William Ellis School Parent Portal - NEWS AT WES

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Spring Term - 21st March 2025

Welcome to our latest news update, including a warm welcome to our newest, youngest Elysians, information for Year 9 parents about the next steps in the options process, and highlights from trips and visits including German exchange visitors.

Year 11 exam preparation

Well done to the Year 11 students who completed mock exams in English and Maths this week. The students are now fewer than 60 days - and 23 school days - away from their GCSE exams.

They should be completing regular revision activities at home, using the revision guides for each subject that were given out in registration last week, as well as online resources such as Seneca and Carousel, that they can all log into. Year 11 intervention also continues after school, and will do throughout the next half term.

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Attendance and Behaviour Updates

Thank you to those families who filled in last week's survey, asking about what motivates students to attend school all or most of the time, or what would encourage them to attend more.

The main thing that drives attendance, you said, was relationships - good relationships with staff, and with friends and other students. We know that relationships are central to life at William Ellis: our mission is to nurture successful students and good citizens through strong relationships.

We will use this information to help us work with students to improve their attendance, thinking carefully about the relationships they have with trusted adults and how we help them to build supportive friendships. Responses also mentioned how much students enjoy trips, visits and special events at school, and we hope that these newsletters provide examples of some of the visits and events that are on offer.

On a separate note, we are expecting some students to be celebrating Eid al-Fitr on March 30th and 31st. Absences for religious observance will only be approved on Monday 31st.

Year 9 options update

Year 9 students have now selected their preferred GCSE options - thank you for the support you provided. Their tutors will now review their subject choices to make sure that they have given clear reasons and to look at the combination of subjects they have chosen, and speak to students during tutorial time. We may contact a few Year 9 families to discuss the choices in more detail. After Easter, we will begin the process of timetabling those subjects so that as many students as possible can be allocated their preferred subjects. Year 9 students will begin their GCSE courses after Year 9 camp, and the half term break.

Welcome to new Elysians: the transition journey begins!

This week we were excited to meet the families of many of our new Year 7 students who will be joining us in September, when we hosted our first of three information events.

As you can see, each event covers different aspects of transition, making sure that students and their families are as well prepared as they can be. We know that there were some families who could not attend due to Ramadan, and we will be sending home a copy of the slides and further information.

Families of new Year 7s will have received yesterday a link to our Applicaa portal, where they can send us more information about their sons. We look forward to seeing families again, and the boys for their transition day at the start of July.

Camden Moving On to Secondary School Event

Parents of children in primary school years 4 and 5 are invited to join Camden's Moving On to Secondary School Event on Thursday 5 June 2025, with timed slots available from 4.15 to 6.45pm. This free in-person event at the Francis Crick Institute, King’s Cross, is a great opportunity to:

Receive advice on how to apply for a Year 7 place for September 2026 from the Camden Admissions Team
Find out more about what Camden secondary schools have to offer your child
Speak with headteachers, student ambassadors and staff from Camden secondary schools.

Book your free place here.

Year 11 Art & Graphics Trip to the National Gallery

Ms Kendall writes:

On Friday 14th March, Year 11 Art & Graphics students went on a trip to National Gallery for part of their GCSE coursework.

We had a wonderfully creative and informative day, where students chose a painting to focus on which fitted with the theme of Gathering. The students were thoroughly engaged throughout and created their own studies.

Mr Gunter and myself were very proud of all the boys who were shining examples of polite young gentlemen and were a credit to WES!

French Drama Workshop

Ms Rodgers writes:

On Monday 17^th March, a group of 30 Year 10 students took part in a French theatre workshop. They were really engaged in the workshop, did some fabulous French improvisation in groups, worked well on translating a scene from French to English and then, after some preparation time, presented their interpretation of the play. One group even presented their scene in 4 languages; Arabic, French, Spanish & English!

A huge thanks to WESPA for funding this amazing opportunity for students to use their language skills in a more unique context!

This is what some of the students had to say about the workshop:

“Interesting… learnt new vocab…. Learnt teamwork with languages…. Fun acting in French… saw different people’s interpretations’ (Philip, 10B)

“I liked learning new French words & using them in a play” (Leon, 10B)

While one of the facilitators said: “It was a brilliant workshop to be part of. We were blown away by the kids' French, it was excellent. Their pronunciation was particularly amazing. There are clearly fantastic teachers at the school!”

European Football Academy - free and low-cost training opportunities

The European Football Academy, is an Ofsted-registered youth football academy committed to making high-quality football training accessible to all students, regardless of financial background.

They are offering the opportunity for students (aged 4-18) to participate in upcoming Open Trials in Maida Vale, Brent Cross, Kennington and Waterloo on March 29-30 where boys and girls can showcase their talent, train with UEFA-qualified coaches, and explore potential pathways into competitive football.

The European Football Agency offer:

Free Training for the Most Talented Players – Scholarships available for those who demonstrate outstanding ability and commitment.
Low-Cost Training for Those Who Need It – Financial assistance so all students can access quality coaching.
Opportunities to Play in Competitive Leagues – League matches across London.
International Exposure – Discounted opportunities to travel and compete overseas.
Workshops for Students & Parents – Highlighting the mental, physical, and social benefits of football.

To find out more and register for a trial, please see: www.europeanfootball.academy/open-trials or email info@efalondon.com.

SEND Notice:

Preparation for Adulthood - event for young people with SEND

Camden Council and their partners are hosting an event focused on Preparation for Adulthood (PfA) for young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). This free event is taking place on Friday 28 March, from 10am to 3pm, at LABS House, 15-19 Bloomsbury Way, WC1A 2TH.

It is designed to provide valuable insights and support for young people with an EHC plan or SEN Support plan, from Year 9 onwards. There are still some places available.

Activities will include stalls, interactive workshops and activities tailored to diverse needs; expert insights and support from local authority officers and partners, including SEND and Inclusion, Connexions, SENDIASS and Wac Arts; opportunities for young people to provide feedback and share their perspectives. Please fill out this easy-to-complete form if you wish to participate.

Yours faithfully,

Izzy Jones

Headteacher

This Week's WESPA Round-Up:

Dear families,

It was lovely to meet lots of new families on Wednesday. The WhatsApp group is up and running and teeming with hellos and introductions. If any current parents who have sons joining in September would like to join, please let me know.

German Exchange

It has been a busy week in the WESPA camp. On Monday we welcomed our German exchange students on their return visit. Thank you to all the WESPA parents who baked, hosted and put on a lovely welcome lunch for the students and their teachers. I understand the exchange students have had a great week with their host families. A big thank you to languages teacher Joely Pritchett for making this possible.

Performing International Plays Workshop

On Monday we were also visited by Performing International Plays. Huge thanks to WESPA Trustee Alex for coordinating this and to all the many people who helped.

On Tuesday, about thirty Year 10 students with interests in French took part in a French translation workshop that WESPA coordinated. There were a variety of activities, the main being translating a French scene into English. The scene was about a 12 year old girl refugee fleeing to France from unsafe conditions. We had to put ourselves in her shoes to figure out what sort of language she would use, trying to find the most colloquial translation. At the end we performed our own takes on this scene, my group performed this scene in four languages. It was fun to have a different experience of translation.

Humphrey Y10

WES Band Club

Tuesday saw the first session for the new Band Club. I am always delighted by the depth of talent at WES. Straight out of the blocks, bands were rehearsing and it was particularly great to help new Y7s get started. Watch this space at the next WES concert! Thank you to WES Music staff Matt Hansom and Max Stoner-Taubman for getting this off to a great start. If any students would like to join, it takes place in Room 48 at lunchtime on Wednesdays - all students are welcome.

Have a great weekend.

Chair WESPA