School Review 2021 by AshfordSchool

SCHOOL REVIEW 2021

shford School Statistics

241 Nursery students 121 girls 120 boys

250 Prep School students 128 girls 122 boys

477 Senior School students 209 girls 268 boys

968 Students Students from 31 countries 125 Boarders

Contents

Foreword........................................................

Alumni ..........................................................

Awards...........................................................

5-6

Partnerships...................................................

Wellbeing.......................................................

Duke of Edinburgh...........................................

Nurseries........................................................

Bridge Nursery..........................................

The Stables Nursery..................................

Prep School Nursery..................................

Prep School.....................................................

Reception & Year 1....................................

Years 2 & 3...............................................

Years 4 & 5...............................................

Year 6......................................................

Reading Challenge.....................................

Academic Results......................................

Senior School..................................................

Humanities...............................................

19 - 20

Mathematics............................................

20 - 21

Science.....................................................

21 - 22

English.....................................................

Languages................................................

Creative & Performing Arts........................

25 - 28

Careers.....................................................

Sports......................................................

30 - 33

House Reviews................................................

34 - 36

Boarding House Reviews..................................

37 - 38

Leavers Destinations........................................

Exam Results..................................................

Foreword

It is natural to look forward to the future with hope and optimism; however, the challenges of the academic year 2020-21 have encouraged this sentiment more than ever. I have been privileged to have spent time in conversation with a lot of our students over the past few weeks; specifically, students who will form next year’s Year 13 – they have a desire to lead the student body strongly, with optimism and hope, which is so refreshing and uplifting. Before looking forward to next year, and acknowledging that for some, all you want to do is move forward, we must review and reflect on the academic year 2020-21. It would have been easy to have allowed the events of the pandemic to engulf and consume us. I was, and remain, determined that the School should draw all the positive lessons which we can do from Covid; to not allow any excuses to cloud our thinking, but to make the very best of a bad situation, which in the wider sense, none of us can really control. We returned to a relatively normal Autumn term, albeit with one-way systems, face masks and hand gel abounding. Significant elements of our co-curricular programme resumed, and lessons took place in classrooms with real (not virtual) teachers. By the start of the Spring term, we were back in lockdown. By now, we were experts in the seamless transition to online learning. Whilst all the lessons were live on Microsoft Teams and teachers had become increasing adept and skilled at delivering imaginative and inspiring online learning, there was a general feeling of “not this again”. We all knew what we were going into and, I think it is fair to say, many more students struggled with motivation. It was great to welcome all students back before Easter and as we embarked on the Summer term. The government had decided that teachers would assess final grades for GCSE and A Level students and so the marathon of internal exams and assessments began, as the School and its Year 11 and 13 students built their body of evidenced assessed work. The whole process was tough on students and staff – hopefully, never to be repeated. Yet, as I write, we maintain a ‘can-do’ spirit: our Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award students are about to go to Snowdonia for the weekend, Sports Day is on, our drama students are rehearsing A Midsummer Night’s Dream on our Somerville Lawn, and our Prep School pupils are presenting their entertainment events to parents. Each and every one of our amazing staff has played an important role in supporting the education of the pupils. Out of adversity always emerges good – I am very proud of the strong sense of togetherness, of team, of determination to do the very best for our pupils - across all of our Schools, from the three Nurseries to the Prep and Senior Schools. This will be very apparent as you read this review of all the work done during the course of the past academic year. Congratulations to all of our parents and pupils on emerging successfully from what will probably be regarded, in time, as the most challenging time our country has faced since the Second World War. I remain resolute in the view that the School can and will emerge stronger and happier as a community.

Mr Michael Hall, Headmaster 3

Alumni

Over the last year we have seen first-hand the strength of our entire Ashford School community and the value of remaining connected with each other. We have seen some inspirational news come from our alumni community over the course of the past academic year. From alumni raising money for charity, to excelling in their careers, to setting up their own businesses, to winning awards. Congratulations to those alumni who have been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours Lists in 2020 & 2021: Dr Emma Vaux OBE (Chaucer Pilgrims, 1982) – for services to Medical Education Rae Stollard OBE (née Sasson, Brooke Place, 1963) – for services to the community in Bournemouth Jackie Brock-Doyle CBE (Somerville, 1982) – for services to Sport Our alumni have continued to support the School community and current students too, and we have listened to several fantastic careers talks including: Becoming a psychologist, and the role of Health Psychology in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic with Trainee Health Psychologist and PhD Student SJ Stewart (Knights, 2013) A Career in Diplomacy with Deputy Ambassador, British Embassy Tripoli, Fleur Willson (Yeomen, 2003) A Future in Food with Head of Food at KFC Jo Tivers (née Brett, Franklins, 2002) A Career as a Portfolio Musician with Matt Nicholls (Knights, 2016) From Love Island to Wimbledon with Broadcast Engineer Kath Gray (Squires, 2010) Mental Health and Wellbeing with Health and Life Coach Rose Berry (Pilgrims, 2008) A Q&A with Content Assistant at Yoto Maisie Peppitt (Squires, 2016) Working on the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games with CBE recipient Jackie Brock-Doyle (Somerville, 1982) My Placement Year at Great Ormond Street Hospital with Sophie Stuart (Franklins, 2016) The Ashford School Foundation has also continued to grow in strength, awarding two additional bursaries for the next academic year, and appointing a new Trustee, Mrs Katie Floyd (née Webb, Merchants, 2003). We hope to continue to grow the resources of the fund so that the Foundation can continue to support more talented pupils to receive an education at Ashford School.

Awards

United Learning Best in Everyone 2021 Awards Sixth Former Tybalt took home the Science Award for his thirst for knowledge and exceptional determination throughout the pandemic. Alongside mastering materials in his A Level studies, Tybalt spent six weeks volunteering in local hospitals where he showed compassion and empathy beyond his years. He also completed an online course at the University of Leeds to better understand the developments of medicine in cancer treatments. Head of German Heather Loughlin received the Inspirational Teacher Award for her strong teaching ability and her excellent pastoral skills. Since joining the school four years ago, Heather has helped to inspire a real love for the German language and culture amongst students, with the subject being now the most popular language choice at GCSE. Francesca Russell, Head of Bridge Nursery, received the Support Staff of the Year Award for the inspiring leadership she has shown over the course of 25 years and the significant role she has played in developing Bridge Nursery into a renowned and highly respected setting.

Tes Independent School Awards Shortlisting

United Learning Art Competition

Ashford School was shortlisted for the Student Initiative of the Year category in the 2021 Tes Independent School Awards.

Anthony, a Year 12 Art student, was selected as the runner-up in this annual competition. His winning artwork will be displayed at the National Art Centre in Tokyo, Japan, representing the United Kingdom in the celebrated International High School Arts Festival from 4 to 15 August 2021.

Our submission was centred around the ingenious work of one of our Year 9 students, Bo. She recently entered and won first place in the Cadet Designers competition, organised by Bompas & Parr and the Red Cross in affiliation with the Design Museum.

Anthony shared his inspiration for his artwork: “My piece is titled ‘Software’ and it represents how technology is at the forefront of modern-day thinking. I called the piece ‘Software’ and put the phones around the head as it demonstrates how technology is essentially the mainframe in the thinking of the younger generation.”

These prestigious Awards are held annually by Tes (formerly the Times Educational Supplement) and recognise the accomplishments of the absolute best independent schools in the UK. They seek to applaud excellence and reward innovation and to be shortlisted is an accolade.

Awards

Ashford School shortlisted for Community Outreach award We are pleased to announce that Ashford School has been shortlisted for an Independent School of the Year Award for our community-centred Swim Programme. The annual awards programme, run by Independent School Parent Magazine, aims to celebrate the excellence of student experience in independent schools across the country. Each year, organisers receive nominations from hundreds of independent schools in each of the 24 award categories. From these entries, standout schools are shortlisted for each award, with an independent panel of expert judges having the difficult task of deciding the final winners. In being shortlisted for the Community Outreach award, Ashford School’s Swim Programme (ASSP) has been recognised nationally for the decisive and positive contribution it has made to the local community over the past year. Launched in 2015 and led by Denise Walsh, ASSP is a programme that gives young people and adults, both at the school and across the local community, the opportunity to access top-class swimming facilities and expertise. Amid the closure of sports centres throughout the pandemic, ASSP staff have worked tirelessly to ensure that community provision has been able to continue. By extending opening hours and being creative with changing facilities and timetabling, the programme has continued to thrive. Alongside offering curriculum swimming to students at the school, over 750 pupils from the local community have benefited from ASSP, including vulnerable children and those with special needs. ASSP has also been lending its support to local swimming clubs, offering pool space and working with coaches to ensure that local talent is being nurtured. Likewise, to ensure the programme is underpinned by a strong team of coaches, the school has launched a new Swim Coach Apprenticeship and offers regular professional development courses for staff. The Independent Schools of the Year judging panel is set to meet in the autumn to make a decision on the winners of this year’s award. The result will be announced as part of a special awards ceremony in October 2021.

Partnerships Pre-Senior Baccalaureate (PSB) Ashford Prep School announced its membership of the PSB in March 2021. This prestigious charity represents several world-class, forward-thinking schools and provides a framework that celebrates the development of values, skills, attitudes and behaviours required for children to succeed and flourish. Head of Ashford Prep, Mr Nick Tiley-Nunn, believes that education is about more than just passing exams. “True academic rigour lies in ensuring learning has both depth and breadth at its heart,” he said. Ashford Prep has a strong commitment to adventurous learning and is in a strong position to embrace the PSB framework. “The ability to award the PSB at the end of pupil’s time at the School will help celebrate and recognise the pursuit of becoming a true all-rounder,” Mr Tiley-Nunn commented. One of the most exciting elements of joining PSB is that it will allow Ashford Prep teachers and pupils to significantly benefit from the wider network of schools within the group. They can access resources, guidance, training and opportunities that are shared with fellow PSB member schools. PSB strives to develop lifelong learners and believes that children who develop a love of learning will benefit as they progress into our ever-changing world.

8billionideas In March 2021, we announced that Ashford School has become an 8billionideas Partner School. 8billionideas is an innovative learning service for 10- to 14-year-olds that teaches children extracurricular skills in three core themes and their education is underpinned by the world-renowned HighPerformance Learning organisation: Starting a Business – A focus on building an entrepreneurial skillset Building a Career Passport – Inspiring your child to explore new careers and passions Levelling Up – Learning new skills and preparing your child for the world of work Dr Kirsten Dickers, Ashford School’s Higher Education, Careers and Research Leader, commented on the partnership saying, “Preparing students to succeed in their future careers is an important aspect of the education we provide at Ashford School. We ensure that our pupils gain career-related skills and knowledge through their academic studies, PSHE and the co-curricular programme, as well as in dedicated careers support sessions. We believe that the partnership with 8billionideas will give pupils extra opportunities to gain the skills to be successful in the future.” We encourage families to take advantage of this opportunity and use your free trial to explore the new 8billionideas platform. There are a lot of exciting career experiences and courses that your children can use to build their skills and learn more about themselves. This can then feed into the careers work that is done in School and help set them up for future success. Visit www.8billionideas.com for more information.

Wellbeing We are immensely proud of our wellbeing provision, thanks to the introduction of the Welllbeing Team. The current situation has not only allowed us to refine what we offer to children, parents, and staff but the proactive nature of what we already provide has ensured we have supported our school community. A number of new initiatives have been launched, allowing the school to be proactive, rather than reactive, when it comes to Mental Health and Wellbeing. These include: Time4Me Sessions Assessment & Formulation One to One Wellbeing Support Counselling Play Therapy Prep & Senior School Personal Development Programme Parent and Staff Consultations At the Prep School, each child is given the last part of the day on a Friday afternoon to take stock of their week, share their successes and concerns with their form teacher and use their wellbeing journal to map how to become the best ‘me’ they can be. Reflection can have a powerful and positive influence on our lives. The wellbeing journal that we have developed for the Prep School allows children to reflect upon the challenges and goals achieved in their week, identify feelings and plot how to make things even better next week. Sage advice and tips throughout the journal from our Wellbeing Team supports children in taking responsibility for their own sleeping habits, developing skills to deal with anxiety and building up a toolkit of calm and relaxing activities. Giving the children these tools and the time in which to reflect, we ensure our children are mentally stronger, more adaptable and happier.

Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme Our involvement in the Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award Scheme, of which Prince Phillip was the Patron and Founder, is something we are all extremely proud of. It has been offered to students at Ashford School for nearly 60 years, starting in 1963 before becoming a Directly Licensed Centre in 1995. Since that time, hundreds of pupils have gained Bronze, Silver and Gold awards and the scheme has become an integral part of life at Ashford. The DofE Award Scheme offers our students so many opportunities. They learn so much from the experience – life skills which are invaluable in the working world.

Ashford School has had a very busy Duke of Edinburgh expedition year. We have completed 6 expeditions this year and we still have one more to go! We have taken advantage of the DofE temporary changes and conducted Homestay and camping expeditions, with the breakdown as follows: 38 participants - Year 10 Bronze (homestay) 9 participants - Year 10 Bronze (homestay) 42 participants - Year 11 Silver (camping) 63 Participants - Year 9 Bronze practice (homestay) 63 participants - Year 9 qualifying (camping) 14 participants - Silver qualifying (camping) Future expedition in August 2021 - 18 Gold DofE participants will depart on the last expedition of the academic year to the Lake District. DID YOU KNOW? Ashford School pupils have walked over 9,034,432 steps during their expeditions, according to Polar Fitness, who estimate that on average, adults will walk 1,312 step per km. Ashford School see the benefit of the DofE Award and heavily subsidises all pupils who would like to enrol. Pupils can enrol and complete both Bronze and Silver Awards for £90. Bronze enrolments are increasing year on year. Silver enrolments are over 300% higher during the pandemic than in 2018/19 and 2019/20. Completions are estimated to be over 90% this year. We are already at 15% and still have over 9 months remaining. Ashford School have a community of experienced and professionally trained DofE volunteers, ranging from parents, staff and members of the public, who have assisted our DofE programme during our expeditions. Ashford School offer all staff member under the age of 23 to enroll and complete their Gold Award at no expense. Mr Simon Burke, Staff Sergeant Instructor for CCF and Leader for DofE

Nurseries Click here to watch our Nursery Provision video

Bridge Nursery

Bridge Nursery has had a fantastic year, celebrating our Outstanding ISI inspection report and continuing to provide an adventurous and positive learning environment for our children. Searching for bugs in our woodland, story time in our garden teepee, messy play and exploring in our sensory room are just some of our children’s favourite activities. Throughout the year, we have developed cultural capital in our everyday practice, supporting our children’s natural curiosity and offering experiences to capture the awe and wonder of the world in which they live. Introducing musical instruments from around the world and using them daily has brought new knowledge to our children. This has sparked an interest and love for music and dance, which has really broadened our creativity as a Nursery. As we continue to acknowledge the importance of maintaining a sense of well-being, yoga and mindfulness sessions have become embedded into our daily routines. We have found that yoga is a fantastic way of enhancing listening and concentration, supporting physical co-ordination as well as developing communication skills, trust and empathy. We have begun to follow the ‘In The Moment’ approach to our group planning which has been a huge success. Identifying our children’s interests and expanding on them supports us meeting the diverse needs of our children, as we challenge appropriately and respect our differences.

The Stables Nursery The Stables Nursery has had a wonderful year and has grown considerably. We lovingly care for over 80 children from 3 months to 3 years, supporting their natural curiosity and sharing their love of learning. We have also welcomed several new staff to The Stables team who have joined us in upholding a warm, loving environment for our littlest members. We have continued to develop the outdoor spaces to enable the children to create their own challenges and be active instigators of their learning. We foster a childled learning approach throughout the Nursery which builds our children’s confidence and allows us to explore our over-arching topic - The World Around Us - to its fullest extent. The babies and toddlers have enjoyed lots of adventures around the beautiful Ashford Prep School grounds. During the colder months, they joyfully discovered naturally occurring ice, observed changes in growth and crunched over the frosty grass. As the seasons changed, the children carefully examined the fresh growth, listening to birdsong and enjoyed picnics under the trees.

Prep School Nursery Learning, exploring, and investigating happens every day at the APS Nursery and throughout this very different academic year, we have continued to inspire and enrich the children's learning experiences. We have covered many topics over the three terms from the Changing of Seasons, Staying Healthy & Keeping Safe and Journeys & Destinations. We have incorporated this into daily Nursery life through an extensive variety of activities which have enabled the children to enhance their knowledge and skills whilst continuing to foster a love of learning. We have been encouraging future designers, engineers, and critical thinkers through our STEM activities which the children have embraced with great enthusiasm. The Nursery have made full use of our extensive outdoor environment, from the excitement of discovering the School's vegetable and fruit garden to harvesting tree cuttings so that we can observe and learn how trees and plants grow. The Nursery children have been resilient, happy little learners and we could not be prouder of all their achievements.

Prep School

Reception

Year 1

The year commenced with our focus ‘This is Me’. We were able to get to know more about the children by sharing information about our families and homes and as well as by looking at our physical features and personal interests, acknowledging our similarities and differences. We explored how our lives compare to those from children from around the world and shared a lovely book, ‘This is how we do it’, to learn about different cultures.

Year 1 have embraced the high-quality learning opportunities and displayed resilience and determination towards their education. It has been a fun-filled year with moments of laughter and enjoyment for all. During the first term, the children discovered what it takes to be a zoologist and they encountered a grizzly bear and other majestic animals using the wonders of augmented reality. They were mesmerised by the sheer size of a giraffe standing in the classroom eating leaves! They also thoroughly enjoyed finding out information about the Goliath bird-eating spider and many other creepy crawlies.

In the second half of the Michaelmas term, we delved into a range of different celebrations including Bonfire Night, Diwali and Christmas. We looked at the history of the celebrations and how and why we celebrate each one. The term culminated in our Nativity performance. The children were thrilled to be part of their own Christmas ‘movie’ and gave an outstanding performance of ‘The Nativity’.

Learning online in the Lent Term did not prevent the children from reaching for the stars and meeting the historical figure Neil Armstrong in person! While wearing his favourite sunglasses, Mr Armstrong was interviewed about his time on the moon and even launched the Apollo 11 rocket! Our children showed off their wonderful engineering skills and built rockets that were NASA-certified.

During remote learning , we were impressed by the resilience, motivation and commitment shown by all the children during this time. We commenced our ‘Dinosaurs’ topic and enjoyed seeing such wonderful learning take place at home. A highlight was the fantastic dinosaur models that the children designed, made and decorated.

A highlight of the year was the magical moment the children received their golden tickets to board the Polar Express. With smiles on their faces, they travelled to the North Pole and helped Twinkle the elf play a few magical games. It was a memorable experience for both the children and the adults.

Trinity term was full of fun as we travelled the world with the Go Jetters! The children were treated to trips to various locations and were able to share their knowledge and experiences, compare features of the environments and use technology to see our destinations up close. We ended the year thinking about travelling by air and sea, and became pirates and astronauts encouraged by the interests of the children.

Our children have unlocked and expanded their creative talents by making intricate animals masks and delicious gingerbread people.

Year 2

Year 3

We started Year 2 studying the Great Fire of London. The children used their art lessons to create the Tudor house of Pudding Lane, which we then set fire to and watched the whole row of houses become ablaze. We made bread to feel like the baker and watched a one man show about Samuel Pepys and his important diary.

Year 3 have shone this year during their first year in the Prep School. They have tackled the different clubs, online learning, subjects and substantial number of activities with an enthusiasm and passion for learning. The curriculum this year has been varied and inspired the children to not only learn but to nurture and develop their individual talents.

The children were fantastically enthusiastic with their online learning and our topic of castles, ranging from making a junk modelled castle to creatively retelling the story of Rapunzel.

Creative and practical learning in all subjects has been encouraged and the children have immersed themselves in Viking Days, Roman Days, Enviromaths Days and tree planting. Sport skills and being part of an effective team has been a focus, particularly with the children taking part in their first matches against other schools.

The children supported Anti-Bullying Week by wearing odd socks and we participated online with NSPCC’s Buddy campaign. The school were incredibly lucky to have trees donated by the Woodland Trust, which the children loved planting in the school grounds. They love to visit their trees and will enjoy watching them grow as they pass through the school. Christmas brought an amazing advent calendar, to which each class contributed and sang a song, which was a lovely countdown to the holidays. Year 2 were honoured and proud to be included in the live Easter service and sang beautifully. The school year included LOC Day and Environmaths Day, where the children were involved with cross-curricular craft and wonderful activities outside. Finally, we finished the year looking at the history of transport. The children dressed as something linked to transport and the entire year visited The London Transport Museum virtually. It was a fantastic virtual trip; the children were thrilled to be in costume, and we had a wonderful picnic on the lawn.

Year 4

Year 5

This year’s cohort in Year 5 have shone throughout, taking the ever-evolving challenges in their stride with enduring positivity. Despite having become the ‘new normal,’ their efforts throughout lockdown were outstanding and nothing evidenced this more clearly than the progress evident in all subjects by the year’s end.

Year 4 have enjoyed a successful year with many opportunities to extend their learning and take part in sports and music events, as well as opportunities to thrive and shine on an individual basis. This academic year, children have extended their history learning with an interactive play at the start of the year and a hands-on Tudor Day to round off their learning: a chance to make Tudor knot gardens, Tudor galleons with which to re-enact the Spanish Armada in the School pool, create finger puppets to use in a retelling of Drake’s circumnavigation or the story of the Mary Rose and a Tudor Explorers’ inspired treasure hunt.

The children were lucky enough to enjoy many of the Year 5 rites of passage, including the Victorian and Egyptian days. This year saw an increase in combining the girls’ and boys’ sports, starting with interhouse football before including interhouse netball and rugby. In the summer term this was expanded to include the entire cricket programme, with unbridled success. In the face of vastly reduced fixtures there was still impressive sporting success, with Will being part of the U11 cricket team that reached the cup final for the first time ever.

This year, children also enjoyed a virtual tortoise talk by the head vet of Howletts and Port Lympne (accompanied by her tortoise!) to complement and broaden their curriculum. Throughout the year children have taken part in sports matches and tournaments and musical events, representing their School with pride, notably the Green Love music project to help raise awareness of climate change.

There is such an abundance of talented performers in this year group, as evidenced in the weekly Friday Factors, the concert and the entertainment evening. Tenor horn, percussion, singing, electric guitar, piano and more: we are an impressively entertaining year. A highlight at Christmas was the production of the digital Advent Calendar with much excitement centred around the opening of a new window – a new performance – every day.

The highlight of the year has been the Year 4 Entertainment Performance, with a series of plays about Henry VIII and Elizabeth I’s reign. All children had an acting and singing role: an outstanding performance which highlighted the children’s many talents.

The children of Year 5 should be immensely proud of their efforts this year. They have carried each other and indeed the staff through another tricky year and we are hugely appreciative of all they have given and achieved. They will be worthy leaders and ambassadors for the Prep School as they head into their final year.

Year 6 At the start of the academic year the Year 6 children returned to school for a whole term without a lockdown! They were extremely happy to be back to ‘almost normal’ with their friends. As well as the usual subject lessons, they were involved in an online advent calendar, where they sang Christmas songs and some of the children performed readings and extracts from the classic story of A Christmas Carol. They created Gingerbread Houses with some wonderful decorations in the HE lessons. During Lent term, the children continued to be creative and engaged in online learning during the lockdown. Their drama tasks involved videos of themselves performing various short sketches, which were inspiring and creative. Later in the term when they returned to school, they threw themselves into their learning and most of them participated in a Cycling Proficiency course in school and on the road! They had WW2 Day where they dressed in some wonderful costumes as part of their learning in their history lessons. On the sporting front, the U11A team of 6 boys and 5 girls reached the final of the KSCA Summers Cup for the first time, competing well against a strong all boys' school. This term our U11s also reached the semi-final of the highly competitive Sutton Valence Six- A-Side tournament, losing a nail-biting game off the last ball of the match (as we did in the final of the 2018 tournament!). The team remains unbeaten in all other U11A team fixtures this term. Our U11A team also remain the holders of the Kent College Six -A-Side Cup, having won the competition two years running. We have had a very busy end of year with a 60s Day dressed in Sixties costumes and participating in many different activities based on the 1960s; an adventurous day out Bewl Water, where the children participated in team building and water-based activities; we had the Year 6 end of year celebrations, where the children enjoyed a barbecue, played rounders, watched slideshows on their time at APS and took selfies in the photo booth; Year 3 – 6 also exhibited art work in the Ashford Prep School Art Exhibition. These are to mention just a few of the highlights and achievements of our Year 6, showing how ‘full-on’ Year 6 can be! Lastly, our Prize Giving took place with some exceptional achievements and emotional goodbyes at the end. We wish our Year 6 all the best for their future endeavours.

Ashford Prep School Reading Challenge As a Renaissance Champion School, the Prep School runs the Accelerated Reader (AR) programme. All of the pupils on AR have actively engaged in reading and taken quizzes. Added to this we encouraged teachers to engage in the reading process and to take quizzes. The children loved recommending books and the teachers have seen first-hand how a variety of factors affect quiz scores. In the past year, Years 3 to 6 pupils contributed to these amazing achievements: A total of 48 Word Millionaires (30% of this group of pupils) 5,929 quizzes passed 130,510,540 words have been read Did you know? The top record for number of words read by an individual is held by Barnabus - in 2013, he read 7,550,927 words! Our library has over 9,000 books and in the past school year, 250 pupils, from Reception to Year 6, have taken out over 8,303 books between them, an average of over 33 books each across the year. Our library truly is a wonderful, vibrant space, popular with the pupils and staff and regularly used by all! *All data is from the start of the new School year in 2020 to 28 June 2021

Ashford Prep School Results All children across the whole School are monitored to measure their progress in English and Mathematics, which is formally assessed termly in reading, writing and mathematics lessons.

Reading: 89% of children across the whole School achieved expected and above in Reading assessments. (National Average KS2: 73% in 2019) Mathematics: 95% of the children achieved Expected and above in Mathematics assessments (National Average KS2: 79% - 2019) Writing: 95% of the children in Year 6, and 80.5% of the children in years 1 –5 achieved Expected or above in Writing assessments. Phonics Check Year 1: 100% of Year 1 children passed (National average is 81%)

Senior School Humanities

Despite the highly unusual nature of school life for large parts of this year, the Humanities staff have gone out of their way to enhance the experience of our students. Trips, of course, have not been possible, so we have had to go online to connect students’ classroom learning with the wider world. In RS, Year 8 attended an online talk in January about homelessness in the Kent area, with a focus on helping to remove the myths surrounding it. In Psychology, A Level students were fortunate enough to be able to attend two virtual conferences, one on Criminal Psychology and the other featuring Dr Elizabeth Loftus, a world expert on eyewitness testimony; the students engage with her research as part of their A Level course. More recently, students have attended a highly informative virtual lecture from a past student, Sarah-Jane Stewart, who is currently doing a PhD in Health Psychology. They have also enjoyed a fascinating lecture from another past student, Sophie Stuart, who this year has shadowed the Trauma and Attachment Unit at Great Ormond Street Hospital. A few of the students attended an online Day of Psychology organised by the University of Kent . In Geography, Sixth Form students have been attending a series of lectures offered by Royal Holloway, University of London, on topics such as understanding volcanic hazards, changing city spaces, wildfires and the carbon cycle and modern day slavery and climate change. Year 12 attended a Climate in Action conference with guest speaker Professor Chris Jackson to find out how we know about the changes to the climate, and what this means for the inhabitants of Earth. He is best known for descending into a live volcano for BBC Two's Expedition Volcano. As well as bringing the outside world to school through virtual talks and conferences, students have become actively involved in enriching extracurricular activities. Undeterred by the limitations placed on us by Covid, Year 7 and Year 9 have completed fieldwork using the school grounds. Year 7 calculated infiltration rates to determine which type of ground surface was more likely to lead to flooding and Year 9 investigated whether different areas of the school site had their own microclimate.

The Geography club ‘Globetrotters’ has also got underway in the Trinity term, and we have been looking at the issue of plastic pollution in our oceans, researching how long it takes for different plastics to break down and creating a classroom timeline to represent this. They also found out about the journey of 29,000 plastic ducks (‘friendly floaties’) that were washed into the Pacific Ocean in 1992 when the container carrying them fell overboard. This helped them to understand the idea of ocean currents. Meanwhile, some of our students have entered nationwide essay competitions such as that run by the University of Durham/Tutor2U and the John Locke Institute on questions such as how best to use Economics to tackle climate change and whether to increase access to our elite universities. One of our Year 13 economists, Yiyi, researched and presented a highly commended EPQ on the changing face of the Chinese cosmetics industry, while a History and Global Perspectives student, Coco, completed an excellent EPQ project on gender inequality in India. Coco also authored an essay for the Philosophy Essay Competition held by the University of Sheffield and gained a highly commended award. Alfie completed an EPQ on the significance of the British and Athenian navies to the survival of their respective empires, and he is now poised to take his interest in Ancient History further at Exeter College, Oxford. Several further initiatives have been aimed at encouraging students to tutor other students: Economics and Business students have been designing their own enterprise education resources for future use in local primary schools, while Year 7 RS students have been creating online presentations to share with the Prep School on world religions. Within the classroom, whether that be virtual or physical, the curriculum has remained broad and varied, and has often responded to current affairs and global issues.

In History, Year 9 students have studied twentieth century world events through the lens of current international relations and struggles for justice in the news.

Mathematics

We have learned about the diverse nationalities caught up in World War 1; the political spectrum from Communism through to Fascism and the dangers of political extremism; the Holocaust; the long and winding path to racial justice, from Slavery through to the murder of George Floyd. Global Perspectives students have engaged with several pressing global issues, from climate change and ecosystem loss to population growth and migration. Most recently, they undertook a mini-project in groups on population growth in a country of their choice, producing presentations and, in one case, a mini-documentary to inform their peers. While we could not run our Year 7 Humanities trip to Canterbury, students were still given a virtual tour of the City and taught about its pilgrimage heritage and the architecture of the Cathedral, city walls and castle. The Year 7 students undertook some excellent projects as a result which incorporated elements of History, RS, Geography and English. Well done to Chloe, Phoebe and Ben who won Gold, Silver and Bronze awards respectively for their excellent Canterbury projects.

A fantastic year for the Mathematics department started as we welcomed the new Year 7s with a ‘Week of Inspirational Maths’, designed to foster creativity, problem-solving and a growth mindset. The celebration of all things mathematical continued throughout the year. In November there was Maths Week England with a Pi memory challenge, artistic design using desmos graphing, classroom challenges and a schoolwide crossnumber. May saw us join with the Prep school for the NSPCC Number Day with an ‘Enviromaths’ theme, where students considered the cost of eco-shopping and carbon footprints. Academic Scholars were also inspired by an Octagon talk by Dr Britton on the ‘Mathematics of Video Games’. On Star Wars Day, May the 4th, 18 teams from local schools joined us for the 20th anniversary of the Ashford School Year 5 Regional Maths Competition. In a change from the usual dash-around-the-hall format, this was a hugely exciting and competitive live online event that allowed the local students to connect with other schools after the long lockdown break.

All year groups have again had the opportunity to enter the UKMT Maths Challenges, online this year, with many students earning certificates at Junior, Intermediate and Senior levels in addition to Kangaroo and Olympiad qualifiers. The Mathematics department has always led the way in terms of use of technology, and remote learning has allowed us to embed these practices even further. The increase in students’ independent study skills has been particularly evidenced by some fantastic individual research this year. There was an extensive project on the mathematics of quantum mechanics, essays and research into logarithms and exponentials, plus Further Maths presentations that included Euclid’s algorithm, big data, the spread of COVID-19 and the licence plate lottery in China. Elevated levels of engagement and enjoyment of Maths have been witnessed across all year groups but of note are the Year 11s. Despite the challenges of cancelled exams, they enthusiastically embraced the opportunities provided to learn about personal finances and many attended A Level taster lessons. As in previous years, we expect to have a large cohort of Sixth Form mathematicians next year and this continues to translate into many Year 13s going on to study Maths-related degrees (15 students in 2020-21).

Science Biology Students continued to embrace the world around us and to give pupils a sense of extraordinary learning. We have continued with the British Biology Olympiad, securing 5 medals, 6 highly commended and 2 commendations. Eleanor achieved a silver medal and scored the highest in the year. Our fantastic STEAM club continued to work on designing experiments for primary schools and developed an outstanding programme for diffusion. Our A Level Biology trip was not going to be stopped by the pandemic and we hosted five local day trips. An enormous amount of fun was had by all: we saw the sea, completed kite diagrams, identified seashore and meadow plants, and gathered a wealth of information. Lockdown work was outstanding, and the biological videos produced by pupils was excellent. Our school geckos are delighted to have the bustle of school life again!

Chemistry This year was a big challenge for extracurricular Chemistry due to the cancellation of most of the competitions. The Olympiad club met once a week to work on challenging problems and discuss solutions. Pupils really pushed themselves and developed their problem-solving and critical thinking skills as well as practising communicating their ideas with others. Some students took part in the Olympiad competition that took place online due to lockdown. A few students are now going on to study biomedical sciences, material sciences and medicine at university.

Physics Students enjoyed a talk by Professor Adrian Dobbs from the University of Greenwich. Students explored how the case wood preservatives gave Stradivarius violins their sound. Students froze and then smashed bunches of flowers using liquid nitrogen. Year 10 students have achieved medals in the Year 10 Physics Olympiad (Junior Physics Challenge). It is the first time we have taken part in this competition, and the teachers were so pleased by how well so many of the students did - 4 Gold , 7 Silver and 7 Bronze medals - a very impressive achievement!

Computer Science Students across the school took part in the Bebras Computing Challenge in November 2020. This is an international computational thinking competition with participants in 40 different countries worldwide. This year nearly a quarter of a million students took part in the UK alone! Entrants are challenged to answer a series of problem-solving questions in a set time limit. Across the four age categories, 22 students achieved scores in the top 10% nationally, gaining a Gold award, and a further 39 received Distinctions, putting them in the top 25%. Credit must go to Harrison, King Lee, Vic and Beth who each came top in their respective age groups.

English

Learning Resource Centre

The English faculty have had an exciting year. We have seen the return of A Magazine with a wonderful new design and some beautiful pieces of work from the students. Click here to read the May 2021 issue of A Magazine

We have celebrated a variety of events in lessons such as International Women's Day, Holocaust Memorial Day, Black History Month, National Poetry Day and of course, World Book Day. This stimulated some incredible creative responses as well as broad and powerful class discussions. The faculty managed to squeeze in a performance of A Christmas Carol to Year 9 and 10 from a visiting production in November - an exciting opportunity to see some live theatre at last! We ran A Level Literature and Language taster sessions for Year 10 and Year 11, giving them the opportunity to experience the joy of these subjects in the Sixth Form. To support students’ understanding of the importance of these A Level subjects, we welcomed alumni speakers who shared their experiences of studying A Level English. Although we have not been able to take our A Level students out this year, they have had the experience of Massolit, which covers our set texts at university level. Our A Level English Language students participated in a British Library seminar in which they learnt about language change, language variation, and regional vocabulary in the UK, whilst our A Level Literature students got to virtually attend a seminar on 'Women's Writing' throughout the ages. The students continued to gain awards in the Reading Challenge, even more so than last year, and Year 7 and 8 had the opportunity to be involved in Bookbuzz again this year. Finally, the faculty has run a creative writing club, a book club and a Scrabble club for our KS3 students, all with enthusiastic attendance each week.

The Senior School’s Learning Resource Centre has continued to provide a wealth of information and to promote reading for pleasure throughout the year. With over 13,000 books available to pupils and staff, we have something for everyone. However, the development of our collection is ongoing, reflecting the changing needs of the School. After consultation with teaching staff, we added over 200 new books to our shelves to encourage Sixth Form students to go beyond the curriculum and develop strong intellectual curiosity. This year also saw the introduction of the Sora app, giving pupils access to OverDrive’s carefully curated collection of over 2000 eBooks, graphic novels and audiobooks. Combined with the expanded Library section on the School’s website, this creates a ‘Virtual Library’ which provides support and stimulation to remote learners and offers 24/7 access to resources for the whole School. Lockdown saw us welcoming the children of key workers into the LRC, which became their home from home during that strange term. Since school life returned to something approaching normal, we have enjoyed hosting frequent ‘Library lessons’ with the English faculty. These lessons, and DEAR sessions (‘Drop Everything and Read’) during form time, give pupils beneficial time to read quietly during the busy school day. We look forward to welcoming pupils and staff to our reopening as the Somerville Library in September, following this summer’s refurbishment.

Modern Foreign Languages Spanish This has been another wonderful year for the Spanish department and the number of students wishing to take Spanish at A Level has shot up! The students adapted and responded well to the online learning during lockdown, and we are so proud of all they achieved. Students learnt how to create subtitles in Spanish for short films, gave presentations on various Spanish artists / footballers / musicians / flamenco / soapoperas, were judges for the music competition La Voz (The Voice) and sampled a range of Spanish culinary delicacies.

German German has continued to go from strength to strength and we are delighted to have been able to re-launch the very popular trip to the Rhineland for Easter 2022. Look out for lots of photos of our adventures next year! Highlights of this year have included some fantastic performances of the Medieval German story "Das Nibelungenlied" as well as our traditional Christmas re-enactment of "Aschenputtel" (Cinderella). The German students remained dedicated throughout lockdown and they continued to produce some highly creative and imaginative pieces of work, not least Tom's brilliant face he made from vegetables when learning about food and drink.

French The French department continued to promote French and its culture. We started the year by promoting all three languages with a Zumba class on French, Spanish and German pop music. Students in French were provided with opportunities for deeper learning either with online activities or in the classroom to help motivate them with a wide range of learning techniques. Culture, music, and art are always at the heart of our French lessons to improve language acquisition, from celebrating la Chandeleur, Saint Nicholas or la fête de la musique, to promoting le 7ième Art with our French film club. The French students remained enthusiastic and dedicated to their learning despite the many challenges we faced.

Creative and Performing Arts Drama Curriculum Drama, particularly through the lockdown months, was such a challenging time for the students, but their resilience, comradery, and determination won through, and they were able to produce some excellent work. Since returning to school in February, there has been a real buzz and energy in the classroom. Students are enjoying each other's company; they have been able to devise, collaborate and perform together - which has been thrilling to witness, after such a lengthy hiatus. All exam level Drama students were able to perform their scripted pieces, showcasing extracts from DNA by Dennis Kelly and Broken Biscuits by Tom Wells, as well as devised pieces from Years 12 and 10. The Year 7 Drama Group met on Tuesdays after school and produced a powerful performance entitled A Year in the Life that reflected on the trials and difficulties of the last year. A huge well done to the Year 7 Drama Group for their maturity and professionalism. The Senior Production Company met on Mondays and Fridays after school and performed Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights' Dream towards the end of June, in a version that should have been open-air. However, the rain came and we moved inside - but a stellar performance was given, nonetheless, and we hope there will be more open-air events to come. AshTech have been meeting regularly and training on the technical sound and lighting equipment to best support the Drama and Music events, and many students have managed to sit exams in a range of LAMDA grades. All performances have been recorded and we will share them with parents at the end of the academic year. Finally, plans are underway for our next Musical - Annie - which will be performed in Brake Hall in March 2022, and a potted performance of The Woman in Black by Stephen Mallatratt, which is due to be performed in the Spring of 2022. We hope to see as many of you there as possible. There will be several events happening next year so please keep an eye on the weekly bulletin for details.

Music Our Music Lessons continued right through both lockdowns via TEAMs and we are very proud of the progress our musicians made and how adaptable they have become in their learning methods. We have a wonderful team of Visiting Music Teachers who quickly adjusted their teaching techniques to make sure lessons could continue online. Our livestreamed Christmas Concert included the Year 7 instrumental Scheme Orchestra paired with a select amount of the School Orchestra. There were performances from Ashford School Orchestra, the Senior Guitar Quintet, Chamber Choir, Recorder Ensemble, Jazz Band and our Year 7 Choir amongst others. The Junior Scholars' Concert was our first virtual concert, taking place online this year. The programme included solo pieces recorded from the pupils' homes. Throughout the last year we have hosted two sets of ABRSM Music exams for our pupils and one session of Trinity Music exams. We are very proud of our pupils’ results, with 75% of our ABRSM pupils receiving Distinctions. The Spring Concert was pre-recorded in Brake Hall, with performances from our Guitar Ensembles, Jazz Band, Recorder Group, Training Orchestra and Choir. The Senior School Soloists' concert was livestreamed from Brake Hall. With a variety of performances from Bach to Bruno Mars, the event had something for all musical tastes. Our annual Piano Recital was livestreamed from Brake Hall with 16 of our Pianists contributing pieces from Chopin to Marianell. Our Summer Concert was livestreamed on Thursday 24 June and included Firebird Finale by Stravinksy with Year 7 Instrumental Scheme players, Training Orchestra and Orchestra. Other pieces included music from Star Wars and Harry Potter. Our GCSE and A Level Music students showcased their recent exam performances. We joined over 60 primary and secondary schools across the United Learning group to take part in a special music and performing arts project to raise awareness about climate change. Together with thousands of students from across the country, we performed and recorded Green Love, a brand-new choral commission written exclusively for United Learning Schools.

Art At the start of the year, we finally managed to hold our end of year show that had been postponed and what a fabulous show it was! We are so proud of what our students have managed to produce in such limited circumstances the creativity shown simply blew us away. The same has happened again this year - it is clear when you walk through the School that there was no holding back the tidal wave of outstanding art they have managed to produce. In May, our Year 9 scholars exhibited their work in a weeklong public exhibition at St Mary’s Church, alongside their teachers and our current Artist In Residence, Rainna Erbas, a recent contestant from Channel 4’s Great Pottery Throw Down. One of our young artists, Mola, was delighted to sell his first ceramic work. Some students have had the chance to try the extremely exciting and experimental Raku firing process where the smoke creates the dark colour and the colours can turn out unexpected and different with each firing! Our Art technician, Iain Rayner, is currently completing a Masters in Fine Art. The windows of the former Knight & Lee department store in Portsmouth were transformed into the Select Dream exhibition showcasing his work and that of other South Coast artists. Iain will be participating in this year’s Folkestone Triennial where he will be exhibiting recent work and doing a series of events including artists’ talks and readings from a recently completed volume of his collected writings.

Our Year 12s thoroughly enjoyed their trip to London’s National Gallery and the mind-melting RYOJI IKEDA, a multi-sensory exploration of light and sound. We were invited to immerse ourselves in Ikeda’s dynamic digital universe. A subterranean exploration of sound and light, the show takes viewers on a sensory journey through 180 Studio’s labyrinth-like spaces. The exhibition featured never-seen-before installations such as point of no return: an intense audio-visualisation that creates a virtual experience akin to entering a black hole; spectra III: a tunnel of strobe lighting that made its premiere at the 2019 Venice Biennale; and A (continuum): a sound installation comprising six colossal speakers. Our Art scholars are working on a community outreach project. They are completing a mural for the homeless shelter (The Beacon Centre) in Ashford. The design shows a lighthouse shining a beacon of light across a stormy sea to symbolise hope. The centre assists a range of vulnerable people, including the homeless, refugees, victims of domestic violence, etc.

Design & Technology During the Trinity term, our Jewellery Club students participated in a series of workshops to enable them to create personalised Fimo earrings and a silver ring. For Made in Ashford, our Year 7 students have been busy building platforms and chimneys for the Lower School play - Mary Poppins - designing and building rocket powered cars and a floating table. Our Lower School students have once again designed and manufactured an array of exciting projects. Electronic orientated projects included a flashing LED-based Christmas decoration in Year 7 and a sustainable lamp in Year 8. Those with a more material bias included the design and construction of passive amplifiers and pinball games. We hosted the first online big STEM quiz night between Tonbridge School, Benenden School and Ashford School. Our Year 12 Science, Design & Technology, Mathematics and Computer Science students had the opportunity to meet socially and compete in a friendly quiz. For the Year 5 Design Challenge, the Art and Design & Technology departments ran two workshops at the Prep School in May. For D&T, the Year 5 pupils designed and constructed personalised pieces of string art. At the end of June, our Year 5 students joined Mr Stew for a workshop session during which they manufactured wooden tealight candle holders. Bo won the Cadet Designers (U18) category in the Fountains of Hygiene design competition, resulting in Ashford School being shortlisted for the Tes Best Student Initiative award.

Food Science It has been wonderful to welcome our students back into the kitchen to get on with the practical side of things. We have made many different dishes, from vegetable curries in Year 7 to meatballs and sauce in Year 8, and homemade honeycomb/crunchie bars in Year 9. Although they have been away from the kitchen for some time, it was lovely to see the students so interested and happy to cook! We began teaching the new GCSE course - Food Preparation and Nutrition - where the uptake has been remarkably successful and continues to be oversubscribed for the next academic year! Students have enjoyed enhancing their skills and knowledge, and they were particularly impressed by a recent online seminar with an ex-student, who is now the Head of Food at KFC. This highlighted the separate roles the subject can lead into, and the importance of the subject in the curriculum.

Careers Throughout the year, the Careers Department, Dr Kirsten Dickers, Head of Higher Education and Careers, organises talks by external speakers, designed to help student explore different career pathways. We were lucky to host the following speakers: Katie Gamston, a Student Recruitment Officer from Cardiff Metropolitan University joined us to talk about degrees and careers in Sport. She spoke about the wide range of sport-related careers – not only in sports science and coaching, but also in fields such as sports media and journalism, product design and management. We heard about the professional experience that students gain as part of their degree, working with top level sports teams and national broadcasters. Christopher Hutton, a Managing Partner at Hogan Lovells and specialist in competition law, spoke about about careers in Law. He explained the different routes into a legal career, either through taking a Law degree or by graduate study after a different degree. He shared insights into some of the legal issues that he works on, and gave students some excellent advice on wider reading and other ways of learning more about law. Kinga Jurkiewicz, a Recruitment and Admissions Assistant at New College of the Humanities (a university founded by the philosopher Anthony Grayling), gave a talk entitled ‘Why study the Humanities?’ She started by talking about the importance of the humanities, the valuable transferable skills that they provide and the many career opportunities that they lead to. She then introduced NCH’s unique combined honours degrees, which allow students to follow a broad liberal arts curriculum rather than focusing exclusively on one subject. Rebekah Shaxted, the Apprenticeship Support and Knowledge Project Co-ordinator at CXK (a charitable organisation providing career support, advice and guidance in the South East), talked to our Sixth Form students about apprenticeships. She explained how apprenticeships work and the range of careers that can now be accessed through an apprenticeship. Most importantly, she gave us some fantastic advice on finding and applying for apprenticeships.

Alumna Fleur Willson (Yeomen 2003) discussed her career journey and told us more about a career in diplomacy. After a Modern Languages and Linguistics degree, Fleur started her career with the Diplomatic Service Fast Stream. Over the last ten years she has held a number of posts with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and is currently Deputy British Ambassador at the British Embassy in Tripoli. Lastly, we enjoyed a talk from students at Queens’ College Cambridge earlier in the year, attended by interested pupils from Years 11 and 12. The Queens’ students shared their own experiences of applying to university and living and studying in Cambridge.

Sports It has been an incredibly challenging, yet successful year of competitive school sport at Ashford School. Despite the disappointment caused by the cancellation of fixtures and competitions, there have been many key developments and individual & team success stories that we are keen to reflect upon:

Virtual Fixtures We have been delighted with participation in the various virtual fixtures that have taken place. This includes fixtures against Sutton Valence School, Kings Rochester and the United Learning Schools virtual fixture. We had over 390 participants from the Ashford School Community involved in walking, running, riding or cycling to contribute miles towards the schools’ total distance. The first fixture we covered a total 2,933 miles as a community in one day – an impressive feat! Thank you once again for everyone’s contribution to these scores.

Netball There were no fixtures or county trials this year in netball, but despite this our girls continued to train, learn and develop as netballers. There has been a clear focus on increasing participation by making all sessions inclusive and enjoyable. As a result, we had a 15 additional girls involved in the clubs at Breakaways and Pilgrims. Ms Hannah Hyams continues to raise the profile of the netball programme at the School through: Coaching at Pilgrims Netball Club Becoming the Kent Netball Schools Secretary Establishing a partnership with London Pulse Netball from October 2021 We are looking forward to re-introducing the following enrichment opportunities next year: Pre-season training sessions Netfest in partnership with the Prep School Trip for students and staff to the London Copperbox Arena to watch England play Summer Camp ran by London Pulse at Ashford School Netball Tour to Brighton for our senior players in March 2022

Swimming Swimming continues to be successful, with several strong swimmers joining the School this year. Although there were limited opportunities to compete, the students have continued to train, progress and improve their general fitness. In June, students had their first opportunity to compete in the pool and a number entered the X Race competition at Folkestone. Students had the opportunity to compete in time trials at Folkestone for the Schools Biathlon. Cc and Tilly were selected for the South East England Swim Talent Pathway programme and have attended online sessions and following on from the X Race competitions several swimmers have gained qualifying times for the Summer Festival Regional Competition. Enrichment opportunities in swimming include: A Performance Squad and a Development Squad, with training available in the mornings and evenings Additional strength and conditioning sessions introduced for our senior swimmers to supplement the water work We continue to work closely with the local swimming clubs to ensure that we can maximise the support for the area’s swimmers All members of the swim squad met Chris Cook and asked him questions about his achievements and his experience of being an Olympic Swimmer.

Rugby We had a short rugby season due to Covid restrictions. The focus was on developing core rugby skills: handling, passing, kicking and game understanding and there has been limited contact this season.

Organising guest coaches to assist with training squads and delivering rugby masterclasses Application for members of the 1XV to be on and involved in ‘Rugby Tonight’ (TV) We want to reintroduce an Autumn International fixture trip again for 2021

The attitude to training from the boys has been exemplary and we have a large senior squad of 36 senior boys. Our two strongest cohorts are the current 1XI and the U14 boys and both squads have several students involved in the Saracens Performance Pathway. We have more students participating in the Saracens & Kent Rugby DPP and PDG programmes and having Mr Bubb as one of the coaches of the U15 PDG squad has helped strengthen our links with Saracens (who are now scheduled to use our facilities at Great Chart for various training days for the Academy Squads). The following students are involved with Saracens: Anthony (U18 Academy), Toki (U16DPP), Bluey (U16DPP), Bryn (U16DPP), Andrew (U15 DPP) and a further 8 students in the (U14 DPP). Linked to this, we do have increasing numbers of students involved with local clubs, especially Ashford RFC, which is developing them further as rugby players. To help raise the profile of Rugby at School and improve the progress of those involved in school teams, we have put in place the following enrichment opportunities in place for next academic year: Pre-season training for the 1XV prior to our return to School Club training day to encourage more students to join the various local clubs including Ashford and Canterbury Re-introduce Holland Tour for those year groups that have missed out of this wonderful touring opportunity A stronger club link with Saracens and a clearer, more accessible pathway now for our most talented rugby students to follow Strong club links with Ashford RUFC following a meeting with the Chairman Introduction of a 7s programme which includes entering the Kent 7s tournament and hosting a 7s tournament for the Granville Schools

Hockey It has been an extremely challenging hockey season with no fixtures for the boys’ or girls’ teams and limited pathways for students to excel. The highlight of the season was our 1X Boys Captain being selected as the Kent U18s captain. We have a few students involved in the Kent / Sussex County Squads including Ben, Joseph and Maddie, and we have an increasing number of students developing in the JDC District Programme and lots of students playing club hockey. Students have continued to work hard in training and adapt to the new expectations following the arrival of Mrs Hewitt (Head of Hockey) and Mr Roberts (Hockey Pro). We have strengthened links with Ashford Hockey Club and have attracted several extraordinarily talented hockey players to the school this year. To help raise the profile of Hockey at Ashford School and improve the progress of those involved in school teams we have put in place the following enrichment opportunities:

Hockey continued... Pre-season training from September to December for all squad players Strong club links with Ashford HC and Canterbury HC, with one member of staff playing for Canterbury Shared use of facilities with Ashford HC which allows students to additionally train with the club through the new Aspire Masterclass sessions every Monday A number of students have attended the local ‘Development Centres’ at both Folkestone and Canterbury hockey club Future developments in hockey include: Pre-season opportunity for our girls in August to prepare for next session We are looking to host a club day next season with external coaches from local clubs (Ashford, Canterbury, Folkestone etc.), running the sessions to encourage more students to pursue hockey at club level Returning to Holland and playing U14 fixtures against MHC Bennebroek. Our relationship with this club has grown considerably and we hope to host teams in future years Continuing to host the Years 3/4 and Years 5/6 Primary School Quicksticks Festivals with over 20+ primary schools in attendance. This is always a fantastic opportunity for our sports leaders to develop their coaching and officiating skills

Cricket It has been a successful cricket season, with our 1XI boys recording their first ever victory over the MCC in September 2020. Following this remarkable feat, we were recognised as one of the Top 100 Schools for Cricket for the first time in the School's history. We were delighted to be able to return to competitive inter school fixtures this Trinity term. That said, it has been an incredibly challenging season with a number of fixtures/tournaments postponed due to Covid outbreaks or poor weather. We are extremely pleased with how the girls are further transitioning into cricket. Our talent coming through is exciting for when we start with our Senior Cricket team and playing competitive fixtures against other schools. This has been one of our most challenging seasons to date, not only with everything going on in the world but also having luck on our side! Our first four weekends of fixtures (20 fixtures) all had to be cancelled during due to weather, we then had to suspend fixtures for eight days due to a potential outbreak. In total, 31 fixtures have been played. Our current win rate is 61%. This is particularly pleasing as we have had a very disjointed season where fluency, rhythm and consistency have been lacking through no fault of our own. Block fixtures scheduled in this year were against Kent College, St Dunstan’s College, King’s Rochester, Duke of York’s, Dunottar School, The Colfe's School and King’s Canterbury. Unfortunately, not all of these matches were able to take place. We are looking forward to our prestigious match versus the Marylebone Cricket Club, where our 1st XI was victorious for the first time in September 2020.

Cricket continued... We currently have multiple pupils who are involved with the County Squads or District Squads in their respective age groups. This includes Benjamin, Kieran, Maddie, Maegan, Harry, Evie, Harrison, and Anna. We also have a few students involved in the District Southern Spartans set up and knocking on the doors of Kent. We are looking forward to re-introducing the following enrichment opportunities next year: Regular 1:1 net sessions for our most talented cricketers Visit to watch Kent in a one-day fixture next summer term Hosting a 6 a side tournament for girls’ and boys’ U15s and 1XI boys. A potential 1st XI pre-season tour abroad

Athletics There have been limited opportunities to compete in athletics due to issues with hosting athletic meets and competitions with the Covid restrictions. We have entered two events this summer term. Nadia finished 3rd in the Long Schools Heptathlon Competition and made selection for Kent. At the recent Kent Schools Track and Field Championships, we had several successful individual performances, and these students will go on to compete at the National Finals. This includes Jess (High Jump), Charlie (Long Jump), George (Shot Putt), Poppy (Long Jump), Nadia (Long Jump), Jess (Race Walking) and Thomas (300m). We are looking forward to re-introducing the following enrichment opportunities next year: Athletics club run with the help of Stella Bandu Encouraging more students to get involved in club athletics - Miss Saville will be involved to break down this barrier Emphasis on improving general fitness of our athletes

Tennis Our 8 tennis teams, ranging from Under 12 to Under 18 are playing several friendly fixtures against Kent College, St Edmunds, Highworth, Harvey Grammar and Norton Knatchbull. We boast a 63% win ratio this term and have some incredibly talented tennis players in the school who have the potential to make the county squads if they continue to train and improve. Treasure is an extraordinarily strong tennis player given her age. We have strengthened links with Wye Tennis Club and have the capacity to use their facilities looking ahead to next academic year.

House Reviews Franklins This has been an unpredictable year for both staff and students, but Franklins House has admirably risen to the task and emerged the stronger for it. James, Keisha and Anya as House Captains have provided consistent and effective support, leading by example and championing all students within the House. There have been numerous examples of triumphs, where Franklins placed second in both the House Languages Competition and Sports Day. Particular credit must be given to Ed, George, Onajite, Abigail, Hannah and Jessie, who performed exceptionally well across numerous events. Similarly, Eddie and Sanskar in Yr 13, who won a slew of sports awards. Franklins, in conjunction with Knights, raised over £800 for local charities in Kent, the awarding of which was decided upon following a Yr 9 House Competition judged largely by their peers. The students in Franklins have rallied against these trying times and continued to excel throughout a range of academic and co-curricular rigours. I look forward in eager anticipation to what we can achieve together in the coming academic year. Mr R. Langford

Knights While it has been a difficult year for us all, I have been blown away with the strength of character, resilience and sheer determination that Knights have faced all obstacles. Although we haven’t triumphed in many competitions, the students have given their all. Our sense of unity of purpose has carried us through, and I cannot praise the students and staff highly enough for their fantastic efforts, even in the depths of lockdown and online learning. Our outgoing Captain and Deputy Molly and Issy led by example with their calm and committed leadership of the House throughout. The baton now passes over to our new Captain, Amelia, and Deputy, Yoris, who will bring their own unique blend of energy and determination to the House next year. In February we said a fond au revoir to Mr Spencer who left the school to relocate to France - he has been much missed, especially by his old charges in 9K. From September, I will be taking a period of leave to look after my new daughter, and I will return in the New Year. During that time, we are very grateful that Miss Spires-Harold will be taking over as Acting Head of House, and I will be able to rest easy knowing that my Knights are in safe hands. I hope all of Knights and their families have a wonderful summer break, and look forward to hearing about their successes in the Autumn Term. Mr A. Stew

Merchants Under the leadership of Freddie as House Captain, and Lucy as Deputy, Merchants have achieved well in many of the House competitions this year. With credible places in Debating, House Science, and many of the sporting events, students have shown great commitment and efforts to do well. After such a strange year it has been great to see what our House has achieved, and I am extremely proud of them all. The camaraderie of our students has gone a long way, and I commend them all for their resilience and perseverance they have shown this year! Moving forward and handing the baton over, I wish Miss Saville and the team all the success in the future. Mrs C. Bates

Pilgrims This has been an eventful and successful year for Pilgrims. Under the stewardship of Iakob and Olivia we have marched through the challenges that this year has thrown at us to come through with House spirit intact, with some real moments to cherish. Notable highlights for me included the fierce repartee of the House Debating, the wonderfully creative offerings that each Pilgrims form produced for House MFL, and the strong and ready participation that students have shown in the slew of sporting trials and events throughout the year. It has been my privilege to lead Pilgrims for the last five years, and I would like to offer my sincerest thanks to the students and staff who have made my time at the helm so enjoyable, and without the support of whom Pilgrims' success simply would not be possible. I wish the House every success for the future and look forward to watching them continue to thrive. Mr T. Vafadis

Squires If I were to summarise Squires' year with one word, it would be "wow". With wins in House Debating, House Science and House MFL, and a second position in House General Knowledge, it has been Squires' strongest year in as long as I can remember. There has been a real buzz of excitement all year and our fighting spirit has never been as fierce. Mention must go to Kiran for his excellent culinary skills which helped secure the MFL win, to Jude for his fantastic recall of the Periodic Table in House Science and to George for participating so well in all the recent House events. We have a real sense of teamwork in Squires, fostered by our fantastic tutor team. Alfie and Daisy have led by example through some challenging times and special credit must be given to those students who joined us during lockdown and who are now very much part of the Squires family. Well done to the Year 13s who were the first form group to rescue Miss Loughlin from the tricky Squires Escape Room during House Assembly time. The students in Squires have proved this year that anything is possible when you dig deep and refuse to give up. Ms H. Loughlin

Yeomen Yeomen House has continued to show exceptional team spirit and unity this year and were winners of the House Cup again in June 2020. Cooperation between pupils in different years, supported by dedicated House tutors, has allowed us to marshal our competitive spirit successfully with Ashley at the helm as House Captain ably assisted by Charlotte as Deputy. Yeomen have published a termly newsletter updating pupils on School events and past pupils’ experiences outside Ashford School. They have included photographs from both lockdowns, which will be displayed on the House notice board once we are able to return to our House area. The pupils’ team ethos has been illustrated in the numerous House competitions, where teams have illustrated their commitment to participation and excellence. Sporting victories include Senior & Inter Boys’ Hockey and Junior Girls’ Netball. I would like to thank my fantastic House tutors for their hard work and the kindness they have shown to our students. Equally, I would like to thank the brilliant Yeomen pupils for their resilience and commitment to the House over the last year despite the challenges we have faced as a community. Mrs D. Walsh

Boarding Alfred House We are immensely proud of the boarders who make up Alfred House. We have had to work extremely hard to keep each other safe and healthy while continuing our education.

Academically, we repeatedly witnessed the focused work done in Alfred House. This preparation was reflected in exam results, the teachers’ feedback, the numerous commendations received and the top prizes in School for Vlad (Business), Peter (Digital Art), Junkai (Computing, EAL), Tony L. (Chemistry, PE), Justin J. (Mathematics, Computing, Design Technology), Justin C. (Music), Bruce (EAL).

These young adults have won admiration for being supportive of the wide range of COVID-19 measures and recommendations put in place within the boarding house and for being patient and helpful with each other and the staff in these challenging times. This spirit was regularly observed: the continuation of online lessons and exams, unperturbed by being suddenly thrust into isolation periods and even removed from the comfort of their own boarding rooms. Hats off to you, boys!

In addition to all the wonderful student achievements and contributions mentioned above, we celebrate and express our appreciation for Mrs Natalie Martin’s extraordinary contribution to the House and the young lives within. Since joining Alfred in January 2019, Mrs Martin has worked tirelessly to create a home away from home where boarders can relax, socialise and study comfortably. The improvements are all thanks to Mrs Martin’s effort and passion and are pleasantly obvious as soon as you walk through the front door of the House, in the Reception area, in the Sky Room, the Games Room and in many other places. The care for the space of the House has only been surpassed by the direct care shown to the students themselves. Their recent heartfelt words of gratitude and farewell are an unmistakable testament of this care. Viel Glück, Frau Martin!

It was great to see that participation in both boarding and School life continuing despite all the changes and adaptations. Several of our senior boarders once again chose to serve their community by leading it, as it was the case for the Head of Boys’ Boarding (Imran) and for the Alfred House Council (Adrian, Gankai,Kirill – House Citizenship Prize, Vlad). The newly appointed Deputy Head Boy of the School - Aeson, two Team Leader Prefects (Ade and Jeremy) and a Knights Prefect (Edwin) all reside in Alfred. It has been great to see interest and success in sports and several were recognised for their sporting prowess: Nuo (Senior Basketball) and Tom (Senior Multi-Sports). Overall, the engagement with basketball, badminton and football remained extremely strong indeed throughout the year. The involvement with music - from learning to play Bohemian Rhapsody on the guitar (Bowen) to being in the School Concerts (Edwin - also awarded the Cooper Cup for Piano - Cody and Justin C.) to creating music streamed by tens of thousands of people (Jerry). Other adventurous pursuits included commended participations in Duke of Edinburgh expeditions (Bronze and Silver) and boarding trips to Go Ape, fishing, golf, cooking for boarding competitions or just for friends.

Brooke House Despite such a difficult and challenging pandemic period, the Brooke boys have shown incredible levels of resilience throughout the year, and indeed they have exceeded all expectations bestowed upon them. The incredibly diverse cohort, both in terms of age-range and nationality, overcame the many challenges associated with prolonged lockdowns and Covid-related restrictions, and continued to flourish in a truly remarkable manner.

Brabourne House Brabourne has continued to be home from home for all our girls. It is a warm and happy place where our boarders feel safe and cared for. We have made the best of restrictions and created new lounge areas around the House, which the girls have thoroughly enjoyed.

Sanskar, Ashford School’s most experienced boarder and Deputy School Captain, was awarded the Senior Boys’ Rugby Cup and Sports Service Award; Alex was presented with the Intermediate Hockey Sports Award; Petar was given the position of Head of Academic Scholars; Tybalt received the prestigious United Learning Science Award; Mola presented, and sold, his excellent artwork at a local exhibition; King Lee was a School Parliamentarian; and Sebastian showcased his excellent musical talent during the School Concert in the Trinity Term.

Friendship groups have continued to form and strengthen within our bubbles, and there is a true sense community in the House, as could be seen when girls who were not isolating would cook special treats for those who were and had them delivered to their rooms by staff.

Whilst the list could easily be continued, I do hope this is a sufficient snippet of evidence to highlight the excellent progress made, and achievements obtained, by the Brooke residents this year!

The snowmen and women we built during the snow week during lockdown is a testament to the fun-loving culture of the House, and the laughter, ever-present in the corridors, shows what life is like in our House. We carved pumpkins for Halloween and built gingerbread houses for Christmas. We had lanterns up for Chinese New Year and had Easter eggs in spring. The House is abuzz with life!

The sense of unity within the House has been genuinely heart-warming throughout each term. In-house activities have provided some healthy competition on a regular basis, and it can be confirmed that amenities (such as our pingpong table) have never seen such frequent use! The strong bond has been highlighted further by the excellent attendance rates at the range of exciting weekend activities (paintballing, golfing, fishing and cooking - to name a few), and already both the pupils and staff are eagerly awaiting the return of School in September, to continue enjoying the many opportunities available to us on Ashford’s doorstep!

2020 Leavers' Destinations

54%

Gained a place at a Russell Group University

26%

Gained a place at a UK Top 10 University

Sport Coaching (Cardiff Metropolitan University) Sport Conditioning, Rehabilitation & Massage (Cardiff Metropolitan University) Music (Cardiff University) Business Management (City University) International Hospitality & Tourism Management (Coventry University) Medical Biosciences (Imperial College, London) Psychology (King's College London) Accounting & Finance (London School of Economics) Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (Loughborough University) Product Design & Technology (Loughborough University) Maastricht Science Programme (Maastricht University) Politics & Philosophy (Manchester Metropolitan University) Interior Architecture & Design (Nottingham Trent University) Biochemistry (Queen Mary, University of London) Pharmaceutical Chemistry (Queen Mary, University of London) Accounting & Finance (Royal Holloway, University of London) Computer Science (Royal Holloway, University of London) Football Studies (Solent University) Physics with Foundation Year (Swansea University) Design for Branded Spaces (UAL) Architecture (UCL) Biochemistry (UCL) Economics & Business with East European Studies (UCL) Management Science (UCL) Neuroscience (UCL) Psychology (University of Bath) Sport & Exercise Science (University of Bath) Medicine (University of Belgrade) Accounting & Finance (University of Birmingham) Sport & Exercise Science (University of Brighton)

10%

Gained a place at a World Top 10 University

Aerospace Engineering (University of Bristol) Economics (University of Cambridge) Criminology & Forensic Psychology (University of Chichester) Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (University for the Creative Arts) Criminology (University of Durham) Medicine (University of East Anglia) Economics & Maths (University of Edinburgh) International Relations (University of Essex) Maths with Computing (University of Essex) Aeronautical Engineering (University of Glasgow) Electronics & Electrical Engineering (University of Glasgow) Computing (University of Kent) Philosophy & Management (University of Kent) Planning & Real Estate (University of Manchester) Economics (University of Nottingham) History (University of Nottingham) Computer Science (University of Oxford) Preparatory Programme for Medical Studies (University of Paris) Primary Education (University of Roehampton) Architecture (University of Sheffield) Economics with Finance (University of Sheffield) Urban Studies & Planning (University of Sheffield) Computer Science with AI (University of Southampton) Business Management (University of Surrey) Computer Science (University of Surrey) Drama, Theatre & Performance (University of Sussex) Biomedical Sciences (University of Westminster) Integrated Wildlife Conservation (University of the West of England) Property Development & Planning with Foundation Year (University of the West of England) Real Estate (University of the West of England) Criminology (University of York)

Exam Results At the heart of the academic experience at Ashford School lies a commitment to building positive learning habits so that pupils can reach their full potential. A comprehensive curriculum is delivered by passionate and highly qualified subject specialists who work with dedication to ensure that every child leaves our School with a distinguished academic record.

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School Review 2021

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