Message from the Headmaster
Dear Parents
I hope everyone was able to enjoy some aspects of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations over half term. I was delighted to be invited to a street party on Park Road next to the School where we toasted the Queen in style, even if my efforts in the subsequent tug-of-war, egg & spoon race and welly-wanging were not exactly regal.
It’s been great to welcome students back to school this week. Examinations are a rather dominant theme, with GCSEs and A Levels still underway and the Lower Sixth and Lower School also taking their end-of-year tests. This afternoon’s Sports Day at Tilsley Park for Third, Fourth and Lower Sixth students has therefore been a welcome change. There were some superb individual performances to enjoy but the best feature of the afternoon was the team spirit engendered amongst our Houses and the support that students gave to one another.
We take our responsibilities for the pastoral welfare of our students seriously, and indeed this week Fourth Year students attended a talk on drugs education as part of their wider Personal, Social, Cultural, Health Education (PSHCE) programme. This was supplemented by a webinar for parents and I wanted to flag up to you another webinar taking place next Wednesday which is being offered across the OX14 Learning Partnership. It is being run in conjunction with the charity FFLAG and is called ‘Supporting our LGBTQ+ children’. There is no need to sign up in advance and attendees will be anonymous. Further information has been sent to parents today via isams email.
Best wishes, Mike Windsor
WHOLE SCHOOL
- Celebration of the Arts, Wednesday 29 June 2022. Abingdon School would like to invite you to a Celebration of the Arts. We will be showcasing the creativity of our students. The event includes The Futuristic Junk Art Festival which includes sculptural work exhibited from all of First to Third year pupils. The students will be providing a live rock and pop concert outside Beech Court. English students will also be presenting excerpts of their creative writing. Refreshments will be available and we hope that you will be able to attend. Our celebration starts at 5.30pm and finishes at 8.00pm. To allow us to have an idea of numbers, please book a free ticket via the Amey Theatre Box Office. A link can be found here. Paul Williamson, Head of Art and Design / Event Coordinator.
- Annual Data Check – Final reminder. Forms were sent to parents on Friday 20 May via isams email. The deadline to complete and submit forms is today, Friday 10 June. Thank you to those parents who have already completed the form. A reminder to parents who have not yet completed the form has been sent via isams email today. Even if your data has not changed, a form is still required to be completed please. The Data Check is an online process that takes a few minutes to complete.
- Henley Royal Regatta – Friday 1 July 2022. Current and former parents, staff, and governors, are invited to join OAs for the OA Club’s strawberries and Pimm’s event at the Friends of Abingdon School Boat Club marquee in Henley Cricket Club car park during the afternoon tea interval (usually between 4pm and 5pm) on Friday 1 July 2022. No RSVP required.
- Music events:
- Lower School Gala Concert – Thursday 16 June 6pm at the Amey Theatre. A reminder to all Lower School parents that all members of Lower School will be performing on Thursday next week.
- Music Society River Cruise – Friday 1 July 6-9pm from Salters, Abingdon Bridge. Tickets are now on sale for this lovely occasion when we hope to hear close harmony and other music as we enjoy our picnics on a balmy summer’s evening. Please book your tickets here.
- Music Tour 2023. We are pleased to confirm that the First Orchestra and Big Band tour planned for Tuesday 4 – Thursday 13 July 2023 has sufficient numbers of pupils committed to be able to go ahead as planned – currently 56. Many thanks to all parents who have responded. There are some pupils joining us next term and still a few current parents from whom we hope to hear – please let us know if you are still undecided by emailing [email protected].
- Next Term, Choral Society sings Haydn’s “Creation” – a call for Singers! Our next Joint Choral Society Concert is on Friday 18 November and we are inviting keen singers from our parental community to take part alongside pupils from Abingdon, St Helen’s, Headington and OX14 Partnership Schools. We will rehearse on Wednesdays at Abingdon School, 6-7pm in the Charles Maude Room (below the Chapel). If you would like to take part, please name your voice (SAT or B) and let us know – [email protected].
- See other upcoming Music events.
- OX14 Learning Partnership Upcoming Events – new additions: Lower Carbon Futures Challenge, Thursday 23 June.
- News from the week
- Food menu for the following week – Week 1
- School calendar
- Weekly mailing archive
- Box Office:
- Soveida Ensemble presents Concert in Support of Ukrainian Refugees – Saturday 11 June at 7pm. The Soveida Ensemble was first established in 2014. Based on a long since forgotten form of Classical Persian music, the Soveida Ensemble performs on some of the oldest instruments created by man, including the Tanbour, Setar, Tar, Daf, Tombak and Ney. The songs are especially selected and composed based on poems by Rumi, Hafez and Saadi, around the message of humanity and unity. All proceeds raised will be supporting Ukrainian Refugees.
- ATOM Festival of Science and Technology – Saturday 11 – Saturday 18 June. Every year ATOM puts on diverse, imaginative and family-friendly events to allow our community to discover world-class science and technology taking place right here, as well as learning about the companies, organisations and scientists who make it happen. We have a variety of different events in the Amey Theatre including Hunting the Higgs, Why Small is Beautiful and A User’s Guide to The Atmosphere.
- See other upcoming Box Office events.
