Renishaw Workshop

We were delighted to welcome Renishaw Engineering into school for an engaging two-hour Year 10 electronics workshop.

Students learnt about the innovative products Renishaw designs and manufactures, from precision measurement and CNC machine probes to 3D printing and medical technologies. The session also highlighted exciting apprenticeship opportunities, including local roles at GET in Barnwood, just a short walk from school.

The workshop was highly hands-on, with students building magnetic spinners and electronic dice circuits — and one student even completed the circuit faster than the engineers themselves when they had a go!

An inspiring session that gave students a real insight into modern engineering and future career pathways.

   

   

Careers Fayre

In November, we hosted the Annual Barnwood Park Careers Fayre, welcoming around 30 companies, schools, colleges and Alternative Provision providers. Exhibitors represented a wide range of sectors, from archaeology and travel to the Army, construction, engineering, football and stonemasonry, giving students the opportunity to explore a broad variety of career pathways and speak directly with professionals from many industries.

In the Careers Café this year, representatives from the Air Force and the Civil Service spoke with students about their own career journeys. We also extended the Careers Café concept across the exhibition stands, enabling students not only to learn about the organisations represented but also to hear personal insights into the exhibitors’ individual career paths.

There was a fantastic atmosphere throughout the event, with a real buzz as meaningful conversations took place, ideas were sparked and questions were thoughtfully asked and answered.

Feedback from the day was overwhelmingly positive. Exhibitors praised the students for their politeness, thoughtful questions and excellent behaviour, while students reported that the event had opened their eyes to a wider range of possibilities within the world of work.

  

  

Year 9 University visit

Year 9 students visited The University of Gloucestershire’s Oxstalls Campus.

GROWS arranged an insight day for the students with activities, a tour and the opportunity to meet and speak with some university students.

The Year 9s had three sessions, which included; creating a university student, designing their ideal university campus and a tour of the campus to see what the facilities are like. The students were given a workbook which contained more information and activities for them to do during the day and some reflective exercises for after. They were accompanied by university student ambassadors and were able to ask questions about uni life and the different pathways they took after GCSEs to uni.

  

Big Bang STEM day

Year 7 and Year 8 had a STEM career day in school. 5 different companies delivered a day of fun activities and spoke to the students about what it's like to have a career in STEM Subjects. 

Year 9 Art workshop

We welcomed Abi Nicol from Create Gloucestershire and Tom Henderson from South Gloucestershire and Stroud College to deliver a full day of workshops to Year 9 students.

The objectives of the day were:

1. To collaborate and communicate in order to construct.

2. To develop skills in 2D and 3D creativity.

3. To identify creativity as a method of play.

And these were certainly met in full by all the students attending.

The day began with an inspirational assembly delivered by Justin Gregory from The Hereford School of Art, about the role of creativity in the modern world and the importance and growth of creative careers. This was followed by our students participating in a series of one-hour workshops throughout the day led by Abi and Tom with the brief, ‘to build a city’. It contained all the things they wanted and thought would be useful in a good town. Students contributed towards a collaborative city where they built a variety of shops, restaurants, places to live and pray, sporting venues, a cable car, a windmill, places for entertainment, a spa for relaxation, an airport and, if you were feeling unwell, a hospital. Infrastructure was added with roads, bridges and a train track. Who wouldn’t want to live there?

The city was incredibly creative and gave students the opportunity to explore materials, scale, 3D construction as well as the chance to work intuitively and without constraints. Click here to view all the photos.

We saw the students using their communication skills, negotiation skills, leadership skills, creativity and problem-solving skills, and lots of team work and collaboration. A myriad of wonderful transferable and useful skills to have in life and in their future careers. You could certainly see that there are going to be some engineers, architects, designers and leaders of the future.

Our thanks go to Tom Henderson from South Gloucestershire and Stroud college and Abi Nicol from Creative Futures for facilitating such a dynamic workshop. Thanks also to Haaniya Moolla and Niamh Baggott, students from South Gloucestershire and Stroud college, Miss Wilson, Miss Dallimore and big thanks goes to Mrs Dunford for organising the day for the students.