14th April 2021 — Congratulation to Faith and Imogen, Year 8, from Malvern St James Girls' School on winning the ISA STEAM Competition (KS3).

The competition encourages students to investigate and solve problems from today’s world. The competition encouraged teamwork, thoughtful dialogue and problem-solving.

As part of this project Faith and Imogen created the Environment and Sustainability Club. They created videos and posts to raise awareness of how people can make a difference to the environment.

Faith and Imogen said "For this project, it is not just one problem that we are trying to solve, we are tackling many separate problems within the category of environmental sustainability. These include: recycling, growing your own food, reducing waste, reusing everyday items, reducing bills, energy efficiency and buying from local sellers (food and other items)."

Well done to everyone who took part in the first ISA STEAM Competition. The judges were very impressed with all the entries.

Visit the ISA Arts website for details of Faith and Imogen's winning entry.

25th March 2021 — Students at Malvern St James Girls' School enjoyed a visit from Medical Mavericks as part of British Science Week 2021.

Prep and Pre-Prep pupils enjoyed an engaging and stimulating show, looking at their growth plates, and demonstrations of different medical equipment. They also learnt that there are more careers in the NHS than just a doctor and a nurse. They also watched a video of a respiratory tract. They followed this up in the classroom when Miss Phipps brought in her dog's favourite chew, a dried trachea of a cow. This allowed students to see the rings of cartilage for themselves.

Year 8 also enjoyed watching The Virtual Human Guinea Pig Show from their classrooms. Years 7-11 attended a hands-on workshop experiencing different eye conditions, using an MRI scanner, practising keyhole surgery, drawing blood from a fake arm and much more.

Year 10 Fish Dissection

Year 10 were interested in finding out more about gas exchange in fish. We have been studying the human respiratory system and this provided a chance to practise our dissection skills and compare the structures.

The adaptations have similar features and Year 10 were able to put their specification knowledge to good use. Year 10 were so keen we ran two dissection workshops! We even found time to dissect the eyes and the brain. I think we could have easily spent the whole afternoon dissecting.

24th March 2021 — During lockdown, girls may not have been at Malvern St James Girls' School but that did not stop the development of the new Prep Garden. The garden includes a polytunnel, raised veg beds and an outdoor classroom.

Relatable learning is at the heart of our Prep curriculum, which is exactly what our Prep Garden will provide us with opportunities for. Recent studies have shown that the outcomes for involving children in school gardening are vast, including;

• Greater scientific knowledge and understanding,
  
• Enhanced literacy and numeracy, including the use of a wider vocabulary and greater oracy skills,
  
• Increased awareness of the seasons and understanding of food production,
  
• Increased confidence,
  
• Resilience and self-esteem,
  
• Development of physical skills, including fine motor skills,
  
• Development of a sense of responsibility,
  
• A positive attitude to healthy food choices,
  
• Positive behaviour.
  

We are very excited about our new venture and are on seedling watch in the Year 6 classroom, where propagators line the window ledges. Watch out for our next instalment.

9th March 2021 — A Worcestershire school has achieved the School Mental Health Award which is delivered by the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools. Malvern St James Girls’ School were awarded a Gold standard for its outstanding mental health and wellbeing provision.

Malvern St James Girls’ School provides a wide range of activities to boost the wellbeing of pupils and staff, including offering Youth Mental Health First Aid training to a cross section of staff and Sixth Form, Wellbeing Champion and Wellbeing Ambassador peer support structures for staff and pupils, mindfulness, mental health and wellbeing lessons taught through PSHEEC and using social media platforms to signpost support and information via @msjbuzz on Instagram and Twitter. Using the Girls on Board Scheme, pupils are taught how to engage in healthy, happy friendships as well as how to manage the ways in which these inevitably change over time. Once developed, these relationship skills will have lifelong relevance. A focal point of the school’s mental health and wellbeing provision is to ensure that every girl feels known and valued at Malvern St James. The school recognises that young people who feel a secure sense of belonging are in a position to get the very best out of their learning experience and so everything the school does is underpinned by wellbeing.

The school also ran a Virtual Festival of Wellbeing, hosting talks from speakers such as Steve Backshall, Helen Glover and Natasha Devon MBE. They have further initiated the Three Counties Wellbeing Collective in order to share best practice with pastoral leads from local schools and were proud to have their Pastoral Prefect produce a book for young people to learn about Mental Health issues as part of their EPQ.

Malvern St James Girls’ School’s Headmistress, Olivera Raraty said: “I am extremely proud and delighted that MSJ’s outstanding pastoral provision in support of positive mental health has been recognised in this way. Mental health programmes have come such a long way in schools in recent years and we are delighted to be at the forefront of this change working with the Carnegie Centre of Excellence. This award also recognises the excellent way that staff and pupils support each other day in, day out, to promote wellbeing.”

Olivera Raraty, Headmistress, said: “The wellbeing of our pupils and staff is at the forefront of everything that we do. The positive mental health programme has given us useful tools and helped raise even greater awareness of the importance of wellbeing amongst pupils and staff; this has changed the language and the way in which we respond as a community to individual needs. We can see that this approach has had a palpable effect on the positive emotional and mental wellbeing of pupils and staff, never more so than during these past few months as we supported one another during the pandemic. This could not have been more timely! This approach is rooted in everything we do at MSJ and we are already building on this work in new and exciting ways.”

The award was established in 2017 by the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools – part of Leeds Beckett University – and social enterprise Minds Ahead.

The Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools aims to strengthen pupils’ mental health by supporting schools to make a positive change at all levels of the UK's education system, improving students’ outcomes and life chances.

Professor Damien Page, Dean of Leeds Beckett’s Carnegie School of Education, said: “Achieving this award is not just recognition of a whole-school approach to mental health, it’s a recognition of the school’s commitment to improving the life chances of children.

“We’re truly proud to have worked with Malvern St James Girls’ School in this vital work and look forward to further collaboration.”

Nationally, more than 900 schools have signed up to take part in the mental health award.

Dean Johnstone, founder and CEO of Minds Ahead said: “This award shines a light on the excellent work schools are doing to promote mental health for their community of children and adults.

“It is thrilling and humbling to learn about Malvern St James Girls’ School and the many other schools engaged in the quality award process. I’d like to offer my congratulations on this deserved recognition.”

Photo from left to right: Mrs Olivera Raraty, Headmistress; Miss Keri Haw, Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead and Mrs Zinnia Wilkinson, Director of Pastoral Care at Malvern St James Girls' School

5th February 2021 — The Malvern St James Girls' School Hearts Dressage Team were crowned overall winners in the National Schools Equestrian Championship Qualifier.

Congratulations go to the winning team of Hannah on Nemo Novice 28, 71.88%, Lottie on Capri Prelim 13, 73.65% and Tiggy on Dash Prelim 13, 69.81%.

The MSJ team succeeded in a class of 21 National School Dressage Teams comprising over 80 riders across the UK all competing for a top-three placing. Congratulations also go to Lottie for a fourth individual qualification on Lucky Novice 28, 71.88%.

Challenging weather conditions and sporting restrictions meant that three MSJ dressage teams, Team Hearts, Team Diamonds and Team Clubs comprising three or four rider combinations, simultaneously recorded remotely their dressage tests under strict criteria.

Our thanks go to other participating team members, Olivia, Serena, Faith and Tilly. A tremendous team effort.

3rd February 2021 — Malvern St James Girls’ School is taking part in the latest fundraising campaign by England Lacrosse to raise money to buy computer equipment for vulnerable young people. So far 50 girls and staff have taken part in the campaign and submitted footage of them ‘Bouncing off the Walls’. They aim to reach 10,000 wall balls.

The England Lacrosse ‘Bouncing off the Walls’ fundraising campaign, in partnership with the Raspberry Pi Foundation, hopes to raise an initial £20,000 to buy 100 computer packages for those in need. Raspberry Pi are a UK-based charity that “works to put the power of computing and digital making into the hands of people all over the world”.

For less than £200, Raspberry Pi can provide a vulnerable young person with everything they need to learn at home, including:

• A Raspberry Pi desktop computer;
  
• A monitor;
  
• A webcam;
  
• Educational software;
  
• Ongoing support from a youth worker and the Raspberry Pi Foundation team.
  

England Lacrosse is asking everyone to join in as they try to achieve one million wall balls, raise money for the Raspberry Pi Foundation, and get active this new year.

To take on the challenge, all you have to do is donate (or ask your family and friends to sponsor you) £1 for every 100 wall balls you complete; 2,000 wall balls will help the Raspberry Pi Foundation purchase one computer package.