It was a real privilege to join one of our poignant House Assemblies this week on the theme of ‘Be Prepared.’ Miss Dolan (pictured here in the Main Hall) is the new Head of House for Oak House and provided so many excellent examples and tips for how all students can be prepared in school and also the wider world to achieve great success and contribute positively to the society around them.

During this period of national mourning, each House Assembly also built in a fitting tribute to our late Queen Elizabeth who, at the tender age of 25, stepped up to become the Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. As we all know, she was prepared to be the queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during her lifetime and 15 at the time of her death. Her reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch and the longest recorded of any female head of state in history. With her as our inspiration, Miss Dolan encouraged all of us to set clear goals in life, but also take steps to be able to respond to any eventuality that might come our way and develop true resilience and grit to succeed in all circumstances.

The assemblies have, as always, made for a very positive start to each day in school this week.