24 June 2016

Last weekend, hundreds of guests attended Patterdale Hall's Open Day. It was a great opportunity to see the results of the Phase I refurbishment and for parents to see or even try out some of the activities that pupils enjoy while on their visits. After the event, VIPs enjoyed a hog roast and a plaque was unveiled to commemorate the renovation work.

Staff from Beech House Infant School were also busy over the weekend, taking part in the Midnight Memories walk. Their efforts raised in the region of £1,400 for Bolton Hospice. To add your support, click here.

Two Year 7 pupils added their voices to the world premiere performance of 'A Brief History of Creation' by Jonathan Dove. This evolutionary oratorio, which was also recorded for CD, was commissioned for the Hallé Children's Choir and was conducted by Sir Mark Elder. James Hopkinson and Olivia Sample performed in the choir alongside the Hallé Orchestra at the Bridgewater Hall.

This week, Beech House held its annual Sports Days. With one event for Years 1 and 2 and another for the Reception classes, there was lots of sporting action to be seen on the field! The children really threw themselves into the activities with lots of enthusiasm and enjoyed the friendly competition against one another.

Year 4 pupils at Hesketh House, Bolton School's Junior Girls' School, put on a series of sketches based on Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' this week. The devised pieces, which were performed in assembly in front of parents and the rest of the Junior Girls' School, carried the audience through the whole of the play in mere minutes!

This week's Inspiring Mind is David Shaw, a member of Boys' Division staff who taught Physics from 1964 to 2002. His profile shares his memories of his time at Bolton School, including his experiences fell-walking and at Saundersfoot Camp with the boys, taking part in sport, and getting to know the pupils in each class.

17 June 2016

Congratulations to three Old Girls who have recently received honours. Janet Woods and Caroline Plumb were among those recognised in the Queen’s 90th Birthday Honours list, while Nicola Grinstead has been given the highest award in Girlguiding, the Silver Fish Award.

This week, Sixth Formers held their annual Community Action Celebration Evening. The Year 12 pupils across the Boys' and Girls' Division have this year given over 11,000 hours of their time to the local community to offer help on a wide range of projects and initiatives, and the evening celebrated their commitment. The pupils received gold, silver and bronze level awards for their dedicated voluntary work, and heard from guest speaker Fiona Gibson, the North-West's Ambassador for the Prince's Trust.

Children at Beech House, Bolton School's Infant School were transported back to an 1877 schoolroom with a History Alive workshop this week. They learned all about what life was like for school-age children in the Victorian period and how different it is to their experience of school today. This fascinating experience really allowed the children to feel immersed in the past.

At the end of the week, pupils at Beech House dressed up in costumes from every decade from the past 100 years to help to celebrate the School's centenary! The children enjoyed wearing Sixties Flower Power outfits, Glam Rock makeup, flapper dressed and gangster suits, and lots more creative clothes that helped to bring history to life once again.

Children in the Nursery Class for Three- and Four-Year-Olds got involved with the centenary celebrations too, learning all about the 1920s and dressing up in appropriate costume!

Girls in Year 12 took part in a Beyond Bolton School careers day to get them thinking about their future after A Levels. They heard from various university representatives and also from five alumni who gave talks about employment at 18, studying in the USA, volunteering, psychometric assessments and life as a medical student.

Beech House's annual Summer Ball, which was recently held at the Macron Stadium, was once again a huge success. The event raised £1,500 for the Phelan-McDermid Syndrome Foundation (PMSF) through raffles, auctions and donation boxes on the night.

Children from the Butterfly Room at Bolton School's Nursery will be leaving to start school in September, but not without a few special treats beforehand. The children went on a special trip to Knowsley Safari Park to see all of the different animals and were amazed by the sea lion show!

This weekend, on Sunday 19 June, Patterdale Hall is holding an Open Day from 10am to 3pm with lots of activities. Click the link to read more about the School's "80 acre classroom", and visit on Sunday to see it for yourself!

This week's Inspiring Mind is Dr Margaret Spurr, Headmistress of the Girls' Division from 1979 to 1994. Her time as Headmistress saw several ambitious building projects completed, including the conversion of the former swimming pool into the Arts Centre and its opening by the Princess of Wales in 1993. Her profile remembers her time at School fondly and shares some of her personal highlights.

10 June 2016

Bolton School teams have now won in all three age groups at the ESSA National Water Polo Finals - for the second year running! The U13 Team was the last to play, following the U15s' and U18s' success at Bolton One in March, and dominated the national stage of the competition to emerge victorious. The current crop of players have now matched a record held by Bolton School alumni who went on to play at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games.

Pupils and staff were delighted to welcome cricket's greatest all-rounder Sir Garfield Sobers to School this week. He had lunch with the captains of the School's cricket teams and gave an address about the sport to an enthralled audience. He came to Bolton School to thank the senior cricket team, which will take part in the Sir Garfield Sobers Cricket Tournament as part of its tour of Barbados in July 2017.

Today, pupils at the Junior Girls' School celebrated the Queen's 90th Birthday with a special picnic lunch which they enjoyed in the playground! They also dressed in the colours of the British flag to honour the occasion.

Year 5 pupils from eleven local primary schools pitted their wits against one another to see who would be crowned "Brain of Bolton" at Bolton School's Big Quiz! The ten challenging rounds covered a range of subjects and topics and really put the teams' knowledge to the test.

Thirteen members of staff at Beech House, Bolton School's Infant School, will be taking part in the Midnight Memories Walk in aid of Bolton Hospice. Click here to support them on JustGiving!

As the half term drew to a close, boys in Year 9 had a second opportunity to see the U20s Rugby World Cup in School while also learning more about the history of the game. They watched a touring production of Hands Up for Jonny Wilkinson's Right Boot, which visited School as part of a three-week theatre tour supported by the RFU. It tells the story of Frederick Stanley Jackson, a Cornish tin miner who was called to play for England in the first ever British Lions tour of New Zealand in 1908 and also sheds light on other key historical moments.

The Senior Boys' Music Department at Bolton School has been commended by the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM). The School has been awarded a Silver Certificate in Music following excellent GCSE results last summer. The Music Department is delighted to have been recognised in this way.

Year 7 sailor Harvey Leigh was recently selected for the 2016 Great Britain U16 International Optimist Team competing at Braassemermeer in the Netherlands. He was one of 215 sailors in the competition and did extremely well.

Old Girl Natasha Lomas recently achieved a distinction in her LTCT diploma in saxophone performance - a particularly impressive feat, since only 25% pass and the saxophone is actually her second instrument!

This week's Inspiring Mind is Mervyn Brooker, who was Boys' Division Headmaster from 2000 to 2008. In his profile he talks about his personal history as well as his cherished memories of leading the School, including the launch of the Millennium Ketch and Winning the National Independent Schools' Cup at football. He also reflects on the community feel at the School and gives great advice to current pupils.