Year 13 Prom

Last Friday was Year 13 students’ last hurrah – the Class of 2025 Leavers’ Prom. After overcoming our A Level exams, we danced the night away for one final time celebrating all of our achievements as a year group. For some of us this marked the end of seven years at St Bart’s School and for all of us this was the end of an incredible two years in the Sixth Form. The Prom was held at the Newbury Racecourse, organised by the amazing event managers. Everyone dressed up in their very best attire. There was music, dancing and a buffet. It was a brilliant night to remember and a fantastic way to send off the Year 13s into the world! A huge thanks to all the staff who organised and supported the event. We really appreciate it. Good luck to everyone for their A Level results!

Sakshi Kamra

Thanks to Phil Cannings at the Newbury Weekly News for the use of his photos which can be purchased, half price, here.

£184 Raised in Great Bart’s Bake!

The heat was on in the Food department on Wednesday 18 June as our talented students took part in The Great Bart’s Bake Off – a deliciously fun event in aid of Ulafu School in Kenya.

Finalists were chosen from a wide range of impressive photo entries, and they didn’t disappoint! The creativity, effort and skill on display was outstanding. The Kenya Link members acted as judges and had the very difficult task of choosing the winner.

Following the competition, the cakes were generously donated to our Bake Sale on Friday 20 June, where students and staff had the chance to buy a slice of the action. Thanks to the generosity and support of our school community, we’re proud to share that the event raised £184 – all of which will go directly to supporting education at Ulafu School.

A huge thank you to everyone who entered, baked, bought cakes or helped out – your efforts really made a difference.

Roll on next year’s Bake Off! See more photos on our website later in the week.

Year 8 Fundraising Extravaganza

Last half term, the Year 8 tutor groups in Evers worked together to plan a huge team charity event consisting of three activities – a chocolate raffle, cake sale and a sweetie salad. Posters were created; plans were set in motion and Evers House Office looked like a sweet and chocolate shop for the weeks running up to the event!

Friday 23 May saw the culmination of all these plans and the event was a huge success raising £502.55 for West Berkshire Mencap, the Evers House Charity. The Evers House team are incredibly proud of all the Year 8 students who were involved in this event – it was a huge success!

Well done to Mr Shailes who won the first prize in the chocolate raffle!

‘Challenges’ Exhibition

There is a small exhibition of work by local young people entitled ‘Challenges’ happening in the foyer at the New Era Theatre in Wash Common. Work by four of our past and present GCSE and A Level students has been selected. A private viewing took place on Friday 1 May and the exhibition can now be viewed on a couple of Saturday mornings in June from 7-21 June, 10:30 – noon.

Congratulations to current photography student Rosie, last year’s A Level Fine Art student Elliot (artwork pictured) and last year’s GCSE students, Lily and Kateryna.

House Drama

Just before the Easter holidays we were treated to the dramatic feast that is the House Drama Competition. Year 12 Drama students wrote, organised and directed a cast of Year 8 and 10 students in their own plays to compete for important House Championship points.

Evers kicked off the evening with the star studded “Restoront From Hell” by Eleanor Peake, Ella Plowman, Eish Mahajan and Ruby Roots. From Curnock we were presented with the haunting “Platform 13” by Daniel Ledwith and Sophie Warner. Davis gave us the hilarious “The Respledent Runway” by Daisy Shaw, Georgina Sheffield, Harry Godwin and Niamh Breslin. Finally Patterson delighted us with the hysterical “The Kardashians” by Macey Seamons.

Huge thanks to all those who put in so much work, to those who came to support in the evening and especially to judge Nick Sutton (Head of Drama from Park House) who declared Patterson as the worthy winners. Congratulations!

Embracing Sustainability At Greenfest

On Saturday 5 April 2025 our school was transformed into a vibrant hub of sustainability and community spirit as we hosted the much-anticipated GreenFest 2025. With over a thousand members of the public in attendance from 10.30am to 3.30pm, the event exceeded all expectations and showcased our school’s commitment to environmental initiatives.

The Heritage Garden provided a picturesque setting for welcoming dignitaries including Mr Billy Drummond, Chair of West Berkshire Council, who officially opened the event, and Olivia Bailey, MP for Reading West and Mid Berkshire. Our school grounds drew admiration from all visitors as they explored over 60 stalls run by local environmental organisations and businesses, all promoting sustainability and eco-friendly practices.

We’re particularly proud of our Young Enterprise team, Clean-Cut, who, during the event, won the award for “Most Sustainable and Engaging Outlook”. Team members, Charlie and Cora, represented Clean-Cut at the event, showcasing their up-cycled glassware and coasters. Their stall highlighted how sustainability is at the heart of their business – from their sourcing and production to packaging and presentation. As a result of their win, the team received a £50 prize to invest back into their business, as well as making many sales to customers throughout the day.

Cora, Young Enterprise Team Member, said: “Winning this award means a lot to us. We’ve worked so hard to ensure that our enterprise reflects our commitment to sustainability, so it is amazing to see that effort recognised. GreenFest was a great event and we were thrilled to be a part of it”

Mrs Seward, Head of Business, added, “Following their success at the Young Enterprise trade fair, it is a fantastic achievement for ‘Clean Cut’ to win this award at GreenFest. I am proud of the hard work they have put in to developing this company and achieving their goals. We will now get to work on preparing for the area final on 6 May, a good result at this event would mean progressing to the Young Enterprise Regional Final.”

Our Kintsugi Club showcased their artistic talents by selling beautiful repaired pottery, demonstrating the Japanese art of embracing flaws and imperfections. Additionally, our Guardians of the Living Realm Club ran a popular stall selling badges depicting our charismatic wildlife: Socks the Fox, Brian the Badger, Owlivia Hooton John the Owl, and Philip the Hedgehog. Their enthusiasm for conservation was evident as they shared information about our biodiversity initiatives with visitors, and the money raised will go towards our Nature Reserve Restoration project. Our school’s Sustainability Lead, Miss Barrett, also gave a talk on the ways we are making St Bart’s more sustainable, sharing our journey and inspiring other organisations to join in.

The success of GreenFest wouldn’t have been possible without the extraordinary efforts of our Facilities and Lettings teams. Their attention to detail and hard work ensured that all aspects of the event ran smoothly, from set-up to clean-up, allowing everyone to focus on enjoying the festivities.

As Ken Neal, Chair of West Berkshire Green Exchange, noted during the event, “Our thanks go to Dr David Fitter, Headteacher of St Bartholomew’s School, and his staff for welcoming us in and allowing the use of these wonderful facilities.”

We’re proud to have partnered with West Berkshire Green Exchange for this impactful community event that has sparked meaningful conversations about sustainability that will continue long after the festival.

St Bart’s at Greenfest

With GreenFest just days away, excitement is building as St Bart’s finalises preparations for the three stalls we’ll be showcasing at this year’s event. Our students have been hard at work, and we can’t wait to share our sustainability initiatives with the wider community.

First up, we have our Kintsugi Stall, inspired by the Japanese philosophy that celebrates the beauty in broken things by repairing them with care. Our students have embraced this ethos by creating and selling unique Kintsugi-repaired china, demonstrating how restoration can be both sustainable and artistic. A selection of these pieces will be on display and available for purchase.

Next, our Guardians of the Living Realm (the dedicated team responsible for documenting and protecting the diverse wildlife on our school site) will be showcasing their work. Visitors can watch exclusive footage of the many species we share our space with, including Socks the Fox, Brian May the Badger, Owlivia Hooton-John, and Philip the Hedgehog. To support our Nature Reserve Restoration Project, we’ll also be selling custom pin badges featuring our beloved school wildlife.

Finally, we’re proud to be represented by Clean-Cut, a student-led company dedicated to sustainable craftsmanship. Fresh from their recent “Best Overall Company” award at the Young Enterprise trade fair, Clean-Cut will be selling their beautifully upcycled glasses and coasters, ensuring that every piece of leftover glass finds a purpose—zero waste, maximum creativity!

Charlie Gale, Clean-Cut Company Member, said, “we’re looking forward to attending GreenFest. It is a great opportunity to showcase our up-cycled glasses and coasters.  We have been working hard over the past few weeks to produce our glasses, using the left-over glass to create coasters, therefore ensuring no waste in our production process. We are excited to engage with the wider community and celebrate our shared commitment to sustainability.” You can view our price list and Instagram page by clicking here.

Make sure to visit our stalls, support these fantastic student initiatives and be part of an event that celebrates creativity, community and environmental action. See you at GreenFest this Saturday!

A Great Night With The PA!

Thank you to everyone who took part in the Parents’ Association Quiz and Chips Evening that took place last Friday. The event was hosted by Quiz Masters, Miss Brenton (Head of Humanities) and Mr Langton (Head of Citizenship and Politics), who took time out of teaching students to test parents’ knowledge over a series of 6 rounds, including a music round. The event was won by team ‘Ste Lin the answers’. Teams were fuelled by an excellent bar and some delicious Fish & Chips provided by Skippers. Thank you to everyone who entered a team and who supported the raffle on the night. A huge thank you also to our Quiz Masters, the Site team and Mr Weller who helped with hall and AV set up, and of course our brilliant Parents’ Association volunteers who organised a superb evening.

£1187 was raised which will be matched funded by Vodafone. A tremendous effort, well done!

If you would like to get involved with the Parents Association – whether joining the committee, organising or helping at events or even just keeping in touch with our news – please visit: Parents’ Association – St Bart’s School

Over £1,500 Raised For Comic Relief

Thank you to everyone who supported St Bart’s efforts in aid of Red Nose Day for Comic Relief last Friday. Lots of students took time to cheer on their House in the hotly contested House Staff Netball, with Curnock being crowned victorious! Alongside Non-School Uniform donations, the House Bake Sale was also a brilliant success and we are most grateful to all those who brought in yummy contributions. In total, the amount raised by the school, including Gift Aid, was £1,555.77. Remember, if you have not had a chance to do so there is still time to donate as the donation page will stay live for another week.

German Week at St Bart’s

Last week St Bart’s was one of numerous schools to take part in the prestigious #ShoutOutForGerman campaign, a week-long, national celebration of German language in the UK.

Organised by the German Embassy, the Goethe-Institut UK and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the campaign aims to pay tribute to “all the schools, teachers and champions of German inside and outside of classrooms who work tirelessly to encourage and strengthen the case for language learning”. It is part of the embassy’s wider work, making the case for German.

The German department at St Bart’s organised a myriad of engaging activities, including visiting speakers, competitions, clubs and films. Events took place in lessons, activities times, and after-school throughout the week. German books were also available in the library, and the canteen laid on German delicacies including Bratwurst and Strudel at lunchtime.

The school was lucky enough to host a number of top-class guest speakers. A highlight was a visit from senior figures at the German Embassy and the Goethe-Institut UK to see how we were celebrating all things German. On Thursday, Susanne Frane, Head of Culture and Education at the German Embassy, and Andrea Pfeil, Deputy Director and Head of Language Department, North West Europe at the Goethe-Institut London, met the headteacher, Dr Fitter. They also visited a Year 12 German class, and joined Year 9s completing a German quiz around the MFL department.

Other speakers included Dr Ian Ellison, a post- doctoral researcher on the Kafka’s Transformative Communities Project at the University of Oxford and a Visiting Fellow at Wadham College; Wayne Morse, a recruitment specialist from BMW; Gregor Kleinknecht, founder partner at MEUM Law in London; and Anna Bawden, Health and Social Affairs Correspondent at the Guardian.

On Monday, Dr Ellison spent the day speaking to German classes from Year 7 to Year 13 about Franz Kafka; why his writing is so accessible, how to discover more about his stories and how to read and translate from German into English. On Tuesday, Year 10 had an online webinar with the British Council on the theme of ‘Where can languages take me?’, as well as a video message from Joel Douglas, former head student and alumnus, who is studying a German and History degree at the University of Exeter and is currently in Mainz on placement as a language assistant.

On Wednesday we were joined by Gregor Kleinknecht, a dual qualified German and English lawyer, who spoke with our Year 9, 10 and 12 about the importance of German and languages for business and in the recruitment process at law firms. On Friday students from Years 8, 9 and 10 were joined by Wayne Morse, who spoke about how BMW as a global car brand recruits apprentices and graduates in the UK and Anna Bawden, health and social affairs correspondent at the Guardian, who is a fluent German, French and Italian speaker. Mr Morse gave a short presentation to several classes about the apprenticeships, intern and graduate employment opportunities available for German speakers at BMW and why languages are helpful, and Ms Bawden spoke about why speaking German and other languages are good for many different careers.

“We have always been proud of the importance Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) plays in our curriculum,” said Dr Fitter. “Speaking more than one language helps build a sense of global citizenship as well as opening up future employment opportunities.” Research has shown that by studying a foreign language students will enhance their grammar skills and improve their analytic and interpretive capacities in English too. We hope that an added bonus of taking part in this prestigious week will encourage many more students to consider choosing German as an A Level option.  “We are determined to continue to raise the profile of the benefits of learning German,’’ Dr Fitter said.

The MFL department offers French, German, and Spanish to students, from Year 7 up to A Level. Students can also take GCSE Mandarin and Latin, with lessons taking place through an after-school club. In addition to language lessons, St Bart’s also provides many other language related activities, including foreign exchange trips, an annual foreign language Karaoke competition, a national translation competition, and a cultural poster contest.

Mrs Tucker, Head of German said: “I would really like to thank all students, colleagues, volunteers and visiting guest speakers who have fully supported the German department in backing the German Embassy’s aim to ‘Shout Out for German’ in the UK. In our increasingly competitive job market, it is not only important that students understand the value that employers place upon the skill of being able to speak another language but that they also become aware of the number of German companies in the UK who are looking to recruit German speakers. Our aim this week was to ‘shout out for German’ to students across the whole school. The vibrant atmosphere and enthusiasm of our students has been amazing!”

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