In order to fulfil our promise to create enriching opportunities for our pupils, the English Faculty have invited the production team from Katch 22, to perform 'Macbeth'. Y10 watched the performance as they are currently studying the play in preparation for the summer exams. This opportunity allows pupils to see Shakespeare in action and covers 20% of their English Literature GCSE. 

The actors were able to draw out key themes, characters and context for pupils with the Q&A session afterwards. The boys asked some insightful questions and gained some useful interpretations for their revision.

We would like to congratulate our Year 8 pupils for the mature and proactive way they have taken responsibility for their own learning by engaging in catch-up sessions, during Monday morning form-time. Those who have engaged in catch-up sessions are showing real commitment to improving their understanding and closing gaps in knowledge. The use of carefully tailored video content ensures that each pupil can revisit key concepts at their own pace, helping to build confidence and strengthen their skills. Just as importantly, their participation highlights a clear understanding of the value of strong school attendance and the positive impact it has on academic success. This dedication and independence are excellent habits that will continue to help develop our pupils to become resilient, confident and successful individuals.

Our Year 11 pupils were treated to a live performance of their GCSE English Literature text  ‘An Inspector Calls’ last week. Ahead of their final GCSE exams, pupils watched the actors explore key themes, character and quotes live and in role. Following the performance, the actors hosted a Q&A session and explained some of their directorial choices. The boys enjoyed the performance and will be well equipped to use the performance in their mock feedback lessons and their final examinations in May. They asked some really insightful questions which confirmed that their learning had been enhanced by experiencing live theatre. Katch 22 will be returning to TGBS next year to perform Macbeth for our Year 10 and 11 pupils. 

Our reading rewards vending machine continues to be a focal point of our weekly celebrations on a Friday lunchtime.  Pupils from all year groups are considered and selected for a range of approaches to demonstrating our TURVES Values, representing the school and attendance at extra-curricular clubs.

23/03/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Kian – following the school’s values.

Year 8: Charlie – following the school’s values.

Year 9: Charlie – a very polite, respectful and hard working pupil who often goes under the radar for these great qualities he shows.  

Year 10: Sebastian – a polite and respectful at all times when circulating the building 

Year 11: Chad - a hard working pupil who is showing a real focus on his studies and upcoming exams.

---

16/03/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Bailey – strong return to school after the half-term following the schools values .  

Year 9: Harley - for the most positives this week in his year group in Tolkien 

Year 10: Mason – most positives in year 10 Austin this month 

Year 11: Alfie – brilliant attainment in RE mocks. 

---

06/03/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Romeo - a hard working, polite pupil who always seems to have a smile on his face. Bounces back when things get challenging.  

Year 8: Joseph – most positives for last month.

Year 9: Tyler - a determined pupil wanting to be successful in all that he does. Keeps his head down, gets on with everything without causing any issues. 

Year 10: Mohammed - brilliant effort in BTEC sport.

Year 11: Jacob - an outstanding attitude towards his studies and mock exams.  

---

02/03/2026

Winners this week include

Year 7: Freddie - wakeboarding 

Year 8: Miles – extra-curricular sport and goal scoring 

Year 9: Logan - consistently meets Values, role model 

Year 10: Jay – excellent effort in lessons and mature approach to learning. 

Year 11: Tyler – Values every day – great work in mocks 

---

13/02/2026

Winners this week include

Year 7: Denis - a hard-working, respectful and resilient individual. Cannot say a bad word about this pupil 

Year 8: Leo- a polite, hard working pupil who shows great determination in all he does. Works with others to support them in lessons, particularly PE. 

Year 9: Jamie - hardworking, polite and always doing what is expected of him. 

Year 10: Israfiel - very hardworking – excellent demonstration of self-motivated to achieve. 

Year 11: Owen - voted by staff and prefects for being an outstanding, humble, hardworking pupil who epitomises the Turves Values every day.

---

06/02/2026

Winners this week include

Year 7: Callum – consistent demonstration of the Turves values – 100% effort, 100% of the time 

Year 8: Ethan - a quiet pupil who often goes under the radar. He is hard working in all lessons and shows respect and manners to everyone he comes across.  

Year 9: Tommie-Lee – a polite, respectful, hardworking pupil who just gets on with it and goes unnoticed. 

Year 10: Kamron - deserves to be recognised. Great worker, polite and diligent. 

Year 11: Dylan - hardworking, polite and model pupil to the lower years. 

---

30/01/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Carl - a quiet pupil who keeps his head down and demonstrates everything it means to be a TGBS pupil.  

Year 8: Aidan – a quiet and respectful pupil who is consistently hard working.  

Year 10: Jacob – a valuable contribution across all lessons. 

---

23/01/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Maurice - polite young man who embodies the values. Always self-motivated to achieve and handing homework in on time. Taking pride in his work and being respectful and kind to those around him. 

Year 8: Ethan - for applying himself to the best of his ability each and every day, having 256 positives to date.

Year 9: Rowan - for his excellent efforts in all of his subjects, more specifically in core subject English, Science and Maths where most of his positives are coming from. 

Year 10: Mason - a Year 10 pupil who has shown great efforts and determination in the first term of his GCSE studies.  

Year 11: Joshua - positive role model to younger pupils.  

---

19/01/2026

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Kierell - a polite and hardworking pupil who consistently demonstrates all values, despite some of the distractions taking place around him.  

Year 8: Hayden – a hardworking, polite and respectful pupil who is a credit to Boulton house. 

Year 9: Luke - never puts a foot wrong.  A young man who lives by our values. 

Year 10: Aiden - a fantastic pupil all round. Hardworking, polite and respectful. An excellent addition to Boulton house this year.  

Year 11: Josh - do we really need a reason why? Surprisingly, has not been nominated this academic year.  

---

08/12/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Shingirai - made huge inroads into his work and has been noticed by staff members due to his hard work.  

Year 8: Nathan - a pupil who never puts a foot wrong. Committed to succeeding in everything that he does.

Year 9: Emaan-Tawheed - new starter to TGBS and what an amazing start he has had, he has settled in well and already taking advantage of our amazing extra curricular clubs such as Duke of Edinburgh.

Year 10: Ryan – fantastic settling in at TGBS.

Year 11: Darren - a model pupil. Lives and breathes the TURVES values. Showing an outstanding effort in his GCSE studies. 

---

24/11/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Ace - hard worker/consistent effort across all subjects.  

Year 8: Jack -made a serious improvement this week and deserves the nomination.

Year 9: Kaiden - has impressed in science this term with his thoughtful questions.  He clearly takes in information and really tries to think about it and connect with his prior knowledge then asks follow up questions, from Dr Patchett.

Year 10: Zack – a mature, polite, hard-working pupil who has shown an excellent approach to his GCSE studies. 

Year 11: Archie - helping a pupil out of a dangerous situation and showing great compassion.

---

14/11/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7- Codi – a polite and respectful pupil who works hard in all lessons. Has returned to school following an operation and has not let this stop him.

Year 8: Oscar – valuable contributions to the class as well as involvement extra-curricular activities like the Warhammer painting and music.

Year 9: Suber - a quiet, hardworking pupil who keeps his head down and demonstrates all things TURVES

Year 10: Ahmed – for living and breathing the TURVES values every day

Year 11: Noah - a self-motivated, respectful, hardworking pupil who continuously shows an outstanding approach to his GCSE studies.

---

20/10/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7: Jayden - for his hard work and his wonderful enthusiasm towards school.  

Year 8: Charlie - shout out from Dr Patchett: “He showed great enthusiasm for every single workshop.  He wowed me in the first when he very quickly told the mentors that he thinks electrons behave like particles and waves, during a session on coding he showed a huge enthusiasm.  He owns a Raspberry PI at home where he does coding himself and he worked hard to calculate the probability of getting two questions in a row right in the maths session, including volunteering to be a gameshow contestant in front of the group and another school.  He showed great enthusiasm and model behaviour the whole time and it was great to get to hear more of his ideas and interests, especially in STEM.”

Year 9: George - a hardworking, focused and hardworking pupil who shows outstanding effort in ALL of his lessons.  

Year 10: Justin - has shown a real mature approach to the start of GCSE studies.

Year 11: Harry - showing a determined and focus approach to his mock exams.  

---

10/10/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7: George - has had an excellent start to TGBS, demonstrating many of our values each day and working hard in all of his subjects.

Year 8: Ollie - a polite, respectful pupil who demonstrates our Turves values in all that he does.  

Year 9: Abdullah - a polite, hardworking pupil who puts in 100% effort into everything.

Year 10: Jamie – a quiet but hardworking young man who has started year 10 off outstandingly.  

Year 11: Charlie - for his excellent start to the year and determination shown across all subjects. Charlie has really shown he is ready to work hard to get the grades he deserves

---

03/10/2025

Winners this week include:

Year 7:  T Mitchell – understated and determined.  He will smash his work and is being nominated by multiple members of staff.  Keep it up!  

Year 8: G Deeley – a polite and respectful young man that has made a really positive start to year 8.

Year 9: J Sibanda - a quiet, polite, hardworking pupil who has settled in tremendously since starting TGBS.  

Year 10: Y Khan – excellent start for this young man who came from a different house and has been a great addition to the Austin roster.  

Year 11: A Kilburn has turned it around after a shaky start to Year 11, well done!

---

26/09/2025:

Winners this week include:

Year 7: A Slotta – polite, respectful, hardworking. He has made a real positive start at TGBS.

Year 8: L Brown –  a hardworking, considerate, and respectful young man who exemplifies our values on a daily basis.  

Year 9: M Jinks - for an excellent performance in the Matthew show.  

Year 10: T Fox- his efforts do not go unseen in the classroom, there has been many good things said about his work ethic particularly in English  

Year 11: O Perret – an excellent performance playing Miss Trunchbull in Matthew show.

---

12/09/2025:

Winners this week include:

Year 9: D Hawkins – great start to September

Year 10: L Taggart – fantastic approach to KS4 & GCSEs.  

Year 11: A Burton: Approaching year 11 with a great mindset. A polite, respectful, hardworking young man.  

---

05/09/2025

Winners this week include: 

Year 7: Alfred L - Amazing start to TGBS, showing many of our Turves values each day. 

Year 8: Archie M: Has started year 8 with an excellent approach, one that I would expect nothing less than. Always a polite and respectful young man who lives our values. 

Year 9: Lamar L Has come back to school a new person. Polite, mature and focused. Has had an outstanding first week back. 

Year 10: Doubra P great start to KS4 

Year 11: Noah T mature start to Year 11 

We would like to congratulate all pupils who have engaged with the peer mentoring programme throughout the Spring term. Our peer mentors have demonstrated impressive maturity, responsibility and leadership, acting as positive role models within our school community. At the same time, our Year 7 mentees have shown resilience, developed their confidence and communication skills, and made meaningful improvements in their attendance. Their collective efforts highlight the positive impact of working together and reflect our commitment to developing confident, successful individuals within a caring and supportive school environment.

The Year 8 and Year 9 trip to Paris was a truly memorable experience for both pupils and staff. Over the course of the visit, pupils had the opportunity to explore some of the most iconic attractions in France, including a day at Disneyland and a visit to the Eiffel Tower.

One of the highlights of the trip was the visit to Disneyland, where pupils embraced the experience with enthusiasm and positivity. They demonstrated excellent behaviour throughout the day, showing respect for one another, staff, and members of the public. Their ability to follow instructions and remain organised in a busy and exciting environment was particularly impressive.

The group also visited the Eiffel Tower, where pupils were able to take in spectacular views of Paris. This was a fantastic cultural experience, and pupils engaged with it maturely, showing curiosity and appreciation for their surroundings.

Across the entire trip, behaviour was consistently outstanding.  Pupils represented the school with pride, displaying kindness, cooperation, and a strong sense of responsibility. Notably, they showed excellent time management skills—arriving promptly at meeting points, keeping to schedules, and supporting one another to stay organised.

Staff were particularly proud to see the boys being recognised by members of other schools and the public for their exemplary behaviour. This external recognition was a testament to the pupils’ maturity and the high standards they upheld throughout the trip.

In addition to being an enjoyable experience, the visit played a significant role in developing pupils’ cultural capital. By engaging with new environments, landmarks, and experiences, pupils broadened their understanding of the world beyond the classroom, helping to build confidence, independence, and a deeper appreciation for different cultures.

Overall, the trip was a great success. The pupils should be commended for their conduct and maturity, which played a key role in making the experience so enjoyable and rewarding for everyone involved.

Pupils have been working on developing their oracy skills during their PSHE lessons this term. On 11 March, pupils in 8X2 demonstrated their ability to Turn and Talk when they were exploring the change in the character of Edward in Blood Brothers.  As part of the process of Turn and Talk, pupils first reflected independently on the question posed and record their thoughts on their mini whiteboards.  After they had formulated their ideas, they were able to discuss in more detail – in the lesson it was clear that this led to higher quality discussions when pupils shared their thoughts with a partner.  In English lessons, pupils have the opportunity to regularly Turn and Talk and this should enable them to develop their skills in both speaking and listening.

Science Club and Diversity Club have teamed up to celebrate LGBT History Month. We had a wonderful (online) guest speaker Sarah Cosgiff from Schools Out, and LGBT+ Education Charity.

Sarah shared some of her history as a scientists and a member of the LGBT+ community. She explained some of the challenges scientists and teachers have struggled with throughout history including Section 28. We also celebrated the innovation of some LGBT figures. In particular, we learned about:

• Barbara Burford, a medical researcher who established NHS equality and diversity guidelines
• Charles Beyer, a locomotive engineer and a founding member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers
• Elke Mackenzie, a lichenologist who researched lichens in Antarctica
• Jemma Redmond, a biotechnologist who developed 3D bioprinters to create tissues and organs
• Robert Boyle, a founder of modern chemistry and of the modern scientific method

Science Club and Diversity Club members asked a lot of really interesting questions, varying from specific science questions about cells, LGBT+ scientists and how Sarah herself became interested in science.  

More information about Schools Out can be found on their website: LGBT+ History Month 2026 - LGBT+ History Month including some short videos about the scientists we leaved about.

Well done and thank you too all the pupils who took part, to Sarah Cosgiff for the fascinating presentation and brilliant answers to (many, many) questions.

Two Year 10's had a work experience placement with Brum Radio for the evening to see how a radio station works. Callum and Oliver got to meet the presenter and production team, they got to see how a show is created, what the presenter was going to talk about and the timings of each topic. They worked with the sound engineers, who explained how they checked and monitored throughout the show.