The Flagpole

It has been an interesting week: the country has gone into a second lockdown, the DfE have again updated their guidance for schools, we have learnt quite a lot about the way the United States conducts presidential elections and, in the meantime.…we’ve had a very good first week back at school after Half Term.

Whilst I do have views on American politics I will keep them to myself and want to concentrate here on staff and pupil wellbeing, the updated DfE guidance from 5 November and the effect that lockdown will have on Princethorpe College. 

The guidance does of course, continue to stress the importance of all our control measures which I re-emphasised in my letter to all parents on 29 October, which have not changed: good handwashing, social distancing, good ventilation in rooms and making sure we do not come into school when unwell. It is nice to see the DfE guidance on face masks has now fallen into line with what we are already doing!

Wellbeing – pupils, staff and families

We are all, I am sure, very aware of the extra strains that we are all undergoing both in school and at home. To help us to proactively manage wellbeing we have recently conducted a survey for pupils – details of which I fed back at our whole school assembly on Monday. We are in the process of conducting a staff wellbeing survey and will be asking all parents to complete their own wellbeing survey next week.

Pupil Health

Unlike clinically extremely vulnerable staff, who now must not now come into school, the most recent guidance from the DfE states:

All pupils, including those who are clinically extremely vulnerable, can continue to attend school at all Local COVID Alert Levels unless they are one of the very small number of pupils or students under paediatric care (such as recent transplant or very immunosuppressed children) and have been advised specifically by their GP or clinician not to attend school.

There has been some debate nationally about extra-curricular activities so it was good to see that the very latest updated DfE guidelines include the following section:

Co-curricular Activities

Schools should consider the provision of pastoral and extra-curricular activities to all pupils designed to:

·         support the rebuilding of friendships and social engagement

·         address and equip pupils to respond to issues linked to coronavirus (COVID-19)

·         support pupils with approaches to improving their physical and mental wellbeing

During the lockdown, all our weekly co-curricular programmes, both before, during and after school will continue, however, there will now be no weekend activities until after Wednesday 2 December at the earliest. We will, of course, keep all our procedures and activities under constant review during this latest lockdown period.

With continued thanks for all you are doing to support you children and the school.

Best wishes

Ed Hester

Please do read the attached guidance document which will hopefully provide more clarity on illness, when to stay off and when to return to school.

You many also find this Coronavirus symptoms flowchart from Warwickshire County Council a helpful guide.

Here is a reminder of the three main symptoms of Coronavirus– if any one of these is present then a test is warranted:

• A high temperature (37.8 degrees Celsius or above)
• A new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot, for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
• A loss or change to sense of smell or taste – this means they cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

To protect others, do not go to school, work or places like a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital if you have ANY of these symptoms. Get a test to check if you have Coronavirus and stay at home until you get your result.

As predicted, the return to school at this time of year brings with it many colds/bugs etc. We are extremely thankful to parents for keeping children off if they are unwell and liaising with us ahead of their return to school.

To support this, any parent who has a child absent from school will be asked to complete and return a very short checklist each day that their child is unwell. This will help us support parents and pupils in decision making about their return to school, ultimately minimising the spread of infection around our community. This Pupil Absence Questionnaire will be emailed to parents on a daily basis until your child is back in school.

Thank you very much for your support.

Kind regards

Paula Greig
Senior Matron

Don’t miss the always much-anticipated Princethorpe House Talent Show that will stream this evening on Teams. We say ‘break a leg’ to all the acts performing, we have been super impressed by your enthusiasm and commitment to your House.

It is going to be a huge challenge for the judges to choose a winner from the array of talents on show, from tap dancing and gymnastics through to song and dance routines with singing and musicianship of all sorts and varieties. But your vote also counts as this year for our special virtual show, the voting will be split 50:50 with the audience as well.  

So, do make sure you watch the show and vote for your winner and help your House to victory. The results will be revealed in school next week.

The fun all starts at 6.30pm!

The countdown to the College's Entrance Exams for admission in September 2021 has officially begun and our friendly Admissions Team are busy accepting registrations and dealing with enquiries from prospective parents. There are just four weeks now until Friday 4 December, the deadline day for registrations for the College’s Entrance Examinations that will take place this year on Saturday 23 January 2021, government guidelines permitting.

Following the government’s announcement that England will be in lockdown for the next four weeks, sadly we will not be in a position to go ahead with our Open Morning in November. We will however, still be hosting a Virtual Admissions Q&A Session on Monday 16 November from 6.30pm to 7.30pm, where the Headmaster and the Admissions Team will answer any last questions about the admissions process and entry to the College in September 2021.

For more information on these events and entry to the College please visit the Admissions pages on our website www.princethorpe.co.uk/admissions or email the Admissions Team at admissions@princethorpe.co.uk or call on 01926 634201/262/297.

All pupils took part in assemblies on Thursday 15 October that encouraged them to dig deeper, look closer and think bigger about Black History Month. Led by Head of History, Peter Bucknall, the assemblies explored how Black history is entwined with British history.

His presentation reflected on the legacy of the slave trade and the impact it still has in society today. It explored the history of black people in the United Kingdom, from Roman times through the Elizabethan era, the Battle of Waterloo and into the 20th Century, the World Wars and the Windrush generation and the vital contributions black people have always made. Using stories of real people, he reflected that history can be misleading and delving deeper and understanding the past properly, helps to explain the present today.

Black History Month, and the contributions of black people, has also been the focus for House Activities with pupils challenged to celebrate the achievements and contributions made to our society by those of African and Caribbean heritage. Pupils have been sharing their ‘hidden stories’ through mediums such as art, drama, writing, presentations and video in a competition to earn house points.

Headmaster Ed Hester commented, "These activities all support the College’s important theme for the year ‘Caring’, and challenge us all to appreciate black history and the importance of equality, diversity and inclusion both in society today and in our own lives. I am delighted that after feedback from parents, current and former students, we have written a new College policy on equality, diversity and inclusion. We will continue to engage with all members of our community to ensure that our ethos, often referred to as our ‘spirit of family’, celebrates the diversity of all members of our community."

It’s been a few months since our last update on the Science Centre, and we wanted to let you know how things are progressing.

All the preparatory planning for the building is now nearing completion, including the detailed technical design of the building and the Bill of Quantities. This means that the project will be ready to go forward to tender, the stage where we appoint the main building contractor, as soon as we judge the time to be right.

Of course, it will come as no surprise that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has, inevitably, meant that we are taking time to consider the financial situation, as well as seeking expert advice on when it would be best to advance the project to the tendering stage.

The good news is that we anticipate that our Trustees will be in a position to finalise the timeline for the Science Centre build within the next 12 months.

Comments Headmaster, Ed Hester, "We remain totally committed to the project and are very excited about the campus-wide benefits it will bring. The additional time we now have will allow us to firm up plans for other improvements, including enhanced dining facilities, new department homes for Art, Economics, Business Studies and Geography and the removal of the last portacabins."

We will continue to keep you updated on the project over the coming months. If you want to read more about our plans for the new Science Centre and other campus developments, further information is available on our Science+ Campaign webpage.

Princethorpe College Upper Sixth Former, Charlotte Fitzpatrick, is one of a small number of local school pupils selected to narrate Leamington History Group's latest video Leamington’s Victorian Legacy that was released on Friday 23 October.

A sequel to their first video: Birth of a Spa Town, the film tells the story of Leamington’s development during the second half of the 19th Century.

Charlotte is the opening narrator and features alongside local experts telling the story of Leamington's development.

She said, “I decided to audition for the Leamington History Group documentary because I love learning about the history of places and I also like performing, so I thought that I might make a good candidate for a narrator for the documentary. I was asked to read two extracts in a Zoom audition with the maker of the film, Mark Ellis, and was delighted to find out that I was one of three local students selected to take part. At the end of September, I received the full script and then went into the recording studio to record my part.”

Charlotte, who is studying Maths, English and Drama and Theatre Studies at A-level, has made an excellent job of the narration, delivering her lines in a confident and informative manner.

The video is now available to watch on Leamington History Group's website https://leamingtonhistory.co.uk/ and gives a fascinating insight into the history of the town.

This year's Sixth Form Open Evening took place on Wednesday 14 October and offered Year 11 pupils the opportunity to discover what Princethorpe’s Sixth Form has to offer. External candidates and their parents were welcomed into school in two carefully planned sessions in line with government guidelines, while current Year 11 pupils and their parents participated in a virtual version of the event.

The sessions began with a presentation from the Headmaster, Ed Hester and Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, in the Sports Hall. They talked about the College’s family ethos, its focus on adding value for the individual and in supporting sixth form students to achieve their personal best. They also spoke about Princethorpe's strengths, such as the dedicated Careers team and the unique Princethorpe Diploma, that add so much value to students’ future university, apprenticeship or employment applications as well as the high expectations and excellent academic results that are a vital feature to any Sixth Form provision.

Visiting families then enjoyed a self-guided tour around key locations, including the Sixth Form Centre, with staff and Sixth Formers on hand to point everyone in the right direction.

In addition all the prospective Sixth Formers were able to view pre-recorded subject introductions on the College website from our Heads of Department on the A-level and BTEC options. Information on the vast array of sporting, co-curricular, leadership and service opportunities was also available.

It was a busy evening with plenty of interest being shown. Feedback has been very positive with the subject introductions proving to be especially helpful. Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, said, “The next stage for all our prospective Sixth Formers is to decide on the subjects you might wish to study, as a rule of thumb you should focus on the subjects you enjoy and are doing well in. Our current Year 11s will be well supported throughout the process, which will pick up speed after the GCSE mocks.”

The A-level options survey has now been circulated to parents and Year 11 pupils and the form should be completed online by Tuesday 17 November.

A copy of the Sixth Form presentation can be viewed here: https://vimeo.com/468913347/c514671509

To download a copy of the 2020/21 Sixth Form Admissions Information Booklet, please click here.

Princethorpe’s pupils have generously supported the Parish Christmas Shoe Box Appeal, filling boxes full of gifts for children overseas.

A grand total of 115 boxes have been collected and assembled this year. All packed full of little gifts and educational and hygiene essentials such as toothbrushes, hairbrushes, paper and pens. Every day, ordinary items to us but of great value to those who would not otherwise receive a Christmas gift.

The boxes will be distributed by Teams4U and will be given to a vulnerable child or family, through schools, nurseries, hospitals and orphanages. Teams4U share the shoe boxes in the local communities they work in as part of an ongoing programme of support.

This year the donations were all collected through the College’s Tutor Groups and it was wonderful to see the whole school community supporting the appeal. Thanks to all the pupils, parents and staff for giving so generously but especially to AFR, FMT and FDL who collected the most.

Thanks also to Junior Chaplaincy Prefect and Year 9 pupil, Jemima Teeton (pictured) who has worked tirelessly helping to sort and pack all the boxes together with Chaplaincy Co-Ordinator, Mary Benham.

Fine art prints of a new painting by Debbie McLaughlin - The Soaring Redbrick Tower - are now available to buy from the Princethorpe Connect online shop.

Local artist Debbie has a long association with the College having worked closely with the Marketing Department on all its design work for the past 14 years.

The new painting, completed during the lockdown, is in the artist’s favoured urban sketching style and depicts the famous Princethorpe tower and the main reception entrance to Princethorpe College.

Debbie told us, "When driving up to meetings at Princethorpe I have always been in awe of the beautiful soaring tower, so was thrilled to have the chance to paint it."

The high-quality, fine art giclée prints have been reproduced from the original painting using 11 lightfast inks to provide a gamut of colour and printed on 285gsm, 100% cotton rag white portrait paper.

Available in A3 and A2 sizes, they are supplied rolled in an 80mm postal tube, ready for framing. Individual A5 greetings cards with the same design, which are blank inside for your own message, are also available to buy.

This first run is strictly limited numbers, so please order early to avoid disappointment. A perfect gift for birthdays or Christmas for all Princethorpians, all profits from sales will support the Making A Difference at Princethorpe campaign.

Our Development Director, comments:

"It’s been nearly 20 years since Princethorpe College last commissioned a painting of the building, and we thought it was right time to commission a new artwork, which in itself could support Making A Difference at Princethorpe."

"The prints and the cards would make perfect gifts for Christmas. The A3 print is almost identical to the original painting in size, but for those who want more of a statement piece, the A2 print really makes an impact. Scanned from the original painting in super-high resolution and reproduced using the giclée printing process, the result has been amazing. This initial run is strictly limited, so please do order early to avoid disappointment."

The A3 and A2 giclée prints and greetings card can be ordered online here. The A3 print is priced £25 (plus P&P), the A2 print is priced £40 (plus P&P) and greetings cards are available for £3 each (plus P&P).

Wednesday 11 November - 11.00am (change of date)

On Wednesday 11 November, at 11.00am, the Princethorpe College community will gather together to silently reflect on the bravery and the selfless sacrifice made by so many of our country's service men and women.

Despite Covid-19, this important date in the College diary will still go ahead. However, this year it will take place safely from within form rooms across the whole school, via a video link .  

Beth Sharpe
Deputy Head - Pastoral

Monday 16 November - 6.30pm to 7.30pm

The Headmaster and the College's Admissions Team will be holding a Virtual Q&A session on Monday 16 November from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

This is a chance for parents to ask any last questions relating to the admissions process and Entrance Examinations Day on Saturday 23 January in an informal forum, before the registration deadline of Friday 4 December.

If you would like to attend this virtual event please click here to register. A link to the Teams event will be sent via email prior to the event.

To access our Revised 2021 Admissions and Entrance Examinations Booklet, and to download the Registration and Scholarship Forms please click here.

Tuesday 17 November 2020 - 11.30am to 1.30pm UK Time

We are looking forward to hosting our Hong Kong and Far East OPs Virtual Reunion on Tuesday 17 November 2020. It will be wonderful to bring Old Princethorpians from across the region together.

The virtual reunion will take place from 7.30pm to 9.30pm Hong Kong Time/11.30am to 1.30pm UK time via Zoom.

The event will commence with a Mass from the Princethorpe Chapel celebrated by Father Teddy O'Brien MSC, followed by an informal online get-together including a virtual tour, a quiz and plenty of time to chat and reminisce.

OPs can register online for the event on Princethorpe Connect: https://connect.princethorpe.co.uk/

We are looking forward to seeing everyone then.

Crescent School will be hosting a Virtual Reception Open Evening and Live Q&A on Tuesday 17 November from 7.00pm to 8.00pm.

The evening is designed to give parents an insight into the Early Years at Crescent School and the firm foundation they give children for their future learning.

During the online event there will be a presentation by the Headmaster, Joe Thackway and Assistant Head (Head of Pre-Prep), Alan Webb. The evening will also feature a short video focusing on life in Reception and prospective parents will have the opportunity to ask questions via a live chat facility. To register for the event please complete the form here.

For more information on admissions or the event please email admissions@crescentschool.co.uk or call 01788 523851 and speak to our Registrar, Helen Morley.

Crackley Hall School and Little Crackers Nursery will be hosting a Virtual Reception and Nursery Open Evening and Live Q&A on Thursday 19 November from 7.00pm to 8.00pm.

The evening is designed to give parents an insight into the Early Years at Crackley Hall and the firm foundation they give children for their future learning.

During the online event there will be a presentation by the Headmaster, Rob Duigan and Assistant Head (Head of Early Years and Key Stage 1), Susan Glen-Roots. The evening will also feature a short video focusing on life in Nursery and Reception and prospective parents will have the opportunity to ask questions via a live chat facility.

To register for the event please complete the form here.

For more information on admissions or the event please email admissions@crackleyhall.co.uk or call 01926 514410 and speak to our Admissions Secretary, Jenny Vaughan.

Friday 20 November - 6.30pm to 8.00pm

Although sadly due to current restrictions, we are not able to proceed with our Prize Giving Ceremony in its traditional format, we are looking forward to welcoming all our Upper Sixth leavers and their parents to a Virtual Prize Giving Ceremony on Friday 20 November from 7.00pm to 8.00pm. The ceremony will be preceded by a Virtual OPs Drinks Reception from 6.30pm to 7.00pm.

Compered by Ben Collie, Head of Sixth Form and with an address by Ed Hester, the Headmaster, the ceremony will follow a similar format to normal with the presentation of A-level subject and other prizes and will culminate with the revealing of the coveted Princethorpe Shield winner. A souvenir Prize Giving booklet will be produced and sent to all Upper Sixth families.

If you would be interested in attending the online event, please click here to register.

The other categories of prizes and awards for other years normally presented at Prize Giving will be awarded in a school ceremony later this term.

Dr Nick Baker, former archivist of Princethorpe College will give a presentation on the life and times of Sir Wilfred Thesiger. A quintessential English explorer, Sir Wilfred Thesiger was the last and greatest of that small band of travellers who sought out the secrets of the desert in the years before Arabia was transformed forever by the oil beneath her sands.

The talk will take place at 7.30pm on Thursday 21 January 2021 in the Sixth Form Lecture Theatre followed by wine and light refreshments in the Atrium. This arrangement will be subject to the Government Covid-19 restrictions at the time. An update will be available closer to the day but please add the date to your diary in the meantime.

Tickets may be purchased at the door but advance notice helps catering. Princethorpe, Crackley Hall and Crescent School pupils free of charge. We are happy to receive provisional bookings by email, please at alexdarkes@princethorpe.co.uk

The Parents' Reading Group has been running for many years now. A group of parents get together once a month to discuss a book we have all previously agreed on. It's an opportunity for readers to share their reading interests with others and to pick up suggestions to broaden their own reading. We are very eclectic in our tastes and completely unpretentious. We'd welcome newcomers and can guarantee all a warm and friendly welcome when we are once again able to meet.

As circumstances will not permit us to meet at present many of us have kept in touch about books via email.  Please let me know if you’d like to be on the reading group emailing list (chriskerrigan@princethorpe.co.uk) and I’ll add you to it. We look forward to welcoming a few new faces when permitted to meet, but until then we’ll continue to share reading suggestions via email.

Chris Kerrigan
Head of English

Exciting news for our exam classes in Years 11, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth, is that Princethorpe has joined a new venture called ‘The VESPA Academy’.

This will build on our work using the ideas of Martin Griffin and Steve Oakes and their publications of ‘The GCSE Mindset’ and ‘The A-level Mindset’. Our pupils have been using the concepts of VESPA via their Learning Skills sessions with tutors, but now they will have the opportunity to create bespoke activities for themselves to support their study skills using the online package.

The five key principles of VESPA are: Vision, Effort, Systems, Practice and Attitude. Ensuring our pupils secure these principles for their studies are our main focus. The Vespa Academy will be launched to Year 11, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth on 19 November 2020 and then they will be supported by their tutors on their journey of activities which will support their study and revision skills. 

For more information on 'The VESPA Academy please click here.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Monday 23 November 2019 – 6.00pm To 7.30pm

As part of our VESPA strategy, Princethorpe College will be holding a virtual, interactive GCSE revision evening, on Monday 23 November between 6.00pm and 7.30pm, for the parents and pupils in Year 11.

It will be hosted by Martin Griffin who has worked with more than sixty schools to develop effective character education systems using the VESPA model. During the session, Martin will explore the key principles of having a positive and proactive learning mindset and share tools and strategies for effective coaching and intervention with parents and equip parents and pupils with practical ideas and strategies to support their children throughout their GCSE courses. We do hope that Year 11 parents and pupils will be able to join us for what promises to be a very useful and informative evening.

All Year 11 parents will receive a letter shortly detailing more information about the event and also a booklet which has been written to support parents through the process of revision and exams.

If you wish to attend, please complete the form here.  

We look forward to you joining this event. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at lizpyne@princethorpe.co.uk

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Now we are in to the second half term, it is important to recognise the stresses and demands on our Lower Sixth students. You should have noticed the level of study has increased somewhat but be aware that this level of load can cause difficulties and anxieties. Here are some tips to support your youngster.

Encourage your youngster to ask for help when they need it – seeking out a teacher before stress starts to build up is essential. This could be as simple as finding the teacher before class, chatting to their tutor or sharing worries with friends.

Stay organised – consider how your youngster is scheduling their time and ensure that they are setting aside time for each subject throughout the week. Encourage them to start assignments early, set deadlines and make the most of study periods in the school day.

Mix up your study routine – talk to your youngster about staying focused and positive during their study time. It is important that they use a variety of study techniques from using flashcards or mind maps, writing summaries and watching online tutorials to getting a friend or family member to quiz them, completing practice tests under exam conditions and working through questions from the text book.

Take time to research your post-school options – get your youngster thinking about their future aspirations. Taking time to research and make plans for post-school life can provide a nice break from studies, while also helping them to stay motivated by reminding them of the bigger picture. This may include researching institutions and courses of interest, organising things for a gap year and putting together course applications.

Stay calm and keep things in perspective – Sixth Form studies are rewarding but also demanding. Your youngster’s mental health is a vital component to success. The current situation is difficult for many of our young people and the support of parents and the school is crucial.  Please do contact us if you have worries or concerns about your child at any time.

For more suggestions, please click on this link.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Thursday 12 November - 6.00pm to 8.30pm

Following the success of our virtual Year 8 Parents' Evening, we intend to hold our Lower Sixth A-level Information Evening in the same way. You are invited to attend a live Microsoft Teams talk by Dr Reddish explaining what the ALIS predictions are and how we can use them, and then a personal Teams meeting with your child’s tutor or member of the Sixth Form Team to discuss your child’s individual ALIS predictions, progress and future targets. The meetings will follow a very similar format to what would normally occur at our Academic Review Evenings on site. Further information and instructions on how to make your bookings have been sent by iSAMS.

We look forward to seeing you on Thursday 12 November.

Ben Collie, Head of Sixth Form
Dr Michael Reddish, Deputy Head - Academic

To support the progress of our Year 11, we will be offering Microsoft Teams meetings with your child’s tutor to discuss progress and future targets. The meetings will follow a very similar format to what would normally occur at our Academic Review Evenings on site.

Between Monday 2 November and Friday 6 December 2020, tutors will be in touch (by email) to make a convenient time for the meeting. During the meeting tutors will have information to share about current progress for your child.  It will be an opportunity for you to discuss all subjects and overall study skills. Importantly, targets will be made for further improvement and for the mock exams and therefore it is expected that pupils will also attend the meeting.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

The Department for Education (DfE) has announced that GCSE, AS and A-level exams will go ahead next summer but will start three weeks later – on 7 June and end on 2 July 2021 for almost all subjects. Additionally, there will be one Maths and one English GCSE before half term; we will notify you of exact dates when we have these. The full timetable will be made available on the Flagpole as soon as we have it. 

Results days will be Tuesday 24 August for A-levels and Friday 27 August for GCSEs.

Calendar Michaelmas Second Half Term 2020

23 November - GCSE Autumn Series exams end

27 November - Year 7 and Year 10 Progress Reports published

4 December - Year 8 Progress Report published

Subject Specifications

Pupils wishing to buy revision booklets or revise online may need to know the exam board and exact exam specification for each subject they are studying.

The A-level subject specifications for next summer (2021) are available to view here. 

Subject specifications for Lower School for next summer (2021), including GCSEs, are available here.

Shellagh Dodds
Examination and Assessment Manager

Tuesday 24 November 2020 - 6.00pm to 8.30pm

The Year 7 Parents’ Evening will take place on Tuesday 24 November 2020 from 6.00pm to 8.30pm. It will be hosted virtually through of a series of Microsoft Teams meetings with your child's teachers. Meetings will be booked online in five-minute slots. Further details will follow on how to book the appointments.

Please be aware that for subjects where teachers teach more than one set, teachers may be in contact with you via email before the Parents’ Evening to update you as to your child's progress as there will be more pupils than available meetings.

You can find a list of your child's teachers under Teacher Contacts on MySchoolPortal.

Dr Michael Reddish
Deputy Head - Academic

The next Undergraduate Open Day at the Royal Agricultural University is on Wednesday 25 November.

There will be an opportunity to hear from current students about what it is like to live and study at the RAU and to find out more about their chosen course of study from the university academic staff.

A live Q&A session will follow where you can ask questions about university life, find out how to apply or ask advice on booking accommodation.

You can book a place at the Open Day here.

Business and Technology roles at IBM are open now.

The Futures Placement scheme offers you an invaluable opportunity to work with a world-leading company for 12 months, broadening your horizons and giving you an insight into life at work.  

If you are uncertain about whether to start work, complete an apprenticeship or go to university the Futures Scheme at IBM is worth considering. It is a one year paid internship offering an invaluable opportunity to work with a world-leading company, broadening your horizons and giving you a head start in your career. 

To find out more visit here. 

Real Student Life has been organised by the University of Trent and is a series of 30-minute interviews with current University students.

The students reflect on their experiences, share their ideas on overcoming challenges and answer any questions that you post anonymously.

Webinars will take place at 12.30pm and you have the following to choose from:

Follow a week in the life of a current NTU student: Thursday 12 November 2020

NTU employability experts and graduates discuss how university can prepare you for working life: Thursday 19 November 2020

Current NTU students discuss what it’s like to be the first in their family to go to University: Thursday 26 November 2020

How it works:

1. Click here and complete the form with your details

2. You’ll receive an email with a link to join the session(s) you selected

3. Join the session as an anonymous viewer

In these unusual times, our Work Experience programme has become rather fragmented - we do hope that Year 11 pupils might be able to arrange something for next summer as normal; there will be more information soon. Some Lower Sixth students have already done some, and others may have plans on hold.

Please could you let me know at miketaylor@princethorpe.co.uk if you have a work placement arranged for your son or daughter at this point – hopefully it can go ahead soon.

Mike Taylor
Work Experience

Mary's Meals have been in touch with the College to thank the school for its continued generosity and support and to provide an update on how the charity has continued to feed children during the pandemic.

Schools in Malawi have closed, like many schools across the world, so their challenge was to find new ways of reaching the children who would normally eat Mary's Meals. Working with governments and community leaders, food has been shared with local communities together with soap and handwashing guidance to help keep everyone fed and safe.

More information on their work can be read in the attached report: 

Mary's Meals Makalanga Primary School Update

The College continues to support Mary's Meals and we are now over a third of the way towards our fundraising target for Makalanga for this year.  Please do consider donating to Mary's Meals through our sponsor a school initiative here: princethorpe-4-makalanga as from Sunday 1 November through to Sunday 31 January the UK Government is matching donations through their UK Aid Match programme giving British people the chance to double the impact of their support to charities doing great work around the world. More information on the UK Aid Match initiative can be found here.

Maybe you were lucky enough to get away over the half term break and now there are a few old coins or notes lurking in a pocket or a handbag?

Why not round them up and put them to good use? All donations would be gratefully received and all money raised will be split between UK projects of the SVP (St Vincent de Paul Society), including support for the homeless, elderly, handicapped and those coming out of prison and an overseas SVP project helping to fund secondary school education children - especially girls - in India. Click here to discover what the SVP organisation is about and how your donation can help.

The money can be current or out of date, British or foreign; anything is welcome. We already have 8kg, but we need more.

Click here and watch the video to see how cash4coins works. This is what you can donate:

• All foreign coins and banknotes
• Current UK coins and banknotes
• Any old British and Irish money
• Even obsolete currency

Please send in money in a strong envelope labelled ‘Rod Isaacs - Cash4Coins’.

We raised a spectacular amount last year.

Many thanks

Rod Isaacs
Assistant Head of Sixth Form

Why not follow the Foundation's new instagram @princethorpefoundationsport for photos and videos featuring sport from across the schools.

In support of the South Africa Tour, our wreath making evening is going to have to take a different format this year. The last two years have been so enjoyable and successful, we want to try and continue this event.

Our contact is busy planning ‘take home DIY boxes’.

Order forms will be out shortly after half term, with the information you need to:

• Order your wreath kit (maximum of 6 per order) which will contain full DIY information, with choice of decorations
• How to pay
• How and when to collect (approximately Tuesday 1 December or Wednesday 2 Dec 2020)

This event is open to all Princethorpe parents, staff and friends. Please get the dates in your diary. 

I would like to say thank you to all the pupils and staff for their hard work in all of the PE and sport activities that happened last half term. It has been great to see so many pupils participating in sport on site.

During PE and Games lessons for this half term, the focus will now be on winter activities, such as rugby and hockey. The seniors, on a Wednesday afternoon, will continue to follow the same programme with minor changes to some activities. For Games, the pupils will come to school in their Princethorpe College PE kit and the correct footwear for their activity, it is recommended that pupils bring their College waterproof with them with a change in the weather expected. For core PE lessons and clubs after school, pupils will still be required to use the changing rooms, these will be sign posted for their year group and it is very important that they only use the one for their year group.

The extra-curricular programme will follow the same programme although some small changes have been made to some years groups training night. Please see the table below for the full details. All pupils must ensure that they attend all sporting activities in the correct College kit.

During this half term, unfortunately, there will no inter school fixtures due to the government guidance in education and year group bubbles.

There will be no internal Saturday morning sports programme until 2 December 2020 following the latest guidance. We hope to be able to commence our planned internal sports programme from Saturday 5 December 2020 - details to follow.

Sports Kit Reminder

Just as a reminder, with the weather likely to change, below is the PE and Games kit required and, as always, we value your support and commitment to our team and our school. When coming to school in PE kit for Games lessons boys must wear tracksuit bottoms and girls can either wear tracksuit bottoms or leggings with a skort.

Curriculum PE Lessons:

Boys - black sports shorts, white socks, white polo shirt or House polo shirt;

Girls - black skort, white socks, white polo shirt or House polo shirt;

Games Lessons – Boys:

Rugby - black rugby shorts, red and black rugby shirt, Princethorpe black socks, football/rugby boots, gum shield;

Hockey - black sports shorts, white polo shirt, black socks, trainers or astro-turf trainers, gum shield, shin pads;

Football - black sports shorts, red and black rugby shirts, Princethorpe black socks, football boots, shin pads;

Games Lessons – Girls:

Netball - black skort, white polo shirt, white socks;

Hockey - black skort, white polo shirt, Princethorpe black socks, trainers or astro-turf trainers, gum shield, shin pads;

In cold weather black tracksuit bottoms, black sports fleeces and/or Princethorpe sports jackets may be worn;

In any PE or Games lesson if you wear base layers or “skinz” then they must be black in colour. No jewellery or watches are to be worn and long hair must be tied up.

Only Princethorpe sports kit can be worn for sports lessons.

Lee Cassell
Foundation Director of Sport 

Well done to Year 9 Bea Boakes, who took part in the British Shooting Olympic Skeet Talent Pathway competition in Cambridgeshire at the beginning of Half Term.

Skeet ranges are arranged in a semi-circle and have two machines that throw out clays at different heights. They launch a series of 25 targets in a specific order - some as singles and some as doubles and as Bea herself says, ‘it is hard and fast.’

Bea has been shooting for two years and only started the Skeet shooting discipline at the beginning of the year. She has been honing her skills at the Edgehill Shooting Ground near Banbury.

The two-day competition with mixed teams, ages and ability was a great experience for Bea. It was her first ever shooting competition and gave her the opportunity to learn the rules and the ropes. After a challenging Saturday she smashed it on Sunday setting two personal bests and winning herself a new gun bag in the process.

Bea really enjoyed shooting with the different abilities and ages and she said, “I learned so much just from one competition; I was really pleased to double my score overnight! The whole event was a great exepirence, and I am looking forward to trying again next year and hoping to progress further.”

That’s a fantastic attitude Bea, keep up the practising and good luck in your next event.

As per the Headmaster’s letter it is fantastic that the updated DfE guidelines continue to allow schools to consider the provision of extra-curricular activities to all pupils.  We know how important it is for our pupils to take part in their passions, whether that is computing in the IDLE Club, attending the Fashion Academy or taking part in Netball training. All of these activities will make for happier, healthier children and this is what we all want at this time. 

The aim of the Princethorpe co-curricular programme links incredibly strongly with the three aims in the Government guidance below:

·         support the rebuilding of friendships and social engagement

·         address and equip pupils to respond to issues linked to coronavirus (COVID-19)

·         support pupils with approaches to improving their physical and mental wellbeing

As always, we will continually review this situation however, at this current point in time, we feel this is the right decision for our programmes. We continue to encourage all pupils to adhere to our Covid expectations, including hand sanitising before and after activities, maintaining their social distancing bubbles and following all the risk assessments that have been put in place for each activity.

Please see the full co-curricular calendar for this half of the Michaelmas Term by clicking here. 

You are not required to pre-book however some activities and clubs operate on an invitation only basis. If you have any questions about an activity or club, please speak to the teacher in question listed.

Thank you for your ongoing support of our co-curricular programme. 

Neil McCollin
Assistant Head - Co-Curricular

To assist us when tracking and tracing contacts of pupils who have tested positive for COVID, we introduced an allocated seat system on the bus services from Monday 2 November.

All users with a return, morning or afternoon pass have been allocated a specific seat within their year group seating area, which they must sit in, this information was emailed to parents by Vectare at the end of the half term holidays. For ad hoc users, there are separate seating plans for the morning and afternoon journeys indicating where seats are available for use within their year group.

There have been a few small changes to the seating plans; parents of those children affected have been contacted. Please see the link here for latest version of the ad hoc seating plans for the morning and afternoon journeys.

We would like to reiterate that it is also imperative that pupils wear their face masks for the duration of the journey.

We have a large number of uniform orders in the School Uniform Shop waiting to be collected. If your child is waiting on any items please ask them to come into the Uniform Shop during their break or lunch time to collect their order.

The Learning Support team welcomes Angela Ritson. Angela has been teaching since 2006 and before retraining as a specialist teacher she worked as a Graphic Designer for the BBC. A fun fact about Angela is that whilst working at the BBC she was once told off by the formidable Anne Robinson for being too noisy on the set of ‘Watchdog’.

In keeping with her previous career, Angela adores all things creative and her favourite colour is orange.

Angela has taught a variety of subjects throughout her teaching career, and is now looking forward to applying this experience as part of the the Learning Support team.

Please see below our current vacancies:

• Teacher of Chemistry (maternity cover) - Princethorpe College
• After School Supervisor - Crackley Hall

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.