The Flagpole

The new Princethorpe College Prefect Body for 2023-2024 was formally inaugurated into office at an end of term ceremony, today, Friday 24 March. Parents of the new prefects were invited to College for a buffet lunch before the afternoon’s formal ceremony began.

Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, introduced the incoming prefects who were presented with their prefect badges by Grove du Toit, Headmaster. Outgoing Head of School, Pratheesh Prabakaran  formally handed over the keys of office on his and Freya Mills' behalf, to the incoming Heads of School, Natalya Elden and Izzy Wright.

The College extends warm thanks to the outgoing prefect body and to the subject ambassadors, they have given unstinting service this last year.

The 2023-2024 prefects smartly attired in their new uniform for the first time, spoke to the gathered audience of pupils about their hopes for their new roles. We wish them all well as they take up their duties.

The roles of office are as follows:

School Leaders
Natalya Elden
Izzy Wright

Deputy Leaders
Radley Evans
Tom Lomas
Connor Silvester
Alice Whittaker

Pastoral Prefects (incorporating House Pastoral Prefects)
Lily Cartildge
Amelie Hancock
Poppy James
Christopher Lock
Isy Williams

Austin House Captains
Jess Evans
Sophie Gray

Benet House Captains
Alex Leret
Molly McGrory

Fisher House Captains
Abigail Hewson
Alexander Matheson

More House Captains
Eloise Keil
Finn Osborn

Social Prefects
Emilia Case
Noah Kemp

Charity Prefects
Grace Isaacs
Chloe O’Carroll-Bailey

Academic Prefects
Lauren Bach
Amy Hogg
Joseph Newborough
Emma Sarkies
Natasha Thomas

Marketing and Communications Prefects
Toby Convey
Abby Long

Environment Prefect
George Wild

Arts Prefect
Dina Parmenter

Ethos Prefect
Zara Simpson

Games Prefects
Mary-Ellen Boyle
Darcey Heritage
Zak Johnson
Charlotte Lewington
Rahul Samra

Princethorpe College welcomed a capacity crowd of nearly 1,000 pupils, parents, staff and contributors to the College's sixth biennial Careers Fair on Saturday 18 March.

Nearly fifty speakers, including current and former parents and Old Princethorpians, gave their time to present on a wide variety of careers and professions. From Accountancy, Finance and Banking to Medicine and Midwifery, Engineering, Computing, Law, Architecture, Product Design, Fashion, Sports Careers, Police and the Armed Forces and even Teaching, individual presentations gave pupil attendees the chance to consider careers, research jobs, listen to advice and ask questions.

The morning included a keynote speech from guest speaker, freelance journalist and personal finance reporter, Old Princethorpian, Felicity Hannah. Felicity’s speech was full of inspiration and sound advice as well as a few tales from her time here at the College. She urged pupils to remember ‘there are no closed doors’ and to be ‘open to change’ as the world of work is changing and career choices evolving. She shared her personal experiences from her very first job while a student as a ‘Ghost Tour Guide’ to how her career progressed from copywriter to freelance journalist and radio presenter. She gave pupils her top tips for success, to network, ask advice, never stand still, be persistent, say thank you and to be the person who is remembered for all the right reasons. She finished by encouraging all to be open and embrace change as there is a world of opportunity out there.

Thanking Felicity, Headmaster, Grove du Toit, summed up with the hope that the Careers Fair would succeed in ‘getting pupils on the right track’ encouraging the attendees to spend a fruitful morning exploring careers, universities and life after the classroom.

Throughout the morning, Princethorpe’s Sixth Form Atrium served as an exhibition hub for universities from across the country such as Cardiff, Sheffield, Aberystwyth, Falmouth and nearer to home Warwick.

For many of the pupils, this was their first step on the career ladder, and it was a great opportunity to have a taste of some of the different sorts of career choices available.

Feedback has certainly been very positive with parents and pupils commenting on how useful and informative the event was.

We are immensely grateful to all the Old Princethorpians, parents, contributors and staff who supported the Careers Fair and to the Careers Team for their organisation of this important event.

Last week, Princethorpe College took part in British Science Week, a national celebration of Science run by the British Science Association. Pupils enjoyed entertaining and interesting activities designed to highlight the importance of Science and inspire and engage the next generation of scientists.

Pupils in Year’s 7 and 8 took on Biology, Chemistry and Physics challenges in their Science lessons, getting hands on with experiments to help them make connections. They enjoyed hazard planning volcanic eruptions, investigating and analysing barn owl pellets, and designing and making balloon-powered cars. It was fantastic, hands on, explosive fun.

Pupils in the lower school also took part in a national poster competition on the theme of ‘connections’ with the best entries submitted into the national competition. The winners in school were: Year 7 – Lucille Watts, Bohdan Nicholl and Ellie Maffey, Year 8 – Amelia Hunt, Millie Lammas and Amy Robinson and Year 9 – Amber Sandhu. Congratulations to them all.

Comments, Head of Science, Emma Cooper, "British Science Week really allowed us to shine a spotlight on Science and provide a platform to engage pupils."

The College is committed to providing the best science teaching and learning in the region, our new 10 laboratory, dedicated Science Centre is nearly complete and it will inspire generations of Princethorpe scientists for years to come.

This week, after school on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Upper Sixth Leavers took on staff teams in friendly hockey and netball matches. It was a great way to celebrate the students time at the College and to see just how good the coaching staff are.

The matches were much anticipated and as the teams limbered up, there was plenty of friendly banter but once they were out on the astro and courts everyone was after a win. Staff from across the school took part including Mr du Toit as well as Games legends Mr McCollin, Mr Cassell, Mr Jackson and Miss Law.

The matches were all great fun, played with fabulous competitive spirit and a great atmosphere amongst the supporters courtside. Well done to all the participants, the Upper Sixth leavers came away with a resounding 5-1 victory in the hockey, the staff A team just edged the netball 20-19 while the staff B team went down 15-10.

We look forward to welcoming our Leavers back for more friendly competitive sport at our OP vs College Sports Day which will take place this year on Saturday 2 September.

On Tuesday 21 March, pupils from Year 7-13 performed Out Of Darkness, a reflection on the Stations of the Cross. The performance took place in Our Lady Of The Angels Chapel and included meditations through reflections, mime, music and song.

The Stations of the Cross is a devotional commemoration of Jesus Christ’s journey from the moment of his condemnation by Pontius Pilate to his death and burial. The 14 stations, focus on specific events of his last day. The journey from station to station is often considered as a mini pilgrimage, and at each station there is the opportunity to reflect and meditate.

The reflections and prayers used in the production were based on the words of Fr Slavko Barbaric who for many years served as parish priest in Medjugorje, Bosnia Hercegovina, a place of pilgrimage and devotion to Mary, Queen of Peace. The final part of the presentation had the actors standing with lit candles while the choir sang Because He Lives, by Matt Maher, a song which speaks of the light of the resurrection.

Feedback on the performance included: 'The music was really stunning', 'I loved the simplicity of the frieze technique to portray each station - really powerful' and ‘thank you for such a moving evening of reflections, everything was so beautifully done’.

A collection was taken for Aid to the Church in Need for their work supporting refugees and Christians facing persecution and for the Friends of the Holy Land for their work supporting Christians in the lands of the Bible and we were delighted that Teresa Kehoe and Peter Rand were there to represent each charity and for the donations given towards each of these great causes.

A huge well done to all the performers and to the backstage crew on a really moving and thought provoking production.

Huge congratulations to Princethorpe’s equestrian team who have finished first overall in the Bloxham School Arena Eventer Challenge Championships. The eventers and their hard-working support crew of parents have been competing all winter and have been extremely successful.

Our 90cm team finished first overall and are now reigning champions for the second year running, an amazing result against some really experienced school teams. Well done to the riders on the day, Year 11s, Harriet Boyd and Sammie Borland and, Year 9, Rosie Moreton.

The championship saw scores from the day added to points earnt over the series to determine the final placings for the league. Thank you to all of the competitors that have managed even one outing this year, riding for their school. We are really proud of all their achievements but also and more importantly their sportsmanship as the winter weather requires real dedication to keep horses fit and in training.

It’s a fantastic finish to the season and it is all looking promising for Princethorpe’s inter-school two-day event on our home turf in May.

We had a great turn out of OPs, current and former members of staff at the Leamington Pub Meet on Friday 10 March. 

There were OPs from the 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s and 10s in attendance, along with Princethorpe legends, Mr Darkes, Mr Griffin, Mr Hester, Mr McCullough, Mrs McCullough, Mr McCollin, Mr Moroney, Mr Price and Mr White. It was also a great opportunity for the OPs to meet new Headmaster, Mr du Toit.

The meet, at The Royal Pug, was a jovial evening for all concerned, catching up and swapping stories over a delicious spread and a drink or two.

Comments OP Chairman, Peter Rollason, "Our local meets are always popular and attract a good crowd. These events really are the lifeblood of the association, cementing existing friendships and forging new ones."

The next event in the OPs calendar is the Science Centre Preview and Brunch at the College on Saturday 13 May. Former parents, staff and past pupils are most welcome. For more information and to sign up visit connect.princethorpe.co.uk

As the Lent term draws to a close it was time once again to recognise and celebrate the many pupils who have risen to the challenge of the College’s ethos.

At lunchtime, on Monday 13 March, Assistant Head Co-curricular, Neil McCollin, invited 85 pupils from across the College to a celebratory buffet lunch. All had been nominated by their teachers; some had excelled or showed commitment to sport, performing arts, co-curricular or charity work, whilst others had gone over and above in their academic studies. All were an outstanding example for their peers.

Headmaster, Grove du Toit thanked each and every one of them, recognising the commitment and effort they put in and all that they do to enrich school life.

This term the College congratulated:

From Year 7: Issey Cleary, Katie Dodd, Ellie Hughes, Evie Johnson, Grace Johnson, John Owen, Elena Raiseborough, Lucas Ross, Ro Somerset and Eve Worthington

From Year 8: Betsy Burgess, Noah Cowlishaw, Harry Messenger, Isaac Nelson, Jasper Nicholls, Louis Reynolds, Clea Roach, Amy Robinson, William Smith and Darcey Wolsey

From Year 9: Joshua Baker, Kathryn Flegg, Henry Fox, Sophie Gambling, Sophie Henry, Conor Horan, Lily Hunter, Annabel Leigh, Grace McCollin, Daniel Ovens Gibbs, Annabelle Ritson, Zach Rose, Jess Sarkies, Annabel Slinger, Hunter Staveley, Dan Tomlinson, Bella Ward and James Wright

From Year 10: Lucy Basford, Adam Chambers, Amelia Du Toit, Jesse Esler, Martha Harris, Zach Hawkins, Ignacy Librowski, Evie Marston, Olivia Monk, Matilda Palmer and Cara Ridd

From Year 11: Felix Batty, Sammie Borland, Raul Camargo Jones, Alastair Clifford, Ollie Farquharson, Ava Farren, Jack Fleming, Freddie Hadley, Ollie Hutton, Ida Kelley, Joel Nicoll, Kate Pomerleau, Harriet Sharpe, Emily Slinger, Ben Smith, Jemima Teeton, Matty Thomas and Sam Verity

From Lower Sixth: Lauren Bach, Toby Convey, Grace Darcy, Jess Evans, Tom Lomas, Joseph Newborough, Chloe O'Carroll-Bailey, Emma Sarkies, Zara Simpson, Natasha Thomas and George Wild

From Upper Sixth: Joshua Apaya, William Gibson-Sexton, Keira MacRae, Oscar Page, Wilf Sansum, Edward Sharpe and Emma Thomas

This term the written Year 11 Intermediate Physics Challenge fell during the February mock examinations, but four brave pupils went above and beyond and managed to fit the paper in during a day that already included a morning and afternoon exam.

The Intermediate Physics Challenge is organised by the British Physics Olympiad. It is a challenging paper that goes well beyond the standard curriculum and is a valuable enrichment experience for pupils. This year 6,000 pupils from 300 schools worldwide took part.

Head of Physics, Dan Lee, was pleased with the results commenting, “The Physics Challenges encourage participants to approach problems with an open mind, taking the principles of Physics and applying their learning to the real world. Our pupils all did very well.”

Jack Dando was awarded a Bronze 1 certificate, Louise Gambling and Thomas Smith received a Bronze 2 certificate and David Ikuomola received a Commendation. Congratulations to them all.

The Year 10 Junior Online Physics Challenge is coming up next term, it offers the first opportunity for younger pupils to take part in an accessible general (physics) knowledge challenge.

On Saturday 18 March, eight Princethorpe College runners competed for Warwickshire against hundreds of runners in the English Schools National Cross Country Championships at Wollaton Park, Nottingham. Competing against the best school athletes from across the country on a fast, undulating and muddy course, the pupils all ran superbly for the county team.

Representing Warwickshire from Princethorpe were Grace Darcy in the U18 Senior Girls, Ben Smith, Felix Batty and Jesse Esler in U16 Inter Boys, Evie Marston, Ava Farren and Kate Pomerleau in the U16 Inter Girls and Lily Hunter in the U14 Junior Girls took part.

A huge well done to them all. It was a fantastic effort at a prestigious event!

This week some of the Science staff had the chance to visit Princethorpe’s Science Centre. In a matter of months, they will be teaching in the building, so it was a great opportunity for them to get a feel for the new facilities and to see how the construction work is progressing.

Head of Science, Emma Cooper, Head of Biology, Catherine Warne and Science Teacher, Faye Roberts were taken on a tour of the new building by Foundation Assistant Head and Project Manager, Alex Darkes, and Trendgrey Site Agent, Kevin Wynne. They were joined on their tour by Foundation Principal, Ed Hester and parent, Rowland Johnson.

They explored the new laboratories, preparation areas, breakout and study spaces across both floors and were impressed by the size of the spacious new laboratories.

Work is progressing well on site, aided by the milder spring weather. Wall and floor tiling is well underway and in the laboratories the focus is on getting the vinyl flooring down ready for the laboratory fit out. That starts at the beginning of April and will take eight weeks. Outside, and prior to the exam season, landscaping work has commenced.

The Science Centre is on schedule to open its doors for teaching in September 2023, it will have 1,800sqm of floor space and 10 laboratories spread over two floors.

We are looking forward to offering more opportunities for pupils and staff to see the new building during the Trinity Term.

On Monday 20 March, Lord Kennedy of Southwark gave a presentation via Teams to our A-Level Politics students.

Lord Kennedy is a British Labour and Co-operative politician and life peer serving as Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Lords since 2021. He explained a little about himself, his role, and how the House of Lords is structured. He then opened the floor to the students who could ask him questions. Some of the questions included asking him about the most recent policies he has been involved with and what the difference between his role is between the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Thanks to the History and Politics Department for organising this fantastic insight into UK politics.

On Saturday 11 March, the College welcomed donors to our Science+ Campaign into school for a special preview of the new Science Centre. The event was a great success, with attendees coming away impressed and excited about the future of science education at Princethorpe College.

The Science Centre is an ambitious project that aims to provide pupils with state-of-the-art facilities for science learning. The new building will feature advanced laboratories and cutting-edge technology that will bring science to life for pupils of all ages.

During the event, donors were given a tour of the building site and shown the progress that has been made so far.

Many of the attendees were amazed by the scope and ambition of the project and shared their enthusiasm and pleasure at the prospect of seeing the Science Centre completed. Some even expressed a desire to donate further to the project, recognising the important role that science education plays in our society.

Steve Kowal, Development Director commented “The event was a great success, and we are grateful to all our donors for their support in making the new Science Centre a reality. We look forward to seeing the project continue to take shape and to welcoming pupils into the new facilities.”

If you would like to know more about how you can support the Science+ Campaign, please contact our Development Director at stevekowal@princethorpe.co.uk.

The U13 Netball Girls have had a busy term of netball and made excellent progress. Having qualified for the ISA Nationals in the local Midlands tournament earlier in the term, yesterday they travelled to Kings High as one of 28 teams taking part in the Nationals.

The girls had a great start and flew through the group stage, playing with control, patience and passion they won all four matches, 7-4 vs New Hall, 10-5 vs Akeley Wood, 10-6 vs Boundary Oak and then 9-7 vs Scarsbrick. They topped their group and were delighted to qualify for the final four of the Cup competition.  

The afternoon matches proved to be much more of a challenge and despite their determination the girls lost the semi-finals to Thomas Battersea. This put them into the Bronze Medal play off. Their final match was a nail-biting game where the girls gave their all but unfortunately in the final few minutes, play went against them and they lost 2-4. 

Team coach, Hannah Carminati, said "We could not be prouder of how hard these girls have worked this season, they played incredibly well and have come on leaps and bounds since the start of the year. They should be proud of finishing fourth out of 28 schools in the ISA Nationals."

Playing for Princethorpe were: Anabel Davis, Rosa Davis, Lola Esler, Faith Katanda, Clea Roach, Amy Robinson, Hattie Sarkies, Georgie Sowter, Lily Tomkinson and Darcey Wolsey.