Self-Defence club points and self-control , and I teach students to move away from opponents and release their grabs , or what they call ‘ personal space invaders ’. The session always finishes with fun tag and reflexes games .
Rod Rands-Webb
I founded the self-defence club in 2015 with the conviction that Sevenoaks students should have the opportunity to learn to protect themselves in an enjoyable way , while letting off some steam , near the end of each week , and without having to pay an additional monthly fee .
To run the club , I assisted my colleague Jacobo Priegue Patiño ( karate black belt ) for two years , and then Sevenoaks parent , James Turner , from the local club , Oaks Martial Arts , for a year . Jon Cheetham from the English department is an aikido instructor and a great adviser for the club .
We now see up to 20 students attending weekly , and for two years , self-defence has been a multi-sports option for Year 9 and Year 10 pupils on a Saturday , as well as giving a Founder ’ s Day demonstration . Each week I lead the session and start by ensuring that everyone warms up properly . We talk about safety
I started to go to self-defence club because I wanted to strengthen my body and prove that girls can be strong as well as boys . I turned up in Year 7 , along with two of my friends , and from the outset , we have got so much out of it ; self-defence club sessions are a mixture of martial arts , including taekwondo , ju-jitsu and many more . Mr Rands-Webb has taught us so many useful techniques for defending ourselves and disarming opponents . It is tremendous fun and now we all know how to protect ourselves .
Lara Foulsham , Year 8
When I arrived at Sevenoaks in Year 9 and was looking at the different clubs available , self-defence club caught my attention . I had done some judo and taekwondo when I was much younger , so I wanted to see what I remembered and to test my muscle memory . At self-defence club we do some techniques from those two arts , and learn other interesting things as well , like grappling , release from grabs , and redirection from aikido . I keep coming back after school on Fridays because it ’ s fun , there is variety and it ’ s not just one style . Plus , self-defence is useful and practical .
Harry Evans , Year 9
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