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Acts of Charity Day takes place annually. Our Act of Charity Day helps our students to establish and emphasise the values that are important to us at Christ the King Sixth Forms. Our students spend the day contributing in a positive way in their local communities.  The day provides the opportunity for students to take part in a group social action activity with their 10:10 tutor group. In previous years this has included as varied activities as litter picking to helping in local Churches, foodbanks and Primary schools. 

If you know of a local organisation or business who would like our students’ involvement with a charitable activity to support the local community then please contact:

St Mary’s –  Ms Rosie Salmon r.salmon@ctksfc.ac.uk  

Aquinas – Ms Lesley Davis l.davis@ctksfc.ac.uk

Emmanuel – Ms Sylvia Harris s.harris@ctlsfc.ac.uk

Below are photos of students from last years Acts of Charity Day 2022.

Mental Health Awareness Week

This week students and staff have getting involved in a range of activities and information sessions with the aim of raising awareness and getting students talking about mental health. Every day the Wellbeing Team sent out information and strategies to promote good mental health including a leaflet on how to cope with Exam Stress and one on how to cope with Loneliness. During the week there were several activities and information session taking place on all our sites.   

Just some examples are:

At St Mary’s in the LRC there was a large display focussing on anxiety with tips and approaches on how to manage its effect and suggestions of actions that can be tried both personally and with friends and colleagues. The display also includes a library of self-help books and details of professional services that can be contacted. 

At Aquinas one of the activities for the week was getting out for a walk at lunchtime with students and staff getting out to take some time to enjoy the fresh air. 

At Emmanuel students and staff created a thought board on how to manage stress and anxiety.  The board was positioned in the reception area and students and staff were encouraged to  come along and post their ideas on the post-it notes available; every thought or idea was exchanged for a sweet. This will provide a great source of tips and hints on how to manage anxiety for students and staff.

Huge congratulations to our Silver Duke of Edinburgh students who have completed their training expedition in very cold and muddy conditions.

The expedition took place over 2 days and nights as one of four elements of the Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award.  The activity was designed to inspire the students to develop initiative and a spirit of adventure by planning, training for and completing an adventurous and self-sufficient journey as part of a team. 

The Virtual Careers Conference at Christ the King Sixth Form has gone from strength to strength over recent years. Having started through necessity with the Covid19 pandemic it now gives students a chance not only to support their progression but to upskill themselves with remote learning.

The cross-site event comprises a variety of university and career-based talks that students join online via Microsoft Teams. The day provides a fantastic opportunity for our Level 3 students to start thinking about their future and to explore their progression options. As in previous years, a Level 1 & 2 Careers Conference was held which offered specific support to students studying a BTEC Level 1 or 2 course with their own progression.

Over 50 external organisations supported the Conference by providing speakers for the talks.  Many of the participants were returning, having attended the event in previous years.  The programme of talks included sessions on a wide range of careers from Medicine and the NHS to entrepreneurship, journalism, engineering, banking and many more.

Later in the academic year, on Friday 16th June 2023, we will also be holding an in-person Careers Fair/Exhibition. At this event students will be able to meet a range of universities, apprenticeship providers, employers, and other support organisations, face to face to support their progression. 

Trip to Eton College

On Wednesday 1st March 2023 students from CTK Aquinas visited  Eton College to attend a student leadership conference where they attended several informative sessions around the theory and application of leadership. The day also provided a fantastic opportunity for students to explore one of the oldest and most prestigious Colleges in the UK and to visit the chapel and the oldest classroom in Europe, which was built in 1440. During the breaks sixth form students from Eton played host to students from Aquinas.

All students gave positive feedback about the trip and the conference, with one student saying:

“I really enjoyed the trip. The first session was my favourite session because we looked at self-leadership and how you can apply it to your everyday life. I learnt that you have to take 100% responsibility for everything you do. I also enjoyed speaking to the boys from Eton and learning about what it is like studying and living away from home.”

On Saturday 18th March CTK Sixth Forms were invited, along with other charities and social action groups within the archdiocese,  to exhibit the charitable and social action work they are involved in.  The exhibition took place in the Amigo Hall after Mass in St Georges Cathedral Southwark.  This initiative was supported by the Archbishop who has a specific interest in schools showcasing their philanthropic activities.

Staff and students from CTK set up a stall in the hall, showcasing their work through banners, posters, and leaflets. This was an excellent opportunity to raise awareness of the many social action projects, charity events and community action events that CTK Sixth Forms support, and the positive impact that schools are having in their communities, and to encourage others to get involved in charitable work.

During half term our students at CTK Aquinas visited Queens College at Oxford University as part of the Lewisham Challenge programme. We received wonderful feedback from the students that took part about what a great time they had!

CTK Aquinas student Daniel said;

“I am thrilled to stand before you to share some exciting news. After months of hard work, determination, and perseverance, I am proud to say that I have been accepted into my dream university – Oxford University, to study Mathematics and Computer Science.

This has been a long and challenging journey, filled with countless hours of studying, researching, and lots of problem solving. I am truly grateful for the support and encouragement of everyone who has been by my side throughout this process, and especially thankful to my school CTK Aquinas for providing me with all the help I needed. 

I know that the road ahead will not be easy, and I am fully prepared to face any challenges that come my way. But I am confident that the education and opportunities I will receive at Oxford will allow me to reach my full potential and achieve my goals.

I look forward to this new chapter in my life, and I am excited to see what the future holds.”

The Senior Mathematical Challenge, organised by the UKMT, is the UK’s flagship maths competition. 

Daniel has spent many months preparing for the challenge, which has required a high level of mathematical reasoning, and precision of thought and fluency in using basic mathematical techniques to solve interesting problems. Daniel was awarded the Gold Certificate, and as one of the highest performers, he was invited to Round 1 of the British Maths Olympiad. He was awarded a Certificate of Distinction and is now preparing for Round 2 of the British Maths Olympiad. Daniel has worked very hard towards these competitions and we are extremely proud of his achievements. 

The rain didn’t stop Geography students from CTK Aquinas enjoying their field trip to Kew Gardens in November.

They attended a session on ecosystems and climate change looking at how climate change affects our ecosystems today and in the future. Through field-based enquiry students explored and analyzed climate change mitigation strategies while developing knowledge and understanding of this complex issue.  

Their second session was on water and carbon cycles where they investigated the importance of the rainforest in the water and carbon cycles and discovered the impacts that human activity can have on these systems. Despite the damp weather students learned a lot from their visit.

Geography student, Mason said this about his visit to Kew Gardens;

“Our trip to Kew Gardens was a lovely and very intriguing look into the wonderful world of botany and how fauna and flora affect the world and our lives in the short and long term as well as how they adapt to survive in extreme climates and places where their environment is not favourable. The day was split into two sessions. Session one, had my group and I focus on the water and carbon cycle. We were expertly guided by staff to learn how without certain parts of these cycles, like animals eating decaying matter or plants blocking water runoff, would lead to very detrimental consequences for the Earth and our society. We were then taken to a massive greenhouse which simulates the climate of the rainforest enabling, exotic plants to grow and thrive as well as different insects too. We learnt about how there are many products that have ingredients the originate from the rainforest as well as life changing medicines that are extracted from plants and flowers there too. We were then informed about how the rainforest is not being protected and how some illegal practices used to chop down timber is causing the rainforest to shrink which impacts heavily on the massive amount of biodiversity which lives there. We were also taught how to measure the biomass of trees to determine different things about it for example the amount of carbon absorbed or the amount of oxygen it produces.”