The Ursuline Post

God Bless,

Mr O'Shaughnessy

Following the Geography Department assemblies on Earth Day, students across the school were invited to take part in an exciting Earth Day Poster Competition. The competition encouraged students to showcase their creativity while raising awareness about the importance of protecting our planet.

The Geography Department was extremely impressed by the high standard of entries submitted by students from all year groups. The posters demonstrated fantastic creativity, thoughtful environmental messages and a real commitment to promoting sustainability and caring for the Earth.

As a thank you for their hard work and enthusiasm, all students who entered the competition have been awarded 20 House Points for their efforts.

After careful consideration, three overall winners were selected from Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9. Congratulations to Paris (Year 7), Yanira (Year 8) and Valerie (Year 9). The winners received their prizes during assembly, which included 20 House Points, a certificate and an Amazon gift voucher.

The Geography Department would like to thank everyone who participated in the competition and congratulate all of the winners for their outstanding work. Well done to everyone involved for helping to make Earth Day such a success across the school.

- Report by Mr Edwards, Head of Geography.

Our Year 7s were invited to The National Theatre to take part in a workshop and watch a performance of the multi award winning production "Warhorse." The children were complemented on their immaculate behaviour by both their teacher and the public and by all accounts loved every second of their experience which included meeting the leading actor after the show.

- Report by Mr Quinn, Head of Drama.

This month, half of our Y7 students visited Grosvenor Hall, in Kent, for their PGL residential. We were there for a total of 3 days, and they took part in a number of various exciting activities, including raft-building (which was many of their favourite), abseiling, archery and the famous 'Giant Swing'! The students also had evening activities of games and a treasure hunt.

The main goals for this trip were to improve student's resilience and team-building skills, The students not only engaged with these objectives fantastically well, but also put themselves completely outside their comfort zone, with many of them trying new skills or confronting their fears head on. It was lovely to see their confidence build as the week progressed, and we were very impressed by all their efforts. They were even told by their PGL team leader that they were their favourite group so far! It has been a pleasure working as their Head of Year this year, and I look forward to seeing them continue to flourish at St Ursula's.

- Report by Ms Howard, Head of Year 7.

Our talented Food Preparation & Nutrition students were proud to support a recent school event, gaining valuable real-world experience along the way.

Receiving positive feedback from guests helped to build confidence while developing teamwork, communication and professional skills for the future.

A wonderful example of our school motto, Serviam – I will serve – in action.

- Report by Ms Ball, Head of Food Tech.

The Year 11 Prom was a fantastic evening and a wonderful opportunity to celebrate with the year group at their final event as students of St Ursula’s School. It was a fitting way to mark the end of their time with us and to celebrate the friendships, memories and achievements they have made throughout their school journey.

We look forward to seeing everyone again on Results Day and celebrating their successes. Although this marks the end of their educational journey at St Ursula’s, we hope to hear from them in the future and learn about how they are progressing in life.

As they move on to the next chapter, we hope they will always carry with them the values of St Ursula’s and our school motto, Serviam – I will serve, wherever their future takes them.

- Report by Mr Muzio, Director of KS4

On Monday 29th and Tuesday 30th June, the Year 10 GCSE Geography students took part in Geography field trips to the River Darent in Kent. The trips, which help prepare students for their GCSE Geography exam Paper 3, involved students working in small groups measuring the width, depth, velocity and pebble shape and size in three different locations along the river (see pictures below). Measurements were taken at Shoreham Village, Eynsford Village and Horton Kirby to see how the characteristics of this river change downstream. Students are currently writing a report in which they are analysing the data they collected to see if it matches the Bradshaw model. These trips were a great success; students enjoyed getting their feet wet and some valuable data was collected to help prepare students for their final exams in June 2027. A huge thanks to all of the staff who helped support these trips.

- Report by Mr Edwards, Head of Geography.

On Wednesday 1st July, our future Y7 cohort visited St Ursula's Convent School for their induction day. This was a very useful experience for them to get to meet their form tutors, fellow tutees and other important staff members at the school before their arrival in September. Following their welcome assembly, students were organised into their form groups and took part in icebreaker activities with them. They experienced two 'taster' lessons, in Drama, History or Geography, and got to experience the school's canteen and playground. Our current Y7 students wrote letters to our new students to tell them about their experiences this year, which students were able to take home with them, along with some school merchandise, as their leaving gift. They were also supported by our fantastic Junior Leadership Team throughout the day, who looked after our new students very well. Thank you to all the staff for making this such a smooth day!

- Report by Ms Howard, Head of Year 7.

We had an epic night of musical theatre led by the incredible Noa Franco as Annie. There are too many superstars in our school (both on and off stage that made it what it was) to mention but the performances on the night and hard work from the last months were all worth it. Mr Quinn and Miss Walliker couldn't have been prouder of them all.

- Report by Mr Quinn, Head of Drama.

Sports Day was a fantastic success, with students showing excellent determination, teamwork and spirit throughout the day. The atmosphere was full of energy as pupils competed across a range of track and field events, encouraging one another and representing their houses with pride. It was wonderful to see so many students stepping out of their comfort zones, celebrating personal achievements and demonstrating our school values through resilience, respect and sportsmanship. A special thank you goes to all the staff members, along with our Year 9 and Year 10 student volunteers, who supported me throughout the day. Sports Day would not have been possible without their hard work, enthusiasm and willingness to help, and I am incredibly grateful for all of their support.

Congratulations to all of our individual event winners and to every student who took part. A special well done goes to the winning houses in each year group: Year 7 – Elizabeth , Year 8 – Elizabeth , Year 9 – Angela, Year 10 – Francis . Thank you to all the staff, student leaders and volunteers who helped make the day such a memorable and enjoyable event for everyone involved.

- Report by Ms Davis, PE Department. Video by Mr Williams, Art Department.

A huge thank you to all of our students, families and staff who helped make this year's Summer Fayre such a fantastic success. Every form group across the school worked incredibly hard to plan, organise and run their own stall, showcasing wonderful teamwork, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. There was something for everyone to enjoy, from delicious waffles, flavoured lemonades and refreshing smoothies to ice creams, stick-on tattoos and many other fun games and treats. Thanks to the generosity and support of our whole school community, we raised an amazing £1,005. The money raised will support both our school community and St Angela's Ursuline School in Adigrat, Ethiopia. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making the day such a memorable celebration of our school community and our commitment to living out Serviam through service to others.

- Report by Ms Murphy, Chaplain

St Ursula’s proudly celebrated Science Week with a range of exciting activities inspired by this year’s theme: “Curiosity: What’s Your Question?”

Throughout the week, our Key Stage 3 students took part in a variety of engaging lessons designed to celebrate the wonders of science and encourage curiosity about the world around them. We also held a whole-school assembly, where students explored the scientific method and discovered how asking thoughtful questions is at the heart of every scientific discovery.

On Thursday 9th, students in Years 7, 8 and 9 enjoyed a fantastic educational visit to the four museums of Greenwich. From exploring maritime history to discovering the wonders of astronomy and navigation, the trip provided countless opportunities for students to bring their classroom learning to life. It was a truly wonderful day, and our students were a credit to the school throughout. Their enthusiasm, curiosity and exemplary behaviour perfectly reflected the very best of St Ursula’s and embodied our school motto, Serviam (“I will serve”).

Thank you to all of the staff who gave their time and energy to make Science Week such a memorable and successful event for our students.

- Report by My Tyerman, Head of Science

On Wednesday 8th July, we hosted our Year 7 showcase. We invited previous teachers and headteachers of the primary schools our Year 7 students attended, and with the help of their form tutors and teachers, our students were able to present some of their best work to them. This provided us with the opportunity to show their previous teachers the amazing progress they have made, the new things they have learned, and the experiences they have gained.

We received some fantastic feedback from the primary school staff visitors, of which we are very appreciative of and further for taking the time to come to the school. We hope to invite more primary schools to visit us in the new school year. We are also very impressed with how far our Year 7s have come - they have made a great start to their time here at St Ursula's.

- Report by Ms Groves, PA

We are thrilled to celebrate the achievements of our students who took part in the prestigious Catholic Young Writer Award 2026.

Organised by the Catholic Writers Guild of England and Wales and supported by the Catholic Union Charitable Trust, this national competition invites secondary school pupils across the country to share their perspectives on key elements of faith. This year, students tackled the theme of forgiveness, with the focus on "Why We Go to Confession."

Results
Whilst we await the official national results from the Catholic Union, we wished to recognise the exceptional talent within our own school community. We are pleased to present the school's top-placing participants:

1st Place: Victoria O (Year 10)

2nd Place: Joanna L (Year 8)

3rd Place: Chinwe E (Year 10)

Highly Commended: Jacqueline A (Year 8) and Mabel A (Year 9)

We would also like to extend our warmest congratulations to Mercy (Year 9) , Confidence (Year 9), Mykah (Year 9), Faith (Year 10), Jasmine (Year 9) and Stefani (Year 10) for their participation and brilliant efforts. You did yourselves and our school incredibly proud!

- Report by Ms Curzydlo, Head of RE

A group of Year 10 pupils had the extraordinary opportunity of visiting the UK Parliament.

Ballots to apply for limited school tickets opened for one day earlier in the year and luckily, St Ursula’s was successful in its application.

After passing through numerous high-level security checks, pupils were able to enter the Houses of Parliament. Our guide led us up the same staircase the Monarch uses to enter Parliament. We were even shown the white markings where the Guards stand, caused by the stirrups on their boots. This led us to the Robing Room - a magnificent room where the Monarch is dressed in full regalia, ready for the Opening of Parliament. We were told that the throne was very small as it was made for Queen Victoria and she had to have a step to help her climb onto the throne.

From the Robing Room, we were led to the library area for the peers, a place where elected Lords and Baronesses from the House of Lords, go through piles of paperwork resulting from debates in the House of Commons. From this point, we entered the House of Lords - a majestic place. Security officers with their dogs comb through the House of Lords before a debate takes place. From there, we were led to the Central Lobby where journalists and camera crews were setting up, ready to interview politicians as soon as they exit the Commons. We could only catch glimpses through the door of the House of Commons as Prime Minister’s Question time was taking place.

As we walked through the Palace of Westminster, to the Great Hall, we were all struck with the grandeur of the architecture. We were told that not a single nail had been used in the construction of the imposing wooden beams. Our gaze was directed to a large circular glass window - a contemporary sculpture called ‘New Dawn’. A design which was inspired by the hundreds of scrolls and petitions found at the top of St Stephen’s tower. Many of the petitions were from women who had campaigned for the right to vote. We were told that when the tide is in, all the circular designs on the window become visible and vibrant in colour.

We were then led to yet another grand hall full of statues of historical figures. Pupils were told how a suffragette had chained herself to one of the statues and had repeatedly shouted out ‘votes for women’. As the suffragette’s chain was cut away from the statue, part of the statue came off and, since then, has deliberately not been replaced - as a reminder to us all about the suffragettes’ struggle to ensure women had the vote.

From this point, we were led to the Education Centre where the pupils were involved in a workshop which focused on the topic of petitions. Groups were asked to create their own petitions focusing in areas such as health, education, transport, science and technology. Time was given for groups to discuss, exchange ideas and choose one central idea to promote. Pupils learnt how to develop a petition and found out that if a petition received 10,000 signatures, this would require the Government to respond with a report. If 100,000 signatures are received, then the issue would need to be debated.

Our visit to Parliament made a lasting impression on our group of Year 10. The guide emphasised to pupils that they could always request to see their MP if they had an issue, that if they felt something needed to change to make society more equal and fair, they could start a petition and that their voice mattered. The overall aim of the tour and the workshop was to teach pupils that Westminster Palace was ‘their’ palace and it existed solely to work for them.

- Report by Ms Ferreira, English Department.

Recently, students in Years 7, 8 and 9 have been taking part in a Geography Department competition to produce a model of a country of their choice. Models needed to show the main Geographical features of their chosen country. The Geography Department has been incredibly impressed by the outstanding shoebox models of a country created by our Year 7, 8 and 9 students — just take a look at some of these fantastic creations!

A huge thank you and congratulations to every student who took part in this exciting competition. Your creativity, effort and geographical knowledge have been truly impressive. As a reward for their hard work, all students who submitted a model will also receive House Points. Well done to everyone involved!

- Report by Mr Edwards, Head of Geography

After its great success and feedback, we were delighted to host another VIP Day for primary schools - only this time for Year 4 and 5 students. During the day, we hosted a range of activities, including lego robot competitions, a drama workshop, a maths treasure hunt and some exciting science experiments.

Our primary school visitors were able to explore St Ursula's and get a taste for life at secondary school, to help them prepare for the educational transition they will make in a few years time. Our supporting staff and students were excellent, as were our catering team, who made everybody some delicious lasagne and St Ursula's cupcakes.

We celebrated the end the day with an awards ceremony, and two lucky winners were able to take home amazon vouchers from the golden ticket draw. Everyone also got to go home with some limited edition St Ursula's merchandise, as well as some fun memories and new friends.

- Report by Ms Groves, PA

The Year 7 students attended an enrichment trip to the Horniman Museum. They visited the galleries, gardens and aquarium and attended a workshop on African Kingdoms. The students represented our school very well, and it has been a pleasure supporting them in their journey at St Ursula's this year! 👏

- Report by Ms Howard, Head of Year 7

Towards the end of this term, all of Year 7 took part in a fun maths project to find out what the "average" Year 7 student at our school is like.

Working in groups, we collected data on lots of different things, including how we travel to school, how long it takes us, how tall we are, how many siblings and pets we have, our favourite colours and subjects and how many books we read.

We then used our maths skills to calculate the mean, median, mode and range for our data. After that, we presented our findings using a range of tables and charts, including bar charts, pie charts and scatter graphs.

We discovered lots of interesting facts about our year group. For example, History was the most popular favourite subject, and travelling to school by bus was the most common method of transport. We also found creating the pie charts quite challenging because of the calculations involved, but we enjoyed working together to overcome this and were proud of what we achieved. It was a fun way to use real-life data and see how maths can be used to answer real-world questions.

- Report written by Johanna R and Isabella C (Year 7)

On Tuesday 14th July, Year 8 students took part in a Geography field trip to Brighton. The trip was a great success and provided students with an excellent opportunity to experience geographical fieldwork beyond the classroom.

Throughout the day, students took part in a range of fieldwork activities, including investigating the process of longshore drift and its impact on the coastline, evaluating different coastal management strategies, carrying out Environmental Quality Surveys, and interviewing local businesses and tourists to understand the social and economic importance of Brighton's coastal environment.

These activities gave students valuable first-hand fieldwork experience while reinforcing the knowledge and understanding they developed during their study of coastal environments in Geography during the Autumn Term. The visit enabled students to apply their classroom learning in a real-world setting, helping them to see how geographical processes and concepts operate in practice. Students also developed a range of important geographical skills, including data collection, observation, analysis and evaluation, all of which will strengthen their understanding of the subject and support their future studies.

Our students engaged enthusiastically with every activity throughout the day and represented the school exceptionally well. They particularly enjoyed the opportunity to relax on the beach and, of course, the well-earned ice creams after lunchtime!

A huge thank you goes to all of the staff who gave their time to support the visit and helped make it such an enjoyable, successful and valuable Geography field trip to the coast.

- Report by Mr Edwards, Head of Geography

The school music department has joined the lead schools for music in Greenwich following an incredibly successful year.

This is your chance to take part in the legendary Notting Hill Carnival! Design and create your own Carnival costume and performance inspired by sound system culture and migration. You will work with designer and artist Cee Boulaqui of Vibrance Mas to make your own Carnival costume using sustainable and recycled materials, creating bold pieces that tell a story and celebrate the people who came before you. You will perform wearing your costumes as part of the Children’s Day Parade at Notting Hill Carnival.

• For ages 13-17

• Dates:

  All Wednesdays in July from 5-7pm (1, 8, 15, 22 and 29 July)

  All Wednesdays in August from 5-7pm (5, 12, 19 and 26 August)

  Sunday 30 August – Performance at Notting Hill Carnival. This will be confirmed after the workshops start.

• More information/how to sign up: Young Carnival Creators | Royal Museums Greenwich

If any past pupils of St Ursula's School in Greenwich would like to join the Greenwich Ursuline Alumni please email GuogAssociation@gmail.com. We will add your to our database which will ensure that you receive the annual magazine and details about the annual reunion. If you have any fond memories, funny stories or any old photos of your school days that you would like included in this year's magazine please email this to GuogAssocation@gmail.com by early June.

Please see the latest Greenwich Ursuline Alumni Newsletter below!

Friends of St Ursula’s (FOSTUR) is the school’s dedicated charity, created to support and enhance the experience of every student at St Ursula’s. Through fundraising, volunteering and community support, FOSTUR helps provide opportunities and resources that go beyond the school’s core budget — enriching school life and creating lasting memories for our girls.

Over the years, FOSTUR has proudly contributed funding towards a wide range of initiatives, including:

• Year 11 Prom celebrations
• Support for the school ski trip, enabling more students to participate
• Equipment for the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme
• Renovation of the school library
• School window upgrades
• Musical theatre costumes, lighting and props

In addition to supporting school events through refreshment stalls and cake sales, FOSTUR also runs the much-loved annual Christmas Raffle, which continues to be one of our biggest fundraising events of the year.

However, like many school charities, we urgently need more parent volunteers, committee members and trustees in order for the charity to continue and thrive. Without new members getting involved, it becomes increasingly difficult for FOSTUR to sustain the support we provide to the school community.

Whether you can spare a little time helping at events, contribute ideas behind the scenes, or would be interested in becoming a trustee, your support would make a genuine difference.

Parents and supporters can also donate directly to the charity, with eligible donations able to be Gift Aided at no extra cost, helping every contribution go even further.

If you would like to get involved or find out more, please contact: fosturatse10@gmail.com

Together, we can continue to support and enhance the school experience for all St Ursula's students.

Some free and low cost activity inspiration, to help you make the most of your summer holidays! ^