2023 Summer Term 2

Dear Parents and Carers,

This has certainly been a busy term with many exciting offsite trips taking place, helping to engage and inspire our pupils.  I have been impressed with just how many pupils we have managed to provide a memorable residential overnight trip for.  Outdoor and adventurous activities have proved to be very beneficial for our pupils, helping to develop self-confidence and raising self-esteem.  A huge congratulations to all of our pupils who managed to complete their Duke of Edinburgh Awards trip at either Bronze or Silver level.  I am glad to report that all pupils who attended the Bronze and Silver trips passed and achieved their DofE awards. 

Pupils in Year 11 and Post 16 have worked exceptionally hard throughout their examinations. I am proud of each and every one of them, and I sincerely hope that all pupils achieve the grades which they deserve on results day. 

It has been a busy term for the PE department, successfully running both the regional and national SEN Football competitions - please see a more detailed report within the newsletter.

It has been great to see so many of you supporting the school in person at the end-of-term celebration event. It is amazing to think that many of our pupils could not play an instrument before joining the school, and some were too shy to consider performing on a stage.  Both are phenomenal achievements and just go to show what is possible with hard work and determination.

I wish you all the very best for the holidays and do hope that you all get to spend some good quality family time together over the summer.

Best wishes,

Mr Anderson

Principal 

On Tuesday 4^th of July we held our first Peer Mentoring Fair at Muntham House School. 

Since January, our peer mentors and primary pupils have been working together to arrange and organise a summer fair. They started by deciding which stalls they would like to organise as a group with some classes choosing to have more than just one stall. Once decided, the peer mentors had to go on a shopping trip with the primary classes to get all the equipment, prizes and ingredients for the stalls. Primary pupils made super posters to advertise the fair.

Some of the stall activities included 'guess the number of sweets', tombola and slime making. However, one of the favourites was splat the teacher with a wet sponge! There was also a special appearance from the Muntham House band who played their winning song for all to hear. Fun was had by all pupils and staff that attended, and it was a great success.

The Peer Mentors are delighted to say they managed to make an amazing £197.38, which is being donated to the charity of their choice. They all spoke about who they thought would be the best charity and after long discussions, they finally decided on The National Autistic Society, which we all agreed was a great decision.  

This time of year is always fantastic for teaching and learning in Science. The pupils can enjoy the lovely school grounds and nice weather whilst learning about ecosystems, different species and how they are adapted to their environment, and their classification. Many pupils have enjoyed looking for insects in our wildflower areas and also pond dipping. We were very excited to find lots of water skaters and water boatmen as well as three newts - sadly a rarity in most areas these days.

In the science lab, we have seen many productive and studious lessons with the year nines and year tens working extra hard on past exam papers in preparation for sitting their GCSEs. Several of the pupils opted to spend extra time on theirs to do as well as possible.

The biggest well done has to go to the year elevens who sat their GCSEs calmly, and tried their hardest. For Science, pupils sat six exams each to get them two full GCSEs. We have every faith that they will get the grades they deserve.

Wishing you a very happy summer, from Team Science.

Year 8 pupils have been working on a challenge to design and build a hovercraft powered by a leaf blower. Pupils watched some YouTube clips to help them develop their own ideas and then set about the task.

The aim was to make a lightweight, balanced structure for the base and add an engine and skirt. The pupils really enjoyed the project and had to think through lots of technical problems.

MUNTHAM PUPILS ON-SHIFT WITH FIREFIGHTERS AT BUSY FIRE STATION!

James, Ben and Charlie all visited Bognor Regis fire station and found out what it was like to be a firefighter! During the visit, they had a ride in a fire engine, complete with flashing lights and sirens! There was also: a trip up the training tower; a look at all the equipment on a fire engine; and exploring the new style uniforms and helmets.

We would really like to thank the firefighters of White Watch at Bognor Regis fire station, who gave their time to talk to us and show lots of different perspectives of life in the fire service. Joe and the team talked about teamwork and resilience which our three pupils listened to intently. At the end of the visit, there was time for a game of pool where Ben, James and Charlie all showed White Watch their skills.

Thanks to Mrs Clark and Mr Shambrook for supporting this exciting endeavour. 

This half term, 10A enjoyed a group outing to the cinema to watch the final Indiana Jones film on its release day. The group chose to have a meal at Mcdonald's, seated together at a large table, engaging positively and with humour. We had time to visit the arcade at the bowling alley, where each member of 10A tried to win tickets for prizes or in the 2p machines. Some joined their tickets to choose a better item. Others gave their tickets up to a group of adults with learning difficulties so they could enjoy themselves too. The day was made even better by Mrs Shambrook joining us! 

It’s been a busy year for 10A, with Oliver, Joe and Billy being a part of the Peer Mentoring Programme. Matthew was part of the winning band at Battle of the Bands. Oliver and Matthew were chosen for the football tournament at St George’s. Toby, Joe and Billy all completed their work experience placements with great success. Tyler has made amazing projects in DT and in construction at college. Toby’s college work has been so fabulous it was presented at the Crawley College show.   As a tutor team, we are so proud of them all.

This half term, PSHE lessons have continued with lessons focussed on Relationships and Sex Education (RSE).

Year 7 pupils have learnt about appearance ideals and the pressure young people may feel to look a certain way. They have investigated the messages given by the media and identified a range of risks associated with this. Year 7 has also explored what healthy relationships look like, and have explored the signs of unhealthy relationships.

Year 8 lessons have allowed pupils to explore their own relationship values and assess whether situations can be resolved with effective communication. Year 8 has learnt the different terms for gender identities and sexual orientations - they considered a range of scenarios and discussed how they can make people feel supported when they talk to their friends.

Year 9 pupils have demonstrated particular maturity this half term when learning about intimate relationships. They have gathered facts on the risks of STIs and learnt about suitable treatments. More importantly, to protect and reduce the risk of STIs, Year 9 has participated in lessons on contraception, including the importance of condoms.

Young people in Year 10 have extended their understanding of healthy relationships by exploring how getting someone’s consent differs from the language and behaviours used to pressure or coerce someone to do something they are uncomfortable with. Year 10 pupils have considered how to manage relationship conflict and breakups appropriately, and how to address relationship abuse safely.

Year 11 and MHC pupils have been busy with exams and Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, but continue to check-in and ask for advice when needed.

The social skills break times in the PSHE/Humanities rooms continue to be a great success. Pupils of all age groups consistently demonstrate kindness, encouragement and joy towards each other. We have also had Year 6 pupils join us for some break times. Each pupil enjoys a cold drink and a piece of fruit, as do many other pupils when they finish their break activity.

This term, it has been great to welcome our upcoming year 7s to the secondary part of the school, where we believe that reading matters! Reading will help them in every single subject, but much more importantly, it is an enjoyable activity that is good for them!

Each pupil in the current year 6 visited the secondary library for a taster lesson. The pupils had a chance to browse through the bookshelves and were able to see all the different genres of reading and information books on offer. They were also able to discuss any books, series or authors they liked. If we don't already have them in stock, they will be purchased ready for September!

All the pupils were presented with a welcome pack, personalised reading log, bookmark and their very first secondary library book which is for them to keep.

I really hope that the current year 6s do lots of reading over the summer to get ready for their time in year 7. We want you to have access to the books you love, including fiction (chapter books), non-fiction (information books), graphic novels, poetry, comics and magazines. Over the summer, adults and pupils can access books online using MyOn.

The Summer Challenge

Retell us a book you have read: when you come back in September, come and find me in the library and retell me the story from a book you have read and I'll see if I can guess it!

We would love to hear more about the books and stories that you love, so we’re setting you a challenge to retell one of your favourite stories. It can be a story from a film, a TV programme, a book, or a comic, but we just want you to tell us the story in your own words. 

This Challenge is open to the whole school, and there will be prizes for the best infants, Juniors and Secondary stories.

This has been a particularly busy time for our Eco-committee. We have had even more Terracycle buckets distributed around the school and greater promotion of the scheme. Our top litter and recycling monitors spoke during a whole school assembly. They explained what they do around the school as recycling monitors and litter pickers, and informed the audience why this is so important for the future of the planet. We also took trips up to the horticulture area, forest school areas, the wildflower garden and the pond to look at our new trees and ways in which we promote biodiversity.

We have had a school visit from Rachel, who works for a local waste management and recycling plant. She met our committee members and gave us loads of ideas on how we can join up with projects and organisations that can help our school become even more sustainable next year, so lots more to work on!  By 2025, the Government has demanded that, where possible, organisations in the public sector will have reduced their carbon footprint by 50% from a baseline level set in 2017. Hopefully, because of the Eco-committee's good work, we will be ahead of the game. 

Please see below a link to a fantastic website that children and young people of all ages can access. It's full of fun and educational resources on a multitude of all things 'Eco' which would be good to do over the summer holidays.

https://www.transform-our-world.org/

The primary sports day was a resounding success, filled with joy and enthusiasm. The entire school came together, and every pupil participated with remarkable sportsmanship and camaraderie. The event offered a diverse range of enjoyable activities and classic athletic events like the thrilling sprints and the impressive high jump. It was heartening to witness the students cheer each other on, encouraging their peers to give their best efforts. The day not only promoted physical fitness but also fostered a sense of healthy competition and teamwork among the young athletes. It was a memorable occasion that left everyone with lasting memories and a stronger sense of community within the school.

Primary pupils enjoyed an end-of-term trip to Legoland in Windsor.  This trip was enjoyed by all pupils, and provided a great opportunity for them to spend and enjoy positive time together outside the school environment.  Lego has become part of the school curriculum, and Lego Therapy is a key part of the therapeutic provision offered at the school.  It was great to provide the pupils with the experience of seeing and exploring giant Lego models, Lego cars and Lego boats. 

It's wonderful to see pupils happily enjoying a positive day together, organised to celebrate how hard they have worked throughout the year.  Well done to all primary pupils and staff for a great year and such an enjoyable day together.

The secondary sports day was a remarkable display of teamwork and friendly competition. With each tutor group forming their teams, the students demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship throughout the event. Laughter and excitement filled the air as they eagerly participated in a diverse array of activities, from slip-and-slide human bowling to the classic sprint and high jump. It was a refreshing blend of fun and tradition, fostering a sense of camaraderie and school spirit among the students. Witnessing the pupils cheer on their peers and celebrate each other's achievements added to the overall sense of unity and pride in the school community. The day left a lasting impression, reminding everyone of the importance of physical fitness, teamwork, and the joy of friendly competition.

KS3

We have had a successful term in sports. Our focus has been on becoming creative in sports by learning how to be creative when formulating a strategy in team games. We have played an adapted game of Quidditch where we worked on being creative in the game. We have been focusing on growing our self-esteem in sports and showing confidence when participating in a team game. We have also been enhancing our fine motor skills in a competitive environment, and pupils have shown this when learning how to throw a javelin with the correct technique. Other activities have included playing team games that have involved throwing and catching, such as American Football.  

KS4

Key Stage 4 pupils have made great progress this term. They have all taken on some responsibility and developed leadership - a number of them have been role models to some of the younger pupils in lessons. Pupils have also shown this during Javelin, where they have peer mentored to help other students learn the correct technique. We have been focusing on living a healthy lifestyle, and within this have been exploring different sports which pupils can participate in outside of school in order to live a healthy, long, active life. We have also been focusing on communicating effective strategies in sport and have played some adapted games which require a strategy to win. Pupils have also displayed great levels of confidence, especially through softball this term.  

KS5

This half-term has been a critical period for the BTEC cohort as they have been diligently preparing for their final assessments. Throughout the year, the PE & Sports team have been consistently impressed by the remarkable work ethic and unwavering commitment displayed by these pupils in their pursuit of personal growth and improvement. Their dedication to their studies has been truly commendable, reflecting their determination to excel in their chosen field. 

Among the topics covered during this period of preparation were the fundamental components of fitness, including strength, endurance, flexibility, and speed. The pupils delved into the principles of training, exploring concepts such as specificity, overload, progression, and reversibility. Additionally, they were introduced to various fitness training methods, encompassing both aerobic and anaerobic exercises, circuit training, interval training and more. The breadth of knowledge and understanding they have acquired in these subjects speaks volumes about their commitment to mastering the foundational principles of fitness and training, setting a solid foundation for their future endeavours in the field. Congratulations to all.

Rugby Academy 

During this half term, secondary pupils have been actively participating in the Rugby Academy, where they have been honing their skills and putting them into practice during game situations. The level of teamwork displayed by the pupils has been nothing short of exceptional, with each player contributing to the overall success of the team. Not only have our participating pupils showcased their practical abilities, but their behaviour has also been exemplary, demonstrating a high standard of sportsmanship and discipline. The Rugby Academy has provided a platform for these pupils to excel both individually and collectively, fostering a positive and competitive environment for their growth mindset and physical development. Our player of the term is Patrick. 

Football Academy 

We have had a busy term at Football Academy. This term, we have been focusing on passing and moving as a team. The main foci have been passing to our teammates accurately and having a strategy to pass and move through the opposition to get closer towards the opposing goal to take a shot.

Our player of the term is Toby, who has made great progress and is working with ever-increasing success in a team setting to gain an advantage. 

Cricket Academy 

The end of the summer term has seen the reintroduction of the cricket academy on Wednesdays after school. Pupils have spent the 5 weeks practising as much match play as possible and refreshing themselves on the rules and regulations of cricket. The group has also been working on patience and teamwork throughout this term and learning to play with players of all different skills, abilities and knowledge.

The player of the term is Stanley, whose enthusiasm and hard work during the term have been fantastic, and we hope this carries on come September.  

Muntham House School hosted the Southern Regional Football Tournament on Thursday, 15th June 2023. We welcomed five fellow Special Schools to our outstanding provision. The day was a huge success. All players showed tremendous sportsmanship, healthy competition, and passion throughout the day. All games were played in the true spirit of the beautiful game, and it was truly brilliant to see all the players thriving and challenging themselves. The standard of football being played in sweltering conditions was commendable.

The tournament went down to the last game of the day, with Muntham House School needing to win by five goals to win the overall event. In the end, St Edwards won on goal difference, worthy winners and gracious in victory. St Edwards will progress onto the National Finals alongside Muntham House School, who qualify as hosts and one more school who will be contacted.

I am proud of all the players and staff from all schools for being part of such a positive, calm and successful event in challenging heat. Thank you to Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club for providing two professional referees who were strong and commanded respect throughout the day. Roll on next year.

A group of enthusiastic year 9, 10, and 11 pupils recently had the incredible opportunity to participate in a national football competition held at St George's Park, the esteemed home of the England Football Team. The night before the competition, our footballers indulged in a delightful team meal, where they bonded and enjoyed each other's company. The accommodation provided them with fantastic facilities and included the opportunity to engage in friendly games of pool, unwind in the hot tub, and even test their sports knowledge with an exciting sports quiz. It was a memorable evening filled with camaraderie and excitement, setting the stage for the upcoming competition. 

In the face of strong competition from 12 teams, our pupils showed remarkable skill and determination, ultimately securing an impressive fourth-place finish. This achievement marked the highest position the team has reached since attending this prestigious competition. Not only did they excel on the field, but they also conducted themselves with the utmost integrity and professionalism, serving as outstanding ambassadors for the Muntham community. The team's commitment, sportsmanship, and exceptional performance showcased their dedication to the sport and demonstrated the positive impact of teamwork and perseverance.

Huge congratulations to all players and staff involved. 

The summer term has been incredibly busy with pupils sowing, planting out and eating our wonderful fruit and vegetables. All of our raised beds are bursting with healthy crops and flowers. The pupils have spent lots of time nurturing the plants by weeding and watering them, showing great patience and resilience, and waiting for them to produce something delicious to eat. The raspberries were the first to ripen and were enjoyed by all pupils and staff. The blackbird family who had nested behind the shed enjoyed a few as well.

We harvested the onions and garlic by digging them up, and then laid them out in the polytunnel so they ripen and dry in the hot sun. This produce is now ready to go to our chef for use in the school kitchen in September.

We have been able to provide Chef with herbs, early cucumbers and lettuce. We grew a variety of lettuce types, and Little Gem and Salad Bowl had the best flavour and were the most popular.

The strawberries were good, and some of our younger pupils enjoyed picking and eating them before a visiting squirrel had a party, and they all disappeared overnight.

The polytunnel looks like a jungle, but with many healthy tomato, cucumber and squash plants, we hoping for a bumper crop in September. A family of sparrows are doing a great job of eating the ants and caterpillars, showing us that encouraging wildlife into the garden means we don’t need to use any pesticides or chemicals. Companion planting also keeps pests away with the added bonus of providing lots of flowers. A number of primary pupils picked bunches of these to take home to their families.

Some of the older pupils were keen to grow lilies and dahlias. These have been very successful and provided great colours and perfume, helping to make our garden a relaxing and calm space for pupils to come to and take some timeout if needed during the day.

The summer term has to be a favourite amongst our furry friends: Omah loves to lay in the sun, and Buzz loves to lay in the shade. Be assured that neither dog will be allowed in school when the weather gets too warm. Part of teaching our pupils to be responsible owners is to teach them how to look after dogs in heat, including using cool spaces, taking part in fewer activities, and being walked only early or late in the day when the temperatures are at their lowest. Thankfully, we had the arrival of an air-con unit this term which Buzz has fully enjoyed lounging in front of, as have the pupils and I when he has allowed it! 

We had extra visitors when the weather became too warm for our canines, and as you can see, R is not only a dog whisperer but a goat whisperer too! The goats loved the shade from the oak tree. I am determined to continue sessions with or without dogs because structure and routine are important for our pupils and therefore, at canine, we remain open in all weathers.

We’ve been continuing our skateboard training. M has been particularly patient with Buzz, who seems to be wary of the skateboard. Maybe summer 2024 was too ambitious for Buzz. Our show debut will have to wait!

Finally, there is nothing more to say but to wish you a safe, happy summer holiday. The dogs will enjoy the break and should be ready to hit the ground running from September…maybe with a little surprise!

At Muntham, pupils are allowed to access the animals on either booked sessions or on an ad-hoc basis if they feel dysregulated. The animals have an immensely powerful ability to calm their visitors and really do help with improving the outlook on whatever might have been a concern to the pupil. The pupils really thrive on spending quiet time with the animals in a calm environment.

The donkeys have been spoilt with much TLC following their operation and with additional grooming as they malt their winter coats. With the summer coats, they certainly look slimmer, which has caused some of our pupils to want to feed them extra treats. This has been excellent in promoting discussions about the importance of a healthy diet for donkeys. Indeed, recently the donkeys have been walked a lot more, which shows they are very familiar with our pupils and can be handled far better. The donkeys are now both two years old, have wonderful temperaments, and really enjoy spending time with the pupils. We are so lucky to have them at the school.

During the day, the goats have been sharing their pen with the school hens. This makes for more visitors to the goat pen as some pupils feel more comfortable in the goat pen rather than venturing into the chickens' area. It's been much like a 'spa vacation' for the goats, with pupils treating them to plenty of summer washes through the hot weather, in addition to grooming, hoof-trimming and a lot of walking around the grounds. Pupils have found that by choosing the more dominant goat to walk on a lead with, the others will follow. This has given the pupils a lot of fun as we are able to walk further and see how the goats react to areas of the grounds that we haven't yet been to. It has also increased pupil learning with regard to which plants our goats enjoy eating. The sense of freedom which the goats experience on these occasions overflows to the pupils and has a wonderfully calming effect. 

With the summer weather, the chickens are all laying, and so collecting the eggs is a daily task for the boys. Pupils have taken ownership of the chickens and are keen to learn what different foods they can be fed. An increasing number of pupils are now more confident with feeding the hens by hand, and the interaction has been so lovely to observe.

The pigs have also been receiving a lot of attention. They not only have upgraded pens but have been spending more and more time with the pupils. Washing the pigs has been a favourite activity, closely followed in popularity by oiling them. For enrichment, the pupils give Bangers and Mash treat balls, straw-filled boxes with treats hidden inside, and water bottles filled with treats to try and eat. Pupils are researching new ways to entertain the pigs, and so next term, they will produce a new enrichment toy for the pigs!

Overall, it's been a very happy term with the animals, and while they will enjoy the rest, the animals will miss the pupils hugely. Roll on September!

This half term, our primary pupils have been taken to the beach for Beach School! The ethos values of Beach School are similar to Forest School with the key difference being that all sessions take place at a local beach!

We visited Selsey Beach near Chichester. It's a great beach because it's small and quiet and the tide doesn't go out very, meaning that the sea is always within reach. It's also a marine conservation zone, so there is plenty of wildlife. 

Whilst at the beach, the pupils learnt about keeping safe - this included looking at tides and how they travel. Some of the wildlife found on the beach and in the sea included flora and fauna. 

Although there was an educational element to Beach School, it was designed to be a relaxing day where the pupils enjoyed themselves whilst exploring and learning. Sometimes pupils were learning without realising it!

We have had a fun and busy few weeks on Hever floor! We have been very lucky with the weather, so we have managed to get outside a lot.

We have enjoyed several trips to the beach where the pupils have had fun looking in rock pools for shells and treasure! The Hever residents particularly like picnics, so this is a must on our trips to the beach. Whilst eating the picnic we found we needed to keep a big eye out for the hungry seagulls who followed us with beady eyes and greedy tummies!

Our pupils discovered a new passion this term, which was metal detecting. We took the metal detector to the beach and also to the local park, finding lots of bottle caps and a silver chain. Pupils realised that using the metal detector required a lot of patience, time and teamwork.

We visited a nearby forest, which is mainly made up of pine and other interesting trees. The pupils ventured off together to see what they could find - they discovered large holes which they believed were made by foxes. Suddenly, the pupils sounded very excited, and they couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw what they thought was a grass snake! We found a huge pile of logs that the pupils enjoyed climbing on to see if they could reach the top.

With our talented bakers on the floor, the pupils all made banoffee pie. They particularly enjoyed licking the spoons just to check it tasted to their liking!

One warm summer evening, Hever residents joined the other floors to play stoolball, - a game they had never tried before, and although reluctant at first, they really got involved in the game and are looking forward to playing it again soon.

The pupils have also continued with their own off-site clubs, including Cubs, Basketball and Football. One even invited a friend from his local cub group to join us for dinner. All the pupils did a fantastic job at making him feel welcome.  

We have finished the year with an end-of-year trip, sports day and celebration assembly! It's been a great term, and we wish you all a lovely summer break and are excited to see what September brings.

Bodiam has had a very busy term and enjoyed many exciting activities, some on-site and some off-site. Resident pupils have enjoyed runouts which are always popular among the pupils, stoolball which was new this term, old favourites such as woodland walks, visiting Swanbourne Lake and spending time at the park.

A picnic in the park was great - pupils then sat and fed the ducks and swans out in the beautiful fresh air, enjoying a lovely afternoon for all. 

The pupils were also taken to Goring Gap and were able to swim in the sea and then enjoyed fish and chips afterwards.

For our end-of-term trip, the pupils went paddle boarding. Each of them had so much fun and found that they could all stand up and paddle independently after listening to the instructor! The evening was finished off with a well-received meal at Mcdonalds.

When the sun is out, Arundel floor residents are out and about. We've been enjoying woodland walks, trips out to the beach, crunching calories at the gym and partaking in football, cricket and stoolball activities.

One evening, we tackled the trees in Rackham Woods, practising our climbing skills and looking out for nature. At the beach, we have been paddling, throwing the Frisbee and skimming pebbles into the sea. At the gym, we have been rowing, cycling, cross-training and making sure we always have a ‘leg’ day.

Back indoors and on floor, jigsaw puzzles have bewitched us all. We have completed a 1000-piece Dr Who puzzle (it took us eight weeks), which goes to show that young people can and do have the ability to see a project through to the end. We are now starting our second puzzle - a landscape of a Bob Ross painting. We are making slow and steady progress but think it might not be completed until we reconvene in September!

Our end-of-year celebration trip involved paddles, boards and much excitement. The pupils thoroughly enjoyed taking to the water - some more than others!

Overall, it has been a busy half term both physically and mentally, which all the pupils have got stuck-in to. So, a massive thank you to the pupils and staff on Arundel floor for working together to create a fun, exciting and respectful place for everyone to share and enjoy. We wish you a happy summer and look forward to seeing you all in September.

This term, we finally reached expedition season, and it was all systems go for the staff involved in order to see all the Duke of Edinburgh groups from Year 9 to MHC through their expeditions.  

Year 9 DofE Trip

Year 9 completed their Bronze Award by carrying out their expedition in Pease Pottage. The weather was on their side, which meant they were warm and dry, but had to slow their pace in order not to overheat. Some excellent navigation was shown, particularly by Dylan, Charlie and Eric, and the teams showed outstanding perseverance to work through their fatigue and stick together as a unit. 

The campsite at Pease Pottage allowed lots of space for the groups to practice their camp craft skills and to enjoy a great big fire in the fire circle (which included s'mores, of course). Fantastic expeditions, Year 9. Well done! 

Year 11 DofE Trip

Year 11’s expedition was in the beautiful Ashdown Forest. This location provides a few more challenging areas of navigation, as it has a much more open wild country where the paths are less visible. However, the Year 11s handled this perfectly, choosing excellent places to have breaks and appreciating the natural sites. They also heard stories of the local area, such as the Airman’s Grave where a Lancaster Bomber crashed in 1942, and how the area inspired the Winnie-the-Pooh tales.  

At the campsite in the evening, the group enjoyed a campfire and some games of frisbee and manhunt. Aaron was even visited by some of the local wildlife at night, which explained the missing food. 

Post-16 DofE Trips

Post-16 pupils have been working towards the Silver Award this year, which means  that unlike Bronze, they had to complete a Practice and a Qualifying expedition. 

Practice expedition – New Forest 

The New Forest is well known for its difficulty navigationally, as paths can appear and disappear without much warning. It is therefore imperative that groups stay alert, particularly through dense sections of forest, so that they can make the right navigational decisions. This proved a good challenge for the Post-16 group, who worked together and discussed in detail the options they had in front of them and related their physical surroundings to their map. Jenson, in particular, demonstrated outstanding map reading and navigation skills. The group pushed through hot conditions and walked a mammoth 20 kilometres on their second day! 

DofE Silver Trip - Qualifying Expedition – Snowdon 

The Qualifying Expedition could have been a trip in its own right, separate from the Duke of Edinburgh Award, as it challenged the pupils to climb Snowdon – the tallest mountain in Wales, standing at 1,085 metres. Accompanied by Mountain Leaders Tom and Rebecca from RAW Adventures, the pupils summited the mountain after 3.5 hours, and were treated to some epic views on their descent after the cloud started to clear. It was a big challenge for the pupils, who had to consider their pacing, energy consumption, and appropriate clothing for the weather. We talk a lot about perseverance in the Duke of Edinburgh Award, but this was definitely the greatest test Muntham House pupils have had so far. All the pupils reached the summit and even explored more of Snowdonia the day before and after the mountain hike. Mr Imbert and the rest of the staff are incredibly proud of the pupils’ achievements and look forward to taking more pupils on this expedition in the future. Keep your eyes peeled for a video showing some of the amazing sites and travelling the pupils experienced. 

Mr Imbert has been blown away by the commitment and hard work shown by the pupils and is hugely thankful to all the staff that supported him as well. This is the busiest term we have had with outdoor education in a while, and Mr Imbert cannot wait to build on the successes to make next year even better. A massive well done to every pupil in achieving their individual goals – it's time for a lie-down! 

The outdoor education did not stop with DofE this term for our pupils! A group of Year 11s and Post-16 pupils travelled up to the magnificent Lake Ullswater in the Lake District for a week-long course with the Outward Bound Trust, accompanied by Miss Coutts, Mr Blewett, Mr Lawrence, Mr West and Mr Imbert. There were some tired legs from the DofE trips, and the weather did not look like it was going to be on our side, so there were some anxious feelings upon beginning the excursion. However, as soon as we arrived on site and met our team of instructors, it was clear that we were going to have a good week. The first night’s activity was a fresh dip in the lake and a chat with instructors about the history of the Outward Bound Trust.  

On Tuesday, the pupils went gorging (in gorges, not eating!!) and then returned to the site for some team-building activities ahead of their two-day expedition. 

The pupils agreed on a canoeing and hiking expedition and were able to use many of the skills they had obtained from their DofE expeditions through school. The group caught a steamboat to the west side of the lake, ready to row the 8 miles that stood between them and the hike to the campsite. The instructors fashioned up some sailing rigs to harness the power of the wind to help the pupils along too! 

When the pupils arrived on shore, they had a 5km hike to a mountaintop for a night of wild camping. The views were spectacular, and it provided a real adventure for the group – who were all in bed, unconscious by 9pm! 

And the adventures did not stop the day after. The group went cliff-jumping, swimming, scrambling and even had the energy for a teacher-and-instructors versus pupils game of football (the pupils won on penalties). 

Mr Imbert has been blown away by the commitment and hard work shown by the pupils on the Outward Bound Trust expedition and is hugely thankful to all the staff who have supported him. This is the busiest term we have had with outdoor education in a while, and Mr Imbert cannot wait to build on the successes to make next year even better. A massive well done to every pupil in achieving their individual goals – it's time for a lie-down! 

Please note that pupils return from their Summer break on

TUESDAY 5TH SEPTEMBER 2023

Term dates are on the school website, and available by clicking the link below.

Term Dates 2022 - 23

AUTUMN HALF TERM HOLIDAY

MONDAY 23RD OCTOBER UNTIL FRIDAY 3RD NOVEMBER

LAST DAY OF AUTUMN TERM

FRIDAY 15TH DECEMBER - INSET DAY

FOR INFORMATION, THE INSET DAYS UNTIL END OF AUTUMN TERM ARE: