6th March 2026

We saw so many fabulous costumes across all the year groups, and it was wonderful to witness such a joyful celebration of reading.

Throughout the day, pupils enjoyed a range of literacy-themed activities, from designing book covers to writing about their costumes in French. We concluded the day with a book and cake sale organised by the Friends of Rupert House, which raised over £700 for The Chiltern Centre - a fantastic result. The centre sent a lovely letter of thanks for all the fundraising activities we have undertaken in support of them, which you can read here. Our thanks go to the Friends for organising the event, and to everyone who bought or donated books and cakes. You can read more about the day here.

Josh Lewsey, a parent and former England, Lions and Wasps rugby player was our special guest during assembly on Monday.  He spoke in a most inspirational way about our values of Courage, Creativity, Respect and Resilience and the ways in which he had to adhere to them through the challenges he faced in gaining selection for England and coping with failure, all of which helped to shape him as a player and person. He made a point of rubbing in the fact that more often than not, he had been on the winning side against Leicester, my team, but I will forgive him for that, in time! Miss Lewis, a proud Welshwoman, spoke about St David's Day, which was on Sunday, and the ways in which it is celebrated in Wales, and her class sang a lovely Welsh song she had taught them. 

It was wonderful also to celebrate the success of our Cross-Country runners, with the Y4 girls team winning at the Oxfordshire Cross-Country Champs on Saturday, and lots of excellent individual performances from the girls and boys, while the senior Girls team prepared for the National Prep Schools Champs on Sunday. The team of Teddy, Olivia, Lotte and Charlotte came an incredible 4^th out of 50 teams overall, putting in a superb performance in defence of the title we won last year. Meanwhile, Nate continues to make waves in the pool, and we congratulated him on winning no less than 3 events and placing in a number of others at a large swim meet recently! 

 

Celebrating Rupert House Artwork

On Monday, Mrs Poulter, Mrs Forbes and I attended the opening of the Wishford Art Exhibition at Westonbirt School. This year’s theme was Nature, and the artwork on display was fantastic and of such a high calibre and displayed in the most stunning setting there.

Well done to all the Rupert House children whose work was exhibited, and special congratulations to Percy F, who won the Year 4 category with his creative Cornwall collage.

We also received the results of the Henley Youth Festival art competition this week. During their art lessons at school, the children created a range of 2D and 3D individual and group pieces, which were judged by a local artist alongside entries from other local schools. Rupert House pupils achieved outstanding results in the 7–11 category, receiving 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize in the group category, and 1st and 2nd prize in the individual category.

You can find out more here.

 

House Music auditions

Well done to everyone who auditioned for House Music this week, including a number of Pre-Prep children who bravely performed in front of their peers and parents, earning valuable points for their houses. Thank you to all the parents who came into school to watch and support the children. Mrs Light listened to an incredible 131 auditions in total! She will be announcing shortly which pupils will be performing at the House Music Concert, which is always such a fabulous occasion.

 

Year 2/3 transition morning

The Year 2 children had a wonderful transition morning on Wednesday with their Year 3 friends, beginning their exciting journey towards life in Prep. Through fun teamwork activities, they strengthened friendships, built confidence and got a taste of what’s to come next year!

 

Summer term clubs

Please read this letter from Arlette Halfhead regarding the Summer clubs. Summer Term club allocations are now live on the parent portal. A small number of spaces remain available; if you would like to add a club, please email Arlette by 5.00pm on Tuesday 10th March, as changes cannot be made through the portal. After this deadline, amendments cannot be accepted and withdrawals may still be charged unless the place can be filled from a waiting list.

 

Friends of Rupert House

Lizzie Benson and Erin Barber have been wonderful in their roles as Chair of the Friends and Treasurer of the FoRH over the past two years, and their tenure will come to an end in July. They are now looking for people to take on these important positions, as well as someone to take on the role of secretary.

Being Chair of the Friends is a fantastic opportunity for someone who would like to become more involved in the school community, meet other parents and help shape the activities and events that bring our community together. The role need not be onerous and does not require a large time commitment. It could also be shared by two people as joint chairs, allowing the responsibilities to be divided. The Chair works closely with class representatives and as part of a supportive team. The role would particularly suit someone who is organised and enjoys planning. Lizzie has already met with her counterpart at St Mary's, and the role will include helping to bring the two communities together from a parental perspective which will undoubtedly help the children to do so smoothly. They are already planning a joint event in early September before term starts, which sounds great fun and details of which will be shared soon!

The Secretary and Treasurer roles are also not overly time-consuming, with some parts of the year busier than others. All three positions could be ideal for people considering a return to work in the near future and looking to gain or refresh valuable experience, with the Treasurer role suiting someone who has an accounting or finance background.

Monthly meetings take place on Wednesdays at 8.30am. If you might be interested in any of the roles, please do get in touch with Lizzie.

 

Year 6 News

Very well done to Coralie, Thomas, George, Jasper H and Jasper W, all of whom were successful in their 11+ Grammar School assessments, with Coralie, George and Thomas all likely to go to Sir William Borlase's in Marlow in September. 

 

Open Morning

Next Friday we are hosting a STEAM themed Open Morning for prospective parents. If you know of any local families who may be interested in joining Rupert House, please do mention it to them and ask them to register via the Rupert House website.

 

Next week promises to be a busy and exciting one, with STEAM Week, the Henley Youth Festival, school trips, musical and theatrical performances, sports fixtures, Open Morning and the FoRH Ball all taking place. Please check the Parent Portal for further information and details about these events.

Have a lovely weekend.

Best wishes,

Nick Armitage