Children at York House School return from scuba diving trip in Malta
A group of Year 6 and Year 8 pupils from York House, a local independent prep school on the outskirts of Croxley Green, have returned home from an exciting week-long scuba diving trip to Malta having achieved their PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) Scuba Diver or Junior Open Water certification.
This is the first PADI qualification the pupils can work towards from the age of 10 years. As the local Hertfordshire, North London and Buckinghamshire hub for dive training, York House also offers weekend diver training at the school in collaboration with Oyster Diving.
As part of the school’s outdoor education ethos, the pupils were invited to further their diving skills and work towards their first certification during a trip to the island of Malta.
Outdoor Learning Lead at York House, Max Langham-Lopez, explained more: “The first dive site of the trip was Qawra Point. Our pupils did their first two open water dives in stunning crystal-clear waters. The dive site itself is made up of sandy banks and seagrass which allowed pupils to submerge to around five metres and practice their equalising and trim.”
The next dive site was Cirkewwa, one of the most popular dive sites on the Island. While working on their skills, the pupils got the opportunity to explore the dive locations. For the year 6 pupils, their maximum depth was 12 metres, while the year 8 pupils were allowed down to a maximum depth of 18 metres.
These depths allowed them to explore the aquatic world and reefs surrounding them, seeing the world from new perspectives. Cirkewwa is known for its varied marine life, including cuttlefish, parrotfish, nudibranchs, sea hares, octopus, moray eels and scorpionfish, to name a few.
In total, the pupils achieved seven dives over four days. As a result, they now have a certification for life. Both PADI Scuba Diver and Junior Open Water allow the holders to dive with either an instructor or qualified dive partner anywhere in the world.
“This amazing experience has helped to improve our pupils’ confidence in exploring the underwater world and observing the incredible aquatic wildlife. From dive one to seven, our pupils demonstrated their newfound skills in buoyancy, breathing techniques and use of equipment. Importantly, the trip also taught our pupils about conservation and how we can observe marine life without disturbing it,” added Mr Langham-Lopez.
Prior to the trip, the pupils had also been working on the online PADI E-Learning course, which teaches them about the concept and theories of diving. As part of their practical training the pupils also learned how to share air supplies with a dive buddy, empty their masks of water and learned important hand signals
The trip to Malta was arranged in collaboration with the passionate teams at Oyster Diving and Paradise Diving who ensured the dives were safe, fun and educational for the pupils.
About York House
York House is an independent prep school for girls and boys aged 3-13 years of age and will move towards an 11+ co-educational model from September 2026. Founded in 1910 with a rich history, the school is set in 50 acres of stunning grounds and has been located just outside Croxley Green in Hertfordshire since 1966.
While the school exceeds academically and pastorally, York House is passionate about inspiring a love of learning with a sense of adventure, while celebrating the importance of a genuine childhood. Offering a high quality experience in outdoor education, art, sport, music, drama and all other aspects of the curriculum, the school is committed to nurturing confident, self-reliant pupils in a safe, caring, positive and stimulating environment.