Happy Christmas!
Wishing all our students and their families a very happy Christmas! The Spring Term begins on Tuesday 7th January 2025.
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.
The annual ski trip for senior students has seen some 90 students head to the slopes in Obertauern, Austria for a week with five hours of lessons every day! Apres ski, the students have enjoyed a trip to one of the world’s oldest Advent markets, the Christmas market in Salzburg. Younger years will get their chance to take to the slopes in April over the Easter holidays.
Damp December day but students and staff have embraced the Christmas spirit and dusted off their festive jumpers in aid of the school’s charities – CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young); Papyrus (Prevention of Young Suicide) and Angus’ Army (The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity). While the majority of students will be going home for Christmas today, some are in Germany on the German exchange trip; golfers are travelling to Portugal to play in the European National Schools Championships and senior skiers are off to Obertauern, Austria. Safe travels all!
A place on the Northern Ireland Netball Squad for Emily Brownleader, a Gordon’s netball scholar.
Emily, who arrived in September in the Sixth Form, heard about the trials through social media and decided to have a go. She was thrilled to not only go through to the next round but end up in the short squad! “I was really happy, I didn’t really expect it, It was just a good experience to try”.
Once a month she now flies to Northern Ireland for netball camps, studying for her BTECs during the flight!
This weekend she will play wing attack for the team, travelling to Scotland for the Europe Netball Under 19 training event, playing against teams from all over Europe. Best of luck Emily!
In a class of their own, Woolwich House, winners of the Gingerbread Decorating Competition! While all the Residential Boarding Houses entered the competition, the creativity of the school’s youngest students clinched the trophy, presented today by Headmaster Andrew Moss. Congratulations Woolwich!
The first of four Carol Services takes place today in the School Chapel of St Edward the Confessor, involving over 130 students either singing or reading. We look forward to welcoming Gordonians, residents of Lakeview and Greenview Care Homes, and students from Holy Trinity School as well as parents and friends. The stunning nativity scene on the front of the Order of Service has been designed by Niamh, a Year 7 student.
Having successfully competed in dressage, showjumping, cross country and polo (for which her team won the National Schools and Universities Polo Association finals!), Inèz Schilbach then set herself the challenge of military riding!
The 13 year old, who was introduced to riding as a toddler, recently competed with the Army Cadet’s Chobham Detachment in a Military Equitation Competition held at Royal Windsor.
Military Equitation involves riding with one hand and sitting in the correct military position while managing formation with horses, in military tack. The cadets were competing under the instruction of a former Lt Colonel of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment while the Judge, formerly from the Kings Troop, assessed them for their military bearing.
Inèz was granted special dispensation to compete at such a young age, and was up against the Army Cadet Force, Combined Cadet Force and Royal Air Force Cadets from military detachments in Portsmouth, Dover and across the South of England. The horses, which are also used to escort the Lord and Lady Mayoress at the Lord Mayors Show in London each year, were randomly drawn for each rider.
In spite of being one of the youngest competitors and having only been military riding for seven months, she was awarded third place!
“We had five minutes to familiarise ourselves with the horses and warm up, meet the other cadets we would be riding alongside and then we started the competition” explained Inèz, adding that the judges were looking for the cadet's affinity with their horse and the control and effectiveness of their riding - which included cantering within formation.
Inèz is very keen to continue with military equitation, and has future ambitions – “What I really want to do, maybe when I am a bit older, is the Lord Mayor’s Parade on horseback” and looking further to the future, she declared: “It’s definitely a military career for me!”
Two regional final wins for Gordon’s golfers has put the A team through to the ISGA (Independent Schools Golf Association) finals in April and the B team into the plate finals in June. Both teams played exceptionally well with the A team shooting a combined score of -8 (Zach scoring an incredible -5!) and beating St George’s Weybridge in the Regional Final 3-0. This will be the first time the B team has qualified for the National Plate Finals after their victory against Cranmore A team with 111 points to 95 at Worplesdon GC. Congratulations to both teams!
Gordon’s toppled 12 time champions of the ACE League, Hartpury College tonight in a thrilling game at Worcester’s Sixway Stadium, 34-25. The Gordon’s ACE team, part of the Harlequins Partnership Programme, dominated the game, watched live by parents, staff and students and via a livestream on the school campus.
Their meteoric rise through the league saw them lose just one game (by one point!) to Hartpury. This is the first time Gordon’s has lifted the ACE League trophy, the pinnacle of schoolboy rugby. Congratulations all!
It's the big game today! Gordon's ACE Team takes on 12 times winners Hartpury in the RFU Ace League Final at Sixway Stadium, Worcester. Staff and students travelling to support (the game will also be streamed live here).
Messages of support - and advice - have also come from some of the biggest names in rugby including Jonny Wilkinson, Dave Attwood and Gordonians Jake Ball, Caleb Ashworth and Tom Golder. #Bleedgreen boys!
Through to the regional knockout stages of the LTA Year 11-13 national competition, the boys’ tennis team, after comprehensive wins over Claremont Fan Court and George Abbot Schools today.