The Salesian Magazine 2023-24

Foreword by the Headmaster

Dear Students, Staff, Parents, and Friends of Salesian College,

As we step into another vibrant chapter of our shared journey, it is my privilege to introduce this year’s edition of our College magazine—a testament to the collective energy, talent, and spirit of our remarkable community.

This academic year, 2023-24, has been marked by extraordinary achievements, both in and out of the classroom. It has been a year of academic excellence, with outstanding A-Level and GCSE results reflecting the unwavering commitment of our students and staff. Beyond these accomplishments, the breadth of our extra-curricular activities—from sports victories and cultural trips to charitable initiatives and creative performances—showcases the holistic education that defines our Salesian ethos.

At Salesian, we are guided by the principles of St. John Bosco, creating an environment where every individual is nurtured, challenged, and inspired to grow—not only in knowledge but also in character and faith. This year I have come to understand the phrase Ubuntu from South Africa which I feel sums up our College.  The spirit of Ubuntu is a profound understanding that “I am because we are.” It is this interconnectedness, rooted in loving kindness, and shared purpose, that fuels our collective success and shapes the compassionate leaders of tomorrow.

This year, we also bid farewell to two exceptional educators, Mr. Nicholas Crean and Mr. Andrew Smith, who retired after decades of dedicated service to our College. Both have exemplified the Salesian principles of accompaniment, providing steadfast guidance and loving support to generations of students. Their cheerful and purposeful approach to education has left an indelible mark on our community, and their legacy will continue to inspire us as we move forward.

We were delighted that Mrs Maureen Devereux was recognised by the king with an MBE this year. Her son, Sean Devereux, was student at Salesian College who went on to help children in Liberia, before he was tragically murdered in Somalia in 1993. The Sean Devereux Children’s fund have embraced the vision of Sean to change children’s lives

through education. His life was a real example of fulfilling that call of the heart and following in the footsteps of Don Bosco in helping to change the world with your own effort. This legacy, perpetuated by Mrs Devereux, is what the king recognised in awarding Maureen with the MBE.  Every year our Year 7 students cememorate Sean's legacy with the annual 'Run For Sean', pictured on the front cover.

As you explore this magazine, may it remind you of the vibrant experiences, the friendships forged, and the milestones achieved. To our students: you are at the heart of all we do. To our staff, parents, and Salesian community: your dedication, care, and guidance make this journey possible. Together, we continue to honor the legacy of Don Bosco, building a future full of hope and promise.

Let us celebrate what has been and look forward with confidence to the adventures that await.

God Bless

Gerard Owens

We are a home

…..From the moment they embark on their Salesian journey, we try to make all our students feel at home.

Welcome Year 7

In September, we welcomed our new Year 7 students to Salesian College. The boys came from over 40 different feeder schools, and were placed within our four tutor groups.

The boys were welcomed by the Headmaster at an assembly in the Chapel, who outlined their Salesian journey ahead of them, encouraged them to participate fully in school life, and ended with a sing-a-long! Following this, the boys spent time in their tutor groups having a tour of the school, setting up IT accounts and developing new friendships.

… and Year 12

Our new Year 12 students joined us for their journey into A-level studies. We welcomed many of our internal Year 11 students moving forward to Sixth Form, along with students from Farnborough Hill, St Nicolas’ School, Gordon’s School, Luckly House, Reddam House and The Marist School. They met as a year group and received a welcome and introduction to the opportunities ahead of them. Importantly, all are welcomed and known because of our small class sizes as well as our determination to make every student feel at home at Salesian.

Welcome to our new Year 7s

St Aidan’s

Harry Bailey George Callum Ewan

Rex Joseph Edward Calder Alex

Gerasimos Edward Eliot Harry Benjamin

Harry

St Bede's

Danny Daniel Lewis Bertram Hugo

Nivaan Dexter Jack David Oluwatimilehin

Leo Xavier Isaac Edward Matthew Sebastian Zachary

St Dunstan's

Archie James Adrian Chibuikem Maximus

Alexander Clyde William Jake Maxwell

Joseph Zen

James

Thomas Rafael

Rafe Luuk

Charles

St Hugh's

Horatio David Kartikay

Roy Nikko

Joseph Arthur Joshua Maulik

Brendan

Evan King Kin Otis

Anish Frederick

Mohammed Euan Edward

College Leadership 2024-25

We welcomed the new team of

College Leadership

St Aidan's Leadership

Archie (Captain), Ella (Head Girl), Dami and Rohan (Vice-Captains) and Evie (Deputy Head Girl).

St Bede's Leadership

St Dunstan's Leadership

St Hugh's Leadership

Christmas Dinner and Jumper Day

In December, we wore our Christmas jumpers and enjoyed a festive lunch together. Well done to everyone who wore a jumper to raise funds for Save The Children - there were some excellent designs! Thank you to our catering team for providing us all with a delicious lunch - even the Brussels sprouts were a hit!

Star Gazing

In January, 100 Year 5 students and their parents attended the Ogden Trust Astronomy Night hosted at Salesian College. The Ogden Trust is a partnership between science teachers from 10 infant, junior, primary and secondary schools in Farnborough and Aldershot.

The students had a great evening, with a carousel of activities incorporating stargazing through telescopes, provided by The Cody Observatory and Salesian College, a ‘pop-up’ planetarium, and arts and crafts activities.

The 10 telescopes were located at the rear of the College campus and were used to view stars and constellations in the night sky. Following this activity, everyone was offered a hot chocolate to warm them up! The ‘pop-up’ planetarium was a massive hit with all who attended, as they were taken on a journey into outer space. In the arts and crafts session, run by Salesian College teachers and students, the visitors were given the opportunity to construct their own solar system.

Mrs Tolcher, Head of Physics at Salesian College said, “It is wonderful to be collaborating with other local schools, and to bring everyone together for such a fantastic event. I hope this event stimulates our budding scientists of the future.”

Neurodiversity Week

The week of the 18 - 22 March was Neurodiversity Celebration week 2024. The Diversity Ambassadors and other students worked to put together a range of activities to make us all aware of the depth of neurodiversity in our college community. These activities included assemblies for all years, loads of posters around college and a quiz.

We learnt that neurodiversity is about recognising that everyone’s brain works differently and that “a wide range of neurological variations of the brain affect the way that people think, learn and process information.” Jane Goodall, Primatologist and Anthropologist said, “Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.” Justin Timberlake, Singer, Actor and Producer takes this one step further when he says, “You cannot make a difference unless you’re different.” Congratulations to the students who won the quiz!

Ryan C - Year 8 St Dunstan's

Alumni Dinner

On Friday 26 January, we celebrated the feast day of our founder, Saint John Bosco, and welcomed home 100 alumni for the inaugural Salesian College Farnborough Alumni dinner. It was wonderful to see so many former students reminiscing about their time at the College, and enjoying being together again. Our guest speaker, Gareth Chilcott, entertained us with his stories on and off the pitch and stressed the importance of reunions. Thank you to our PTA for providing the bar and our caterers, Thomas Franks, for the delicious meal. We plan to make this an annual event and look forward to welcoming more alumni home next year.

PHSE

ARISE Workshops

As part of our PSHE programme, the College arranged for ARISE (Anti Racism in Schools and Education) to present to all of our students on the topic of anti-racism.

ARISE provides anti-racism training and workshops for teachers, other school staff and students across the UK and overseas. With an increasing awareness and desire for schools to support their diverse student bodies, we believe it is more important than ever to invest in educating and training our staff and students in all aspects of anti-racism.

The College has also been presented with a certificate from the founder of Arise in recognition of our commitment to stand up against all forms of racism.

Oddballs

Years 10 and 11 received an informative presentation from Joel, the local ambassador for Oddballs. The charity aims to raise awareness of testicular cancer, which currently impacts 1:270 men at some point in their lives. Joel explained how effective personal screening and action can be so important in treating the disease successfully.

Nutritionist

We welcomed Nutritionist Olivia Booker from our catering contractor, Thomas Franks, to speak to our students and parents about different areas of nutrition. Olivia addressed the whole school with a presentation on general nutrition during assembly, focusing on the importance of a healthy and balanced diet. Later in the day, she addressed GCSE and A Level PE students on Sports Nutrition, and our students preparing for mock exams about the importance of Brain Nutrition. Finally, parents were invited to attend a presentation regarding our school meals.

Sixth Form Mentors

Congratulations to our Year 12 students, who undertook a peer mentoring programme.

Over 50 Year 12 students volunteered to become mentors. They gave up their time to receive their training and helped students across the College in many areas.

The programme concluded after Easter, all mentors received a certificate to recognise their completion of this programme. Well done to you all!

Diversity and Inclusion Ambassadors

Congratulations to the Diversity and Inclusion Ambassadors, who delivered an excellent assembly and presentation to our Year 7 students. The purpose of the assembly was to explain what the role of the Ambassadors is, and to encourage some of our Year 7 students to volunteer to become Ambassadors in this programme as well.

Following on from the presentation, one of our Year 7 students reflected on what he had heard in the assembly:

"I think that the point of the assembly was to show that being diverse is incredibly brilliant as it allows us to live in a beautiful world, as it would be a lot worse when we don’t celebrate our rich and diverse culture or promote inclusivity. This assembly made me understand why diversity and inclusion is important and made me understand more about what the role of the ambassadors. It made me want to become an ambassador myself." Roy C - 7 St Hugh's

Farewell Year 13

On Thursday 9 and Friday 10 May, we celebrated with our Sixth Form Students as they completed their formal studies and prepare for their A-level study leave. On Thursday, we joined together for Mass, followed by a drinks reception in the sun. On Friday, our students turned up in fancy dress, working together in their friendship groups to create some incredible 'team efforts' such as The Spice Girls, Hobbits, Ninja Turtles and medieval knights. We wish them all the very best in their exams.

We are a School

......Throughout the academic year, our students participate in a wide variety of learning environments, both in and outside of the classroom.

This may involve local day visits, residentials both in the UK and abroad, external experts coming into school to enhance the learning experience, and participation in competitions.

This all contributes to developing the Salesian Ethos and to our excellent exam results.

Annual Distribution of Prizes and Certificates

On the evening, we recognised the achievements from the previous academic year of students ranging from Years 7 to 13. They were presented with Advanced Level and GCSE certificates as well as special subject prizes and awards for attainment, effort and achievement. The prizes and certificates were presented by College alumnus, Professor George Smith FRS, who gave an excellent and inspiring address drawing upon his many years in academia and his own experiences as a student at the College.

Annual Distribution of Prizes and Certificates

continued

We were pleased to welcome back last year’s Upper Sixth to the College. Last summer saw 70% of our students achieve grades A*-B at full A-level and the majority went on to study at a wide range of different universities across the country and indeed across the world. Others are taking a gap year, or degree apprenticeships, and some are already undertaking training in a range of professions.

The Centenary Cup for the Highest Points Achieved at A Level was presented to a student who attained 4 A* grades and is now reading Mechanical Engineering at Leeds University and who also received the La Pensee Prize for Aspiring Engineer: George G

Last year’s Year 11 attained 70% of their grades in the range 6-9 in the face of a national return to pre-pandemic grading standards. The student who achieved the best results at GCSE, attaining a nationally outstanding 10 grade 9s this summer, which places him alongside the very best students in the country, was awarded the Headmaster’s Prize for Excellence & Sixth Form Academic Excellence Scholarship: Dami A.

The Alastair Austin Memorial Prize for Overall Effort and Contribution by a First Year Pupil was presented to Jack F.

The David Nolan Memorial Prize for Overall Effort and Contribution by a Second Year Pupil was presented to Theo D.

The Fr Alfred Pilbeam Prize for the Dux Boy was awarded to one boy in each House who receives the highest number of good marks in the school:

We are grateful to the many sponsors whose generosity allows these and many other students to be recognised each year. If any parent or former student would like to consider becoming a Prize Night sponsor, please contact moorea@salesiancollege.com

Mr A Moore – Senior Deputy Headteacher

St Dunstan’s Harry S. (7D)

St Hugh’s Toby T. (9H)

St Aidan’s Patrick N. (9A)

St Bede’s Harrison F. (8B)

Projects

Cell Models

During the first half term, Year 7 students learned about plant and animal cells, and were set an extended homework project to create a ‘cell’. We were very impressed with the exceptionally high standard of the boys’ work, along with their individual creative interpretation of the brief. We had a range of cakes, collages, models and artwork to represent the cells.

Ovid

Over the October half term, Year 7 students were asked to complete a project of a ‘creative retelling’ to Ovid’s Myths, of which four were entered into a national competition.

Don Bosco Project

Every year we request that our Year 7 students create a piece of work based on their learning about our founder, St John Bosco, on their own or in pairs. We are always delighted by their individual and creative responses, such as models, games, needlework, collages, and, this year, an illuminated solar system!

Volcanoes

Year 9 Geography students completed an exciting module about volcanoes which culminated in an extended project to create their own model. Many of the boys took the opportunity to demonstrate their fabulous baking skills, and the classroom became the setting for a scene from The Great British Bake-Off showstoppers!

Imaginative Creatures

This summer term, Year 8 have been constructing imaginative creatures constructed out of clay. The task was to mix at least 3 different animals together, exploring a variety of skin, such as fur, scales, feathers etc. As you can see, here is just a selection of the 92 weird and wonderful creatures that have been created by the students.

Year 13 Poster Presentation

Year 13 Physics students were researching CERN ahead of their visit. They created posters on a subject of their choice. They presented these posters to staff, other students and parents yesterday, in a similar format to Poster Presentations which are used in lots of science undergraduate university courses. It was great to see students becoming experts in their choice of field!

Competitions

Chess Champion

Daniel S, Year 10, finished joint 3rd (with the score 7/9 in the U17 section, winning 6, drawing 2 and losing 1) in the FIDE World Amateur Chess Championship 2023 held in Oman. Due to a tie break, he just missed out on receiving a medal. With over 400 players hailing from as many as 64 different countries. The competition was intense, with some matches lasting over 4 hours, showing his dedication to win.

Chess Champions

On Thursday 27 June, I was rewarded with the privilege to compete in the The Oakmoor School Gambit Chess Tournament 2024. It started with a group stage with 8 people in each group. We all played 7 games, and the top 4 from each group went on to the next round. I played my 7 14-minute (7 minutes each) games and unfortunately I didn't go through. From then on, I watched a couple of the games until the final, which was in their hall. They used an electronic board, and so we could see the moves on the big screen. We could also see who was winning, which made it very exciting! In the end, Nathan B won the final, and we received our award for the school. Overall, I was very glad to compete in this tournament and hopefully I will do better next year.

Rotary Young Writers Competition

Our students managed to achieve outstanding pieces of writing, based on the theme of Rebuilding, in this year’s competition. Mary Madine, Chief Judge of the Rotary Competition, was exceptionally impressed by the entries of our Salesian students. Such was the high standard of our Salesian entries in the intermediate category, that Mary felt at least eight of our Salesian students’ entries were deserved winners of the competition. Congratulations to all students who entered. In particular, the following boys are commended for winning the following prizes in the intermediate group:

Winner: Theodore M (9D)

Highly commended: Oisín M (9B) and Oliver M (9A)

Samuel L - Year 9 St Dunstan's

Microsoft Office Specialist Award

Last year, the College introduced the Microsoft Office Specialist course for all our Year 10s to ensure all students are certified in Microsoft products. Due to the number of Microsoft passes achieved in a short space of time, the College were awarded a Centre of Excellence award from Prodigy Learning (Microsoft Certification UK). Mrs Batt and Mr Sansome were invited to the London Transport Museum to attend the Certification Matters event and collect the award. The event consisted of various lectures, including Microsoft, as well as case studies from different schools and universities who also provide Microsoft certification. In the evening, we gathered for the award ceremony, where we collected a lovely plaque which is now proudly displayed in reception.

Salesian Speaks

After our English Speaking Board (ESB) examination, we were given the opportunity to represent St Dunstan’s at this year’s Inter-House Salesian Speaks Competition, which gave us the chance to express our appreciation for the opportunity we were given to participate in the ESB examination. Following our achievement of all receiving distinctions for our ESB, we could showcase our skills in reading a passage from a novel, performing a poem of our choice, and making a presentation to show our passion for a topic of our own choice. We were also given the opportunity to listen to other people's performances from the other Houses of their speeches, poems and readings. The thing that made our experience even better was that we, St Dunstan’s, were fortunate enough to win. The winners of the different categories were as follows:

Best Presentation: Rafe S (St Dunstan’s), Best Poetry Performance: Bertie F (St Bede’s)

Best Prose Passage Reading: Jake K (St Dunstan's): Edward M (St Aidan’s) Winner Overall: St Dunstan’s

We believe this experience will really help us in later life and we are eternally grateful for this chance. InterHouse Salesian Speaks was a fantastic event and should be continued for generations to come.

Clyde G, Rafe S and Jake K (St Dunstan’s)

Christmas Cards

Year 7 and 8 students were set the task of creating a Christmas Card design for the College. They investigated traditional and modern designs and the imagery associated with Christmas, alongside how to create a successful composition that could combine both relevant words and images. Students could work with any appropriate art materials, with some entrants opting for painting, digital art, pencil drawn or even collage. After much deliberation, Mr Owens chose the eventual 5 winners, whose designs have now been used for the College Christmas card.

Interhouse Quiz

Congratulations to St Bede's for winning the Inter House Quiz and gaining valuable Merit Marks that will go towards their House total. The members of the winning team were presented with a prize at our school assembly.

The winning team consisted of: 7B Zach Z; 8B George G; 9B Oisin M;10B Will S and Joey K; 11B Liam G

Rhythm and Rhyme

As performers in this inaugural event, reciting poems, written by us and famous poets, and performing music was appreciated by all involved. For most of us who wrote our own poems, it gave us the opportunity to share with the audience our first impressions of significant moments in our lives. We were grateful that the poet, Vic Pickup, who inspired us with her poetry workshop on writing poetry, could be with us on the night to witness our final products. Reading our own poems gave us the opportunity to recall some very special, funny, fearful, and heart-warming memories in our lives with our families and friends. An inspiring moment for us was listening to Mr Cassidy’s choice of space poems to his composition of space music. For Anishan B (Y8), choosing 'Music I Heard' by Conrad Potter, allowed him to embrace and express the memories of the loss of a person’s loved one. George G (Y8) felt that it was a privilege to share Maya Angelou’s 'A Caged Bird' regarding the freedom gained by overcoming slavery. There was a fitting moment when Joshua G (Y9) performed his own poem about his impressions about playing the piano at his first Eisteddfod, followed by his rousing performance of Beethoven’s Pathetique on the piano.

Without a doubt, the interweaving of poetry and music was appreciated by parents, friends of the school and performers. What a memorable night this was for those who attended and congratulations to all who performed. We look forward to another evening of 'Rhythm and Rhyme' next year.

By Joshua G (Y9), George G (Y8) and Anishan B (Y8)

Workshops

Problematic Polymers Workshop

Year 9 students attended a Design Technology and Chemistry cross-curricular day, in which they learnt all about plastics. Students learnt what plastics are as well as how they are made and disposed of. Using a range of different plastics, the students were then able to design and create games suitable for an 8 year-old child! It was great to see students coming together as a team to problemsolve, evaluate and, ultimately, produce excellent games!

The games were tested on Wednesday afternoon by guest judges (children aged between 4-8 years old!). The winners were the toy gun and the football pitch.

Forensics Workshops

Y8 students participated in Forensics workshops where they were delving into the evidence and witness statements in a murder investigation. They analysed forensic findings including DNA evidence, mobile phone information, shoe prints and fingerprints. Later, they arrested their main suspect. The students had been learning about different career opportunities in the police force, the legal profession and in forensic science.

At the end of the day, the students simulated a Crown Court trial and took on roles of barristers, witnesses, jurors and judges. The students were amazing in their roles and in all activities throughout the day. Thank you to Simon Smith, Managing Director of Zakon Training, who ran the workshops.

Year 9 Drone Coding Workshop

Year 9 participated in drone coding as part of a STEM enrichment activity. Students used a coding app to move their drones up, down, right, left and forward. They were set a task to direct the drones through hoops. After some collisions, there were many successes. Some groups collaborated to create a drone dance through hoops.

Students were emphatic in saying the activity was fun and entertaining. They have not had the opportunity to do drone coding before so this was new to them. We may have inspired some future drone coders!

Medical Mavericks

On Wednesday 28 February, students were involved in a series of workshops run by Medical Mavericks. They had a talk learning about medical advances and the impact of engineering developments. They were shown how ultrasound scans are used to find the carotid artery in the neck, show bladder size, and even to determine if they are still going to grow. Students then rotated around workshops where they had the opportunity to take fake blood out of a model arm, try their hand at keyhole surgery, try on glasses mimicking different eye disorders and to look at blood cells in their finger, among other activities. In the senses session, they discovered which was their dominant eye, whether they had an unusual taste allele, if they had certain tendons showing they had evolved differently and got to test their eyes and balance. During the sports session, students competed with each other to throw the ball the fastest, run the fastest, jump with the greatest force and try activities to test their reflexes.

The students greatly enjoyed the day and gave positive feedback for the sessions. The Maverick team were very impressed by how engaged and polite the Salesian students were. All in all, it was a day enjoyed by everyone.

Students Inspired by Visiting Poet

A number of our Year 7-9 students appreciated the opportunity of attending a poetry workshop presented by Vic Pickup, a poet and writer. Taking the theme of ‘First Experiences’, Vic guided students through activities, which awakened their memories of their own first experiences. This then inspired them to start drafting their poems and to explore different styles and structures of poetry that could best reflect their first experiences. The students were given invaluable tips by Vic on the process of writing poetry and encouraged to continue writing their poems.

“I attended a poetry masterclass, which was fantastic. There was an electric atmosphere that really made me overjoyed to have participated. It was a privilege to attend, and I would recommend it to anyone with a passion for poetry.” (Euan T, 7H)

“I liked the workshop because Vic really helped to bring out the best in me. She also performed her own poem, ‘A New Fridge’, which I loved, and it gave me inspiration to write my own poem.” (James C, 7D)

“It was great to write our own poems whilst being guided by a very good poet.” (Rhys N, 8A)

“Apart from the workshop, which was really interesting and has inspired me to write more poems, I learned a lot about how to perform my own poems and the techniques I need to perform a poem well.” (William K, 9H)

Physical Theatre Workshop

On Monday 11 September, our A-level Drama Students were invited to Farnborough Hill to take part in a Physical Theatre workshop with movement director, Steve Kirkham. For those four hours, Mr Kirkham worked the students through some key building blocks to devise in this particular style, looking at physical storytelling through movement and music.

His breadth of experience with notable theatre practitioners such as Frantic Assembly, DV8 and Matthew Bourne ensured that he brought a wealth of ideas and experience and instilled in the students a sense of confidence to play and explore movement freely. He then sat down to do a short Q&A at the end of the session, telling stories of his own experience working with some high profile practitioners and how the world of Drama works outside of the classroom setting.

Hopefully, the students will cherish this experience for years to come and be able to implement some of these high energy devices in their own work in the coming months and years.

Visitors

Historian Visit

On Wednesday 20 March, Sixth Form History students had a wonderful visit from Jutta Johnson, a German woman who had previously lived in West Germany during the existence of the GDR.

She provided us with unique insight into both the East and West German experience of the post-war division of the country- from 1949-89 - including the events of the Berlin Wall and its impact. She also explained how the polarisation of the ‘Germanies’ influenced culture, politics, the societies, and the people - elaborating on a strong difference she felt between herself and her relatives who had lived in a strongly communist area of the GDR, exemplifying the lasting impact the GDR has had on Germany today.

Everything that Mrs Johnson mentioned during this talk, I felt, was extremely crucial to my understanding of the GDR. I believe, through allowing all of us to hear a personal account of the key historical era, we were able to consolidate our textbook knowledge of the German state and further learn new things about it as a period in History. This included learning about the personal civilian experience and more about the West German perspective also.

Therefore, I believe we are all extremely grateful for her visit to Salesian College and will further use the insights she provided us with in our summer exams. Thank you, Jutta!

Nuria B - Year 13

The Morality of Warfare

On Monday 26 February, Fr Nick Gosnall, Chaplain to His Majesty’s Forces, met with all A-level Philosophy & Ethics students. As part of our course, we have studied the Just War Theory and the morality of warfare in the modern world. He shared his experiences with us, and we had the opportunity to ask questions.

Fr. Nick's talk was extremely enriching and thoughtprovoking. He gave us an insight into his life as a military chaplain, and his own ethical code that he stood by during his time in that position. His beliefs on death were particularly inspiring, as he gave the view that death is not something to particularly be feared, and that there are things that are worse than death, such as betraying his own moral code by taking a life. The talk that he gave, and the positions that he shared during the talk made me, and many others, look into our own values and how strongly we are committed to our own principles and values, and how we could learn something from his strong sense of morals and virtues.

Rufus B – Year 13

Plays

Reserva Duplicada

Years 7 and 8 watched the Spanish play Reserva Duplicada, performed by two excellent Spanish actors from the Onatti theatre company. This proved to be very interactive and highly enjoyable.

Joseph E, 7 St Hugh's said 'The play was about two couples booking the same accommodation at the same time and ending up discovering this near to the end. Overall, I really enjoyed watching the play but I need to learn more Spanish.'

Le Cours d’Art

Year 7 and 8 were entertained by the French play, Le Cours d'Art'. The story was about students who are locked in an Art room, possibly all night, until somebody finds the key to the door. The actors talked about positive and negative descriptions, colours and food. The play was very interactive and humorous as one of our students was invited onto the stage to act.

Kartikay B - Year 7

World Book Day

On Thursday 7 March, we celebrated World Book Day at Salesian College. Our Library hosted a fun Literary game for all students to take part. All Salesian staff members were allocated characters from famous Literary pairs and wore badges, and of course, some dressed up as their character! The students' job was to find and match as many pairs as possible throughout the day. The most matched pairs won!

The staff also had their own incentive to find their matching character partner; this was wine and chocolate!

There was a great buzz during lunch in the Library, where we hosted a World Book Day quiz. The boys got into teams to answer as many questions as possible. There were three top scoring teams, resulting in a tie breaker. Our winning team and runners up were very happy to receive their prizes of sweets and chocolates.

Day Visits

Year 7

Braywick Nature Reserve

In the first half term, Year 7 visited Braywick Nature Reserve in Maidenhead. I really enjoyed the day with my Form group and I think it really helped me get to know all the boys in the form.

We spent the 45 minute journey chatting to each other and playing games. Once we arrived, we walked for about two minutes to the main hall and we went through what we were going to do. Everyone went for a short walk around the park finding out more about the trees in the park. We learnt about giant sequoias and their fire blanket, the dinosaur monkey puzzle and the poisonous yew! We even got to hug an ancient oak and had a walk in silence listening to the sounds of nature. Afterwards we went to do some pond dipping. Prior to this I had no experience of this activity and I found it rather interesting. I enjoyed studying the specimens in the water including water boatmen and small fish. We then returned to the hall and had lunch together followed by a scavenger hunt which was very competitive. During the afternoon we made dens and the one I made had a catapult. I worked with Arthur, Roy and Freddie; it was a real team effort which we all enjoyed. I couldn’t believe it when Mrs Morrison told us it was time to go home.

This was my first school trip with the College and it was a great opportunity to feel more relaxed with my form group and teachers whilst learning lots about nature. I have left Braywick with more of an appreciation for God’s creation. I definitely would recommend this trip to future Year 7s.

David B - 7H

Geography North Camp

Year 7 Geographers familiarised themselves with the local geography of North Camp to determine if they think it is a nice place to live. The students surveyed the variety of buildings, environmental quality, noise and traffic levels to analyse back in the classroom. All of the students worked well in their groups and concluded that North Camp is a diverse and very interesting area!

Winchester Science Centre

In March Year 7 undertook a trip to Winchester Science Centre.

The Scientists combined core Salesian principles of School and Playground, exploring interesting science exhibits, and learning many interesting facts about nature of sound and how it travels, and astronomy, with a particular emphasis on the Solar System show in the planetarium and many more scientific phenomena. Most of our young scientists agreed that they enjoyed the room of optical illusion the most, but others also were fascinated by non-Newtonian fluid slimes that they made during Matter Workshop.

Students summarised their newly acquired knowledge and photos from most memorable exhibits in booklets.

River Tillingbourne

June is national fieldwork month for Geographers, as we had great pleasure in taking all of Year 7 to the River Tillingbourne to investigate the extent to which the river fitted the Bradshaw Model. The boys had the opportunity to work in groups to collect data to find out how the characteristics changed downstream. There also seemed to be a parallel study being carried out to find out who could get the most water in their wellies!

Japanese Film

Japanese linguists from Years 7-10 ventured into Guildford to watch the new movie by the acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki: The Boy and the Heron. The first half of the film was reminiscent of Totoro with the young protagonist's move from Tokyo to a large house in the countryside. The second half was a journey ever more fantastical, full of imagery from the natural world. The boys were both delighted and surprised in equal measure.

Year 8

Kew Gardens

On 20 and 21 November, Year 8 participated in the annual visit to Kew Gardens. The visit aims to teach students about plant adaptations as well as the important role of plants in everyday life, including medicines, food and culture. Through a series of activities, students would explore the three main greenhouses at Kew Gardens, as well as attempt their best David Attenborough impression in order to create a documentary on plants. Fun was had by all, despite the rain!

Year 10

Bletchley Park

Year 10 Computer Science students visited Bletchley Park to see the home of code breaking. They learned about different types of encryption during a practical workshop and learned about the impact the code breaking work at Bletchley had on the Second World War. Overall a fascinating day extending the curriculum.

Extended Learning Programme

On Wednesday 1 May, a group of Year 10 students visited Oxford University as part of the Extended Learning programme. Accompanied by Mrs Grover and Mr Rowe. The day started with a visit to Corpus Christi College. We were kindly hosted by James O’Sullivan, a Salesian Alumnus who is currently in his final year studying PPE. He discussed his journey to Oxford, how the university is structured and student life at the university. We also had a session discussing what students should be doing now to develop their intellectual curiosity in preparation for university study. This was followed by a tour around the college. Mr Rowe then led us on a walking tour around the central University area and we were joined by George an undergraduate student of English at Oxford so they could ask him any more questions they had. In the afternoon we had a fantastic taught session at the Natural History Museum. This was closely related to the students’ studies in GCSE Biology and the students shared some great ideas. The highlight was handling the hissing cockroaches! An excellent day was had by all, and the Year 10 students gained an insight into life at university.

Chelsea FC Tour

On Thursday 21 March, 64 of our Y10 GCSE Business pupils visited Chelsea FC at Stamford Bridge to get to know more about the business of running a football club. Students were taken on a guided tour and enjoyed sitting in the dugout, walking down the players' tunnel, sitting in the media suite, as well as being able to ask questions about the players' wages, how the club diversifies into other markets and the fact that is one of the biggest valued franchises in the sporting world.

Students listened to talks at different stages of the tour, one of which was sitting in the team dugouts watching the grounds staff using LED lighting to encourage the grass to grow faster! Another was in the players’ dressing room surrounded by the 1st Team shirts. The talks related both to the business aspects of running a football club, but also did so in the context of many of the great players that have and haven’t managed to score at Stamford Bridge.

The guides explained that match day revenues were only a small proportion of the total income stream for the financial year, although some of the corporate boxes cost between £500K and £1m per season, with a 3-5 year minimum spend. We also found out why the players run to a certain point on the pitch to celebrate, as the partners and children of the players are located in their own private box near pitch level at the Shed end of the ground.

The tour ended with a look around the Chelsea Store (Premium pricing at £100+ per shirt!) and the museum with all the silverware, memorabilia and a chance to time their own reaction speeds and take a few free kicks with some of the more interactive displays.

Overall, it was a great opportunity for our students to understand the tight margins that impact even the largest brands on the planet, the difficulties of expanding a premiership ground in the heart of a major city, and to see how well the women’s game has developed and been invested in since we visited last year.

BMW Mini

Year 10 Design Technology students visited the BMW Mini Plant on Tuesday 26 March to investigate and contextualise their learning regarding just in time manufacturing, flexible manufacturing systems, sustainability, automation and mass/bespoke production techniques. The tour around the factory showed the new Mini Cooper in pre-production with 300 new Minis being manufactured per day, increasing to 900 when the Minis are officially released.

Monday 1 July 2024

Year 7 Hawk Conservancy

The Year 7 Hawk Conservancy visit was a delightful trip. We had the chance to observe a variety of birds, including eagles, hawks, falcons, and owls. The most educational part was the 'Wings of Africa' show in the morning, where we saw the African fish eagle catching food in the air and from the water, and heard its distinctive call.

The secretary bird's signature kick on a rubber snake was a unique sight. We also learned about the Conservancy's important work in Africa, stopping poachers from poisoning carcasses and killing vultures. This educational aspect of the trip was particularly enlightening. And let's not forget the fun we had ducking low when the birds flew towards us, providing us with a unique and entertaining experience.

Isaac

R and Leo H - Year 7

Year 8 Imperial War Museum

Year 8 had a brilliant day at the Imperial War Museum making documentaries

Year 10 Chessington

Year 10 had a great day at Chessington World of Adventures enjoying the rides and viewing the animals in the Zoo.

Year 11

GCSE History

Whitechapel Visit

Year 11 historians went for a guided walking tour of Whitechapel, led by expert guides from Anglia tours. They got to see the difficulties faced for those living in the slums of Whitechapel, as many hints of past lives are still there despite the regeneration and gentrification (great examples for the Geographers). Anglia Tours gave students lots of hints and tips of how to push their answers further to the grades and what could be used to find out more, a key part of GCSE Crime and Punishment.

GCSE Religious Education Workshop

On Thursday 25 January, all of Year 11 travelled to St John Bosco College in Battersea to attend the annual RE GCSE revision conference. It was a wonderful opportunity for all three Salesian schools in the south of England to come together. We were led through the day by Dr Peter Vardy who is an outstanding Philosopher and engaging speaker. He led the boys through a series of fast paced lectures with thought provoking questions linked seamlessly to their GCSE course. The boys were engaged and responsive throughout and the day finished with a thoughtful debate on the motion, 'the sanctity of life is more important than the quality of life', where many of the students from the three Salesian schools articulated their views with reasoning and thoughtfulness.

Poetry Live

Year 11 students attended Poetry Live, an event at the Hexagon Theatre in Reading to help our students develop a higher level of understanding of their examination poetry material. The day included the reading and discussion of poems from the GCSE Anthology by the poets themselves, and advice from one of the lead examination markers on how to approach the examination papers.

The following students said about this opportunity:

“This was a beneficial and amusing experience, especially when John Agard spoke about his poetry and read his poetry with such enthusiasm and passion. The examiner was particularly helpful and I now feel that I can answer the questions better.” Sam C

“My eyes were opened about the skills and craft behind the poems. This experience has inspired me to read the seen poems again so that I can gain a better understanding of the world and the poetry. The examiner provided good insight into answering the unseen poetry. This has helped me to find a better way of approaching the unseen poem.” Arjan M

A moment, which brought great credit to Duncan M-B (Y13) and the school, was his exceptional performance of his own poem, ‘One Minute’, portraying the desperate situation of those working in the NHS during the COVID pandemic. Duncan, who entered his poem and won the Poetry Live 2022 competition and was invited to read his poem at this year’s Reading Poetry Live.

Ashmolean Museum

Year 11 Classics students went to Oxford in order to explore Bronze Age exhibits in the Ashmolean Museum. The students took lots of photos to develop their understanding of koine (shared culture) across Egypt, Greece and the Aegean in this period. In so doing, they've expanded their knowledge beyond the requirements of the curriculum and had a glimpse of the elite academic world.

Year 11 Celebrations

To celebrate the end of Year 11 classes, the year group enjoyed a day at Thorpe Park. Everyone had a great day out on the adrenaline fuelled rides with their friends.

They were accompanied by staff who split quickly into the dare-devils and the sedatestrollers!

The students were invited in for breakfast with their teachers to help them prepare, and to support anyone with pre-exam nerves.

Sixth Form Biology In Action

On 28 November, we had our Y12 and Y13 Biology students participating in an online conference about Biology in action in research and technology. Dr Pooja Swahili talked to us evidence of infectious diseases littered throughout historic literature, art and text. A small handful of these diseases even go as far as leaving visual evidence on bones, only to be uncovered by archaeologists thousands of years later. Professor Dave Goulson explained the many causes of insect decline. Insects are vital, fascinating, weird and wonderful. They are food, pollinators, recyclers, pest controllers, and much more, so we should be deeply concerned that they are in rapid decline. Some solutions: mow your garden less, plant native wildflowers and reimagine those weeds as wildflowers!

In the afternoon, students had an examination technique session followed by Helen Pilcher discussing dilemmas posed by modern day conservation. There are only two northern white rhinos left. Saving them will involve some cutting-edge biology, but it’s going to be challenging and very expensive. It also uses pluripotent stem cells which Y13s have been learning about. The jury was out on whether we should conserve them. The last lecture by James Piercy explained how understanding blood clotting has driven the improvement in halving the number of people dying from major trauma, and how current research is aiming to save even more lives.

The event was stimulating and gave students an insight into where you can go with further studies in Biology. Many students were taking notes and I hope some were inspired to read more about the topics covered and to plant more wildflowers.

Chemistry in Action

On Monday 4 December, Year 12 chemistry students attended the Chemistry in Action conference at the Emmanuel Centre in London. It was a great day, where we had the opportunity to listen to many people who pursued careers in Chemistry talk about their chosen specialisations in great detail. I found the Nuclear scientist to be the most interesting, as he talked through applications of radioactivity and nuclear fission in depth. I really enjoyed the whole experience and it definitely helped to open my eyes to a future in Chemistry.

Charlie P - Year 12

Computing In Action

Sixth form Computer Scientists attended the Computer Science in Action event at the Emmanuel Centre. They learned about topics such as developing Smart Cities, the race for Quantum Computing, behind the scenes of App Development, AI and the details of UX design. They also learned more about exam technique and strategy from an experienced A Level examiner.

Overall, a great day of learning and extending the curriculum was had by all. The day also showcased the endless career possibilities that come with Computer Science and the students were full of enthusiasm and buzzing about the future afterwards.

Psychology In Action

On Monday 11 December, Year 13 Psychology visited the Emmanuel Centre in Central London for a ‘Psychology in Action’ conference.

There was a range of intriguing psychologists and researchers presenting their ideas and work, from using zebrafish to look at sleep to selfdriving cars and their future. For example, Lasana Harris, Professor at UCL, shared concepts of anthropomorphism, the perception of things as human such as geometric shapes assorted in a certain manner, or even a lamp, such as in the famous IKEA advert. This was extremely fascinating as most people never think about the way we ‘humanise’ still objects, and especially when we think about new AI advances in the future, which was covered by Harris in the talk.

Furthermore, a Revision Skills section was included in the middle of the conference, presented by Nate Rae, which included diving into techniques such as mind palaces, fun mnemonics and even rhymes or songs. This was extremely useful, and definitely allowed everyone in the room to explore new fun ways to revise.

Nuria B

I am very privileged to have enriched my knowledge and understanding of certain topics outside the classroom. One of my favourite talks was linked to biopsychology and highlighted the versatility zebrafish can offer in research involving the sleep wake cycle. Advantageous features of the zebrafish included optical transparency, which allowed researchers to analyse real time neuronal activity. With this information, they can accurately identify key components in our brain that play a vital role in the regulation of hormones such as melatonin and how this impacts a person’s sleep wake cycle. Overall, I found this trip to be quite fun and recommend that students should attend these lectures in the future.

Vincent

Q

EPQ Visit to the University of Westminster

Our EPQ students visited the University of Westminster to take part in a research skills workshop led by Dr Doug Specht. They learned how to better structure their research question and objectives. They also used the university online research database to access a range of resources that would not otherwise be accessible to them. They returned to College with a plethora of journal articles, statistical reports and literature, which will extend their research base for completion of their EPQ projects.

Year 12 STEM Visit to Thorpe Park

30 of our budding engineers, scientists and mathematicians participated in our Y12 Physics and Maths trip to Thorpe Park. In our Maths and Physics lessons before the trip, students selected a research question which they could investigate as part of the trip, such as how the g-forces experienced vary with position within the passenger carriages, or how the acceleration of Detonator compares to gravity. They also learned about motion graphs and SUVAT equations in the Mechanics topics of both Maths and Physics. During our visit, students collected data using mobile phone apps such as PhyPhox to support their investigations, and were able to try out lots of the rides (generally without queueing for too long!). There are a wide range of careers in ride design, engineering and maintenance into which students gained an insight as part of the afternoon.

Philosophy and Ethics Conference

On Friday 1 March, the Year 12 and 13 Philosophers travelled to London for a conference led by Dr Peter Vardy. Upon arrival at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, after a brief walk from Waterloo station, Vardy began the day. The first lecture was on the Problem of Evil and Suffering and whether God could possibly be good in the face of this. This was followed by the ethics of Natural Moral Law, and the day culminated in a group debate, evaluating whether our own conscience is a good moral guide.

Vardy was an excellent speaker, engaging the audience with questions that allowed us to explore the course and formulate our own viewpoints. As a Year 12 Philosophy student, this lecture was especially useful to find out more about the course and what I will do next year as well as cementing my own knowledge of topics we had already done. Moreover, this event helped me to confirm that university was for me, as the day was structured similarly to a university lecture.

Archie E, Year 12

PolEcon Conference

On Monday 11 March, the Year 12 and 13 politics students attended PolEcon alongside 2,000 students from schools all across the country. PolEcon was a conference that invited students to participate, as at the end of every talk students were invited to an open microphone where they could ask questions. The first talk was delivered by Wes Streeting and focused on the NHS and the state of healthcare in the UK; immediately after, Lord Dubs delivered a very inspiring talk about his background and path to politics. Shortly after, Baroness Chakrabarti read a chapter from her book, 'Human Rights', and was then followed by Richard Tice, leader of Reform UK. This was a particularly interesting session as Reform UK is a party that is growing in popularity, so students were able to ask questions about its views and policies as a party. Furthermore, Sir Jacob Reece Mogg came on stage and was very impactful.

Later in the afternoon, Liberal Democrat MP, Sarah Olney, gave us her personal insight into her experiences as an MP; her session was very encouraging for young girls aspiring to enter politics, especially as she was once the only the only female MP for her party. Zack Polanski, a politician for the Green party, was a particular crowd pleasure due to his progressive and engaging views regarding equality, the environment and peace in Gaza. The day ended with a live Q&A, 'Rest is Politics'; questions were answered by Rory Stewart and Alistair Campbell, and after the session students could attend a book signing.

Overall, PolEcon was a very dynamic conference to attend, and was structured in a way that enabled students to engage with a variety of politicians and political views. It was also beneficial to hear the differing views of politicians from different parties, especially with the upcoming 2024 elections.

Imogen F and Evie B - Sixth Form Students

Visits to BMW / Mini Factory

On Monday 25 March, all the Business A Level students visited the Mini production facility in Oxford. Students and staff enjoyed a tour of the whole production plant. It was fascinating to see the mechanisation and use of robots in the process. The size of the factory was huge and there were very few people working on the shop floor. Students learnt about ‘closed cell production’ and ‘open cell production’ and the tour guides were brilliant. Iain had worked at the factory for over 40 years and said their labour turnover was one of the lowest on the planet. Every 67 seconds, a new Mini comes off the production line with a quick ‘beep’ of the horn as a final check.

This day trip aims to provide our students with practical insights into business operations and management, enhancing their understanding of real-world business practices. Thank you to Mrs Nash and Mr Gore for joining us for the day.

Year 12 Chemists visit to Southampton University

On Monday 24 June, Year 12 Chemistry students travelled to the Chemistry Department at the University of Southampton to take part in a twilight practical session. They were accompanied by Mr Hartland and Mr Rowe. Students were presented with the challenge of extracting myristicin from nutmeg, using techniques such as solvent extraction and recrystallisation. This involved use of apparatus, such as rotary evaporators, not normally found in schools. They then checked the purity of their extracted compound using techniques such as thin layer chromatography, melting point determination and infrared spectroscopy. All techniques used are integral to the A Level Chemistry syllabus. This was a fantastic and enjoyable experience for all involved and enabled students to practice techniques that are part of their practical endorsement, and which may be tested in the final examinations.

Oxford University

On Friday 8 March, a group of Year 12 students had the opportunity to visit Oxford University accompanied by Mr Rowe and Mrs Grover. The aim of the visit was for them to discover more about university life and the Oxbridge application process. Professor George Smith, Emeritus Professor of Materials Science and Salesian Alumnus, kindly hosted us.

Our day started with an introduction to the university and tour around Trinity College. The students enjoyed the opportunity to ask questions about life at Oxford and the application process. We then visited St Mary’s Church (The University Church) where we climbed the tower and were rewarded with a spectacular view over Oxford. This was followed by a delicious lunch at Trinity College.

In the afternoon, we visited the Materials Science department, where we had an admissions talk and a question-andanswer session with current Oxford students both undergraduate and postgraduates. Our Year 12 physicists were particularly keen to discuss the students' research with them. We then had a tour of the department and observed scanning electron microscopes and atom probe tomography. This was a fascinating insight into the structure of materials at an atomic level. The students were all very engaged and asked excellent questions.

The students left with a greater awareness of the application process and a view into life at Oxford University. Professor Smith commented on what a talented group of students they are and wishes them well with any applications.

Student perspective:

We were very lucky to have been able to visit Trinity College Oxford, with Professor George Smith an old boy from the college. We ate lunch in the college and had a tour, with conversations regarding general and college admissions. We then went to the Materials Science department and saw some very expensive electron microscopes. Overall, it was a great day and we were all very grateful to have been able to go.

Arthur H

Residential

Year 7 Activity Weekend

On the school residential trip to Tregoyd, I and the rest of year 7 were given an abundance of incredible opportunities, each one being a unique adventure of its own. The coach journey there was kept exciting by the amazing views and being able to sit with your friends and socialise by talking, playing games and sharing a bag of sweets or two! Once we had arrived at Tregoyd House, we were able to settle into to our dormitories and then the real fun started.

We did a whole range of activities during our time away, many of which were new to everyone. Highlights included archery, survivor, abseiling, silent disco, rifle shooting, climbing, zipwire and raft building, to only name a few. My personal favourite was probably raft building. It helped that we had great weather, which meant I was quite happy to go in the water in order to help my team win, although it was still freezing! We were given a lovely breakfast, lunch and dinner to keep you fuelled with delicious food for the day. There was not a dull night either as from nine thirty you were given the time to get ready for bed and could have fun with your room-mates before lights out at 10:30.

I think we all developed new skills as a result of our time away, teamwork, resilience and communication being just some of them. Whilst it was sad to leave, I was always carry the memories that I made with me and I would definitely recommend it to future students. I would like to thank all the staff that went with us for giving up some of their half term to give us this opportunity.

Edward R – Year 7 St Bede’s

Year 8 Paris Visit

On Saturday 22 June, 68 Year 8s (a record number!) set off on a four-day voyage to Paris. We spent a very busy Sunday sight-seeing, taking in the Montparnasse Tower, the Eiffel Tower in all its Olympic glory, a boat trip on the Seine, the Sacré-Coeur and finally Montmartre, stopping to fit in a quick ice cream en route! It was exciting to see all the preparations underway for the Olympic Games starting in just a few weeks' time! We finished off the evening with a round of bowling at the local bowling alley.

Monday was Parc Astérix Day - great fun had by all on the rides and attractions. On Tuesday, we journeyed home via a trip to a real French bakery for a croissant workshop with the Scary Baker! A very tired but happy group arrived home, just in time to catch the end of the England match!

Year 7, look out for your chance to sign up to next year’s visit early in September!

Year 10 French Tour

The French Department took a group of Year 10 students to Normandy from 16th to 20th February 2024. We stayed at Château de la Baudonnière in Normandy where students were encouraged to listen and practise their French from the moment they arrived, to the moment they left. The residential trip was fantastic. The students worked together to make bread and participate in activities such as orienteering, outdoor games and archery. All activities allowed the students to develop their understanding of French culture and language. We also went to a French market and visited places such as the Mont Saint-Michel, Bayeux Tapestry and Colleville-sur-Mer where we visited the American Cemetery. We all enjoyed a programme of activities led entirely in French and we brought back great memories from this visit.

Year 9 Battlefields

We were delighted to be able to take our Year 9 students on the Battlefields Tour in October 2023. We followed an arduous programme; however, I hope that they all feel much more informed and aware of the events of the Western Front during 1914-18.

Our four tour guides were excellent and enabled the boys to gain a much deeper understanding of the experience of conflict in World War One. Four students, all with relatives who were buried or missing on the Western Front, had the privilege of taking part in the Wreath Laying as part of the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate at Ypres. We were also delighted to conclude our Tour with a special Service of Remembrance inside the Ring of Remembrance at the largest French Great War Cemetery at Notre-Dame de Lorette. The International Memorial (Ring of Remembrance) which opened in 2014 – a staggering memorial with over 580,000 names from all nations being remembered. Father Andrew Ebrahim SBD led our worship, and the students kept the service booklet on the day. A framed poster of the tour is in the process of being produced for the History corridor, which includes the whole Year and Form photographs of all the boys who took part.

I hope the Tour made a real impression on your son and that because of this he will want to know more in the future about the importance of remembrance. I am also hoping that he will be even more interested in joining future tours at the College, thus maintaining this interest throughout his life.

Year 10 Geography

The Year 10 Geography students recently went on a visit to Dorset for their fieldwork section of their GCSE, investigating coasts and the effects of rural deprivation.

We left school early on Friday morning and drove straight down to Swanage, where we were doing our field work for the day. When we first arrived, we were greeted by our two guides from the hostel were we staying, and who would also be leading our field work. After we had been introduced, we got straight to work, looking at coastal management strategies on Swanage beach. After a hard day’s work, we stopped in Swanage to buy ice cream, which was absolutely delicious, and then headed back to Leeson House, where we were staying, where we were greeted with a delicious hot meal. Once we had finished dinner, we went for a walk along the Jurassic Coast, looking at different features of the cliff.

The next morning, we set off bright and early (after devouring a cooked breakfast) to continue our fieldwork, this time investigating the effect of rural deprivation on the small villages of Langton Matravers and Corfe Castle, which we assessed judging on the number of local services, such as transport links, doctor’s surgeries and shops. In the afternoon, we then went and looked at significant geographical features nearby, such as Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door, and ate more ice cream!

On Sunday, the final day of the visit we visited a nearby outdoor waterpark, which was lots of fun, with lots of jumping and flipping into the water, and general chaos. After that we drove back home, with almost everyone having a short nap in the bus, having been so exhausted from the long weekend of fun.

I would like to thank on behalf of all the students all the staff who went on the visit or who were involved in organising it, including Mr Gore, Dr Toal, Mrs Leforte, Mrs Payne and finally Ms Day, who although was not able to come, played a key role in organising the visit.

Will B

NASA Visit Summer 2024

Houston, we have lift off! At exactly 06:15am, we began our journey to NASA, Houston, Texas. 32 students from Year 9 and 10 were about to spend 8 days in Texas visiting the Space centre, but first: a 9 hour flight!

We arrived in Texas to our phones notifying us of England's noble defeat in the Euros - not the start to the trip we were hoping for! However, things soon improved as we headed out for our first meal: Wagu burgers!

After our first evening, the rest of the visit followed a similar pattern. Students had a 6:00am wake-up call and breakfast at 06:30am, a popular breakfast being waffles in the shape of Texas smothered in cream, syrup and, of course, sprinkles. After breakfast, we headed to the Space Centre. On our first morning, we took a tour of the NASA site, including seeing the Saturn 5 launch vehicle and the famous Mission Control Centre used for the Apollo 11 moon landing.

Afterwards, we were enrolled in NASA's Space University for the rest of the week. During that time, students successfully took part in STEM based workshop where they built and coded robots, designed a Mars habitat, created and tested thermo tiles, and built rockets.

Teachers also took part in these sessions, but the less said about our attempts, the better! During a particularly stormy afternoon, the students were also able to try SCUBA diving in a local pool.

Students were set numerous challenges they had to complete in groups whilst under water.

In the evenings, we got to experience more of Texas, including putting our best foot forward in a line dancing class, trying the rides at the Kemah Boardwalk and most importantly, venturing into a Wallmart.

An enjoyable time was had by all, and students came away with a much broader understanding of the role of STEM subjects within the aerospace industry.

Classics Tour of Rome

During the October half term, students from Year 9 – 13 who are studying Classics, had the opportunity to visit Rome. The tour included all the famous landmarks such as the fascinating Colosseum, Pantheon and Vatican City to name but a few.

However, the opportunity to analyse the GCSE / A Level sites and artefacts of Classical Rome gave us the rare opportunity to interpret the deeper connotations of their mythical / political contexts. Ms Vandenberg’s students taught us about Domitian’s hippodrome (the modern Piazza Navona), while Dr Toal took us to his old place of study to enlighten our cultural and theological understanding. Ms O’Brien’s students led superb appraisals of the Temples of Portunus and Hercules.

The cross curricular links between Classics and RE were well explored during our visit to the impressive Vatican museums, perfectly rounded off with the world-famous Sistine Chapel

Congratulations to everyone involved in making this a superb educational visit.

Year 12 Leadership Weekend

In late September we had the chance as a year to go on a trip to Swanage, an annual visit for year 12s at the start of the year. This was a great chance to connect with many new people whilst also getting the opportunity to bond with my existing friends, such as spending quality time with my form during exciting activities like abseiling and climbing, which I thoroughly enjoyed. This trip has provided great memories for everyone in our year, and we are all looking forward to our next whole year trip to Lourdes. Arian M

I enjoyed the Swanage trip because we did fun activities like rock climbing, high ropes and archery. In addition, I learnt more about the new people in the Sixth Form and made some new friends. My favourite thing we did in the trip was the rock climbing. Jacob C

Towards the start of the year, the entirety of Year 12 were given the fantastic chance to bond and grow together at a residential trip in Swanage. From facing fears on the high ropes, demonstrating teamwork and support in rock climbing and relaxing in the common room in the time in between, we were all able to create connections that wouldn't have been made otherwise. It was a highly impactful experience that has shaped life at the College going forward.

Dami A

Year 12 Spanish Exchange

Language is the outward expression of a nation's spirit. The annual Spanish Exchange Programme is a confluence between Spanish and English cultures, facilitated by each respective Salesian school. Having spent a week in Spanish households between 12 and 19 of December, our students gained an authentic understanding of what it would be like to live and study in Spain. The programme has been organised since 2004 in conjunction with Salesians Sarria in Barcelona. Amongst many activities, our cohort was given a tour of the College, attended lessons in a variety of subjects in Spanish, and enjoyed cultural visits to Sitges, Tibidabo, Don Bosco's House and the Sanctuary of Mary Help of Christians. Salesian families were incredibly generous and took very good care of their exchange visitors. We are very grateful to Xavier Brines and Francisco Alamo, the Headmasters, and Laura Ramirez, the Head of International Relations, for their warm welcome. It was a truly amazing experience nurtured by the Salesian ethos, "el carisma", a language uniting us all for a better world"

We have recently welcomed the Spanish Exchange 2024 from Barcelona. Spanish students spent a week with families and enjoyed a full programme of activities, including time at the College and visiting different locations such as Oxford and London. It has been a great week and we are proud of this project between Salesian College Farnborough and Salesian College Sarria, which has been running for twenty years. This exchange is a Salesian exchange between two Salesian Schools and it has been very special to share our common ethos "el carisma" as well as to improve the linguistic competence and cultural awareness of the students involved. We are grateful for the welcome and support of both schools and we are looking forward to visit them back in Barcelona next academic year with the new Lower Sixth Spanish cohort.

Psychology Visit to Vienna

A group of us went to Vienna for 3 days for a Psychology visit. One of the key highlights of the visit was the Victor Frankl Museum, in this museum we were able to interact with his work and did this through an exhibition. We were able to participate in watching videos about Victor Frankl with an interviewer who discussed his thoughts on why meaning matters and about finding meaning in life. Victor Frankl developed logotherapy, a psychotherapeutic approach that focuses on finding personal meaning in life, this linked in with our social influence topic we are currently studying.

Megan B - Sixth Form Student

We visited the Sigmund Freud Museum on the second day. This was a particularly invaluable experience as the museum is situated in his former home and working space. Here, we were able to explore the ongoing history of the influence of Freud's life and work. The museum held a detailed and extensive exhibition, of which the focus on Freud's Psychodynamic approach and theories, were particularly useful within the context of our studies.

One of my highlights of going to Vienna was the Archives of the Austrian Resistance, where our tour guide focussed on the development of Hitler's annexation on Austria and how the Jewish population were negatively impacted from this power shift in the late 1930s. I personally found this visit to be quite interesting because we were able to link our knowledge on social influence to events that happened in the past.

Madeleine T - Sixth Form Student

Vincent Q - Sixth Form Student

Biology Field Course 2023

On the hottest days of the ninth month, behold: A Level adventurers set out to explore the verdant hills and waterways of Surrey. Seven and ten students, dispersed in two minibuses, left the hallowed halls of Salesian College and travelled to the Field Study Council’s Juniper Hall, at the base of Box Hill.

Once the site for expelled nobility from revolutionary France, the house is set amongst ponds and woodland. In the pond, snails were decorated in glittering nail varnish to estimate their number; in the woodland, humane traps were filled with straw, crushed apples and mushed insect pupae to entice shy mice and voles after dark. Quadrats were placed randomly - but with care - to help assess the diverse plant populations that inhabited the ground shaded by tall beeches and birch. And abiotic factors – too many to list here – were recorded, the better to scientifically understand the distribution of vegetation. After a night filled with moths and tawny owls, the travellers worked on their Core Practical alongside the sparkling River Tillingbourne. Again, much measuring was done, samples taken, and photographs captured of the larvae of mayflies, stoneflies and non-biting midges whilst herons, Red Admiral butterflies and Common darter dragonflies floated around the students.

Finally, under the cover of the capacious gazebo set in Juniper Hall’s lawn, the final sessions were conducted; the Sun’s heat ameliorated by gentle zephyrs fanning furrowed brows.

The students did themselves proud by their efforts, attitude and attention to detail, and it is always a pleasure to do this trip.

Lower Sixth Geography Visit to Dorset

The Year 12 Geographers enjoyed three days of preparation for their NEA investigation which allows them to make a ‘deep dive’ into one small aspect of Geography. During this visit, they had the opportunity to explore and collect data in a diverse variety of coastal landscapes; ranging from the sand dunes of Studland, the world famous Lulworth Cove / Durdle Door area and the rapidly eroding cliffs of Christchurch Bay. To accommodate the human geographers, we also spent a day investigating if Poundbury (King Charles’ vision of a sustainable residential environment) met its goals in improving quality of life for residents.

As is so often the case, the students fully embraced the opportunity to get ‘hands-on’ with the real world, only breaking for the obligatory ice cream! It is hoped the experiences shared will help with their A-level and provide inspiration for further travels.

British experience of Warfare Tour to Belgium and France

This was the first time we have run this History visit, and we were delighted with the outcome. The purpose of the tour was to bring the A-level history syllabus to “life”, and to provide many of our historians from Years 11-13 a chance to expand the depth of their knowledge, not only in preparation for their A-level exams, but also to deepen their love and interest in the subject. We designed the tour to encompass Britain fighting the French in the Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars, culminating in the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, followed by a study of the British Experience of Warfare on the Western Front 1914-18.

This tour replaced our traditional visit to Russia and will alternate with our History tour to Berlin in the future.

We departed from the College early on the morning of Friday 9 February 2024 and returned late on Monday 12 February 2024. The tour was arranged by Anglia Tours, and we were expertly led once more by Andy Wallace from their organisation. Many of our students had the opportunity to go on a pilgrimage to visit the last resting place of their relatives who had sadly been killed in World War One.

All of the students were impeccably behaved, and they were a credit to the College. Thank you also to the staff who gave up part of their half-term holiday to accompany the students on this tour.

Physics Visit to CERN

On our first day of the CERN trip, we visited the Swiss Plasma Centre, where we witnessed a live plasma burst in the Tokamak. It was incredible to see the power of plasma up close and learn about its potential in fusion

We spent a whole day at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. We had a guided tour of the data centre and SM18, where they test magnets for the Large Hadron Collider. It was incredible to see the technology behind one of the biggest scientific experiments in history. The World Wide Web was created at CERN and we learned about this in the data centre.

During our downtime, we went on a treasure hunt around the historic parts of Geneva and went bowling. We also had a chance to try delicious Swiss cheese fondue for dinner. Visiting the Jet d'Eau was the perfect end to our trip, seeing the iconic water fountain shoot up into the sky.

Overall, the trip was not only educational but also really fun. And who knows, maybe one day some of us will have careers at CERN, contributing to groundbreaking discoveries in physics!

Careers Careers Fair

On Friday 29 September, Salesian College hosted the first Careers Fair for all years in its history. The feedback received has been excellent and it was a very good opportunity for our students who attended talks from different areas and talk to the professionals in the Hall. The atmosphere and engagement were brilliant, and we had such a great breadth of visitors. With the future of Careers steering towards work-based opportunities combined with academic learning and wide information about technical and academic routes, we were proud to offer an excellent all age careers service as we are encouraging our students to make the most of their individual talents.

Taste of Frimley

Seven Year 11 and Year 12 students attended the Taste of Frimley event at Frimley Park Hospital. This event presented students interested in careers in medicine with the opportunity to explore various options through a series of lectures and tours in the hospital. The evening highlighted the benefits of volunteering for both the hospital and patients and the students. Four mini lectures followed where students were introduced to a doctor, a nurse, a healthcare scientist, and a surgeon. After the lectures, students were given guided tours to various departments; our students went to the Radiology department, the Physiotherapy department and nursing. Many thanks to Frimley Park Hospital for hosting us again and giving our students this opportunity.

Year 13 Medicine and Dentistry Mock

Our prospective Medicine and Dentistry students in Year 13 took part in a mock Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) circuit. They had the opportunity to experience an MMI interview to prepare them for forthcoming interviews in December and January. They were tested on a range of areas including role play, teamwork, personal attributes, motivation to study medicine, medical ethics, and insight into the NHS. This was followed up by a feedback session where we discussed their strengths and weaknesses and areas for improvement. The students had all prepared well and found the experience very useful. Thanks to Dom Spencer in Year 13 for helping with the role plays.

Year 13 Mock Oxbridge interviews

Year 13 students who have applied to Oxford and Cambridge took part in mock interviews. Students have been questioned about their personal statements, areas of further reading and pushed to think about areas beyond the A-level course. They have been developing skills in ‘thinking out loud’ and verbalizing their thought processes to interviewers. Interviews have taken place in a range of subjects including Politics, Classics, Economics, and Engineering. We wish them the best of luck with the interview process.

Salesian Inspires

British Airways Pilot

Mr Conor Jackson, Alumnus, gave us a fantastic presentation on a day in the life of a British Airways pilot. It was a very clear insight about the steps to follow if you wish to pursuit a career in aviation. The room was fully attended by enthusiastic students, and, at the end of the talk, Mr Jackson answered many questions relating to the career. There was a real buzz and interest in the room. We were delighted to see Connor again, very proud of his professional trajectory, and very grateful for his time with us again.

Careers In Languages

Jack Heath, College alumnus, visited us recently to deliver a Salesian Inspires talk about how Spanish and Modern Foreign Languages open doors and broaden horizons. Jack spoke about his background, about what does a BA Language Degree entails, the benefits, plans after university, possible careers and the world of work. This talk connected well with the previous Year 10 taster days in Spanish lessons and the recent visit of the Spanish Exchange from Salesian College Sarria in Barcelona, by offering a myriad of options if choosing to study Spanish at A Level and showed the impact of using languages in your future career. We congratulate Jack on his first class degree in Spanish (Estudios Hispánicos) from Leeds University and wish him well in his immediate plans.

Well done Jack!

Careers In Property

Careers in property offer a diverse range of opportunities within the housing market. Whether you’re interested in legal aspects, sales, or management. Mr Jeremy Metcalfe, partner at Hollis Hockley LLP and Miss Freddie Chandler, apprentice, gave us a talk about "A Career in Property - Chartered Surveying: What do they do? How do you get into the industry?’. It was an excellent occasion to inform the boys about a different career and to welcome Jeremy and Freddie, both Alumni.

Careers At Philips

As part of the Careers Programme, Salesian Inspires, Mrs Cardona organised for Mrs Longworth, from Philips to come and speak to all of Year 9 and some Business & Economic Sixth Form students to talk to us about Philips. It was a very informative presentation, helping us to understand the history of the company and some of the diverse and important areas the company is involved in. I was impressed to learn about all the innovative products the company produces and how many of these products help treat people in hospitals and that Philips makes a big difference to millions of people’s lives around the world.

I found Mrs Longworth's presentation on Philips and its professional journey to be both insightful and captivating. I gained valuable information about Philips' work and their early career prospects, such as their degree apprenticeship and early graduate programs. Many thanks to Mrs Longworth for making the time to come and speak to us.

Ashish N Year 12

Work Experience

All Year 10 students at the College went on Work Experience Week from 24 – 28 June. The majority of our students had an in-person experience with companies and a small proportion had the experience virtually, on-line, with structured programmes and video conferences as well as projects facilitated by companies via the digital platform Springpod.

In-person experiences were amazing by providing wonderful opportunities of work skills development, practice and demonstration. Students had a variety of activities to complete, presentations and meetings to attend. Students’ targets were listening, speaking, problem solving, staying positive, aiming high, leadership and teamwork. Feedback received from employers and pupils has been brilliant.

Following a Review Day, students agreed that they developed communication, leadership, independence, teamwork and problem-solving skills during the week, and it had an impact on aiming high ambitions, gaining greater focus and confidence in their ability and future prospects.

It has been a very successful week in many areas, and we are most grateful to our teachers for visiting the boys while in work experience.

Salesian College celebrates GCSE success!

Salesian College parents, boys and teachers were extremely proud and excited to receive some outstanding GCSE results on Thursday morning 22 August 2024. This cohort have faced a disrupted secondary school experience but students at Salesian College have, however, surpassed previous levels of attainment with 79% of students achieving grades 9-7.

85% of all grades were 5-9 71% of all grades were 6-9

The top performing students this year were Shaurya C. and Henry S. who achieved the perfect score of 10 top grades (10x9). Close behind were Liam G (9x9,2x8), Rhys D. (9x9,1x7), Sparsh M. (8x9,1x8,1x7), William S. (8x9,1x8,1x7), Leon T. (7x9,3x8), Nicholas F. (6x9,4x8,1x6), Henry T. (5x9,3x8,2x7,1x5) and Tami O. (3x9,6x8,1x7,1x4) who completed the ‘top ten’ students. These only reflect the pinnacle of the work of all of those students who have done very well and who should be very pleased and proud of their achievements.

Mr Owens commented “The GCSE results achieved by all the boys in Year 11 at Salesian College are, once again, a great credit to the boys and staff who have worked so hard in partnership together. At a time when grades have been harder to achieve across the board we are very happy to have again maintained excellent results. Parents are naturally delighted and the College is very proud that a year group and individuals who have achieved so well in sport, cultural events and many aspects of school life have now achieved such brilliant GCSE results. These follow the excellent pass rate at A level achieved at Salesian College last week.

We look forward to welcoming the boys back into the Coeducational Sixth Form where they can look forward with confidence to their A-level studies and preparation for University and later life.”

Salesian College Celebrates Excellent A Level Results

The College once again celebrated excellent A level results with 90% of grades awarded in the A*-C range. The academic achievement of the students’ further builds on the enviable reputation that the College enjoys as one of the highest achieving co-educational sixth form providers in Hampshire. The average results per student are AAB.

This summer’s Year 13 cohort saw 74% of the grades achieved at A*-B in three or more A Levels. Of particular note are the excellent proportion of Year 13 students who achieved three or more A* or A grades each with 40% of grades at A* or A and a quarter of students attaining at least one A* result. First amongst these was Edward S. who attained four A* grades and takes up his place at the University of Bristol to read Aerospace Engineering. Also worthy of particular mention are three other students who all achieved three A* grades to secure their respective places to study Medicine: Lucia G. (Christ Church College, Oxford), Duncan M-B (Bristol University) and Ruben R. (King’s College, London). Other very high performing students include Jack L. 3 A* grades (Maths, Bath). Harry B (Law, Bristol), Annabelle L.(Business Management, Exeter) and John M.(Medicine, Exeter) who each attained 2 A* and 1A grade. Maxsen L. 1A* 2A & 1B (Physics with Astrophysics, Manchester), Haydn W. 1 A* & 2A (Business Economics, Exeter), Adam C. 3 A grades (Paleontology and Archelogy, Bristol), Harry L. 2A & 2B grades (Aeronautics & Astronautics, Southampton) and Jacob B. (History & Philosophy, Warwick), Rufus B. (History, Durham), Sam B. (International Social & Public Policy, LSE), Eve M. (Politics & International Relations, Edinburgh), William N. (Economics, Bristol) and Harry S. who all achieved A*AB. A good number more students achieved at least grades AAB or equivalent and all of these, along with the vast majority of their colleagues, will be taking up places at an impressive range of top universities this autumn.

The Headmaster, congratulated students on their achievements, “Salesian College is proud to have a Sixth Form which provides a wide range of opportunities alongside the achievement of outstanding academic results. I congratulate all our young men and women who have added so much to the life of the College. Whilst we rightly congratulate our students who have attained the top grades, it is equally important to celebrate the achievements of all of the students who have worked so hard to maximise their potential and meet their respective university offers. I thank the staff for all their hard work and commitment to student success. I wish all of our leaving students the very best of luck as they progress to university and I look forward to seeing them back on Prize Night on Friday 22 November.”

We are a church …where Gospel values and the presence of God in our lives is shared, understood, accepted and lived out in daily life.

Mass of Dedication

In the first week, we gathered as a school community to celebrate our Mass of Dedication for the new school year. This was a joyous occasion as we look forward to the opportunities and experiences that we will all share with each other in the year to come. Fr Pat encouraged us to reflect on the ways in which we will dedicate ourselves to the year ahead, ensuring we all give of our very best at all times.

Our student leaders led the College in the readings of the Mass and we are grateful to Angelo A, Eve M and Euan B as they remind us what it is to be a Salesian and to be an example to all.

Our Mass ended with a rousing rendition of the School Song and a message for us all to fully embrace the opportunities we will have this year, and to always give of our very best; for ourselves and each other.

Mass of Remembrance

On Friday 10 November, we came together to remember those who had made the ultimate sacrifice in conflict. We were honoured to be joined for our Remembrance Mass by The Very Reverend, Vicar and Dean, Fr Nick Gosnall.

Our service of Remembrance began as staff and students gathered together accompanied by the orchestra playing a piece of music, The End of the Watch (Eight Bells) which was composed by Ethan B in 9D. An introduction to the Mass took place with Rohit (9H), Sam (9D) and Ansh (9H) recalling key moments from their recent trips to the Battlefields of World War One.

Fr Nick and Fr Pat guided us through the celebration of the Mass, ably supported by altar servers Thomas (9A), Oliver (9A), Jude (9B), Joseph (9H) and Nicolas (9H). The choir and orchestra provided a beautifully sombre expression of reflection throughout. Our readers, senior students, Euan, Rachel and Ruben, alongside Harrison (9B), Ebube (9B) and Jonas (9D) were excellent and examples to the rest of the school.

Our ceremony of Remembrance took place with Ella McD in Year 12 playing The Last Post as we entered a period of silence to reflect on the lives of the fallen. The silence was broken by Ella playing Reveille. Our service of Remembrance continued as the Headmaster and Angelo and Eve, our School Captain and Head Girl, processed for the laying and blessing of the wreath. Mr Owens then read the Roll of Honour of former Salesian students who lost their lives in World War One.

The College community observed the service of Remembrance with solemnity and respect throughout.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.

Mass for the Feast of Saint John Bosco

On Friday 26 January, we gathered as a community to celebrate the Feast of St John Bosco. Our Year 7 students took the lead for the first time as they led us in an introduction to the life of Don Bosco. They reminded us of the legacy that he has left throughout the world, particularly the inspiration he had on the life of Sean Devereux. We were delighted to be joined for Mass by Mr Mark Chatterton, a former student and one of Sean's school friends. Mr Chatterton is a Trustee of the Sean Devereux Children's Fund, and he was presented with a cheque by our Year 7s from their Run For Sean that they took part in before Christmas. Our Mass then began with the entrance hymn, 'Here I am Lord' and Fr Pat, as ever, enthusiastically celebrated the Mass with us all. He was ably supported by Our 6th Form Liturgy coordinator, Angelo A, who organised and prepared our altar servers, William C, Patrick N and Deacon M. Year 7 students supported Fr Pat in the readings and bidding prayers. We are very proud of these boys for their time in preparing and reading so well for us all. A significant day for the College and for Salesians all over the world as we pause to remember the influence that Don Bosco has had on us all.

Mary Help of Christians

On Wednesday 8 May, the College community gathered to celebrate the important Salesian feast day of Mary Help of Christians. For many years, this has been known by our Year 12 students as 'the Lourdes Mass' as this is their opportunity to bring the spirit of Lourdes back to the rest of the school whilst remembering the influence of Mary.

Our Mass began with an introduction from Dami, Amie, Arthur, George and Megan as they talked about their experience of Lourdes at Easter with HCPT. They were able to demonstrate to the rest of the school a snapshot of what they did on the pilgrimage, from serving the pilgrims at the torchlight procession and Trust Mass, to helping the family groups push wheelchairs or face paint. The sentiment was relayed with accuracy; that the spirit of Lourdes is one of fun and service to others.

Our Mass was led as ever by Fr Pat who kept us all in time with the singing and actions! Our Year 12 students continued to take the lead with our banner carriers, Brogan and Joe, and the readings by Archie, Ed, Javier and Phoebe. The school hall was filled with joyous music led by Mr Cassidy and those who have been to Lourdes led the way in the animation. Our Mass culminated in traditional Lourdes fashion with an enthusiastic rendition of 'Rise and Shine'. It is hoped that the younger students now have a greater insight into what a pilgrimage to Lourdes is like and can look forward to their turn in Year 12!

We were able at this Mass to give particular thanks to Mr Crean, who went to Lourdes with HCPT with the first ever group from Salesian College in 1998. Mr Crean is an example of service to others, and he was presented with a gift from this, his final pilgrimage group. This was also the final whole school Mass for our Year 13 students and we are particularly grateful to our liturgy coordinators, Vincent and Angelo, as they helped to prepare our altar servers for one final time. We are grateful too to Nick, also in Year 13, for his service as a Eucharistic Minister, leading by example to those around him. We wish them all well for their exams and the future.

Mass for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

On Friday 8 December, we gathered to celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception; a day in the Catholic Church when Mary being born without original sin is remembered. This is also a most significant day for the Salesian family as it is believed to be the day, in 1841, that Don Bosco's vision of working with the young first came to fruition through his meeting with Bartholomew Garelli as he was preparing to say Mass.

After Mr Owens reminded us of the importance of this feast day for our Salesian community, we reflected, through the words of our CAFOD Young Leaders, on how we can all lead our lives in the service of those around us as we follow the example of Don Bosco.

We were led through the celebration of the Mass by Fr Pat. He was ably supported by our new Year 7 altar servers, Edward M, Daniel C, Zachary Z, Jake K, Rafa S, Nikko C, Freddie S and Edward Y. They have spent time with Fr Pat and our Liturgy coordinator, Vincent, in preparing for this important role. We were guided through the Liturgy of the Word by Dami A and George M, Krish B, Owen T and Roshan S, who all read with sincerity of heart.

Easter Liturgy

On Holy Thursday, we gathered as a community for our Easter liturgy. Our CAFOD Young Leaders, Archie, Phoebe, Rohan, Amil, Jemima, Ella, Ed and Poppy, led us through our reflections on the Stations of the Cross. This was a solemn and moving experience for all as we were reminded of the suffering that Jesus went through on his final journey. Our CAFOD Young Leaders, using teachings from Pope Francis, reminded us of how each station resonates with us all today. At every stage of Jesus' final journey we reflect on our own lives, our own struggles and ways we can be better people in and for the world around us.

Mass of Thanksgiving

As a College community, we gathered to celebrate Mass and to give thanks as the academic year draws to a close.

Our senior students, Archie, Ella, Dami, Rohan and Evie, led us in the first reading and responsorial psalm. We also heard from students in Years 7-10 who had volunteered to represent their year group; Xavier in Year 7; Sanjeev in Year 8; Rohit in Year 9 and Daniil in Year 10. We are grateful to the Year 8 altar servers as they supported Fr Pat during the Mass. All students involved in the celebration of the Eucharist were excellent and a credit to the school.

As we reflected on the year that has been, Fr Pat, in his homily, reminded us of the importance of giving thanks; of being grateful for what we have and the experiences we have shared together this year. He encouraged us all to be ambassadors for Christ, to see the Kingdom of God on earth as we continue the mission of Don Bosco.

Our Mass ended with a rousing rendition of Jerusalem before we enjoyed a photo montage that looked back over the many wonderful memories that have been made this year. All students and staff look forward to a very welldeserved rest over the summer holidays and it is with genuine fondness that we look forward to making more memories next year.

Visit of Fr Roman Jachimowicz SDB

On Monday 13 and Tuesday 14 November, Fr Roman was with the Salesian community in Farnborough. His job title is ‘Regional Councillor for Northern and Central Europe’ and his task is to report back to the Salesian headquarters in Rome on Salesian activity in Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Great Britain, Germany, Ireland, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine and Hungary. His territory runs from the west of Ireland to Siberia!

Fr Roman made a short visit to the College on the Tuesday morning, meeting Mr Owens and the senior student leadership team. He was very impressed with the family spirit in the College and the strength of the Salesian ethos. Later, he enjoyed an evening meal with the Salesian priests and brothers and eleven recently appointed members of the College staff in Saint John Bosco House.

HCPT Carol Service at Westminster Cathedral

Our choir had a wonderful experience representing Salesian College at the HCPT Christmas Carol service at Westminster Cathedral.

"Singing at Westminster Cathedral was such an amazing experience and was filled with joy. We practiced and in the end it paid of whilst we were singing in the huge cathedral. It was an experience that I will never forget but remember it fondly".

Z - Year 7

Festival of Readings and Carols

The annual Festival of Readings and Carols is the best way to start the Christmas festivities. Last night our Orchestra, Choir's and Readers put on an amazing performance to entertain us all.

Zachary

Year 8

Retreats

Year 7

All of Year 7 enjoyed their first form retreats this week as they ventured to the local parish Church, Our Lady Help of Christians. Here they were able to spend time getting to know each other, to reflect on their first half term at Salesian College, and ultimately to have fun! They were joined each day by 6th Form members of their House. Everyone was very grateful to our Year 12 and Year 13 students for giving of their time and the Year 7s were able to learn from them and their experiences. Each form reflected on their values and began looking ahead to their futures, even writing a letter to themselves to open in Year 11! A fitting end to a wonderful first half term for our Year 7s.

On a wet and autumnal morning in October, the whole of Year 8 ventured aboard two buses to the wonderful Saint Cassain's retreat centre in Kintbury, Berkshire. Accompanied by Fr. Sherlock, Ms Lindquist and the Year 8 tutor team, the students enjoyed a day of prayerful reflection and timeout. The themes of community and friendship were explored by the students and they had opportunities to think about how these important themes inform their lives. The retreat team at Saint Cassain's centre led the day and reminded the boys of the importance of reconciliation and forgiveness too. The day culminated in a communal liturgy, where students paused once again to offer thanks and prepare to integrate their learning from the day into their lives. The beautiful grounds of Saint Cassains made for a lively lunchtime too, with students playing football, climbing trees and ambling through the gardens. At Salesian, we value hugely the opportunities for reflection and this day was a welcome experience in the midst of a busy and fruitful term.

Year 9

At the start of the day, we went into the chapel where we spent time reflecting in prayer on the day ahead in a liturgy led by Fr Pat. We were told our groups and spent the morning going round several workshops. We looked at Holocaust memorials around the world, which allowed us to see how people looked at the Holocaust from different perspectives. After that, we had an interesting presentation about the Salesians of Auschwitz, and each of their stories. This was delivered by Dr Alasdair Richardson, who is also a former student. The final workshops were on the value of survivor testimonies, and how they will soon not be alive to tell their stories so we need to value them. The final session was on Holocaust art and was led by Mr Bannister, who shared his grandfather's story with us in how he was involved in liberating one of the camps. After lunch, we finished off the day with a talk from a second-generation Holocaust survivor, Michelle Richman, who talked about her father Zigi who lived through the Holocaust, spending time in several camps including Auschwitz. His story was eye opening because it showed us a different view and what he actually went through. Sadly, Zigi died last January but his family are continuing to tell his story so that future generations continue to learn. Michelle told us that Zigi always ended his talks with the message to not hate and that he spread joy to all he met. I think this is a valuable lesson for us all.

Sammy C - Year 9 student

Year 10

On the 30 April, all of Year 10 participated in our annual retreat day away from school at the Franciscan centre Ladywell in Godalming. This trip allowed us to take a pause on our usual busy life and to slow down and reflect on our lives as a whole. We spoke about who we are as individuals and the different personalities which we each possess. We also participated in Mass led by Father Pat where many students, including Rosko and I, partook in various readings.

In the afternoon, we were able to look back at the year we have had and acknowledge the accomplishments, challenges and memories made in Year 10, allowing us to realise how far we have come from the start of the year. We also got the chance to listen to an inspiring story of one of the staff at the centre who talked about his life in Ghana and how he was unsure of where it would lead him to in the future. This linked to our task of talking about our future plans and what we are hoping to achieve and do in the future; from what subjects we want to do for A level and what sixth forms we want to go to, to speaking about what careers we aspire to work in. There were some ambitious aspirations found in my group which was great to see!

Overall, I would say the retreat was a great success as it allowed us to remember the part of the year that has passed but also made us aware that the future is not too distant and we were able to start thinking about what we might want to do in the future!

Patrick N and Rosko H 10A

Year 11

On Friday 22 March, Year 11 ventured out for their final retreat as a cohort. After a short journey, we arrived at Ladywell Franciscan Centre in Godalming. The day began with a reflective look back over their time since Year 7 with some entertaining photographs through the years. Students then received the letter that they had written to themselves on their Year 7 retreat day, which triggered interesting and humorous reminders of the years gone by. After reflecting on where it all began, students had the opportunity to consider how their characters have developed as they have matured as well as gain an insight into how others see them. We had the privilege of celebrating Mass together in the beautiful Chapel, their final Mass together as a year group. The afternoon was spent looking ahead and thinking about their Salesian footprint, reflecting on how their Salesian journey has shaped them and will continue to inform the choices that they make and the impact they will have on the world. Naturally, the day was punctuated by intense football matches with Mr Maher and Mr Gore at the centre! Some competitive games of Uno and time to explore the beautiful surroundings made for an enjoyable day for all.

Sixth Form

Year 13 enjoyed a retreat day together at Waverley Abbey House yesterday. Some activities for reflection and affirmation, followed by an enjoyable walk to Tilford.

CAFOD young Leaders

On Tuesday 23 January, the CAFOD Young Leaders were invited to take part in our second training day, this however this time online. We spent the morning in Valdocco House, accompanied by Mr Dalgas and Brother Martin, joined online by the other schools from the Portsmouth Diocese, many who we had met at our in-person training day in November, and two from other dioceses across the country.

After a prayer to start the day, each group presented what they had achieved so far in their roles as Young Leaders, detailing successes, failures and ideas for the future. After a difficult start with the technology, with the help of Mr Draper we were able to present what we had achieved so far in our roles, alongside being inspired by what the other schools had accomplished. As the morning progressed, we were led by prompts to inspire us in ideas for future campaigns such as tackling food poverty and the cost-of-living crisis, and we were excited to come up with many new ideas for future fundraising initiatives. We finished the morning suitably inspired, and we were reminded of CAFOD’s values and about their Lent campaign which we will be supporting. We want to thank everyone for supporting CAFOD so far, and we encourage you to look out for our future charity events.

Ella M - Year 12 Student

The Community

This academic year saw the retirement of Fr Tony Sultana as Parish Priest of Our Lady and St Dominic’s and the appointment of Fr Anthony Lobo as his successor, Fr Peter Brealey was appointed Provincial Economer, but remains a member of our Community.

Br Michael Delmer, headmaster of the College from 1983 to 1997, celebrated his 90th birthday, joining Fr Aidan Murray and Fr Peter Quinn in their tenth decade of life.

At the other end of the age scale, Br Steven Koso left us for a while to work with Syrian refugees in Istanbul, and Br Martin Pushparaj joined us. He has been much appreciated in the Community, Parish and College and his name appears several times in this magazine.

Each year we like to invite recently appointed members of staff to share a meal with our Community. This year eleven teachers and support staff took up the invitation and got to know more about us and our history.

On May 1st, we celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the opening of Saint John Bosco House. Fr Gerry Briody, our Provincial, came to preside at the Mass. The guests of honour at the festive meal which followed were our domestic staff, who do so much to make our house a real home.

The Anniversary was also marked by a new sign in white on a bold, blue background. This replaced the old one, which was prone to losing letters in stormy weather.

The Province retreat was held at Hinsley Hall in Leeds. Those who could not attend in person followed the talks online. Our preacher was Archbishop Tim Costelloe, from Perth in Australia. The Archbishop is a Salesian, and he was very happy to spend the week as a ‘brother among brothers’. At the end of the retreat he made of point of visiting his online retreatants in Farnborough.

Fr Pat Sherlock SDB

Lourdes

We were once again in Lourdes this year with Hosanna House Children's Pilgrimage Trust (HCPT), with our enthusiastic and committed young people, and we were pleasantly surprised by the volume of pilgrims attending, especially the large number of family groups who had returned to Lourdes in great numbers.

Our Year 12s worked very hard in preparation for their Pilgrimage and gave up a lot of their free time for training, and I would like to thank them for their commitment and dedication to this cause. I am confident that they found this worthwhile as they brought so much joy and love to hundreds of children over Easter.

Here is an extract from one of our students who attended the Pilgrimage, which sums up her experiences of Lourdes.

"My favourite aspect of Lourdes was the atmosphere of the place. Anywhere you go, there will be an HCPT group dressed in their bright group colours singing songs and laughing. My friend and I joined in on one of the groups songs that they were singing, on our way to an HCPT job. I can firmly state that Lourdes and my HCPT family was the most accepting, care-free experience that I have ever participated in."

Amie G Year 12

This year we were joined by a number of staff who were attending the Pilgrimage for the first time. Here are some of the thoughts from Mrs Longo and Miss Gomes.

This year, we had the privilege of joining the annual pilgrimage to Lourdes with our wonderful group of year 12s. When looking back at these precious experiences, it is difficult to choose the best moments to highlight. It was inspiring and humbling to witness our Year 12s grow in their willingness to be helpful. They brought joy to many children and received beaming signs of love which we hope they will treasure forever!

The whole experience contributed to helping us feel and become a more integral part of the Salesian community which we have recently joined; it is one we will always hold dear in our hearts.

Finally, I would like to thank all the staff who gave up some of their valuable holiday to accompany our young men and women on their pilgrimage. Without their support, this trip would not be possible. I would also like to thank Mrs Bourke, Mrs Jackson and the Administration Team for their incredible hard work organising from behind the scenes.

Mr P Dalgas - Assistant Headteacher

Charity

The academic year started brightly with lots of charitable opportunities taking place within the College. In October, Year 7 organised and raised donations for their annual ‘Run For Sean’ event in aid of the Sean Devereux Children’s Fund which is always an early highlight in the school calendar. This event raised over £2,500!

In early November, we held our Mass of Remembrance at school. As a college, we raised over £700 towards the Poppy Appeal. Our Sixth Form and Year 10 charity reps did a fantastic job going around the forms selling poppies and wristbands for this.

Step by Step is a local charity that supports homeless people in the area. All of Year 12 were invited to sleep out on the night of the Festival of Readings and Carols in aid of this charity and to experience what life is like for homeless people. They raised £1,800 for this local charity all whilst sleeping out that night.

On Wednesday 22nd November, Jayden in Year 10 ran a charity football tournament after school at the playing fields raising money for the Sean Devereux Children’s Fund. There were 40 students playing on the evening, a brilliant tuck shop, and a significant amount of money raised.

The following week, students, staff and parents across the school helped run various stalls at the Christmas Fayre. These were excellent and raised over £2000 for SHARE, CAFOD, HCPT, SDCF, War Child, Cancer Research, Great Ormond Street, Caring Matters Now and Mercy Ships.

Our Christmas food collection supported the Vine Centre, a charity in Aldershot supporting local residents with a variety of physical and mental needs. All forms contributed to this collection and a team of staff and sixth form helpers delivered the food items in early December to the Vine Centre. Year 9 St Dunstan’s collected the most amount of food this year and won a prize for all their efforts.

Our last initiative of 2023 saw staff and students dressing up in their Christmas jumpers for Save the Children on the final week of term. It was fantastic to see so many students getting into the Christmas spirit and donating towards an incredibly important cause, raising £860.

The Spring term's big charity event was our 6th Form Fundraising Week, raising over £1,200 for St John's Ambulance and the RNLI. Each of our four house charity coordinators were responsible for running a different event throughout the week, including a staff car wash, bake sale, mufti day and CPR challenge amongst others. This was a fantastic week of fundraising headed up by Duncan, our school Charity Chairperson.

In the lead up to Easter, CAFOD's Hire a Helper Day took place inspired by the Lent season of giving up something. Year 7-9 students went to the refectory at break time to 'auction' on a Year 12 helper to take care of their every need for the rest of the day. Carrying their bags, taking notes within lessons and going to early lunch were all part of their role for the day. All 40 sixth formers had bids placed, the most expensive going for £30! This fantastic initiative raised £363.25 and was led by our CAFOD Young Leaders.

At the end of the may half term, Mr Gore and his trusty 4 legged companion, Georgie, set off on a 100km walk across the Surrey Hills to raise money for SHARE. Mr Gore was inspired to fundraise ahead of his visit to Zambia in July. This walk raised an incredible £4552!

Three weeks before the end of term came the PTA Summer Fayre. A number of form charity reps from Year 7-10 ran stalls and games across the afternoon, raising money for SHARE, CAFOD, Sean Devereux Children’s Fund and the Brain Tumour Charity.

Across this year, students, staff and parents have raised over £20,000 for a wide range of charities, and made a significant impact in many people's lives. Thank you to everyone who has been involved in fundraising this year, and I am looking forward to seeing even more people play a part in our school's charity work next year.

SHARE visit to Zambia

The SHARE group spent over two weeks visiting Zambia. They were joined by students from the Salesian school in Sarria, Barcelona and stayed at the City of Joy orphanage in Mazabuka. The group worked with the children and met former students as well and hearing how the support from funds raised through SHARE has continued to help these young people pursue education and careers.

As well as teaching some lessons, they played football against Don Bosco FC, helped at Mrs Mweete's porridge club and carried out essential repairs to the faculties. They also spent time at the Flamboyant School which caters for 130 children with special educational needs, where they did some arts and crafts activities and pledged to help support the vocational training projects which the school runs.

The group also travelled to Livingstone to see the Victoria Falls and then entered Botswana for safari in Chobe National park.

We are a playground

…..We actively encourage all our students to participate in a rich and varied enrichment programme, to develop themselves and friendships that will last a lifetime, along with wonderful memories and experiences.

Ski Trip

This Easter, Years 7-10 went to La Plagne, France for the 2024 ski trip. We left from school at 7.00 in the morning, and, after a full day travelling, when we got to the resort, we sorted out our rooms, ate and then got our skis fitted for the next day. This was probably the best and most efficient ski fit you have ever seen!

Every day, we got up at 7:45 for breakfast and got ready for the day. There were four groups, all level based, beginner, lower intermediate, upper intermediate and advanced. We could not have asked for better weather, with snowfall happening on the first few evenings leaving fresh powder ready to be skied! Both upper intermediate and advanced spent most of their time off-piste and ripping through the powder, with the beginner and lower intermediate groups honing their turning and control. Our instructors were amazing, and we all had a great time skiing, everyone had their fair share of laughs and crashes.

Most groups went to the snow park at least once and some people may have even wiped out, in the park (or off a jump into powder). After skiing, the fun didn’t stop either –we were allowed to go into town and spend our pocket money. When we got back we had a bit of free time then went down for dinner, after we would have a room inspection (I don’t

think the teachers liked my room). We would finish the day with our evening activity - one night we went bowling, another we went to a restaurant and others we did bingo and a quiz at the hotel.

Overall, we had an amazing time, and we were very lucky with the weather, I am very grateful to Mr Priest and the staff for organising it and am equally excited for next year.

William S - Year 10 Saint Bede's

Theatre Visits

Life of Pi

On Tuesday 3 October, a group of students in Years 7 to 13 went to the New Victoria Theatre in Woking to watch ‘Life of Pi’.

Based on the novel by Yann Martel, and adapted for the stage by Lolita Chakrabarti, ‘Life of Pi’ follows the optimistic young Pi. His world is full of the weird and wonderful as he lives at a zoo in Pondicherry, India. Due to unrest in India, the family immigrate to Canada. With their animals in tow, they board a cargo ship headed to the West. Disaster strikes in the form of a shipwreck which sees Pi stranded on a lifeboat with Richard Parker, a Bengal tiger. It really was a gripping story!

When discussing the highlights of the show with students, we unanimously agreed that the undisputed stars of the show were Andrzej Goulding’s video projections, Tim Lutkin’s lighting, Carolyn Downing’s sound and Tim Hatley’s magical set. It was a feast for the eyes! Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell’s masterful puppetry also contributed to the frightening yet playful nature of the creatures.

Metamorphosis

On Tuesday 21 November, we went to see Frantic Assembly's new show, Metamorphosis. We took Year 10, 12 and 13 Drama students to the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford to see this new adaptation by Lemn Sissay OBE. The director of the play and Artistic Director of Frantic Assembly, Scott Graham was also in to see the show. Mrs Townsend went up to congratulate him on an excellent performance and thanked him for inspiring our students through the work Frantic Assembly do in supporting Drama students.

The dialogue was a lyrical and poetic feast for the eats and the physical theatre was flawless. Felipe Pacheco was impressive as the troubled and changing Gregor. Felipe has been into Salesian to deliver a workshop a few years ago and both the play and workshop were a testament to his talent and ability - he did not disappoint. Hopefully, this show was something different and a little abstract for the students to see to influence their upcoming work on devising.

Music

Salesian Musicians Perform at Local Schools

A group of musicians from Years 9, 10 and 12 had a pleasant visit to St Peter’s and St Patrick’s Schools in Farnborough. After the wonderful start of an early lunch, we left at 12.30 on a sunny walk to St Peter’s School. Upon our arrival, we were welcomed by their friendly school dog, Humphrey! We were treated to medleys from Matilda and Moana performed by their school choir. At St Patrick’s School, we performed in front of the whole school and they sang a hymn to us. Our line up consisted of Will, Oisin, Theo and Josh who performed The Pink Panther for us with a quartet consisting of trombone, flute, trumpet and piano. Next was Toby, who played a piece called Tarantella on the piano. Then Jem Morton performed on electric guitar, playing a funk song. Finally, Jacob and I performed a guitar duet with an acoustic version of the song “End Of The Rainbow” by Jesse Clegg. Thank you to Father Pat who led the trip with the Music staff and led the opening prayer.

Seb C - Year 12 - Music Captain

Battle of The Bands

On Sunday 4 February, a band of musicians from our Rock and Pop group performed in ‘Battle of the Bands’ at Prior’s Field School, along with twelve other schools from the surrounding area. Seb, Jacob, Caleb, Leon and Rex played two songs to a packed hall. They were well received by the audience and the adjudicators. Rex explains: "The man gave the last group a round of applause before booming “Now it will be Salesian College.” My teeth chattered, my legs went stiff and my arms heavy, but once I sat on the drum seat, drummed for ‘Play that Funky Music’ I felt great! Then for the second song ‘Drag me down’, I stood up by the microphone and waited for Seb to start singing. I joined in and sang my heart out and heard a crowd of people sing along with me. There was clapping and whistling and, looking back on it, I was nervous but now it feels like I could do it a million times more."

Our thanks to Mr Cox (bass guitar teacher) and Mr Wills (drum kit teacher) for coaching the Rock and Pop group. If any instrumentalists or vocalists are interested in joining the group, then please see Mr Cassidy or Mrs Price.

St Peter’s Church Concert

On Wednesday 22 May, several Year 7, 8 and 9 musicians from Salesian College were invited to perform in a joint concert held in St Peter’s Church. The event was hosted by St Peter’s School and students from The Wavell School also played and sang.

We left the College at 12:10 and walked to the church. When we arrived, we had a swift sound check and helped the school set up the audience chairs. Shortly after, the concert started, with some of St Peter’s pupils playing a piece of music before the students of our school orchestra played an ABBA medley. We then accompanied St Peter’s School choir as they sang ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight'. Later in the programme, our Year 9 Jazz Band took the stage performing ‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’. The music went on for the whole afternoon, with a wide range of pieces, including a recorder group. Thank you to Father Pat who accompanied us along with the Music staff. The concert was exceptional, and I am so happy that I took part.

Ethan 9D (Percussionist)

Rock & Pop

In March, we had a wonderful evening where our talented musicians were able to perform their 'Rock & Pop' talents in front of an audience. Students from all year groups took to the stage and provided us all with a fantastic concert.

The 39 Steps

This year, we chose a comedy to start the extra-curricular calendar with a well needed laugh: The 39 Steps! Sometimes, I think it is a bit of a ‘joke’ trying to put a play on in only two months and it certainly is a challenge, but luckily the only jokes and laughs have come from the students and their comic genius and dedication to entertain the audience! This year has also been Dom Spencer’s directing debut, taking the lead in working with the actors (and numerous production tasks too!) and what a great job he has done. We honestly could not have done it without his hard work and ‘can-do’ attitude.

Stand out moments from both performances included Annabella’s latenight confessions to Hannay, the police chase on the Edinburgh train and the confrontation with Professor Jordan –who knew you could hide a gun under a hat?! We also must mention the handcuffed scenes between Hannay and Pamela – thoroughly engaging acting from our Sixth Formers as always. I’ve had feedback that the Scottish accents were flawless or was that passable? I can’t remember!

Salesian Showcase

Friday 24 November saw the return of Salesian Showcase in College Hall, offering up a range of excellent performances from students in Years 7-13. At this point I have been legally bound by the Comperes of the evening to state what a ‘fantastic job they did’! All joking aside, they guided the audience through the performance with humour and confidence; they did a superb job. There were so many highlights from the evening that it is so hard to choose a standout performance, however, Mrs Morrisson was thrilled to see so many Year 7 students taking part in an assured and competent way. The Sixth Form bands opened both Acts with both well loved and original songs, there were great instrumentalists in all years and even some original devised work from students in Year 7 and 8. There are always a few technical hitches, but the audience came along for the ride and I hope they enjoyed themselves. And so, another show down, we find ourselves embarking on the next school production!

Charlie and The Chocolate Factory

This year saw a more traditional and well know musical grace the stages of College Hall, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. We knew it would be a popular choice with the recent release of ‘Wonka’ in 2023, but little did we know just how popular! Over 100 students signed up to be either on the stage or behind it, we were absolutely thrilled with the response. The audition process saw students in all year groups improvise short scenes in their chosen character and I cannot convey how difficult they made casting the show. The amount of talent and ability was just outstanding. We were also pleased to see so many female students take part this year and hope this continues to grow year after year. The Principal Cast were incredible role models to the younger students and this is what I love about Salesian – the support of the Arts really does bring the students together.

The rehearsal process was thoroughly enjoyable, a particular highlight being our choreographer, Sophie Burrows, working with so many Year 7 students putting together the Oompa Loompa dances – something students and staff are still commenting on. We had our largest cohort of Year 7 students this year and their enthusiasm and commitment was an inspiration. I love talking to Year 5 and 6 students on their induction and taster days as so many see our students in the shows, and this encourages them to have the confidence to take part when they join in September. I always hear, “it looks like they are having so much fun and I want to do that!”

The school production is such a huge event in the calendar of the Drama and Music departments, but this year was particularly special as the Art department also designed and helped build, paint and dress the set. Mr Bannister’s creativity and dedication helped to elevate the sets alongside our hugely talented Maintenance Team who are always at the centre of the school production - in a multitude of ways. We can’t thank all those who helped in any way this year as it was wonderful to be a part of such a dedicated and generous team.

Creative Arts Festival

During the week beginning 17 June, Salesian College Music Department organised several events as part of our annual Creative Arts Festival; a huge thank you and well done to all those students who took part. It was great to see students from Year 7 through to Year 13 all involved. Here are some students’ thoughts about the festival week:

The Creative Arts Festival was really fun! I was fortunate enough to perform in the first concert which featured performances from Year 10 to Year 13 students and included the Bosco Brothers; this was my debut singing with them. I am the newest Bosco Brother: we sang "Sh-boom" and it went really well. Besides our act, there were lots of other great acts. This was an amazing experience and I hope to do this again next year. Thanks to all the people who performed and to the tech crew and Mr Draper, Mrs Price and Mr Cassidy for making this possible

On Tuesday evening, the Creative Arts Festival Concert was held for students from Years 7 to 9. There was a variety of genres performed including LAMDA, classical music, and even some film clips with music composed by Year 9 students! The school orchestra also took part and performed a Medley of pieces by ABBA including Mamma Mia and Waterloo, and many students performed in a group or solo. It was a wonderful opportunity for us to display what we have been working on in lessons, rehearsals or on our own over the past year and was very enjoyable for everybody involved.

Ebube U 9B

Oisin M 9B

On Thursday afternoon, some members of the orchestra and other musicians had the opportunity to help to lead a workshop for around twenty Year 6 pupils from South Farnborough School. To compose and perform a piece of film music, first we watched a clip from the cartoon “Tom and Jerry”. We then helped them with their instruments and ideas to create a piece of music that matched the clip. Pupils brought a variety of instruments, and others played the keyboard. At the end, we heard all the pieces with the clip, and they were all particularly good. I was glad to take the opportunity to improve my confidence and help the Year 6 pupils to develop their musical and compositional ability.

On Friday, all of the Year 7 students, along with a group of Year 8 to 12 musicians, had an exciting time at the Indonesian Gamelan workshop. We were able to try out many different instruments in the Gamelan Orchestra, ably led by one of Hampshire Music Service tutors. It was my second year playing this and we progressed to playing three pieces within the hour session. It was a great experience, and we were very fortunate to be able to have the beautiful gamelan instruments in school to play.

Samuel L 9D

Theo D 9D

Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Day Walk

This was the first practical and outside activity for the majority of Year 10 students to enjoy. As I arrived at the start point on a windy Friday morning, I could tell the students were excited for the activities that lay ahead of them, instead of being inside the classroom. As my group and another group joined up to start our walk, the sun matched our morale as the rays came gleaming down on us. Our first kilometre consisted of us learning the basics of map reading and understanding our surroundings which my group got to grips with quickly! As we continued through the morning, we enjoyed the journey with a mixture of fun and learning.

After a 5km walk, we completed the first of two circuits and it was time for lunch. Little did we know that the weather had other ideas about the peaceful and calm lunch we had planned as the heavens opened and the wind whistled past us. We sought shelter under some trees, while the leaders prepared for the afternoon ahead.

Following our ‘refreshing' lunch we set out on our final circuit for the day, mainly focusing on our independent application of map/ navigation skills and resolving emergency situations. As the rain continued lashing down our morale matched the weather as we trudged through the mud; however, mine was quickly lightened after watching a member of my group slipping over constantly due to his interesting footwear choice! Once we had completed the bulk of our journey in the rain, we took cover and refuelled, and, thankfully, the weather returned to its former glory as the end drew near.

With our energy levels low but morale high, we pushed through the last route of the day. As the other group stormed ahead with determination to get back first, I noticed a shortcut our group could take to arrive back at the car park first and, after some group discussion, we decided to take it. In the end it paid off and, only a few minutes after, we arrived back at the start point, victorious!

Subsequently, once all the groups had arrived back at the start point, I asked the others how their day went and it was all positive feedback. As our parents came to pick us up, one by one, we rested after a long day's walk. Our gratitude goes to all of the teachers and staff who gave up their time to teach us. We are all looking forward to the experience of our Practice Expedition next!

Extra-Curricular Clubs

STEM

STEM club is a fun activity filled session running after-school for Y7 and Y8 students. They participate in a range of different activities, including making flashing Christmas trees, dissecting squid, finding magic numbers, engineering problem solving and nature photography.

Students enjoy participating in the activities and working in groups to develop their analysis skills. They have the opportunity to conduct experiments or activities they would not normally encounter in their lessons such as making playdough or exploding rockets.

Debating

Debating Club enjoyed another successful year as one of the college's most popular lunchtime clubs. Students of all year groups convened once a week to debate topical issues, ranging from election politics to school lunches. James PearceMolland, the outgoing captain, commented: "It has been a privilege to oversee the growth of debating in the college.

Ancient Greek Club

This club is for Year 8 and above. The begin by learning this new alphabet with vocabulary before starting translation. Students have the option to enter for the Intermediate Greek Certificate at the end of a year, a qualification recognised by universities.

Maths Workshop

Students from all year groups can attend Maths workshop, on a drop-in basis, to receive additional support with homework or develop mathematical skills. This is agreat opportunity for our older students to support boys from the lower school to consolidate their own learning.

Chess Club

Chess club is open to all students, beginners and more advanced players, for friendly matches and development opportunities. Our chess club is very successful, please see the article about the Oakmoor Gambit in the ‘School’ section of this magazine.

Dungeons and Dragons Club

We run Dungeons and Dragons club on Fridays after school 4-5 pm where students can turn their imagination to the max and roleplay as their favourite characters that they make themselves, whether it is a mighty barbarian warrior, a sneaky rogue, or a powerful mage or a wizard. They adventure in fantasy setting, slaying dragons, saving princes and princesses and finding rare treasure and magical artifacts!

It is a nice place to meet new people and start friendships that last for life!

The club accepts students from year groups Year 7 to

Manga Club

Year 7 boys have created their own Manga graphic novel, designing their own characters and storyline using influences from Japanese Anime, Manga and pop culture.

Rocket Club

Rocket Club have completed their first build, ready for test launching over the holidays. The nose cone was 3D printed by Tyler, and the design and making of the body, parachute, fins and motor holder by Tobi, Will B, Will S and Rosko. Fingers crossed that we have a successful maiden launch!

Year 10 Rocket club continues with the second iteration of our design (the first test barely left the launch pad!) With an improved launch system and support for the motor, we had greater success, with approximately 10 meters in flight height before the wind destabilised a slightly top heavy design, causing it to spiral out of control with the parachute failing to deploy. Iteration 3 coming soon...

Drama Club

This year has seen the largest turn out of students attending Drama Club than ever before. Demand was so high we had to split the year groups into two sessions, one on Tuesday and one on Thursday lunchtime. During the 30mins we meet each week, we complete tasks ranging from games, improvisations, pieces inspired by a stimulus, classroom extension work and looking at how to include greater creativity into their classwork. Above all else, it is time for the students to do what they love to do - tell stories, have fun and make each other laugh.

Sports

Basketball

This year 44 games were played with 32 wins, scoring 1751 points and conceding 1104.

The Year 7 squad had a solid first season together winning 4 out of 7 games played, the Year 8 squad also had 4 wins from 7 games played, the Year 9 squad achieved league and cup double! The Year 10 squad won 3 of 6 matches and finished third in the league.

The Year 11 squad won 9 games from 9 scoring 567 points and conceding just 196 meaning a points difference of +371 - an incredible unbeaten 5-year journey!

Cross Country

The Senior Squad finished 7th in the English Schools Regional Finals, and won the district competition, with William S coming second. The Intermediate Team had individual and team success and finished second at the district championships. The Junior Squad also had a great inaugural season, with Year 7 and 8 both coming second at the Junior District Championships.

Netball

This year the league was decided on points difference with Salesian level with The Oratory at the top of the table. In total the girls scored 135 points and conceded 96 in the league, with Oratory just pipping us to the title. The girls took part in the end of season netball tournament at Shiplake finishing third overall.

Swimming

The ISA regional championships at Surrey Sports Park saw the squad bring home 22 medals. At The National ISA finals London West won the event. Of special mention goes to Malachy P Year 8 as part of the freestyle relay team that won bronze, Ryan G bronze in the intermediate breaststroke and double gold as part of the relay squads. Arkar H silver in the senior butterfly and double gold in both the relays.

Rugby

The College has enjoyed a good rugby season; 58 matches were played with 32 wins and 2 draws, scoring 1491 points.

In their first season at the College, Year 7A developed well as the season went on, ending with a record of 4 wins and a draw from 8 games played. 7B played 4 games, winning 1 of the 4 matches they played. This was a 20-10 win over Glyn. Year 8A played 9 matches, won 2 and drew 1. The B squad had a challenging season winning 1 of the 4 games they played. Year 9 played 8 games and won 5, showing determination to keep going until the end in several matches. Year 10 achieved an incredible 9 wins from 11 matches and secured a place in the County Cup Final. Year 11 competed in the County Cup, and also focused their development to representing the College in the U18 squad. The senior squad played 8 matches with 5 wins and 3 losses.

During the rugby 7s season in March, a total of 32 matches were played, with squads winning 19 and drawing 2 of the matches. The Year 7, 8 and 9 squads competed in the Farnham 7s with both the Year 7 and 9 squads winning the title!

Table Tennis

Table-tennis continues to flourish and be enjoyed by many students. The College U13 squad of Roy C, Elias M, Oliver P, Kartikay B and Rafe S become Hampshire champions and reached the semi-finals of the National Championships.

Football

Football continues to be a very successful sport at the College with 171 games played this season, 621 goals scored and 320 conceded. There were 113 wins and 14 draws, giving a very healthy 74% win/draw ratio.

Year 7A had a very good first season together playing 20 games, winning 17 and drawing 1, scoring 105 goals. They went unbeaten winning the district league, came runners up in the District Cup and got to the quarter-final of the County Cup.

Captain Rafe S scored 27 goals, with Timi O and David O scoring 19 each and Edward S 18. Year 7B played 16 games winning 5 and drawing 4, scoring 48 goals. The boys finished mid-table in the league and lost 9-8 on penalties in the B team Cup semi-final. Year 7C team won 3 of their 6 matches.

The Year 8A team played 16 games winning 7 and drawing 1, scoring 42 goals. Charlie B scored 15 goals with Jack F scoring 8. They finished mid-table in the league and lost out in the District Cup semi-final against Tomlinscote in a tight game. Year 8B had a tough season but made progress and several losses were narrow as they won 1 game of 6, drawing 1 and losing 4.

Year 9A had another brilliant season, winning the league and reaching the District Cup final which they lost on penalties to All Hallows. They also played in the County Cup final but lost to The Mountbatten who scored 2 late goals. In total they played 23 matches, winning 17, drawing 3 and losing 3, scoring 98 goals. Adrian O scored 38 goals from 16 games, with 14 goals from Charlie C, 9 from Alex E and 7 from Ethan K. Year 9B lost lots of games due to the weather sadly winning 2 of the 4 games they played.

The Year 10 squad had a great start to the season, winning the district league with 10 wins from 16 matches. Year 10B played 4 games, won 2 and drew 1.

Year 11 won all their league matches and reached the District and County Cup finals. Unfortunately, they lost the District Cup on penalties and to Bohunt in the County Cup. They ended the season with 12 wins from 14, scoring 68 goals, Alex F with 17, Lewis M 14 and JP 6. A fantastic squad with memories for life at the end of their Year 11 careers.

The Senior Squads had an amazing season with all four squads winning the league and Cup doubles, a first in Salesian College history!

Cricket

Our teams collectively played 47 cricket matches played from AprilJuly, with 30 wins. Squads have done well in their district leagues with Year 7, 8 and 9 finishing runners-up. Year 7 made it to the plate final of the County Cup, and Year 8 to the County Cup final. Year 9 got to the quarter-final, and Year 10 the semi-final of the County Cup. Year 10 won the district league, winning all their games, with a season record of 10 wins from 11 games.

Tennis

Boys have been involved with the district league and the senior squad was in the Aegon league. Students have represented the College across Y7-13 with more competing for places during regular weekly training at school with staff and tennis coach James Vass. Year 7 won their league with Year 8, 9 and 10 coming runners-up.

Golf

In October, 11 students from Y7 to Y13 represented Salesian in the Hampshire Schools' Individual Golf Championships at Hockley GC. They all played well in challenging conditions for all players. Both Lucas L and Max F won prizes. Lucas came third in the best net score with a 67. Max went one better and came second on countback with a net 66. Well done to everyone involved.

The Annual Salesian Golf Championships were played at the Army Golf Course in June, with 29 students taking part on a gloriously sunny afternoon. The senior competition was won by Edward Bostock for the second year running with Alexander K and Alex Y joint second. The senior net winner was also Edward with Sean G second & Jay M third.

The junior competition was won by Nikolai W also for the second year running, with Keeyan F runner up & Max F third. Keeyan won the junior net for the second year in a row with Reuben C runner up & Oliver M third.

Inter Salesian National Athletics

The Year 7 squad on their athletics debuts performed exceptionally well, winning the year group title with gold medals from Callum E, Gerasimos N and Rafe S. The Year 8 squad also won the year group title with some magnificent performances, gold medals came from Reuben H, Harry S (2), Demilade F and the relay squad. Year 9 also won their group, with gold medals for Rafferty B, Lewis B, Rupert B, Abongwa N, Nikolai W, Archie S, Adrian O and the relay team. Year 10 finished 2nd in their group, with gold medal performances from Luke M, Deacon M, Casper H, Max W and Rosko H. When all the points were added up the boys had won the inter Salesian title AGAIN. An amazing achievement to win the overall boys title for the last 11 years.

Sports Day

Salesian College Sports Day was once again at the Aldershot Military Athletics Stadium. It was a wonderful afternoon of athletics, with full participation and enjoyment from all, and great to have so many parents and friends along to watch and enjoy too! Congratulations to everyone who participated in the track and field events, to the record breakers, and the overall team champions: St Dunstan's.

A special mention for the incredible support shown to Kartikay in Year 7 on crossing the line in the 1500m - true Salesian spirit by all.

And farewell to Mr Smith and Mr Crean who retire at the end of the academic year. Thank you for all of your support, encouragement and commitment to this event over the past 40 years!

Salesian College Sports Day 2024 Record breakers!

•Year 10 - Deacon - 400m - old 54.18 new 52.8

•Senior - Archie - 400m - old 55.20 new 50.97

•Year 8 - Zafar - High Jump - old 1.47m new 1.50m

•Year 10 - Rosko - High Jump - old 1.66m new 1.67m

•Year 8 - Demi - Shot - old 10.85m new 10.92m

•Year 10 - Theo - Long Jump - old 5.65m new 6.05m

The House results were as follows:

Year 7

1st Dunstan's 2nd Bede's 3rd Aidan's 4th Hugh's

Year 8

1st Aidan's 2nd Dunstan's 3rd Hugh's 4th Bede's

Year 9

1st Aidan's 2nd Dunstan's 3rd Hugh's 4th Bede's

Year 10

1st Aidan's 2nd Bede's 3rd Hugh's 4th Dunstan's

Senior (Boys & Girls) 1st Hugh's 2nd Dunstan's 3rd Bede's 4th Aidan's

Overall Lester Shield 1st Dunstan's 2nd Aidan's 3rd Hugh's 4th Bede's

Inter House Sports

2023 - 2024

FOOTBALL

YYear 7St Bede’s

Year 8St Dunstan’s

Year 9St Aidan’s

Year 10St Aidan’s

OverallSt Aidan’s

ATHLETICS

Year 7St Hugh’s

Year 8St Aidan’s

Year 9St Aidan’s

Year 10St Hugh’s

SeniorSt Aidan’s

OverallSt Hugh’s

HANDBALL

Year 7St Dunstan’s

Year 8St Dunstan’s

Year 9St Aidan’s

Year 10St Aidan’s

OverallSt Dunstan’s

CROSS COUNTRY

Year 7St Dunstan’s

Year 8St Aidan’s

Year 9St Hugh’s

Year 10St Aidan’s

OverallSt Aidan’s

BASKETBALL

Year 7St Bede’s

Year 8St Dunstan’s

Year 9St Dunstan’s

Year 10St Hugh’s

OverallSt Dunstan’s

RUGBY

Year 7St Dunstan’s

Year 8St Hugh’s

Year 9St Dunstan’s

Year 10St Hugh’s & St Aidan’s

OverallSt Hugh’s

TENNIS

Year 7St Aidan’s

Year 8St Aidan’s

Year 9St Aidan’s

Year 10St Bede’s

SeniorSt Dunstan’s

SOFTBALL

Year 7St Hugh’s

Year 8St Aidan’s

Year 9St Aidan’s

OverallSt Aidan’s

INTER-HOUSE SPORTS SHIELD

1St Aidan’s

2St Dunstan’s

3St Hugh’s

4St Bede’s

Sports Awards

Over 600 students, parents, siblings and staff filled The Main Hall to celebrate the sports success of this academic year.

In total, over 300 Colours were awarded, with over 90% of Year 7 students receiving at least one Colour for their participation in school sport. 30 Team trophies along with numerous MVP awards were handed out over the night.

Many thanks to our Guest of Honour, Mr Brian Wood MC, and for his inspirational speech.

Trophies awarded:

Honeywill Trophy – Jack F and Reuben H

Dawson Trophy – George D

Lombardi Trophy – Sam B

Old Salesians Bosco Cup – Troy O-L

Stokes Cup – Joshua L

Reeve Cup – Dominic S

Smith Cup – Alex Y

Father McGuiness Trophy – Oliver R

Brother Dariusz Cup – Jacob B

Brother Martin Cup – Jack B

Sportswoman of the Year – Eve M

Robert Stella Trophy – Connor W

Patrick Wilson Trophy – Alberto B-G

Gareth Cousins Cup – Alex F

Ben Tucker Trophy – Harry Q

Rugby Tour

The Year 10 and 11 rugby squads enjoyed a brilliant tour to France and Spain over half term. The teams both won two games against French and Spanish opposition and had a memorable time on and off the pitch. Aside from the games, the touring party enjoyed a coaching clinic at Top 14 side Aviron Bayonnaise, time in both Biarritz and Bordeaux, Six Nations rugby with England narrowly beating Wales watched on a big screen in Soustons, some great after match hosting from Soustons and Bilboa and some competitive tenpin bowling! All boys on the tour conducted themselves with exemplary behaviour and were a real pleasure to take on tour. Player of the Tour went to Jake E and Rhys M, with tourist awards going to Rhys D and Henry S with Thev D winning an award for his immense contribution on the pitch and Munya M taking the title of memorable pitch moment for his swan dive after scorching over the try line in the opening game. A thoroughly enjoyable trip was had by boys and staff. Roll on the next one!

Golf and Tennis Tour To Portugal

Superlatives can barely begin to describe the luxurious surroundings that awaited the students bound for Amendoiera Resort in the Algarve for a five-day tennis and golf tour two days after the end of term. Whilst the photos that accompany this article are spectacular, they do scant justice to the breathtaking views and challenge afforded by the Faldo, O'Connor Jr and Penina golf courses, the quality and intensity of the Five Star tennis coaching, the spacious apartments, the breakfast, lunch and evening meals and the cloudless skies. Throw in the privilege of being flown to Faro by BA Captain Peter Nye, Old Salesian and father of one of the tourists, and the delirium that followed England's semi-final win in the Euros and you have the ingredients of one of the epic school trips. Charlie E takes up the golfers' story...

On the first morning, golfers were organised into groups according to age and ability. We played the O'Connor Jr Course and then in the evening played par 3 floodlight golf. On the second day, we played on the Faldo course, which was no longer but more undulating and challenging. For our second round on the O'Connor Jr course, a Ryder Cup Day was organised where golfers were split into team Europe and team USA. Thursday at Penina was like travelling back in time. This course, which hosted the Portuguese Open in the '60s and '70s, was much shorter and the beautiful clubhouse was full of memorabilia of Nicklaus, Jacklin, Palmer and Trevino. Our final round on Friday was a Texas Scramble on the Faldo, which was a bit easier the second time around! My favourite moment was when we all watched England win in the Euro semi- finals against The Netherlands. I will definitely go again in two years' time because I loved my experience in Portugal. I want to go back already!

The tennis was fun and the coaching outstanding. We had two tennis sessions per day, each session lasting about two and a half hours. Every morning, we would begin with a warm-up which was mostly oriented towards footwork, before moving on to drills involving a racket and ball. We covered every aspect of tennis during the week from forehands and backhands, to serves and volleys. Our favourite day was when the focus was on volleys, as we were able to make a vast improvement on both power and technique. Our afternoon sessions were devoted to competitions: the coaches hosted the tennis euros, with England coming out victorious. We thought that it could have possibly been a sign of good luck, which worked for the football semis. However, the luck unfortunately ran out when England played in the final. The afternoon tennis sessions were game and match-play oriented. Personally, we preferred this, as we really enjoyed the more competitive environment. In the last session of the tour, 10 of the top players were selected to play each other in a singles tournament, and the rest of the players got into groups of 3 and played doubles matches.

This trip was an amazing experience, helping us to improve our level of tennis and to just have fun on court. It was also delightful for us to see the teachers in a different light, outside of the normal school learning environment. For many of us, the best part of this whole experience was the countless memorable moments that we shared with our good friends. Overall, this is a week which we certainly will not be forgetting any time soon.

PTA Review

The PTA has once again had a busy year with lots of fundraising going on. This means we have been able to support a wide variety of Departments and Clubs at the College with lots of donations. Please see the list of donations made this school year and a list of the donations that have already been agreed for next year. We decided to ask for and look at the requests before the summer holiday to make sure staff have time to order and hopefully receive the items before the start of the school year.

Thank you all so much for all your support over the year.

Attending the Fayres, Quiz Night, Ball, Year 7 and 8 Disco, buying raffle tickets, making donations for raffles, tombolas and the Uniform Shop, buying from the Uniform Shop and buying drinks and tuck from the PTA Bar at events, all help us raise money to benefit the students and staff at Salesian College. We couldn’t do it without you, and we really appreciate your support.

Donations

• Prize Night £380

• Computing: Kitronic £202.98

• School Council: Break time kit: Footballs £423.54 for this year

• School Council: Gaming Van (Christmas Fayre) £320

• Eco Garden £2000

• Rocket Club: Rocket material £300

• PE: Jackal Bags £815.83

• Dungeons and Dragons Club: books £101.06

• School Council: Break time kit: Table tennis bats x 40 £202.99 for next year

• Drama: ETC Nomad Student Package £360

• Languages: Headphones x 30 £269.64

• Music/Drama: Keyboard, case and pedal £1228.50

• PE: Scrum Sled £1800

• PE: Gym Kit £700

• School Council: Laser Tag (Summer Fayre): £570

• Chess Club: Chess sets £451.35

• Design & Technology: 3D Printer £600

Total £10,727.89