Cheshire's The Grange

Our Design department's annual exhibition was a testament to the incredible creativity and hard work of our GCSE & A-Level 3D & Graphic Design students!
As Mrs. Farrall, Head of 3D Design, said, "The work on display this year was fantastic with many students in both design disciplines obtaining exceptional attainment above their minimum expected grades. It certainly was a showcase of exceptional student work." Well done to all our talented designers! Also, a huge shout-out to the Design Department and the incredible site team for bringing the exhibition together.

3.00pm Tuesday 10th June: The traffic lights at the crossroads by St John's Church, Hartford (Chester Road/Bradburns Lane/School Lane junction) are currently out of service.

Just before the half term break we were delighted that Stuart Forbes from Mid Cheshire Beekeepers joined our Planet Protectors for a working lunch.

We enjoyed short films of his bee hive in action, and a slide show teaching us the importance of bees as pollinators and their impact on our ecosystems. Did you know that without bees we wouldn’t have 1/3 of the food we do! Also bees never sleep, they fly 600 miles in their short lifetime (6 weeks!) and only make half a teaspoon of honey in their life! Amazingly bees visit 50-100 flowers per trip, and fly at 15mph!

We took away many positives from the experience, as one child told me that she had overcome her fear of bees as she learnt more about them, and another, Bea, loved that her name was a homophone with bee! And Aadya, used her amazing art skills to make Mr Forbes a BEE-autiful bee card, which we all signed to thank him for his visit. 🐝🐝🐝

Say “hello” to our new emotional support Dave, I mean dog! 👋🐶
Mrs. Sneath, our Wellbeing Practitioner at the Junior School, has a new friend in the Wellbeing Hub. It's a large and very cuddly toy dog who loves to help children if they are feeling sad, upset, or worried. 💖

We held a competition to name the dog, and Mrs. Sneath was overwhelmed to receive 99 suggestions! The winning name, drawn out of the hat, was from Charlie in 1RB, and our wellbeing dog is now named… DAVE! 🎉🐾 The children are looking forward to chatting to Dave and giving him a cuddle – he's sure to be very popular! 😊

Last week, our Junior School children cooled down with a delicious ice pop sale, organised by the amazing Mrs. Griffiths!

This sale was part of her ongoing fundraising efforts for St. Luke's Hospice in memory of her brother, and in October, she's tackling an incredible 50k trek and camp in The Sahara. If you'd like to support her and learn more about her powerful story, please visit her JustGiving Page.

And a special shout-out to our Planet Protectors! They did a fantastic job collecting all the ice pop wrappers for recycling, raising awareness about the challenges of recycling soft plastics at home. Mrs. Griffiths will be personally taking these wrappers to a special recycling bin at the supermarket.

A huge thank you to all the parents, pupils, and staff for their kind support so far!

https://www.justgiving.com/page/liz-griffith-1722366011006?utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=page%2Fliz-griffith-1722366011006&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=pfp-share

Developing a love for the outdoors and a sense of adventure! 🏞️ The first half of Y4 experienced their trip to Coniston Water Park recently. For many, this trip is their first time away from home! 🏕️ Judging by the photos, we think it’s safe to say they had a great time! 😊 The second half of the year group will be embarking on their own Coniston adventure after the half-term break.

Today, we were thrilled to welcome a truly towering figure - Paul 'Tiny' Sturgess, who stands at an incredible 7 feet 7 inches tall and wears size 18 shoes, visited our school as part of our exciting guest speaker programme.

Paul holds multiple world records, including being the tallest professional basketball player, the tallest actor, and officially Britain's tallest man! But it wasn’t just his height that made an impression, his message to our children was equally powerful.

With some very tall stories and plenty of humour, Paul spoke to the children about what it means to be ‘different’, encouraging them to embrace their individuality and how he’s turned what makes him unique into something hugely positive. His message tied beautifully into our school values, especially the importance of being understanding and celebrating both our own uniqueness and that of others.

Paul also wowed the children with a video of his time playing for the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters and shared exciting stories from his acting career—including roles in Doctor Who, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Fantastic Beasts, and his upcoming part in Stranger Things!

To top it all off, he led a fun basketball session, teaching the children some skills—and even a few tricks!

We thought you’d enjoy seeing a few pictures: Mr Tagg and our Heads of Sport, Ella and Max, for scale 😊

What an inspiring and unforgettable day, thank you Paul.

“So here’s to labs, to Acorns who try,
Who make things fizz and sometimes fly!”

Last Friday, our young chemists took part in the annual Royal Society of Chemistry Analyst competition for Y12 students. This year, for the first time, some brilliant Y10 students were also invited to take part. The premise of this year’s competition was to investigate what chemicals were contaminating soil in an old industrial area.

Here is a poem written for the occasion by two of the students who took part!

"Reactions in the Lab"
By two girls in goggles and gloves

In coats too big and gloves too tight,
We stepped into S9’s bright light,
Beakers lined like loyal troops,
in trays Miss Jackson laid in groups.

The air was sharp with something strange,
TLC eluent was in our range.
We read the book (well, half, at best),
Then guessed the rest — a noble quest.

Pasteur pipettes in hand, we work in sync,
Dr Bollans gave a silent nod (we think)
The flame turned a brilliant red,
“A shimmer of lithium” we both said.

We stirred, we watched, we measured twice,
Dr Wilson’s banter laced with sound advice.
The Bunsen burned a steady flame,
As science played its lovely game.

Mistakes? A few — but memories more.
Confidence we'd not had before.
Not just reactions in a conical flask,
But proof of how we aced the task.

So here’s to labs, to acorns who try,
Who make things fizz and sometimes fly,
Who mix their minds with grit and grace—
And light the world from this small space.

Xanthe and Emily, Y12

On Wednesday and Thursday this week, The Grange School proudly hosted its first ever Proms concert, inspired by the Last Night of the Proms, and what an incredible evening it was!

Our talented senior students delivered an unforgettable performance filled with orchestral pieces, solo performances, and choral numbers, all made even more special by the enthusiastic participation of Junior School percussionists. Together, they brought the house down during crowd favourites Land of Hope and Glory, Rule Britannia, and God Save the King, with plenty of flag-waving and joyful clapping from the audience!

The timing couldn't have been more poignant, coinciding with VE Day, adding a moving sense of reflection and celebration to the evening.

This was also a very special final concert for our Year 13 students, and we extend our heartfelt thanks to them and their families for their dedication and support throughout their years at The Grange School.

The evening also raised money for Macmillan Cancer Support, in memory of Clive Gandee, a much-loved peripatetic music teacher.

The concert concluded on a high with a rousing rendition of Dog Days Are Over by Florence and The Machine - a modern twist and a fitting finale to a spectacular night.

Huge congratulations to everyone involved. We hope this marks the beginning of a wonderful new tradition of Proms at The Grange School!