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2012 in review
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 11,000 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 18 years to get that many views.
Calne academy opens field of dreams
A school’s vision of having classes run outdoors has become a reality.
Springfield Academy in Calne, which cares for vulnerable children, has opened its new Greenfield Campus on land it rents from Goatacre farmer Kevin Iles.
The campus will offer lessons in animal care and therapeutic sessions not just to Springfield pupils, but to students from other schools in the area.
Funding from the Springfields Charitable Trust has paid for a new barn, a custom built classroom so lessons can continue whatever the weather, as well as pens and paddocks.
Read More: http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/10043189.Calne_academy_opens_field_of_dreams/
Gough’s Charity Golf Day 2012
The day was organised by Martin Lang, Head of the Commercial Department. This was an opportunity for Goughs to thank clients for their continued trust and commitment and for choosing Goughs to represent their business interests, but was also an event with a clear focus of raising much needed funds for The Springfields Academy Extreme Classrooms initiative
It was a golf charity day with around 60 clients and associates participating in an 18 hole Stableford competition. There were opportunities along the way to win prizes for nearest the pin and closest the line – as well as prizes for the overall winning individual and winning team.
Goughs were an integral part of the transformation Springfields took to becoming an Academy, a relationship blossomed and Martin said that he and his fellow partners at Goughs, were proud to be associated with such an inspiring organisation and felt that they wanted to do something to show their appreciation, for what the Academy does for the young people that attend the Academy.Martin Lang gave a heartfelt and thought provoking speech at dinner where he described Trystan Williams and James Lynch as inspirational and described their dedication to changing the lives of children who as Martin put it, have been forgotten about by society.
Calum Carter, a pupil at The Springfields Academy who attended the event was happy to talk to the many people present about his own personal experiences, describing the difficulties he faced in the past – right up to his amazing experiences participating in The Extreme Classroom expeditions such as The Arctic and his recent trek in Tanzania. Calum was happy to talk openly about what The Springfields Academy has done for him, and how the Springfields Academy had supported and inspired Calum to always strive for better.
Congratulations to the winners and a heartfelt Thanks to the Partners of Goughs for a truly amazing day
Summer sports club raises money for charity
Springfields holiday sports club, run by Marvin Brown has been a huge success this summer. Local children have been given the opportunity to attend jam packed sporting days at the Academy. Staff have helped to make the days successful offering varieties of sports for the children to try. From football to dodgeball, badminton to curling the days have been great fun and offered sports that the children may not have tried before. The proceeds of the sports days are being donated to BrAMS (multiple sclerosis research)!! And we have raised a huge £682 pounds for this charity.
More sporting days will be held in October so check back for updated posts.
Thank you for your donations!
Marvin Brown
Exam success
Congratulations to all our Y11 students on their fantastic results. A year of hard work and determination has paid off for our year 11 students. For the third year in a row we have an increase in the Average Points Score which currently stands at 194.5, an improvement of 35 points from 2011.
Aside from every year 11 pupil gaining a Maths and English qualification and another great year for Science results, students also did exceptionally well in PE where the average grade was A. Generally students showed that they had the resilience to see through the exam season and press for their college and work places in September.
Congratulations are also due to the following individuals, Jordan Bell, Ryan Blei and Jamie Creese who gained – 5+ A-C grades including English & Maths and to Calium Marshall who overcame many obstacles to gain a fantastic C Grade in Maths.
A huge well done to all our students, all the staff who supported them in so many ways, and their families and carers.
Travis ,Jordan ,Ryan ,Tom ,Stephen ,Jamie Calium ,Aaron ,Oscar ,Dom ,Dean and Terry ; WELL DONE. We all wish you every success with the new challenges of September. Remember how far you’ve come! You can take the next step. 
Are you up for the challenge?
Chris Sampson is taking part in the ‘The Coastal Challenge’ on Anglesey.
Isle of Anglesey Coastal Path falls within a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) which covers 95% of the coast. It passes through landscape that includes a mixture of farmland, coastal heath, dunes, salt-marsh, foreshore, cliffs and a few small pockets of woodland. Compared to the Jurassic Coast and the Atlantic Coast challenges the Anglesey Coast presents a slightly kinder challenge as its a bit flatter but still a tough challenge under foot.
Day 1 was 30 miles,
Day 2 is 28 and
Day 3 is 29 miles, ………a true Ultra Marathon.
We are supporting Chris Sampson through the weekend and hopes he does really well. For more information on the coastal challenge click here
Check out this link for a full account of the runclick here
Autism friendly cinema
What makes the screenings autism friendly?
ODEON Autism Friendly Screenings are designed to make the cinema experience more accessible to guests who might find mainstream screenings challenging. The screenings are run in partnership with learning disability and autism support provider Dimensions.
These alternative screenings are recommended to anyone who might benefit from the subtle alterations made to the auditorium environment. Films are screened with the lights turned up, the volume turned down, and with the trailers and adverts removed. People can feel free to move around the cinema or make a noise as they feel comfortable. Guests are reminded not to run inside the cinema and children should be supervised at all times.
Winners
Mr Lynch receiving the “Best special school award”
The Academy was nominated for several awards at the TES annual conference held today in London. Members of staff attended the event on behalf of the Academy.
The Springfields Academy won “Best special school” & overall “Best School” award.
We are all proud of these awards and is a fantastic accolade to end the final term on. The Academy has been through lots of positive changes this year and these awards just confirm and recognise all the great things, we as staff do at the Academy.
@tesResources: Springfield Academy wins special school of the year #TESSAs a beautiful speech by their choked up vice principal http://t.co/iFEHH77w
Greetings, Salamu
All is well as darkness falls. Great first full day, in country. Yesterday all coped well with the detail of African bureaucracy that saw us out of Kenya and into Tanzania. Beautiful campsite tucked away beneath the trees. This morning we woke at 05.30 and left after breakfast for the viewpoint on Longido. We looked down on the African plain as the day began, meeting Tortoise, scorpion and ( viewed by our guides) Leopard. We then shifted camp towards Kitumbeine on our journey towards the rift. The landscape changed becoming drier and through the trees we saw Zebra and (grants)Gazelle.
The insect and bird life is vibrant and everywhere you look there is life. All has been brilliantly organized and everyone seems pleased we are here.
Tomorrow we climb again, and the horizons open up even further. Now the stars are out, a full sky and the crickets serenade beneath the dynamo h. All are well. The team is working, the children are healthy and a little over awed.
Safari njema!
The Tanzania group left the Academy at 2pm today to start their amazing journey. They arrived at Heathrow at 15:45.
The challenge – June 2012
A 9 day trek across the floor of the Great Rift Valley starting from the sacred Mount Longido and finishing at the stunning Crater Highlands and the world famous Ngorongoro Crater. This a unique and physically and mentally challenging expedition guided by members of the Maasai community, once the fiercest of warriors but now struggling to retain their lifestyle in this fascinating geographical and geological region.
Springfields Voice 