3 February 2023

Dear Parents

It has been an incredibly busy week across all sections of school as we approach the final week of the half term. The first part of the Spring term seems to be rushing by at an incredible pace and there was even the hint of warmer day in the air the morning!

Trips and Expeditions

This week in school we have been busy finalising our five-year trip cycle. One of the great joys of school life is the opportunity to participate in school trips, residentials and expeditions. Across their time at Cranford we hope to provide our pupils with a plethora of opportunities, from day visits and theatre trips, to year group residentials, Duke of Edinburgh Expeditions, Sports Tours, Choir Tours, World Challenge expeditions and so much more besides. We hope that this overview gives you an indication of the schedule of our regular programme of ‘bigger’ trips. This list is not exhaustive and does not include for example year group residentials, but we hope it gives you a good outline to help with planning for your children. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs Powell (jkpowell@cranfordhouse.net), who will be happy to help!

Open Week

It has been a privilege to open our doors to a record number of visitors for all sections of the school for this term’s Open Week. The visiting families have all commented on the wonderful atmosphere in school and the politeness of the pupils they have encountered. It has been lovely to hear prospective families comment on the warm welcome they have received from pupils and the happy, vibrant atmosphere they have encountered.

Sport

One of the highlights of any week is the array of sports matches and fixtures that take place across the school, from House Cricket this week in senior school to a multitude of inter-school fixtures and trips to ISA and IAPS competitions it has been a busy week in school including the following:

• • Our Junior Cross Country team took part in The Manor Cross Country Event with outstanding running by all.
• • Our U14 Boys Hockey took on some very competitive games against St Edward’s School with our A Team winning 2-0.
• • Our U18 Netballers had a very tough game against Headington, showing amazing resilience to gain a very convincing win.

One of the many highlights of my week was watching our U11 and U13 teams produce impressive performances against the Manor Prep and Abingdon School. As ever when watching our teams compete, I was struck by the strong camaraderie, team spirit, athleticism and determination of our players. Well done to everyone who represented school in sport this week! I’m looking forward to lots more sport this term as the light evenings return to us!

Year 3

Year 3 have had an exceptionally busy week. Kicking off with their trip to Ufton Court, they have emersed themselves in the world of the Romans. They had an action-packed day, meeting a Roman Centurion, learning about different Roman traditions, playing Roman games and they even had a full battle re-enactment! Fortunately, they all survived the event and were able to come back to school ready to enjoy Roman Day on Thursday! Dressed as gladiators, soldiers, emperors and empresses, they presented a stunning assembly for the rest of the Junior School, explaining what they had learnt about the Roman Empire, before taking part in lots of Roman activities for the rest of the day. In addition, they have been very busy practising for the Year 3 and 4 show. We are definitely in for a treat after half-term!

Exam Invigilators

We are soon going to be recruiting for Exam Invigilators for the public examination season in May and June. You would need to be available from the 15 May until the 23 June and will also be expected to have an enhanced check with the Disclosure and Barring Service. Full training will be given. If you are interested, please email recruitment@cranfordhouse.net, in the first instance.

Have a good weekend!

With best wishes

Dr James Raymond

Headmaster