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Lent Term: February 2025

Discovery Day

Our recent Discovery Day was a chance for current Form 6s to learn all about what Forms 7 & 8 have to offer - from the array of trips, to additional responsibilities in sport, the advanced skills required for the Aldro Independent Project, boarding, the History Table experience, the Leavers’ Programme and much, more in ICT, art, drama and music.

Lead by teachers and guided by current Form 8s, pupils learned a great deal about the excitement that awaits them in the later years at Aldro.

“What do I love about Aldro? The amount of opportunities you are given to try new things””

Form 8 Pupil

From the Head

As we reach the mid-term break, the Christmas holidays seem like a distant memory following a half-term packed full of activity at Aldro!

FoAA Quiz Night

Aldro’s 19th quiz evening, ‘Sounds of the 90s’, took place in the CHC last Friday. A relaxed, if not slightly competitive night, compered by legendary quizmaster Mr Rose.

Teams worked their way through 90s songthemed rounds such as ‘Let Me Entertain You’ and ‘Mambo no.5', resulting in teams of Aldro teachers and staff taking the top three spots (sorry!)! A wonderful evening raising money for the FoAA and the school charity the RNLI.

Highlights for me include our first ‘Discovery Day’ and observing the tangible excitement of our current Form 6 pupils as they learnt about all the new opportunities open to them in Forms 7 and 8. It has always been my firm belief that one’s final years at prep school can evoke the best memories of their school daysour current senior pupils conveyed that so convincingly as they showed the Form 6s around! Another highlight was our annual Scholarship Day, which saw twenty applicants in Form 6 engaging wholeheartedly with a range of activities and assessments. Their energy, curiosity, and determination were wonderful to witness.

Music has also enriched this half-term, with a couple of informal concerts delighting all who were able to attend. It always brings such pleasure to sit back at the end of a busy day and enjoy the diverse and talented performances of our budding musicians; my congratulations to all those who took part.

Sport remains central to life at Aldro, and I must extend my particular congratulations to our U13 and U11 girls' netball teams for their recent victories in their respective age groups at the Lancing netball tournaments. Our U13 girls' cricket team has also excelled, reaching the regional finals of the indoor cricket competition on the back of some impressive, convincing performances in the two preliminary rounds. Meanwhile, our boys' 1st XI cricket squad is currently touring South Africa, and we send them our best wishes while suppressing just a hint of envy at their exciting itinerary.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Friends of Aldro Association for their unwavering support of the school. The recent Quiz Night was a particular triumph, thanks to their superb organisation and the imaginative contribution of the inimitable Mr. Rose, who once again excelled as Aldro's quizmaster; what a fabulous evening enjoyed by all who came! It has been a wonderful half-term at Aldro.

I send my best wishes to all in the Aldro community for the upcoming mid-term break, and here’s to a second half of term similarly packed full of activity, adventure and fun!

Chris Carlier

Wooden Spoon Day

Aldro was a sea of rugby and sports team jerseys as pupils showed their support and raised money for the Wooden Spoon Charity.

£455 was raised for a great charity supporting children and young people.

Trips

Delicious Dumplings!

Aldro marked Chinese New Year by transforming the dining hall and setting out a wonderful Chinese lunch for pupils and staff.

A massive thank you to the parents who so kindly came in and made delicious dumplings which were enjoyed by all.

We wish everyone the best of luck in the Year of the Snake!

Pupils have enjoyed a wide range of residential trips this term.

Form 8s took a trip to London to visit the Natural History and Science Museums. Meanwhile, Form 4s explored the Wat Phra Dhammakaya Buddhist Temple to learn all about Buddhist practices and ceremonies. Form 3 had a wonderful day completing an Antarctic Explorer’s workshop at Gilbert White’s House, learning all about penguins and they even got to pull each other along in sleds!

Words of Welcome from Mr Valdemoros

Two years ago I decided to quit my job as Senior Software Engineer at Microsoft and brave the high seas to run all the AV and IT aboard a luxury superyacht. It was excellent fun with lots of travelling and different challengesfrom sailing up the west coast of Africa back to Europe, to throwing together high-end DJ and lighting systems for parties, or restoring operations after a major blackout. Never a dull moment! I’ve now come back to dry land and am looking forward to applying what I’ve learned to my new role of Head of Digital Strategy at Aldro. It’s a very different environment but with a surprising number of parallels – stay tuned!

Girls’ Sport

It’s been a cracking term for girls’ sport at Aldro. Before Christmas, the U13A girls' indoor cricket team competed in the local round of the ECB indoor cricket tournament. Hosted by Aldro, the girls beat Glebelands and Broadwater School to take them through to the next round.

On Wednesday 12th February, the U11As and the 1st team travelled to Lancing College to play in the Lancing College netball tournament. Both age groups finished top of their group and made their way to the finals where both came out on top against their respective Brighton Girls teams! All were rewarded with medals and shields, with Aldro’s Lily awarded the U11 Most Valuable Player of the tournament by the Lancing College staff.

The 2nd and 3rd netball teams also had great wins against Farleigh in their Wednesday fixtures and a close game for the U11Bs. A superb term of sport!

Hi! I’m Mr Valdemoros and I’m excited to be joining the team at Aldro!