Fyling Hall Music and Drama department are celebrating outstanding results from their year 11 to 13 students this summer. The school’s results as a whole are excellent but in Music and Drama every student in year 11-13 achieved the top grades of Distinction or Distinction* (only available in year 13) on their Rock School qualifications. This is an astonishing achievement especially in a year when overall GCSE and A level results have dropped in comparison to previous years. We must take a moment to tell our pupils just how proud we are of all their hard work to achieve these results and to congratulate them all! To have one or two students achieve the top grades as a teacher is a dream but to have every single student reach this goal is simply fantastic.

So what is so different about Rock School music and drama? And why do our students achieve so highly?

Well, Rock School is an exam board with a focus on practical experience and development of practical skills in their qualifications. Rather than the GCSE or Alevel which is mostly theoretical and can be narrow in scope, Rock School allows pupils to experience a broader range of music or drama in their studies. Rigorous theoretical understanding of the subjects is woven into practical units many of which can be chosen by the teacher to highlight the interests and future plans of the students in the class. As we have small class sizes, especially in the 6th form, pupils are able to pick units that best align with their interests. Units studied by previous classes include Acting for the Camera, Music Technology and Preparing for a Career in the Performing Arts.

We offer a variety of Rock School qualifications at Fyling Hall. In Drama we complete the Creative and Performing Arts Diploma in year 10-11 (level 2) and year 12-13 (level 3). The courses cover a range of play texts, performance styles and dramatic theory. Being mostly practical there is lots of opportunity for pupils to improve their performance skills, to reflect on their acting and to get time on stage. In previous years students have gone on to study dramatic arts and acting at University of Central Lancashire, Liverpool Institute of the Performing Arts (LIPA) and Chichester University. In Music, students have a choice of studying the Extended Certificate or Certificate in Music Practitioners in the 6th form, allowing some students to complete a course in one year and then focus on other subject studies. Music Practitioners also allows pupils to focus on their personal instrument and playing skills as well as performing regularly and covering a large range of theoretical knowledge too. We have a host of former students now working in the music industry either as performers or in technical areas such as musical production, others have gone on to university education in music including at the Academy of Contemporary Music in London.

As we prepare to bring students back into the Music practise rooms and to fill the Barn with lights, actors and action, it is a great time to reflect on the achievements of those pupils who are leaving the school. It has been such a joy to welcome audiences back to the Barn for music concerts and dramatic recitals this summer; our incredibly talented and hardworking pupils come alive when they are met with an audience and it is so rewarding to see them shine. We will be sending out a full term of dates in the next few weeks for up coming concerts and performances, we are looking forward to seeing you all soon.

Lizzie Jeeves, Head of Drama and English as a Second Language