Monday 13th October - Head of School Letter
What an outstanding and vibrant week we've had at The Cottesloe School!
The dedication seen from our students across academic and co-curricular fields truly embodied our motto: Prepare, Aspire, Succeed. From our Year 11s diligently preparing for their mock exams, to Year 12s broadening their horizons at Oxford Brookes University and engaging in cultural trips like the Ashmolean Museum and the theatre, our pupils continue to aspire to excellence. This focus on learning, growth, and wellbeing—including a brilliant World Mental Health Day on Friday—is why we know they will succeed. My sincere thanks goes to all the adults who commit their time to provide these opportunities, clubs, and interventions outside of the twenty-five hours of core classroom learning.
Hello Yellow!
The fantastic atmosphere on World Mental Health Day last Friday was entirely down to the enthusiasm and hard work of our Sixth Form students and Wellbeing Ambassadors, who were brilliantly supported by Miss Phillips and Mrs Coyne. The 'Hello Yellow' bake sale was a runaway success, with the queue for delicious, donated cakes stretching out of the TEAM Hub throughout break and lunch. We want to extend a massive thank you to all the staff and students for the incredible generosity shown through donations and purchases; this community spirit is what makes The Cottesloe School so special. The initial total raised from the break and lunchtime sales alone is a staggering £368.81! We are still receiving online contributions; the grand total for the YoungMinds charity will be shared next week.
In the meantime, you can see brilliant photos of the talented bakes and the fantastic yellow outfits worn by our community members on our social media channels, helping to raise money and awareness of the importance of good mental health.
Staff Running Success
A number of our staff enjoy nothing more than lacing up their running shoes and heading out to pound the pavement or trail. Earlier in the term, Mr Gracey, teacher of French and German, ran the Warsaw Marathon. Having run Milton Keynes previously, he had eyes on running a sub 3:45 marathon. He stormed home in 3:40:22, smashing his goal and running a personal best. If you’re interested in running stats, he ran an incredibly even and disciplined race with every 5km split within 3 seconds of each other. Over 42.1km or 26.2 miles, that is very hard to do. Well done Mr Gracey!
We love celebrating the resilience of our staff! A huge congratulations goes to Mrs. Knightley, our fabulous Head of Year 7, and teacher of Geography, who absolutely smashed the Royal Parks Half Marathon yesterday. After enduring several years of injury, she demonstrated incredible grit and determination to not only make it to the start line but to complete the race with such strength. We are immensely proud of her achievement and how she refused to give up, even when the injury worries were bleak; the epitome of Prepare, Aspire, Succeed. The race was your victory lap, Mrs Knightley! For those families not new to the school, you may know I often have the privilege of volunteering as part of the official pace team at events like the London Marathon. Yesterday, I had the absolute pleasure of supporting Mrs. Knightley directly, as one of the official three-hour pacers at the Royal Parks Half, soaking in the beautiful sights of London whilst helping runners achieve their personal goals.
Year 11 Mocks
Following the intensity of the first week of mock exams, we were delighted to receive outstanding feedback from our invigilation team. They specifically noted how our Year 11 students maintained exemplary conduct and demonstrated the very best of our Healthy Relationship attributes, even under high pressure. The invigilators highlighted the students' politeness and respect, particularly noting that students thanked the invigilators upon leaving the exam room. While we witness this respectful and caring behaviour every single day at The Cottesloe School, it is lovely when external visitors recognise how successfully our students embody our core community values. Well done Year 11, we are proud of you.
3G Artificial Pitch update 13th October
It’s been an exciting week for developments with our new 3G artificial pitch! We welcomed coaches and officials from our partner clubs in Wing, Wingrave, and Stewkley for an important session focused on the care and proper use of the new facility and equipment. This was followed by the inaugural meeting of our 3G Pitch Steering Group Committee, chaired by Mr. Jones, marking a fantastic step forward for collaborative use.
Ahead of the full community rollout after October half-term, trial club nights are already underway to ensure smooth integration. In parallel, the PE department is scheduling student taster sessions to familiarise them with the pitch and integrate its use into the curriculum for the remainder of the school year. Finally, a huge thank you to those who have generously donated to support the purchase of new equipment that will be used only on the 3G surface. Further donations to enhance this brilliant community resource can be made here: 3G pitch equipment fundraising
Face-to-face Events 2025/2026
One of the key objectives in our School Development Plan for this year is to improve our communication with families further. One aspect of this work is to increase the number of opportunities families have to meet staff and engage with the school face-to-face. We will hold at least one in-person event per year group, supplemented by additional cross-year opportunities.
These events are in addition to the online subject-based progress evenings held at least once per year dependent on the year group - dates of online parents evenings are here: Parents Evening For more details on our three-year strategic plan, please see our website: The Cottesloe School - Strategic Plan 2025-28.
We have a number of important in-person evenings in the next few weeks and we’d love to see you at one or more of these, depending on the year group your child is in:
Thursday 16th October – Year 7 Character Evening
To book a place, please click on the relevant time: Session 1 4pm-5pm or Session 2 5:30pm-6:30pm
Wednesday 22nd October – Year 12 Transition Parent Information Evening 6pm-7pm.
To book a place please click here to book a space via Eventbrite.
Wednesday 5th November – All Year Groups | Careers: Futures Discovery Evening 6pm-7:30pm
To book a place please register here: Futures Discovery Evening
Thursday 6th November – All Year Groups | Safeguarding: Online Safety Evening 6pm-7pm
To book, click here: Online Safety evening with Thames Valley Police
Monday 10th November – Year 11 Sixth Form Open Evening including Further Education Providers
To book a place, please click on the relevant link: 5pm Book Now or 6pm (THIS SESSION IS FULLY BOOKED)
Sports Report
Resilience and Rallies
We love celebrating success both inside and outside of school! We are delighted to start this week's report by recognising two outstanding individual achievements. A huge well done to Josh in Year 10, who capped off a fantastic summer by competing in the Club 100 Kart Championship and was proudly awarded the title of Best Rookie! Equally impressive is Oakley in Year 7, who has achieved a massive feat by qualifying for the prestigious Horse of the Year Show with her pony, Sonic. We are incredibly proud of both students. There are more details and pictures of their successes on our social media. If your young person achieves success outside of school, either in sport or another activity, please let us know so we can celebrate their achievements with the whole community.
This week delivered a mixed bag of results across the pitch and court, but the spirit and sportsmanship demonstrated by our students continue to make us proud. The Year 8 Netball teams shone in their fixtures against John Colet, showcasing teamwork and resilience:
- The A Team fought hard in a brilliant, competitive game, finishing with an 8-8 draw. Congratulations to Autumn for being named Player of the Match!
- The B Team secured a fantastic, decisive 8-0 win! A special shout-out goes to Allegra, who was rightly named Player of the Match for her stellar performance.
While our football teams faced challenging opposition this week, their commitment remains high. The Year 7 team faced a difficult outing against John Hampden, resulting in a 9-0 loss, and our U18s fought hard but ultimately lost 5-2 to Royal Latin. We look forward to seeing the teams bounce back in their upcoming cup fixtures.
It's going to be a packed week of competitive action. Good luck to all our team!
- Cross Country Cup: TCS competes in the first round of the English Schools Athletic Association Cross Country Cup at Princes Risborough on Tuesday.
- Girls' Football County Cup: U14 Girls take on SHFGS in the County Cup.
- Rugby: Year 7 and Year 11 teams face John Colet and Waddesdon.
- Netball: Year 7 team is in action against John Colet.
- Boys’ Football: Big week for our senior teams, with U18s in the Cup against Dr Challoners and Year 9 in the Cup against Holmer Green.
School Closure Information
Occasionally, the school may need to close due to unforeseen circumstances, such as severe weather conditions, heating failures, or following instructions from emergency services, with the safety of our students and staff being our paramount concern. In most instances, the decision and announcement will be made before the start of the school day, though this may not always be the case depending on the nature of the situation. Please ensure you familiarise yourself with our closure processes, which are available on the school website: https://www.cottesloe.bucks.sch.uk/parents/school-closures
Careers
Assembly Theme
This week’s assemblies have a Careers focus, led by Mrs Gunn. Years 8 and 9 will find out about Careers Discovery Day next July. Look out for a letter this week regarding this.
On Thursday, the Creative Media Skills Institute will deliver an assembly to Year 10. The Creative Media Skills Institute (CMSI) offers specialised, industry-led training and courses in film and television, ranging from prop making and costume to directing and production management, primarily delivered by top-tier professionals from their base at Pinewood Studios. Learn more about them: cmsinstitute.co.uk/
Bucks College Group | Open Days for post-16 and post-18 pathways
Please see below details of Open Events being held by the Buckinghamshire College Group and how to book a place at one of the colleges: Open Day booking form
Years 13, 12, 9, 8 and 7
Restart a Heart takes place today – more on this in next week’s letter. Year 10 and 11 completed this first aid training last year.
Year 12 and 13
Physics A Level students are off to the Schools Aerospace Roadshow in Wycombe tomorrow.
Year 11
The mock exams continue this week. We wish all students the very best for these exams. The exam timetable can be found here: Examinations
Year 10
The Silver D of E practice expedition heads out on Sunday 19th October.
Year 7
The Year 7 Character Parents’ Information Evening is this Thursday.
Have a great week, whatever it holds for you, and thank you for your support.
Best wishes,
Louise Baldwin
Head of School