Heads Review - 2024 Issue 12

HEAD’S REVIEW

Head’s Introduction

Last weekend’s MNDA challenge was simply outstanding – the girls’ attitude was great throughout, the distance everyone covered, the participation in the event of the wider school community, the detailed planning and set-up ensured it ran smoothly, and, most importantly, the vital funds raised. The total is just short of £10,000, which is remarkable. Congratulations to everyone involved in the planning and execution, especially Mr Wilson, Mr Bond, and Dr Barrand, and, of course, to Year 8!

I am thrilled that the Library is open again, and the girls are already making great use of it. The design is all the more effective when the space is busy, but during lessons there is an atmosphere of quiet and focused industry.

House Music last Friday was great fun, and well done to those involved. The musical talent on show was really fantastic, and I was impressed with the girls’ responses to the theme. Congratulations to House 2,  who were the overall winners.

Well done to the Year 11 artists, who have now completed their GCSE – I am sure it must feel great to have one full GCSE done. Good luck to all those who are doing their DofE Bronze and Silver practice expeditions this weekend, and good luck to everyone involved in next Thursday’s Fringe Concert – I hope that many of you will come along to support what will be an amazing event.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

2nd May | 7PM

ALL SAINTS

CHURCH,

HOVE

Tickets

https://brightonfringe.org

or https://roedean.ticketsolve.com

The Library

Stunning View of Roedean from the Sea

Fantastic 24-Hour Charity Event Raises £9812

Year 8 set the rest of the School a challenge –race them be the first to cover 777 kilometres in an exciting 24-hour charity challenge to raise funds for MNDA, the Motor Neurone Disease Association. Their target was also to raise £7,777, the number 7s acknowledging the shirt number of the Rugby League player, Rob Burrow CBE, and patron of the charity.

Year 8 got off to a fantastic start, covering an amazing 251 kilometres in the first hour. But they then had to go back to lessons, allowing Year 7 and 9 to catch them up and get some distance on the board for the School. Everyone walking around the 1-kilometre track wore a chip which logged the distance live, so we could all follow our progress in real time.

It quickly became apparent that we had underestimated the girls’ determination to achieve a big total, and the rest of the School actually covered the target distance first. So we had to recalibrate our target – the first time, we converted to imperial and worked out how many kilometres 777 miles is. But then the Year 8 also covered the new target of 1,250 kilometres, so we increased the target again to 1,777 kilometres. With about an hour to go before the end of the 24-hour overnight challenge, they broke through that barrier too – just brilliant!

The race was started by Majid Hafezparast, Professor of Molecular Neuroscience at the University of Sussex, with a special interest in Motor Neurone Disease, there was also a representative from the MNDA charity present. Professor Hafezparast cut the orange ribbon, and the Year 8 streamed over the line to begin the challenge.

Other year-groups took over the mantle an hour after the start, and there was someone racing around the track throughout the 24 hours of the race. Boarders also joined in on Friday evening and Saturday morning, but the most credit goes to the sixty-five Year 8s who slept on crash mats in the sports hall, walked in waves through the night to keep the race going. Admittedly, it was a bit like a massive sleep-over, complete with delicious pizza, but they were brilliant, and there was no grumbling at all when they got up in the middle of the night to walk again.

We were so lucky with the weather – there was a spot of rain in the first hour, but the rest was either sunny or moonlit, with lovely clear skies. No doubt, these conditions helped the students and staff involved to cover big distances – the Year 8 team clocked 1,880 kilometres, and the rest of the School community achieved 1,199, meaning that overall we covered 3,079 kilometres! Not only did the girls smash the distance targets, but they also smashed the fundraising target, with donations of £8,794, which increases to £9,812 with GiftAid –outstanding!

This was absolutely a collective endeavour, but it is also noteworthy that 11 people completed the marathon distance or more! Well done to Mr Wilson, Dr Barrand, Mr Bond, Katherine (who covered 57 kilometres, representing Year 8, then left early to compete in an Athletics fixture – and won her 3000m event), Mancy (from Year 12, who completed 50 kilometres), and Year 8’s Astrid, Bella, Erin, and Lili, who also covered at least 42 kilometres! However, the most kudos goes to Mr Orys, who walked and ran almost non-stop between 4:00pm on Friday and 1:00pm on Saturday, and completed an unbelievable 84 kilometres, a double-marathon!

After the challenge, Professor Hafezparast sent his congratulations: 'This is an amazing achievement. Please convey my deepest gratitude to everyone involved in organising the event, and special thanks to all the girls and staff who participated. Thank you also to everyone's generosity and commitment to this important cause. This will make a significant difference in the lives of those affected by MND.'

Thank you to everyone involved – it was a community event, with the Grounds and Estates teams marking out the track and lighting it, members of staff sleeping in CHall with the students, and all those students, members of staff, and parents who got stuck in to make a difference for MNDA!

LAMDA Exam Results – March

Congratulations to the 21 students who took LAMDA exams in the latest cycle – remarkably, every single one was awarded a distinction, again!  Well done!

Pupil Grade Subject

Ariella (Yr7) 3 Acting

Hailey (Yr7) 3 Acting

Jolie (Yr8) 3 Acting

Betsy (Yr7) 4 Acting

Ana Luisa (Yr9) 4 Acting

Charlotte (Yr10) 4 Acting

Helena (Yr8) 4 Musical Theatre

Livvy (Yr8) 4 Musical Theatre

Claudia (Yr9) 4 Musical Theatre

Madeleine (Yr8) 4 Speaking Verse and Prose

Molly (Yr9) 5 Acting

Aubrey (Yr10) 5 Acting

Chloe (Yr10) 5 Acting

Jemima (Yr10) 5 Acting

Lyla (Yr9) 5 Acting

Natalie (Yr9) 5 Acting

Maggie (Yr10) 6 Acting

Lucy (Yr11) 6 Acting

Amelia (Yr12) 6 Musical Theatre

Portia (Yr13) 8 Acting

Ella (Yr12) 8 Musical Theatre

Jesus Christ Superstar Trip House Music Year 7 West End Workshop

'Last Wednesday, the Drama and RS Departments gave us an amazing opportunity to see the outstanding musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, in Eastbourne.

The whole experience was incredibly enjoyable, thanks to the very skilled cast, technical team, and musicians. This 1970s rock musical told the infamous story of Jesus and Judas from a different perspective, with a twist in the

Mrs Sellers

Result

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

Distinction

This fantastic event took place last Friday with 'Rock Music' as its theme. Amongst the highlights were heavy bass riffs, blow up guitars, superb singing and dancing, Mr De Costa as Freddie Mercury, Mr McGregor living out his 80s rock group dream, and the participation of lots of girls throughout the School.

The Houses truly showcased the incredibly high level of musical talent at Roedean! Thanks to Mr Halsey for his “hilarious” compering, to Ms Izzard Davey for her tech support, and to all the House staff for putting together a rocking event!

The overall standings:

1st House 2

2nd House 4

3rd House 3

4th House 1

modern portrayal done by the company. The leads depicted a complicated but definite relationship, and the creative adaption of the usual production made for a unique and special performance for the audience.

Overall, it was a brilliant experience!'

This week, all Year 7 students took part in a dance workshop with West End performer, Kate Kenrick. All four groups learnt the incredibly challenging choreography to Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious from Mary Poppins, and they did brilliantly – well done Year 7!

Mr Wriglesworth

Miss Abaza

The Library Refurb is Brilliant!

We are delighted that the Library has re-opened this term after its refurbishment, and it looks fantastic. The design of the Library enables a combination of study, quiet reading, small group work, presentations for up to 80 people, a display of student work and archive materials, and access to loan laptops. It also includes the opening up of the side rooms and showcases the honours' boards dating back to the first years of the school, some of which have previously been obscured.

Much like that in the boarding houses, the design is characterised by a clever combination of both modern and heritage features. We have new windows and stonework, along with complete rewiring and improved WiFi

Forty-nine brave Year 9 students and members of staff will be abseiling from over 140 metres from the iconic Brighton i360, to raise money for the Year 9 charity of the year, Raystede.

Raystede aims to alleviate animal cruelty, rescue, rehabilitate, rehome, and provide sanctuary for animals in need. Last year, thirty students and staff took part in this breath-taking challenge and raised nearly £7500. This year we hope to raise even more! It promises to be an unforgettable and adrenaline-filled evening.

connectivity. There is a new ceiling, which respects the Arts and Crafts design and architecture in the beamed roof, and a safety balustrade has been added on the mezzanine and spiral staircase. The oak floor has been sanded, and now contemporary lighting highlights the restored portraits of our Founders.

No doubt, Dame Emmeline Tanner, after whom the Library is named, would be very proud!

Dr Hobbs

Please support the Year 9 students and Mr De Costa, Mrs Sharp, Mrs Finn, Mrs Woodbridge, Mrs Andrew, Ms Shahab, and Mr Higgins in this epic event!

If you would like to donate, please do so via this link: https://www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/roedeanschooly9

Mr Wilson

This year's Fringe concert, the first of the series, will be a wonderful showcase of the School's musical talent.

Six soloists will play will perform with the School's orchestra in the first half, followed by two choral pieces, in which the choir will be accompanied by the orchestra.

This year, our event will be in All Saints Church in Hove – please book your tickets on the link below – you won't want to miss it!

Wakehurst – Year 12 Biology Trip

'Wakehurst botanical garden is the most biodiverse place on the planet, and is used and managed by Kew Gardens. In the morning, the Year 12 biologists visited the Millennium Seed bank, where over 2 billion seeds have been collected from all over the world and stored in sub-zero chambers. We were shown the largest seed on Earth, the Coco de Mer, which is endemic to the Seychelles and can weigh up to 20 kilograms! We also visited their greenhouses, where rare plants with recalcitrant (difficult or impossible to store) seeds are planted and cultivated.

After a nice lunch out in the sun, we spent our afternoon conducting our own woodland investigation of biodiversity at Wakehurst, and comparing two hazel coppice plots in Pearcelands Wood. It was really interesting applying the knowledge of using quadrats and calculating biodiversity using the Simpson’s index. And we definitely enjoyed seeing so many fields of bluebells!

With 2 in 5 plant species threatened with extinction, we learnt a valuable lesson in the importance of conserving the world’s plants for the future. The extinction of one species will disrupt the entire balance of the ecosystem, so the research that takes place in Wakehurst therefore has an invaluable impact on the biodiversity of our planet, and we were extremely privileged to have witnessed the ongoing conservation projects that are carried out at Wakehurst.'

Kaitlin and Hannah

We had a fantastic day at Wakehurst with our Year 12 students last week, learning about the vital conservation work that botanic gardens like Wakehurst conduct around the world. The students were excellent ambassadors for the School, and the Wakehurst staff even commented that they were the most interested group they had ever taught!

Dr Turner

Ski Trip over Easter Silver for Maisa in the South East Regionals!

Over the Easter break, 45 pupils and six members of staff travelled to Austria on the ski trip. Despite the very early start (3:00am), we made it to Innsbruck in good spirits by lunchtime, and were surrounded by the mountains of St Anton in no time at all.

The first two days were very snowy, making conditions a little tricky for all the groups, especially the beginners, however, by the time the sun came out on day three, all four groups had made it up the mountain by chairlift for lunch. The top groups enjoyed some fabulous powder, and the beginners were able to make their way from the top to the bottom of the mountain.

The weather conditions made for some great goggle tans, but the warm weather also meant that technique was put to the test with plenty of bumps and moguls all over the mountain (Mr Fieldsend will attest to this!). The girls also enjoyed shopping, eating pizza, and plenty of board games. It was a testament to the brilliant teaching from our instructors and the effort from all the girls, that there were no injuries, and everyone had a fabulous time.

Thank you to all my colleagues who joined in, allowing for such an enjoyable time.

Miss Kirby-Jones

Congratulations to Year 7's Maisa, who participated in the regional championships at K2 last weekend!

She did brilliantly well:

■ 200m Individual Medley – finished in 9th position with a time of 2:41.76

■ 800m Freestyle – finished in 7th position with a time of 10:08.15

■ 100m Backstroke – finished 3rd in the first round with 1:12.30, and missed the Bronze in the final by 0:0.23, less than a quarter of a second, achieving 1:11.62

■ 200m Backstroke – finished 2nd in the first round with 2:32.18, and won Silver in the final, missing the Gold medal by 0:0.49, achieving 2:28.93

What an amazing achievement to finish second in the whole of the South East region! Well done, Maisa, for your amazing swimming!

Ms Marek

Rowing Gold for Nancy Mr Meardon runs the London Marathon

Congratulations to Nancy (Yr11), who took part in the Junior Inter-Regional Champsionships up in Nottingham last weekend.

She works incredibly hard and trains a great deal, and all of this paid off as she took Gold in the Women's Junior 16 race – we look forward to hearing about the rest of her competitions later this year.

Well done!

Congratulations to Mr Meardon, who ran the London Marathon on Sunday for Myositis UK. He ran with his partner, Ms Rowlinson, who miraculously pushed her Dad in a wheelchair for the 26.2 miles. Mr Rowlinson was diagnosed with inclusion body Myositis ten years ago and sadly there is no cure, meaning raising funds to support research is even more important.

Training for Mr Meardon has been somewhat of a struggle due to recent illness and a busy schedule, however the three of them ran the marathon in a time of 5 hours 55 minutes and 27 seconds.

If you would like to sponsor Mr Meardon, please use this justgiving link:

https://www.justgiving.com/page/david-jennyjonny

This Fortnight in Boarding...

We have been blessed with some sunny weather to kick off our Summer Term, and, of course, all the boarders have dived straight back into their favourite, and some new, boarding activities!

House 1 rehearsed for House music, fuelled by some sweet treats from the pantry! Girls have been getting green-fingered, planting seeds to grow cress, with the aim of making egg and cress sandwiches in the near future –keep your eyes peeled and your fingers crossed!

House 2 worked hard to prepare props for House music, fuelled by some nachos and cheese! Well done to House 2 for a fantastic, rock and roll performance, and the win! The girls celebrated with some tasty, and perfectly decorated, cakes, made by Mrs Burns. The sight of the sun has got everybody excited for warmer weather – even Mr Bear has been waiting for the sunrises! Over the weekend, girls enjoyed an ice-cream bar, with lots of tasty options for toppings. Boarders have been getting to grips with the Nintendo Switch, hosting a Mario Kart competition, with some perfectly themed accompanying snacks!

House 3 enjoyed a Mexicanthemed evening, with homemade quesadillas and loaded nachos. Girls were spoilt for choice with a range of dips, including salsa, guacamole, and sour cream!

House 4 celebrated World Art Day with a variety of creations, including friendship bracelets, origami, and air clay modelling. The girls even enjoyed a late Easter treat of homemade Easter chocolate nests, adorned with mini eggs! On International Evenings, boarders explored the classic French cuisines, by making fresh croissants and pains au chocolat – yummy! They also had fun successfully making German bagels, both sweet and savoury!

Miss Barnett

Roedean Golf

With the sun gloriously beaming down on our beautiful Roedean campus, it was time for the return of the fair weather Roedean golfers to get back to hitting their golf balls!

Students from Years 7, 9, 10, and 12 dusted off their clubs and spent Activity 2 on Tuesday working on their swing on the Roedean driving range.

It was a lovely afternoon to play golf, with the girls marvelling over their good shots, laughing with friends over the slightly (!) less good ones, and enjoying the beautiful views that Roedean students have over the English Channel every day.

Sailing

The Roedean sailors did really well on Saturday – in cold blustery winds, they sailed Toppers for the first time and competed in some short races against each other. They have been working towards completing RYA Level 1 and 2 qualifications, and are using their knowledge with confidence to sail in the different wind conditions and different boats on Piddinghoe Lake. Well done to everyone involved!

U13B Cricket vs Cumnor House

In their first Cricket fixture of the term, the U13B hosted a softball match versus Cumnor House.

Cumnor won rock paper scissors, and decided to put the team into bat first. The innings was slightly slow in terms of runs, with the team scoring 127 runs in our 20 overs, but having six wickets, meaning we ended up with Cumnor chasing 97 to win. The highlight of the batting innings was a big six by Andrea.

The bowling inning was tough, with Cumnor hitting runs frequently with lots of boundaries which we were missing in our inning. Unfortunately, we didn't get any wickets, but the bowling highlights were from Ying and Bea, who conceded fifteen runs in four overs, which is great numbers.

Cumnor won by 73.

■ Bowling/Fielding Player of the Game: Andrea

■ Batting Player of the Game: Rosa

Mr Wriglesworth

Miss Kirby-Jones

Mr Foggoa

Cricket vs Brighton College

U12D

The U12Ds had their first ever cricket match last week against Brighton College, and did a brilliant job in a sport new to many of them. We batted first, with Cindy and Ariella making some great runs, and Hailey and Ariella were our highest scoring batting pair.

The team came into their own in the fielding, demonstrating some excellent teamwork and communication to get the ball back to the bowler as quickly as possible. Evelyn caught out one of the opposition players with a excellent catch, and Cindy, Perla, and Soraya all managed to bowl the opposition out.

The game finished with an incredibly close score of 299 runs to 295, with our U12Ds narrowly missing out on the win. However, it was a great learning experience and the team worked very hard throughout. Well done all!

Miss Donovan

U13E Victory

Last Wednesday, Roedean’s U13E team played to victory in their first fixture of the season against Brighton College.

The sun shone on the newly cut grass of the cricket pitch, and the stage was set for the historic showdown! Lucia and Henrietta opened up proceedings, and scored an impressive 36 runs in their first over, followed by 46 in their later appearance! Both players earned themselves the Players' Player award for the tournament – Lucia for her batting prowess and Henrietta for bowling.

Next up were Tilly and Hazel, who were strong both in batting and bowling, contributing hugely to the victory. In Cheryl’s first cricket match, she scored an impressive total with her partner Chloe! Lily bowled extremely well, and took two wickets against the Brighton batters. Together with Alice, who was formidable as wicket-keeper, the pair were a force to be reckoned with. Jemima and Sara gained confidence in the field and contributed to several Brighton players not achieving full runs with their precision and tight fielding.

The final score was 395-373 to Roedean! Well done, team.

Ms Marek

U15A Football vs Oxford International College

On Friday, we hosted a Year 9/10 seven-a-side football fixture versus Oxford International.

The team gelled really well, playing cohesively and working all together as a group. At times their was some fantastic free flowing football, creating lots of chances on goal and converting seven of them as the team won 7-1.

The team featured several new faces to football, which was great to see, as was their confidence throughout.

The defence and Flo in goal played well to concede only one goal.

If you are interested in playing football, please sign up for this activity in Activity 1 or 2 on Wednesdays.

Mr Foggoa

Sussex Badminton for Athena and Jolie

During the Easter holidays, Athena and Jolie had the amazing opportunity to represent Sussex Badminton at U18 level (both players are playing for the year group above) at the Inter County Tournament held in Nottingham. There were over 300 players, representing 30 counties, with matches played over 4 days. This is the highlight of the badminton season!

They played superbly well, and finished 17th out of 29 teams. Sussex had a very tough first box, with Hertfordshire and Nottingham, and, for a team with 7 new players to the ICT extravaganza, it was always going to be a tough ask to win those 2 matches. However, they fought back and then won the next 4 matches convincingly.

Well done!

Miss Kirby-Jones

U15A Tennis vs Hurst

On Monday, the U15A tennis squad had their first league tennis match against Hurstpierpoint College. Representing Roedean were: 1. Ruby, 2. Betsy, 3. Amelie, 4. Miranda. They played singles first, followed by doubles. There were some great rallies in the singles, and everybody seemed to be playing the points out, rather than just winning after 1 point. Hurst were consistently getting the shots back though, and they were good matches to watch. The results in the singles were as follows: Betsy won 6-0, Ruby won 6-2, Amelie lost 6-3, Miranda lost 6-2.

In the doubles, the matches were great to watch again, and we saw some hard baseline hitting from Ruby and Betsy, meaning they were overpowering their opposition. In contrast, Amelie and Miranda were going for shorter shots into the gaps on the court and moving their players around. They were so close to winning their doubles – they were 4-4 at one point, but Hurst just managed to get the edge on us. The doubles results were as follows: Betsy and Ruby won 6-0, Amelia and Miranda lost 6-4.

This meant that the overall score was tied 6-6, so onto a doubles championship tie-break (first to 10 points wins), with Betsy and Ruby playing Hurst’s doubles first team. It was tense – at one point we were up, then we went down 7-4, so we were all on the edge of our seats! I knew Ruby and Betsy could do it though and they did! They won the next 7 shots in a row and sealed the win for Roedean.

What a great start to the tennis season!

OR Netball – Victory for the Roedean 1st VII

On Saturday, we had our annual OR Netball match. It was a lovely morning for our Old Roedeanians to come back and visit us.

It was a very tightly-contested first quarter, with the OR team taking a 3-goal lead straight away. The current 1st team then stepped up a gear and managed to pull ahead to win the first quarter 7-4. The OR team played with great spirit and determination, linking up well, despite being a squad from many different past year groups!

The final score was 39-17 to our current 1st team. Well done to all who played – it was a fantastic occasion, and we hope to see all the ORs back next year!

Miss Hammond

Miss Patching-Jones

U18 Volleyball vs Oxford International

In a very popular first volleyball fixture of the year, we hosted Oxford International from Ovingdean. Attendance from watching students was incredible, with around twenty to thirty students cheering after every point.

The fixture was highly competitive, with all the students keen to feature and working hard for each other – lots of the points were tough rallies.

Both teams really enjoyed themselves – OIC won two sets to one, but overall it was a great experience, and we have lots of fixtures planned in the future.

If you are keen to play volleyball, please attend the Co-Curricular club, in Activity 1 on a Thursday.

Mr Foggoa

We welcome contributions from all parts of the Roedean community. If you have something you would like featured in the Head’s Weekly Review, please email: aws@roedean.co.uk

Sport Stars of the Week

Congratulations to the Team of the Week, which is the U15A Football team – they played brilliantly in their match against OIC.

Well done also to this week's sporting stars: Mr Campleman

Year 7

Cindy, for fantastic progress in Cricket this term

Year 7

Shahdi, for consistent effort and having a brilliant attitude in PE lessons

Year 8

Katherine, for an excellent performance in her 3000m event at an Athletics meet

Year 9

Lily, for a fantastic start and progress in Cricket this term

Year 10

Romy, for a brilliant first-time effort in the 3000m event in an athletics meet

Year 11

Orla, for an excellent performance for the 1st XI Cricket team and taking 2 exceptional wickets

Year 12 & 13

Maria, for a fantastic batting performance against Seaford College for the Roedean 1st XI Cricket