CarmelUpClose

a knight torememberpage 10

Carmel is one of the top tencolleges in the countrypage 2

Carmel is one of the top tencolleges in the countrypage 2

rreessuulltt!!

Carmel College MagazineAutumn 2010

new year, new students,new facilitiespage 4

studentsimpress topdesignerspage 18

The Class of 2010 did themselves, their parentsand their college very proud! They achieved thecollege’s highest ever A Level results and onceagain placed Carmel among the very bestcolleges in the country.

With an overall A Level pass rate of 99.4%, theproportion of students achieving A*, A or B gradeswas a phenomenal 57.6% and this performanceplaced the college in the top 10 colleges in thecountry according to the Independent newspaper.A key performance indicator for colleges is “valueadded” which measures the progress students havemade from GCSE. When Carmelʼs 2010 results areanalysed in terms of value added, it reveals thatCarmel is achieving its aim of “academic excellencefor all”. This analysis places Carmel high among thetop 5% of schools and colleges in the country.

one of the top tenccoolllleeggeess iinn tthhee ccoouunnttrryy

22

As in previous years there are many stories of students achieving outstanding academicsuccess. This year saw the introduction of theA* grade at A Level and student Tom Lamont,who came to Carmel from St Gregoryʼs,certainly shone when he scored a full housewith an incredible 4 A* grades at A Level plusanother A* for his Extended ProjectQualification! Tom has now gone to OxfordUniversity to study Earth Sciences. Two other

Carmel students are Oxbridge bound too– former Prescot student Helena

Newbold who is now atCambridge University readingLanguages, and Matthew

Blundell, formerly of Cowley,who is now studyingEngineering at OxfordUniversity.

There were many examples of exceptionalachievement this year and with so manyhappy students Principal, Rob Peacock, wasdelighted to join in the celebrations on resultsday. “Today is one of the highlights of theyear. I love seeing our young people reapingthe benefit of all their hard work. A Levelexams are challenging and nerve wrackingand an enormous amount depends on theoutcome. Seeing how well the students havedone and knowing that they can now move on to the next stage of their careers makes allthe effort worthwhile. It is great to share theirexcitement. They are tremendously talentedand committed and I am confident that theywill go on to even greater success. It is a realprivilege to have helped them along the way. I wish them all the best.”

33

After being given the "go ahead" for theredevelopment of our campus in Spring2008, all buildings are now complete. The ambitious scheme represented a totalinvestment of twenty two million poundsthat has transformed Carmel College intoa truly outstanding and inspiring placeto learn and work.

From the start of the new academic year,students have had use of the brand newDalton Building which includes facilities forPerformance and Dance. There’s a new DaltonTheatre which seats an audience of 200, plusa Dance Studio, performance areas, teachingand learning rooms and changing andshowering facilities. A new Student ServicesCentre is also located in this buildingproviding students with a “one-stop-shop” for information and advice.

The other buildings in the redevelopmentprogramme include the Centre for Art andDesign, completed in Spring 2009 and theWest Park Building, completed in August2009, which provides facilities forSciences, Law, ICT, Philosophyand Religion, History,Geography, English,Sociology,

Psychology, Modern Languages andFoundation Learning.

All subject areas have access to their own I.T.facilities and the new buildings are “wi-fienabled” to allow staff and students to accessthe internet anywhere. As part of the College’s“green heating and lighting strategy”, the newbuildings are “controlled” by an intelligentbuilding management system to ensureoptimum efficiency. State-of-the-art air coolingsystems are used throughout; the lighting iscontrolled using sensors to detect andautomatically adjust the level of additionallighting required in individual areasthroughout the day.

The new buildings will be complementedby the careful

new year, new students,nneeww ffaacciilliittiieess

44

landscaping of the college grounds. A centralcollege courtyard will make the best possibleuse of the space to provide students, staff andvisitors with a pleasant outdoor area in which towork or relax. Two new all-weather sportstraining pitches are also welcome additions tothe College’s existing sports facilities. The

outstanding facilities that havebeen created certainly matchour outstanding reputation andwill provide an inspiringenvironment for futuregenerations.

5

In January Carmel's students organised a number of events in order toraise money for the Haiti Appeal. The devastating earthquake causedwidespread damage and left many in desperate need of clean water,shelter and medical help. At Carmel, fundraising activities included acake sale and a ‘waxing event’ where three of Carmel’s brave studentshad a leg, back or face wax (ouch!!) in exchange for donations from thecrowds of onlookers! Over £1400 was raised in total.

help for hhaaiittii

The Lasallian Project takes groups of youngpeople to various countries in the DevelopingWorld to work on school building projectshelping to make education more available asa force for change and means of escapingfrom poverty. This year student StaceyGriffiths spent time in Kenya:

The Lasallian Developing World Project Kenya2010 had a profound impact on me. Having thechance to witness the level of poverty across asmall part of Africa, and to directly have animpact on enhancing the lives of those inpoverty, is an invaluable experience that will staywith me well into the future. It brings with it manynew realisations that I have applied to my ownlife back home, in terms of appreciation,happiness and lifelong friendship. It issomething I would hope to repeat many yearsinto the future so I can continue to have a smallinfluence on the development of the third world.

'Act as if what you do makes a difference. Itdoes' - W. James

lasallian developingwwoorrlldd pprroojjeecctt

66

model students team upwwiitthh ssaaiinnttss Earlier this year Carmel College hosted a

fashion show in conjunction with St HelensRLFC. The event was organised by nineA Level Applied Business students as partof their coursework and showcased thelatest kits and new clothing range on offerat Saints.

Models from across college together with AS Dance students helped to make the eventa resounding success, with the Dalton Theatreat full capacity! The Show also featured aguest appearance from Saints player JamesGraham, together with club mascots Bootsand St Bernard.

Throughout the week the students soldmerchandise in college and achievedexcellent sales targets. Alongside this, theyalso organised some signed shirts and othermerchandise which was raffled. The studentsdonated £100 to Sport Relief and £100 toWillowbrook Hospice which was collected bythe Mayor of St Helens on their behalf.

77

This year’s trip wentto the Kaprun area of Zell am Zee inAustria. A combination of great students, greatski conditions and great accommodation atthe side of the lake produced a memorabletrip. The powder snow off piste meant plentyof fun for both the experienced and first timersand the students learnt a lot from their

instructors. Alongside theskiing, highlights included the games night atthe hotel, the Austrian version of mushroomthrowing and of course the fancy dress eventon the final night!

88

ski trip 22001100

Carmel’s Foundation Learningdepartment wowed audiences withtheir outstanding performances intheir show ‘I’ve got the XFactor…Get me out of here!’

The Dalton Theatre was full tocapacity with both performances a complete sell out! Each act wasintroduced in an X Factor style by“Ant and Dec” with stunningperformances from Lady Gaga,Abba, The Saturdays, Queen, Ali Gand Jedward. The show ended witha fantastic finale which sawmembers of staff joining in with a ‘Superman’ number!

9

students have theX factor!

Students and staff at Carmel Collegecelebrated earlier this year when theywere officially welcomed into London2012’s Get Set network, in recognitionof their commitment to the Olympicand Paralympic Values. Joiningschools and colleges across the UKas members of the Get Set network,students will receive access toexclusive competitions and 2012Games related opportunities over the next three years.

Craig Heap, Olympian andCommonwealth Gold Medallist gave a talk to students about the personaltriumphs in his career and presentedthe college with the official plaque andcertificate. From now to the start of theGames, Carmel plans to offer manydifferent activities both through theEnrichment Programme and throughthe curriculum.

carmel joins London 2012’s get set network

The search for the Holy Grail continued itstrail to Carmel College in April of this yearas King Arthur and his knights took onMonty Python's Spamalot.

The Tony award winning production wasremastered so that audiences could enjoy the 2005 classic. Scripted from the originalHoly Grail film with a bit of Blackadder thrownin for good measure, Spamalot entertainedwith uplifting numbers like ‘Not Dead Yet’, ‘His Name is Lancelot’, 'Whatever Happenedto my Part’, 'Knights of the Round Table’ andthe inimitable ‘Always Look On The BrightSide’. The production was slick and colourfulwith a very talented and highly comedic cast.Ultimately it proved to be a knight toremember!

a ‘knight’ ttoo rreemmeemmbbeerr!!

1100

Carmel’s annual Industry Day provedsuccessful with over 40 businessesattending the annual event. Students hadthe opportunity to speak to representativesfrom a wide range of organisations to gainan insight into what each career mayinvolve, as well as obtaining advice on howto progress in these areas.

1111

industry ddaayy

1122

This year marked the FrenchDepartment’s 18th annualexchange to the Vendée regionof France with over 30 studentsand staff travelling to La Roche.

The group spent a very enjoyableweek visiting a ‘boulangerie’, anaquarium, a pottery, the town ofLa Rochelle and the cinema.Students were looked after bytheir host families and took part ina range of activities, experiencingthe way of life of a young personin France. The whole experiencewas both educational andenjoyable and the visit helped to motivate students as well asincreasing confidence just beforethe oral examinations!

In February of this year a group ofCarmel’s Spanish students along withtheir tutors flew out to Barcelona.

They visited all the major sights including theSagrada Familia - the famous work of AntoniGaudí, Las Ramblas, the Olympic Stadiumand the Camp Nou, the home of FCBarcelona. The group also saw a film at the

cinema which was good listening practice,and there was even time for some shoppingin Spain’s famous department store – El Corte Inglés! The highlight of the trip wasthe Pueblo Español where students saw thevaried architecture of Spain and aspectacular Flamenco show - a fantastic endto a fascinating visit!

french exchange 22001100

students explore bbaarrcceelloonnaa

The annual Geography field trip saw the AS students braving the elements inMorecambe where they completed adetailed ‘Environmental ImpactAssessment’ of the coastal defences.

The following day the expedition continued on to Sandscale Haws National NatureReserve. In yet another bracing wind,students got down to surveying the vegetationcommunities and environmental conditionsalong the sand dune system … the electricfence which restricts pastoral grazing, beingthe only barrier to their enthusiasm! Barrow-in-Furness was the next port of call. Here, thestudents toured the once heart of Britishshipbuilding.

The final day of fieldwork took the students to a range of locations to study ‘RuralRebranding’ before visiting Holme OpenFarm, near Holme Fell, border countrybetween Cumbria and Yorkshire. Once againthe students worked tirelessly and ended theday with a well earned drink and a cake in the Farm Café!

geographers brave the elements

1133

Another successful Student Health Daytook place earlier this year. Students andstaff were given the opportunity to speakto health professionals and get expertadvice on a range of health issues.

Visitors included representatives from theLighthouse Drugs and Alcohol Team, AsthmaUK, Smoking Cessation Team, ChlamydiaScreening, Mental Health Team andMerseyside Police who were publicising theirRoad Safety Awareness campaign. There wasalso the opportunity to book an appointmentfor a health check with an NHS Health Trainerand to find out your BMI through the Alive ‘n’Kicking Weight Management Programme.Information about healthy eating and gettingyour “five a day” was also available and, witha variety of fresh fruit freely available to all, afew people decided to get their five portionsin one sitting!!

14

health kick for students

AS Level Dance students at Carmel took part in aworkshop delivered by 3rd year BA Hons Dancestudents from Edge Hill University.

Designed to raise the profile of Dance within further andhigher education, the programme gave students aninsight into university life in general and specifically whatthey can expect as an undergraduate Dance student. The day proved to be very informative and enjoyed by allwho took part.

dance students practisetthheeiirr tteecchhnniiqquuee

Staff and students from Carmel’s Law department spent a very enjoyable five days in theBig Apple.

Highlights of the trip included a night visit to the Empire State Building, a guided tour of the UnitedNations Building, visiting a snow covered Central Park, ice skating at the Rockefeller Centre andwatching a basketball game at the world famous Madison Square Garden. All in all a fantastic tripenjoyed by staff and students alike.

new york, nneeww yyoorrkk!!

1155

Six of Carmel’s studentsentered a public speakingcompetition organised by theCatenians at Eccleston GolfClub. Students chose from alist of topics and wereexpected to speak for 4minutes. Topics included ‘Is66 too old to have a baby?’,‘Yes we can’ (BarackObama), “You are thearchitect of your ownfortune” (Appius Claudius).Congratulations to Carmelstudents Jacinta Peers andThomas Williams who wereawarded first and second places.

Science graduate ambassadors from NewcastleUniversity visited Carmel this year to deliver a series of activities for the college’s science students. Theseactivities aimed to enhance and enrich the STEMcurriculum with some fun experiments. The sessionsgenerated a real buzz around the science area andstudents commented on how much they enjoyed the day.

the appliance ofsscciieennccee

1166

public speaking ccoommppeettiittiioonn

Staff and students at Carmel got to show off their musical talents bybusking for Children in Need.

Throughout the day students played a range of different instruments and at lunchtime a large crowd gathered to enjoy a mini concert by staff trio Rob Peacock andKen Buckley on guitars and Frank Park on the violin. All our buskers attracted generousdonations raising £440 for this worthy cause.

children in nneeeedd

1177

In 2009/10

Carmel raised

£3,835 for charity!

carmel is aFFaaiirrttrraaddee CCoolllleeggee

Last year, Carmel became a Fairtrade College andthe Fairtrade Foundation has renewed our FairtradeStatus again for the next two years. Their report wasfull of praise: “Your events are extremely impressiveand highlight your commitment to raising awarenessabout Fairtrade on campus. We are very impressedby the high level of engagement of the studentcommunity. We congratulate Carmel College for alltheir hard work. We are delighted to renew CarmelCollege’s Fairtrade Status.”

As part of Fairtrade Fortnight, temptingly tasty treatswere to be had at two cake sales - and all madewith Fairtrade ingredients, delicious! Carmel’sJustice and Peace Group brought in homemadeFairtrade sponge cakes, flapjacks and cookies anda Fairtrade Tea Party was the order of the day downin the Foundation Learning Flat. With a beautifullypresented spread of cakes all baked by theFoundation Learning students, guests at the teaparty were spoilt for choice!

Each year, one of Carmel's BA GraphicDesign degree students, gets the opportunityto spend three weeks working at British Voguein London. The placement allows the studentto work with some of the industry’s mostprestigious designers including world famous Creative Director, Robin Derrick.

This year, Josh Glover was chosen to take up this fantastic opportunity. Josh provedhimself at the magazine, and in no time hewas working with the Creative Director and the Fashion Editor. The August issuecontained some of Josh’s page layouts anddesigns, which is an amazing achievement for a first year degree student.

Thanks to Josh, the relationship that Carmelhas built with Vogue has gone from strength to strength.

students impress top ddeessiiggnneerrss aatt bbrriittiisshh vvoogguuee

1188

Antony Conboy has graduated from his BA Graphic Design course with First ClassHonours. The former Carmel student wasalways destined for great things achievinggrade A in Graphics and a Distinction on theArt Foundation Diploma. For his final majordegree project, Antony created an app for theiphone, which has gone down a storm with thefashion world. Macworld said: “Lookinglass isthe world’s first dedicated ipod, ipad, andiphone fashion buying Magazine. Regularlyupdated Lookinglass leads the way in a newera for magazines.”

In talks with Selfridges and British Vogue,Antony finally accepted the offer from

publishersConde Nasteto work on their Wiredpublication and develop the technology.Creative Directorof Vogue, Robin Derrick told Carmel “It’s greatto see that Antony has done so well, and tohave seen the progress he has made sincehis work experience. His degree work on theapp is really fantastic. I’ve been so impressedwith the calibre of students that come to usfrom Carmel.”

antony conboy - ooffffiicciiaallllyy ffiirrsstt ccllaassss aannddccaauussiinngg aa ssttoorrmm!!

Earlier this year students from theGovernment & Politics, Sociology & Media departments jetted off fromHeathrow for the annual trip to theUSA.

This year’s tour was expanded to takein the City of Boston for the first time.The group visited Harvard University,had a tour of Boston via the Freedom Trail and the historic Boston Common,and also saw the famous ‘Cheers’ bar.

The next leg of the journey took them toNew York City where they had to bravetorrential rain! Undeterred by the weatherthey visited Times Square, had a guidedtour of Mid-Manhattan, took a trip on theferry to see the Statue of Liberty and EllisIsland and also visited Wall Street and theStock Exchange.

From New York the group travelled to Washington DC stopping off atPhiladelphia on the way, where studentssaw the Liberty Bell and had a tour ofLiberty Hall. But without a doubt thehighlight of the whole trip was visitingthe White House where they had a tourof the East Wing - very impressive!Whilst in Washington the group alsovisited the Capitol Buildings wherethey almost got to see the President, but sadly it wasn’t to be!

usa tour 22001100

1199

Summer 2010 saw the culmination of twoyears of planning the adventure of alifetime – a month long trip to India andtrekking across the Himalayas!

Students, Harriet, Tom, James, Beth, Jenny,Rachel, Vanessa and Joseph raised £3,000each to fund the project through individualand group fundraising activities.

Accompanied by Carmel Tutor, Ed Swann,and a World Challenge Expedition Leader, theteam arrived in Manali just as the monsooncame! Finding themselves stranded for 3days, they acclimatised whilst exploring thelocal area and prepared for the main trekwhich would take 12 days to complete. Alongthe journey they visited a Tibetan monastery,tried new foods and learnt about theHimalayan people. Following glacial streamsthrough remote areas of the Himalayas theyclimbed almost 5000m up to Chandra TalLake in the Kullu Valley!

After the trek the team visited the awe-inspiring Golden Temple in Amritsar, amagnificent highlight of the trip, beforecontinuing to Jaipur, “The Pink City”. Herethey spent 5 days working on a project toteach sports to local primary school children.Before returning the home, the team alsofound time for some sightseeing visiting Agraand the Taj Mahal. All involved in the trip hadan amazing time and it’s an experience whichthey will always remember!

2200

world cchhaalllleennggee

During the Easter holiday the Biologydepartment took a trip to Costa Rica inCentral America.

The group got first hand experience workingwith a group of Costa Ricans on a TurtleConservation project where they collectedeggs to protect them from poachers and went out on night patrols. Cahuita Beach wasthe location for a rainforest walk and the groupsaw monkeys, poisonous snakes and a widevariety of plants before taking to the sea tosnorkel over the coral reef.

Their third stop was the Sarapiqui ActivityCentre. Here the group stayed in deluxe tents in the rainforest and went to sleep to the sounds of tree frogs, cicadas and howlermonkeys! The next day, they themselvesswung through the trees on zip wires for arainforest canopy tour – voted the best activityof the holiday!

2211

biologists visit the””rriicchh ccooaasstt””

At the end of June, Carmel’s lower sixthstudents were given the opportunity to “have a go” at different enrichment activities. Over two days, students could choose fromover 50 activities on offer through Carmel’sEnrichment Programme - from art, music,performance, media and film through to arange of sports, sign language, cooking andmany more. The event was very successful in highlighting the opportunities available atCarmel and students and staff thoroughlyenjoyed themselves!

a taste of eennrriicchhmmeenntt

2222

Netball

Carmel's Netball team tastedsuccess in December when theytook part in the British CollegesNorth West Competition inManchester. The girls flew throughall rounds and ended with an 18-12 win in the Final. It had been agreat day for the Netball team whowere on top form throughout thetournament. This will hopefully bethe first of many trophies for theteam who also enjoyed asuccessful season in the BritishCollege North West Leaguewhere the girls finished fourth intheir table. Well done girls!

Rugby

Carmel’s Rugby League team enjoyed an “up anddown” season in which they finished 3rd in theirleague table, during rugby “legend” and managerGarth Thomas’ last season at the helm! The ladswere entered into the Carnegie CollegesCup and managed to take it allthe way, defeating fierce rivalsSt Helens College in the Final inwhat turned out to be a thrillinggame, and a great send off forthe upper sixth students. Nextseason with some new additionsand rookie manager Tony Higginsin charge, the team can continuewhere they left off, and pick upmore silverware!

Football

The Football teams also had amixed season, with the college 1stteam finishing 1 point outside theplay-off positions in a season offrustration. The 2nd team howeverenjoyed their most successfulseason in years finishing top of theleague and losing out narrowly in the league play-off finals 1-0. This year we will be hoping for animprovement from the 1st team and for the 2ndteam to continue where they left off.

2233

sports rreevviieeww

Netball Team - British Colleges North West Plate winners 2010

Student Rugby League Plate w

inners 2010

Chemistry Olympiad

A group of Carmel’s chemists took part in the extremely demanding RoyalSociety of Chemistry Olympiad againthis year. All of our students passed with two achieving Silver Awards.

Creative Writing Award

Lower Sixth student Charlotte Harriswon the 2009 Young Creative WritingAward for her short story ‘The Hunt’ at the St Helens Cultural Awards.

Carmel’s Art Students feature in theSunday Telegraph

More than 15,000 entries have beensubmitted to the Saatchi Gallery / SundayTelegraph Art Prize for Schoolscompetition so far and out of the five thatwere featured in the news article, two ofthem were Carmel students!

Prescot Road, St Helens, Merseyside, WA10 3AGTel: 01744 452200 (Reception)

01744 452214/452212 (Admissions)Email: info@carmel.ac.uk

www.carmel.ac.uk

Carmel College is proud tobe a Fairtrade College

Choose products with this Markwww.fairtrade.org.uk

more studentachievements

Photography by Elliot Garner

Photography by Joe Finegan