Paris 19/05/25

 On Monday the 19th of May 2025 some of our sixth form students travelled to Paris for Holton schools second abroad residential. The first two days were spent at Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios where students got to experience the magic of Disney by witnessing the character parade, going on all the thrill rides, and being able to watch some of the shows. The tower of terror was a real highlight for the group! However the most memorable moment for all of us was the Disney tales of magic night show, which combined pyrotechnics, fountains and fireworks to create a truly unique visual experience and a special memory for them to share. The penultimate day was spent at the Eiffel Tower seeing some pupils conquering their fear of heights by getting a lift to the second floor. Later that day we returned to the tower to watch its famous after dark sparkle before going on a river cruise along the river Siene. Most pupils on the trip attended Barcelona the previous year, all but one, who for that pupil this trip was their first experience going abroad and they’ve told us this trip was incredible. It was a great experience for all involved by combining the fun experience of Disney with time to take in the French culture when visiting Paris city centre, and we are proud to have been able to make these memories that will hopefully stay with our pupils throughout their life. 

 On Sunday 11th May five students made the long-awaited trip down to Polzeath for the U3's attending their first weeklong residential here at Holton. Throughout the duration of the week in Cornwall students took part in two-hour surfing lessons each day, pushing themselves to improve on their skills in each session. Two of the students opted to partake in a further 2 hours of surfing each day to push and improve their skills. 

Whilst we were their students and staff enjoyed time on the beach after surfing playing cricket and forming positive relationships and also enjoying the element of competition throughout the week. Towards the end of the week staff and students took an afternoon visiting Padstow via the local ferryboat, the students were keen to explore and worked together on the port crabbing, helping each other and working together part of a team. 

Overall, a very successful trip down to Cornwall with each student pushing themselves out of their comfort zone, with surfing and learning a new skill, students taking the lead on meals out and ordering their own meals and drinks, helping massively with their social skills. We are very proud of how the students conducted themselves during the week, building their resilience and how they represented the school for the duration of the trip.

 The fishing residential was organised by Andy Wilson after the owner of facilities contacted him offering the accommodation and fishing to school free of charge. Andy organised the trip in six weeks as the accommodation was only available before the end of term four.

The venue was Sapphire Lakes, North Lane, Cromwell, Newark. The dates booked were 31st March to 2nd April 2025 [last week of term four].

The aim was to have the students on a residential for two nights and for them to be able to fish for extended periods of time over three days to increase their independent fishing skills in both float fishing and feeder fishing [using a quivertip rod].

The residential was a great success with all the students really enjoying the fishing and developing their independence and social skills.

Term 2 saw 6 intrepid explorers from U1 head off to the frozen north (Well Caythorpe which was frozen after a freak overnight snowstorm). All the pupils attempted a variety of activities in order to show resilience, teamwork, and the ability to push themselves. The activities included a bungee type jump, high ropes course, rifle shooting, laser quest, vertical challenge, zip wire and some team building skill. All the participants attacked the activities with a certain amount of trepidation but with the help of their peers managed to overcome fears and attempt most of the activities. Well done on the 3 days to all involved. 

 ​On Monday 30th of September 2024, The U2 class travelled to Parkwood Outdoors Dolygaer in Merthyr Tydfil for an action packed four-night stay. During their stay pupils and staff took part in various outdoor and adventurous activities including caving, gorge walking, rock climbing, abseiling, kayaking and bushcraft. The clear favourite was caving whereby the first obstacle was to climb through a small hole within a rock face before exploring the various tunnels and passages within the cave. Some pupils even took on the harder challenges of army crawling through tight passageways to reach the other side of the cave. A close second favourite was Gorge walking, firstly the pupils took the plunge to get their bodies used to the cold waters to then eventually progressing onto climbing up small waterfalls and sliding down a natural slip and slide made from rocks. Overall, the Wales residential was a great experience to take part in adventurous activities away from their home comforts and create positive experiences for pupils to remember.

 On Monday the 10th of June 2024, the sixth form group travelled to Luton Airport for a 4-night stay at Barcelona in Spain. The aim of the trip was to provide students with the experience of going abroad and understand other cultures from around the world. On the second day some pupils took part in a guided tour around the Nou Camp stadium giving a brief insight into the history of Barcelona Football Club whilst other students took part in sightseeing around Barcelona and around Las Ramblas. In the evening all pupils and staff were given a tour around the Sagrada Familia Cathedral taking in the architecture and history of the building. At night pupils then indulged in local dishes of tapas and paella.

On Wednesday it was more of a relaxed day by visiting the local beach to sunbathe and take a dip in the sea. In the evening, we travelled to the marina and boarded a yacht for a 2-hour sunset cruise taking in the Barcelona coastline. On the last day the group was up early to travel to Port Aventura World theme park in Salou. All pupils loved the theme park and conquered their fears on various rides. Overall, the trip was a great success as pupils coped extremely well from being out of their comfort zone being so far away from home. Pupils behaviour and engagement whilst abroad was exceptional and staff were proud of their efforts. This is the first time Holton School has completed an abroad residential and due to its success, this is something we will carry on looking to offer in the future. 

On Monday the 26th of June, four of our pupils set off to do the Expedition part of their Duke of Edinburgh bronze award. The task was to be out for two days walking for at least six hours per day, put tents up and cook a meal while camping. The pupils started their walk in the Lincolnshire Wolds at Belchford and were out walking while exploring the Lincolnshire wildlife and had a visit from the Duke of Edinburgh Assessor, who chatted with them and asked a few questions about the walk. The pupils spent nearly seven hours walking independently which required a great amount of effort. 

The pupils were then taken to the campsite at Woodhall Spa where they put their own tents up and spent the night under the stars. The next morning, they had to cook their own breakfast on the Gas stoves, wash up and take their tents down. When ready, the pupils went on a 6 hour walk around Woodhall Spa which they completed and with that, managed to pass their Bronze Award.