5th June 2026

I hope your children all had an enjoyable and restful break. It has been wonderful to catch up with lots of the children and to hear all about their half-term adventures and experiences.

We began this week with a visit from Birte Hayes who came to talk to the children in assembly about her incredible experience of running the Marathon des Sables. She gave a wonderful talk about the challenges that she faced and spoke to us about the importance of teamwork, of supporting each other and of having a positive mindset. 

Following the incredibly successful 'Make £5 grow' challenge the Year 6 children undertook before Half Term, on Wednesday they presented a review of the processes they went through to the parents and their peers. They talked about the decisions they made in their choices of products, the branding and advertising, the price-points they had settled on and then spoke about the lessons they had learned. I was most impressed with their confidence in presenting in front of a room of adults and the maturity they demonstrated in talking so knowledgeably about the processes they had followed. I must also congratulate them on making over £1000 altogether, which is quite an achievement! The profits will be split between a charity of their choice and paying for a fun leavers' event they will also decide on together.

The week concluded with our Reception Discovery Afternoon at the Outdoor Classroom, where our incoming Reception children enjoyed their first opportunity to meet the EYFS team and get to know one another before joining Rupert House in September. Thankfully, the rain stayed away, allowing everyone to make the most of the outdoor setting - searching for bugs, toasting bread over the fire and playing in the teepees. These children will also be invited to an induction day on 19th June, when they will spend time with our current Nursery pupils and learn more about life in Reception at Rupert House. It promises to be another exciting step in their journey towards starting school with us in September.

Staying on the theme of Forest School, a big thank you to the Year 6 parents who have very generously given us a wonderful Forest School tool kit, which I know the children will very much enjoy using!

Thank you to all parents for ensuring that children arrived yesterday in the correct summer uniform, complete with blazers, for the whole-school and class photographs. The children looked incredibly smart, and we look forward to seeing the finished photographs. By some miracle, the  weather behaved just long enough for the photo to be taken, and Quincy and our dog, Suli, also made an appearance!

 

Wishford Athletics Event

This week, the sports department took a group of children from Years 3 to 6 to Palmer Park in Reading where they competed against 9 other Wishford Prep schools in an athletics competition. Our pupils delivered an outstanding performance, finishing 1st overall in the girls' competition and 3rd overall across all schools. There were some exceptional individual performances too, including Sophia S, who broke the Wishford Athletics records in both the 80m and long jump, and Teddy M, who claimed double gold in the 600m and high jump, setting a new event record in the process. A huge congratulations to all 45 pupils in Years 3 to 6 who represented the school so brilliantly! You can read more about the day HERE

 

Parent Lunch

We are delighted to be hosting a Parent Lunch on Wednesday 10th June from 12.45pm to 1.30pm. This is a wonderful opportunity for parents to enjoy a meal, sampling the delicious food prepared by our catering partner, Chapter One, and to learn more about the menus from our Head chef, Barry.

If you would like to attend, please email office@ruperthouse.co.uk to reserve your place.

 

Thank You from Kiya Survivors

We recently supported Kiya Survivors, a Peruvian based children’s charity, following funds raised at the Rupert House Silent Auction. Kiya have shared that this fundraising will enable them to undertake additional projects this year for the children they support - one of which is to buy 11 year old Zaid a wheelchair. Zaid has cerebral palsy and he outgrew his previous wheelchair years ago and his mother has not been able to afford a replacement. She has since been carrying him around the streets and to appointments in her own arms. The team visiting Peru this summer (including Genevieve & Sophia in Year 4 & Edward in Year 2) will visit Zaid and Maria his mother and present the new wheelchair on behalf of Rupert House. Funds raised will also fund a physiotherapist to work an additional four hours a week in the charity’s centre, and with plenty of children to visit, this will really help support the children who need it most in the local community. Kiya sends a huge thanks to all parents for their support.

 

Henley Festival Rise Young Art Competition - deadline extended

Children are invited to paint, draw, or create a mixed media piece inspired by the theme My Favourite Place. Let imaginations run free, whether it is a magical landscape, a treasured holiday spot, or a cosy corner at home. Artwork should be no larger than A4 and suitable for framing. Entries will be judged by age group (categories: 5-7 years, 8-9 years and 10-11 years), and all finalists will have their work proudly displayed at the Playdate event on July 12. Winners and runners up will also receive a ticket to attend and all entrants’ artworks will be exhibited at the Amber Gallery in August. Children can submit their artwork through school (please hand work to Mrs Poulter). Please note that the deadline for submitting artwork has been extended to Wednesday 10^th June.

 

Sister Act Jr.

The cast of Sister Act Jr. are working so hard - they have done such a great job learning their lines, taking direction and learning their songs & choreography. Mrs Light has asked me to convey to you how impressed she is with what she has seen so far. Please can the children be reminded to keep this up for these last two weeks - revisiting their stage directions, dance moves and words so that they are performance ready. All resources are on Teams for those extra rehearsals at home.

I am excited to announce that tickets are now available to book. Please read the letters below carefully for booking instructions. The front five rows have been reserved for Year 6 parents at the Tuesday and Wednesday 7pm performances. Unfortunately, if you book these seats and you do not have a Year 6 child, your bookings will be amended. Also, any parent bookings made before 6th June have been removed so these seats will need to be rebooked.

 

Minibuses from September

We have recently introduced new minibus routes. If you are interested in using the minibus service to travel to and/or from school from September, please get in touch with Wendy Emslie at wendy.emslie@ruperthouse.co.uk or transport@ruperthouse.co.uk

 

Best wishes,

Nick Armitage