6 March 2020 - Issue 8
HEAD’S
WEEKLY REVIEW
Head’s Introduction
Roedean’s Festival Celebrating Inspiring Women
World Book Day
Not even the torrential rain yesterday could dampen our spirits at Roedean as we held our Festival Celebrating Inspiring Women. The sixteen successful women who came to speak fitted the bill completely, and their audiences enjoyed hearing about their experiences. The girls’ feedback has been very positive, and I hope that each one took away a message which will give them confidence and empower them in the future. Giving such a wide choice of talks to the girls was a big undertaking, and I am grateful to my colleagues in all departments in the School for their contribution to making the day run smoothly. Thank you also to Dr Barrand who has worked tirelessly and over months to put together such an ambitious and inspiring programme.
Please see page 4
‘Name That Tune’ Gala Concert
At the end of last week, we enjoyed a simply brilliant ‘Name that Tune’ gala concert. There was such variety in the repertoire, and the evening saw a quarter of the girls in the School performing, which is remarkable. It was also wonderful that some children from St Mark’s and their parents came to the concert – I am sure that they must have been completely inspired by the music they heard. I would like to congratulate our ensemble directors, Ben Rous and Sophia Bartlette, and, of course, our Director of Music, Veronica Fewkes – what a fantastic evening of music! Roedean marked World Book Day on Wednesday this week. There were some amazing book characters walking the corridors, and they certainly featured in our fashion show in the Library with the Year 2 children from St Mark’s. We had author talks on that day from the well-known writer, Melvin Burgess, and from local author, Helen Peters. Judging from the numbers of books they both had to sign, the talks were very well received! Thank you to Ms Boobis and Ms Bailey for masterminding the day.
Please see page 6
A Level Drama
On top of these large-scale events, we have also hosted the SISNA Netball Tournament, and I am delighted that the U13s won the competition which is remarkable – congratulations! The Year 12s have all had very useful workshops in small groups with Victoria Ball, dealing with conflict resolution and how to cope with challenging situations – their feedback has been very positive indeed. Earlier in the week, our students studying Drama at A Level also performed their devised examination pieces and monologues – well done to all six performers. You will have heard, no doubt, of Roedean Council’s decision to close our partner school, Roedean Moira House after two and half years of our committed and passionate work. I have spent two days with colleagues working closely with the very sad and distraught families and children of the School. It is a very sad day for Roedean Moira House and for Roedean too. For me, personally, there is no worse thing in this role, than seeing educational opportunities closed. We will continue to support each and every family to the best of our abilities. I am always so grateful for all that this community does in a week – well done to you all. I hope you all enjoy a lovely weekend, and thank you in advance to everyone who is involved in tomorrow’s Open Day.
Please see page 7
U13 SISNA Victory
Please see page 11