Varndean Sixth Form College

Congratulations to our MedVetDent students Immy Butler (Team Leader), Emily Crisp and Lila Crockett, who travelled to the University of Oxford to compete in the national final of the Practical Ethics and Responsibility Competition (PERC) hosted by the Uehiro Oxford Institute 🎓

After competing against dozens of schools across the UK, our combined Year 1 and 2 MedVetDent team earned their place in the final through an outstanding video submission exploring the question: “Should adolescents be allowed to make autonomous decisions about long-term psychiatric conditions?”

During the live final, students debated a range of challenging ethical topics including commercial surrogacy, social media use for under-16s, and government promotion of plant-based diets.

Each student contributed confidently and effectively throughout the debates, and the team achieved an incredible Runner-Up position nationally. 🏆

Judges praised the team’s clarity and professionalism during their opening statements, the strength of their reasoning, and the quality of their oral presentation skills.

In addition, Lila Crockett was awarded a medal for Best Speaker, recognising her exceptional debating ability, confidence, and clarity of communication throughout the competition. 🏅

Mentored throughout by MedVetDent Coordinator Emma-Jayne Hanner, the students also experienced university life at Oxford while staying at St Hilda’s College and meeting fellow finalists from across the UK. 🏛️

We are enormously proud of all of the students involved. Their curiosity, resilience, professionalism, and willingness to engage thoughtfully with complex ethical issues embody the ambition and collaborative spirit at the heart of our MedVetDent programme.

Congratulations to everyone involved on an outstanding achievement — they did themselves and the College incredibly proud! 👏

19 of our intrepid Gold Duke of Edinburgh students are heading to Bannau Brycheiniog in Wales today.

Led by James Gordon, Ben Foley and Simon Whitmore, the group will spend the next few days completing their Gold Qualifying Expedition.

Ivy, Simon’s dog, is also joining the adventure and has already secured her place in the pack 🐾

Wishing all our students the very best of luck!

This afternoon we celebrated our fabulous Year 2 students as they marked their final day of teaching with us. 🎉

The event was brilliantly organised by our Student Union and featured a range of activities including a BBQ and ice cream van, inflatable sumo wrestling, photo booth, glitter tattoos and face painting, fairground games, candy floss machine, music provided by our amazing Funk Band.🎤🎹

Principal, Donna-Marie Janson, said: “It has been an absolute pleasure and a privilege to get to know you. I know I speak for all staff at the college when I say that we will miss you enormously. You have brought energy, kindness, humour, talent and character to our community, and you have made Varndean a better place.” 🫶

A huge thank you to all the staff and students who joined us to celebrate, and we wish all our students the very best of luck with their upcoming exams and every success in the future. 💫

On Wednesday, our MedVetDent students attended an inspiring Cardiac Careers event at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, hosted by University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust.

Throughout the day, students took part in interactive sessions led by doctors, nurses, physiologists and radiography staff from across the cardiology team, gaining valuable insights into the wide range of careers within medicine and the NHS.

One of the highlights was a session led by an F2 doctor about applying to medical school, which students found both reassuring and incredibly informative.

Organised by Varndean Sixth Form College’s MedVetDent Coordinator, Emma-Jayne Hanner, the event provided an outstanding enrichment opportunity and helped further develop students’ understanding of healthcare careers and life within the NHS.

Thank you to Laura Godfrey, Janet Marshall and the entire Sussex Cardiac Centre team for the time, enthusiasm and care they dedicated to creating such a meaningful experience for our students. Their openness in sharing their professional journeys made a lasting impression on everyone involved. 💙

The sun was shining for our A Level Environmental Science students,who visited Chichester Harbour for their first ecological fieldwork study and an essential component of their course. They were taught important techniques on sampling at the site with a view to studying the process of sand dune and salt marsh succession at East Head Spit and Snowhill Creek; both sites at West Wittering beach. They also learnt about coastal processes at the site including the many plant adaptations at the regions which enable them to thrive at the location which is a harsh environment for plants.

Emma-Jayne Hanner, Programme Lead for the course at Varndean Sixth Form College said “This field trip provided an invaluable opportunity for our Environmental Science students to apply their classroom learning in a real-world coastal environment. Through hands-on ecological sampling and the study of succession at Chichester Harbour, students developed
essential practical fieldwork skills while gaining a deeper understanding of coastal ecosystems, conservation and environmental management. Working alongside the Chichester Harbour Conservancy also highlighted the importance of nature recovery and habitat protection, greatly
enriching the Environmental Science provision at Varndean, and inspiring students to engage with contemporary environmental challenges.”

The Chichester Harbour Conservancy (CHC) Chichester Harbour Conservancy who run the conservation work at the site carry out crucial Nature Recovery Programmes which include education and training of young people and other professionals in Geography, Environmental Science and Biology on the principles of
preserving unique habitats and ecosystems. Chichester Harbour was designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in November 2023.

The trip was accompanied by Steve Villaneuva-Last, Head of School for Humanities and Yaso Shan, Biology and Environmental Science Tutor.

Our new 2026-27 Student Union Leadership team are up and running and had their first meeting with the College Principal, Donna-Marie Janson, yesterday.

Pictured are our new representatives, together with Donna-Marie, as they prepare to embark upon the exciting role ahead of them. Over a light lunch, the students discussed some of their ideas for the coming year. First up is to help arrange the leavers party for our Year 2 students later in May!🎉

Congratulations to the newly elected team, the college looks forward to working with you all over the next 12 months. A special thanks also goes to our outgoing Student Union for all their extreme hard work and dedication, and to all those who were involved in the election process.👏

The new SU team comprises of:

Apollo & Zeb - Joint Presidents
Veronika - Communications
Kit - Wellbeing
Eva - Enrichment
Leo - Environment
Maya - Marketing & Events
Shelyn - Charity
Bertie - EDI
Ilona - Democracy & Voice

On Wednesday, to mark Mental Health Awareness Week, students from Varndean Sixth Form College joined 120+ young people from schools and colleges across Brighton & Hove to reclaim the Council Chamber at Brighton Town Hall - transforming it into a space for action, creativity, accountability, and hope. 💙

As leaders within Brighton & Hove Citizens, the largest alliance of community organisations across Brighton and Hove, students came together to celebrate major wins already secured and to challenge city leaders to go further on the issues affecting young people today.

Together, the Alliance has secured £600,000 so every secondary school in the city can access counselling support. Students shared powerful testimonies about the life-changing impact this support has had on them and their peers.

A huge moment came when Cllr Bella Sankey, the leader of Brighton & Hove City Council confirmed that the counselling “pilot” is no longer a pilot - it is now a permanent part of the Council budget, meaning funding will continue in the years ahead. A massive step forward for young people across our city. 👏

Students also called on the Council to tackle digital isolation and help make Brighton & Hove the most playful city in the UK. Through creative activities, they mapped the barriers young people face across the city, with common themes:

• Activities are too expensive
• Many spaces feel unsafe
• Access to activities is too limited

From there, students began building practical solutions together - the first steps towards a city-wide Playfulness Manifesto.

Congratulations to every student who helped shape and lead the action, and to everyone who showed up with such energy, discipline, and determination. ✨

Coming soon in June - our annual CREATIVE ARTS SHOWCASE 2026!
A celebration of the amazing creative work from students completing their courses this summer in 3D Design, Acting, Art, Dance, Drama, Film, Gaming, Graphic Design, Media, Music, Photography and Textiles!

Private Viewing (invitation only): Friday 5 June, 6pm - 8.30pm
Open to the public: Monday 8 & Tuesday 9 June., 10am - 4pm

A huge congratulations to Isobelle Scott and Ava Lawson on their incredible achievement of being selected for the Royal Academy of Arts Young Artists’ Summer Show 👏

Isobelle has been selected for both the main exhibition at the RA in London and the online exhibition. Ava has been selected for the online exhibition. 🎨

The London exhibition runs from 14th July – 30th August
The online exhibition goes live on 14th July

We are extremely proud of their success, such a fantastic accomplishment! Massive congratulations from the Fine Art department! 🎉