News list
Our Kindergarten indoor teaching area went through a transformation over the summer holidays and our newest pupils started their St John’s journey in September in newly designed, spacious classrooms. The floor area of both classrooms has been doubled, creating open-plan teaching spaces with plenty of light, new furniture, bespoke storage and free access to outdoor spaces.
At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month St John’s fell silent to remember those who have given their lives in conflict and the centenary of the start of the First World War. Events took place throughout the school, including raising money for charity, special services, poppy installations, original artwork, poetry and musical compositions.
St John’s College School has recently become involved with the Shakespeare Schools Festival (SSF), last year’s offering of The Tempest marking the first year of participation, but it has become a highlight of the school calendar. Months of rehearsal went into this year’s Macbeth, which a selection of St John’s Sixth Formers performed to a packed Mumford Theatre on 13 November. The result was an undeniably ‘spellbinding’ piece of theatre which ‘captivated the audience throughout’, described by parents as ‘powerful and tremendously exciting’ and a ‘tour de force’, and which prompted SSF
Pupils of St John’s won a clean sweep of the top prizes at third annual Creative Writing Competition this year hosted by St Mary’s School, Cambridge. The children were encouraged to write up to 500 words in response to a choice of keywords such as ‘Hope’ and ‘Battle’, along with artworks produced by St Mary’s Senior School students.
Parents and pupils alike were treated to a thoroughly entertaining spectacle in the shape of this year’s Fourth Form production, Love Against the Odds, three fairy tales from across the world that depict the triumph of love over adversity. Opening proceedings, The Five Swans tells the story of the young princess, Lili, who must free her brothers from a dreadful curse placed upon them by the wicked Queen, their stepmother. In The Great Flying Ship of Ivan the Impossible, the eponymous hero finds himself at the mercy of the Tsar after he turns up at the imperial palace in Moscow and demands
The joyful sounds of the Harvest hymn filled the hall as the children celebrated this year’s charitable giving at St John’s in our Byron House special service. The food donations came flooding in and after the services the goods were delivered to the Cambridge Food Bank, a local charity, part of Newmarket Open Door. The charity redistributes donated foods and household products to disadvantaged people and operates a Shop ‘n’ Share scheme with donation boxes at Milton Tesco and Daily Bread in Cambridge. The monetary donations and the collection went to Jimmy’s Night Shelter, a Cambridge-
Our Pre-Prep parents enjoyed an informative and entertaining English Morning at St John’s with talks from our teachers about the development of reading and early English skills at school. The parents also had an inspirational and energetic talk from synthetic phonics ‘guru’ Jaz Ampaw-Farr, as well as a passionate talk about reading to children from Marilyn Brocklehurst.
After a long summer break a group of Form 5 and 6 children were ready to hone their rugby and hockey skills with a mini tour to Edinburgh. The group of girls and boys had an initial training session at school before taking the train to Edinburgh to play against Cargilfield Prep School, situated on the outskirts of the city. There was plenty of time for sightseeing including a walk up Carlton Hill, which has stunning panoramic views across the city, and an historic tour around Edinburgh Castle. They also visited Murrayfield Stadium.
The national Coffee Morning is Macmillan's biggest fundraising event, where the charity asks people across the UK to hold a coffee morning and raise money for people living with cancer. The sun shone for the annual St John’s PA Macmillan coffee morning held in the Master's Lodge of St John’s College, the beautiful private residence of the Master and his wife. The cakes, made by PA committee members and kind friends, looked and tasted fantastic and put everyone in the mood to donate to the sum of £986 to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
On Saturday 14th September, our St John’s rugby teams visited Framlingham College for their annual Pre-Season U11 and U13 Prep Schools Rugby Festival. This Festival attracts over 250 boys and it gives coaches and players the opportunity to play in a number of games and to enjoy themselves without the pressure of playing for a trophy. Brandeston Hall, Barnardiston Hall, Holmwood House, Widford Lodge, Orwell Park, Old Buckenham Hall, Taverham Hall and The Abbey all took part in the day.