Newsletters
Read below a sample of our 2026 April Term school newsletters:
Spirit of the Banda – Week 01
Welcome back to the third and final term of the academic year!
As I mentioned in my end of term letter, we are launching a monthly Coffee by the Car Park event; an opportunity for parents to chat with the Senior Leadership Team, as well as other staff, at the beginning of the school day. The first one is this coming Tuesday and will be located in the Pegasus garden. Parents from all year groups in the school are most welcome to attend.
A new addition to this newsletter this term will be The Wellbeing Wall, a regular page that details relevant details and events connected to the pupils’ pastoral care and wellbeing. Please do look out for it in the coming weeks.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 02
As we reach the end of Week 2 (admittedly a second four day week!), term is properly up and running with our first round of netball and rugby matches having taken place against Cavina. In addition, Rising Stars parents enjoyed a ‘Play and Stay’ morning and our Year 6s braved the elements during a three day team-building and challenge trip to Kembu.
Our first silverware of the term also arrived, courtesy of our Under 9 chess team who triumphed at last weekend’s IAPS tournament. Our Under 11 and Under 13 teams also performed admirably to leave us in second place overall, a mere single point short of retaining the trophy for the fourth consecutive year.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 03
Wednesday’s netball and rugby matches against Pembroke were a real highlight of the week, with numerous closely fought contests between girls and boys, at both Under 13 and Under 11 level, punctuated by plenty of good sportsmanship. We were also blessed with wonderful warm, sunny weather and our pitches all looked in fine fettle following the recent rains. It was great to see so many parents from both schools on the sidelines.
And finally…. A big thank you to the PTA and Quizmaster Brad for a very enjoyable quiz night yesterday. You will doubtless be reassured to hear, should you need to, that your children’s education is in safe hands, with the staff team romping home to victory!
Spirit of the Banda – Week 04
The middle of May marks the onset of exam season in many schools and it’s no different here, with each of the Upper School year groups set to do so over the coming few weeks. Whilst Year 8s Common Entrance papers mark an end point for their time at The Banda, at least from an academic perspective, the papers for Years 5, 6 and 7 are a temperature check of their progress over the year.They tell us what has been mastered and where sails need to be readjusted. They are not a definition of a child’s personality or potential – we don’t want ‘exam-ready’ children, but rather ‘life-ready’ children who happen to be sitting exams.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 05
A huge thank you to everyone for your patience and understanding with the school closures at the beginning of the week; it was important to prioritise everyone’s safety. It’s meant a rather truncated week but a no less busy one with Years 5 and 6 sitting their end of year exams; Year 4 zipping off for a two day adventure at Sagana; a fabulous play and art show from the Pegasus children; and the playing of the year’s main inter-school tennis tournaments.
Have a restful Half Term and we look forward to welcoming everyone back on Tuesday 2nd June, following the public holiday.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 07
Many congratulations to our Year 8 pupils who have completed their Common Entrance exams this week and now have a busy and fun-packed Leavers’ Programme to look forward to over the coming weeks. Huge congratulations too to our latest senior school award winner, Sade, who had been given a Nsouli Scholarship to Brookhouse School for both academic excellence and music. This is a very prestigious award for the Inspired Schools group, competed for by thousands of pupils across the world.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 08
It was absolutely fantastic to unveil the Banda Book Box at the beginning of the week. The brainchild of Miss Brooke, this is a truly remarkable project that will not only continue to enthuse reading amongst children at The Banda, but also allow us to take this mobile library out into the community and allow our children to bring the joy of reading to those less fortunate than them. I would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who has enabled this project to come to fruition, most notably the Molenaar family.
Spirit of the Banda – Week 09
Our Year 8 pupils have enjoyed a fun and thrill packed week at Sagana as the highlight of their Leavers’ Programme, a great reward for their efforts in their recent examinations, with 99% of papers being graded A* to C and an impressive 54% being either A* or A. This beats the previous record set last year and represents the best set of results in the last decade and a half. Many congratulations to each and every one of our Year 8 pupils!
