50s, she was horrified by the many dull, utilitarian products which looked as if they belonged in a hospital.  In time, Philippa became increasingly determined to champion the need for thoughtful design so she took the plunge and – after 20 years as a city lawyer – made her passion a reality when she established The Future Perfect Company.  Philippa is the winner of the West Sussex County Times Best New Business Award 2010 and was a finalist in the Southern Business Awards 2010.

Sue Poulton, Head of Mathematics at Collyer’s, explained: “A number of the elite universities, including Cambridge, Warwick, Bath and Imperial, require a pass in STEP Maths papers for students wishing to take a Maths-related degree. The aim of the day is to support our most able mathematicians to pass STEP on the road to fully reaching their potential.”

Students and staff travelled to Collyer’s from Brighton and Hove VI form College, Burgess Hill School for Girls, Christs Hospital, Hurstpierpoint, Lingfield NotreDame, Reigate VIth Form College, Sussex Downs, the Weald and Worthing VIth Form to take part in the conference.

Rob  Etteridge, Assistant Subject Leader for Mathematics, was delighted: “The Collyer’s students have really enjoyed this fantastic opportunity to work with other colleges on content beyond the syllabus. The event has been hugely successful”.

Peter Mitchell, formerly chairman of Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) for the United Kingdom, led the introductory sessions on STEP Maths. The regions top maths teachers and students then took part in elite-level mathematical exercises throughout an action packed day.   

Nick Robins, who helped to co-ordinate the event, said: “It is a great opportunity for staff and students to work on some really tricky Maths problems together and also for staff to get expert advice about preparing candidates for these STEP papers. We thought it important to share this expertise with staff and students from other institutions and we have really enjoyed working with them.”

Principal Dr Jackie Johnston, was proud to host the maths conference: “We have an extremely strong reputation for Mathematics and it is a great honour for Collyer’s to host this event. Hopefully it will help to make sure that the region’s most able mathematicians reach their considerable potential.”

The Wolfson Food and Nutrition Facility comprises modern kitchen and lap-top facilities and is the largest facility of its kind in the country being used by AS and A2 students studying the Food, Nutrition and Health course.  The event was hosted by the Principal of Collyer’s, Dr Jackie Johnston, with Vivien Chaffin-Laird, Colin Eley, Aqsa Rafiq, Roger Raymond, Jennifer Simmonds, Sarah Wilks, Robert Yorke and Nicola Whitehead representing the Governing Body. Other VIP guests included Cllr Claire Vickers, Chairman of HDC and Chris Baister, Business Development Manager at HDC. Paul Stoggles from WSCC was also in attendance, along with Graeme Skipper from Fulcrum Design, Ann Avery, who is Food Manager at M&S and Steve Gilham, who managed the project for Collyer’s.

Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston, was delighted that the College of Richard Collyer can benefit from such generosity: “The students and staff at Collyer’s were proud to show-off our new facility to a host of VIPs.  We are hugely grateful to the Wolfson Foundation and delighted that we have been able to develop for the future.  I am confident that it will help the Food and Nutrition success story under Sally Miller to continue!”

A top performing institution, Collyer’s has Beacon status and enjoys an “Outstanding” rating from Ofsted.  The new facilities have literally built upon the continued academic success of Collyer’s and students who arrived in September have already enjoyed the new facilities across the college.

Mr Gordon Tregear, Vice Lord Lieutenant of West Sussex, was honoured to open the facility: “A-level Food and Nutrition at Collyer’s is the largest course of its kind in the country and Sussex should indeed be very proud of Collyer’s and these cutting edge facilities.”

The 21st century facilities include 10 cookers, 24 lap-tops and a state-of-the-art skype-enabled camera.  Guests were treated to a range of healthy and delicious food, prepared by students Natasha Crawford, Hester Doran and Penny Stone.

Sally Miller, subject leader for Food and Nutrition, was thrilled: “I would like to thank the Wolfson Foundation, the Principal and Rosemary Cowley for their vision and incredible support.  I would also like to thank Ann Avery from Marks and Spencers and Gordon Tregear for their continued help and interest in food education at Collyer’s”.

Georgina Child, who is studying Food and Nutrition, was impressed with the new centre: “We’ve really enjoyed using the new facilities this year.  The kitchen and the lap-tops are excellent and we are also very lucky to have a brilliant teacher in Sally Miller”.

Isabel Braddock (Millais), Lucy Chenery (The Priory), William Earley (Forest), Sam Hammant (Brighton College),  Zoe Hough (Tanbridge House), Brett Pagden (Holy Trinity), Thomas Tozer (The Weald) and  Katherine Urquart (Warden Park) each received £500.  

Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston explained: “We wanted to recognise the work of our excellent partner schools and reward some of our new outstanding students for their academic excellence at GCSE. As a ‘magnet college’ attracting students from right across the region, it was only fitting that we also rewarded students coming to us from farther afield. I’m sure the £500 will be put to good use to help support their education while at Collyer’s”.

Isabel Braddock, who formerly attended Millais School, said: “I’m delighted with the award. Thanks to everyone at Millais.”

William Earley, who won the prize from Forest School, was thrilled: “Thank-you to all of the brilliant teachers at Forest!”

Catherine Urquart was ecstatic to win the Warden Park School prize: “I’m thrilled to be awarded the bursary. I don’t know how I’m going to spend the money. It’ll either go towards the college’s China trip or I’ll save it. Thanks to Collyer’s for thinking of me for the award and huge thanks must go to all of the supportive teachers at Warden Park.”

Lucy Chenery added: “Thanks Collyer’s and thank-you to The Priory in Dorking for all of their kind support and great teaching. Big hugs to the Priory lot!” 

Ana Dueñas León was amazed by the outstanding dancing expertise on show: “The students thoroughly enjoyed the workshops and demonstrated how talented at dancing they are. I was really impressed that they managed to dance an extremely challenging choreography by the end of the sessions.”

Margarita Mortimer, who is Subject Leader for Spanish, was thrilled: “Ana’s wonderful workshops have really helped to give the students a vital insight into Spanish Culture, which is something that has been the key to the success of the course. It was also a great opportunity for the college’s gifted dance students to showcase their talents!” 

Last week, students including those studying adult education courses at Collyer’s, visited the Hawth in Crawley for a performance of Amor en el Jardin (Love in the Garden).

Margarita Mortimer explained: “The evening of performance, poetry and music was inspired by Spain's greatest writer of the 20th century, Federico García Lorca. The students loved the show. It was simply breathtaking!”

Melanie Russell, Assistant Principal, said: “We have outstanding Dance and Spanish departments and events like these are what make education at Collyer’s so special!”

Oliver was thrilled with the astonishing national press interest: “I’ve been mentioned on the BBC News, Sky News and Heart Radio; as well as in The Times and The Express, The Sun, The Telegraph, The Guardian and the Metro.”

Oliver, who is 16, won £500 for his superb shot. He explained: “I think the autumnal lighting compliments the red of the fox, giving great warmth and depth to the image.”

Laura Andrews, Subject Leader for Photography at Collyer’s, was delighted: “The photograph is excellent! Congratulations to Oliver! What a fantastic achievement!”

Horsham station is currently undergoing a multi-million pound major refurbishment and as large hoardings and fences are part and parcel of such a project, the CRP got in touch with the college to work on a project to display A-Level students’ artwork while work at the station takes place.

Art teacher and Senior Tutor, Ian McAlister explained: “The student art will be on display for most of the year and it will be Horsham’s first outdoor gallery. The work will be seen throughout the station and may eventually form part of a permanent display when renovations are complete.”

Sarah Evans, Southern’s Corporate Social Responsibility and Partnerships Manager said: “When we were approached by the CRP with the idea of displaying the artwork at the station we jumped at it! The outside of the station has certainly been brightened up and the quality of each piece of art is outstanding.”

20 large panels, displaying around 57 pieces of art including drawings, paintings and photography reflecting Horsham and its history will be on view.

Collyer’s Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston was thrilled: “We are delighted to be involved in this creative project, as it provides a great opportunity for our young artists to showcase their talent. The outstanding quality of the work on show is a reflection of their fantastic ability. We are incredibly proud of our students and they are a credit to Collyer’s and our superb Art department.”  

A host of top professionals also helped the students to organise their cases and give the event further authenticity. These included PC Keith Beckley, KPMG’s Simon Bush, law under-graduate George Woodhouse and private investigator Michael Colacicco.   

Magistrate Mary Hamilton, who conducted the mock trial on the final day, was impressed with the high standard of work on show: “The students worked particularly hard in their legal teams and I was very impressed with how well they prepared and the quality of the performance. Presenting in court is extremely difficult and I felt they all did brilliantly.” 

The winning legal team comprised Lizzie Bright, Spencer Phillips, Jessica Mok and Prudence Nash. Acting as the prosecution team, they actually lost the trial, but Judge Mary Hamilton felt that they deserved the prize in recognition of their outstanding team work over the two days.

Steve Nicholls, Collyer’s Vice Principal, later presented a bouquet of flowers to Madeleine Mills, who was helping to co-ordinate the event for the last time. Steve said: “Collyer’s has worked closely with Madeleine Mills and her brilliant team at Education Business Partnership to put on this superb annual event.  Collyer’s CSI has gone from strength to strength over the years and Madeleine’s outstanding work has undoubtedly helped to make this possible. On behalf of Collyer’s, I would like to say thank-you Madeleine!”  

Head of Law at Collyer’s, Helen Mayer-Dean, was delighted with Collyer’s CSI: “The trial was gripping. The quality of the legal cases put forward was outstanding. The students are a credit to themselves and a credit to Collyer’s. We would like to thank Mary Hamilton, Horsham Magistrates Court, Education Business Partnership and all of our volunteers for their superb support. Events like Collyer’s CSI are what education is all about!”

In a number of subjects the results are particularly outstanding. Photography had a 100% pass rate with 75% at A*/A/B, DT Graphics Products had a 100% pass rate with 73% at A*/A/B, Computing had a 100% pass rate with 69% at A*/A/B and Maths had a 100% pass rate with 68% at A*/A/B; French and German both had a 100% pass rate with 67% at A*/A/B,  Food and Nutrition also posted a 100% pass rate with 65% at A*/A/B and Dance had a 100% pass rate with 62% at A*/A/B. 85% of Further Maths students achieved A*/A/B, 64% of Government and Politics students achieved A*/A/B; Art and Design had a 99% pass rate with 67% A*/A/B and Chemistry also had an excellent pass rate of 99% with 65% A*/A/B.

Noteworthy individual successes included Bristol University bound Michael James, who achieved straight A*s in Chemistry, Maths, Further Maths, Geology and the Extended Project. Chinese student Lin Yin, who will read Engineering at Cambridge, also achieved straight A*s in Maths, Further Maths and Physics, with an A in Chemistry. Jennifer Bloomfield, who is to read History at Cambridge, achieved A* in Chemistry and English Literature and As in History, Maths and the Extended Project. Richard Fitton, who is hoping to study Maths at Cambridge, gained A* across the board in Electronics, Physics, Maths and Further Maths, with an A for Extended Project.  Rachel Fletcher, who will be studying at Magdalene College, Cambridge next year achieved A*s in Chemistry, French, English Literature, Maths and an A in Latin. Oxford bound Sarah Illingworth achieved A* in English Literature and History with straight As in French, Drama and the Extended Project.    

The college’s AS results were also excellent, with an overall pass rate of 94% with 46% achieving A/B. Photography enjoyed a 100% pass rate with an incredible 80% at A/B! Vocational subjects also excelled with 100% of Child Care Level 2 Diploma students achieving an A* or A!   

The Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston, was absolutely thrilled that the college had once again exceeded its very high previous record: “We are delighted to be celebrating yet another record-breaking year. I’m incredibly proud of our students and staff. The success reflects their hard work over the course of another hugely successful year, across the broad range of subjects studied. The results are simply outstanding!”

Despite national press coverage focussing on the difficulty of getting places at university, the strong performance of Collyer’s students means that the vast majority will have secured their places. 

Dr Jackie Johnston added: “Horsham should be very proud of its young people. They have done their very best to invest time and effort in their futures, in what is a difficult and uncertain world for them”.

The college’s high quality post results advice service is now in full swing, with academic staff guiding students into appropriate university choices. 

The teams of eight were each led by a top representative of the business community. These experts came from companies including: HSBC, Spectrum Training, The West Sussex County Times, Accenture; TS Travel, Marks and Spencer, Gatwick Diamond, Media Word Waves, GSI Wealth Management and Chappells Kitchen Design. Each group undertook a variety of tasks, which included making a balloon sculpture, chairing and running a management meeting, and setting up a car production line.  

Mark Goodson from Accenture MC’d the event, assisted by Collyer’s Senior Tutor Ian McAlister, who helped put the conference together. Ian was delighted with the day: “The brilliant team of business experts have helped Collyer’s to make the 26th Challenge of Management Conference even bigger and better than ever. The students attacked the complex tasks with great zeal and gusto. They were quite simply a credit to the college.”

Principal Dr Jackie Johnston, was delighted: “The top industry professionals clearly inspired our students to work really well as business teams throughout a fun, action packed day. We’re hugely grateful to them for their efforts. It was incredibly generous of these busy business people to take time out and volunteer to help the next generation. Thanks must also go to Ian McAlister and his brilliant team, who have yet again excelled themselves.”   

Ian McAlister added: “Particular thanks must go to Lorraine Nugent of Media Word Waves and Darren Hawley of GSI Wealth Management, who spoke passionately to the students about the importance of decision making and team work in the real-world of life and business.”

The premiere of the DVD was displayed on a big screen in front of an audience of health professionals, support groups, stroke survivors and members of the public.  The DVD was extremely well received and copies were quickly snapped up by local groups and organisations. 

Malcolm Gates, LINk Communications Officer, said: “We developed the video to be used as a ‘tool’ by small groups to stimulate discussion and, hopefully, take some action as a result. This might simply be individuals deciding to improve their diet, take more exercise or give up smoking”   

Dr Vicki King, Chair of the LINk Stewardship Group presented gift tokens to the students as a “Thank-You” for all their hard work.

Jonathan Nunns, Head of Media Studies at the College of Richard Collyer, said: “LINk are brilliant to work with and this is a smashing project for a superb cause. The DVD has high production value, demonstrated by the fact that it is being used across the region.”

Principal, Dr Jackie Johnston, was full of praise for the young film makers: “Young people often get a bad press for a perceived lack of social conscience, so we’re delighted that these talented students are helping to dispel that myth. They are a credit to the media department, Collyer’s and Horsham”.

A scheme to give away state-of–the-art training software to every young driver has been launched by Principal Dr Jackie Johnston and Horsham MP Francis Maude at Collyer’s.

Drive IQ, an a2om CIC campaign, aims to dramatically reduce the number of young people dying on the roads. The campaign will see Drive IQ “brain training” software given away to schools, colleges and novice drivers across the region.

Sarah Rowley, CEO of a2om CIC and campaign founder said: “Drive IQ affects behavioural change by using coaching techniques that allow the novice driver to make safe driving decisions. We are giving away this software as we truly believe that price should not be a bar to young people gaining access to life-saving software and technology. Our plan is to roll-out a pilot scheme nationally.”

MP Francis Maude added: “This modern approach is already popular with students. It gives young people free and easy on-line access to a learning programme which could save their life and the life of a friend or road user.”  

Principal Dr Jackie Johnston, was delighted to host the launch: “It’s a great honour for Collyer’s to be selected to launch a scheme that will eventually run nationally. We are fully supportive of the Drive IQ initiative and confident that it will help to save lives.”

To get free access to Drive IQ go to www.driveiq.co.uk and follow the instructions.

The group started its week in the UK with a visit to Horsham District Council’s Chamber, as part of the students’ education to find out about how local government works in different countries. The Chairman of the Council, Cllr Claire Vickers welcomed the group and led a special presentation ceremony.

Cllr Claire Vickers said: “It was a real pleasure to meet with the students. They were very enthusiastic to find out more about what the Council does, as well as about everything that’s going on around the District.”

Ms Margarita Mortimer, Head of Spanish Studies at Collyer’s said: “We are always delighted to welcome our Spanish exchange students because it’s such a good opportunity for them to experience life in England as well as practise their language skills. The Students and their families have been very accommodating and visiting Horsham Council and being welcomed by the Chairman have been a real experience for all of us.”

Irene Fernandez, accompanying teacher for the Spanish students, added: “We would like to thank the Council and Collyer’s for welcoming us so warmly. We have been coming to Horsham for seven years now and it’s always been a real pleasure.”

The students continued their educational week with visits to the Horsham Museum, Brighton and the Houses of Parliament, as well as spending time with local students and their families.

Special guest speaker, Gill Buchanan (Manager of the Swan Walk Shopping Centre) gave an inspirational talk to the students. She said: “Sincere congratulations must go to all of the students. I’m passionate about vocational qualifications because they are extremely valuable in the work place. The students have all done incredibly well and their parents must be extremely proud”.

The graduation was attended by students, teachers, parents and representatives from the local community, including artist Martine Spencer, Christopher Skelton (Director of Mapp & Co Estate Agents), Major Steve Ansell (Army Careers Advisor Sussex), Clare French and Sally Anne Jackson (Headstart Day Nursery) and Philippa Aldrich (Future Perfect).

Principal Dr Jackie Johnston was delighted with the students’ achievements: “This is the first Level 2 SFBac graduation year and it’s fitting that we have such a special group of students to honour it. Some are going straight into the work place; others are staying on to study Level 3 courses with us. Wherever they move on to from here, I’m sure that they will be successful”. 

Special awards were given to the top student from each of the subject areas. The Art and Design prize went to Martin Dimitrov; Child Care and Education was won by Rebecca Tidy, Billy Basmadjian walked away with the top Business prize and the top student in IT was Adam Dedman. James Hickman was delighted to receive the award for Sport.

Rebecca Tidy, who won the Child Care and Education prize said: “I’d like to say a big thank-you, on behalf of my group, to our teachers. They’ve been brilliant. I’m really looking forward to studying Level 3 Child Care at Collyer’s from September.”

Martin Dimitriv, who scooped the Art prize added: “I’d like to thank my teachers for being extremely supportive and patient throughout the year.”