Newsletter January 2025
January has been a busy month, many things to achieve in what is only a five week half-term!
There has been a lot of focus on futures for both year 11 and 13. Both sets of students received mock exam results and had parents’ evenings to discuss their next steps. I was delighted that the feedback on going back to in-person meetings was positive and we felt that this added extra depth to the conversations. Year 11 attended our Sixth Form Open Evening and are currently having one to one guidance interviews with senior staff. A reminder that the application deadline for Verulam Sixth Form is the 7th February. The UCAS university application forms have now been submitted with a record 90 from our year group of 110. Thank you to Mr Bint and the year 13 tutor team for their work on references and preparing the students. Both sets of students now need to commit to revision with only around 9 school weeks before the start of the public exams.
Year 9 are also facing the future with our KS4 Options Evening coming up on Tuesday 4th February. More information will be provided on the evening and the options booklet can be found here.
Life in the rest of the school has continued to be exciting and varied, with the Geography fieldtrip currently in Lanzarote and upcoming trips to Austria for skiing and New York for Sociology. Our school production this year, ‘Lord of the Flies’, continues in rehearsal and we are looking forward to the performance next term. In sport, there have been some excellent wins in year 7 and 8 as the basketball season has started. A number of our football teams have continued their progress in the district cup, with year 9 recently winning against St Albans School. It was also great to welcome back former students Seb Ferdinand and Harrison Smith to talk to our students about their careers in football. Harrison also scored in his home debut for St Albans City, watched by a record crowd at Clarence Park. Thanks to the club and alumnus Lawrence Levy for continuing the link with Verulam and offering us discounted tickets.
I wish everyone a good break during the upcoming half term. A reminder that the school is also closed to students on the 13th and 14th February for staff training days, including a conference where staff from all 10 schools in the Ambition Education Trust will be gathering at St Albans Girls’ School. Thanks again for your support for the school!
Mr Moane
Headteacher
Pastoral
Children’s Mental Health Week 2025
Verulam is excited to celebrate Children’s Mental Health Week, focusing on the theme “Know Yourself, Grow Yourself.” Drawing inspiration from Disney’s Inside Out 2, we aim to help students recognise and embrace their emotions as the first step to personal development.
Throughout the week, students in Key Stages 3 and 4 will attend assemblies exploring practical ways to look after their mental health and wellbeing.
Younger students will concentrate on understanding their emotions, while older students will focus on managing pressure – especially around exams – and discovering healthy strategies for stress management. These assemblies will be supported by follow-up form time activities to reinforce and apply the ideas discussed.
In addition, we are launching a new Mental Health Mentor programme led by Senior Sixth Form students. After specialist training from the Anna Freud Centre delivered by our NHS Mental Health Support Team, these mentors will offer one-to-one or small-group sessions, providing guidance and encouragement to younger pupils. By offering a listening ear and promoting positive habits – such as engaging in physical activities and school clubs – our ambassadors will play a vital role in creating a supportive environment.
Please see tailored information about these activities, along with guidance on accessing further help. We hope this week will inspire our community to “Know Yourself, Grow Yourself,” reminding everyone of the power of self-awareness and emotional wellbeing.
Mr Holding
Useful Websites:
Trips & Visits
Year 12 Sociology Students Inspired by UCL Visit
Our Year 12 Sociology students recently experienced an exciting and insightful day at University College London (UCL), ranked among the top 10 universities globally. Lead Sociology teacher Mrs Braban & Director of Sixth Form took 32 students as part of UCL Sociology Department’s link school programme. Our students were invited to join an audience of 400 students from across the UK to explore a range of contemporary sociological issues presented by world-leading academics.
The event provided a rare opportunity for students to gain insights into cutting-edge research and engage with topics that have real-world implications. Throughout the day, leading social scientists shared their expertise on a variety of issues:
- Professor Ann Phoenix – “Childhoods and the Global Polyresins”
Professor Phoenix examined the impact of global challenges on children’s lives, particularly focusing on environmental and social issues that shape childhood experiences worldwide. - Professor Stephen Ball – “What Are Schools For?”
Professor Ball closed the programme with a critical discussion about the purpose of education, encouraging students to reflect on the role schools play in shaping society. - Professor Caroline Oliver – “Resettled Afghan Young People’s Accounts of Education, Place, and Belonging and the Use of Visual Methods”
Professor Oliver shared powerful insights into the experiences of Afghan youth resettling in new environments, using innovative visual research methods to explore their sense of belonging and identity. - Dr. Dylan Kneale – “Health and LGBTQ+ People”
Dr. Kneale highlighted the unique health challenges faced by LGBTQ+ individuals, shedding light on the inequalities in healthcare systems and the need for more inclusive practices. - Professor Louise Archer – “Nike Girls and ‘Bimbos’: Using Bourdieu to Understand the Pathologisation of Working-Class Femininity in Education”
Professor Archer delivered a thought-provoking talk on the stereotypes and judgments often applied to working-class girls in education, using Bourdieu’s theories to critically examine social inequality. - Dr. Ozan Aksoy – “Sundays Unbound: Blue Laws, Church Attendance, and Shifting Moral Attitudes in the US”
Dr. Aksoy explored how changes in US laws surrounding Sunday trading have influenced church attendance and societal attitudes, offering fascinating insights into the interplay between culture and policy.
The visit gave our students an invaluable opportunity to engage with university-level thinking, and consider how sociology applies to the real world. Many left feeling inspired by the quality of research and motivated to pursue higher education in the field. We were very proud that often Verulam students were leading the questions
We are grateful to UCL for hosting such a stimulating and memorable day, and we look forward to continuing our partnership as a link school.
Mr Base
Escape Rooms Reward Trip
During the entire last term, all students have been building up reward points that could lead to an invitation to join the first reward trip of the academic year. The trip took place on Wednesday 22nd January with 83 students from years 7-11 taking part across the day at the St Albans Escape Room. Those invited had achieved the most positive events in their year and had no unauthorised absence since September. Below is a brief report from one of the students who took part.
Yesterday was great, even though the group I was in didn’t succeed, the experience of solving the puzzles was good fun! The room we were in was set in a WW1 bunker and we had to solve puzzles in order to get gas masks to save ourselves from a gas attack. Other groups were solving murder mysteries or trying to find ancient relics in the mines. Amazing team-building and bonding experience! Arthur R, year 11
Students are now all ‘reset’ to zero on both counts and will be working towards the next trip which is already being planned with input from the school council to try and get another popular activity for students to take part in.
Well done to all students who were eligible for the visit and a massive thank you to Mr Ivers, Mr Hammond, Mrs Barford and Mr Toley Jnr who ensured the day run so smoothly.
Mr Toley
Curriculum News
Department in Focus – Business Faculty
Within the Business Faculty we offer a broad and diverse curriculum which covers a whole range of courses and qualifications in Business, Economics, Law and Computer Science. This is a busy time of year for us as we focus on guiding and supporting our Y11 and Y13 students towards their final examinations and coursework completion in the summer. As optional subjects (with the exception of KS3 Computer Science) we also look ahead to next academic year to promote our subjects and recruit students to choose our courses. We experienced a very busy Sixth Form open evening on Thursday 9th January and we look forward to the new style Y9 options evening on Tuesday 4th February.
In other news, a small team of Year 12 A Level Economics students, led by Finley Lynton, joined the annual Wharton Global High School Investment Competition. Teams were given virtual funds to invest on the stock market for a client and this competition had 1,800 teams participating from 70 different countries. Although they performed admirably, the team were unsuccessful in qualifying for the semi-finals. There is however always next year!
It is time once again for Year 7 Computer Science students to engage in robotics, they have been hard at work developing their coding skills to get their robots to solve a number of challenges. Students have been using line sensors to track a path and distance sensors to avoid obstacles. They are now competing against each other in classes to see who can complete the most robotic challenges in the remaining lessons this half term.
Year 9 Computer Science students have been looking at AI and the environment. We looked at what generative AI can produce and you can ask your child to show you how to create an AI generated song all about you. For the first time we are also engaging in the environmental issues that we normally cover in GCSE where we are investigating the environmental impact of cobalt mining in Congo and the importance of cobalt in the production of electronics.
Mr Engel
Is there really a link with Computer Science and Mathematics?
We teach our students that on a base level computers work in binary; 0’s and 1’s. Surely that is pretty easy to deal with mathematically? Well, as with most things, they tend to get a bit more complicated when you dig a little deeper. Computers can only store a certain number of these 0’s and 1’s to represent positive numbers, negative numbers and fractions. Our Year 12’s are learning about floating point binary, normalisation and floating point arithmetic. Here we have two students Luca and Blake explaining to the class how to subtract two floating point binary numbers. Why don’t you have a go (without asking ChatGPT or DeepSeek for help)?
Show the subtraction of the following numbers, assuming an 8-bit mantissa and 4-bit exponent. 01001000 0100 – 01000000 1111. Then normalise the answer.
*See end of the newsletter for the answer.
Mr Schalker
Curriculum Enrichment
Sporting Pathways Assembly
This month, we had the privilege of welcoming back two of our former students, Seb Ferdinand and Harrison Smith, who have both gone on to achieve success in the world of professional football. Their visit to the school was nothing short of inspiring, as they shared their personal stories, challenges, and triumphs in their respective careers.
Both Seb and Harrison emphasised the importance of persistence, resilience, and having a strong support system. They spoke candidly about the challenges of balancing academics with their sporting ambitions, the sacrifices they made, and the relentless effort it takes to reach the top.
During their visit, Seb and Harrison also took time to engage with our current students. They participated in a Q&A session, answering questions about their daily routines, training regimens, and how they stay focused on their goals. Many students were curious about how to break into professional sports and asked about their experiences navigating the competitive nature of football.
Their visit left a lasting impact on our students, who now have real-life role models to look up to. Both Seb and Harrison have shown that with determination, hard work, and a love for the game, anything is possible. We are incredibly proud of their accomplishments and look forward to seeing what they do next in their professional careers.
We thank Seb and Harrison for taking the time to return to their roots and inspire the next generation of athletes here at Verulam.
Mr Anthony
Sports Round-Up
Basketball | ||||
Team | Opponent | Result | Type | Report |
Boys-U12A | Sir John Lawes School | Won : 38 - 24 | League | |
Football | ||||
Team | Opponent | Result | Type | Report |
Boys-U12B | John Hampden Grammar School | Lost : 3 - 4 | National Cup - Round 3 | |
Boys-U16A | Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School | Lost : 0-0 pens | ||
Boys-U12A | Richard Hale School | Lost : 0 - 2 | County Cup Rd 3 | MVP(s) Hawkes |
Boys-U14A | Chauncy School | Lost : 0 - 2 | County Cup Qtr Final | |
Boys-U12A | Riverside School | Lost : 2 - 4 | National Cup - Round 6 | Goals: Kosh, Joseph MVP(s) Gibson-Dunt |
Boys-U15A | Roundwood Park School | Won : 2 - 1 | Area Cup Rd 1 | Goals: Coffey, Johnson MVP: Hamilton |
1st XI | Townsend CofE School | tbc : - | ||
Rugby | ||||
Team | Opponent | Result | Type | Report |
1st XV | Samuel Ryder Academy | Won : 27 - 17 | Friendly |
Mr Errington
Staffing Update
Introducing New Team Members!
The Spring term brings several new members of staff to the Verulam team. This month we’re introducing two new additions to the English Department, Miss Edgar and Miss Willetts.
Miss Edgar began her teaching career five years ago and is currently Second in Charge of English. She is passionate about reading interventions, improving literacy, and fostering a love for reading among students.
Miss Edgar has a particular interest in ensuring all students access ambitious and diverse texts and has led initiatives to support reading across the curriculum. She is also an AQA examiner and has experience teaching KS3 to KS5.
Miss Edgar has joined the English department and is currently enjoying teaching Death of a Salesman to her Year 12s.
Miss Willetts began her teaching career in New Zealand, where she spent five years working in an all-boys school teaching primarily English, but also Media Studies and History. Driven by a passion for travel and history, she moved to the UK six years ago and has continued teaching English in all Key Stage areas. During her career, Miss Willetts has held a range of leadership roles, including Head of Year, PSHE Lead and most recently SENCo, and is currently an examiner for AQA English Literature.
Miss Willetts is excited to be joining the school as Literacy Coordinator, a role that aligns with her experience in special educational needs and English, and her passion for supporting student development.
Miss Willetts joins the English department and is currently enjoying teaching Macbeth to her Year 10s.
Rewards and Awards
New Senior Prefect Team
Having received applications from over 40 candidates initially, I am delighted to announce that as from April 2025 until April 2026, the new Senior Prefect team is as follows:
This was a demanding process whereby each student had to submit a letter of application, was then interviewed by a panel of staff and students, and finally presented their manifesto in an assembly to all. The process has been robust and comprehensive and the students have really risen to the challenge. I would like to pass on my congratulations to all of them and I am sure that they will continue to shape and prioritise our school community in all they do.
- Tom Roffe – School Captain
- Victor Artemi – Head Boy
- Roxy Weber – Head Girl
- Danny Walsh – Vice School Captain
Joining them as Senior Prefects are the following students:
Rebecca Bint | Kieran Sisk | Sam Bailey |
Matthew Farrer | Basil Dredge | Rocco King |
Dorothy Franklin Ferrier | Sam Steward | Marco Vukaj |
Alex Evershed | Fin Lynton | Oliver Brown |
Arthur Rennie Sivell | Dylan Lota | Daria Novikova |
Holly Hinton | Harry Collins | Stephen Ntim |
Harry Robinson | Lola Saward | Charlie Waters |
Mr Moane
Year 7 Form Reps
Student voice and leadership is vitally important to the success of Verulam School. Every form tutor elects two students to represent their tutees and they become responsible for the organisation of events within the form. In order to be chosen, our new Year 7 students were asked to write a letter of application to their form tutor explaining why they should be selected for the prestigious role. Many of the applicants had previous experience of class rep or school council in their primary school, some spoke about the number of house points, letters of recognition and Blue Stag awards they have earned proving their behaviour is up to the best of levels and they emulate the school’s key characteristics of excellence, character and respect. Form tutors then had the difficult job of choosing from the high quality candidates. Our form reps were awarded their badges in assembly.
Congratulations go to:
7B – Henry M and Luka G
7C – Alex H and Nilesh PS
7H – Arjan R and Nicolas P
7J – Callum A and Ethan K
7P – Rico J and Cameron S
7Y – Ethan D and Harry J
Mr Knowles
Chinese New Year and January Readathon
January started with a new reading challenge leading up to Chinese New Year. Well done to everyone who completed the reading challenge and to those who wrote a 4-stanza poem on the Year of the Snake for our competition! The winner will be announced in February.
Thank you to everyone who has supported our January Readathon with Read for Good, sponsoring students to read, with proceeds going to children in hospitals so they are able to read exciting new books and listen to amazing storytellers.
February in the library:
There will be a ‘blind date with a book’ section ready for Valentine’s Day and a ‘Tom Palmer Reading Challenge’ in preparation for out author visit!
We will be welcoming multi-award-winning author Tom Palmer who will be giving a talk and a writing workshop where students will get the opportunity to gain advice from the established writer.
Those who complete the Tom Palmer Reading Challenge will receive a certificate from Tom himself!
Well done to: Sena A., Naoki M., Luka G., Issac L., Austin M., Gordon X., and Oliver C. for completing the Chinese New Year Reading Challenge and to Callum A., Alex H., Charlie S., Rex T., James T and Henry M. for completing the Year of the Snake poem.
Miss Pettitt
Events and Celebrations
Sixth Form Open Evening Welcomes Record Attendance
Verulam School welcomed over 300 guests to our highly successful Sixth Form Open Evening. Attendees included both our own Year 11 students and many external applicants, all eager to learn about the distinctive opportunities Verulam Sixth Form has to offer.
The evening began with a warm welcome in the main hall, where Headteacher Mr. Moane and Director of Sixth Form Mr. Base delivered a compelling presentation outlining the vision and ethos of our Sixth Form. They emphasised that Verulam is “big enough for academic excellence but small enough for students to get noticed and nurtured,” highlighting our unique proposition of combining academic success with a supportive and inclusive environment.
Adding to the inspiring talks, Head Girl 2024, Oumou, and Head Boy 2025, Victor, shared their personal experiences of Sixth Form life. They spoke passionately about the leadership opportunities available to students, emphasising how these roles empower them to be role models in every aspect of school life.
Following the main presentation, families were invited to explore the full breadth of our curriculum in a carousel of subject talks. With over 20 subjects on offer, guests had the chance to sample up to five, gaining valuable insights into the courses, teaching methods, and enrichment opportunities available in Post 16 at Verulam.
The turnout and energy of the evening were exceptional, marking one of the busiest and most exciting Sixth Form Open Evenings in many years. The event demonstrated the strong interest in Verulam’s distinctive approach and the bright future ahead for our Sixth Form.
We extend our thanks to all the families, staff, and student ambassadors who contributed to making the evening such a success. These are truly exciting times for Verulam Sixth Form!
Mr Base
Spring Production: Lord of the Flies
Our 2025 Verulam School production of Lord of the Flies will be taking place at 7pm on Thursday 27th and Friday 28th March. Tickets are available now via Parentmail>Shop priced at £8 for adults and £4 for students. The Creative Arts Faculty would love to see you at what promises to be an entertaining and marvellous occasion.
Mrs Tomlin
Student Voice
The Hobbit or There and Back Again by J.R.R Tolkien: a Review
The Premise of The Hobbit
There and Back Again focuses on a comfort-loving, unadventurous hobbit, who has never even dreamed of setting foot outside his quaint little neighbourhood. However, one day, he comes across the legendary wizard Gandalf, who is looking for people to take part in his next adventure, but needs one more recruit as he has thirteen in his squad, and doesn’t want to be cursed before his adventure has even started by an unlucky number. That night, the hobbit — who was called Bilbo Baggins — had a surprise dinner with the dwarves, where at first they sang, told fascinating sagas and blew smoke-rings before getting down to business. They told Bilbo that they were going to steal what was rightfully theirs from the dragon, Smaug, and that they needed him to help them on their quest. Bilbo, with some reluctance, finally accepted this offer, and along the way, faced storms, stupid yet powerful giants, malicious goblins, the misty mountains, and much more…
My Opinion on the Work
If told to give Tolkien’s masterpiece a rating out of five stars, I would probably give it the full five. This is because there is exemplary character work, with the author letting the reader imply and read detailed descriptions of every dwarf’s, hobbit’s, elf’s and wizard’s unique and beautiful personality; moreover, Tolkien makes wonderful use of imagery in his work and the plot of There and Back Again is wonderfully imaginative and out of the ordinary. There is definitely a reason for so many modern writers trying… and failing… to match the quality and the authenticity of his work.
Who Would Enjoy The Hobbit?
I would recommend The Hobbit to anyone who enjoyed The Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman: both The Hobbit and The Northern Lights are perfect for fantasy lovers who crave original plots, different worlds and consummate character work. I would also recommend it to anyone who is interested in mythical tales and folklore, as both folklore and The Lord of the Rings feature mythical creatures and very out-of-the-ordinary tales.
Ari S, 7B
Extra Curricular
Spring Term Clubs
Details of lunchtime and after school clubs and activities for the Spring term can be found on the website by following the link here.
Mr Toley
Families First: Get the right help at the right time
Families First A4 Website Poster*The answer 00100011, normalised 01000110 0100
Coming Up
Monday 3rd – Sunday 9th February
Children’s Mental Health Week 2025
Tuesday 4th February
KS4 Options Evening – 6pm
Thursday 6th February
Culture Day
Friday 7th February
Sixth Form Application Deadline
Saturday 8th – Wednesday 12th February
New York Sociology Trip
Tuesday 11th February
Year 9 Parents Evening
Thursday 13th and Friday 14th February
Inset Days – no students in school
Friday 14th February
Ski Trip departs
Monday 17th – Friday 21st February
Half Term
Monday 24th February
All students return
Wednesday 26th – Friday 28th February
Berlin History Trip
Monday 3rd – Friday 7th March
Year 13 Mock Exams
Monday 3rd March
Secondary School Allocation Day
Thursday 6th March
Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Parents Information Evening