Welcome to the Fourth Year blog!
Another term has flown by, and you have all been as busy and brilliant as ever! A huge thank you to everyone who has submitted an article this term. The blog relies on your contributions so please do get in touch if there is anything you would like to write about for the summer edition.
The Easter holiday is shaping up to be packed full of adventure for our Fourth Year Hamptonians. Some of you will be heading out on Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, others will be practising their language skills on trips to France and Spain, exploring what life might have looked like in Greek and Roman Sicily, or honing their rowing technique in France. Whatever your plans, we wish you a wonderful and relaxing break and we can’t wait to see you back refreshed, recharged and ready for an exciting summer term!
Miss Eamens
Sports roundup
It’s been another action‑packed term on the sports front, with Fourth Year Hamptonians showcasing fantastic teamwork, enthusiasm and determination – whether on the pitch, in the pool, on the court, or out on the water! Our sports reporters share some of the highlights:
U15A Football
The football season after Christmas has been a great experience for the whole team. There have been ups and downs, with the highlights being a 3-0 victory against a strong KCS side in our first match back since the break, and a 4-1 win over St John’s Leatherhead, who we have never beaten up until now. Our only loss on this side of the season came against a well-organised Dulwich side, who we battled strongly against until the very last whistle. While the team feels happy with our performances, we were very unfortunate to not secure more wins, seeing as we have drawn five matches, many of which we felt we deserved to win. Nonetheless, there are lots of positive takeaways from this season overall, and we look forward to next season.
By Cillian C (4F)
Elgin Cup Champions
On Tuesday, the U15B team won the Elgin Cup by beating rivals Whitgift School 3-0 at Whyteleafe FC’s stadium. Following the 3-1 defeat to the school in the opening stages in the tournament, the U15Bs set their hopes high for the rematch. The game began with an intense start from the Hampton side, putting lots of pressure on the Whitgift backline. As Charlie M (4A) lined up for a freekick from an excellent position won by Nayan W (4F), he powered a shot against the underside of the crossbar and past the outstretched goalkeeper, putting the Hampton side up after just a few minutes. Playing with increased confidence, Nayan W won another freekick in an equally strong position and placed a lovely finish into the bottom corner under the wall. The striker improved his display even further just minutes later, sliding a chance past the keeper with a beautiful outside-the-boot shot. We were 3-0 up after 20 minutes; we were in dreamland. Trying to protect our lead, we sat back against their pressure and maintained our structure. It worked and the half ended 3-0.
In our preparation for the next half, we were told by our coaches and Mr Burke our game plan: play defensively and maintain our position as leaders in the tie. This was executed perfectly by the Hampton defence, not conceding a single shot on target in the second half. The structure was rigid and unyielding, causing the Whitgift attack to not have a sniff of a goal. The final whistle rung across the Whyteleafe stadium and Hampton were crowned champions of the Elgin Cup, lifting our first piece of silverware.
By Stan H and George S (4D)
Rugby Sevens
The U15As are having our best Sevens season yet, and following a strong plate win the previous week at the Surrey Sevens, remaining unbeaten in the tournament, we arrived at John Fisher Sevens feeling confident, however knowing it would not be an easy day.
We had our first group game against Forest School who were a powerful side but, with strong defence and passing the ball out wide, we were able to pull off a 24-10 win. Feeling good, we went into our next game against Reigate Grammar, but after some silly mistakes, we ended up with a disappointing 12-12 draw. Next, we had Reed’s and we knew we needed to win if we wanted to get the easier draw for the next round. They were looking dangerous with lots of offloads, and a couple of interceptions, but our smothering defence and our improving attack allowed us a comfortable 26–7 win. For our last group game, we played Whitgift. Since they were resting their A team for the National Cup, it was their Bs. Our sole aim in this game was to rack up points difference, and we did a brilliant job of this, scoring plenty of tries and not conceding any points leading to a 54–0. While we were waiting to see if we had won our group, Reed’s beat Reigate in a close game meaning we had topped the group without the need for it to go to points difference.
For our quarter final matchup, we faced St Benedict’s, our local rivals. After a close 14-12 first half, we stepped up our defence, kicking deep and not letting them out of their half leading to a 33–12 win sending us though to the semis. It was then we realised we were up against Seaford, a team that consistently beats us in the 15s season. After a physical first half, we were 12-5 down. However, in the second half, we raised our pressure to the next level, forcing lots of errors which we swiftly capitalised upon allowing up to pull off a well-deserved 24–12 win.
The final was against Brighton College, a team that had quite comfortably beaten us in our pre-season Sevens fixtures. We all knew this was going to be the hardest match yet and we would have to leave everything we had on the pitch if we were going to win. It was a tough first half with them scoring a good try under the sticks to go 7–0 up and they held onto it into half time. We came out from half time gunning for the win. We spent most of the half attacking trying to get that equalising try. However, their defence was too strong, and we couldn’t get through or around them. We kept going again and again until we got a scrum five meters out from their try line. But we still couldn’t score. This was the story for the rest of the game leading to an eventual 7-0 loss ending our unbeaten streak in sevens and our opportunity to take home the prestigious trophy. However, even with this unfortunate loss at the end of the tournament, it had still been great fun with brilliant weather, and everyone had played their hearts out. Now it was full recovery mode for Warwick two days later.
By Huw C (4B)
The U15s Sevens season has brought challenges alongside many rewards. Overall, the team has performed excellently over the array of Sevens tournaments which we have managed to attend. A memorable moment for the squad was a convincing win over a strong Seaford College side in the John Fisher Rugby Sevens tournament. The boys got off to a rough start at the beginning of the match going down 12-0 in the first two minutes, and at half time we were behind 12-5. After a convincing yet affirmative talk from the coaches, we stepped back out on the pitch believing we could make it to the final. The next half was definitely one to remember, we shifted the ball excellently, coast to coast. Eventually we found a gap and took advantage of our fast wingers to score and give the lads some momentum. As a result of that try, they began to roll in, scoring wide and through the middle, we ended up winning 24-12 which put us through to the final of the cup competition. Which, unfortunately we lost out to an excellent Brighton College side 7-0. Overall, the 2026 Sevens season has been fabulous and I’m excited for what the boys can achieve next year.
By Archie S (4C)
Rowing
Following the training aims we set in the previous term, our rowers’ hard work has paid off with a successful Easter term. The teams trained hard to perform well in two main races. We raced on 13 March where the J15 First VIII secured a respectable third place in the prestigious Schools’ Head of the River Race, with a narrow 10-second gap between first place and third place over the demanding 6.8km race. At the Junior Sculling Head at the end of term, the boys finished second overall in the 3.8km stretch, earning themselves a Silver medal in that event.
As for the J15 Second VIII, the boys performed greatly, achieving second place in their Schools’ Head category, and fourth in the Junior Sculling Head, where they raced in the same heat as the First boat. Finally, the J15 Third VIII, racing only in Schools’ Head, achieved a valuable third place in their category, proving the boys have had a solid season, with hopefully some further victories to come. We can thankfully say that there have been no mid-race crashes this term, always a positive! Onwards and upwards as we train towards National Schools’ Regatta next term!
By Hari L (4A)
Middlesex Badminton Tournament
It was the day of the tournament. We all had to wake up early to prepare for the long journey to Stepney Green. Along the way we discussed tactics and were briefed that we would each play two matches against each school, either doubles or singles, and we needed to come top two in our group if we wanted to progress to the knockout stage. Luckily for us, one of the schools in our group was absent, and so we only needed one win to progress. Our first match was against a strong side, and we lost a closely fought battle 3-2, with one of our opponents ranked third in the country for singles. However, we managed to clinch a win against the next school 5-0, and so we were through to the knockout stage.
Sadly, the next school we were up against won the tournament last year, so we were all nervous, but knew that if we played our best, we would manage to win. The first match was first seed singles, and so Luis (4B) stepped up to play. After a long game, he managed to win 15-10, and so we were 1-0 against the opposition. The next game was doubles, and we unfortunately lost, so the score line was levelled. The next two matches were very closely fought, and Benji (4D) and Manav (4E) managed to win, but we also lost one (props to Manav as he almost managed to stage a big comeback), so again the score line was level. In our final match, doubles, Luis and David (4G) took the early lead, but we were unable to convert and lost 12-15.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable day, and since this tournament was U16, we are all excited for next year, and hopefully we will do better next time.
By Luis MY (4B)
Senior Ski Trip
It was brilliant to hear some of you spent the holidays carving up the slopes and enjoying the snow! Zac C (4D) tells us all about the Senior Ski Trip:
During the first week of the Christmas holiday in December, the Senior Ski Trip to Italy happened, a week-long trip into the Italian mountains which saw a lot of skiing and fun events. For most of the trip, the weather was lovely, all sun and no clouds, however, for a few days, we saw a complete whiteout on the slopes. Despite this, the skiing was still amazing with a lot of fresh snow. After skiing every day, we had the opportunity to leave the hotel and explore the village, visiting shops and buying souvenirs. We were able to walk around the area before dinner during our free time, which added even more fun to our busy days. As for the skiing, we did five hours every day, one morning session and one afternoon session. The slopes were amazing and a lot of fun!
During the evening, we had some group events, including a trivia night and a night where we watched the football game, which was very exciting! The trivia night was a lot of fun, and there was a lot of friendly competition between year groups. Overall, the Senior Ski Trip 2025 was a lot of fun and was a great time for everyone involved, even the teachers!
By Zac C (4D)
Model United Nations
It has been a successful term of MUN debating, with standout performances from Vihaan K (4A) and Digby J (4B) who were awarded Outstanding delegate in the Special Committee and Highly Commended in the Special Committee at the LEHMUN Conference. Vihaan tells us more!
The Lady Eleanor Holles Model United Nations Conference was a huge success for Hampton School. Starting on a Friday, representatives from schools across London debated vigorously about vital topics in the world, which are debated in the real United Nations today. One of the great things about MUN is that everyone learns new concepts and world views, and it helps to improve public speaking and oral skills. LEHMUN showed that diplomacy isn’t just boring debate, it involves mind games, teamwork and strategy, and compromise. That too, the social aspect made the conference enjoyable, as it gave pupils a nice chance to meet a really diverse group of people.
Finally, on the Hampton front, delegates performed excellently, representing Iran, China, Turkey, Greece, Venezuela, Switzerland, Kazakhstan, India, and Portugal. Hampton dominated the conference, with many pupils winning awards. Overall, the conference was both fun, and successful for Hampton.
By Vihaan K (4A)
Performances galore!
It has been another vibrant term for Music and Drama, with pupils taking to the stage, enjoying inspiring trips to professional productions, and making the most of a wide range of opportunities to showcase their creativity and talent. Let’s hear from some of our budding performers!
Treasure Island
A few weeks ago, it was the Senior School performance of Treasure Island adapted by Bryony Lavery. I took the role of Jim, the cabin boy onboard the Hispaniola on a voyage to hunt for buried treasure. After weeks of rehearsals and shaky line learning this was it. I was really excited as it was my first time playing a big role in a senior play and, in the last rehearsal, I had finally managed to get through the show without stumbling over my lines. One of my favourite scenes involved an elaborate fight scene between Israel Hands (an evil pirate) and I. With the help of Mr Haynes, we managed to pull off a convincing struggle with a very realistic punch that made the audience gasp.
Another scene involved me hiding in a (not very comfortable) barrel as evil pirates schemed outside. Getting out of the barrel on the first night I did get cramp on stage, but overtime made my barrel quite homely and nearly missed a cue on the second night. Of course, the production would not have been possible without the help of the brilliant crew – getting ready hundreds of props, creating an amazing set and making sure the lighting and sound was perfect. On top of this we were lucky enough to have an incredible live band that brought numerous fight scenes to life and ensured that I didn’t have to sing a shaky shanty. Needless to say, the play would be nothing without our amazing director, Miss Tiller. She put the whole show together and always managed to make rehearsals fun and engaging and made sure that each cast member had an incredible time on and off the stage. Can’t wait for next year!
By Willoughby E (4J)
Take a look at some more of the photos from Treasure Island here.
Rock Concert
The Hampton Rock Concert was an event I had an incredible time performing in. The Hammond was transformed into a true rock concert, complete with flashing lights, booming speakers, and even smoke effects. Many of my fellow performers took to the stage and played their hearts out, and the audience did not disappoint. The atmosphere was truly amazing to perform in. When I stepped onto the stage, I felt nervous, but I knew that my bandmates and I had been rehearsing since October. I grasped the microphone and began to sing. The first words came out strong, and my nervousness quickly faded. I sang with everything I had, keeping my head high and my voice steady. The rest of the night was just as memorable. Multiple more songs from the other bands, with the Junior, Intermediate, and Senior Rock Bands all performing their impressive pieces. This to me felt amazing to experience and is something that I will cherish for a long time.
By Joshua A (4B)
Downing Street
On Tuesday 3 February this year, I went to 11 Downing Street to play at an event. I left School early and went straight into the centre of London where I met my friends. It was part of an event in order to raise funds for the National Children’s Orchestra (NCO). The whole event lasted three days where all the heads of orchestras (children and professional) around the UK came together to discuss their funding with the government. After going through security, we took loads of photos in front of 10 Downing Street and then entered the building. We played at the first evening with around 60 people in the audience. Firstly, a professional chamber group played a short piece. Then, we played Cavatina, by Dvorak (arranged for string trio) and Five sheep, four goats, by the Danish string quartet. My other friends also played cinq pièces pour trio, by Ibert. After our performance, we had a short tour of the building and then went home. Overall, it was a very fun event (even though I missed football)!
By James N (4E)
ISSP Music Day
On 26 February, Hampton School joined with six other schools to form a full orchestra. Over 130 musicians came together to perform a stunning concert. After a full day of tiring and hard working rehearsals, the orchestra and choir performed amazingly in front of parents, staff and audience.
After a whole day to rehearsals, the concert was ready to go. The whole orchestra and choir performed George Bizet’s ‘Farandole’ and the orchestra also split up to perform many different impressive pieces. The string ensemble performed Tico-Tico no Fuba by Zequinha de Abreu, showing off the high standards of the string players. The wind, brass and percussion performed Into the Clouds! by Richard Saucedo, upping the standards once again. The combined choir also did not let the standards slip, performing two wonderful songs: Talking to the Moon by Bruno Mars and Here comes the Sun by The Beatles, showcasing their amazing and pleasing harmony.
ISSP Music Day was another opportunity to see once again how high the standards are for each school in the local area. The day gave each pupil to socialise with each other, meeting new people and filling the day with laughter and happiness.
By Sion K (4D)
Earlier this term we had the ISSP Music Day where we hosted local schools for a day of workshops, rehearsals and performances. After a quick meeting, we were split into four categories (choir; woodwind, percussion and brass; strings) and started rehearsing. In the choir section, we did “Here Comes the Sun”, “Talking to the Moon”, and a few more pieces. The rehearsals were quite long but very productive and really tested how good we were at sight singing. Later, during our lunch break, there was a beat boxing workshop. Despite many of us being quite hesitant at the beginning after we heard the beatboxer perform an accurate sounding beat, we all grew more interested. He taught us how to make a snare sound, a kick drum sound, and a hi-hat sound and after that we combined everything we learnt to make a beat! After lunch, and a few more rehearsals, the concert began. The choir section hadn’t seen what the orchestral sections had been doing the whole day, and so it was astonishing when we heard how well the orchestral pieces sounded. Overall, it was a very fun and musical day – hopefully – for everyone involved!
By Gabriel K-S (4E)
Chamber Music Day
On Tuesday 10 March, Hampton held its first-ever Chamber Music Day. Throughout the day, 18 different groups of players played their pieces to external judges (Nicole Wilson – violin, and Anna Hashimoto – clarinet), visiting the school. Then, after school, there was a final where five groups got through. Finally, the winner was announced and there was a big concert at 7pm which lasted for about 90 minutes. A wide range of different groups played from the Clarinet Ensemble to the Concert Band. I played in three different groups: the Mendelssohn String Quartet, the Schubert String Quintet, and the Mozart Piano Quartet. Luckily, all three of my groups got into the final and my String Quartet won the competition! Overall, it was a very fun, helpful day and I hope that I can take part again next year.
By James N (4E)
Ballet Shoes
I was lucky enough to see the show Ballet Shoes during January along with my classmates who are also taking Drama for GCSE. We left after school on a Thursday, taking the train from Hampton into central London. After being allowed a small period of time to stock up on snacks, we walked ten minutes to the National Theatre building. We were led up to the Olivier Theatre where we took our seats and waited with anticipation for the show to begin. Members of the ensemble dressed as ballerinas demonstrated a few moves, encouraging the audience to join. As they went backstage, the show began.
The story of Ballet Shoes follows three girls aged between 10 and 14, all adopted by an eccentric, but lonely explorer called Great Uncle Matthew or GUM. The girls are also cared for by Sylvia and Nana. I’ll try not to spoil too much of it, but three different lodgers stay at GUM’s house over the course of the play, and they each help the girls follow their dreams. The play looks at themes like dreams, ambition, female empowerment and family. It was very entertaining and I would thoroughly recommend it. Being able to enjoy it casually with my friends was enjoyable, but studying Drama allowed me to appreciate it with a more analytical eye. Overall, it was a great experience that I will be sure to remember throughout my time at Hampton.
By Josh D-L (4D)
Duke of Edinburgh
Preparations are in full swing for the Fourth Year’s Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, and the excitement is certainly building! We wish everyone heading out on their Silver practice expedition over the Easter break a rewarding and enjoyable adventure. Luke F (4D) and Danyal P (4J) give us an insight into their recent training weekends, sharing what they learned and how they got on:
On Saturday 7 March, me and many others from our year drove to Bentley Copse for our DofE training weekend. Upon arrival, we separated into our groups and collectively decided on a place to set up camp. Once we had found a place to set up the tents, we built them in pairs or threes. I was inexperienced in this, so it took us a while to finish them, but once we had, we began cooking dinner.
Previously, each group was given one or two small cooking bundles known as trangias, containing a modest stove, a kettle and a few pans. We had two among the nine of us, so it was a real challenge managing portions and food. We agreed on two people in our group as cooks each with one assisting cook, and the rest would do washing up and cleaning afterwards. We cooked lots of pasta we had brought with us, mixed with tomato sauce, to make a modest but satisfying meal.
After the meal, we also participated in a night navigation activity, where our large group was split into two smaller ones of four and five people. Then, equipped with only a map, compass and head torch, we had to find posts all around the Bentley Copse area. It was very difficult, as our lack of vision and recognisable reference points among the trees made finding the various posts difficult, but we succeeded in finding every single one!
The following day, we went on a 10 km walk through forest, hills and heavy fog at one point. We had to use our map and compass to find our way, and make sure we were hydrated to keep going. We were, however, well prepared, and had brought just enough provisions we could eat on the road without stopping, allowing us to keep the pace. The route was a big loop, circling back round to the buses, where we dropped our bags and drove back to Hampton School.
By Luke F (4D)
As we entered the camp we were clamouring with excitement, bodies flowing with adrenaline and ready for two days in the wilderness. As soon as we entered the camp, we were instructed to set up our surprisingly large tents. After we completed this task, we started to make our food using our trangias. We boiled some water and made some pasta which was bursting with flavour. Then the fall came, we had to clean the dishes. After this, we started with what came to be the most enjoyable task of the weekend, the nighttime orienteering. We attached headtorches and were instructed to look for signs in the dark. All we had was a map and, on each sign, there was a letter which made a code. Unfortunately, we did not finish on time. The code was never to be found. When we slept the floor was cold like an ice rink each of our limbs were frozen in stone. The next day we woke up and made a simple breakfast. Porridge. Next, we went for our practice expedition. Armed with just a map and a compass, we undertook a loop of 10km. It was tough, especially because of heavy rucksacks. However, we ploughed through it like a steam roller and eventually achieved the goal. Finally, we arrived onto the coach claiming our victory.
By Danyal P (4J)
STEM careers afternoon
Hampton School recently hosted its annual STEM Careers Afternoon, giving Fourth Year pupils the chance to join pupils from six partner schools for an inspiring and engaging careers event. Luca F (4J) tells us more about it!
On Wednesday 4 March, a number of people took part in the STEM Careers Afternoon – and it ended up being a really enjoyable experience. Many schools chose pupils who came and listened to the speakers. The Hampton boys were split up and placed with several different pupils from the other schools. There were a range of speakers who were talking about their careers and how STEM factors into their everyday lives. The atmosphere was great right from the start, and everyone seemed excited for the different speakers.
The STEM careers afternoon had loads of guest speakers from different fields including sports science, data science at McLaren Racing, naval architecture and much more. Overall, the whole event was a lot of fun, and it was amazing to hear all the different questions pupils had.
By Luca F (4J)
Creative with Clay
Fantastic creativity from our Fourth Years today as they crafted clay plates of food in Art. The pieces will be fired over Easter — painting to come soon:
In Art, we made clay plates based on our food designs which we painted in watercolour. We used different tools and skills to develop a simple plate into a relief design. It was an enjoyable experience and I am looking forward to seeing my final design once it comes out of the kiln.
By Sewon P (4D)
Interform update
This term has seen the Fourth Year take on an exciting array of challenges – from Rowing and Pictionary to Rugby, Football and the HAFA – all in the hope of being crowned Interform Champions! Aidan G (4J) gives us the lowdown on Interform Pictionary:
Interform Pictionary was incredibly fun and healthily competitive. All forms implemented various strategies, and it was very interesting to see the competitive sides of others in the form and year group. It was a very enjoyable experience – not just because my team (4J) came out victorious – and from what I can tell, there were some very entertaining moments such as a dolphin that looked like a banana. Overall, it was really fun and a good variety for interform.
By Aidan G (4J)
Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for… the results!
| 1st | B |
| 2nd | D |
| 3rd | C |
| 4th | J |
| 5th | A |
| 6th | G |
| 7th | H |
| 8th | F |
| 9th | E |
4B successfully knock 4D off the top spot with a convincing victory in the spring interform competition!
Special shoutouts
- In the last edition of the Fourth Year blog, we heard from Shishir V (4B) about the UK Linguistics Olympiad. Shishir has since sat the challenging round two paper and was awarded a Merit – an incredible achievement that is believed to make him the youngest Hamptonian ever to receive an award in round two!
- Oskar S-P (4F) certainly deserves a shoutout for his stellar effort in Interform rowing, single-handedly powering through almost the entire race for his Form!
- Well done to all the Fourth Years who participated in the Junior Chemistry Olympiad. A huge congratulations to Joe B (4B), Alexander C (4D), Arha D (4F), Gordon L (4A), Luis MY (4B), James N (4E), Finn R (4A) and Shishir V (4B) who all secured an impressive Gold Award in the prestigious challenge!
- Congratulations to Gordon L (4A), Kairav S (4E), Vayun J (4H), Oliver Y (4B), Patrick H (4A) and Nathan W (4D) who have all been awarded more than 50 merits so far this academic year, keep up the excellent work!
And all that’s left to say…
