25th June 2010
A Message from the Headmistress
It seems impossible to think that another school year is nearly over and as we say goodbye to our leavers, we have already welcomed our new girls, both to the Senior and Junior School, at our New Girls' Afternoon. Such is the pattern of school life.
I hope that the car park is less congested following Lavant House Stables' creation of their own car park, although I know that journeys to school this week have been frustrating indeed following the diesel spillage on the Lavant Road. The last few days of term are as action packed as usual with many events to enjoy. I hope that you may be able to support your daughter at Sports' Day, the Swimming Gala, the Arts Evening or come along to our end of term service. Finally I should like to wish everyone a pleasant and restful summer holiday and to thank you all for your support this year.
Staff Changes
Dr Sturt has decided to step down from his responsibilities as Deputy Head although I am delighted to report that he will continue teaching Latin and Classical Civilisation at school. It is a testament to his considerable contribution to life at Lavant House that his responsibilities will be shared amongst several teachers next year. Thus Mrs Houghton-Connell will become Deputy Head, Mrs Martin will take over as Director of Studies and Mrs van Beek will become Head of Key Stage Three (Ist to IIIrd Forms in the Senior School). Congratulations to all concerned and I hope that Dr Sturt enjoys the return to full-time teaching - an area of his work that he enjoys above all others. Mrs Stone will join us as Head of Senior Art, although Mrs Houghton-Connell will still be teaching Art at the upper end of the Senior School. Mrs Blows, Mrs Street and Mr Ward will be retiring at the end of the Summer Term. We wish them all a long and happy retirement. Mrs Jones will take over as the Head of Learning Support, Mrs Williams will become Head of ICT and Mrs Adams joins us as Head of Geography. We welcome Miss Cawte who is taking over as Head of Senior Games following the resignation of Miss Wiggs, and we will follow Miss Wiggs' paralympic training with interest. Finally, goodbye and thank you to our Gap student, Catherine, and Assistant Housemistress, Amy Kyffin who now has a full-time nursing position at St Richard's Hospital, having recently qualified as a nurse. She has been an important member of the boarding house community over the past four years and she will be replaced by Mrs Costello in September.
Speech Day
Speech Day is on Saturday 3rd July and is a compulsory afternoon of school for the girls. Girls should be in their form rooms by 1.30pm in full school uniform, unless they are involved in any of the musical activities in which case they should register with Mrs Howell-Evans at 1.20pm. School musicians will perform until 2.00pm when the speeches start and a cream tea will be served afterwards. Parking will be in the field and parents are welcome to bring a picnic lunch to eat before the start of Speech Day.
Parent and Daughter Tennis Tournament
This takes place from 10.00am on the morning of Speech Day. Any parent and daughter teams who want to take part should contact Mrs Ellicott.
School Ball
There are still some tickets available for the ball (Arabian Nights theme) from the School Office, but they are going fast!
If you have any high quality prizes suitable for the tombola at the Ball, please hand into the School Office as soon as possible. The PFA organise the tombola and it was extremely successful last year.
Bronze D of E Assessed Expedition 19th-20th June
Seventeen members of the IVth Form were dropped off in the South Downs bright and early on Saturday morning. Their aim was to get to Cobnor Activity Campsite by late afternoon in order to put up their tents, cook an evening meal and camp overnight. They all made it, (although some later than others) and after a good nights sleep set out for the walk back to Lavant House on the Sunday. The weather was again kind and the girls arrived back at Lavant very tired but happy. The Assessors from Peak Pursuits were very impressed with the girls and were happy to pass all of them on the expedition section. Well done to all who took part!
IIIrd Form Activity Week
As part of their Activity Week the Third Form had an 'historical' tour of the School. With the expert knowledge of Mrs Carlysle they were able to access areas of the school normally out-of-bounds. This included the cellars and the old tunnel from the former kitchen buildings to the main house. It was a great opportunity for the girls to discover the hidden secrets of Lavant House.
In glorious summer weather, on Thursday morning, the IIIrd Form were dropped off in three separate groups with the aim of navigating to the top of the Trundle and the promise of an ice cream. Map skills were good, spirits high and everyone arrived safely and in good time. After completing a quiz and a sketch of the view, everyone walked back to school for a well deserved BBQ.
"Artist in Residence" at Lavant House
Art teacher Nancy Goodens will be leaving our teaching staff this summer but not going far, as she will be moving into the Old Dairy at Lavant House as Artist in Residence from September, providing the opportunity for pupils and the general public to view regular exhibitions of both her own and local artists' work. Nancy will also be independently running her established Artworks courses in the new studio, providing a range of creative classes and workshops. For adults, subjects include silver jewellery, fused glass, leatherwork and textiles, in the form of one-day workshops, evening classes and weekly groups. Nancy is planning a Saturday morning Art Club for children, and a Young Artists group after school. Nancy will also be providing children's creative activities for Lavant House during the Christmas and Easter holidays. For more information please see Nancy's website www.artworksstudio.co.uk, or you can call her on 07766 919231 for further details.
'A' level and GCSE results
'A' level results are available at school after 10.00am on Thursday, 19th August and GCSE results after 10.00am on Tuesday, 24th August.
Summer Arts Evening
On Wednesday, 30th June, at 7pm there will be a Summer Arts Evening which is to be held in the gym. The evening is a celebration of the art, drama and music that the Ist-IIIrd Form have been studying at school and an excellent opportunity for parents to see their daughter's work.
Salter's Chemistry Festival
On Monday 7th June, Mrs Watson took four excited and enthusiastic Form II girls to the Salters' Chemistry Festival at Brighton University. The team of Paris Johnson, Alice Leaver, Ellie Rowe and Imogen Terry had an introductory talk before starting work, along with 16 teams from other schools, in a large laboratory. Their task was to carry out tests to find out who had murdered Captain Salter. The girls were successful in discovering that the cook - Delia Smith - was guilty.
After lunch, the team was back at work again. Firstly, they had to use the Internet to answer some questions and then they were back in the lab, trying to put six differently coloured liquids in order of density. They were then treated to an exciting demonstration, including lots of explosions (not enjoyed by all!), followed by a presentation of prizes and certificates. The girls thoroughly enjoyed their day and gained an insight into what it is like to study science at university.
Back to the 1970s
On Friday, 11th June, pupils raised money for St Wilfrid's Hospice by going back to the 1970s. The costumes worn were fantastic, and often authentic 1970s garb, and lunch was 1970s style eaten to the strains of loud disco music. Sixth Former Isabel Costello did an excellent job of organising the fundraising week. Pictured are some girls with Media Teacher (Mark Conford) and our Chef Adrian Nelson. Thank you to everyone who made donations to be sold in one of the St Wilfrid's shops.
Lower Sixth Information (starting September 2010)
Girls who are planning on making university applications in 2011 are encouraged to start researching suitable courses. Choosing which university or college to go to can be a life-changing decision. Do as much research as possible so that you can later choose the right course for the right reasons. More advice and information will be given to the girls in September.
Parents can register and receive a free guide by going to the following website: www.ucas.ac.uk/parents/
Mrs Ayling
PFA News
The second hand uniform shop will be open on Monday 26th July at 10am and Tuesday 31st August at 2pm. PLEASE support your PFA and donate quality items for the tombola to be held at the Ball on the 3rd July - these should be delivered to the office as soon as possible.
Boarding House
This has been a very busy half term for us. We have welcomed seven French girls who have enjoyed their time with us enormously. They have been involved in swimming and rounders matches and they have enjoyed tennis lessons with Mrs Ellicott.
Our caravaning weekend went very well. We arrived at 6pm and after a quick look around the site we all enjoyed a lovely meal prepared by Adrian. A visit to the disco that evening was exciting but the girls were all tucked up in bed by 10pm. French croissants and English crumpets were on offer on Saturday morning which was followed by a visit to Pagham beach. Olivia and Laure braved the sea and said it was much warmer than Brittany!! The afternoon was spent in the two swimming pools and after a game of rounders we all enjoyed a lovely barbecue. A much needed lie in was had on Sunday morning followed by a crabbing session on the beach. After a barbecue brunch, and with the weather getting warmer, that afternoon was spent by the pool. We finally arrived home just in time for more food cooked by Adrian. Many thanks to Amy, Nikki, Katherine and Mr Kyffin for all their help in making it such a great weekend.
Finally we have to say goodbye to Maria on Friday as she moves back to Spain for her family holiday. We will miss her.
Before the end of term we will be having an international rounders match and we will be saying goodbye to all our temporary overseas boarders as well as to Catherine, our gap student, and Amy, our Assistant Housemistress.
Senior Sports
June has bought Lavant House plenty of sunshine and alongside this, plenty of sporting success. Girls from Forms I - IV have all had the opportunity to take part in area tournaments and have shown how strong Lavant House School is at sport compared to other schools of a much bigger size.
Firstly, on the 8th June, 10 IIIrd Form girls went to Felpham Community College to play in the West Sussex West Area Rounders Tournament. There were 6 schools present, including Seaford and Bishop Luffa. The girls played extremely well, scoring many rounders and getting the other teams out when they were fielding. The girls' fielding was very strong and Lavant House won 3 out of their 5 matches finally coming 3rd out of the 6 schools. The girls played very well and their teamwork and dedication was commendable.
On the 15th and 17th June, Lavant House took 4 doubles Tennis teams to Seaford College to play in the U15 Area Tennis Tournament on Tuesday and the U14 Area Tennis Tournament on Thursday. The U15s took a while to warm up and lost their first matches. In their second matches, they stepped up their game and went on to win. Lavant House were Runners Up at the tournament but came away with their heads held high. The U14s proved to be more successful on the day with both teams winning their first match but losing their second. This took both teams into a tiebreak, playing the best of 5 games. One team won their tiebreak 3-1 and the other team won theirs 3-2, resulting in Lavant House coming 1st in the Tournament.
On Wednesday the 16th June, 17 Ist Form and IInd Form girls went to The Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth for the West Sussex West Area Athletics Championships. The sun was shining and it was a very hot day. With the Lavant House base set up with blankets, plenty of water and packed lunches, the girls were ready to go and from the moment the events started Lavant House girls achieved some tremendous results. All four 200m runners went through their heats to the final and two girls went into the 100m final. Both relay teams went into the final and girls achieved 1st, 2nd and 3rd positions in some field events. The girls kept their energy levels high with their lunches and were ready to tackle the afternoon which included the finals of the 100m, 200m and relays and some more field events. We secured 1st place in both the Year 7 and Year 8 relays, 200m, 100m and Year 8 Discus. Within every event, we managed to come in the top 8 and secure valuable points for the school. Jess Breach achieved the Best Overall Girls Performance within the whole tournament for beating the 200m record twice, and being a member of the winning Year 7 relay team. The overall results came in and showed just how successful Lavant House had been. The IInd Form team came 2nd out of 13 schools and the Ist Form team came 3rd out of 13 schools. The girls really enjoyed the day and they made the school and me very proud. Well done girls.
Over the next couple of weeks there are still many exciting tournaments and sporting events taking place, which will hopefully bring Lavant House more success. We have the U12 and U13 Area Rounders Tournament, U13 Athletics Championships, Sports Day, Swimming Gala, Interhouse Rounders and the U15 Area Rounders Tournament. Good Luck to all the girls taking part and let's hope this lovely weather continues.
Junior Sports
This weeks rounders matches against Windlesham House were played with great spirit despite the sweltering heat. The U10/9 team won a very exciting match 19 to 16 and the U11 team won 20 - 12. Well done to all the girls who have played rounders this term. A swimming match against Prebendal was held on Tuesday. The U10 match was close with Lavant winning by 2 points 93 - 91 and the U11 team winning by 111 to 76. Next week the last swimming match will be held at school against Great Ballard and Arundale at 2.30pm, 30th June.
Junior Lavant
The Junior school is just coming to the end of a very successful camp out week. The girls in Years 3-6 were given the option to camp here at school throughout the week. Many girls chose to camp all 4 nights while others decided to just stay for 1 or 2. It has been a valuable experience, however long the girls stayed. Having to organise their belongings, shower, clean teeth, change clothes etc, independently, away from home has been a big challenge for some of the campers! The excitement of sleeping in a tent caught up with many the following day and we did have a few tired girls. However, after an early morning cycle, some breakfast and a swim they were all ready for a day of outdoor activities.
The Year 6 pupils have been making a film this week using the funds that they raised during the 'challenge month'. They chose to pay for a film maker to come in for 2 mornings and make a DVD with them. They wrote the story themselves and then had the experience of making the film. They all thoroughly enjoyed 'being on set' and we look forward to seeing the finished product.
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M 28 June |
Senior Sports Day |
1.15pm |
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T 29 |
A & AS EXAMS FINISH Junior Sports Day 2.00pm |
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W 30 |
Form IV Maths module Form I - III Arts Evening |
7.00pm |
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Th 1 July |
Senior Swimming Gala "Poetry Picnic" |
am 1.20pm |
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F 2 |
SUMMER BALL |
7.30pm |
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Sa 3 |
Tennis Tournament SPEECH DAY |
10.00am 2.00pm |
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Su 4 |
Silver Duke of Edinburgh Expedition until 6th July |
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M 5 |
Junior Swimming Gala |
2.00pm |
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W 7 |
Technology Day |
All day |
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Th 8 |
End of Term Assembly End of Term Service, St Mary's Church, Lavant END OF TERM |
9.00am 10.45am 12.00 |
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For more information please contact Lavant House School via our contact form, or you can request a prospectus