Headteacher's blog
Archived News
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Tuesday 18 June 2024 Soul Knights tickets still available Our newest ensemble - the School soul band - will be performing for the first time on Friday 21 June at 7pm in the School Chapel.
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Monday 17 June 2024 Music Tech students' new album available Our Year 11 Music Technology students have been busy recording and producing a new album of 80s classic covers. What's more, they are using sales of the album to raise funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.
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Friday 14 June 2024 Open Morning at Junior School Come along to our next Open Morning at the Longdon campus to meet our outstanding teachers and see our happy, hard-working pupils on a normal day in school.
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Thursday 13 June 2024 Geographers explore the River Dove On Tuesday, all of Year 7 visited Dovedale as part of their Geography course. They started their walk in the village of Alstonefield, walking down into the valley of the River Dove, following the river all the way southwards to the outskirts of Ilam. Along the way they measured the velocity of the river across a meander to investigate how they develop. The weather was kind enough that we were all able to enjoy a very pleasant picnic on a hillside overlooking the river.The students also practised their field-sketching skills and recorded their observations about the impacts of tourism. Many students were thrilled to sit inside some caves and to look for fossils among the many scree slopes; themselves evidence of the cold period following the retreat of the ice sheet 10,000 years ago. We talked about the geological history and how the abundant Carboniferous Period fossils were more than five times older than the time when the big dinosaurs became extinct.Year 7 should be very proud of th
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Wednesday 12 June 2024 Exotic creatures at Longdon A visit from the Animal Man at Longdon saw our youngest children introduced to some exciting, exotic creatures.
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Tuesday 11 June 2024 Rounders success! The LCS Year 7 and Year 8 rounders teams emerged victorious in their recent matches with Rawlett.The Year 7s enjoyed an evenly-matched encounter with their Tamworth opponents, but eventually overtook their total before a hailstorm stopped play. LCS fielded first and restricted Rawlett to 5 rounders, with some good fielding and excellent decision-making, particularly by Amelie at back-stop, and good bowling by Ines. LCS then took up the chase and soon overhauled the Rawlett score, finishing the innings on 7 with Cerys, Izzy and Rosie all hitting rounders. In the second innings, Rawlett added 3 to their score, but LCS took their total to 9 before the hail set in.The Year 8s delivered a comprehensive victory, running out winners by 17.5 to 6.5. They shared the scoring around, but Lexi and Elsie were the main stars with the bat, while a very good fielding performance by the whole team saw them removing the Rawlett team with plenty of balls to spare.
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Monday 10 June 2024 Congratulations Sophie! Sophie (Year 7) is currently representing Lichfield Cathedral School via the National Schools Equestrian Association (NSEA) and competed at two large scale NSEA events recently at Hickstead and Aintree. There are many prestigious schools attending these competitive events and each 'class' can have over 70 entrants. Sophie did amazingly well riding her Pony 'Doylan Honey Gift', achieving two 3rd places at Hickstead, and a 12th at Aintree. As a result of her finishing places at Hickstead, Sophie has now qualified for the National NSEA championships at Arlington in October. This is tremendous news and a wonderful achievement for Sophie - a huge well done from us all!
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Sunday 9 June 2024 Chorister installations in June Congratulations to Navyd and Millie who were recently installed into the Lichfield Cathedral Choir Foundation. Both Choristers are photographed with Canon Precentor Rt Revd Andrew Stead, Interim Dean Rt Revd Bishop Jan McFarlane and with Head Boy and Girl Choristers Oliver and Poppy and Deputy Head Chorister Quinn.
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Saturday 8 June 2024 A reflection on humility In cathedral last week we reflected on the significant sacrifice and bravery of D-Day. With few remaining veterans, the first-hand accounts of the event are few and far between. However, listening to some of these interviews in the news, I was struck by the humility and selflessness shown. These soldiers who had acted with such extraordinary courage could see nothing extraordinary in what they had done, but rather were keen to reflect on those whose stories ended that day in 1944. This got me thinking about humility in a wider sense…You have probably heard of Aesop’s Fables. The Fables are a collection of stories credited to Greek storyteller Aesop, who lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 564BCE. Tradition says he was born a slave, but developed a real talent for fables, stories that were used to teach truths in a simple, understandable way. Even if you haven’t heard of Aesop’s fables you are almost certainly familiar with one or more of these timeless stor
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Friday 7 June 2024 Commemorating D-Day The D-Day landings of 6 June 1944 was the largest seaborne invasion in history. Along with the associated airborne operations, it marked the beginning of the liberation of France and western Europe. Unprecedented coordination between Allied nations, and the intensive planning of engineers, meteorologists, logisticians and countless more, led to a force from 13 countries approaching Normandy in a 6,000-vessel armada supported by 11,000 planes. This assault led to France’s liberation from the German military and the eventual defeat of the Nazis.Eighty years on, the continued commitment to honor the historic significance of D-Day and the sacrifices made, connects the strength of alliance and dedicated resolve during World War II to NATO strength and unity today. To commemorate this significant day, we were treated to a lunchtime concert of wartime songs from Miss Croft and Mr Chamberlin.
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Thursday 6 June 2024 New Dean announced Yesterday it was announced by 10 Downing Street that His Majesty The King has approved the nomination of The Rt Revd Janet McFarlane, Interim Dean of Lichfield and an Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of Lichfield, for appointment as Dean of Lichfield.The Lord Bishop of Lichfield, The Rt Revd Dr Michael Ipgrave said, ‘I am very glad that Bishop Jan will be the next Dean of Lichfield. She has handled her role as Interim Dean over the last year with warmth and deftness and I know her appointment will be popular with staff and visitors alike. Her love for the region shines brightly and her love for the things of God brighter still.’ Bishop Jan said, ‘I am beyond delighted to have been appointed as the first female Dean of Lichfield. I was ordained in Lichfield Cathedral 30 years ago and if you had told me then that I’d be returning one day as Dean, I would have grinned with utter disbelief! I was born and grew up in Stoke-on-Trent and so, even though I have lived in
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Thursday 6 June 2024 Top tips for home study
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Wednesday 5 June 2024 Building confidence When parents of prospective pupils come to see me, they often ask how the school instils such confidence in its pupils. This question often arises from a tour of the school conducted by current pupils who have successfully displayed a friendly, personable maturity without tipping over into an unattractive arrogance. Pupils as young as those in Year 4 are often involved in talking with parents at Open Mornings and they are invariably outstanding ambassadors for LCS. The question itself is an interesting one as there are no ‘confidence’ lessons on the curriculum. However, the importance of confidence cannot be underestimated and is pivotal as we move through life. Indeed, I genuinely believe that confidence is borne of being comfortable in your own skin, being your own true self, having integrity and taking hold of every opportunity that LCS has to offer. Confidence is developed in the classroom, where the atmosphere encourages pupils in both giving and listening to opinions.
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Thursday 23 May 2024 Supporting quiet pupils The strengths of a quiet child lie in their ability to observe, reflect and listen attentively. Quiet children often possess deep insight, creativity and empathy. Their introspective nature allows them to analyse situations thoughtfully and respond with wisdom and sensitivity. They may excel in tasks that require concentration and independent thinking, such as reading, writing and creative pursuits. Additionally, quiet children often develop strong bonds with a few close friends, fostering deep and meaningful relationships. Overall, their quiet demeanour can be a source of strength, enabling them to navigate the world with thoughtfulness, resilience and authenticity. Whether someone is an introvert or an extrovert is determined in large part by genetics, and tends to remain stable over time. Introverted children often have a rich interior world and rely on their inner resources (and own values) rather than turning to other people for support and guidance. Introverted children like imag
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Thursday 23 May 2024 Athletics: ISA Midlands Championships A total of 36 LCS pupils travelled to Leicester to compete in the ISA Midlands Athletics Championships - all performed exceptionally well and there were many medals won:
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Thursday 23 May 2024 Netball Tournament Netballers from LCS enjoyed a successful afternoon at a Year 5 & 6 tournament this week. The girls took on teams from all over Lichfield and played well to finish third. The team was victorious against St Michael's, Whittington, Scotch Orchard and Charnwood, and only lost to an excellent Little Aston team who were the eventual winners. They faced Willows in their semi-final and went down 3-2 in a tightly contested game.
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Thursday 23 May 2024 Athletics: Cannock & District A very busy few weeks of athletics competitions have led to some fantastic results. In the Cannock & District Athletics competitions in Wolverhampton for students in Years 7 to 10, several achieved places in the top 3 in their age groups and have gained qualification for future competitions:
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Thursday 23 May 2024 Victorian school days Year 2 recently visited Blists Hill and had a fabulous time. On arrival, the children (and teachers) changed into Victorian clothes and were taught by a strict and stern teacher called Mrs McCallum. After lunch, the children visited a printing press and a pharmacist. Victorians regularly went to see a pharmacist for dental work, as it was much cheaper than going to a doctor's surgery. This hugely enjoyable trip has helped the children to understand the topics they have been studying in the classroom.
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Monday 20 May 2024 Arts competition for 4-18 year olds The National Association of Teachers of Religious Education have launched the 2024 Spirited Arts Competition. Pupils are invited to submit an entry in (almost) any art form - art, poetry, photography, dance, music, drama, sculpture, etc. As a school, we can submit a maximum of 10 entries, so there will be internal judging of LCS entries.
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Sunday 19 May 2024 Workshop with West End star West End actor and vocalist, Cameron Sharp (Beautiful, School of Rock, Jesus Christ Superstar, Rock of Ages and Avenue Q), came in to work with some of our talented cast for forthcoming show, Back to the 80s. He talked to them about the theatre industry, did some warm up exercises, taught a dance and then offered our students invaluable advice about their acting and singing ahead of our next show in October. It was lovely to watch our students' confidence and stage presence grow as the workshop progressed. Thank you Cameron!
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Saturday 18 May 2024 Book Club choose new books Book Club members went to Waterstones this week to select some wonderful new books for the School Libraries, with Mrs Mills, Librarian, and Miss Aldridge, Head of Year 7.
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Friday 17 May 2024 Year 7 Buddies ready to help Last week, we invited our current Year 7 pupils to apply to be a Buddy to the current Year 6s, who will be moving up to Year 7 in September. We were overwhelmed with the interest shown, with almost 40 applications submitted. Miss Aldridge was then faced with the near-impossible decision of choosing just 12 pupils to be awarded a Buddy badge. Huge congratulations to the pupils who were chosen - Freya, Katie, Rosie, Lucia, Cerys, Tessa, Alex, Seb, Leo, Thomas G, Thomas H and Henry. We look forward to seeing your friendly and helpful faces around school during the Year 6 transition.
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Thursday 16 May 2024 Why core values are so important The School has four core values of Learning, Faith, Leadership and Service. Each of these are of integral importance to us in terms of who we are and what we do. LearningWell, what is a school without learning? We are keenly aware as teachers that we are all learning all the time – adults and children alike. The opportunity to learn not only what is on the curriculum, but also what finer qualities we admire and wish to develop within ourselves is absolutely our core business and is a gift. When we stop learning, we are lost. FaithMany centuries ago, a School of Song and Grammar was founded for the choristers of the Cathedral Church of St Mary and St Chad. They studied and sang to the glory of God and it is this school upon which our foundations were laid. The tradition of sacred choral singing is something in which we take great pleasure and pride. Our Cathedral Choristers and Choral Scholars are committed, enthusiastic members of our community and their work provides a bea
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Thursday 16 May 2024 ISA Drama success We are delighted to announce that for the second year running, our students have won the Independent Schools Association Drama Competition with their performance of The IT. Judges praised the 'powerful and effective ensemble work', awarding LCS 'Best Senior School Production' as well as an honorable mention for Poppy (Year 10) in the 'Senior Individual Performer' category. Huge congratulations to everyone involved!
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Thursday 9 May 2024 Beat exam stress GCSE exams have started today. Once more we find ourselves in exam season and there is definitely a different air around the Lichfield site. Let’s be honest, exams are just not very nice. For most people, myself certainly included, memories of exams consist of hours of revision, last minute panics and anxiety inducing post-exam chats with friends, that only ever convinced me that I’d got everything wrong. However, things have a funny way of working themselves out and perspective is always regained. With all of this in mind, I thought I would share some top tips from the ‘Mind’ website: Mind wanted to do a few things to ease the pressure. We’ve already got Emoodji, our new app to help students navigate the ups and downs of uni life, which you can download for free on iOS and Android. But we wanted to do more, so we asked our supporters for their top tips for coping with exam stress, or any kind of high-pressure time. This is what they said – please do
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Thursday 9 May 2024 TT Rockstars triumph Year 3 and 4 pupils (and staff!) dressed as rock stars for the latest Times Table Rock Stars event. They enjoyed orienteering around the School grounds, answering lots of times tables-based questions to unscramble a secret word.
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Thursday 9 May 2024 Ascension voices sing from rooftop To celebrate the Ascension, the Senior Choristers and Choral Scholars enjoyed a hearty cooked breakfast before climbing to the top of the Cathedral to sing the traditional Ascension Day hymn to the gathering of onlookers below.
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Thursday 2 May 2024 Music & Wellbeing This week I am unashamedly sharing an excellent article written by Dr Hazel Harrison on Music and Wellbeing. Here at LCS we are very aware of the transformational power of music and the benefits we appreciate from having such a musical community. However, it's good to have the science to back up our experiences, as Dr Harrison tells us:
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Thursday 25 April 2024 3 skills needed for future jobs
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Friday 19 April 2024 The importance of Easter to Christians
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Thursday 18 April 2024 “The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.”
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Thursday 14 March 2024 Creative Education
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Thursday 7 March 2024 Read your way to a better life
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Thursday 29 February 2024 Giving Thanks for St Chad
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Thursday 22 February 2024 Don't Panic: Teaching how to fail positively Failure is an essential part of learning, not the end of it. By celebrating failure as a good thing and encouraging pupils and students to learn from mistakes and try again, we help them to develop persistence and the right attitude to be a good learner. Not learning to tolerate failure leaves children and young people vulnerable to anxiety. It leads to meltdowns when the inevitable failure does occur, whether it happens in Nursery or university. And perhaps even more important, it can make children give up trying—or trying new things.
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Thursday 8 February 2024 Children's Mental Health Week 2024 Children's Mental Health Week seeks to empower, equip and give a voice to all children and young people in the UK. This year’s theme is “My Voice Matters”. Every child has the right to express their views, feelings and wishes in all matters affecting them, and to have their views considered and taken seriously (Article 12 UNCRC). This is incredibly important because:
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Thursday 1 February 2024 Foundation Day 2024 Address A warm welcome to all of you on our day of celebration to commemorate the 82nd anniversary of the re-founding of the school in 1942. It is especially wonderful to see everyone in the Cathedral together and to be able to invite special guests to commemorate the anniversary with us.
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Thursday 25 January 2024 Teaching Tolerance Instability, conflict and human rights abuses are daily occurrences worldwide, often driven by hostility based on religion, belief, ethnicity or culture. Tolerance education can play a crucial role in preparing students to live in peace in our increasingly diverse and often divided world. The United Nations’ Transforming Education Summit in 2022, recognised education is “a foundation for peace, tolerance, other human rights and sustainable development.”
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Thursday 18 January 2024 The importance of great teaching It comes as no real surprise to us in education that research looking into what makes children succeed generally comes down to the fact that great teaching from great teachers is the key. The best investment any school can make is in getting effective, enthusiastic and committed teachers in front of its pupils. I hope you can all remember fondly a favourite teacher who inspired you and gave you great confidence in your potential and abilities. For me, it was an English teacher who could recite poetry from heart, weaved engaging stories into every lesson and always looked immaculate. I thought she was the bees’ knees and am sure she played a huge part in my future career choices.
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Thursday 11 January 2024 Sing a song! Why singing makes you happier Welcome back to school and happy new year! There has certainly been a lot of singing over the festive period and with ‘Be a Chorister for a Day’ fast approaching, we’re certainly being true to our musical roots. So in the spirit of embracing one of the school’s founding principles – the love of singing, I would like to bring your attention to a recent article from the Choir Director Magazine which expounds the benefits thus: ‘Any of us who have sung in choirs know all too well the joy it brings not just the audiences, but also the choir members themselves. And why wouldn’t it? When we raise our voices with lots of other gorgeous voices in a big, beautiful space, it feels like we’re altering molecules…how is it possible? Well, according to various scientific reports, we are altering molecules…inside our brains, with different changes occurring whether listening to music, singing, or singing with others …end