Not just high octane adventure for students on the The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme, but giving back. Some 250 students now enrolled for the scheme either working towards their Bronze, Silver or Gold - but all volunteering as part of their awards! The DofE Award Scheme has calculated that 3055 hours were spent volunteering, the value of which is £16,128!
National finalists for the second year running in England Netball’s National Schools competition – the 1st VII Netball team after winning six out of seven games yesterday afternoon in the Regional Finals. The team, captained by Summer Chapman, included two playing up two years. They beat Benenden (15-4); St Paul’s Girls’ School (12-3); Latymer Upper School (6-3); Sydenham High School (9-2); Coopers’ Company and Coborn School (14-2) and Epsom College (3-1). A delighted Head of Netball, former Superleague player Nicole Humphrys said “I am very proud of them. They stuck together, dug deep, and executed when it mattered to get the job done”. The team will take on the top 18 schools in the country in the national championships on March 15th at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield.
The start of the Pipes and Drums' 140th Anniversary Tour, which will take in places associated with General Gordon. First stop after the Whitehall Parade was Westminster Abbey, which houses the Gordon Monument. The School Chaplain the Reverend Graham Wright gave a short service at the monument and Tom Gordon a direct descendant of General Gordon, laid a wreath. Afterwards the Pipes and Drums performed outside for visitors of the Abbey. At St Paul's Cathedral, members of the Band visited the General Gordon monument before playing on the steps of the cathedral.
Gordon's 140th anniversary year was launched on Saturday at the annual Whitehall Parade to the Gordon statue at Victoria Embankment Gardens. There, three wreaths were laid on behalf of the Gordon family, students and staff and Gordonians. Students stayed true to the school's character values, showing much resilience due to the protest taking place at the same time in Whitehall. The Whitehall Parade was followed by the Gordon Memorial Service on Sunday in Guildford Cathedral with the Bishop of Dorking the Right Reverend Paul Davies delivering the Gordon Sermon.
Please see below for video of the Gordon Memorial Service:
Her tantalising tortellini of sea bass with rocket pesto proved an absolute winner with the judges of the Springboard Future Chef competition today. Matilda Spink will now go through to the Regional Final in Brighton in March, in what is the biggest school culinary competition in the UK. Congratulations Matilda!
Final rehearsal before the big day tomorrow when students in Years 9 and 11, together with the Pipes and Drums, leave the General Gordon statue in West End to Parade along Whitehall to the General Gordon Statue in Victoria Embankment Gardens for the start of Memorial Weekend. The bass drum now sports a new skin to commemorate the school’s 140th anniversary this year. Best of luck to all those taking part tomorrow and Sunday.
A chance for our female mathematicians in Year 12 to attend inspirational lectures and workshops at Oxford University’s Mathematical Institute at the It All Adds Up conference. The conference, designed to increase female participation in maths and related subjects at Oxbridge, also gave them the opportunity to try out some entrance exam problems and attend a Q&A with current students.
This year marks the 140th anniversary of the school’s opening as The National Memorial to General Gordon! A host of commemorative events are planned. The celebrations begin over Memorial Weekend with the start of the tour by the Pipes and Drums of places associated with General Gordon. On Saturday, 18th January after the Whitehall Parade, they will be laying a wreath at the Gordon Memorial in Westminster Abbey and performing on the steps outside, before playing at St Paul’s Cathedral, which holds a monument to General Gordon. The school shop is now selling commemorative merchandise such as pin badges, umbrellas and travel mugs, with all proceeds to the Gordon Foundation. For more information and to buy, please click here.
Wins in Portugal for Gordon’s golfers in both the Scratch and Stableford Individual Competitions at the Schools Golf competition at Vale de Pinta and Amendeoira Golf Clubs, have put Fraser Brammall, Zach Mathews and Freddie Blomfield through to the final competition at Worplesdon Golf Club in June. In the team stableford event, Gordon’s finished second and third!
The new year marks the start of the 140th anniversary celebrations for Gordon's, featuring a number of events throughout 2025.
We look forward to welcoming Residential Boarders back to school on Monday 6th January and all our students for the start of term on Tuesday 7th January.
Wishing all our students and their families a very happy Christmas! The Spring Term begins on Tuesday 7th January 2025.
Every day, for almost a year, Sandringham Houseparent Tom Webb has run five kilometres to raise money for Angus’ Army, the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. The charity, one of the whole school ones for this year, was started after student Angus was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in the summer of 2023 and received treatment from the Royal Marsden.
Sandringham House formed themselves into Angus’ Army, enlisting students, staff and parents from across the school community. First they ran the Oxford Half Marathon to raise money for the charity and then 100 miles of the South Downs. Mr Webb continued the fundraising by pledging to run 5Ks every day, whatever the weather and wherever he was in the world.
On January 1st he will have completed his year of running, bringing the total number of kilometres run to 1,825 and helping to raise boost the amount raised for the charity which now stands at a staggering £46,500. As he nears the end of his marathon achievement, he is hoping to hit the £50,000 mark for the charity. Can you help him do this? Donations can be made here. To learn more about Angus' Army, please click here.
