Newsletters

NEWS AT WES - 26th June 2026

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Summer Term - 26th June 2026

 

Welcome to our latest news update, including highlights from our Year 11 Art show and GCSE presentation evening, summer open events for prospective families and details of our Jack Petchey Award winners. It has been a hot week but a busy one!

You will have received an email today about changes to our pastoral system for September from Ms Cooper. We are excited about the new opportunities for leadership and strong relationships that this will offer our students, young and old! Please do read it carefully.

Elysians choosing their next path...

Thank you to all the Year 11 students and their families who attended yesterday's Presentation Evening to celebrate the boys' achievements over the last five years.

We were unfortunately unable to hold the usual Art Show, but the Art Department have put together a visual guide to the exhibition of exam work, which can be viewed here.

...And future Elysians about to embark on the Journey

We were very happy earlier this week to be able to represent William Ellis at Camden's Moving On event - which luckily took place in the (beautifully air-conditioned!) London Irish Centre on Camden Square.

As ever, our student ambassadors did a wonderful job of talking to families about what makes our school special and the best choice for boys' education in North London - as did Mr Altmann, Ms Charalambos Clarke and Mr Lane!

A reminder that our next Open Morning for families considering Secondary School places for 2027/2028 will be on Wednesday 8th July at 9am.

Families can register their attendance at either of this event here.

Registration for our Autumn Term Programme of events has also now opened and bookings can be made via the school website's admission page.

The dates of our Autumn events are as follows:

Open Evening - Thursday 24th September at 6pm

A chance to tour the school, meet staff and students and take part in some fun activities. Families with an interest in applying for an Aptitude Place - including our Languages Aptitude Test, new dor 2027 admission, are encouraged to come to this event to find out more.

WES Wednesdays

Through September and October there'll be a chance for families to come and see the school on Wednesdays for the following events:

Open Mornings (all at 9am)

 16th September

  23rd September

7th October

14th October

 

Meet The Head - Wednesday 30th September at 4pm

A chance for parents and carers to meet me for an informal Q&A session.

 

Sixth Form encounters with artists

WES alumnus Matt Small, unveiled his magnificent mural of Camden Blossoms, at the Talacre Community Sports Centre on Saturday, as part of The Windrush festival! The mural tells the story of the Windrush Generation & their enduring legacy in Camden.

It highlights influential Camden based pioneers such as Jerry Williams, the boroughs first black mayor, Claudia Jones whose activism fostered community and social justice and the legendary music collective Soul II Soul, which brought global recognition to Camden's vibrant music scene. 

You can read the article about this project on Page 2 of last week's Camden New Journal 

A Valiant Performance from the Year 7 Cricket Team

Mr Levitt writes:

Congratulations to our Year 7 cricket team who came runners-up in the London Boys Schools Network Plate on Friday 19th June. Our route to the final was highlighted with some excellent batting from Jayden and Quinn, some strong bowling from Ishmael and Natty and outstanding fielding from Teo and George. The boys showed great resilience to battle the heat in a full day of cricket.

Cricket club for KS3 is every Friday after school. We have one more game to play this season and welcome new players.

 

Year 10 'Cabinet of Curiosities' Project

Ms Madsen writes:

On the 11th of June, the Year 10 Art and Graphics classes visited Lauderdale House to attend the private view of the annual exhibition, which was a culmination of their work this year. The work was on display around the house and gardens as part of the Highgate Arts Festival.

The flyers for the exhibition were designed by our Graphics class and the work was all made in response to theme of 'cabinet of curiosities'.

The students have produce work in clay, print and bronze sculptures. Students were very excited to see this public exhibition of their work.

Jack Petchey Award Winners' Trip to see Hamilton

Ms Rowland writes:

Jacob and Novel in 10W each won £300 to spend in school from the Jack Petchey Foundation. They chose to spend their money on a trip to see the musical Hamilton with their close friends on the 23rd of June, inspired by previous winner Tyrese (10B).



We had a tumultuous tube ride in the 30oC weather, which included an overzealous tube driver attempting to shut the doors when only half of our group was through! Luckily, Mr Pratt's head was in the way! He took the full brunt of the doors, muscled them open and allowed us to reunite!

The musical itself was amazing. Kobe, clearly an avid Hamilton listener, sang along angelically. Zeph was beside himself at John Lauren's death. Rabah , more interested in the football, streamed the England vs Ghana match during the interval, placating the Year 10s.

After the muscial, we travelled back with the pupils to Kentish town, where they went home to revise for their chemistry mock the following morning.

Brandon Centre's ADHD Parenting Programme

To find out more see: ADHD Parent Programme | Brandon Centre or download the leaflet.

Camden Schools Art Biennale 

The 2026 Camden Schools Art Biennale exhibition will run from 14–26 July, showcasing the artistic achievements of Camden’s young people at the Lethaby Gallery and Window Galleries, Central Saint Martins, and on billboards across Granary Square.

There is a programme of free family events including workshops (18 & 25 July, 12–3pm) and a Think, Make, Do Fair (21 July, 2–5pm) and a forthcoming Young Person’s Guide to Creative London.

See more details here.

Yours faithfully,

Izzy Jones

Headteacher

This Week's WESPA Round-Up:

After a fantastic International Evening a couple of weeks ago and a beautiful send-off to our Year 11 leavers, now it is time to look forward to two more key celebrations that will be happening before the end of the academic year. As always, we are very excited to support the school and hope that many parents will join us to celebrate the boys’ accomplishments.

WES Fest – Wednesday 9 July, 5:00–6:30pm

Join us for an evening of celebration, featuring drama and music performances from our talented students. There will also be a bar with refreshments provided by WESPA.

This year's WES Fest will be particularly special as we celebrate and thank Mr Pratt, who is retiring at the end of this academic year after his dedicated service to the school.

We would love your support in helping make this event a success and raise funds for the music department.

How you can help:

  • Food Donations
    We are looking for parent volunteers to provide cakes, bakes, and light snacks to sell during the event. Please ensure that all food items are clearly labelled with allergen information (please no nuts!) and you bring the food along in the evening. We would also welcome volunteers to help supervise and run the food stall.
  • Fun Fair-Style Stalls
    We are also seeking parents (as well as staff volunteers) who would be willing to run a simple summer fair-style game or challenge (throwing wet sponges at their favourite teachers). Attendees would pay a small fee to take part, with small sweet treats prizes provided by us.

If you can help in any way, please join the WhatsApp group (link below). Thank you for your support – we look forward to seeing you there!

https://chat.whatsapp.com/ImX7yiafj6cCstXO72MYX8

WESPA Award ceremony, Wednesday 15 July, 5:00–7:00pm

This is a special evening where we celebrate the achievements of our talented students and recognise the outstanding performances they have given throughout the academic year. Students receiving awards, along with their parents and carers, will be contacted directly by the school.

WESPA will be providing a refreshments bar for the event, and we are looking for a few volunteers to help run it on the evening. If you are available and would like to lend a hand, please join the WESPA WhatsApp group using the link below – no professional bartending experience required!

https://chat.whatsapp.com/GFR512H65o76mrhQm95YeU

WESPA General Meeting, Thursday 2nd July, 7:00pm

Our last GM of the year will take place online next week, link below:

Topic: Summertime WESPA GM
Time: Jul 2, 2026 07:00 PM London
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86249128111?pwd=nda9GzkJAJWlLv7cUEtMXU3DcR1960.1
Meeting ID: 862 4912 8111
Passcode: 963962

In the meantime, we hope you are all keeping cool and enjoying this burst of summer sunshine from a suitably shady spot!

The WESPA team

Coming Up...

Year 12 Futures Day
All Day
29
June
Year 8 Camp Week
All Day
from 29 Jun until 03 Jul
29
June
Year 10 Work Experience
All Day
from 29 Jun until 03 Jul
29
June
Induction Day for New Year 7
8:30am – 2:30pm
02
July
Year 7 Music Taster Sessions
9:00am – 10:50am
02
July
LaSWAP Taster Day
All Day
03
July
Year 8 Music Taster Sessions
9:00am – 10:50am
03
July
Year 8 Camp Week
All Day
from 06 Jul until 10 Jul
06
July
Year 12 Work Experience
All Day
from 06 Jul until 10 Jul
06
July
Welcome & Information Evening for new Year 7 families
5:30pm – 7:00pm
06
July