Padworth students are encouraged to participate in extracurricular activities to give an important balance to their academic study and to enable them to get the most out of school life.  Activities take place at lunchtimes, after school and at weekends and are organised both by our own Academic and House Staff and outside Instructors to cater for different tastes and talents.

A wide choice of activities is on offer – including basketball, football, drama, keep-fit, singing, gym, Economics and Philosophy clubs as well as a Debating Society and a full programme of Saturday excursions as well as special interest trips to the theatre, museums and art galleries, paintballing centre.

Weekly Activity Programme (please note that this programme is subject to change)
Monday	Drama Club
Tuesday	Basketball Keep Fit Christian Fellowship (Lunchtime)
Wednesday	Drama Club Student Council Meeting (Lunchtime) Padworth Singers (Lunchtime) Football Club
Thursday	Chess Club (Lunchtime) Debating Society Woodlands Fitness Gym (Offsite)
Friday	Philosophy Club (Lunchtime) Book Club (Monthly) Economics Club Drama Club Evening trip to Cinema, Bowling or Ice-skating
Saturday	All day trip to a local town or city
Sunday	Afternoon trip to the local shopping centre Football match against local team (depending on fixture list)

There is a variety of Clubs and Societies on offer at lunchtimes and in the evenings including Chess, Debating, Economics, Philosophy, Reading Group, Christian Fellowship, Drama, Keep Fit and Choir….and students are welcome to start up their own club.

Here’s some news from some of the Clubs…The Economics Club have been examining the very topical subject of Quantitative Easing and set up a practical demonstration of the sale and purchase of government securities and the way in which that increases the money supply.  Head of Economics, Michael Laizans runs the Club with the aim of helping students understand and enjoy the practical side of Economics.

Philosophy Club meets every Friday lunchtime to discuss interesting philosophical issues such as the Existence of God, Ethical puzzles and Beauty which have led to some lively discussions amongst the Sixth form students and staff who attend – in the words of one of the students, “Philosophy Club is great because you can express and explain your ideas in a safe and sensible environment and it also widens your understanding by listening to other peoples’ opinions and views on subjects that don’t necessarily have a right or wrong answer”. 

In the Spring Term, the Philosophy Club welcomed Jo Thomas, a local artist based in Reading who came to lead a discussion about nature, art and thinking.  Students and staff joined Jo in the orchard to talk about the processes of thought in the natural environment.

Sixth form Psychology students visited London in the Summer term to see the “Who am I?” exhibition at the Science Museum which explores the science of identity through intriguing objects, provocative artworks and hands-on exhibits.  In a second trip they visited the newly built Darwin Centre and the National Gallery.

…and a massive question is on the minds of Debating Society members as they  prepare for the next Debate on “Democracy vs Economics”.

Drama

This year,the Drama Club has worked on two productions – the first was an exciting project as part of the National Theatre Connections Festival  which involved students in the workshop, rehearsal and performance of a new play, “Journey to X” by Nancy Harris.  The play was performed on stage in the Padworth Hall in March 2012.  As well as the acting parts, there were opportunities for students to get involved in the marketing, lighting, stage management, choreography, set design and production.  Click here for more details

Our Christmas show last year, “A Christmas Carol”, was a fast paced comic production, based on the Charles Dicken classic, which took the audience on a whirlwind journey filled with laughter and tears.  Matthew brilliantly portrayed the grumpy and miserable Scrooge whilst Rashed shone on stage as Tiny Tim.  The production successfully entertained the audience at Christmas in Words and Music.

Music

All students have the opportunity to take individual instrumental lessons which can be arranged for any instrument and will include theory of music – such lessons incur an additional charge. Singing lessons are also available.

The Padworth Singers, a staff and student choir, meet weekly during term time and everyone is welcome to join. Events are organised on a termly basis to offer the opportunity for the Padworth Singers and for all students to perform in front of an audience and these always provide a wonderful occasion for the college community to enjoy.

Trips and Social Events

Every weekend, there is a full day excursion to visit a city, place of interest, theme park or special activity.  This term, the trips include Oxford, Thorpe Park, Bicester Designer Shopping Village, Windsor, Swindon, Reading, Paintballing day, Bath, London.

Click here for this term’s Calendar of Events

Every Sunday, we take students to the nearby shopping centre and every Friday night, there is an outing to the cinema, ice skating rink or bowling alley.

Social events  include Welcome Suppers, Talent Nights,  Student discos, Hallowe’en Party,  Christmas in Words and Music, Leavers’ Prom, Presentation Day, Quiz Nights, Summer Art Exhibition, Sports Day and International Evening.

Student Council

The students have their own representative body, the Student Council, which is elected by the student community at the beginning of the academic year and which provides a forum for all students to have their say on any aspect of school life. The Council meets twice a term with a member of staff to promote the views of the students and to organise events.

In addition, a number of students, both day students and boarders, are given the opportunity to play a leadership role within the student community.  Each year, a number of students are appointed to positions of Head Boy, Head Girl and Student Leader.

I love interacting with people and at Padworth, I ran for the Student Council and was elected – I tried my best to address any problems students may face and voice their concerns”, Xiao Qian, former Padworth student