Word from the Head – 8 May 2026

We are starting to organise our annual Careers Convention for Year 10 and Year 12 students on the morning of Wednesday 17 June 2026, which aims to broaden and deepen students’ understanding of various careers sectors.

We are looking for a large number of volunteers who are prepared to share their career journeys in a 25-30 minute talk, with questions afterwards. The talks will be hosted by a member of staff and take place in classrooms at 8.55am, 9.45am and 10.50am. The talks can include presentation slides or be more informal – whatever suits you. If you are able to help, please complete this form to let us know your availability and we will be in touch.

We are also seeking organisations who can host Work Insight Visits (for up to 15 students) on the mornings of Tuesday 16 and Thursday 18 June (Year 10), and Wednesday 17 June in the afternoon (Year 12). Visits generally last a couple of hours; students are accompanied by staff, are shown around the premises and ideally engage with some employees, and sometimes complete a short work-related task. Several of our regular hosts are unavailable this year so we would love to develop relationships with new organisations. Please email us at careers@channing.ac.uk if you can help, and many thanks in advance.

A useful resource designed for child and parent to watch together is this Tooled up Webinar Performance Anxiety which explores causes, practical strategies and ‘performance’ anxiety in all forms – classroom, social, examination, as well as stage.

[Transcript: Everyone Gets Stage Fright: Chat with Dr Anna Colton]

Please use this link to book your free tickets for this year’s LAMDA Showcases. https://www.trybooking.com/uk/events/landing/109712

The LAMDA students will be performing their original interpretations of their chosen Duologues on Monday 11 and Tuesday 12 May in the Arundel Centre. It is a rich programme of comic and tragic scenes from Sophocles, Shakespeare and Oscar Wilde through Inez Bensusan and Mary Shelley to the present day, with Jacqueline Wilson, Malorie Blackman, Nell Leyshon to name a few. The evenings will be a joyous celebration and entertaining culmination of all their hard work.

We are delighted to confirm the star-studded line up for North London Laughs Comedy Night at Alexandra Palace Theatre on Thursday 14 May. This is a charity comedy night in aid of the Gastroenterology Department at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Parenting for Emotional Health takes place on 1 June 2026 from 12.30 – 1.30pm. This session with Julie Harmieson, Director of Education and International Strategy at Trauma Informed Schools, will introduce parents and carers to key principles for promoting children’s emotional health and wellbeing. Participants will explore how children develop emotional regulation skills and the important role of secure, responsive relationships in supporting this development.

To register for your free place please click here.

We are over the moon to share the spectacular news that our Young Enterprise teams have reached new heights following their outstanding performance at the Regional Finals last week. Seeds&Greetings did not just compete but truly conquered a field of exceptionally talented young entrepreneurs from the likes of Wetherby School and City of London Girls.

Having already beaten our North London competitors, we are incredibly proud to announce that they were awarded Best Company Overall, marking them as the top team in the region. This achievement is a direct testament to the team’s core mission of sustainability, their resilience in navigating a growing business, and the seamless collaboration that delivered a pitch perfect performance throughout the day. We couldn’t have been more impressed with them!

And today, Ava N, one of the managing directors, was demonstrating a new prototype of Braille seeds cards. What a brilliant idea which really showcases inclusivity and sustainability!

Winning the regional title means the journey continues as Seeds&Greetings have now secured their spot in the penultimate stage of the competition, which will be hosted at Amazon HQ on 15 May. This represents the final hurdle before the highly anticipated UK National Finals in Wales.

As Seeds&Greetings prepares for this next challenge, we also continue to celebrate the wider success of our dedicated Young Enterprise cohort. Interlinked remains a standout team for their previous success in winning Best Marketing, a title earned through their brilliant branding and effective audience engagement. Maya B, from Interlinked, has also been nominated for Best Journey as an individual prize. Look out for their products on Sports Day, Fair in the Square and the Junior School Summer Fair.

Furthermore, Seeds&Greetings adds this new regional title to a trophy cabinet that already includes awards for Best Sustainability and Best Team Journey. We are enormously proud of every student involved, as their hard work and initiative have made this an unforgettable year for Channing Enterprise, and we invite you to join us in wishing Seeds&Greetings the very best of luck in the upcoming rounds.

Music at Lunchtime
Music at Lunchtime last week was a preview into the vocal department’s upcoming week of Musical Theatre exams. Candidates from all different levels gave us a glimpse into their carefully designed programs. First up was Winnie D from Year 12, who sang Adelaide’s Lament from Guys and Dolls. Winnie’s performance was characterful, exemplified through the accent she put on, and she delivered a poised performance. Next up, Layla P from Year 9 sang Can’t Catch Me Now from The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Layla’s performance was confident and youthful, and paired with cinematic staging that altogether made for a very enjoyable performance.

Maya B from Year 12 followed with a fluent performance of A Little Bit in Love from Wonderful Town, which can only be described as fun for all involved. Millie W from Year 10 was next, singing Someone to Watch Over Me from Oh, Kay!. Her smooth, sweet voice complemented the song perfectly. Rory M sang next, performing I Can Hear the Bells from Hairspray. Her performance was humorous and energetic, and she was able to follow the character’s journey through the song perfectly. Finally, Bella K from Year 12 performed All Falls Down from Chaplin. Bella’s performance was characterised by her sass and attitude, combined with her flawless vocals, and it was clear that she had a blast taking on this song.

Overall, it is safe to say that we have a lot of amazing exam results to look forward to, if this Music at Lunchtime recital is anything to go by. We wish all the candidates the best of luck! We were unable to record last week’s recital so I am afraid we do not have a SoundCloud link for you to listen to.

Reviewed by Tal M

The vast majority of our Year 9 cohort had a fantastic time over the Bank Holiday weekend on the annual History trip to the battlefields of the Western Front in Belgium and France. Students visited the world famous Flanders Field Museum in Ypres, walked quietly and reflectively around Tyne Cot and Langemark cemeteries, and visited the battlefields and trench systems of Beaumont Hamel and Vimy Ridge. They conducted themselves brilliantly at all times, showing themselves to be thoughtful and knowledgeable historians. A real highlight was our participation at the Menin Gate Last Post ceremony on the Monday evening, during which Arya P and Anoushka C laid a wreath in memory of the fallen. They represented the school very well and deserve to be commended publicly.

U13 Tennis vs City of London School for Girls
It was a fantastic afternoon of tennis for our Under 13s during their friendly fixture against the City of London School for Girls, where the energy and competitive spirit were high from the very first serve. It was wonderful to get the girls out on the court against another school, and they rose to the challenge with a positive attitude that kept the matches intense and engaging. The doubles play was particularly impressive, resulting in a well-earned split of two wins and two losses across the board. Beyond the scores, the real highlight was the sportsmanship and teamwork on display; the girls supported one another through every rally, representing the school with great pride. It was an enjoyable fixture that provided match experience.

On a warm Thursday afternoon we played double tennis matches against City of London Girls. The Channing Year 8 team was successful as we won both matches 6-3 and 2-1! The matches were close as we often came to deuce. We had a really nice time and it was nice to play in a friendly match against City of London Girls.

Shivani, Sophia and Yihan, Year 8

Haringey Athletics Championships
On Tuesday, we took a group of Year 7, 8, and 10 students to the Haringey Athletic Championships at the New River Sport & Fitness Centre. It was a really exciting day to see so many schools participating in this event.

It was great to see our students push themselves and excel across the different athletics events throughout the day. We had students competing in a range of track events, including the 100m, 200m, 300m, 800m, and 1500m, as well as field events such as high jump, long jump, shot put, and javelin.

We would like to give credit to all of the girls for performing so well on the day and for pushing themselves against some very tough competition. We hope they thoroughly enjoyed the day!

Anatomy Club
This week the students dissected a sheeps’ eye. Using dissection tools, we carefully cut through the outer layer called the sclera to observe the internal components. Inside, we identified the cornea at the front, the lens which helps to focus light, and the vitreous humour, a clear jelly-like substance that maintains the eye’s shape. We also examined the retina, the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye. This practical investigation helped us understand how each part of the eye works together to enable vision, linking directly to what we have been learning in class.

Next week, we will dissect a mouse! Our first whole mammal.

The Eco Reps were gardening today. Some repotted the classroom spider plants and snake plants that had outgrown their pots under the expert guidance of Ms Cronk, while others watered the new trees they had planted earlier this year.

Meanwhile the Catering Team has updated the school menu to show which options have the lowest carbon footprint. The Eco Reps spent several weeks working out the carbon footprint of each recipe for the main and Sixth Form dining rooms using an online calculator. All carbon friendly options are written in green so students can make informed decisions. Bella and Imogen, the Sustainability Officers, have been visiting year groups assemblies to inform students and discuss why this is an important initiative.

This week from the archives we have a charming shot of Channing girls at play on the grounds of the Junior School in the early 1990s. And a quick glance out of the window confirmed that play time is still filled with adventure and joy in 2026!