Yesterday, Year 11 students from all three Robert Clack sites had the privilege of hearing from Laurand Krasniqi , a former student who is now a second-year medical student at King’s College, London. Laurand, who graduated from Robert Clack in 2021, shared his journey into the world of Medicine and offered valuable advice to those aspiring to follow in his footsteps. During his presentation, Laurand spoke candidly about the challenges and rewards of pursuing a career in Medicine, emphasising the importance of starting early and preparing for the rigorous academic journey ahead. He also highlighted common pitfalls to watch out for along the way, giving students a realistic and practical perspective on what it takes to succeed in this field. The session was interactive, with many students engaging actively by asking thoughtful and insightful questions. Laurand’s personal experience and guidance resonated with everyone in the room, leaving them feeling inspired and motivated to pursue their own dreams in Medicine. A big thank you to Laurand for taking the time to give back to the Robert Clack community and for inspiring the next generation of doctors. Thank you!

' We believe every young person has a story to tell and the capacity to tell it.' A small group of RCS students were selected to take part in the Write Back programme. Write Back is a superb opportunity for students to grow in confidence with their creative writing and be able to express themselves. We asked our students: What did Write Back do for you? What were the benefits for your academic progress? Would you recommend it to younger students? Rubaiya Write Back was the core reason of me being more confident in myself as well as developing public speaking and literature skills. This is an amazing opportunity for those who are eager to write but don't know where to start or to boost their self-confidence. In Write Back, we worked as a team rather than just individuals to write our stories, making it as great socialising opportunity so I would definitely recommend it to younger pupils at Robert Clack. Zainab Writeback was an interesting experience which included socialising with different people and connecting using games. It was a unique weekly event that was fun with friends and meeting and engaging with various individuals. Sumaiya Write- Back is an exciting and unique experience, and I truly enjoyed it. Each session we get to talk about ideas for soon-to-be-published stories and is also a great opportunity to socialise and have fun. What I thought might feel stressful was actually quite the opposite; it was very welcoming. Hafsa I enjoyed and loved my experience at Write Back as it helped me express my creativity. Write Back is all about sharing, soon to be published, story ideas with others free of judgement. I am glad to have had the opportunity where I could socialise with others, through games and sweets, and improve my own writing.

After a break of 5 years, we are delighted to be participating in the Jack Petchey Count on Us Maths Challenge again. Our first sessions have commenced with a probability game called Hedgehog, and a very large dice! We are confident that our students will excel and I look forward to updating you as they progress through the different rounds against schools across London. Maybe they will even make it to the Grand Final at City Hall!

Cricket Leaders Our Cricket Leaders had their first event of the year in January at Becontree Leisure Centre. This event saw 9 Primary Schools and over 150 students attend. They set up and delivered cricket based activities as well as umpired the 3 T’s tournament at the end. Before Christmas, our young leaders completed 3 after school sessions that were a part of a cricket course for them to gain their Young Leaders Award and I am proud to say they have all passed and achieved this!  Our leaders have more events coming up this year, including umpiring Dynamos Cricket for SEND students that will help them progress to the London Youth Games; umpiring the borough Dynamo cricket tournament as well as the county finals that will be held at the County Cloud. These students have gone above and beyond to gain confidence, professionalism and general understanding of rules surrounding games. It has been incredible to see these girls speak in front of not only students but teachers, adapt their activities to the needs of the students and remain enthusiastic throughout. Well done! Miss Robbins

Year 12 Visit to Clear Channel UK – Business Studies On 23rd January, students from our Sixth Form Entrepreneur Academy had the incredible opportunity to visit the offices of Clear Channel UK, hosted by former pupil Jamie Mason. The session was an action-packed experience that covered key aspects of advertising, sales, and the significance of Out-Of-Home (OOH) advertising. One of the highlights of the day was working on a real advertising brief from KFC, which students pitched back with enthusiasm and creativity. They also participated in speed networking, engaging with professionals from various departments and gaining insight into the diverse roles within Clear Channel UK—truly meeting the ‘People Behind the Posters.’ At the beginning of the session, Jamie’s fellow host, Jordan Smith, posed a thought-provoking question: Who would consider a role in this industry? Only a few hands were raised. By the end of the session, they bravely asked the same question again. This time, every single hand went up. This powerful moment underscored the impact of real-world industry exposure and how experiences like these can shape students’ education and future career aspirations. Student Reflections: FA, Year 12: “Overall, the day was insightful and provided a range of opportunities for us at Robert Clack Business Academy. My classmates and I had multiple chances to speak with professionals across different roles in the industry. The day concluded with a fantastic opportunity to work in groups and create an advertising prompt.” KU, Year 12: “I had the privilege of visiting the Clear Channel headquarters, where I gained valuable insights into the crucial role advertising plays in shaping our daily lives. This experience deepened my understanding of how strategic marketing influences consumer behaviour and brand visibility on a large scale.” A huge thank you to Jamie Mason and his colleagues at Clear Channel UK, as well as the Brixton Finishing School, for hosting such an inspiring and educational session. It was an invaluable experience that left a lasting impression on our students, equipping them with knowledge and aspirations for the future.

On Friday 24 th January, Robert Clack Beauty Academy hosted our very first in-house Manicure competition. All students in year 12 and 13 on an NVQ level 2 and 3 program participated. We were very fortunate to have with us two external judges with many years of experience. Kate Smith, key accounts manager from our awarding body VTCT and Katie Nicholls, a local salon owner with whom we work very closely with for work experience placements. Katie has also donated the winning prize of a free training course for one year 12 and one year 13 student (NVQ level 2/3 Beauty Therapy). We are sincerely grateful to our guests who both gave up their free time to judge the students on their personal appearance, client care and professionalism, hygiene and working area, filing, cuticle work and massage techniques, and lastly their ability to paint Red varnish and French varnish, these were all marked out of 10. Once all the scores were added up, the winners were as follows: Year 12 Runner up - Honey Winner - Giovanna Year 13 Runner up Isabella Winner Ruby There was only 1 point between the winners and runner ups. The standard was exceptionally high. Both judges commented on the students professionalism, confidence and skills. The judges said the students are a credit to the school and department. Kate Smith from VTCT was extremely impressed with the facilities, she couldn't believe the high end beauty equipment and salons that the students are so fortunate to work in, and that the students receive a free uniform and kit. She commented how lucky they are as this provision is very rare with other beauty training establishments. The students were given excellent feedback from a competition/examination point of view, and to support them achieve the highest industry level. The department could not be prouder. It was a wonderful experience for the students to participate in, preparing them for trade tests in the industry, and possible national competitions! Well done to all the students who took part! You should all be so proud of yourselves.

On Monday one our schools art and photography students Alexa participated in the London finals of the articulation speaking challenge. She presented, in the words of the lead judge "...[a] very well structured [presentation] through the use of key works that illustrated the themes and ideas she explored, and made excellent use of video and comparative imagery. She carried out great close visual analysis and tied this to broader cultural references, delivering an engaging and enjoyable presentation." We are extremely proud of her and the continued impact that Robert Clack Art and Photography is making on the wider art community of London. Congratulations Alexa!

The Robert Clack choir had the great pleasure of participating in three carol services this December. The first service took place at CU London on the 3rd of December, to celebrate the commencement of festivities and the lighting of the Christmas tree. This was organising by the Borough of Barking and Dagenham, and our choir joined other schools. Excitedly, Robert Clack choir opened the event by performing first, after a wonderful speech by the Mayor. The next service took place at Dagenham Green, a construction site that is due to open their brand-new houses and flats. The Robert Clack choir sang festive carols on the 5th of December, amongst the pleasing crowd and Santa! As an appreciation, our students were given lots of free gifts and featured on their website! Lastly, The Robert Clack choir annually visits The Mercury and Queens Hospital. Every year, the choir sings in the community to raise money for King George and Queen's hospital. The choir received lots of positive feedback from the community and public, continuing to spread the Christmas Cheer, even in some of the dreary weather that has been on show lately!

'Belatedly the London Cricket cup medals arrived at the school a few months late. It did revive the memories of what was an unprecedently successful Summer of Cricket in 2024. The year 8s narrowly lost in the final of the Reigate sixes to Reeds school, then unfortunately went down to a strong City of London side in the semi finals of the cup, a fine win over Norlington School saved the season in the London League. Special thanks must go to Vyasin Sarma Srividyanandan who skippered the side fantastically well throughout the year. Plus to Callum Salmon for his excellent wicketkeeping. The year 9s went one better by doing something that no year group has ever done at Robert Clack, win an Essex Cup. This they did this by beating King Edward VI Grammar school at Billericay cricket club. A brilliant team, there were so many great performances; Ismail Rumjaun's belligerent batting, Manthan's wily spin and George Miller's phenomenal keeping spring to mind. Finally, through it all, the best performances was reserved for the year 10's London cup win away at Kingsdale, South London. Having came through a gruelling cup campaign to beat Barking Abbey, Norlington, Gable Hall, Brampton and Mayfield they had to chase 128 against a very confident and fancied Kingsdale. This they did with hard hitting contributions from Vyasin, Muhammad Ahmed and Captain Fantastic Maswer Mansoor. The latter's contribution throughout the season in all three components of batting, fielding and bowling were integral to the team's success. We are hoping to have at least as successful Summer of 2025.