Events
We offer our school community a varied and dynamic programme of events and traditions throughout the year. Our calendar of events can be accessed here and can be synced with the calendars on your phone so you always have the latest, most up to date information.
Coffee mornings
We host a welcome back coffee morning on the first day of each term to which all parents are invited. This is a great opportunity for new parents to meet existing parents and for current parents to welcome new parents. We also have regular parent coffee mornings on a Friday throughout the year to give parents the opportunity to socialise and meet informally with school leaders. All coffee mornings are held from 8-9am unless otherwise notified.
Bake sales
Bake sales take place for each class once per term and are organised by the FRHPS via Class Representatives. Proceeds for each sale are added to the class budget which is used to purchase items chosen by the class.
Open classrooms
In the half term where there is not a Parents’ Consultation Evening, we hold open classrooms. These are an opportunity for you to come into school at the end of the day, with your child, and see both their classroom and their books. Although this is not an opportunity to discuss your child's progress with their class teacher, you can find ways to do that here.
Christmas concerts and nativities
Christmas is a wonderful time of celebration at Rydes Hill. All classes will have an opportunity to perform a Christmas celebration for their parents in the weeks leading up to Christmas. The Nursery School perform a Nativity Play, and our Pre-Prep stage an impressive Christmas performance.
Christmas fair
The Christmas fair is an annual event which is organised by the Friends of Rydes Hill Preparatory School (FRHPS or The Friends). The fair takes place on a weekend during the Autumn Term and is a fun day for Rydes Hill families to get together and enjoy a host of festive activities.
Founder’s day
Our school was founded in 1945. The founding Sister, Sister Patricia, celebrated her feast day on 17th March (St Patrick’s Day), and this was adopted as our Founder’s Day. Each year the day starts with a Mass which is followed by a range of activities throughout the day. In keeping with the traditions of the nuns, there are usually sweet treats such as iced buns for tea. We also enjoy a fantastic Founder’s Day Concert, showcasing talents of our pupils.
Sports day
Every child in the school takes part in Sports Day which takes place in the Summer Term. Children compete in their Houses and a cup is awarded to the winning House once all children have competed. Parents are invited to attend and encouraged to participate in the ‘Parents’ Race’. A range of refreshments are served throughout Sports Day. As British weather cannot always be relied on, we schedule reserve dates for Sports Day which we revert to in the case of inclement weather.
Summer concerts
Mrs Flude, our Director of Music, organises a Summer Music Concert so pupils throughout the school have the opportunity to come together and demonstrate and celebrate their talents. The concert has a mix of solo musicians as well as junior choir. Our Peripatetic Music Teachers also showcase their pupils progress to their parents with their own concerts at the end of the Summer Term. In Year 2 where the pupils are given and learn the violin for the year, concerts are held each term for their parents to demonstrate their progress in playing the violin as a group and reading music.
Summer fair
The Summer fair is an annual event which is organised by the Friends of Rydes Hill Preparatory School (FRHPS or The Friends). The Summer fair takes place on a weekend during the Summer term and is a fun day for Rydes Hill families to get together and enjoy a host of activities.
Prize giving
All children take part in prize giving at the end of each academic year. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the successes of each child.
In this special ceremony each child receives a certificate and a book. There is a short paragraph read out about each child and their achievements that year. Some trophies arealso awarded for outstanding efforts and achievements.