High Oaks, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, AL3 6DR | Tel: 01727 853047 | Email: admin@townsend.herts.sch.uk
Mental Health Awareness Week – 11th – 17th May
During this week there will be a variety of activities for students to participate in to raise awareness of mental health.
Head students will be selling green pin badges to raise money for the Mental Health Foundation, they are £1 and students can pay by card or by cash.
We are also supporting the ‘Wear it Green’ Day on Friday, where students can wear an item of green clothing in addition to their normal school uniform. Any donations can be made via School gateway.
The school Chapel will be open all week during break and lunch as a safe and calm space for students to visit during break and lunchtime throughout the week. Sixth Form students will be present as someone to talk to.
Students are welcome to:
- Take some quiet time to reflect
- Sit peacefully and have a break from the school day
- Speak to sixth form students for any advice or guidance
The Prayer Tree will also be in the chapel. Students can:
- Write a prayer, thought, or message on a paper leaf
- Place it on the Prayer Tree as a way of sharing hopes, worries, or encouragement
The library will be introducing and reading the Carnegie award book called Popcorn (about dealing with anxiety and panic attacks) in Year 7 and 8 library lessons which is available to all students via the Sora app on their iPad.
The timetable of activities is outlined below:
Ms L Gibbons
Assistant Headteacher
Bank Holiday Monday
Please note that the school will be closed on Monday 4th May due to a Bank Holiday.
We will be open again on Tuesday 5th May at 8:45am.
Support Groups & Activities
Please see the below information about upcoming support groups and activities.
Townsend’s Got Talent!
Our annual talent show will be taking place in July and auditions for acts that wish to be involved will be on Tuesday 5th and Thursday 7th of May in the Drama Studio from 1:20pm-1:50pm.
Students who missed sign up for auditions can see Mrs Coates before the auditions to sign up. Students who signed up for an audition should come to Drama for a code to the Showbie class that will allow them to see the audition time slots. All acts welcome, come and share your talents and skills!
Mrs V Coates
Head of Drama
Carnegie Book Award
The Discovery Centre is shadowing the Carnegie Book Award in library lessons.
Students read and vote on the shortlisted titles, the winners will be announced at the end of June. All books are available to borrow in the library and as ebooks or audiobooks on the Sora digital reading app – on your ipad.
Mrs K O’Brien
Library Manager
Hertfordshire County League Athletics
On Tuesday 28th April, Townsend kicked off their County League season with a trip to Westminster Lodge in St Albans.
As we were the host school of this event, we could give more students the opportunity to represent the school across Year 7 to 10. Townsend had 48 very keen representatives at the event across all year groups.
All students have been focusing on Athletics in their core PE lessons this half-term, giving them time to practice for these county league fixtures, with some attending after-school and lunch time clubs.
Stand out performances:
U14 Boys:
John P – 1st in Javelin (25.19m)
Xavion C – 2nd in Hurdles (15.02s)
Kyron H – 2nd in Shot Put (7.94m)
U14 Girls:
Sienna E – 2nd in 100m (13.75s)
Ava R-H – 2nd in High Jump (1.28m)
Ava R-H – 2nd in 200m (31.87s)
Ruby W – 2nd in Shot Put (7.59m)
Relay team – 2nd (1m1s)
U16 Boys:
Ellis M-B – 1st in 800m (2m19s)
Relay Team – 2nd ( 50.3s)
Callum W – 2nd in Long Jump (4.64m)
U16 Girls:
Cerys W-K – 1st in 100m (13.41s)
Praise U – 2nd 300m
All students represented the school fantastically and we look forward to seeing how they do at the remaining 5 county league fixtures.
A big thank you for all of the staff who came and supported the event; Miss Gibbons, Mr Dawson, Mr Hill, Mrs Hill, Mrs Johnson, Teacher Mac, Mrs Sibley, Mr Armstrong and Miss Stanely as well as the PE Department.
A reminder that Athletics club is on a Monday after-school – speak to a member of the PE Department if you are interested.
Next County League fixture: Tuesday 5th May 2026 at Westminster Lodge, St Albans. Keep an eye out for team sheets.
Miss M Jones
Head of PE
Exam Instructions
Please see the below information for students regarding upcoming exams.
Year 10 Exams
Please see the below information about the upcoming Year 10 trial exams.
From the 5th May- 8th May.
Unifrog- Helping your child to make decisions about their future.
Unifrog is an online platform used by all students at Townsend School to help them explore their interests, choose the best academic or vocational pathways, find out about different careers and submit applications for universities, apprenticeships and colleges.
By following the link below you can set up your own parent account on Unifrog so that you can use Unifrog to help support your child in making decisions about their future.
Mrs K Davey
Assistant Headteacher