6 March 2026
Dear Parents and Carers,
It has been another busy week in school especially for our Year 13 students who have been completing their final set of mock exams prior to sitting their A-Levels in the summer. At this time of year many of our young people, particularly Year 13 and Year 11, are considering their future, thinking about their next steps and what their future career might look like. Next week we will be marking National Careers Week, when students will have opportunities to discover how different subjects connect to the wider working word.
This week also included World Book Day celebrations on Thursday, and you can see some fantastic photos and further details about this event below. I can confirm that any tales or rumours you have heard of a terrifying Lord Voldemort stalking the halls are absolutely true!
Given this context, I thought it would be nice to share with you an article from the recent publication of the Sixth Form Supercurricular Magazine written buy a former student. Aimee very articulately reflects on her journey from her A-Levels to the present day where she is currently working in the publishing world.
Have a lovely weekend.
Mrs McFadden
Life’s a Climb but the View is Great!
Aimee D (former Durham Johnston student)
When I was going through my A-Levels, I thought success meant having everything figured out, but the truth is that figuring things out as you go can be just as promising. I had taken Biology and Chemistry with the hope of going into Medicine, but it wasn’t long before I realised that my strengths, and my enthusiasm, were pulling me in a different direction. Around halfway through my A-Levels, I realised my grades in Biology and Chemistry were not going to get me into that industry, and I felt like there was a big question mark hovering over my future. I decided to fully lean into English Literature. Of course, this shift came with its own set of anxieties. Was it too late to change my path in life? Was I capable enough? Where would an English Literature degree lead me?
I think there is a lot of discourse surrounding what the most ‘useful’ university degree is, and it can feel like your entire future rests on choosing the right one. But the truth is, you really don’t need to have that mapped out just yet. The most important thing is to choose a path you genuinely enjoy, whether that’s a university course, an apprenticeship, or something in between. Passion will always carry you further than pressure. Grade requirements were another source of stress for me. What if I didn’t get the results to study something I actually enjoyed? Luckily, every university is different, and admissions teams really do look at the whole picture. Newcastle University must have seen my enthusiasm shine through in my personal statement, and despite achieving a B in Biology and a C in Chemistry, I got an A* in English Literature. While these results didn’t meet the AAB requirements of the course, I was still offered a place.
So, when I arrived at university, I threw myself into the course. To my relief, many of my peers felt the same way - compared to the intensity of A-Levels, studying a subject we enjoyed felt like finally being able to breathe. That’s not to say it was all smooth sailing. The late nights, the different style of learning, the modules I wasn’t as excited by, and the last-minute meetings with my supervisors left me feeling confused for the future, and back to square one. But that’s the nature of looking towards the future, there is always going to be an element of the unknown, it’s inevitable. The key is to enjoy the journey and recognise that the moments of doubt and fear are really just moments of growth and character building.
After graduating, I didn’t feel ready to leave education behind, so I worked in administration for a year, to save up for a master’s degree. I went on to complete my master’s degree in Publishing at University College London, which was a tough process, but completely worth it. The course itself was stimulating and challenging in the best ways, allowing me to design book covers, create acquisition pitches, learn about global publishing contexts, and work on editing unpublished manuscripts. Living in an expensive city, juggling minimum-wage pub jobs, and budgeting down to the penny was exhausting. Still, for the first time, I felt certain about the industry I wanted to go into, and that made the hard work worth it.
Today, I am a Production Assistant at a leading children’s publishing house, and while my path hasn’t been linear, and likely won’t be in the future, it’s mine to look back at and build on. I still worry about the future (who doesn’t?), but I’ve learned to appreciate how far I’ve come, and check in with myself every so often. Something I like to ask myself in moments of stress is ‘Would you switch places with yourself a year ago? Or 3 years ago?’ and the answer is always no. Progression might not always be obvious in the small moments, but it’s always happening - it’s undoubtable. And that’s something worth holding onto.
World Book Day & other tales from the English Department…
On Thursday, we celebrated World Book Day in style! Staff dressed up as famous literary characters, and KS3 students had fun guessing the famous characters in 'Literary Legends Bingo'.
With the help of Collected Books (an independent book shop in Durham), we were able to celebrate reading and all of Year 7 and 8 left school with a free book on the day! Students had the choice of a range of World Book Day titles and enjoyed chatting about their choice with peers in their English World Book Day lesson, as well as designing a book cover for their favourite book.
The whole school also took part in our annual Masked Reader Competition. The pupils looked at pictures of 22 disguised staff and attempted to unmask their identities. Can you guess who these teachers are?
Our new library wish list features our '8 Before the End of Year 8' titles. The reading challenge has proven very popular with Year 7 and 8, and we would love to offer more opportunities for students to engage with these brilliant books. If possible, we would be very grateful for any donations and books bought via the Collected Books website to keep our library growing!
Click here to view the wish list.
Thank you to Collected Books for all their help in ensuring our students had a fantastic World Book Day.
Whilst we celebrate reading on World Book Day, we know that the joy of reading for pleasure exists all year round! A reminder that our Reading Room is open to Year 7 and 8 students during Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday lunch, as well as Monday to Thursday after school. You can browse our 8 Before the End of Year 8 reading challenge and our extensive catalogue at this link.
Year 9 Theatre Trip
“Why love, if losing hurts so much?”
Sephy and Callum sit together on a beach. They are in love. It is forbidden.
On Wednesday, the English Department took 60 Year 9 pupils to the Northern Stage to see a production of their text, Noughts and Crosses. The production was powerful, dramatic and very entertaining. The pupils (and staff) thoroughly enjoyed it.
English Department
Team Maths Challenge Success!
This week, four of our students – two from Year 8 and two from Year 9 – took part in the Team Maths Challenge at Durham Sixth Form Centre. Facing a series of demanding mathematical rounds against 12 competing teams, our pupils showed fantastic teamwork, problem‑solving, and resilience throughout the day.
We are delighted to share that they placed 4th out of 12, making them the highest‑scoring comprehensive school in the competition. A brilliant achievement and a day the students thoroughly enjoyed.
Well done to all involved – we are incredibly proud of them!
Mathematics Department
Geography Webinar
On Tuesday 10th March, the Geography Department are participating in a Royal Geographical Society webinar entitled ‘Choose Geography: Careers in Global Governance.’ All geographers in Years 11-13 are invited to attend; 3:30pm – 4:30pm in GG2.
Durham Johnston Public Lecture Series
In the Spring term, Durham Johnston staff will be sharing their specialist expertise in a series of open lectures. This is a celebration of our teachers' rich subject knowledge and our students' curiosity. In the spirit of Christpher Wren's Royal Society lectures or Michael Faraday's Christmas Lectures, our lectures will be public education – entertaining, and open to all staff and students at Durham Johnston.
Mrs Bothwell is our first host; please see the poster below.
Mr Patterson
Associate Assistant Headteacher
PE News
On Tuesday, our Year 8 boys’ basketball team travelled to High Tunstall for the Junior NBA tournament. We dominated the competition, winning all our games comfortably, scoring over 80 points and only conceding 12. We now progress to the play-offs next month.
Also on Tuesday, our boys' football teams played Sedgefield in league matches. The Year 7 game was an 11-goal thriller. Unfortunately, despite leading for most of the game, we eventually lost 6-5. Our Year 8 team were depleted and made a slow start but improved to take a 2-1 lead after a wonder strike from POM Noah W. Ultimately we lost 4-2 but cannot fault the attitude and work rate from all players. It was better news for our Year 9s who played some excellent football on their way to a 2-0 victory with goals from Dylan F and Max H. Sedgefield conceded the Year 10 game.
To complete a busy day our Year 10 girls’ futsal team hosted the Durham futsal finals. We started well beating St Bede's 9-4. We finished runners-up after losing 8-4 to a very strong Hummersknott team who now progress to the Regional finals.
On Wednesday, our U18 boys’ rugby team made the short journey to Durham School for the County Sevens tournament. The standard was incredibly high in a competition dominated by private schools. However, we never gave up, winning two games and scoring some excellent tries.
Our U16 girls’ football team faced Framwellgate in the County Cup. We dominated from the start and scored some excellent team goals as we took a 6-1 lead at half-time. We eventually won 11-1 with 4 goals from Erica H and 6 goals from POM Emily R.
Yesterday our Year 7 & 8 netball teams hosted Durham School in league games. Both of our teams remain unbeaten and top of the league after comfortable victories. Our Year 7 team won 19-8 with Martha W POM. Our Year 8s won 30-1 with Kat R POM. They both have only one league game to go against Framwellgate to secure the league title. Also yesterday, our Year 8 girls’ futsal team travelled to Easington for their futsal finals. We started with a hard-earned 1-1 draw with the hosts but again finished runners-up after a 6-3 defeat to Carmel who won the competition.
Finally, we are looking forward to meeting our Year 8 skiers at school at 11.30pm on Saturday night ready to travel to Italy for what should be an amazing and unforgettable week of skiing.
Mr Hopper
Subject Leader for PE
A reminder of our weekly sports bulletin:
