Category: Senior School News
We are delighted to be starting a new annual Michaelmas exhibition called Insight, showcasing work at our Senior School from all students in Years 6 and 7 who have each responded to a particular brief. Alongside this we will also be exhibiting new work from Year 12.
This show offers something different and complementary to our existing suite of yearly shows. Firstly, we have never exhibited Prep school work at the Senior School and secondly, Year 7 is a special time; it is the start of the Senior School experience and as such an opportunity to be challenged in new ways and understand your potential with fresh insight.
Year 12 are equally at the beginning of a fresh start; the end of GCSE and the beginning of A levels is a momentous time for students and their families. The Year 12 students have just finished their induction in which they tried out lots of different approaches to making and they are now considering what they might focus on; their exhibits are the first fruits of this progress.
Most exhibitions offer insight at the end of a course, but not the genesis; this is an opportunity to see rising stars grapple with what they will become; the lines are not clear, the work is experimental and we can reveal in seeing a snap shots of the beginning of things rather than the end.
The show is open from 4.30pm to 5.30pm on Tuesday 6 December. Please come along and share the invitation with any and all interested parties.
Our DofE students were busy over the October half term break, working towards their gold and silver awards in various ways.
Some of our Silver DofE students set off on their practice expedition, undertaking activities at the Harrold Odell Country park in Bedfordshire. Carrying full kit and camping out for two nights and hiking for three days, the Year 11 students had to complete seven hours of daily planned activity, covering approximately 16km each day. Weather conditions were good for the time of year but this didn’t prevent a few boots getting completely stuck in thick mud! The practice expedition gave the students the opportunity to hone their skills ready to undertake the three day qualifying expedition next year.
Meanwhile 20 students from Years 11 to 13 travelled to the Peak District National Park for their expeditions, with one Gold assessed group, two gold practice groups and one silver practice group. After training days with their group supervisor they then took part in four day (Gold assessed group) and three day walking expeditions; carrying all their expedition equipment and camping out overnight. Luckily apart from their final day on expedition where it poured down they enjoyed unseasonably warm, sunny weather.
Well done to everyone that took part, congratulations on your awards, students listed below:
Group 1 Gold Assessed: Year 13’s Lily, Sasha, Tilly and Ella
Group 2 Gold Practice: Year 12’s Abdulla, Ed, Izzie H, Izzie M and Jonny
Group 3 Gold Practice: Year 12’s Esmee, Chloe, James and Theo
Group 4 Silver Practice: Year 11’s Charlotte, Florence, Hugh, Ollie B, Ollie J, Oscar W and Martha
Group 5 Silver Practice: Year 11’s Will, Fred, Henry, Samson, Oscar H, Jack and Harrison
During half term, 44 students and four members of staff embarked on the first overseas sports tour for a number of years – the Paris Rugby tour. Setting off in the early hours and making progress through the tunnel and to Paris for their first stop at the Eiffel Tower, the students had the opportunity to walk around the surrounding area, getting the coach travel out of their system.
With the hotel located just outside the Disneyland complex, it was perfect for the School party, allowing unlimited buffet breakfasts and evening meals; for those with adolescent boys this was clearly fantastic news as it guaranteed that the boys were fed and watered well every day.
The tour saw the group visit the Montparnasse Tower with views over Paris, unfortunately the low cloud obstructed some of the more famous landmarks, but being 250 metres above the Paris Skyline was thrilling. The Stade De France was an excellent tour, giving students the chance to sit in the changing rooms and run out onto the pitch as their idols have, and as they have seen on TV. A river boat cruise along the River Seine provided an opportunity for everyone to relax and enjoy the views around Paris in the sunshine; from the Eiffel Tower to the Notre Dame cathedral and the Statue of Liberty.
Whilst the emphasis of the tour was about having fun and enjoying each other’s company, the tour was also about playing rugby, and both teams (U14 and U16) played two matches whilst on tour.
Unfortunately the French opposition was a little strong on each occasion, however the games were very competitive and enabled the students to play on some excellent surfaces at two great venues against two clubs who hosted the boys exceptionally well.
The players of the tour were:
U14 – Year 8’s Isaac, Ollie and Liam, and Year 9’s Angus
U16 – Year 11’s Tolly, Oscar and Year 10’s Archie
Tourist of the week – Year 9’s Oliver for all his help, talk and classic one-liners throughout the week.
Thank you to all that came on the tour and we look forward to the next one soon.
Our Equestrian teams celebrated their most successful year at the National School Equestrian Championships at Keysoe from Thursday 20 to Sunday 24 October. The most successful Suffolk team, Woodbridge had nine riders taking part over four days up against the best school riding teams in the UK, having qualified in eight team and four individual events.
Woodbridge had five top eight team places from our eight team competitions, rewarded with rosettes, prizes and of course a bucket!
Woodbridge riders were winners of the regional points league 2022. The team with the most points in each county gained from competitions over the year is invited to compete. Two riders jump 70cm, two jump 80cm, two jump 90cm and two jump 1m against the clock. Top 5 scores to count. Our team was Year 12’s Oscar, Year 11’s Sophia, Year 10’s Eve, Lois and Oscar, Year 8’s Harry, Zac and Edie.
Other top results included:
Eve Y10 winning the 1.10m Jumping with Style on Laddie.
Oscar T coming third in the 80-85cm Jumping with Style on Cliff
The team of Year 8’s Harry and Zac, with Year 10’s Oscar and Sophia came third in the 80-85cm Show Jumping. They were competing against 34 teams. They finished in 7th place after the first round, which meant that they were into the jump off. This was very exciting as the top eight teams all compete again; Sophia achieved a clear round with the fastest time to help move the team up four places into 3rd place.
On Saturday evening we supported Year 8’s Edie who had been selected to represent the South of England team in the Nations Cup. Four teams of four riders from the South of England, the North of England, Wales and Scotland compete for the cup over eight jumps against the clock. It was a very fast and exciting competition. Scotland won the Cup and Edie and the South of England team finished in 3rd place.
Well done to Year 7’s Grace who competing in her first Nationals came team 8th in the 70-75cm Show Jumping together with Year 8’s Harry, Zac and Edie.
Full results below:
Thursday 20 October:
· 70-75cm show jumping 8th Edie, Grace, Harry, Zac
· 70-75cm jumping with style 6th Edie, Harry, Zac
Friday 21 October:
· 80-85cm show jumping 3rd Harry, Oscar T, Zac, Sophia
· 80-85cm jumping with style 6th Edie, Harry, Oscar T, Sophia
· Year 10’s Oscar individual 3rd
Saturday 22 October:
· 90-95cm show jumping 21st Eve, Lois, Oscar, Sophia
· Eve individual 5th
· 90-95cm jumping with style 14th Eve, Lois, Oscar, Sophia
· Year 10’s Oscar Individual 10th
· RPL 1st Oscar G, Eve, Sophia, Lois, Oscar T, Zac, Edie, Harry
· 1.10m Pony Individual Eve 9th
· 1.10m Horse individual Oscar G 12th
Sunday 23 October:
· 100-1.05m team show jumping eliminated
· 100-1.05m jumping with style individual Eve 4th
· 1.10m individual Eve 1st
Telling the story of true love ripped apart by bitter divisions, rehearsals for our Sixth Form performance of Romeo and Juliet are well underway. Performed in our Seckford Theatre on Wednesday 23 and Thursday 24 November, students will share their performance of the most famous story of love at first sight.
Preparing for any performance, choreography is an important part of rehearsals, and former student Kath Clements will be in School working with the cast of Romeo and Juliet.
OW Kath, now a Primary School Teacher, visits School regularly in her role as a Creative Movement Director/Practitioner, she has worked on many productions including The Wizard of Oz and Delicieux (which was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe). Depending on the project students are working on, she choreographs specific movement in order to teach students as well as facilitating workshops where they can be inspired to create movement motifs, with Kath guiding them through the development process.
Supporting GCSE and A level students in particular she’s able to work collaboratively with them teaching the choreographic process which can then be applied to their practical studies and work; they can borrow or adapt motifs/sections of movements.
Looking ahead to Romeo and Juliet she commented, “I’m looking forward to working with students on this year’s production as it embodies a contemporary feel with many technological elements, mature themes and ambitious choreographic moments. It’s always a pleasure to return to School and be part of the Drama productions, something I was lucky enough to take part in as a student.”
Tickets for Romeo and Juliet will be available from Seckford Theatre | Romeo & Juliet 23 – 24 November – Seckford Theatre and we look forward to reporting on rehearsals and hearing from students taking part as we move towards performance dates.
Having represented the School for the last eight years, recently placed 3rd in the National Regional U18 Team Youth Championships representing the Eastern region as well as competing in the British Pony Eventing Championships in 2021, Year 12’s Ada was asked to be part of a Junior GB Eventing team in a Home International team friendly against Ireland, and was of course delighted!
With only four riders and three final scores counting, she competed at 2* International level at Bicton with the opportunity to work with the GB team coaches, as well as test her ability under team pressure for experience for consideration for the Junior European Championships in 2023 – something she’s working hard towards achieving.
Having worked incredibly hard for many years in what is a particularly demanding sport, Ada’s dedication is clear. She seems to be unstoppable, having recently also had a super result coming in 17th place at a 2* International at the South of England Horse trials, an open class event that was quickly followed up with good placing in an U18ON competition for regional team selection for the Youth championships for 2023 as well.
Ada had an amazing time at Bicton meeting the Irish team members. She was one of the counting scores in the GB result coming 18th individually in the open section of 72 starters with the GB team narrowly being beaten by the Irish team by 0.8 of a mark!
We will be following Ada’s progress closely and wish her the very best of luck.
Just ahead of half term break, on Thursday 13 October, over 60 Woodbridge School athletes from both the Senior and Prep School, travelled to RHS for the first of three Suffolk Schools Cross Country trials. Their performances were exceptional, winning nine of the 24 medals on offer, with some races having around 200 competitors.
Although largely an individual event, our team performances were noteworthy indeed. Almost 80 Suffolk schools enter the competition, which for the first trial is raced in two halves to cater for numbers. With almost 40 schools in our South East section, Woodbridge School had three team wins and two thirds in the six races up to and including year 11.
Over 40 Woodbridge School athletes have qualified by right to compete at the second trail by finishing in the top 50; the second event takes place on the 26 November 2022.
Our athletes won medals for individual top three places in seven of the eight races, winning nine of the 24 medals overall:
- Minor Girls (Year 6 & 7): Year 7’s Alice (Silver)
- Minor Boys (Year 6 & 7): Year 6’s Dex (Bronze)
- Junior Girls (Year 8 & 9): Year 8’s Romilly (Gold), Year 9’s Charlie (Silver), Year 8’s Felicity (Bronze)
- Inter Girls (Year 10 & 11): Year 10’s Phoebe (Bronze)
- Inter Boys (Year 10 & 11): Year 10’s Angus (Bronze)
- Senior Girls (Year 12 & 13): Year 13’s Amy (Silver)
- Senior Boys (Year 12 & 13) Year 12’s Henry (Gold)
Races of note were the Minor Girls where Woodbridge School had six athletes in the top 13 (three of those from our Prep School), Minor Boys where we had seven in the top 14 (five of those from our Prep School) and Junior Girls where we had a medal clean sweep and five athletes in the top 10; it was a sea of red vests!
With two trials remaining, over 20 athletes still have a chance of county selection and seven or eight are fighting for the right to compete at English Schools in Nottingham in March.
Congratulations to every athlete and a huge thank you to staff and parents for their support on the day.
Looking ahead, Woodbridge Cross country athletes have a busy November, with some competing at the National Cross Country Relays in Mansfield on Saturday 5 November, most of our Woodbridge School year group teams competing at the regional round of the English Schools Cup on the 12 November, and the second Suffolk Schools Cross Country trial taking place on 26 November.
OW Jim Marshall recently arranged for Friends XI (a group of OWs and friends) to play Volunteering Matters Young People (all 16 – 25 years olds, many of whom arrived in the country as unaccompanied refugees). Volunteering Matters is a charity that works with inspirational volunteers and partners to transform lives in the community. Jim is a volunteer ambassador and mentor for the charity. Woodbridge School happily donated the use of our Tollers pitch and the loan of a minibus and driver to help support the match, which was the second in a series of charity football matches organised by Jim and the charity.
Drawing 6-6, the match was more about the people involved and what they got from taking part than it ever was about the score. All of the young men playing for VM have a story and in many cases the VM Grandmentors project has played a crucial part in supporting their transition from care into independence. The VM squad boasted a student nurse, second year university sport scientist and a degree apprentice telecoms engineer, with one of the players just 16 years old and relatively new to the UK, alongside others who were also at the beginning of their journey towards independence.
A post-match meal was put on by The Table, where players and spectators enjoyed a bite to eat and a chance to exchange stories, experiences as well as hopes and aspirations for their future. This alongside the donation of funds by local companies including Marshall Wolfe, Best of Suffolk and Rokker, meant the day was a huge success in every single way, and something Woodbridge School was proud to be a part of.
For more information, including how to get involved and support the charity, please visit Volunteering Matters at For our community – Volunteering Matters
Our netball report this week includes details of the South Suffolk Tournament and of matches played by our U14 and U16 teams.
Woodbridge U14s
The week started off very positively with the U14s securing a place at the County round on Saturday 19 November from their excellence performance during the afternoon and the U16s following suit the following day. The U14 team; Millie (Captain), Charlie, Lily, Lyrah, Scarlett, Bea, Eloise, along with three Year 8s – Izzy, Amelie and Georgia knew it was going to be a tough afternoon, but they were up for the challenge.
Our first match against RHS resulted in a 12–6 win, which was a great and positive way to start to the tournament as only playing seven minutes each way each game, is very different to a full 40-minute match, so you have to give everything you can from the starting whistle and not stopping until the final whistle blows.
RHS was next and we seemed to be a little complacent due to our first win, so this match was a little closer and tougher, but we came away with a 4–3 victory.
Farlingaye followed and again our winning streak continued with an 8–2 win.
The next team was Ipswich School, no doubt the hardest match of the tournament, so the girls knew they had to give everything they had. It was an even match with the score being 4 – 4 at half-time, then we certainly woke up and played with grit and determination, not giving anything away and working so hard as team. What a game it was! The girls were rewarded with their performance and came away with a 9–6 win.
Only one match to play not only to secure first place at the tournament, but a place at the county finals which we were hoping for. Tiredness definitely kicked in and the last match against St Jos was very scrappy, however, we managed to stay ahead and win 4–3.
The girls should be congratulated on their effort, determination, and tenacity during the afternoon – they demonstrated excellent teamwork and sportsmanship and should be proud of what they achieved.
Well done! Thank you to all the parental support too!
Woodbridge U16s
The U16s travelled to Rushmere on Tuesday afternoon to play local schools in the South Suffolk Tournament which is a national competition leading to a County, Regional and National round.
With three superstar Year 9s in the squad – Lara, Juno and Georgia, joining Georgie (Captain), Charlotte H, Charlotte C, Flo, Marina, and Skyla, we knew we had a strong chance of doing well, but tournaments can be funny things!
Playing seven minutes each way, we started well beating Ipswich High 10-7, then we moved on to play Farlingaye and beat them 16-4. We had to have our game heads on versus Ipswich School and although holding them all game and being in the lead, we won by just one goal in the end 13-12. An amazingly fought contest and with some great netball played.
We then played RHS winning 17-6, St Joseph’s College beating them 19-2 and then finally onto East Bergholt High School finishing the day on a real high winning 21-3.
So after playing 84 minutes of netball, we scored 96 goals (amazing shooting by both Charlottes!) and conceded 33. This means that we have qualified for the County Round on 19 November – if you are free that morning and fancy watching some amazing netball come to Rushmere, we will be there!
Congratulations to all the girls for a truly brilliant display of tenacity, determination, teamwork and netball skill! Well done and thanks to all the parental support from the side lines, I hope they were as proud as we were.
Results:
Woodbridge v Ipswich High School Won 10-7
Woodbridge v Farlingaye High School Won 16-4
Woodbridge v Ipswich School Won 13-12
Woodbridge v RHS Won 17-6
Woodbridge v St Joseph’s College Won 19-2
Woodbridge v East Bergholt High School Won 21-3
County finals take place on Saturday 19 November at Rushmere. Timings to be confirmed.
Our Junior 1 to 4s played Orwell Park earlier this week on Wednesday 12 October. Details of the matches, the players and the scores are included in our reports below.
Woodbridge Junior 1-4 vs Orwell Park School
On 12 October, it was the Junior’s turn to play Orwell Park School, the perfect last match day for our teams for the half term. Four teams played while the Juniors 5 to 8 teams worked hard on their skills, ready for their matches after half term. Thanks to all the parents and relatives who have supported matches so well and seen some great goals, defence and play all round this half term.
Junior 1: Drew 1-1
A slow start saw the Junior 1s go 1-0 behind early on. They shook this off and got back in the game and soon they were to turn the tides and start attacking, understanding how OPS were trying to defend and using that to Woodbridge’s advantage. Some great build up play saw Woodbridge create lots of chances, one of which was neatly put away by Year 8’s Issy early in the second half.
The Orwell GK was up to the challenge of every other attempt, as was our own Year 8’s Eva in goal who delivered another player of the match performance.
Some of the highlights of the game include the fantastic penalty corner defence from Woodbridge, a goal saving close down by Felicity, a cracking rising reverse stick shot by captain, Year 8’s Georgia, a telling interception and stylish counterattack by Issy, solid defending and outletting by Year 7’s Jemima.
A top end to the half term with the team displaying all their skills and knowledge and excellent teamwork, earning a very satisfying draw. Joint MVP’s were our Year 8 players Eva, Georgia and Issy.
Junior 2: Won 6-3
This was a thoroughly entertaining match and win for the Junior 2s. It was a bit of a seesaw battle in the first half with Woodbridge taking a 2-0 lead before going 3-2 behind. Dominance in the second half and some excellent team goals saw the team secure a very convincing win. Year 8’s Amelia was again amongst the goals, scoring two! One goal each for Year 8’s Rosa, Romilly, Sophie and Year 7’s Tabitha. Player of the match was Sophie. Well done to this team for the character and support for each other they have shown throughout the match.
Junior 3: Drew 1-1
A frenetic match that saw Woodbridge attacking the majority of the time but the Orwell Park goalkeeper stood firm for large swathes of the match. A high striker from Orwell saw the ball come through to her, unmarked and well put away to go 1-0 ahead. This was a test for the girls to come from behind. The Woodbridge attacks continued and finally in the second half, a rebound from a rebound and another rebound, pinball in other words, saw Year 8’s Honor finally breech their defence. Orwell held out well for a draw in the end. Year 7’s Charlie was voted player of the match by the opposition and a special mention from Miss Hinton would go to our defensive duo of Year 7’s Millie and Lottie who joined in our attack at every opportunity and created a lot of good plays in the match.
Junior 4: Won 4 -0
Great game by the team! The girls have really listened to coaching and are using square and through passes and starting to play a passing game. The team was effective in applying their press for the first time, having worked in this during after school practice and it worked a treat! It was lovely to see the team all much more confident in their hockey skills and work really well together as a team each, understanding what their positions require of them.
All in all a top effort by the team to double their half time lead and win in convincing style. A brace of goals were scored by Year 8’s Eirann and one each by Year 7’s Millie and Taaliah.