The day began with a focused morning session dedicated to teaching our cadets how to operate effectively as a section in urban environments. Working in teams, they learned the fundamentals of clearing buildings, room entry techniques, movement through confined spaces, and how to communicate silently and efficiently within their teams. The training also covered how to secure a small village by systematically sweeping through streets, checking potential threats, and holding ground once cleared.

This week saw an exciting milestone for many of our cadets as they experienced live shooting on the outdoor Electronic Target Range (ETR) for the very first time. Under the guidance of our experienced instructors, cadets had the opportunity to apply their marksmanship skills in a dynamic and challenging environment.

Rossall’s Combined Cadet Force enjoyed an unforgettable day of water-based adventure training at the iconic Liverpool Albert Docks, and what better way to beat the heat?

Day 1 of Army Camp kicked off with a bang, literally, as Rossall CCF cadets dove into an action-packed day of fieldcraft training like no other. Under the expert guidance of two highly experienced instructors from the North West Cadet Training Team, cadets learned how to engage a simulated enemy in the field.

With a 100% pass rate and an average point score of 36, significantly above both UK and global averages, Rossallians are now heading off to pursue a diverse range of exciting pathways, including some of the most competitive university courses in the UK and internationally.

Dear All,

As the academic year is now drawing to a definitive close, I am writing to express my heartfelt gratitude to all Rossallians and their families. Rossall is a truly outstanding community of which I have been immeasurably proud to have been a member.  Thank you so much for the incredible kindness and friendliness that has been extended towards the Quartermain family over the years. We will miss the Fylde Coast enormously but I know that the connections that we have made here, and the friendships that have evolved, will endure long into the future. 

“May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your face, and the rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand."

It was a special day for the chapel today as next year’s Year 7’s embarked on a treasure hunt through the building. What started tentatively - and with a slight air of apprehension and genuine awe - quickly turned into an avid competition to find stories in windows, names on honours-boards and the name of the handsome wooden man standing on a dragon in Memorial Chapel…..(It turned out to be St George)

The more time you spend in our beautiful chapel, the more detail you discover: almost every window shows a different character from the Bible, every plaque is a memory of a Rossallian’s life, every little wooden creature makes you realise just how special a place you are in - and our new Year 7’s certainly discovered every detail, looked into every corner and brought the chapel to life with their enthusiasm and energy.

Today, our chapel felt like a refuge from the warm air in all the other school buildings. While we usually struggle with the temperatures in this beautiful old building (and have at times seen our own breath because it was that cold), they were a blessing today. A refreshing and cool place of calm - our refuge for body and mind before heading into this afternoon’s rather warm classes. 

Over the past 18 months, Rossall School’s Combined Cadet Force (CCF) has been working closely with local Army Cadet Force (ACF) detachments in a unique collaboration that’s already delivering impressive results.

Each week, Rossall CCF welcomes ACF cadets from Wingate Company into its facilities, giving them access to advanced training resources such as L98 rifles, a DCCT simulator, and an air rifle range—equipment not typically available during standard ACF parade nights.

Leading the initiative is Captain Dave Lindsay, Rossall’s School Staff Instructor and a former ACF instructor and detachment commander. His insight and experience have played a vital role in making the partnership a success.

Confirmations are a really important thing.You need to confirm event bookings and concert venues, table reservations and business transactions, hotels and your holiday return flight.

This Sunday afternoon, eight of our current students and one who has left us only a couple of years ago are going to confirm their faith! 

This weekend is Prize Day! 

It is a day full of celebration and recognition of the huge amount of work that students have done over the last year, key stages or even their entire school-career.

It is - for many of our oldest students - the end of an ‘era’ at Rossall School. And it is, invariably, a time for the odd tear between the cheers and hugs and celebrations.

This Thursday marks the eightieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe, which occurred on 8th May, 1945. The war in the Pacific was to rage on for another three months and was only brought to a conclusion with the dropping of atomic weapons on the Japanese cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima.  The Second World War resulted in a devastating loss of human life. Estimates vary, but it is thought that up to sixty million people were killed. Many of those who lost their lives were civilians and they fell victim to aerial bombardment, famine, imprisonment, disease and many other depredations associated with the pursuit of total war. Anti-Semitism led to the genocide of over six million Jews and many other minorities were also persecuted during this period. Over five million German soldiers died during the Second World War and the bombing of cities such as Dresden, Hamburg and Berlin resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians. When the guns fell silent, it was estimated that there were seven million more women than men in Germany. Such was the cost of the war. 

“The new Pope has a degree in mathematics. 

He doesn’t understand sin. 

He understands cos.”

I can only apologise for the joke - blame it on social media - but I could not help but giggle when I read it while trying to find some more sensible information about the newly appointed Pope Leo XIV.

The start of May is a difficult time for Rossallians. Not only do many of their international friends enjoy a day off school back home on 1st May (and it was a glorious day to be honest), but they also ‘miss out’ on the Monday Bank Holiday and get to attend school instead, while many of their neighbours (and their parents?) have a day off. 

Parents often love to tell anecdotes about their children, and when you are the child in question that can often be embarrassing and occasionally enlightening. Apparently, my most used phrase as a toddler was “I will do it by myself”. Now, read into that what you will but I am afraid that I know that this phrase rings true for me as an adult as much as it did when I was a child. I hate to feel incapable, I can be terrible at asking for help and I can be quite obstinate about receiving and responding to advice. I have a sense that I should authentically own the decisions that I make and that I must be capable enough to look after myself in all situations. 

After graduating from Rossall last year I decided to take a gap year and spent 10 weeks volunteering with children in Arusha, Tanzania. I am beyond grateful for every moment of this adventure, since it allowed me to learn so much about the lives and the culture of the people there. It was truly the most eye opening and at the same time most challenging experience of my life. 

80 million!

That is the number of Easter eggs sold every single year in the UK. 

80 million Easter eggs, which translates to almost 29,000,000kg of chocolate. 

That is a lot of chocolate.

80 million!

That is the number of Easter eggs sold every single year in the UK. 

80 million Easter eggs, which translates to almost 29,000,000kg of chocolate. 

That is a lot of chocolate.

 Bill Ashton was a truly remarkable man, and we should feel enormously proud of the fact that he was a Rossallian. Born in 1936, Bill was the son of Eric Ashton, who owned a bakery business in Blackpool. His mother died when he was just seven years old. When Bill joined Rossall School in 1950, he took up the saxophone and clarinet. An outstanding scholar, Bill left Rossall in 1955 for Oxford, where he studied modern languages at St Peter’s College.