Exciting news for the BCA Technology Department

The Technology Department is undergoing some exciting changes within the courses being offered and the equipment being used.  The department is keen to mirror what industry is doing as closely as possible and this has seen the introduction of BTEC qualifications in Motor Vehicle and Hospitality being offered.

The BTEC qualification in Motor Vehicle involves students researching and understanding the principles of how a cars engine functions, the various types of vehicle design that are available together with their advantages and disadvantages and how a cars braking system works.  Students will also have to demonstrate practical skills whilst checking and repairing braking systems to a high standard.

The department is also really pleased to announce the imminent arrival of a brand new laser cutter and 3D printer that will give students an ideal opportunity to take advantage of CAD CAM within their projects across all year groups.

Also in the Design and Technology department we have recently purchased a petrol powered go kart.  This will soon be offered as an after school enrichment activity where the pupils will strip down the entire kart, repair any damaged parts and restore it to look like new.  This will increase the pupils’ knowledge on mechanics and mechanisms through a practical activity.

Do you want to get into computer  coding and programming but don’t know where to start?

CoderDojo is a worldwide phenomenon that has put learning to code into the hands of the children and lets you have fun at the same time. The only rule of CoderDojo is ‘be cool’!

Warrington first and only CoderDojo started up on Saturday 26^th April at BCA. Lots of code ninjas came from all over the North West to learn how to write code. In our first Dojo we coded a new flappy birds game and used scratch to design a brand new game.

In our next Dojo on the 24^th May we hope to start programming Minecraft, use the fantastic Lego Robotic kits and continue on our scratch adventure!

Follow us on Twitter @dojowarrington for updates and find out how to sign up for future Coder Dojo sessions.

Beamont Collegiate Academy are very pleased to announce that from September 2015 our students will be housed in a brand new, state of the art building.

Under the Government’s Priority Schools Building Programme (PSBP) Beamont Collegiate Academy has successfully applied for and been granted funding for a complete new school build on the existing site off Long Lane, Warrington.

The schools construction partner, Wates Construction and architect, local firm Ellis Williams Architects are extremely pleased to have won the contract for the school.  Tony Shenton, Business Unit Director for Wates Construction in the North West, commented: “This appointment underpins our regional reputation for the creation of outstanding education facilities and our expertise in the development of innovative and efficient building solutions. It also serves to demonstrate the progress being made in the delivery of the Priority School Building Programme, in which I am pleased Wates is playing such a significant part.”

Wates Construction were shortlisted down to the last two and successfully won the contract based on their proposal best meeting the needs of the school and its students. The building will comprise of 2 floors and will sit within an area of the grounds which is not currently occupied by any other buildings. Once the new school is built the current building will be replaced by sports facilities and car parking.

Of the new build Principal Mr Andrew Moorcroft said “We are delighted that Wates have been appointed to provide us with brand new academy building. It is exciting for the whole school community to know that in just over a year’s time we will be moving into an amazing new learning environment with state of the art facilities including brand new classrooms and science laboratories, a robotics workshop, CAD / CAM design studio, music recording studio, activity studio and fitness suite and many other inspirational learning spaces”

Building work is due to commence from this summer and students and staff will be able to see their new school take shape over the following 12 months. The new school will be open to students from September 2015. Current Year 5 students in local primary schools will be invited to visit the site at various times throughout the build process. This will allow them to see how their secondary school is developing ahead of them joining in 2015.

This exciting development for Beamont Collegiate Academy comes just 12 months after they converted to a sponsored academy under the umbrella of the Warrington Collegiate Education. This partnership provides students at Beamont Collegiate Academy with a vast range of opportunities, including strengthened relationships with local employers and use of the wider campus facilities, including Warrington Collegiate and the sports facilities at the Orford Jubilee Hub.

The local community of Beamont Collegiate Academy, including prospective and current students and their families are invited to attend an exhibition on Thursday 10^th April. Proposals will be on display of the new building in the West Hall of the school between 3.00pm to 7.00pm. Local residents are invited to come along and meet the construction team and architect, who will be on hand to answer any questions.

To keep up to date with the latest developments at Beamont Collegiate Academy please check out the website: www.bca.warrington.ac.uk and follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BeamontCollegiateAcademy .

Daresbury labs is home to some of the most cutting edge Scientists in the world, researching everything from cures for diseases to what happened before the Big Bang.

A group of talented Year 9 pupils were selected to take part in a ‘Chemistry at Work’ event at Daresbury Laboratory. The opportunity offered students the chance to understand the place of chemistry in everyday life and the world of work, with particular emphasis on what is happening in industry within their local area.

The aim of the day was to show the exciting, interesting and wealth-creating activities that are worth considering as the basis of a career in Science, technology and Engineering subjects.

The pupils who attended the event were excellent ambassadors for the School and we look forward to seeing their careers in Science progress until they too are making exciting discoveries of their own!

As part of BCA’s specialist programme to develop future Engineers and scientists five Year 9 pupils recently attended a Science in Industry Conference at Amec Nuclear Services in Birchwood.

Pupils were given the chance to explore the Nuclear energy business and to highlight the range of potential career pathways, including safety consultants, project managers and mechanical and electrical engineers. All highly qualified, well paid and sought after careers.

Will we see the following pupils running a nuclear power station in a few years?

Year 9 work goes on display at the Warrington Town Museum.

The exhibition will open to the public on Saturday 1 March and continue until 21 June 2014.

Beamont Collegiate Academy work will be on show with two other schools from Warrington, Great Sankey High School and Lymm High School.

Some fantastic work, try to get to see this if you can.

A big thank you to all those parents helping students with their ideas:  Well done Year 9, a great effort from those involved.

The Exhibition is called “Memories” and is in the main Gallery on the balcony area.

The exhibition will open to the public on Saturday 1 March and continue until 21 June 2014.

Year 10 student at Beamont Collegiate Academy, Lucy Clarke, 14 returned triumphant from the recent WUKF European Karate Championships held in Sheffield with a bronze medal from the 13 – 14 year old girls category.

Lucy, who trains at least 5 times a week between her two clubs in Warrington, Woolston Karate Centre and Cheshire Martial Arts Club after being head hunted for the SKA England Squad for her talents took to the karate floor within the Kata discipline which involves attacking and defence moves in a sequence.

The event attracts thousands of competitors from across Europe every two years. So Lucy was up against competitors from Romania, Denmark and Italy within her category. After being whittled down from 40 entrants within the 13 – 14 year old girls class to 12 and then to 6 in the final, Lucy was judged by 5 judges who each awarded the competitors a score based on her sequence of moves which was in turn totalled up to award the podium places.

On her bronze medal experience Lucy said “I was quite overwhelmed when it happened because I wasn’t expecting to place. It’s the biggest achievement of my life so far”.

Lucy who has only been training since the age of 10 hopes to open her own Dojo (training club) in the future with her fellow team mate and bronze medal winner Jessica Bates who competed in the 16 – 17 female category.

Dallam Primary school pupils got to grips with science at a nearby high school.  Youngsters from the Boulting Avenue school paid a visit to Beamont Collegiate Academy and discovered about the interesting world of science with a range of experiments.  Pupils Alice Bands and Charlie Daniels with teacher Laura Mellor testing out an experiment.

Superstar rugby player Danny Walker, 14, who currently plays as a Hooker for Widnes Vikings under 16s Academy has been selected for the England youth under 16s squad.

Having only been playing on his scholarship with Widnes Vikings for 6 months Danny quickly stood out as a star player and has been called up for the England squad.

When asked how he felt the Beamont Collegiate Academy pupil said “Over the moon! I can’t get over the fact that I have been chosen for it! Now it is time to progress and hopefully achieve my goal of becoming a professional rugby player.”

Danny was interested in rugby from a young age, following in his older brother’s rugby footsteps as he aspired to be just like them. He started out at the Rylands Sharks aged 6 and training has been a large part of his life ever since. He currently trains at least twice a week with the Widnes Vikings under 16s Academy and one a week with the under 19s Academy.

As part of his England squad selection Danny will be going for a heart test in Sheffield later this month followed by a fitness test in Leeds in February. Once he has passed both of these stages he will join the squad officially and the season will start in March.

When asked what he puts his success down to modest Danny said “My success is down to my Mum & Dad, my coaches, school and generally people who have been there for me all of the time”.

Dad, Stuart Walker said “To be selected to represent his country amazed and shocked me as he is only 14 and is a wonderful achievement and great reward for all the effort and hard work that Danny has put it. My objective at the moment is to keep Danny’s feet firmly on the ground!”

The staff and pupils at Beamont Collegiate Academy wish Danny all the very best in his rugby career. We are all very proud of what he has achieved.