Events

Since September 2008 a number of events have taken place which further illustrates the achievements being made at St Chad’s in the area of information technology.

Satellite CLC – At the beginning of the new school year St Chad’s saw the opening of the new Satellite CLC.  For some time taking students to the Runcorn City Learning Centre had been seen to be both inconvenient and problematic as it impacted on timetabling.  With control of the CLCs moving to Becta in 2008 it was felt that it was time to provide new technologies within school’s own buildings.  In September the Satellite CLC was opened and students were able to use 30 brand new Apple Mac PCs. Now software such as Comic Life, Photoshop Elements, iLife package and Final Cut Express are featuring in lessons across the curriculum.

National E-safety week – The 9th February 2009 saw the launch of the National E-safety awareness programme in school with pupils taking part in sessions designed to raise awareness of the growing safety issues associated with the use of information technology.  Pupils were given an opportunity to take part in competitions and discuss issues they felt were important.

Computers for Pupils – In December 2008 sixty four laptop computers were provided to students in Year 7, 8 and 9 as part of a government initiative. The Computers for Pupils initiative is a £60 million, 2-year DfES programme aimed at helping some of the most disadvantaged secondary school children improve their education and life skills by putting a computer into the home. Local Authorities (LAs) identified as having eligible schools and pupils in their area have been given funding to buy equipment, as well as help and advice covering all aspects of the scheme.

Opening of New Learning Zone – On April 20th the new Learning Zone built as part of the Phase II building programme will officially be opened for use.  The facility on two levels will house both an Internet/Interactive zone and a modern state of the art library area.  It is hoped that the new facility will help the school progress with haste towards its goal of having a totally integrated ICT enabled community.