From the Co-Headteachers
We are extremely proud to be a school for boys. We enjoy teaching boys and young men because it is our fervent belief that the world needs kind fathers as well as caring husbands and partners. On a daily basis, we strive and drive to produce successful students, confident young people and responsible, grown-up citizens who have had the best start in life.
At Isleworth & Syon, we enjoy a proud heritage of excellent examination results, outstanding enrichment opportunities and positive contributions to our local community through an array of student leadership pathways. We work tirelessly to maintain our high standards, both in school and across our community.
There have been several great news stories this week. First, Poetry By Heart – after 37,000 entries, we have been informed that Blake Lawrence has made it to the last 14. See more details below. Second, congratulations to all of our cricketers who this week have been playing an array of private schools in the Middlesex Cup; again, this signals the advanced and unique nature of our extensive enrichment opportunities.
Thank you for reading the 30th Isleworthian of 2022-23. Do you have some feedback? We always want to improve. Go to this link and leave an anonymous comment. Any student-focused questions should be sent via email rather than the form.
Simon Fisher and Jo Higginbottom
SWR Strike
Students that travel on South Western Railway (SWR) should be aware that the company are undertaking several days of strike action during May. Find out how this will affect you via their website.
Clubs of the Week – Cricket
Cricket clubs run from 3.05 – 4.30pm on the field, as follows:
- Year 7 – Wednesdays (DKE)
- Year 8 – Tuesdays (MAS)
- Year 9 – Tuesdays (SMN)
- Year 10 – Friday (LMC)
- Senior Cricket – Wednesdays (SMN)
The cricket season has begun and all year groups have the opportunity to train and play matches. Already, there have been games against independent schools for Year 10, while our Seniors will play in the annual game against the MCC. Check the schedule above for the chance to train with your year group. All are welcome!
There are so many clubs on offer each week! Check out the full list; students can sign up with the staff member listed.
Parent Portal Access
Many of our parents/carers regularly use the Parent Portal, a fantastic tool to keep up to date with students’ homework (PPA) tasks, timetable and attendance.
We have recently learned that the company who makes the Parent Portal has discontinued the ‘Insight’ app which you may use. This means that it is no longer available on Google Play or the App Store.
Do not worry, though, as you can still access the Parent Portal via the homepage of the school website or this direct link: https://parent.isleworthsyon.org/webapp/. Please change your bookmarks to the new link.
House Point Champions
Well done to those students who reached the threshold for Diamond or Prestige awards this week.
Note: this list is accurate as of 7.00am today (Friday). If your child reached a threshold after 7.00am on Friday, they will appear in next week’s list.
Prestige (300 points)
Kip BARCLAY-HARDING (7Ad)
Dan BURDEN (7Am)
Anatoli HIORA (9Br)
George MOORE (7Ad)
Darius ROOHI (7Sh)
Zisis ROSSIOS (8Ad)
Asif SHAH (7Am)
Harry STOCKS (7Sn)
Diamond (200 points)
Faris ALI (7Sn)
Abdullah ANIMASAUN (10Tr)
Alfie BARKER (9Tr)
Ryan BARTON (9Br)
Finn DONOVAN (10Bl)
Logan DUNNE (7Am)
Hussain FAZLY (8Tu)
Harparshah HUNDAL (10Sn)
Manvir KHURANA (8Sh)
Ryan PAGE (8Tu)
Sahib RUPRAH (7Tu)
Aaron SAGOO (10Ad)
Aurav SHETTY (7Br)
Jan SPYCHALSKI (7Ad)
Abdur UR REHMAN (8Tu)
Pride of House
A huge congratulations to this week’s worthy recipients of a Pride of House award. This award is given to a student in each form who has best exemplified the values that make an Isleworthian. Click a house badge to check out each list!
Examinations
Just a short reminder that all students must know their exam timetables for the start of exams next week. The school website also has a helpful range of revision materials. Good luck to all!
Coming Up!
- Monday 15 May – Public Examinations Begin
- Monday 29 May – Friday 2 June – Half-Term
- Wednesday 14 June – School vs MCC cricket match
- Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 June – Year 9 Immunisations for those with consent (DTP and Men ACWY)
Word of the Week
The word of the week is ideology.
Careers Corner
Yesterday, we hosted two speakers as part of our Sixth Form enrichment programme. Slavka Bila gave an interesting talk on her career journey from Slovakia via a degree in New Zealand to a cybersecurity role with Cisco Systems. She highlighted the reality that career journeys are not always linear and often have many peaks and troughs. She also drew students’ attention to the vast array of skills needed to work in cyber-security and emphasised that you don’t always need to be tech-oriented to work in IT.
As an entrepreneur, psychologist, sports and fitness coach, Ava Pierce spoke about the challenges of setting up and running her own business. She talked about her first business where she identified a gap in the swimming lesson market and managed to build that into a significant enterprise. She stressed the need for anyone with an entrepreneurial mindset to be developing their product continually and looking for their next opportunity.
Both speakers gave a fascinating talk to our students. We are always looking for other people to share their knowledge and experience with our students. If this is something that interests, please contact the school for the attention of Mr Adams.
Safeguarding
Being online is an integral part of children and young people’s lives. Social media, online games, websites and apps can be accessed through mobile phones, computers, laptops and tablets – all of which form a part of the online world of young people.
The internet and online technology provides new opportunities for young people to learn and grow, but it can also expose them to new types of risks. E-safety forms a fundamental part of our safeguarding and child protection measures. So, we encourage all parents/carers to watch the YouTube video below, produced by the Financial Times:
If you have a concern about the safety or welfare of your child, please email safeguarding@isleworthsyon.org. If there is an emergency call 999 or, for non-urgent matters that require police attention, call 101.
News
Blake Lawrence To Perform At Globe Theatre
We were delighted to learn yesterday (Thursday) that Year 11 student Blake Lawrence was selected for the Poetry by Heart grand final event at the end of June!
At the event, Blake will have the unique honour of reciting his chosen poem on stage at Shakespeare’s Globe theatre in London. It is richly deserved after his fantastic performance in both the school final and the online regional competition.
Blake is one of 14 finalists in the freestyle category – bear in mind that there were over 2,000 entries submitted at the previous stage, so this is some achievement! Well done to Blake.
Harvey Dobel Collaborates With ‘Fleabag’ Actor
In February, we wrote about a Year 10 student selected for a special theatre project, run by The Old Vic.
To recap, Harvey Dobel (10Am) submitted a monologue for their ‘One Voice: Whose Planet Are You On’ project – exploring the impact of individual actions and the force of collective responsibility on the future of our planet. The competition was open to all students in the theatre’s prestigious Schools Club programme, of which we are a member.
Harvey has spent the last few months working with a professional writer to help expand his piece. We have just learned that his piece will be performed by professional actor Jenny Rainsford (‘Fleabag’) and released at the start of June. We can’t wait to see the final product!
DofE Silver Launches
We are proud to run all three levels of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award – Bronze, Silver and Gold. The Award is a fantastic way for students to learn new skills, develop leadership attributes and experience adventure.
This week, Mr Adams held a parent/carer information meeting for the 22 Year 10 students taking the Silver award, as well as their families. The meeting ran through the demands of the award, which will involve in-school training sessions before a practice expedition in the Chiltern Hills next week plus an assessed expedition later this year. Good luck to all the students involved!