The Skinners’ School THE SKINNERS’ SCHOOL
Newsletter Summer 2014
On a sunny afternoon in July we were delighted to welcome renowned philosopher A.C. Grayling. 250 students from Skinners’, Tunbridge Wells Girls’ Grammar, Bennett Diocesan School and Mayfield School for Girls were captivated by Professor Grayling’s hour long discussion on the concepts of Ethics v Morality. Afterwards, Professor Grayling spent time with the Philosophy and Ethics Society. This was a wonderful opportunity for students to listen to the ideas of one of the country’s leading academics; all four schools have strong records in Philosophy, Religion and Ethics, and regularly send students to read related degrees at leading universities. L to R: Samuel Colman (Deputy Head Boy), Professor A.C. Grayling, James Miller (Head Boy), Matthew Turbett (Deputy Head Boy) & Mr Edward Wesson (Headmaster)
From the Head Master Another packed term comes to an end. The most ‘examined’ students in the world have just completed GCSEs and A levels and we await results in August. The 1st XI has completed a very successful cricket season, winning their league, reaching the Kent Cup Final and defeating MCC. And the U14 team won the Kent Cup. This sense of a wider education is shining through at the end of the year, with an Art Exhibition, a Summer Concert, a marvellous solo violin concert by John Britton, Year 8 trips to the Loire Valley and the Royal Courts of Justice, Year 10 pupils’ visit to the D-Day landing beaches in Normandy, Lower Sixth students departing on treks to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, and a highly successful CCF camp in Penally, where the Skinners’ contingent won awards for Best Drill, Best on Exercise and Best at Orienteering. As Wayne Preston, our marvellous SSI says, “we looked and sounded the bee’s knees!” This week the Sports Award evening was a fitting celebration of the achievements of so many. I do not have enough room to record them all but I will mention the words of Bonita Norris, the youngest woman to scale Mount Everest. Here was a woman who tried a climbing wall for the first time at university, got hooked, and three years later climbed the highest mountain in the world. What was refreshing about what Bonita told us was that her huge achievement was not a walk in the park but a physical, emotional and mental struggle. She described her progress towards her target of climbing Everest as one of putting one foot in front of another, in both a literal sense on the mountain but also in the preparations for her adventure. One foot in front of the other. Not terribly glamorous but real, and ultimately fulfilling. It reminded me of the words of black American author Maya Angelou, who died earlier this summer, which I read in an assembly: “You may suffer many defeats but you must never be defeated.” There is something about our progress through life there, and certainly about progress through school: the key is to focus on small targets and to and to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Keep enjoying it, but therein lies success. Enough. It is time for the holidays and I wish all pupils, parents and staff a long and relaxing break. Mr Edward Wesson
CARNEGIE DEBATE 2014 Monday 23rd June and the Librarians, Mrs Weaver and Mrs Deller, accompanied by Mr Niven plus seventeen pupils from Year 7, attended The Carnegie Book Shadowing Balloon Debate at TWGGS in conjunction with students from SKA and TWBGS. This is an annual event held at one of the participating schools. Over several weeks over Thursday lunch breaks, the boys had read and discussed a shortlist of eight interesting books. Two competitions were held, an alternative book cover and a book review. Although we did not win either, our entries were excellent. One of the eight participating teams
The participants were divided into teams, each with the objective of trying to convince the judging panel that their book was the book to read. Never having met the other students, with an hour allotted in which to put together a three minute presentation, it is surprising the results that are achieved. This year the book chosen by the students was controversial “The Bunker Diary� by Kevin Brooks and for once the national judges agreed! Mrs Weaver, Librarian & Mrs Deller, Assistant Librarian
Since Christmas two of our most talented Lower Sixth musicians, Sander Priston and Richard Poole, have been involved in a weekly mentoring session with younger students at the Skinners' Kent Academy. Sander and Richard have both found this opportunity deeply rewarding and they look forward to helping the Music Department at SKA more next year.
Craig Fleming
Former Headmaster Peter Braggins hands over the Braggins Cup to Joe Thomas, Captain of the Old Boys’ football team.
This year’s annual Old Boys’ v School football match took place at a sun drenched Southfields on Saturday 21st June. With considerable skill, determination and a little assistance from the referee, the Old Boys prevailed, winning 5-3, with outstanding performances from a number of Leopards. With over 35 involved in this year’s game, the old boys’ football is becoming one of the mainstays of Leopards’ Day. We were delighted to welcome many spectators, particularly Peter who presented The you to all involved.
Braggins
Braggins Cup to the Captain of the Old Boys, Joe Thomas.
A big thank Craig Fleming
Old Boys (blue) v School (white) teams before the annual Old Boys’ football match
Year 10 students Ben Morris and Sollie Cook have had a wonderful four day residential experience at Oxford Brookes University. Organised by The Smallpeice Trust in partnership with Oxford Brookes, the course was designed to give students a practical insight into the engineering principles, materials and technologies that shape the cutting edge of professional motorsport – this included an industrial visit to Williams F1.
BEN MORRIS
SOLLIE COOK
JAMES STONEY
Year 8 pupil James Stoney spent his four day residential experience at the University of Lancaster. Organised by The Smallpeice Trust and sponsored by BAE, James had the opportunity to learn about engineering through a series of presentations and practical hands-on workshops. Students were tasked with designing, building and testing a remote controlled vehicle capable of negotiating various types of terrain whilst searching out objects to complete a mission.
MARC DAVIS
Lower Sixth Former Marc Davis had a taste of designing future aircraft at the University of Southampton. Organised by The Smallpeice Trust and delivered in partnership with the University's Faculty of Engineering and the Environment and Microsoft, this four day residential course opened the eyes of Sixth Form students of how supercomputers can be used to design future aircrafts. The course was overseen by worldleading engineers from Microsoft Institute for High Performance Computing.
WILLIAM CLARK
LAW AWARD WINNER William Clark has won this year’s Cripps Law Award. Skinners’ has a long association with Cripps, now South East England’s largest law firm, and is very grateful for the support given to its students who read Law at university. William, who is leaving Skinners’ this summer and lives in Rusthall, is hoping to read Law at the University of Reading and to become a solicitor.
YEAR
8 TRIP TO LOIRE VALLEY
Sunday Sunday was an early start as we set off at 5.00am. As the journey went on we anticipated our arrival in France. After arriving in the Loire, we explored the hotel, and had an evening of activities such as rugby, football and other sports. Monday Our first activity of the week was a visit to Nançay to see a radio telescope. We also visited the planetarium showing the movement of the stars and planets in our Solar System. We returned to the hotel for lunch, after which we visited the wine caves in Vouvray. We saw a series of tunnels and caves where the wine is stored for ageing and fermenting. We even had a small taste of the wine ourselves! We returned to the hotel for supper, after which we had some fun on the sports field with the teachers until 9.30pm when we all turned in for a good night’s sleep. Tuesday Tuesday greeted us with a visit to the Chateau in Amboise; where we learned about French history and Louis VIII. After the tour of the castle we were
allowed to spend time in the town, where we bought gifts for our families and food from the bakeries and the ice cream stalls. After lunch we were given an activity booklet and interviewed members of the public - asking them questions about their life, using our French. This was both interesting for us and the members of the public as they learned about English culture and why we were in France. We returned to the hotel to a lovely, hot meal and a chance to complete our French activities by listening to the recordings and noting them in our booklets. Wednesday Wednesday was the day we had all been waiting for, the visit to Futuroscope. We arrived at 10.00am sharp and started to explore the gigantic park. Everybody rushed to ride one: the rabbit time machine. This was a popular ride even for the teachers!!! When we returned to the hotel everybody was talking about our great day at the park. We then settled down to a lovely lamb burger and played some American Football with the “Hardy Sunshines” and the “Morrison Super Bowls.”
Thursday
Friday
We woke up to hot chocolate, baguette, butter, jam and cornflakes on our last day in France. Today we visited an animal park in Autrèche where we saw deer, bison and ostriches, after which we travelled to Clos Lucé, where Leonardo Da Vinci spent the last years of his life. We returned to the hotel for our final dinner of burgers, fish and chips.
We set off at 8.00am and had two stops in France for the chance to stretch our legs, have lunch and take a rest. Thank you to Mr Renaudie for arranging this amazing trip as well as the other staff for looking after us. Semih Altinpinar and Jack Borrett – 8 Hunt
RAF SECTION - “FLYING HIGH” On Wednesday 18th June, Flight Sergeant James Woodroofe, Corporal Max Douch and Squadron Leader James Coltella were invited to attend a function at Downing Street regarding the Cadet Expansion Programme. The government is keen to see 100 new cadet units in schools by 2015 and has announced a £1 million bursary to kick start the scheme. Three officers and 12 cadets from the RAF Combined Cadet Force sections from around the UK were selected to meet the Prime Minister as well as senior cabinet ministers and captains of industry, in order to rally support for funding this project. The £1 million from LIBOR fines will be matched by private sector contributions, with £300,000 already committed from organisations and individuals. Further investment is expected across all military cadet programmes over the next four years. A former cadet himself, Sqn Ldr Coltella commented that “the CCF brings so much to young people, teaching them skills for life, beyond the confines of the curriculum”.
The reception at Downing Street saw people from a variety of walks of life come together. The Prime Minister spoke about his own cadet experience and whilst he never mastered the finer details of drill and turnout, expressed the values espoused by this important organisation. The Skinners’ School has had a long established Army Section; however in April 2013 we were able to launch an RAF Section in partnership with Judd School. Bringing diversity to the school’s extracurricular activities, boys in the section have had the opportunity to go flying and gliding, attending camps around the UK, and the possibility to travel further afield. Sergeant Charlie Alford, another cadet at the school, has recently been awarded a prestigious RAF flying scholarship and recently flew solo at a flying school in Dundee. Sqn Ldr Coltella notes that “a year has brought much to our fledging section, from meeting the Prime Minister to finishing 5th in the National Finals of the Air Squadron Trophy; we are certainly flying high!”
Max Douch (far left) and James Woodroofe (fourth from left) with members of other RAF sections and the Prime Minister
SKINNERS’ TOP GUN! Charlie Alford, a year 12 pupil, was recently give the opportunity for 12 hours of flying at Tayside Aviation in Dundee – his ambition is to become a pilot, therefore the experience will stand him in good stead. Charlie is pictured above in the aircraft that he was lucky enough to fly.
PAUL LYALLS VISIT TO SKINNERS’ Charismatic poet, Paul Lyalls, once again visited
As a performance poet, Paul has gigged at
Skinners’ to perform a number of his most
numerous Edinburgh Festivals and many
engaging poems to our Year 7 classes and inspire
prestigious venues in cities as diverse as New York
our boys to write with flair and personality within
and Belfast. The current Poet in Residence for the
their own poetry, so supporting the Year 7 Poetry
Roald Dahl Museum, he has performed with Will
Unit of Study. Specifically within the sessions run
Self, Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze and George Best, to name
by Paul, our boys wrote their own ‘urban haikus’.
just a few.
Paul Lyalls' work is funny, fast-moving, hip, accessible, rhythmic, clever and real. He has run hundreds of workshops in secondary and primary schools.
The contribution on the next page from budding poet Josh Asprey (7 Yellow), epitomises the talents of a number of boys within this year group Chris Johnson
My Place by Josh Asprey – 7Y My place is in my mind, Where ideas are forged Under the heat of thought And the hammers of the brain. Where the seeds of ingenuity Flourish and blossom into a Tangled wilderness of Resinous roses and sinuous songs. Where dreams dock at port And hope winks bright In a subconscious sky. Where bad ideas are discarded Into an ocean of deep thought Like paraphernalia overboard A sinking ship.
Where the richest crystal Is as pure white as a secret, Wrapped in a knowing smile. The sun beams love down To shine eternal over the surface of Oceans uncharted and Forests wild. Even death is not the end – Nothing once thought can Be erased.
My world, my place. My place in my mind, Where the poor have more than The rich, in terms Of needs and hope.
This place is mine; Wreathed in thought and Hidden ideas.
Where the roots of learning Take hold and grow to Bear the sweetest fruit In the land.
My world, my place. My place in my mind, Where people live off the bread of love and the water of joy.
The fierce heat of campfires As they light the world For creatures undiscovered Deep within the mind.
Where weary travellers are not weary, and the dead Relive to get the best Out of life.
A portable stronghold; A stable mobility; A bunker unique to me and My mind.
Ever closer to the Core, Symmetrical lakes shimmer With dreams stored For another night.
My world, my place.
The core itself, a living Beast, crafted of cogs, The cogs of the mind I need and use.
Where a spark of genius Illuminates all In a place woven of dreams And moonlight shafts.
In the West, hope springs eternal By the side of the road, Where subterranean works Sprout it in geysers.
For presents the people Of the world Give smiles more dear Than anything wrapped.
The scent of tulips Growing in imaginary worlds – A myriad illusion of smell Ghosting around you.
My place in my mind Where ideas are trained Under instructors of war In harsh new worlds.
In the North, luck grows On trees where it Freezes into icicles By clouds of chilled success.
Oiled daily with Rebellion and all the myriad feelings A mind needs to Stay alive.
In the South, marshes attract Beasts unknown in their pools Of the salty tears of defeat and New life. In the East, the sun rises Not every day, but Every time someone realises How happy they are. And in the centre, Within the Core, Lies the heart of it all, The epicentre of knowledge. We call it the brain, the thing That knows no limits And sees no bounds. But to me, it is My place, where the impossible Is likely and hope is The lifeblood.
My world, my place.
100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OUTBREAK OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR Parents will be interested to know that the school has been marking the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of WW1 with a number of events this year: In February, the whole of Year 9 visited Ypres and the trenches and cemeteries of the Western Front as part of their history studies. In May some members of Year 12 attended a gala performance of Never Such Innocence, a special commemoration at Australia House, 14th May. The following events are also to come: Re-dedication of the Memorial Stone to pupils and staff who died in WW1, Tuesday 9th September, School Hall, 6pm. Parents and old boys are welcome to join a small group for this short ceremony. WW1 Commemoration Lecture in School Hall, October, given by Taff Gillingham. This will involve a lecture for our own Year 11 students and those of other Tunbridge Wells schools. It will be repeated in the evening for visitors, parents and old boys, and will be the first of five annual lectures over the years 2014-18, marking the 100th anniversary of the period of WW1. Remembrance Sunday, War Memorial, Tunbridge Wells, Sunday 9th November, 10.30am: the CCF will, as ever, be on parade. Whole School Act of Remembrance, Tuesday 11th November, 10.45am, School Yard. All pupils and staff will take part, and parents and Old Skinners are welcome to join us.
The school was honoured to have one of its older old boys visit in June. Gordon Cosstick was a student at Skinners’ from 1938 to 1944, a particularly difficult time for the school with so many old boys fighting in WWII. Gordon was a member of Hunt House, a keen sportsman and musician, and a member of the school’s CCF. He remembered his period of time at Skinners’ with great fondness and he was very pleased to find the school in such fine fettle. Gordon, who was accompanied by his daughter Susie, had not stepped foot in the school for 70 years and he was able to regale some of the present Sixth Form with tales from a very different time at school, including sharing the site with Colfe’s School who were evacuated from London during the war. It was a pleasure to meet both Gordon and his daughter, and the Sixth Form were truly inspired by his visit.
This year the school gave us the opportunity to purchase Das Rad and Allons-y magazines for our language studies. These magazines are in French and German and they help boost foreign language grammar. There are interviews with the latest stars and all the big news in that country. The magazines offer an insight into their cultures. There are also are online activities which allow you to improve your understanding of the language. Online forums enable you to contact others to practise your language skills. These magazines were a great help to us and boosted our skills in languages. We particularly found the vocabulary boxes useful and we would recommend them to future pupils. Edward Whitby, Jack Borrett & Josh Martin – 8H
West Kent Schools Themed Book Award
This year, for the second time, a group of Year 7 and 8 pupils joined pupils from fourteen other local schools in participating in this book award. Organised by school librarians, the aim is to promote ‘reading for pleasure’: many of our pupils read all of the shortlisted titles in the teen category, which this year was based on the theme ‘Going Places’ and included works by Gillian Cross, Norton Juster and Michael Morpurgo. From October onwards, the group met every few weeks in the library for an informal and lively discussion about the books they were reading. The scheme culminates in an Award Ceremony, this year hosted again by Kent College. Mrs Weaver & Mrs Deller, along with our enthusiastic group of readers, met up with over two hundred other pupils and school librarians from across Kent for an evening of entertainment and very welcome light refreshment. This year the group was gripped by tales of intrepid adventure delivered by Stuart Howard (explorer and
mountaineer) and fascinated by Tanya Landman’s talk about how she became a writer and about what inspires her. The lively question and answer sessions that followed reflected the speakers’ ability to engage and enthuse with their audience. The range of pupilproduced video-clips and fancy dress showed how this year’s theme had really caught the imagination of those involved. Well done to all those who took part and represented their school in an exemplary fashion at Kent College. We are already looking forward to next year’s event and seeing more pupils ‘reading for pleasure’. Mrs Weaver/Mrs Deller Librarians
SKINNERS’ FOOTBALL SUCCESS!
The Tunbridge Wells Foresters U15 Football Team this year collected the Division-A Fair Play Award for the second successive year from the Crowborough District League in which the Team has played since 2008. The core of the squad is Skinners' Year 10 boys, the majority of whom have been playing together since 2005. Well done to Samuel King, Jack Whittaker, Callum Crooke, Sollie Cook, Oliver Jones, Will Norwood, James Davis, Harry Burgess, Oliver Colbran, Kieran Wells & Cameron Maskell.
'Kent Maths Teacher of the Year'
John Bullen, Head of Year 10, was recently awarded Kent Maths Teacher of the Year. He was nominated by nearly all of the Upper Sixth boys he taught last year. Congratulations to him!
GENEROUS DONATION FROM THE RUG SHOP
The Rug Shop of Tunbridge Wells, very kindly donated a beautiful Persian rug as one of the prizes at our recent May Ball. The lucky recipient had 5 rugs to choose from after the bidding. This was an amazingly generous donation to the school for which we are very grateful. Pictured above with the owner of the store, Ali Karimi, are Theo Tebay, Tom Moffatt, Vincent Bailey Ladd and Charlie Reed.
PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION UPDATE It has been another fantastic year for the PA with over £33,000 raised for the school, (bringing our fundraising total over the last 3 years to over £100,000). A variety of events (and lots of hard work!) have contributed to this amazing total, which will go along way towards funding the ongoing IT projects at the school. The annual Skinners' Ball was held last month and a wonderful evening was had by all. 181 parents and teachers dressed up in their finest, had a fabulous meal and danced the night away to classic disco tracks. Our famous auction exceeded all expectations with lucky winners now being the proud owners of tickets to The Graham Norton Show and Strictly Come Dancing, holiday homes booked for South Africa and Menorca as well as a host of other wonderful treats. Next year promises to be bigger and better. Watch this space! The Christmas Fayre and Farmers' Market was another roaring success with a record number of people through the door. This year we opened up the Sports Hall for the second time and there was a host of events on for the boys. All great festive fun! The Quiz Night in March proved as popular as ever. Competition was fierce, resulting in a great atmosphere over the fish and chip supper! In addition, we held a number of Home Clothes days as well as fund raising raffles at school events throughout the year.
We are extremely grateful to everyone who has helped contribute to the work of the PA, whether it be buying raffle tickets, attending the events or manning a stall at the Christmas Fayre. We couldn't do it without you! We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have so generously supported the Association again this year via an annual subscription. This gave a huge boost of £6,000 (before Gift Aid) to our fundraising efforts. However, we always need more help and would welcome new faces on the PA. The next PA meeting is on Monday 8th September 2014 at 7pm, which will be held at the School in the Conference Room above the School Reception. Please do come along and support us. You'll get a warm welcome!
Nicky Tebay PA Chair
THE PA SPRING BALL
The latest prize-winners for Club 2000 were: March 1st 2nd 3rd
J Andrews £180.00 R Fitzwater £ 90.00 S Dutton £ 45.00
April 1st
S Hemsley
£180.00
2nd 3rd
J Jefferies
£ 90.00
R French
£ 45.00
May 1st 2nd 3rd
J Sweeney £180.00 M Brookman £ 90.00 L Grasby £ 45.00