Summer Term 2

26 June 2026 - Shelburne

House Dinner

At Wycombe Abbey, the Summer Term is synonymous with the community events and traditions that make the school such a happy and enjoyable place to live and work. Blessed once again with beautiful weather, our outdoor House Dinner was a great success and served as a suitably celebratory start to the final Half Term. It was wonderful to bring our community together to celebrate all that the girls have achieved this year, and I hope that everyone present enjoyed a relaxed evening filled with good food, good company and games!

Following the drinks reception and barbecue in the Daws Hill courtyard, a spirited game of family rounders saw enthusiastic participation and a healthy dose of competition demonstrated across all ages. A particular highlight of the evening was the charity game of “heads and tails”, which raised over £400 for Mary’s Meals and Young Deaf Activities. Thank you to our House Charity Representatives Stella and Ivanka for their work behind the scenes.

U5 End of Exams Celebration

Another cohort of UV pupils have made it through their GCSE exams! I could not be prouder of this particular group of girls, who have made the whole process seem like a breeze! They have demonstrated exceptional poise, maturity and support for one another, setting an outstanding example to the younger years. Although I am incredibly sorry to be saying goodbye to Ameera, Angela and Belle, who leave us for other schools next year, I am excited to see what the others will achieve as they take on positions of leadership in House next year. Well done Zoe, Angela, Isolda, Ameera, Ava, Nate, Belle, Annabelle, Leila and Audrey! Wishing you all a fantastic summer break.

Closed Weekend

It was fantastic to see so many Shelburne families at Dove Day this year. Zara, Monique, Stella, Armenell, Clara, Milly and Clare enjoyed building and racing our raft. Despite losing their heat due to an early crash with another raft, the raft completed the circuit in one piece and no-one ended up in the lake, which we consider a massive win! Carolina, Juno, Matilda, Kera, Elise, Candice and Prim fought valiantly in the tug of war competition and were victorious against Rubens House. House training begins early tomorrow to strengthen our position in next year’s fight. Thank you so much to everyone that contributed to our House Hamper and bought tickets for the raffle, which made over £3000 for our school charities. The delighted winner of the Shelburne Hamper was Miss Franks from Wendover!

We also had several members of Shelburne showing off their talents in various performances. Zara, Kate, Prim and Matilda performed a beautiful rendition of ‘You Will Be Found’ from the musical Dear Evan Hansen with the choir. Mij gave an amusing performance of her LAMDA exam piece in Fisher Library, and also entertained the crowds with several songs accompanied by the Junior Concert Band. The afternoon review show was also a spectacle of music, dancing and acting talent. Congratulations to Lydia, Kera, Kate, Jennifer, Anjola, Zara, Prim, Muji, Lydia, Cathy, Mij and Aishnie for their involvement. Alexandra, Anjola, Jennifer, Candice, Prim and Nell also took to the stage at GlastonAbbey. The event was a spectacle of incredible talent, and I am so in awe of their talent and bravery.

Dove Award

Over the course of this academic year, the LIV have been working hard on a portfolio of tasks called the Dove Award. The have each independently completed an independent project on an area of personal interest, from learning to cross-stitch and bake, to clay modelling and computer programming. The Dove Award Celebration Evening took place at the start of June and brought together the whole year group for pizza, ice cream and an award presentation ceremony. Huge congratulations to Kera and Matilda, who each received a prize for their efforts this year.

Sport

Shelburne House pulled out all the stops at Cricket Funals, demonstrating fantastic House Spirit and skills on the pitch. The team came 6th overall. Well done to Stella, Monique, Cosima, Elise, Nelly, Clara, Juno, Izzy and Carolina. Although the House were disappointed not to be able to compete for Shelburne in Sports Day this year, Cosima thrived on the Athletics Field at the Track and Field Cup, placing 2nd overall in her events.

Drama

Juno, Lydia and Freya performed in a production of Peter Pan this Half Term, providing audiences with the opportunity to remember a childhood favourite tale about the boy who never grows up and his adventures in Neverland. LV have also been working hard on their entry into the Inter-House Play Competition. Directed by Mij and Izzy, they retold the story of Toy Story from the perspective of the misunderstood villain Sid.

Exchange Pupils

This Half Term, the Shelburne girls have thoroughly enjoyed hosting Charlotte and Elise, exchange students from Greenwich Academy, Connecticut, and St Mary’s School in Perth. They have immersed themselves in British culture and explored the local area, even managing to see King Charles on their visit to Windsor!

I’ve enjoyed my time here at Wycombe Abbey so much, and especially in Shelburne. The community built here with the girls and the staff is incredible. Everyone is welcoming, kind, and has encouraged me to get involved in as much fun stuff as possible. Being in Shelburne has made me feel part of a giant family and has been such a fantastic experience. I’ve truly loved boarding despite being nervous at first, but it’s been such an unforgettable experience that I will cherish forever. – Elise

My time in London so far has been beyond what I ever expected. This Friday, Emmy and I went to Royal Ascot which was super fun. It was surprising to see the men in top hats and tails as well as all the women in fascinators. I’m so lucky to have seen the king twice during my stay. Staying with Emmy’s family has been so fun and I’ve bonded so much with her parents and sister. I am definitely going to miss them when I leave back to the USA. – Charlotte

Farewells

Cosima has been with us since January, having transferred from her school in Germany on a slightly longer exchange. This has enabled her to fully immerse herself in boarding and experience learning her subjects in English! She has been an real asset to the House and has thrown herself into every tradition and activity on offer. It was particularly special to see her go up on stage in Mark Reading to receive a Drama prize at the end of this year. The girls and staff will miss her greatly, and we sincerely hope she keeps in touch with us and returns to visit with her sister, Elianne, who completed the same exchange three years ago!

Our wonderful LVI girls are preparing to leave Shelburne House for their final year in Clarence. They have been fantastic leaders and role models, and have introduced many new initiatives and activities to bring our community together over the year. We will miss them very much, but I am excited to see what the future has in store for them. Below you can read some reflections of their time in Shelburne:

Shelburne has been a home away from home to me or the last five years and has been full of some amazing memories including dorm feasts, Flippin Fridays and spending time with the Shelburne community. Shelburne has given me some of my best friends for life and any girl in Shelburne lucky enough to end up in Shelburne will no doubt have a blast. – Stella

Shelburne is like a second home to me and has really helped me with my transition into Sixth form. My favourite memory must have been preparing for fairies or house singing. It is such an amazing community to be a part of, and it has helped me build many long‑lasting friendships.– Prim

I feel like Shelburne has been such a welcoming place and people in the House have been so kind and friendly to me. I really got along with my year group and now we are very close friends and I love talking to them. The staff team has been doing their job so well, checking people with registration and how they are doing everyday, and it has been such a pleasure to know them. You really make me feel like Shelburne is where I belong when I just started by journey in Wycombe. I have changed a lot since I first started, I turned from a somewhat introvert person to who I am today, saying hi to everyone and appreciating everything happening in Shelburne. It has helped me to appreciate the connections between year groups and staff members. – Candice

My favourite memory at Shelburne was definitely when we did zorbs for House Innings! It was amazing to have so much fun with the whole house! – Monique

Having been in Shelburne for five years now, I can confidently say that my experience at Wycombe would not have been the same if I was in any other house. The atmosphere and support in Shelburne, both from teachers and from other girls, is incredible, and our House spirit is absolutely unmatched. Some of my most valued memories have stemmed from sharing dorms with girls both older and younger than me, and interacting with people from all throughout the house during evening activities (especially crepes and Daws Hill rounders!). – Victoria

My favourite part about Shelburne has to be how caring the house staff are. I have felt so supported through both the good times and the bad, and so I am truly grateful to them all. What I will miss most about being in Shelburne is our Mons movie nights. They were always full of laughter and created some of my favourite memories.– Dara

My favourite part of being in Shelburne was my house family and living in mixed-age dorms from UIV to UV, as it gave me the wonderful opportunity to build close friendships across different year groups and support the younger girls with their work. As for my favourite memory, nothing tops House Shout each year. It is an event that truly captures our incredible house spirit! – Claire