Staff Book Club thoroughly enjoyed 'The Kite Runner' in their meet up on 10th March. From the structure, the crafting of the story, the characters, emotion, and context, everyone had a different focus when talking about the book.
Everyone is welcome to join us with our next book, Jeremy Vine's 'Murder on Line One'.
On Friday 13th March 2026, another group of Etone College staff ventured to the Nuneaton Warhammer store for a workshop on how to paint a Warhammer miniature.
At Etone College, there is a continual drive to support their wellbeing through various initiatives and events; one such activity is painting Warhammer miniatures.
For this event Mr Hope, Mr Monro and Miss Streza were having their first experience of the painting workshop, again led by store manager James, with Mr Gittens returning to make further progress with his previously started miniature. The session lasted for 1 hour and 15 minutes with the staff surprised at how quickly the time had gone by as the store was reaching its closing time. Mr Hope and Mr Monro enjoyed the use of the Contrast paints, with the instructions from James about how to paint larger areas with this type of paint particularly useful. Each member of staff chose a very different colour scheme, ranging from purples to teals to greens to using a variety of colour scheme, despite them all starting with the same miniature, with Manager James making positive comments about all of them but saying how he liked the colour scheme that Mr Hope had decided on as it was unusual for a Space Marine to be seen in those colours.
By the time the session had come to a close, all of the staff that took part said how much they had enjoyed the experience, with Mr Monro echoing the sentiments from the previous workshop and saying how therapeutic it was as well as feeling inspired to paint some more.
The results from the session were each a fantastic achievement, with the Etone College staff having the miniature that they had painted to take home as a reminder of the event.
Etone College would again like to say a massive thank you to the store manager James for running this session for the staff, and his continued support of the school Warhammer Club. As with the previous session, the staff feedback was very positive and the painting results were great to see. The question that remains though…will there be a part 3 to these adventures?
As part of World Book Day every year we have a great turnout of staff who dress up to celebrate their love of reading. Each year these costumes are brilliant and really show a plethora of creativity and passion which our pupils are extremely appreciative off.
This year we are thrilled to have had;
Mary and Burt dancing along the corridors from Mary Poppins
Gangsta Granny rocking around the school causing up a stir
TWO sets of Thing 1 and Thing 2, the English versions and then they Gym Things rocking their workout look
The white rabbit - Not late but precisely in time
Sherlock Holmes with no mystery regarding the love of books
Mozart and Bach in a stunning duet!
Andy lastly the witch from Room on the Broom
Best dressed department however went to… MFL with their ingenious take on becoming the “Walking Dictionary” pupils always seem to ask for in lessons!
Well done and thank you to all of our members of staff!
On Thursday 26th February 2026, a small fellowship of Etone College staff went on a journey to the Nuneaton Warhammer store. What awaited them, was worth the wait.
At Etone College, we have encouraged a number of extra-curricular activities for the staff to take part in to support their wellbeing; one such activity is painting Warhammer miniatures.
Mr McKenna led a small group of staff; Mr Gittens, Miss Smedley, Miss Newcombe and Miss Gorton to the smallest Warhammer store in the country, located in Nuneaton, and introduced them to the hobby of Warhammer. The store manager James led the session for an hour and a half, providing each member of staff with an Infernus Space Marine and giving them free rein on a colour scheme, answering questions, providing guidance/words of wisdom and paints throughout the session. The looks of joy as new paint colours were provided was one of many highlights. Each member of staff took inspiration from very different places; some from popular franchises, others from television series and some from their own imagination.
By the end of the session, which seemed to go by quickly, Miss Smedley was surprised at how therapeutic the hobby can be, the time spent focusing on only painting the miniature in front of her whilst talking with the others. The results were fantastic to see, with each member of staff having a miniature to take home that they had painted.
Etone College would like to say a massive thank you to the store manager James for running this session for the staff, and his continued support of the school Warhammer Club. The staff feedback was very positive and the painting results, amazing. What Warhammer adventures await, time will tell…
At Etone College every year we say thank you to teachers when we celebrate Thank a Teacher Day and we also say thank you to our LSAs with Thank a TA Day. However, there is not a special day for support staff in schools (although there really should be!) as these individuals are the backbone of our school. Without each and everyone of them, we would not be the success we are.
Therefore, we would like to say thank you to our support staff. We have spent this week delivering goody bags as a very small token of appreciation for all that they do to support the staff and pupils at Etone College.
If you see a member of support staff tomorrow, remember to give them a special thank you for all that they do.
Our Year 12 and 13 Etone Elect students truly embraced the spirit of Valentine’s Day this year, spreading kindness across the school community while supporting an incredibly important cause.
Students organised a sweet treat fundraiser in aid of Papyrus, the UK charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide. Their efforts were met with an overwhelming response from both students and staff.
In total, just under 400 bags of sweets were delivered around the school! The event was so popular that it was extended to give staff the opportunity to send thoughtful treats to one another, adding even more positivity and connection to the day.
Thanks to the generosity of our school community, an amazing £193 was raised for Papyrus.
We are incredibly proud of our Year 12 and 13 students for their compassion, organisation, and commitment to making a difference. A wonderful example of our school values in action — spreading love, kindness, and support where it truly matters.
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
We were delighted to welcome our new staff to a breakfast this morning to check in with how they are all doing. Opportunities to come together to chat about what is going well is so important but also for us as leaders to ensure that we do all we can to make sure that our staff are happy and supported. Highlights that staff shared with us include consistency and structure across the school, outstanding support for staff from leadership, a family feel, welcoming, supportive, approachable leadership and fantastic pupils. We are looking forward to coming together again later this term as a group for after school staff darts.
On Wednesday 28 January, Workload and Wellbeing Leads from across the Trust came together for the first People Strategy Conference, focusing on driving professional growth and staff wellbeing.
The conference reinforced our commitment to creating environments where staff feel valued, supported, and able to thrive.
The event centred on embedding the Trust’s People Strategy: Attract & Retain, Develop, Empower, Thrive, with practical discussions on supporting colleagues at every stage of their career, prioritising manageable workloads and wellbeing, and sharing ideas to build a positive, collaborative culture across all schools.
Our strategy is designed to attract, develop, and retain talented staff who share our Trust’s vision and values. We aim to empower colleagues to grow, lead, and innovate, ensure consistently high-quality teaching and support across all schools, foster a positive, collaborative culture where teams can thrive, and drive long-term success for every pupil and community we serve.
By investing in our people and putting wellbeing at the heart of everything we do, the Trust ensures a strong, resilient workforce ready to deliver education without exception.
Staff Darts brought out the competitive side in Miss Hillary who stormed to victory. Mr Kirk kept a close eye on the leaderboard whilst darts were thrown with varying levels of accuracy. What a wonderful way to finish a week at work!
Secondary School
Leicester Road
Nuneaton
Warwickshire
CV11 6AA
T: 024 76 757300
postbox@etonecollege.co.uk
SENDCo - Mrs K Smith
Monday - Thursday: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Friday: 8:00 am - 3:30 pm
(Equivalent to 39.5 hours)
