News

The UCAT exam is an entrance exam required for certain University degrees, and our Medical Student Ambassadors will be spending the day teaching each of the sections, top tips, and exam skills to help improve their score. 

This course is free to all, and how to register can be found on the advertisement or via the google form link:

https://forms.gle/dja6y8kxgodSm2xD7

Today at Hot Chocolate with the Head, we celebrated the achievement of our Young Sporting Ambassadors who have been nominated for their outstanding contribution and volunteering their time to the Community Afternoon Tea that took place last month.

The Community Afternoon Tea is an initiative led by Mrs Berry, PE Dept & SSCO, which welcomes elderly residents from the local community to enjoy a delicious afternoon tea and the opportunity to enjoy time to socialise in a relaxed environment.

To have a look through the images from the Community Afternoon Tea and to read more – click here: John Taylor High School eNewsletter (jths.co.uk)

On the day the pupils decided what jobs they would take on during the event which included, welcoming the residents at reception, signing them in, serving tea and cakes, playing games such as chess and table tennis, and sitting and chatting to them. The Young Sporting Ambassadors also wrote a letter for the residents to take home with them which we hope the residents thoroughly enjoyed.

Mrs Berry said ‘Our school’s Young Sporting Ambassadors played an integral part on the day and did an outstanding job of creating a lovely relaxed atmosphere for everyone. Thank you to each and every one of them, they demonstrated our core values of respect, kindness and integrity throughout the event and represented the school wonderfully. They all deserve to be recognised for their contribution at Hot Chocolate with the Head.’

During the Hot Chocolate with the Head celebration, the group shared some of their favourite things about the day which included enjoying some cake and having a chat with the residents and playing table tennis!

Well done and thank you to all those nominated. We hope you enjoyed your hot chocolate and yummy chocolate treats. Bea (Y9), Zoe (Y9), Sian (Y9), Kaitlyn (Y9), Jess (Y9), Ava (Y9), Isobelle (Y9), Alice (Y9), Lorelai (Y9), Ryan (Y9), Evan (Y8), Thomas (Y11), Holly (Y12), Jess (Y12), Evie (Y12).

Safeguarding Update: 

Dear Parent(s)/Carer(s), 

I would like to start by introducing myself. My name is Mrs M. Bousfield and I have recently joined John Taylor High School as the Designated Safeguarding Lead. Over the past couple of weeks, I have been getting to know many of the wonderful students at JTHS. I look forward to supporting them for the duration of their time at the high school. 

For more information about Safeguarding at John Taylor High School, please visit: Safeguarding - John Taylor High School (jths.co.uk) 

The following students celebrated their achievements with Mrs Cochrane this week, congratulations to them all! 

Whether you are new to the sport or looking to build on your skills, Burton Rugby Club are recruiting for girls to join the Under 12, Under 14 and Under 16 teams to begin in August. 

Please get in touch with the relevant team contact on the Burton Rugby Club website: Contact Burton Rugby Football Club (burtonrfc.com)

Dear Parents/Carers, 

Please be reminded that we are a 'nut free' school. It is vitally important that products containing nuts aren't brought onto the school premises as this could compromise the safety of students and staff who have allergies to nuts.

We are asking all parents to please double check the ingredients in any food products before they are brought to school and to remind their children of the dangerous implications that it may cause by having these types of food products in a school environment.

We thank you in advance for your support in this. 

On Thursday 25th March, a group of Year 10 students had the opportunity to attend the National Apprenticeship & Education Event, with Mrs Ball who leads on careers education, information, advice and guidance at John Taylor High School.

The event, which was held at Millenium Point in Birmingham, welcomed thousands of pupils from schools and colleges from across the midlands who wanted to find out more about apprenticeships as well as the educational pathways available to them. Companies such as West Midlands Police, The Army, HMRC, The BBC, Balfour Beatty and lots more were in attendance.

The aim of the event is to bring together a variety of Top UK Employers who are able to provide face-to-face, fun and interactive environments for the students. Mrs Ball said ‘the event was brilliant for our students to learn more about life after school and get them to feel inspired about their future. It was aimed at an age-appropriate level and gave our students the confidence to approach potential employers and ask them questions; something they may not have ever done before. Well done and thank you to every student who made it a successful trip.’

One student said ‘it was great to be able to talk to potential employers and companies that offer apprenticeships in a face-to-face environment. They gave us lots of information to think about and gave us some alternative ideas after we have done our GCSE’s. I’d recommend it to other students, thank you to Mrs Ball for organising it’.

For parents looking for advice or support on career pathways please visit this link on the JTHS website  Students - John Taylor High School (jths.co.uk) or follow @careersjths on X (twitter).

As you may be aware, when a packed lunch is required for a school trip, any students who have Free School Meal eligibility will have a packed lunch provided from the school canteen.  This packed lunch will be the equivalent of the free school meal allowance of £2.95 per day.  If your child chooses to purchase food from the canteen on the same day as the visit (for example - either for breakfast or break), then this expenditure will be shown as  a debt on your Parentpay account, as the cost of the packed lunch will be charged on the same day.  It is the parent’s responsibility to monitor the Parentpay account and the ensure that any negative balances are cleared please.

If you have any questions regarding this, please get in touch with the finance team.

Kindest regards,

Rachel McConnell, Business Mananger

Dear Parents or Carers

The Careers and Enterprise Company have been commissioned by the Government to support schools improve their careers provision and in particular, raise awareness of technical education and apprenticeships. They would like to collect research from parents about your knowledge of these areas so that they can identify how best to support parents when exploring different pathways for their children.

Therefore, they would be very grateful if you could complete this survey. This will mean that they can identify the needs of John Taylor parents and provide additional support and resources for you.

I would be very grateful if you could spare a few minutes to provide them with the information that they require and complete the survey by clicking on the link below:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/john-taylor-high-school-parents-24

Many thanks.

Mrs Spencer

Assistant Headteacher: Director of Post 16 and Careers Lead

Interested in going to a Russell Group University? Make sure you don't miss our upcoming Meet the Russell Group webinars. 

Hear directly from representatives and experts from 22 of the 24 Russell Group Universities including Cambridge, Bristol, King's College London, LSE, and Manchester to get answers to all of your questions about applications, student life, personal statements, and much more. 

Held across 3 days, the webinars will cover topics such as 
an Introduction to the Russell Group & Why to Study There, Personal Statements & Applying to a Russell Group University and Student Life.

Dear Parents/Carers,

Please can we remind you that to report any student absence, to call this phone number: 01283 376751

For more information on how to report, please visit our website here: Report an absence - John Taylor High School (jths.co.uk)

Thank you for your support.

On Friday 19^th April, forty Year 9 students embarked on the fascinating trip to Belgium to learn about different areas of WW1.

On the way to the hotel, the group began with a visit to Bayernwald where the students got the opportunity to experience life in the German trenches and bunkers which was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone.

It was an early start on day 2 as the group had a full day’s itinerary ahead of them. They visited Essex Farm, just outside Ypres. This was the site from which John McCrae wrote the famous poem ‘In Flanders Field’ and was also home to one of the youngest soldiers to die on the Western Front, Pt Strudwick. The students then explored Langemark Cemetery, giving a different take on commemoration from a German perspective and the resting place of 44,000 German war dead.

At lunchtime the group enjoyed some delicious food in the beautiful city of Ypres, plus it was a bonus that it was market day! Many Belgium waffles & chocolate were consumed which both the students and teachers were very happy about!

After lunch it was time to visit the private collection at Pond Farm, the home to WW1 enthusiast Steyn and his remarkable tank. The group learnt it took twenty years of painstaking planning and building to achieve the finished tank. Steyn’s perseverance was undeniable and a core value we regard highly as a school.

The penultimate stop of day 2 took the group to the site of the 3^rd battle of Ypres, also known as Paschendale. Here our students came face to face with the horrors and scale of warfare on the Western front. The final stop of the day included a visit to Tyne Cott Cemetery where the students saw the sobering sight of 11,800 gravestones. Despite a jam-packed day, there were some great learning opportunities for the students, they were fascinated by all the sights and grateful for this first-hand experience.

Before the group departed on day 3, they left the Peace Village and visited Talbot House Every Man’s Club; a place where soldiers would eat and recuperate away from the fighting. Now run as a museum and visitors guesthouse, Talbot House is described as ‘a beacon of peace for soldiers during the First World War. A refuge from the atrocities… A house where everyone is equal, without distinction of rank or status’. It was really interesting for the students to experience a different side to the war and a unique insight into the past.

We’d like to thank each student for their fantastic behaviour and enthusiasm during the trip and thank you to Mr Knight, Miss Archer, Miss Arif and Mr Thompson who made the trip come to life.

Click here to read the April 2024 Edition of Mental Health Matters, your JTHS wellbeing newsletter

On 18th April the JTHS Year 8 rugby team participated in the Staffordshire Schools County Tournament.

Overall the team won 5 games, drew 1 and lost 1; as a result were crowned Plate Winners! The teamwork and communication between the group was exceptional. They managed to score an impressive 16 tries, whilst only conceding 2. The team grew stronger and stronger throughout the day after the initial early loss. Every player should be extremely proud of the way they conducted themselves with fantastic effort and attitude across all 7 games that they played. Mr Williams was extremely proud and is excited to get the plate rightly displayed in the cabinet! Well done to the following players from Year 8: