End of Autumn Term

16 January 2025 - Campbell

In Campbell House, the words for this year are ‘Quality Time’. Decided by our Head and Deputy Head of House, Jane and Anna, they have elected to look at the different ways in which the House can enjoy each other’s company over the course of the year, and picked five areas where we can focus our energies and see the benefits of the friendships we are building.

One of the five main areas was ‘Dorms’ and, this half term, the House have looked after the UVs as they have been navigating their Mocks. Although it can be a stressful time, Dorm Decs bring a lightness to the occasion and the younger girls can be relied upon to make sure that their Head of Dorm has sufficient snacks to get her through the process! As part of our Christmas festivities, each dorm created a Gingerbread House and decorated it within an hour for a final judging by Miss Dorme. Libra and Sagittarius placed, but the final winners were Pisces, with an incredibly structurally sound creation (including a freestanding tree!) that looked delicious!

As always, this half of the Autumn Term has been jam-packed. We have had Bonfire Night, including the excellent LIV guy, which looked just like the Dobble hand! Judy and Steph, our Charity reps, put together a stall which raised over £500 for the School Charities and we all enjoyed the wonderful fireworks.

Campbell also put on a good show at the annual Archer Concert in November. With a great number of musicians in House, we were well-represented in the different orchestras, and it was a pleasure to see solos from Judy (LVI) and Judea (UVI).

UIV competed in House Dance and truly embodied Michael Jackson’s dancing as they performed to a medley of his songs. We know that they put in a great deal of hard work in preparation for the event and loved seeing them all come together as a group. It made for a very entertaining dance, and we were especially impressed by their moonwalks!

Most recently we put on a fantastic performance for the House Ensemble competition. Judy, House conductor, writes below:

“This term, eight Campbell musicians took part in House Ensemble as part of their House Games activity. With only three rehearsals before the performance, we successfully produced a convincing rendition of the theme tune from Jurassic Park. Jane, Izzy, Anna, Liv and Mia played the melody beautifully, and a special mention must go to Cosima, Emma, Sophia D for the hard work they put in to master their challenging parts. At the final performance, we played confidently, and with the special appearance of Yimika in an inflatable dinosaur costume, successfully reenacted majestic scenes from the film. The Ensemble’s success and efforts are an undoubtable testimony to Campbell’s House spirit and musical potential – all we have to look forward to now is House Shout next term!”

This term we are very sorry to be saying goodbye to three members of House staff as they move on to different and exciting things.

Mr Illsley joined us in September as the Campbell Resident Tutor, after working in Junior House last year. He has jumped into House activities and, in true Campbell style, has run some incredible quizzes over the course of this Term. We will miss his enthusiasm with hot chocolates, and wish him every success as he moves closer to home to be near family.

Mrs Stoute leaves the School after 14 years working in different boarding Houses. She has been an integral part of the Campbell family for years and will be sorely missed by girls and staff. We will be particularly sad not to hear her stories at bedtime and her hugs. Mrs Stoute is stepping away from her role to be able to spend more time with family and we hope that she enjoys her time.

Miss Smith joined Campbell House in 2017 as House Tutor and became Deputy Housemistress in 2021. Her time in Campbell has been so appreciated by all the pupils who have known her throughout the years, as well as being a real staple in the House team and a fantastic personal support. We will maintain her love of rubber ducks and her appreciation of a tidy top button. Miss Smith leaves us to take up a role as Housemistress in her new school, and we know that her new girls will love her just as much as the old ones do. We wish her every success in her new and exciting role.

After a busy and fun term, we hope that all of our Campbell family have a restful and happy break, and we look forward to seeing everyone again in January.