We wish the very best of luck to former pupil Ella Sansbury, who is releasing her debut single Apologise on Friday 14 July.

A singer-songwriter, Ella writes from a very personal and emotional place and her debut release was written about the breakdown of a very close friendship.

She joined forces with Liverpool-based producer and songwriter DSM in his studio, where they wrote and produced the song, and she has huge ambitions and plans for the song.

Ella said: “With this being my first release I am so excited, I cannot wait for everyone to enjoy this as much as I’ve enjoyed making it!

“I also really want to say a big thank you to Merchant Taylors’ for their support.”

Apologise can be found on Spotify, Amzaon Music and other platforms and you can follow Ella on Instagram @ellasandsofficial.

Merchant Taylors’ enjoyed a haul of team and individual honours among our girls and boys at this year’s Sefton Schools Athletics Championship.

Our girls’ teams from Years 9 and 10 were overall winners in their age group categories, while our Year 7 and 8 girls’ teams both claimed a highly creditable fourth place.

Stand out performances among the boys included Ralph Sinclair, who won the 100m in an excellent time that was just 0.3 seconds outside the school record, while fellow Year 8 pupils Jordan Scott and William Delamere were victorious in the 200m and 1500m races, respectively.

Among the girls, Elisa Jashari-Boyle took double gold in the Year 7 shot and discus and there was success for three Year 9 pupils, with Dakota Backhouse winning the high jump competition, Scarlett Adderley taking gold in the hurdles and Maddie Clark coming first in the shot.

Several Year 10 girls and boys were also victorious in their respective categories. In the girls’ competition, Claudia Flanagan crossed the line first in the 300m and Serenne Crosbie recorded the top score in high jump. Tom and Harry Cosgrove were boys’ triple and long jump champions, while Joe Wake took gold in the 800m and Swithin Samarawadika won the 1500m.

It was an excellent performance from all of our athletes, who can be proud of their talent, hard work and determination to drive themselves and each other on to succeed.

The sun was shining for the fabulous Paris Dinner, which took place at the spectacular Cercle de L’Union Interalliée.

Former pupils from Merchant Taylors’ Crosby and Merchant Taylors’ Northwood came together at the event, where they were treated to a champagne reception in the gardens, before dinner in the sumptuous dining room.

Congratulations and thank you to OC Peter Magill for organising the event and to our friends at Northwood for jointly hosting such a special occasion.

Cadets from the Royal Navy section of our CCF paid a visit to HMS Biter.

HMS Biter is one of the 14 Archer Class inshore patrols vessels that form the Coastal Forces Squadron.

The cadets boarded the vessel at Liverpool’s Royal Albert Dock and were able to learn more about its duties and operations.

Its routine tasking includes Maritime Security Operations,  supporting multi-national and NATO exercises and support to fleet currency training for ships and submarines at Fleet Operational Sea Training.

Lancashire Thunder captain and wicket-keeper Ellie Threlkeld visited school to deliver a coaching session to our senior girls.

The session began with a focus on catching, where girls were encouraged girls to adopt the correct stance, head and hand positions to maximise their fielding ability.

Ellie, who also plays for Manchester Originals in The Hundred series, then showcased her wicket-keeping skills, conducting drills with our head of cricket coaching Gary Yates, himself a former Lancashire player and coach.

Girls saw first-hand the speed and accuracy required to play professional cricket.

Finally, girls were coached on batting as they watched Ellie explain the nuances of an effective batting style, both at the wicket and in our outdoor practice nets.

It was a fantastic opportunity for our girls to continue to develop their skills and passion for cricket and we thank Ellie for giving up her time to share her knowledge and experience with them.

A collection of electrifying performances from pupils in Years 7 to 13 combined to light up the Shakespeare North Playhouse.

It was an evening of laughter, farce, tension and intrigue as Merchant Taylors’ became the first senior school to perform in front of a full audience at the Prescot theatre, which opened last year.

Pupils performed four abridged versions of well-known Shakespearean plays – A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing and Hamlet, each with a contemporary twist.

The evening also featured a series of stunning character soliloquys including Mercutio, Iago, Juliet and Portia.

Well done to all of the cast and crew and a special thank you to Ms Gregson-Burt and Mr Davenport for all of their hard work and creativity in putting the show together.

We were delighted to host our annual CCF Inspection Day, where we welcomed Air Commodore Shaun Harris CBE as our Inspecting Officer for this year.

Our CCF contingent currently has almost 250 officers and cadets and, with a further 100 cadets set to join us at Year 9 in September, we have one of the largest voluntary contingents in the country.

Cadets organised a number of stands for Inspection Day, showcasing the skills of our cadet NCOs and the opportunities on offer with help from the military family.

There were also a range of activities available, including an inflatable obstacle course, flight simulator, team building and drone flying.

Many of our younger pupils in Years 6 to 8 were also able to enjoy the experience prior to the official beginning of Inspection Day, allowing them to get a taste of life in the CCF.