


World Mental Health Day takes place every year on 10 October. It’s a valuable reminder for us all of the importance of our wellbeing and our need to prioritise and invest in good mental health. One of the key themes of this year’s campaign is the idea of Overwhelm: the fact that it is impossible to read a newspaper, watch the news online or scroll through social media platforms without thinking the world is constantly in crisis. Social injustice, global conflict, economic instability, political unrest, climate crisis: it can quickly feel like bad news is everywhere. This is further exacerbated by the speed and availability of information; we all have round-the-clock access to the latest news. This continual exposure can rapidly cause a sense of overwhelm and take a toll on our mental health.
In a school setting there are also additional pressures facing us all and this is why our weekly Reflection at our whole-school assembly is such an important opportunity to come together as a community to pause and think bigger picture. Last week’s Reflection, to tie in with World Mental Health Day, was delivered by our School Captain, Alex. Mental wellbeing is an important message for all our young men to hear; for students to hear it from one of their own peers is all the more powerful and compelling. Alex focused on tennis champion Naomi Osaka who, in 2021, hit the headlines when she withdrew from the French Open to prioritise her mental health. At the age of 23, she was already a fourtime Grand Slam winner, and a highly celebrated international athlete. Amidst her success, however, Osaka spoke bravely about experiencing waves of anxiety before matches and interviews: inevitable challenges of a high-stakes professional sporting environment. To share a simple yet empowering example, Osaka once said in an interview that “it’s OK to not be OK” despite deeply ingrained societal pressures just to cope or internalise anxieties and stress.
Osaka described how she began to use mindfulness techniques, such as breathing exercises or focusing her attention on her surroundings, to take a quiet moment away from the spotlight and the pressure of the sporting arena. While this didn’t completely erase her struggles, it gave her the space to pause, to slow down and to protect herself. Osaka’s experience demonstrates that mindfulness is more than just sitting down cross legged and meditating; it is also about creating moments to reflect and prioritise your own mental health, especially when things feel overwhelming in the busy, hectic lives our students lead.
As Alex mentioned in his Reflection, this is something we can all relate to. Whether it’s the pressures of exams, social interaction, sporting fixtures, drama or music performances, or social media, we are all living in a world where it is increasingly easy to get caught up not only by the what ifs, but also to become troubled by the past, as well as the present and future.
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” a valuable reminder for us all of the importance of our wellbeing and our need to prioritise and invest in good mental health.
Eradicating the stigma around speaking up, encouraging a culture of openness and honesty, promoting a community where everyone looks out for and supports each other: all of these are at the very heart of an environment where mental health and wellbeing remain at the very forefront of our minds. As Alex urged all his fellow students: “I ask all of you to speak up to anyone if you’re struggling: whether it be to a friend, your parents, a teacher, or one of our school’s dedicated counsellors.” Whether it is voicing concerns and talking to others or finding space and time in our day to pause and reflect, this is a culture which we will continue to strive to embed at the RGS.
As Naomi Osaka said, “it’s OK to not be OK”.
Our Values
A high-performing and inclusive independent day school, which provides a great education so that students can lead happy, successful lives and have a positive impact on society.
Our Strategic Priorities
Integrate our pastoral and wellbeing offer, and tailor this to meet the needs of a modern-day student community.
Develop a more focused co-curricular offer, organised around a character development framework based on our school values.
Enhance our academic strength, in terms of exam results, developing minds and preparing students for higher education.
Maintain a healthy future pipeline of students in the face of increasing demographic, market and regulatory challenges.
We encourage all parents to follow us on our official social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram and X. As well as fly-on-the-wall insights into daily life at the RGS, there are regular posts over weekends and holidays bringing you news of sporting fixtures, school events and school trips.
If you have any photographs of RGS students in action in any capacity, please do always send them in to Mr Pressley on jwp@rgsg.co.uk
Half term Trips
French Trip to Rouen.
German Exchange Trip to Tübingen.
History Trip to the WW1 Battlefields and Normandy.
Spanish Trip to Seville.
Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Practice Expedition in the New Forest.
Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Practice Expedition on Dartmoor.
Monday 20 October
Half term starts
Monday 3 November
Staff Development Day 3. School closed for students.
Tuesday 4 November
Second half of Michaelmas term starts.
Wednesday 5 November
Monday timetable.
Thursday 6 November
ILA/ORIS Celebration Evening in the Auditorium.
Tuesday 11 November
Lower Sixth Form Introduction to Higher Education Evening in the Auditorium.
Junior Piano Concert in the Recital Room.
Thursday 13 November
Talking Teens Workshop in the Seminar Room.
We are excited to share that the RGS has won the Independent School of the Year award for Outstanding Fundraising – a testament to the hard work of the whole RGS community. The judges commended the bursary provision that is embedded within the School, the amount raised by charitable initiatives, the variety of charitable events we organise and the involvement of students in these. They also highlighted student-led initiatives, such as the Sleep Out, and our support for the Tudor Project and the String Scheme.
We are delighted and honoured to have won this award, which is the result of collaboration from so many different people and in so many different ways. The school community and involvement are at the heart of what we do, together with our drive to support local, national and international charities and communities.
- Ms M Popa (Director of Development) and Mrs RJ Rathmell (Head of Charity and Volunteering)
The RGS biathlon team travelled to Eastbourne College to take part in a regional qualifier event. The competitors took part in separate swim and run events, for which they were awarded points based on their times. These points will be added to the national ranking list, which will determine whether they qualify for the national finals, which will take place next March.
All of the team raced with determination and positivity. Particular congratulations should go to First Form team members Marcus Cotonet, Seb Stott-Fernandez and Ethan Tallis, who secured joint 1st, 3rd and 4th in their age group, as well as Eli du Preez (Second Form) and Jake Mills-Hicks (Fourth Form) for securing Silver and Bronze medals in their respective age groups.
Highlights of the block fixture against St Paul’s School included an excellent win for the 2nd XV scoring 28 points without reply, with Tristan Lee securing a hat-trick of tries; the all-conquering Under 15Bs continued their fine form with a narrow 10 – 5 victory. The 1st XV agonisingly were the wrong side of a 12 – 15 scoreline; however, the performance against strong opposition was encouraging. In the final block before half term, RGS teams competed across the board against another strong opponent, Epsom College. The Under 15B team maintained their unbeaten run into half term with a hard-fought 24 – 19 win with a sensational cross-field grubber from Josh Horsnell leading to a late, winning try. The 1st and 2nd XVs both played some of their best rugby of the season, narrowly losing by just one score, with the 1st XV’s 20 – 22 defeat particularly notable for the huge defensive effort and for being their most complete performance of the season to date.
RGS teams impressed against the traditionally strong opposition of Bradfield College. The RGS emerged victorious in both the 10-Bull Four by 187 – 184 and in the 10-Bull Pair by 187 –184 in which James Grimshaw was top scorer with 95. Despite the RGS losing the final event – the 5-Bull Four – our team’s strong performance in the earlier rounds meant we secured the Hicks Suffield Jones Cup trophy - a testament to the students’ skill, focus and determination. The RGS last won the trophy back in 2021.
Our ski racers competed against the very best at the English Schools Finals in Norwich having earned their place after a strong showing in the regional heats just three weeks ago. The standard was exceptional and the competition intense. Both our Middle and Junior Teams brought home silverware, placing 3rd in their age groups. The Junior Team missed 2nd place by just 0.04 seconds! The teams then teams raced in the British Open Qualifiers, placing 9th and 10th in England. While the top 8 qualify automatically, we hope some of our skiers will be selected to represent Team England at the finals in Swadlincote this November. A fantastic achievement and a testament to the hard work, skill and determination of our skiers!