b'Students raise funds for MHESS and Christians Against PovertyAt the end of the Lent term, a group of Sixth Form students, led by Elin Jones (Year 13), organised an Easter egg raffle to raise awareness about MHESS (Mental Health at Ellesmere Support System), the support available at school and to raise funds for further training and activities for pupils. 233 was raised and has been divided equally between MHESS and CAP (Christians Against Poverty).We would like to thank everybody who supported Elin and our team of medical staff with this fund raiser including Mr Wignall who helped draw the results, Sue Hinks for costumes and display boards and Tesco and Co-op in Ellesmere who very kindly donated Easter Eggs for the raffle.Mental Health at Ellesmere Support System (MHESS) is an initiative that is led by Elin, a team of Sixth Formers and Alex Murphy, Director of Rugby, all supported by our qualified team of medical staff. The scheme is designed to raise awareness about general mental health and wellbeing for students, as well as the problems associated with the tighter restrictions students have been facing during these unprecedented times of Covid. The group are in the process of creating a multi-layered support structure with lots of options for our pupils. Having a student support team provides an approachable source of guidance for students that acts as a stepping stone between pupils and staff. Its difficult to understand the risks to mental health - something which can creep up on you without being aware of it, which is what prompted the launch of the scheme. Problems can arise in several ways, including anxiety, stress and depression so we must do everything we can to safeguard the health of our students. The support system will monitor, help and advise while raising awareness of the risks to people who are having to deal with every day issues as well as the increased isolation we are all facing at this time.The richness of languages at EllesmereSixth Form languages may be declining nationally, but here at Ellesmere the interest from our Sixth Form students in the languages we offer, and in the cognitive benefits and transferrable skills that languages bring, remains strong at both A Level and with the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme.Edward Paul, an Upper Sixth student, has recently accepted a place at Newcastle University and is looking forward to studying for a BA in Linguistics with Spanish. Edward says: Having previously lived in Argentina and India, I have grown up with an awareness of different cultures and the richness of languages. I believe foreign languages act as the perfect gateway to experiencing a wealth of cultures, and studying them to a high level allows you to broaden your mind. The British Council recently listed the top ten languages that should be studied to safeguard the UKs future prosperity and global importance, and Spanish was ranked at number one. My university course will therefore put me in an ideal position for a range of suitable careers that will allow me to experience life in different countries, and to enjoy a rewarding career when I finish my studies. I am very appreciative of all that my subject teachers have done to promote language-learning and global matters whilst I was in Sixth Form, and I have also enjoyed being part of a diverse international school during my Sixth Form years. At Ellesmere we wholeheartedly believe in the benefits of foreign language acquisition, a belief that has put us ahead of the curve. The advantages for business, travel and cultural intelligence are obvious but there are also the cognitive benefits of language acquisition, along with the sheer fun of learning something new. We wish Edward all the best as he moves on to university. Ellesmere College Newsletter Summer 202115'