Events
News
Master Diver at just 13!
Having started scuba diving as an extra curricular club here at the Academy, Alex recently completed his confined pool skills in the academy pool and then progressed to an open water course at Girton sailing club. This now means that he has qualified as a PADI open water diver. Alex is one of only a few of his age in the country about to obtain a master scuba diving certificate which is the highest recreational level available, achieving master level at just 13 years old. The youngest anyone can achieve this qualification is 12, so this is an exceptional achievement. In total Alex has completed over forty five open water dives, as well as his advanced water course, alongside his rescue and first emergency responder courses. Well done Alex and we look forward to hearing more of your successes.
Netball County Champions!
On Wednesday the Academy’s Under 19 netball team travelled to Stamford High School for the County Netball Championships. The team should have been full of confidence, but we had two last minute changes to the team due to injury which meant we were playing with the bare seven required. In a tournament with only one break for rest, playing seven matches on the bounce would be extremely demanding for a team with no substitutions to make.
We started the tournament with a rematch against Dean's College (aka Lincoln College) who we had played in the district tournament. The team took the first four minutes to settle their nerves but by the start of second half they broke the college team’s attack turning over possession and taking the lead. From that point they forced errors on the opposition and scored at every opportunity. By the final whistle the score was 15-9.
The team were so impressive to watch. They dominated every match they played except one. Winning six from seven matches. They only lost to Carres Grammar, a match towards the end of the tournament where our lack of substitutes really had an effect. Carres finished the tournament as runners up and had a squad of 12. We finished this game 6-8.
Despite an awful day of weather and a team of just seven players to play an incredible amount of netball, we are pleased to say that the team returned to the Academy victorious. They are county champions once again and are heading to the regional championships in January. They were an absolute joy to watch, coach and spend the day with. They are a group of students who represent our Academy with pride and determination.
Duke of Edinburgh - Gold Award
It was a cold and windy morning but spirits were high. Nineteen Year 13 students embarked on the final chapter of their Duke of Edinburgh journey: an expedition that would last for four days and three nights, covering a total of eighty two kilometres across the North Yorkshire Moors. The journey was long, and many of us took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep on the minibus before starting our expedition in the pouring rain around midday.
The first day of the expedition began in Robin Hood’s Bay and ended in Goathland, nineteen kilometres later. It was a tough day, with extremely high winds and driving rain meaning it was difficult to walk in a straight line! The wind on the moor was particularly vicious – there were many casualties including a map case, map and three rucksack covers blown across the moor, yet thankfully saved by some quick action from Elsie, Fiona and Mr Ackland.
An early start on Saturday morning meant that our group was able to attack the eighteen kilometre second day with incredible pace; we awoke to persistent rain and set off as the sun rose over the moors. Though the rain died down as the day progressed, the wind continued and as we arrived at the campsite in Rosedale at 1700 hrs we were able to get most of our kit dry. The facilities were lovely and we were all able to enjoy a hot shower and a hot meal before settling down for the night.
Day three was definitely the most challenging of the four: a twenty-four kilometre route paired with yet more rain was a killing combination. Temperatures dropped, meaning our group only had one stop throughout the eight hour day, and we arrived at Low Farm Campsite soaked to the skin. Thankfully, the lovely lady who ran the campsite took in our clothes, boots and maps and dried them out for us overnight. Another hot shower and some food left us feeling much better, and we went to sleep with the end of the expedition in sight.
It’s fair to say everyone left the campsite on Monday morning ready to finish the expedition on a high. The last day was a long slog, twenty one kilometres, but by this point we were so wet that we didn’t notice the persistent, continuous rain. It took lots of singing, laughing and crying to get us through the last day, but our group ran the last hundred metres to the sound of applause coming from the staff waiting for us at the end. A quick stop at McDonalds for some 150 chicken nuggets gave us the energy we needed for the long drive back to pack the kit away.
We learnt a lot about ourselves over the four days. Teamwork, communication and supporting one another were imperative as everybody had times when they felt as though they couldn’t carry on. It was undoubtedly an unforgettable experience, albeit one of the hardest accomplishments we have ever achieved. We are so proud of one another and of ourselves for having come through the other side.
Business Language Champions
‘Hey, I’m Egness Moeufy! Two teams of Year 10 linguists and I worked together in a competition in Waddington, Flying High! Both groups showed creativity in all the challenges, impressing the judges with their survival bag packing skills, presentations, parachute designs and, though it took a while, they saved Mrs Erskine from a teacher kidnap! Thankfully, I, and many other eggs, survived the parachute drop. I am egg-static to say that we had a winning team and multiple individual award winners; reigning Business Language Champions!
Well-done guys! You were egg-cellent representations for the Academy!
Félicitations! Ich bin ein glückliches Ei!‘
Year 11 History visit to Germany
The Year 11 History visit to Germany took place between Thursday 18th and Tuesday 23rd October. Departing from Lincoln Academy at 3am, the group of 54 students managed to catch some sleep on the long drive to Munich, arriving very late due to traffic delays ready for a busy day on Friday.
On Friday we walked the path of the Munich Putsch, from the city gates to the Felderenhalle via Marienplatz before heading for the documentation centre to be given a guided tour of the artefacts and displays there. The day ended with some traditional German food in the Lowenbraukeller before we headed back to the hostel for some well needed R & R!
Saturday began with a guided tour of Dachau Konzentrationslager (Concentration Camp) - the first such camp opened by the Nazis as soon as they took power in 1933. This was a highly emotional and moving experience, as the group heard personal stories of how individuals were affected by the Nazi regime.
The group then headed back to the coach to make the short journey to Nuremberg, where a fantastic walking tour took in the Congresshalle, the Zeppelinfeld, the Luitpoldfeld and Silbersee - the site of what would have a 410,000 capacity sports arena! Nuremberg was a fascinating experience to fully immerse oneself in the egocentricity and megalomania that surrounded Adolf Hitler in the early 1930s. On Saturday night after yet another busy day we headed to our wonderful accommodation in the heart of Nuremberg - a youth hostel in the medieval Nuremberg Castle.
On Sunday we got back on the coach (we were becoming accustomed to "coach life" by this point) and headed for our final stop - Berlin. After visiting the Wannsee Conference venue and the ever evocative Gleis 17 we headed to the heart of Berlin to visit a memorial the Sinti-Roma. After some currywurst in the Pavilion restaurant in the shadow of the Reichstag we finally went up to the top of the current seat of european power - the German Reichstag - for fantastic night time views over the city. After yet another action packed day we made for our final hostel - Amstelhouse in the heart of Berlin's working class district.
The last day was another packed day, visiting the home of the SS during the 1930s, Berlin Olympic stadium and various memorials around the city before ending the tour at the place (it is believed) where Adolf Hitler's body was burned - the "Fuhrer Bunker" - now a car park at the bottom of a block of flats.
We headed back to the coach once more to start the 16 hour journey home.
The Year 11 students were an absolute credit to themselves and the Academy and all of them got a lot out of what was a thoroughly worthwhile visit.
CCF cadets fly a Typhoon.
On the 16th of October, four cadets ventured up to RAF Waddington to visit the Airspace Battle Training Centre (ABTC). The ABTC enables the army, particularly artillery, to link virtual scenarios with pilots flying in virtual flight simulators, to create a full scale virtual battle space. This enables training between pilots and ground assets. All four cadets got a chance to fly in both tornado and typhoon fast jet simulators. Two cadets went in the tornado simulator and took turns finding targets and flying and shooting targets. In the typhoon simulators, there was only space for a pilot so there were two separate simulators for the cadets to use. In the typhoon simulators we were shown how to fly the aircraft in various scenarios including low level flying and tactical manoeuvres etc.
The ABTC Flight Sim Trip was beneficial to all the cadets attending, showing them what to expect from training in some aspects of the RAF and into some aspects of the Army. It showed them the capabilities and handling of both the typhoon and the tornado. Particularly with the typhoon simulator it showed the cadets how a modern fighter jet has been designed to allow the pilot to fly the aircraft and operate the weapons system simultaneously, with relative ease. The trip was helpful for the four cadets who attended, all having an interest in an RAF career.
Football and Netball successes
This Wednesday afternoon the U19s played a friendly match against Bourne Grammar. The match was organised as a warm up for the forthcoming County Championships.
The girls played brilliantly throughout the whole match. We used the match to try a few combinations of players to see what might work best for next week.
In the first and second quarters Sophie and Juliet played in the circle and proved to be a strong shooting combination. You can see the years of playing together have led to an almost telepathic awareness of where the other will be, resulting in fast passes and accurate movement and, ultimately, lots of goals.
In the third quarter we swapped things round a little and Kate came into the circle with Sophie moving to WA. It took the girls the quarter to settle into the new combination and Bourne pulled a number of goals back to put our team under pressure. The defence of Ellie, Olivia and Yasmin stepped up significantly. They made a number of well timed interceptions and forced Bourne to make a number of errors. As a result of the increased pressure on Bourne, our team were able to maintain a lead of 15-9.
By the final quarter the team were working brilliantly together. The mid court play being led by Charlotte, our Centre, was excellent. On a number of occasions our mid court players marked so well that Bourne were unable to get the ball into their attacking third.
The final result was 21-10 which will give the team great confidence for next week. If you see any of the girls around please congratulate them on this fantastic result and wish them luck for the County Championships.
On Wednesday 17th October the Year 8 netballers travelled to Priory Lincoln Academy to continue their successful netball season. The girls were excited to play and worked together incredibly well the minute they came onto court. With some beautiful attacking play down court between Freya 1, Leah, Freya 2 and Steffi the girls continued to score the goals. The girls defended well with Tilly consistently turning the ball over in the circle and Evie working hard for any rebounds that came her way. The girls demonstrated brilliant cohesion on court and with Niamh and Coco putting pressure on their attacking players, we were able to pick up any loose balls and turn them into goals. A fantastic result ladies the best one yet. Well done you remain unbeaten!!!
Final score: Priory Academy 41 – Lincoln Academy 18
The Year 8 B Team also travelled to the Priory City of Lincoln Academy for a friendly game. They started with the centre pass but we were quick to intercept and gain possession of the ball. By the end of the first quarter we managed to get 2 goals, thanks to Josie and Lucy with some great goals and teamwork . When the second quarter started we had Erin as centre playing in that position for the first time, but doing a great job and doing some great interceptions. When the ball was in possession of PCLA ,our defence, Erin C, was quick to intercept. When the ball got to their shooter Sophie and Jessica were great at catching the rebound. By the end of the second quarter the score was 9-2 to us. Then at the start of the third quarter we were all feeling quite confident and Anna had changed back into centre doing some great passes and interceptions and Izzy helping getting the ball to the shooters. Priory City also had some great interceptions managing to get the ball to their shooters but Sophie was quick in the rebound and managed to get us back the ball. The third quarter finished and we were all happy with how it was going. We went into the final quarter with Jude being a shooter and doing a great job giving us two goals and Lucy giving us another two. We were all super pleased with how we played and so happy with the result!
Well played everyone! The final sore was 16-3 to LSST!
Wednesday evening saw the Y9 football team travel to Lincoln Academy for their fourth game of the season. They currently had two losses and a win and were hopeful to continue with another good performance. Match report below written by players’ player Yasser:
Before the game started, we were pretty unconfident because we had 9 men and the opposition had 11 and plenty of subs. However, we got a generous deal from Mr Duggan that if we win, we get a chocolate bar each (This may well be used as a case study within GCSE lessons focusing on extrinsic motivation…). So that really boosted our confidence. As the game started we pressed high and started sharp with some good play. Then they reacted with some great passing to win themselves a free-kick. Their striker headed it in, however it was called offside by the professional linesmen. Even he had a great game down the line. Anyway we struggled in the first 15-20 minutes to find options considering we had 9 men. Their striker was, again, played offside by a disciplined back three. The whistle blew and that was the first half. We were proud because they had more players and it was still even. The second half began and after some play they got the first goal. There was great play by Olly C and Finley who through balled it to Sam so he could use his skills and play it to me, which he did perfectly. I got the ball and as I turned around, there was a giant in front of me. Well that’s what it looked like from my angle. Therefore I had to use my quick feet to get past my opponent and when I did, I slotted it in the back of the net which made the score level again. 1-1. We really wanted to win this game because it was so competitive, and we wanted those chocolate bars. Anyway it was getting to the ¾ stage of the match, Kyran played a wonderful pass for me to kick it in behind their back line and Olly N chased it aggressively and lobbed it over their keeper. 2-1 and we were buzzing. We tried to maintain our lead, however we panicked a little bit when they got a free-kick on the edge of the box. Everyone was shouting orders and we didn’t communicate well. They whipped it in and Ben C tried to head it away but accidentally headed it into our own goal. 2-2 was the score and they were so happy that they were drawing against a team with 9 men in their home ground. We really needed this win and we literally turned into Barcelona. With some fabulous play, the ball was crossed in from the midfield and I was battling for it as it was in the air. I did a good touch with my chest and volleyed it in to the top corner. Everyone was rushing to me and complimenting me, which really showed our team spirit. The whistle blew for the last time and we won the game with 9 hardworking players. Sir has got to get some good quality chocolate bars for that performance!
Discipline and determination well and truly won us the match. The team worked so hard and it was brilliant to see them wanting to work for each other and communicating well to maintain a good structure defensively and some wonderfully unpredictable attacking play. Well done to all.
The same day the Year 10 netball team travelled to PCLA to play their second netball match of the season.
The girls played a brilliant match which was closely fought and captivating to watch. Our opponents started very strongly, turning over our first two centre passes to take a 3-0 lead. Yet our attack kept their cool and brought the score up to take an 8-5 lead by the end of the first quarter. The next three quarters were equally as close, the lead changing a number of times. The final score 20-26 to Lincoln was a great result for the girls who showed such determination and resilience. The team will play again after February half term. In the mean time we will work hard to refine our skills, ready for those matches.
On Tuesday 16th October the Year 7 netballers travelled to Branston. So the match began and very early on Grace scored the first goal, which we were very excited about. A little later in the quarter we scored again. Unfortunately, near the end of the quarter Branston managed to score. As the quarters went on more and more goals were scored. Branston managed to grab hold of the lead in the second quarter, but we kept our heads held high. After some amazing teamwork, passing and goals the match had ended. Branston had managed to beat us 8-6, but we are still very proud of our efforts.
Match Report written by Katie Year 7
A huge well done to all the girls who made their debut representing the Academy. They worked incredibly hard and such early on in the season they show great promise as a team. This fixture will be a tough one when we face them next year! Roll on the rest of the season girls……
Final score: Priory Academy 6 – Branston 8
Lincolnshire County Cricket Awards
Last week saw LSST student Anton McCready pick up the well-deserved bowling award for top wicket taker in his age group for Lincolnshire County Cricket. He has also scooped awards for the bowler with the top statistics for the North Lincolnshire Junior League as well as picking up best bowler for the adult team he plays for.
International School Award
The Priory Academy LSST has been reaccredited with the British Council’s prestigious International School Award in recognition of its work to bring the world into the classroom.
The International School Award celebrates the achievements of schools that do exceptional work in international education. Fostering an international dimension in the curriculum is at the heart of the British Council’s work with schools, so that young people gain the cultural understanding and skills they need for life work in today’s world.
Some of our international work that impressed the assessors includes the Czech exchange run by the Maths department, the Rugby and Netball tours coordinated by PE and the range of opportunities available for foreign travel across all departments. They were also pleased to see the growth of our boarding house and how our international students are such an important and valued part of our academy community.
The Academy will be presented with the award at a ceremony at the Houses of Parliament in December and we look forward to forging new links with schools in countries such as Bangladesh and hope that this will provide our students with the opportunity to explore the world beyond the classroom.
A huge thank you to all staff who have supported our bid and to our students who have embraced the many opportunities that are on offer.
CCF Adventurous Training Week
In September, the cadets went to the Lake District for an adventurous training week, taking part in a variety of activities. During the week, it was incredibly windy and there were tents blown over by the wind as well as trees and branches that fell across the road - the tree clearing team was then created. The cadets were driving up a hill when they came across two massive trees that had fallen across the road. Having already cleared some of the smaller trees, all the cadets managed to break and move the two giant trees off the road and onto to river bank, whilst waiting for the aid of the handsaws.
They arrived on Sunday at the campsite and set up all the tents and equipment. The cadets cooked their own food in a field kitchen which was a new experience for them.
The next day was the first day of activities. Some of the cadets went ghyll scrambling whilst the other half went to Honnister Slate Mine to do the Via Ferrata. For ghyll scrambling they walked down a river whilst abseiling down some of the heavy waterfalls. As well as this there were some jumps down the waterfalls too. In Via Ferrata, the cadets scaled a mountain following a route around it. This year everyone took part in the extreme level and this included a wire bridge similar to a tightrope and a cargo net crossing. They also took part in the climb inside the mine which took them around the old Honnister slate mine. The cadets then switched over on Thursday to do the other activity.
On Tuesday they all did water sports on Derwent Waters. This included raft building, canoeing and kayaking. They ended with a race on their rafts at the very end. They then travelled back to the youth hostel where they would stay for the rest of the week. Here the cadets were finally able to enjoy real showers and beds.
On Wednesday, due to the dangerous weather the cadets enjoyed a more relaxed walk around Lake Buttermere. Even then the wind, was incredible and sending clouds of water across the lake and even making Miss Thompson’s hat blow away into the lake.
Finally on Friday, as their last day the cadets had a circuit of events in Keswick such as an escape room, climbing, and Puzzle Place which was filled with different types of illusions. They then left the Lake District in the afternoon and travelled back to the Academy. On the journey back there was lots of singing, especially on the party bus which ended the whole trip on a high.