Luckley Life - Autumn 2022

LUCKLEY LIFE

SCHOLARS’ DINNER

On Thursday 20 October we hosted the inaugural Enrolment of Scholars’ Dinner to welcome 2022 scholars to Luckley. The dinner was a brilliant celebration of excellence across all areas of scholarship. Scholars and their parents enjoyed a fantastic address from Commonwealth gold medallist, Reuben Arthur who shared his life experiences and was an exceptional motivational speaker, inspiring us all. As always, we were treated to a delicious meal, thanks to our amazing catering team. Thanks to Sarah-Jane for delivering her HPQ findings, to our drama scholars for their performance, the art scholars for the presentation of their wonderful artwork in the Whitty foyer and to our musicians for the stunning entertainment. Mrs Bizior is looking forward to this becoming an annual celebration at Luckley.

CHRISTMAS JUMPER DAY

On Thursday 1 December, staff and pupils took part in a Christmas Jumper Day with the traditional festive parade, raising money for Save the Children and our School charity, Stand By Me

Our Catering Department received another 5* Hygiene rating from the Food Standards Agency, proving what we all already know, they are just the best! Well done Emily and team!

HANNAH WINS REGIONAL COMPETITION

Year 11 Art Scholar, Hannah L-S was announced as the London West Regional Winner for KS4 Drawing in the ISA Art Competition, with her stunning work entitled ‘Horse’. Hannah’s drawing then went on to receive Highly Commended in the National Finals. This really is a superb achievement with stiff competition from pupils from a wide range of independent schools across the UK.

THE NEWSLETTER FOR LUCKLEY HOUSE SCHOOL

LOWER SCHOOL UPDATE

By Mrs Esther Brown, Head of Section (Lower School)

TEAM BUILDING DAY

A wonderful way to begin the new term; Year 7 pupils spent the day at Oakwood Outdoor Activities Centre to enjoy some team building activities outside. They participated in a range of activities including high and low ropes, the leap of faith and mountain boarding. It was lovely to see everyone forming new friendships and being so supportive of one another. The care and kindness in this year group has certainly been visible all term and I am very proud of all they have achieved to date.

YOUTH SPEAKS

By Mrs Holly Duxbury, Teacher of English

On Wednesday 9 November I had the pleasure of watching our teams take part in the Youth Speaks Rotary Debate Competition.

Our intermediate team was made up of Lyra L, Trinity M and Amani K speaking on the topic of whether beauty contests should be banned.

Our senior team comprised Dylan M-H, Leo S-T and Henry P-B debating whether there is still a place in society for violent contact sports.

Both teams had been working hard since September constructing their arguments and, impressively and they managed to speak for very close to the 15 minute allotted time on their topics.

Although we didn’t win (fingers crossed for next year), I was incredibly proud of our pupils; Lyra and Henry had never spoken in front of an audience of this size and did so with remarkable confidence and ease. Dylan received a special mention from the judges for his confidence and notes-free delivery, Trinity and Amani constructed very detailed arguments, and Leo very sensitively introduced the members of his team with a thoughtful use of humour. Well done to all who took part.

ICE SKATING

With a long term almost at an end, there was just enough time to squeeze in a quick trip to the ice skating rink in Windsor. Much fun was had by all and it was a joy to see so many smiling faces. Luckley pupils have a unique way of warmly helping each other out and they genuinely do look out for each other. Returning home to hot chocolate with whipped cream was the idyllic end to a cold afternoon.

MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES UPDATE

By Madame Hannah Molloy, Head of Languages,

GERMAN CHRISTMAS CULTURE

of German

YEAR 7 MEXICAN FESTIVAL

Year 7 pupils went to Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market to enjoy a healthy dose of German Christmas culture. The children adored exploring all the beautiful and authentic stalls, which offered Bratwürste, Lebkuchen, Pfannkuchen and much, much more, including heisse Schokolade mit Sahne!

KUCHEN AND KINDERPUNSCH

VIRTUAL TRIP TO GERMANY

Year 7 pupils excelled with their efforts to replicate traditional German cakes, bakes and biscuits. Thee was such a range to try and Frau Hinz served up tasters of Kinderpunsch, a warming, non-alcoholic mulled wine style drink, to a background of German Christmas carols playing over video clips of last year’s European Christmas markets. We successfully relived the great experience we had at Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market. The winners were Nia B and Drew H. Not only did these girls provide the most beautifully filled out booklets, but also an excellent array of delicious German treats. Gut gemacht, Nia and Drew!

The recipe for the mimicked mulled wine (child friendly!) is below to get you into the Christmas spirit!

Kinderpunsch:

1 cup of water, 1 cup of apple juice, 1 cup of orange juice, quarter cup of cherry juice, 1 cinnamon stick, 5 cloves, 1 star anise.

Simmer for 10 minutes to infuse. Optional: add hibiscus teabag and/or several hibiscus petals and let it steep for 10 further minutes. Sweeten with honey. Add orange slices or cinnamon sticks to garnish!

Year 8 pupils went on an impromptu trip to Vienna (Wien), Grindelwald and Hamburg. How, you ask?

The pupils were preparing for a test on free time activities with an emphasis on sport. We teleported ourselves abroad using cycling videos on the big screen. The pupils in the "basket" of our big table tandem bike had to answer revision questions while the rest cycled furiously, taking it in turns to support each other. They answered the questions perfectly and were inspired by just how beautiful the German speaking world is!

Well done, Year 8!

Year 7 Spanish pupils have been learning about Día de Muertos, a Mexican festival which has its roots in Christianity. We rounded off the mini topic by decorating galletitas and describing them in Spanish.

and Frau Holly Hinz, Teacher

SENIOR SCHOOL UPDATE

By Mr Matt Humphrey, Head of Section (Upper School)

Wow! What a term it has been. I have been so truly impressed with the efforts of all pupils in the Upper School for both their academics as well as the broad enrichment programme. They really have grabbed all the opportunities with both hands!

We had two lovely trips to Kingston and Swindon Christmas Markets where it was great to see the pupils have some downtime and relax.

A quick special mention to Lola-Bella T in Year 9 for her award at the Pride of Reading awards in special recognition of her fundraising efforts. Lola-Bella raised over £5000 for a shelter in Poland for Ukrainian refugees by completing a five-hour drumathon – an inspirational effort and epitomises the Luckley way!

I hope everyone has a restful Christmas period and the pupils come back recharged ready for the spring term.

OH NO IT ISN’T............ A PANTOMIME AT THE WHITTY THEATRE

REVERSE ADVENT CALENDAR

Throughout the first 24 days of November the School community has taken part in the Reverse Advent Calendar to put together Christmas boxes to donate to the Wokingham Food Bank. Form 10H has been particularly generous with donations for this very worthy cause. The whole school went on to make contributions to the Foodbank, who were grateful for the delivery made by Aryan K, Charity Prefect and Joe C, Deputy Head Student.

Find out more at https://wokingham.foodbank.org.uk/

Wokingham Pantomime Group presents for Christmas 2022

Dick Whittington at The Whitty Theatre Thursday 29 December 2022, 1PM Book tickets at: h ttps://www.ticketsource.co.uk/booking/venueplan/ qANnapXKWtOB

CREATIVITY AT LUCKLEY BOARDING NEWS

Year 7 pupils used rigid moulds to make various candles in the enrichment programme candle making club.

By Mr Chris Hill, Head of Boarding

As we approach the end of the term, I am delighted with the continued development of Luckley's boarding provision. The autumn term is always the most challenging for the pupils and the boarders have really benefitted from the extra time in bed afforded them each morning and having prep finished by 7:30pm.

This week saw the much-anticipated Boarders' Christmas Party and it was great to have so many flexi-boarders in attendance.

This term, in Textiles, Year 7 pupils have made cushion covers and Year 8 pupils have made rucksacks.

Year 12 Textiles students worked on fabric sampling, showing development of samples in use of colour, pattern and technique.

Year 10 Textiles students created felting samples inspired by an underwater theme. This was their first time learning how to make felt using the wet felting process.

On top of their weekly routines, the boarders have enjoyed busy weekends with lots of day pupils joining them. The weekends saw them Canadian canoe down the Thames, visit the sights of London, take on the staff at paintball and experience the thrills of Thorpe Park's Frightnight.

Mr Hartley and Mr Hill will be publishing the spring term programme just before Christmas and these can be booked through My School Portal.

SIXTH FORM UPDATE

By Mr Richard Battrick, Head of Sixth Form

BLACK TIE DINNER

Our annual black tie dinner for Years 12 and 13 is a fantastic evening of fine food and some superb examples of singing by way of student karaoke!

Some teachers were also tempted to get up and dance with the students, showing that even teachers are able to let their hair down! The evening provided a great opportunity for students across the Sixth Form to mingle and spend quality social time together and plans are already underway for next year’s event, which we look forward to.

SAFE DRIVE, STAY ALIVE

For the first time since covid restrictions ended we were able to take our Year 12 students to this brilliant driving safety awareness performance.

This county-wide initiative is of tremendous value and really does highlight the importance of driving safely. Its hard hitting impact left our students under no illusions about the dangers of driving carelessly and this year it was especially poigniant that many members of the emergency services that were taking part also spoke about their own personal losses, highlighting how such situations can actually happen to anyone.

The event went well and left students with much to contemplate as they prepare for their driving tests and life as responsible drivers.

OUTDOOR EDUCATION

By Mr Scot McNaughton, Outdoor Education Coordinator

DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S AWARD SCHEME

The DofE has made an excellent start this year with groups at Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. Pupils have been working on their first aid as part of the expedition syllabus, including the valuable life skills of how to deal with an emergency using the safe airway position and CPR.

TRIP TO EDINBURGH

This year we were able to finally run our Year 13 residential and cultural trip to Edinburgh since covid restrictions were lifted. Students and teachers took part in an activity-packed three days, taking in the sights.

Highlights included trips to the Surgeon’s Hall, Edinburgh Dungeons, Edinburgh City Museum and art galleries, a theatre trip to see Saturday Night Fever, several amazing restaurants and a silent disco! There was even time for students to fit in some weekend shopping and to peruse the city centre.

The trip was a fantastic opportunity to refresh after a hard term of work at school and to enhance the students’ knowledge of Scotland.

A huge thank you to the teachers that accompanied the students - I look forward to returning to Edinburgh next year.

All dates for the expeditions are now on the school website: www.luckleyhouseschool.org/duke-of-edinburgh-awardscheme/ as well as lots of useful and downloadable information for both participants and parents. In the meantime, we are ready to move on to map skills in preparation for the expeditions in the spring and summer.

COMBINED CADET FORCE

We are delighted that the CCF has returned after a covid absence, with an excellent partnership forming between Luckley House and Reddam House contingent.

The cadets have really taken to the course and have recently all passed their ‘Skill at Arms’ test and a challenging 24-hour exercise. In addition, they represented the School in the laying of the wreath during our remembrance morning, all demonstrating a high level of discipline.

There is a lot more to come including range days, field days and an adventure training week in Snowdonia. Well done to all our cadets!

AN INSPIRATIONAL TALK BY MUSICIAN, SCOTT DARLOW

By Dylan M-H, Year 12

On Monday, I had the pleasure of seeing the musician Scott Darlow at The Whitty Theatre on two separate occasions. From the moment he started talking, the whole room was silent and we listened intently as he told us about his childhood and life. It was a very moving and emotional story that helped us better understand his culture. He spoke with great fluency, and kept us all enthralled with amusing anecdotes and stories. He talked very passionately about his belief in FLUTE (forgiveness, love, understanding, tolerance, and empathy) and how he treats everyone he meets with these ideologies and I think life would be a better place if we all adopted this approach.

The two songs he performed were enchanting and you could lose yourself within the melodies and connect with the raw emotion his lyrics convey. He helped broaden my understanding of Australian culture and spoke passionately about the consequences of colonialism and how the aboriginals are still recovering from the effects. He told us the aboriginal name for the didgeridoo which was a ‘Yidaki’ and played an amusing story on it which made us all laugh.

He commanded the stage well and some Year 12s said “he was very talented” and “his story was very touching”. He gave us a new perspective on life and how we should show extra love and kindness and find a career that combines both our passion and our talents. He was an incredible guest at Luckley and I left feeling awe-inspired and breath-taken. It was truly spectacular.

WHEN THE GRINCH STOLE SANTA!

On the last day of term the Leadership Team joined up with the Sixth Form Senior Team to provide some festive entertainment for the whole school community. At 10.20am there was a live broadcast across the school during which it was announced by Fairy Godmother Bizior and Elf GB that the Grinch (Mr Vallance and Mr Battrick) had stolen the Senior Santa Team and hidden them around the School! The pupils had a wonderful time during morning break seeking out the santas, winning tokens which turned into valuable points for their Houses, as well as delicious chocolate treats. The key was to avoid being captured by the Grinch who confiscated any tokens collected - a great source of amusement for the pupils and a fun way to end the term!

Find out more about Scott HERE

OUR DAY OUT

The Senior Drama Club provided two nights of superb entertainment with their production of ‘Our Day Out’, the musical theatre adaptation of Willy Russell’s television play. The cast, the crew and participating staff members; Mr Oliver Bamber, Mr Adam Hartley, Mr Matt Humphrey and Mr Sebastian Phillips re-enacted the story of a group of underprivileged teens on a school trip from Liverpool to Conway Castle in Wales. There was much laughter and applause as all involved played out this thoughtful comedy with energy, passion and style; from the singing and dancing to the set and costume design. Thanks also to Luckley’s Drama department; to Mrs Esther Brown for bringing the show to life and reminding us of the importance a school education has on our lives.

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

By Mrs Janice Ellwood, Director of Music

THE CHRISTMAS CHORAL FESTIVAL

On Saturday 26 November we held a fantastic choral concert where the Berkshire Youth Choirs and Luckley Chamber and Junior Choir all came together to perform. There were various combinations of choral performances from the different choirs, from Christmas music to classics by Rutter and Chilcott.

Highlights were all the junior choirs singing a version of 'We Don't Talk About Bruno' and the concert ended with a brilliant performance of 'Sing' by the Pentatonix's, sung by everyone. There was an amazing choral sound and atmosphere and a choral experience to remember. Well done to everyone involved.

CHRISTMAS CHEER CONCERT

The end of term saw another brilliant Christmas Cheer Concert performing to a full house. Pupils from Years 7 to 13 took part in various choirs, orchestra, swing band and rock bands to name a few, as well as some outstanding solos. There was so much talent ranging from our youngest musicians to the experienced Sixth Form, including the staff choir! There were many Christmas classics to get everyone in the Christmas mood, plus rock, pop, musical theatre and classical items, something from every genre and for everyone. Thank you and well done to all who took part.

CANDLELIT CAROL SERVICE

On Thursday 8 December we held the annual Luckley Candlelit Carol Service which this year was held at St Paul’s Church in Wokingham. It was the perfect way to end the term and get everyone in the Christmas spirit. The Senior, Chamber and Junior Choirs led the singing and provided many beautiful contributions, including classics by Bob Chilcott. There were also traditional Bible readings and a variety of charming Christmas poems read by pupils from across the school, as well as a thought-provoking address by The Revd J Bidgood.

The church was full of atmosphere with candlelight and Christmas wreaths and was a very special occasion.

ALUMNI & DEVELOPMENT NEWS

By Miss Sarah Francis, Development Manager

We are fortunate to have such a diverse community of Luckley alumni, each pursuing their own interests and dreams and at different stages of their lives. Over this past term we have hosted a number of alumni lunches, with a memorable visit from Mr Richard Blake (and his wife, Margaret), Luckley-Oakfield’s fondly remembered and only male Headteacher (1984 – 2004). As one would expect, afternoon tea was full of stories of days gone by and a lot of laughter. Mr Blake has not lost his wit or sense of humour. One alumna, Claire Elliott-Purdy (class of 2005) sent in a letter for Mr Blake, to be given to him on the day. Let’s just say he has a large fan base!

There was also a visit from a Japanese alumna, Yuki Sumi-Barnett (class of 1999), who was amazed at the changes to Luckley’s facilities; something many of our alumni visitors remark on. Since her visit, Yuki has been put in touch with another former Luckley pupil, Lowly Norgate (class of 1991) – the two working in education gives them much to talk about.

Alumna Timandra Slade (class of 1974) returned to speak to our Year 12 EPQ students, having published her first book; an historic account of her father’s escape from German captivity in WWII. You can order a copy HERE

We welcomed a number of our alumni to our annual Candlelit Christmas Carol service and continue to receive news from across the country with old school photographs, fond memories and news from our alumni community. Many attribute their successes (in part) to their Luckley teachers guiding them through their years here. With a number of events lined up for 2023, we look forward to the return of many more of our alumni.

Currently a group of alumni mentors is being paired up with Year 12 students in order to provide trusted advice to encourage student success in their chosen fields.

We will be kicking off next January with the Class of 2018 reunion dinner, something that former pupils and Luckley staff delight in.

Our current Luckley pupils have much to look forward to. Once a Luckley pupil, always a Luckley pupil.

Timandra Slade (second left), with husband, Barry and former Luckley friends, Caroline Edwards (left) and Sue Alun-Jones (right)

Alumna Leila Lingner (class of 1981) ran a Luckley Lecture entitled ‘Good Food for Good Health’, offering pupils and their parents an insight into how nutrition can positively impact health, with one lucky winner receiving a complimentary bespoke health plan. Leila is a registered nutritionist and health coach who runs her own business. Find out more at: LL Nutrition

Leila Lingner & Caroline Mercer visited for lunch

ECO SCHOOLS’ UPDATE

By Bailey P, Eco Schools Communications Rep

This term the Eco-schools team has completed its environmental review and decided to change one of the three topics from ‘School Grounds’ to ‘Biodiversity’.

The after-school club has already taken part in the British Trust for Ornithology’s ‘ What’s Under Your Feet’, a citizen science project, investigating soil biodiversity’s effect on bird populations.

To carry out this experiment a group of students took a sample of 30cm x 30cm soil near the football pitch. They found only two worms in the sample; we are not sure why. It could be soil erosion or compact soil, but we will be repeating the test in spring and summer to see if there are any different results due to the temperature change.

We planted wildflower seeds around the wildlife garden in hope that they spring for the summer. We also continue to fill the bird feeders to encourage biodiversity.

At the final meeting of the term we agreed that our three topics would be Biodiversity, Energy and Waste. Follow

LUCKLEY LIBRARY LOVES

By Ms Charlotte Mesley, Librarian

The Girl Who Saved Christmas is an action-packed festive fantasy and sequel to Matt Haigh's best-sellling ‘A Boy Called Christmas’.

The cast of characters includes funny elves, stupid trolls, tricky pixies and Dickensian humans, all enhanced by Chris Mould's superb line drawings.

The wonderful and weird worlds of Elfhelm, Troll Valley and Victorian London are imaginatively linked with two unfolding adventures and a race against time. It's a joyous read with a big-hearted message of love, kindness and hope, all delivered to the reader in time for Christmas.

The Girl Who Saved Christmas is suitable for all ages and is located in the junior section of the Library.

CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATIONS

Year 9 Textiles students made some fabulous Christmas tree decorations in lessons which have been placed on the tree in Wokingham Town Centre.

SPORTS BOARD

By Mr Matt Humphrey, Director of Sport

Team PE has been immensely proud of the efforts of all our pupils throughout the school this term.

To break it down by numbers, we have had over 250 different pupils attend our enrichment programme or play in one of our 21 different teams, in our 126 fixtures!

Next term sees some changes in the department as Mrs Hayden and Mrs Hobson go on maternity leave and we welcome Mr Hafiz and Miss Taylor to support the department. We will also introduce some changes to our enrichment programme to promote participation and improve team performance.

I would like to personally thank Mrs Hayden and Mrs Hobson for all their support; they will be missed by pupils and staff and we wish them all the best

Some individual pupils we would like to recognise are Noah B (Year 8) and Sam Q (Year 10) who have both made their respective Berkshire County Hockey teams, as well as Savannah R (Year 8) who swam at the London Aquatic Centre for the ISA London West Swim team. A huge congratulations to them all and, as always, please do keep us informed of any achievements outside of school!

Team PE wishes everyone a wonderful Christmas break and ready to hit the ground running in the new term.

LUCKLEY HOUSE FRIENDS

“Parents working together for our children”

Luckley House Friends, our parent association, has been busy this term organising more fabulous events for Luckley families and staff.

In September we held our infamous ‘Quiz Night’ raising just under £1500 for school projects and equipment to further enrich our childrens’ experiences at Luckley. A great time was had by all and the coveted quiz trophy was won by team ‘Universally Challenged’ pictures below.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCKLEY...

In keeping with the School's birthday tradition, Head Students Katie and Kam visited All Saints Church to lay fresh flowers at the grave of Miss Bertha Drake. It was 104 years ago that Miss Drake and Miss Barratt founded Luckley School, offering a broad Christian education. Happy birthday Luckley House School. You continue to look as good as you did back in 1918 and are still going strong!

The Year 7 and 8 Disco was a great success as we welcomed over 70 pupils to a fabulous evening of music, dancing and live streamed football!

Second hand uniform sales are held regularly and advertised through school newsletters and our parent WhatsApp groups. Our next sale will be held in the spring term.

DIARY DATES

Luckley Friends Committee meeting - Monday 16 January, 7pm Bingo and Pizza Night - Friday 17 March Summer Festival - Friday 23 June

ALL WELCOME!

For more information on LHF events or to get involved, please contact your Parent WhatsApp group administrator or email Luckleyhousefriends@luckleyhouseschool.org

ISA DANCE COMPETITION

Luckley House Friends supports and funds non-academic events and projects at Luckley. The Committee, a group of parents and Luckley staff, are always keen to hear from other parents, so if you would like to find out more or get involved please contact us via email at Luckleyhousefriends@ luckleyhouseschool.org

Luckley’s young dancers had a fantastic time at the ISA Dance Competition at Reddam House and enjoyed seeing lots of dancers from other schools.

It was a great opportunity for our dancers to perform and show off all their hard work.

WWW.LUCKLEYHOUSESCHOOL.ORG