Some of the smartest people in the world understand the importance of a sense of humour. The ability to laugh at ourselves and the world around us is a vital weapon against poor mental health and low self-esteem - issues already beleaguering &apos;Gen Alpha&apos;.

Horrifying as it is to consider, the world is becoming less tolerant, more desperate and increasingly cruel all the time. Young folk are bombarded with apocalyptic headlines, attention grabbing algorithms and stomach-churning newsreels at every turn. Where can a kid find refuge from it all, in a world so entirely connected?Here, we hope.

Whilst we never set out to improve SAT results for our young wizards, it is sadly inevitable. Schools are underfunded and oversubscribed. Expecting teachers to convey a sense of the wonder, magic or joy that our language offers is nigh on impossible. Not so at Spellcasters. Having a laugh with poetry and prose is what we&apos;re all about and it turns out that it can inspire all sorts of benefits in class. Sorry about that.

Conjurers
 
 (8-11s) 
 
 
 Gathers at 5.15pm 
 
 
 Disperses at 6.30pm
 
 
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Do you know a young person who loves stories more than sports?
 
 
 Who&apos;d rather be lost in a good book than on a long run?
 
 
 That&apos;s &apos;Teehee&apos; more than P.E.?
 
 
 
 There are oodles of holiday clubs aimed at simply keeping youngsters busy - largely via organised sports. SpellCasters Summer School is not that.
 
 
 
 Instead, we&apos;re offering five days of tailored tuition to a small group of kids who want to hone their performance skills, artistic appreciation and general confidence.
 
 
 
 Whilst there are plenty of &apos;drama clubs&apos;, they tend to homogenize artistic expression, often run by people who have never performed professionally themselves; the blind leading the blind. Fine, for those who want to become generic, but lethal for those who aspire to art.
 
 
 
 Taking in poetry, meditation, creative writing, performance skills, rehearsal techniques, body awareness, voicework and plenty more besides, SpellCasters Summer School is lead by Rufus Hound, who, for over two decades, has operated at the height of British show-business and who knows what it means to be an artist in the modern world.
 
 
 
 This isn&apos;t a week of learning how to be a better actor, presenter, comedian or writer - it&apos;s a week of learning how to grow one&apos;s authenticity, intention and understanding in the pursuit of making works that excel. As we increasingly drown in a world of &apos;content&apos;, understanding what art is, why it matters and how to make it has never been more important, if we&apos;re to shepherd kids away from a world where everything is inhuman, meaningless and disposable.

Rachel is a born-and-raised Hamptonian who always dreamt of being a teacher, so motivated by the idea of helping kids, that she became Brownie Guide Leader the same year she started her Primary School Teacher training!Over the past 21 years she&apos;s been a Key Stage Lead, Newly Qualified Teacher Mentor, Student Teacher Mentor and Acting Deputy Head and has taught hundreds of children from Reception right through to Year 6 at different schools across TW12! Having become increasingly frustrated by the under-supported school system, Rachel has recently chosen to step back from it in order to reconnect with the values that made her want to teach in the first place - &quot;I’ve seen how confidence and self-esteem shape a child’s ability to thrive, and often wished something like SpellCasters had existed when I was at school - so now I&apos;m making it! 
 
 
 Abracadabra!&quot;

SpellCasters is a relatively new enterprise, and as such we&apos;re rather flexible. If there was an outcry for a different day or age group, we&apos;d certainly consider it. Our email&apos;s below.

Conjurers
 
 (8-11s) 
 
 
 Gathers at 5.15pm 
 
 
 Disperses at 6.45pm
 
 
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SpellCasters
 
 
 Risk Assessment

Horrifying as it is to consider, the world is becoming less tolerant, more desperate and increasingly cruel all the time. Young folk are bombarded with apocalyptic headlines, attention grabbing algorithms and stomach-churning newsreels at every turn. Where can a kid find refuge from it all, in a world so entirely connected?
 
 
 Here, we hope.

Spellcasters is run by West End, TV and Film star, Rufus Hound with a teacher of over 20 years experience in Hampton Schools, Rachel Hornblow

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Mother of St Mary&apos;s pupil

&quot;Rufus Hound was very kind and very loving and we had so much fun!

&quot;Rufus Hound was very kind and and we had so much fun!

SpellCasters
 
 
 Safeguarding Policy

Professor Emeritus of Warwick University, Philip Pullman, author of the multi-award winning &apos;His Dark Materials&apos; series puts it most succinctly:
 
 
 
 &quot;Language is for talking and sharing things and enjoying rhymes and songs and riddles and things like that.That&apos;s so important. I can&apos;t begin to express how important that is; the most important thing of all. A sense that language belongs to us, and we belong in it, and that it&apos;s fun to be there and we can take risks with it and say silly things in it and it doesn&apos;t matter and it&apos;s funny. All of that. If your sense of language is that it&apos;s something you&apos;ve got to get correct and you mustn&apos;t get it wrong and you&apos;re going to get marked on it, judged on it, well … That&apos;s a pretty poor show.
 
 
 
 [&apos;Paradise Lost&apos; by Milton] actually had a physical effect on me; my skin bristled and my heart beat faster. It was my first real understanding of the fact that poetry is not a fancy way of giving you information; it’s an incantation. It is actually a magic spell. It changes things; it changes you.&quot;
 
 
 
 Spellcasters is a feat of imagination; intelligent silliness to joyful ends. And if, accidentally, kids leave the program with a few things that spike their SATs? Fantastic, but that will come because they feel more confident and happier in themselves and with language more generally.

We are using magic in the sense that the author Alan Moore describes it:
 
 
 
 &quot;I tend to see magic, in a way, as a kind of language. I think, unsurprisingly, the gods of magic ARE the gods of language. And magic is, in a sense, a kind of language with which to read the universe. It’s a language of symbols with which you can extract meaning from the most mundane things. I think that if magic is anything, it’s about realizing the unbelievable supernatural magic of us thinking and having this conversation. Realizing just how magical every instance is, every drawn breath, every thought. Just how astronomical the odds are against it. How wonderful! And following through these kinds of beautiful chains of symbols that can lead to some interesting revelations. It’s about uncovering the revelation that is in everything.&quot;

Spellcasters has been conceived as an antidote to the virtual, disposable  and valueless world our kids are growing up in. With the tsunami of non-human content about to engulf us all, understanding the importance of art and artistry has never been more vital.

From the Art Week Poetry Workshops

Testimonials from previous courses/workshops:

Fee for 14 weeks is £225 (just £15 per 1hr 15m session!), plus a £25 materials pack for new starters

We  will be making announcements about future after-school clubs in due course.
 
 
 
 Below, a selection of from our instagram feed :)

Rufus is an award-winning actor, comedian and presenter who has spent the last 25 years working for The RSC, the BBC, Studio Ghibli, Disney, The London Palladium, The Comedy Store and plenty more besides.As the dad of two teens who have grown up in Hampton, he&apos;s all too aware of the challenges facing the youngsters of TW12. When Rachel asked him to run some Poetry workshops as part of their Art Week, he realised that there was a unique opportunity to give kids something school just couldn&apos;t - a sense of the magic and wonder in language!&quot;Words, well wielded, can change the course of your entire life - can change the world!&quot;, claims Hound. &quot;Yet this isn&apos;t something youngsters get to learn at school. Whilst I absolutely loved Drama as a subject, there&apos;s a ton of good stuff that comes from learning how to  stand on your own two feet and having your voice be heard. Spellcasters is about nurturing joy, connectedness and confidence. It&apos;s about art and meaning. In a world beset by tech, it&apos;s about the things that make us human.&quot;

Well, whatever you&apos;re doing the techniques must work. My son doesn&apos;t remember anything that isn&apos;t to do with football, and he&apos;s just remembered all of it a month later!

- Great ability or adroitness in a pursuit.
 
 
  - The art of a wizard; sorcery
 
 
  - Exceptional creative ability

Spellcasters convenes in the sublime Temple to Shakespeare built by the legendary David Garrick, on the banks of the Thames in Hampton, Middlesex

SpellCasters
 
 meets every Thursday at Garrick&apos;s Temple to Shakespeare
 
 
 Hampton Court Road, Hampton, TW12 2EJ
 
 
 
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SpellCasters
 
 
 Confirmation of Insurance

No disrespect but &apos;Wizard School&apos;? Isn&apos;t that a bit mental?

wizards@thespellcasters.club

No , sorry. By all means come and learn how to write your own stories about teenage wizards but if you&apos;re looking for a game of Quidditch, you&apos;re out of luck.

Is this a Harry Potter thing?

Alignment with the National Curriculum
 
 
 Spellcasters supports spoken language, poetry, and performance objectives from the Key Stage 1 &amp; 2 National Curriculum: Develop spoken language confidence through performance and debate
 
 
 Explore rhythm, structure, and vocabulary in poetry
 
 
 Encourage clear, expressive reading &amp; public speaking
 
 
 Use creative writing, storytelling, and drama to develop literacy skills
 
 
 Support discussion, reasoning, and critical thinking through engagement with texts 
 
 
 For neurodiverse learners, the program emphasizes strength-based learning, movement-friendly activities, and multimodal engagement to ensure accessibility and success.

Spellcasters
 
 is an esoteric club for young people who wish to wrangle their own innate magic. 
 
 
 Using a combination of performance skills, confidence building, comedy, meditation, poetry and old fashioned stupidity, we attempt to build the foundations for a more magical, joyful and meaningful life.
 
 
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£193.00

Great ability or adroitness in a pursuit.
 
 
 The art of a wizard; sorcery
 
 
 Exceptional creative ability

It certainly is. Everyone working on Spellcasters or for Garrick&apos;s Temple To Shakespeare is fully DBS checked, we&apos;re insured by a a leading European Insurer to operate as a childrens club 365 days a year and, our Risk assessments and safeguarding policies are publically available, below

For a copy of our Safeguarding policy please click here

Because you may have questions

Fee for 14 weeks is £225, plus a £25 materials pack for new starters

Michael Rosen&apos;s 
 
 
 YouTube Channel

Each day consists of a four sessions, loosely described as:
 
 
 Play
 
 
 Creation
 
 
 Focus
 
 
 Understanding
 
 
 
 Within these sessions, we&apos;ll consider:
 
 
 
 The Magic Within
 
 
 Dynamism (don&apos;t be boring)
 
 
 The Life of Meaning/The Meaning of Life
 
 
 Language as a spectrum
 
 
 The Right to be Wrong
 
 
 Play&apos;s the Thing
 
 
 The Joy of Tricks
 
 
 Jokes: The Deadliest Weapon
 
 
 Why does everyone bang on about Shakespeare?
 
 
 and much else besides
 
 
 
 At the end of the week, loved ones will be invited to come and see a show of the work and performances that we&apos;ve created - testament to the fun had, the progress made and the lessons learned.
 
 
 
 So whether you&apos;ve a young person who wants to be an actor, presenter, content creator, artist, writer, comedian or just someone who can speak from the heart with confidence - SpellCasters Summer School is for them.

Hampton Court Road, Hampton, TW12 2EJ

Does this actually help with anything at school?

So, it&apos;s about the magic of language? Of Poetry?

wizards@thespellcasters.club

It was really funny! He made us laugh - I still remember the poem!

Because we understand you may have questions

Our term has now started, so we aren&apos;t taking on any more students.
 
 
 For information about further Spellcasters terms (we&apos;re hoping to be back with more in September) or to join our  WAITING LIST please email us:

Garrick&apos;s Temple to Shakespeare

Choose the perfect plan for you

Meet the 
 
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If all places have sold out, please email us at the below address, with the subject WAITING LIST &amp; we&apos;ll let you know if extra spaces or days open up

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It was wonderful to see how the children developed their skills and grew in confidence through the workshops. Rufus explored performance through poetry, music and song helping the children to recognise and use their emotions to perform to an audience. His workshops were fast paced, engaging and fun, while also instilling a sense of self-belief in the children.

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Term times matching St Mary&apos;s

SpellCasters Summer School

wizardry /wĭz′ər-drē/:
 
 
 
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F
 
 urther to the great success of our first batch of SpellCasters afterschool clubs, we&apos;re back for more this September!
 
 
 
 W
 
 hat started as a series of poetry workshops for Art Week at St Mary&apos;s School in Feb &apos;25 blossomed into our poetry, performance and personal development club - SpellCasters: Sorcerers
 
 
 
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 , we&apos;re keen to conjure more of the magic we made this past summer 
 
 with more of our signature games, silliness and confidence building practise for kids aged 7-11. 
 
 
 
 I
 
 nstead, we&apos;re offering five days of tailored tuition to a small group of key stage three students who want to hone their performance skills, artistic appreciation and general confidence with expert tuition.
 
 
 
 S
 
 pellCasters: Sorcerers has become a playground for self-expression, where we utilise the increased confidence that comes from connecting to oneself to help kids shine.
 
 
 
 T
 
 aking in poetry, meditation, creative writing, performance skills, rehearsal techniques, body awareness, voicework and plenty more besides, SpellCasters Summer School is lead by Rufus Hound, who, for over two decades, has operated at the height of British show-business and who knows exactly what it means to be an artist in the modern world.
 
 
 
 T
 
 his isn&apos;t about learning how to be an actor, presenter, content creator, comedian or writer - it&apos;s about learning how to grow one&apos;s authenticity, intention and understanding in the pursuit of making work that excels. It&apos;s about learning how to be great.
 
 
 
 A
 
 s a tsunami of AI &apos;content&apos; threatens to engulf us all, understanding what art is, why it matters and how to make it has never been more important. Unless we help kids understand the world isn&apos;t relentlessly inhuman, meaningless and disposable, what do we think their experience will be? 
 
 
 
 O
 
 h, and before we sound too worthy, a reminder: 
 
 
 
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So, in a nutshell, a holiday club to engage creative, funny kids in the joy of being smart, clear and silly with words. 
 
 
 There&apos;s nothing quite like this on offer anywhere in the world. It may not be for every kid, but as a parent you&apos;ll know that if this sounds like it&apos;s right for a special kid in your life, it&apos;ll be... well ... magical!

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 v Creativity

The world is serious enough

Explore the top features that set us apart from the competition.

We are delighted to announce that we will be expanding our Afterschool club this winter!
 
 
 Mondays:
 
  15th September - 15th December 2025
 
 
 excluding 27th October for half term
 
 
 Thursdays:
 
 18th September - 18th December 2025
 
 
 excluding 30th October for half term
 
 
 
 from 3.45pm- 5pm -  Garrick&apos;s Temple To Shakespeare, Hampton
 
 
 
 
 
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As well as the course fees, new students require the SpellCasters starter pack (Wizard Hat, Grimoire, Magic Wand) - £25

In the unfortunate event that all of our spaces have gone, please sign up to the mailing list. 
 
 
 If demand is overwhelming, some magic may yet occur.

Term starts on 24th of April and finishes on 17th July
 
 
 (No meeting 29th May, during half term)

wizardry /wĭz′ər-drē/
 
 
 
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Spellcasters
 
 is a course that will build week on week. 
 
 
 As such, we cannot simply &apos;replace&apos; students once the course has begun, to make up the numbers.
 
 
 It is for that reason that, in order to keep 
 
 SpellCasters
 
 economically viable,  we ask you to understand that there are no refunds available once the term begins and the foundational work is done, other than in the most exceptional of circumstances.
 
 
 
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It&apos;s actually really fun!
 
 
 
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We are delighted to announce that we will be running two separate week long 
 
 Spellcaster Summer Schools
 
 !
 
 
 Week 1
 
 :
 
  
 
 4th
 
 - 
 
 8th August 2025
 
 
 Week 2:
 
 
 
 18th
 
 - 
 
 22nd August 2025
 
 
 from 9.45am - 5pm -  Garrick&apos;s Temple To Shakespeare, Hampton
 
 
 
 
 
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Read what our students have to say about their magical experience at Spellcasters Academy.

Spellcasters
 
 
 
 
 Gathers at 3.45pm 
 
 
 Disperses at 4.45pm-
 
 
 
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Fee for the week is £399 per person, plus a £25 materials pack, payable in advance.

Our team

Contact us

Email

Garrick's Temple to Shakespeare