Pocklington School - Allawalla Tingle Oct 2016 | Page 2

SPACEBEAR BATTERED BUT UNBOWED AFTER ADVENTURE A teddy bear blasted into space by pupils at Pocklington Prep School has returned home battered – but with some thrilling footage from his adventure into the stratosphere. “I’m glad he landed in my field because he could easily have landed somewhere inaccessible and never been seen again. I was pleased to be able to get him back to the school.” The bear, known as Major William Wilberforce, soared 36km (22 miles) above Earth beneath a helium weather balloon, before plummeting back down at an initial acceleration of 9.81m (32 feet) per second once the balloon had burst. Major William lost a leg during his adventure and literally had the stuffing knocked out of him, but a visit to a 'teddy doctor' and the delivery of a bespoke crutch patched him up, and he’s now looking forward to his next adventure. The school has used remarkable footage from Major William’s onboard selfie cam to make a short film of his heroic journey, noting the equivalent heights of various landmarks passed during his 108-minute ascent and giving pupils some thrilling views of Earth from above. Patrick Allen, Pocklington Prep School’s Head of ICT and 'Mission Controller', documented Major William’s adventure in SPACEBEAR The Movie, a gripping 13-minute account of the mission, which began in June. Fortunately for Major William, his ignominious crash back down to Earth in a barley field 16 miles away from the launch site, and his subsequent tussle with a combine harvester, wasn’t captured by the camera. A failure in his GPS tracking system meant he lay unnoticed in a field in Raywell, west of Hull, for 50 days, until being spotted by farmer Richard Thompson, who happens to be a former Pocklington School pupil. Mr Thompson said: “I spotted the little teddy bear and his parachute as I was about to go over it with the combine. When I read the labels and realized he was from my old school, it was quite a surprise. POCKLINGTON JOINS YORKSHIRE CARNEGIE SCHOOLS PROGRAMME BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE – WORK STARTS ON NEW ART & DESIGN TECHNOLOGY CENTRE Pocklington School has been selected to join Yorkshire Carnegie Rugby Club’s new Affiliated Schools Programme this year. We were recently delighted to announce that the Governors had given the green light for the new Art and Design Technology Centre. The affiliation will give pupils a closer insight into the workings of the Leeds-based Championship club. Its players and staff will visit and take part in assemblies, and there will be a chance for Pocklington to host a first-team training session. He said: “Our pupils were so excited to hear Major William had survived to tell the tale. We had a worrying few weeks when transmission was lost, so there was huge relief that he, and his footage, survived. At its June meeting, the Board considered the results of the tender process, the continuing success of the Campaign and the overall sound position of the Foundation’s finances in reaching this decision. Demolition of the old biology building and the re-siting of a Portaka bin took place at half term in June and the demolition of the first slice of the existing Art and Design Centre in July. As one of just 16 Yorkshire schools invited onto the Affiliation Programme, Pocklington pupils will also be able to attend a Yorkshire Carnegie home game and participate in the match-day entertainment. “The space project has inspired real enthusiasm in the children. They were involved in every step of the mission’s preparation and to see it come to fruition so successfully is invaluable educationally." The scheme is aimed at introducing more pupils to rugby union and Yorkshire Carnegie in particular. It runs alongside the club’s England Rugby Developing Player Programme, which identifies and nurtures future talent. Major William himself has been inspired by the triumphs of Paralympians and will not let his disability hold him back. He already has his sights set on flying in a glider, swimming with sharks and abseiling. Pocklington School’s Master i/c of Rugby, Sean Houltham, said: “We have been recognised by Yorkshire Carnegie as a school that supports the individual to achieve their potential, whilst also balancing their sporting and academic needs. This partnership is a great opportunity for pupils of all abilities to enjoy rugby and develop their skills.” To see SPACEBEAR The Movie, go to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmQz8Qqz9dg Pocklington School’s rugby elite includes Lewis Wilson, who left the Upper Sixth this summer. Lewis was Yorkshire Carnegie Senior Academy Player of the Year in 2015, has three caps for England Under-18s and was joint vice-captain of the school’s 1st XV. Adam Blades, Yorkshire Carnegie Community Manager, said: “It is great to have Pocklington on board as one of the 16 affiliated schools. “This is in recognition of the commitment Pocklington has shown in attending various Yorkshire Carnegie games and events over the past few years. They have also allowed us the use of their school facilities as a host venue for our community events.” Lisa McCann, the club's Schools Development Manager, added: “We are delighted to launch this scheme for our schools. This is a chance for us to engage all of their students with Yorkshire Carnegie, even if they do not play rugby union. We are hoping to inspire the next generation of Yorkshire Carnegie fans and this is an exciting time for us.” Major William Wilberforce - 35km up MEGAN AWARDED SCHOOLS DESIGN PRIZE FOR A LEVEL COURSEWORK Megan Glew (05-16), Upper Sixth Leaver has been awarded a Schools Design Prize by The Furniture Makers Company and her design is featured on their Schools Design Prize webpage. The Schools Design Prize is a unique award given to promising young students in over 1100 schools across the country each year. As part of her AS level Design Technology project, Megan’s brief was to design and manufacture a piece of flat pack furniture. She chose a lounge chair, gathering inspiration from Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe’s MR Chair. Her final design used a basis of birch faced plywood and red upholstery fabric to create a cushioned, comfortable chair. Megan used a variety of manufacturing techniques, which are all available in the Design Technology Department at Pocklington School. Mr Ellis, Head of Design at Pocklington School commented: ‘Megan’s enthusiastic and focused approach allowed her to make full use of the industrial processes available to her in the Design Technology Department. Her AS coursework is still being used to inspire the next generation of pupils studying Design Technology.’ After receiving her A level results, Megan obtained a place at Nottingham Trent University to study Product Design. We wish her well with her studies and future career. Construction began by contractor Houlton on 1 August, with Phase One due for completion by 31 May and Phase Two handed over in October 2017. The Campaign continues and a second Progress Report with further details about the project will be produced in due course. To find out more about the Campaign, you are invited to come along to an informal meeting to hear our plans in more detail, culminating in a tour of the site. Contact Susan Kay on 01759 322626 or [email protected] to book a time. To view a copy of the last Progress Report and the Campaign Brochure please visit www.pocklingtonschool.com/campaign We look forward to our new Art & Design Technology Centre so we can continue our strong tradition of inspiring the creative minds of the future in a modern, vibrant environment.