Houses
Dale
It has been a thoroughly successful year for Dale House. The blend of new blood and old hands has certainly delivered success across a wide range of activities. Whilst success is easy to judge when the House Competitions are reviewed at the end of the year; a good year can be measured in other ways. The atmosphere in the House has been terrific and it has certainly been an enjoyable place to be. I hope this report can highlight some reasons for this. Zak Day, Cammy Glover, Alex Howarth, Ardin Jacques, Matthew Moss, Joseph Pickering, Josh Raw, Max Thompson and Thomas Wilkinson joined us in Year 7. Ivan Gaskin joined us from Northumberland House. James Ingram was Head of House and has displayed outstanding passion and loyalty to the House; as he has done so throughout his time in Senior School. Chris Bury and Dan Miller were House Deputies and both have made significant contributions this year. Nicholas Crowe was Head of School. With no element of bias, as his Housemaster, I would like to record what a splendid year he has had. Mr Usher joined us as a tutor in September. The enthusiasm the boys display towards House Singing never ceases to amaze me. This year was typical with rehearsals well attended and occasionally tuneful. It is often said that we can sing all of the notes but not necessarily in the correct order and so it continued this year. The Juniors sang ‘Black and Gold’ with enthusiasm and gusto. It must be a terrifying experience for those standing on the stage in front of an audience for the first time and I am sure it doesn’t become any more comfortable second time around. In recent years, we have found that tribal chanting is the best medium to display our yet- to- be-discovered talents. So, ‘Waving the Flag’ was an ideal piece as I believe we captured the sentiment of the song which is essentially based on chanting and shouting; something as I said we are rather good at. The part song was ‘Golden Touch’ by Razorlight. Once again, the part song performance was brave and great credit is due to those who took part. Throughout the second half of term as the House tournaments took place there was a frenzy of chess, table tennis, scrabble and pool depending on the competition of that particular week. These competitions remain a particular strength of the School and provide plenty of entertainment. The response from members of the House to participate is terrific. A core value of the House, and something we promote in particular, is involvement and participation. The House competitions are an excellent vehicle to facilitate this and increasingly the boys take full responsibility for selecting and organising teams. Sadly, we said goodbye to Mr Gorman at the end of the Christmas Term when he took on his new role as Second Master. His contributions to the smooth running of the House have been greatly appreciated. His calm, organised manner is the perfect foil to my rather more chaotic modus operandi. As a former Housemaster, Mr Gorman’s timely suggestions and ideas have helped me greatly. He will be missed by all members of the House; having a former member of Dale as Second Master can
The Barnardian Magazine
be no bad thing in the future. I have yet to get to bottom of who said what to Mr Usher - his stay with us was short. Clearly somebody upset him, since in January he left us to become Housemaster of Durham House. Mr Ince crossed the floor from Durham House, as did Mr Goldberg. A theme this year, and it is supported by clear evidence every week, is how few academic detentions and behavioural sanctions the boys accumulate. This is something else we promote and encourage. Mr Nicholson keeps a close eye on these things and long periods go by when his now famous sanctions’ app. is redundant. This is balanced by the large number of merits most pupils have amassed. Mr Everitt has the more pleasurable task of tracking these successes. His clever graphs and spreadsheets are anticipated eagerly every Wednesday morning. The Spring Term brings not only a New Year but also the joys of the Barney Runs. We were quite clear about our targets from the start. With such large numbers taking part a united effort is required. Quite simply, we said that if the House decides to do well, then it will do well. This message was repeated at every practice and House meeting. The achievements of some were outstanding this year. Sadly there is a lack of space to mention everybody competing; they all deserve recognition. As an arbitrary guide I will only mention those finishing in the top ten; the list will still be long. In the Junior Barnard Run, Joseph Pickering came 10th, Jack Ellis 9th, David Evans 6th and Zak Day 1st. In the Intermediate Barnard Run, Ethan Kelsall came 10th, Andrew Bartlett 6th and James Watson 1st and in the Senior Barnard Run, Sam Hunter was 10th, Chris Bury 9th, Anthony Harrison 4th and James Ingram 1st. Zak Day won the Wilford Cup; James Watson won the Blackett Cup and James Ingram the Lloyd Evans Cup. Overall, Dale came first in the Junior Barnard Cup and first in the Barnard Cup: An outstanding achievement. Once again a significant sum of money was raised for the Butterwick Childrens’ Hospice by those members of the House running in the Barney Bash. This has been a strong year for public speaking. The Lectern Club has host a number of memorable nights. The pinnacle for all public speakers is the House Public Speaking Competition. The future looks very healthy, with the Juniors and Intermediates doing very well in their competitions now held under the spotlights of Big School. The Senior Team of James Ingram – Vote of Thanks, Nick Crowe - Chair and Chris Bury – Speaker, were impressive. Chris’s delivery is entertaining; his ideas intelligent. We won the Junior General Knowledge Quiz Competition and retained the Nigel Stephens Cup for the Senior General Knowledge. Following our success in the Barnard Runs, hopes were high as Sports Day approached. Members of Year 11 and the Upper Sixth returned having already completed their exams. Once again I must keep the list as brief as possible, so I shall only mention those placed first, second or third. In the Junior Competition – 100 metres Jerome Hardy 2nd and Zak Day 3rd; 200 metres Jerome Hardy 2nd; 400 metres Callum Simpson 3rd; 800 metres David Evans 2nd and Jack Ellis 3rd;
1500 metres David Evans 1st and Josh Raw 3rd; High Jump Callum Simpson 1st and Zak Day 2nd; Javelin Jerome Hardy 3rd; Discus Tom Metcalf 2nd and finally, the Juniors won the 4 x 100 metres relay. In the Intermediate Competition – 100 metres Agni Ghosh 2nd; 200 metres Lewis Sowerby 3rd; 400 metres Agni Ghosh 2nd; 800 metres James Watson 2nd; 1500 metres James Watson; Long Jump Lewis Sowerby 3rd; High Jump Chris Harrison 1st and Hamish Glover 2nd; Triple Jump James Beauchamp 3rd and in the Discus, Duncan Hewitson 3rd. In the Senior Competition, 200 metres Josh Peat 3rd; 400 metres Anthony Harrison 2nd; 800 metres Anthony Harrison 2nd; 1500 metres James Ingram 2nd; 3000 metres James Ingram 3rd; Shot James Gatenby 2nd and Tom Raw 3rd; Javelin Anthony Harrison 2nd and Discus James Dickenson 3rd. The list is long, but well worth recording. Incidentally, Callum Simpson broke the 21 year old Junior High Jump Record. Overall, the Juniors won their competition. After leading all afternoon, the Seniors and Intermediates eventually came second. The House won the Cowling Cup for the combined relay competitions. Like the Barnard Run this was terrific achievement; our best for many, many years. As a House we set clear goals at the start of the year, academic success certainly being one of them. As I have mentioned the merits poured in and the academic detentions were kept to a minimum. These efforts clearly paid off with a large number of House members receiving prizes at Speech Day. The Tutors’ Prize was awarded to Dan Milne in the Autumn Term, Callum Simpson in the Spring Term and James Gatenby in the Summer Term. The Charlesworth Cup was awarded to Hans Kukreja in the Autumn Term, James Ingram in the Spring Term and Dan Miller in the Summer Term. Sadly, we say goodbye to many of those mention in this report. The Upper Sixth have been an outstanding year group throughout their time in the House. Their collective contribution has been considerable, individual contributions memorable. We wish Chris Bury, Nick Crowe, James Gatenby, Giles Hooker, James Ingram, Dan Miller, Sam Oakes, Joshua Peat and Tom Raw good luck for the future and they leave with our heartfelt best wishes. Next year’s Head of House will be Anthony Harrison. It has been an outstanding year and credit is due to all members of the House. The boys have the chance to do well in the classroom and excel elsewhere in the School. Behind them are a team of dedicated tutors. I would like to record my thanks to all those who have helped this year; Messrs Oakley, Everitt, Nicholson, Ince, Gorman, Goldberg and Usher. In particular, and I am sure the aforementioned gentlemen will not be offended, I would like to thank Miss Broadbent who has worked tirelessly this year in her role as Assistant Housemistress. DWD
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