Town Talk Ryan repays
air ambulance A SNODLAND mountain biker air- lifted to hospital after a crash has completed a gruelling Army ob- stacle course in aid of the Kent Air Ambulance.
Ryan Payne
(20), suffered seri- ous chest and ab- dominal injuries after he landed on a tree stump when ajumpwent wrong at an off- road cycling track
at Penshurst in May last year. He was treated at the scene by
the helicopter’s doctor and para- medic before being flown to King’s College Hospital in Lon- don, but has since almost fully re- covered, despite losing the use of one kidney and suffering nerve damage in his leg. He raised £200 by running
the10 km obstacle race at Eridge Park, TunbridgeWells. He finished 344th out of 1,676 runners in 1.5 hours, after negotiating deep muddy trenches, wobbly bridges and a freezing ice crawl. He is pic- tured after the race. The former Holmesdale pupil,
who works at his parents’ design company, is now planning a 60- mile bike ride later this year.
Local news for Snodland and Halling
‘Good’ school now has sights set on an outstanding rating
STAFF and pupils at Holmesdale Technology College, Snodland, are celebrating after receiving a glowing report from Ofsted. The 908-pupil school in Malling
Road was judged to be a good school overall with the second highest rating – grade 2 – in all categories. Lead inspector Robin Gaff, who visited in March, confirmed the continued progress since April 2011, when Holmesdale was recognised by Ofsted as a good school “on an upward journey of improvement”. The latest report said students
made good progress throughout the school and achieved well, with standards rising in all sub- jects. The sixth form received praise
for the good progress students made from their starting points. They “gain qualifications which prepare them well for the next stage of their education and for work”, the Ofsted report said. Principal Julia Campbell was singled out for her effective lead- ership. Ably supported by her
Staff and pupils of Holmesdale Technology College find a novel way to celebrate their glowing Ofsted report
senior colleagues and executive principal Patrick Hannaway, she was said to have been “relentless in her successful drive to improve teaching and raise standards”. Teachers planned activities
which were well matched to stu- dents’ different abilities and inter- ests and leaders had improved teaching by setting staff clear tar- gets and making sure they re- ceived the support and training needed to achieve them. Gover- nors carefully analysed all as- pects of
the school’s
performance and their willing- ness to robustly challenge lead- ers had also contributed to the school’s improvement. Students behaved well in les- sons, with few concerns about
bullying, and the school offered a good variety of after-school clubs, trips and special events, which contributed well to their spiritual, moral and cultural de- velopment. Mrs Campbell said: “I am
proud to lead a school whose staff aim to provide an excep- tional education through our ‘can do’ culture, exemplified in our motto ‘Believe, Aspire and Suc- ceed’. “This culture has raised expec- tations; our students respond well to the teaching and wider opportunities the school pro- vides. We shall be continuing to drive forward and now have Ofsted’s measure of outstanding in our sights.”
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