The Arrow Spring 2023

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Issue 19 • Lent 2023

STRAIGHT TO THE HEART OF CLAREMONT SCHOOL

A brilliant day at the Houses of Parliament for Claremont's Eco Warriors!

Claremont is an official BBC Young Reporter School!

Claremont’s Eco Warriors take our petition to Parliament…

By Joe C-S, 7P, Eco Warrior and Arrow reporter Members of the Student Council, Eco Warriors and The Arrow news team, went to the House of Commons to urge the government to stop water company Southern Water polluting our sea. Heavy rain last summer meant sewage from storm overflow was released into the ocean by the water company around the Hastings and Bexhill coastline. Staff and students went to Parliament to deliver our 224 signature petition to Hastings and Rye MP, Sally-Ann Hart, with the support of Bexhill MP Huw Merriman, led by Mrs Perry. Current law states that water companies, including Southern Water, must stop polluting the sea by 2035 – and we believe this is not soon enough!

Mrs Perry said: “Sewage pollution creates a risk to human health and sea life. Our petition urges the government to take

action, to bring forward overflow spilling targets from the reduction plan, and make our sea safe for 2023 and beyond.”

A spokesman from Southern Water said: “The UK’s network of storm overflows prevent flooding of homes, schools and communities. We are leading the water industry in acting to reduce the volumes and increase our treatment capacity.”

See pg 2 for more on this Claremont's new principal story and our meeting with speaks to The Arrow on pg 3 MP Sally-Ann Hart!

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INSIDE CLAREMONT SCHOOL

Hastings MP Supports our Petition!

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By Mr Bunker

An exciting time to be at Claremont!

This term has seen new beginnings and a new charter of responsibility towards the environment. Our campaigning Eco Warriors went to Parliament to deliver our petition to stop water pollution from antiquated sewage overspill systems. Along with members of the Student Council, and The Arrow news team, they met with Hastings and Rye MP Sally-Ann Hart, who is backing our campaign, along with Bexhill and Battle MP, Huw Merriman.

The group were lucky enough to have a tour of the House of Lords, and see a debate in the House of Commons from the public gallery. A fantastic experience for all, and it may inspire a future Prime Minister among our students! We are proud to stand up for our planet, and foster resilience in both ourselves and our world.

After saying goodbye to Mr Perrin in December, Claremont was delighted to welcome Mrs Collins, our new principal, to the school. Mrs Collins was quick to introduce herself by attending assemblies and engaging with students.

I have to mention the arrival of Charlie the Chihuahua! I think it's fair to say our principal’s dog has become a huge favourite and many of the children have been queueing outside Mrs Collins’ office to meet him.

It has been an extremely busy term, with rehearsals for High School Musical and children preparing for the Hastings Music Festival. As always, we're delighted that so many children have participated and show the dedication our children have for the performing arts.

Children’s author, Kate O’Hearn visited us for World Book Day, dressed magnificently as an Olympian and reading from her latest book in her Pegasus series.

It has been a fantastic Lent Term, and I wish students, parents and carers a wonderful Easter.

Excitement mounts as Claremont heads to the Houses of Parliament, Claremont's Eco Warriors hand our petition to Hastings and Rye MP, Sally-Ann Hart, & Our guided tour of the Houses of Parliament

Hastings and Rye MP, Sally-Ann Hart met Claremont students at the Palace of Westminster to receive our petition. Member of Parliament, Ms Hart, said she supports our campaigning students’ efforts to put pressure on the government to bring forward sewage overspill reduction targets. Tristan, Elodie and Elliot posed questions while Joe C-S handed over our petition. Isadora, Aven, Lani, Lwandile and Ezra handed Ms Hart letters and pictures asking to stop water pollution.

Ms Hart said: “I don’t like sewage contaminating our oceans. It’s been an issue which has been going on for a long time. I’m grateful to Michael Gove who put monitoring in place in 2016, showing that lots of water companies were using the sewage discharge overflows too many times. We put a plan in place that will put a lot of pressure on water companies to reduce the use of sewage discharge overflows with a time agenda on it so there’s a strong ambition to reduce those before 2035. The pressure on water companies is to do more themselves. If we banned the use of sewage overflows overnight, we’d all end up with sewage backed up in our loos and streets, and we can’t have that. I work with Southern Water, looking at nature-based solutions, such as ways of reducing water surface run-off going into the sewer pipes.

You all know about climate change, in January, in six hours, we had half a month of rainfall, and saw lots of sewage coming out. My job is to hold the water company locally to account to make sure they are doing what they need to do. I get just as irritated when I see another warning that sewage discharge is being released. I get frustrated with Southern Water as people blame me for their problem. I want them to do better. It won’t be fixed by next summer, but we have a fully costed plan to achieve the goal by 2035, but we expect water companies to do better than that.

We’re reviewing the plan in 2027 and we also have to balance the cost in terms of water bills. We can’t have them going up too much while companies invest in the new system.”

The MP praised Claremont students for this initiative in creating and signing the Save Our Sea petition, saying this is democracy in action! Thank you, Mrs Perry for organising the trip to Parliament. After a tour of the palace, including the House of Lords, students saw MPs debating in the House of Commons. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Leader of the Opposition, Sir Kier Starmer, were both there!

Bienvenue, Mme Collins!

Have you got a story to tell?

Enter the BBC Young Reporter Competition and help shape news for young people across the world.

By Freya (edited by Mme Patel) Nous sommes heureux d’accueillir ce trimester notre nouvelle directrice d’école, Madame Collins.

Mme Collins a étudié à l’université en France et est bilingue. Elle a occupé des postes de direction dans le passé et nous sommes ravis qu’elle rejoigne notre communauté. Nous espérons que Mme Collins passera un premier trimestre fantastique à Claremont et que Charlie sera également heureux de nous rejoinder.. *** see translation on page 7!

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SPECIAL FEATURE

A New Vision

By The Arrow news team: Tristan, Joe C-S, Michael G, Henry A, 7P, Ryleigh, Joe M, 3C & Faraz, 3W New Claremont Principal, Mrs Collins, spoke to Arrow reporters this term, sharing her new vision for our school. In a fascinating interview, Mrs Collins – accompanied by chihuahua Charlie – hinted at exciting changes and a new direction.

Henry: “Why did you decide to come to Claremont?”

Mrs Collins: “I wanted to work in a school which gives a lot of opportunities for young people as education is much more than just lessons. It’s about how we work with you to become a happy young person who knows how to deal with challenges in life. You need to know how to solve problems, and Claremont is a great set up because of the different schools, addressing the needs of students at Prep and Senior level. In addition, the school has wonderful facilities, lovely teachers and wonderful students. Honestly, I felt like the lucky one being picked to come here. How could I refuse?”

Joe: “Do you like the atmosphere at Claremont?“ Mrs Collins: “I love it! It’s nerve-racking coming to a new school, meeting new people and learning new rules, but I have felt so welcome by the teachers and students. The atmosphere is like being part of a family. It is a friendly and kind place. Kindness is one of the most important qualities anyone can have going forward in life.”

Tristan: “Please tell us about the other schools you have worked at.”

Mrs Collins: “I’ve worked at a lot of different schools, for example in the UK at Brighton College, and in a bilingual school in Switzerland, where English and French are spoken. My daughters both spoke French and English from the moment they could speak because my husband is English and I’m from France, and we speak both languages at home. I also worked in international schools in the UK, in London and Canterbury, with students from all over the world.

We are such a global society, we can share our experiences, which is fascinating. At Claremont, we have international students as well as local families and we can learn from each other.”

Henry: “What do you want your legacy to be at Claremont?”

Mrs Collins: “We’re a school so we want students to get the best attainment in their results, and get into their first choice university or college, but also I feel we’ve done something good when students say ‘I grew in confidence’ or ‘I lead this Society at uni’ because of the things I learnt above and beyond the classroom at Claremont. We want our young people to feel empowered, strong and confident when leaving school to face the big world out there. I want my students to be successful in their private life as well as academic life.

I’m interested in each individual reaching or doing better than what they can attain, adding value to the young person. It could be sports,

being involved with the environmental petition to Parliament about pollution, things like that. It is about doing something with your education and realising the power you have, a voice in your world and your locality.”

Ryleigh: “What challenges do New Claremont Principal, Mrs Collins and The Arrow's reporting team - and Charlie, of course! you think you will face?”

Mrs Collins: “I think the challenges I will face will be to do with me rather than anything else. When I see something that could be better, I want it straight away. I have to learn to be patient. I look at what we have every day, every year, and think how can we make it better? The challenge is that sometimes it takes time. With the two heads of school, we are discussing how we improve the opportunities we give to our students. We want to get parents involved in some parts, and students in others. I want to hear your stories. I need time to get to know the school and get more peoples’ voices into these conversations, then after that, big plans!”

Ryleigh and Faraz: “What are your favourite subjects?“ Mrs Collins: “I’m learning all the time from everyone. At school, my favourite subjects were languages, especially English and Spanish. I hated maths! I couldn’t understand it. Or so I thought… One day, my maths teacher told me that the subject is actually the same as studying languages. In a language, you have a verb, personal pronouns, a tense and put them together and make a sentence.

Maths is the same. A plus B equals C, it’s a language! It opened my eyes, and I ended up doing mathematics as a higher subject in my Baccalaureate. Sometimes, we need to look at things differently to make it talk to us. Learning to look at things differently is preparation for your futures.”

Henry: “Do you have any hobbies? What do you do in your free time?”

Mrs Collins: “My biggest hobby is interior design. I like to restore old furniture, upcycle things. I love visiting old houses and anything to do with architecture. I love going for hikes, being in nature, seeing beauty. I love travelling and visiting my family. I love films and going to the cinema. I don’t have time for TV!” Joe C-S: “Are there any changes you will make at Claremont?”

Mrs Collins: “It’s early days, and there won’t be change for the sake of change, which is why we’re getting peoples’ viewpoints. There will be new creative opportunities, new evolutions.”

Joe M: “How difficult is it adapting to your new role?”

Mrs Collins: “I thought it might be difficult adapting to my new role but I felt so welcomed here. When you work with people who are passionate about what they do, it’s a very easy job! When we’re with positive people, you get to give that positive energy back.”

Spotlight on…Charlie!

The Arrow reporters were thrilled to meet our new principal Mrs Collins’ chihuahua, Charlie. Charlie remained very calm when asked about how he is settling in to Claremont, and let Mrs Collins answer for him.

Mrs Collins said: “Charlie is going to be 10 next year on February 14th, which is Valentine’s Day. He comes into school because, if you have read His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, you will know about animals who are daemons. Charlie is like my daemon, plus he’s my companion so he’s like my third child!” When asked if he has met Effie, Mrs Ackerley’s therapy dog, Mrs Collins said: “Charlie has one flaw, he doesn’t like other dogs! He was constantly chased by other dogs when he was younger so he won’t be meeting Effie.” We learnt that Charlie’s favourite food is peas!

He also loves cucumber and broccoli. Mrs Collins added: “The cutest thing is, he has lots of toys and he knows all his toys by name, so if I say ‘Where's Mr Squeaky?’ He knows exactly which toy to pick up.” We were all happy to meet Charlie!

ENVIRONMENT FEATURE

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Save our World for Earth Day!

By Henry A, 7P Earth Day is held every year on April 22nd, and is the world’s largest environmental movement. For 52 years, the global event has been held to support protecting our planet. The theme this year is Invest in our Earth. Head of Geography, Mrs Francis said: “At Claremont, we will discuss this in geography lessons. Earth Day is very important to me as I believe it is a chance to unite as a global community, and it gives us all a chance to do something to protect the planet. We will also be looking at how sustainable our clothes and the fashion industry is.”

Here are some facts about our world: We CAN help! By doing some or all of these things, we 1. 91% of the world breathes in polluted air every day! stand a chance of creating a better world to live in: 2. At least 1 in 10 people die from air pollution-related 1. Going on a beach clean and putting the “rubbish” in the diseases! recycling.

3. Air pollution is a greater threat to life expectancy than 2. On short trips, don’t use anything with an engine! smoking or War! 3. Follow the Frog! The Rainforest Alliance has a frog for 4. Air pollution contributes to the spread of COVID-19! their symbol, showing which food to buy to help workers in 5. Air pollution causes 36,000 deaths a year in the UK! rainforest areas!

6. Only 2.5% of water on earth is fresh!

4. Turn off lights when you’re not using them!

7. At least 6 billion pounds of rubbish gets put in the ocean 5. Use reusable shopping bags. every year!

6. Don’t use single-use plastics.

8. 70% of industrial waste is dumped into water!

7. Grow some of your own veggies.

9. 80% of water pollution comes from domestic sewage!

8. Eat less meat!

10. On average, 250 million people die from diseases caused 9. Use less water in your daily life, like fewer or smaller by contaminated water, including 5 million children under baths, shorter showers and less use of washing machines. the age of five years old!

10. Use public transport!

11. By weight in 2050, it is estimated that there will be more 11. Use natural cleaning products. rubbish in the ocean than fish!

Do these things and we could save our world!

Around the World: Freaky Peaks 1. Mount Giewont in Poland looks like a sleeping giant if you look at it carefully. Hundreds of people carried metal up the mountain to construct the giant cross at the top.

3. Mount Wycheproof is the smallest registered mountain, and stands at 42m above sea level. It is located in Australia's Terrick Terrick range. The name ‘Wycheproof’ originates from the Aboriginal term ‘wichi poorp’, meaning ‘grass on a hill’.

2. Mount Everest is located in the Himalayas and is more than 60 million years old. It grows approximately 44 millimetres every year! Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world above sea level at 8,848.86m tall!

By Leon, 5S, and Nico, 5B

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FACT : According to the US Geological Survey, there is no official difference between hills and mountains! The United Kingdom and the United States used to define hills as summits measuring less than 1,000 feet tall.

However, both countries abandoned the distinction in the mid-twentieth century.

4. Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. It is covered in snow for five months of the year, and is one of the Three Holy Mountains, along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.

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5. Mount Etna is an active volcano in Sicily, and one of the world’s most active! In Greek mythology, the monster Typhon was trapped under this mountain by Zeus.

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6. Mount Kilimanjaro is the tallest mountain in Africa, and the world’s tallest free-standing mountain. It was formed from volcanic activity, not plate tectonics, which creates mountain ranges when plates push against each other.

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SCIENCE FEATURE

All Things Science!

“Antarctica is the heartbeat of the earth.” British Antarctic Survey

The magic of a single water droplet caught at the Science Museum; Working together at the Science Museum & A great day at the Science Museum and Science Museum fun!

By Henry A, 7P As Science Week closes, we celebrate all the amazing opportunities students have had to learn more about how science works! The Science Fair showcased students’ skills and interests in various topics, with people having stalls and projects to tell us about. Head of Science, Mr Richardson said: “I really look forward to the energy and excitement the students bring to this event.” Year 6 had an eventful trip to the Science Museum. The students had a great day exploring the ‘wonderlab’. The students discovered different aspects of science which included friction slides. There was also a lot of interest in Elephant's toothpaste and they all loved seeing poor Mr Richardson sit on a chair of nails.

They captured pictures of slow-motion water droplets, timed to perfection. Year 7 has been studying lots of topics this year, most recently they built roller coasters looking at energy transfers needed to perform the loops. They are hoping to complete this topic by going to Thorpe Park! During Science Week students got the opportunity to study the connections between carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, plants and animals, by looking at dry ice – with an explosion or two! Year 8 have taught Pre-Prep some science lessons during Science Week. Artist and scientist, Nick Sayers, showed us his brilliant drawing machines.

Mr Sayers said: "I make art inspired by science, often using everyday materials, including drawing machines from bicycles."

Nina with her colourful design

Fun-tastique French Trip!

By Tristan, 7P Claremont Year 7 students embarked upon the first trip abroad since Covid 19, going to France for the day! We visited a World War ll memorial, a bunker and museum called La Coupole, which was built by the Nazis to launch V2 rockets at London!

Luckily, La Coupole was not constructed in time for the rockets to launch before the end of the war. We learnt about the history of the site, and how close we came to being destroyed by Nazi weapons.

Madame Patel said: “This was our first school trip abroad with Year 7 after the pandemic. We were very conscious of changes to customs and the consequences it would have on waiting times at passport control. We all felt a very positive feeling about going to France again, and it was a very positive experience for everyone.”

Special thanks to Mr Ware, Señora O, Mr Richardson and Madame Patel for organising the trip!

Flying our flag at Antarctica!

By Henry A, 7P 1: “Do you know how many scientists there are in Antarctica?” - “There are around 10,000 scientists in Antarctica in the summer, which includes 18 different countries, but in winter there are only 1000.”

2: “What is the British Antarctic Survey?”

- “It is part of the Natural Environment Research Council, and they represent the British in the Polar regions. They say that by understanding the Polar regions, we can understand the entire earth.”

3: “How did our flag travel to Antarctica?”

- “I expect that it was digitally sent to the Rothera Research Station.”

4: “What is your favourite animal in Antarctica?” - “My favourite is a penguin.

I don't have a favourite species as I love them all. Did you know that there is a penguin in Antarctica called the Macaroni Penguin!”

5: “What are you most interested in with this project?” - “I’m interested in how scientists can find out so much about Antarctica!”

Thank you, Mrs Francis!

FACT: Antarctica Day celebrates the fact that 12 nations signed the Antarctic Treaty in 1959.

By Henry A, 7P Claremont Year 6 students Nina M and Freddie G won the competition to design flags to accompany a research trip to Antarctica! The UK Polar Network runs the project, linking schools from across the world to outreach projects with scientists. Both flag designs were combined into one image, which has reached Antarctica!

Nina said: “The flags around the border of my poster are the countries that signed the Antarctic Treaty. I chose the rainbow in the middle to represent the British scientists who work in Antarctica, and the penguin because it is a common and popular animal in Antarctica, which is at the South Pole.”

Freddie said: “The colours in the background represent parts of Antarctica. Black represents night, white represents mountains, yellow is the sun, and blue is the ocean. I chose the King Penguin because England has a new king and his poster had a statement that said “Science and the environment come before money and power.””

SPECIAL FEATURE

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Pegasus Author at Claremont for World Book Day!

Author Kate O'Hearn comes to Claremont; Welcome to the bestselling children's author! & Enraptured by Kate O'Hearn's storytelling

The Arrow’s reporter Michael, 7P, celebrates his Greek heritage, alongside our World Book Day visit by author of the Pegasus series, Kate O’Hearn, by looking at all things relating to the Greek Gods. Michael takes a look at their weaknesses, strengths, likes and dislikes, their symbols, powers and sacred animals.

Zeus - God of the Sky Weaknesses: He gets in trouble with his wife for falling in love with mortals and if he doesn’t get his way, he becomes angry!

Likes: According to myth, he likes to laugh out loud and fall in love with pretty mortals.

Dislikes: The god of the sky doesn’t like his son Ares, the god of war!

Wife: Hera Symbol: Lightning bolt Personality: The god of the sky is known to be wise, fair, just and merciful, but also easily angered.

Powers: He can control the weather, not including the sun (Apollo is the god of the sun), and has unmistakable leadership skills. He can make rain and make tornados (not including water spouts, as that is Poseidon's power).

Sacred animal: The Eagle Poseidon - God of the Sea Weaknesses: Being warlike (but not as much as Ares), moody and unpredictable!

Likes: Falling in love with goddesses, humans, nymphs (nature spirits) and other creatures.

Dislikes: The hero Odysseus for blinding Poseidon's son

Claremont Prep School Orchestra brings home the silverwork!

By Leonardo R, 5D A famous children’s author came to speak to us at Claremont!

Kate O’Hearn who wrote the Pegasus series of books, dressed up as an Olympian with a long robe! The author read from her recently published book, Escape from Atlantis, and answered lots of questions. We asked her how she became a writer.

Mrs O’Hearn said: “I’m Canadian and I was bullied at school for my accent, so I wrote a story making me and this bully into friends. We went for a picnic on top of a huge tower, and my character Kate pushed her off!” The author asked us to cross our fingers because the Pegasus books might be made into films.

Poseidon; Zeus & Hera

Polyphemus (one of the cyclopes).

Wife: Amphitrite Symbol: Trident Personalities: Poseidon is known among the gods for his bad temper, his violent nature and his mood swings!

Powers: He has the ability to create storms, earthquakes, floods and droughts.

Sacred animals: Poseidon's sacred animals are bulls, horses and dolphins.

Hera - Goddess of Marriage Weaknesses: Her weaknesses are vindictiveness, which means having a strong desire to get back at someone, vanity, which is having extreme pride in your appearance, and jealousy.

Likes: Her crown made out of peacocks.

Dislikes: Her husband Zeus falling in love with mortals!

Husband: Zeus.

Personality: Hera is assertive, wrathful and short-tempered.

Powers: She can turn mortals into animals or even monsters.

She can summon animals. She summoned two snakes to go and kill Hercules.

Sacred animals: The peacock and the cow.

Winners! Claremont Prep School String Orchestra win at Hastings Music Festival!

WELLBEING SPECIAL FEATURE

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Wellbeing at Claremont

Enjoying the sunshine on a woodland walk for Mental Health Week; Seed planting during Mental Health Week; Just Dance for Mental Health Week! ; Child's Pose in yoga class for Mental Health Week & A Challenge Games session during Mental Health Week

Children’s Mental Health Week took place in the UK in February At Claremont, we took part in activities held during break times throughout the whole week. The activities ranged from dance, hockey and challenges, to woodland walks,, seed-planting and yoga.

Mrs Ackerley, who organised the amazing events, said: “Wellbeing is at the heart of everything we do at Claremont

School. We all recognise that mental health is as important to us as our physical health, which is why the week was so valuable in creating opportunities for students to find ways to feel better.

Without good mental health, people are unable to make the most of the opportunities offered to them and reach their potential, academically and within their relationships.”

Effie, the Therapy Dog

By Freya & Leonardo R, 5D Mrs Ackerley brought Effie to The Arrow because we wanted to know more about her role as a therapy dog. A therapy dog is a dog that works within schools or another setting, and supports people to achieve their potential and make them feel calmer. If people Meeting Effie in The feel worried either by Arrow club! something at school or at & Effie the therapy dog home, they can be distracted from their worries. Mrs Ackerley said: “Sometimes, people feel she’s a friend. She’s also quite funny. By stroking an animal, it lowers our blood pressure and relaxes our breathing, working on our nervous systems.” Mrs Ackerley explained why we have them: “My husband works with children who have complex needs, and identified that children really benefit from having dogs in school. So, when Mr Catt’s dog had puppies, we went to have a look at them but Effie was not our first pick! Mr Catt told us to choose Effie because she is calm and caring. We now have two dogs. Effie has a sister called Delilah.

Effie is so calm and so gentle, she’s perfect for working with children.”

Effie is a 13-month-old Labradoodle. Her mum was a Labrador and her dad, a Poodle. She’s known as a Flat Labradoodle because she doesn’t have curly hair. She’s been in and out of school since she was 12 weeks old to get used to the new noises and smells. “She responds to hand signals. This is because I don’t have to raise my voice to give her a command, and some of the children she works with are non-verbal. She approaches children with her head down. If people are scared of dogs it’s usually their face they’re frightened of as they think they might bite them. She’s very gentle here, but at home, she’s lively!” Thank you, Mrs Ackerley, and Effie, for coming to see us, and for everything you have done for us at Claremont. We will miss you!

Arrow reporter Ryleigh, 3C, tells us why kindness is at the heart of wellbeing at Claremont.

Kindness makes you happy!

Kindness is when someone needs to borrow something, or asks for something, and you say ‘Yes!’ and that is being kind.

Kindness is all about being kind to your family and friends. If your mum doesn't want to wash up you could wash up for her. If someone doesn't have anyone to play with, you could ask if they want to play with you.

You could hold the door open for your teacher, or another student who has a lot of books and things to carry. You could help tidy up your classroom, or tidy your bedroom without being asked. You could send a card to a friend, or tell someone what you like about them.

Kindness doesn’t cost anything to do, and it can make a big difference to how someone feels.

It feels good to be kind – so let’s all be kind to each other! ***Translation from pg 2 : We are happy to welcome our new school principal, Madame Collins, this term.

Mme Collins studied at university in France and is bilingual. She has held leadership positions in the past, and we are so excited for her to join our community. We hope Mme Collins has a fantastic first term at Claremont, and that Charlie is happy to join us too!

SPORTS SPECIAL

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These Girls Can!

These girls can! Girls' football kicks off at Claremont!

By Henry A, 7P This term the school has decided to add girls’ football to the games curriculum, and there is a club on Monday evenings as well. I spoke to Head of Prep Games, Mr Catt, about this exciting new development.

Mr Catt said: “At Claremont, we felt

there was an opportunity for this to evolve, and to give our girls the exposure to play a sport that is forever growing and expanding. We’ve tried for a while to find ways to fit this into the school calendar, to really give girls’ football the push it needs here.” I asked

Mr Catt about the Euros, and whether it had an impact on girls wanting to play football.

Mr Catt said: “Great question! I watched the Euros and watched England closely!

It was starting to become a big sport in its own right, as the Women’s Super League (WSL) was attracting bigger crowds but the Euros took women’s football to a whole new level. To sell out Wembley was amazing to see, and viewing figures on TV were at a record high! If we can encourage girls to go and find football clubs off the back of us teaching it at Claremont, then this will be fantastic.”

The program for girls consists of two games sessions a week with a football fixture against another school on match afternoons. The sessions focus on skills, developing awareness, understanding the rules of the game and small competitive match practices - based on enjoyment and participation.

Mr Catt added: “I’m genuinely really excited for our girls and the opportunity this may create for any of our enthusiastic and budding footballers.”

HOT TOPIC Trading cards!

Football cards are a thumbs-up for Joe!

This term’s hot topic among students is whether trading cards should be allowed in school! They include Premier League, Match Attax and Pokemon cards. Our reporters, Joe M and Faraz, have gone head-to-head, debating whether they are a good thing to be able to trade and share at school. What do you think?

Joe M: I’m in favour of trading cards. I think they should be allowed in school! These are the reasons why: 1. If you’re lonely, you can trade a card and make friends!

2. It’s good fun for anyone who likes football, or collecting things.

3. Being in a trading gang of friends is sociable and we learn how to barter and negotiate trades of our cards.

4. We learn how to handle conflict over swaps and trades.

Faraz: I’m against trading cards. I don’t think they should be brought into school! There are my reasons why:

Faraz gives football cards the thumbs-down!

1. It causes conflict! People get upset when they feel their trade is unfair.

2. Sometimes, trades go wrong, or cards get bent or lost.

3. They’re distracting, and people get obsessed with them!

4. People can be tricked into giving up good cards!

Currently, Mr Cook overseas two sessions, on Tuesday and Friday lunch breaks so students can trade in a friendly way.

Mr Cook said: “This is indeed a contentious topic. Initially, they were banned due to some ill-feeling after swaps and some confusion around the value of those in-demand cards!

We have introduced a hand-shake after a deal has been made and both parties are satisfied. It has really taken off and some of the students have started bringing in binders or folders to display their collections.” Tuesday trading is on the astro pitch and Friday trading is beside the fire in the front hall.

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