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.

Merchant Taylors’ has recently partnered with the Ashinaga Foundation, an educational charity that supports orphans around the world, to help put its lost property to good use. With a history of more than 55 years, Ashinaga’s support has enabled more than 110,000 orphaned students to gain access to higher education.

You can read more about their work here.

Old Crosbeian, Hector Bagley (2010), works for the charity in Uganda, and he has been instrumental in making the partnership a reality. The school has donated its spare lost property to the children Mr Bagley works with, providing them with much needed items. It’s lovely to see our lost property being put to good use and we are delighted to be able to help the Ashinaga Foundation and the children they support.

We are proud and thrilled to announce that our supremely talented Amabile choir has been named the GSA Choir of the Year.

The choir was victorious in an impressive field of senior choirs from across the country, who took part in the Grand Final in Warwick on Sunday 12 March, after making it through fiercely competitive earlier rounds.

After stunning performances, which moved the audience to tears before delighting and wowing them with fast-paced technical agility, they were crowned champions and celebrated with joyous friends and family. The following video was captured by one of our parents.

The panel of judges voted unanimously, calling Amabile “simply sensational” and praising their music as “the most extraordinary performance.” The choir were congratulated for their sense of ensemble, their breathing, the communication between the girls, the way they watched each other and their togetherness. Head judge Simon Lole concluded by saying simply, “It was quite astonishing.”

Amabile features 13 girls from Year 9 to 13. Congratulations to Lydia, Sophie, Bea (Year 13), Eeva, Rhea, Sophia (Year 12), Amelia, Katie, Mary, Lara (Year 11), Ruby (Year 10), Mya and Sofia (Year 9).

The choir’s director, Marie-Claire Gervasoni said: “The girls were amazing today (as always) – superb poise, musicality and command of the stage. I have the best job in the world! It’s a pleasure to work with such committed musicians. Thank you to the GSA for organising such a wonderful event, and to all the choirs who competed for giving everyone a truly superb day of choral singing.”

Next up for Amabile is this term’s Spring Concert and the end of year Opera performance, before they set their sights on international goals.