School Liaison

School Liaison is one way in which we aim to support our local comminity. By engaging with schools in our area, we have provided grants for holiday clulbs, sponsored students through their award programmes and competitions. Our work aims to support young people in the comunity in ways that develop thier skills.

Recent activity in late 2010 and early 2011 include:-

Rotary Young Chef competition

Ryan Barker from the Grange school and Shaydel Ramajan from Twynham school took part in the Group 2 final of Rotary Young Chef competition at Bournemouth College on 7 January. Ryan won and went on to the District Final at Ferndown Upper School on 12 February. 

Shaydel and Ryan had both competed in the Christchurch Food Festival Education Trust's Young Cook of the Year competition during the Food Festival last May (which is sponsored by the Christchurch Rotary club) having won their respective in-school competitions to get to the final in the Food Festival marquee. On that occasion it was Shaydel who won, but this January gave Ryan the opportunity to fight back.

Ryan then took part in the District final at Ferndown Upper School on 12 February where he competed against a total of thirteen other students from most of Dorset, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands. Sadly his menu of Sole Meunière, baked chicken with a vegetable ragout and apple tart with honeyed crème fraiche didn’t win but this has cemented his ambition to train as a chef and he has been accepted as a student in the hospitality and food development department at Bournemouth College from September 2011.

Continued Success
Three former winners of this competition who have been helped by the Christchurch club are now studying at the college. Kirsti Maybank is halfway through the Specialised Chefs course and is apprenticed at Claridges Hotel, London; and Ashley Best is a first year on the same course and is apprenticed to the Ritz Hotel in London. Louis Dupres is also studying at the college and is progressing well.

Rotary Youth Speaks

Christchurch Schools took first place in both the Intermediate and Senior levels of the Rotary "Youth Speaks" competition covering the Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch area. Both teams were sponsored by the Rotary Club of Christchurch, and faced stiff competition from schools elsewhere in the area.

 The Intermediate level for students aged 11 to 13 was won by one of two teams from The Grange School, with an impressive talk on "29 April: Good for Us?". The date of 29 April is of course the forthcoming Royal Wedding, and the speaker analysed very cogently the implications - both favourable and otherwise - of this event. The team comprised:

Shannon Trimby (Chair)
Jaque Durrant (Speaker)
Lucy Scott (Proposer of vote of thanks).

The Senior level for students aged 14 to 17 on 31.8.10, was won by the team from Twynham School, with a wide-ranging talk on "A Common Language!", which looked at the diverse manifestations of the English language in the modern world. The team comprised:

Natalie Steel (Chair)
Ben Mundy (Speaker)
Daisy Wyper (Proposer of vote of thanks).

The judges commented favourably on the high standards achieved by all teams. Sadly Twynham school had to withdraw from the District final but the Grange went on to perform well – although, sadly, they did not win, they gave a very credible performance.

The Rotary Youth Leadership Award

The club are delighted to be supporting Shannon Montgomery a 6^th former from Twynham School who has been accepted on one of the forthcoming Rotary Youth Leadership weekends to be held at the Avon Tyrell Activity Centre in August. Shannon who hopes to study law has already shown great leadership potential at school. The weekend will further allow her to develop her potential while taking part in a range of exercises designed for this purpose.

The Junior Cook of the Year, organised by the Christchurch Food Festival Education Trust

This competition now in its fifth year is again being sponsored by Christchurch Rotary Club. Students are asked to design a two-course meal for two people for no more than £14. Launch demonstrations in order to give the students ideas have been given in each of the three secondary schools in Christchurch and students are now creating their menus. Semi-finalists will cook in front of TV chef Lesley Waters, Rotary President David Richardson and organiser Rtn. Mary Reader on Tuesday 3 May in their schools. A winner from each school will then go forward to cook in the final on Friday 6 May in the marquee in Saxon Square on the first day of the Festival. Judges will be Luke Matthews Head chef of the Chewton Glen Hotel, Tim Lloyd MD of the Captains Club Hotel and Rotary President David Richardson.

Design A Meal on a Paper Plate organised by the Christchurch Food Festival Education Trust

This competition is sent to all seven primary schools in Christchurch and is sponsored by the Christchurch Rotary Club. Pupils are asked to design a healthy meal in 3D on a paper plate. Twelve winners from the schools will then go forward and present the entries at the final on Friday 6 May in the marquee in Saxon Square on the first day of the Festival. Judges will be Luke Matthews Head Chef of the Chewton Glen Hotel, Tim Lloyd MD of the Captains Club Hotel and Rotary President David Richardson.

All of the above updates were kindly provided by Rotarian, Mary Reader on the 11th March 2011