The week began with assemblies in Juniors and a superb assembly in Seniors from Mr King in preparation for The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. He invited pupils to ask what and why are we commemorating?

He asked, is it because she is British and what does that mean anyway? He asked the same of her royalty; what does that privilege mean in the context of a family beset with their own challenges and a country grappling with a cost of living crisis, the extent of which I have not seen in my lifetime.

Then he invited us to examine why we should care about the Platinum Jubilee. Whatever you feel about the royal family, 70 years of selfless service and duty contributing to the successes of this country both in spirit and financially is perhaps worthy of note.

Finally, once again acknowledging many of us have differing views about the monarchy, he asked us to explore the qualities of our Queen; her sense of duty, her understanding of others, the role model she has become for many and the stability she offers, particularly given the enormous changes seen during her reign. He said;

Imagine 70 years of change at an increasing rate, yet your job and its mission remain the same: be all things good to all Britons and those who live in the UK. It’s not an easy job description to fulfil!

He then talked about that very British institution, the street party. Interestingly, street parties (or peace teas as they were known) started in 1919 after WW1 as a treat for the children who had suffered real hardship during the war. Given this focus, we felt it entirely fitting for the School to lend some wonderful Croydon High spirit to the Platinum Jubilee celebrations and our wonderful Mrs Beck set about organising it.

It was a remarkable feat. Mrs Beck charged herself and a team of volunteers from across the school community with turning our car park into a street party venue for the entire school in time for lunch and then back into a car park in time for the end of the day. Not only was this achieved, despite the setback and then threat of wind and rain, the event was an absolute triumph!

It is the first time – as far as anyone can tell – that the entire school, Juniors, Seniors and staff, have sat down together to eat. Of course, we were sad not to have our Year 11 and Upper Sixth pupils join us but their examinations must be protected and those who happened to be in working on Wednesday did join us briefly for some short light relief from revision.

The lunches were delivered in themed boxes and fitted the brief perfectly. The entertainment from Olivia H, L6 and Talia E, Y11 was fantastic. It was lovely to see our Junior pupils enjoying watching the Seniors; indeed, one Junior pupil I spoke to who could hear the music but not see the performers was amazed that they were live performances from our own pupils (I think she was a little starstruck by the end!) Once lunch had finished, a couple of pupils began singing a number from the forthcoming Lower School performance of Mathilda, they were joined by a few more, then a few more and before we realised what was happening, a flashmob had taken over, singing in beautiful harmony. We then embarked on a short whole school singalong to give the event a really celebratory feel.

This event lifted the spirits, despite the weather, in so many ways. It was an utter joy to see Junior and Senior girls dancing and singing along together, particularly given the Covid bubbles separated us for so long. It was touching to see the warm relationships between staff and pupils and the way pupils from all year groups joined together. It was uplifting to watch our girls having so much fun. It was a poignant (for me, anyway) reminder of the power of our community and the joy it brings to everyone who belongs to it.

As quickly as the event was put up – perhaps even more quickly – the setting was taken down as pupils returned to their lessons on time at 1.30pm.  The excitement and celebration were quickly replaced by focus and concentration on the task at hand.

In her Christmas speech last year, The Queen said: I hope will be an opportunity for people everywhere to enjoy a sense of togetherness. A chance to give thanks for the enormous changes for the last 70 years; social, scientific and cultural. And also, to look ahead with confidence.

I believe that, on Wednesday, Croydon High did her proud!

I would like to thank everyone who was involved in putting on this memorable and remarkable event. The catering team who prepared so many lunches; the caretaking team who ensured we could all sit down to eat; the front office team who supported the preparations and everyone – pupils and staff – who, on the day, gave up their free time to support the final preparations. Most of all, I would like to thank our Head of Community, Sue Beck for masterminding the event and working tirelessly over the past few weeks to see her idea become a reality.

In recent years, and despite Covid, Sue has been responsible for so many significant and meaningful events, including The Masked Singer, Fit February, the Harvest celebrations, GDST Run the World, Remembrance Day, Pyjamas for Childrens Hopsital, Colour Run, GDST Pole to Pole, Captain Tom 100 and many more charity projects and events…She tells me that she gets these ideas when she takes her dog out for a walk. I wonder what she and Poppy (also known as Popstar!) will come up with for us next?

I wish you all a wonderful half term break and hope you enjoy your own celebrations for Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.

And just a record of previous occasions in which Street Parties were organised:

• 1919   ‘Peace Teas’ for children after the 1st World War
• 1935   Silver Jubilee of King George V
• 1937   Coronation of King George VI
• 1945   VE and VJ Days after World War 2
• 1951   Festival of Britain
• 1953   Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
• 1977   Silver Jubilee of the Queen
• 1981   Wedding of Prince Charles & Diana Spencer
• 2000/1   Millennium Summer Parties
• 2002   Golden Jubilee of the Queen
• 2011   Wedding of Prince William & Catherine Middleton
• 2012   Diamond Jubilee of the Queen
• 2016   Queen’s 90th Birthday
• 2022 Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

I hope you have a wonderful Half Term break!

Mrs Pattison

Headmistress

On Wednesday afternoon this week, Croydon High marked the Queen’s Jubilee with a ‘street party’ style lunch for the whole school and Junior and Senior School staff and students all came together to celebrate.

Undeterred by grey skies and the odd shower, everyone thoroughly enjoyed this momentous special occasion. The car park at the entrance to the school was transformed, with bunting and flags and tables and chairs for over 600 people. Our Nursery and Reception girls joined in from a slight distance, safely seated on their Union Jack picnic blankets, as we felt the noise might be a little overwhelming for them! They were VERY excited!

Our catering team outdid themselves with delicious, themed picnic boxes. A few of our talented Sixth Formers serenaded us with songs – including SOS by Abba, sung by Olivia in Lower Sixth with guitar accompaniment by Talia in Year 11. Pupils and staff sang a few favourite numbers together, including ‘Let It Go’ from Frozen, ‘Reach for the Stars’ by S Club 7, and ‘Sweet Caroline’ by Neil Diamond. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the flash mob performance of “When I grow up” from Matilda led by Year 9s Susie and Eva and Year 7 Lara.  There was a quiz organised by Mrs Conrad, plenty of dancing and flag waving, and the lunch ended with an impressive whole school conga line!

Pupils enjoyed collecting signatures on their commemorative Jubilee Postcards and talked about the idea that in 70 years’ time, they will be able to look back and remember the people they shared the day with! It was a wonderful, happy celebration of community spirit for all in attendance – including the cardboard cut-out of Her Majesty, who joined in the various festivities.

As some of the pupils observed “My favourite part was seeing the girls and staff having fun together.” And “I love the sense of community when we are all together – loved the dancing and singing too!”

Enormous thanks to all who contributed to an unforgettable school experience; catering, premises, senior office, Music and Drama departments, pupil helpers … all brought together under the direction and vision of the one and only Mrs Beck.

To see more pictures from the day, why not follow us on Instagram?  @croydonhighschool

Mrs Cook

Director of Philanthropy and External Relations

On Saturday 21 May, a special reunion took place at Croydon High School, with some members of the school’s netball teams, dating back to 1979, returning to school to compete in the third Ivy Link Netball Challenge Cup.

It was fantastic to see many of our alumnae, some with their families, participate in friendly yet very competitive matches. Over 35 netballers took part, ranging in age from 19 to 61, and there were plenty of fine netball skills still in evidence in all five teams. It showed that if you learn something well, it stays with you for life!

We were happy to welcome spectators who came to support their schoolmates, catch up and reminisce. It was great to see some former staff, including PE teacher Liz Robertson who took numerous netball teams to the National Finals at Croydon High from 1966 to 2001.

The top two teams equalled 18 points, so it all came down to a goal difference of 3. It was just as exciting as the battle between Manchester City and Liverpool the following day! We were delighted to present the Ivy Link Cup to the winning team – Sydelle Davey 1992, Sue Wright 1992, Shola Apena-Rogers 1996, Mary Latham 1996, Millie Oughton 2010, Lily Rogers 2010 and Ellie Haden-Scott 2018. Congratulations!

Delicious match day teas, including Pimm’s, were enjoyed by all, thanks to our fantastic catering team. Thanks also to the premises team and PE department who worked hard to make the event a success, especially Mrs Beck, without whom the day would not have been the same.

The Ivy Link is the school’s alumnae network and regularly communicates with over 4,000 women who attended the school, either here in Selsdon or at its original site in Wellesley Road, Croydon.

Mrs Roe

Alumnae Relations Manager

On Friday 13 May, we welcomed the girls in Year 5 at Hamsey Green Primary School for an afternoon of science at Croydon High.

All the girls thoroughly enjoyed the Cluedo style Forensic Whodunnit session (led by Mrs Conrad in the Biology Lab with the test tube!) They then went on to chemistry, creating red cabbage indicators to test the pH values of various household products. They were clearly excited to use the science equipment and the Croydon High cookies went down very well too!

Croydon High staff commented on what a pleasure it was to welcome such engaged visitors including some very promising young scientists. Mrs Mace, Head of Hamsey Green Juniors who accompanied the girls was also extremely appreciative of the efforts made by the school to offer the girls this exciting opportunity.

Thank you to all involved in making this such a successful event.

Mrs Cook

Director of Philanthropy and External Relations

It is not unusual for us to run two school trips in a week, but it is not normal for the teachers!

This week two groups of staff spent an evening at the theatre watching two of our students in School of Rock, currently touring the UK. Ivy (Year 5) and Kyla (Year 7) have spent several weeks together this year touring from Edinburgh to Eastbourne but the Croydon High staff caught up with them in Dartford as it was a little closer to home.

At the beginning of the show, Andrew Lloyd Webber announces that the instruments are played live by the child cast. As we heard the announcement it seemed an odd announcement to make – surely that is the point. However, when you see the confidence and skill with which they play it is certainly easy to see why someone might assume they were miming!

Following the film’s plot by the same name, the children are taught how to ‘beat the man’ through rock music, and the class take on different roles in the band. Shonelle (Kyla) auditions to be a singer, and Katie (Ivy) swaps her ‘cello for a bass guitar. Both Croydon High students and the rest of the child cast are beyond amazing, and their teachers were very impressed. We even made trips to the stage door to get a photo!

Mrs Bradshaw

Deputy Head (Sixth Form and Operations)

On Monday, netball players from Years 8 to 10 made their way to the Copper Box Arena to watch London Pulse play Manchester Thunder. It was an exciting game with Pulse leading the first three quarters, and our school being divided in who we were supporting made it even more exciting. Pulse was leading most of the game, but Thunder made a great comeback in the final quarter, winning it 56-50.

We learnt a lot about the game and are looking forward to including the skills we saw in our matches next season.

At the end of the game, we were lucky enough to meet a number of the players and even have some selfies with them!

By Lexi R, Y10

On Tuesday morning, alumna Honey Gabriel came into school to talk to a group of Year 9 and 10 pupils about her career as an Actor and Voiceover Artist. The event took a Q&A format, and, over croissants and juice, pupils asked lots of excellent questions about what a career in Acting is like.

Honey shared some of the challenges and the high points of her career, giving pupils a positive and realistic view of working in the arts. It was interesting to hear how Honey had not thought about a career in Acting while at Croydon High and, in fact, first worked in Private Equity!

Honey is now carving out a career for herself, having graduated from Drama Studio London during the pandemic, starting her career with virtual productions during lockdown. Honey was incredibly inspiring, showing our pupils what can be achieved with tenacity, determination and hard work.

Mrs Humphrey

Head of Progression & Futures

As part of their learning about Kenya and African animals, Year 1 visited Port Lympne Reserve to go on safari. Despite the persistent rain throughout the day, we zipped up our coats and enjoyed exploring the reserve to learn about the different animals. The safari truck experience meant that we could get really close to the animals, including some which are near extinction. We loved seeing all the animals but some particular highlights were the giraffes, tigers and rhinos. We also learnt about the conservation work they do at Port Lympne and we discovered that many of the animals are transferred back to the countries they are from.

Miss Threadgold

Deputy Head of Junior School