A round up of news and achievements from Roedean this month.

Global Space Design Course 

Congratulations to Maria (Yr10), who has been accepted onto the above 10-day residential course in July, at Imperial College London. It is a very prestigious and selective course, and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate in workshops, masterclasses, and lectures around the topics of space, technology, engineering, and business. As well as being an intense academic course, there are tours around Imperial College, and Oxford and Cambridge universities. The challenge involves designing a habitat on another planet, with twelve students from the winning team gaining a chance to compete in the world Global Space Design Challenge in 2022, and potentially win a trip to NASA. What a brilliant opportunity – well done!

Baking for SECAmb (South East Coast Ambulance Service)

Well done to Pippi (Yr8), who made cinnamon buns and Easter treats for a food collection which her road takes to SECAmb (South East Coast Ambulance Service) each week. With so many places shut, it has been difficult for the crews to get food on the hop, so the residents of her street have taken both home-cooked meals and supermarket donations up. They have been taking food regularly for months, but they wanted to go all out for Easter by adding treats. Pippi’s Dad is proud and delighted with their involvement, and said, ‘They really enjoy being in the kitchen, and it is such a great way to show appreciation for the hard work the crew is putting in for the rest of society.’ Congratulations, Pippi!

Jasmine at Hickstead

Congratulations to Jasmine (Yr7), who proudly represented Roedean at the NSEA Hickstead Elite Showjumping Qualifier show. It was her first showjumping show on her new pony, Boo, and Jasmine flew through the course beautifully, and placed 5th as an individual out of a strong class of 40 combinations representing various schools in the Southeast region. She only narrowly missed qualifying for the annual schools’ national championship by 1 place in her first ever outing with this pony, so the future is looking bright as she enters more shows. We will watch this space!

Pop-up Musical Performances in the Cloisters

On Thursday 22 April we had some pop-up musical performances in the Cloisters, so that music can be heard and enjoyed around the School. Thank you so much to Galina, Amy, Lydia, and Anamika for participating and playing so beautifully. Thanks also to Mr Rous for accompanying, and Mr Tostevin for the technical help. Let's hope that the good weather continues so we can have more weekly performances!

A Year of Covid – the Headmaster’s Reflections

What a year it has been. On the 18 March 2020, schools were told to close and exams were cancelled. A year later, schools are open, but exams are cancelled for a second year and we are still in lockdown. There is much to reflect on. Most importantly, we should remember all those who have lost their lives, those most impacted by the virus and those who fought to save lives. But an anniversary is an opportunity to look back so that we don’t forget the journey. Please see the Head's Weekly Review below (23 March 2021) to read the full transcript.