The Flagpole

Many thanks to all who have read through the Foundation Strategic Plan and even more thanks to those who sent through feedback – as promised, we have been in contact with all those who requested it. 
 
A number of parents asked for more details on our sustainability plans – an outline of our strategy and progress will be published on our website before the end of this month and this should give you a really good insight to what we are currently doing and what we are aiming to achieve in the future. 
 
There were also some queries about our plans to develop more non-fee income streams to help support the education of our pupils. Our excellent new Commercial Enterprises Manager, Gemma Cullinane, has prepared a short survey to gather your ideas about activities you, your families or friends may be interested in, ranging from Holiday Clubs, to adult evening classes, to weddings. It would be really useful for us if you could fill this in for us by Monday 26 February. Click here to find out more and go to the online survey.
 
As I’m sure you are aware, 2024 is almost certainly going to be a General Election year. We have been in contact with the MPs and prospective MPs from the main political parties in all the constituencies where our Foundation families live and I have had face-to-face meetings with a good number of these. These meetings have been very useful in ensuring that the people who will potentially be representing us in Parliament have a good knowledge and understanding of our schools, our ethos and the key role we play in supporting families in the local community. I’m sure there will be plenty more to say about the election in the future. 
 
If there is any further feedback on the Strategic Plan or related queries please do send them through using this link. 
 
Very best wishes, I hope you have a good Half Term break, 
 
Ed Hester

Princethorpe College Upper Sixth Former and Academic Prefect, Joseph Newborough, is thrilled to have received an offer to read Maths and Physics at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, comments, “Joseph has earned this success. Applying to Oxbridge is a character-testing experience. The process is very competitive, with students facing pre-tests, intensive scrutiny of their academic and personal achievements and rigorous interviews. This is excellent news for him.”

There is good news for the Upper Sixth across the board this year, with the College pleased to support 115 applications through UCAS. Many students applied early and are now reaping the benefits with 32 having already received decisions from all five of their university choices.

Ben Collie, continues, “Applications for medical courses are also progressing well, with interviews completed and two students now waiting on decisions, and the apprenticeship interview season is just about to kick off. Our Upper Sixth have exciting plans for the future, whether that be studying at university, undertaking internships or apprenticeships, working or taking gap years and we are delighted to support them all towards their next steps.”

We look forward to sharing more good news in due course.

As part of the Foundation's new Strategic Plan, Gemma Cullinane, our recently appointed Commercial Enterprises Manager, has been tasked with identifying potential additional income streams, with a particular focus on optimising our facilities, through events and activities outside of the school day. This additional income will be invested back into our schools to further enhance our educational provision.

A key part of the process is market research and Gemma is currently investigating the sorts of events, activities and opportunities that might appeal and would like to hear the views of the Princethorpe community.

Comments Gemma, "We are looking at a variety of exciting options. In the last parental survey there was a lot of interest in holiday camps, so I am keen to explore that further, other areas we might pursue include leisure activities for adults and children, larger scale events and private events and celebrations. I am really interested to hear from Princethorpe families, as your input will be vital in helping us shape our plans." 

Please follow this link to a short online questionnaire and have your say by Monday 26 February.

Many congratulations to the Boys 1st XI Football team on an excellent Quarter Final 1-0 win in the Independent Schools Football Association’s U18 Trophy. Having overcome University College School on penalties in a nail biting first round match, the team then beat Abingdon School 4-1 in the second round to qualify for the Quarter Final.

On Tuesday 30 January, they hosted Berkhamsted School at home in an evenly matched cup game. Both teams had good spells of possession but Princethorpe’s winning goal came just after half time when Joe Bird scored from a free kick. Joel Nicoll came close when he hit the bar from a header but the score remained at 1-0 until the final whistle.

A fantastic gritty effort from the boys means that the team have now reached the semi-finals. A huge well done to them all!

Princethorpe College sent a team of Lower Sixth and Year 10 pupils to Stowe School on Saturday 3 February to compete in the Young Citizen's Independent School's Mock Trial competition.

Competing against schools from around the country, Princethorpe’s pupils performed superbly taking on the roles of criminal barristers, court clerk, usher, witnesses and jurors in a criminal trial simulation against opposing school teams. Their performance was judged by experienced judges from the legal profession.

In what was a tight competition the team grew in confidence as the competition progressed and proved their capability by finishing in second place. They should be very proud of their efforts on the day and for all the hard work they put in preparing for the event.

Our College production of Loserville was magnificent. The Clarkson Theatre was filled full of energetic rock songs as audiences were transported back to America in the 1970s.

Loserville tells the story of unlikely hero Michael Dork and his closest friends, a group of socially awkward boys, struggling through High School and constantly thwarted by popular and privileged school quarterback, Eddie Arch and his cronies. Michael is trying to invent email, Lucas is writing his first Sci-Fi novel (Galaxy Battles; Episode 4) and Marvin and Francis spend all their time building a space ship from a shopping trolley. Then one day, a new girl arrives at the school. Holly is intelligent, funny and harbours a desire to become NASA’s first woman in space. Her sudden arrival throws everyone’s world into turmoil.

Loserville was filled full off brilliant and energetic rock songs by James Bourne of Busted and for five performances we joined our talented Musical Theatre Group on an exciting, if at times bumpy, ride to see our heroes got their 'Ticket Outta Loseville'.

It was spectacular show, full of vibrant energy and enthusiasm and we are all humming along to the songs after what was a most entertaining and enjoyable performance.

Congratulations to everyone involved, on stage and behind the scenes and especially to the Directors, Mr Cowlishaw and Ms Newborough. We just can't wait to find out what their plans are for next year!

After a very early departure from Princethorpe College, 21 Sixth Form students flew to Geneva on Friday 26 January on a mission to visit CERN.

The students summarised their trip for the Flagpole:

"Travelling light with a small backpack, our group led by Mrs Rose with support from Mr Lee spent the first day sightseeing on a self-guided walking tour, taking in the United Nations, Botanical Garden, Lake Geneva where the standard in stone skimming varied from novice to expert, the Science Museum that included a number of hands-on exhibits (comes highly recommended and free entry too!). Then after a few hours downtime at the Geneva Youth Hostel and a hot meal the day concluded with a walking tour of another section of the Lake that was lit up with over 30 installations as part of the Geneva Lux festival, including a variety of lights, lasers and music. From there we ventured into the old town where we explored the architecture laid out along cobbled streets. Day one clocked up 30,000 steps and 20km of distance covered.

The next morning the hostel breakfast set us up well for the day and we travelled by tram to CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research) and spent the morning on two tours, the first with a physicist Malik who explained what CERN was trying to achieve, how the particle detector worked and some of the successes such as the invention of the World Wide Web, particle accelerators that are used in medicine and the discovery of the Higgs Boson (an elusive subatomic particle that was predicted, but had not yet been detected). The second tour was to the Cryogenic Research Facility, where we were introduced to how the beams of charged particles were accelerated and steered around the 27km long ring which lies 100m below the city of Geneva, using extremely strong superconducting magnets achieved by supercooling them down to less than -271˚C (below 2 kelvin). The power required by the particle accelerator is equivalent to one third of that consumed by the entire city of Geneva, which we discovered means that experimentation can only be carried out in the warmer months as power is needed for heating over the winter.

A Warwick University PhD student met us for lunch in the refectory and talked to us about his research looking into the W and Z particles, giving an inside perspective on what it is like to work at CERN, some of the challenges he has faced and the excitement of being part of a continuously evolving experiment (a new 100km circumference accelerator is planned to discover even heavier particles in the future).

A second contact also gave us a brief idea of his job – piloting the beams of particles moving at 99.99999% the speed of light in opposite directions around the 27km ring tens of thousands of times per second in order to collide as many of them together as possible over a 24 hour period.

The CERN visit finished with 45 minutes in the brand new exhibition centre, which included a plethora of hands-on demonstrations and interactive sections which brought the physics behind the experiment alive.

A quick stop at Ikea on the way to the airport afforded ourgroup with a decent meal (Geneva was expensive!) and the opportunity to purchase large stuffed animals, before a smooth flight back to the UK and a precision arrival back at school at 11.00pm."

The physicists at CERN remarked on how engaged Princethorpe's Sixth Form students were and Mrs Rose and Mr Lee were certainly impressed with their positive attitude, organisation and willingness to participate.

More information about visiting CERN can be found here: Welcome | Visit CERN Science Gateway tours are free, but often need to be booked in advance.

Comments from the students included:

Oliver: I was fascinated by the CERN exhibition and guided tour, and was especially impressed by the fact that the large hadron collider is so long that it was built with tolerance to compress and expand by 18m in length due to difference in ambient and operational temperatures (a range of 300˚C!).

Alex: I enjoyed the CERN trip and I learnt a lot about the standard model and particle physics, which will help my studies in physics.

Louis: I really enjoyed the night life of Genève, walking past the very aesthetically pleasing buildings with large colourful branding and also the strange yet wonderful little artistic structures adorning the streets.

Many thanks to Melody Hossaini, Founder and CEO of InspirEngage International, for delivering a fascinating ‘Interview’ Masterclass on Monday 29 January to our Lower Sixth Form students.

Melody shared mindset techniques and top interview tips to help Princethorpe’s Sixth Formers prepare for their Interview Skills day. She stressed the importance of hunger, passion and charisma, reminding them that you get to the interview with what is written on your CV but it’s your personality and performance in the interview that is the key to success. She encouraged them to bring the best of themselves to the table.

She brought a wealth of expertise and enthusiasm to the discussion, creating an engaging and empowering atmosphere for our students and shared experiences and examples to bring her top tips to life, including the challenging interview process she went through to gain her place on the seventh series of the BBC’s The Apprentice.

Melody rounded off her inspirational talk by answering questions from her audience before sending the students on their way with her final advice ringing in their ears, “Don’t overthink, don’t worry, and most importantly, don’t waste it!” Sound interview advice indeed.

The latest issue of The Old Princethorpian, the Princethorpe Foundation’s termly e-newsletter for past pupils, staff and parents is out now. Click here to have a read.

Our newsletter aims to keep our alumni in touch with one another and news, developments and events across the Foundation.

The next event on the OP calendar is our Leamington Pub Meet which takes place on Friday 8 March at the Fox and Vivian in Leamington Spa. For more details of all our alumni events please visit Princethorpe Connect.

If you have any comments on the e-newsletter or news to share then please do get in touch, email oldprincethorpians@princethorpe.co.uk.

Individual red and white carnations have been distributed to classrooms across the College in readiness for Saint Valentine’s Day.

Over the last few weeks, Princethorpe’s Sixth Formers have been busy promoting a charity fundraiser in aid of the British Heart Foundation. Selling red carnations for that special someone and white carnations as a thank you to a great friend.

Led by Charity Prefects, Chloe and Grace, the College’s Cupids, have carefully prepared the flowers, delicately wrapping them and handwriting personal messages for the anonymous gifts.

This year, nearly 100 lucky recipients received a special delivery – we hope everyone enjoyed their St Valentine’s Day surprise.

CEO, Adam Shay and, Director of Technical Projects & Head of R&D, Dr Gracy Lebeau from RBT Global (Residual Barrier Technology) visited Princethorpe on Tuesday 23 and Tuesday 30 January to run a Biochemistry Workshop on the ‘Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases’ for 24 Year 10 pupils.

Mr Shay and Dr Lebeau provided an introduction to the concept of pathogens, infections and the control of them and then supported pupils in a practical lab experience where they ran agar plates to test the effectiveness of RBT's products, with successful results. The Year 10 pupils also worked through some business challenges, considering how to brand a new product they are bringing to the market.

RBT Global kindly offered to host two or three pupils for a site visit to the RBT lab and for work experience, with the pupils eager to take up the generous offer.

Many thanks to RBT Global for providing such a fascinating experience for our pupils.

The College’s Cross Country runners travelled to Coventry War Memorial Park on Wednesday 31 January to compete for the first time in the King Henry VIII School Relay Race, a national event, recognised as one of the largest schools’ cross country relays in England, attracting specialists from across the country.

The Relay races are for teams of four girls and six boys, with each athlete running 2.3 miles. There are no age groups so it was just the top cross country runners from across the school.

Both teams had a really good outing on what was in places a crowded, muddy course. The Girls finished 11th overall out of 28 teams while the boys placed 28th out of 56, both excellent results for their first time.

For the Girls, Lily Huter ran first and finished the course in 14.58 placing her 24th overall. Natasha Evans was second out and ran her leg in 17.06, then came Jess Evans who delivered a steady 15.51 with Grace Darcy completing the Girls’ team powering home in 14.32 to finish 13th overall.

Not to be outdone, the Boys team were able to compete with the best teams. Felix Batty ran first running a super 12.46 for individual 66th place. Next was Will Harrison in 14.02, Charlie Atkins, 13.42, Will Smith, 14.11 and Guy Dawkins, 15.47. Ben Smith ran the final leg finishing fast in 12.54, to take 76th place. 

Congratulations to all the runners for an excellent day of racing at an exciting new event.

Some photos courtesy of King Henry VII School.

On Monday 29 January, A-level English Literature students joined other A-level classes around the country for a conference organised by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust on the playwright’s tragedy Othello.

The week before, students listened to a pre-recorded talk and two extract analyses before joining experts and other schools live online. Students were able to put their questions to Shakespeare experts, Dr Darren Freebury-Jones and Dr Nick Walton, and discover what other students wanted to know about the set-text.

Our students thoroughly enjoyed the event and the ideas discussed certainly enriched their appreciation of the play.

More were the victors in the College’s annual House University Challenge competition, after achieving a super score of 245 across their three matches.

University Challenge is a regular House event, based on the long running TV quiz show. In the College’s competition the teams are required to have representatives from each year group and the pupils face questions on a wide range of subjects including Literature, Sport, Science, History, Maths, Art, Film, Technology, Music and Religion. Across two weeks the House teams faced each other in turn in front of an audience of Tutor groups.

Quizmaster for the competition was House Activities Leader, Meg O’Gorman, who enjoyed asking the infamous starter for 10 and follow up bonus questions.

Playing for More this year were: Year 7 pupils: Austin Newbold and Sofia Papadogiannakis, Year 8s: Oliver Quinn and Harry Ratchford, Year 9s: Elwin Williams and Jacob George, Year 10s: Abbas Hazra-Omer and Jonjo Boyle, Year 11s: Jack Mills and Dylan Willliams, Lower Sixth Formers: Giorgio Kleinmann, Toby Wollaston and Abi Gillard and Upper Sixth Formers: George Wild and Joseph Newborough

After the final match Miss O’Gorman commented, “Thank you to all of the pupils who participated in this year’s competition. It is very different being on stage to when you are in the audience or watching at home. The questions were challenging, and the matches were all exciting. Well done to everyone who took part.”

The final results were as follows: 1st More, 2nd Fisher, 3rd Austin and 4th Benet.

Princethorpe’s runners had an excellent outing at the Midlands Regional ISA Cross Country at Bedstone College on Wednesday 24 January. Princethorpe traditionally does well at this event and once again there were lots of top 10 finishes for the College.

For the U16 Girls, Lily Hunter put in a strong performance for Princethorpe and came storming home to finish in 1st place overall. The U16 Boys also ran well with Charlie Atkins finishing 5th, Jesse Esler hot on his heels in 6th, Soren Wasley 11th and Mark Message 13th.

In the U14 Girls race Issey Cleary had a good run to finish 4th with Marley Adnitt 10th and Rosa Davis just behind in 12th. For the U14 Boys Will Smith ran well to finish in 2nd place with James Bostock just behind in 3rd and Max Kiely finishing 16th.

Then in the U12 Girls race Esme Card was first across the line for Princethorpe in 4th place closely followed by Ellie Gane in 9th and Grace Crowfoot in 14th while in the U12 Boys race Rufus Jones came 2nd and Austin Higham 14th.

Overall, the Junior Boys and Inter Boys teams took first place while the Junior Girls, Minor Girls and Minor Boys teams placed second.

Head of Outdoor Education and PE Teacher, Will Bower, said, “The rough rural terrain at Bedstone College makes it one of our favourite cross-country events. As usual there were lots of excellent performances and it was great to see the teams do so well. Many congratulations to all who took part.”

The National Championships take place at Worksop College on Saturday 2 March.  All those who finished top 10 will be selected for the Midlands Team.  Sixth Formers are also eligible to run in the National event.

109 Sixth Formers, 22 professionals and one day, Tuesday 30 January, came together to make a very successful Sixth Form Interview Skills Day. Designed to perfect their interview technique, sharpen communication skills, presentational qualities and the ability to respond to feedback, during the day the College's Lower Sixth students each took part in a formal interview. Taking the role of interviewer were senior professionals from a variety of different business backgrounds. All were past or present parents, or friends of the College, with years of interviewing experience out in the working world.

In readiness for their one-to-one interviews, students had submitted their curriculum vitaes to be scrutinised beforehand. Exactly like in a real interview these documents formed the basis of questions that were discussed. Then at the end of the interview the professionals provided valuable feedback with constructive suggestions for improvement.

Feedback was very positive with many of the interviewers commenting on how impressed they were with the College's Lower Sixth students, and the students equally delighted and impressed with the suggestions and support received.

Head of Careers, Jacqui Quinney, commented, “Our Lower Sixth were encouraged to prepare well for these interviews. Our aim was to provide them with a head start in developing their interview technique. It was an extremely important day for them all as they face the looming reality of university and workplace interviews. The skills practised today will benefit all of our students and we are immensely grateful to all of the volunteer interviewers who have given up their time to help us today.”

Year 5 and Year 6 pupils from local primary schools enjoyed an introduction to the sport of Rugby when they took part in Princethorpe's Try Tag Rugby event. The after-school session took place on Friday 26 January and was organised by the College's PE team on a cold but dry all-weather pitch.

Working in small groups, with Sixth Form students and PE staff, the children started with some fun warm up activities. They then enjoyed skill building drills before finishing with a mini game played in front of an enthusiastic crowd of parents. Of course, after all that energetic fun the youngsters were sent on their way clutching certificates and a legendary Princethorpe cookie.

The successful workshop was just one of a series of activities and opportunities the College organises for prospective pupils to introduce and familiarise youngsters with the school. Next up on the sporting front is Princethorpe’s High 5 Netball Tournament for local primary schools on Tuesday 5 March.

Our Lower Sixth Geographers very much enjoyed their residential field trip last week. They visited the excellent Cranedale Centre at Kirby Grindalythe near Malton, in Yorkshire, from Tuesday 23 to Friday 26 January to conduct field studies on costal places, including measuring beach profiles, as well as exercises in planning and carrying out small scale projects and investigating housing and land use, all important for their A-level studies.

In addition to working in and around the Field Centre, they visited Flamborough Head, the Holderness Coast and Scarborough Town. The weather had its moments but everyone wrapped up well and worked hard to collect and analyse their data. As always, the trip was an invaluable learning experience that will assist them all in completing their important NEA coursework.

To mark National Storytelling Week, Princethorpe College pupils were delighted to share the wonder of stories with pupils at local primary school, Our Lady's Primary School, Princethorpe.

On Monday 29 January, Year 5 and 6 pupils visited the College Library to hear pupils from the College’s Book Club read them a story. Year 8 pupils Dami, Lauren and Isaac read Anne Frank, A Retelling. While reading the story they also asked questions to engage and support the younger pupils in understanding the story.

Then on Tuesday 30 January, Years 3 and 4 were welcomed to the College for another story telling session. Year 8 pupils, Liv and Cora and Year 7 Scarlett shared two books with the youngsters, Small In The City and If All The World Were.

To round off the week on Friday 2 February, four pupils, Year 10s, Megan and Jess, Year 8, Dami and, Year7, Scarlett were excited to go down to Our Lady’s to read to their Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 children. They shared The Magic Paintbrush by Julia Donaldson and If All The World Were by Joseph Coelho.

Year 8 Dami commented, “We were warmly welcomed by both classes we visited, and they were a fantastic audience. We read the Reception class the story of The Magic Paintbrush, while we read If All The World Were to the Year 1 and 2 class. I found it lovely looking at their excited little faces as we read them the stories, and they really engaged when we asked them about their favourite books. I think that the books themselves were incredible both with beautiful illustrations and powerful morals.”

Stories allow you to escape and imagine, they tell you about the world, allow you to step into someone else’s shoes and all while developing essential literacy skills. National Storytelling Week provided an amazing opportunity for Princethorpe’s story lovers to shine the spotlight on the magical power of stories.

Wednesday 21 February - 7.00pm to 8.30pm

Our first meeting of 2024 went off with a somewhat controversial start. Both novels we were reading, The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough and The Figurine by Victoria Hislop, had very mixed reviews. McCullough's novel of love and passion in the outback felt somewhat dated and was considered a novel that was one to remember with affection but kept firmly in the past. Hislop's latest offering was not considered her finest, with The Thorn being considered overly descriptive and unnecessarily long. What was the aim of the novel? We were not sure. The Figurine looked the part but that was about all.

And so on we go to the next pairing. We are not meeting until after half term and so we decided to go for two books once more, to keep everyone going. The first is Girl A, by Abigail Dean which looks to be a thriller with a psychological edge. It's a novel that has sat by my bed for a while now so I'm happy to be moving it into the 'reading' pile. We are also going to read the teen Sunday Times Bestseller, Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell. 

We meet on a Wednesday evening for a cuppa and a chat about all things bookish. If you fancy a change of scenery (especially as The Traitors has ended) please do come and join us. We love a fresh face. 

Friday 23 February 2024 - 6.45pm to 10.00pm

Join us for a night of good food, great company, and valuable insights into the future of farming.

Hear from two speakers:

• Jennie Wheildon: Unlock New Funding Opportunities and Plan for the Next Generation in Farming
• John Price (OP 2014): My Journey into Farming and Prospects for the Future of Farming

Don't miss this opportunity to connect with fellow farmers, enjoy delicious food and drinks, and gain valuable knowledge for the future of your farm.

Secure your spot here by Friday 16 February 2024.

Thursday 29 February - 4.00pm to 5.30pm

Our next English enrichment event will take place on Thursday 29 February, between 4.00pm and 5.30pm in the Sixth Form Lecture Theatre.

This time we will be looking at Journalism. Where can the study of English lead you? To a career in journalism perhaps?

Join us for a talk by Georgina Fuller, a freelance journalist, editor and media consultant with over 20 years' experience. Georgina has had bylines in papers such as The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian and The Times, and has appeared on Channel 5, ITV, Radio 5 and Radio 2. She will explore the importance of investigative journalism, coming up with ideas, writing for the web versus print, researching articles and finding case studies.

All welcome!

Helen Pascoe-Williams
Head of English

Tuesday 5 March - 4.30-6.30pm

We warmly welcome you to an informal evening of drama presented by our KS4 and KS5 Drama and Theatre Studies pupils. Our pupils will present a mix of devised and scripted pieces from a range of plays and theatrical styles.

They would really welcome your feedback in the final stage of their rehearsals.

We encourage Year 9's who are opting for Drama at GCSE to attend this event.

Please note that this evening is recommended for 14+ as there are themes of violence and strong language.

Tickets are not required for this event, but to help us cater efficiently please reserve places by clicking here to book through My School Portal, no later than Friday 1 March.

Thursday 7 March 2024

Thursday 7 March is World Book Day and our College will be celebrating everything books and reading. 

Reading for pleasure is so important, not just for the enjoyment of a good book but also it also helps to relax, inspire, escape and also brings a new confidence in literacy and comprehension. We learn so much from reading books, without even realising it.

We are excited to announce that we have a week of events planned around World Book Day, please click here for further information.

As usual you will be able to use a WBD voucher to either claim your free £1 book from participating retailers or use for money off another book in store. This year the vouchers have been sent to us digitally, to download please click here. We do have some printed vouchers so pop into the library if you would prefer one of these. 

The library will also have a selection of the free World Book Day books that can be exchanged for a voucher, they will be offered on a first come, first serve basis during the World Book Day week.

There are lots of fun activities on the World Book Day website, just click the link below to join in the fun.

World Book Day

The Library Team

Friday 8 March 2024 - 6.00pm to 10.30pm

The OPs annual Local Meet takes place on Friday 8 March 2024. We are returning to Leamington Spa, but to a new venue, the upstairs function room of the Fox and Vivian on Clarendon Avenue.

Our local meets are usually very popular, so we are hoping for a really good turnout of OPs from across the decades to attend, plus a few former members of staff.

There will be the customary welcome drink or two and the OPs Commitee will be laying on some delicious food, so do let us know if you would like to attend by clicking here by Friday 1 March.

Alumni of all our Foundation schools and partners and friends are most welcome. We look forward to seeing you there!

Saturday 9 March - 10.30am to 12.30pm

Crackley Hall School and Little Crackers Nursery, are holding an Open Morning on Saturday 9 March. Come and find out why Crackley Hall School has been judged 'Excellent' in all areas by the Independent Schools Inspectorate. It's a great opportunity for prospective families considering Crackley Hall School to come and have a look around and get a feel for the school. There will also be opportunities to speak to pupils, key members of staff and to meet Mr Duigan, Headmaster.

To find out more and to book your visit to Crackley Hall and Little Crackers Nursery visit our website here.

There are a number of opportunities to visit the school during the course of the year. We encourage prospective parents and pupils to visit us both formally and informally to get a true flavour of the school.

Most of our pupils enter at Nursery and Reception, though pupils are welcome at any age, dependent on a place being available.

Applications for places in the current Reception to Junior 6 are treated on an individual basis as places are limited. In years where there is no place available, we operate waiting groups. 

Little Crackers Nursery are now accepting registrations for September 2024 onwards. If your child is turning two, get in touch and come and take a look around our Nursery or come along to our friendly Stay 'n' Play Toddler Group on Wednesday mornings in term time. 

Saturday 16 March - 10.00am to 12.00pm

Crescent School, Princethorpe's prep school in Bilton, Rugby, will hold an Open Morning on Saturday 16 March. Come and find out why Crescent School has been judged 'Excellent' in all areas by the Independent Schools Inspectorate. It's a great opportunity for prospective families considering Crescent School to come and have a look around and get a feel for the school. There will also be opportunities to speak to pupils, key members of staff and to meet Mr Thackway, Headmaster.

To find out more and to book your visit to Crescent School visit our website here.

There are a number of opportunities to visit the school during the course of the year. We encourage prospective parents and pupils to visit us both formally and informally to get a true flavour of the school.

Most of our pupils enter at Reception and at Year 3, though pupils are welcome at any age, dependent on a place being available. The school is proving popular so parents are being encouraged to apply early for places in Reception. 

Applications for places in the current Reception to Year 6 are treated on an individual basis. We are currently operating waiting groups in most year groups. Please get in touch with our Registrar, Mrs Helen Morley, regarding our availability for September 2024. 

We are now taking registrations for September 2025 entry to Reception and Year 3. 

Saturday 16 March - 12.00pm to 2.30pm 

Princethorpe College will be hosting its first Arts Festival on Saturday 16 March from 12.00pm to 2.30pm. All are welcome for a celebration of the arts and performing arts at Princethorpe, with displays of art, drama, music and more.

Entry is free; however, we would appreciate if you would book a ticket in advance of the event. Please click here.

We hope to see you there!

Tuesday 19 March 2024 - 2.00pm to 4.00pm

To mark St Joseph's Day on Tuesday 19 March, Crackley Hall School is holding a St Joseph’s Day Mass.

We cordially invite all former St Joseph's and Crackley Hall pupils and former staff to join us. The Mass will take place from 2.00pm to 3.00pm and afterwards there will be light refreshments for visitors and an opportunity to tour the school.

All are most welcome so please do sign up for the event on Princethorpe Connect here.

More information will be shared with all those registered before the event takes place.

Tuesday 19 March 2024 - 7.30pm to 10.00pm

Mrs Margaret-Louise O'Keeffe, former Deputy Head - Pastoral at the College, is delighted to join us once again to delve into the life of Gustave Caillebotte: Impressionism’s Mystery Man.

Who knows Caillebotte? Where does he come from? In what school was he trained? No one has been able to tell me. All I know is that Caillebotte is one of the most original painters to have come forward in some time, and I am not afraid I shall compromise myself by predicting that he will be famous before long.

So wrote the critic, Marius Chaumelin, after first seeing Caillebotte’s striking works in the Impressionist Exhibition of 1876. The prediction was correct for Caillebotte did become famous, not just as an artist but as an indispensable organiser, financier and publicist of other Impressionist Exhibitions and then also as a  patron and collector. As a wealthy man who never needed to work thanks to his family’s fortune, Caillebotte kept most his paintings or donated them to friends and, ironically, this led to a long period of neglect when his dramatic cityscapes, portraits, still-lifes and landscapes were not on public view.

The dramatic purchase by the Art Institute of Chicago of his sensational Paris Street: Rainy Day in 1964 changed everything and led to a revaluation of his work. Before then, he was best known for the ultra-generous donation to the French state of major Impressionist works he had purchased, a donation which required his executors to negotiate patiently to persuade some intransigent officials to accept them.

This talk will illustrate the intriguing oeuvre of this unusual character, so aware of his own mortality, who died aged 45 in 1894.

Click here to book your place.

We were delighted to welcome Mrs Rachel Fox, our new Dance Teacher for September, to the College this week to speak to pupils about the new BTEC Dance course which will start in Year 10 next year.

Mrs Fox joins us from BOA, and is an experienced dance teacher and seasoned performer, with many credits to her name including performing at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics.

A recording of the event can be seen here and a copy of the subject information page can be accessed here.

The equipment required by pupils for all mathematics lessons are as follows:

Tutor Reports for Year 8 will be published today, Friday 9 February 2024, and will be available to view on My School Portal.  

Full reports for Year 10 will be published on Friday 23 February 2024 and will be available to view on My School Portal.

Wednesday 14 February will be celebrated by many people with tokens of love, flowers and Valentine cards.

It is also the day when Christians commence their 40 days of penance and fasting, as it is also this year the beginning of Lent. Awkward problem to be encountered if you are about to give up chocolates! The symbol of ashes in the form of a cross on the forehead of Christians on this day is a reminder that this earthly existence is but a preparation for the next life. Quoting from Genesis 3: 19 ‘For dust you are and on to dust you shall return’ is most definitely countercultural to the celebrations of Valentine’s Day. Is it a case of feasting or fasting? Or maybe, for the day that is in it, you can do a bit of both. Feasting the night before [Shrove Tuesday] and fasting thereafter! 

Our Lenten prayer from an unknown author challenges us to feast on all that makes us human and wholesome and to fast from our shortcomings.

The Fast Life:

Fast from judging others;
Feast on Christ dwelling in them.
Fast from fear of illness;
Feast on the healing power of God.
Fast from words that pollute;
Feast on speech that purifies.
Fast from discontent;
Feast on gratitude.
Fast from anger;
Feast on patience.
Fast from pessimism;
Feast on hope.
Fast from negatives;
Feast on encouragement.
Fast from bitterness;
Feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern;
Feast on compassion.
Fast from suspicion;
Feast on truth.
Fast from gossip;
Feast on purposeful silence.
Fast from problems that overwhelm;
Feast on prayer that sustains.
Fast from anxiety;
Feast on faith.

Amen
 
Fr Alan Whelan MSC and Mrs Mary Benham
 

Fr Teddy O'Brien MSC would like to invite you to participate in any or all of the services that will take place during the season of Lent.

Sunday 24 March    
Palm Sunday Mass               8.30am St Anne's, Wappenbury
                                         10.30am Princethorpe College

Thursday 28 March              
Maunday Thursday Mass      7.00pm Princethorpe College

Friday 29 March                
Good Friday Service             3.00pm Princethorpe College

Sunday 31 March - Easter Sunday           
First Mass of Easter              8.30am St Anne's, Wappenbury
Mass of the Day                   10.30am Princethorpe College

If you would like further information about St Anne's, Wappenbury please use the link here.

We will be celebrating Year Group Eucharist for Years 9 and 10 in the Lent Term 2023.

• Monday 26 February - Year 9 - 9.40am-10.30am
• Tuesday 27 February - Year 10 - 9.40am-10.30am

Family members are invited to join the relevant groups in the College Chapel and to stay afterwards for light refreshments.

Please use the main exterior Chapel entrance. Car parking will be clearly indicated.

If you would like to attend please click on the relevant year group above to confirm your attendance.

If have any queries please email Mrs Mary Benham, Chaplaincy Co-ordinator at marybenham@princethorpe.co.uk

We are delighted to invite our Year 11 pupils to the End of Year Celebration at Coombe Abbey on Friday 21 June 2024 from 7.00pm until 11.30pm. Tickets are now on sale, and we hope all our pupils will come to celebrate the end of their GCSE courses and exams before they make their transition to Sixth Form. 
 
If you haven't already done so could I ask you to please follow the link here to indicate if your child will be attending. This form also requires your permission and agreement to add the cost of £65 per person for this event to your next fee invoice together with any special dietary requirements for our pupils attending this celebration.

If you could complete this form by Friday 1 March 2024 it would be appreciated. 

Many thanks.

Beth Sharpe
Deputy Head - Pastoral

As we approach half term, we would like to share the latest health update with you. This is the season where various bugs and illnesses make an appearance and knowing what the guidance is helps us to manage pupils better when they feel under the weather.

In the interests of the health of the whole Princethorpe community, we ask that you be aware of the following guidance.

• If a pupil has sickness or diarrhoea, they must stay off school for 48 hours after the last episode.
• If a pupil is unwell and/or has a high temperature, please stay off school.
• Covid testing is no longer recommended, but if you choose to test and are positive, we ask that pupils stay off school for three days.
• In light of the Measles outbreak in the West Midlands, if you haven’t received two doses of the MMR vaccine, please consider booking an appointment for this with your GP.

On behalf of the medical team we wish you a happy and health half term break.

Paula Greig
Senior Matron

As the first Lent half term concludes, it's time to take stock of the accomplishments achieved by our Sixth Form students, especially during the Lower Sixth Interview Skills Day. This event marked a significant step forward in their preparation for the future, featuring practical activities and a talk from interview skills expert Melody Hossaini.

Lower Sixth Interview Skills Day: A Practical Approach to Preparation

The Lower Sixth Interview Skills Day was a success, with students actively participating in mock interviews to fine-tune their communication skills and receive valuable feedback. Workshops throughout the day covered essentials like resume building, effective self-presentation, and understanding body language during interviews. The focus was on practical skills to enhance performance in academic and professional settings.

Keynote Speaker: Melody Hossaini's Insightful Talk

A notable aspect was the talk by Melody Hossaini. Drawing on her expertise, she shared practical insights on topics such as authentic self-presentation and maintaining a positive mindset. Her talk resonated well with our students, providing not just tips but also motivation to approach challenges with confidence.

Parents, your children's commitment to developing these skills reflects their eagerness to succeed. As we wrap up the Lent half term, let's acknowledge and celebrate the strides our Sixth Formers have made, anticipating their continued growth in the upcoming term.

Wishing you a restful break. Please can I also remind students if they need to sign out of school I need an email from home to authorise this at least 24 hours in advance.

Key Dates

Wednesday 21 February - Pancake Races

Tuesday 12 March - Out of Darkness

Friday 22 March - Sixth Form Leadership Inauguration and Award Ceremony

Saturday 23 March - Prefect Training

Sunday 7 April - 40 Mile Walk 

Tuesday 2 July - Upper Sixth Leaver's Ball 

Ben Collie 
Head of Sixth Form 

Our PE and Games Department have created a helpful guide for pupils and parents ahead of the Lent Term 2023-24 which includes further information about: 

• Team coaches and how you may contact them
• Instructions on how to access the Sports homepage and teamsheets
• Information about fixtures, including selection and cancellations
• Sports kit expectations
• Postcodes for away fixtures 

Please click the link here to view the guide. 

If you have any questions, please direct them to your son/daughter's team coach, or email me at leecassell@princethorpe.co.uk.

Lee Cassell
Foundation Director of Sport 

The process of organising the return visit of our Dutch hosts from October 2023 is now well under way. We are looking forward to reciprocating the fantastic experience our pupils received during our four night stay with the players from Hopbel Hockey Club. The return dates are from Saturday 20 April through to Wednesday 24 April. These dates are at the start of the Trinity Term to allow all year groups to host if they wish and it is before the Year 11s get into their examination window.  

The girls and boys are a variety of ages, between 12 and 16. This may be of interest if your child would like to participate in the Holland visit in October 2024 (current Year 9 boys and girls), however this invitation is open to all families. In order to help, we are looking for families who can offer to host a pair (or more) of Dutch visitors and are willing to entertain and involve them in your family life for either all, or some, of the four nights, we can look at visitors moving between families and are happy to discuss this further. 

We will organise an itinerary of fixtures and activities during the school days and a BBQ for our guests with their host families on Sunday 21 April. We will let you know who the other host families are so that you can organise other events together if you wish. We will supply bus tickets for the Dutch visitors should these be required but they will need to be picked up after fixtures each day from College.

Due to the requisite safeguarding checks, all adults (members of the family over 18-years-old) within the household must hold an enhanced DBS certificate, to be sent for by the Princethorpe Foundation, even if they currently have a DBS certificate from another employer. If you are subscribed to the DBS Update Service, please do let us know. To allow plenty of time for the DBS certificates to be received before the tour, please do contact our Recruitment team here to book an appointment. The DBS check has to be done within the three months prior to the visit. It will only take 15 minutes per person to apply for the DBS certificates, and one person from the household can bring the documentation on behalf of everyone in the household. The recruitment team are available Monday to Friday from 8.00am until 5.00pm. If you have any questions, please do contact Claire Wildsmith or Suz Jeffery on 01926 634269 or by email here.  Please see the attached document entitled ‘Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks’ for the ID documentation required.

Many thanks for your continued support of Princethorpe Sport and we hope that you can continue this by hosting some Dutch guests in April. 

Our friendly PTA here at Princethorpe College are keen to welcome new members. 

By joining our PTA community, you are not committing to volunteer, but just to joining our community and if you do wish to volunteer you will receive emails when we require help to run our events.

For more information about the PTA and how to join please email ptassociation@princethorpe.co.uk or visit MySchoolPortal.

Princethorpe PTA

Please don’t forget that Princethorpe College PTA is registered with easyfundraising. 

When you shop via the easyfundraising website or app, with over 4,100 of your favourite retailers, including John Lewis & Partners, eBay, Amazon and many more, you will raise FREE donations for the school.  

If you’re not already registered, please visit our easyfundraising page here.

This will really make a difference to our school! Thank you for your support.

Whilst the DofE Presentation Evening has taken place, there is still time to complete your award and receive your badge and certificate.

Guidance can be found on a DofE Completion email sent to pupils and parents, and the advice documents are also available on MySchoolPortal. Lunchtime drop-in clinic takes place every Tuesday at 1.05pm in LG02.

Gold

Following our meeting please keep an eye on Teams as you will be added to a group and set an assignment to start off the expedition training.

The practice expedition meeting for all Lower Sixth Gold participants takes place on Tuesday 5 March at tutor time in the Sixth Form Lecture Theatre.

In the meantime, please check your expedition kit and get some training in to help you on the trip. You should also book your residential via the DofE opportunity finder: Opportunity Finder - participants - The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (dofe.org).

Silver

A few of you need to please complete your programme planners and get started on your volunteering, physical and skills sections.

The Practice Expedition Meeting for pupils takes place on Wednesday 28 February at tutor time in the Clarkson theatre.

Bronze

Please could I encourage pupils with questions about the scheme to attend DofE clinic every Tuesday at 1.05pm in LG02. Miss Harding and I are very keen to help all Year 9 pupils get started on their award.

Please continue logging your hours for the volunteering, physical and skills sections. The Practice Expedition Meeting for pupils takes place on Friday 1 March at tutor time in the Clarkson theatre.

It is always great to hear about our pupils' successes that take place outside of school; please do keep us updated if your son or daughter has won a competition, raised money for charity, is performing in a show or competing at a high level with a sporting team outside of school.

We would like to invite parents to submit this information to us via a nomination form by clicking here so we might celebrate these achievements in school too. The form will close on Wednesday 21 February. 

Neil McCollin
Assistant Head - Co-Curricular

It is always great to be able to share news of pupils' co-curricular successes outside of school.

Our College pupils had plenty of success at the recent Warwickshire Swimming Championships.

Year 9, Charlotte Gower, had brought home plenty of silverware. She won six Gold medals, three Silver and a Bronze and was awarded two trophies for being the fastest across all groups in the 100m Backstroke and 200m Backstroke.

Year 8, Issey Cleary, had a really successful event. She won both the 100m and 50m Breaststroke events with times faster than any U15 competitor making her Junior Champion for both events too. She was also up 1.5 seconds on her personal best in a very close race in the 50m Freestyle.

Year 7, Sam McCormick swam really well, achieving personal bests in every event in which he competed. He came away with a Gold, Silver and Bronze medals.

Then congratulations also go to Issac Fisher in Year 7 and Bobby Emmerson in Year 8 who have been selected for the Warwickshire Golf Union U14 squad. They join, and will now be playing alongside, fellow Princethorpe Year 9 pupil, Squad Captain Theo Clegg. The boys are enjoying their group training sessions and are looking forward to playing in competitive matches once the season starts.

A huge well done to all.

Educational and co-curricular visits have always been a major part of life at Princethorpe. These experiences for pupils enrich their lives, enhance their learning and develop their understanding and appreciation of the world around them. 

We would like to remind you of the provisional major trips plan as it currently stands (this does not include academic department day trips or Duke of Edinburgh's Award). Please click here for the planned school trips.

Please also ensure that you read the information about individual trips with care when they are released, in particular in relation to consent, cancellation and insurance.

Neil McCollin
Assistant Head, Co-Curricular

Monday 19 February - 6.15pm to 7.00pm

An on-line information evening for parents of pupils going on the Easter Ski Trip will take place on Monday 19 February at 6.15pm.

We do have a couple of places still available for this trip.  The dates of the trip are Saturday 23 to Saturday 30 March and the cost is £1,169.00.

If your child is interested please contact myself at jacquiquinney@princethorpe.co.uk, or Neil McCollin at neilmccollin@princethorpe.co.uk.

Jacqui Quinney
Head of Careers

As it is the time of year when there is the threat of snow, it might be helpful for everyone to be familiar with the arrangements should there be significant snowfall. Where possible and if it’s safe to do so, we always remain open, even if we have to end the school day earlier than usual.

Should there be bad weather overnight, we talk to the bus companies a little before 6.00am and they brief us about their ability to operate our services. The Headmaster then makes a decision about whether the school will open.

Information will be available via the channels detailed below:

The home page of the website www.princethorpe.co.uk will normally be updated shortly after 6.00am.

• We will also post on the College Twitter page @PrincethorpeCol and Facebook Page www.facebook.com/PrincethorpeCollege shortly after 6.00am.
• If there is likely to be disruption we will send text messages to parents’ mobiles and the mobiles of pupils who use the buses, usually by 6.30am. Please note that we are not able to receive text replies on this service. 

The Estates team will respond to the severe weather with appropriate actions in line with our policies to keep the site as safe as possible. This may result in areas being closed or restricted and normal operations being adapted. We kindly request your support in adhering to any restrictions and taking extreme care whilst on site. In the case of flooding, then www.environment-agency.gov.uk is also useful. If you look under Flood and then use the river search word Leam, that will give you a good idea of the conditions around Princethorpe and the surrounding villages.

Should we have to close during the course of the day we will send text messages to let you know the arrangements. In such circumstances we will publish regular updates on the website. Where possible, we will make sure that our main number 01926 634200 is staffed during our school office hours, from 8.00am to 5.00pm. 

Eddie Tolcher
Foundation Bursar

We would like to remind parents of some useful contact details.

To report a pupil absence please do so on My School Portal.

For other enquiries please use the email addresses below:

Bus related queries - princethorpe@vectare.co.uk

School Shop - uniform@princethorpe.co.uk

Medical Centre - pcmatrons@princethorpe.co.uk

School fees -  accounts@princethorpe.co.uk

General enquiries - post@princethorpe.co.uk

Lost property - lostproperty@princethorpe.co.uk

Wisepay catering - cashless@princethorpe.co.uk

Email addresses for members of teaching staff can be found on My School Portal.

Please note that half a term's notice is required if a pupil no longer needs to use the bus service provided by the school.

Parents wishing to give notice should contact Vectare by email princethorpe@vectare.co.uk.

Eddie Tolcher
Foundation Bursar

Please see below our current vacancy: 

Princethorpe Foundation

• Digital Transformation Leader

Princethorpe College

• Teacher of PE and Games
• Teacher of English
• Graduate Teaching Assistant
• Payroll Officer
• Minibus Driver

Crackley Hall School / Little Crackers

• Learning Support Assistant (Nursery)

Full details and how to apply are available via the following link: Join Us

Should you know anyone who might be interested in this post, please do share this information with them.