Private School News

Gymnast’s visit inspires local children

Pupils and staff at Duncombe School, Bengeo, gasped as Olympic hopeful Danny Lawrence gave a breathtaking display of gymnastics at the school recently.

His visit was arranged with the organisation Sport for Schools as part of the 2012 Inspirational Campaign. The campaign’s mission is to inspire 2,012 children to enrol in sports clubs throughout the UK in the build up to the London Olympics.

Danny encouraged all the Duncombe children to keep fit and with his coach, Paul, led every year group in a series of gymnastic exercises. He then displayed his own talent by performing cartwheels, somersaults and other gymnastic manoeuvres before answering lots of questions in a special assembly.

Danny explained to the pupils how he began gymnastics at the age of 9 and now trains 30 hours a week on top of his job as a Firefighter. Danny has represented Great Britain at three World Championships and his next big event is the Commonwealth Games in 2010, followed, of course, by the London Olympics in 2012.

Head of Boys’ Sport, John Ferguson, who set up Danny’s visit, said: “The children
were genuinely inspired by Danny and his commitment to his sport. Watching someone so talented at such close quarters was an amazing experience for them.”

St Francis’ College girls surpass themselves in pursuit of top grades

Year 11 girls at St. Francis’ College, Letchworth gained a remarkable set of GCSE grades again, however this year, the percentages of A*s and A’s were beyond expectation. A remarkable 73% of examinations taken achieved grades A* and A, an extraordinary result for a school which accepts girls of average ability and above. The coveted top A* grade was awarded to a phenomenal 40%, 43% with 10 or more A/A* and 98% of all results falling within the A-C band.

“I could not be more delighted for the girls and their families, and of course their teachers” said Headmistress Mrs Dorothy MacGinty. “The girls have worked hard in their preparation for the examinations, but they have done so with a healthy balance of music, drama, sport and other activities. I wholeheartedly believe in girls getting the right balance of individual pursuits and academic rigour.”

This year group are hot on the heels of the Sixth Form girls who achieved outstanding A level results the previous week.

Belles of the Academic Ball

Another bumper crop of A Level results has been awarded to St Francis’ College girls this year.
83.7% of results were at A /B grade, with 59.6% of the examinations taken achieving grade A. Possibly the most remarkable statistic is that almost 40% of the Upper Sixth girls achieved 3, 4 or 5 straight A Grades.

“This year’s results are outstanding”, remarked the Headmistress, Mrs Dorothy MacGinty. “It is testament to the diligence and determination of every individual girl. We are not a highly selective school, but we offer excellent teaching staff and small classes, affording the opportunity to nurture the individual’s potential.

14% of our Upper Sixth have gained places at ‘Oxbridge’, which is one of the highest percentages in the country. I am proud of all of the girls who have worked hard and gained places at their first choice university.”

New Deputy Head for St Edmund’s College

LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER A BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

Senior School pupils at Bishop’s Stortford College took over the reins of a history lesson, to teach Junior School classes about the Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump in Canada – doing so with great aplomb.

A curriculum topic for both age groups (albeit at different levels), each Fourth Form (Year 9) student had to teach two Lower Shell (Year 3) pupils about the history behind the UNESCO World Heritage Site before devising a plan for creating the best ever buffalo jump. Prizes were awarded to the best from each Lower Shell class.

Apart from being a fun diversion after exams, such interschool initiatives have wide-ranging benefits. Curriculum work is reinforced, the older pupils learn about teaching from the other side of the fence, interschool relations are strengthened and, most magically of all, it is an inspirational experience for all concerned…the younger ones look up to and love the older ones’ attention; the older ones love the feeling of being able to share knowledge which they find hugely stimulating and rewarding.

Being a family of three schools in the one College, there is huge scope for bringing the different ages together to learn from each other. Other recent examples at the co-educational, boarding and day school for four to eighteen year olds include a group of twelve year old Lower Third pupils mentoring their nine year old French buddies, helping them to go through key words and numbers before teaching them for a short lesson; Senior School pupils helping with Pre-Prep swimming lessons as one of their activity options…and, of course, musicians of all ages coming together for the College’s annual Ensembles Concert.

HIGH ACHIEVING ART DEPARTMENT ON THE MOVE WITH NEW £1.5 MILLION INVESTMENT AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

Pupils at one of the county’s leading independent schools are looking forward to pushing creative boundaries further following the completion of a new, £1.5m art centre.

The spacious, purpose-built facility at Bishop’s Stortford College to be named the Walter Strachan Art Centre, in memory of one of the College’s great teachers and advocates of the arts, houses several large studios including sculpture studio, workshop, gallery space, IT suite, dedicated 6th Form studio and a well resourced departmental library. The wide range of resources in the department allow pupils to become involved in painting, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, textiles, glass, graphic design, photography, fashion, animation, computer generated imagery and film making.

Richard Honey, Head of Art at Bishop’s Stortford College, is delighted: “The creation, and enjoyment, of visual art has always played a very important role at the College. We openly encourage experimental and innovative work and work very hard to ensure that each student has the support and resources to pursue and express their ideas. The centre is already proving to be an inspirational environment to work in, for staff and pupils alike.”

Nestling on the edge of Bishop’s Stortford amid tall pines and wide open spaces, the co-educational, boarding and day school, has a long standing record of achievement in art. Last year, of the thirty-eight pupils who sat GCSE Art and Design, fifteen achieved the top A* grade and, incredibly, nine of these were ranked amongst the highest achieving students across the country by Edexcel, the UK’s largest awarding exam board. At A-Level, of twenty pupils, fifteen achieved a grade A and five a grade B.

Commenting on the secret of the art department’s success, sixteen year old Charlie Aitchison said, “You have such a huge range of resources and materials and you’re allowed to think for yourself, push the boundaries and be an individual.”

Success in art extends across the ages at Bishop’s Stortford College, which caters for children from four to eighteen. In May this year, six Junior School pupils achieved GCSE standard three years early by successfully passing the Silver level of the Arts Award, with a further seven pupils gaining the Bronze Award. The Arts Award is a highly regarded national qualification developing young people as artists and arts leaders. Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School is one of a very few schools in the country to be accredited as an Arts Award centre.

“Our aim is to give pupils the skill and the confidence to realise their artistic potential,” said Mr Honey. “We want them to become excited by the Visual Language, and to understand what Art is and what Art can be.”

The new Art Centre will be officially opened at the end of the College’s Open Morning on Saturday, 19th September at 1.00pm.

CELEBRATING A LEVEL SUCCESS AT QUEENSWOOD

With over 85% of A level grades at A or B, once again Queenswood girls are celebrating their superb achievements; 94% of grades were at an impressive A-C grade. For the seventh consecutive year, the overall pass rate was 100% and 18 out of 47 candidates achieved three A grades or more in their subjects. Amazingly, four girls gained 18 subjects at grade A between them.

The school offers over 20 subjects at A level and performance has been excellent in all areas. The Sciences, Mathematics and Economics and Business Studies are popular choices and results continue to be very strong in these subjects and this year English and History have produced 100% at A and B grades. The girls are going on to university to read a huge range of subjects including Aeronautical Engineering, Music and Sound Recording, Medicine, Philosophy and Economics and Law.

Celebrating with the girls, Mrs Pauline Edgar (Principal), said: “We are delighted that the girls have produced such wonderful results. The girls work hard and these results reflect the team work between the girls and their teachers. The results confirm Queenswood’s position as an outstanding school. We wish the girls well for the future.”

Well done everyone!

BEST EVER GCSE RESULTS AT QUEENSWOOD!

Queenswood girls are celebrating the best GCSE results ever with a huge 8% increase on our previous best! With 80% of GCSE grades at A*/A, 95% A*-B and 100% A*-C, the school is delighted with the record breaking achievement.

A total of 443 out of 552 subjects taken were passed at A* and A; 16 of the 59 candidates achieved A*/As in all their subjects.

It goes without saying that the girls achieved marvellously across all subjects. It is of particular note that the core subjects: English, Modern Languages, Maths and Science achieved A*/A results of 92%, 91%, 81% and 78% respectively and the GSCE options were similarly strong.

Principal, Mrs Pauline Edgar, said:
“We are thrilled with this set of results. Everyone has worked extremely hard to ensure that the girls achieve the best results possible. The girls should feel confident as they embark on their A level courses.”

GCSE Exam Success at St Edmund’s College!

Students and staff at St Edmund’s College, near Ware, are celebrating another excellent set of GCSE results today. This year’s results are some of the best that the College has ever seen, with 41% of students achieving an A* or A grade, and eleven students achieving 10 or more straight A* and A grades.

St Edmund’s College
Number of candidates
90

Overall Pass Rate A – G
100%

Five or more passes at A*- C
92%

Five or more passes at A*- C, excluding English and Maths
91%

% A*- A
41%

% A*- B
70%

Best Performing Students
A total of eleven candidates achieved 10 or more straight A* and A grades. These included the following:

Students who achieved 11 A*s/A’s

Paul Gordon, from Ware (11 A*s)
Stella Spanos, from Hatfield (11 A*s)

James Hartley, from Bengeo
Jasmine Smith, from Ware
Andrew Archibald, from Woodford Green

Students who achieved 10 A*s/A’s

Abigail Robinson, from Buntingford
Alexandra Owen, from Baldock
Harrison Hutchison, from New Barnet
Francesca Shippey, from Berkshire
Alfie Linsell, from Dubai
Simona Mihaleva, from Bulgaria

Chris Long, Headmaster said: “I am absolutely delighted with the results. This has been one of our best ever years for GCSE’s at

St Edmund’s, with 41% of our students achieving A* and A grades. Our focus as a Catholic school has always been on academic excellence for each individual student, whatever their talents. These results prove that this philosophy is successful.”

98.3% of Haileybury pupils achieve five A* – C grades

GCSE pupils at Haileybury have again achieved outstanding results, with 

98.3% achieving five or more A* – C grades and 60.5% achieving A or A* grades. 96.1% of all entries at GCSE were graded A* – C.

Natalie Peacock is the school’s top achiever, with 10 A*s. Four pupils achieved nine A*s, with another four gaining eight A*s.

A further five pupils gained seven A*s, six achieved six A*s, three achieved five A*s and two achieved four A*s. 

“Taking the iGCSE results into account, the percentage of pupils gaining five A* – C grades is excellent, while the number achieving A or A* grades has improved by 3% on last year. This is a wonderful achievement by anyone’s standards and is proof of the hard work and dedication put in by both pupils and staff,” says incoming Master of Haileybury, Joe Davies.

“This set of GCSE results confirms the significant leap forward in Haileybury’s academic ability over the past three years and bodes well for the future.”

HIGH ACHIEVING RECORD CONTINUES AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

· A record 69% of entries taken were awarded A* or A, with a new high of 36% at the top A* grade at Bishop’s Stortford College in this year’s GCSE examinations.

· An impressive 43 students, 45% of the year group, each gained at least 10 A* or A grades.

· 100% of pupils achieved 5 or more A*-C grades.

Haileybury pupils achieve 54% A grades

Haileybury’s A Level pupils have produced excellent results this year, with 54,1% achieving A grades, up from 49,7% last year. The number of A-B grades for A Levels and the International Baccalaureate is 81%.
The percentage of A grades marks Haileybury’s best year yet and are increasing sharply each year. The 2007 total of A grades was 42.2%, and 37.6% for 2006.
Two pupils, Rupert Flint Cahan (K) and James Turing (E), achieved four As and an A grade at AS Level, while another seven pupils achieved four As. They are: Amy Gandon (H), Charles Richards (Th), Tim Stoten (K), Daniele Guerrieri (L), Danna He (Alb), Clementine Reed (H) and Herbert Swaniker (Th).
In total, 28 out of 94 candidates achieved 3 As or better.
In addition, more than 60% of the Higher Level grades obtained in this year’s International Baccalaureate results were the prestigious 6 or 7, while 65% of Standard Level scores were also at those top grades.
The Average Points Score, at 35.3, although slightly below the last year’s level of 35.9, is ahead of the average for the years 2005 – 2007. The average UCAS point score per A Level and IB pupil is 390.
Haileybury’s incoming Master, Joe Davies, says: “We are thrilled with these results, especially the percentage of A grades attained. Taking into account the excellent IB results which were announced in July, as well as the stability in the number of pupils and of boarders, there is clear evidence that Haileybury is continuing to strengthen in every way.”

MORE A LEVEL RECORDS AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE

For the seventh consecutive year, new A level records have been set at Bishop’s Stortford College.

64% of A levels were awarded an A grade, a new high point.
88% were awarded A or B and 98% were awarded an A, B or C, both statistics matching last year’s record figures.
Once again, the pass rate was 100%.

Top performer was James Hutchings from Dunmow, with five A grades, closely followed by the following eight pupils on 4 A grades: Harriet Robinson from Newport, Patrick Tsitsaros from Saffron Walden, Maria Duvidzon from Russia, Matthew Tang from Hong Kong and, from Bishop’s Stortford, Jorge Alexander, Tom Castro, Michael Dabbs and Stephanie-Howard Smith.
Altogether thirty six students (40%) gained three or more A grades.

Headmaster John Trotman, congratulating the whole year group, spoke of the outstanding performance being the icing on the cake of a marvellous year. ‘Many pupils, not just the ones with A grades, deserve enormous credit for the progress they have made and the inspiring way in which they have set about achieving their potential.’

‘Over recent years we have established ourselves as one of the country’s top co-educational schools and I am confident that all pupils in the College will be further inspired by this achievement,’ he said.

‘Excellent A levels have given our pupils access to places at many of the best universities in the country once again. We are delighted.’

PHC Success At District Athletics

North Herts District Schools Athletics Championship was held recently at Riddlins Track Stevenage. The Princess Helena College followed up their win by the seniors in April with another strong performance winning the Small Schools Cup and a grand total of 17 medals including 5 golds.

Our medals included golds for Annie Reid in the Year 7 800m and javelin (well done Annie for the new school records in both events), Beth Taylor in the Year 9 800m, Aishling Hayward in the Year 9 1500 m and Freya Reith who set a new district record in the javelin.

Silver medals went to Sophie Gill in the Year 7 hurdles, Issie Courtney in the Year 8 800m, Hannah Routledge in the Year 9 long jump, Rose Smith in the Year 10 High Jump and Lucy Lancaster who set a new school record in the Year 10 1500m.

Bronze medals went to CP Herron in the Year 7 discus who set a new school record, Georgina Kilby in the Year 8 hurdles, Fleur Lancaster in both the Year 8 200m and high jump, Sophie Wood Year 9 hurdles and high jump, and Danielle Reid in the Year 10 800m.

“All the girls were absolutely fantastic and 15 of them set new personal bests. I was extremely proud of how they all organised themselves and competed so well and I’m now looking forward to seeing others breaking their personal bests on sports day” said Mrs Keenleyside.

Madeleine receives a letter from the Prince of Wales!

Ten year-old Madeleine Robinson, from St Hugh’s Prep School, in Hertfordshire, was delighted when she recently received a letter from HRH The Prince of Wales. Madeleine had sent a card to The Prince of Wales last month, to tell him about her love of playing the harp and to ask whether she would be eligible to be a Royal Harpist when she was older. Madeleine’s grandmother, who had told her all about the Prince of Wales’s Official Harpist, has been poorly recently and so Madeleine wrote the letter in an effort to cheer her up and hopefully get a reply back.

Madeleine, who lives in Westmill, near Buntingford, was therefore thrilled when the letter from Clarence House arrived, together with some information about the current Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales, Claire Jones.

Madeleine has been playing the harp since she was five and now plays a full-size concert harp. She is about to take her Grade 3 music exam.

Jacqueline Hart, Head of St Hugh’s School said: “Madeleine plays the harp beautifully and is very keen to play professionally in the future, so she was absolutely thrilled to have her letter and achievements acknowledged by The Prince of Wales.”

Photo:Madeleine with her harp and Royal letter outside St Hugh’s School.

Two pupils from St Edmund’s College appear in the ITV Drama ‘May Contain Nuts’

Two pupils from St Edmund’s College, near Ware, are appearing in ‘May Contain Nuts’ – a two-part comedy drama for ITV1, currently being screened on 11 and 18 June, starring Shirley Henderson, Darren Boyd, Elizabeth Berrington and Sophie Thompson.

Nine-year old Andrew Byrne, who attends the prep school of St Edmund’s College (called St Hugh’s School) plays Jamie, the son of the main family in the drama. Andrew, who lives in Hertford, has already appeared in several other television drama’s including Cranford, ‘After Thomas’, ‘Jekyll’, with James Nesbitt and Doc Marten. He is currently filming the Cranford Christmas special for the BBC. Andrew’s acting career has followed that of his 12-year old brother Thomas, who also attends St Edmund’s College.

Twelve-year old Sophie Lee, who is in Year 7 at St Edmund’s College also has a small part in the ITV drama and appears in the second installment to be shown on Thursday 18 June, where she plays a pupil at Chelsea College, the private girls’ school in the show. Sophie has been acting for a few years now and attends the ‘Vestry School of Dance & Performing Arts’ in Walthamstow, where she lives. She has previously had several walk on parts in various TV shows as well as commercials, including one for Sainsbury’s.

Alison Cameron, Marketing Manager at St Edmund’s College said: “We are very proud of Andrew’s and Sophie’s acting achievements. Their teachers and classmates have enjoyed watching them on TV, particularly as it’s a comedy drama about an independent school!”

SIX TALENTED ARTISTS ACHIEVE GCSE STANDARD THREE YEARS AHEAD OF TIME AT BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Six talented artists at Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School have achieved GCSE standard three years ahead of time by successfully passing the Silver level of the Arts Award.

The Silver award achievers, Phoebe Poulter, Stephanie Malyon, Emily Neill, James Scott Flanagan, Portland Samek-Richardson and Amy Roberts, gained their Bronze award last year and are currently in the equivalent of year 8.

Following in their footsteps, seven pupils in the year below have gained their Bronze award: Dani Moon, Max Abbott, Julia Bicknell, Rachael Speller, Ellysia Lewin, Taylor Weeks and Connor McSweeney.

Arts Award is a highly regarded national qualification supporting young people to develop as artists and arts leaders. It demonstrates a young person’s skills in communication, planning, evaluation and leadership. The Silver Arts Award is equivalent to GCSE level and Gold equivalent to A level. The Arts Award is run by Arts Council England and Trinity Guildhall – two organisations with a high profile and considerable reputation in the arts sector.

Bishop’s Stortford College Junior School is one of the very few schools in the country to be an accredited Arts Award centre.

“The pupils have worked incredibly hard to reach such a high level so early in their journey as artists and I’m very proud of them,” said Emma Neville, Head of Junior School Art. “We are keen to offer as many opportunities as possible for creativity to be expressed and developed. Above all, we want our pupils to have an enjoyment of art that will remain with them for life.”

PHOTOGRAPH: Back (l to r): Taylor Weeks, Emily Neill, Portland Samek-Richardson, Connor McSweeney, Ellysia Lewin, Rachael Speller.
Front (l to r): Amy Roberts, Stephanie Malyon, James Scott-Flanagan, Phoebe Poulter, Dani Moon, Julia Bicknell, Max Abbott

QUEENSWOOD WINS TENNIS TITLES

Two tennis events have been won by the impressive Queenswood pupils in recent weeks:
The dynamic duo of Becky Smaller (13) from North London and Lindsay Young (13) from Maidenhead won the 14U Harpenden Girls Schools Championships held on the 9th May at Harpenden Tennis Club. This competition first took place in 1921 and was last won by a Queenswood pair in 2003. Becky and Lindsay stormed through to the semi-finals and then had a tight match against Millfield’s first pair winning 7-5 6-3. They then took on Sevenoaks in the final comfortably winning 6-2 6-2 to take the championship.

A clean sweep for Queenswood in the Herts Schools Doubles Tennis Championships, gave the talented players both the 18U and 14U Girls Doubles titles on 16 May. Our 18U pair of Shona Young (15) from Maidenhead and Anya Lofinmakin-Dutta (14) from Islington, played excellent doubles in the final against St. Albans High School, to take the title. Not to be outdone, our U14 pair of Becky Smaller and Lindsay Young, following their success in the Harpenden Doubles, had a tough final against Loreto College but came through to win. Our U14 second pair of Chloe Lant (12) from Maidenhead and Alice Wills (12) from Enfield won their plate event.

Photograph:(l-r standing):Anja, Shona, Becky, Lindsay and Chloe and Alice being held!

Teddy Bears’ Picnic at St Hugh’s School

On Wednesday 13 May, St Hugh’s Prep School, in Old Hall Green, held an Open Afternoon and a special Teddy Bears’ Picnic to welcome the new Nursery and Reception children who will be starting in September.

The children (and parents) enjoyed their picnic bags, whilst Mel the Magician kept everyone entertained with spinning plates, balloon characters and magic tricks.

Current parents, families and friends from all year groups were also invited to look round the school and the children were proud to show them their work.

Mrs Jacqueline Hart, Head of St Hugh’s School said “It was a really fun afternoon and all the children had a wonderful time.”

St Hugh’s Science Week

This week pupils at St Hugh’s School have been learning about all things to do with Science and nature. They have been very busy with a number of activities including planting fruit trees in the orchard; meeting a local Dentist – Mrs Mohedeen from Ware Dental Practice, who explained to the children how to care for their teeth and gums, as well as seeing an amazing display of birds of prey from the ‘Hawkshead English School of Falconery’, which included barn owls, a tawny owl, an eagle owl, a falcon and a hawk.

One of the highlights of the week was a special Dressing up Day, again with the theme of ‘Science and Nature’, where the children paid a small donation to charity to participate. There were some fantastic and imaginative costumes including doctors and nurses, vets, mad professors, a range of wildlife including butterflies, bees and ladybirds and even a scary skeleton!

In addition to the organised activities above, the children went outside in their classes to explore the nature trail, hunt for mini-beasts and investigate pond-life. Indoors they completed experiments, including creating gooey mixtures and cooking a variety of cakes and biscuits.

Mrs Hart, the Head of St Hugh’s School said: It’s been a really colourful, fun and educational week for us all!”

About St Hugh’s School

St Hugh’s School is an Independent Catholic Day School and Nursery for girls and boys aged 3 -11 years, located in the beautiful grounds of

St Edmund’s College. The school’s heritage and ethos are routed in the Catholic tradition of faith and living, but pupils of all faiths and denominations are welcomed and children attend from a variety of cultural backgrounds. For further details, please visit www.stedmundscollege.org