EDUCATION

ALL THE NEWS FROM YOUR LOCAL SCHOOLS

Sport Success for Headteacher of Manor House

It takes commitment to train for a Triathlon. Rising two hours before the sun during these winter months isn’t for everyone.

For Headteacher of Manor House Ms Fantham, most week days start with a swim, a run or a cycle ride before her working day begins, part of her preparation for the Sprint Triathlon European Championships in Munich this August (having first qualified in 2019 for the event in Kazan, Russia), cycle around Lock Ness), where she will be raising money for Team Macmillan.

No wonder then that Sport is central to life at Manor House School, Bookham, Ms Fantham is the ultimate role model for her pupils. With a back catalogue of playing county level hockey, competing at squash and water polo for the University of Loughborough, followed by two ski seasons and representing Merrow Tennis club’s first team, Sport has been a passion for Ms Fantham since childhood. triathlon club were thrilled to be invited to compete at the Schools Triathlon at Cranleigh School in May 2022, fundraising for Restless Development and other school charities. But before that, the Manor House School 2022 ski trip beckons, with Ms Fantham, staff and pupils looking forward to some fresh show on the slopes in Crans Montana.

Ms Fantham trains with triathlon coach Laura Addie of First Stride (Winner of Ironman 18-24 World Champion 2019) and sits on the GSA Sport & Wellbeing committee and the England Hockey Working Group.

Angela’s Swim School

Make room for swimming in your life. It’s the essential water safety life skill that’s highly inclusive and gives a total body workout, building muscle tone and improving breathing and circulation.

Angela’s Swim School offers lessons to children from 4 months old, plus adult classes for all abilities. Learning to swim from a young age really helps children build in confidence, strength and stamina.

To help children learn to swim the right way, Angela’s Swim School has developed the Swimstylers, who are at the heart of the school’s teaching programme. These inspirational characters break down how to become a strong, independent swimmer into clearly defined targets, which step-by- step show children how to progress their swimming with confidence and strong technique.

The six Swimstylers characters feature on class names and awards so charting progress is really easy - that’s from non-swimmers up to a 1500m swim.

The swim school’s founder swam competitively at the highest levels. Angela’s insight and winning techniques have been the basis of her swim teaching career for over 25 years and made Angela’s Swim School a major provider of lessons in the Southeast, with pools nearby in Cobham and East Horsley.

Give them the gift of swimming today. Join Angela’s Swim School. Visit www.angelasswimschool.co.uk for more information.

The Power of Music

Tom walks into the music room on a rainy Monday morning in January looking a little downcast and sleepy; 10 minutes later he’s singing, dancing and smiling and ready to start the school week feeling confident and excited about the days ahead. The secret? Music! The transformative effects that music can have on a young mind are extensive. Socially, music gives children a sense of belonging, instilling confidence and self-esteem; academically, music offers support in literacy, numeracy and speech development. In fact the list of evidencebased benefits are extensive, from boosting IQ to reducing aggressive behaviour, refining motor skills and nurturing positive wellbeing.

For many, the key touchstones of the school year (concerts, nativities, productions, carol services etc) were again cancelled last year due to the pandemic. Those performances that did take place did so to a sea of masks in freezing temperatures as windows were thrown open to increase air flow. At Barrow Hills we were lucky to have the resources to film our performances so parents were still able to see them. Singing has taken a hit throughout the pandemic but, again, we were fortunate at Barrow Hills to have a supportive management team who recognised its importance and we were blessed with enough space and ventilation to carry on singing, dancing and making music in our weekly lessons and ensembles. Keeping the school buzzing with music and laughter has helped children feel safe, secure and happy in these unstable times.

Ultimately, music’s power lies not only in its transformative impact on the individual but in its ability to bring a school community together. If you’re looking for a school in which your child will flourish in all aspects of their education, then make sure it’s a school that sings!

We welcome families to visit throughout the year at Open Mornings and for private tours. Our upcoming Music and Storytime Morning for pre-school aged children will take place on 25th February with sessions from 9.30 to 11am.

Harriet Hardy, Music Teacher

Developing Potential For Life

St. Andrew’s School was founded in 1937 and is a respected and thriving co-educational Nursery, Pre-Prep and Prep School, set in 11 acres of grounds near Woking town centre. St. Andrew’s creates a nurturing and happy environment in which all pupils are encouraged and enabled to develop their potential to the full.

At St. Andrew’s children feel secure and confident and are highly motivated to perform to the best of their ability in all aspects of school life. Above all, children make friends for life, leaving as confident well-rounded young people ready for their education ahead. Children are prepared for entrance and scholarship exams to a wide range of independent senior schools and there are specialist teaching facilities for all subjects including science, ICT, music, food technology and art. The curriculum is broad and the school places great emphasis on music, sport and the arts. In our latest ISI Inspection we were proud to be rated ‘excellent’ in all areas.

St. Andrew’s has excellent on-site facilities and our latest building development project has provided us with a fantastic tiered seating theatre, food technology room, library, changing rooms and classrooms. Our impressive outdoor facilities include an astro, sports pitches, tennis courts, cricket nets and a swimming pool.

Don’t just take our word for it, come and visit the school to see for yourself! We have three open days, one per term, but you are also welcome to visit the school at other times. See our website for further details: www.st-andrews.woking.sch.uk

St George’s College Weybridge is a leading independent co-educational Catholic day school for children aged 11-18 in Surrey. Founded in 1869, with its distinctive Josephite ethos, St George’s has become the largest independent Catholic school in the country with a thriving Junior School and College. The School had a full ISI inspection in December 2019, and was rated excellent in all categories.

St George’s is academically selective, where children can learn and grow into kind, polite, respectful adults. There is a perfect balance between academia, creativity, and sport. This is what makes St George’s unique – and what makes the children who leave us exceptional. The distinctive ethos upheld by St George’s encourages a strong sense of family, where all students are valued and encouraged to fulfil their potential in an atmosphere of mutual respect and compassion. This atmosphere is extended to all families, Old Georgians, staff, the local community and the wider world.

St George’s welcomes students and staff of all faiths and none. It is our wish that during their time at St George’s, our students will grow up within a community where Christian beliefs and principles are a guide for all that we do. This is evident in the liturgical life of our school and in the many ways we have of reaching out beyond our community.

St George’s is in the top 1% of schools nationwide for Value Added, and seeks to help all students to choose the best path for their individual abilities desires and needs, so that they become the best version of themselves.

St George’s welcomes all prospective families to view the school, with Open Mornings running in Spring and Autumn each year.

St George’s College Weybridge