A group of Year 9 girls proudly represented North Warwickshire in the Year 9 'Fits a Knockout' County Final after winning the schools round earlier in the competition. The final took place at the Combat Fitness Centre in Solihull and saw teams take on a wide range of challenging fitness activities.

Throughout the day, the girls competed in events including wall throws, Olympic rings, an agility course, bear crawls, box jumps and boxing, testing their strength, endurance and teamwork. Competing against strong opposition, the team finished an impressive 5th out of 7 teams. 

As well as their sporting achievements, the girls were recognised for their outstanding attitude and behaviour, winning the School Games Values award. This award celebrated how they consistently demonstrated the School Games values, showing excellent manners towards staff, working hard throughout every challenge, and displaying determination and resilience from start to finish.

A fantastic achievement and a credit to the school, well done to all involved!

As you may be aware this year our Trust charity is Papyrus, an important organisation that looks to provide support to young people in an effort to prevent suicidal attempts. Whilst a very sensitive topic, the aim of the charity is an important one.

To support Papyrus, we are teaming up with Three Dads to complete the Hadrians Wall Walk in May. This will see nearly 70 members of the trust follow the 84 mile long historical path, coast-to-coast.

With 12 members of Etone staff taking part in the challenge we were excited to take on our first practice this past weekend. Travelling through some very muddy fields and equally stunning valleys of the Derbyshire Peaks.

Whilst not a competition at all, Etone members smashed it walking over 26km, in the quickest time with the highest elevation. Please do support us if possible by donating to our fund here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/etone-college-10?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL

On Wednesday our Year 11 Class of 26 pupils were introduced to Daniel Caines and his inspiring story of self-belief and visualisation as he looked to become the youngest world champion on record in his sport.

Daniel is a world class athlete that hails form the West Midlands region, having been bought up in an elite sporting family. Despite this, his focus in sport was not initially clear and it took him until his early adulthood to really decide on his future goals. From here Daniel’s story of self belief and how focusing on 5 specific things would lead to him making British trials, qualifying for the Olympics and becoming the youngest 400m World Champion in history.

Daniel’s story was an important build up for our pupils in their programme as we hurtle towards the second mock series of the year. Discussing both his resilience and his self-belief in line with Etone Values, he was able to provide a clear message of focus to all pupils who were eager and engaged throughout the session.

Following the year group talk, pupils were able to ask some interesting questions of Daniel and this led to him selecting a number of pupils to ‘dig deep’ into aspirations and workshop some specific goals for individual pupils. This workshop was extremely well received with pupils eager to consider this goals and more importantly the specific stepping stones they need to achieve to get there. From owning an Alpaca Farm to running for Team GB at the Olympics (hopefully winning Gold) the aspirations of our pupils are truly inspiring. The session was a massive success and we are so thankful to our Etone friend, Daniel for coming back an visiting Etone. Well done Year 11 and thank you again Daniel.

G Daffern & S Butlin

“We need to talk about oracy.” These are Geoff Barton’s opening words within the Future of Oracy report from the Oracy Education Commission. I think as teachers we understand the principle of talk and its ability to accelerate progress for students, but particularly, post 2020, this is something increasingly high on the agenda of teachers and policy makers alike as an acknowledgement of its significant role in levelling the playing field...

Read more: Staffordshire Research School

As part of our Learning for Life (LfL) programme, our Year 9 students recently attended an important and thought-provoking presentation delivered by PCL Marsdon. The session focused on the serious dangers of knife crime, the concept of joint enterprise, and the legal consequences linked to carrying these.

PCL Marsdon spoke candidly about the risks associated with knife crime, not only the obvious physical dangers, but also the long-term impact on families, futures and communities. Students were reminded that carrying a knife for “protection” can quickly escalate situations and significantly increase the risk of harm to themselves or others.

A key part of the presentation explored “joint enterprise”. This area of law means that individuals can be held legally responsible for a crime even if they did not carry out the act themselves, but were involved in a group where a serious offence took place. The message was clear: being present, encouraging others, or supporting someone who commits a crime can still lead to severe consequences, including arrest and imprisonment.

Students also learned about the law surrounding knife possession. In the UK, it is illegal to carry most knives in public without a valid reason. A criminal record for knife-related offences can affect education, employment and travel opportunities well into adulthood.

The session encouraged students to think carefully about peer pressure, decision-making and the importance of making safe, responsible choices. PC L Marsdon reassured students that support is available and emphasised the importance of speaking to a trusted adult if they feel unsafe or concerned about someone else.

We are grateful to PC L Marsdon for delivering such an informative and engaging session. Conversations like these are vital in helping our young people understand the law, stay safe and make positive choices for their futures.

Whilst we are under no impression any of the above will be present in our pupils futures, we are dedicated to ensure our pupils are well informed citizens to further support community development.

Our Year 11 students recently took part in a 30-minute road safety presentation 

The session was part of a broader national effort to make road safety education both memorable and meaningful, especially for young people about to transition into greater independence on the road. Research shows that teenagers are among the most vulnerable road users, particularly around ages 12–17, when risk-taking behaviour increases and independence grows.

As many of our Year 11 students are either already travelling independently or soon will be, the goal of this session is to help young people make safer choices so that you can:

• Be aware of distractions and how they alter your perception.

• Think ahead instead of acting on impulse.

• Support others in making safe decisions too.

We are so proud to share the successes of Dexter in his Taekwon-Do journey. In November, he attended the Birmingham Open as his first competition and won a gold medal in Patterns and Sparring. At the weekend, he had his Taekwon-Do awards party and Dexter was awarded competitor of the year. His coaches recognised his tremendous effort in competition, especially considering

He tries exceptionally hard in his Taekwon-Do sessions and he is currently working towards his green belt grading. Well done Dexter!

Over the past couple of weeks we have been so proud to award our Etone Value badges to pupils. This week we have given out the next batch of badges which have been we;; received by pupils. With caring being the most awarded so far, we are looking at ways to further support our pupils in making their next steps. Well done Team Etoneers!

On Monday our Student Council representatives took part in a Food Tasting session for two new menu items arriving soon to our Etone Café. As members of the school leadership team they take their responsibility to show their values seriously. As part of the session they showed their integrity as they gave honest and considered feedback to our Catering Manager, Mr Thornley-Yates as he looks to implement the next two tasty additions to the menu.

This time the additions are the;

• Breakfast Vegan Sausage Roll – A tasty vegan option for all with a festive feel and taste. This was well reviewed by pupils who felt it tasted yummy and would defiantly be willing to pay for this snack.
• Fish Finger Wrap – Another tasty option for those who enjoy a traditional fish finger sandwich, with a twist. This addition was met with excitement from those who enjoy seafood and was met with satisfied smiles upon tasting.

A big thank you to all of the councilors and the catering team for the amazing session.