Spring 2026

6 February – NEWSLETTER

EDITION 54

HeadTeacher’s Welcome

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome to another Highbury Fields School newsletter!

In this week’s edition, you can read about some of the fantastic enrichment opportunities that have recently been going on at Highbury Fields, including the Urban Debate trip and the inter-school Geography quiz.

Next week, I look forward to welcoming Year 10 students and parents on Thursday 12 February for Parents’ Evening .

Please enjoy reading this week’s newsletter and I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Tim Fox
Headteacher

Trips and Enrichment Activities

Urban Debate League

Last week, 18 students competed in the Urban Debate League Round 1, representing the school brilliantly. The students were split into three teams:

Team A: Theadora, Matilda, Kenza, Sofia, Agnese and Sadie
Team B: Hania, Yasmin, Erika, Thandiwe, Aya and Anisha
Team C: Maia, Frida, Jessica, Hannah, Poppy and Sarah.

The students travelled to Chelsea Academy to compete against other schools in the first round of the competition. The teams took part in two debates in which they had just 15 minutes to prepare for each.

The first debate motioned ‘This House would abolish classes set on ability in schools’. The students made some brilliant arguments, focusing on how sets make it easier to create resources for lessons and how if everyone is of the same ability, it helps whole class understanding and lesson pace. Our Highbury Fields teams did a fantastic job winning two out of the three debates.

In the second debate, Highbury Fields argued in favour of the motion ‘This House believes the rise of the digital world has done more harm than good ’. Teams focused on the impact social media has on mental health, how AI has encouraged laziness and how an over reliance on the digital world has led to a lack of social skills. Students also raised great questions about the effectiveness of digital schools and how speaking through screens has impacted face-to-face interactions. The teams yet again won two out of the three debates.

We had an amazing time competing; the students really enjoyed the trip, with Maia describing it as “so enjoyable” and Poppy saying she was “so excited to be able to do [her] first debate competition”. Well done to all participants and good luck in your preparation for the next round!

The Riot Act visits Year 7

Last Monday, The Riot Act visited Year 7 students in their assembly, using theatre to teach how to stay safe when crossing the road.

The short play they performed demonstrated what to do and what not to do when crossing roads.

We learnt never to look at devices or have headphones on when crossing the road and how we shouldn’t let peer pressure or peer influence make us do something that feels unsafe.

– Livia and Wren, Year 7

Students enjoyed learning about this important topic through the engaging medium of theatre in education.

Call for phones

The school is looking for donations of old mobile phones, in particular unwanted iPhones or other smart phones.

These will support our trips and enrichment programme, in particular trips abroad.

If you have any unwanted devices you would be happy to donate to the school, please bring them to the main site reception or Sixth Form reception during the school day. We ask that you ensure the phone has been returned to factory settings and is not locked with a password.

Spring Term Trips

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We have some fantastic trips lined up this Spring Term. Scroll through the carousel below to see what’s in store for each Key Stage.

Other news from around the school

Geography Quiz

On Thursday 28 January, Year 7 and 8 Geographers took part in an inter-school quiz, hosted by the Geographical Association. 79 teams competed across 18 schools in London.

Students put their knowledge of the world to the test, from words linked to sustainability, to capital cities and flags, to key geographical events in the news.

Alice described the quiz as “fun and inclusive for every student” yet “challenging”. Grace and Erin also said they liked the “variety of different topics” covered by the questions.

The Highbury Fields team who did the best overall included Arielle, Angel, Bianca and Joycelyn, who made an incredible comeback in the final two rounds. A big well done to all students who took part!

Go the distance: Next week’s Highbury Mile

Throughout next week, students in Years 7-11 will be participating in the Highbury Mile Running Competition, in which they will have the opportunity to run a mile during their PE lesson.

On the day of their PE class, your daughter should come to school wearing her PE kit. Students will complete four laps of the Highbury Fields park and winners with the fastest time will be selected from each form and year group.

This is a wonderful opportunity for students to engage in a friendly and active competition, while demonstrating teamwork, effort, and school spirit.

Our Parent Community

The Waiting Room: Autism and ADHD Support in North Central London

The London Waiting Room is an NHS-run hub of information and support for children and under 18s with neurodevelopmental needs.

The service aims to provide parents and students with guidance and support, including resources to learn more about Autism and ADHD. You can also discover practical activities and tools you can use to support your child and places to go for additional support where your child will feel safe and understood.

Visit the Waiting Room

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ HFS Rewards ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Attendance

Here are last week’s top performing forms for their attendance:

Top Forms for Attendance
Year 7: 7/Helen Sharman – 99.24%
Year 8: 8/Margaret Atwood – 98.81%
Year 9: 9/Helen Keller – 98.64%
Year 10: 10/Angela Carter – 96.52%
Year 11: 11/Kelly Holmes – 98.07%
Sixth Form: 12/Amelia Earhart – 99.08%

Merit Awards

Congratulation to all who received merit awards last week. It’s fantastic to see more and more students achieving 120 merit awards and even 240 merits!

30 Merits
Form Tutor Merit
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Year 10: Qamar, Destiny, Charis, Mollie, Ela, Theadora, and Sydney
Year 11: Zeynep, Rumeysa, and Lily-Mai.

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60 Merits
Head of Year Merit

Year 9: Melisa, Naz, Fiyinfoluwa, Tanzila, Clem, Tallulah, Taahira, ZamZam, and Ibtisaam.
Year 10: Marwa, Kourtney, Maryam, Mollie, Nana, Sadie, Afifah, Luel, and Sara
Year 11: Amila and Jamila.

120 Merits
Headteacher Merit

Year 7: Fatimah, Hawi, Willow, Ria, Phoebe, Elsie, Adele, Ami, Emmylou, Ruqayyah, and Milly
Year 8: Iman, Maysa, Samiya, Shannon, Molly, Emma, Sagal-Rahma, Seyma, Yealietta, Ayah, Mumtaz, Anisha, Azka, Meliyah, Elise, Cecilia, Hanna, and Nahidah.
Year 9: Lorin, Thandiwe, Rebeka, and Yasamin
Year 11: Rayah and Aicha.

240 Merits
Board of Governors Merit

Year 7: Nafeesah, Qamar, and Barlin
Year 8: Hafsah and Taima.

Students of the week

This academic year, we have introduced ‘Students of the Week’ to recognise individuals who have demonstrated excellent commitment to learning and the community. Here are the successful students from last week:

Year 7
7/Helen Sharman – Sara
7/Junko Tabei – Aida.

Year 8
8/Alicia Keys – Sabrine
8/Jane Goodall – Elsa
8/Margaret Atwood – Kiah
8/Marie Curie – Divine
8/Serena Williams – Cecilia.

Year 9
9/Barbara Hepworth – Lorin
9/Helen Keller – Fidella, Erika, Ella, Alice, and Asha-Rose
9/Katherine Johnson – Anna
9/Maya Angelou – Emily
9/Olga Korbut – Tanzila, Thandiwe, ZamZam, and Munisa
9/Wangari Maathai – Isaacy, Alisia, Nayehare, Methaq, and Amelia.

Year 10
10/Jacqueline Du Pré – Nora
10/Kadambini Ganguly – Afia
10/Nicola Adams – Yamina and Lilly
10/Mae Jemison – Fatma and Barbra
10/Sylvia Earle – Emine.

Year 11
11/Ada Lovelace – Kiara
11/Andrea Levy – Hawa
11/Isatou Ceesay – Olivia-Mae.