Rhyddings Business and Enterprise School head leaves at ‘pinnacle of career’

5:09pm Friday 14th November 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

RHYDDINGS Business and Enterprise School headteacher Barry Burke gave his farewell prize night speech last night.

Mr Burke became head of the Oswaldtwistle school in 1999. In 2005 it was named as one of the fifth most improved schools in the country.

At the end of this term Mr Burke will leave to take up the post at a new inner city academy in Manchester.

Mr Burke told patrents and pupils: “Tonight is the last time I’ll speak to you as headteacher of Rhyddings Business and Enterprise School.

“As you know, I’ve been given the opportunity to take some of the ‘Rhyddings Magic’ and plant it in a new school in Manchester.

“So you see, it’s really your fault I’m leaving at the end of this term.

“After all, you’ve demonstrated to the world that Rhyddings’ students improve their performance year on year with your year group achieving the best all round set of results ever, and that makes me look good!

“And just like Joe Calzaghe’s decision to ‘quit’ while he’s at the top, I’m able to leave Rhyddings at the pinnacle of my teaching career – all because of your outstanding success.”

Mr Burke thanked pupils, staff, governors and parents and added: “I’ll take my Rhyddings ‘snapshots’ with me to make me happy when times get tough and call on the support of my friends when I inevitably meet those apparently insurmountable obstacles.

“Standing on the shoulders of giants, like those in Rhyddings, has made me successful but, more importantly, happy.”

>> PRIZEWINNERS

100 per cent attendance: One year, Katie Collins, Kirsty Evans; five years, Daniel Duckett; Art and Design: Aqsa Munir; Business Studies: Daniel Duckett; Engineering: Liam Koral; English Language: Farheen Mohammed; English Literature: Nafisa Tahir; French: Rebecca Entwistle; Geography: Katie Collins; Health and social care: Leanne Slattery; History: Farheen Mohammed; ICT: Kirsty Ormerod; Mathematics: Daniel Duckett; Media Studies: Sameena Waheed; Performing Arts: Emma Ward; Physical Education: Danny Wilkinson; Religious Education: Zisham Abid; Science: Rebecca Entwistle.

Technology (Catering): Katie Collins; Graphics: Louise Pike; Product Design: Aqsa Munir; Technology, resistant materials: Drew Owens; Textiles: Zakkeha Begum; Travel and Tourism: Louise Pike; Urdu: Zisham Abid.

School Trophies: Moore Trophy for service to the school: Mark Braysford; Governors’ Trophy for service to the community, Annabel Johnson; Rhyd-dings Trophy for effort, Moinuddin Anwar; Banks Trophy for achievement, Emma Ward; Mim’s Trophy for extra-curricular perfor-mance, Christopher O’Connor; Rhyddings Trophy for outstanding academic achievement, Rebecca Entwistle.