Durham High School
End of Week Newsletter
Issue 32 – 15 June 2025
Dear Parents
What a wonderful week we have enjoyed here at Durham High School. It has been such a pleasure to spend time with so many of you at the various events taking place across the school. Your support and enthusiasm continue to enrich our school community, and it has been a real highlight to share in the successes and celebrations of the girls with you.
Year 10 Parents’ Evening was a great success, and it was inspiring to see how determined and resilient the girls are as they prepare for their GCSEs. They are making excellent progress and showing real maturity in their approach to their studies, which bodes very well for the year ahead.
Meanwhile, our Lower Sixth students have begun their UCAS journey in earnest. Tuesday evening’s information session, led by Mrs Wheeler, was both informative and encouraging, and it was wonderful to hear the aspirations our students have already begun to form. Their enthusiasm and preparation have been impressive, and I know their form tutors and Mrs Wheeler will continue to provide expert guidance throughout the process. We are also very grateful to Stirling University for their helpful insights, and I hope the UCAS convention on Friday added further inspiration.
In the Prep Department, we were treated to an absolutely delightful evening of music. The girls performed with such confidence and joy across a range of instruments, including trumpets, violins, recorders and ukuleles. We were particularly impressed by our solo instrumentalists and singers, who performed with poise and maturity well beyond their years. The concert closed with a lovely set from the Prep Choir, whose harmonies brought the evening to a perfect close. My thanks go to Mrs Crinson and our peripatetic music teachers for preparing the girls so beautifully.
Thursday’s sunshine provided the perfect backdrop for our annual Parent and Daughter Tennis event, which saw a record number of families join us. It was a fantastic occasion with a brilliant atmosphere and a lovely opportunity to connect with many of you. Congratulations to Mariam (Year 6) and her mum, who retained their Prep Competition title for a third consecutive year, and to Heidi (Year 7) and Mr Eagle, winners of the Senior Competition. Thank you to everyone who played, supported and helped organise such a successful event.
This week also saw the celebration of some outstanding work in our Excellence Book. I had the pleasure of spending break times with two groups of remarkable girls: Harriet, Lucy and Poppy in Year 9, and Freya and Grace in Year 7. You can read more about their achievements later in the newsletter.
Next week, we look forward to celebrating Diversity and Inclusion Week across the school. The girls will be taking part in a range of activities designed to celebrate different cultures, traditions and experiences. One highlight will be our Whole School House Signing event, where the girls have been learning British Sign Language to perform a Disney classic. Final performances will be published on our social media platforms towards the end of the week.
In the Senior Department, form times will be packed with engaging and creative sessions, including Rangoli pattern making, Chinese speaking and calligraphy, guided running, Arabic cuisine, Indian dress and music workshop, Irish dancing, Bharatanatyam dancing, Haiku poetry and cheerleading. A huge thank you to all the girls who have volunteered to lead these sessions for their peers –we are so proud of your initiative and leadership.
Looking ahead, I am very much looking forward to the Lower Sixth Parents’ Evening on Monday, and our first Parent Voice session led by external consultants. Thank you to those parents who have volunteered to be involved in this valuable work.
Tuesday night we will be treated to two performances of Annie Kids, involving our Year 5 girls and Year 5 pupils from Acre Rigg Academy, Finchale Primary School and Esh C of E Primary School. I cannot wait. I love Annie! I’m already singing the classics as I write this paragraph.
Good luck to all our Sports teams who are out competing over the next few weeks, especially our Y7 and 8 who will represent us in the District Athletics competition
Our annual Colour Run on Friday promises to be a very special day. It will raise funds for Poppy’s Light Foundation in memory of Poppy Eagle, a former pupil and much-loved Deputy Head Girl. It is a privilege to honour her memory in this way, and we hope it will be a joyful and meaningful occasion for all involved. Thank you for your support with the sponsorship collections.
Saturday is our Old Girls’ AGM and Summer Lunch, which is always a lovely day. It is such a joy to welcome former pupils back to school, hear them speak so fondly of their time here, and take them on a tour to see what has changed. Thank you to Emma Hardy, our Old Girl Secretary, for organising this muchloved event.
Best wishes
Mrs Michelle Hill Headmistress
Finally, I’d like to wish all the dads and grandads in our school community a very happy Father’s Day on Sunday. I hope your daughters and granddaughters spoil you – you deserve it. Thank you, as always, for the wonderful support you give them.
Queen Margaret’s School for Girls, York
On Friday, I was deeply saddened to receive a letter from the Headmistress of Queen Margaret’s, informing us that the school will close at the end of term. She reached out to ask for our support with places, as this is understandably a very challenging time for their whole community.
Although we are not able to offer boarding, we will do our best to support girls with day provision, though it is unlikely that many are from within our region. If you have friends or family who are affected, please encourage them to contact me directly, and I will be happy to speak with them to see how we might help.
The entire Queen Margaret’s community remains in our thoughts and prayers.
Galaxy Global Education Group visit to school
We are hoping to have a presentation on Friday 27 June at 4.00pm – 4.30pm in Senior Department Hall, where you will hear more about the Galaxy Global Group, but this is yet to be confirmed. We will let you know as soon as we can confirm.
On Saturday 28 June, Dr Harry Yu, CEO of Galaxy Global Education Group will attend
DHS Live. He is looking forward to saying hello to many of you throughout the day.
Summer Holiday Camps at Durham High
We have secured several providers for our Summer Camps at DHS during the Summer Holidays. Information and how to book will be sent out next week. We are hoping these will grow in popularity and number, so they can be offered during the Easter Holidays too.
Netball camps aged 8-12 - Wednesday 16th & Thursday 17th July and Wednesday 27th & Thursday 28th August
Wilderness School (In our outdoor area) aged 4 – 12 – Tuesday 29 & Wednesday 30 July, 10 – 2pm
Lingotots workshops 3- 11- Tues 19 –Thursday 21 August and Tuesday 26 –Thursday 28 August – 3 time sessions (morning, afternoon or all day).
Polka Dance – TBC
Football Workshops - TBC
UK Maths Trust Junior Mathematical Challenge 2025
Silver Year 7: Marin
Silver Year 8: Katie
Congratulations to the following pupils for achieving certificates in the Junior Mathematical Challenge 2025
Bronze Year 7: Millie, Eva, Eloise, Valeriia, Heidi, Khadeeja.
Bronze Year 8: Ginny, Isabella, Zarah, Roza, Sobia, Zoe, Robyn, Rayah
Silver Year 6: Mariam special mention to her for getting a silver certificate in Y6. This is exceptional!
Gold and joint first in school: Anastasiia and Carola Elin
Festival of Fieldwork in Pre-Prep and Prep
Prep and Pre-Prep children have enjoyed taking part in a Festival of Fieldwork during the past fortnight. Each class, from Nursery to Year 6, has explored a different aspect of our school grounds in detail, carrying out surveys of trees, grassland and pollinators, as well as observing colours, habitats and microhabitats from the perspectives of birds, bees and spiders.
The children have also undertaken some research to support discussions about how to make the grounds more attractive to wildlife and are looking forward to taking action to help the creatures that share our lovely site with us
Parent and Child Tennis Competition
Our Parent and Child Tennis Competition was a fun-filled evening in the sunshine, bringing together a record number of families for friendly matches, plenty of laughter and delicious refreshments. The event celebrated teamwork, sportsmanship and the joy of playing tennis as a family Huge congratulations to all participants. In the Prep Department, Mariam and Professor Coolen-Maturi were the winners, with Amiya and Ashwin finishing as runners-up In the Senior Department, Heidi and Mr Eagle took first place, with Carola Elin and Dr Kaizer as runners-up.
Pre-Prep & Prep Pupils of the Week
This week’s Pupils of the Week in Pre-Prep and Prep were:
Nursery: Alicia for listening well and for being keen to learn new things. She is excellent on our new balance bikes!
Reception: Matilda for being very helpful and in a positive mood all week. She has worked with confidence too.
Y1&2: Precious for great independence and creativity.
Y3&4: Faelene for always being ready to learn and for sharing wonderful ideas in English.
Y5: Bea for her great work and enthusiasm in Geography and for sharing interesting facts with her peers.
Y6: Mariam for having a fabulous attitude towards absolutely everything!
Faelene was the Lingotot’s Star of the Week.
Bea and Mia were presented with certificates for working hard with their Buddies.
Faelene was presented with the medals she won in her recent gymnastics competition. We are so proud to hear that she now ranks 6th overall in the UK for her age.
Medals were presented to Emma (Basketball) and Amiya (Cheerleading).
Mariam and Amiya were also presented with the trophies they won in last night’s Parent Child tennis tournament.
Well done, everyone!
Pupil Celebrations
Faelene – Year 3
Congratulations to Faelene who performed brilliantly at the National Gymnastic Association Finals last weekend in Rugby. Faelene won 3 bronze medals, ranking 6th overall in the UK for her age. This was her first big competition at national level and she loved being with her team for the weekend.
Well done, Faelene! We are very proud of you.
Excellence Book Awards
Harriet (Year 9) has shown immense perseverance in Art Club. Mrs Sutcliffe said that Harriet has made excellent progress and has displayed sophisticated skill in her artwork.
Lucy and Poppy (Year 9) took the lead in creating and preparing a whole school assembly. The girls carried out extensive research in their own time, resulting in a well-pitched and informative assembly linked to the theme of British Science Week. Together, they chose the entrance music, prepared the content for the PowerPoint presentation, selected the reading parts and wrote the prayer. It was a superb assembly, and we are very proud of them.
Freya (Year 7) produced outstanding homework on the Wars of the Roses in History. Students were asked to summarise the key points, and Freya went above and beyond by creating a beautiful and thoughtful display to accompany her work.
Grace (Year 7) completed an excellent piece of Chemistry homework on the topic of 'What happens when an ice cube melts'. Her work was detailed and carefully presented, showing a clear understanding of the states of matter, particle theory and changes of state. It was evident that a great deal of time and effort had gone into it.
Prep Sports Update
On Thursday morning, Year 3 took part in a cricket festival at RGS. The girls played with great enthusiasm and teamwork, and it was fantastic to see how much progress they made throughout the morning. Their batting and fielding skills improved with each game, and by the end, they were playing with real confidence and ability. Well done, girls – a brilliant effort from everyone!
Senior Department Sports Update
Congratulations to our Year 7 girls on some excellent sporting performances this week. At the Area and District Rounders Tournament, they achieved joint first position, having won four out of the five games played. The team grew in confidence throughout the tournament and demonstrated excellent fielding and tactical understanding.
Two Year 7 cricket teams were also in action this week in friendly matches against Newcastle High School. Both teams delivered superb performances, winning their games with some outstanding batting and fielding.
Year 7 Physicists
Last week in physics, Sienna and Anastasiia made an incredible robot dog using a LEGO education kit. They even programmed the dog to move its jaw and tail. Eloise, Lemma and Holly also enjoyed taking part in the activity. Well done, girls!
7H Assembly on Refugee Week
We enjoyed another super form assembly this week, led by 7H. They delivered a fantastic assembly for Refugee Week. This year, the theme was inspired by the classic Moomin books, which have touched generations around the world with their timeless messages of inclusivity, kindness and belonging.
Centred around the idea that “The Door is Always Open”, a reference to the Moomin House, which offers shelter, comfort and security to all, the assembly encouraged us to get involved through simple, everyday actions. The girls reminded us that small acts of kindness can help us stand with refugees and build new connections within our communities. Well done, 7H, for delivering such a thoughtful and inspiring message.
Lower Sixth UCAS Discovery Day
On Friday, 32 of our Lower Sixth girls attended a UCAS Discovery Day at Newcastle Utilita Arena. They had the opportunity to speak with student ambassadors and admissions tutors from universities across the UK, gaining valuable insight into individual institutions and the courses on offer.
The girls' behaviour was exemplary throughout. It was a thoroughly enjoyable and informative afternoon, and they returned armed with plenty of information – and a few freebies too!
Senior Department Art Show
You are warmly invited to our Art Show on Monday 30 June at 4.30pm, celebrating the tremendous work of our Senior Department pupils this year.
Everyone is welcome. Please come to Main Reception, where you will be guided over to the Art Department.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Old Girls Summer Lunch
Our Old Girls network is an important part of the Durham High legacy and a tribute to those who have gone before us who share the unique experience of life at our school. We are celebrating our alumni with a summer lunch on Saturday 21 June. If you know an Old Girl who would like to join us, please do share the invitation within your network. You can book here: https://www.trybooking.com/uk/ERHZ
It promises to be an afternoon of good food and memory-sharing with a like-minded community.
Nearly New Uniform Sale
Bank Detail Change
The Parents and Friends Association will be holding a Nearly New Uniform Sale on Thursday 3 July, from 3.00pm to 4.30pm in the Main Hall.
Please note that this is a cash-only event.
Donations of washed uniform items are very welcome and can be handed in to Main Reception by Friday 20 June 2025.
As mentioned in our letter shared on 4 June, we have updated our bank account details. This is a gentle reminder to refer to that letter and update your payee record before making your next payment to the School.
Our new bank details will also be included on all invoices issued in August.
Any payments made to Parent Gateway, School Fee Plan or TryBooking are not affected.
Key Dates
There is a lot for us to enjoy between now and the end of term. Please check the list below for activities/ events that may involve your daughter
Date
Monday 16 – Friday 20
Event
Time (if relevant)
June Tenner Challenge Lunch times
Monday 16 – Friday 20
June Diversity and Inclusion Week
Monday 16 June Y3 and 4 Jarrow Hall Trip
Monday 16 June
Tuesday 17 June
Lower Sixth Parents’ Evening 4.30pm- 6.30pm
Y5 Outreach Dress Rehearsal All day
Tuesday 17 June Y5 Outreach Performances 5pm and 7pm
Wednesday 18 June Y7 Geography Field Trip
Thursday 19 June Nursery and Reception trip to Butterfly World
Friday 20 June Year 10 Crown Court Visit Morning only
Friday 20 June Colour Run 1.30pm-3.30pm
Saturday 21 June Old Girls AGM 11.00am-12.00pm
Saturday 21 June OGA Summer Lunch 12.00pm- 3.00pm
Monday 23 June Y10 & Lower Sixth Flamingo Land Trip
Monday 23-25 June Y9 Lakeside Residential
Tuesday 24 June Year 1 and 2 Tynemouth Aquarium Visit
Tuesday 24 June
Upper Sixth Leavers Service- St Oswald’s Church 2.30pm-4.00pm
Wednesday 25 June Prep Sports Day 9.30 – 12.30
Wednesday 25 June Pre-Prep Sports Day 2pm – 3.30pm
Wednesday 25 June Year 11 Prom 6pm – 11pm
Thursday 26 June
Upper Sixth Leavers Dinner 6.30pm-8.30pm
Thursday 26-28 June Silver DofE Assessed
Thursday 26 June Y8 and Y9 NHS Vaccinations (for girls who have missed them) 9 – 10am
Thursday 26 June
Upper Sixth Leavers’ Dinner
Friday 27 June Y6 Play 7.00pm-9.00pm
Saturday 28 June Whole School Open Morning 9.30am-12.30pm
Saturday 28 June DHS Live! 2.00pm-5.00pm
Monday 30 June Y6 Celebration 2.00pm-3.30pm
Monday 30 June Art Show 4.30pm-6.00pm
Tuesday 1 July
Senior Sports Day
Wednesday 2 July Y8 Activities Trip to Barnard Castle
Wednesday 2- 24 July Sri Lanka Projects Abroad and Sports Tour
Thursday 3 July Welcome Day
Friday 4 July
Final Day of Term
Normal time