6th February 2026
We have come to the end of another very wet week which, although far from ideal, has given us the opportunity to enjoy plenty of muddy outdoor adventures - from flood-filled walks around Henley and mud-pie making in the Outdoor Classroom, to some thoroughly muddy rugby sessions and a very soggy Running Club session this morning.
I enjoyed joining in a rugby session with the Year 4 children in awful weather earlier in the week, not that the children were at all phased by the conditions. As we were saying at Running Club this morning, we just have to embrace the mud!
Although it seems a long time ago, my Monday assembly focused on the link between Christmas and Candlemas, with the latter celebrated on 2nd February. Traditionally, people used to keep many of their Christmas decorations up until this date, so I do apologise if it means your children may encourage you to keep your Christmas lights up for longer next year!
Next week marks the final week of this first half of term. We will be marking Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week, as well as Safer Internet Day on Tuesday. This year’s Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week focusses on the theme of ‘This is my place’ and there is an excellent article HERE from the Wellbeing Hub which you might like to read as it chimes very much with our approach. In addition, the Shiplake Maths Challenge will take place, the Junior Orchestra will be visiting Abingdon, and we will be holding an in-person Parents’ Evening for Pre-Prep and Year 3 parents.
Nutrition workshops
This week the Pre-Prep children enjoyed nutrition workshops run by Beth from Chapter One. She talked to them about the Eat Well Plate and they had great fun drawing their own plates based on yesterday’s lunch or dinner, then learning how to make them even healthier - making sure they included a good balance of fruit and vegetables, carbohydrates and protein.
NSPCC Number Day
Mr Dwinell organised a number of exciting activities this week to celebrate NSPCC Number Day which is today, Friday 6th February. You can read all about the day HERE.
Queen Anne's AI Conference
One of the schools we feed, Queen Anne's, is hosting a fascinating-sounding evening titled The Future of jobs: Humans, AI and the World of Work which will take place on Monday 2nd March at 19:30, at the school. It will bring together experts in AI, education, and workforce development, alongside school leaders, teachers, parents and students themselves to consider practical questions around AI and the impact it will have. If you are interested in attending, please see the link HERE.
Rupert House Open Morning
If you know anyone who might be considering sending their child to Rupert House, please point them in the direction of our next Open Morning which takes place on Friday 13th March from 9.45am to 12pm. We are inviting prospective parents to join us for our STEAM themed event where they can experience the excitement of learning at Rupert House. From hands-on science experiments and engineering challenges, to artistic innovation, mathematical puzzles and interactive tech, there’s something to ignite every young inventor’s spark. The link to register can be found here: Rupert House School - Open Events
Last chance to book - Discover Activity Camps
With just one week to go until half term, this is a reminder to book your child into Discover Activity Camps at Rupert House. The team is looking forward to welcoming children aged 4–14 to their multi-activity day camps, offering a wide range of age-appropriate activities including forest school, cooking, team games, sports and active outdoor play. There are still places left for children aged 8-14. Camps can be booked on a daily basis, although a full week is recommended to make the most of everything on offer. Spaces are still available for children aged 8–14. Find out more HERE.
Tough Mudder
The staff and parent team of Rupert's Troopers are planning to take part in this year’s Tough Mudder on 9th May. If you’d like to join us for either the 15km or 5km challenge, please complete this short form. The Tough Mudder is great fun, and we’d love to put together a big team this year. If you’d also like to join the Rupert's Troopers WhatsApp group—where we chat and organise upcoming sporting events and challenges—please email jenny.ovstedal@ruperthouse.co.uk.
Year 6 results
And finally, I am delighted to share the brilliant news that not only were our three boys who applied to Abingdon School successful in being offered places, they achieved two academic scholarships and an all-round scholarship between them, so well done Joshy, Jasper H and Jasper W respectively! The Registrar phoned me to say that this was remarkable and that the team were enormously impressed with the boys and the way in which they conducted themselves whilst there for the assessments and interviews. Hot on the heels of this super news, we heard that both Jaspers have also been offered places at Magdalen College School and that Jasper W has been awarded an all-round scholarship there as well - one of only two that were given out! Very well done to them.
Best wishes,
Nick Armitage