Private School News

HAILEYBURY SCHOOL, HERTFORDSHIRE – HAILEYBURY PUPILS ACHIEVE RECORD IB RESULTS

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) pupils from Haileybury, an independent, co-educational boarding school in Hertfordshire, have produced the best set of results since the School began offering the IB, with an average points score of 37.2 out of a maximum of 45. The second best year was in 2008, when the average points score was 35.9.

Three pupils – Susannah Carr, Johanna Hockmann and Paula Hubner – scored 43 points, while 12 scored 40 or more. 40 points equates to 5 A grades at A Level on the UCAS points tariff. Twenty eight out of the 44 candidates scored 36 points or more.

In addition, the results of the Theory of Knowledge and Extended Essay sections of the Diploma were excellent – 30 candidates out of 44 scored 2 or 3 of the 3 points available.

The Master of Haileybury, Joe Davies, says: “These are excellent results and reflect tremendous credit on the ability and determination of the candidates in the demanding IB Diploma Programme, which they have studied over the past two years. These results also show the dedication of the teaching staff who have guided and supported the pupils in their studies.”

ST HUGH’S SCHOOL HERTFORDSHIRE – ST HUGH’S SCHOOL PLAY WORLD CUP MATCH

On Tuesday (15 June), pupils and staff from St Hugh’s School, the Prep school for St Edmund’s College, played in their own special World Cup match. A team of Year 6 boys (aged 10 years) played against a team of male and female teachers. In the end it was youth and agility that won the game, with the pupils winning six goals to two.

The whole school came out to watch the game dressed in various World Cup kits, hats, flags and even the odd vuvuzela!

Mr Blom, the Head of St Hugh’s said: “All the children enjoyed the match whether they were playing or spectating and it was great to celebrate the World Cup right here at St Hugh’s. “

St Edmund’s College welcomes His Most Eminent Highness Fra’ Matthew Festing, to their Senior Prize Giving

St Edmund’s College, England’s oldest Catholic School, held its Senior Prize Giving evening on Thursday 29 April 2010, where the Guest of Honour was His Most Eminent Highness Fra’ Matthew Festing, The Prince and Grand Master, Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta.

The evening began with an address by the Chairman of Governors, Mr Jeremy Gillham, followed by a wonderful music recital by the College’s Music School. Chris Long, Headmaster then gave his Report, in which he outlined some of the numerous achievements made by the students over the past year and despite the difficult economic and political climate, he shared his optimistic vision for the year ahead.

It was then onto the serious business of presenting over 150 prizes to students from Syntax to Rhetoric (Years 10-13), for Academic, Music and Sporting achievements. These included the coveted ‘Headmaster‘s Cup for Progress’ which was awarded to Dominic Muncaster; the ‘Governors Plate for Academic Endeavour’ which went to Kittinun Phatpanichot the ‘Royal Society of St George Award’, which was awarded to Charlotte Watts (for personal achievement) and to Marta Wesierska (for overcoming adversity); the ‘Patrick Cullinan Salver for Contribution to Sport’ which was awarded to Aliabbas Azim-Naqvi; and the’ DJK Walters International Prize’ that went to Marta Wesierska.

Chris Long, Headmaster commented: “It was a wonderful, positive and uplifting evening for both our students and parents and we were extremely privileged to have Fra’ Matthew Festing as our Guest of Honour. Our students were extremely interested to hear about The Order of St John of Jerusalem – the oldest charitable institution of Western and Christian civilisation and its commitment to serving the poor and the sick across the world.“

Haileybury hosts top Kenyan tennis players

Haileybury, a co-educational independent boarding school in Hertfordshire, is to host eight tennis players from Eastern Africa next week. The students are from Malezi School in Kenya, and are making history as the first from the
region to travel on a tennis exchange with schools in the United Kingdom.

This maiden trip, which will be the first of many, is sponsored by Virgin
Atlantic and SKAL, and will see the Malezi School team visit and play
against UK’s top tennis schools as part of developing new partnerships
between top tennis schools in England and Malezi School.

The school has topped Kenyan tennis for the past 11 years and most
of its former players (like former junior champions Rahab Mbugua,
Maurice Wamukowa and Terry and Joab Odera) are studying in the US on
tennis scholarships. One of the visitors to the UK, Azisa Butoyi, is the reigning KCB Kenya Open ladies singles champion, while the rest of the team comprises the top players in Kenya.

“This exciting trip will also have players participate in the Wimbledon
Junior Tennis Initiative as well as touring the National Tennis Centre at
Roehampton and the Wimbledon Tennis Museum,” explains Dr Liz Odera, the team’s coach.

The visitors will take on Haileybury’s top players on Saturday, 15 May between 10 am and 12 noon at the Hailey Lane tennis courts.

New Head for St Hugh’s School

St Hugh’s School, the Independent, Catholic prep school for St Edmund’s College, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Leonard Blom as the new Head of St Hugh’s. Mr Blom took up his post on 20 April 2010 and takes over from the previous Head, Mrs Jacqueline Hart, who left in December to become the Headmistress of Woodford Green Prep School.

Mr Blom joins the school with a wealth of leadership and teaching experience, most recently gained at Edgeborough Prep School in Surrey, where he was Head of Geography. Prior to that, he held Headships at St Dominic’s Priory Junior School and Erica Girls’ Primary School, both in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Originally from Port Elizabeth in South Africa, Mr Blom is married with two teenage children and in his spare time he is a keen runner and cyclist – regularly taking part in triathlons and marathons. He has a BEd Honours degree specialising in Educational Management and a BA degree in History, Psychology and Philosophy, both gained from universities in South Africa, plus he recently obtained his National Professional Qualification for Headship in the UK (NPQH).

Mr Chris Long, Headmaster of St Edmund’s College said:

“The Governors and I are delighted to welcome Leonard to St Hugh’s. He has exactly the right experience and qualities to oversee the day-to-day running of the school and to positively support our pupils, staff and parents”.

Haileybury receives excellent Ofsted Report

Haileybury’s boarding provision has been described by Ofsted inspectors as having “outstanding features”, with no recommendations for improvement set. These comments follow an inspection of the School’s boarding facilities in March 2010, which looked at the key boarding school national minimum standards under the ‘Every Child Matters’ outcome groups.

The overall outcome judgement is good with outstanding features. The outcome judgements for “Being Healthy” and “Enjoying and Achieving” are outstanding while those in the areas of “Staying Safe”, “Positive Contribution”, “Economic Well-being” and “Organisation” are judged as good.

“The school is popular with boarders and parents,” continues the Report. “Across the school, the health and well-being of boarders is promoted exceptionally well.”

The Report goes on to stress that Haileybury is committed to boarding, with an emphasis on community values and fostering responsibility and independence.

Says The Master of Haileybury, Joe Davies: “The Ofsted Report is very positive and we are thrilled with the outcome, particularly as it follows on from the equally positive Independent Schools Inspectorate Report late last year.”

HIGH PRAISE FOR BOARDING AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

The independent day and boarding school in Bishop’s Stortford has passed an inspection of its boarding provision with flying colours.

Ofsted inspectors say that Bishop’s Stortford College, a co-educational school for four to eighteen year olds, offers ‘much added value’ with boarders enjoying ‘the true essence of boarding which allows them outstanding personal achievement’ as well as access to an extensive range of activities and facilities.

In their latest report, which has just been published following an inspection in February, the Ofsted team concluded that the provision for the 235 boarders aged between eight and eighteen is good with outstanding features. The document highlights the dedication and commitment of the staff who help both the full boarders and flexi-boarders to ‘develop potential in all areas of school life’ and ‘feel supported and valued as part of the community’.

The inspectors praise the exemplary behaviour of the girls and boys and commend the ‘welcoming, caring and supportive environment’ in which the boarders are ‘courteous, respectful and take responsibility for their actions’.

The College is rated as outstanding in securing boarders’ views and encouraging them to make a positive contribution to all aspects of College life with boarders ‘confident that their points of view will be listened to and acted upon’. The report confirms that the College looks after its boarders well with an outstanding induction programme for new boarders, good accommodation, a highly accomplished health and safety programme, an excellent medical centre and a good range of healthy foods.

According to Ofsted, the promotion of equality and diversity is good, with one boarder quoted in the report as saying, “I can proudly say that the College is the best centre for fun and excellence not just in the UK but on an international scale also.” Inspectors commend the College’s flexible approach to boarding, noting that it ‘widens the access of the boarding provision to day pupils and enhances the experience for the boarders who enjoy the company of a wider range of pupils’.

The single recommendation made at the last inspection in 2006, to improve access to communication in the Junior School boarding house, has been fully addressed, whilst the one recommendation made in the latest report, to improve the quality of evening meals, is an area that the College is already working on through its active catering committee of boarders and staff.

Headmaster John Trotman said: “The inspection process is intense with all the paperwork scrutinised and staff, boarders and their parents questioned about every aspect of boarding life. We work incredibly hard to provide affordable excellence and I am absolutely delighted that the high quality experience enjoyed by our boarders is endorsed so positively by the inspectors.”

GARY RHODES OPENS QUEENSWOOD’S COOKERY SUITE

On Saturday 6 March 2010, Queenswood School, Hatfield, welcomed celebrity chef, restaurateur and author Gary Rhodes OBE to officially open the new state-of-the-art practical cookery suite. For many years the girls have had a vital ingredient missing from school life: cookery lessons. The suite, which was completed in the autumn, was masterminded by the school and generously supported by parents and others.

This sensational facility has top of the range equipment including a ‘chef’s theatre’ (overhead TV monitor for demonstrations), movable work stations and professional Küppersbusch ovens. A school-wide competition was held to name the new suite and the winner was Hannah Watters from Wheathampstead with ‘Haute Quisine’.

Gary Rhodes was a natural choice to open the new cookery suite as he has been connected with the Focus on Food campaign and the Cooking with Schools programme which is all about putting healthy eating at the heart of the classroom, showing children how to prepare and cook healthy food – and having fun in the process. Our girls certainly have a lot of fun in Haute Quisine and Gary spent over an hour meeting pupils, parents, staff and sponsors and sampling the delicious canapés which the girls were preparing.

In opening ‘Haute Quisine’ Gary said: “It is so inspiring to see so much enthusiasm from all involved, and to discover a kitchen so sensibly designed and beautifully crafted. It is a fantastic addition to an already wonderful school”. He paid tribute to Practical Cookery teacher, Mrs Jayne Lee, for her ‘obsession’ with the subject. Jayne, whose husband David is the Executive Chef at the school, is delighted with the new venture and said: “Food is a great area of interest at the school and the enthusiasm of the girls has been phenomenal. This occasion marks the start of many happy years cooking in HQ and we now have plans to grow our ingredients on the school’s allotments: ‘from plot to pot to plate’!

We are sure Gary would agree this is the perfect recipe for success!

Photo: Gary Rhodes with practical cookery teacher Mrs Jayne Lee and girls in Queenswood’s new practical cookery suite ‘Haute Quisine’.

STAR-STUDDED EVENING AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

Lady Gaga, Corinne Bailey-Rae, Led Zepplin, Back Street Boys and even the Spice Girls were amongst the many headline acts performing to packed audiences at the Leo Price Theatre, Bishop’s Stortford College last week.

Fourteen acts in total competed for the affection, and votes, of the audiences on two consecutive nights in a special Stars in their Eyes charity show extravaganza in aid of research into the rare Niemann-Pick disease.

Show host Matthew Kelly (Jack Kenning) was on top form introducing each act with his inimitable style and sense of humour. A total of forty-five pupils aged fourteen to eighteen were involved in the performances, including a highly accomplished eleven-piece band which included five saxophonists, supporting two members of staff as the Blues Brothers.

“We have some amazingly talented pupils at the College and this popular show format was an ideal platform for their musical skills to be showcased in a way that was inspirational, fun and hugely entertaining,” said Deputy Head Graham Brooks. “I challenged the pupils taking part to reach for the stars and make their act as professional as humanly possible. They did all their own planning and preparation with hours spent studying the performance of their chosen star. The standard they achieved was simply incredible.”

The staging and lighting, masterminded by Technical Theatre Manager Carl Burton, were equally impressive, with ingenious ways of enabling the six-strong roadie team to change sets between each act within a few minutes.

Billy Joel (James Hart), accompanied by Amy Moore on flute, conquered the hearts of the first night’s audience with ‘Always a woman to me’, whilst Brit Award star Lady GaGa (Steph Thorpe), supported by the Ga-getts (Sophie Cornelissen, Jess Reilly, Maddy Hallwood, Chantal During, Rosie Cave, Georgia Martin, Alice Menhennet, Liisel Velland) captured the most votes on the second night with ‘Bad Romance’.

“We were absolutely amazed by the professional standard and sheer number of talented young people performing,” said College parent, Tessa Firmin, “It was a fantastic evening which will no doubt be remembered by everyone for many years to come.”

Vincent Taylor, a friend of College parents who had travelled out from London for the show said: “I was truly astonished at the very high standard of both the musicians and the vocalists. I was also impressed with the obvious camaraderie amongst the pupils, with everyone looking genuinely pleased for the others’ successful performances. The atmosphere was fantastic.”

The event raised over £2,500 for the little-known Niemann-Pick charity, which seeks to raise awareness, and fund research into, a terrible terminal genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC).

PHOTO: Some of the top performers over the two nights: Lady GaGa and the Ga-gettes, Billy Joel, Corinne Bailey Rae and the Back Street Boys.

Boomtube

On Sunday 28 February coach-loads of excited Q girls and a posse of proud parents descended on the West End for a concert of a life-time: Boomtube. The event was staged at the famous Phoenix Theatre and masterminded by Harrow School pupil Charles Y and his family to raise funds for the charity ‘Room to Read’ (www.roomtoread.org). This amazing rock music concert allowed the special musical talents of teenagers from Harrow, Wycombe Abbey and Queenswood to be show-cased, supported by two professional bands: Red Box and Magazine Gap. Over six groups plus soloists gave thunderous performances to rapturous applause on the night and a phenomenal total of £23,000 was raised in the process.

Our super-cool band, Interno (Spanish for ‘boarder’), comprising Nikita H, Caroline S, Danny A-L, Jane A, Lydia A and Emma N, soon had the appreciative fans rocking and rolling in the rows. Their vivacity and obvious love of rock music, coupled with hours of practice, paid off and their flawless, funky and fabulous performance flowed. We all thought our girls were the best – bias had nothing to do with it! At the end of a fun and fulfilling evening all the ‘rock chics’ and their adoring supporters wended their way home, content in the knowledge that they had done their best. Rock on girls!

FIRST EVER FESTIVAL FUELS PASSION FOR READING

With fourteen events packed into one week, involving thirteen star authors, illustrators and poets, attempting to summarise the highlights of the first ever Bishop’s Stortford College Festival of Literature is an almost impossible task!

This extraordinary celebration of all things literary was launched with a controversial lecture on the true origins and identity of Shakespeare by Charles Beauclerk before sixteen teams from the College and other local schools competed in a fiercely fought Kids’ Lit Quiz, with Eleanor Cavill, Charlotte Morrison, Sashini Mariathasan, Grace Compton and Ben Withers from the Fourth Form emerging as winners.

Conn Iggulden, international best-selling author of historical fiction and the only person ever to top the Sunday Times Fictional and Non-Fiction lists at the same time, spoke about why it is dangerous for boys not to read and after his humorous and entertaining talk it would be impossible not to want to read his own stories. Simon Armitage, one of the nation’s leading poets, read from his work with power, passion and humour, including his signature poem ‘The Shout’, which harks back to his youth in a Yorkshire village and excerpts from his translation of ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’.

Anthony Browne, the Children’s Laureate, is a highly influential artist and author whose illustrated stories are loved by children and adults in equal measure. The rush to buy his books after his talk speaks volumes for the impact he had! After speaking in the evening, he worked with the Junior School the following morning before presenting the first ever Bishop’s Stortford Picture Book Award, which was voted on by 1400 children from local primary schools as well as the College. The clear winner was ‘Morris the Mankiest Monster’ by Sarah McIntyre.

You can read Sarah’s account of the event on her blog:

http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/272418.html

Junior School teacher Simon Bailey had produced one of his cartoon specials depicting Anthony Browne presenting Sarah McIntyre with her trophy much to the amusement of both author-illustrators!

Local authors, Marcus Sedgwick, Pauline Francis and Gareth Mottram gave a fascinating workshop with questions and answers about their writing, Matt Haig and Meg Rosoff worked well with College Junior School pupils showing how inspirational it can be for pupils to meet and question the authors of the books they have been reading. In the evening, Meg joined Pauline Francis, Anne Harding and Marilyn Brocklehurst to provide wisdom and insight on how to keep teenagers reading.

Master storyteller, Hugh Lupton, captivated his audience with stories on a Russian theme, including three different tales beautifully woven together around the escape of his great uncle (Arthur Ransome of Swallows and Amazon fame) from Russia during the Bolshevik revolution. He also entertained and delighted our younger pupils with his storytelling, telling pyjama-clad pupils magical tales from around the world.

Radio 4’s Saturday Live poet-in-residence, Luke Wright, concluded the star-studded festival week with a fantastic performance of his work before judging the Senior School House Reading Competition. The winners of this were:

Junior – 4th Form Young House
Claire Devine had the audience in tears within seconds reading ‘Stop All the Clocks’ by W.H. Auden.

Intermediate – L5th and U5th Benson House
Kirsten Lane, Gabby Nellis-Pain, Jess Gibbs, Louise Reilly and Abi Kessock-Philip gave a brilliant, sinister and disturbing reading of ‘The Devil’s Wife’ by Carol Ann Duffy.

Senior – 6th Form Hayward House
Tom Emmett’s reading of ‘Eulogy for Malcolm X’ by Ossie Davis was simply outstanding.

To round off the Festival of Literature, Marilyn Brocklehurst from Norfolk Children’s Book Centre provided an amazing book sale for Junior School pupils and her passion and knowledge about children’s books was infectious, with children and parents leaving with yet more reading gems to discover.

A hugely successful and inspirational week which has more than achieved our aim of fuelling the passion for reading in young and old alike.

Photo: Hugh Lupton telling bedtime stories to BSC Pre-Prep children

Arsène Wenger to open Haileybury’s new Modern Languages Centre

Arsenal Football Club manager Arsène Wenger OBE will open Haileybury’s new £2,2 million Modern Languages Centre on 4 March 2010 at 2.45pm.

Mr Wenger, who speaks six languages, will address VIPs and other guests on the importance of learning a foreign language. He will then officially open the two-storey, 1050 square metre facility which was completed at the end of last year.

The Centre boasts eight classrooms which will house 24 pupils each, a library/smaller classroom for 12 pupils, two English as a Foreign Language (EFL) rooms, three language assistant rooms and a staffroom. The building has been designed to offer a flexible learning environment with state-of-the-art facilities.

“The new building means we are now able to offer pupils and staff a wonderful environment in which to teach and learn languages,” says The Master of Haileybury, Joe Davies.

“Pupils now have access to smart and spacious classrooms with exciting technology in each one.”

Mr Wenger is the most successful manager in the history of Arsenal in terms of trophies and is also the club’s longest-serving manager. He has a degree in Electrical Engineering and a master’s degree in Economics from Strasbourg University. He is fluent in French, German, Spanish and English and also speaks some Italian and Japanese.

Fund raising at Duncombe School for the Haitian earthquake appeal

The whole community of children, staff and parents at Duncombe School in Hertford wanted to help the victims of the Haiti earthquake. Last Friday a coffee morning was held and the Rev Jo Loveridge from All Saints’ Church, Hertford addressed a special assembly.
The whole school then gathered in the playground around a map of Haiti and covered the map with coins brought from pocket money and piggy banks, contributed by families and staff and raised by a cake sale instigated by five of the pupils and held during the coffee morning. Rev Jo led everyone in a prayer and the singing of ‘He’s got the whole world in His hands’ around the map. And then the counting began! The grand total came to over £1,300!
Headmistress Verity White was delighted but not surprised: ‘Duncombe is well known for its caring ethos. The pupils were particularly touched by the terrible suffering of many Haitian children and asked me if the school could do something to help. This is the wonderful result’.

TALENTED FOOTBALLERS AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE JUNIOR SCHOOL SELECTED FOR EAST REGION U13 SQUAD

Four boys from Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School have been selected for the East Area U13 football squad to play in the Independent Schools Football Association annual festival at Repton School on March 28th and 29th. The boys staved off strong competition from rivals of a number of leading schools in Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk to secure their places in the squad after trials which took place at King’s Ely School at the weekend.

All the more remarkable is that only one of the boys, twelve year old Tom Harnack from Sawbridgeworth, is attached to a football club. Tom is goalkeeper for Bishop’s Stortford Community U12’s and has trained with the Leyton Orient youth team. The three other boys to be selected, George Silk, Matthew Dodds and Harry Calder, were all members of the winning Bishop’s Stortford College team that triumphed in last season’s East Area Soccer Sixes tournament. These three are currently playing rugby for BSRFC on a Sunday and thus only play football in school. Earlier in the season George Silk scored ten goals in a match against local rivals Felsted!

David Herd, head of football at the College, commented, “This is a tremendous achievement for the boys. Should they do well at the festival they have a chance to represent the England Prep Schools squad. Tom Harnack should be particularly proud of his call up as he has another year to go in this age group.’’

Photograph(l to r: Tom Harnack, Matthew Dodds, George Silk, Harry Calder

Fun in the snow at Duncombe School

Unlike many schools in the area, Duncombe School in Bengeo was able to open on both Wednesday and Friday despite the adverse weather. The pupils revelled in building snowmen with their friends during play time and the staff adapted lessons to embrace the opportunities afforded by the extraordinary conditions.

But the snowfall, although heavy by Hertfordshire standards, was a ‘light dusting’ in the eyes of Head of Girls’ Games, Paula Twynham, who hails from Canada. Paula spent the Christmas break back home in London, Ontario and said the four feet of snow lying on the ground there when she left was less than usual! Should we experience further significant snow in Hertford, Paula is considering introducing cross country skiing to the Duncombe curriculum!

BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE PUPIL LANDS ROLE IN BIGGEST SELLING WEST END SHOW OF ALL TIME

Twelve year old David Ballard, from Sawbridgeworth, is over the moon after landing a part in OLIVER!, the biggest selling West End show of all time. The talented young actor will share the Theatre Royal Drury Lane stage with Griff Rhys Jones who has been cast as the new Fagin and Jodie Prenger who plays Nancy.

David, who attends Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School, will perform in the chorus, singing some of the much-loved hit songs, including ‘Food, Glorious Food’, ‘Consider Yourself’ and ‘Robbery’.

“I auditioned during the summer holidays and was invited back in September,” explained David. “At this second audition, we were taught a dance, which we then performed as a group, plus a song, which we had to perform on our own. I was really nervous! Rehearsals started last week, less than a week from getting the phone call and I will be going three times a week. My first performance will be on 21st December and after that I’ll be performing about twice a week until March. It is hard to juggle everything I have to do but I love it and I hope it will lead to better things.”

Auditioning for a very different type of role, David is hoping to play the part of Mercutio in a film production of Romeo and Juliet at Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School. Filming begins next term and will be screened in the summer term. David is also a member of the Phoenix Theatre School and performed as John Darling in Peter Pan at Harlow Playhouse in September.

Based on an interview by fellow pupils: Sadie Clifton, Elise McCusker, Hannah Griffiths, Catherine Ellis and Victoria Snowden.

Photograph: David Ballard

SIXTH FORMER WINS PLACE IN NATIONAL YOUTH WIND ORCHESTRA

A talented musician from Bishop’s Stortford College has won a place in the National Youth Wind Orchestra. Sixth Former Abigail Heath had to impress the selection panel with two contrasting pieces, sight-reading and her responses to their questions.

As one of the seven clarinettists in the orchestra, Abigail will take part in two ten-day courses and three large concerts during the Easter and summer holidays.

“I’m very involved in music at the College having played the clarinet for seven years and reached Grade 8,” said Abigail. “Playing with the National Youth Wind Orchestra will be a great experience. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Abigail, who lives in Bishop’s Stortford, also plays the oboe and is studying for her A levels in Maths, Biology, Psychology and Art.

Photograph: Abigail Heath

London to Bearwood World Challenge Bike Ride

The challenge was for five members of the Brazil World Challenge team to bike ride from the Brazilian Embassy, next to Hyde Park in London to Bearwood College, to raise funds for their World Challenge expedition to Brazil in July 2010.

So one fine Saturday morning, five members of the team along with two members of staff arrived at Bearwood to embark on what would turn out to be a very gratifying and rewarding team building bike riding experience.

The team caught the train to London and then set off from the Brazilian Embassy to Bearwood by bicycle along the scenic Thames River path.

This challenge has not only helped the team raise funds for the trip but helped develop good communication and motivational skills along the way. Despite a few minor bike problems (and a very big hill!) they cycled into Bearwood at 7:30pm, exhausted but elated, having completed their goal and covering at least 50 miles in total.,

The challengers, Sarah Jane Gardside, Tasha Hawkins, Oliver Connolley, Himkala Gurung and James De Souza would like to thank everyone for all their help during the day and to those that sponsored them. Initial estimates indicate that they have raised £400.00.

The expedition is to the south of Brazil, with the company World Challenge. There are 9 pupils ranging from the Fifth to Upper Sixth Form who will be accompanied by 2 members of staff plus a world challenge expert. They are away for a month leaving at the beginning of July 2010.

Each pupil has to raise £4000 each and so far the group have organised fundraising events such as a car wash, James Bond theme party for staff and parents and smaller events such as making and selling cookies. The bike ride is the latest in the fund raising events.

Image: Oliver Connolley, James De Souza, Tasha Hawkins, Sarah-Jane Gardside and Himkala Gurung outside the Brazilian Embassy

A Grand Afternoon

More than 100 grandparents joined pupils at Duncombe School in Bengeo for a special afternoon recently. The celebration gave grandparents an opportunity to look around the school, guided by their grandchildren and to see the children’s work. The visitors were then treated to a traditional cream tea and home-made cakes prepared by the catering department.

Mrs Verity White, Headmistress of Duncombe, said: “The event was a huge success and we have had some lovely thank you notes. The atmosphere was very special and it was a joy to see grandparents and grandchildren together. We’d like to say a big thank you to all the grandparents for coming, especially those who travelled a long way to enjoy this wonderful afternoon.”

Moon Rocks Land at St Edmund’s College!

Rare samples of Moon rock and lunar dust landed at St Edmund’s College, in Old Hall Green this week, on loan from the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council. Meteorites of different kinds also formed part of the display and students were able to handle and study them, seeing the obvious differences in the materials they are made from.

The lunar samples were collected during NASA’s manned space missions to the Moon in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. During these missions the Apollo astronauts brought back to Earth 382 kilograms of lunar material. Most of this material is used by scientists to study the Moon, but NASA decided to use a small proportion of the rock and soil to develop lunar and planetary sciences educational packages.

Miss Sophie Kobylec, a physics teacher at St Edmund’s College who organised the Moon Display, said: “It’s incredible to think, that when you hold a meteorite, you are handling something that may have travelled millions of miles to fall on the Earth. Students at both the College and St Hugh’s, our Prep School, have really enjoyed examining the meteorites and learning about the work of the original space missions.“

Photo: Students from St Edmund’s College and St Hugh’s School examine the lunar samples.