The Importance of Dungeons & Dragons

– By Helen McMahon, Director: Safeguarding

If any of us ever find ourselves at a loose end on a Tuesday after-school, we know there's at least one place in the school where we can be energised and baffled in equal measure.

Follow the faint cries of ‘Let me roll my lucky dice’ and ‘May the odds be ever in your favour’ and you'll soon find yourselves in the company of our charismatic Year 8 Dungeon Master and around 20 eager attendees (overseen, of course, by one of our teaching team). This is the SMMA Dungeons and Dragons Club - and there's no better place from which to start a discussion of the importance of extra-curricular activities.

Dungeons and Dragons Club – like many of our extra-curricular offerings – was established in response to pupil demand. We underestimated how popular it would become. When schools come to assemble an extra-curricular timetable, it’s easy to default to the 'Big Three': sports, music, and drama. Those are fantastic, but they don't catch everyone. There’s a specific cohort of students, often the ones who find the noise of the pitch or the pressure of the stage a bit much, who need a different kind of team. This was the cohort of children who this particular club was attracting some four years ago - a diverse group, who found belonging in the fun and fantasy of the game. The club has grown organically over the years since and it is great to see its continuing legacy, both within its walls and around school in the cross-year friendships that have been forged.

We often talk about our mission to inspire and nurture the young people in our care. Part of this involves creating opportunities that may not be readily available outside the school walls. Our Islington location places us in the UK's most densely populated borough, so we make maximum use of the outside space we're lucky enough to have – including keeping chickens, bees and 2 tortoises on our roof garden!

The animals are overseen by our highly responsible Animal Maintenance Team, who are identifiable around school by the AMT pin badges they wear with such pride. As with Dungeons and Dragons, being a member of the AMT isn’t only an opportunity to spend time in an enjoyable way, but also a powerful example of being part of something bigger than oneself.

The clubs schedule is overseen by our Character Education Lead, Juliette Gorb. Along with ensuring the programme is varied and comprehensive, Juliette takes careful note of the cross-section of attendees. In this way, we can make sure we're developing opportunities for children who haven't yet taken advantage of our (entirely optional) extra-curricular offer. By doing so, we aim to fulfil our mission to serve the whole community.

And of course, the Big Three are always an important and popular part of the clubs offer too – and they also contribute hugely to this mission. Mr Oshikanlu's Acting Academy is a great example of a club with a broad representation in terms of gender, economic background and Special Educational Needs. As a valuable training ground for our incredible SMMA musicals and plays, we were proud to see the club's impact on developing excellent representation from young people with SEN in our most recent musical, Matilda.

We run a large number of music groups and ensembles: currently 12, with weekly scheduled rehearsals and more in the run-up to specific events. The performances our students produce are often astonishing, and all the more notable as they include pupils who only picked up an instrument in Year 7 by virtue of our MISST funding that allows every child to learn to play the violin. As a result, talents have been nurtured that may otherwise have lain dormant and unrecognised.

Sports clubs and team training reach a wide group of students too. An Elite sports programme is overseen by Mr Shah and also responds to student demand, for example in developing our girls’ cricket teams after an initial uptick in interest. We're now seeing large numbers of our girls at training as we move into the summer months. Elite sports ties are awarded to students who go out to represent the school with extended involvement over at least two terms. Meanwhile, those who simply want to let off steam can take part in ultimate frisbee.

Perhaps the most important point to consider about clubs is the need to evolve and review continually. At this time of year, we're discussing when to start the Gardening Club (led by one of our Associate Teachers who happens to be a horticultural expert) and how to arrange the watering of the flowers. A new Art Club for the Lower School is being mooted. And we're considering how our after-school clubs might better support some of our children to spend their evenings productively. While it's logistically challenging, a rich and responsive extra-curricular programme is always worth the energy it takes: for the chance to inspire and nurture our young people, to let them ‘live well together’, and to help them to find their place in our school community.