## **The Discovery Society Annual Report 2024** Report of the Trustees for the year ending 31[st] December 2024. The Discovery Society was registered as a charity (Charitable Incorporated Organisation – CIO) on 21[st] November 2019. As such its first full year of operation should have been the year ending 31[st] December 2020. There was however no report for the year 2020, as this was not required by Charities Commission rules, and the majority of the society’s activities were severely disrupted by lockdown measures related to the global COVID-19 pandemic. These restrictions commenced just 4 months after the charity’s registration date. The first reporting year was therefore 2021, this being the fourth annual report ## **Our Aims** The charitable aims were amended by the charity commission on 28[th] November 2022 following a resolution at the meeting of 25[th] November 2022. The word ‘scientific’ was removed from the charitable aim, to broaden the scope and reach of potential charitable activities. “The charitable object of The Discovery Society is to advance the education of the students at The Bewdley School by providing and assisting in the provision of facilities [not required to be provided by the local education authority] for understanding of and engagement in exploration and research.” ## **Our Research Strategy** The Discovery Society is a Charitable Organisation attached to an 11-18 comprehensive Secondary School with the purpose of encouraging scientific exploration and research. We live in an era where the popular view is that the world is ‘discovered’ and the only ‘new knowledge’ is based around technologies that we create. The world for school age children is so technologically oriented that the fundamental principle which has driven the creation of this charity, is that children need to be encouraged to interact with the natural world and to view finding out how it works as a central component of their learning. Without such an impetus, we will always struggle, for example, to understand both the concept of climate change and the impact of human activity on the other species we share the planet with. ## **Research Interests** Students at the school follow the National Curriculum for Science for year 7 to 11 (age 11-16). In our Sixth Form students study Advanced Levels in Biology, Computer Science, Chemistry, Geology and Physics. The curriculum for all of these subjects is prescribed by the examination bodies under the regulation of the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ). The core elements of study are therefore determined beyond the institution: - Learning materials are determined by these externally driven curriculum arrangements • Research interests are drawn from these materials and the themes from which they arise We are also partnered with the University of Birmingham Earth Sciences Department (School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences) who will support us with our research, and many of the research interests will draw from the research areas they are currently focussing on. These will include postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers. In the event that any of our sixth form students become co-authors in research papers, the drafting and publication processes will be carried out by the professional scientists at the University. This also includes the potential for students to engage in research through Operation Wallacea. ## **Member Benefits** Aside from the benefits offered by involvement in exploration and research, members will potentially have access to the following accreditations: - Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards - Bronze, Silver and Gold Crest Awards - Involvement biannually in Operation Wallacea which offers PADI registration - Kidderminster Beekeepers Society - Tree people It is anticipated that this initial menu will expand as the charity matures and hones its expertise. ## **Review of Activities** The principal activities planned for 2024 were: 1. Operation Wallacea – 2 Staff and 9 students from Year 11,12 & 13 students to visit Honduras for a two-week expedition from 3/7/24 to 17/7/24 2. Duke of Edinburgh – planned offer of Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards - a. Current numbers enrolled in the various awards – Bronze 71(40% of Y10), Silver 27 (17% of Y11), Gold 21 (42% of Y13) 3. Planning Operation Wallacea trip to Mexico for a two week expedition 3/7/25 to 18/7/25 2 staff, 10 students 4. Submission of Royal Society project outcomes 5. Development of Science Garden and links with local community to develop regular visitors to environmental club ## **Operation Wallacea Report - Honduras** ## Operation Wallacea Report In July 24 the Bewdley school took 9 students and 2 staff to Honduras in Central America with Operation Wallacea. The aim of the trip was to assist the Operation Wallacea team in terms of Biodiversity surveys but also to enhance the scientific experience of the students. Travel such as this also helped the students develop resilience, team building and being able to see the world from a wider perspective. ## **Week 1 - Cusuco National Park** The staff consisted of two biology specialists to help support the science work, Sarah Leach and William Morris. The students consisted of six year 11 students, one year 12 and two year 13 students and was a mix of boys and girls, some with aspirations to study Biology related degrees, others just with the drive to travel and experience the world. The first week was spent staying with local villagers in Buenos Aires village in the Cusuco National Park. Students and staff were immersed in family homes and were made very welcome by local families. We spent the days surveying vegetation, mist netting for birds and night time bat surveys. During the evening the staff and students were involved in lectures about local flora and fauna. 6 of the students and one staff member also took part in a canopy access course and saw the rain forest from a different angle. The second part of the week was spent in tents at the satellite camp which had a rustic feel with basic facilities including accommodation in tents and hammocks with very basic trench toilet systems. Each satellite camp has a camp fire which becomes the central point for socialising and swapping stories between surveys and in the evenings. We also had the opportunity of enjoy the luxury of a "jungle shower" in a nearby stream. Here the staff and students worked with Opwall staff to continue survey work deep in Cusuco cloud rainforest. They took part in night time herpetavore surveys, mammal surveys, mist netting for birds and invertebrate surveys. The surveys consisted of a 2 km transect that led out into the rainforest from the satellite camp. Both students and staff were pushed to their limits physically and mentally. The terrain in Honduras is extremely mountainous with over 82% of the land mass being classed a mountain. All staff and students coped with the challenges well and took each say in their stride. ## **Week 2 - Dive Site Bay Island Utila** The second week of the expedition consisted of a week at the Dive site on the Bay Island of Utila, students and staff stayed in dive accommodation at Bay Islands College of Diving (BICD) for the week. Conservation Initiatives at the site are focused on restoring populations of a keystone sea urchin species, and managing threats from the invasive lionfish. People living on the Bay Islands are economically reliant on dive tourism, therefore protecting the reefs is a conservation priority. Opwall work closely with the local community to assist with this. Students and staff who had completed their open water dive training in the UK took part in coral reef surveys with Opwall scientists. A small group of students and one member of staff trained at the dive site and completed the PADI open water diver certification. One student also went on to complete their advance dive training. At the end of the two weeks staff and students return home with a wealth of science and travel experiences, with students using these experiences to enhance their next steps at college and further education. ## **Duke of Edinburgh Report** Engagement with The Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme remain very high, with 697 students participating since 21/11/19: ||2019-20|2020-21|2021-22|2022-23|2023-24| |---|---|---|---|---|---| |Bronze|66|84|92|70|92| |Silver|36|63|38|36|38| |Gold|8|30|16|12|16| ## **Royal Society Project Report** “Tomorrow’s climate scientists: Can aerial mapping and imagery be used to identify the areas of greatest flood risk on our school site?” Environment Conservation Through The Use of Technology T￿8•*d￿V k Thunfv•[s￿OfBth1nI UNIVERSITY)F BIRNIINGHAM IEw&Thd •lTh> tet*W) thpsME Sr4￿￿gO shoy￿￿ e￿n￿a[les5tOllLe ￿SureeF￿e thBn¥thK gBdri Rewichand m¥e%1¥&tknn¥ur￿rt￿ken THE ROYAL SOCIETY ￿￿ge¥h￿￿n￿￿5QT￿r*arn' Env1ronment Conservation Through The Use of Technology ThBÈxthy SC*￿1 TheUnfveiskyOt&nn&w￿ UNIVERSITY)F BIRMINCJHAM ove￿IEW￿￿d4Mny Re>uk54nd¢On¢￿slO ewe B￿k9[OL￿d thtsb)ww*ntTh)rKMNffj1MnJ1ui¢ irnirw RèmrrfthandiThYestiya￿0nSUn&rt￿kvn . THE ROYAL SOCIETY Co Headteacher Catherine McDou Registered charity number.. 1186512 The Bewdley 8chDDI, Sknurport Road, Bewdley, Wopcest£P5hire DY12 1 BL Telephone. 01299 402277 Email.. office@bewdley.worcs.sch.uk- Web.. www.bewdley.worcs.sch.uk ## **Environmental Club Report** Our Environmental Science Club began in May 2023. It grew out of interest from the students in Science Week, it is run by the Deputy Head of Science, Anne Morgan, with the help of Shelia Lawes of the Kidderminster Bee Society. Over the past year and a half, the Club has carried out a number of activities, primarily based in the Science Garden. These include: - Creating a wildflower garden. - Creating a grass compost heap from the grass removed - Building and installing Solitary Bee Houses (for Mason bees). - Planting an apple orchard. - Planting a fruit garden. - Making and installing 4 large planters. In November 2024, these beds were filled with soil. Two beds were planted; with winter vegetables such as carrots, mint, chard, onions and garlic; and herbs such as mint, thyme and rosemary. - In December, tulips were planted in the garden (in preparation for spring). - Laying a path into the garden with woodchips. - Making bird feeders using pinecones found on the school site. - Germinating seeds such as tomatoes and basil. When it was too cold to work outside, we continued to emphasise our recycling efforts by: - Making paper pots and paper logs; the paper used was from old exercise books. - Making bird scarers from plastic water bottles and coke bottles. Two workshops were also held for the members. They were: - A workshop on ‘From where does our food come?’ highlighting the relationship between bees, edible fruits and honey, led by Shelia Lawes of the Kidderminster Bee Society. - A workshop on ‘Making eco-friendly Christmas decorations from recycled materials’, led by Dr Laura Hobbs, the parent of one of our members. The Club continues to flourish – with additional plans for more planting of flowers, vegetables and trees, trips and many more activities ## **Duke of Edinburgh Plans** The Duke of Edinburgh Award is offered to: Year 10 – Bronze Award Year 11 – Silver Award Years 12/13 – Gold Award Supported by a mixture of after school and weekend sessions, with some expeditions taking place during school time. For example, a typical Bronze expedition will mean 2 large groups each having a 2 day expedition on Friday/Saturday and Sunday/Monday. ## **Operation Wallacea Plans** Preparation for Operation Wallacea in Mexico for July 2026 is well underway with 2 staff member and 9 students again students will complete the PADI Open Water Diver Training with our local provider. ## **Our Finances** See our annual return, available online: |See our annual return, available online:|See our annual return, available online:|See our annual return, available online:| |---|---|---| |**https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search/-/charity-details/5148105/accounts-and-annual-returns**||| |The Discovery Society' Accounts|Prepared by:|P Gillett, Finance Manager, The Bewdley School| |Year ending 31.03.24|Date prepared:|16.01.25| |Opening balance (01.04.23)|£66.83|| |Expenditure (01.04.23-31.03.24)|-£60.00|Monthly bank fees HSBC| |Income (01.04.23-31.03.24)|£39.98|Amazon Smile donations| |Closing balance (31.03.24)|£46.81|| NB HSBC account was closed on 22.04.24 and balance (£46.81) transferred to new Lloyds bank account. ## **Policy Framework** As all of our trustees and activities fall within the operating environment of The Bewdley School – A Foundation School, all of our operations work within the policy framework of the school. The statutory policies which apply to our activities can be found at: - https://www.bewdley.worcs.sch.uk/statutory policies/ ## **Our Trustees** We currently have 3 trustees: |**Name**|**Date first held**|**Term**|**Term Ends**|**Relationship to School**| |---|---|---|---|---| |David Hadley-Pryce*|21/11/2019|4years|20/11/2027|Head Teacher| |Catherine McDougall|26/02/2020|3years|25/02/2026|DeputyHead Teacher| |Christopher Beech|11/1/2023|3 years|10/1/2026|Head of Science/DofE lead| * Chair of Trustees