An absolutely fantastic, hands-on start to the half-term for some of our Y10 students this week; a plumbing workshop with Steve Willis Training.
It was a real test of teamwork, accuracy and attention to detail, using equipment safely – a chance to further develop our students’ workplace skills. They also learned lots about apprenticeships and careers in the heating and plumbing industry, which will be invaluable to them as they start thinking more seriously about their Post-16 choices.
Some of the students were a little camera shy, but their pipework speaks for itself!
Before May half-term, Oathall Farm had the pleasure of hosting a group of excited pre-school learners from Hedgehogs and Badgers Nursery School.
Farm Education and Engagement Officer Mx Sveinsson delivered a session highlighting the life cycles of frogs and sheep, where the group were able to observe and ask questions about the natural habitat of our recently restored school pond as well as the baby lambs frolicking in the adjacent field.
It is a delight to host educational visits from our community here at Oathall Farm, and we are privileged to be able to highlight the amazing learning opportunities that can be found outside of the classroom. We look forward to welcoming Hedgehogs and Badgers back in the future!
The Summer Concert – one of the highlights of the Oathall calendar – is less than a month away. And parents are now invited to get their tickets via ParentPay.
The concert will take place in the school Hall on Tuesday 23rd June 2026. Doors will open at 6.15pm, with the performance running from 6:30pm until 8:45pm.
And it promises to be an evening to remember! Oathall’s musicians will perform with special guest musicians from Teddington School in London who will be joining us for one night only. The Concert will also feature our Singing Group, a number of small ensembles and the winners from the Battle Of the Bands event last month.
Refreshments will be served during the interval by Friends Of Oathall – the relaunched PTA.
Our last Extended Learning afternoon of the year takes place on Thursday 4 June.
Year 7 – An external company will be coming in to teach First Aid to our students. When they’re not learning these essential life skills, they’ll be playing team sports.
Year 8 – We have arranged for the theatre company The Globe Players to come into school and put on a performance of key scenes in Romeo and Juliet. The Globe Players’ repertoire includes lively presentations of classic texts, children’s plays and workshops. Their mission is to stimulate imaginations and inspire young audiences by bringing the enriching experience of theatre to as many schools as possible.
The performance of Romeo and Juliet links to the Year 8 English curriculum, and this performance will enable the characters and themes to be brought to life for our students. The afternoon will also involve a workshop where students will create and perform a modern interpretation of a key scene from the play.
Year 9 – The students will be using their maths skills, and specifically budgeting to tackle the real world exercise of Booking A Holiday. They’ll use the information provided, and their allocated budgets to plan and make choices based on the criteria. Alongside budget constraints, time will be a factor!
Year 10 – Students will spend the afternoon focusing on choosing a college to continue their studies after Y11. We have a large number of colleges coming into school to present, and the students will get to speak to representatives and ask them questions.
We look forward to delivering another varied and entertaining afternoon.
On Wednesday lunchtime in the canteen students were invited to dispose of their waste in a markedly different way.
Three tarpaulins were set up in a collection area at the back of the hall, where students were directed how to sort their waste to ensure it is recycled appropriately. This initiative – devised by the Eco Club which meet after school every Thursday – was intended to illustrate the scale of the waste being generated each day and to educate students who may have been doing it wrong.
The Club – facilitated by teachers Miss Barry and Mr Hillman – is very popular with its members, who patiently managed the session, directing students where required, awarding tokens to those taking part.
There had to be a winner of course. This time it was Pioneer. We look forward to running the exercise again in the near future.
The Maths Faculty wanted to share that Casio are running two free GCSE Maths revision webinars, one for Foundation and one for Higher. There are a few dates to choose from which will be useful as revision ahead of their calculator maths GCSE exams on Wednesday 3rd and 10th June.
Casio say the webinars are “focused on tricky exam questions, problem-solving, and getting the most from their calculators.”
They simply need to go to the Casio website to sign up.
Students that play an orchestral instrument are being invited to to join the school Orchestra ahead of the Summer Concert next month.
This is a fantastic opportunity for budding musicians – or established players – to gain more experience playing live music to an audience, and to experience the thrill of performing in an ensemble.
Rehearsals are every Thursday after school in MU01.
Please contact Mrs Mactaggart, Head of Music Faculty for more information.
Students were invited to attend a celebratory brunches this week with the Headteacher and their Heads of Year, to recognise the achievement of attaining A1 grades for every subject last term.
A1’s are awarded in recognition of a student’s positive attitude to learning.
To earn this award in every subject is an outstanding achievement.
A gentle reminder for Y11’s that they need to return their library books by the end of this week – Friday 22 May.
Also in the newsletter this term; an update on our Student Librarians, a recap of what happened in the library on Earth Day (there’s footage on our YouTube channel if you missed it) and recommended books via the Carnegie Book Awards.
We are looking for singers to join the Singing Group ahead of the Summer Concert on 23 June 2026.
The Singing Group needs a soloist – or two students to do a duet – at the Summer Concert. Auditions are on the Thursday before half term 21 May and the Thursday after, 4 June – at lunchtime in MU01. We’re asking students to sing the first verse of Sweet Child of Mine by Guns and Roses. If they want to try out, they should add their name to the noticeboard in the Music Department.
More information about the Summer Concert to follow. In the meantime please encourage your children to consider auditioning.
