Dear Parents and Carers,
As our Year 11 students continue to prepare diligently for their forthcoming summer exams, we begin to turn our attention to celebrating their time at Durrington High school by hosting the Summer Ball. This year the Summer Ball is being held at the Avisford Park Hilton Hotel, Arundel on Thursday 25th June 2026 from 6:30pm-10pm. The ball will be hosted in the Grand Hall at the far end of the hotel building, this fantastic venue being a very fitting place to hold a formal celebration for the students and staff.
The tickets for this event are £42 which includes a buffet style meal, DJ, and various student and staff awards that will be presented during the evening. Students can now secure their ticket for the ball by paying on Arbor. Details will be available on Arbor under ‘Trips’ from Friday 20th March 2026. The deadline for all payments will be Friday 1st May 2026. You are required before purchasing a prom ticket for your child to ensure your child’s medical information and in particular the details of any food allergies or intolerances is up to date on Arbor. In purchasing a ticket, you are confirming that you have checked, and updated if necessary, this information. Summer Ball tickets will only be issued once students have been formally signed off, having sat their exams appropriately, returned all textbooks and school resources including their Library books.
Tickets will be handed to the students following the Leavers Assembly on Thursday 25th June. The assembly gives us a chance to celebrate the students and their time with us as well as being an opportunity to confirm the final Summer Ball details. Please note that the Leavers Assembly is for students only. Students must attend this in full school uniform.
We would like to make the Summer Ball accessible to as many students who wish to attend. Therefore, if you are experiencing any financial hardship but wish to attend the ball, please contact House teams, Mr Fuller or Mrs Temple via email to discuss what support may be available. In addition to this, we will be contacting you in the near future with information regarding Summer Ball dresses and suits that are available to students, should they wish to use them for the event. These have been kindly donated by the school and local community. We would not want any student to feel unable to take part in this event, due to issues around clothing or the cost of attending and will do our best to support accordingly. Please also be aware that St Barnabas have in stock a selection of prom dresses at their wedding boutique at 11 Rowlands Road, Worthing. As well as being more ethical, their pre-loved dresses will save you money and at the same time support your local hospice charity. All proceeds from the sale of dresses go towards helping them continue to care for patients and their families in our local community.
We will confirm further arrangements regarding how students will access the hotel, instructions relating to parental parking as we get closer to the event. Parents will be welcome to attend the arrival of the students and there will be an opportunity for parents to take photos as part of this. The formal start of the Summer Ball is at 7pm and it will finish at 10pm with students welcome to arrive from 6:30pm. All students will need to ensure that they have transport from the venue booked appropriately at 10pm.
Please be aware that the Summer Ball is a voluntary event and in line with requests from both parents/carers and students, I have clarified our expectations below. In order for a student to be eligible for the event, students must meet the following individual criteria:
· Students should attend school every day, only having time off for genuine illness or extenuating circumstances.
· Students must attend all lessons up until they have completed their exams in that subject. If a student has completed all of the exams for that subject they must still attend all lessons but bring with them appropriate revision materials for other subject areas.
· Repeated truancy from lessons will mean they are no longer eligible for a ticket to the Summer Ball.
· Incidents of multiple occupancy in toilet cubicles will mean that they are no longer eligible for a ticket to the summer ball.
· Repeated lateness to school and lessons will mean they are no longer eligible for a ticket to the summer ball.
· There must be no serious breaches of the school behaviour policy or sustained pattern of non-compliance with the behaviour policy.
· A student must not have been placed in Internal Exclusion on more than 1 occasion or have been issued with an external suspension after Friday 20th March 2026.
· Students must complete all internal and external examinations fully; specifically, this will include attending all examinations on time, sitting each and every part of the examination and completing the examination within all of the published rules and guidelines set down by the exam boards.
· A student has returned all Library books to the Library and any that remain outstanding, lost or damaged, must be paid for in advance of the date of the Summer Ball.
Please note:
Places can be withdrawn at the discretion of the Co-Headteachers up to and including the day of the Summer Ball. There is no appeal for any such decision. Should a student’s behaviour or conduct prohibit them from attending the event, the school will not be eligible for any of the costs incurred for any financial outlay relating to the Summer Ball, be this clothing, transport etc. The expectations set out above will remain active until the evening of the Summer Ball on the 25thJune 2026.
We know how much the students are looking forward to the event but I would stress that our expectation of the students’ behaviour remains as high as ever. The Summer Ball is the highlight of our school calendar every year and by hosting the event at such a wonderful venue it promises to be a truly fitting celebration of our students’ hard work and contribution to Durrington High School.
Should you have questions relating to the event, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
Mr J Fuller