northants study centres annual review 09-10

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Northamptonshire Study Centres

Annual Review2009/2010

In partnership with

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE

STUDY CENTRESTACKLE LEARNING & MOTIVATION

NCC study centre AR 2010 10/9/10 14:59 Page 2



Welcome

Thank you for taking the time to read our annual review for the academic year 2009/2010

Northamptonshire Study Centres provide young people with wider, richer educational

experiences and opportunities. We are proud of the partnership between the study centres

and the local sports clubs which works in an effective and exciting way to offer young people

the opportunity to learn new skills and increase motivation and self esteem.

Councillor Andrew Grant, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People

Northamptonshire Study Centres continue to provide innovative and exciting

learning opportunities for children and young people who attend either Playing for

Success (PfS) or one of the many other programmes on offer. Now firmly locatedwithin Extended Services we are excited about our contribution to Study Support

within the county.

Study Support “.is about support, support for learning, for adventures of self discovery, journeys into

new ways of knowing, realisation of hidden talents. It is about the achievement that follows naturally

when children and young people have the self confidence and resilience to cope with setbacks....”

Extended Learning Opportunities: A framework for self-evaluation in study support, DCSF. Ref:00907-2009BKT-EN

We are fortunate to have full time study centres at Northampton Saints Rugby Club, Northampton Town Football Club,

Northamptonshire County Cricket Club, Rushden and Diamonds Football Club and Silverstone Circuits. In addition

we have satellite centres at Adrenaline Alley in Corby and at Grendon Outdoor Education Centre.

In addition to more than two thousand hours of Playing for Success delivered to over one thousand five hundredstudents from eighty six primary and twenty two secondary schools over the year, more than one hundred and thirty

hours of PfS time has been offered through the kic.in2.study programme, enabling over forty young people in the care

of the local authority to benefit. Close working relationships with Connexions, the Princes Trust, the University of the

First Age, Northamptonshire Children’s University, the Global Dimension Practitioner and Grendon Outdoor Education

Centre have enabled us to broaden our offer and Northamptonshire Study Centres have delivered a range of day time

programmes which have been accessed by more than one thousand six hundred students from ninety four schools

and other settings. We have also offered nineteen family learning days and more than sixty days of holiday

programmes.

Four centres have QISS accreditation, two at Established level, and all continue to engage with the QiSS (Quality in

Study Support) process to reflect on and constantly improve what is offered to the young people of

Northamptonshire. The new centre at Grendon focuses on Olympic and international themes and has already been

awarded the Inspire Mark as recognition of its contribution to the county’s 2012 agenda.

We continue to work with vulnerable young people through the innovative kic.in2.study programme, close

relationships with special schools and DSPs, and targeted programmes of personalised learning devised in

consultation with schools. Working through the network of ESCO’s (Extended Services Coordinators) across the

county ensures that even more of our young people are able to benefit from programmes that can raise academic

achievement, improve behaviour and attendance and raise levels of self esteem and motivation.

We face challenging times as we look for sustainable ways of working with schools and other partners but are

confident that together we can continue to offer opportunities which engage, enrich and empower our young people.

Val Sudlow, Study Centres Manager

For more information on all our programmes please visit our website: www.northantsstudycentres.org




Saints Study Centre

The year has been busy delivering the core PfS programme as well as increasing the

daytime use of the centre.

The Saints Study Centre supports schools in improving the life chances of children

through developing each student’s motivation and confidence by improving their

personal and social skills and attitudes to learning. The centre assists young people to

become more effective learners, focusing on numeracy, literacy and information and

communication technology (ICT) in a sporting context.

Mentoring at the Saints Study Centre

Pete & Jeanette

Awards for AllWe have obtained an Awards for All Grant for holiday programmes in partnership with

St. James Primary School and the Northampton Saints Community Department.

This allows us to deliver a four day programme at the centre during each of the

school holidays with three weeks of activities during the summer. Activities include

Puppet Making, Maths is Fun, Circus skills, Photostory, visiting the Club Shop, Player

Maths Cards Challenges and Robolab. The children also play sport every day.

One of the reasons young learners improve in so many

ways is the support we get from our fantastic teamof mentors. They come from all walks of life

including Barclaycard, County Secondary Schools and

Northampton University.

Here is how one of our Barclaycard mentors,

Brooke Nicholls, described her experiences.

“I can’t believe it’s been over 2 years since Pete came in

to work looking for volunteers and talked me in to

helping out on a Barclaycard Reward Day. Little did I

know then that I’d have so much fun and end up

agreeing to help out during the week with PfS on a

regular basis.

My employer Barclaycard has been very supportive and

allows me to leave work early on Mondays (on the basis

I make the hours up of course!!) so I can come down and

help out at the centre every week as a volunteer.

The Study Centre provides a fun environment which

means the children enjoy coming after school and aretherefore on their best behaviour! They get to take part

in a variety of activities including circus skills, player

interviews, Shakespeare drama classes and much more.

To this day I still can’t plate spin, but watching the

children give everything a go with such enthusiasm

pushes me to keep trying!

The team are such good fun to be with that I still look

forward to my Mondays. Pete delivers his sessions with

such energy and enthusiasm that you believe it when he

says he has the best job in world!

The Study Centre is a place where children can come

and learn new skills and at the same time build their

confidence which you can really see improve over the 20

hours they spend at the centre. Not only has the Centre

helped to build their confidence, but I can honestly say

its helped build mine too.”

ESCO Partnerships A number of Extended Services Coordinators (ESCO’s) have begun to use

the Study Centre to deliver a variety of programmes. To date we have had

Gifted and Talented Maths days with the Guilsborough and Campion

Clusters and team building days with the Moulton Cluster. We look forward

to developing even more projects with ESCO’s in the future.




Cobblers Study Centre

Jaimie & Jean

Centre overviewIt has been a year of significant growth and development for the Cobblers

Study Centre. Major developments this year have included the introduction of

our first Student Council, the Saturday Animation Club, our Gateway Olympic

Project and our first successful Multi-Disability Duke of Edinburgh Silver

Award. In addition to these projects we have also run our first Cobblers Sport

Relief Rowathon with live video link-up to other

participating PfS centres and have established

ourselves as a regular meeting and training venue

for other Northamptonshire County Council Service

areas. We continue to develop our PfS curriculum

and this year has seen the Student Council,

Barclaycard Reward Days, daytime and after schoolprogrammes all increasing the impact of Playing for

Success for the young people involved.

Duke of EdinburghThis year the Cobblers Study Centre has continued to work in

partnership with the Football in the Community Programme to deliver

the Duke of Edinburgh Award. After completion of their Bronze award

members of the Northampton Town Multi-Disabled Football Club

embarked on their Silver Award and in May they completed their three

day practice expedition along the Welsh Coast at Barmouth. More

recently they walked and camped for a further three days along the High

Peak trail in Derbyshire. For their Service section the group kept busy

making Cobblers gift cards and place mats to sell to raise money for a

‘Shelter Box’ to be sent to Haiti.

Our new Bronze Kic.In2.Study group joined up with Grendon Hall to complete the skills section of their award. They

learnt how to run and maintain a set of quad bikes for three months. The Bronze group have also completed their

practice expedition in the Grendon area and their assessed expedition elsewhere in the County.

Daytime and Holiday ProjectsOur daytime provision has also expanded significantly during the course of the

last year. We continue to work with numerous long-standing partners including:

The Northampton Town Football in the Community Programme, The Football

League Trust, The Princes Trust and the Gateway School. Through our ongoing

work with these partners we have been able to develop new projects to meet the

changing needs of young people in the wider community. In addition to these

projects we have been involved in a number of new projects including: After –school and curriculum time Animation Clubs, Alternative Provision for students

at risk of exclusion, Intervention Programmes, Double Club Visits, Reward Days,

Boys into Books activity days, partnership programmes with The Albion

Foundation and The Gateway Supporter 2 Reporter and Olympic programmes.

We have had a busy holiday project schedule and programmes run during the

school holidays include Daventry Multi Disability days, Animation Club Summer

School and a Daventry Transition Summer School.




Diamonds Study Centre

Literacy project with Sir Christopher HattonThe centre was approached by the

Sir Christopher Hatton School in

Wellingborough to run a series of

sessions designed to improve

literacy skills and to motivate a

group of football loving Year 9 male

students. The sessions took place,

over the course of the academic

year, with the initial session involving a tour around the

Nene Park complex, completing both a numeracy and a

literacy based orienteering challenge within the stadium,

and then using the computers to design a Comic Life

poster with text and photographs to record their visit. The

students returned later in the term to attend an evening

match between Rushden and Diamonds FC and

Eastbourne Borough. They interviewed the manager Justin

Edinburgh before writing a skeleton match report during the

game. The students then returned to the Study Centre the

following afternoon to write a complete match report and

the winning two entries appeared in the club’s match

programme. The students also took part in a practical

coaching session as well as being given the opportunity to

interview two of the players and then produce a written

record of the information they obtained.

“Pass it on” The Games are ComingThe scheme was launched on Tuesday November 3rd as balloons were released

at PfS Centres across the country. Fifteen students from Newton Road Primary

School in Rushden are pictured with Nicky, a BT volunteer, with their balloons

outside the RDFC Sports and Study Centre.

“Pass it On” is the Playing for Success 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games national legacy programme.

In the run up to the Games, Pass it On aims to engage all PfS centres in activities around the Games through

a national competition and a resource exchange across regions. This is a unique opportunity for PfS centres to

use the Olympics and Paralympics as a key resource to raise standards. Throughout the regions a relay

of resources will take place with each resource or ‘baton’ representing an Olympics and Paralympics Value.

These Olympic values, which mirror those being promoted within our study centres, are respect, courage,

equality, excellence, friendship, inspiration, determination together with Olympic and Paralympics Heroes’

themes. Over the three years in the run up to the 2012 Games there will be nine Values for nine regions over

nine terms. These will provide a resource for the competitions and other work that will develop as an online

sharing network of ideas and good practice.

Rob & Sara

The centre based at Rushden and Diamonds Football Club, in conjunction

with its satellite centre at Adrenaline Alley in Corby, has expanded during

the year to meet the needs of schools across much of East and North

Northamptonshire. This has resulted in the ability of our joint centre to offer

Playing for Success opportunities to 105 students from eight secondary

schools and 285 students from nineteen primary schools. Our strong working

relationships with both host clubs has enabled us to deliver an innovative PfS

programme, which has a balance between literacy, numeracy, practical and

ICT activities, in addition to a number of daytime and holiday projects.

Making maths fun at a Football ClubFollowing CPD with an Advanced Skills Maths teacher we have introduced an innovative

additional mathematical activity at the centre. The youngsters are introduced to the properties of

a variety of different mathematical shapes with the emphasis placed on both regular pentagons

and hexagons. They are then shown how to make origami replicas of these two shapes and in

pairs they carefully produce twenty hexagons and twelve pentagons. They then work together to

construct a dodecahedron football by using their fine motor skills to attach five hexagons alongeach of the five sides of each pentagon until they finally complete the circular football.




Steelbacks Study Centre

In the last academic year, the centre and its staff have continued to build on a

reputation for excellence across the projects we deliver regularly, whilst also

working to expand the range of activities we have on offer. Playing for Success has

continued after school for years 5 and 8, as well as for Kic.in2. Study for years 9 and

10. This has been supplemented by Supporter to Reporter and a range of bespoke

projects for schools. Our centre co-ordinator Lynn Harrison, has achieved

accreditation to deliver the Arts Award and has completed her HLTA qualification.

Maths DaysSteelbacks Study Centre has piloted and successfully run a series of Applied

Maths booster days for year 5 pupils. Staff used topics which had beendelivered in school and developed activities which would enable students to

apply their knowledge. In one task, they used the architecture of the buildings

at the cricket ground to examine the properties of shapes, and used this

information in a bridge building task. In another, they were given a budget and

destination and had to plan an away trip including costs and timings for the

cricket team. By using the facilities at the stadium the pupils were able to

practise and develop their skills in a fun and supportive environment. All

sessions were differentiated to enable every child to participate and achieve a

level of success during the day.

Yvonne & Lynn

School of LifeDuring the summer term, some of our Playing for Success graduates

were given the opportunity to take part in an intergenerational learning

project in which they taught the animation skills they learnt during their

course to older people from the local community. The project formed part

of a national pilot which aims to improve community relations and

increase the number of older people who feel empowered to volunteer.

The day at the centre involved twenty four young people working with

eight older people, and included opportunities to complete team building

games as well as having lunch together, giving both generations the

chance to talk and find out more about each other.

Steelbacks World TourThe centre has piloted a range of academic, sports and arts activities

based on the top ten cricketing nations in the world. The Steelbacks

World Tour is a programme of ten lessons which gives an introduction to

the culture and traditions of each of the nations, and includes

opportunities to learn how people from that nation would greet each

other and to sample traditonal foods. Pupils involved have had the

chance to try Batik from Sri Lanka, African drumming and Gumboot

dancing from South Africa and, of course, cricket from Pakistan. The

sessions could be delivered individually to support other projects in

school, or as a block to give pupils an overview of the issues facing

people in different parts of the world.




Silverstone Study Centre

The home of motorsport is buzzing with developments on the track and in the

Study Centre. Changes in the centre’s line up see Trevor join Vicki to present a high

tech and dynamic offering to Playing for Success and all our other activities. As in

the past children are constantly helping us to develop programmes for their needs

and aspirations. Silverstone is the place for speed, passion and wonder!

Vicki & Trevor

Downforce DayHow do you keep a racing car on the track? The answer to that question is

‘downforce.’ Silverstone expanded its repertoire this year to offer specific

Science Days. Testing lift with paper darts, children soon understood that if

we reversed the theory then we could see why a racing car had wings on the

front of the car. The dry subject of Newton’s laws of motion came alive aspupils designed their own experiments using an adapted skateboard and a

two metre ramp!

I am learningHow do you get a teenager to volunteer to do extra

maths? Easy, open I am Learning and away we go!

Accessed from our web-site and linked into our study

programme I am learning motivates students to buy

game time by answering maths questions or completing

an English task. Game time means that you can then

play a range of games. The game of choice for most

young adults is Splat the Teacher! Virtual MuseumOver sixty gifted and talented children from south

Northamptonshire displayed their infinite capacity to

surprise and delight by furnishing the Virtual Museum.

Selecting their own subjects they researched and

compiled artefacts and embedded them in our simulated

world. Subjects included Ferrari, racing car construction,

a biography of Murray Walker and car crashes! A new

multi-linear computer platform will make the museum

even more exciting and interactive in the coming year.

SponsorshipSilverstone Study Centre was extremely fortunate to attract

sponsorship from Porsche who wish to support the Study

centre’s programmes. This has enabled us to increase our

investment in high technology and help to keep us at the forefront

of computer aided learning.




Projects

Kic.in2.studyOver the last year more than forty young people in the care of the Local

Authority have taken advantage of the opportunities offered to them through

kic.in2.study. Students from year 6 through to year 12 have attended PfS

based sessions at Northamptonshire Study Centres, been involved in the

Supporter to Reporter programme, worked towards achieving a bronze level

Arts Award, completed units towards the Duke of Edinburgh Award at

bronze level, and attended a singer songwriter course at The Stables music

studios in Wavendon. As well as taking part in activities at Everdon Field

Centre and Grendon Outdoor Education centre they have attended local

theatres to see a pantomime, a musical and serious drama, and enjoyedmatch day experiences at the Cobblers football club, the Saints rugby club,

and Nottingham Panthers ice hockey club.

Much that is written about study support emphasises the impact it can make on the

learning and development of young people and clearly this is of even greater

importance to young people in the care of the local authority. Kic.in2.study attempts

to overcome many of the barriers that exist to prevent their full engagement in

extended learning opportunities. By developing positive relationships between the

young people and our staff they can be encouraged and supported to take

advantage of these opportunities. Our excellent relationship with a local transport

company sympathetic to our needs removes one of the most difficult hurdles to

young people’s involvement and the cyclical nature of our programme offers a

continuity and consistency which may otherwise be lacking.

Helena, Anna & Val




PfS on the Road

World Cup programme A successful PfS on the Road day took place at Hartwell CE

primary school in July. As part of the school’s cross-curricular two-

week world cup programme, Anna and Lee from NTFC led

sessions around geography, ICT, English and Drama. The activities

included identifying countries and continents on a world map,

creating a presentation on a world cup country and a player profile,

a press interview inspired by video clips of previous world cup

action, and drama based on stadium scenarios. The young people

were extremely enthusiastic, enjoyed the activities and broadened

their understanding of people and places associated with the

football tournament.

In its fourth year now, the Double Club

continues to run successfully at Abbeyfield

and Thomas Becket Schools. These

school-based ‘mini study centres’ make use

of the Study Centres and stadiums for visits

and community sports coaches to engage

and motivate year 7 and year 8 pupils in their

learning. Staff target students who need a

boost in their literacy, numeracy and ICT

attainment or use it to encourage poor

attendees or as a reward.

Double Club

Building on last summer term’s success and positive feedback from

year 6 students and secondary pastoral staff alike, the transition

project has continued with Daventry Schools and Daventry District

Council’s transition team this year. Pupils from a range of primaries

visit Danetre and William Parker secondary schools to participate in

specialised sessions to get used to being in their new schools, meet

the staff and make friends with other children before starting in

September.

The sessions, led by study centre staff and the schools’ own

pastoral staff, are divided into sport-related learning activities,

transition content and school information. This year the focus has

been on the football world cup where we have related some of the

issues year 6 pupils would encounter to the world of sport. These

include perceptions of success and failure, celebration, attitudes to

learning, protective behaviours and making positive choices. To build

on this experience, these students have attended an Olympic themed

summer challenge at the Cobblers and Steelbacks study centres as

well as follow up sessions in the autumn term once they are in year 7.

Daventry Transition




Grendon Study CentreFollowing a very well received pilot programme run in the Spring term the Grendon Study Centre opened as

an international and Olympics inspired learning venue in May 2010 at Grendon Hall Outdoor Education Centre.

Children from local primary schools attended during the summer term with Year 9 student leaders from

Wollaston School acting as mentors.

Satellite Centres

Corby Study CentreWe have, during the course of the academic year, developed a satellite centre based at the Adrenaline

Alley Urban Sports Centre in Corby. Staff and students have done a fantastic job through the creation of

murals, wall displays and the like which give the classroom a unique character and a real wow factor.

We have used the sports of skateboarding, in-line skating and BMX biking to

design an innovative curriculum which has included making scale models of

ramps which they design based on “The Vert” ramp at the Alley. They also used

Movie Maker to import photographs, video clips, music and text to make their

own DVD as a momento of their practical experience at the centre.

The centre has enabled young people from two Corby secondary schools andeight Corby primary schools to experience Playing for Success for the first time

and the feedback from students and schools alike has been excellent.

We have recently developed a partnership, with both the Corby Learning

Partnership and Lodge Park Technology College, enabling us to continue with the

project during the next academic year.

Going for GoldIn order to fully utilise the opportunities arising from the London

2012 Games and to inspire children in their learning, we have

created a Going for Gold Club pack to support the development of

student led Study Support activities or clubs. The pack contains

everything young people need to set up a club including a wide range of activity ideas designed to

promote the Olympic values and Global Learning. All activities have been curriculum linked and

designed to improve outcomes across the ECM agenda.

The centre aims to use the Olympics,

Paralympics and international themes

and values to motivate, inspire and

engage pupils in their learning. We aim

to improve confidence, self-esteem

and social skills as well as developing

leadership, teamwork and co operation.

As well as centre based activities we

engage students in practical outdoor education activities

with a focus on teamwork, sportsmanship, co-operation,

managing risk, communication and fun.

Sessions have included video conferencing with the Legacy

centre in London to discuss controversies in sport and the

concept of heroes; designing an eco-based Olympic village;

creating an Olympic logo and learning more about Olympic

sports, countries and athletes. Practical sessions have

included fire lighting, zip wire, ropes course, archery and

numeracy and literacy themed orienteering.

Olympic and global values underpin all the work that goes

on at the study centre as well as supporting the national

curriculum’s citizenship and PSHE objectives.




Summer 2010

This summer saw a plethora of activities taking place at study centres across the county. Many of these were

accredited by the Children’s University and will help the young people involved to achieve their bronze award.

This year’s Summer Challenge at the Cobblers and

Steelbacks Study Centres was offered to students

moving from primary to secondary schools in the

Daventry area. The programme was based on the

Olympic values of Friendship, Excellence and Respect

and involved the young people in sports, art and media

based activities. The Animation Summer School at the

Cobblers Study Centre epitomised perseverence,

commitment and hard work and saw an impressivenumber of short films produced.

The Saints Study Centre and Community Department

Summer Challenge focussed on building self

confidence and improving literacy, numeracy and ICT

skills through a variety of activities.

Young people from Kettering attended summer school

based at the Diamonds Study Centre and including a

day at Grendon Outdoor Education Centre. They took

part in orienteering, control technology tasks, origamiand movie making as well as team building activities.

Students from Northampton attended summer school

at Silverstone Study Centre where they took part

in a number of motor racing and media related

activities. They looked at some of motor racing’s

heroes, produced their own television chat show and

experienced a tour of the Silverstone circuit. Team

work and enthusiasm were in evidence everywhere and

a great time had by all.

Kic.in2.study groups have taken part in drama, media

and arts activities at venues including the Steelbacks

Study Centre, Silverstone Study Centre, Grendon Hall

and Royal & Derngate theatres.


northants study centres annual review 09-10

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