Apprenticeship success:

Our students have had some amazing news this term, and I am thrilled to be able to share their successes. 

We are really proud of our Year 13 students who have been awarded places on highly competitive apprenticeship programmes with major STEM companies.

Jack Clift - L3 apprenticeship in Project Controls at AWE

Will Handley - L6 degree apprenticeship in Engineering at AWE

Jake Finkel - L4 apprenticeship in Supply Chain Management at Bayer

We are extremely proud of all the students - well done!

Student VIP breakfast:

On Tuesday 26 March, 43 of the students with over 300 achievement points were treated to a VIP breakfast attended by members of the house team and SLT and our head of trustees.

Mr Towill and Mr Beard gave a short speech to thank all of our fantastic students for all their efforts this year in getting it right day in, day out.

There was a lovely atmosphere and all the students had a great start to their day.

Thanks also to Mrs Fox, Mrs Wilcox, Miss Sharpe and Mrs Williams for their help organising the event. 

Denefield students win the Platinum award at the Warick National Concert Band Festival:

The National Concert Band Festival is recognised as the largest, most active, enterprising Festival for wind instrument musicians who play in wind bands or big bands throughout the UK.

Four Denefield students attended and performed at the festival as part of the Reading Symphonic wind band and although this festival is not a competition, the adjudicators select award-winning bands. The Reading Symphonic wind band won the Platinum Award!

The National Concert Band Festival celebrates and promotes the music and activities of wind bands / jazz bands by holding regional festivals across the UK and a National Festival. 

Above, Year 13 Daisy and Felicity performed at the festival alongside Year 11 student Joseph and Year 9 student Helena - well done to you all. What a fantastic achievement. 

Denefield's Year 9 girls netball team won the league!

Huge congratulations to our Under 14 girls netball team who, on Monday 25 March 2024, won the league.

In an exhilarating showdown against Blessed Hugh Farringdon and Reading Girls, Denefield's Year 9 netball team emerged victorious in the finals of the Reading Schools Netball League. Their exceptional teamwork, and unwavering determination secured us a well-deserved league title win.

The league started with a convincing 24-3 win over Blessed Hugh Faringdon. This built confidence going into the next game, where they won 42-0 against Highdown, which was more than a goal a minute. To secure their spot in the final, the team travelled to Little Heath and won 22-4. The finals were tough for the team, but they fought hard to beat a strengthened Blessed Hugh Farringdon, 9-6. It was just Reading Girls that stood between them and the trophy, and they managed to put on a superb performance to win 13-4.

Lilly, Year 9 says 'The Denefield defenders made it difficult with tight marking, forcing errors and winning lots of interceptions, disrupting the opponents’ attacking flow.

The Denefield shooters were on fire! Their accuracy and composure under pressure were instrumental in securing crucial points.

The mid-court players were the engine of Denefield’s success, linking up beautifully, creating opportunities and maintaining good possession throughout.

It was a great experience to face other netball teams in the Reading area as part of this league.

Being part of this remarkable team was more than just playing netball; it was about showcasing the true spirit of teamwork.'

Congratulations to our Year 9 netball team for their outstanding performance. The oppositions players of the match were Charlotte and Lilly. 

Miss Colbourne, Head of Faculty PE and Health says 'It has been a pleasure coaching a talented bunch of girls. They have trained hard and listened to feedback working on different elements of the game. This year it was great to see new faces that have come on leaps and bounds, becoming an integral part of the team. I am looking forward to next year already!!' Well done girls!!! Bring on the Domino's.'

Weekly sports fixtures:

This week's results:

What a week for Denefield's sports teams! A clean sweep of wins. Well done to our Netball and Football teams for their fantastic results this term. 

We hope you have found the Weekly Bulletin sports fixture updates helpful - our students have a lot of games to be proud of on a weekly basis, and we will continue to cover them in our Weekly Bulletin. 

For more detailed information on the leagues Denefield is part of, click the buttons below.

The Summer term extra-curricular timetable will be published when we return from our Easter break.

Stay up to date with Denefield's sporting fixtures and results by clicking the button below. 

The students pictured are all part of our Virtu Football Academy Coaching Programme.

 

Mock Trial Competition:

On Saturday 16 March, 13 Denefield students attended the Mock Trial Competition. 

The Bar Mock Trial Competition helps young people understand how the law touches every aspect of their lives, gaining an insight into how the legal justice system works.

Following months of regional heats across the UK, schools came together to The Old Bailey, London to battle it out to become winner of the 2024 competition.

Mrs Doyle, Teacher of English says 'The team did so well, I was so proud of all their hard work. We didn't get through but they enjoyed the day and performed really well'.

Well done to all students that participated, see below, proudly holding their certificates. 

We Will Rock You, 2024 school show:

Don't miss the full details of our fantastic school Show, found below in School Events. 

Above, the cast of We Will Rock You, 2024 preparing for a dress rehearsal performance to local primary schools on Tuesday 19 March. 

World Book day, potato competition:

^Wow! World Book Day 2024 was jam-packed full of brilliant activities as the school celebrated their love of books and reading. 

Mrs Fogarty, Librarian and Learning Resource Centre Manager organised a brilliant competition- make a potato into a book character!  There were some amazing entries, including Aslan, Wally, Arthur and even an Oompa Loompa. 

Year 11 student Rosie was the winner with her Toothless potato entry! (below)

Every student who entered received house points and chose a brand-new book to keep. The winner, Rosie, won a stack of brand-new fiction books and lots of chocolate.

More information on World Book day can be found below, in 'School Events.' 

World Book Day, short story competition:

The English Department ran a short story competition for this year's World Book Day. 

Year 8 Sophia is our winner and has received House Points and a sweet prize. Scroll down to read Sophia's fantastic short story. 

The Visitor, by Sophia. 

A cool breeze made the curtains dance. The white silk leapt about, as if it were an excited ghost reaching for the night. Candlelight flickered across the room, landing on a little boy’s face. He was sound asleep. His sister, in the bed next to his, wasn't. She sat up, her dark hair resting on her shoulders. The sleeves of her pink pyjamas were rolled up, as her eyes scanned the pages of the leather-bound book. Pale fingers gripped the edges, turning knuckles white. Footsteps sounded outside the bedroom. A shadow formed beneath the door. Her visitor had arrived…

Modern Foreign Language, Lingua Chef competition:

During February half-term, Modern Foreign Language launched Denefield's Lingua Chef competition for Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 students. To take part, students had to research and cook a recipe from another country.

Students then sent in a photo of their finished dish, details of the recipe they followed and a poster describing what the dish is, where it originates from and any interesting facts about the dish.

Ms Fitipaldii says 'It was incredible to go through all of their entries and learn recipes from around the world.'

Year 7 student, Sofia Paroni-Kendall and Year 8 student Alicia Hoang received first prize.

Sofia made a main of Ricetta Ragù allay bolognase and Tiramisu for  dessert! (above.)

Alicia made Pho, a chicken noodle soup that originated from North Vietnam. (below)

Year 8 students Ava and Mya received second prize.

Year 7 student Jake, pictured above with his Danish Aebleskiver (peach pancake balls) and Year 8 student Tilly received third prize. 

'It was very exciting to see students cooking their chosen recipes. There were so many high-quality entries that we decided to give shared prizes.' says Ms Fitipaldi Moreno, Teacher of Spanish.  

Congratulations to all winners and to all participants for their fantastic effort. All student posters and entries have been displayed outside our modern Foreign Language classrooms. 

First prize received 3 Faculty points =15 house points

Second prize received 2 Faculty points =10 house points

Third prize received 1 Faculty point =5 house points

All entries received a extra-curricular house point for participating.

Premier League Inspires visit, Reading Football Club:

10 Denefield students who are taking part in a 10 week program with Premier League Inspires, attended Select Car Leasing Stadium, home of Reading Football Club.

Our students delivered their Social Action Project that they spent 6 weeks working on, to members of the community, including Microsoft and Reading Football Club.

The students also participated in a carousel of activities throughout the day.

Amazing work!

Year 12 Maths Inspiration tour, The Hexagon:

Maths inspiration was an amazing show, highlighting different ways our A-level maths students can use maths in unexpected and creative ways.

The show demonstrated how to create amazing and beautiful patterns in art, using maths to help stop climate change and looking at how music uses maths to create beautiful sounds.

'This is the first time students have attended this show, but certainly not the last - The sixth formers found it very entertaining.' Says Miss B Leahy, Teacher of Maths. 

Combined Cadet Force field day:

On Wednesday 13 March, alongside Pangbourne College, nine Year 11 Denefield Cadets prepared for a night-time exercise and camping at Bramley Military Training ground in Hampshire.

In this exercise, the cadets were provided with the opportunity to demonstrate their leadership skills and took it in turns to take responsibility for their groups.

The group arrived just before 7.00pm to unload equipment and make camp in an old warehouse. Although dry, cadets were sleeping on concrete floors – roll mats and sleeping bags provided were military grade.

Throughout Thursday, the Junior cadets rotated around a programme of six stances, including: a Stalk, Pairs Firing, and Manoeuvre; Casualty Evacuation; Fire Team Attack; Skill at Arms Revision; and Room Clearance.

The group achieved their objective slightly later than planned, but they got back to base by 11.00pm - hot chocolates and pizza were ready for their return.

Excitingly, all junior cadets had the opportunity to conduct blank firing, and did so with great enthusiasm.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff members and cadets for their efforts. We hope that they all feel that they have had the opportunity to develop and push themselves outside their comfort zones.

Year 11, 12 and 13 Art visit to Florence:

Please see 'School News and Events', below for more details of the Art trip to Florence. 

Above, photos taken by a student on a film camera. 

Mock trial competition:

On Saturday 14 March, 13 Denefield students attended the Mock Trail competition. 

 

Denefield's donations of wash bags to The Royal Berkshire Hospital:

Well done and thank you to everyone who donated wash bag items.

Freddie and Tanzika, pictured below are members of the Royal Berkshire Hospital Youth Forum and came up with this fantastic donation idea. 

All donations have been packed up and will be delivered to the emergency care unit at the Royal Berkshire Hospital. 

Congratulations to our Reading FC ticket ballot winners!

On Saturday 9 March, 25 students and an accompanying adult attended the Reading FC vs Wycombe Wanderers game after winning the Denefield free ticket ballot. 

It's a shame Reading FC lost, but a great day was had by all! 

'Taylor and I had a fab time at the football on Saturday' below, Taylor sat excitedly at the game. 

As part of the Grassroots scheme, Denefield are entitled to discounted Reading FC tickets- please see 'Community news' for more information and how to book. 

Denefield Futures Fair:

On Friday 3 May 2024, we are holding a Futures Fair to introduce students to different employers, colleges, apprenticeship providers and universities.

Mrs Jackson, our Transition and Careers lead is currently seeking support from local businesses, Trustees, parents and carers to ensure we have a great range for students to meet on the day.

If you are interested in helping out and are free between 11.00am and 3.30pm on Friday 3 May, please email careers@denefield.org.uk

Many thanks for any help you give!

Red Nose Day 2024:

Thank you to everyone that wore non - uniform and donated, we raised a whopping £2,173! 

Message from the PE department- PE Kit:

If your child has PE kit that is too small for them and they would not use it again (especially year 11's), the PE department would love to have it as part of their spare kit.

The long sleeve rugby style top, the short sleeve polo, or even shorts, that would be fantastic. If you do have any old kit and would like to bring it into school, please drop it off at main reception or bring it around to the PE Department.

Many thanks,

Mr Clare

Wellbeing Hub Summer term content line-up:

The Wellbeing Hub have a brilliant line-up of content across the Summer Term, covering a range of topics including Self-esteem, Transitions, Sleep and Sex Education – more details on what we’re covering can be found here. 

The Wellbeing Hub, content for the Week commencing Monday 1 April:

Trustees visit:

On Thursday 21 March, Denefield Trustees spent the day on site. They had a busy agenda, including tours, meeting staff and student groups. 

Find our more about our Trustees and members

Kids College:

Year 5 and 6 Pupils from local primary schools are invited to Denefield to participate in activities in preparation for them to join our community. 

Denefield staff lead activities in Science, Art and Food Technology to introduce pupils to eachother, familiarise themselves with our school faciltiies and most importantly, to have a great time! 

Not only do the pupils have a great time, so do our staff - supporting the transition from primary school to secondary is rewarding for all. 

STEM Electricity roadshow:

Representatives of BAE Systems, The Royal Air Force and The Royal Navy visited on Tuesday 26 March.

Year 7 and 8 students gathered in the hall during their Science period to listen, watch, learn and participate in our visitors' Science roadshow on the topic of electricity.

Their demonstrations highlighted the use of Maths and Science in all Engineering roles. The event, performed for Year 7 and 8, was hugely engaging and motivating, involving interactive demonstrations including building a huge circuit and generating electricity by hand and pedal power.

'It was really fun, we loved it' Five Year 8 students gave their feedback after the session. 

Mrs Jackson, Transition and Careers Lead says 'It was simply ‘electrifying’.  Huge thank you to the organisations and the team, Matthew, Sophie and Lydia as well as all the staff who made it happen.'

Onatti Modern Foreign Language play:

Earlier this term, over two weeks, our Year 8 students were joined by the Onatti team. The first week, our Year 8's watched a German play.

Students watched a play performed by two native German actors.

The second week, the Onatti actors performed a Spanish play. 

All plays are performed entirely in the subject language. All actors are trained to perform with clear, slow delivery  to ensure the students can follow the play. 

Planning a clear out over Easter?

One of our local schools, Purley C of E Primary School have arranged a Bags2school collection on the morning of Monday 15 April 2024.

This is a great way to raise funds for our local primary school, as well as helping with your Spring clean!

Please find the details of what we can and cannot donate in the flyer below.

If you have donations, please drop them at Purley Primary School, RG8 8AF courts at 9.00am on Monday 15 April.

Village concerts:

Easter holiday sessions:

Reading FC Mini Season ticket on sale!

Give your club your backing with up to 20% off for the final three home fixtures. Please share the following link: https://www.readingfc.co.uk/news/2024/march/17/Mini-Season-Tickets-Mar24/

Schools and Grassroots tickets available for Reading FC Women v Blackburn Rovers Women

When?

Reading Women vs Blackburn Rovers Women
Sunday 31^st March, 12pm kick off

Where?

Select Car Leasing Stadium

Prices

12 and Under: £1
17 and Under: £2
18 to 24: £3
65 and over: £3
Adult: £5

How to qualify for the discount and confirm your attendance?

To redeem, please visit https://ticketing.readingfc.co.uk and enter the following unique coupon code: #DenefieldSchool in the basket once you have logged in and selected your tickets.

Important!  This offer applies to tickets in blocks G9 and G10 of the West Lower Stand only. Coupon codes are valid up until 4 hours before kick-off.

How many tickets can we purchase?

There is no limit on the number of tickets you can buy using your unique code.

If you have any questions about this offer, please email sales@readingfc.co.uk or call 0118 968 1313.

Come on URRRZZ!!

Madden Swim School:

We have limited availability for our Easter intensive swimming lesson course.  The 5-day course is Monday to Friday, 8-12th April at both our pools; Downe House School pool in Cold Ash and The Oratory School pool in Woodcote. This is for a 30-minute swimming lesson each day. The cost for the 5-day course is £65 per swimmer, and the benefit of running the course in our style, is that siblings swim at the same time. 

Shallow end swimmers enjoy this course as their swimming ability and water confidence improves so much! We have two teachers in each class of up to 6 children.  We teach children of all abilities, from 3.5 - 17 years. Deep end swimmers have a wonderful time in their lessons wearing flippers, learning stroke improvement, building stamina, improving their water skills and diving! 

The progress is quite remarkable over the 5 days, and we highly encourage you to get your children enrolled.  The lesson times at Downe House School pool are 9am, 9:30am and 10am, and the lesson times at The Oratory School pool in Woodcote are 2pm, 2:30pm and 3pm. 

We look forward to hearing from you to enrol your children to our upcoming lessons, please email julie@maddenswimschool.co.uk.