Enrichment in 2025

Enrichment is one of the best ways to support student interest and for them to attain new skills. The College has a rich co-curricular life with opportunities in sport, music, debating and public speaking. The Enrichment program runs parallel to these activities, involving inter school competitions, incursions, excursions, exams and after-school training sessions.

Timing

Most enrichment training programs run on Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesdays after school from 3:30- 4:30pm. This allows students enough time to use facilities and have a quick snack. Very rarely lunchtime meetings will be held that go for part of lunch – It is important for students to take breaks to eat and socialise every day.

Communication

Enrichment opportunities are routinely advertised on VO though the news function and by emails to students. Permission notes are sent via email and the parent portal.

Selection

Some enrichment activities are competitive and there are more students who want to participate than there are available places. Selection processes mimic the selection process in sports and other co-curriculars being based on merit, achievement and attitude.

Conflicting schedules

Our students are very busy. Before signing up for an enrichment activity it is important for students to consider their other commitments both inside and out of school.

Excursion and incursions

Some enrichment activities involve incursions and excursions that interrupt normal class time. These events are usually academically rigorous in their own right, but students who are missing too many classes for other events may be gently asked to reconsider.

A summary of some Enrichment Activities planned for 2025 can be found in the table below:

Activity	Year groups	Approximate time of the year
Middle School Ethics Olympiad Finals (2024 silver medalists)	8, 9	February Term 1
Science and Engineering Challenge	9, 10	March Term 1
Sea Science Student Expo	10, 11, 12	March Term1
Senior Ethics Olympiad	10, 11, 12	May Term 2
Da Vinci Decathlon	7, 8, 9, 10, 11	May Term 2
Biotech Futures Challenge	9, 10, 11, 12	Terms 2 and 3 dates TBA
Junior Thinkers Conference (unconfirmed)	7, 8, 9	August Term 3
Middle School Ethics Olympiad	7, 8, 9	November
Various smaller competitions and exams	All	Throughout the year

If students have events that they know of or areas that they are interested in exploring please get in contact to see if we can find a way to support student passions.