Co-Curricular Matters

Boys and girls in the Shell year spend at least three afternoons a week playing games and taking part in sporting activities. The major games each term are:

Boys Girls Michaelmas Term Rugby Hockey (also Lacrosse) Lent Term Hockey Netball (also Lacrosse) Summer Term Cricket Tennis (also Athletics)

The two afternoons in the week when all Shell boys and girls play the major games are Mondays and Fridays. Participation in the major game is compulsory for all pupils in the Shell, but the choice increases as pupils progress up the school; senior pupils are more able to choose one of the alternative games and will have time available for academic work some afternoons. For pupils with disabilities and for whom reasonable adjustments cannot be made, alternative activities will be provided.

Matches against other schools take place chiefly on Saturday afternoons, with occasional matches on Wednesdays and Thursdays. In the winter terms, the school fields up to five rugby and five hockey teams (boys) and four hockey (girls), five netball and two lacrosse teams at Shell level. Those who do not represent the school on Saturday afternoons are directed towards a selection of alternative activities. Parents are encouraged to watch matches and to have tea in the Norwood Hall afterwards. Most Saturdays there are multi-sport activities on site. We have occasional trips to Bath, Bristol, Oxford and Blenheim for those not involved in fixtures.

Full details of the College’s fixtures are to be found in the Almanac, sent to parents every term and given to each pupil. Weekly fixture information can be accessed from the main College website via the sports website (sport.marlboroughcollege.org) which you can also save to your phone as a Mobile Web App. Clear details of venues, times, directions and cancellations are published before each major block fixture on a Saturday. Team lists are password protected for security, and this password is shared with parents at the beginning of an academic year. Further information about how to use the sports website will be available on the Parent Portal.

On Wednesday afternoons in the Michaelmas and Lent terms, some girls and boys in the Shell participate in a games circus when, besides having coaching in the major games, the year group is introduced in turn to the wide variety of other games that Marlborough has to offer. These are coached by senior pupils under staff supervision and will include a selection of: squash, fencing, fives, water polo and basketball. Those girls and boys in the top two teams for the major sports and lacrosse do not participate in the circus but have an extra team practice.

On Tuesday afternoons in all three terms there is a programme of other pursuits as part of the Shell and Remove Options Programme. These include art, clay pigeon shooting, ceramics, cookery, dance, design technology, drama, debating, fencing, film, girls’ football, boys’ football, girls’ cricket, music, photography, polo, rackets, riding, robotics, sewing, science clubs, table tennis, textiles, junior singers and outdoor activities.

On Thursday afternoons the Shell follow a year group programme of activities in the Michaelmas and Lent terms. In the Summer term, the Shell have an extra afternoon of sport on a Thursday. The aim is to enable pupils to participate in a variety of activities.

In the Summer term the school fields up to five cricket teams and four tennis sixes at Shell level for boys and girls. The College’s policy is that those boys who are required for cricket will play it; those who are not may take up tennis, athletics or swimming. Cricket trials take place for all Shell boys on selected Sundays in the Lent term by House. The major game for girls is tennis; girls who do not play this may take up athletics or swimming. We have a number of girls cricket fixtures. Coaching in these sports takes the place of the games circus on Wednesday afternoons in the Summer term. On Tuesday afternoons pupils continue to choose from a list of the College’s other sports or a non-sporting activity.

In the Remove and Hundred years, some continue with the major games but others, not required to play the major game of the term, may choose from the wide variety of other sporting activities on offer (including Outdoor Activities). The Remove year take a minimum of three sessions of sporting activity on weekday afternoons (Monday to Friday). They also take a course on Wednesday afternoons which introduces them to the CCF and to Outdoor Activities. In the latter, they are introduced to the basic skills of camping, canoeing, orienteering and rock climbing. Pupils participate in one other activity, sporting or non-sporting, opting from the list of pursuits available to the Remove on Tuesday afternoons. The Gold DofE is available in the Upper School; pupils opt for this in the February of the Hundred year. In 2019 we launched the Silver DofE Award to the Remove and over 40 pupils have completed their initial training.

Girls and boys in the Lower and Upper Sixth take a minimum of two sessions of exercise in a week. The most proficient in the major game of the term continue playing it, but also have opportunities to pursue another sporting activity. Many, especially those who play the major game of the term, take more than the minimum amount of exercise. A large number of pupils represent the school in alternative games such as squash, rackets, fives, lacrosse, basketball, fencing, polo, water polo, swimming, riding, clay pigeon shooting, shooting, football and golf. The range of sports and activities available is wide and includes: aerobics, yoga, dance, pilates, badminton, jiu jitsu, table tennis, fishing, beagling, softball, volleyball and watt-biking.

An extensive programme of inter-house competitions, (both sporting and non-sporting) at Senior and Junior levels, is held through the school year. All members of the Upper School do a Wednesday afternoon activity which is usually the CCF or a form of Outreach, often with children or the elderly in the local community.

The orchestra rehearses on Wednesday afternoons; members of the orchestra can take part in some Outreach activities on Monday afternoon instead.

Many of the College’s facilities are open on half days (Tuesdays and Thursdays) and at weekends for boys and girls to pursue activities that interest them independently; these include the Sports Hall, the Squash and Fives courts, the Swimming Pool, the Art school, the Music practice rooms, the ICT Centre and the Technology Centre. Drama productions are rehearsed at these times and many Music ensembles also have their weekly practices.

Outdoor Activities

The College offers a wide range of Outdoor Activities, including canoeing, sailing, kayaking, sub-aqua, mountain-biking, hill-walking, rock climbing, mountaineering, caving, coasteering, potholing, orienteering, camping and dry slope skiing. The facilities of the purpose-built Kempson Centre include a recently refurbished climbing wall and the Climbing Club meet here two evenings a week.

Each year a number of Lower Sixth pupils participate in the Devizes to Westminster marathon double kayak race. This involves three overnight camps over the Easter weekend, plus 125 miles of paddling and constitutes a considerable personal challenge.

Weekend expeditions are organised to such places as the New Forest, the Forest of Dean and the Brecon Beacons. We make a small charge to cover transport and equipment for such expeditions. In the holidays longer expeditions are organised, and recently have included trips to Nepal, Peru, Iceland, Slovenia, Sweden, Mount Olympus and The Alps. Pupils in the two Upper School years are strongly encouraged to participate in the DofE Gold Award scheme and the Outdoor Activities department co-ordinates this and helps pupils plan and carry out their own mini-expeditions. Pupils in the Remove are encouraged to participate in the DofE Silver Award.

Educational Visits

The College runs a comprehensive programme of day and overnight trips which aim to extend and enrich the academic and co-curricular experiences of the pupils.

In term time there are trips to university departments, museums, theatres and cinemas and a varied programme of recreational House trips for Shell. The House trips are usually aimed at one year group and it is hoped that all of the year group will attend. They greatly aid the bonding and settling process.

The Outdoor Activities Department runs a number of adventure weekends which are open to all pupils. Recent trips have included climbing in North Wales, moutainbiking in mid Wales and Gold DofE Training in the Brecon Beacons and Snowdonia. Each year the Shell

has an Outdoor Activities Week in June; the vast majority of the sixteen Houses stay in the Brecon Beacons. Each year there is also a post-GCSE trip for pupils in the Hundred, in 2019 this was a ‘Surf or Turf’ trip to the Gower.

In normal times, the College runs a number of foreign trips in the holidays. Many of these are regular trips. Recent examples have included:

• Art School Study Trip to Venice • CCF Trip to San Diego • Chinese Exchange to Beijing and Guilin • Classics Department Trip to Greece • Cricket Tour to South Africa • Design Department Trip to SCAD, Atlanta • English Department Trip to Dublin • Exercise and Sports Science trip to Swaziland • French Exchanges to Paris, Limours and Luxemburg • Geography Trips to India, Iceland, Sri Lanka and the Azores • German Department Exchange to Berlin and study trip to Munich • Golf Tour to Devon • History of Art Trips to Rome, Paris, Milan and the Low Countries • History Trips to Siena, Berlin, Prague, China and Morocco • Hockey Tour to the Netherlands • Italian Department Trip to Florence • Junior Ski Trip to France • Netball Tour to Barbados • Physics Trip to Cern, Switzerland and NASA, Florida • Politics Department Trips to Bosnia and Washington • Rugby Tour to Japan • Russian Department Study Trips to Moscow and Keiv • Football Trip to Norway • Spanish Exchange to Cuenca and Santiago • Sports Performance Trip to California • Tennis Pre-Season to Portugal

Society Meetings

These take place at a variety of times during the week. A full list of the College’s societies together with those responsible for activities is to be found in the Almanac.