St Thomas' House Booklet - 2020-21

St Thomas’ House Handbook

Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents .................................................................................................................................................................................. 2 Welcome from the Housemaster ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Welcome from Head of House ......................................................................................................................................... 4 St. Thomas Becket ................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Packing List and Uniform ..................................................................................................................................................... 6 Laundry .................................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Money and Valuables ............................................................................................................................................................ 7 Cooking and Ordering Food .............................................................................................................................................. 8 Contacting Home .................................................................................................................................................................. 8 Homesickness......................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Start of Term Arrangements ............................................................................................................................................ 10 Life in Your House .............................................................................................................................................................. 11 TYPICAL DAILY ROUTINE OF THE HOUSE .......................................................................................................................... 11 NOTES ON HOUSE ROUTINE.................................................................................................................................................... 12 WEEKENDS ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 13 GOING OUT WITH PARENTS .................................................................................................................................................... 13 RELIGIOUS LIFE IN THE HOUSE................................................................................................................................................. 14 ACADEMIC LIFE IN HOUSE ......................................................................................................................................................... 15 ACTIVITIES AND SPORT ............................................................................................................................................................... 16 HOUSE COMPETITION AND HOUSE COLOURS ............................................................................................................... 16

House Team ......................................................................................................................................................................... 18 HOUSE MONITORS ........................................................................................................................................................................ 22

Safeguarding .......................................................................................................................................................................... 23 Substances Rules .................................................................................................................................................................. 23 Medical Care in School ...................................................................................................................................................... 24 Health and Safety in the House ........................................................................................................................................ 24 List of Important Contacts ................................................................................................................................................ 26 Tutor Contacts .................................................................................................................................................................... 26

2

Welcome from the Housemaster Welcome to St Thomas’ House, I look forward to seeing you all in September after what has been a challenging few months for us all throughout lockdown and the COVID-19 Pandemic. The house team and wider school management have been working tirelessly over the summer break to ensure that when we return there will be a safe environment for your start in September. I have enjoyed speaking to you all over the past few months and I hope you are as excited as I am to start into the new school year.

This booklet has been designed to give you an idea about what life is like in the house and hopefully answer some of the questions you have. You should read this with your parents and use it to supplement the information you have been sent by the admissions office.

St Thomas’ aims to be a home more than just a House – providing a secure, happy and caring environment for each boy to develop and maximise their potential, whatever their talents and interests. In essence we want St. Thomas’ to be a home away from home.

The qualities that you will develop living in this House will be every bit as important as the information that you learn every day in the classroom. With tolerance and respect for those around you, you will develop strong friendships that will endure long after you have left Ampleforth. St Thomas’ has a reputation for being a House where boys form close bonds with one another, look out for each other and always give of their best in all that they do.

My main goal for this year as your housemaster is to focus on stability and challenge. I want to work with everyone in the house to maintain a stable environment which encourages your growth both academically and socially. The Rule of St. Benedict states that “idleness is the enemy of the soul (RSB pro48)” and in this spirit I wish to challenge you to go beyond the classroom with your learning, to push you to be more curious about the world and to ask you to try and answer to the challenges that we face as a society.

Best Wishes Gavin Lynch-Frahill

3

Welcome from Head of House Hi, I’m Giles and I’m going to be the Head of House for St. Thomas’ next year.

First of all, I would like to congratulate you upon what is (in my entirely unbiased opinion) a fantastic choice in choosing St. Thomas’. Especially for those of you going into Year 9 I can understand your apprehension about moving into a new school and a new lifestyle in the boarding house, my best advice for this is to throw yourself into everything, Year 9 is the best time to try everything out and get a feeling for what you want to do. Take advantage of all the great opportunities you have available to you while you have time, I think that in Year 9 I was probably involved in about five extracurricular and as a result I felt entirely used to the school atmosphere by the end of my first week and a half.

I’m sure many of the parents will be like mine inclined to buy out the entire stock of M&S in preparation for the school year, something I would advise against, you will only need fresh clothes for 10 days because of the school wash and the Ampleforth sense of “style” and I use this in the broadest sense of the word is somewhat unique and I found that it is easier to buy some of the clothes after you have been there for a few weeks. I look forward to seeing you all in September and if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to email me (g.murphy21@ampleforth.org.uk).

All the best, Giles

4

St. Thomas Becket “Ave Mater Angha” the motto of St. Thomas Becket and the City of Canterbury. It translates as “Hail, Mother of England.” From this we take inspiration from St. Thomas’ life and martyrdom to guide us in our development.

St. Thomas Becket as the Archbishop of Canterbury clashed with King Henry II over the right of the church being infringed upon by the crown. St Thomas was martyred by knights of the king whilst praying in the cathedral. The site of this martyrdom has become an important shrine for pilgrims from across the globe. This pilgrimage was immortalised in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.

From St. Thomas’ sacrifice, we in the house take leave by his example, where we all strive to be integral and endeavour for what is right and just in all of our actions in life, in spite of fear and consequence.

Our house crest is the coat of arms of the city The Site of St. Thomas' Martyrdom in Canterbury Cathedral

of Canterbury, often used to represent St. Thomas.

5

Packing List and Uniform All parents are sent a list of clothes that are needed for school during the summer. All clothes must have name tapes (these are much more obvious than simply writing the name on in biro or marker pen) so that they do not get lost in the school laundry. It is also a good idea to have a set of name tapes to give to Matron so that when you get new clothes during term, often new games kit, the clothes can be labelled by her.

For the first term back we will not being wearing ties or jackets as per the COVID guidelines, you must ensure that all of your clothes are washable at 40 degrees celcius and above.

You can wear your own clothes in the House and around school outside of the school day. With limited wardrobe storage space, you should not bring too many of your own clothes though – it is very easy for rooms to become untidy if boys have too many clothes.

You should have a mouth guard for rugby and hockey; if you go to a games session without one you will not be allowed to participate. A basic mouth guard is available at the school shop for £3.

The Games department also organises a dentist to visit the school in the second week of term to fit students with professional mouth guards which cost between £28 and £70 depending on the dental work they protect. There is no pressure from the Games department to use these however.

Laundry Dirty washing must be placed in the bins outside the Laundry room. Laundry is taken to be cleaned on Tuesday morning each week so you must ensure that all of your clothes are in the laundry before check-in on Tuesday. It comes back on Thursday morning. We do have emergency washers in the House which are sometimes used to clean dirty sports kit.

There is a school dry-cleaning service that is run by the school shop. Any minor repairs to clothes that are needed can be taken to Matron.

6

Money and Valuables You need pocket money at school as there is both a school and a House tuck shop. This really is only pocket money though as any larger purchases like games kit or books can be paid for with a chit – a special slip signed by Mr Lynch-Frahill or Matron that can then be taken to the shop and is charged to the termly account. As a rough guide £10 a week should certainly be enough, particularly for junior boys.

All money should be left with Mr Lynch-Frahill in the House bank for safekeeping. This can then be taken out after morning prayers. Above all, however, amounts of money over £10 should not be carried around or kept in your dormitory.

It is recommended that a minimum amount of expensive electrical items are brought into school.

Games consoles and handheld equivalents should be left at home. This is not because the House is full of dishonest people – far from it – but because a boarding school is an easy place to lose things. Laptops and mobile phones should be insured through personal plans or included in home insurance policies as valuables are not covered by the school insurance. All computers and phones left unattended should be kept locked with a password. It is also sensible to avoid leaving expensive items and money lying around in communal areas. Each boy does have a lockable cupboard that will fit a padlock and so that would be a sensible thing to bring at the start of term.

It would be a good idea to bring a few coat hangers too.

Passports and tickets for travel should also be given to Mr Lynch-Frahill upon arrival at Ampleforth for safekeeping.

7

Cooking and Ordering Food

In addition to the main school meals there are kitchens in St Thomas’ where the boys can make hot drinks, toast and sandwiches. Bread is always available along with milk, coffee/tea, squash, various spreads and fresh fruit. Matron often leaves lots of lovely food in here around morning and afternoon break times too. She can also order food for you; it is better to do this through her as she will regularly do food shopping.

Contacting Home While boys these days rarely write home they often need things to be sent to them. The House postal address is: St Thomas’ House Ampleforth College Ampleforth York Y062 4EU NB: All packages will be stored in the school for 72 hours before being delivered to the boys as per COVID guidelines. In this case it would be advisable not to send food.

You will be provided with a school e-mail address which can be accessed from any of the student computers in the school, including those in the House. Laptops brought from home can also be logged into the school wireless internet which covers most of the campus once they have been 8

registered with the school’s IT department. iPads are now common place in the classroom for all students in St. Thomas’. Once you can access the school internet you will also be able to keep in touch with home through video calling. These days most people tend to use facetime, skype, zoom, WhatsApp and other apps to video call so there is no shortage of ways to keep in contact with home. Other access to the internet through the school wireless network is protected by a school firewall, as well as restrictions on access during school time, prep and in the evenings.

The vast majority of boys have mobile phones. If you have one, the number for this should be registered with Mr Lynch-Frahill and updated when a new phone is bought so that you can always be contacted in an emergency. Reception is often poor in the valley but the best signal currently available is from EE. We remove mobile phones and other gadgets from the First and Second year’s dorm from bed time until morning prayers.

Good times for you to speak to your parents are between 5.00 and 6.30 pm on weekdays, after 3.30 pm on Saturday and anytime on Sunday except during Mass and prep time. Mobile phone topups are available from the Abbey Shop.

If at any time the boys break or lose their communication devices the school will give them access to contact home if needed.

Homesickness While it is very easy to stay in touch with home while boarding it is still common to feel homesick, particularly in the first few days and weeks of term. Everyone experiences this to a greater or lesser degree at some point and it is better to admit it than to try and cope with it on your own.

Remember that there is plenty of sympathetic support available in the House from any of the House staff, the tutor team, our chaplain Fr Alexander, or another student. Outside St Thomas’ if boys want to talk about this or any other issues there is the school counsellors Mr Allisstone and Ms Brown. I always find that homesickness is perpetuated by lack of activity. The best way to adapt and get used to being away from home is to throw yourself fully into the life of the schools by doing as much as you can in the co-curricular, then you will find that you have made a wide circle of friends and settle very quickly.

9

Start of Term Arrangements The start of term arrangements have been sent from the Headmaster to parents and are different for each year groups. They can be found here: Autumn2020Guide

On a recent trip to see Premiership Rugby

10

Life in Your House St. Thomas’ House is a boarding and day house for boys ages 13-18. It is a striking country house that has been converted into a boarding house by the addition of a modern extension. The house is located on the edge of the school site on the road from the school to the village of Oswaldkirk.

St. Thomas’ is blessed with the best view on the site where we sit high on a hill overlooking the Vale of Pickering. The view when the sun rises early in the morning is idyllic, particularly when it shines through the morning clouds to light up the Basil Hume Millennium Cross which is in front of our house.

St. Thomas’ has a reputation of being a house with many talents across a wide spectrum of activities and interests. This has resulted in us having a rich cultural house with boys having each of their unique abilities appreciated by all.

Life in the House is underpinned by the Catholic and Benedictine ethos of the school and serves to support the spiritual, moral and intellectual development of students as set out in the school’s mission statement. The Rule of St Benedict has provided the inspiration for many schools over the centuries and at Ampleforth we aim to share in that same tradition of, ‘establishing a school for the Lord’s Service’. (RSB Pro45)

TYPICAL DAILY ROUTINE OF THE HOUSE Time

Event

0720

Wake up call

0740

Morning Prayer

0750-0830

Breakfast in house. Day boys register with Housemaster

0840

Morning lessons (Periods 1 + 2)

1025

Morning breaktime

1050

Morning lessons resume (Periods 3 +4)

1235

House lunch

1315

Quiet time in House

1350

Afternoon lessons (period 5 + 6) 11

1535

Afternoon break

1600

Afternoon lessons resume (Period 7)

1655-1820

Activities and Supper

1830

Check-in and start of prep

2100

Evening prayer

2130

First year bedtime

2145

Second year bedtime

2200

Remove bedtime

2200

Light and TV off in communal rooms. All sixth form to own rooms

NOTES ON HOUSE ROUTINE •

Out of consideration for others’ sleep, those getting up before 7.00am must do without disturbing others in the House. The alarm for the front door is turned off at 6.40 am.

•

0720 morning call is done by the Remove year group on a rotation.

•

0740 morning prayer will also be the morning roll call and so is compulsory for boarders.

Day

boys

are,

of

course,

welcome to morning prayers, but as this might not be possible they must register at Mr LynchFrahill’s study before 0830.

Your parents should please contact by phone or e-mail if there is either a delay or absence that day.

•

Every morning before the start of lessons you will be expected to make your bed, put clothes away and ensure that your books are in good order and ready for the school day.

This is regularly checked by either Matron or the House monitor on duty that day.

•

From 1830 (the start of prep) until 0700 the next morning you must sign out if you are leaving the House. Boys should never be out of the House without permission after House prayers.

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WEEKENDS On Saturday afternoon after morning lessons and a cafeteria lunch you will be involved in sports, either training or representing the school in fixtures.

Saturday evening is the main social time of the week. There are regular social events, cinema trips, quiz nights and similar organised events either within the House. As we are keeping the house as a bubble this term we will have extra social spaces and entertainment to ensure that the boys will have a good deal to do.

The Windmill social centre for the sixth form is currently being assessed under the guidelines for COVID and a provision will be announced at the start of term for sixth form socialising.

Abbey Mass on Sunday will be at varied on different weeks due to restrictions on the numbers of people in the building.

Sunday Lunch is a formal House lunch at 1.00 pm (although in the summer term we usually have a House barbeque) and you will then have the rest of the afternoon free until prep time from 5.00 until 7.00 pm.

Unfortunately, we cannot run trips outside the school on Sundays for the first half of term at the earliest so we will make a provision for extra food and entertainment on Sundays for the boys.

GOING OUT WITH PARENTS Due to the COVID guidelines, boys will only be allowed to leave school at the weekend with their own parents. The first few weekends of school up to Exeat are ‘closed weekends’ to enable the boys to settle. If you wish to take your son out of school, please email Mr Lynch-Frahill.

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RELIGIOUS LIFE IN THE HOUSE Life in the House is underpinned by the Catholic and Benedictine ethos of the school and serves to support the spiritual, moral and intellectual development of students as set out in the school’s mission statement. The Rule of St Benedict has provided the inspiration for many schools over the centuries and at Ampleforth we aim to share in that same tradition of, ‘establishing a school for the Lord’s Service’. (RSB Pro45) 15

The Rule and the Gospel guide and inform life in the House and key parts of this involvement with the Catholic Benedictine tradition are our daily Morning and Evening Prayer, as well as Mass in-House for different year groups. There is also Sunday Mass in the Abbey, participation in reconciliation services, and the annual House retreat. Our House chaplain, Fr Alexander, is in the House almost every evening and is always available for boys who want to have a chat. He also runs the Philosophy Society where the boys discuss a huge array of topics. Boys can be involved in the religious life of the House either as readers and as Eucharistic ministers in the 6th form. One of the House monitors each year is also the House catechist who, along with Fr Alexander, prepares boys (most often Second years) for confirmation.

The Arrival of Basil Hume Millennium Cross

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Boys are also very welcome to attend any of the monastic offices in the Monks’ Choir in the Abbey church. The Schola Mass is at 8.30 pm on Fridays and Compline is at 8.15 pm every day.

As a House we also support the school’s charity, FACE-FAW, and students are invited to be involved in other pastoral activities, most notably the Friendship Holiday and the Lourdes Pilgrimage, both at the end of the summer term.

ACADEMIC LIFE IN HOUSE Ampleforth College is first and foremost an academic institution. Having been founded as a place for young Catholics to receive an education that can see them take a leading place in society, good academic performance is at the heart of what the school is trying to achieve.

Prep is done in the House after school every day and the staff and duty monitors ensure that prep time is a quiet time around the House, particularly in terms of playing music in rooms. You must stay in your own room unless you have arranged to go and work in the library. Any boy leaving the House must ask permission from the tutor on duty and sign out.

Mr Lynch-Frahill and the tutor on duty check the rest of the House to ensure that boys are working.

It is vital that all boys remember that if they are having difficulty with their prep they should talk to somebody about it as soon as possible. There are a number of sixth form mentors who will be happy to help with specific subject issues, as well as members of staff around who can also help. At the very least giving prep a go and agreeing with your teacher to see them in a support class or individually to go through the work is vastly preferable (and less liable to get a detention!) than just not doing work set.

Sixth formers have a number of study periods each week, during which they can either return to their rooms to work or go to the school library.

For many, particularly in the top three years, they will want to work before or after prep time in their rooms and it should be remembered that many students in day schools in their public exam year will be working more than two hours an evening.

In a wider sense the House is one in which academic interests, effort and achievement are both prized and encouraged. Boys who win Headmaster’s commendations (awarded for good effort every half term) get a special celebration meal cooked by Matron. Winning Headmaster’s 15

commendations also reflects well on the House, and as such will be an important factor in whether a boy wins his House colours.

You can also get practical help for your studies in the House. Our duty tutors can help with a range of different subjects, and individual learning support lessons can be arranged with Mr LynchFrahill which will be held either during study periods or during prep time.

ACTIVITIES AND SPORT In the evening each day, on Friday afternoon and sometimes at other times during the week, there are a large number of activities on offer to everyone in the school. These are often based on sports, music, drama, CCF or academic extension, but the range is even wider than that. It is expected that every boy will be a member of at least two different activities each week. Many will do much more!

With

training

on

Monday

and

Wednesday, team run (preparation for the weekend fixture) on Thursday evenings, and school fixtures for most on Saturday, sport is a very big part of life here at Ampleforth.

HOUSE COMPETITION AND HOUSE COLOURS Almost every single activity, from music to rugby to debating is also run as a House competition sometime during the year. These friendly but fiercely-fought competitions are invaluable for building up House spirit as they bring all the boys together as a real team. The breadth of different competitions, and the full participation required by many (such as cross country and the rowathon) means that everyone will have a role in representing the House at some stage of the year. Every year there is a presentation of House colours to reward those who have put in a really noteworthy effort for the House. There are junior colours for those in the First and Second year and senior half colours and colours that can be won by those in the top three years.

16

A good way for parents to keep up with life in the house on a regular basis is the house newsletter

that

we

will

send

and

our

house

facebook

page:

https://www.facebook.com/stthomas.ampleforth

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House Team MR LYNCH-FRAHILL - HOUSEMASTER This is Mr Lynch-Frahill’s first year in Ampleforth, he joins from King Edward’s School Witley where he has been a teacher of history and assistant housemaster for 5 years.

Before becoming a teacher, he served as a Naval Officer for 5 years. He is a graduate of St. Edmund’s College, University of Cambridge and University College Cork. He is currently reading a PhD in University College London. He loves all sport and has sailed internationally. His new love since moving to England is cricket, where much to Mrs LynchFrahill’s chagrin, he enjoys spending his evenings practicing his batting.

MR BUTLER - ASSISTANT HOUSEMASTER Mr Butler has been at Ampleforth and Assistant Housemaster for St Thomas’ for 2 years now, having moved from a state school in Scotland. He is an old boy of Ampleforth and went on to study Engineering at Manchester. Before becoming a teacher 12 years ago, he was an IT Manager and project consultant working for a number of big companies including Barclays, BBC, Sybase and IBM. He has always enjoyed a wide range of activities and sports, in the past it was the likes of chess, rugby, hockey, tennis & badminton but now that he lives in Scotland it is more curling and golf! He has 3 children, two of which are with him now at Ampleforth. Mr Butler shares the tutoring of years 12 and 13 with Mr Davison and Mr Devitt. He also coaches the SMA rugby plus the school da Vinci Decathlon.

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KATE DUREE - MATRON Kate has been matron for the boys of St Thomas’s House for almost five years. Having been a parent of three children in St Martin’s and Ampleforth, she has had more than ten years’ experience in the valley. Her role as matron is very much focussed on the pastoral care of the boys. Kate describes herself as being “like a mum at school” for the boys and it being “the most rewarding and the most exhausting job” that she’s ever had!

FR ALEXANDER- HOUSE CHAPLAIN Fr Alexander has been chaplain to St Thomas’ since 2008.

He says House prayers each evening, celebrates Mass in the House every Thursday and runs the St Thomas’ Philosophy Club on a Friday evening, involving members of the Sixth Form. He organizes the House Retreat in October each year which includes a House service activity (e.g. picking apples in the Orchard) and concludes with Mass in the crypt or Village church. He also teaches an Elective Course on Spirituality to the Sixth Form each year.

A former teacher of foreign languages (Spanish and Italian), he puts on a Russian Orthodox Liturgy in Russian and English twice a year in the abbey church.

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MR TOWNEND - TUTOR Mr Townend joined St Thomas’ House in 2017 having been at the College since 2012. He is a tutor to GCSE years and in the coming year he will be looking after our Year 11 students having also had them in Year 10. Mr Townsend is also the Head of Physics and is involved with the CCF Army Section running the Year 10 programme.

MR DAVISON - TUTOR Mr Davison is a former student of the College, who has previously been an Assistant Housemaster in St Thomas’s and a sixth form tutor since returning in 2009. An enthusiastic reader and teacher of Shakespeare, Irish literature and poetry, he also oversees the half-termly publication of ‘Ampleforth News’ and other student publications. He also coordinates the College’s live streaming of outside theatre productions. Mr Davison also coaches the 3rd XV Senior Rugby Team.

MR JAMES - TUTOR Mr

James

joined

Ampleforth after

retiring

from

professional rugby, playing his final game for Gloucester in front of a packed Kingsholm after 187 appearances. Mr James was also part of the 2007 Welsh World Cup squad playing four games. He leads the 1st XV and has had an immediate impact on the forwards. Mr James also heads up the Sports Development programme. This very important area of Ampleforth Sport ties in all the most promising sportsmen and women with lectures on nutrition to practical sessions on SAQ, strength and conditioning and swim fit.

20

MS TOMASI Ms Tomasi hails from Yorkshire and has been a tutor in St. Thomas’ for 1 year and has attended to the needs of our year 9 students with great empathy and compassion. She is a teacher of Dance and has over the past few months created some excellent videos on eAmpleforth challenging the students to develop their movement skills

MR DEVITT Mr Devitt is native of County Tipperary in the Republic of Ireland and holds a Master of Physics degree and a PGCE, both from the University of Liverpool, and an MBA from the Open University. He has served as Head of Physics, Joint Head of Science, Rugby coach and a Sixth-form tutor in St Thomas’ and then St Aidan’s, where he also assisted his wife, the then Housemistress of St Aidan’s. He is currently the Deputy Head Academic.

MRS LYNCH-FRAHILL Mrs Lynch-Frahill also lives in St. Thomas’ with Mr Lynch-Frahill and is keen to get to know the boys.

She is a graduate of Mary Immaculate College, Limerick and has been a Prep School teacher for 9 years. She has previously taught in St Bridget’s School in County Cork, The Marist School in Ascot, and Pennthorp School in West Sussex. She is a keen badminton player and enjoys travel. She is currently on study leave completing her Masters in Catholic Educational Leadership in St. Mary’s University, Twickenham.

21

DOUGAL - HOUSE DOG Dougal is a Labrador Retriever puppy who was born in March 2020.

He loves belly rubs and pig’s ears, and really likes being taken for walks by the boys. He is normally found in his bed in Mr Lynch-Frahill’s Study.

ELLA- HOUSE CAT Ella is an English Shorthaired Domestic Cat, who was rescued by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Little is known about her before she was adopted but she is very happy in her new home. She is very shy and does not like being picked up, but if a boy in the house is able to get her to rest on his lap a takeaway shall be his prize.

HOUSE MONITORS Alongside the House staff the House monitors in the Upper 6th, led by the Head and Deputy Head of House, help to run the House on a day-to-day level.

Monitors help with the practical running of the House; supervising prep, organising teams for House competitions, helping to run House socials etc. Just as importantly they are also there more generally as boys to whom other members of the House, particularly juniors, feel they can turn if they have any problems. Their rule is crucial in setting the tone for the rest of the House and they are very important in the influence that they have over the rest of the House. It is expected that they set a good example in their approach in all aspects of life at Ampleforth – academic, sporting, spiritual and social.

Monitors are given training and guidance in their roles, and are rewarded for their extra responsibility with, among other things, a special dinner each term.

22

Safeguarding Your safety and happiness are very important to us. You will get to know a broad range of staff who you will form positive relationships with and who you should feel comfortable talking to if you have a problem or a concern. Usually this will be members of your House Team such as your Housemistress or Housemaster, your Assistant Housemistress or Housemaster, your Matron, your Tutor or your House Chaplain. There is also a central designated safeguarding team who you are always welcome to speak to also. Posters with their names and faces on will be put up on your boarding house noticeboard along with their contact details also. Mr Ridge is the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL).

Substances Rules Students in the First, Second and Remove years are not allowed to have alcohol at any time while at school. Sixth formers are allowed a couple of drinks with a meal at Windmill at the weekends.

They are also allowed a couple of drinks along with food at House socials put on during the week from time to time.

If boys break these rules by drinking too much or drinking when they shouldn’t be they will be disciplined according to the school’s policy on alcohol. If a boy is deemed to be seriously drunk, then he might be taken down to the infirmary to be looked after there. This will automatically result in a school suspension. Either possessing or being found to have drunk spirits automatically results in an external suspension.

Smoking at any time is against school rules and persistent smoking can lead to serious disciplinary issues. The school and the House has a zero-tolerance approach to smoking.

The use of illegal narcotics at any time is against school rules will lead to serious disciplinary issues.

The school and the House has a zero-tolerance approach to drugs.

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Medical Care in School Matron is normally in the House between 8.00 am and 5.00 pm on weekdays. All medication is to be kept with her for safe keeping and she will accompany boys to medical appointments if possible.

The school infirmary is just down the hill from St Thomas’ if boys are feeling unwell or are injured, although boys should always talk to Matron or Mr Lynch-Frahill or the tutor on duty before going to the infirmary.

In the event of illness either Mr Lynch-Frahill or Matron will make the necessary provision via the infirmary, including a doctor’s appointment if necessary. Parents are informed by either email or phone if boys are kept in the infirmary overnight for any reason.

Health and Safety in the House You must keep your room / part of the dormitory tidy and free of litter. Furniture should not be moved in the rooms as everything has been placed carefully where it should be.

You must not fix anything to the walls except on the pin boards provided in each room. Modest posters (that you would not mind elderly relatives seeing for example!) can be put up but must be taken down at the end of each term as this is part of the letting arrangement for the holidays.

Every boy is also expected to take responsibility for the public spaces in the House, helping to create a tidy and homely environment. In addition, Matron regularly comes round and checks each room in the House.

As part of this a weekly fire check is also carried out. All electrical appliances must be PAT tested before arrival, or this will be undertaken once you arrive at school and charged to your account.

Every study desk has power points and these can be used only for personal computers, lights and stereos. Under no circumstances should students use or bring in other electrical items such as televisions, toasters and kettles. Students have access to toasters, kettles, microwaves, cookers, refrigerators and televisions in the House.

You should familiarise yourself with the escape routes and fire procedure for the House. Regular fire drills are carried out each term where we congregate on the football pitch (Wembley).

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Juniors are not allowed to go onto the 6th form gallery unless they have asked permission from Mr Lynch-Frahill. Similarly, students should not go into other year group dorms unless they have asked permission from Mr Lynch-Frahill. Only First years or monitors on duty should ever be in the First Year dormitories.

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List of Important Contacts Mr Gavin Lynch-Frahill Housemaster St Thomas’s House Ampleforth College York YO62 4EU 01439 766702 gjl@ampleforth.org.uk

Mrs Kate Duree Matron St Thomas’s House Ampleforth College York YO62 4EU 01439 766706 kate.duree@ampleforth.org.uk

Fr Alexander McCabe Chaplain to St Thomas’ House Ampleforth Abbey York YO62 4ER alexander@ampleforth.org.uk

Mr Piers Butler Assistant Housemaster St Thomas’ House Ampleforth College York YO62 4EU 01439 766702 piers.butler@ampleforth.org.uk

Tutor Contacts First Year (Year 9)

Miss Tomasi

emily.tomasi@ampleforth.org.uk

Second Year (Year 10)

Mr James

will.james@ampleforth.org.uk ,

Miss Tomasi Remove (Year 11)

Mr James Mr Townsend

Middle VIth (Year 12) (vertical Mr Davison tutors)

Upper VIth (Year 13) (vertical tutors)

emily.tomasi@ampleforth.org.uk will.james@ampleforth.org.uk , billy.townend@ampleforth.org.uk daniel.davison@ampleforth.org.uk ,

Mr Butler

piers.butler@ampleforth.org.uk

Mr Davison,

daniel.davison@ampleforth.org.uk ,

Mr Butler

piers.butler@ampleforth.org.uk

Mr Devitt

John.Devitt@ampleforth.org.uk

26

St Thomas’s House Ampleforth College York YO62 4EU

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