The changing seasons welcomed us back to school with open arms, this Monday. The weather is
undoubtedly getting colder and the days are noticeably shorter. Personally, I enjoy the shift to Autumn;
the changing colours are truly glorious around our grounds, and we are encouraging the children to
take a moment to appreciate their beautiful surroundings.
You may notice that your children are starting to feel a little tired as the weeks move on. We expect this
in school and have used Assembly time to focus on the values that are important to us at Mowden. We
have asked the children to remember these when they may feel a little weary and grumpy. These values
set us apart, and they are what make us special.
This week’s update is really not from me but from our children - the ‘word cloud’ overleaf highlights all
the values the children identified as being important to our community. Almost every word was
contributed by our children, although Mr Fowlds did specifically request that ‘confidence’ and
‘independence’ were included. Please take a look - we are very lucky to learn, live and work here.
Lots of values have been identified, but the amount of crossover across the year groups from Year 3 to
Year 8 was heartwarming. The ‘word clouds’ are now displayed in all our Form Rooms, and I have one
on the pin board in my Office. We should never forget our values as they are the foundation of our
school. It is from these values that we draw our overall ethos. This ethos has endured over many years
and many changes, long may it continue.
Also, just a short note regarding bags. Bags have always been a Year 8 privilege at Mowden. To be quite
honest I do not know why the other year groups have not been allowed to bring one to school....
Traditions are very important within a Prep School environment, and we are fully committed to
retaining these, but given the current circumstances, it would seem sensible that the children are
allowed to bring a bag to school. Ideally this would not be too big (of a size that will fit in the children’s
lockers). We will see how this goes, and assuming the School continues to function with everyone
carrying a bag, we will look to source ‘Mowden bags’ for next academic year. If your child is happy to
carry on without a bag, this is absolutely fine.
I am very grateful to Mr. Lamb, Mr. Shaw-Kew, Mr. Knight and the Gap students for all they did to
prepare for our Prep School Cross Country on Wednesday. Every year, we travel to attend the Prep
School Championships at Shrewsbury School. Clearly, this was not possible but we thoroughly enjoyed
being able to take part virtually, we even managed to include the requisite jump! There are more details
and photos on the website. It is incredibly challenging to find a way to come together as a whole school
at the moment, so I hugely appreciate all of the staff working together to make this happen. I know
many of you watched the event on Instagram, so I hope you enjoyed it also.
We are looking forward to meeting prospective families at our Virtual Open Morning on Saturday.
There is a new section on our website (in the Admissions area), with information and videos. You may
like to have a look. Do also feel free to share with any friends who may be considering Mowden.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Mrs. Kate Martin, Head