Our Year 13s go off on Study Leave today. This is a bittersweet day, because it is one of a dwindling number of days when they are all together in School. However, this day is a stepping stone to becoming an OR, and they will always be part of our community. They had a morning filled with photos and their Leavers’ Breakfast, And, of course, Leavers’ Chapel. I would like to congratulate the year-group on everything they have achieved while at Roedean, and particularly this year - there is no doubt that they have made their mark, and we wish them all the best for the coming weeks and beyond.
Congratulations to everyone involved in last week’s Brighton Festival Fringe concert, which was an outstanding success. A parent in the audience commented that the concerts seem to get better and better every time, and I have no doubt that this is down to the ambition of the Music Department, and of the players themselves - the repertoire chosen is incredibly challenging, but every time they prove that they are up to it! Well done, and particular congratulations go to our soloists from the second half, Charlie, Alex, Vanessa, Ellen, Bernice, Candis, and Ellen.
It was a wonderful day for Cricket yesterday, and we were proud to host the MCC Women’s touring side again. Our 1st XI, which includes players from Years 9 to 12 stepped onto the field with great confidence, undaunted by the MCC, and they were a credit. We lost the match, but the MCC players were impressed both with the stunning location of our pitch, but also the calibre and talent of our players. Well done in particular to Kayla in Year 10, who scored 91 not out.
Berlin Design Trip
Brighton Festival Fringe Triumph
1st XI Cricketers Against the MCC
We look forward to welcoming prospective families to our Open Day tomorrow - they will see the School at its best, and I am grateful to all my colleagues and the girls for showcasing everything Roedean has to offer at this important event in our calendar. Good luck again to all those doing GCSEs and A Levels. I wish you all a restful weekend after Open Day!
Student Boarding Talks
A huge thank you to Millie (Yr12) for delivering an engaging introduction to Dungeons & Dragons. Her presentation gave students a fantastic overview of the game, including the role of the Dungeon Master and how to get started as a player. Our students then had the opportunity to create their own characters and consider their first adventure together.
House 2 already has an established D&D campaign running, and it was wonderful to see even more students inspired to get involved and give it a try. Boarding activities such as Dungeons & Dragons help students develop creativity, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills, in a fun and collaborative environment.
Miss Sinton
Berlin Design Trip
The Design Trip to Berlin is well underway, and they are having a brilliant time exploring this remarkable city. The weather is slowly improving, and the girls have enjoyed taking in everything the German capital has to offer. A fuller reflection on the trip will be shared after we return.
Mrs Quirk
Primed for Their Next Steps
As we say goodbye by to Year 13 today ahead of their forthcoming A Level examinations, we reflect on what a fantastic range of future pathways they have ahead of them.
The scope and range of courses and institutions they have chosen is impressive, with students proving that they really are forging their own paths. This year’s 5 most popular firm choice UK universities are University College London, King's College London, Edinburgh, Durham and Cambridge, and Imperial College.
100% of our Medics and Lawyers are holding places to study their preferred courses, and we have our best Oxbridge offers in well over a decade, with 5 students holding conditional offers at Cambridge and 1 at Oxford. And
if that wasn’t enough, Roedean’s students are also holding unconditional offers at globally recognised institutions such as McGill, UBC and Toronto in Canada, HKU and HKUST in Hong Kong, the University of Sydney and the University of Melbourne in Australia, and the University of Michigan and NYU, as well as the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, via the Morehead Cain Scholarship in USA.
We are so proud of the diversity and ambition of our Year 13s, and look forward to supporting them through these next steps.
Ms Boobis
Brighton Festival Fringe Triumph
On Friday 1 May, Roedean hosted our annual Brighton Fringe Festival concert. This is a tradition spanning more than twenty years where we celebrate some of our incredibly talented soloists, as well as our orchestra and our choir. This is a wonderful community event, with our students joined by staff members as well as guest singers.
The first half of the concert featured our choir, performing works inspired by the natural world. Members of the audience reported that they had never heard the choir sound so good and I too was blown away by the performance of our singers. The concert began with The Snow by Elgar, with Natalie and Charisse playing the Violin duet parts and Mr McGregor on the Piano. Next was the ethereal Stars by Ēriks Ešenvalds with an unusual accompaniment of six wine glasses. Våren (Spring) by Grieg was sung a capella, and featured a beautiful solo verse from Alice. The finale of the first half was the incredibly powerful Cloudburst by Eric Whitacre, with a solo line sung by Jemima and accompanied by Piano, Percussion, and Handbells, and also featuring a rainstorm created through clicks, claps and stamps from the choir.
After the interval, the orchestra was in place to accompany seven concerto movements and opera excerpts performed by talented soloists from Year 11 to 13. We had a moving performance of the first movement of Elgar's Cello concerto from Charlie, a joyous and magical performance of the finale of Glière's Harp concerto from Vanessa, and Alex captured a driving and spirited performance of the finale of Sibelius's Violin concerto. Next was the first of two opera arias sung by two students who are taking up places at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music next year. Ellen gave us a dramatic rendition of Va! Laisse couler mes larmes from Massenet's Werther and Candis pulled at our heartstrings with a beautiful performance of Song to the Moon by Dvořák. In between was a lyrical and dramatic performance of the emotional middle movement of Rachmaninov's Second Piano concerto by Bernice. The finale of the concert was a stunning performance of Waxman's Carmen Fantasie based on themes from Bizet's opera; Ellen dedicated her performance to the memory of her former Violin teacher and her playing was by turns lyrical and exciting.
It was wonderful to gather our school and wider community for a major event in our beautiful Chapel. Huge congratulations to all the soloists, singers, and orchestral players for giving the audience such a wonderful evening of music.
Mr Rous
Outstanding Game Against the MCC for the 1st XI Cricketers
A very young 1st XI hosted the MCC Women in another excellent day of Cricket at Roedean. As is tradition, MCC batted first and a strong lineup posted 227-4 in their 30 overs, with some powerful hitting both down the ground and square of the wicket. Andrea and Sophie took a wicket apiece, and there was an excellent running catch taken by Bella.
In response, Roedean made a slow but steady start through Yas and Milana, and when wickets began to fall, a heavy defeat looked possible. However, Kayla and Isabella put together a partnership of 138, with Izzy growing in confidence and Kayla dealing brutally with anything short or wide. History looked set to repeat itself following Kayla’s century in the 2025 fixture, but this year she fell just short, finishing unbeaten on 91 from just 75 balls. Izzy grew in confidence, and her role in the partnership was enough to earn her the MCC Spirit of Cricket cap.
Congratulations!
Mr Smethurst
U14C Cricket Edge a Thrilling Victory at Christ’s Hospital
In a closely contested and exciting fixture, the U14C team travelled to Christ’s Hospital in high spirits for their first game of the season. After winning the toss, captain Amara elected to bat first.
Roedean made a strong start, with runs flowing quickly, although wickets fell at regular intervals. A standout performance came from Amara, who led from the front with an excellent innings to earn the Batter of the Day honours. The team finished on an impressive 254 for 8.
In response, Christ’s Hospital fought hard, but Roedean’s fielding and bowling effort proved decisive. There were several standout moments in the field, including an outstanding spell from Emma, who took 3 wickets for just 3 runs in 2 overs. Charlotte also impressed with a wellexecuted maiden over.
The match went down to a tense final over, where Indira, named Bowler of the Day, held her nerve brilliantly, conceding just two runs and taking two crucial wickets to secure the win. Christ’s Hospital finished on 237, handing Roedean a well-earned victory.
It was a fantastic team performance, and well done to all the girls! The team looks forward to their next fixture against Cardinal Newman.
Mr Foggoa
U13B Cricket Victory vs Brighton Girls
On a blustery yet beautifully sunny day, perfect for cricket, the U13B team secured an impressive victory over local rivals, Brighton Girls.
Having been put into bat first, the team made an excellent start and went on to post a strong total of 330, despite losing a handful of wickets along the way. There was a sense that the score could have been even higher, but it was nonetheless a commanding performance. Tabitha and Scarlett led the way with the bat, both contributing significantly to the total with a confident and composed innings.
In the field, the team backed up their batting effort with a disciplined and energetic bowling display. Wickets were shared across the side, reflecting a true team performance, and Brighton Girls were restricted to 258.
Tabitha was deservedly named Batter of the Day for her standout innings, while Juno earned the Bowler of the Day honours after an excellent spell, taking four wickets.
The team has trained well this week, and will look to carry this momentum into their upcoming fixture against Lingfield College.
Mr Foggoa
U13E Cricket vs Brighton Girls
The U13Es had a great, albeit windy, start to the cricket season against Brighton Girls.
Although the result didn’t end up going their way, the girls played excellently, especially considering the adverse weather conditions. This was many of the girls' first time playing a cricket match, which was not evident in the slightest. Cecile managed to get two wickets, and Dao, Desire, Matilda, and Farhana got a wicket each!
This was a brilliant start to cricket term, and an exciting indication of how much the girls can improve in the following few months.
Miss Webster
1st XI Cricket vs Eastbourne College
Up first, Bella, Flo, and Miranda bowled with pace and accuracy, and were well-supported by the off spin of Bethany. Wickets had already begun to fall, but the introduction of Megs to the attack changed everything. She took a wicket in her first over, then produced a hat-trick to dismantle the Eastbourne innings, and, along with a debut wicket for Year 9’s Isabella, bowled the hosts out for 87.
Flo and Bethany began the run chase quickly, with Flo particularly strong through the leg side. Bethany was bowled by an excellent delivery, which hit the seam and moved away, which brought Yas to the crease to see the game home alongside the unbeaten Flo.
Congratulations!
Mr Smethurst
The 1st XI began the term with a solid performance at Eastbourne College.
U13 Girls Battle to an Exciting 302–299 Victory
The Under 13D Cricket team had a great match against Brighton Girls this week. It was fantastic to see everyone taking part and getting stuck in for the first match of the season.
There were some really strong performances from the girls, with a special shoutout to our Players of the Match, Phoebe, for her excellent bowling, and Shalom, for her dominant batting performance.
It was excellent to see them all progress and grow in confidence. The match came to a very close finish, but the girls fought hard and secured a win, with a final score of 302–299. Well done, everyone!
U14B Cricket vs Reigate Grammar
The U14Bs began their season with a loss at home to a strong Reigate Grammar team. Roedean batted first, and battled well in the face of some accurate and quick bowling. Wickets fell, but Sophia and Soraya steadied the ship with some hard hitting, and they managed to get the score up to a defendable 76. Reigate’s batting was also strong, and with some powerful hitting all round the ground, they finished the innings quickly, for the loss of just one wicket.
The Tennis Season is Underway
The Tennis season began last week with two days of back to back fixtures. We played an U18 National Cup game against Brighton College, followed by an U15 League game at Mayfield.
Our fabulous Tennis team was defeated by Brighton's strong side, but they came back on the Friday with overall wins against Mayfield and Oathall.
I was really impressed by the standard of our girls' tennis and also their great sporting attitudes. In both singles and doubles, there were fabulous, crowd-pleasing matches.
Mr Williams
Well done to Betsy, Ruby, Scarlet, Avril, Kayla, and Honor.
Mrs Baker
Mr Smethurst
House Swimming
Last week, we hosted House Swimming, and it was great to see so many of the girls taking part and competing for their Houses. Everyone was so committed, showed amazing house spirit, and gave 100% throughout the event.
Houses 1–4 competed in a range of races and relay events, creating an exciting atmosphere full of encouragement and friendly competition. The students demonstrated a huge amount of determination in the pool, while supporters on the sidelines cheered for their teams.
The event was a wonderful opportunity for everyone to come together, represent their Houses with pride, and celebrate participation as well as achievement. Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part, and to the staff who helped organise such a successful event - congratulations to House 3 who were the overall winners!
Mr Williams
Sport Stars of the
Week
Congratulations to this week's sporting stars:
We welcome contributions from all parts of the Roedean community. If you have something you would like featured in the Head’s Weekly Review, please email: aws@roedean.co.uk
Year 7
Scarlett, for her performance in both Tennis and Cricket
Year 8
Deema, for her constant hard work in Games
Year 9
Emma, for great work in her Cricket match this week
Year 10
Lili, for how well she has been doing in Cricket this term
Year 12
Megs, for being great in both Cricket and Athletics fixtures
Year 13
Alex, for her effort in run club, and always keeping the vibes great for everyone there
Non-Negotiable
ResilienceEmily, for her performances at the Track and Field Cup
