News

Princethorpe College – What’s It All About? The Big Reveal

"Princethorpe College - What's It All About?" That’s the question followers of the College on social media have been seeing every day over the course of the last week.

The cryptic message along with a teaser video and photographs has repeatedly posed the question in a countdown to the big reveal today, Friday 14 September at 4.00pm, when the new College film will be premiered.

The film, produced by the Foundation Marketing Team and award-winning Affixxius Films, was shot over the Lent and Trinity Terms and aims to communicate the all-embracing nature of Princethorpe, the wealth of opportunities on offer and the individuals who make up our community. It also celebrates the College's beautiful setting.

The launch has been timed to coincide with the College's admissions for 2019 and the lead up to entrance exams in November.

Thanks to all the pupils and staff who helped and took part in the film - what stars you are!

Roll out the red carpet, grab your popcorn, sit back and view the film here. We'd love you to like and share it on social media, hope you enjoy it! #princethorpeandme

 

Costa Rica Proved An Amazing Central American Adventure

Over the summer, 70 Princethorpe pupils took part in an amazing adventure, a four-week life changing experience, which they will simply never forget.  The pupils travelled to Costa Rica with Camps International where they worked on community and conservation projects.  Immersed into a completely different culture, they lived and work alongside the local population.  They had no choice but to buckle down and get on with some serious grafting and in so doing they gained independence, learnt a lot about themselves and this diverse and fascinating Central American country.  It was for all a once in a lifetime trip.

Split into two groups the now Lower and Upper Sixth pupils followed similar itineraries at five different locations.  In the south of Costa Rica at Camp Terraba they worked on community projects that included improving sanitation and building a community kitchen.  One of the accompanying staff, Charlotte Verleure commented, “In just three days the students excavated an enormous pit 8m3 in size, the local community told us they had never seen anything like it.”  But the students also had time off to explore the area and enjoyed a riverboat ride to see the wetlands.  At Camp Guanacaste, in the heart of the protected Caňo Negro Forest Reserve, the pupils helped make beehives, painted park benches and played football with the local children.

At Camp Pacuare, on the Caribbean coast, it was very wet as it rained non-stop for days.  There, their work included environmental projects with beach cleans and work recording turtle hatchlings size and weight.  Then, all of the pupils also spent a day in Monteverde where they explored the local coffee, sugar and chocolate industries. They enjoyed taste testing the organic chocolate and helping to make sugar cane juice on their plantation tours. Finally, all the pupils took part in a PADI Open water Scuba Course at Camp Playa Panama on the Pacific coast and put their new skills to good use helping with the construction of an artificial reef in the ocean.

Trip Leader, Faye Roberts, commented, “All the pupils worked hard and I mean hard.  The projects were mostly tough manual labour but aside from the donkey-work there was time for fun.  Football at the community pitch, cooling off at the beach after a day of hard work or simply making friends with the local children at the park.  They enjoyed many bonfire nights at the different camps sharing sweets and resting after long days at work.  Our pupils gained so much from the trip, many visibly matured and we are so proud of them all.” 

Reflecting on their trip of a life time Fenton Woolf, Juliette Carter, Leah Dunkley and Ryan Warwick commented, “It’s a cliché but it was a once in a lifetime trip.  The work was physical, a lot harder than expected, but it was immensely rewarding to see the projects completed, to know that we had helped build a kitchen for the community and helped provide beehives so they could run their own honey business.  Our Spanish improved and we had fun teaching the children traditional English playground games.  Seeing the wildlife was incredible.  We would very much love to return to Costa Rica when are older.”

These experiences could of course never happen without the commitment of College staff and our grateful thanks go to Faye Roberts, Karen Bannister, Toby Harper-Lawrence, Gavin Rooney, Jan Ryalls, Charlotte Verleure and Will Uglow who accompanied the pupils on their adventure.

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Countdown To Entrance Exams For 2019 Entry Underway

With just eight weeks to go the countdown to the College's Entrance Exams for admission in September 2019 has well and truly begun. This year the exams for Year 7 to 10 entry will take place on Saturday 10 November from 9.30am to 3.30pm.

Our friendly Admissions Team has been kept busy over the summer accepting registrations from prospective parents.  The deadline for registrations is ideally Friday 5 October, to enable the seeking of references from junior schools.

There are still plenty of opportunities for prospective pupils and their parents to visit the College before the Entrance Exams, including our Open Morning on Thursday 27 September from 10.30am to 12.30pm, when Year 8 and 9 pupil tour guides will be available to show visitors around the school.

The College is also hosting Taster Days for children in Years 6, 7 and 8 (as of September 2018).  For more information please contact the Admissions Team on 01926 634262.

Comments Melanie Butler, Assistant Head, Marketing, Admissions and Communications, "Parents and pupils will still have plenty of time to prepare and opportunities to visit the College in the run up to the exams.  The results will be out at the end of November, making for an exam-free Christmas holiday, which has got to be good news."

If you have any queries relating to admissions please feel free to email the Registrars at admissions@princethorpe.co.uk or call them on 01926 634201.

Admissions Newsletter For September 2019 Entry Published

The latest edition of the College's Admissions Update e-newsletter has just been published. This issue is packed with news to give prospective parents and pupils a feel for College life, information on forthcoming events and helpful advice about the admissions process, particularly for those who are looking at entry in September 2019.

The newsletter reminds parents that this year our Entrance Exams for Years 7 to 10 admissions in September 2019 are on Saturday 10 November 2018 from 9.30am to 3.30pm. Early registration is advised.

The newsletter is issued twice a year to coincide with key admissions periods, the next edition will be published in Spring 2019.

Click here to go to the Admissions Update newsletter.

Or if you have any queries relating to admissions please feel free to email the team at admissions@princethorpe.co.uk.

Tom Lomas Joins The Cast Of Matilda The Musical

Huge congratulations to Princethorpe College Year 8 pupil, Tom who joined the touring cast of Matilda the Musical at the end of August. Tom has already been on stage in performances at the Birmingham Hippodrome and will go with the production when it moves to Manchester Palace Theatre later this month.

Working in one of the three teams of young performers we are sure Tom will be having a great time at the infamous Crunchem Hall.

For more information and to see the official cast announcement please click here.

Heritage Day A Great Success

On Sunday 9 September Princethorpe College took part in the annual Heritage Open Days festival which every autumn offers the general public an annual opportunity to explore England’s history, culture and places of interest for free.

Well over 100 visitors enjoyed a guided tour around the College conducted by Assistant Head, Alex Darkes and Archivist, Janette Ratcliffe. The tours took visitors around the most historic parts of the building along Lower Pugin into the Library, down to the Round House, back along the Cloisters to the Chapel and then for refreshments in the Sixth Form Centre.

College Archivist, Janette Ratcliffe, commented, “We were really busy, with people queuing up for tours from 2.00pm, and there was a nice mix of visitors from near and far and young and old.  Some were able to share fascinating facts of their own.  One family told us how they came to own part of Nun’s Wood adjacent to the College, which was exchanged for a taxi!  Another commented on the brickwork at the College and how, because it was expensive, it had fallen out of favour long before the Priory was built.”

She added, “We were delighted to meet everyone and to share the fascinating history of St Mary's Priory.”

Heritage Open Days run until Sunday 16 September, so there is still a chance to visit more hidden places around the local area visit www.heritageopendays.org.uk to find out more.

John Miller - Tick Tock Repairs A Clock

We were delighted to invite former member of staff, John Miller, into school to assess the clock that sits on the Front Office mantle shelf. We are pinning our hopes on John repairing it for us.

Since John's retirement from Princethorpe he is very busy, not only repairing clocks of various shapes and sizes, but also volunteering at the Northampton and Lamport Railway.

We are very pleased that John is still in touch with the College especially when he is so helpful with anything horological!