News & Diary
Window on Winchester – Sixth Form – Summer Term 2026
It’s a pleasure to write my first newsletter to you all as Winchester College’s new Registrar.
I joined Winchester in 2023 as Deputy Registrar, following a 20-year career as a journalist based in Washington, Paris and London, writing about economics and public policy. Closer to home, my connection with Winchester is longstanding: both of my sons attended The Pilgrims’ School, and one has recently completed his time at Winchester.
Please do get in touch with the Admissions team or I if you have any questions. In the meantime, I look forward to speaking with you in the months ahead.
Anna Kennedy
Notions are distinctive words and customs unique to Winchester College pupils and our community.
This unusual language has developed over many centuries, reaching its peak in the nineteenth century.
While notions have naturally evolved, with new words replacing others that have fallen out of use, some of the oldest words still spoken at Winchester preserve direct links to Anglo-Saxon England.
We recently produced a short guide to Notions for new pupils and families. Please enjoy!
Avoiding the unintended consequences of education reform
In her message to parents this term, Headmaster Ms Elizabeth Stone reflected on the growing debate around online examinations and the wider consequences such changes could have for teaching and learning in schools.
The Headmaster recently shared a list of suggested summer holiday reading with Sixth Form pupils.
Her mandate to them was to ‘browse widely, choose what appeals, discover something unexpected, and, above all, enjoy your reading. (And pass on your recommendations!)’
We were delighted to open our brand new 6-lane 25-metre swimming pool to pupils this term, with all year groups now making the most of the new facility.
The pool is part of our new Sports Centre which includes an eight-court Sports Hall, six squash courts, six fives courts, plus a dance studio and martial arts Dojo.
We were also pleased to open our new all-weather pitch which sits alongside the Sports Centre.
We recently published a list of residential trips and sports tours for next year.
All visits are intended to support pupils’ engagement with the curriculum or co-curriculum, while also forming part of a broader education.
This year’s programme is wide-ranging, comprising a variety of cultural trips, expeditions, and sports tours.
We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Ms Tammy Parks, our first Head of US and International Universities.
Ms Parks joins us from Emanuel School in London, and has a wealth of experience in both UK schools and the private university counselling sector, as well as a Master’s degree from NYU; she previously worked as the Assistant Director of Financial Aid and Admissions at Fordham College in New York.
She will offer a comprehensive service to families, covering all aspects of international universities from initial exploration to profile-building, college choice, financial aid, essay writing, application, and results day. She has previously worked with pupils at Wellington College, Westminster School, Radley College, Queen’s Gate School, and St Mary’s School Ascot.
Her advisees have gained successful entry to University of Chicago, UCLA, UPenn, Brown, Yale, Stanford, New York University, Columbia, and more.
This term eleven pupils brought the earliest surviving play in western literature to the QEII stage with two performances of Aeschylus’s The Persians.
The play follows a Chorus of Persian elders anxiously awaiting news of their army’s campaign in Greece.
A percussive soundtrack, inspired by Indian and Persian music, ran throughout and the modern military costumes drew parallels with contemporary conflicts.
Our Year 12 geographers travelled to the Jurassic Coast earlier this month to spend a brilliant weekend developing the fieldwork skills they’ll need for their Non-Examined Assessment (NEA), which makes up 20% of their final A Level grade.
Over the weekend, pupils practised a range of techniques, including beach profiling, sand dune succession, and exploring the impact of tourism around Corfe Castle. They also studied key coastal processes such as sediment transportation and mass movement at locations like Swanage Bay.
Alongside the fieldwork, pupils had plenty of chances to enjoy the fresh air, and more than a few ice creams in the sunshine.
They returned well-prepared for their NEA write-up, which begins in earnest next academic year.
Congratulations to those incoming pupils who were awarded a Founder’s Scholarship, recognising their academic excellence, intellectual curiosity, analytical rigour, and flexibility of mind.
Recipients of the Founder’s Scholarship receive a 25% reduction in school fees, awarded on merit and are not means-tested.
A significant milestone took place earlier this month as we welcomed the first residents of St Cross, our new Sixth Form girls’ boarding house, during their induction.
The girls took the time to explore their new home and bedrooms before embarking on a myriad of activities!
Two of our Sixth Form Music Scholars gave a lunchtime recital at the National Musicians’ Church, a remarkable achievement for pupils of their age.
Coen’s solo piano programme opened with Franck’s dazzling Prélude, Chorale et Fugue, followed by Kapustin’s jazz-influenced Concert Etude No. 1. Winston began with Kit Turnbull’s Oscillation, whose extended playing techniques were beautifully complemented by the resonant acoustic of Holy Sepulchre Church, before closing the concert with a superb performance of Poulenc’s Clarinet Sonata, accompanied by Nick Salwey on the church’s newly acquired Steinway Model D Concert Grand.
The Music-at-Hill concert series regularly features conservatoire students and professional musicians, making this a real honour, and one that had to be earned. Both boys were runners-up in this year’s Concerto Competition, which led to the invitation. The audience and promoter were so impressed that Winchester has been invited to return next year.
Congratulations to Coen and Winston!
Congratulations to those pupils who took part in the National Schools Regatta at the beginning of Leave-out.
The Championship 4 came 3rd in their final in a fantastic race.
This is Winchester’s 2nd National Schools medal in three years and all of the athletes that raced made an A final.
A great day of racing by the seniors!
Families connected with Winchester may be interested in CATALYST, Winchester College’s online enrichment programme designed to reflect the College’s distinctive culture of learning.
Designed and taught by Winchester dons, the programme is inspired by Div and brings together pupils from around the world to think, question and test ideas in conversation. Courses range widely across topics such as AI, philosophy, economics, ethics and scientific inquiry, encouraging intellectual exploration, analytical rigour and thoughtful approaches to complex problems.
Two programmes run this summer:
Families connected with Winchester are offered a 20% discount on this summer’s courses. When applying, simply note “Winchester Family” on the application form.
Further information can be found at the links below.
