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Message from the Headteacher, Mr Richards
This week, year 11 and 13s have had their Art and Photography mock practical exams, year 7 went to the Natural History museum to take part in the Mars Rover challenge workshop, we held our Winter concert yesterday evening (we will be performing to some of the local primary schools today) and DT pupils took part in a Graffiti workshop.
Next week, as well as being the last week of term, it’s rewards week. We will be celebrating your children’s success across the school in assemblies and various other exciting events. GCSE Graphics and Textiles pupils in year 11 will be working on their portfolio component on Tuesday and Wednesday.
We will make a slight change to our usual end of term dismissal: All pupils will be dismissed at 12.30pm and sixth formers may leave site following their last lesson of the morning. It is important you speak with your child about the arrangements for the afternoon. They should not loiter around school or the local area and should go straight home. The school site and office is shut from 2pm. To manage expectations, over the holidays there will only be a skeleton service and we do not expect teachers to check emails or voicemail over this time
Ofsted
You may be aware from press releases over recent months that Ofsted (the schools’ inspectorate) has changed the way that they report on schools. There will be a new report card published online for families to see the different aspects of how a school is doing. They have also changed the way they grade schools: there is no longer an overall grade such as good or outstanding and, instead, the school evaluation is broken down into separate areas each given a different grading. Ofsted has published a video to support families in understanding this new system which you can view here. Our context is that we were graded as Outstanding in 2019 and maintained this standard in our inspection which took place in March this year. We are unlikely to be inspected until around March 2029 on this new system but it’s worth pointing out that there is no correlation between the old good or outstanding grades and the new expected standard, strong standard or exceptional. If you have any further questions, please contact info@villiers.ealing.sch.uk for the attention of the Headteacher.
Y7 Trip to Natural History Museum – Mars Rover Challenge
On Monday, a group of year 7 students went to the Natural History Museum to take part in a challenge to build and test a Mars Rover robot. The session started with an engaging presentation by the lead staff at the Museum in charge of the programme. Students were challenged to demonstrate their prior knowledge about space. It was amazing to see the depth and breadth of knowledge our students have. They were able to identify the modern techniques of collecting data from space leading to the introduction of how they were going to build their own robot using Lego blocks and then programme it with codes using an iPad. This task required a combination of their creativity and coding skills. They worked in small groups of three students to build their own robots in three stages. The most exciting aspect of the session was when students were testing their robots to move on a simulated Mars surface. They were able to manoeuvre their robots remotely using iPad codes. If the programming was not done correctly, then they could not travel the required distance or stop at the right place when visiting a landmark they had been allocated ‘on Mars’. This gave students an insight into the challenges faced by Scientists when they are controlling missions to Mars from the Earth using computer programmes. After the workshop, students had the opportunity to explore other museum galleries. It was a great experience for some the students who had never visited this famous global museum with so many artefacts and specimens on display collected from all over the world.
Heathrow STEM Challenge
We extend our congratulations to the students who participated in the Heathrow Challenge this week. The program was carefully structured to provide genuine insight and inspiration for students considering a career pathway in engineering and technology.
During the session, students gained practical knowledge regarding the diverse engineering roles essential to Heathrow’s operation. They received instruction on micro-bit coding and applied this knowledge to program their devices to navigate a detailed airport map, simulating and solving complex engineering scenarios.
The challenge was integrated with the Skills Builder Universal Framework. Facilitators explicitly showcased and explained core attributes, such as Teamwork, allowing students a vital opportunity to practise and develop these essential transferable skills within a collaborative team environment
During the session, students were consistently guided to focus on essential skills using the Skills Builder Universal Framework. We integrated the official skills icons and linked each skill step to a specific reflection question. This ensured continuous self-assessment. Following the successful completion of the challenge, students consolidated their learning by:
- Delivering a presentation on the key skills they practised as a team.
- Completing a detailed reflection on the skills acquired and evaluating how much the challenge boosted their confidence in applying those skills.
Is my child well enough to go to school?
If your child is feeling unwell and you’re not sure whether to send them in, please read this NHS guidance which will support you in making a decision: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/
Free school meals supermarket vouchers
School Streets
The Christmas holiday will soon be starting and we take this opportunity to remind you that School Streets operate term time only, according to the dates published on the Ealing Council website: Academic year 2025/26 | Term and holiday dates | Ealing Council Our scheme still operates on individual school INSET and occasional days.
We also confirm that the School Street cameras will be back in operation from Monday 5th January 2026.
Further information is available on our website: Ealing School Streets | Ealing School Streets | Ealing Council
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