Our Stockholm Turing trip was an exciting and memorable experience for our year 8 student from all Matrix secondary schools, giving pupils the opportunity to explore a new city, develop their independence, and experience Swedish culture firsthand. 

The trip began with travel from their school to Heathrow Airport before flying to Stockholm and getting settled in their rooms before heading to dinner. Pupils enjoyed buffet style dinner and together getting to know each other across the different schools. 

Throughout the week, pupils visited many of Stockholm's famous attractions. They explored the Paradox Museum, took part in an interactive Scavenger Hunt through the historic streets of Gamla Stan (Old Town), visited the Avicii Experience, and discovered fascinating exhibits at the Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology. They also enjoyed a visit to Djurgården, where groups explored the Police Museum and Sports Museum. They explored the famous group of ABBA though their museum and also spend the day at Skansen, experiencing Swedish history, culture, and wildlife. 

One of the highlights of the trip was spending time in Stockholm's vibrant city centre. Pupils walked many miles throughout the week, exploring different districts, parks, shopping areas, landmarks and food choices. This gave them a real appreciation of the city while encouraging resilience and independence. A key achievement for many pupils was confidently using Stockholm's excellent public transport network. They quickly became familiar with travelling on the Metro (Tunnelbana), buses and trams learning how to navigate the city safely and efficiently. For many pupils, this was also their first experience travelling on a public boat, with ferry journeys providing a unique way to see Stockholm's beautiful islands and waterfront. 

Alongside the educational visits, pupils enjoyed eating out together, park evenings, shopping, games at the hostel, and time to socialise with new friends made on the trip. They represented Matrix Academy Trust exceptionally well throughout the trip, showing respect, maturity, and enthusiasm at every venue visited, which many commenting on how well behaved and polite our pupils were. 

Pupils returned with wonderful memories, increased confidence, new friendships, and a greater appreciation of another culture. The trip was a fantastic success and provided experiences that many pupils will remember for years to come. 

Continuing to celebrate another fantastic year of achievement, hundreds of Etone College pupils enjoyed our final two end-of-year rewards trips to Cliff Lakes and Alton Towers, following on from earlier theme park trips over the last fortnight.

These exciting experiences recognised pupils in Years 7–10 who consistently demonstrated excellent attendance, positive behaviour and our Etone Values throughout the qualification period and, for many, across the entire academic year.

Pupils in Years 7–10 had an action-packed afternoon at Cliff Lakes, taking part in a range of exciting water-based activities that challenged them to work together, show resilience and encourage one another. Meanwhile, pupils from Years 8 and 9 enjoyed a thrilling day at Alton Towers, making the most of the rides and attractions while representing the school with exceptional maturity and respect.

Throughout both trips, our pupils were outstanding ambassadors for Etone College. Their positive attitudes, excellent behaviour and consideration for others were recognised by members of the public and venue staff alike, reflecting the high standards we expect and the values we are proud to promote.

These reward trips are an important opportunity to celebrate the commitment shown by our pupils throughout the year. Excellent attendance and positive behaviour not only support academic success, but also contribute to our commitment to rewarding pupils and giving them fantastic opportunities beyond the curriculum.  

A huge thank you goes to all of the staff who gave their time to support the visits, ensuring that pupils had memorable, enjoyable and safe experiences.

Congratulations to every pupil who earned their place on this year's reward trips. We look forward to celebrating even more success and recognising the achievements of our pupils throughout the next academic year.

The evening of Wednesday 15th July saw the most important completion of the year - the return of the Etone College Talent Show, of course! Would Griffin hold on to their title? We were on the edge of our seats with a panel of esteemed judges, including Mrs Price, Mrs Whitmore and Mr Pugh from the North Warwickshire music service. We were entertained by the many and varied talents of the Etone College students as well as our orchestra, choir and the drama group who performed their original piece ‘Hope’. 

After a jam packed evening of music, dance and drama, we saw a joint third place with Tymon on the violin and Aniela singing, a second place earned by Ryan performing Mozart on the piano and a well earned first place to Eleanor who sang a piece from Les Miserables. Dragon now holds the title for the next year and what an exciting year we have ahead of us! Enjoy your summer holiday, Etone! 

All photos by Natasha W in year 11.

Students from Etone College have conquered Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), raising an incredible £5,000 for the Oddballs Foundation while demonstrating the very best of Etones' values: self-belief, courtesy, caring, integrity and support.

The charity challenge took place during the third heatwave of the year, with exceptionally dry conditions across North Wales leading to several wildfires in the surrounding area. Despite the demanding weather, three groups of Etone students successfully completed the mountain, ascending via the Rhyd Ddu Path. Throughout the challenge, students continually showed self-belief by pushing beyond what they thought was possible, while supporting and encouraging one another every step of the way.

The first group, made up of Year 10 students, set an impressive pace and proudly became the first Etone students to reach the summit of Snowdon. Their determination, preparation and positive attitude were outstanding, demonstrating that hard work and self-belief are the foundations of success.

The Year 9 group approached the challenge with tremendous courage. Although they couldn't quite match the pace of the Year 10s, they embraced every obstacle with determination, pushing beyond their adventure thresholds on the more demanding scrambling sections. Their resilience and willingness to encourage one another perfectly reflected Etone's supportive culture.

Our youngest participants, from Years 7 and 8, proved that success is about much more than speed. Their teamwork, resilience and constant encouragement ensured they completed the challenge in great spirits. They looked after one another throughout the day, showing genuine care and courtesy even when the conditions became increasingly difficult.

A special mention must go to Finley, who represented the Tigers Programme with distinction throughout the challenge. He naturally stepped into a leadership role, keeping morale high, carrying out wellbeing checks with members of the group and even taking the time to collect litter along the trail. His actions demonstrated integrity, care for others and respect for the environment, making him an outstanding ambassador for Etone College.

Collectively, the three groups raised approximately £5,000 for the Oddballs Foundation, a charity committed to raising awareness of testicular cancer and promoting early diagnosis among young men. Every step taken on the mountain has helped support this important cause, reflecting our students' desire to make a positive difference beyond the school community.

The success of the challenge would not have been possible without the dedication of our staff, who encouraged, motivated and supported students throughout each ascent. Their commitment ensured every student had the confidence to succeed. A particular congratulations goes to Mr Monro, whose remarkable achievement of completing all three ascents demonstrated extraordinary endurance and unwavering commitment.

Finally, special thanks go to Charlie, whose passion and vision inspired the Snowdon Challenge after a talk from the regions Oddball Ambassador. Although injury sadly prevented him from taking part, his enthusiasm and planning helped make the event a reality.

The Etone Snowdon Challenge was about far more than reaching the summit. It was an opportunity for our students to put Etone's values into action—showing self-belief when the climb became difficult, being courteous and caring towards others, acting with integrity throughout the journey, and remaining supportive of every member of the team. The mountain may have been the destination, but the character our students displayed along the way was the greatest achievement of all.

On Thursday, during our Enrichment Week Etone was once again visited by our friends the Mayor and Mayoress of Nuneaton. Jining us to celebrate in our recent win for Secondary School of the Year, the guests were welcomed and overjoyed to be able to share in the success of the award.

Greeted by Mr Smith, it was a great opportunity for the school to share its vision and key aims for the upcoming academic year along with visiting pupils as they complete their enrichment activities.

During the visit the Mayor was very interested to see the 1:20 scale of the Brandenburgh Gate in Berlin. A combination of MFL and Maths the activity looked to showcase the teamwork and resilience of our learners as they build the landmark in record time.

Over in Geography there was a chance to explore the 'fairness' of the world of economics with pupils taking part in the 'Trade Game', where they pit the various countries of the world against each other in an attempt to earn as much as possible, in relation to their resources.

We are very thankful to the Mayor and Mayoress for their visit and can't wait for them to be back soon.

We are delighted to announce that our school has been awarded the School Games Gold Mark Award for 2025/2026 in recognition of our continued commitment to providing high-quality physical education, school sport, and opportunities for all pupils to lead active, healthy lifestyles.

The Gold Mark Award celebrates schools that demonstrate excellence in promoting participation, competition, leadership, and inclusion through sport. Achieving this award reflects the dedication of our pupils, staff, volunteers, and families, who have all played an important role in creating a positive sporting culture across our school.

Throughout the year, our pupils have embraced a wide range of sporting opportunities, including inter-school competitions, festivals, clubs, leadership roles, and inclusive activities designed to ensure that every child has the opportunity to take part and succeed. We are particularly proud of the enthusiasm, teamwork, resilience, and sportsmanship our children have shown in every event they have participated in.

This achievement would not have been possible without the hard work and commitment of our PE staff, teachers, support staff, sports leaders, and the ongoing support from parents and carers. We would also like to thank our local School Games Organiser and partner schools for providing fantastic opportunities for our pupils throughout the year.

Receiving the School Games Gold Mark Award is a wonderful achievement and inspires us to continue developing even more opportunities for our children to enjoy sport, be physically active, and achieve their personal best.

We are incredibly proud of this recognition and look forward to building on this success during the coming year.

We were honoured last week by our local MP, Jodie Gosling who entered an Early Day Motion on Wednesday for the House of Commons to congratulate Etone in winning Secondary School of the Year.

The motion, signed by Jodie, recognises the dedication of all stakeholders at the school; pupils; staff and families in making the school both a community hub and one of outstanding progress. We would very much like to thank Jodie and invite you to check out the motion HERE

Our annual Sixth Form Summer Fayre was a fantastic success, with students and staff coming together to enjoy an afternoon of sunshine, fun and community spirit. 

A huge thank you to our Sixth Form students and the Sixth Form team for organising such a brilliant event, as well as to all the staff who volunteered and supported throughout the day. The sponge-the-teacher stall proved especially popular, while the Staff vs Students football match provided the perfect finish, with the students taking the win on penalties.

It was wonderful to see so many students enjoying themselves and creating lasting memories. Thank you to everyone who helped make this year's Summer Fayre such a success and for the sixth form charity - Nuneaton Food Bank