‘When you find yourself with more than enough, build a longer table, not higher walls.’

What a pleasure it was to welcome Tom Herbert to Beaudesert. Tom is the founder of The Long Table in Brimscombe, Stroud.

The Long Table is a unique social enterprise all built around creating a space for community and companionship. The restaurant runs on a ‘pay as you can’ basis enabling everyone to come and eat. Where possible, food is sourced from local farmers, and any food left over at the end of the day is frozen and sent to those who need it through the ‘freezers of love’.

Tom left us with a very poignant question… ‘What if everyone in our community had access to great food and people to eat it with?’

Our Harvest Festival donations were dropped at Stroud Foodbank earlier this week by our minibus drivers and were gratefully received.

Please enjoy this lovely Harvest prayer, written by Arthur in Year 2.

Dear God,

Thank you for the Harvest. Thank you for the rain and sun and vegetables. The vegetables are yummy and the corn that makes our cereal. Thank you for the farmers. 

Amen

Earlier this week, our Year 5 children were challenged to work together in groups to build the tallest freestanding paper tower they could. They weren't allowed to use any materials other than newspaper, which led to some inventive and creative solutions within their groups. Well done to the winners in each Form:

• 5C Winners - 37cm - Gus, Juniper and Amaya
• 5G Winners - 38cm - Meredith, Whitney, Summer and Rory
• 5H Winners - 87cm - Will G, Fergus and Henry

Our winners from 5H were the overall winners, with the tallest tower in the land!

In Pre-Prep this week, we enjoyed learning about Harvest Festivals, naming and exploring different vegetables and creating wonderful harvest artwork, as well as thinking about the gift of giving and helping others. We also learnt about harvest traditions around the world, including Yam Festivals celebrated in different parts of Africa, including Nigeria and Ghana.

We have been busy with our Maths learning, comparing quantities, learning about ‘part-whole’ models and using play-based learning to compare mass, length and capacity.

Our Nursery children are settling beautifully into life at Beaudesert, and it is joyful to watch their confidence growing daily as they build familiarity with their wonderful learning environment and form relationships with adults and peers.

Our Performing Arts Centre was abuzz with activity on Thursday evening, as over 30 Heads and Registrars joined us for our Senior Schools Fair. The event was very busy; we hope parents were able to talk to lots of different schools, and fill their boots with tote bags and free pens!

Our Year 7 children enjoyed their first study skills session with Elevate Education on Thursday. In preparation for upcoming assessments, the children discussed time management skills with Tali, which included revising difficult subjects first, and scheduling homework and revision in good time. These are all important skills that they will utilise for years to come.

This week has been another fantastic one in the Boarding House, with a great mix of activities and plenty of fun. On Monday, the children continued their fitness training, starting off the week on a healthy note. On Tuesday, the weather kept us indoors, but that didn’t slow us down. The Sports Hall was buzzing with energy, as the children enjoyed games of pickleball and other activities hosted by our lovely GAPs.

The middle of the week brought beautiful weather, allowing for plenty of outdoor time on both Wednesday and Thursday. The children took full advantage of the sunshine, enjoying games and activities out in the fresh air. It was wonderful to see them so active and engaged with everything the outdoors had to offer.

Friday was a particularly special day, as we celebrated Monty’s birthday! The boarders all gathered to sing for him, and he was treated to a 'pawsome' breakfast provided by the kitchen. Delphi and Milo did a great job presenting it, making the morning even more memorable for the old boy!

Wishing you all a lovely and relaxing weekend!

Oli and Debbie Jones, Houseparents

On Wednesday afternoon as the children returned from matches, one boy found a little lost teddy bear on the Common and passed it on to Mr Searson.

As luck would have it, after posting a photo of the bear on our local Facebook group, the grandparents of the owner were identified. Pooh was collected yesterday and safely returned to a very grateful little boy - and a very relieved set of grandparents! We all know the importance of a special teddy, and we are so happy to see this one has been reunited.

Don't Forget!

We are looking forward to our Autumn Fair on Saturday, 12th October 2024, from 8:30am to 3:00pm.

The Fair is a great opportunity to start your Christmas shopping, with over 40 stalls in attendance, including Oarsum, Atelier 18 and Hoboko. Delicious food and coffees are also on offer.

Entry is £3.50 for adults, children under 16 years old go free. All proceeds are going to local charity Gloucestershire Young Carers, who support young carers across the county.

See the full list of exhibitors.

We hope to see you there!

And finally... We have had one more entry for our 'Beaudesert Park dogs in school uniform' feature. We are glad so many of you enjoyed the photos last week.