Wheeler Programme students try their hand at Real Tennis

Wheeler students tried their hand at Real Tennis when they came to Wellington College this month.

The Year 11 students, who joined the programme earlier this year, also enjoyed a drama workshop, a session on maps and power and a thought-provoking discussion on the toppling of the Edward Colston statue in Bristol harbour.

Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called the sport of kings – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of tennis is derived. It uses a cork-cored ball and is played on an asymmetric court.

Coach Danny Jones said afterwards: “As always, the Wheeler students were amazing and full of energy and fun.”

The Wheeler Programme is a fully-funded programme for state school students within the Wellington College Learning Alliance.

Twenty-four students are selected in Year 9 and the college helps support them until their graduation from the programme at the end of Year 13.

The programme includes a mixture of group activities, visits to workplaces, universities, organisations and people; talks, lectures, workshops and discussions; individual coaching, and tailored mentoring.