What a fabulous half-term break it has been. I spent quite a bit of it in the garden, but after stumbling across an old ‘Dorset Walks’ Pathfinder book, I enjoyed trying out a few new long walks with the dog. The Jubilee Celebrations were most impressive and I hope you too are feeling refreshed and ready for the term!
Our Form 8’s seemed a little quieter coming into school this morning, perhaps conscious that they have only 5 weeks left at Sunninghill. They have much to look forward to however with their trip to Spain less than 2 weeks away.
We welcomed Katrin Jones into school today to give a careers talk to Form 8. Katrin is the Careers Development Manager for the Wessex Multi-Academy Trust and she discussed the transferable skills GCSE courses can offer. She also talked about how exam choices can lead to different career paths. The children found it a useful and informative session.
Keeping children safe online is an ongoing concern for both parents and staff. Like many schools, we are receiving an increasing number of requests for help. To support parents, Mrs Smith has arranged for a parent presentation to be given by the Dorset County safeguarding trainer. This will take place after school on Monday 27th June. The talk should last about an hour in total, leaving room for questions.
IAPS Sailing
I have some really good news to share with you. This years’ IAPS national sailing championships, hosted by Andrew Simpson Foundation & WPNSA, faced tough conditions with Day 1 – U11’s competition sadly cancelled. Day 2 went ahead, the U13’s took to the water at Portland in challenging conditions with a steady force 5, gusting to force 6 which is pretty windy!
Sunninghill’s U13 top team of two boats comprised Freddy H (at the helm) and Thomas E (at the helm) with Sam H and Lydia N. They bravely took to the water with 40 boats and 16 other schools in a regatta comprising 4 races. Many schools were forced to retire early after struggling with the tough conditions. By the last race, due to the poor conditions, only 14 boats out of the 40 sailed. Team Sunninghill remained calm under pressure and their strong communication skills and excellent teamwork helped them to avoid capsizing and stay in the race. The team clearly enjoyed the challenge and came off the water with huge grins and beaming smiles!
We are extremely proud of Team Sunninghill who came in 2nd place overall, only 1 point behind the winners. A sterling performance for such a light crew in a 25 knots Portland breeze!
