You may also be interested in the clubs page.

Sport

In addition to their timetabled PE and games lessons, Years 7 to 10 also take part in a series of inter-form tournaments. These usually take place across a whole morning, with all students from the year group participating, but some tournaments are held at lunchtimes. A trophy is awarded to the winning form in each year group. Forms learn to work together as a team, and students enjoy the competition.

Clubs are organised for a range of sports: rugby, football, hockey, netball, cricket, tennis, short tennis, basketball, badminton, rounders and athletics.  Clubs are open to all students, regardless of ability. There is also a comprehensive midweek fixture list involving teams from St Ivo competing with other local secondary schools (details can be found on the Schools Rugby site by clicking here).  St Ivo students are invited to trials for District and County teams.

Dance

A range of dance clubs meet on a regular basis, including a boys' dance club, and the hugely popular Thursday workshop sees dozens of students staying at school until 4.30pm.  In December, entries are taken for the annual "Spotlight" dance show, in which individuals, pairs, and small groups perform an impressive range of dances.  The dance clubs and GCSE and A Level groups also contribute, and over 250 performers take part on the two nights.

Drama and Theatre Studies

The drama and theatre studies students, with help from others from Years 10 and 11 put on a production of the internationally acclaimed play ‘The Visit’ in the drama studios in November 2008. The dance and drama departments put on a production of ‘Rob Roy’ (its world premiere) in the school hall in December 2008. In the forthcoming programme of events for 2009-2010 we will be performing ‘Oh What a Lovely War!’ and ‘Cinderella’ during the Autumn term.

Our A level students performed a number of pieces during the Spring term including edited versions of such well-known dramas as ‘The Trial’, ‘The Woman Who Cooked Her Husband’, ‘Bouncers’ and ‘Shakers’.

Music

Peripatetic staff from the Cambridgeshire Instrumental Music Agency visit the school, providing tuition for students in strings, woodwind, brass, percussion and voice. We also have a piano and keyboard teacher and an electric guitar and drum tutor.

Clubs presently on offer include junior choir, chamber choir, advanced signers, Barbershop, orchestra, percussion club, folk group, concert band, swing band and a Ukulele group. An annual ‘Come and Play Day’ is held for KS3 and Year 6 musicians to come together to rehearse and perform as one. The next one will be held in Summer 2010. The Christmas concert will as usual be a celebration of pupils music making over the Autumn term with a festive theme. An upper school concert in the Spring will show off our older students’ talents and the Summer concert should end the year with a bang!

Mathematics

Students in all years enter national competitions organised by the UK Mathematics Trust, with a number gaining certificates. Each year, up to nine Year 8 students take part in a series of five mathematics workshops in Cambridge.  The Saturday morning workshops are organised under the auspices of the Royal Institution of Great Britain. Speakers include university lecturers, and participants work on challenging areas of mathematics outside the school curriculum.

Press Matters

Items are released to the local press regarding school or individual achievements. A ‘press’ board is available in in the foyer to highlight these activities.

The 'Green Fingers Club'

The ‘Green Fingers Club’ originated about 14 years ago and with the ‘Crazy Compost Company’ acts as the fund raising arm of ‘The Animal Shed’ club which looks after the school rabbits and guinea pigs.  The ‘Green Fingers Club’ grows plants for sale to staff and the public and the ‘Crazy Compost Company’ recycles the animal waste into garden compost or mulch.  Around £650 gross is raised in this way each year and the profits used for repairs, veterinary bills and for investing in new stock.

In the past four years the ‘Green Fingers Club’ has been actively involved in developing the school garden, a plot of land adjacent to St Ives golf course.  Each stage of the development has been entered into a national garden competition for the under 18s.  The club's vegetable clocks, ‘Garden of Reflection’ and biodiversity garden have each won the Eastern region heat of each competition entered and as such have gone on to represent the region in the national finals.  

Our woodland edge garden has lead to an increase in the number and species of birds and invertebrates.  We have seen an increase in wildlife, including great-crested newts, dragonflies and birds of prey including Kestrels.

Charity Events

The school has a long tradition of raising money for charity.  Many students participate in the British Heart Foundation Sponsored Swim and profits from discos organised by the year councils are usually donated to charities chosen by the year group. Examples of charity events include:

• Year 7 students chose to support Cancer Research UK. Pupils raised over £200 through a disco and a Talent Show.
• The chosen charity for Year 8 students has been Starlight, a charity that aims to grant wishes for seriously ill children. The year group have organised a ‘Year 8’s Got Talent’ competition. During the summer term the Year Council planned a ‘Summer Fayre’ with several stalls organised by the pupils including ‘throw a wet sponge at the Head of Year and Assistant Head of Year’.
• Year 9 students have supported a number of charities this year, raising money for Motor Neurone Disease, NSPCC, Teenage Cancer Trust, and Parkinsons Disease. Over £2,000 was raised by the students.
• Year 10 students took part in a number of activities during the year, which included a Year 10 boy raising over £250 for Children in Need by shaving his head.
• Year 11 raised money for a fellow Year 11 student who needs a new artificial limb. Students washed cars and baked cakes.
• The Sixth Form supports a number of charities throughout the year, including raising money for cancer research, collecting boxes for Christmas presents for disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe, as well as regularly donating blood at local session. Students are also encouraged to become bone marrow donors and last year one student donated bone marrow over the summer break.
• The whole school raised £2,500 on Red Nose Day when students paid to attend school wearing their own clothes and wearing Red Noses.

Year Councils

Each year group has a Year Council, with elected representatives from each form.  The councils organise social events, make decisions about donations to charity and provide a forum for discussion of issues concerning the school, its environment and community. The Year Councils are often consulted about matters of school policy.

School Council

Two representatives from each year group, together with additional co-opted members form the St Ivo School Council.  Meeting every fotnight, the School Council examines whole-school issues and makes recommendations to the Senior Management Team.  The School Council makes a practical and positive contribution to the successful development of the school, helping students to use their voice in an assertive rather than aggressive way.  Having a School Council encourages students to reflect upon things and look at what are actual possibilities, what are non-negotiable and how to work projects through to completion.

St Ives Youth Town Council

This council was set up in 1999, with proper elections held in the school.  Each year group has two representatives and the council has made major contributions to the planning of the St Ives Carnival and other celebrations.  Five members of the council visited their counterparts in Stadtallendorf.  A major project has been setting up youth groups in the town and working on the St Ives regeneration.

UK Youth Parliament

One of our students is the nominated representative on the UK Youth Parliament for this area and eight other students sit on the local Steering Committee. This is an exciting opportunity to be involved in discussion and decision making at a national and occasionally international level.