If you are eligible for free school meals, you can also apply for places at the HAPpy Activity Camps this summer holiday. There are thousands of places for days of fun sports, enriching activities and fabulous nutritional meals, all of which is free for children aged 5 to 16 who receive benefits related free school meals. Mrs Honeywell will be in contact with more details for students who are eligible but if you would like to find out more details in the meantime you can visit www.sportinherts.org.uk/hafhappy 

Barracudas Activity Day Camps, will once again be open at Sandringham School this summer! Aimed at children aged 4-14 years old, they are looking forward to a summer of fun with 80+ exciting activities including fencing, archery, swimming, football, arts and crafts, dance and much more! They are Ofsted registered and have high staff to child ratios, plus parents of Sandringham School receive an extra £10 off per week if they quote code HSCH21 at the time of booking. Open summer 26th July – 27th August.

Book now at www.barracudas.co.uk or call 01480 467 567.

We are into the second week for Fit 4 Life where all of the additional activities available to students got underway. It was fantastic to see students getting up early to take part in HIIT, running and swimming before school, as well as being excited to try some new activities after school like water-polo and foot-golf.  Sadly Sports Day had to be postponed until next week (Wednesday 14th July) but students enjoyed an inspiring talk from Gymnastic Commonwealth Gold Medallist @stevefrew7 talking about setting goals and self belief. A huge thank you to Mr Cracknell and all of the PE Faculty for making the day such a success. We look forward to sharing the results of the Virtual Charity Run next week. For action from throughout the week and updated score information from Sports Day and the Charity run check out @SandringhamPE on twitter! And you can still donate towards our charity FareShare here

Year 10 Bronze Expeditions

Year 10 have been busy this week planning their routes for their Qualifying expedition which is taking place on 18th/19th July. A reminder that all orders for kit hire must be submitted via the google form sent out but also paid for on ParentPay- this must be done by 9am on Monday 12th July. Please ensure that the consent form is also completed electronically.

Silver and Gold Qualifying Expeditions

Seven Silver groups departed this morning for the Peak District to complete their Qualifying expedition. Three Gold groups completed their Qualifying expedition in the Lake District on Thursday- well done- and a further three groups are travelling to the Lakes today to start their final expedition. Follow us on Twitter @SandringhamDofE for updates and photos. Here are some of the photos from the Gold expeditions this week.

Dear Parents, Carers and Staff,

As we move towards the end of the academic year we wanted to write to give you an insight into the work we have been doing at Sandringham. Of course, this academic year has not been a usual year as we have not been able to spend as much time in school as we normally would. We have continued to hold our committee meetings virtually and also attended virtual school events. Despite this change to our ways of working we have still been very busy.

We have:

• Ensured clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction
• Held leaders to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff
• Overseen the financial performance of the organisation and made sure its money is well spent
• Reviewed and revised our roles to ensure we have a fair distribution of work and are working effectively
• Sat on interview panels for new members of staff
• Met with Ofsted inspectors as part of their visit looking at the National investigation into sexual harassment and abuse in schools
• Conducted virtual focus groups with staff and students to understand more about their experiences at school
• Reviewed the outcomes of last year’s academic assessments and had oversight of the process for reaching Teacher Assessed Grades for this year’s GCSEs and A levels
• Worked with the leadership team to ensure that wellbeing is a continued focus for both staff and students
• Continued to monitor the COVID response - the safety of students and staff is our priority - and reviewed the virtual learning curriculum and provision of teaching both online and back in the classroom.

You can find out more about who we are, what we do,and other key information  on the school website, where you will also find information about our roles and responsibilities.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff at Sandringham for their tireless commitment to improving the lives of young people, and for all the additional hours they have committed this year in improving the school campus, supporting the delivery of the virtual learning curriculum, and in generating the teacher assessed grades. 

We would also like to thank you, the Sandringham families, for your support over the past year. We are hopeful that next academic year will be less disrupted than this past one and that we will have the opportunity to spend a little more time in school.

We would like to wish you all a lovely summer break and we look forward to September 2021 and the excitement it brings.

The lateral flow tests provided to all students are to identify people who are asymptomatic, if you  have any concerns about your child you should book a PCR test.  Tests are easy to book via the below link and results come back very quickly

Lateral Flow Tests: Testing should ideally be done every Sunday and Wednesday.  It is important to highlight these tests are for people with NO symptoms, and cannot replace a PCR test.  If a student has a positive result from a lateral flow test you should inform the school via the absence@sandringham.herts.sch.uk email address and take the child for a PCR test as soon as possible.

When to Book a PCR Test: If a student is showing symptoms they must get a PCR test as soon as possible, you can book via https://www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test   Please do not use a Lateral Flow Test as a replacement for a PCR test if someone is displaying any COVID symptoms.

Please let the school know when the result of this test is received by using the email address above, title your email  COVID Notification.

Families First offer support to families with children under 18. If you would like emotional or mental helath support, parenting or money advice, ideas on staying healthy and staying safe online, then you can find out more here.

We are extremely proud of all of the dance students, including those who unfortunately couldn’t perform last night in the Spark dance show. The show was such a great achievement and we are so glad to have been back in the Sandpit Theatre and share with you all an amazing evening of dance. We look forward to many other performances next year.

This week we celebrate a group of students who have been doing some amazing work. Back in June, some of our Year 12 biologists competed in the Intermediate Biology Olympiad run by the Royal Society of Biology. The competition challenges student’s biology knowledge and encourages them to continue studying the biosciences beyond school. The competition consisted of a one-hour multiple-choice test based around their first year of A-level study and prior GCSE knowledge, and over 8500 students took part worldwide.

We are proud of all those that took part, but special mention to those that achieved silver or bronze awards, or were commended for their overall results.

Silver medallists: Claudia Sugden, Vasyl Ruszin, Ben Andrews, Nicole Tindall

Bronze medallists: Julia Bartholomew, Isabella du Preez, Tilly Risby, Caitlin Watkins

Highly commended: Ella Paul, George Booth, Nathan Darby

Commended: Olivia Stevenson, Carys Lester                   

Achievement certificates will be sent to the school in September but in the meantime a huge well done to these students and we look forward to further success next year in the International Olympiad competition.

If you would like your son/daughter featured in the last Sandprint of the Year, please email melissa.holian@sandringham.herts.sch.uk with any details and/or photos.

Changes to BYOD Programme for KS4 from September

As per letter 157 (available to download on the school website), from September we will be making a small adjustment to the bring your own device (BYOD) equipment requirements for pupils entering Year 10 and 11.

It will still be that students require a tablet device which they should bring to school every day fully charged. However, alongside this they will also need a wireless or detachable keyboard. These pieces of hardware can be purchased from a wide variety of retailers online and in store. Prices online from retailers such as Amazon start from around £15.

If your child is in receipt of free school meals or pupil premium funding and you need support in purchasing this piece of equipment, please contact Louise Turner, Pupil Premium Coordinator, via admin@sandringham.herts.sch.uk.

This week saw the launch of our new classroom posters celebrating the figures whom our classrooms are named after.  The Teaching and Learning team of the SLT have been working hard all year to write about each of the important figures.  They were originally chosen by the staff as they had made an important contribution to the subjects that we teach at Sandringham. Thanks to the efforts of the SLT, whatever classroom a student is in, they can now read about the person who the classroom is named after – and hopefully be inspired! Although it was a team effort, I would like to express my particular thanks to Daisy Barrow, Maya Gupta and Naomi Gherani in Year 12 who led this project.

We were really pleased to welcome 245 Year 11 into 12 students to our Sixth Form Induction this week. Students were able to attend sample lessons in their chosen subjects and hear about what life will be like in the Sixth Form. The cohort included around 80 new students from other schools, and we hope that most will be joining us in September. All students were enthusiastic and already engaged with the prospect of their Post-16 experience. They will need to confirm their place in the Sixth Form on results day (12th August) and all information about transition into the Sixth Form can be found here: https://sandringham.herts.sch.uk/virtual-sixth-form-induction/

We look forward to meeting them all again in August/September.

Every week the Mathematics Faculty publish a puzzle for you to try.  For every entry you will receive 1 housepoint, if you answer correctly you will win 2 housepoints and if you are the fastest person to answer the puzzle correctly then you will win 5 housepoints!  To enter, simply scan the QR code and fill out the google form.  Good luck!

On Thursday, Year 7 had a Work Exploration Day as part of Sandringham School's Careers Education. They had the opportunity to shadow a nominated adult in their place of work (or virtually) and start exploring different career paths beyond the classroom. Feedback was that students enjoyed the day and were a credit to their parents and the school. A big thank you to parents for giving up their time to help with this important experience of the world of work, and to Ms Tang for organising the day. Pictured here is Max C enjoying his day at Wagstaff where he learnt about the process of office refurbishment from sales through to design then build. 

The school will be holding an Open Evening on Monday 13th September for prospective parents. This means that there will be an early finish on the Monday at 12:10pm and a delayed start on Tuesday 14th September.

The Hertfordshire Mental Health Support team are holding a free workshop for secondary school parents to help young people with a low mood. You can attend virtually on Tuesday 13th July @ 6pm or Tuesday 3rd August @ 12pm. To book your attendance on one of the above days - please click here

Sixteen-year-old Starr lives in two worlds: the poor neighbourhood where she was born and raised and her posh high school in the suburbs. The uneasy balance between them is shattered when Starr is the only witness to the fatal shooting of her unarmed best friend, Khalil, by a police officer. Now what Starr says could destroy her community. It could also get her killed. 

Winner of both Children’s Book of the Year, and the Waterstones Children's Book Prize in 2018, ‘The Hate U Give’ is inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, and tackles race, violence and poverty with raw honesty and fearlessness. An unflinching and immensely powerful novel, suitable for students in Year 9 and above. Read an interview with the author here.

P is for… plethora [noun]

Definition: A large or excessive amount of something.

Example: The organisation was run by a plethora of committees and subcommittees.

Synonyms: Deluge, Profusion, Overabundance

Antonyms: Lack, Need, Scarcity

Etymology: From the Greek word ‘plēthōrē’ meaning be full.

On the 19th July at 4pm, Oxford University are hosting a free online super-curricular activity for 11-14 year olds called Book Club Live with Dan Freedman. You can join the event by  registering here and also submit a book review to be in with a chance of winning the books on the Oxplore recommended reading list.

Dan's latest novel, Unstoppable, has been chosen by Oxford University as its Oxplore Book Club Book of the month and is available to borrow from the LRC now. Visit the Oxplore web page for fantastic resources linked to the book and its themes, including an analysis from expert psychologist Dr Lucy Bowes. 

If you attended our Symposium last week, you will have seen the exciting launch of this year's World Class Schools essay writing competition by Dan Freedman, author of the hugely popular Jamie Johnson football novels.The title this year is “How much can motivation from parents, or the important adults in your life, help or hinder your success?” and more information can be found here. You can download last year's winning essays and top tips from winning students. Shortlisted students will be honourably mentioned at the Awards Ceremony and Winners and runners up will be announced and awarded at the Awards Ceremony, and their essays will be made available to download from the WCSQM website. This is an ideal project for the summer holidays, 

Some more pictures of our fantastic Athletics Team at Westminster Lodge last week. Lots of medals were won and some new PBs achieved. We are really proud of all the students who took part. 

Well done the amazing boys tennis team. After a gruelling day yesterday, they lost their national quarter final to Reeds school 8-4. A superb effort from the whole team taking the 2nd doubles and 3rd singles matches. Today they play for 5th place. Good luck boys!

We are open! We look forward to welcoming you back through our doors and remember we are a socially distant venue so seats will disappear very quickly so do not miss out and get your tickets now!

Following Government guidelines, you must wear a face covering while attending The SandPit Theatre unless you are exempt as stated in these guidelines. If you do not wear a mask you will be refused entry and your ticket will be forfeited. Our café will be open during these screenings for drinks and snacks but please note we will only be accepting card payments. Alcohol is available for sale 30 minutes before the shows begin.  The box office is open from 11.30am – 3.30pm Monday to Friday. Alternatively, you can call us on 01727 799565 or visit www.sandpittheatre.co.uk

We now sell and accept Theatre Tokens!  You can use these tokens to purchase tickets for any of our shows or buy them as gifts to be used at over 260 venues nationwide and in the West End all while supporting theatres including us!

The new 25th Anniversary show catapults Riverdance into the 21st century and will completely immerse you in the extraordinary and elemental power of its music and dance. 25 years ago, 7 minutes changed the face of Irish dancing forever. The Eurovision interval act performance gave millions of people a new and exciting glimpse of the future of Irish dance. Now 25 years later, composer Bill Whelan has re-recorded his mesmerising soundtrack while producer Moya Doherty and director John McColgan have completely reimagined the ground-breaking show with innovative and spectacular lighting, projection, stage, and costume designs.

Tickets £13.50/£10

Matthew Bourne’s Romeo and Juliet is a passionate and contemporary re-imagining of Shakespeare’s classic story of love and conflict is set in the not-too-distant future in the ‘Verona Institute’. Here ‘difficult’ young people are mysteriously confined by a society that seeks to divide and crush their youthful spirit. Our two young lovers must follow their hearts as they risk everything to be together.

Tickets £13.50/£10