Ackworth Today - Autumn 2021

ACKWORTH

TODAY

A FOCUS ON THE FUTURE

Global Learning Week puts sustainability – and fun! – at the heart of Coram House

Home Away From Home New rooms, new friends, and new routines for Ackworth boarders

Making a Difference Keeping alive community spirit during challenging times

AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

HEAD’S ADDRESS ANTON MAREE

A Year of Promise The first term of the new year also holds so much promise.

A new year group for pupils; for some a new school. For teachers, the chance to begin the journey afresh.

F

or me, it was the chance to return to the school year as we did in 2019, with morning meetings in the Meeting House, year groups mixing and no limits on how we could bring the school together.

As we now know, that wasn’t to be. Despite infections in our area holding at relatively low levels at the beginning of term, we took the precaution of keeping our Covid-safe measures in place. This was to ensure continuity of education for pupils and the safety of our community. On reflection, it was the right decision. Cases are rising in the U.K., although serious illness seems hampered by the rapid rollout of vaccinations to adults earlier in the year. Children are now being vaccinated, too, with those who choose to take up the jab being offered the chance to do it in school.

Despite this, there is much that is allowed to proceed. School trips are back on. Teachers are eagerly running trips to Belgium, Iceland and the USA, to name but a few. I’m sure pupils will relish the chance to travel somewhat more freely, and for international pupils the opportunity to experience more of the world outside Ackworth.

We held an Evening of Table Tennis event, which saw our academy players compete in a friendly tournament against a group of external players.

The event was attended by players’ families, and it was wonderful to bring people together for an enjoyable evening to celebrate the sport and the return to competitions.

2 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

Our Football Academy has welcomed a number of new players to its ranks this year, not in the least from as far afield as Bermuda. Our growing teams are reflecting our determination to offer excellence in all that we do. Our Football Academy continues to attract interest from pupils both at home and overseas.

Our works programme has progressed at pace throughout the school. Heating systems have been upgraded in the Library and Girls’ School House, providing much needed control over temperatures during the colder months.

Refurbishment in boarding continues with a new kitchen-dining area for boys, while girls have taken up residence in the upgraded western end of Boys’ School House, though segregated by strong security systems, I should point out.

In spite of the pressures we face brought about by the pandemic, our focus continues to be on pushing the school forward in all areas. Our boarding offering is now as competitive as some of the best in the business; our technology revolution continues throughout the school with more departments receiving upgrades; and we continue to review our curricular offering to ensure it prepares pupils to enter a modern world.

ACKWORTH TODAY

A Letter of Gratitude Dear Mr Maree,

h, and my time at Ackwort I will forever cherish en wh re lucky we all we I am reminded how school. at e tim ir the scribe listening to others de ed by the unique They are often shock where we can speak ibe environment I descr a daily basis, wonder to the headmaster on break times and have the grounds freely at lly with teachers who rea such small class sizes s. sse ne ak gths and we understand our stren asure to attend each It was a genuine ple ul to you particularly, day, and I am gratef g the school, but addin ing not just for oversee r ou gh ou rsonally thr a great deal to me pe ct ve had a large impa ha ey Th s. ion at convers y. da a highlight of my on me and became Kind regards,

Oliver Foster

www.ackworthschool.com | 3

SUMMER TERM

Open Day 2021 This year’s Open Day on 9th July was an inhouse event and, due to restrictions, only pupils and staff attended. The day was a hot 22 °C so the full event was hosted out on The Green. The day began with speeches from the Clerk and the Head, along with the school hymn.

Shortly after was the presentation of awards. Congratulations to Maisie Waite for receiving the Carl Sutcliffe Award and to Ben Cawood for receiving The Old Scholar Cup. The afternoon began with a superb music performance, which eventually led into Ackworth School’s all-famous Grand March – socially distanced of course.

An Open Day with a big difference, but not too far from tradition. If you wish to watch the live streamed recording, scan this QR Code!

Ben Cawood

Old Scholar Cup Citation This person has impressed the staff and wider community with their pro-active, positive, and friendly manner. They have embodied the very best of what we expect in terms of behaviour and representation from our students. Their willingness to go the extra mile to make other people’s life easier has been noticed by a wide range of people within the school.

When gathering information for this citation one member of staff said, ‘Where do we start with this student, how do we narrow it down? From accidentally mentoring the lower school students through kindness and friendship, to diligently introducing new students to the Ackworth way by giving tours and generally making people feel settled and secure.’

This person is a committed member of Woolman House and whilst they are not House Captain, their contribution to the House and the House system has been outstanding, rivalling even die-hard Woolmans as top woolly mammoth in terms of House Spirit.

This person has done a huge amount to encourage participation in House events by members of all ages and has arguably single-handedly revitalised ‘House’ competitions. Without him, it would not have been possible.

Evidence of this includes that he is ‘far away’ from being a singer, but got the whole house singing as a choir. Geoguesser, e-sports - these new House initiatives were spearheaded by him. Dubbed as something ‘new and different’ to encourage participation.

House meetings online are entirely down to him encouraging people to work together, motivating people to be involved, putting in the time and effort to keep this important school tradition alive.

4 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

Scan Me!

Carl Sutcliffe As a sports leader he has been fantastic. He helped in organising the inter-form Olympics just before Christmas, the Olympic day, and Race to Japan. His commitment and support of these events has been wonderful. Not one to let go of the microphone easily, he was the Master of Ceremonies for Olympic Day and interacted with Coram House children brilliantly.

Contributions to Sixth Form entertainment have been overseen by this person in their own special way, organising staff participation and learning new skills to deal with the video editing required for this year. He is also the only person ever to convince Erica Dean to become a difficult person and coax her acting talent out of her.

To make this happen in the face of adversity is a real achievement.

This person embodies the ethos of Ackworth School and his contribution to so many aspects of the school community makes him a very worthy winner of the Old Scholars’ Cup. He is, of course, Ben Cawood.

ACKWORTH TODAY

Sports Day in photos

Nursery

Pre-Prep

www.ackworthschool.com | 5

SUMMER TERM Prep

Senior

6 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

ACKWORTH TODAY

Coram House

A New Global Committee for Coram House and aspiring young activisits!

Coram House’s newest members of the Global Committee met for the first time this term. With COP26 Glasgow and environmental matters being on everybody’s minds the pupils are even more passionate to have their say.

First item up on the agenda, car emissions in the school car park! The Global Committee ran a competition for pupils to design a poster to be hung in the car park, asking people to turn off their engines whilst waiting. During their meeting one Friday morning, the Committee deliberated and decided on a winner. Congratulations to Freya, Annie, and India for your poster designs! You are the winners.

How does it make you feel seeing everyone come together at COP26 in Glasgow?

What does it mean to you to be part of the global committee?

Diamond, “I think they have actually tried with COP26 and a lot have tried to change to make the environment better.”

Vivi, “I feel like it’s good that all the countries are taking responsibility as leaders, but they do need to do something that will make a drastic change otherwise all of this will be for nothing”

Darcie, “I think it’s exciting because it means keeping the environment safe” Gabby, “Well, it means saving the environment, and when I am saving the environment it makes me feel like I am doing something right!”

Get a different perspective on life…

Year 3 have been working on the iPads investigating perspective with great fun being had! www.ackworthschool.com | 7

SUMMER TERM Art Club During the summer Year 3 and 4 girls were sewing bags. Once the bag was made and ready, we experimented with tie-dye!

There was no certainty of how the folding and the colours would come out. The suspense was intense until the big reveal!

Time Capsule Food and Nutrition 2nd form had a go at making Honeycomb, Science you can eat!

8 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

To mark what has been such an unusual and turbulent year, we created a time capsule in Coram House. Each year group has filled a bag with items that they believed represented the last year. This has included pieces of writing from lockdown, drawings, Covid vaccination vials, newspaper cuttings and much more. This time capsule will be buried in the new peace garden for future pupils to find. Well done to all of the pupils in Coram House for their hard work on this project.

ACKWORTH TODAY

International Week in Food Tech Claude As part of his work experience Claude visited Analytical Innovations in Mirfield. Claude got the opportunity to work on state-of-the-art systems to carry out analysis for drugs present in hair samples.

4th Year French

2nd Year have been making TexMex. They made Chilli Con Carne and toasted Corn bread (Photo 1). 3rd Year have been cooking Mexican food and made Chicken Enchiladas (Photo 2). And in 1st Year class they have been preparing curry as part of exploring the flavours of India (Photo 3). Mongolian Chicken was prepared by 4th Year (Photo 4).

1

For International week, 4th form French pupils wrote letters to French pupils at “Le Collège Saint Louis de la Guillotière” in Lyon. Here they are holding their letters.

They are looking forward to receiving replies in the new term!

2

3 4

2nd and 3rd Year French In 2nd and 3rd Year French for international week, the pupils researched famous French-speakers and produced presentations that they then shared with their classmates.

www.ackworthschool.com | 9

SUMMER TERM Drama The Wardrobe The Junior Drama Production, Summer Term 2020-21 The junior drama production that took place at the end of the Summer term 2020-21 (Sam Holcroft’s “The Wardrobe”) was held outdoors in Great Garden amid England’s Level 3 Covid restrictions. Even though, when I look around me now, it is clear that things are still not quite right, the world is definitely getting back to normal: testament to this is the fact that I can’t really remember what Level 3 restrictions actually were. What I do remember, is how challenging this play was to produce, how many difficulties beset its redoubtable cast and crew: the unpredictable weather, unforeseen student withdrawals, the awkwardness hulking around a giant and unwieldy wardrobe to and from the gym, the challenges of negotiating rehearsals for two separate casts who were doubling the parts just in case covid bubbles popped. Then add to that the fact that the engine room of the play, the wonderful cast, were all students in the lower years of the school, none older than 14, some taking on their first leading roles, some performing for the very first time. Professional theatres weren’t putting on productions so how on earth could we? In so many ways, the whole endeavour was absurd.

But that’s the beauty of plays, the beauty of drama. No matter what the circumstances, the prospect of it is always utterly ridiculous in the beginning, yet we come together to do it anyway.

In a matter of a few short months, we’re going to transform 60 written pages’ worth of dormant letters into a living, breathing creature, a production that miraculously brings long-dead characters back to life, showing in a few short minutes the tumult and chaos of their lives at their most traumatic, their most joyful, their most intense.

In a matter of a few short months, we’re going to put on a play that traverses 500 years of human history in a little over an hour, from the last days of the Wars of the Roses to the paranoia of the Plague, to the heartbreak of WW1 conscription, to the cruelty of social media.

In a few short months, whole scenes will be learned and performed in completely different languages, bawdy ballads from the late 1880s will be resurrected and belted out as if from the terraces of a football stadium, and stories of sexuality, racism, domestic violence, bereavement, fear, hope, will be told by a group of 11-14 year olds with a sensitivity, a maturity and a deftness of touch that utterly belies their ages.

It always seems impossible until it’s done. Yet again, it reiterated the enormous privilege I have in teaching our students. The cast and crew of The Wardrobe have had to deal with so much, yet were willing to put in the (considerable) time and the (draining) effort to put on a show in the most trying of circumstances. It should have been impossible and it wasn’t. They did it.

10 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

There were too many wonderful moments of the production to recount them all; little snippets and snatches from memory will have to stand as inadequate tribute to the whole. Nina holding her nerve and executing her ten-minute monologue in the pouring rain. Liam’s unflappable servant, William, calm and cool in the face of the crazed irrationality of Milano’s Jaffrey. Noah’s French and Adam’s German. Erin’s bana-NA. Charlotte and Alice’s fabulous and completely different Lady Macbeths. The boys hiding in the wardrobe with Jack the Ripper in the tabloids, singing ‘Sweet Violets’ - Noah, Adam, Milano, Harvey and Ben. Takarra and Eve, Alice and Erin, in their fabulous Tudor costumes, chewing on blood capsules.

My pox-ridden, festering servants Eve, Alice, Zoe, Charlotte, Nina, Alex. Eve’s angry, heartbroken Nell, swatting the sarcasm out of Noah. Takarra’s ever-hopeful narrator in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with her terrible costumes, Alex’s stern but sympathetic nurse. Zoe pulling out the stops to hit the volume in the last scene despite the total lack of acoustics outdoors. Rachel’s pleasure at merging haunting classical with Macklemore. The fact that so many students were at the very heart of the whole show; not just the cast, but Ella, Bella, Freya and Emily as assistant directors, Freya with makeup, Eva with props, Lucy with costumes, Rachel with sound, Mia with design, and ready for the wet weather plan, George on lights. The energy, focus, and commitment of the students was the beating heart of this beautiful play.

I wasn’t the only one who sensed it. ‘Maybe it was the acting’, one person wrote to me after the run, ‘or maybe it was the birds, or maybe it was just the fact that it was an actual play with an actual audience… but the play had heart, clearly flowing through each and every participant. Those students absolutely loved being part of it.’ I do hope so. I loved working with them. I loved theatre coming alive again at Ackworth, after too long locked down and locked away. It was unsurprisingly emotional putting a show in front of people again. It reminded me how primal and how necessary that sense of human connection is. That sense of relatedness and contact and transport and story: it felt like thawing and returning to yourself again. And all done by 11-14 year olds. It’s astonishing. They’re astonishing.

Alistar Boucher, Head of Drama

ACKWORTH TODAY

Ben Cawood reflects on drama and his performance of Every Brilliant Thing I began getting involved with drama with Mr Vergette in my first year at Ackworth when I played the role of ‘party/wedding guest’ in The Sound of Music. Vergette’s drama club on a Thursday afternoon was one of the highlights of my week. Since then, I have taken part in every production that has been available to me, even the musicals when, how can I put this, my singing rather lacks proficiency! I have also been involved in the interhouse drama productions and directed them for Woolman (GO WOOLMANNNNN!) for a number of years.

In June I performed the second of two one man shows I have performed at Ackworth. The first being A Chip in the Sugar by Alan Bennett which saw a Yorkshireman who is chronically dependant on his elderly mother become deeply troubled when she has a relationship with a man who does not turn out to be faithful. This year I performed Every Brilliant Thing – a play by Duncan McMillan. As a result of these performances there has been the creation of the Ackworth summer monologue or the so called ‘Cawood slot’, where a different pupil performs a one man show at the end of each school year. Sitting in my room at uni writing this on a cold November night, it is an absolute honour to know that I have left a mark on the school in this way.

Choosing the monologue was one of the most difficult tasks – and involved reading lots and lots of plays. We considered numerous texts including one where the performer was sent the script by the playwright just one hour before performance and then had the task of sight reading it all.

Surprisingly, Every Brilliant Thing was something that I initially turned down! I was concerned about its hard-hitting theme and the way in which it directly asks the audience to take part in the production by taking on characters and reading out bits of paper, which I not only thought would be a challenge (being something completely different to what I had ever done) but also I thought being only 18 years old, an audience may not react well to me asking them to stand up in front of everyone.

How wrong could I have been?! I am eternally grateful for Mr Boucher asking me to reconsider the play as it is so poignant and so relevant to so many people. It is known as ‘one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression’ and it truly is. It centres around the life of an unnamed ‘narrator’ who has a mother with depression who tries to take her own life on two occasions and eventually does towards the end of the play. It follows his life through childhood to university and into adulthood and how he copes with his mother’s attempts: he writes a list of every brilliant thing – things such as really good oranges, falling asleep as soon as you make it onto a plane, waking up when you land and feeling like a time traveller, staying up all night talking, and waking up late next to someone you love. The narrator completes the list to one million, but it did not save his mother. The audience is given list entries to read out during the performance, so for example if I said the number ‘1006’ someone would say ‘surprises’. In the end not only did we manage to make all the entries in the play that are read by the audience, myself

and Shannon Jones managed to fill a whole wheelbarrow with our own entries of ‘every brilliant thing’ about the world which the audience could peruse at their leisure at the end of the performance.

Each time I read the text, I see it from a different light and read different interpretations into what the playwright has written. Furthermore, the play has made me see the world completely differently and in so many general life situations, you could so easily reference lines from the play from the silly to the poignant in almost any situation. One of my biggest fears with performance was performing the line: ‘I have some advice for anyone who is contemplating suicide’ – feeling that because I had no experience of such feelings, I had no right to be giving such guidance. Yet, that is the art of performing – playing characters who are different to you. Moreover, it was an important message and one that needed speaking out. In fact, talking to one lady after my performance in the community, she told me that she herself has suffered from anxiety and depression and that the play really spoke to her and she loved the way it addressed the issue in an amusing yet mindful way.

The most interesting thing about performing the play in my opinion was seeing how different audiences reacted to the play. I began by performing sections of it to Mr Boucher’s different drama classes from first year to third year and it was intriguing to compare how a younger audience compared to the evening production at school which was then totally different from in the community. The community performance was at a local Women’s Institute group and so while a little confused at the beginning about why the heck an 18-year-old was handing out bags of paper with writing on for them to read out, with many people asking “Are you actually doing any performing or is it just us!?”, they quickly got into it and were willing to extend the improvisation further, taking on the physicality of the different characters too.

Performing a one man show obviously has its challenges, and particularly this one with the added element of audience participation. People often ask how on earth I learn such vast swathes of text? I think the real challenge is working on how to perform each of the lines. Remembering the different pace, tone, inflection, volume etc. on each line, and particularly in this play where there is a very large contrast between the narrator’s “up” moments and “down” moments.

Remembering an hour’s worth of blocking, physicality, movement and vocal can be a challenge and I would have to read through notes I had taken down and drill them into my head once the lines were secure.

The performances themselves seemed go to better than rehearsals, and that is simply down to the fact that performances have an audience and so it brings the piece to life and allows for greater improvisation. Obviously, there were slip ups, for example a prop in the wrong place, I lost my place and just went ‘you know what I have no idea what I’m saying’ and got a prompt from Boucher. The beauty of this play is that for whatever reason the audience is ALWAYS on your side. The conversational style and the way it engages www.ackworthschool.com | 11

SUMMER TERM and involves the audience means that if something does go wrong they are always forgiving. In many ways that provided some sort of a get out of gaol free card.

I thoroughly enjoyed the whole process from start to finish, from choosing texts, to rehearsing to practising to performing. It is a beautiful monologue and one which I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to perform.

That is the brilliant thing about Ackworth, there is always an opportunity to pursue the things you enjoy in an environment where people will support you all the way.

Coram House

National Thursday 24th June

Year 3 and 4 Year 3 and 4 worked together to show ‘what love was all about’ during Forest School this week.

Benjamin Cawood (OS 2014-21)

Our Visiting Friend

– Zephyrine Barbarachild Charlotte Hussey (Year 3)

The different faces of friendship 5B Zephyrine visited our class, she is a Quaker. We all asked a question about what it is like to be a Quaker. My question was, “Why did you become a Quaker?” The answer was, “I was born into a Quaker family, but I soon realised I was not a membered Quaker, so I chose to become a Quaker member.”

I learned at Zephyrine’s visit that the room next to my classroom used to be a ‘sick- bay’ when she was a boarder at the school. I also learned that it takes a lot to be a true Quaker and it is more than going to meetings and staying silent for an hour or so! It is also about caring for others and thinking about other people before yourself.

Quaker silences mean a lot to me because they give me time to think about any little mistakes I have made in the past and how to learn from them. I also think about how much I am given and that I should be grateful for it.

12 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

A friend to me is someone who you can count on and someone who cares.

I met my first best friend when I was three years old.

Seven years later, we are still besties now. A good friend is someone whom you can depend on, someone who is loyal and someone who is supportive when you need them the most. IT A friend to me is reliable. It takes time, we always have to have trust. Friends are special. We always have to help them. They can try nice - that matters - but personally it is more about loyalty. They make me feel special. They always help me and are the best thing to have. HE To me a friend is a great opportunity and there are lots of great adventures in a friendship. It is super fun and there lots of good experiences. Friends are very loyal and supportive. They always stay by your side. They rely on you as you rely on them. HR To me, a friend is a person that is there through things in your life. It is a person that makes you and other people happy. A friend is someone that you can trust,

ACKWORTH TODAY

The different faces of friendship by 5H pupils A friend to me is one of the most precious things I have ever had. Before I got my friend, I had to have confidence to speak to get that friend. I had to show loyalty and pride.

When I had put all that energy and work into it, I got that special person. ZF A friend to me is somebody who makes me laugh and somebody who has my back. A friend is also kind, open about themselves, loving and gracious. You should be able to trust your friend and they should be able to trust you. A friend to me is also helpful and thoughtful. Your friend must be reliable. I have two very reliable best friends and they are some of the most cherished people in my life. A true friend will always stay with you through the highs and the lows. GF A friend to me is a wonderful thing to have and they are caring and helpful. A friend is someone I can rely on and who is the most precious thing I could ever have. If I lost my friends, I would be very sad. JB A good friend to me is a reliable person whom I can trust.

You can play with them and have fun. A friend is someone you like to spend time with. But remember to sometimes do what your friend wants of you. Otherwise, they won’t want to be your friend anymore. DH A friendship means a lot to me because it is very hard to find a true friend. My friends always help me and

rely on and talk to if you are down. They can count on you and you can count on them. But a best friend you can trust and rely on more. You might fall out but a real friend will forgive you. SE A friend to me is someone you can trust, tell your secrets to and someone who will help you in everything. Friends aren’t just friends; they are family. If and when you fight with them, you will always get back together. A friend is the best gift you can get. They make you feel like you are in a home away from home. FC To me a friend is somebody that cares for you even in your darkest hours. It is somebody that looks out for you, who is loyal and supportive. They are kind even when you are angry at them. They will always be there for you. They make promises that they will keep. DJ To me a good friend is a person I can trust. Through the good times and the bad, a friend should always be by your side. Having a best friend made me confident. Friends are the people that you can rely on and should always have your back. My best friend and I have had a friendship for years. KP To me a friend is someone who listens to you when something is wrong and wherever you go, they will always be by your side. They are easy to talk to and you feel safe in their presence. They are someone who respects your secrets and don’t judge you for them.

You can trust them. BL

appreciate my decisions. A true friend is someone you can always rely on. It was very hard for me to get a friend because it took me a long time to find a true real friend. GK A friend to me is a trustworthy person. They are also responsible and loyal.

It is someone you can rely on at all times. A true friend is someone who always has your back in bad situations. SS A friend to me is someone I can count on. Someone I can tell secrets to. Someone I can play with. Someone who makes me laugh and makes me happy when I am around them. They should never fail you and if they do, they are not a proper friend. HP A friend to me is someone who cares about you, makes you laugh and someone whom you can trust. If your friend isn’t loyal or reliable, they aren’t a true friend. Make sure they are considerate and thoughtful. GB

A friend to me is a person I can rely on and someone who cares, someone who can understand. A friend is someone truly loyal to me. A friend is someone who can help you when you are down, someone you can count on, someone who you work very hard to get, someone that can support you in your darkest times and will always be there for you. RF It is hard to be a good friend, you have to be confident and loyal. If you have a good friendship it will last forever - well hopefully. Six years ago, I joined a new school and I didn’t have any friends. So I had to be brave and confident enough to get myself one. Ever since that day, I have had a best friend and I still have to same one now. AS

Year 4 An example of our self-portrait work.

We added positive comments about ourselves to the portrait too.

www.ackworthschool.com | 13

SUMMER TERM Pre-Prep Activities – Self portraits

Emoji Faces Year 4 have been discussing emotions and how we show our emotions. We have been working outdoors to create some emoji faces to portray different emotions.

The children have really enjoyed this activity and have created some fantastic work.

Lucy “Though the 5th Year was tough last year, we all managed to pull through and celebrated the end of our secondary school time with the Prom. With it being held at school, we were able to spend our last moments with some people that we’d known for five years or more in the same place.

The boys were dressed in their smartest suits, and the girls in their glamorous gowns. We danced the night away, cherishing the last memories we will have as a year group.

It will be a night we will all remember and cherish for the rest of our lives.”

Nursery Activities – Making Family Trees

Evelyn Year 6 Relationship Cubes

“I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and I’m grateful that I got to say goodbye to people who have shaped my life forever.”

Marius “Prom was very fabulous.”

Grace D “Prom was everything ten-year-old me wished for, and more.”

Blake “Prom was a nice, well-organised experience.

Glad to be there.”

Layla “We were so lucky to have an experience we will never forget. It was such a special and magical day.”

Milly “It was a very beautiful and unforgettable experience.”

14 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

ACKWORTH TODAY

AUTUMN TERM

International Day of Peace

As a Quaker school, PEACE is one of our core values and there are many people within the Friends Society who work hard every day in creating more peace and less conflict in the world.

Year 6 Year 6 have been creating posters during Computing lessons for Peace Day. Some very recognisable symbols are used throughout!

Science Week Reception Reception enjoyed watching Sublime Science during Science Week and Rocket Ross taught them the importance of testing and experimenting. Reception then had great fun testing what happens when warm water is poured in the centre of the Skittles.

They finished off the week enjoying using the pond and dipping equipment to find out what lives in the school pond.

Year 6 Year 6 enjoyed their Sublime Science session in the Fothergill Theatre. Year 6 learned about vibrating particles, quarks, electrons and making slime. www.ackworthschool.com | 15

AUTUMN TERM World Quaker Day and Outreach Week

Ackworth School’s vis iting friend, Zephyrine Barbarac hild, spent time with Coram Ho use pupils over the week speak ing about Quakerism. There we re lots of enthusiastic question s!

Sunday 3rd October was World Quaker Day with Quaker Outreach Week following.

“The Quaker faith allows you to draw strength in many different ways. In a time of crisis living in truth provides clarity and simplicity to your life and allows you to reflect on what is important.”

Ackworth was founded as a Quaker school in 1779, to educate Quaker children ‘not in affluence’. Much has changed since then but we still state in our aims that Quaker values underpin the school. At the heart of the Quaker faith is the statement in the first Advice: Hence the emphasis on silence which still shapes our day at Ackworth and which is such a feature of the school, giving as it does a reflective feel to our daily lives. Having listened, a Quaker tries, however imperfectly, to translate faith into practice. This year’s theme was Hope and Resilience – so what did our pupils have to say about what Quakerism means to them and how it has helped or affected them over the last 24 months…

• Quaker beliefs and values allow you to connect with other people who may also be going through their own personal challenges. Quakerism gives you the ability to bring people together in friendship for the mutual benefit of all. Climate crisis’ need a collective response. That single solidarity can be found when people are brought together equally, something found in Quakerism. (Rhys) • The world has been in a severe pit of crisis (due to COVID-19) for almost two years and as a result we have all endured an immense struggle. Quakerism may be perceived as more than a religion, it is a community that highlights core values which are beneficial for positive human interaction. One Quaker ritual that people may be able to draw strength from is meeting for worship and period of silence. Silence presents vital opportunities for reflection, stimulating many parts of the brain, which encourages awareness and gratitude of the now and present moment. This will enable the ability to focus on the positives of the situation as opposed to the negatives linked to the time of crisis. I attend Ackworth School, a Quaker boarding school, which has a motto of ‘Non Sibi Sed Omnibus’, meaning not for oneself but for all. This values the process of working together in a small community, in order to benefit the larger community.

This approach embodies the simplicity and sustainability values of Quakers. Even if we don’t believe our small change will be impactive upon global warming or other global climate change, one small step made by a smaller population will in turn help the greater picture in the future. (Emily) 16 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

• Q uakerism helps me to clear my mind to be able to perceive the truth and help me enlighten my outlook on my peers and allows us me to connect even through trying times like COVID-19. (Matthew) • T he Quaker faith allows you to draw strength in many different ways. In a time of crisis, living in truth provides clarity and simplicity to your life and allows you to reflect on what is important. The silences that are carried out throughout the day, allows me to reflect and learn more about the community and gain perspective about the world around me. Quakerism also helps me deal with the climate crisis as it allows me to be educated on the resources that I am using and the sustainability of the products being used in everyday life. By being mindful about the world’s natural resources and learning how to live a simple and sustainable life, allows you to help fight against the climate crisis in an informed and effective way. (Abrielle) • Quakers are kind and peaceful followers of their practices and through every action, the thread of equity and empathy is evident. As we approach a global warming crisis, it is important that we all accept responsibility in improving the state of our Earth as we all live here together. Quakerism is against the blame culture of who initiated the potential crisis, instead it focuses on the positive impact each individual can have on recovering from global warming. The motto of Ackworth School, non sibi sed omnibus - not for oneself but for everyone, is a reminder of the impact and importance of selflessness and its powers. (Harriet)

ACKWORTH TODAY

Founders’ Day Walks On 20th October we set off at 10:00 and got on the minibus. When we were all on, we went off on an adventure. Me and Brendan were taking pictures of the nice lake. Some people went for a walk around the garden and then around the house. Some people had to wear blue covers over their shoes as they were too muddy. I went around the lake with Miss Stoner, Alex and Miss Turner and I went in the park with Brendan and Alex. I made some new memories with my new friends.

In the courtyard there were some massive white and orange pumpkins for us to look at. There was also a nice cafe and a nice shop I bought a bottle of Pepsi. Then I went on a zip-line it was great fun going on the zip-line, Miss Mace, Mrs Addison, Miss Finn and Kacie, Claude and Claus me and Alex went to the lake.

Henry (First Form)

www.ackworthschool.com | 17

AUTUMN TERM

Charity Week Every year, the pupils and staff choose one international and one UK or local charity from a short list of six which are chosen by the Sixth Form.

We raised just over £2500 this year for international charity World Land Trust, and UK charity Bluebell Wood Children’s hospice.

Activities the pupils could have taken part in included cake and hotdogs for sale, charity auctions, the staff & Sixth Form entertainment evening, frugal lunch, and most pupils’ favourites, the stocks!

World Land Trust Buy an Acre - Habitat loss is the greatest threat facing wildlife worldwide. World Land Trust work to re-forest land and employ local people to work as rangers to protect it as nature reserves. They believe that by protecting land, acre by acre, they are taking the best action to ensure a future for wildlife. Under the ‘Buy an Acre’ scheme in Brazil, Argentina and Guatemala they use every £100 donation to purchase one acre of habitat and protect it for wildlife.

European Day of Languages In September we celebrated European Day of Languages!

Throughout the school we heard of the importance of language learning and the pupils took part in activities. The dining room was decorated with flags of the world, language facts, and even a themed menu! Yum...

18 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice helps families in S.Yorks who want an alternative to end-of-life hospital care for children and teenagers. Fundraising started when 11-yearold Richard and his mum wanted him to pass away at home. The hospice supported 267 families in 2019-20, helping tired mums and dads get some much needed me-time; looking after brothers and sisters who are feeling angry, lonely or confused; and are there for families during the last moments of their child’s life.

ACKWORTH TODAY

Halloween Spooky fun was enjoyed on the last day of half term!

Harvest Festival During the Autumn term, Coram House prepared and performed their yearly Harvest Festival. A recording is available on YouTube – follow the QR Code to watch now!

Scan Me!

www.ackworthschool.com | 19

BOARDING UPDATE Settling Into A New Routine I have blinked and we are almost at the end of the first half term! I am not quite sure how that happened but as they say, time flies when you are having fun. The boarders are very much looking forward to a well-earned rest, as are my team and I wouldn’t often admit to this, but me too!

This first half term has been much about establishing relationships, adjusting to new routines, learning how to respect one another and generally enjoying living as one big family. I am sure they will all be pleased to share with you some of the laughs we have had over the past six weeks.

I have to say that despite a couple of bumps along the road, all of the boarders have been a pleasure. I especially enjoy witnessing the enthusiasm that oozes out of them in so many different areas. We have exceptional football players (boys and girls), we have musicians that grace us with their music regularly, we have table tennis players that show an elite level of commitment to their sport. The boarders are so fortunate that they can enjoy such a wide variety of extra curricular activities to fill their evenings that compliment their academic studies.

Last week, we appointed our Boarding House Captains and Council. This was an incredibly proud moment for me, and for them. It is important that they have a voice, we can only make changes if we know what to change and I am sure they will help steer things in the right direction.

This week marked our annual Founders’ Day. We celebrate the day the school was founded with traditional activities such as charitable contributions, local walks in the countryside and, of course, bangers and mash to finish the day!

20 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

We have celebrated a few birthdays this month. Our catering team provide each boarder with a lovely cake on their birthday and we all sing happy birthday in our morning meeting. It is always a lovely way to start the day when there is a birthday to celebrate.

Lastly, I would like to talk to you about the CCTV system that we have installed on all the main entrances as you enter the boarding house. This is not revolutionary, in fact, most schools are now adopting the same level of security. The cameras are being installed as an additional security measure to assist the electronic key pad system. The safety of our boarders is paramount and I am pleased to share this update with you. The CCTV policy can be viewed on our website.

I would like to wish you all a restful and happy half term!

Nicola Gilbert and The Boarding Team

NURSERY

ACKWORTH TODAY

First week back in Nursery and everyone was happy to welcome our new friends, and welcome back our old friends too. There is always fun to be had whilst learning!

www.ackworthschool.com | 21

CORAM HOUSE Head’s Address One of the best things about Coram House is the fact that we can tweak and make our curriculum personalised; this benefits the pupils, teachers, and parents. We can ‘cherry pick’ the very best parts of National Curriculum and dedicate our teaching and learning to the topics and subjects we want to highlight and prioritise.

Science week was two years in the making. The pandemic got in the way but did not deter us from going ahead.

Staff planned both practical and investigative experiences for the children across physics, biology, and chemistry.

A week that we will not forget in a long time!

Each pupil experienced a session with the Sublime Scientist but, perhaps for me, the highlight was watching the pupils enter the planetarium and looking up to see dinosaurs, the solar system, space travel – to name but a few.

We are so lucky to have this flexibility and freedom and I embrace this every day when I come into school.

Global Committee We would like to introduce our new Global Committee 2021-2022.

22 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

As one Year 3 child told me “That was the best week ever.

I love science!”

Sally Slater, Head of Coram House

Year 1 Reading and Writing Children enjoying the implementation of Read, Write, Inc. and it is going well.

ACKWORTH TODAY

Year 3 Table Tennis practice with Chris Parker

Year 5 A visit from a Nutritionist New instruments for Year 3!

Christine Bailey qualified nutritionist met a panel of Year 5 children. They discussed nutrition generally, the eatwell plate, “eating the rainbow”, portions, different food categories and allergies.

Year 4 Boys in the sunshine!

Year 6 Scholastic Lollies Year 6 took part in a workshop with Jenny Pearson during the Scholastic Lollies in September. Jenny ran a quiz in which the class discovered that someone once arrested a coconut and that jellybeans and some cheese is illegal to sell in the UK! www.ackworthschool.com | 23

CORAM HOUSE Forest School Year 5: Building boats in Forest School Reception: The autumn chill was in the air which means it was a perfect afternoon for toasting marshmallows on a fire in Forest School. Our lucky Reception class got to experience this special treat and did so well carefully toasting their marshmallows to perfection.

Reading

Drama Club

Coram House is having a big push on reading at the moment. They have introduced the Reading Raffle to encourage reading at home. The children have also been loving reading to their friends in class, each year group have enjoyed zoom calls from different authors and they had a visit from the scholastic book fair. Every class is also now enjoying being read to by their class teacher in form time at the end of the day.

Year 5 and 6 drama club have been creating scenes by interpreting the Year 6 Harvest song recorded by Alison.

24 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

ACKWORTH TODAY

Gardening Club Gardening club in full DIG! Lots of mini beasts to be found whilst we prepare the earth.

Supplying Lunch Fresh vegetables straight from the Ackworth School Allotment and onto our plates. Thank you to the students of Year 6 for adding to lunch! Ackworth School has a long history of farming and being self-sufficient by producing its own produce. It’s lovely to see these traditions continuing and teaching the children these skills

Out of School Achievements Jasmine from Year 6 is pictured here looking very sporty in her Wakefield Wildcats Netball kit! She’s been playing there 2 years now and is still ‘smashing’ it!

Well done, Jazz.

Over the summer, Claudia auditioned for a place on the Northern Prep Squad Associates programme. Up against hundreds of other auditions, Claudia was successful and began her journey in September. WOW! Gabriella has been working hard attending rehearsals for her Christmas skating show.

Additionally, Gabriella has been chosen to attend the first ever Torvill and Dean academy. She had a fabulous day and it was such a good opportunity to be coached by Torvill and Dean, Karen Barber and Mark Henretty from Dancing on Ice.

www.ackworthschool.com | 25

SENIOR SCHOOL Third Year English Third Year students have been pre-reading of a GCSE set text: William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. They will return to this text - and the books they are currently highlighting and annotating - in two years’ time for the final year of their GCSE English Literature course. This pre-reading helps familiarise a long and challenging text.

To bring the characters to life, students imagined they were the protagonist, Macbeth, writing to his wife to inform them of the witches’ prophesy that he would become king. In their letters, he describes this moment of revelation, and his subsequent hopes and fears. They then compare their letters with the one that appears in the play in Act 1 Scene 5.

Please find attached two particularly impressive examples of this creative writing exercise: William C and Eleanor.

Dear beloved wife, I have stumbled upon the most exhilarating brilliant news!

Earlier today, after I defeated the troublesome disturbance known as Macdonald, me and Banquo (my honest, brave ally) founded a heath. And in that heath were the most gruesome, withered, defiants of the Lord’s will I had ever allowed my pure eyes to set upon.

Three haunting creatures. Workers of the devil. Three witches. Yes, you heard me correctly my sweet love. I witnessed the skinny sorcerers manipulating dark, hungry magic. I listened as their swollen, chipped lips moved to create a chant. But then they stopped. Banquo, the brave, honourable soul stepped in. And bellowed at the miserable trio. He called out, asking whenst they came and what they are. The witches remained in their silent state.

Until one spoke. It said ‘all hail Macbeth, Thane of Cawdor!’.

Then the second one did. And then the third called me a king. Me and Banquo stared into each other’s eyes, both filled to the brim with shock. A prediction had come into play. A foreshadowing. But it wasn’t exactly terrible was it? Imagine, my dear, imagine me wearing the jewels-covered, glorious crown. Imagine me becoming king. But at the time I of course presumed it was blasphemy. A way to twist and corrupt my mind. And I feel my emotions were intelligent to assume that, after all, I’m not even Thane of Cawdor, yet.

They then made another prediction. One that made even less sense, less logical. That Banquo’s children shall rise to be kings, but not him. Then right when they had a firm, ribcrushing grip on our curiosity, they vanished. Like scraps being thrown at a flock of starving crows. We felt baited, toyed with and teased. But alas, we eventually laughed it off, joked about their scrawny appearance and ridiculous words.

Then, out of the blue, the king’s messengers arrived. We were baffled and utterly clueless, until they told me I had just become the Thane of Cawdor. My mind fell into an abyss of thoughts.

About the future, about the things I have been informed. Could this, my wife, my love, mean that I am soon to be king?

Love Macbeth xxx William C 26 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

To my dear wife, So foul and fair a day I have not seen. Banquo and I were riding home after defeating the rebels Macdonald and King Sweno of Norway; when we happened upon three of the most hideous beings I’ve ever laid my eyes on. Their ragged, dirty clothes and bodies showed they had no regard for hygiene; and their faces. Their faces were ogre-ishly morphed and distorted so much so that they didn’t look like they should be from this Earth.

Their stick legs, looking as if they were about to snap, uncurled and they slowly crept towards me like a lion about to pounce on its prey. They then uttered words that could possibly change our lives forever: “All hail Macbeth, hail to thee Thane of Glamis”, “All hail Macbeth, hail to thee Thane of Cawdor”, “All hail Macbeth, hail to thee, that shalt be King hereafter.” The latter of these brought a finger of ice down my spine and made my hairs stand on end.

Then they turned to Banquo. “Lesser than Macbeth and greater.” “Not so happy, yet much happier.” “Thou shalt get Kings, though thou be none.” We begged them to explain the meaning of their riddlish tongue. But they just smirked.

A devilish, sinister smirk dancing on their pale lips which sent me cowering into my saddle like a mouse backing into a hole from a cat. Until suddenly, with a blink of an eye, they were gone.

Vanished. Vanished from thin air right before our eyes. At hearing what prophecies these ugly, oafish beasts gave me, I felt my palms start to get clammy and my voice a mere croak as I attempted to discuss what happened with Banquo.

I already am Thane of Glamis, but the Thane of Cawdor is quite well and King Duncan is my good friend – the only way I could become King is if I … well. Kill him. Oh no! I cannot let these foul thoughts corrupt my mind!

At first I didn’t believe what the haggard crones told me, but just when I was almost convinced it must have been a figment of our imagination, we were tired after all, Angus and Ross rode in and delivered most frightful news: I am to be Thane of Cawdor. This was most worrying, as if their first two predictions were correct, what’s to say the third won’t?

I would have to kill King Duncan! But I can’t do that. My heart beats through my ribcage at the mention of this shameful thought that appeared and now hovers at the back of my mind like thunder looming over a summer’s day. Why, just this morning I was valiantly serving my King and now these faithless thoughts are being drawn to my mind like a bat to the light flutter of a moth’s wing.

Dearest love, what would you do in this situation? How am I meant to deal with these unruly thoughts that warp my mind?

What if I never recover from these demoralising aspirations?

What if I have to live with them forever? I am at a loss of inspiration. Only you, my love, can help me.

All my love, Macbeth xxx Eleanor

ACKWORTH TODAY

Duke of Edinburgh 6th Form girls learning how to use cooking pots.

Food Tech 5th year have made patterned Swiss rolls to improve on skills in preparation for their NEA.

French For International Week at the end of last term, 5th Form French group wrote letters to some French students at a school in Lyon, France (Collège Saint Louis de la Guillotière).

On 27th September the class was very excited to receive their replies from their new French penpals. Our Ackworth students wrote their letters in French and the French students, who are learning English at school, wrote their replies in English. It was an added bonus that the letters arrived on the day Ackworth School was celebrating the 20th anniversary of European Day of Languages!

Physics Fifth Formers, William, Eleanor, and Charlotte learning about Newton’s Law in Physics.

History Sixth Form historians enjoyed a trip out in October to track the Pendle Witches for their in-depth study! www.ackworthschool.com | 27

SENIOR SCHOOL

PE

Netball Ackworth Senior Girls playing their Netball matches on a warm Autumn evening! The U13 Girls Netball have been competing for the ‘Sisters in Sport’ plate this half term.

Cross Country Back in October the first event of the Wakefield District cross country was held. Well done to the all the pupils who took part and achieved amazing results, with two pupils coming 2nd place in their race! Thank you to QEGS who hosted a first lovely event. Outwood Grange Academy was to host the next, with Ackworth School following.

Hockey Enjoying a morning of Hockey.

U16’s Football The U16’s preparing for their ESFA Cup game.

28 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

ACKWORTH TODAY

Music

It has been a “hip” start to the year for second form, while covering the topic of hip-hop music. Following on from their iPad training at the end of last year, the year group have built upon their GarageBand skills by creating their own hip-hop pieces. The project was to use and adapt a pre-programmed drum beat, and record in an original bass line using the keyboard function. Following from this, the students had to create and record an original rap, on a theme of their choice. The work created was very imaginative and in some cases, quite serious, with some of the raps covering issues such as the environment and homelessness.

Drama

LAMDA Speech and Drama

For our third years, there was a song and dance to be made about their topic on musical theatre. Students studied work from the musicals Hamilton and Phantom of the Opera and their final assessment project was to perform part of a piece from one of these two shows. It was great to see students immersed in the music, and some unexpected rappers showcasing their talents in the performances!

Oliver McCarthy – Director of Music

Ackworth School offers all students the opportunity for extracurricular Public Speaking and Speech and Drama lessons with experienced and qualified LAMDA instructors. Last year, Abrielle received a Distinction in her Grade 8 Solo Performance examination. Here, she reflects on the challenge of the course and the impact speech, drama and performance can have on one’s life…. … A lot of people may think that Speech and Drama is just about acting but it really is so much more than that. It provides you with new ways of communicating, a deeper understanding of different era’s and cultures and it enhances your drama skills to a new level that you may not have thought would be possible. I particularly enjoyed not just performing my pieces but I also found that the theory side to this experience was really interesting. By researching and learning more about the play, the characters and why it was written, this allows your analyses and evaluation skills to be expanded and you can apply your knowledge in a more critical way across many different aspects of everyday life. I would recommend doing this incredible qualification to anybody, even if they don’t feel that they are particularly confident in terms of drama or performing. The teachers are absolutely incredible at making you feel so confident and comfortable within your performance and they improve your weaknesses and progress your strengths to an even higher level. From taking my Grade 8 Speech and Drama, I feel that I have not only grown as a performer but also a person. I am more confident within my abilities and my love of performing has only grown stronger.

Abrielle

www.ackworthschool.com | 29

SENIOR SCHOOL Out of School Accomplishments Jack Congratulations to Jack for have been selected for West Yorkshire School for the English Schools Athletics Championships. Jack achieved gold at the Yorkshire Championships back in August, as well as the Trafford Medal Meeting in September, and a silver at the English School’s Athletics Championship in July 2021.

Jack said, “Now I have nearly finished my season, it’s time to prepare for the next one!”

Isobel Isobel achieved three bronze, three silver, and three gold medals in tap, ballet and pointe at the Dance World Cup which took place in July 2021. The training never stops as Isobel told us she is now preparing for the qualifiers for the 2022 Cup!

Jonah Jonah, First Year, hiked Swirral Edge, summited Helvellyn and conquered Striding Edge. A five hour epic loop of walking in total! Great work Jonah!

Florence Florence competed at Royal Windsor Horse show, where she saw the Queen, on her pony Annandale Toy Soldier. Florence and Soldier came second – this is a huge achievement, well done Florence!

30 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

SPORTS ACADEMIES

ACKWORTH TODAY

Football Academy The first half of the Autumn term has proved a positive one for the Football Academy leading into a 3 – 1 win on Wednesday 20th October against Barnsley College. The boys have shown resilience having a shaky start to the season but have left this first half term on a high! We hear from Max:

“Football Academy is very good.

I’m enjoying it. The facilities that we train in are very good facilities with a professional environment. Also, the coaching is very high level which has developed me a lot. We play a game every Wednesday and the league we play in is very highly competitive. This will help me improve a lot as a player and I am enjoying playing and training with this great group of players.”

Max - Year 13

Table Tennis It has been a fruitful start to the new academic year, with two new students joining our elite programme.

The season kicked off with a 4 Star event in Blackpool. Where we saw each player who was entered from the academy reach their seeded position.

Both Felix and Rebecca reaching the quarter finals in the junior category.

We had the summer off and therefore little time was spent in preparing for this event, yet we are confident in seeing big developments and progress in the coming season, tournament calendar.

Upcoming events: Cippenham and Stockton 4* Star, Junior British league (we have two teams) boys and girls. Other events include WTT Italian Junior Circuit (Felix) and WTT Junior Circuit in Israel with Felix and Rebecca.

We have been training each week 15-20h per week and the growth is clear to see. Rebecca played Senior British league winning 9 out of 10 matches. Will also played National Junior League and he won 18 out of 18 where last season he won only 8 out of 18 matches.

Felix and Eli went to the Serbian WTT Junior Circuit in September and even though Felix did not win a match.

The positives completely out way the negatives. Felix played 4 matches. German no.1 U17, losing 3-0 but close matches. Then he lost to no.1 Serbian 3-1. In the under 19 category Felix showed his class and how much potential he does have. He lost to the no.2 U19 seed and Russian no.1,

3-1 and former no.3 in Europe from Germany 3-2 with an opportunity of winning that match.

The confidence and lessons learnt from this event for Felix was clear to see. His training and focus has been upgraded, including a comfortable win over England no.2 junior in a friendly match (played in Ackworth).

Our focus now is to have our two juniors from Hong Kong rejoin us and bring 3 new signings from Brazil and Ghana. This will also be followed up with some visits and recruitment possibilities from Spain and Singapore.

This season should see Ackworth truly flourish and pave a positive avenue for the future of Ackworth School Table Tennis Academy. www.ackworthschool.com | 31

SPORTS ACADEMIES

An Evening of Table Tennis On October 8th Ackworth School hosted a friendly Table Tennis tournament. The school was joined by a selection of special guests playing alongside our own Academy team. It was an evening of showcasing skills and enjoying a friendly thrilling tournament.

One guest who joined the school for the tournament as well as an afternoon of talks was world-renowned singer/songwriter Zak Abel. Zak was ranked No. 1 in the Cadet age group in England and was 2009 Cadet Boys’ Singles national champion at the age of 14; he was also ranked No. 5 for under 18s in England. Between 2008 and 2010 he won the Under 15 national singles and Under 18 doubles titles. In 2010 he was ranked number 39 in the senior category. At the age of 16, Zak had a chance of a change in career and began to give more of his devotion to his music. The decision was not without cost as the table tennis sector had lost a brilliant player, but the music industry was to gain. Zak has featured in the top 20 UK

32 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

charts working with artists such as Gorgan City, Duke Dumont, and Kygo. His top single on Spotify has over 150 million plays!

The tournament itself was thrilling. Although Ackworth School came second to the away team their performance was a credit to Head Coach, Eli Baraty. It was the perfect event to have been able to showcase his amazing coaching and view the skills of both teams.

The Ackworth School Table Tennis Academy is a pre-eminent programme not only within UK boarding schools but within the junior game. The programme offers students the chance to excel under world-class coach Eli within a school environment which champions traditional values. Our students compete in the premier division of the Junior British League and train in our bespoke table tennis centre. Pupils also have the opportunity to travel abroad to train and play in international tournaments.

OLD SCHOLARS Old Scholars Stories Josephine Beaumont On 21st July, we were treated to a visit to the school from Josephine Beaumont and her niece, Lorraine Simpson. Josephine was a pupil at Ackworth from 1943 to 1946 and she had some fascinating insights into life at Ackworth during the war years.

Josephine comes from a long line of Bowmans who have attended the school from its earliest days. The first of her ancestors to arrive in March 1780, were two little sisters from Chesterfield, Alice and Sarah, aged 11 and 8. This

ACKWORTH TODAY

was just 5 months after the school opened. They appear as numbers 84 and 85 in the first Admittance Book.

Josephine’s grandfather, John Edward Bowman (AOS 1879-1883) was a well-known Wakefield businessman, and Lorraine has prepared his diaries for publication at the end of the year. We look forward to seeing a finished copy of “The Diary of a Wakefield Draper” and reading about his days at Ackworth in the latter part of the 19th century.

Visits like this constantly add to our knowledge of the history of the school and of the people who have passed through its doors.

Ackworth School Connect Ackworth’s alumnae are known as ‘Old Scholars’ or ‘Ackworthians’. Our Old Scholar community is a vibrant and diverse group that spans the globe. As a member of the Old Scholar Association, you know that we have a strong sense of community, built around the importance of equal, positive, and exciting relationships.

Rob Woodall During my years at Ackworth, dad bought an Austin Westminster, as a suitable car for towing a caravan, partly to use for “leave weekends”, a journey of almost 90 miles. I remember helping him work on this car during my holidays, and how it dispatched its towing duties with ease. Having spent my life in the motor trade I thought it would be interesting to restore one of these cars and make the journey back to Ackworth along as much of the “old road” as possible.

After an extensive restoration, with the (once scrap!)

Westminster finished, Jean and I booked ourselves into Rogerthorpe Manor at Badsworth and drove the mostly familiar route, over the Woodhead Pass, through the much-changed roads of Barnsley, ending our journey driving into Back Lane.

Our Old Scholars stay connected through our online networking platform, Ackworth School Connect. This platform is like Facebook, but for Ackworthians. Follow the latest news from the school, see what your former classmates are up to, and reach out to some familiar faces you haven’t seen in a while.

Visit www.ackworthschoolconnect.com to sign up today.

Ackworth School aims to encourage a sense of community amongst its old scholars and provides a connection between the school today and its former pupils.

www.ackworthschool.com | 33

OLD SCHOLARS Old Scholar Reunion 2021 Geoffrey R. Pedlar, AOSA President 2005-6, stands surrounded by octogenarian classmates from the 1952- 1960 era as they attended their annual lunchtime gathering at the Kestrel Vintage Inn, Harrogate, on Thursday 5th August 2021. A lovely afternoon was enjoyed by all.

Ackworth Archives I was 14 years old on 28th February 1955. I remember it well, as the alarm had been raised after a fire broke out in a common room immediately below the Cupola clock tower. It was discovered by the music teacher on his return to the school premises in the early hours of Monday morning while, to quote the paper, “400 pupils slept on “. At the time, there was a fair amount of speculation about this masters’ nocturnal activities prior to his discovery.

The feature in the paper shows a ‘posed ‘group of pupils carrying rescued items from the common rooms. I say ‘posed’, because we are pictured coming into Shed Court from the direction of the ‘Green’, when in reality we came from the opposite direction, as they were being taken to be stored in the Craft shop.

I am in the frontline of the procession wearing my Sunday suit. I should have changed into uniform, but probably ignored it in my eagerness to join the ‘fray’. The girl on the right, carrying a box, was Elizabeth James O.S. (1952-58) and the sister of Professor Philip James, O.S. (1949-56) who, among his many accomplishments, became a prominent advisor to the Government on diet and nutrition in the 1980s and 90s. He often appeared on Television. Prof.

Phillip James married Jean Moorhouse, another O.S. The boy second from the left is Richard Walker O.S. (195260). He found a baby owl [see photo 2] which had fallen from its nest and adopted it for the summer term, before taking it home for the holidays. Unsurprisingly, it was named ‘Twit’ and whenever Richard whistled, it would fly on to the 34 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

classroom windowsill, much to the amusement of the assembled class.

Richards Father was himself an O.S. as was his brother Alan O.S. (1956-63) who also was married to an O.S. Another O.S. of note during my time was John Gledhill (1950-55) who was an award-winning composer professionally known as ‘Patric Stanford’.

And so ends a little more of Ackworth history.

Best wishes.

Tony Lucas

Would you like to return to Ackworth School for a visit? Or perhaps take a look at where one of your relatives attended? Please get in touch with us at alumni@ackworthschool.com to organise a visit.

ACKWORTH TODAY

Obituaries Peter Dyson AOS 1944-51 The story of an Ackworth friendship.

Our lifelong friend, Peter Dyson died recently, and his death leaves a hole in the life of his contemporaries at Ackworth and in particular for his friend Stephen Lonsdale.

Peter and Steve both aged 14. first met on ‘the London Train’, in 1948. It transported the few non northern pupils from the south to Ackworth station at the beginning and end of each term.

On one occasion they cycled 180 miles to school up the Great North Road in two days to keep the train fare to spend in the school tuck shop.

They maintained contact for most of their lives, from that first encounter until the last recent visit to share lunch and chat. They lost contact in the busy middle years when distant jobs and large families took priority. Old Scholar friends made contact after many years and Peter and Steve renewed their friendship with each other and with the wider group of contemporary friends. Testimony to their friendship is the fact that they served as best man for each other, Peter on two occasions.

Blessed with a remarkable memory, certainly for those early years, Peter would talk endlessly about the matches they played, the goals scored and the personalities of school mates and teachers. He was a competent sportsman and won the Badsworth in his last year at Ackworth, a fitting end to a happy and successful official school career. He also enjoyed recounting his extra -curricular activities such as roaming the roofs by night and scaling the laundry chimney. In the holidays he and Steve would go to watch Arsenal together, each with a small suitcase filled with books to provide a firm elevated base on which to stand.

They also spent long summer days on Lords cricket ground.

Steve’s mother suggested that Peter join them for the British Association for the Advancement of Science

Juliet Norris (nee Binks) AOS 1939-46 Juliet Norris, known to all as Binkie. Juliet was an Ackworth scholar from 1939 to 1946, following in the footsteps of her mother, Lucy Binks, nee Harrison. Binkie enjoyed school, excelling at tennis and hockey, making many good and enduring friendships and meeting Peter Norris who she married in 1952.

She worked as a physiotherapist in Cambridge before returning to Ackworth with Peter who had taken up a history teaching post at the school. They lived at Greystones on the Pontefract Road in a flat above the Westwood family and started their family of four boys Simon, Leo, Guy, and Mark. The family moved to Brekenbrough in 1957 then to Peebles in 1963, working at Craigerne, a Barnardo’s residential school, before retiring to Cabbage Hall where they spent the rest of their lives.

annual family week. They enjoyed suitable lectures and outings with that august body. They both remembered a particularly vivid week in Newcastle when they all went down a coal mine.

On leaving school Peter followed his father into the bank while Steve trained as a civil engineer like his own father. Both were conscientious objectors and as such, they were obliged to work in alternative occupations for 2 years, instead of compulsory military service. Peter was sent to France with the Friends Ambulance Service to work on the land and Steve worked in The London Hospital as a porter and then in the lab, (but still paid as a porter).

These experiences lead them both to change direction.

Subsequently Peter trained as an engineer and Steve embarked on the training for a medical career.

The next phase was marriage and family life for them both, far apart, in Yorkshire and Cornwall. Peter worked for Yorkshire Water and Steve as a GP at home and with VSO in Malawi. They lost touch for years, that is until the vibrant AOSA, active as ever with the network of Guilds, country and worldwide, made contact. They found each other again and they met up with other old classmates and joined in with dinners, walks, weekends, and holidays throughout their remaining years.

Since then, both retired and lived in North Yorkshire, they walked the moors together endlessly talking. They were often joined by Chris Evans who is another OS contemporary, and he brought another topic, local archaeology into their conversations.

Peter was laid to rest in the green burial ground in Westerdale, North Yorkshire in the presence of friends and family. We will miss him.

Binkie worked as a seamstress, making and mending clothing, bags and aprons until her eyesight failed her.

She loved her garden, was a prolific painter and a keen supporter of the Arts in Peebles. She played the piano and learnt to play the accordion in her seventies. Cabbage Hall’s front door was always open, and she was a wonderful host to family, friends and to ‘Servas’ travellers.

Grandchildren in particular enjoyed staying there and they all have fond memories of the love, games, swimming, crafts and discussions around the dining table while eating delicious meals with their grandparents. She and Peter camped for fifty summers on the Isle of Mull and the Ackworth Old Scholars Easter gathering was an important event in their busy diaries.

An eternal optimist, she looked for the good in everyone and enriched so many lives through her support and friendship. Her Quaker faith was central to her life, and she leaves a legacy of extraordinary kindness, a love of family and the pursuit of peace and justice. www.ackworthschool.com | 35

OLD SCHOLARS Margery Bunney AOS 1941-45 For someone who threatened to burn the school down if she did not leave as soon as possible in her first term Margery Bunney (nee Wilson 1941-45) retained a long connection with Ackworth. From being a scholar she was to become a parent, domestic bursar, music teacher and house mistress, Clerk of Ackworth General Meeting, Clerk to the School Committee and president of the Ackworth Old Scholars Association.

Margery was born on 31st October 1927, the eldest of three children of Joseph and Annie Wilson of Port Sunlight. Her father was a newsagent, who had a sense of humour but also believed in providing opportunities for his children, and her mother was a home maker.

The family moved to Hoylake and then West Kirby, from where Margery went to Ackworth in 1941, after the blitz in Liverpool, and on the recommendation of her uncle. Fred Boardman was chief librarian in Rotherham and a friend of James Westwood and was able to give advice to JW on the establishment of the new library of 1936. He was impressed by the School.

After her difficult start Margery excelled at music and was an enthusiastic games player. She also made some lifelong friends, including Hilary Paish, Audrey Hindle, Juliet Binks (Binkie) and Elizabeth Bunney. Due to a lack of teachers at the end of war Margery spent her last term as a music teacher which helped her future career.

It was planned that Margery would study hotel and catering management in Edinburgh, at Atholl Crescent, but could not start until 1947 so with her father’s backing she studied for her LRAM in 1946 at Liverpool School of Music.

After two years in Edinburgh where she organised teas, visits to concerts and walks before breakfast she spent a year working at Great Ayton and after qualification took a position at Chester Training College in 1949.

At Easter 1946 Margery was invited by Elizabeth (1941-46 and Head Girl) to stay at the Bunney family home where she met John W Bunney (1934-39) for the first time. They were married in September 1950 and started a life in the Midlands where Jack ran a market garden business. The finances were never strong and, when family commitments allowed, David (1963-70), Andrew (1967-74) and Catherine (1973-77), Margery became a private music teacher.

Appointment to the post of domestic bursar at Ackworth provided a significant change in family fortune from August 1967. Then came a move back to music teaching and the role of housemistress of Seatons with a staff house provided.

An advert for a house mistress and other roles led to a move to the Mount School in York in 1975 where Margery was a formidable head of Girls School House and taught piano.

The manners and the approach of the School appealed to Margery’s tidy nature and it helped that Jack was with her at the school as Head Gardener. In addition, and remembering her own experiences, she always looked out for those pupils who were unhappy at school and gave support where she could. These were perhaps the most productive and fulfilling 36 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

12 years of their lives making many friends as well as finding two excellent daughters-in-law on the Mount staff, Frédérique and Tina.

York was to be their base after retirement in 1987 from where they travelled widely, seeing family and friends and enjoying cultural events such as the Chapter House concerts and the York pantomime.

But Ackworth still had need of service which Margery gave willingly using her knowledge gained as an employee as well as a scholar. It was also perhaps a reflection of her Quaker heritage, unexpectedly finding that her Cumbrian forebears were among the early Quakers of the late 17th century.

Margery took great delight in her grandchildren but also had to deal with the emotion of the early deaths of her brother John, sister Jennifer and then Catherine in 2009.

Her loss of memory meant that she did not really know about the deaths of Jack in 2018 and Andrew earlier in 2021.

Due to physical frailty and dementia Margery and Jack spent their last two years together in a care home where there was humour, and welcoming care. Regular visits by family and friends made such a difference. She never lost her humour, a sense of mischief or sense of order, such as turning off lights, closing curtains or tidying up place settings.

Margery died peacefully at her care home in York on 28th October 2021 aged 93. She is survived by David and Tina, Frédérique and son-in-law Simon, by 6 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren.

David Bunney November 2021

Sheila Wilde (nee Heath) AOS 1942-45 Sheila Wilde was born into a Quaker family in Bourneville, Birmingham and was lucky enough to attend Ackworth School as a pupil during the 1940’s. Sheila went on to train as an infant teacher at Birmingham University and settled with her husband Donovan in Solihull. Apart from a short career break to start a family she taught in Solihull for most of her working life. She was respected by pupils and fellow colleagues alike and after retirement was regularly greeted in the town centre by former pupils.

Reflecting on her life Sheila recently wrote that her days at Ackworth had given her a great sense of independence in the world.

ACKWORTH TODAY

Celia Ball (nee Armitage) AOS 1939-44 Celia was born in Ridgedale, Sask, Canada in 1927 to Francis (OS 1895-1900) and Sarah Armitage.

Francis and his brothers attended Ackworth School as did the preceding three generations of the family. Celia’s two sisters Nancy and Miriam were also old scholars.

Celia came to Ackworth in 1939 and left in 1944 to spend a year at Derby Technical College, followed by two terms at Woodbroke. Celia spent the next five years at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital in Birmingham, qualifying firstly as an Orthopaedic Nurse and then as a Chartered

Physiotherapist. Celia’s career in physiotherapy spanned nearly 40 years as a specialist working with adults with physical and mental disabilities.

Celia married John Ball in 1950 and became mother to Deborah, John, Peter and David (OS 1974-76). With four married children she was blessed with eight grandchildren and four great grandchildren.

Celia was a birth right Quaker attending both Sutton Coldfield and Blackburn meetings where she was Clerk.

Celia served on Meetings for Sufferings Committee for five years and was a Governor of the Retreat. She was a regular attendee at Easter Gatherings and Manchester Guild Events.

Celia aged 94, passed away peacefully on the 29th July at Donnington House Care Home, Chichester.

David Ball (OS 1974-96)

Colin Jefferson AOS 1949-53 29 March 1938 – 9 October 2021 Son of John Jefferson (formally a pupil at Ackworth) and Doris, and brother to Peter, David and Richard. He attended Ackworth from the age of 11-16 where he formed friendships which he treasured throughout his life. He married Judith in 1968 and became father to Daniel and Kathy and later Grandpa to Hannah, Sophie and Alice. He was very much loved and will be fondly remembered.

Dorothy G. Walker Robbins AOS 1933-38 Dr. Dorothy Gertrude Walker Robbins, 100, of Wolfville died peacefully on October 15, 2021. The youngest daughter of Frank Walker and Gertrude Andrews, both of whom came to Canada from North Yorkshire, England, she spent her early years happily at Ackworth School at the age of 12 where she stayed to complete her high school education. Her parents and sisters had attended Ackworth, where her grandfather, Frederick Andrews, was and still is known as the longest standing headmaster. She loved her years there and felt they were responsible for equipping her for the direction she chose in her life.

Independent, outgoing, hardworking, determined, fun-loving, generous, and stubborn at times, Dorothy wanted to be remembered as someone who “maybe made a difference”. Her family, friends, colleagues, and students can certainly attest that she did! Dorothy remained in touch with Ackworth School where she attended virtual events during the pandemic.

Mary Rowntree AOS 1931-38 Mary Rowntree, pictured here with the Rowntree family, passed away peacefully at the age of 100 years old.

www.ackworthschool.com | 37

OLD SCHOLARS East Coast Guild Gathering Finally, after not being able to meet up for our usual 'bangers and mash' lunch last year, 18 Old Scholars and friends met once again at Worfolk Cottage, Staintondale on the 16th October to celebrate Ackworth School's Founders Day. We were delighted that Anton and Alison Maree were able to join us, and we heard first-hand from Anton how the school, staff, pupils and parents had coped during these difficult and challenging times throughout the pandemic. He was also able to share with us the photographs of the excellent work completed in the boarding house during this time.

There was a great deal of catching up and chatting with each other and I'm sure everyone enjoyed meeting up again with Ackworth friends and sharing Ackworth news.

If any Old Scholars in the Yorkshire area would like to join us next year on Saturday 15th October 2022 please feel free to contact Mike and Annabel McRobert – mikeandannabel@hotmail.com Annabel McRobert

DEVELOPMENT & FUNDRAISING

The Gift of Giving Fraser Meet Fraser. Fraser is 14 years old and has been with Ackworth School since 2016 in Year 9. For the last three years Fraser has had to attend Leeds Children’s Hospital three times a week for dialysis treatment as his kidneys do not function enough to keep him well. This is what Leeds Children’s Hospital had to say about Fraser ... “Fraser comes to dialysis and makes the nurses laugh, plays on his tablet, and eats plenty of food - he makes the best of being hooked up to a machine for four hours at a time - but there is so much Fraser wishes he could do like swimming, attending school full-time, and playing with his siblings”. The big picture is that although Fraser is a regular 14 year old boy who likes doing regular things, he is still restricted in his life. Fraser is in need of a kidney donor. We are raising awareness for Fraser and reaching out to our community in search of his saving grace. If you would like more information on organ donation within Leeds contact leedskidneyappeal@NHS.net one donor can save up to eight lives through organ donation and potentially save up to 100 lives through the lifesaving and healing gift of tissue donation.

38 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

NEW Tennis Court Lighting Our tennis courts need new lighting. New court side lighting will amplify the encouragement of playing tennis in the community, especially among girls and young women. It will allow the school and Ackworth Tennis Club to train new coaches, host tennis matches and events, and bring the love of tennis and the fitness it provides to children from neighbourhood schools. New lighting will ensure that tennis can be played year-round despite the daylight saving as the nights draw in through the winter. www.ackworthschool.com/ preserving-history-embracing -future

Donate here Scan Me!

Tennis Outreach Program Back in June 2021, Ackworth School working in conjunction with the Tim Henman Foundation and Finding Your Spark, invited 6 state primary schools from West Yorkshire to participate in a function at the school celebrating passion and love for tennis. Without the Tim Henman foundation it would not have been possible to put on this event and we are eternally grateful to how he has supported us over the last four years.

“I’m proud and pleased to have helped host this event and walking around seeing children are having an amazing time, it has a big impact on their physical well-being.” Sally Slater, Head of Coram House.

COMMUNITY

ACKWORTH TODAY

Schools of Ackworth The Schools of Ackworth are committed to working together, for the benefit of people in the village of Ackworth, our local community. The schools meet once per term to share ideas and identify community projects that can be worked on collectively.

During the summer term, the primary schools have been involved in a number of projects.

Community Litter Picks Week commencing the 14th June 2021, the schools of Ackworth relayed a week-long litter pick across our village.

Oakfield Park’s Sixth Form community started the pick on Monday 14th June 2021, handing over to Mill Dam on Tuesday, Ackworth School on Wednesday, Ackworth Howard School on Thursday, and Bell Lane took us over the finish line on Friday 18th June 2021.

The litter pick presents fun, developmental learning opportunities for the pupils, whilst simultaneously giving back to the local community. Attached are a few photographs taken from the litter picks.

Thank you to Ackworth Parish Council and in particular Kyla Batty and the team for their help with the litter pick equipment and litter collection.

Ackworth Scarecrow Competition A group of Ackworth residents, led

by Karen Campbell have for the past two years organised the Ackworth Scarecrow competition.

This year, the schools of Ackworth decided to compete in the Ackworth Scarecrow Competition.

The theme for this year was ‘EVENTS IN BRITISH HISTORY’, which was decided upon by the organisers, to coincide with the centenary of the Royal British Legion Poppy appeal that began in 1921.

The fundraising from this year’s competition will go towards the Ackworth Heritage Fund to help preserve Ackworth’s history.

Thank you to the organisers of this event, for awarding individual prizes to the schools of Ackworth alongside the overall winners, and well done to all those who participated raising over £500 for the Ackworth Heritage Fund.

City of Sanctuary Our Wakefield City of Sanctuary appeal was a huge success, managing to gather enough donations for 105 boxes! These were sent off to the children and families in need during the Afghanistan Appeal. Thank you to the Ackworth community for all your donations and to our wonderful students and staff who worked hard to get these boxes done!

Thomas Franks Foundation Ackworth School pupils might have been resting over half-term, but the kitchen was still hard at it! The Thomas Franks Foundation prepared over 100,000 meals to go towards food charities for the vulnerable, including 10,000 peach crumbles. Amazing work for an amazing cause!

www.ackworthschool.com | 39

COMMUNITY Nostell Priory Park Run A fantastic time at Nostell was had where some of our students, staff and a parent took part in the Ackworth School takeover of the parkrun. The pupils did an amazing job of setting up the course and then cheering, supporting, and recording the local runners.

A credit to themselves and the school. Well done!

Operation Christmas Child Throughout the Senior School the pupils have been preparing shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child on behalf of the Samaritan’s Purse.

Helping Families at Christmas These lovely gifts were donated by the families of Ackworth School but also by people in the Ackworth Community.

Tennis Outreach Programme Alice Robson pictured here doing what she does best and inspiring the minds of young girls to get into sport and tennis. A recent Community Outreach event invited three primary schools to come and train with Alice for the afternoon. Alice has worked hard to grow this programme, getting young girls and women back into playing tennis.

40 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

PSA NEWS

ACKWORTH TODAY

Autumn Flower Arranging The flower arranging evening held by the PSA was a great success. It was lovely to be able to offer this again after a long break due to the restrictions from the pandemic.

Uniform Shop Our NEW Uniform Shop is now OPEN! It is now located across the road near the playing fields in what used to be the nursery! Come and see the PSA team for all your uniform needs. Look out on our social media for our opening times or contact Elise Ager for all enquiries.

Elise.Ager@ackworthschool.com

STAFF NEWS Fundraising runs

Heather Gordan

Scan Me!

Katie Staton In September, after training for over a year, Katie Staton and her friend ran the Nottingham half marathon!

Katie said, “It was tough, but we raised a lot of money for a great charity (Action for Stammering Children) and gained some sore legs too!”

History Teacher, Heather Gordon, ran the Great North Run for Wakefield Hospice back in September. Heather is continually supporting their amazing work and if you wish to support Heather you can donate via her JustGiving by following the QR Code!

Staff recognition Linda Rushton “Ackworth School has seen me through some of the biggest milestones in my life and the management and staff have always been there for me throughout the ups and downs.”

Linda has seen the school change a lot over the last 40 years and remembers a time when the sweet smell of freshly baked bread would come from kitchen. It’s safe to say that Linda has seen the ways of the school change, but she continues to give it her all and remains a valued part of the school’s catering team.

On November 3rd, Linda Rushton celebrated her 40 years in service. She is the youngest of three sisters, who have all worked within the walls of Ackworth School.

Linda is due to retire next year and is ready to enjoy some time with her twin grandchildren! www.ackworthschool.com | 41

STAFF NEWS New Family Members

Leavers This term we say goodbye to Pip Langfield. Pip has been with Ackworth School since 2016. You will be missed Pip but we wish you all the best.

Congratulations to Emma and Angus for their baby girl, Ava Garland who arrived safe and very well on Friday 17th September at 2.09pm.

New Starters Alison Wise “I am excited to be joining Coram House as music teacher. I grew up in West Yorkshire and play the piano and the cello. I studied music at St John’s College, Cambridge, and Durham University.

I enjoy teaching children of all ages. My teaching draws on Dalcroze Eurhythmics, teaching music through movement. We explore music in lots of different ways, and I find the approach really fun and creative. You may have heard of the band, The Eurythmics – singer Annie Lennox named the band after this approach to music teaching, which she encountered at school!”

Tim Neale Learning Support Mentor

Alexandra Selby EYFS Practitioner

Christopher Stanley Teacher of German and EAL

Alice Stoner Specialist Learning Mentor

Laura Hulse Teacher of English

42 | AUTUMN 2021, ISSUE 13

Oliver Griffin Specialist Learning Mentor

Rebecca Gleave Teacher of English

Laura Mace Specialist Learning Mentor

John Lynch Learning Support Mentor

Lydia Hutson Specialist Learning Mentor

Jon Phillips SENCO/Head of Learning Support

AUTUMN PICTURES

ACKWORTH TODAY

www.ackworthschool.com | 43

Pontefract Road, Ackworth, Pontefract, Wakefield, WF7 7LT Tel: +44 (0)1977 233600 Email: admissions@ackworthschool.com

www.ackworthschool.com