FBA Update

Spring is in the Air! 🌼

As we step into the new season, the arrival of spring brings longer days, brighter skies, and a renewed sense of energy across our school community.

It’s wonderful to see the sunshine returning, and even more special to witness the daffodils—planted by our students during our school’s birthday celebration in September—blooming beautifully around the grounds. These vibrant flowers are a perfect reminder of growth, renewal, and the hard work of our students.

Lunchtime is also buzzing each day with some students playing ball games on the field , others bringing picnic blankets and enjoying having a break with friends outside.

We’ve attached some lovely photos of the daffodils in full bloom, a testament to the care and dedication our students put into planting them and our skilled site team looking after our grounds.

We hope they bring as much joy to our students as they do to us!

Wednesday 26th March - Year 9 Celebration Evening (online)

Wednesday 26th March - Japanese students visit

Thursday 27th March - Year 11 Academic Review Evening

Tuesday 1st April - Year 10 & 11 Celebration Evening (online)

This is located on the Hardstanding at the front of the school. As well as a convenient way to dispose of unwanted items, it helps raise some extra funds for the school.

Everyone is welcome to use the clothes bank to get rid of any unwanted items:

• Clothing
• Paired shoes
• Handbags, belts, hats, jewellery
• Toiletries & perfumes
• Souvenirs and unwanted gifts

Please NO:

• School clothing or uniform as this can be donated to us directly please
• Wet, ripped, soiled or unwearable clothing

At FBA, we strive to provide our students with the highest levels of education and the widest range of learning opportunities but we need your help to maintain the volume of funding required to facilitate this which is why we have a School Fund.

For the benefit all FBA students, the School Fund is used to:

• broaden and enrich the educational experience on offer to our students
• support and develop extra-curricular activities
• finance the distinctive events and traditions that make up the FBA year
• augment the facilities and resources available to FBA students
• encourage the school improvement work of the School Council
• maintain the school minibus

Your support is highly appreciated and assists the school to develop many activities and initiatives that would not otherwise be possible. We realise that money is tight for everyone but every little helps and collectively makes a huge difference to our students.

There are a number of ways to provide support which are outlined on our school website below and whichever you choose, we thank you.

https://fbaok.co.uk/key_information/voluntary-contributions/

Our 'She is Studious' form time programme is back. Each day students spend thirty minutes with their form tutor where they complete a range of activities from Reading, House activities, to Careers. From one week to the next students will focus on a different activity.

Last week, we started again our study skills programme 'She is Studious' which is one of our KRACERS attributes.

Year 7 and Year 8 have been learning about how to respond and act on Feedback, Metacognition and Growth Mindset while Year 10 will be looking at Examination Mindsets.

On Saturday, 15th March, six of our Year 8 students showcased their innovation and problem-solving skills at the North London Regional Lego League competition. They impressed a panel of judges with their project on overcoming challenges in ocean exploration and demonstrated their technical expertise in a rigorous 30-minute Q&A on their robot design. In the thrilling robot game, their autonomous robot tackled a series of set tasks, earning them the prestigious 'Rising Stars' award—an incredible achievement!

On Tuesday, 11th March, 40 Year 12 Excel Programme students attended an inspiring conference hosted by The Elephant Group. They had the opportunity to connect with prestigious Russell Group universities, gaining valuable insights into higher education pathways. The day also featured an engaging session on the MetaMethod, a powerful approach to organising revision and study skills, equipping students with essential techniques for academic success.

On Thursday, 13th March, forty of our top Year 11 students had the incredible opportunity to visit New College, Oxford, for a day of insights into life at Oxbridge. They learned about entry requirements and A-Level subject choices, toured the historic college, and even dined in the grand hall. The day also included a workshop on effective note-taking and a fascinating mini-lecture in Biochemistry delivered by one of the university’s Medicine Tutors, offering a true taste of academic life at Oxford.

This week’s fitness tip comes from Sport’s Captain Chloe, 8R, who highlights the importance of wearing appropriate sportswear.

Dressing right for exercise is not just about style—it helps you move better, stay comfortable, and even stay motivated! Here are some sport-friendly outfit ideas for different activities:

· Running & Athletics – Light, breathable T-shirts, leggings or shorts, and cushioned trainers for support.

· Yoga & Stretching – Soft, flexible leggings or joggers with a fitted top to avoid distractions.

· Team Sports (Football, Basketball, Netball, etc.) – Sweat-wicking tops, sports leggings or shorts, and supportive trainers with grip.

· Dance – A comfortable tank top, leggings, and flexible shoes that allow movement.

Prioritising comfort, movability, and sensible footwear keeps you focused on your performance. Plus, feeling good in what you wear can boost your confidence and mental wellbeing—when you look good, you feel good!

Our school's PE kit supports these principles by offering practical and comfortable options, such as the FBA PE polo and girls' sports leggings, designed to enhance performance and confidence.

Fitness Challenge of the week

Put Chloe’s tip into action by planning and wearing an appropriate sports outfit for your next workout! Here’s how to take part:

✅ Step 1: Choose an activity—running, team sports, dance etc.

✅ Step 2: Pick an outfit that’s comfortable and well-suited to the activity.

✅ Step 3: Notice how it affects your movement, focus, and confidence. Do you feel more prepared and motivated?

Our inspirational woman of the week is Kris Collins known as KallMeKris, as nominated by Daniella A in 8W. Collins is a Canadian content creator and social media personality known for her humorous and relatable videos on TikTok and YouTube. She inspires young women by being unapologetically herself, using her platform to promote body positivity, mental health awareness, and self-confidence.

Kris encourages authenticity and staying true to one's values. She opened up about her difficult past, including experiencing emotional and physical abuse in her childhood. She has shared how these challenges deeply affected her self-esteem and mental health.

Despite this, Kris used her experiences to fuel her personal growth and transformation, ultimately finding strength and healing through creative expression and building a supportive community online. She has since used her platform to raise awareness about mental health struggles, empowering others who may be going through similar hardships.

Congratulations to the following students who participated in the IWD Poetry competition. All who participated have been awarded achievement points. The winners/runners up for each key stage are:

This will be announced along with your prizes in upcoming assemblies. Well done!

An exhibition inspired by International Women's Day

19 March - 25 April

This exhibition celebrates women; from historical and contemporary female artists, to inspirational women of history. It includes the activism of the suffragettes, the pioneering portraiture of Alice Neel and botanical illustrator of the 1600s Maria Sibylla Merian, to contemporary work by Ms Poluck, Ms Farrugia and Internationally acclaimed artist Jeanette Barnes.

The gallery is open for all Thursday & Friday lunchtimes for all students.

It has been another busy week on the farm, and our animals are enjoying the spring sunshine.

Last week, students assisted with deworming Nugget and Rocky, our Shetland ponies. Regular deworming of ponies is an important aspect of their basic care. Large animals will come into contact with a variety of internal and external parasites throughout their lifetime. Our ponies have six-monthly faecal egg count checks too, to ensure we are managing their worm burdens accurately – this involves sending a faecal sample off to a laboratory, where it is tested for parasite egg type and number. While having a low worm burden in their digestive systems can have little or no effect on an animals health, a high parasite burden can be very detrimental.

As well as regular deworming, we can also minimise risk by ensuring that we keep our animals bedding nice and clean with daily mucking out, alongside removing droppings from the paddocks – thank you to all the students who help out with this every week!

If you would like to help care for our animals, please do come and visit the farm. We are open on Mondays to Thursdays during every break, lunch and after school until 4pm, and before school at 7.50-8.25am on Fridays.

Kooth is a free mental health support service. They have a podcast where they chat about everything mental wellbeing as well as some guided meditation. They are a safe and accepting place for all listeners, so take a break from everyday stresses to sit back and enjoy their fun and interesting episodes...

Episodes can be find here https://pod.link/1547256556

Sunday marked the fifth anniversary of the first Covid lockdown which saw the country confined to their homes and schools close to the majority of pupils. There are numerous articles in the papers and on news programmes about the lessons learned from this time. Looking back, it is hard to believe that one day we were free to do and go where we wanted and the next we were confined to our homes.

Reflecting on this time, there are a few things we want to share for our students that we have learned to value more:

1) Value of human contact. When it was taken away, we missed it very much so do not take it for granted.

2) Value quality time with the people that we love. The stories of tragic loses owing to Covid should always be a reminder of the fragility of life and that we should treasure our friends and family.

3) Value the little things and do not take things for granted. When we could not buy pasta or loo roll, these things suddenly gained importance.

4) Value all jobs. The lockdown taught us that there are no "unskilled" jobs. People in a wide range of roles kept the country going and kept us safe.

5) Value society and its power for good. It showed how well, we can work together and cooperate for the greater good. Very few people were selfish. People stuck to the rules.

We do hope that we never face this again but there are many benefits from the pandemic which we need to keep at the forefront of our minds.