2025 Summer Term 1

Dear Parents and Carers,

The first half of the summer term has been full of fun learning activities using the wonderful grounds and outdoor areas within the school.  It has been great to see so many pupils excelling in the outdoor environment in Forest School, up at the School Farm or out on Duke of Edinburgh expeditions.

I have been extremely impressed with all of our year 11 pupils, who have applied themselves really well in their GCSE examinations. All boys have been trying their best, which is all we can ask for.  We are now halfway through the exam period, and I am confident that all year 11 pupils will continue to try hard and will be successful.

After school Rugby club has continued to go from strength to strength, increasing in numbers each week.  Keen Rugby players were taken on a trip to Twickenham recently and also played their first ever competitive Rugby 7’s tournament.  Any other pupils wishing to join and learn more about Rugby are all very welcome. 

Best wishes,

Mr Anderson

Principal 

Muntham House School hosted our Annual Regional South Football Tournament on 20th May. We welcomed 8 fellow SEND schools from across the South of England: Hampshire, Sussex, Kent, Surrey and South London.

It was a beautiful sunny day in West Sussex; perfect conditions for a football tournament. This event was for years 9, 10 and 11 pupils who hold an EHCP and is the biggest SEN National Football tournament. The level of football was very impressive and there were many competitive fixtures between the schools. Each school played 6 matches against each other, competing in a league table format, with each school bringing very strong teams for the tournament.

Muntham House school played and fought tirelessly and managed to win 4 games and draw 2 games. Muntham House placed 3rd. St Edwards placed 2nd and LVS Hassocks were our overall winners.

We want to thank all the schools for their participation in the event. The behaviour and attitude of all the pupils on site were exemplary.

Well done again to LVS Hassocks for winning the tournament. The winners now qualify for the National competition, which is held at St George's Park, the home of the English national football team, on 17th June. They will be joined by the winners of the other regional qualifiers of the Midlands and the North.   

On independence Friday our resident knight, Kyle, walked into Billingshurst with Stan and Roman. Lots of the general public stopped to chat and show an interest. This is great for Kyle, who loves to talk about making authentic armour and wants to make people aware that it is a dying skill.

Kyle has been working hard on designing and developing a set of medieval armour in the DT lessons. He has researched, in detail, produced prototypes and templates and formed each piece of the suit by hand using traditional techniques. Kyle hopes to pursue a career in Armour Smiting and has been working with the careers team to investigate this. This really is a super piece of work that he has worked hard on over the last 2 years.

Kyle is working with the Careers team and looking to get a paid internship in Nottingham and help this dying art stay alive and continue down the generations.

Mr Benton has been very supportive of Kyle in DT and jumped at the chance of a photo opportunity, as did Miss Green, Miss Van and Mrs Du Vergier, who can now officially say they have met a knight in shining armour at Muntham House School.   

This half term, the pupils have been focusing on their throwing and catching skills. This has required many different skills, such as teamwork, communication and an understanding of the throwing technique that is best for that situation. We began the half term with learning three different throwing techniques: chest pass, bounce pass and an overhead throw. The pupils used a variety of balls to develop their accuracy and power. We then moved into small games and activities to allow the pupils to develop their own problem-solving skills to decide which throw would be best for the desired outcome.

On the 30^th of April, Primary took part in an Ancient Egyptian Day. This day included many hands-on activities to allow the pupils to immerse themselves in our new topic and to enable them to understand the day-to-day lives of people through those times. The pupils took part in: hieroglyphic writing, creating their own cartouches and beetles out of clay, building an Egyptian mask and artefact exploration. Next half term, the pupils will be moving on to ‘The Big Top’ and learning about the amazing magic that happens within a circus.

On Friday, 2^nd May, Primary pupils from Muntham took over at Cineworld in Crawley and had an entire Cinema screening to themselves to watch the highly anticipated Minecraft Movie! Staff and pupils enjoyed their snack boxes whilst watching the movie and the pupils loved every moment of their hard-earned reward trip.

Kyle took his driving theory test at Horley recently and smashed it! The average pass rate at the test centre in March was only 46%! Kyle was having none of this, though and all of his hard work paid off when he scored very highly in both the multiple choice and the Hazard perception test.

Kyle is now ready and looking forward to taking his practical driving lessons with the school driving instructor. Kyle is looking forward to getting on the road and all the independence that driving will give him in his social life and with getting employment.

Well done Kyle!

Hello from Team Science. We have been really busy this half term.

The year 7 groups have been making lots of progress on topics such as Cell biology and diet and nutrition, as well as studying the lifecycles of butterflies and moths.

The year 8s have learnt lots about Magnets and Electromagnets, Chemical reactions and the Periodic table, which are fantastic topics as they involve doing lots of experiments with unusual sounding chemicals.

The year 9s have been learning about Atomic structure, Variation in species and have started using formulas to work out Speed and Acceleration.

The year 10s have also been making superb progress in general and have just started GCSE level Evolution.

Our year 11s have mostly been focusing on exam preparation and have already started to take Science exams. Most have been squeezing in as much revision as possible and taken opportunities to seek out members of staff to help guide them with this. We are very proud of them.

Happy Spring to all. 

Year 10 pupils have been preparing for their GCSE coursework projects and were given a chance to design and make an item of their choice.

Next term, they will undertake their NEA coursework task for their GCSE, where they need to research, plan, design and make their product.

Projects have included a Motorcycle work ramp, a Record storage unit, a wooden chair, a Drawer unit and a set of wooden steps, all chosen by the pupils.

A very successful term in Mechanics this spring. Pupils have been working hard to finish their work before the end of term and have even begun working on their next modules. 

The Malle Mile Beach Race was held on the 3^rd of May, and the school project bikes did not disappoint. The CG125, which the pupils had modified for the race, managed not to come in last place, and the SRX (which has been an ongoing project for the past two years) did well to win all but the last of its races.

Another project has begun taking shape with the hope that it will be ready in time for next year's Malle Mile beach race—photos to follow in the next newsletter.

Have a great half-term break, everyone!

During the last six weeks, the Food Tech department was lucky to have a professional chef visit from the Prept Foundation. The Prept Foundation was co-founded in 2020 by Dan Wade, Jessica Aggarwal and Tom Surgey. They wanted to help fill the gap between what was taught in the Food Tech curriculum and what pupils need to make healthy, nutritious food when they are cooking for themselves.

After a few conversations between Mrs Barratt and Camilla Bowers at Prept, professional chef Ellie Ledden, came to teach our Year 11 pupils. Our pupils had an amazing time learning how to make Potato Gnocchi from scratch with a piquant sauce. After this, they were shown how to make a quick berry ice cream and cookie biscuits. Then the ice cream was loaded onto one cookie and sandwiched by another; what a treat!

We can’t wait for them to come back. I will tell you all about it when they do. Until then, keep well from Mrs Apicella and Mrs Barratt.

It’s been a busy and creative half term in the Art Department! 

Congratulations to our four Year 11 students who recently completed their 10-hour GCSE Art exam. Each of them produced impressive final pieces based on their chosen themes: Human Being, Angles, Narrative, and Rough and Smooth. Their dedication and creativity truly shone through. We’re excited to showcase their work at the End of Year Summer Show — dates to be announced soon. 

Meanwhile, Key Stage 3 students have been getting into the groove of the 1960s with our Psychedelic Record Painting Competition. This vibrant, cross-curricular project involved the Graphics, Music, and PSHE departments and encouraged students to explore the bold colours and cultural context of the era. Congratulations to the winners from each group, and well done to the many impressive runners-up! 

The pupils have absolutely loved being back in our beautiful primary forest school area. We have certainly been blessed with the weather and have made the most of every second. Alongside swinging in hammocks and taking turns riding in our giant wheelbarrow, the pupils have created clay Easter bunnies with sycamore seed ears, Easter egg collages using natural materials and rather lovely hedgehogs as part of the National Hedgehog Awareness Week. The fire circle has also become a regular feature of our sessions, and there is certainly nothing quite like cooking your own snack outdoors! It has been wonderful to see so many happy, smiling faces enjoying the outdoors!

Year 9 

Year 9 completed their Bronze expedition in the Horsham area, camping near Pease Pottage. Both groups were met with a little bit of rain on the first day, but were able to dry off nicely in the beautiful May sun. This was their first expedition experience, so it provided plenty of learning opportunities and food for thought on how to improve their preparation and ability for Silver next year. Some pupils excelled at navigating, such as Scott S and Oscar W, whilst others were real group morale boosters, like Bradley S. Mr Imbert was really happy to see everyone getting on playing lots of games when at the Scout camp booked for the night, further developing their social skills with each other, which makes for a more cohesive and well-working group. 

Year 10 

10A completed their practice expedition on the South Downs, around Graffham, camping out for 2 nights. The group were very fortunate with the weather, as it was lovely and sunny but not as scorchingly hot as the previous week. Jake R was able to show the group a great walk around the Cowdray Estate on night one, and then showed them a great spot for paddleboarding and kayaking on evening two. Mr Imbert was particularly proud of Ben H, whose social skills have come such a long way. Lots of lessons learned from the trip, all to help the boys better prepare for the qualifying expedition in June. 

Year 11 

Both Year 11 classes completed their Gold practice expeditions, hiking through the South Downs for two days. It was a good opportunity for them to remind themselves of how to do things correctly and to make mistakes. Mr Imbert was harsher on their kit admin in preparation for when they complete their qualifying expedition in the Lake District. Placed a gas canister on a table and forgot about it? It’s gone! Did you place your water bottle at the last checkpoint and then leave? It’s gone! Overall, Mr Imbert was impressed by how much the boys were able to do independently, and how well they reflected on what they needed to improve on in preparation for their Qualifying expedition. The groups also practised some rough terrain walking and scrambling at Harrison’s Rock, practising spotting each other with full kit. 

Both trips had the very fortunate surprise of being joined by former staff member Mr Rogers, who joined the boys for dinner and then a sunset overlooking Seaford. It was also Mr Chimombe’s birthday on the 11A trip, and the boys put together such thoughtful things to do to celebrate his birthday away from home (even though he only lives around the corner from where they camped!). 

This half term has been extremely busy sowing seeds, pricking out and planting the plug plants out in the raised beds. The pupils are now waiting patiently for the fruit and vegetables to ready for them to eat. The peas and carrots we sowed in the autumn are ready and the pupils have enjoyed harvesting these and eating them during their lessons. We have harvested lettuce and radish for chef, and will be giving him a steady supply over the coming weeks. Our grapevines are full of grapes; let's hope for a bumper crop in September.

We have explored the countryside, watching the leaves appear on the trees and the many different flowers come into bloom. A highlight was the bluebells, which looked fabulous, and the pupils enjoyed a walk to see them. We were lucky to have some frogs spawn in our pond, which will help with slugs and snails eating our precious vegetables. Blue tits have nested in two of our boxes and a blackbird family have been visiting regularly.

We are also very excited to share with you all that Muntham House have been chosen to exhibit a bug oil drum at the RHS Hampton Court flower show this year. A small group of pupils got together to make a design on the theme of 'Wonderland'. We will be planting teacups, jugs and teapots with herbs and flowers. We have a cake stand with crochet cakes and sandwiches. The pupils are busy in the workshop with Mr Benton building a top hat ready for the show in July.

Pigs

Bangers and Mash have moved enclosures and have never been happier munching on the thick, lush grass and stubble turnip. Over the heat wave week, the girls took it very steady and did a lot of sunbathing. Mash, being lighter-skinned, had sun cream applied to prevent sunburn. The refreshing paddling pool was set up by the pupils and used regularly by Mash. The girls love the summer the most, lounging about in the sun, being fed delicious fruit and veggies. What could be better than that?

Goats

Gizmo and his crew do struggle in the heat a little. They grow thick woollen coats to keep them warm in the winter, but all of a sudden the weather is sunny and the temperature rises, and they can't take their coats off! For this reason, we take the goats out for exercise and give them a chance to munch on the bushes in the earlier sessions of the day. The goats appreciate the shade and often spend their afternoon sunbathing, not moving too much. When the weather isn't too warm, there is nothing the goats like to do than race with the pupils. To cool off the goats and make their coats fall out a bit, they have been bathed regularly. As the goats are impatient, we use soap that can be put on, but there is no need to wash it off with water. They smell great afterwards. 

Donkeys

Buzz and Woody have been plodding around the Muntham mile happily recently. In the spring, cow parsley and sticky weeds grow, making a tasty, sweet treat for the donkeys to snack on whilst they wander around. The pupils have to work hard to encourage the donkeys back on track, as they are very stubborn. They may be small, but they can dig their hooves in pretty deep. With the GCSEs coming up, the donkeys have been a friend in need for some of the students. They offer a friendly, calm donkey ear for any worries. With the heat comes the flies. Buzz and Woody are wearing fly masks during the day so that flies are not too annoying around their face. Buzz wears the red and often gets called "Spiderman" by pupils, and Woody wears the blue and pupils have nicknamed him "Captain America". Buzz and Woody have been bathed by the pupils twice this term. Woody is patient and appears to like the fuss. Buzz is not too keen on how long it takes. When they are drying, they like to roll around in the dirt, undoing all the pupils' hard work. 

Chickens

The Muntham chickens are happy girls. They are spoiled daily with various fruit and vegetables, hand-fed to them by the pupils. Eggs are being laid in the hay rack located in the goats' shed, the girls line up waiting to lay an egg patiently, and the eggs are shared out between the pupils who have sessions. The chickens cope well in the heat; they find shade everywhere and don't seem to be affected. They have made dust baths in every corner of their enclosure, as the ground is so dry. The chickens spend their mornings with the goats, eating the grass. By lunchtime, they are keen to go back to their enclosure to eat their layers' pellets and roll around in the dust.

KS3

The pupils have had a successful term in sport. We have been focusing on Touch Rugby and preparing the pupils in P.E for our Touch Rugby competition. The pupils have been learning how to pass the ball correctly, the rules of the game, the different positions and how to use tactics in touch Rugby to gain an advantage against an opponent. The pupils have shown how they can communicate positively and in a constructive way.   

KS4 & KS5

Summer Half Term 1

Heart:	Taking Responsibility and Developing Leadership
Head:	Communicating Effective Strategy with Confidence in Sport
Hands:	Physical Fitness for a Long Healthy Active Lifestyle

Our key stage 4 + 5 cohort have been exploring some different striking and fielding games such as softball and Cricket. They have been developing their leadership skills in certain positions and learning how different positions on the softball court have different responsibilities and what to communicate to their teammates depending on what position you are playing. The pupils have also been reflecting after a game what strategies worked or what they could do next time if a similar situation happened.  

PRIMARY P.E.

This half term, pupils have shown great progress in developing key cricket skills, including batting, bowling, and fielding. They’ve demonstrated improved hand-eye coordination, teamwork, and understanding of game strategy during match play. It’s been fantastic to see their confidence grow, with many showing real enthusiasm and sportsmanship throughout the sessions. 

Football Fixtures  

A successful season in the was wrapped up this term with the final fixtures for Post 16, Under 16s and Under 14s.  

The Under 16s finished the season strong and for the 3rd year running came away winning the league. A fantastic achievement for the team and hopefully they can carry this into next year’s Post 16s fixtures.  

The U14s came second in a very competitive league this year. They showed great teamwork and resilience throughout the year and despite some frustrating results at times, they managed to pick themselves back up and work together as a team to improve on their game.  

Post 16 also had a very competitive season, at times having year 11s play up an age group to help the team out when low on numbers. Despite this, they played some great football and came away also finishing second and looking forward to returning next year and push for winning the league.  

Well done to everyone that has represented the school in the SLSL this season and we look forward to returning next year.  

Twickenham Stadium Tour 

We took our Rugby academy players to Twickenham Stadium for a stadium tour on 1st May. We learnt about the rich history and traditions Twickenham Stadium holds. The players managed to sit in the executive box seats, go on to pitch side and walked around the home dressing rooms. The players showed great behaviour and asked some inquisitive questions through the tour. At the end we then spent some time in the museum looking at some of the old shirts and artwork linked to Twickenham stadium. We also brought some merchandise in the club shop. It was a great day and inspired our players to learn about the history of Rugby and investigate the life of a professional Rugby player.  

Rugby Touch Competition  

Our Rugby team made Muntham history this term as they competed in their first ever touch Rugby competition on May 9th. We were immensely proud of them, and they played very well and represented our school fantastically. We came up against mainstream and private schools who take their rugby very seriously and brought talented teams to the competition. Muntham, however have been training hard in Rugby academy and won a game against a strong side. A massive well done to all the boys that competed in this event.  

Cricket Discoverability Day  

On The 16th May Muntham House attended Sussex Discoverability Day which was held at the Sussex Cricket Ground in Brighton. Our pupils behaved very well and engaged in multiple alternative Cricket activities. We were able to walk on the pitch where the Sussex team plays. The pupils engaged in a variety of activities and challenges such as striking the ball into the cricket stand, how fast could they bowl the ball, some catching practise of different rebound nets. They also engaged in some sports for disabled people such as blind cricket and Table cricket. We also got to meet Sid the Shark! Sussex Crickets mascot. For more information on the event please follow the link below. DIScoverABILITY Day | Sussex Cricket 

Regional Football Tournament  

Muntham House held our Annual Regional South Football Tournament on 20th May. We welcomed 8 fellow SEND schools situated across the South of England; schools from Hampshire, Sussex, Kent, Surrey and South London. The level of Football was very impressive and there were many competitive fixtures between the schools. Muntham House played and fought tirelessly and managed to win 4 games and draw 2 games. Muntham House placed 3rd place. St Edwards placed 2nd place and LVS Hassocks were our overall winners. We want to thank all the schools for their participation in the event. The behaviour and attitude of all the pupils on site was exemplary. Well done again to LVS Hassocks for winning the tournament.  

Parallel Youth Games  

We took the majority of our key stage 3 cohort to the Annual Parallel Youth Games, held at the K2 in Crawley. We had 28 pupils who competed in a variety of sports such as Kurling, Golf, Climbing, Street Soccer, Tennis and Cricket. Our pupils represented the school fantastically and competed well. This year had a lot of strong competition with 18 fellow SEND schools who participated in the event. We came away with Silver medals in the Cricket competition and managed to secure Gold medals in the Tennis competition. We also got to meet a professional Cricket player who handed out the medals. Well done to all the pupils but especially the pupils who earned a medal!  

The past few weeks have been filled with exciting activities and memorable moments on Hever Floor. With the arrival of more sunshine, our young people have enjoyed a wide range of outdoor adventures, including picnics on the school grounds, a cinema trip to see the Minecraft movie, and our first beach visit of the year.

Pupils have been actively engaged in riding bikes, discovering and caring for caterpillars, and even taking part in early morning runs around the school grounds. We were also delighted to welcome several new pupils to Hever Floor. With the support and guidance of our existing boarders, they have quickly found their feet and become valued members of the Hever Floor family.

Our joint end-of-term trip with Bodiam and Arundel Floors was a highlight, coinciding with a birthday celebration for one of our pupils, making the event even more special.

All had a fantastic time, and we look forward to more fun when we return after the upcoming break.

This term, we have been blessed with some beautiful weather, and we have made the most of it.

We have enjoyed a lovely trip to Arundel, where we had a picnic and fed the ducks. A highlight of the term was a fantastic afternoon at the Lido, the pupils had a great time jumping into the pool and soaking up the sunshine.

On another sunny day, the pupils took to their bikes and had a wonderful ride around the beautiful grounds of Muntham.

When the weather was a bit cooler, we spent time indoors making some classic favourites, including banana bread, shortbread and chocolate chip cookies.

We also had a trip to the beach, although it wasn’t quite warm enough to paddle, the pupils thoroughly enjoyed sitting by the sea with fish and chips.

Another trip out was to the park, where the pupils had a lot of fun, making the most of the play equipment and enjoying time outdoors together.

We had a birthday this term, and we celebrated Caiden’s 14^th with a trip out to Laser Quest and then onto McDonald's.

We’ve just wrapped up an action-packed half term, and whether you were diving into revision or flipping burgers at the barbecue, there was something for everyone. Here’s a look back at what we got up to, ending the half term on a high. 

A massive well done to all our pupils who came along to the after-school revision sessions this half-term. Whether you were brushing up on science formulas, smashing out history facts, or just needed a quiet space to focus, it was great to see you all getting stuck in. A big thanks to those who shared their own tips and resources – teamwork makes all the difference.  

Our half-term barbecue was a total hit! The sun made an appearance, the grill was sizzling, and the vibes were unbeatable. From football, quick cricket, welly wanging and Frisbee, it was the perfect way to relax and celebrate all the effort the staff and pupils have put in.  

We’ve been so proud to see how respectful and kind you've been to each other this half-term. Whether it was helping someone through a tough week or cheering each other on in revision, the positive atmosphere has been real and appreciated by all on the Arundel floor. 

After a well-earned break, we will hit the ground running next half term with: 

• Final revision sessions ahead of exams 
• End-of-year celebration planning 
• More ways to relax and recharge as a team 

The pupils have done brilliantly this half-term – keep the momentum going and remember, you’re not in this alone. Let’s smash the next few weeks together! 

PLEASE NOTE THAT PUPILS RETURN FROM

HALF TERM ON:

TUESDAY 3RD JUNE 2025

Term dates are on the school website.

 Term Dates

FOR INFORMATION, THE INSET DAYS UNTIL SUMMER HOLIDAYS ARE: