students in class
Junior Reflections

Junior Reflections Week 18 2024

Dear parents,

Graham Keene visit

February has arrived, as have the first lot of daffodils in my office. A lovely feeling of Spring is nearly here. I joined the Upper Two pupils first thing on Monday morning to listen to our very own local mountaineer, Graham Keene. The pupils were mesmerised by his account of climbing the seven highest mountains in each of the continents, and he encouraged the pupils to follow their dreams – anything is possible.

Future-ready learning

Mrs Morgan and I visited Wells Cathedral School on Tuesday as part of the District 4 heads termly meeting and a chance for our digital leads to meet up. The discussion topic was “Future-ready learning”, and we had a very interesting and informative presentation from Lex Lang on the integration of AI in education. It certainly gave us a lot to think about, not just as a teacher but also as a parent.

Comets club

This week, comets club headed to the senior school for “Combinatorics – The Art of Clever Counting”. Mr Bowler introduced compositions to the group, where the pupils were asked to break down whole numbers. The Upper Two children were brilliant at identifying patterns, and they got to see how creative mathematics can be! A huge thank you to Mr Bowler for inspiring our pupils.

Informal Brass Concert

I attended the Informal Brass Concert, and what a treat I had. I was blown away, excuse the pun, by the talent, and a special mention goes to our very own Nathaniel in Lower Two, who performed the James Bond theme tune on the French horn. It was a brilliant performance. I do enjoy the Informal Concerts, and it is lovely to see many of our old junior school pupils play as well.

Junior school council

On Thursday morning, the junior school council welcomed three of our senior school council members, Alex, Jasmine, and Tom, to our half term meeting. They talked about their roles and the brilliant changes they have helped to influence before taking questions from the pupils, such as changes to school uniforms and school lunches. Alex, Jasmine, and Tom shared words of wisdom and encouragement as well as fond memories of their time in the junior school before hearing feedback from each class on what has been enjoyed, what was not quite so good, any worries, and finally, suggestions for the school council to discuss at future meetings.

Coffee morning

It was lovely to see many of the lower school parents at our coffee morning on Wednesday; as always, it was a great start to my day and great to catch up. This evening sees our annual junior school quiz, which I am very much looking forward to, and tomorrow I will be welcoming many new families and their children to our assessment day.

I hope that you all have a lovely weekend, and I am sure I will see many of you this evening.

Playground people of the week

Archie F1C

Lysander  U2T

George U2E

U11 Hockey – Devon Finals

The U11 boys hockey team travelled to Blundell’s on Wednesday for the Devon Hockey Tournament. They displayed some fantastic skills and scored some great goals during the tournament. Exeter School progressed through the group stages in top place and came up against West Buckland School in the semi-final, where the game went to penalty shuffles. Exeter School narrowly lost the shoot out and West Buckland School progressed to the final. Well done to all the pupils involved!

Informal Brass Concert

15 players from across the school took to the Music Hall stage on Wednesday in the Informal Brass Concert. Featuring nine trumpeters, three trombonists, a euphoniumist, a hornist and a tubist, and ranging in age from Nathaniel in Lower Two to Oscar in Upper Sixth, the event offered huge variety in the instrumental disciplines on show and the experience of the players. The choices of piece also offered something for every musical taste, with movements from concertos by Hummel and Haydn, pop favourite Angels, film/stage classics including Raiders March, the James Bond theme and Castle on a Cloud through to jazzy numbers such as Chattanooga Choo-Choo and Funk. You can access the audio recording here.

The next Informal Concert event will feature the guitarists, and is taking place on Wednesday 7 February at 4pm in the Music Hall. Parents, pupils, staff and families and all welcome to attend.

Junior School News

Junior Sport News

Last week, our wonderful Young Changemakers presented a cheque to @hospiscaredevon, having raised an incredible £1,679.17 for the local hospice charity throughout the year! 

Our sixth form pupils have given so much of their time to this partnership, taking part in workshops with Hospiscare's Learning and Development team, as well as volunteering and fundraising in all sorts of creative ways.

Hospiscare does such vital work supporting families across our community, and it means the world to see our pupils choosing to give back in such a meaningful way. From bake sales to sponsored challenges, every penny raised will make a real difference.

We are so proud of our Young Changemakers for their compassion, commitment and community spirit. Well done to all involved! 🙌

#ExeterSchool #IndependentSchool #Hospiscare #GivingBack #CharityWork #RaisingMoney #SixthFormPupils #YoungChangeMakers #Inspiring #Achievement

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A huge thank you to The Revd Canon James Mustard and Director of Music Timothy Noon for a truly wonderful service! James gave us the warmest welcome and spoke so beautifully about our partnership. 🎶 

Dr Rainbow, Mrs Van and Mr Titchin were delighted to be there to see our wonderful choristers perform and thoroughly enjoyed the special moment. 😊 

#ExeterSchool #IndependentSchool #ChoresterProgramme #Choir #Music #ExeterCathedral

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We were delighted to welcome back two of our alumni, Sidney (2014–2025) and Tom (2016–2025), last week, ahead of their return for the second year of their degree courses.

Taking time out of their own studies, Sidney and Tom came back to Exeter School to share excellent first-hand tips and advice on navigating the first year of university life.

Their visit marked the launch of this year's Upper Sixth Futures Programme, giving our current pupils invaluable insight from those who have so recently walked the same path from school to university. It's a wonderful example of the strong connections our alumni continue to have with Exeter School, and how willing they are to give back and support the next generation of pupils.

A huge thank you to Sidney and Tom for their time. We wish you both every success as you head into your second year!

#ExeterSchoolAlumni #ExeterSchool #IndependentSchool #GuestSpeakers #SixthFom #NextSteps #University #FuturesProgramme #InspireAndAchieve

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Congratulations to 1st XI captain Josh who scored his second county century for @devoncricket yesterday, 119 not out against Oxfordshire in their 3-day match. This follows his 119 against Wiltshire in the T20 fixture two weeks ago. Devon have progressed to the QF of the T20 comp which takes place later this month. We hope Josh continues his good form! 

@exeterschooluk @exetercricketclub #devoncricket #centurian #t20 #exeterschoolsport #schoolofgreatcharacter

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Huge congratulations to @exschsports 1st XV player Max who represented Italy 🇮🇹 U18s this weekend. The Italy squad were in camp with Wales & Scotland with all three teams playing each other in 40 minute matches! We hope this is the start of an exciting year for Max. 👏🏻 @exeterschooluk @rugbubble_ #rugby #exeterschoolsport #reprugby #schoolofgreatcharacter

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Congratulations to James (U5) who competed at the Aquatics GB Next Generation Championships last week, an event held for the top 24 swimmers in Britain in each swim event. 

James achieved qualification times for 6 events - 50, 100 and 200 fly, 200 free and 200 and 400IM. Competing in the 16yr old age category, he reached three finals, placing him in the top 10 in his age group in Britain. Great achievement, well done James! 🙌🏻 @exeterschooluk #exeterschool #exeterschoolsport #schoolofgreatcharacter

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Congratulations to @exschsports pupils Annabel, Isabelle, Alfie & Benjamin who all represented the University of Exeter Talent Academy at the England Hockey TA cup at the end of July. Brilliant achievement! 🏑 🙌🏻 @iscahockeyclubjuniors @devonhockeyassociation #exeterschoolsport #hockey #schoolofgreatcharacter

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WHOLE SCHOOL OPEN DAY 2026

Whole School Open Day

Join us for our Whole School Open Day on Saturday 26 September 2026. This is a wonderful opportunity to explore Exeter School, speak with our staff, and see class activities in action. Current pupils will be on hand to show you around and share their own experiences of school life.

Click here to register