posted by Margaret Thompson, Library Assistant, Arbroath High School

Match Reports – Week Beginning 20^th March 2017

Angus Schools Cross Country
Congratulations to all pupils who took part in the Angus Schools Cross Country. There were a total of 57 Arbroath High School pupils who ran in the event at Monikie Country Park on Tuesday 21^st of March 2017. Special mention to Isla Whitton who won the S1 Girls, Demi Kelbie who came second in the S3 Girls, Adam McIntosh who came second in the Senior Boys and Elliot Burns who came third in the Senior Boys. There were also team successes for the Senior Boys who won gold, S1 Girls who won silver, and S3 Boys and Senior Girls who won bronze.

Cricket
Congratulations also go out to Megan McColl, Zoe Rennie and Abbie Hogg who have all been selected to represent the U17 Scotland Squad for Cricket. The girls attended the National Cricket Academy at Mary Erskine School during the Easter holidays and cricket matches will commence in July.  Megan McColl was also been named as ‘Most Improved Player 2016’ for the U17 Scotland Team where she was awarded a trophy at regional training.

Pictured are (left to right) : Megan McColl, Zoe Rennie and Abbie Hogg.

Table Tennis
Well done to Zoe Rennie who represented Arbroath High School at the Scottish Cup Table Tennis Finals. Zoe finished 8^th in the U14 girls.

posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer

On 7 March 2017, Mark McDonald, Scottish Government Minister for Childcare and Early Years, was joined by a group of young people from across the country, at the National Museum of Scotland, to launch a national search for young Ambassadors for Scotland’s Year of Young People 2018 (YOYP 2018).

On the milestone of 300 days to go until the year starts, a new website, event funding and the official logo for YOYP 2018 were also unveiled. yoyp2018.scot

YOYP 2018 will inspire Scotland through its young people aged 8 to 26, celebrating their achievements, valuing their contributions to communities and creating new opportunities for them to shine locally, nationally and globally. It is the next of the Scottish Government’s series of themed years and follows the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017.

Young Scot, Children in Scotland and Scottish Youth Parliament are recruiting 200 young people throughout Scotland to become YOYP 2018 Ambassadors. Ambassadors will ensure that people and organisations in their communities know about what’s happening. Together with other Ambassadors they will lead on projects and activities to create events and opportunities to celebrate young people.

More information on the Year and planned activity can be found at yoyp2018.scot

Join the conversation online using #YOYP2018

posted by Louise Kirby, YMI Coordinator, Schools & Learning

Please click on the link below to view more information regarding “Sing With Us”

AC Boys leaflet ISSUU

posted by Rhonda McFarlance, Funding Officer, Chief Executive’s Department

Institute of Physics – Public Engagement Grant Programme (UK)

The Institute of Physics has announced that its public engagement grant scheme is now open for applications. Through the grant scheme grants of up to £2,000 are available for running physics-based events and activities in the UK and Ireland that raise public awareness of, and engagement with contemporary physics; especially those not previously interested in physics. The grant scheme is open to organisations and individuals and provides funding to organise public engagement with physics activities.

Applications are accepted from members of the Institute of Physics; museums; schools; community groups; arts groups; and libraries; etc. An example of a project previously funded is Manor Field School for ‘Faster, Higher, Stronger… But How Do We Know?’. Where families in Burgess Hill had the opportunity to take part in an evening of hands on activities exploring the accuracy of measurement in sporting events, with particular focus on the Olympics.

In 2015, the Ignite! Project received funding. The project provided an opportunity for an accessible and interactive community ‘Fun Palace’ event in Strelley, a disadvantaged area of Nottingham, inspired by the International Year of Light.

Applications must be received by 12 noon on Monday 12th May 2017.

http://www.iop.org/about/grants/outreach/page_38843.html

New Schools Initiative to Help Young People Travel Abroad (UK)

The European Commission has launched a new initiative to help young people travel abroad.  The newly-launched Move2learn, Learn2Move initiative will fund the travel of at least 5,000 young people to other EU countries – individually or together with their school class.  The one-off initiative which celebrates the 30^th anniversary of the Erasmus programme for education and training, youth and sport is open to young people attending schools taking part in eTwinning, the online learning community for teachers in Europe. The young people must be aged 16 to 19 and the modes of transport used must be environmentally friendly.

The deadline for applications is the 30^th June 2017.  The National Support Services which are implementing eTwinning in all 28 Member States will help the Commission in the selection of classes on the basis of specific criteria, including the quality of the project they have put forward under eTwinning for the school year 2016-2017, the extent to which social inclusion (e.g. of disadvantaged young people) has been taken into account in their project and whether the class has travelled abroad before.

http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/updates/20170328-new-schools-initiative-help-young-people-travel-abroad_en

Funding for Schools to Purchase New Musical Equipment (UK)

Schools in the UK, that wish to purchase musical instruments and equipment can apply for funding of up to £2,000 through the EMI Music Sound Foundation’s Instrument and/or Equipment Awards. To date the Foundations has made awards to over two thousand schools, individual students and teachers improve their access to music through the purchase or upgrade of musical instruments and equipment.

Examples of sponsored schools are: Armthorpe School, Doncaster; Egglescliffe School, Stockton-on-Tees; and Oaks Park High School, Essex.

The funding has to be made for music education that is beyond statutory national curriculum music teaching. The Foundation cannot fund retrospectively and schools are not eligible for financial assistance under this scheme if they have already purchased their instruments or if they do so before their application has been approved.

http://www.emimusicsoundfoundation.com/index.php/site/awards/

Wolfson Foundation’s Secondary Education Programme (UK)

The next deadline for stage 1 application to the Wolfson Foundation’s Secondary Education Programme is the 10th June 2017. Through its Secondary Education Programme high-achieving state-funded schools and sixth form colleges can apply to the Foundation for funding for capital or equipment projects relating to the teaching of science and technology, languages, music, the arts or libraries. Grants do not normally exceed £50,000 for schools or £100,000 for sixth form colleges.

Projects should focus on students taking A-Level or GCSE examinations. Schools and Colleges applying to our January Stage 1 deadline will, if successful, be invited to submit their Stage 2 application by 15 February and will be considered by the Schools Panel in May and the Trustees in June.

Examples of schools that have received funding through the Foundation include:

• Cheadle Hulme High School, Cheshire, which received a grant of £46,000 for A Level science equipment;
• Jordanhill School, Glasgow for the creation of new science laboratories; and
• Arthur Mellows Village College, Peterborough, received a grant of £40,000 for the :refurbishment of two science IT classrooms.

http://www.wolfson.org.uk/funding/education/secondary-education/

Funding for Outdoor Play for Children with Learning and Physical Disabilities (UK)

The Lords Taverners Outdoor Play grants programme has re-opened for applications. Through the programme, special schools catering for children with severe learning and physical disabilities can apply for funding towards outdoor play equipment.

Funding is available through the Outdoor Small Packages programme for play equipment packages of up to £15,000 and the Outdoor Major Packages programme for play equipment packages of up to £35,000. Play time’ is proven to improve children’s physical and mental health, help develop emotional responses and learning skills and improving basic numeracy and literacy.

Since 2009 the Lord’s Taverners have provided outdoor play equipment to 83 special schools, benefiting nearly 8,000 pupils. For example, Bradfields Academy that caters for 300 young people up to the age of 25 with complex learning disabilities and difficulties received funding for new outdoor play space. The school provides education for students who have to deal with speech, language, emotional, sensory, physical and autistic spectrum disabilities.

There is currently no closing date for applications.

http://www.lordstaverners.org/outdoor-play-spaces-lords-taverners

The Dan Maskell Tennis Trust (UK)

Special schools as well as coaches, clubs, disability groups, associations and individuals can apply for grants from the Dan Maskell Tennis Trust for equipment and specialist wheelchairs to enable disabled people to play tennis. Funding of up to £1,500 is available for groups and clubs and up to £500 for individuals.

Individuals can receive support for a sports wheelchair, tennis rackets, coaching lessons with an Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) licensed coach or course fees for official LTA development/Coaching courses. Groups can apply for wheelchairs, court hire, coaching fees and equipment packages which will include, rackets, balls, mini net, and coaching aids such as cones and throw down marker lines. In the case of wheelchairs, a deposit will be required; for individuals the amount of deposit required will depend on the wheelchair type requested, clubs will need to provide a deposit of £250 per chair.

For example, Tim Farr was awarded a grant towards a personal wheelchair. And Newtown Tennis Club in South Wales have run a very successful tennis programme for children at a special school – Ysgol Cedewain with a range of learning disability where tennis is now embedded at a core school sport with the Club still involved delivering weekly tennis sessions to pupils.

The closing date for applications in this round is the 30th June 2017. The next deadline thereafter will be 1st September.

http://www.danmaskelltennistrust.org.uk/apply-for-a-grant.html

Funding for Sports Related Projects Run by Young People (UK)

vInspired, the Volunteering Charity, has announced that its Cashpoint grants scheme is currently open for applications for sport-related projects. The Cashpoint grants scheme offers grants of up to £500 to give young people (aged 14-25) the opportunity to bring their ideas to life. The funding is available to individual young people (or small groups) who have developed a project idea and will run the project themselves. Projects must be run on a volunteer only basis and funded projects must create at least 2 new volunteering opportunities for 14-25 year olds (in addition to the applicant). vInspired cashpoint must be the only funder for the project. There are no closing dates for applications and grants will be awarded on a continuous basis until all available monies are exhausted.

https://vinspired.com/cashpoint?utm_content=bufferb5736&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Rowing Foundation Grants Programme Re-Opens for Applications (UK)

The Rowing Foundation has re-opened its grants programme. The purpose of the Foundation is to promote the participation in rowing of young people (those under 18 or still in full time education) and the disabled of all ages. The Foundation gives grants of £500-£3,000 (up to 50% of the cost of the project) to help British rowing organisations, clubs and schools whose requirements may be too small or who may be otherwise ineligible for an approach to the National Lottery or other similar sources of funds.

Previous clubs and organisations supported include:

• St Breock Primary School which received funding towards the purchase of four oars;
• Mounts Bay Pilot Gig Club for lifejackets for juniors;
• The Helford River Gig Club has recently taken delivery of a new set of lighter oars thanks to a major contribution from the Rowing Foundation; and
• Dorney RC for adaptive seat and pontoons for a sculling boat.

The closing date for applications is the 12th June 2017.

http://www.therowingfoundation.org.uk/home/

Greggs Foundation Breakfast Club Grants (England, Scotland & Wales)

The Greggs Foundation currently supports 380 breakfast clubs throughout England, Scotland and Wales. Schools that are interested in opening a breakfast club at your school must be able to show that at least 40% of your pupils qualify for free school meals and that the school serves a disadvantaged community. School should able to attract adult volunteers to help run the scheme and attendance at the club must be free for all pupils. The Foundation uses the money to support breakfast clubs through an initial start-up grant for equipment such as chest freezers to store food items or toys and activities for the club. Greggs Foundation also makes a payment each term towards other food items and Greggs plc donates bread from the nearest shop.

Recently set up breakfast clubs include:

• “clubs” at Hillside Community Primary School, in Skelmersdale which received funding of £600 for its breakfast club which around 45 young people attend each day; and
• Swalwell Primary School, in Gateshead where nearly 50% of school children are entitle to free meals received a grant of £1,100.

Although applications can be made at any time, there is currently a waiting list for funding whilst new sponsorship partners are being identified.

https://www.greggsfoundation.org.uk/breakfast-clubs

 

posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning

Perpetrators of hate crime focus on victimising individuals on the basis of actual or presumed sexual orientation, gender or transgender identity, disability, race or religion. The spectrum of hate crime is wide in nature and includes physical and emotional abuse and harassment, name calling, bullying and violence, and its impact on victims and communities should not be underestimated.

Police Scotland are running a Hate Crime Awareness campaign to communicate to the public that hate crime is a serious crime and to encourage the public to report incidents should they occur.

Our key messages are:

• Tackling hate crime is a key priority for Police Scotland.
• We treat victims and witnesses of hate crime with fairness, dignity and respect.
• We recognise that hate crime is underreported. We are working to improve confidence in, and access to, Police Scotland and our Criminal Justice partners.
• If you are targeting someone, we want you to STOP IT. If not it won’t be long before you become our target.
• If you know someone that is being targeted REPORT IT. Together we can make a difference.
• Preventing/stopping hate crime is everyone’s responsibility. If you are aware hate crime is happening, report it by contacting Crimestoppers.
• Being different isn’t a crime, but somebody victimising you is.
• If you would like support to report, you can attend one of our third party reporting centres. A full list can be found on the Police Scotland website. You can also report by contacting Crimestoppers.

posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning

We have Suicide Alertness For Everyone Training (safeTALK) scheduled for:

Tuesday 2 May 2017 (1pm – 5pm) in Forfar

This training is open to everyone (employees, employers and members of the public in Angus). 

safeTALK is designed to be an introductory course for anyone interested in learning to be suicide aware.  Can you recognise the signs of someone at risk of suicide?  Would you know what to say to a colleague, student, family member or contact with thoughts of suicide?  Most persons with thoughts of suicide go unrecognised – even though most are, directly or indirectly, requesting help.  Without safeTALK training, these invitations to help are too rarely accepted, or even noticed.  In only a few hours, you will learn how to recognise these invitations and provide practical help to persons with thoughts of suicide.  Expect to leave safeTALK more willing and able to perform an important helping role for persons with thoughts of suicide.  safeTALK is a training session for everyone in the community – no prior knowledge is required.

Aim of Training:  To enable participants to recognise and engage people who might be having thoughts of suicide and to connect them with community resources trained in suicide intervention.

Learning outcomes:  By the end of this course participants will:

•          Be aware that people at risk of suicide are often not given help due to cultural myths and misinformation
•          Recognise when a person might be having thoughts of suicide
•          Engage that person in direct and open talk about suicide
•          Move quickly to connect them with someone trained in suicide intervention who can review the risk and develop a plan to reduce the risk of harm or death.

Please see attachment for further information about safeTALK.  Outline of safeTALK training

To book, please email suicideprevention@angus.gov.uk with the attached registration form.   safeTALK Registration Form

Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.  This session is free of charge to participants and will be funded by the Suicide Prevention Collaborative for Angus.