3 July 2026
Dear Parents and Carers,
It’s been a particularly exciting day in school today as we’ve welcomed our new Year 7 cohort for their induction day; they have participated in a range of activities, met their forms, and experienced the infamous ‘chip day’ (specially moved for the occasion!). We hope they have returned home full of excitement about this next step in their education, and we look forward to seeing them when they return in September.
From the youngest in school to the oldest: after the updates on Year 7-11 from Year Leaders in last week’s bulletin, I thought it only right that we should also hear from the Sixth Form. Mr Wilbraham has written an update particularly focused on the fantastic work produced by our brilliant Sixth Formers in their super-curricular magazine, which you can read below.
Have a lovely weekend.
Mrs McFadden
Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.
Whether the great Groucho Marx said this or not, the companionship offered by the personal engagement of reading is very special. In the school's Sixth Form, we are very keen to support students with their own 'super-curricular' journey where they read for their own enjoyment and importantly, due to the proximity of the university application process, we especially encourage our learners to read more deeply and broadly about the subjects in which they are most interested. Whilst a UCAS personal statement has to engage with the reading and research students have undertaken beyond their classroom experience, our main motivation in cultivating a reading culture is to foster the love of reading for reading's sake. Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in the Sixth Form Super-curricular magazine.
This year has seen another excellent story of nationally competitive university and apprenticeships offers for our departing Year 13 students. A fundamental aspect of student life in the Sixth Form is this super-curricular engagement, where learners are actively encouraged each week, to participate with reading or research activities that deepen their understanding and competence in academic disciplines, beyond the work that they would normally undertake in the A level classroom. Our weekly notices shared with students and parents exemplify the academic, super-curricular opportunities we expect students to engage with: Russell Group universities especially offer free resources that all students have access to and should explore, to help them in their prospective course and institution research, as well as allowing students to hone their knowledge and capability in the subjects. A lot of super-curricular reading and research should be an enjoyable experience, showing the students they've made the right decision with their A levels and likely course choice at university.
Beyond the notices, the student-led super-curricular magazine, published on a termly basis, where students submit their reviews of super-curricular reading and activities, has come a long way from the first publication in the summer of 2024 where it was very much a staff-led publication. We share three examples of the Magazine to show this journey, and demonstrate the excellent work our students voluntarily undertake and how articulate and cogent they are. We are so proud of our student community in Sixth Form - they are a privilege to teach. Happy reading!
Mr Wilbraham
Head of Sixth Form
Public Speaking Competition
Join the English Department for a fantastic evening of public speaking on Tuesday 7th July at 4.30pm. Year 7, 8 and 9 students have battled it out to reach the final, where they will perform in front of our judges to crown a winner. Students will present on a range of topics from the environment, Room 101, and social justice.
Year 12 History Trip
On Monday, a group of Year 12 History students attended a Q&A event with Dr Fiona Hill at the Chapter House in Durham Cathedral. The topic was the impact of the Declaration of Independence in its 250th year, and what it reveals about the current state of US (and world) politics. Fiona Hill's experience as being a National Security Adviser for presidents G.W. Bush, Obama and Trump gives her unparalleled insight into the workings of the American state at the highest level.
The discussion was excellent, touching on the circularity of history and the balance between idealism and reality, and the importance of the Declaration in American identity. Our students asked numerous insightful questions on topics ranging from Dr Hill's beliefs about the cultural impact of Trump's reshaping of the office of President, to how America had managed to avoid religious conflict given its original character as a haven for persecuted European religious groups.
The students were everything that we expect from Durham Johnston historians – engaged, curious and thoughtful. They were a credit to the school. I would also like to thank Dr Hill and Durham Cathedral for putting on such an excellent and engaging event for sixth formers from across our area.
Mr Doyle
Subject Leader for History
Future Business Magnates
I am delighted to announce the Year 8 Future Business Magnates team took third place in this year’s competition. An incredibly close contest which saw schools from around the region compete against each other in a series of challenges. The team won £500 for our school, which we will invest into a Business & Enterprise event next year; they were also all awarded £30 in high-street shopping vouchers. We were treated to a beautiful two-course meal at Hardwick Hall Hotel – we all dressed up for the occasion and thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon. Thank you to Business Durham, it has been an excellent experience. We are incredibly proud of the team, they have a viable business and the waiting list for their trinkets grows longer by the day! Well done Year 8 – you are absolute superstars!
Miss Forbes
Subject Leader for Business
House System News
As another super successful year comes to an end we wanted to thank all of our parents, carers, and wonderful students for supporting an array of charities throughout the year. Feeding Families, Durham Foodbank, Young Carers, our Kindness lockers and care packages for our young people have all benefitted from your generosity!
We held student voice meetings earlier in the year so that our students can share their views and ideas; one focus in these meetings is choosing the local charities they would like to support. We collated all of the suggested charities and sent out a form based on the feedback received. The top three were decided and as a result we have made a donation of £300 to each of the following charities: Durham Cats & Dogs home (based in Coxhoe), Alzheimer's Society (based in Durham) and UNICEF. The work they do is so worthwhile and we wanted to say thank you for everything they do for our local community and beyond. We are very proud to offer our support!
In addition, our annual Colour Run raised an unprecedented £1100 for Macmillan, which we will donate to the local hub. £2000 will be donated to charity this week alone, testament to the success of our giving back approach, the engagement of our students and what it really means to be a Johnstonian - upholding our Social Justice values!
Miss Forbes
Senior Teacher, the House System
DJ World Cup 2026 (Year 8)
World Cup fever continued and the competition has well and truly taken over Durham Johnston; there has been a house competition running each lunchtime this week. Monday to Wednesday have been the group stage games, the standard of the football played was excellent and the supporters did not disappoint either!
Year 8 were up this week and to gain extra House Points they decorated their form room doors, created banners, designed their own strips and even brought food in from their assigned country.
The competition has gone from strength to strength this week and the shirt designs have been the best EVER!
After five days of fierce competition the standings were:
Wakenshaw: 100 House points
Kenny: 75 House points
Annand: 50 House Points
Heaviside: 25 House points
Mr Kidd
PE Department
PE News
On Tuesday, our Year 8 girls rounders team travelled to Parkview for the Area tournament. We started slowly but improved with every game eventually finishing in third place after winning 2 of our matches.
Also on Tuesday, our Year 7 boys basketball team played Dame Allan's in an end of year friendly. We started strongly and were ahead for most of the first half. However, we struggled to score in the final quarter eventually losing an excellent game 51-39. This team has shown great improvement throughout the season.
On Wednesday lunchtime our Year 8 dodgeball team set off for Kettering to compete in the National Finals. After a restful night in a hotel, which included watching an England victory we arrived at Kettering Arena ready to compete against the best 20 school in the country. This was a great day of competition; unfortunately we didn't make it through to the quarter-finals but had an excellent experience including a great 9-3 victory in our final match. All the boys were a credit to the school throughout the 2 days.
Also on Thursday, our Year 7 cricket team travelled to Yarm School in the County Cup semi-final. They batted first and set us a challenging total. We kept losing wickets and left ourselves too much to do in the final over eventually finishing 12 runs short of their score.
Good luck today to our Year 8 cricket team who are at Brandon CC facing Whickham in the quarter-final of the County Cup.
Finally, the PE department are looking forward to welcoming everyone to our 30th annual Sports Presentation Evening which takes place on Thursday at Ramside Hall. We have sold over 300 tickets so it should be amazing evening, celebrating the sporting success of so many Durham Johnston students this year. Please arrive for 6.45pm so we can make a prompt start at 7.00pm.
Mr Hopper
Subject Leader for PE
A reminder of our weekly sports bulletin: