Spring Term 2022 review

The Spring Term is always a busy time and despite some minor disruption caused by the continuing pandemic, Lancing Prep Worthing has been moving out of the winter months and thoroughly enjoying the return to more normal school life. 

The children have loved playing in school fixtures, tournaments and competitions, both at Lancing College and further afield, and we have welcomed back spectators outdoors, with our refreshments trailer proving a great success on chilly afternoons! 

Our wonderful LPWA treated all year groups to a fun ice-skating session in Worthing in the run-up to the Winter Olympics and they thoroughly enjoyed their outings. Inter-house competitions have been taking place, with the highlight being the traditional Shrove Tuesday pancake races, where pupils compete in their houses for the coveted ‘Golden Frying Pan’, this year won by the Saxons. It was huge fun and lovely to see the older pupils helping the younger ones! 

World Book Day was another joyful occasion when everyone dressed up as their favourite book characters, and the children had a host of activities to enjoy. The ‘Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover’ initiative was great fun, with the pupils trying to guess what book was inside, just from the ‘blurb’ description on the wrapping, and the classroom doors were dressed as book covers to welcome everyone in. A performance poet came in to deliver an assembly and workshops for the older pupils and our youngest children were treated to a very special story time with our very own storyteller when they heard all about the wolf who wanted to be a dancer. The hall was filled with wolf ‘howls’ and laughter!  

The Worthing Music & Arts Festival took place once again this year, and many of our pupils entered the music and drama competitions. Alex P, a very gifted musician, won the 12 years and under class, as well as the all-ages recital class, for violin and also went on to win the piano baroque class for 15 years and under, with a second place in the contemporary piano in the same age group. In the drama competition, Janani R won the coveted Joan Dickinson Memorial Trophy for her stunning performances in a range of classes, brothers Albie and Monty T took first and second place respectively in the Solo Shakespeare 13–14 years, and there were 2nd, 3rd & 4th placings in the 12–14 Duologues for Hope S and Ava U, Josh H and Ben B, and Anna B and Amelie K-M. Hope S was also placed 3rd in the 12 years Solo Drama with Molly B coming 4th, and Imogen W and Janani R were placed 3rd in the 11 years and under Duologue. Our warm congratulations to them all. The performing arts continue to be such a strength at our school. 

The third element of our school ethos ‘Go out in the World and Do Good’ has also been much in evidence this term. The prep school houses have taken it in turns to collect for the Worthing Food Foundation who run a food bank to help local people in need. The WFF have been very appreciative of the donations and are keeping in touch with the school regularly. We have been thinking a lot about climate change and what we can, as a school, do to play our part in reducing waste. Our Year 7 and 8 pupils went to the Sustainability exhibition at Lancing College and came away brimming with ideas after learning more about how we can all better care for our world. The pupils are also very aware of the suffering of Ukrainian refugee families and our Go Fund Me Page continues to raise funds to help those in desperate circumstances. 

So, although there continue to be very difficult times for many people globally, the overwhelming positivity of our small school community in Worthing and our desire to make a difference, nurtures us and continues to carry us through to better times to come.