News from MCS

Yesterday a number of School Council student representatives took a leading part in the interview process to decide the new contract for the school catering service. We interviewed four potential companies and reviewed their sustainability, ecological motivations, and quality of food. The choice will be difficult as all the companies brought something different to the table... literally! All of the food sampled was delicious and all four of the companies, including the company who currently supply our food, have plans to refine and continue to improve the food hall experience in our school. 

The students (Faith Hogan Year 7, Amy Billis Year 7, Jack Hanks Year 8, Jack Painter Year 10 and Rebecca Green Year 11) all contributed to the questioning and discussion, and particularly enjoyed the sampling process.

The student opinion on this matter is very important to our school as the food hall is used by the vast majority of students, and we are keen to contribute to make the food offer as high quality and good value as possible. We discussed the proposed menu items and meal deals, and are particularly pleased that the companies have all committed to keeping the meal deal price for the next year. We also discussed their commitments to sustainability and use of local suppliers.

We are all very pleased that student voice has led this process, all while maintaining the healthy eating regulations of the Welsh Government. In the coming weeks we shall make the decision as to which company will get the contract. All of the companies made very engaging, informative and delicious presentations.  

Jack Painter
Elected School Council Representative for Year 10

We are piloting a summer uniform arrangement from next Monday (15th May) to the end of the academic year, as follows: 

1. Students are not required to bring blazers to school - they are optional (and recommended if the weather is cooler even in these summer months). Students can leave blazers at home or bring them in and put them in a locker, if they choose not to wear them.
2. All other uniform expectations remain the same. No hoodies, mid-layers, non-uniform jumpers etc. are permitted to be worn in school. We would rather not have to confiscate for any students who persistently wear these, so please encourage your child to either leave these items at home, or to store them in a locker or bag throughout the day.

We hope that these arrangements will aid students to be comfortable as the weather (eventually) gets warmer.

Year 7 Newport Plate Final

MCS made it to the Newport School Plate final against Caldicot at Newport HSOB RFC.  Caldicot started the strongest with two early scores but Monmouth hit back to stay in touching distance of Caldicot.  Both teams exchanged scores throughout the game, playing their part in an entertaining and high scoring match.

MCS just ran out of time and failed to get the winning score with Caldicot crowned 2023 champions.

Ben Hopkins-Firth was presented with the Newport Schools Player of the Match award after scoring five tries.

Year 9 Newbridge 7s

Year 9 travelled to Newbridge 7s for a festival of Rugby recently. MCS made easy work of the group stages recording wins against King Henry, Tredegar, Newbridge 2 and Risca to earn their place in the semi-finals against Newbridge.

Newbridge opened the scoring with two converted tries early in the first half, leaving MCS playing catch up. The second half was all MCS who quickly opened the scoring to reduce the deficit but, unfortunately, this was their only score which saw Newbridge take a place in the final.

MCS Player of the Tournament - Sam Deighton.

As you are aware, MCS Friends have run a second hand uniform service for several years now, gratefully receiving uniform donations throughout the year from parents.

As students leave MCS from Year 11 and Year 13, if you have any uniform that you would like to donate (including PE kit), we would be pleased to receive it.  Could you please drop off any donations at Reception where it can be stored in the uniform pods until it can be passed to us to be checked and sold at the Bridges shop in Monnow Street. This raises funds for the school and ensures parents can access uniform items for their child/children at a discounted price.

Thank you in advance for all your support.  

MCS Friends

Y11 study leave officially starts on Friday 26th May.  Until then, it is a legal requirement for students to be in school.  All Year 11 students are expected to attend all timetabled lessons alongside any examinations that they might be sitting.  Students do not need to attend school on Friday 26th unless they have an examination or a planned revision session with their subject teachers.

As you will be aware, the full lesson timetable continues during this first stage of exams, with students required to attend all lessons if not in exams. This ensures we maximise our face-to-face teaching time with them at this early stage, when most of their exams still lie ahead. If students have a morning exam, they return to lessons for the rest of the day.  If it is an afternoon exam, they attend lessons in the morning, taking the exam in the afternoon.  Students leave school at the normal time of 3pm.

We are sure you will agree that it is far more beneficial for students to be in school where they can access their teachers with any questions than for students to try to revise at home, on their own.

To prevent any misunderstanding from students, could we please ask that you advise your son/daughter of the information above, ensuring there is no confusion as to the procedure in place to maximise their success in exams.

On Thursday 25th May, we will hold a small gathering in Form groups, during session six. This will give students an opportunity to celebrate with their Form Tutor and to receive their Yearbook, if one has been purchased.