26 October 2018

Harvest was celebrated in the Junior Girls' School with reflections on the origins of the festival and the importance of sharing what we have. Meanwhile the Junior Boys' Harvest assembly asked pupils to think about others. The Senior Girls' Harvest celebration also focused pupils' minds on what is really important: Year 7 pupils asked what being 'rich' really means. Year 2 pupils led the Harvest Assembly at Beech House with the story of a village where no one was willing to share.

The donations of food and other essential items from all three schools were given to local charity Urban Outreach.

The Boys' Division sponsored walk at the end of last year has raised £10,000 for charity. The money has been split between 10 local and national charities, with each receiving £1,000, and representatives recently visited the school to collect the funds.

Old Girl Joyce Tyldesley returned to give a concise and interesting lecture on our obsession with the Ancient Egyptian Queen Nefertiti and the iconic bust that has made her so famous. Delving into the history of the bust and the facts we know about Nefertiti herself, Dr Tyldesley discussed why so many people are drawn to the queen and the issues that arise from this.

Bolton School hosted a fantastic presentation about the growth mindset, based on the message of Matthew Syed's book 'You Are Awesome'. The Boys' Division Great Hall was filled with local primary school children, including some Junior Boys, who listened to inspiring accredited speaker Rob Carpenter.

Children in Year 1 were delighted to have the opportunity to meet and learn about owls, all of which were rescued by Lancashire Hawks and Owls. Margaret and Michael gave pupils a few facts about the different types of owl they had brought with them, and everyone had the opportunity to stroke each of the magnificent birds.

'It's a Numbers Game' enthralled Girls' Division pupils in Year 8 as they discovered from representatives of BAE Systems, the RAF and the Royal Navy how maths is used every day, often without anyone realising it. The presentation also introduced them to a robot and showcased many different types of engineering.

Infant pupils in Year 2 had an interactive presentation through which they learned all about what it was like to go to school in the Victorian period.

Boys' Division pupils in Year 8 have the exciting opportunity this term to take part in a radio production project with Bolton FM. The boys began with a presentation on what local radio is all about and progressed to planning their own show and even visited the studio to find out more.

The inaugural round of the Historical MasterChef competition was held in the Girls' Division. Pupils had spent previous weeks researching the chosen time period to create a feast of Roman-inspired treats for the judges.

Pupils from both Divisions in Years 10 to 13 got to grips with the wide range of careers relating to the environment that are available to them. Several alumni returned to share their workplace experiences and explain how different jobs relate to helping the environment.

There has been a glut of sporting success in the Girls' Division. A number of Girls' Division pupils have been selected to join the U19 Lancashire Lacrosse A and B teams. In netball, both the U15 and U16 teams have won the Bolton Schools' Tournament, and a Year 8 pupils has been invited to join the U13 Lancashire Academy Centre of Excellence for Netball. A year 7 pupils has been named North West Champion for her age group after winning a gymnastics competition, and ten pupils in Years 7 to 10 have been asked to represent Bolton town at the Greater Manchester Schools' Cross Country Championships.

Twenty-two musicians from all year groups in the Boys' Division entertained with a Musical Evening held in the Arts Centre. A huge range of musical styles and instruments made this an enjoyable evening for everyone. The next will take place on Thursday 16 May 2019 and a warm invitation is extended to all.

Ahead of Bonfire Night and Halloween, the Junior Boys were given a presentation about staying safe at this time of year from the local fire service.

Old Boy Chris Harbour, who reached the quarter-finals of MasterChef, returned to School to talk to Girls' Division GCSE Food Technology students, exactly one year after filming his last episode. He spoke about his passion for food and inspired them with some of his favourite dishes, both from the show and from cooking at home.

Recent leaver Stewart Knights gave a presentation about the architecture of the Eden Project at the national Art Out Loud Festival held at Chatsworth House. His talk was part of the ‘ARTiculation: Inspired by Buildings’ category.

Coming up after half term, Jo Fairley, an award-winning journalist and co-founder of the global ethical chocolate company Green & Black's, will give a free talk in the Girls' Division on Monday 12 November at 7pm. Everyone is welcome to come along to what promises to be a fascinating evening. Full details are here and the talk is part of the Girls' Division's ongoing series of Enrichment Lectures.

Bolton School Services Limited (BSSL), which this year celebrates its 25th birthday, is the business that keeps on giving. All of the profits generated are used to finance bursaries, which support pupils aged 11 years and over at Bolton School.