The Portcullis 2020-2022

Front cover photo left to right:Willa (U6ARW) and Joe (11SJB) in Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’

from the Headmaster Welcome

The Summer Term of 2022 concludes with Dacre Day and Field Week, featuring over a week of trips and co-curricular events for pupils of all ages. May and June saw the return to public exams for the first time in two years and, since Easter, we are back to full strength with pupils able to enjoy the full range of opportunities at Emanuel. I am delighted to be able to write this, as there have been times when school life has ceased to exist in the ways we all most naturally enjoy and benefit from.

During these most challenging of ‘pandemic’ times, however, we have learnt a great deal of good about ourselves. We have truly acted as a community, caring for each other, working as one and supporting those beyond our school. Not only have the bonds between all school colleagues, pupils and parents been tightened, but we have also been awarded national prizes for our outreach and partnership programmes, with many initiatives now embedded in our school’s schedule. I would like to say how pleased I am to see our work with local primary pupils, and now families from Ukraine, thriving.

Our pupils have also gained greater confidence in their studies during this testing time. Despite some of their teaching being conducted remotely, each pupil has shown themselves how well they can cope with adversity.They have learnt personal approaches that work best for them, and they have returned to the ‘new normal’ school life with a greater sense of confidence. I suspect there is also a sense that each of them has realised that almost all aspects of school life were missed: friendships, groups, teachers, moments of fun, collective experience — a powerful lesson to learn at a young age.

This sense of renewal and return is evident in many areas of Emanuel. In September 2022, we launched the school’s ‘Sixth Form Award’ — a diploma programme that will mean that, alongside A Levels studied, our pupils will all be involved in creative programmes, altruistic campaigns, mentoring and experiences of leadership. We will also ensure that they receive outstanding career and higher education guidance, making the most of the wider Emanuel network. This will all build on the breadth of opportunity seen in weekly lessons in the Lower and Middle School.

We have been really glad to see our lower school lessons in coding; robotic and design going well, alongside moral and ethical debate and oracy (ETHOS); and our latest collaborative lessons in social entrepreneurship.

Beyond the classroom, music, drama, art and sports have all flourished. The Music department has presented a range of events at school and off-site, culminating in ‘A Night at the Musicals’ at the Clapham Grand in June, a very different, but no less exciting and impressive experience than that at the Ministry of Sound for young DJs, who played there earlier this year — the first school to ever do this! As ever, the Drama department’s standards have remained exceptionally high and this year’s musical, School of Rock, was a great success. The summer term has seen two Art shows for the GCSE and A Level pupils, both of great quality, talent and imagination. Girls’ and boys’ cricket keeps growing and we have been pleased to achieve so many victories against other leading London co-ed schools. Our rowing continues to be very popular and we have competed across a range of prestigious events. Beyond traditional sports, we continue to offer new ones, with this year seeing a successful start to our water polo and swimming fixtures, for example.

Renewal and change have been seen beyond the curriculum and co-curriculum. Emanuel’s critical build plan is underway, with an enlarged Sixth Form building now completed. The next stage is to redevelop our off-site sports facilities at Blagdons in Raynes Park, making sure we have a site that provides every opportunity to the girls and boys. Next year will also see us focus on our plans for a new refectory and specialist classroom building, benefiting arts, as well as science teaching in the coming years and making sure Emanuel continues to thrive.

Perhaps we might have to accept that in a post-pandemic world, we may never quite achieve a ‘new normal’, more a state of ‘never normal’. But maybe this is no bad thing, and perhaps better reflects the exceptional aims of the school and the talent of the people within it.

Mr R Milne (Headmaster)

NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR COMMUNITY OUTREACH

We are thrilled to have won the Independent Schools of the Year 2021 award for the Community Outreach category.

Competition was intense, with a record number of entries across all categories. Independent Schools of the Year is an awards scheme run by the Independent School Parent portfolio of magazines to celebrate the success stories of schools and their pupils across the independent education sector in the UK and British schools overseas.

The award recognises our creative approach to supporting our primary school partners throughout the pandemic with our Primary Ambitions programme. Primary Ambitions unites Year 6 pupils from 18 local state schools with a high proportion of free school meals with Emanuel Lower Sixth students every Friday from 2.00pm to 3.00pm. Our Lower Sixth students teach a variety of subjects to groups of 15 Year 6 pupils on our school site. The modules taught cover subjects in the arts, languages, literature, politics, science, technology, maths and sport with 19 different options for primary schools to choose from. The emphasis is on our pupils running each session, enabling them to develop leadership, coaching and mentoring skills as well as further develop confidence, empathy, kindness and respect for those from different backgrounds.

The challenges posed by Covid-19 meant our partners needed our support more than ever.

As partner schools were unable to come on site, our pupils embraced the challenge and developed Primary Ambitions ‘Lessons-in-a-box’ to deliver to our partner schools. They prepared lesson plans, presentations, group and individual activities, how-to videos, and materials. Given the complexities of primary school teaching over the pandemic, providing opportunities for enrichment was invaluable.

Headmaster, Mr Milne, commented:

“How great to end the first half term of our year by winning a national award for our outreach and partnership programme.

Whilst the award focused on Primary Ambitions course, it also represents a positive understanding of our wider community partnerships.

These relationships in Wandsworth and beyond are part of Emanuel’s accessibility drive. This year we expect to have 1140 partner school pupils participating in our flagship outreach initiatives, meaning 1425 pupil hours per 5-week module in the Primary Ambitions course alone, and over 6000 pupil enrichment hours across the programme.

Lower down the school, our youngest pupils have a long running partnership with Christ Church CE Primary School and those in Year 7 and 8 follow timetabled courses in philosophy, social and ethical debate (ETHOS), as well as use teamwork to solve national and global challenges through the social entrepreneurship lessons.

Middle School pupils will be involved in the second series of the Ascent Programme from the coming summer. This is a Saturday morning ‘academic booster’ scheme taught by Emanuel staff and supported by pupil volunteers from Years 9 and10 with boys and girls in Year 5 from local partner schools.

Our belief is that by the time Emanuel pupils leave us they will have a true sense of the world beyond their school, be altruistic in outlook and have the confidence and desire to change the world for the better. We also intend that these programmes will help the local community to thrive and sustain our commitment to make Emanuel as accessible as possible.”

Notes from the Pulpit

By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion...

How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?

(Psalm 137:1-3)

While some of us found it incredibly difficult, our tenacity and creativity as a community meant that we found new ways to sing our song whilst in exile.

More recently, the war in Ukraine has disrupted our sense of order and justice, combined with political unrest at home. As once again the waters feel choppy, the 23rd Psalm, ‘The Lord is my shepherd...’, offers a vision of green pasture and still waters:

He guides me by still waters...

(Psalm 23:2)

As I write, many in the school are periodically checking live-stream footage of the Chapel gable windows. This is no craze for church architecture; rather, the focus is on a family of kestrels nesting there. Kestrel-cam watchers can see mother and father sharing the incubation of their eggs and eagerly awaiting the hatching and fledging of the chicks!

It should come as no surprise to those familiar with the powerful Jewish poems called the Psalms, used in both Jewish and Christian worship, that this is the spot the kestrels have chosen. As Psalm 84 declares:

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.

Happy are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise.

Like the kestrels, generations of students and staff have valued the Chapel as a place of peace and sanctuary in the centre of a bustling complex of buildings. The physical and emotional presence of a beautiful space at the heart of the school, reserved for stillness, prayer, and reflection, is an important symbol of the inner stability that we hope will grow within our students. Developing inner stability has been increasingly important since the last edition of The Portcullis, as we have found ourselves in unwelcome and troublesome waters. As the pandemic uncontrollably disrupted our lives, exiling us from each other, we may have been tempted to give in to hopelessness and pessimism, as in another famous psalm:

The Emanuel School Chapel continues to provide opportunity for students and staff to find still waters in the midst of the tumult. They will not be found because the world becomes still, but only by taking time to be still ourselves and to take stock, reflect, meditate, and — dare I say it — pray.

At Emanuel, we do this in the inclusive atmosphere of Chapel, where students and staff can engage on whichever level resonates with their own sense of spirituality. Gathering in a beautiful space like the Chapel to reflect, sing and pray not only grounds us in our school’s rich history and tradition but it is one of the many ways we guide students to discover still waters and an inner stability. This will equip them to face the often tempestuous and noisy seas of our modern world, with the vision, courage and optimism which will help them reclaim its wonder and find meaning in it.

Revd S Labran (School Chaplain)

Community Partnerships and Outreach

As an integral part of the Wandsworth community, one of our key aims is to enhance social mobility in our neighbourhood.

Primary Ambitions

The Primary Ambitions programme involves running weekly enrichment sessions for groups of 15 Year 6 pupils from 18 different local state primary schools. Every Friday, we welcome 285 pupils to Emanuel to take part in the programme. Emanuel Lower Sixth pupils coach and mentor in areas as wide-ranging as gymnastics, film making, languages, drama, politics, maths and science. Feedback from partner primary schools and participating pupils has been overwhelmingly positive.

Since launching Primary Ambitions, in September 2019, we have worked with 25 local primary schools and offered over 10,000 hours of education, sport or cultural opportunities to their pupils. Our partner primary schools are chosen for their high percentage of children qualifying for free school meals, a government indicator for deprivation.

“We have seen increased confidence [in our students], especially when speaking in public – speaking with clarity and maturity.”

Shaftesbury Park Primary

Supporting Our Local Community Through Covid-19

With the impact of Covid-19 and the resulting school closures, planned partnership activities had to be postponed. Instead, we focused our community partnership activities on supporting those most in need in our local community.

During the first lockdown in March 2020, we launched a meal delivery programme. By the end of the summer term last year, we had delivered over 5520 nutritious meals to nearly 1400 families in seven of our partner primary schools including Chesterton, Christ Church, Falconbrook, Fulham, Goldfinch, Griffin, and Sulivan Primaries.

In addition, we provided much-needed books to Christ Church CE Primary through an online book drive; 4000 face masks, facilitated by an Emanuel parent, to our community partner organisations including Spires, Sands End Adventure Playground, Katherine Low Settlement, Regenerate Rise and the Smile Brigade; refurbished laptops to Westminster City School, one of our Foundation partner schools; and digital devices to ‘Power to Connect’, an initiative to provide much-needed laptops to school children without online access to learning. When Emanuel closed at short notice, we also donated surplus food to the Wandsworth Foodbank and the Ace of Clubs charity. Forty of our Sixth Form pupils volunteered over the first lockdown and the summer holidays at catch-up summer school programmes for pupils at two partner primary schools.

With school closures from January 2021, families in our partner primary schools were once again struggling to put nutritious food on the table. We re-launched the meals-in-a-bag programme with the Emanuel Catering department preparing the food and staff delivering it to partner primary schools. Each meal-in-a-bag included a recipe card and all of the ingredients to make a tasty meal for a family of four. By Easter, we had delivered over 11,000 meals to 13 partner schools.

Lessons-in-a-Box

In the Autumn term of 2020, due to Covid-19 restrictions, Lower Sixth pupils were unable to teach Primary Ambitions onsite. Instead, they prepared the resources for ‘lessons-in-a-box’, with support from specialist Emanuel staff, which were passed on to our primary schools for their teachers to facilitate.

We were thrilled to win the Independent Schools of the Year 2021 community outreach category for our work in this area.

“The class teacher is extremely impressed with the content, the detail and the excellent resources. The children are really enjoying the lessons. You can tell how much work has gone into each lesson and the thought and detail is evident in the planning.”

Sulivan Primary Supporting Afghan and Ukrainian Refugees

In response to the recent Afghan refugee crisis, we partnered with local charity West London Welcome to support the growing network of Afghan refugees in our community by collecting and delivering thousands of items of children’s clothing.

The recent Ukrainian refugee crisis reinforced the need for us to support those fleeing war and persecution. In partnership with the White Eagle Polish Club in Balham, we were able to deliver 160 bags of medical, hygiene and sanitary supplies as well as thermal clothing.

In addition to collecting much-needed items, the Emanuel community has donated £15,000 to the Disasters Emergency Committee’s (DEC) Ukrainian appeal. We have also reached out to our community and provided several school places to children hosted by Emanuel families. We have recently launched the Coffee and Conversation Hub to enable refugee families to network and practise their English in a safe, supportive environment on Saturday mornings at Emanuel.

Ascent

In the summer term, we run ‘Ascent’, a Saturday booster programme for 30 of our primary school partners’ Year 5 pupils. We were delighted to receive funding for the programme from the Foundation’s Covid Catapult fund.

Ascent’s initial aim was to ‘close the gap’ for pupils within our local communities who were hardest hit by the Covid-19 driven school closures. As we move beyond Covid, our intent is to support Year 5 children from disadvantaged backgrounds who are failing to meet national standards in the core subjects of literacy and maths. We provide booster curriculum-linked sessions in the core subjects of maths and literacy supplemented by interactive, fun hands-on science sessions and co-curricular lessons (Drama, Art and Sport). Our aim is to help participating children to catch up then to solidify their basic knowledge and skills, build their confidence and empower them to exceed national standards.

We run nine Saturday morning sessions in the summer term plus an additional two-day session at the end of our term before the state schools break up for the summer holidays. Sessions are led by Emanuel staff supported by Emanuel and Westminster City School Sixth Form volunteers.

Ongoing Community Initiatives

We share our facilities; for example, we host weekly adult disability football sessions on our mini astro with Fulham FC Foundation and young people’s disability hockey with Wayfarer’s Flyerz.We provide weekly swimming lessons for five local primary schools each term and offer access to our biodiversity garden.

We run many other activities with our partners including football tournaments, enrichment sessions, joint workshops and school trips, our very own Dragons’ Den competition and a fabulous literary competition run by the local author and illustrators’ group, CWISL. We also support local community organisations including Regenerate Rise, a community centre for the elderly; Spires and Ace of Clubs, charities supporting homeless people in our neighbourhood; and the Christmas hamper initiative through St Mark’s amongst others.

Development & Alumni Relations

Sarah McGee Development Director sarah.mcgee@emanuel.org.uk

Sarah is responsible for setting and implementing the strategy for the Development and Alumni Relations office. She also serves as the lead fundraiser to achieve the ambitious philanthropic targets set for the school’s bursary programme and critical build plan.

Anna Van Es Development and Alumni Manager anna.van-es@emanuel.org.uk

Anna leads on development and alumni events and publications while driving forward the school’s legacy and regular giving programmes, as well as alumni relations activity. Anna is editor of the alumni magazine, The Rose and Portcullis and the Old Emanuel (OE) e-news.

Tony Jones

Archivist

tony.jones@emanuel.org.uk

As well as being the school’s senior librarian, Tony manages the school archive: a fully functioning small museum for all things Emanuel. Tony also runs our alumni Facebook and Twitter posts and plays a key role in alumni relations, events and communications.

Thank you

Philanthropy is critical to achieving the school’s educational vision and mission. Even during the peak of the pandemic, our supporters showed their commitment by providing time and resources to the school and wider community. We are very grateful — you have made and are continuing to make a positive difference to Emanuel School and our community.

In 2016, we set a goal to raise significant funds through the Emanuel 430 initiative to ensure the Emanuel School experience remains a visible, viable and affordable route for talented individuals from all around the city. In 2022, we surpassed £1,500,000 for free places — raising more money than ever before — some raised in very creative ways! As part of the 43 for the BRT fundraising initiative, students, staff, parents and alumni carried out a range of activities from cycling to reciting sonnets. Last summer, 76 rowers from the Emanuel School Boat Club completed an epic 54km sponsored row from Windsor to Emanuel, raising over £14,000 for free places. To those who participated, thank you for helping us break down barriers to access high quality education.

Your investments in the school have given us the confidence to launch Giant Strides, our most significant fundraising campaign to date. In these pages, we have outlined what we’ve accomplished and our vision for Giant Strides.

This can only be achieved with the continued commitment of our Emanuel community. We invite you to join us as we embark on a journey to transform our site and develop an even more robust bursary programme.

Support Us

The

Emanuel School Battersea Rise

London SW11 1HS

development@emanuel.org.uk

020 8870 4171

www.emanuel.org.uk

Emanuel School Alumni @OldEmanuels /old-emanuels

emanuel.school

@Emanuel_School

Please join us as we strive to raise more money than ever before for our current and future pupils. We rely on support from the whole Emanuel community to achieve the aims of Giant Strides. To find out more or to get involved, please contact Sarah McGee or Anna Van Es at development@emanuel.org.uk.

Development and Alumni Relations Office

emanuel.org.uk/support-us/giant-strides

Transformative Free Places

The value of offering free places at Emanuel cannot be overstated. We have seen how an Emanuel School education can change a child’s life but, equally, we believe that ensuring diversity in the school benefits the whole community. By broadening our reach, our pupils’ experience is enriched through exposure to new perspectives, helping to prepare them for life after Emanuel.

Competition for bursaries has never been higher. On average, we interview nearly 1,500 children with one in six requiring a bursary to attend. In 2016, we set ourselves a goal to offer 43 children a free place by 2024. This year, we achieved this goal — two years early.

Due to the generosity of our community, we have created a new giving opportunity - named bursary awards. An annual gift, totalling full fees, will establish a bursary to support one child’s education for multiple years. This is life-changing for both the individual and his/ her entire family. Free places not only provide a meaningful source of financial support, but also encouragement for the academic and personal growth of young individuals.

The Pilanesburg Foundation, one of the school’s longest standing donors, has established the ‘Rachel Dacre Bursary’ to support one pupil for the duration of their time at Emanuel School. We are so grateful to the Foundation for their kindness and generosity, and we hope others will consider establishing a bursary for a talented child to study at our school.

We value our donors’ generosity and appreciate all they do to support the school’s aims and ambitions.

The 1594 Club

Old Emanuels

All pupils who leave Emanuel become Old Emanuels (OEs) and remain a valued and crucial part of our community. We keep OEs in touch with each other and the school through numerous events and reunions as well as through regular communications. In 2022, we welcomed Old Emanuels from across the decades at a special reunion in June. We were also delighted to see so many rowing OEs at an alumni reception at Henley Royal Regatta in July. Our OEs tell us of their continued pride in the school and everything it is achieving.

Reaching Out to OEs in Lockdown

During lockdown, Emanuel School staff prioritised contacting OEs from the Class of 1960 and before to collect stories and updates. Not only did this allow us to learn about their personal experiences at school and beyond, but it gave us an opportunity to provide a meaningful update on life at Emanuel today.

Over the past few years and during the most challenging months during lockdown, Emanuel pupils wrote handwritten and often beautifully illustrated Christmas cards to OEs to provide Christmas cheer. The cards were hugely appreciated, and many wrote to tell us that reading them had cheered them up during a difficult time.

In 2020, Emanuel School established the 1594 Club to recognise legacy donors - those who generously leave a gift to the school in their will. Their support enables the school to meet the ever-changing challenges of teaching and learning, to widen access and to provide the very best learning opportunities and facilities for our pupils — both now and in the years to come. Club members enjoy events and have special access to school-wide activities and news.

Thank you to our 1594 Club members for making a meaningful and forward-thinking investment in our future. If you are interested in learning more, please get in touch with the Development Office (development@emanuel.org.uk)

GIANT STRIDES WILL CREATE INSPIRING PLACES FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING ACROSS THE SCIENCES, SPORT AND THE CREATIVE/PERFORMING ARTS AND OFFER MORE FUNDED PLACES THAN EVER BEFORE TO THOSE WHO WOULD NOT OTHERWISE BE ABLE TO ATTEND EMANUEL, HELPING TO DIVERSIFY OUR COMMUNITY, INCREASE OPPORTUNITY AND FOSTER TALENT.

“What a superb idea! I was overwhelmed to receive it. Please pass on my grateful thanks for a well written and thoughtful message. Many thanks for contributing a little ray of sunshine in this gloomy period.”

Old Emanuel

Critical Build Plan

We started on an historic development of our site in early 2022 with the expansion of the Sixth Form Centre. Phase two, which is currently underway, is the renovation of our off-site sports facility in Raynes Park. The new Astroturf, cricket nets and hard courts will be used extensively by pupils and the community throughout the year, enabling us to increase the provision of hockey, netball, football, cricket and tennis. Following on from this, we will improve our facilities for the sciences, the creative and performing arts and day-to-day school life.

These additional facilities will enhance our overall educational offering, further our award-winning outreach initiatives and ensure we meet the needs of pupils today and for generations to come.

Sixth Form Centre

Expansion of the Sixth Form Centre has provided a 50% increase in space. The pupils now benefit from a modern and spacious learning environment with flexible social spaces, improved café, assembly space and study areas. The extended space creates a cohesive community of Sixth Formers who will have the ability to work collaboratively or independently, network and socialise, as well as regularly access careers advice.

On the ground floor, the large and flexible contemporary space can be used to host events such as our prestigious Goddard Lecture series or careers networking evenings. Upstairs, a lightfilled common room offers relaxed seating overlooking the pitches as well as ‘pods’ for collaborative working. Adjoining this are deskfilled rooms for quiet study. The second floor has additional study environments as well as a conference room.

Completed: Autumn 2022

Off-Site Sports Facilities

Renovation of our 12.5 acre off-site sports facility in Raynes Park is underway. It will enhance opportunities for both girls and boys while providing a home venue for hockey for the first time in our history. The improvements include a new all-weather pitch and modern pavilion with warm-up facilities and changing rooms, as well as12 cricket wickets and four hard courts for tennis. Sport is an integral part of the culture and Emanuel hopes this space becomes a focal point for our pupils and spectators as well as significantly enhancing our community initiative opportunities.

We aim to be the top co-educational school for sport in southwest London and to build on recent successes at national and regional level across our sports.

Concept design of off-site sports pavillion & all-weather pitch (above).

Sixth Form Centre 2023

GOING GREEN

The climate crisis can often seem dauntingly insurmountable, but Emanuel students have decided that inaction is not an option, and they’re willing to plant the seeds for change, writes Ms Preston

Let’s face it: thinking about the environment can often feel overwhelming and lead us to think ‘what’s the point? I can’t make a difference on my own’. But acting in the interests of the environment does not require you to have superpowers or to make radical changes. Any changes you make, no matter how big or small, are a step in the right direction.

This is the philosophy at the heart of our Eco Committee — a working group of Emanuel students across all year groups that meet weekly to identify the areas within our school where we can have a meaningful impact on the environment. As well as informing our school community about wider environmental issues, we also want to celebrate the successes and positive changes that are being achieved in the move towards a more sustainable planet.

Although discussing contemporary environmental issues does play a part in the Eco Committee, we believe that our main emphasis is about taking action to bring positive change for our environment. We are confident that it is the combination of all our efforts that will lead to positive changes for our school, our community, and our world.

Emanuel Climate Conference

The eco-year kicked off with the Emanuel ‘Eco Fortnight’, timed to coincide with COP26 global climate conference in Glasgow in November 2021. A variety of activities took place over these two weeks to recognise the climate crisis and its causes, and to encourage us to think carefully about what actions we might take to contribute towards a sustainable future.

A key event during the fortnight was the inaugural Emanuel Climate Conference, where Year 7 and 8 pupils took part in a series of engaging talks and discussions led by Sixth Form and Lower School pupils. Students spoke passionately about a range of environmental issues including fast fashion, the circular economy, the health of our oceans, and the impact of global food systems. In addition, pupils and staff were invited to make their own ‘climate pledge’, such as using active travel, planting trees, or avoiding single-use plastic to show how small steps can make a significant difference.

Celebrating Emanuel Biodiversity

The spectacular Emanuel Eco Garden continues to be a haven for those wanting to swap screen time for green time. As well supporting valuable pollinators such as bees and butterflies by providing pesticide-free food sources, safe shelter, and access to clean water, it provides an ideal location for educational activities across the school curriculum.

Our environmentally-conscious Gardening Club has been busy this year, sowing and planting an array of wonderful produce including Swiss chard, broad beans, tomatoes, purple pak choi, onions, spinach, carrots, rhubarb, giant sunflowers, sweet peas, nasturtium and lettuce!

The Eco Garden also provides a fantastic outdoor classroom for Emanuel pupils and our Primary Ambitions cohort. Lower Sixth pupils have used this vibrant ecosystem to teach local primary school pupils about biodiversity with hands-on activities, including surveying the pond to identify the plants, invertebrates, and amphibians that live there.

Members of the Eco Committee exploring the Eco Garden. Left to right: Sophie (10HJC), Sophie (LJTB), Eva (L6SJC), Lucy (L6AZ), Otto (L6AZ).

WasteLESS Week

Over the year around 360 pupils from Years 6, 7, and 8 have taken part in two ‘WasteLESS Week’ events to help raise awareness about what we can do as a school community to reduce food waste. In UK households we waste 6.5 million tonnes of food every year, 4.5 million tonnes of which is edible. This is enough to fill 38 million wheelie bins or 90 Royal Albert Halls! These are not items like eggshells or chicken bones but the last few bites that you can’t quite manage, or your bread crusts or potato skins — all the things which could have been potentially transformed into something delicious.

During WasteLESS Week pupils made sure to ask only for what they thought they could eat and to ensure that no good food went to waste at the end of their lunch. Stickers were awarded for each clean plate and those who committed to this continuously over the week were awarded with prizes in the Hampden Yard.

In April 2022, the campaign was a great success and the total plate food waste saved was 46.5 kilograms, which is equivalent to approximately 150 two-course meals. As well as this, we are thrilled to see that general food waste at lunchtimes has decreased considerably since November 2021 by nearly 100kg!

Meat-Free Mondays

Replacing meat with plant-based choices on Mondays is one way that Emanuel students and staff are taking action against climate change linked to meat consumption.

Did you know that:

• 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions are caused by animal agriculture?

• 70% of deforested areas in the Amazon Rainforest have been replaced with pastureland for animal grazing?

• 1kg of meat requires between 5,000 and 20,000 litres of water compared to only 214 litres to produce the same weight of tomatoes?

This initiative takes place each fortnight with Mrs Street and her catering team taking meat off the menu and serving healthy and tasty climate-friendly vegetarian and vegan choices.

Year 6 pupils showing their projects on global environmental issues. Left to right: Manu (6CAL), Millie (6CAL), Joseph (6CAL)

Millie (7SMR) and Eva (7SMR) from the Emanuel Gardening Club hard at work planting green goodies in the Eco Garden

THE SHOW MUST GO ON...

Lockdown and Covid restrictions may have threatened to close the curtain on theatrical productions, but students and staff at Emanuel refused to wait in the wings, writes Harry (U6WGD)...

As theatres closed across the country, many wondered whether the Covid-19 pandemic would be the end of theatre as we knew it. For obvious reasons, the lockdown was a real challenge for the Drama community at Emanuel. Theatre is by definition a collaborative form of art; aside from the actors and performances, there are so many people involved behind the scenes of any one production.This meant that the theatre community had to think of increasingly covert ways of surviving. At Emanuel, against all odds, theatre didn’t just survive: it thrived.There were so many challenges to overcome, but the Drama department consistently battled them all with dignity, grace, and jazz hands!

Following Covid restrictions, Emanuel’s theatrical community was desperate to tread the boards again. Having had to cancel the previous musical, Oliver!, barely days before the run started, by September 2020 everybody was looking forward to showing the world just what we were capable of. With bated breath, students waited to find out if we would be able to stage another musical amidst Covid-19 restrictions and, if so, what the musical would be. When The Addams Family Musical was finally announced, everybody was overjoyed and practically bursting with excitement.

There was, of course, one snag: Covid-19 was still running rampant, and different year groups were not allowed to mix. In order to protect the students, we limited the show to three distinct casts, with an actor for every role in each year group.The musical was also divided into three separate sections (each with their own ‘bubble’) to allow as many students as possible to be able to perform.

The road was not without bumps, but the Emanuel community always stepped up to the challenge.We all knew that group bubbles could burst at any moment, but nobody ever let the side down. For example, when the actor who played Uncle Fester in Upper Sixth was forced to self-isolate, the amazing Seb (L6WGD) stepped in. This kind of selfless initiative was constant throughout the musical, with everybody in the cast doing whatever they could to help the show.

With carefully controlled rehearsals, our production managed to run remarkably smoothly, all thanks to the amazing efforts of everybody involved. The staff working on the production, led by Miss Graves, put out every fire (luckily these were only metaphorical fires!). Miss Graves’ unending dedication and passion set the tone for the team and brought us all together to give what we could to our show. It was an amazing production to be a part of for many reasons, but it would not have made it close to the stage without her, or the whole Drama team. We owe her endless gratitude. This was her first musical at Emanuel and it will not be forgotten.

As the start of the show approached, pressures from the pandemic simmered with another potential lockdown, only two months after the ‘rule of six’ was imposed. Barely a week before the show, we received the news that two members of the Year 10 cast had contracted Covid-19 and would have to isolate — possibly for the entire run. This was devastating to the cast; we were a family and wanted to make it to the finish line together.With less than a week before the start of the run, the wonderful Edie (L6CCG) and I stepped in to fill the roles of Wednesday and Gomez Addams, respectively, replacing the isolating Year 10s. Due to the carefully maintained Covid restrictions, we could not actually act on stage with the Year 10 cast.This made their acting a lot more difficult, but regardless they performed incredibly night after night. I personally had so much fun watching their performances live each night; each and every member of the cast was absolutely brilliant.

By the time of our run, we’d come to terms with the loss of our original cast, and then on the penultimate night we were met with glorious news: we had our Year 10s back! With their isolation period over, we were going to cross the finish line together as a full cast. The atmosphere on the final night was truly electric with our Year 10 actors able to be there with us for the final night. As expected, both gave amazing performances — an impressive feat considering that this was without the extra week of working on the show that the rest of us had.

The show was an indisputable triumph — a success enhanced all the more by the fact that we could finally welcome in a live audience for the first time since pre-Covid times. Reviews were unanimous in their praise, and those of us who worked on the production will remember it fondly forever. In nine months, we all feel that we created something truly special. Together we survived the endless trials of Covid-19, but only due to the tireless devotion of the cast, crew, band, and the wonderful team that is Emanuel’s Drama department.

Ethan (U6SMJ) as Gomez Addams

REPRESENTATION MATTERS

Conversations around equality and diversity are at the heart of the Archer Group — a team of students and staff passionate about bringing positive change to Emanuel, writes Mr Andrews...

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The Archer Advisory Group (named in honour of John Richard Archer, former Mayor of Battersea and the first black person to hold a senior public office in London) was established in June 2020 as an important voice within Emanuel School. The group is made up of school staff — from across all employee positions — and pupils of different ages and backgrounds. Its task is to review the school’s curriculum, structures and population through the lenses of the diverse members of the Emanuel community.

The group audits changes already made within the school, as well as devising and advising on new approaches. It has a specific focus on the ways in which we provide both education and a safe space in which to raise, discuss and act upon ideas or concerns regarding race, anti-racism and forms of inequality and representation in society. Each meeting includes pupil-chaired discussion and staffpupil dialogue. At the time of writing, there are currently 26 pupil members and 13 staff members of the Archer Group.

Aims

To genuinely care for each other, stand up for others and be honestly educated in matters of race, anti-racism, inequality and human rights.

We endeavour to review school policy and practice to ensure equality and inclusiveness in its application to all members of the pupil and staff body; to ensure the experiences of all groups within the school community are reflected in the curriculum; to identify opportunities for greater diversity and inclusion at school; to help catalyse new initiatives to celebrate and promote diversity

and inclusion; to identify instances of inequality and unnecessary barriers of entry to different people and to develop strategies to remedy this; and to provide opportunities for groups of pupils, staff or parents to be heard.

Archer Group Initiatives

Academic departments including English, History, and Geography have redrafted curricula, to include compulsory study of diverse authors each year and foregrounding of the British Empire and the slave trade on the Year 9 curriculum.

As part of the activities days at the end of the summer term 2021, pupils in Years 6-10 took part in an exciting range of activities related to the theme of ‘Culture and Community’. This evolved from the work of the Archer Group which itself has played a central role in the ongoing dialogue regarding race and diversity at our school.Whether discovering an Indian grave in Battersea Rise cemetery, engaging in Japanese meditation or joining a workshop on music and migration, the two days presented an invaluable opportunity for our pupils to have fun whilst discovering more about Clapham’s wonderfully diverse community.

In November 2021, local historian, Sean Creighton, was invited to give a talk to the Sixth Form, introducing students to John Archer, memorialisation, and problems involved in researching, and publicising the Black Atlantic. We were similarly engaged by Mr Martin of the Physics Department, who talked to the group about antisemitism (including the microaggressions he had experienced as a pupil). Another fascinating event saw the group discuss the 2021/22 report by the University of Birmingham, ‘Islamophobia in the UK’, in which pupils considered how we, as a school, might help to challenge anti-Islamic prejudice. The school librarian, Mr Jones, subsequently produced a ‘Positive Muslim Voices’ reading list and presented its contents to the group.

The Archer Group was also very pleased that Christo Brand, former warder of Robben Island Prison, agreed to talk to the Emanuel community from his home in South Africa. Christo shared a living testimonial of Nelson Mandela’s time in prison and his release. He is one of a select few who can offer authentic insights into Mandela’s thoughts, reflections and hope for humanity. It was a truly inspiring story. Christo was Mandela’s warder for 12 years and became a close friend of his — right up until his death in 2013.

It was clear to all that ‘Black History Week 2021’ was a hugely positive experience. The pupils and staff of the Archer Group curated a varied and inspiring programme of events. Members of the Emanuel community were encouraged to debate the efficacy of reparations paid by the west for slavery, hear inspirational and moving testimony from Christo Brand, Floella Benjamin and

Patrick Hutchinson, study the life experiences of local author Alex Wheatle, analyse James Baldwin’s 1974 masterpiece, If Beale Street Could Talk, and witness the story of three female African American mathematicians playing a pivotal role in the 1960s American space programme via the 2016 film, Hidden Figures.

In the words of the The Rt Hon The Lord Paul Boateng of Akyem and Wembley, this has been ‘a good opportunity to reflect on what needs to be done in order to ensure that our education is a system fit for purpose. The challenge is to prepare by a policy of inclusion rather than exclusion for all young people to thrive in a diverse and multi polar world in which no region or race holds sway over the others.’ Whilst taking pride in the response of our community to this annual focus on black history, we are all of course mindful that this must be viewed as an ongoing process, far too important to be confined merely to one week or indeed one month a year.

“The challenge is to prepare by a policy of inclusion rather than exclusion for all young people to thrive in a diverse and multi polar world.”

150 YEARS LATER

Emanuel’s iconic main building celebrated its 150th birthday in 2022. Our senior school librarian and archivist, Mr Jones, details its rich and varied history...

When the Royal Commission of the Patriotic Fund Boys’ School opened its doors in the autumn of 1872, its original purpose was to house and educate 180 boys orphaned by the Crimean and other wars. The building was designed by Henry Saxon Snell, a noted architect who specialised in health facilities, including many London hospitals and other public structures such as workhouses and mortuaries. Henry may have been surprised to find out that the Patriotic Boys’ School only functioned as an orphanage until December 1882, after which the inhabitants were dispersed to other institutions, with Emanuel School very promptly taking up residency in the building in January 1883. This was a moment of monumental significance in school history, marking the departure from its historic home in Wesminster, which was demolished a few years later.

The entire site cost £32,000 and the then-cash-strapped institution felt that relocating into a building which already accommodated boarding would mean that the required structural alterations would be minimal. The eleven-acre site also offered great potential for continued development when future funds became available.This was a fresh start for Emanuel, with new Headmaster the Reverend Arthur Towsey overseeing an initial school roll of 117, none of whom came from the old Westminster site. Initially most pupils boarded and by 1889 the roll had climbed steadily to 270. For much of the twentieth century this number fluctuated between 650-750, with the most recent decade seeing that figure swell beyond 1000, by far the highest in the school’s long history.

Playground before Concert Hall extension

Goddard Room of the Library

The dormitories were located on the first and second floors and housed between 22-28 beds. By the early twentieth century, boarding was in serious decline, with Wandsworth no longer as rural as it once was, and the dormitories morphing into the new House system, just over twenty years after Emanuel took residence. As the number of day pupils grew steadily, the dormitories were gradually converted into classrooms and by 1913 this era of school history was over.

The rest of the site has changed significantly more than the Saxon Snell building itself and, in 1883, there was a fraction of outlying buildings compared to the busy site of today. Some of the many consigned to history over the passing decades include the ‘old’ gym, the original Fives Courts, infirmary, pigsty, vegetable gardens, FirstWorld-War-style trenches, CCF obstacle courses, and the outdoor rowing tank.

1896 saw the first major extension to the Saxon Snell building when the Concert Hall was connected to the back of the structure, originally known as the ‘New’ Hall, then the ‘Old’ Hall, and eventually the Junior Dining Hall, before it became sole use of the Music Department in the mid-1990s. In 1907, the original school library was cleverly built above the toilets in the location which is now the Fiennes Theatre. The library remained relatively unchanged throughout its century long residency and when Headmaster Mark Hanley-Browne arrived in 2004 its redevelopment was one of his earliest targets, with this ambitious project radically redesigning the ground floor of the Saxon Snell building. The Buttery area (once a short cut that had since been glass-roofed over) and the Senior Dining Hall became parts of the library, with another courtyard being converted into the Marquand Room of the Library in a project completed in 2007.

In the early 1930s, the steeple was removed from the tower and in 1941 part of the structure was struck by a German bomb whilst the school was evacuated to Petersfield. By the late 1930s, most of the building had electricity and there was major expansion around the site, with the first Hampden Hall being built in 1937, the most ambitious project for several decades. The hall burned down in January 1957 but was quickly rebuilt by 1959 with the Pavilion Room and ‘old’ gymnasium (now the Dining Hall) as part of the upgrade.

The internal alterations within the Saxon Snell building itself are too numerous to list and the room numbering system has been changed several times. Were you to ask a pupil of today’s generation where ‘Room 22’ is, they would look at you with complete befuddlement! In 1970, the Dacre Building provided much-needed new classroom space, eventually being replaced by the ‘New’ Dacre Building in 2017.The new version was significantly larger and internally connects to both the Saxon Snell building and the Science Block.

All pupils now use their own personal devices, thus Computer Rooms 1 and 2 have been converted into classrooms. Only the very oldest alumni will ever remember taking a dip in the underground freezing cold swimming bath, which was underneath ‘Room 11’ close to the main toilet block, which was itself demolished in 2013 to facilitate the extension of the Fiennes Theatre. This was a complex conversion, which involved raising the roof and restructuring the foundations of the building, ultimately providing a 115-seat theatre.

The New Dacre Building was not the first time extensions had been connected to the original Saxon Snell building, with the Cyril Broom Science Block opening in 1980, significantly upgrading the laboratory facilities. Current pupils might also find it hard to believe that the area now occupied by M6 and M7 was once the home of both the kitchens and the rather exclusive Staff Dining Hall. There are very few staff remaining who remember the smell of cabbage wafting down the corridors!

When we lead tours of the buildings for OE reunions, we find that varying generations hone in on different changes. Those over the age of fifty are often amazed that the private studies, which were once for the sole use of the Head Boy and other senior pupils, are now office space for the Middle School Heads of Year! Of course, should the pupils of today return for the 200th anniversary of the Saxon Snell building in 2072 they are bound to be amazed by another host of developments. With old buildings, the only constant is change.

Royal Commission of the Patriotic Fund Boys School in 1872

Bomb damage in 1941

The Old Library in the 1990s

The old underground swimming bath

MYTH BUSTERS

In Spring 2021, a group of passionate students formed a new school society designed to discuss and debate important gender issues that have long been disregarded by mainstream society, writes Ms

Aitken-Burt

Why are the facts about the current state of gender equality in the world so misunderstood? Most of the time, we perhaps don’t think about the reason behind certain views we hold and where they come from. The Athena Society was created at Emanuel to try and tackle these complex issues and reclaim the often ignored voices and stories of women across a range of subjects.

The group was established in April 2021 in the wake of the murder of Sarah Everard, which shook the local Clapham community. Through conversations with Lower Sixth Politics students who wanted to discuss and better understand the history behind the existence of misogyny, we decided to set up a weekly after school session to explore the real meaning of gender equality. To emphasise the aim of learning and empowerment, students decided to name it after the great Greek Goddess of Wisdom.

Through interweaving the variety of disciplines I teach, the Athena Society discusses interesting, important and overlooked stories about gender equality across Art, Classics, History, Politics, Philosophy and Culture. Each term the group reviews articles, books, films and news stories to uncover and understand the hidden stories and struggles of women through time.

But this is not just a group for young women — gender equality is important for everyone to be freed from harmful gender stereotypes. It has been great to see male students supporting their female peers by attending and engaging with the discussions. Not only has it helped students to understand what feminism is actually about and remove its negative connotations, but it has helped to get students to recognise omissions in the historical record and understand that some narratives are emphasised over others, with a significant impact on the stories we tell through time.

The thing we all love about Athena Society is the friendly environment, even when we are sometimes having tough conversations. Students tell me what they want to know more about, and we find interesting ways to bring it to life within a safe, non-judgemental, controlled discussion framework. The aim is to seek to understand and learn from each other by posing questions to get us thinking. History is a really great way to think about issues from a new perspective by looking at different characters, countries and time periods. Through busting myths, we can eradicate those historical misconceptions and better educate ourselves in order to create change in the present day.

The Athena Society quickly became one of the most popular after-school groups and it has been incredible to see students enjoying thinking in new ways, especially about something so important. The society has opened up so many new conversations in a way that students find interesting and enjoyable. It has also helped students and staff to be part of a wider conversation, even beyond the individual sessions we have held.

The Athena Society is also about putting words into action. For International Women’s Day, we raised £511 through the sale of stickers displaying our fantastic logo (pictured right) designed by Emma (U6RJB). The money was donated to the Women and Girls’ Network — an under-resourced charity that runs five rape crisis centres in London that provide free helplines, counselling, information on dealing with the criminal justice system and group support work in schools.

“As a school, understanding the ways in which the patriarchy impacts women's lives is instrumental in creating change: firstly in schools, then in society. I’m so proud to have founded the Athena Society; it has been one of the first steps in filling gaps left by the curriculum whilst nurturing a safe environment where students can discuss gender and women in History and Politics.”

Festa (U6SPP)

“I was a founding member of the group because I began to realise there was a different perspective on the world I hadn’t considered before. Often the topics we discuss had completely slipped under my radar and I hadn’t recognised the harm they have caused and still cause today.”

Chris (U6AEM)

“The aim was to draw all students, boys and girls and from a range of year groups in order to start constructive discussion. I enjoyed hearing the views of my peers because unless we have wider discussions we won’t find solutions to injustices. Even just basic awareness of many of the issues we have covered promotes incremental social change on views towards gender equality.”

— Tara (U6SEM)

“I will remember feeling heard, feeling inspired by a teacher who shared a passion with us and educating myself on the topic of feminism. I will continue to work together with like-minded individuals for change as, through Athena, I know it can happen.”

Willa (U6ARW)

HOT OFF THE PRESS

In Summer 2021, Emanuel published the debut issue of a brand new literary magazine designed to showcase students’ outstanding creative work, writes Mr Maskell...

In any given year, students produce countless pieces of highly impressive creative work across all subjects. With so many exciting projects in each and every class, it can be difficult to track just how much imaginative and individual artistry our students generate. We decided to create Emanuel’s own literary magazine as a means not only of preserving and documenting this work, but of showcasing and celebrating the exceptional and wide-ranging artistic achievements of our students.

The idea germinated with a series of creative meetings with an editorial committee of Lower-Sixth students — Phoebe (L6SEM), Rebecca (L6ASO), Rosalind (L6HHM), and Emma (L6RJB). We worked to determine the magazine style, tone, and structure before commissioning and collating work from across the school. We also decided upon the name for our publication, calling it ‘EMU’. After many months of piecing the magazine together, the debut issue was sent off to be externally printed. It was important to us that the magazine would be assembled much like a professional publication, giving students a taste of what it means to be published and edited, and to provide a long-lasting memento of their work that they can share with their families and revisit long after their school days. Printed copies arrived in the summer of 2021, and we could not be happier with the final result.

The issue begins with Poetry, commencing with twenty-six alliterative animal poems for each letter of the alphabet, inspired by Carol Ann Duffy’s ‘F for Fox’. Pupils from Years 6 to 9 collectively assembled an amazingly aural menagerie of creature-poems, from ‘A for Alpaca’ by Isak (6CAL) to ‘Z for Zebra’ by Will (9HJC), and each poem is accompanied by a beautiful illustration by Edie (9MJR).There are then personal poems about familial relationships from Year 7 pupils, namely Eliza (7AFH), James (7AFH), Flo (7AFH), Martha (7AFH), Nicole (7AFH), and Milo (7AFH). From Year 10, we then enjoy a range of formally inventive and subtle poetic explorations from Sophia (10SJB), Alice (10RET), Freddie (10RET), Sophie (10NS), and Daniela (10DGA). These are followed by the winning entries from the English department’s inaugural ‘Poet Laureate’ competition; Elsa (7AFK) won the Year 7 prize with her serene ‘Floral Quartets’, while Esme (8AEM) took home the Year 8 prize with her perceptive musing on labour and exploitation, titled ‘The Factory Worker’. The poetry section concludes with 16 Haiku poems on a variety of subjects from

pupils in Years 6 to 9. The Japanese Haiku, with its extremely tight syllable count, is a deceptively simple form to master, but the published poems dazzled with their sparse and impressionistic quality. Poetry is followed by the Fiction section, where there are evocative descriptions of desert islands and jungles from Jessie (6CAL), Mia (6CB), and Sam (7MSH), alongside Hemingway-inspired minimalist tales from Aidan (8AFH) and Zac (8AFH). Pupils in Year 7 tried their hand at 100-wordshort stories with a Gothic flavour. In the Middle School, Katie (9HJC) wrote a superb re-telling of the myth of Icarus, while Lily (10CMB) produced a vivid stream of consciousness narrative to capture a frantic attempt at communication.

‘emu’ - Emanuel’s very own literary magazine

Then comes the Opinion section, in which students write argumentative pieces on an issue of interest to them. Clara (9VCO) addressed the presentation of neuro-divergence in film and television, while Lakshmi (9HJC) tackled Disney’s controversial reinforcement of negative cultural stereotypes. Gender imbalances in sport were highlighted by Izzy (9SDG), and Ilse (9PAK) confronted the issue of conservatorships and their exploitation of the vulnerable. In addition, Ice (10AJL) wrote a mature reflection on how Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel, American Psycho, interacts with the American Dream and, in the Sixth Form, we were treated to intelligent debates on NASA’s Martian Rovers by Annabel (L6SPP) and the recent removal of statues by Rebecca (L6ASO)

Throughout the magazine, student writing was supported by the specially-commissioned artistic talents of Roman (8AEM), Finlay (8WGD), Edie (9MJR), Rachel (9PAK), and Grace (10CMB) The Art department also supplied superb artwork from pupils across the school, including striking paintings from Ayeishah (7MM) and Lola (L6HVW).There are also excellent photographic contributions from Emma (U6RJB) — who provided the issue’s cover — and Willow (6CB)

We hope that students feel proud of their contributions to this exciting new initiative. Work is already underway on the second issue, so we encourage all students to mine their creative resources and to get involved in whatever artistic endeavour suits them; from poetry to short stories, articles to illustrations, we hope to see your efforts in the next issue.

In September 2020, Emanuel celebrated its first ever Pride Week. Pride Week exists to celebrate those members of our community who are LGBTQ+ and increase understanding of awareness of issues related to LGTBQ+ wellbeing and equality.

In 2021-22, the Pride Committee aimed to increase its importance within the school community by setting up afterschool sessions for LGBTQ+ students and allies to socialise, learn, and engage with queer content in a safe space. This group has become known as ‘Prism’ and has been popular with students across the Middle and Upper School.

During the last week of the Spring Term 2022, Emanuel celebrated its second Pride Week, which was larger in scope than before.A nonuniform day with the theme “colourful” and various social activities, including a bake sale and screenings of LGBTQ+ related films, were shown. In some subjects, students enjoyed Pride-themed lessons. For example, students learned about how sexuality and gender has been explored through literature in English, the struggle for LGBTQ+ rights in History and learning about LGBTQ+ people of faith in Religious Studies. In Life Education, students had the opportunity to explore the life stories of famous LGBTQ+ people and reflect upon the various successes and challenges they had experienced in life related to their identity.

century and post-war world. In the classical field, Mr Morrison explored homoerotic subtext in Virgil and Miss Ferstman discussed how Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles reframed the Trojan narrative from the perspective of the same-sex relationship between Achilles and Patroclus. Meanwhile Festa (U6SPP) discussed the representation of queer characters in film and TV, including the acclaimed Portrait of a Lady on Fire, whilst Ms Hoult wrote on the neglect of homosexual characters from Homer’s Iliad in the 2004 film, Troy. There were also reflections on homosexual behaviour in Biology from Miss Spruce, on the psychology of sexual fluidity from Miss Boyd, and on history’s overlooking of significant queer figures in the women’s suffrage movement from Mr Andrews

The creation of the Pride Committee over the last few years has been a real asset to the Emanuel community and will continue to raise awareness and provide a safe place for LGBTQ+ students and allies across the school.

Alongforthepride

There was also a daily bulletin with interesting and informative articles written by students and members of staff. Information about the history of sexuality through time written by Ms Aitken-Burt, proved popular covering the periods from ancient, medieval and early modern periods, to the 19th

SPELLING SUCCESS

Many of us struggle with spelling, but there are a variety of strategies that we can use to overcome the most common of literacy difficulties, writes Dr Blum...

Spelling is in many ways the toughest of all literacy skills. To spell correctly, the pupil has to be one hundred per cent accurate in their recall of every letter, whereas to read with one hundred per cent accuracy you can get away with scanning words without the need for photographic recall of each and every letter sequence you see.

Over the years, I have seen spelling as the literacy skill that can trigger off the highest level of emotional frustration and feeling of negativity from secondary school students. For a small minority they have spent years covering up their spelling limitations and many have long since given up trying to improve it. Even pupils with an otherwise mature literacy skill set can often find their spelling is still an area of weakness. So what can be done about it?

A lot of controversy and mystery surrounds the art of spelling. Good spellers, like good readers, often don’t remember what explicit strategies they actually used to learn their skill. For many, it’s just an unconscious talent they acquired. For the majority, a lot of reading was enough to reinforce their spelling skills. Sometimes they will tell you that they learned to spell by having a lot of spelling tests at school. But when asked how they actually learned the spellings for the tests, they can’t really remember a particular strategy. Perhaps they knew most of them already and simply wrote them out correctly for the test. It’s likely that they combined three particular skills which poorer spellers often lack:

• A good visual memory for what they have seen in print while reading.

• A secure motor movement memory, so that they remembered automatically how their hand should move across a page to form a word correctly. In situations when they were not sure, they would simply write the word out in a couple of versions and assess which one ‘felt right’, in terms of movement.

• A good aural memory for the sounds in words and which combinations of letters represent them on each occasion.

Good spellers find that spelling words correctly comes so naturally to them that they do it intuitively and without conscious effort. Obviously, this will be the situation in which many teachers and indeed many parents find themselves.Yet, what poor-spelling pupils need more than anything else are explicit strategies to help them spell better. The intuition and unconscious talent of their teachers and ever-helpful parents won’t help them improve their spelling for a spelling test.

Let’s look at the most common strategy that a parent would use to help a pupil improve their spelling or learn a word for a spelling test. ‘Look, Cover, Write and Check’ is a very visual strategy. The pupil looks at the word and tries to visualise it in their mind’s eye. The word is covered, and the pupil writes it from memory. The word is uncovered, and the pupil checks it. If it is incorrect, the pupil starts the process again, keeping on until they get it right.

This is a good structural basis for interventions aimed at strengthening specific aspects of visual memory. But it just won’t work for some people. They need to explore other visual and multi-sensory strategies. So here are a couple of useful strategies to experiment with — less often taught but very useful to know.

Word Within the Word

A word itself is the most obviously recognisable chunk of another word. For example:

textiles — word within word: ‘text’ or ‘tiles’ daddy — word within word: ‘add’ repeat — word within word: ‘pea’ or ‘peat’ knowledge — word within word: ‘know’ or ‘ledge’

Adding Colour

Once pupils have found parts of the word they need to focus on, one useful strategy is to highlight the bit that is the word within a word or the part of the word they find challenging:

• By shading or colouring it in.

• By drawing a picture that helps give a distinctive association to the meaning of the word.

Sounding It Out and Saying It Wrong

Many irregular words in English don’t look as they sound. A good strategy for some pupils is to ask them to sound them out phonetically, from the way they look — saying the word the wrong way, to help spell it the right way. This kind of exaggeration is sometimes called spell speaking. Here are two obvious examples.

• Wednesday — Say with the ‘Wed’ and the ‘nes’ clearly audible.

• Island An island is what it says — ‘is land’ — so say it like that to help you with this irregular spelling.

There are many other spelling strategies (mnemonics, motor skill memory, word banks) and there is not time to go into them all here. If your son or daughter struggles with spelling, the most crucial strategy for spelling better is the personal desire to succeed at it and conquer the problem. Building up a positive emotional commitment to improving spelling is the one essential strategy. Without it, no other spelling technique can work.

For further information on spelling strategies, please contact the Learning Support Department.

English

We have had an eventful two years in the English department, but two years that have been full of creativity, excitement, and our favourite activity… lots and lots of reading! With five book clubs now up and running in the English department, to stand alongside the many book clubs offered by our fantastic library, some might say there has never been a better time to stay inside, hunker down, and curl up with a good book. Our Creative Writing Society continues to go from strength to strength, and 2020 saw the establishment of the first English department magazine, Emu, celebrating writing across the school.We’ve enjoyed National Poetry Day each year, resulting in some thought-provoking and imaginative haiku from our Lower School students, and Senior Literary Society has also seen an array of fascinating guest speakers enlighten our Sixth Formers, with topics ranging from ‘Black Poetry through a Psychoanalytic Lens’ to the plays of Harold Pinter.

Ms S Routledge (Head of English)

Staff Changes

I was proud to step into the role of Head of English in September 2019 and have been consistently amazed at the dedication, commitment and innovation of the English department: Emanuel pupils are an extremely lucky bunch! Internal promotions and our expanding school allowed space for further members of the team, and we were thrilled to welcome Mr Clarke in September 2019, Mr Maskell in September 2020 and Mr Morley in September 2021.

We were saddened to see our Deputy Head of English, Mr Healy, move to Exeter in January 2021, but gladly welcomed Dr Donn to the team: a lover of American literature and modern poetry, she has brought new life to our curriculum with exciting new schemes of work. New life arrived in other ways, and the last few years have also seen Ms Johnson, Ms Windsor and myself on maternity leave. A huge thank you to Dr Donn and Mr Clarke, who stepped into the Head of Department and Deputy Head of Department roles respectively, and to Ms Graham for providing maternity cover.

Creative Writing

We are also encouraging our pupils to seek out opportunities beyond the framework of our school. For the first time, a group of creative writing enthusiasts from Year 10 have prepared to enter the George Orwell Youth Prize, writing pieces exploring the climate crisis. Our Creative Writing Society also continues to meet regularly to share ideas and discuss each other’s work. To keep this fantastic momentum going, we have also launched the Peter Hendry Poetry Prize to find our 2022 Emanuel School Poet Laureates. Last year’s pilot Poet Laureate competition for the Lower School was such a success with pupils that we are now expanding to the whole school community. Peter Hendry was the Headmaster of Emanuel from 1959 to 1984 and a superb English teacher with a passion for poetry. The Peter Hendry Poetry Prize, named in his honour, is awarded to one pupil in the Lower School, one in the Middle School and one in the Upper School for a poem of their own writing on any topic they choose. Each winner will also receive the honour of being their section’s Poet Laureate for 2022-23, writing poems to celebrate key events in the academic year.

Graphic Novel Club

The Year 6/7 ‘Graphic Novel Book Club’ from Dr Donn read Thornhill by Pam Smy and Ye by Guilherme Petreca. The students especially enjoyed Thornhill, a creepy and mysterious story set in an abandoned orphanage. They were fascinated by how the author used visuals and text to tell two stories that seem completely different at first, but then start to get more and more entangled. There was also lots of discussion about how the motif of dolls (especially when they’re too life-like) can create uncanny effects — a fantastic but spine-chilling conversation!

Visiting the Globe Theatre

Diversifying the Curriculum

Diversity in the English curriculum is a much-debated issue, and one that we feel especially passionately about at Emanuel. Master works of African American Literature — including Toni Morrison’s Beloved or Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God — have long been part of our GCSE and A Level curriculum. However, we have also been busy revising our Lower School curriculum so that it now better reflects the fascinating diversity of literary voices; Marjane Satrapi’s 2000-2004 graphic memoir Persepolis and the classic Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D.Taylor are just two examples of texts which have proven especially inspirational in English lessons. Student representatives in the Archer Group gave us invaluable feedback on these curriculum revisions, and we are currently exploring how to contextualise and critically disrupt a canonical text that has proven contentious in recent years: John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men.

Dr

In March 2020, a lucky group of A Level pupils had the opportunity to visit the Globe Theatre to experience Shakespeare in performance. City of London School hosted the pupils for two inspiring lectures about Shakespeare’s theatre, and the group then walked over to the Globe to participate in an interactive performance of Hamlet, in which the actors took direction from pupils to show how scenes could be interpreted in different ways.

Ms Routledge (Head of English)

Donn (Deputy Head of English)

Miss Windsor with A Level Literature students at The Globe

EMU

Perhaps the co-curricular highlight of 2021 was the publication of EMU Mr Maskell led a group of truly talented artists, writers and editors to put together a professional first issue of this magazine showcasing the best and brightest writing Emanuel School has to offer. A full feature on Emu can be found on pages 26-27.

Poetry Slam 2020

The hugely enjoyable Emanuel School Poetry Slam was a victim of the pandemic, so we savour the memories of the pre-Covid Slam of February 2020. Students in Years 6-9 battled it out with their spoken word skills, performing poems in response to the theme ‘My World’. The competition was as tough as ever, with students tackling topics as diverse as climate change, grief, illness, family identity and social unity. Joining us on the day was poet extraordinaire, Mr Gee, who led a series of poetry writing workshops for Years 8 and 9 in the day, before performing his own poem ‘Go Tell It to the Mountain’ and judging the competition in the evening.

As always, it was a close call, but the final winners for each year group were Eva (6EKM), Manasseh (7AFH), Emil (8AFK) and Amelia (9MAH). The audience was particularly impressed with the Year 6 and 7 competitors, who held their own against older students with their confidence and use of movement in their performances, but the overall winner, and recipient of the Slam trophy, was Amelia. A huge congratulations to all the performers and winners!

Poetry By Heart 2022

This year, the poetry enthusiasm was channelled into the national competition ‘Poetry by Heart’. In March 2022, all our Lower School pupils participated in classroom heats, performing a truly astonishing range of lyrical texts with real originality, empathy and flair. We celebrated our strongest performers during the school finals on March 9th, and selected frontrunners from Years 6 to 9. Representing Year 6 were Lorenzo (6USC) and Charlie (6USC), and in Year 7 were Aoife (7JRS) and Lauren (7PM) For Year 8, the finalists were Eva (8SMR) and Oliver (8RDC) and for Year 9, Suzie (9HLM) and Manasseh (9HEC) All the finalists recorded their performances in our film studio and submitted their entries to the national competition. All the entries were commended or highly commended and received praise from the judges for their composure, emphasis and emotional understanding of the poems. We look forward to competing again next year!

Poetry Slam winner Amelia (9MAH) performing in February 2020 (below).

GCSE Book Club

In the GCSE Book Club, run by Mr Maskell, Year 10 and Year 11 students discussed a variety of classic and contemporary works by authors such as Ernest Hemingway, Sylvia Plath, Samuel Beckett, Franz Kafka, and Mark Haddon. Students were encouraged to think about the context, language, and legacy of each book, considering what makes a work of literature important or influential. Each week brought a new and exciting debate and Year 11 students in particular were excited about the introduction this provided for their A Level course.

Year 9 Book Club

The Year 9 Book Club was established by Miss McCloud upon the descent of our third lockdown as a way for our pupils to continue connecting and communicating about their love of books. Year 9 pupils had the opportunity to read and discuss a variety of novels, such as Emma by Jane Austen, The Cousins by Karen M. McManus and The Last by Hanna Jameson. Pupils relished being able to discuss novels over Zoom and took to each new book with enthusiasm! It was a pleasure to discuss such a wide range of literature with this engaged group.

Lower-Sixth Lit Club

This Lit Club of 2020-21, run by Ms Routledge and Dr Donn, read a number of novels, from Donna Tartt’s The Secret History to Claudia Rankine’s Citizen. A particular favourite was Citizen, a collection of prose poems on the theme of racism, exploring microaggressions and the role language plays in racist structures. Students engaged in an interesting and passionate discussion about how language, as a way of addressing the reader, can show a way out of these patterns of bias and enjoyed considering the emotional side of Rankine’s prose poems.

Upper-Sixth Lit Club

The Upper-Sixth Lit Club of 2019-21 holds a special place in Ms Routledge’s heart as her first ever Emanuel School book club. Together we read the classics, the prize winners, the best sellers and everything in between. From Virginia Woolf to Kiley Reid, we have discussed genre, style, sexism, racism and given our own editing critiques. Highlights for the students would surely be meeting in Mr Milne’s office to discuss Pat Barker’s Regeneration (complete with sugary treats) and for Ms Routledge would be one student picking a book club read, The Color Purple, as one of her A Level coursework texts.

Senior Book Club

Run by Mr Maskell, Senior Book Club meets every fortnight to discuss compelling works of literature from a variety of authors. Composed of pupils from mainly Years 11 and the Lower-Sixth, Senior Book Club is a society that nurtures a love for literature and opens eyes to new readings and interpretations of both novels and plays. The chosen text is read in advance, so pupils come prepared to share their experience of the work and spark creative discussion. In the last year, there has been a focus on contemporary novels such as Mohsin Hamid’s imaginative Exit West, Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche’s Purple Hibiscus and Sally Rooney’s latest — Beautiful World,Where Are You. Members have also enjoyed delving into 19th and 20th Century drama such as Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. For anyone wishing to step into the literary world, Senior Book Club is the doorway.

Hilla (L6SMJ)

The Year 9 Book Club: Locked down... still reading!

Maths

The worst of the pandemic may now seem like a distant memory, but I would never have thought that debates surrounding exponential growth, the R-rate and logarithmic scales would have become an almost daily topic of discussion for many of us. The global pandemic has elevated these mathematical terms to a position even the wildest of numerical optimists could not have hoped for, and we can safely say that never has the study of mathematics been so important to society. For my part, I am incredibly proud of my team of Maths teachers and the students of Emanuel who have not only showed some great resilience in the toughest educational setting we will likely ever see — navigating our school community through the trials of the pandemic and the post-lockdown world beyond — but who are also developing into a group of fine mathematicians and problem solvers.

Mr R Bishop (Head of Mathematics)

Online Success

As the world moved ‘online’ over the past two years, we in the Maths Department are grateful to have access to some of the best online resources in education. Out of over 10,000 schools using ‘Dr Frost’ — the worldwide online mathematics platform Emanuel is ranked, at the time of writing this, 42nd. On ‘Hegarty Maths’ in the past year, students at Emanuel have answered a staggering 472,808 questions correctly!

Farhan (8RDC) must get a special mention. Farhan is the youngest student in the world to have completed every task on ‘Hegarty’ and is currently ranked 6th on Dr Frost (out of nearly one million students across the globe!). We salute this incredible achievement. But it is of course the achievements of all the students at Emanuel that have seen the school elevate to one of the top performing schools on ‘Dr Frost’ and ‘HegartyMaths’.

Numbers at A Level

The number of students opting to study Mathematics and Further Mathematics at A Level has nearly doubled in the past three years. We are especially encouraged by the increase in the number of female students opting to study Mathematics at a higher level. It is the intelligence and creativity of engineers, scientists and mathematicians that will really impact the future of our society and it is crucial that we harness the talents of all students in Maths from a diverse range of societal backgrounds to see the most significant gains. For too long women have been severely under represented in STEM subjects and careers, but not anymore at Emanuel. The group of girls pursuing Mathematics and Further Mathematics at A Level at Emanuel is truly inspiring, and the collaborative working environment that we see between the girls and boys in these A Level classes gives me great hope for the future.

Incredible success: Farhan (8RDC) is the youngest student in the world to have completed every task on ‘Hegarty’

Senior Mathematics

In the time since the last edition of The Portcullis in 2019, Sixth Form Mathematics has continued to flourish at Emanuel. For those students who find the subject challenging, there is a thriving afterschool club that has regularly attracted twenty or more enthusiasts. At the other end of the spectrum we have witnessed a number of spectacular achievements. Izzy and Ibs, who left in 2019, are now both studying mathematical-based degrees at Cambridge. And of the 2020 leavers, Siddiq is reading Mathematics at Oxford, Luke is at Cambridge studying Engineering, and Joe demonstrated just how fickle the process can be, by miraculously not getting an offer from Cambridge. Billy and Violet, who left Emanuel in 2021, are studying Economics and Chemistry at Cambridge and Oxford respectively, and this year, Edward (U6AEM) and Hetty (U6ARW) both have offers from Oxford to read mathematicalbased degrees.

Easy as Pi

2022 saw the return of the famous ‘Pi Day’ at Emanuel, which was subsequently turned into ‘Pi Week’!

On the 14th of March (3.14), pupils celebrated ‘Pi Day’ by getting involved in a range of activities throughout the week. Well done to Darya (8RDC) who won the Pi Baking competition, and to Farhan (8RDC), who won the Pi Recital competition (managing to recite 81 digits of Pi without hesitation — very impressive!). Oscar (6CAL) and Dougie (6CAL) were the first to track down all the clues and crack the code for the ‘Emanuel Pi Hunt’. Pupils also enjoyed a Pi-themed lunch and various other activities in form time and lessons.

Junior Maths Challenge

In April 2022, over 200 pupils across Years 6, 7 and 8 participated in the nationwide UKMT Junior Maths Challenge. Emanuel saw the best set of results the school has ever had, with 32 students being awarded Gold, 58 students awarded Silver and 92 students awarded Bronze. Congratulations to all the students who represented the school, in particular Millie (6CAL) and Isabelle (7CB) for achieving Best in Year, and Callum (8RDC) for achieving Best in School.

In the last UKMC Senior Team Challenge before the pandemic, held in November 2019 — and in what can only be described as a truly remarkable team effort — Joe (U6PMM), Siddiq (U6HHM), Billy (U6SKR) and Jeanne (11BJR) managed to score 168 out of 186 points! Emanuel finished in sixth place out of forty-two schools, just one point behind Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in Barnet, and only five points behind the winners from City of London Boys School. This was a truly extraordinary performance, and they deserve every commendation.

The Mathematics department would like to congratulate Joe (U6PMM), Siddiq (U6HHM) and Lucy (10RCW) for achieving a distinction in the British Mathematical Olympiad Round 1 (BMO1). The BMO1 examination lasts three and a half hours, and consists of six extremely challenging questions, acting as the preliminary stage to select the British Mathematics team.

Mr A Leadbetter (Teacher of Mathematics)

Students in the Lower School recently obtained fantastic Junior Maths Challenge results with record numbers securing Gold, Silver and Bronze awards.

The future looks bright in Maths at Emanuel, and we can’t wait follow the careers of these incredibly talented mathematicians.

Miss N Sidhu (Teacher of Mathematics & KS3 Coordinator)

Millie with her certificate for the UKMT Junior Maths Challenge.

Joe, Siddiq, Billy and Jeanne at the 2019 UKMC

Farhan (8RDC)

Diego (6CAL)

Poppy (7PM)

Ines (7PM)

Grace (7PM) and Layla (7PM)

Amy (6CAL)

Rhea (6CAL)

Amy (6CAL) and Rhea (6CAL)

Science

Science at Emanuel continues to be surrounded by a buzz of excitement, and pupils from across the age range take part in weekly supercurricular activities from practical competitions to the newly formed Women in STEM society. As always, Science Week (this year on the theme of ‘Growth’) was a huge highlight, with pupils competing to win prizes in the daily puzzles, cracking codes, and racing around the school to find scientific facts and key terms. In lessons, small groups of Year 7 and 8 pupils teamed up to ‘Beat the Flood’, designing and building a model of their affordable flood-resistant homes before seeing how they fared under a deluge (of tap water!). Outside of the classroom, we have been enthralled (via live link) by our very own pair of kestrels, nesting with their eggs in a crevice of the school building; enjoyed the tranquil oasis of the biodiversity garden — including its visiting heron; had our eyes opened by Mark Miodownik to the potential of material science to revolutionise our world; and been inspired by medics, atmospheric scientists, and polar explorers in lecture trips across London.

Mrs R Brown (Head of Science)

Biology

Biology has continued to flourish at Emanuel. Students remain fascinated by the living world around them and are increasingly drawn to how we might conserve, facilitate, and contribute to it. Practical work walks hand-in-hand with academic study, and we’ve been thrilled to be able to return to relative normality this year to allow for physical and collaborative research. As Biologists, we were compelled by the ground-breaking scientific efforts to study, combat, and control the Coronavirus pandemic, but nothing can ever substitute the live learning so integral to our subject.

Miss S Bunting (Head of Biology)

Women in STEM Club

After being inspired by the all-female Biology department, my fellow STEM friends Rebecca (L6CDK) and Rosie (L6SKH) and I started the ‘Women in Stem Club’ for Sixth Formers at Emanuel. Beginning with the letter ‘S’ from STEM, a few members volunteered to create presentations about powerful and influential women in the field of science such as Rosalind Franklin and Gertrude B. Elion.

We have since had members present from all the other fields that make up STEM. We have enjoyed a large turn-out to our sessions and we are looking forward to establishing the club further and exploring the history and future of women in STEM. We are grateful to our supportive Biology teachers for helping us create the club and guiding us in our meetings.

Margot (L6PSA)

Dissection Club

Miss Childerstone has begun running a dissection club for students, which is proving to be a huge hit. Students are able to learn about the anatomy of various organisms and further their understanding of physiological systems.

Ducklings & Chicks

The school community enjoyed watching the hatching of duckling and chicks. Once hatched, the younglings were well cared for by our nurturing pupils!

Chemistry

Acids and atoms, molecules and matter — the world of chemistry continues to delight and fascinate our students at Emanuel. The pandemic made our vital practical experimentation almost impossible, so the return to live lessons could not be more welcome and Chemistry has flourished outside of the classroom, too.This year, for example, we were pleased to see the return of inter-year Chemistry competitions and our annual trip to ‘Chemistry in Action’.

Dr S Khan (Deputy Head of Chemistry)

Chemistry in Action

A trip to ‘Chemistry in Action’ is a must for all budding chemists. In Spring 2022, leading chemists in the industry treated us to five sessions designed to inspire a future generation of young chemists. ‘Colourful Chemistry’ kicked off by Peter Hoare led us to discover the science behind all kinds of chemical processes (such as combustion, redox and kinetics) involving transition metals. Following this, a fascinating talk was delivered by Alex Baker from the University of Warwick. He shed light on one of the groundbreaking applications that chemistry can have — the lateral flow test — and how it can go as far as to fight health inequalities. Each of the scientists proved that you would be hard-pressed to find any aspect of your life that hasn’t been or won’t be impacted by chemistry research.

Anjou (L6PSA) Royal Society of Chemistry Olympiad

In January, I took part in the Chemistry Olympiad a year early. Questions took topical subjects like clean fuel, coronavirus testing and drilling into their chemistry. I found that questions challenged me to go above and beyond the A Level syllabus, stretching my subject knowledge. I am immensely proud to have achieved a silver medal in the Olympiad even though I was not in the Upper Sixth. Well done to my fellow Olympians (pictured right) — Phoebe (U6SEM), Edward (U6AEM), Hetty (U6ARW), and Lucy (L6JTB) — who also achieved silver medals.

Freya (L6SMJ

Top of the Bench

Last term we took part in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s interschool ‘Top of the Bench’ competition. It consisted of a practical and written questions that were challenging but very fun to try out. It was a unique experience because we had never had the chance to compete in chemistry before and it was our first solo experiment. We were able to participate with other years as well, broadening our knowledge and expertise. Getting another chance to compete in the competition next year would be amazing and, hopefully, we can get a higher place and continue to expand our chemistry knowledge.

Kaia (9SB) and Romilly (9SB)

Physics

Despite the challenges of the last two years, the momentum of the Physics department was undiminished as we stormed to glory in multiple competitions through the hard work and enthusiasm of students from all ages. A big congratulations to the Weizmann Safecracking team, Astro Pi, Space Design, and Physics Olympiad teams, who each found enormous success. In lessons, too, students continue to amaze us in their enthusiasm for the laws of space, time, matter, and existence itself!

Dr S Parsons (Head of Physics)

CERN 2020

In February 2020, A Level Physicists travelled to Geneva and enjoyed a fantastic trip to CERN. Travelling 10km into France across the diameter of the LHC gave us a sense of the scale of the engineering. Upon reaching the northern-most point of the accelerator, we went 90m underground and saw the Compact Muon Solenoid — a 14,000 tonne detector.This is where scientists could discover extra dimensions, or particles that make up dark matter. We were fortunate to visit the ‘Antimatter Factory’ and learn about how scientists hope to determine the interaction between antimatter and gravity. It was an unforgettable trip to the forefront of modern physics.

Mr R Chuter (Teacher of Physics)

Inspirational Lectures

Mr Martin has organised a series of exciting lectures by inspiring women in physics. In September 2021, the department was delighted to welcome Alexandra Mitchell, a current PhD student studying gravitational waves, as a visiting speaker. Students from Years 10 to 13 listened attentively as she described gravitational waves, where they come from and her role detecting them. This includes building the most sensitive seismometer in the world.Alex also spoke about how many potential careers are available to those with a Physics degree, including everything from particle researcher to careers in finance and even medical physics. As a department we were delighted to be able to hear from such an excellent role model for our budding Physicists.

Weizmann Safecracking Competition

We have overseen three entries to the Weizmann Safecracking Competition in the last two years — one ‘real’ and one virtual competition for the annual challenge run by the Weizmann Institute. Over the preceding five months student entrants had been designing a safe and building it with the help of the DT department. The catch was that the safe had to be unlocked using physics principles. In 2021 we had two teams, with some amazing puzzles including a fluidised sand bed, a gyroscope, a Barton’s pendulum and a dizzying diode bridge to confuse and bamboozle our opponents.

History

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it...” Whilst I would prefer a more upbeat quotation to open this year’s History pages, this aphorism seems particularly apt for the 2020-22 edition. A number of years in recent history seem to have repeated themselves, not least 1968 — a year of racial tension and protest in the USA and Britain, a particularly bad but largely ignored pandemic, but much better popular music. The Spanish flu of 1918-19 also seems a grim but obvious comparison. Let’s all hope the economic storm can be weathered so the 2020s aren’t a repeat of the 1930s.We should leave that rather dour thought and remember that History is always great to study (but not always to live through) and the future beckons. In tough times the study

of History can still be fun, whether baking a chocolate Crusader Castle or on acting out the trial of Charles I. In a period in which the very purpose, value, and nature of History and remembrance of the past has been so sharply in focus, I am pleased that Emanuel students invariably approach the subject critically and thoughtfully. We are proud that the History department was able to play a role in the school’s LGBTQ+ Pride Week, and we should be proud too of the efforts of Miranda (U6SMJ), Mr Andrews, and the entire Archer Group for introducing the thought-provoking Emanuel Black History Week.

Mr S Jones (Head of History)

Hever Castle

In June 2022, the History department was finally able to resume its annual tradition of taking Year 9 to Hever Castle, having last visited in 2019. Below, Sara — now in Year 11 — reflects on her Year 9 experience of the trip in 2019...

Soon after we arrived at Hever Castle in 2019, we were led on a guided tour through the castle, crossing a moat in which ducklings were paddling and Koi fish swimming before entering the castle itself. We learnt about some of the previous owners, including the Boleyn family whose daughter Anne was wed to Henry VIII. The castle has had many owners, including the American millionaire William Waldorf Astor who added an Italian garden in the early 1900s. He also had a 38-acre lake constructed which took 800

men two years to dig! During the tour of the castle we saw many colourful Tudor tapestries and even some instruments of torture. Outside the castle in the grounds, we walked through the stunning Italian Garden which was filled with thousands of rose plants of all colours, as well as original sculptures imported from Rome and Pompei. The Garden was lovely and finished next to the beautiful man-made lake. My favourite activity of the day was navigating the water maze — a pond topped with panels rigged to splash water when stepped on. It was great fun but it did leave us soaking wet. We finished off the morning with lunch and ice cream and a quick stop at the adventure playground before heading back to Emanuel.

Sara (9-11DGA)

Year 9 at Hever Castle on the 2019 trip

Hever Castle 2022: Tilly (8HV), Natasha (8RDC), Alba (8SMR), Olivia (8RDC)

Normandy 2020

I was a bit concerned during the week before half term as Storm Ciara battered the South coast. By 4:30am on the morning of Friday 14th February, however, the weather had calmed down. Our Year 9 students had a smooth morning crossing to Caen, visiting Pegasus Bridge (where the first British paratroopers landed in the night of 5/6 June 1944) and settling into our accommodation a short walk from an enormous beach (part of the “Sword” landing beach on the 6th June 1944 — D Day).

On Saturday we headed to Arromanches, where the remains of the artificial ‘Mulberry’ harbour are still clearly visible and where we saw an amazing film about the Normandy campaign. We went on to Pointe du Hoc, where the huge shell holes, bomb craters and concrete German defences made a big impact. We returned to our base via Omaha Beach museum and cemetery, which was very sobering (you need only see the opening landing scene from Saving Private Ryan).

Sunday was our Caen day — there was a really good market with all kinds of stalls and the opportunity to practise our French, plus

a visit to the ramparts of William the Conqueror’s 11th century castle, and to a stunning Norman Gothic church. We spent the afternoon at the Caen Peace Museum, probably the best coverage of the period between 1918 and 1945 that I know, which certainly provoked some excellent questions and interesting debates.

Monday was Bayeux day — the tapestry was amazing and Bayeux Cathedral, with its stained glass and its painting of Saint Thomas Becket, was very impressive. Free time in Bayeux to fill up on crepes, galettes, frites and fromage left us heading back to Caen for the late afternoon ferry. We caught the aftermath of Storm Dennis, making it a memorably ‘bumpy’ sea crossing to Portsmouth, eventually arriving back at Emanuel around 11:30pm having packed an awful lot into a very short time. Many thanks to everyone who went for being so helpful and making it such an enjoyable trip; both the accommodation manager and the coach driver congratulated us for keeping rooms and coaches in such good order, so well done all of you!

Mr A Keddie (Teacher of History)

LGBTQ+ Pride Week

This year, Emanuel hosted its first ever Pride Week Years 7-9 also received lessons on the history of Pride. These lessons centred around the question, ‘To what extent did the Stonewall Riots aid LGBTQ+ acceptance?’, covering a range of topics surrounding Pride and LGBTQ+ rights, as well opening discussions on the effectiveness of LGBTQ+ activism, its potential failings, and what may still need to be done. It was sobering to think that when most of our teachers were at school (and when some of them were teaching) Section 28 prevented the “promotion” of homosexuality in schools. Year 8 were particularly intrigued by the fact that it was Henry VIII that introduced the first legal persecution against homosexuality in order to legitimise the Dissolution of the Monasteries!

Sam (U6SKR)

Leader & Founder of the Emanuel Pride Committee

Emanuel Black History Month

Race is one of the most difficult topics in the world to discuss, mainly because it is often considered to be an instant physical indication of divisions in humanity. The Cambridge Dictionary defines race as ‘one of the main groups to which people are often considered to belong, based on physical characteristics that they are perceived to share such as skin colour, eye shape, etc.’ Alongside physical characteristics, there are often cultural traditions in which people find a strong sense of identity. For many, it is not the colour of their skin or the shape of their eyes that help define who they are, but rather the culture in which they flourish and celebrate. Unfortunately, many others do not see it this way and, as a result, large sections of the human race have had to become highly aware of their physical appearance and how others’ perception of it

will affect them in day-to-day life. I have organised Black History Month at Emanuel because I hope very much that people will take the opportunity to explore, to ask questions, to take the initiative to investigate a culture they are curious about or to reflect on a moment in history that has shocked them. You may feel anxious about asking someone something you think might be wrong or might offend them, but as long as you do so respectfully and are genuinely interested in hearing what they have to say, ask anyway. If you don’t ask, you won’t find the answer. There is much to lament and much to celebrate in black history, and in the history that is being made as you read this. Now is a perfect opportunity to start becoming a constructive part of it.

Miranda (U6SMJ) Organiser of Emanuel Black History Month

Geography

Remote learning and national lockdowns threaten Geography more than other disciplines. Fieldwork and out of classroom experiences are vital in bringing our subject to life, and so finding ways to be innovative and dynamic despite the Covid restrictions has been a key challenge facing our department over the past two academic years. For the Sixth Form, we brought in Barry Cullimore, fieldwork expert and digital data connoisseur, who introduced our students to cutting-edge analysis tools that ensured our investigations continued to pack the usual academic punch that we expect in the department. For the Lower School, new schemes of work on Black Lives Matter and ‘Movement and Migration’ have captivated our students as we continue to sprinkle our lessons with gold-dust from contemporary society, economics, and geopolitics.

The half-termly newsletters keep students up to date on opportunities for geographical enrichment outside school, whether through museum visits or television documentaries, and I have been staggered by the student uptake in our school competitions. Students have written on topics as far-reaching as virtual reality, the Ukraine-Russia conflict, corruption, and COP-26, whilst the school’s inaugural COP-26 climate conference was truly inspiring, showcasing the next generation of environmentalists who the school are so fortunate to host every day. More recently, it has been fantastic getting students out of the classroom to a lecture day in central London and to a rivers investigation day in Surrey. With some excellent international residentials in the pipeline, it is a very exciting time to be studying Geography at Emanuel.

Mr J Harris (Head of Geography)

Studying ‘Black Lives Matter’

Black Lives Matter, also known as BLM, is now studied by Year 9 in Geography lessons. I believe that it is important that we learn about this, as it is a global issue directly affecting our generation. The Black Lives Matter movement was formed in response to numerous deaths of black individuals as a result of police brutality and racially motivated violence. The most famous of these deaths was the shocking killing of George Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis in May 2020, an event which captured the world’s attention. The whole movement started with a hashtag, #Black Lives Matter, in 2013. By 2020, it escalated to protests all around the world against racial inequality and violence.

The Black Lives Matter community aims to make change and bring about equality for black people, who simply want to be respected and not judged by the colour of their skin. Organisers say the movement’s mission is to ‘eradicate white supremacy and to build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities’. We have learnt how the movement seeks to make vital changes in society, confronting discrimination that has become almost inbuilt

within law enforcement, particularly in the USA. The movement represents an opportunity for all people, irrespective of class, political background or race, to collaborate against institutional racism.

Studying BLM from a geographical perspective means that we are looking at the impact of this movement across three sectors: politics, society, and economy. Through politics, we understand this is a fight to attain legal justice and rights in our time to create a better future.Through society, we have learned that institutionalised racism affects the way that people behave and are represented in the world. And through economics, we have seen that we need to give equal opportunities to everyone, as biased systems only widen the gulfs between the privileged and those in greater need. The consequences and impact of this movement are going to change our lives, and the lives of generations after ours, and Geography helps us understand how this important movement is set to shape the world around us.

Louise (9MJR)

Sixth Form Geography Lecture Day 2021

Anticipation and excitement were in the air as we bundled onto the train at Clapham Junction, heading for a riveting lecture day at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster.

On arrival, we were introduced to captivating, renowned speakers who explored crucial geographical theories with a present-day lens. It was fascinating gaining an academic and theoretical perspective on contemporary geopolitical events surrounding China and Russia from political geographer Alasdair Pinkerton. This fueled my curiosity about how the subject of Geography has a large impact in this new technological age of politics. More importantly, Mr Harris’ question was commended by the lecturer for being insightful and pertinent, identifying how the presence of economic superpowers impacts global stability and security.

The well-known geography writer Danny Dorling delivered an eye-opening critique of the economic globalisation that continues to connect people and countries across the world.Through a more physical lens, Jenni Barclay gave enthralling comments on volcanic activity, and how communities can mitigate hazards in the 21st century. This made me wonder how this new era of warning and prediction systems can reduce damage done to contemporary society.

These talks gave us Sixth Formers an insight into the geographical minds of acclaimed academics, which made us further question the geographical problems in the world today.

Joshua

Green City Projects: Summer 2020

During lockdown and via remote learning, Year 8 pupils were challenged with designing their own green and sustainable city to include housing, green energy production, places to grow food, transport links, businesses, and areas for nature to thrive. The results were truly inspiring!

Sixth Form students at the Geography Lecture Day

(L6CCG)

Geographical Book Reviews

One very talented geographer in Year 7, Macsen (7MM), has been delighting us all with his reviews of significant recent geographical literature. Macsen’s extremely impressive reading is seeing him engage with important contemporary geographical issues. First he read The Almighty Dollar by Dharshini David, and he was struck by how the book ‘takes you on a journey of one single dollar from the US to China, China to Nigeria, Nigeria to India and more’, while ‘teaching you a little about foreign direct investment, or FDI, which occurs when corporations invest in countries’. He then read Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall, which he considers ‘an absolutely amazing geo-political book’. Macsen enjoyed how the book ‘focuses on the impact of Geography on countries and regions, such as how Russia does not have a powerful navy because its ports freeze over in the winter, or how the UK has the best of both worlds by being an isolated island but close enough to the continent to allow trade and prosperity to spread’. He then moved on to another book by Tim Marshall: Divided. A more challenging read, Macsen was nevertheless intrigued by how the book ‘discusses the many divides in modern society, whether it be race, religion, or class’, and how Marshall ‘explores the rise of nationalism and how humans in some societies are almost returning to tribalism with ideas of us and them’. The Geography department wishes to congratulate Macsen on his superb reading, and we can’t wait to hear about what he reads next!

Tectonics Project

Also during online learning, as part of their study of tectonics, Year 7 pupils were given the challenge to create a 2D or 3D representation of either an earthquake, a tsunami, a volcanic eruption, or to design an earthquake-resistant structure. Pupils were encouraged to use materials found in their homes and we were hugely impressed by the range of their creations. Highlights included food art, animations, videos, and visual displays.

Classics

The siege engine of the Classics department pushes on with great success into yet another year. In 2022, 137 pupils opted to study a classical subject for GCSE in Year 10, and 40 pupils joined the A level ranks in Year 12. Results have been exceptional with 100% A*/A for Latin at GCSE, and 100% A*/A for Classical Civilisation at A level in Summer 2022.

We offer many trips to supplement the students’ learning, including Bath, Leptis Magna,Verulamium Roman Museum and Roman Theatre, Fishbourne Roman Palace, the British Museum, a trip to the Cambridge University Greek Play, Richborough Roman Fort, Canterbury Roman Museum, Paris, the Bay of Naples, Greece, and Sicily.Venimus, vidimus, vicimus!

2019

2019-2020 had its blessings for the Classics department with the arrival of the phenomenon who is (in mortal form) Mr Morrison He has proved to be an excellent and popular teacher and has played a major part in the high numbers of pupils electing to pursue Latin and Classical Civilisation at both GCSE and A Level in his time at Emanuel. In July 2020, we sadly had to say ‘vale’ to Mr Ford, a legendary figure in the department. The pupils will never forget his tremendous subject knowledge, his highly amusing stories, and his linen suits. He is still spoken of fondly by his students and colleagues. In the Autumn Term of 2020, we welcomed four new teachers — all of whom are fabulous! Miss Williams joined as a full-time member of staff, Mrs Anson as cover for Ms Hoult for the term, and Mrs Peters and Miss Johnson, who took on the delights of Year 7 Latin teaching. In Spring 2021, we were delighted to welcome back Ms Hoult to ‘virtual’ school. She is a very popular teacher and the students were very happy to see her again. Finally, the 2021-2022 year saw the arrival of Miss Ferstman, an energetic and inspiring addition to the department. She has been in charge of the hugely successful Primary Ambitions project for this academic year.

Mr P Adams (Head of Classics)

Trips

There were two Classics trips to Italy planned for 2020 but sadly both had to be cancelled. However, prior to lockdown we did run some fabulous trips. In October 2019, Mr Adams took Sixth Form Latin and Classical Civilisation students to see the Cambridge University Greek play Oedipus at Colonus. This was a triumph and the students really enjoyed the immersive experience of the production in the original language. Indeed, one student described it as ‘the best day of (her) life’!

In late February 2020, Mr Adams led the Year 9 Latin and Classical Civilisation trip to Bath — a trip everyone always loves.We saw the Roman Baths; were welcome visitors to Bath Abbey; went on a walking tour of the magnificent city, and saw the Royal Crescent and Pulteney Bridge.

Lockdown Highlights

Lockdown 1 in the Summer Term of 2020 saw the Classics department play to its strengths with a range of creative, engaging, and amusing lessons. From Mr Adams’ classic voiceover PowerPoints to Mr Morrison’s ground-breaking YouTube channel (38 subscribers and counting), the department kept up its characteristic vivacity and good-natured ‘-bantur’.

We also saw a variety of creative projects inspired by the Cambridge Latin Course: Lego models of Salvius’ farm by Imogen (10REM), cakes depicting Barbillus jostling with a crocodile by Annie (10RET), tributes to Cogidubnus (RIP), stopmotion animations of the villa Caecilii and much more!

Year 7 channelled their inner Grumio by creating Roman food at home and skimming through the 2,000 year old cookbook of Apicius. There was also excellent research done on Roman emperors by Year 9, with individual students presenting their findings to a rapt audience via Zoom. Meanwhile, Sixth Formers went above and beyond with their study of Greek and Roman epic. They listened to MASSOLIT lectures online and referred to a range of university-level articles on JSTOR, preparing submissions for an Oxford University essay competition. Another highlight was Year 12 Classical Civilisation students reciting the poetry of Tyrtaeus, with a moving rendition of the ‘Fallen Warrior’ poem by Hughie (L6PSA) bringing a tear to even the most stoic classicist’s eye.

Lockdown did not dampen the enthusiasm for Latin with a fantastic 85% of the Year 7 electing to continue with its study in Year 8 (115 pupils). Numbers for GCSE and A Level were equally pleasing.

Mr Adams in the Classics classroom

L6 students during their trip to the British Museum

2020-21

During the term, we were fortunate to have many days on site and enjoyed events such as Miranda Barclay’s EPQ presentation to the entire Sixth Form on similarities between Virgil’s Dido and Cleopatra VII; the creative talents of Lower Sixth Classics students making a life-sized Oedipus figure, a Bacchant’s thyrsus, and one of the most colourful displays in the school in D2; the Year 11 and 13 bubble ‘clinics’ for Latin and Classical Civilisation; huge numbers for taster evening events for Latin and Classical Civilisation; and Year 7 donning traditional Roman dress as they took part in a toga dressup competition and created a variety of colourful Roman dinner party invites and adverts for Roman houses for sale.

Competitions

In Spring Term of 2021, we also launched a couple of competitions. The Y7-10 Latin/Classics competition involved creating a piece based around a myth or the Cambridge Latin Course. The Year 11-13 Latin and Classics competition invited students to record a short presentation explaining which single day in the history of the

classical world they would choose to travel back in time to. Emma (L6RJB) wrote a superb piece on spending a day in Ancient Rome, and Rocco (U6MPD) — now a Classics student at Edinburgh University — narrated an excellent presentation on a day trip to the City Dionysia.

‘Greece’ is the Word

In late February 2021, Emanuel was selected as one of only 10 independent schools in the United Kingdom to take part in a new Classical Association Ancient Greek qualification (first sitting was Summer 2022). We currently have some excellent and highly talented Year 8, 9 and 10 pupils producing excellent work in anticipation of this. Kit (9DLB) commented: ‘I am loving Greek so far and am now remembering most of the alphabet without prompts’. He is now studying outside of lessons for the Greek GCSE in 2024.

There were even more trips on offer — Year 9 Latin (108 students) and Year 10 Latin (64 students) both had a successful trip to Bath, the former having to be divided across two separate dates to accommodate the large numbers. The main purpose of the trip was to visit the historic Roman Baths themselves.We met a real life Ancient Roman attendant at the Baths who regaled us with tales of her daily life.We emerged from the ancient mystery of the Baths at the reasonably priced gift shop, where students purchased a range of memorable souvenirs. We had the chance to visit the funfair outside, and meet Father Christmas himself, followed by a tour spearheaded by Mr Adams. It was a fabulous day enjoyed by all. One student described the trip as ‘amazing’, that he was ‘impressed by the level of organisation’ and that he ‘didn’t want to go home.’

In addition, 25 A Level Classical Civilisation students enjoyed a day at the British Museum, visiting the Nero Exhibition. Free doughnuts were dispensed by Mr Adams, Mr Morrison’s talk on Nero’s characterisation was met with rapturous applause, and the tour ended with a visit to the Parthenon Marbles, the Bassae Frieze and the Rosetta Stone.

On the last day of the February half term, 37 Latin and Classical Civilisation Sixth Form students attended UCL’s production of

Euripides’ Electra. For some, this was their first theatre trip postpandemic and so was hotly anticipated by our dedicated cohort. The recognition scene between Orestes and Electra was a clear highlight, played out with understated subtlety by the Old Tutor. The tragicomic aspects of the play were particularly prominent and came to a head with the ‘deus ex machina’ appearance of Castor, whose performance seemed to channel the spirit of Frankie Howerd in Up Pompeii! Students were beaming with appreciation, crying cathartic tears of laughter and lamentation as they emerged from the auditorium.

One Lower Sixth student praised the play for ‘bringing together elements of traditional Greek tragedy with clever, modernised touches’. Another said that this was ‘the best evening of the year — if not, [her] life’.

I would like to thank Ms Hoult, Mrs Anson, Dr Wakefield, Mrs Peters, Miss Johnson, Miss Williams, Mr Morrison, Miss Ferstman and Miss Aitken-Burt for all their hard work with the department.

Mr P Adams (Head of Classics)

Joe (10SJB), the Quintus of Emanuel, reading from Book 3 of the Cambridge Latin Course in Aquae Sulis.

Lakshmi (10HJC); Sophia (10SDG); Anna (10MGA); Eleri (10MGA); Felix (10MGA); Isabelle (10HJC)

Y9 students enjoying their trip to Bath

Languages

The last two years have seen a significant development in the teaching of Modern Languages at Emanuel. We are ambitious for our pupils, and we have been impressed at how well they have adapted to an approach which focuses on giving them the skills and tools to manipulate and create language for themselves. With an eye to the future, we have also introduced more technology into the classroom and are making use of a wider range of interactive websites which are greatly assisting pupils with their learning. We have also expanded the range of enrichment and co-curricular activities available so that pupils not only hone their linguistic skills, but learn more about the countries in which our languages are spoken.

Spanish

Celebración del Día De Los Muertos

During the first week of November we enjoyed a week of celebrations commemorating The Day of the Dead through many subjects, not just in Spanish. Year 6 practised their symmetry skills creating brightly coloured ‘Papel Picado’, a type of Spanish bunting used for decorations. This is a traditional paper cutting technique used particularly for this festival. The theme of celebrating our dead was also studied in Religious Education and English lessons, where some great poems were written. While in Biology they learned about the millions of monarchs butterfly that arrive at the same time as the day of dead in Michoacán México.

Our hard-working catering team joined in, preparing a menu consisted of an amazing array of Mexican cuisine, from spicy Yucatan chicken tacos to sweet and savoury Guadalajara pork and pineapple, to Oaxaca omelette. For dessert, there were sweet and sticky Buñuelos, a traditional doughnut style dessert which is often served at festivals. They also decorated the dining areas with painted skulls representing La Calavera Catrina and added some great Mexican music to keep everyone’s feet tapping.

The Spanish conquistadors introduced All Saints Day (Día de Todos los Santos) to Mexico. The conquered Native Americans took the opportunity to incorporate their own traditions for

honouring the dead into these two days. The resulting holiday is a unique mixture of the two cultures. On the Day of the Dead, the focus is on celebrating with one’s family — alive and dead — and remembering those who are no longer alive. It’s on seeing death as another stage following life, not something to be faced with fear. It’s a day of happiness because they are remembering loved ones.

Mr C Kidd (Head of Modern Foreign Languages)

German Onatti German Play

In February 2022, Year 9 and 10 German pupils were treated to, Horoskop — a comedy play by Onatti theatre group. The pupils’ language skills were put to the test by the play — which was entirely in German — and by Mr Kidd acting as quizmaster at the end. The pupils then wrote a review of what they’d seen in German.

Breakfast Club

German club runs every Friday morning from 8:00 until 8:20 in M5. It is a great environment to practise German and gives me a chance to make friends with other bilingual students. We play fun games and have friendly competitions all while practising German vocabulary and grammar. We also do fun themed sessions, such as at Christmas, where we ate Lebkuchen and learnt about how they celebrate Christmas in Germany.

Year 11 Trip to DSL Article

In January 2022, 17 Year 11 German students were given the opportunity to pay the German School in Richmond a visit. For the entire stay they were paired up with a ‘buddy’ from the German School who showed them around the school grounds. They were highly interested in seeing a piece of the fallen Berlin wall. Furthermore, the Emanuel students participated in lessons: some of them even had to sit a Geography test or write a poem in German. In their final lesson they completed a questionnaire — with the help of their buddies — about the German school system. Our students were astonished to learn that you actually have to repeat a whole school year if you do not have good enough grades, that students do not have to wear a school uniform and that students from more than 50 nations are at the school.

French Breakfast Club

When I joined Advanced French Breakfast Club, it was to look for a club to help with my accent and vocabulary, and I am glad to say it has helped me so much with my accent and my confidence in vocabulary. We have rotating language teachers who run the club, so it is nice for them to come back and see our progress. During my time in the club, we have looked at French ‘Bande Dessinée’, describing words and have done presentations on our favourite hobbies. It is fun, and I look forward to going every single week.

Maja (9HLM)

Ruby (7HAB)

Politics

The political landscape of the past two years has proven to be a fascinating, if often concerning, education for our students. Both in the UK and abroad, we have kept a close eye on how power has operated as the world was forced to band together to combat the pandemic. We have watched governments come and go, but the basic necessities and desires of all people have remained the same. Politics students at Emanuel have, as ever, discussed and debated these issues with impressive scrutiny and principles.

Mr W Davis (Head of Politics)

The Senior Politics Society has been extraordinarily well served by visiting speakers in the last two years. We believe that it is vital that our students are able to engage with those who live and work in the political sphere. Students have been fortunate to hear from several distinguished guests.

Rod Cartwright

We heard from Rod Cartwright on the rise and legacy of New Labour. Having worked closely with the party during the 1997 election campaign at Millbank Tower he was in an excellent position to detail the key elements behind Tony Blair’s astonishing success. Being a public relations specialist, it was no surprise that he stressed the simplicity of communication, the clarity of the message and the balance of style and substance portrayed by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, respectively, as keys to New Labour’s electoral success. He then put forward a convincing case for Tony Blair as one of, if not the, most successful prime ministers of the 20th Century. Rod looked at the decline of absolute poverty, the depth of constitutional change and the improvement in public services as key indicators of a successful premiership. He was put under pressure by some pupils who maintained that he could not be forgiven for the humanitarian disaster of the Iraq War, whilst Mr Jones blamed Blair for hubris after the UK’s successful intervention in Kosovo. Clearly, few prime ministers divide opinion like Blair does, but with one of his greatest achievements — the Good Friday agreement — under threat from Brexit, it was fitting that his legacy was discussed in election week.

Azmina Siddique

We were lucky enough to welcome Azmina Siddique, Policy Advisor for the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change. She discussed counter-extremism policy in the UK and students were challenged to think about where the line should be drawn between security and liberty. She explained the reasons for both the rise of Islamism and the growth of far-right groups, and students wrestled with difficult questions about what constitutes extremism. In light of the tragic London Bridge attack the following day, these issues feel more significant and relevant than ever.

Rod Cartwright speaks to the Senior Politics Society

Dr Mark Allinson

We were also visited by Dr Mark Allinson, Associate Pro ViceChancellor (Learning and Teaching) at the University of Bristol. He was invited by Friederike (L6SJC), who was inspired by reading his work over the summer. He spoke about the history and development of democracy in Germany. Students were treated to a comprehensive summary of the state of German politics from the Weimar Republic to the current day, with a particular focus on the conflict between the systems of East and West Germany and how these divisions have not been entirely healed by unification.

Jack Simson Caird

On 11th November, Dr Jack Simson Caird (OE), Deputy Counsel for the House of Commons Justice committee, returned to Emanuel to speak to Politics A Level students about the proper constitutional role of Parliament. Jack spoke about the legal implications of Brexit, the functions of the independent judiciary and led a highly relevant conversation about the standards we should expect from our politicians. We are incredibly grateful to Jack for giving up his valuable time, and he was delighted to reconnect with Mr Keddie who taught him politics all those years ago.

Iain Anderson

We were exceptionally grateful to Iain Anderson, co-founder and Executive Chairman at Cicero Group for giving up his time to speak to the students of the Senior Politics Society. He has worked for a range of politicians, including Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke MP on his leadership bids. He spoke to students about his extensive experience and made a compelling case that lobbyists aren’t always the villains they are often made out to be by the media.

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan MP

On the 12th May 2021, Politics students were lucky enough to hear virtually from Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, the MP for Tooting and the Shadow Secretary of State for Mental Health. She gave the students a summary of her life and how she ended up in politics, with really important lessons about the impact of refusing to give up in the face of adversity and the importance of putting yourself out there to change your local community for the better. She then gave honest and comprehensive answers on topics ranging from the future of the Labour Party in light of the result of the Hartlepool by-election, the mental health crisis for young people to her role in the shadow cabinet and the efficacy of Prime Minister’s Questions in holding the government to account.We are incredibly grateful to Dr Allin-Khan for giving up her time to speak to us, and are very hopeful that we will be able to welcome her to school in person soon.

Parliament Trip

Politics pupils really enjoyed their visit to Parliament. They were amongst the first schools to be able to sit in the Commons gallery since the beginning of the pandemic and took part in a workshop looking at how laws are passed.

Dr Jack Simson with Mr Keddie

Dr Mark Allinson with Friederike (L6SJC)

Rosena-Allin-Khan

Politics talk with Dr Jack Simson

Business & Economics

As for so many of us, the past year has been one of great challenge for Business and Economics. This has been not just in terms of delivering the curriculum to the standards that we have set for ourselves, but also in our efforts to try to keep everyone enthused; setting, marking, moderating and grading exam papers; stretching our talented students through extra-curricular activities; and supporting our cohort through help clubs. We have all done our best to try to ensure that it has been ‘Business as Usual’ throughout this difficult period.

My colleagues in the department adapted extremely quickly to the new working conditions and, in many ways, we are better for it. Embracing technology like OneNote, Zoom, and Teams proved difficult at first, but these and other teaching aids now form part of our everyday working lives and have enhanced our ability to develop interesting lessons and provide more directed support for the students.

Mr R Tong (Head of Business & Economics)

Economics and Business Society

Miss Courtney has set up the Economics and Business Society, which runs on Monday lunchtimes and is extremely popular with A Level students. Among other things she has organised a talk by Andy Hubbard from Karshare who spoke to the society about entrepreneurship and the importance of resilience when setting up your own business. School Bursar Mr Grenfell Martin then discussed the key responsibilities of a bursar and focused especially on how Covid-19 has impacted his decisions. The students learned about the costs associated with running a school and the distribution of funding. Students have also developed their independent skills by presenting to their peers on a number of topics. One particularly memorable presentation saw Zach (U6ARW) and Joe (U6WGD) present on the topic of ‘The Stock Market’, which provided insight into the different types of stock traders, influences on the stock market, and further market analysis.

Young Enterprise

A group of Lower-Sixth students set up their own company,‘Spruce’, and ran it for the year, generating finance and developing their own eco-friendly products. First, they made and sold scrunchies from fabric offcuts to generate seed finance. Using profit from their scrunchies, they were able to develop their main product: macrame potholders. The recyclable macrame was handmade by the group and they split the work by traditional division of labour methods that Adam Smith would have been proud of! Students sold their products via the Young Enterprise website and through posters around the school, advertising using TikTok and Instagram as well as a WordPress website. The team was ably led by Indigo (L6SEM) and they gained some vital entrepreneurial skills through the process.

Psychology

It has been great to see the students back in school and being able to teach Psychology in more hands-on, creative and interactive learning this past year. Some of our favourite creative lessons this year have been the introduction of sheep brain dissections, getting creative with ‘food’ and ‘sweetie’ neurons (a firm student favourite for obvious reasons!), and exploring attachment theories with dolls.

Mrs L Wilson (Head of Psychology)

Science and Psychology Conference

We were fortunate to be able to take Upper Sixth students to the annual ‘Science and Psychology’ conference in December 2021. The conference has always been well received by students with this year being no different! The conference included talks on the power of dance by Dr Lucie Clements (both students and staff getting fully involved in ‘The Macarena’!), Prof. Richard Wiseman demonstrating the power of magic and illusion and explaining the psychological principles underpinning it, and a live hypnosis demonstration by Andrew Norton, followed by a lecture on the ethical issues associated with conducting hypnosis, especially during therapy. It was an immensely engaging day, with many students reporting that it was their ‘best conference ever’.

Mental Health Awareness Week

To mark Mental Health Awareness Week this year, some of our Lower Sixth Psychologists were tasked with conducting their own wider reading into the impact of perfectionism, digital media, and exam anxiety on teenage mental health. For example, Rhea (L6SMJ) read about the problems of perfectionism. Following her reading, she wrote: ‘It was very eye-opening as it made me re-think the positive connotations of perfectionism (hard work and striving for success) and showed me that it is more likely to be debilitating and can actually cause mental illnesses. The part I found most of perfectionism as a vicious cycle. The avoidance of failure at all cost minimises the feeling of shame, but prevents learning from mistakes, creating a tendency to give up sooner, thus preventing self-actualisation, which ultimately results in failure and feelings of shame, reinforcing the avoidance’.

Attachment Theory

Students are always fascinated by attachment theory, and one of their favourite lessons is when we use baby dolls to demonstrate how humans form relationships and bonds with those around us from the moment of birth. We look at how interactions between a child and its caregivers can affect the ways in which all future relationships for that child occur and develop.

Anna (L6SPA) learns all about attachment!

Miss Boyd teaching Psychology

Religious Studies

As we have weathered the storm of the pandemic, many have found themselves with big questions. Many of these questions seemingly cannot be answered, and for some it is unclear to whom exactly we should be asking them.The study of religion is the study of faith, philosophy, and the questions that make us human. Despite the challenges of the past two years, our students have remained resilient and reflective in their understanding of the world, realising that listening, discussing, and contemplating are often the best ways to have our queries addressed.

Miss A Hewett (Head of Religious Studies)

A Level Conference 2020

We are grateful to Academy Conferences for continuing to run their excellent A Level Religious Studies conference, albeit online in view of restrictions. Talks covered a range of topics on the syllabus, from Keith Ward’s session on the attributes of God to Daphne Hampson’s intriguingly entitled talk, ‘On not being an Ostrich.’ The day ended with a coaching session on ‘How to make essay writing work for you’, ensuring our students were equipped with both the knowledge and communication skills to excel.

Bringing Culture to the Classroom

In a year of restricted travel the department has been bringing culture into the classroom. For example, Year 7 students enjoyed making dreidels with Miss Burdett as they learnt about the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. Our GCSE students have studied Buddhist art and listened to chanting as part of their study of religious practices. One Year 11 student said: “I think what I enjoy most about the RS GCSE course is the variety of themes that we cover and the different perspectives that we get to see them through.This allows us to learn about a lot of different cultures and religions throughout the planet. It’s like travelling the world without ever having to leave the classroom.”

Emanuel School Philosophy Club

Every week we pick a motion (written by a member of the group) and take turns to raise our opinions on the topic in question. Some of the subjects we have discussed include time, the morality of prisons, and whether we really exist (everyone had a bit of a mental breakdown after that particular debate!). I really enjoy Philosophy Club as it gives me the opportunity to learn about other people’s points of view and it allows me to question... well, everything...! without anyone telling me what is right or wrong.

Pearl (8RDC)

Design & Technology

Design Technology at Emanuel is a blend of creativity, problem solving, engineering and technology.We believe that all children are naturally creative and are capable of producing work of originality and value. As a department, we have established an environment of creative independence, where imagination and strategic thinking fuel our future. Many changes have developed over the past few years, and change is fundamental to DT. In our lessons we encourage a blend of sketching, practical exploration, and modelling extensively. We also use CAD (computer aided design) in most of our projects, just as real-world designers do, utilising contemporary techniques and software. At A Level we take this one step further and work with industry.

The KS3 curriculum has a focus on the user and sustainability. We work on ergonomic and anthropometric design in Year 7, and biomimicry within design in Year 8. In Year 9 we encourage students to consider their own design style and take creative risks where

students create lighting solutions inspired by the work of a product designer of their choice.

At GCSE and A Level, students have produced fully functional and finished outcomes with fantastic portfolios to match; we are extremely proud of all that our exam classes have created. Students have gone on to study Product Design, Industrial Design, Robotics, and Engineering across a range of top universities including Loughborough, Nottingham, and Edinburgh, and students have gone forward to apprenticeships with GlaxoSmithKline, amongst others.

Looking to the future, we continue to embrace change and continue to strike the balance between creativity and problem solving, all whilst achieving top grades to prepare our students for the next stage of their careers.

Mr N Guegan (Head of Design Technology)

CoxBox by Matthew (U6SEM)

Lamp by Tom (11SJB)

Art

During this period of uncertainty and unprecedented isolation, art has proven to be a major solace to many. Making art has become a language in which some have found their voice or source of comfort. Artists, ever adaptable, responded to their confinement with a variety of online exhibitions, while major galleries made sure their collections were accessible. Inspired by the Getty Museum’s challenge for people to re-create an artwork with anything they might find at home, we ran our own challenge in which a number of pupils and staff took part, as well as our own in-school version of Grayson Perry’s Art Club. The Art teachers of Emanuel quickly adapted to online teaching and were delighted with the work our students produced. By March 2020 our exam groups were already uploading work to a digital platform which meant that we could carry on with our student tutorials via zoom, advising and shepherding them in developing their work. My colleagues and I were very impressed by the resourcefulness and continued focus that our students demonstrated.

Ms S MacMillan (Head of Art)

Art Scholars

In Autumn 2021 three new Art Scholars joined Saskia (L6SKH) in the Lower- Sixth; congratulations to Esme (L6LAB), Katarina (L6HC) and Freya (L6HC) who were all awarded art scholarships. In Year 9 Beckett (9HLM) joined Finn (9SED), Eva (9SED) and Mia (9SED). Meanwhile, Mia (7AFH) and Madeleine (7HAB) were awarded art scholarships in Year 7, as well as Mizuha (6USC) in Year 6.

Clubs and Activities

We have run a wealth of art clubs and super-curricular provision this year and even introduced Year 9 Clay Club and Year 10 and Lower 6 Illustration Club, as well as continuing with Junior Art Club and Sixth Form Life Drawing.We were also struck during the lockdown by the success of Grayson Perry’s Art Club on Channel 4 (which has been so popular that it has come back for a second series), so set up our own version at Emanuel.This challenge, run by Miss Cottone, saw more than 40 students across all year groups take part.

Trips

In Autumn 2021 our art students were finally welcomed back to art galleries. It was a delight to take our Year 11 GCSE students to Tate Britain and for them to be able to experience drawing from the original artworks. A week later we took our Year 10 artists to the V&A where the gallery invigilator was so impressed by the focused drawings our students were making that she asked the director of the V&A, Tristram Hunt, to come down and see them. He was very pleased to see our students sketching in the Cast Courts and said to please keep bringing our students back to the gallery!

Exhibitions

In 2022, we were able to return to holding our Art A level exhibition and it was a joy to celebrate the outstanding work on display with our students, parents and staff. We joined forces with A level Design Technology and Photography making for a very special exhibition.

Emanuel Art Lockdown Challenge

The Art department were overwhelmed by the quality of submissions for the Art Lockdown Challenge, reaching a decision about winners was incredibly difficult.

‘The Lady of Shalott’ - John William Waterhouse (Sebastian, 7SWJ)

‘Louis Comfort Tiffany’ - Joaquín Sorolla (Anu, 9RET)

‘The Son of Man’ - René Magritte (Moses, 6CAL)

‘Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird’ - Frida Kahlo (Lily, 7CY)

‘Thinking About Death’ - Frida Kahlo (Siddiq, L6HHM)

‘Marilyn Monroe’ - Andy Warhol (Emil, 8AFK) ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ - Johannes Vermeer (Daria, 10RCW)

Lower School

Darya (7AFH)

Vasilisa (7HAB)

Daisy (6USC)

Josephine (7PM)

Mia (7AFH)

Apolline (7HAB)

Lauren (7PM)

Monty (6USC)

Matteo (6USC) & Mizuha (6USC)

Ale Saa (6USC), Millie (6CAL) & Rhea (6CAL)

Fred (11SJB)

Chloe (11AJL)

Maia (11SJB)

Olly (11JEH)

Lily (11DGA)

Rosalind (11DGA)

Alex (11CMB)

Ella (11SJB)

Jena (11CMB)

Mariana (11CMB)

Emma (U6RJB)

India (U6HHM)

Lola (U6WGD)

Alistair (U6CCG)

A Level

Martina (U6CCG)

Emma (U6RJB)

Daisy (U6AEM)

Nina (U6ARW)

Samira (U6ARW)

Ksenia (U6SEM)

Computing

Emanuel is a hub of exciting and innovative computing activity. Students in the Lower School have immensely enjoyed the addition of Computing, Design, and Robotics to their timetable, while talented coders and programmers of all ages have enjoyed honing their skills in weekly clubs and activities. As we look forward to introducing Computer Science A Level in September 2022, this is a very exciting time for Computing at Emanuel.

Mr P MacDonagh (Head of Computing)

Challenges and Competitions

Emanuel pupils have taken part in the Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge, with a significant number gaining a distinction for their problem-solving ability. This year the top 20% of competitors in the country were invited to take part in the Oxford University Computing Challenge. A special mention must be made for Harry (9HLM), who was impressively awarded a distinction, which places in him the top 5% nationally.

Coding Club

Participants in Coding Club have developed a range of exciting games and animations using Scratch. We trialed an internal Code Jam competition and in the June half-term we ran the first of a planned series of Game Coding workshops with a view to inviting coders from local schools to take part in regular Game Jam competitions.

Courses

A small but dedicated group of pupils have been pursuing a lunchtime course in Ethical Hacking and we have built a “sandbox network” using Raspberry Pi computers, which we will use to intercept wireless communications and explore methods of deciphering the encryption key.

Computer Science A Level

Next year will see the introduction of A Level Computer Science at Emanuel and, in preparation, pupils will take part in a fun day of talks at the Emmanuel Centre, Westminster. Topics will include Artificial Intelligence, Smart Cities and Logic problems as tackled by Alan Turing. We are hugely excited to expand Emanuel’s offering for Computing, and we look forward to reporting on the achievements of our students here.

Film & Media

Things have been continued to evolve within the school’s Film and Media department over the last few years. The growing interest in this co-curricular area of school life since the department was launched in 2017 has led to the introduction of A Level Film Studies in September 2022.This new development has, in turn, given a new focus to all of the co-curricular film and media activities here at Emanuel.

Media Club

There are currently three media clubs that run each week for Years 6 to 7. As part of this, pupils enjoy learning how to use the school’s film studio. It is here that they film Emanuel News, and all these episodes are available on the school’s YouTube channel. All Media Club members have the opportunity to present the news and/ or to take on a role behind the camera. During the lockdown of Spring 2020, Media Club pupils made two episodes of Emanuel News remotely, recording themselves presenting the new stories from their own homes.

Another significant aspect of Media Club is learning the basics of filmmaking, and each the year pupils have had fun experimenting with different techniques as well as working in teams to make short films for the House Film competition.

Pupils were even able to do some remote filmmaking during periods of remote learning. In the lockdown of Spring 2020, they worked together on a short film entitled Bananas about Mr Reg, who learns the hard way about the challenges of teaching online.

Filmmaking Club

With the advent of A Level Film Studies, the school’s Media Clubs for Year 8 upwards have all become filmmaking clubs with a special focus on giving pupils the chance to experiment with making short films for internal and external competitions. There are currently three filmmaking clubs that meet each week (Year 8,Year 9 and 10 and Year 11+).

J Skinner (Film and Media Coordinator and Teacher of Film Studies)

Kindness Detectives Documentary Project

In the Spring term of 2022, pupils from the school’s Media and Filmmaking clubs participated in ‘Kindness Detectives’, a documentary project run by the Be Kind Movement. Nico (7HAB) interviewed his mother for the project. Here he explains more:

“We were invited to a documentary-making workshop, where we learned some techniques for filming interviews. We were tasked with interviewing someone about an experience from their life involving acts of kindness. I really enjoyed learning a new aspect of filmmaking and being able to share a personal family story about my very kind and inspirational Great-Grandmother.”

Mr

Film in Week Projects

Apart from a forced break in Spring 2020, there have been two ‘Film in a Week’ projects per year during the school holidays. These intensive courses have been an exciting opportunity for pupils to learn the basics of filmmaking. With each project, pupils started from scratch, writing, shooting and editing their films in less than a week, with some final post-production being completed afterwards.

With each of these projects, it has been fantastic to see the pupils working together so well as a crew and cast to make their films. They should be really proud of what they have produced.

Film in a Week: October 2020 (Year 10)

In October 2020, seventeen Year 10s participated in this project, working in two separate filmmaking teams. It was excellent to see the different ways in which the theme of ‘Independence’ was interpreted. The Feathered Dress was a quirky and fun comedy, whilst Recasted made for a tense thriller.

Film in a Week: October 2021 (Year 9)

During the 2021 Easter holidays, twenty Year 9s worked in three separate groups to make films on the theme of ‘kindness’ in association with Wandsworth-based charity Be Kind Movement.

Film in a Week: October 2021 (Year 11)

A small group of Year 11 pupils worked together to make Focus, a short film about how a girl with ADHD copes with her condition when faced with the daunting challenge of presenting in front of her class. His project was run in collaboration with The Grey Coat Hospital school (one of our foundation schools).

Film in a Week: Easter 2022 (Years 9 and 10)

This project saw 16 pupils from Years 9 and 10 working in small teams to make fun speculative adverts. They were given a brief to devise an advert for a hypothetical product using a piece of music they chose from a set playlist. For this project,Year 10 pupils were joined by some pupils from Ernest Bevin College (one of our local partner schools).

A still from Focus, by Year 11 pupils

Nico (7HAB) presenting to camera in the Kindness Detectives documentary

Year 10 pupils filming a fun advert for ‘AMPZ Headphones’

A still from ‘Recasted’

Film Studies

Although a relatively new medium, especially compared to literature, film has been communicating interesting, enthralling narratives in increasingly creative ways, for over a century now.

Film Studies provides students with the opportunity to explore the medium’s rich and varied history, from the early beginnings of the silent era to modern Hollywood classics and documentaries.These are just a few of the many reasons we are so excited to be teaching Film Studies to A Level students from September 2022.

The course focuses on many genres and movements, including French New Wave and German Expressionism, asking students to consider the influential nature of social and historical factors as well as analysing in detail the micro elements such as cinematography and editing, whilst exploring more abstract concepts such as spectatorship and authorship.

It also provides the opportunity for students to make their own short film, utilising the understanding and skills they practise in the first year of the syllabus. No doubt for some students, this will the most exciting aspect of the course, as they get to flex their own cinematic creativity and bring their unique ideas to life.

Having studied Film as part of my English degree and having a long-standing interest in it myself, I look forward to sharing my enthusiasm and passion for all things film with the students from September.

J

World Premiere for ‘School’s Out’

In 2018, Emanuel pupils and staff made a fantastic short film entitled ‘School’s Out’ for the Impact50 feature film project.We are delighted that our short film was selected for inclusion, alongside entries from around the world, and that the feature film has now been released. The participating pupils have received IMDb credits as actors, composers and directors. Some of them have become world record holders due to the large number of collaborators on this film!

The world premiere of Impact50 was held at the Genesis Cinema and some of our staff, pupils and alumni were there to see this exciting film.

Mr

Dunley (Head of Film / Teacher of English)

Hilla (L6SMJ), Rudi (OE) and Ice (11AJL)

Background left to right: Erica (OE), Rudi (OE), Mr Skinner, Hilla (L6SMJ), and Mrs Still Foreground: Harry (U6WGD) and Lucie (L6SJC)

Music has a long and strong tradition at Emanuel with a significant number of our pupils involved in a wide variety of activities. Our offering encompasses rock bands, chamber ensembles, an annual musical, jazz ensembles, guitar groups and percussion groups, as well as the more traditional ensembles such as chapel choir and orchestra. Approximately 350 individual music lessons take place every week in school! The Music department is hugely ambitious for our pupils and their musical opportunities. Our aim is to become a centre of excellence for contemporary music while maintaining our superb status in choral and orchestral music. Over the past two years, we have started offering DJ lessons, developed the KS3 curriculum so pupils are offered a truly 21st century music education, hosted careers’ talks for those keen on a future in the music industry, become a Rockschool examination centre, offered RSL Music Production grades, and invested in the very latest technology and software. Exciting times lie ahead!

Rock and Pop Concert

In January 2020, the Hampden Hall came alive to a phantasmagoria of lights, smoke and some scintillating music for our inaugural Rock and Pop concert in Hampden Hall. The Autumn term saw over 70 pupils audition for a place in one of the three newly formed school bands that have been tutored by Mr McCredie, one of our peripatetic guitar teachers. The three bands performed pieces such as ‘Shotgun’ by George Ezra, ‘Get Lucky’ by Pharrell Williams and Bruno Mars’ ‘Uptown Funk’. Within the gig were stunning performances by George (U6ECR), Katy (11BJR) and Joe (L6JJH) (‘Sunshine of your love’ and ‘Purple Haze’) and solo spots by Annabel (11BJR), Mariana (11BJR), Bluebell (U6RCB) and Livi (11SDG). The pupils should be congratulated on their superlative performances and we look forward to the next event, which is a gig at the famous Half Moon Pub in Putney later on in the year. A big thank you to Ms Kerstein, Ms Thorne, Mr Dibden and Luke (U6CEG) for their astonishing hard work in organising the lighting and sound!

Autumn Term Concert (2020)

The Music Department’s Autumn Term concert is named after the patron saint of music, St Cecilia. All the school’s major music ensembles performed and delighted a packed audience with an eclectic range of music. The symphony orchestra began proceedings with the ‘Grand March’ from Aida, which was followed by the concert band, who filled the stage with an army of brass, woodwind and percussion. There were some delightful offerings from our chamber groups — flute, guitar, saxophone, percussion and string — and a powerful and emotional rendition of ‘Evermore’ from ‘Beauty and the Beast’ by Sam (L6SKR). The concluding part of the concert was given over to more contemporary music, with our Big Band and Jazz Band on scintillating form.

Mr C Janz (Director of Music)

A wistful performance of Billy Joel’s ‘Lullaby’ by Schola Cantorum was followed by a medley of hits by the Beach Boys sung by the school choir.

Showstoppers!

On Wednesday 2 October, the Music Department hosted the popular annual concert for all Year 6 and 7 pupils: Showstoppers! During their curriculum lessons, the pupils had learned four epic songs, including a medley about the weather and a collection of some of the great rock songs from the 1970s and 1980s. Accompanied by a slick band — Mr Gregory, Hugo (L6SSH) and Kyra (L6SJC) — the pupils sang magnificently and the audience’s seemingly insatiable musical thirst was only quenched by an encore at the end. During the concert, we also heard solo performances from our three Year 7 music scholars: Maisie (7HEB), Emilia (7SWJ) and Isaac (7AFH). They each played with impressive panache in front of a packed Hampden Hall.

St Paul’s Cathedral Evensong

In December 2019, the Emanuel School Choir enjoyed the honour of singing Evensong at St Paul’s Cathedral. We enjoyed a vocal masterclass beforehand in the cathedral’s song school with Lucy Griffiths, one of the UK’s pre-eminent choral conductors.The choir sang responses by Richard Ayleward, a setting of the ‘Magnificat’ and ‘Nunc Dimittis in G’ by Charles Stanford, with soloists Emily (U6PMM) and Sam (L6SKR), and Charles Wood’s anthem ‘O thou, the central orb’. The choir and soloists sang with great panache and, as ever, we were supported by a considerable number of parents, staff and tourists. Mr Gregory accompanied the choir on the organ with consummate élan.

Music Careers’ Evening

On Monday 9 March, the Music Department hosted a music careers event for our pupils in the Concert Hall.A panel of industry experts focused on three main areas: what pupils should be doing at school to stand the best chance of making it in the music industry, the best institutions at which to study music and how to apply to them, and finally what it is like working in the music profession. We were delighted to welcome Mary Jong, Marketing Manager at Pioneer DJ Europe Ltd, Judy Griffith, Promotions Manager at Fabric Nightclub in London and Mark Brown, Director of Cr2 Records. Particularly valuable were the contacts made and the opportunities our pupils now have to gain work experience with these illustrious musicians.

A night at the PROMS

February 2020, Emanuel played host to its very own version of the ‘Proms’, resulting in an unforgettably spectacular evening, writes Mr

Back in the late 19th century, the Proms were held at the Queen's Hall, a beautiful art nouveau rotunda on Upper Regent's Street. It was subsequently flattened during the Blitz. All the concerts were conducted by Sir Henry Wood, whose bust now presides over the series at the Royal Albert Hall. The BBC stepped in to save the Proms when they nearly went bust in 1927, and they have never looked back. The mission was simple and remains the same: to provide top-quality music for everybody, in egalitarian surroundings, at affordable prices.

This wonderful institution swept into Hampden Hall on Friday 7 February 2020, the day after the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Accession to the Throne. And it was the most incredible of evenings: the Emanuel School Choir, the Emanuel Parents’ Choir, alumni of the school, the choir from Sacred Heart Roman Catholic School, four stellar soloists (Philippa Boyle, Kate Symonds-Joy, Greg Tassell and James Oldfield) and a 40-piece professional orchestra combined to produce the most magisterial and resplendent sound.

The evening opened with Ralph Vaughan-Williams’ rousing arrangement of the ‘Old 100th’ Psalm, first performed at the

Janz

coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. This was followed by the major work in the evening’s concert, Elgar’s Coronation Ode, written in 1902 for the coronation of King Edward VII. The King suggested to Elgar that words could be provided to the Trio section of the first Pomp and Circumstance march, which he liked. The work was an immense success, bringing Elgar a status unprecedented for a British composer at that time and leading to countless honours and, in 1904, a knighthood. Our choirs were on scintillating form for this piece: throughout the varied and demanding movements, tone quality was ripe and resonant, diction was clear, rhythms pungent, and attacks and cut-offs precise.

There was very much a celebratory atmosphere in the second half. Everyone joined in with Holst’s ‘I vow to thee, my country’, Parry’s ‘Jerusalem’, ‘Land of Hope and Glory’, and, somewhat amusingly, in the festivities of Henry Wood’s ‘Fantasia on British Sea Songs’, where humming, whistling, singing and party hooters all played a part. The evening ended with Hubert Parry’s setting of Milton’s ode, ‘At a Solemn Musick’. Congratulations to all involved in this spectacular concert.

Drama

Left to right: Zachary (8AFH), Maisie (8HV) and Aoife (8SMR)

THE GUT GIRLS

In December 2019, pupils in Years 10 to 13 performed in Sarah Daniels’ The Gut Girls...

In the penultimate week of the Autumn term, audiences were transported to the gruesome gutting sheds of Deptford and taken through a tale wherein the powerful Lady Helena (Georgina, L6JTB) attempts to save a group of working-class girls from the terrible conditions of their gory labour and turn them into respectable Victorian ladies. The performance was expertly led and humorously handled by the five lead (Willa, 11HMN), Kate (Maisie, 11HMN), Ellen L6AZ) and Polly (Alice, 10HLM), who each kept audiences laughing through the girls’ tragic circumstances.

The entire cast and tech team created a phenomenal performance of an incredibly complex text, performing with audiences on three sides. The characters were lively and fun, but audiences felt the emotionally-fraught ending deeply. Thank you to the incredible cast and our amazing tech team.

Miss C Fearnley

Images: 1. Willa (11HMN) in foreground; 2. Rudi (L6PSA); 3. Georgina (L6JTB) and Jemma (L6PSA); 4. Sophia (11BJR); 5. Erica (U6HVC); 6. Tate (L6SMJ) and Willa (11HMN); 7. Asha (L6MPD); 8. Sophia (11BJR) and Grace (L6AZ)

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OLIVER!

In March 2020, over 100 pupils staged one incredible performance of Lionel Bart’s beloved musical about a young orphaned boy who would ‘do anything’ to get just a little bit ‘more’ out of life...

On a Wednesday evening in March 2020, the Hampden Hall hosted a very unusual entertainment. The 110 pupils who had worked so hard for two terms preparing this year’s school musical, Oliver!, gave their first and last performance of the show to a small but enthusiastic audience.

Lionel Bart’s Oliver!, with its episodic structure and vast number of Dickensian characters, is the perfect choice for a school where so many students and staff want to be involved both on stage and off. And after two terms of intense rehearsals, learning intricate harmonies with Mr House and challenging choreography from Mrs Matthews for those in the cast, or weeks of technical preparation with Miss Caffyn, Miss Thorne, and Miss Kerstein, emotions ran high. This was to be my last musical at Emanuel, after nine very happy years, but also the last performance for our 13 Upper Sixth students.

However, due to the evolving situation with Covid-19, it was not to be, and the run was curtailed. I delivered the sad news to the company during rehearsals on Tuesday morning prior, and you could have heard a pin drop. The company was understandably devastated, but they took on my next challenge to them with aplomb. We decided to raise spirits by performing ‘Oom-Pah-Pah’ in the Hampden Hall yard to the lunch queue. I had no idea how popular this would be, with a huge crowd of students and staff watching from the playground and out of numerous windows. In such a strange week this really raised the spirits of the school as a whole, bringing tears to the eyes of the most hardened teachers!

By Wednesday afternoon we were re-rehearsing the show; Seb (L6SMJ), who had done a fine job as Bill Sikes in rehearsals, was forced to self-isolate, as was Piper (9RET) — one of our magnificent Pickpockets. I would like to extend my thanks to them for making this difficult decision. Tate (L6SMJ) stepped up to the plate, learning the role of Sikes overnight, for which he should be commended.

Wednesday evening’s performance flew by almost in a blur. Sam (L6SKR) and Eliza (L6HHM) brought the house down with their hilarious ‘I Shall Scream’; Phoebe (L6PSA) and Ethan (L6SMJ) as the Sowerberries were a macabre masterpiece; Lars (9CMB) won over the audience as the perfect Artful Dodger, while our gang of thieves picked a pocket or two under the watchful eye of the exquisite Rudi (L6PSA) as Fagin, who earned deserved ovations throughout ‘Reviewing the Situation’. Erica (U6HVW) won Oliver’s heart as Bet, and Bluebell (U6RCB) as Nancy tugged at the audience’s heartstrings with ‘As Long As He Needs Me’. The real heart of the show, however, is Oliver, and we were blessed to have Sean (8LVD) in the title role; he played the part beautifully and with great humility.

I would like to thank all the staff and pupils involved for their enthusiasm, compassion and never-ending good humour at such a difficult time.

Mr J Arnott (Teacher of Drama)

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Images: 1. Ethan (L6SMJ) and Phoebe (L6PSA) as the Sowerberries; 2. Bluebell (U6RCB) leads ‘Oom-Pah-Pah’; 3. Sean (8LVD) as Oliver; 4. Rudi (L6PSA) as Fagin with Lars (9CMB); 5. Matilda (9AJL), Izzie (9NS), and Vanessa (9CMB);

6. Bluebell (U6RCB) as Nancy.

‘You will be haunted by Three Spirits...’ Ebenezer Scrooge (Oscar, 10NS) is warned by the ghost of his former business partner, Jacob Marley (Oliver, 10DGA)...

Images: 1. Hannah (9MJR) and Sean (9PAK); 2. Anastasia (9VCO); 3. Nicholas (9FRL); 4. Annie (9SDG) and Emil (9REM) as Year 9’s Ghost of Christmas Present and Ebenezer Scrooge; 5.Vanessa (10CMB) as Mrs Fezziwig; 6. Oliver (10DGA) as Year 10’s Ghost of Jacob Marley; 7. Lars (10CMB) as Mr Fezziwig; 8. Cara (10CMB) and Oscar (10NS) as Year 10’s Belle and Ebenezer Scrooge.

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THE ADDAMS FAMILY

In July 2021, almost 100 pupils from Years 10 to 13 returned to live theatre with a sell-out run of macabre musical comedy...

Everybody’s favourite macabrely dysfunctional family was brought to life in Emanuel’s superb Senior Musical of 2021. Charles Addams’ deliciously morbid creations, gently mocking the ‘ideal’ 20th century American nuclear family, have come a long way since his original 1930s cartoons.You might now know them better from the 1960s live-action television series, or the 1990s films starring Anjelica Huston, or perhaps even the 2019 animated feature. In 2010, The Addams Family Musical opened on Broadway, with sensational music and lyrics from Andrew Lippa and a witty script from Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice . We quickly knew that this would be a fantastically fun production for the dramatic talents of Emanuel students, and —following the disappointing early closure of our previous musical, Oliver!, owing to the pandemic — we were determined to get this ghoulish masterpiece on the stage.

With Covid still a risk, the production was not without its hiccups, as Harry (U6WGD) recounts on pages 18-19, but we are so proud of how maturely and resiliently Emanuel’s students rose to the many challenges of mounting this production. Our three separate casts were phenomenal, and everybody behind the scenes worked tirelessly to create this memorable addition to Emanuel’s always inspiring and exhilarating theatrical output. The Drama department congratulates everybody involved.

Images: 1. Isabella (10AJL) as Pugsley Addams; 2. Ethan (U6SMJ) and Asha (U6MPD) as Gomez and Morticia Addams; 3. Tala (L6ARW); 4. Maisie (L6HHM); 5. Susanna (U6JJH); 6. Leili (L6CCG); 7. Harry (L6WGD); 8. Izzie (10NS); 9. Aoife (L6ASO); 10. Livi (L6JED); 11. Seb (L6WGD) as Uncle Fester; 12. Sam (U6SKR); 13. Gemma (10JEH) as Grandma.

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A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

In November 2021, Emanuel’s senior students staged a punked-up version of Shakespeare’s whimsical comedy where the ‘course of true love’ runs far from smoothly...

In November of 2021, students in Years 10-13 performed in the Senior Play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This iconic Shakespearean comedy follows four lovers who run away to the forest, only to become the victims of cheeky Puck’s fairy magic, resulting in two characters in love with the same girl at once. Packed into this fast-paced play is also a rivalry of fairy kingdoms and an interesting rendition of the bizarrely tragi-comic Pyramus and Thisbe performed by the Mechanicals.

Miss Fearnley worked her own magic to give this classic play an exciting twist. In this version of A Midsummer Night’s our audience was transported to the 1980s, where the action took place in an abandoned playground. Instead of trees and leaves, we used climbing frames and seesaws as our set, accompanied by the top hits of the 80s to create this wild and funny production. Miss Fearnley also steered away from the original genders of some of the characters in the play, adding the element of not only unrequited love, but potentially transgressive love

In my role as Hermia, I was so fortunate to work with the lovely Maisie Annie (10REM), and Joe (11SJB) as the lovers — playing our characters was definitely an experience we will never forget. Our mischievous lead fairies were played by the wonderful Sophia (U6AEM), Alice (L6SPA)

And this play would not be complete without the hilarious Lucy (U6JED), Julian (11JEH), Olivia Oscar (11NS), and Lars (11CMB), led by Lella (U6SSP). The cast was such a joy to work with, and it was so nice getting to know the younger years, especially after being separated for last year’s musical due to Covid. Of course, this play would not have been possible without the incredibly dedicated staff! Thank you to Miss Fearnley and Mr Norton Smith for being fantastic directors, and to Miss Kerstein and everyone working backstage for bringing the show to life.

Ironically, this was my first and last Senior Play at Emanuel. A Midsummer Night’s Dream was the perfect way to conclude my time at Emanuel. Being a part of something so collaborative and positive was so rewarding, especially being able to work alongside some of my closest friends. I can’t wait to come back and watch the future productions at Emanuel.

Leili (U6CCG)

Images: 1. Rebecca (U6AEM); 2. Lella (U6SPP); 3. Oscar (11), Julien (11) and Lucy (11); 4. Lily (U6HHM) as Hippolyta; 5. Lars (11CMB); 6. Alice (L6SPA) as Puck; 7. Lucy (U6JED); 8. Oscar (11NS) as Bottom; 9. Sophia (U6AEM) and Willa (U6ARW) as Titania and Oberon; 10. Leili (U6CCG) and Maisie (U6HHM).

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SCHOOL ROCK of

In March 2022, over 100 students from Years 7 to 13 shook the walls of the Hampden Hall with their electric performances of School of Rock raising musical inspired by the 2003 film...

What an experience! Earlier this year, students from across all year groups took part in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical, School of Rock. We rehearsed for six months, and we loved every minute.

School of Rock is a story about a misfit, Dewey Finn, who has a dream that no one else believes in: they want to be a rock star. In Dewey’s desperate attempts to find fame they stumble across a class of talented school musicians who help them discover their true self.

In typical Emanuel style, our incredible director Miss Graves decided to gender-reverse the lead role of Dewey. The amazingly talented Livi (U6JED) took up the challenge and she knocked everybody’s socks off! As a Year 8 pupil watching and learning from the older cast members, I was truly inspired. I have to say that Edie (U6CCG), Caspar (L6SPA), and Hannah (10MGA) were particularly fabulous in their roles! I have learnt so much from them and the other teachers, including Mr Norton Smith. I would like to give special thanks to Miss Kerstein and the rest of the tech team who made our show look so spectacular, and we cannot forget the wonderful work of our very hard-working costume designer, Emma (U6RJB)!

I was extremely grateful to play the part of Summer. I got to combine my four loves: singing, dancing, acting, and bossing people around! Summer is a precociously confident girl who loves school but has found herself silenced by her overly controlling mother. She longs for respect and only finds it when Dewey opens her eyes to the freedom of Rock.

I will keep many heart-warming memories in my heart from my experience in School of Rock became very close to the cast members, and I loved rehearsing with them even on cold Tuesday evenings in the winter! A particularly great memory was the first time everyone sang ‘If Only You Would Listen’ together; it was such a beautiful moment and I think that as a cast we reflected our characters’ hurt and anger to the audience.

Although I was a bit nervous, I really enjoyed performing ‘Time to Play’ for the first time in front of an audience. I had never been in front of such a big crowd, and I simply couldn’t have done it without my amazing friends’ encouragement, with the full support of the cast behind me. It is very hard for me to pick my favourite songs in the show as I genuinely think that they are all fabulous! If I had to pin it down to two, I think that I would have to pick ‘You’re in the Band’ and ‘Time to Play’ because I had the most fun rehearsing them!

School of Rock has left its mark on everyone involved in its creation, and after months of rehearsals and hard work, I think it’s fair to say that we all ‘Stuck it to the Man!’ I’m enormously proud of what we achieved as a company and as a school, and I’m sure that a lot of people — like me — can’t wait for next year’s auditions!

Image right: Livi (U6JED)

Images: 1. Max (9HLM) and Sofia (8HV); 2. Elsa (8AFK); 3. Sean (10PAK), Dougie (10MGA), and Louis (L6JTB); 4. Harry (U6WGD); 5. Annie (10SDG); 6. Caspar (L6SPA); 7. Pia (8RDC) and Isobel (9HLM) with Gracie (8HV) and Marina (9HEC) in background; 8. Livi (U6JED); 9. Clara (10VCO); 10. Edie (U6CCG);11. Max (9HLM), Oliver (8RDC) and Marina (9HEC); 12. Summer (8AFK); 13. The Cast; 14. Eva (8SMR)

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PAPER AEROPLANES

After a year of no live theatre, Emanuel’s Drama department was pleased to have delivered a live-streamed performance of the Year 8 Play, Paper Aeroplanes, in May 2021. This play, which was initially meant to be performed in May 2020, saw 24 Year 8 pupils and two Year 9 tech pupils creatively collaborate to deliver this performance.

Paper Aeroplanes is a light-hearted, fun adventure story where 10-year-old Maisie gets catapulted into a world full of weird and wonderful creatures, including a gherkin, a fluffy pink elephant and a fish tank full of jellyfish. Maisie is on a mission to defeat the evil

toad mistress and somehow find her way back home. The cast and crew worked exceptionally hard throughout the months leading up to this performance in order to get the show up and running, and I cannot express the level of talent and commitment each and every pupil brought to the process.

We were hugely grateful to be able to start putting on shows again. There is nothing quite like live theatre.

Miss L Caffyn (Director in Residence)

Images: 1. Sophia (8PM); 2. Eva (8WGD) and Marina (8EB); 3. Monty (8AFH); 4. Max (8EB); 5. Maja (8AFH); 6. Sebastian (8AEM); 7. Isobel (8AFH)

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The MOUSE and his CHILD

When we were first told what the Junior play was going to be and what it was about, I was a little perplexed. I had never heard of the play before and had no idea what to expect. I arrived at the first rehearsal slightly dubious but, by the end of it, I understood exactly why the Drama Department had chosen the play for us. A sweet tale about a mouse and his child seems innocent enough until you know the entire story, which is really a heartfelt and daring adventure. The Mouse and Child are lovable enough characters to follow through the story, but as the play progresses, a whole cast of unique and intricate characters all with their own quirks and layers of personality are introduced, and this is what makes the play so special.

Being part of the cast was just as fun as watching it. Mr. Lancaster (the director) was able to put on a production so wild and fun while also keeping us all in check. Balthazar (8SMR) and

Sofia (8HV) (the Mouse and Child, respectively) both had to work incredibly hard as the leads as they were in every scene! Their perseverance paid off, and I cannot think of anyone better for the parts.

My favourite scene was one which sets the tone for the rest of the play: the opening scene where the Mouse and Child come out into the world for the first time. I loved this scene for the humour provided by the supporting characters like Pearl (8RDC) as the Elephant and Pia (8RDC) as the Seal.

Being a part of The Mouse and His Child was one of the most fun experiences I have ever had, and I would not change a thing about it. I can’t wait for the next production!

Harry (8MSH)

Images: 1. Zachary (7AFH); 2. Aoife (7JRS); 3. Lauren (7PM); 4. Bianca (7HAB); 5. Nahom (7JRS); 6. Noah (8HV); 7. Pearl (8RDC); 8. Summer and Freddie (8MSH); 9. Sofia (8HV); 10. Harry (8MSH).

Benjamin (8HV), Annie (8SMR), Ferdie (8MSH), Tilly (8HV), Moses (8SMR)

Hockey

Hockey has returned for its first full season in two years, and what a busy and successful season it has been. The Year 6 pupils got their first taste of this great sport, starting their training in September and making the weekly trip down to Barnes HC every Friday. They had a great season with the highlight surely beating Alleyn’s Year 7s in three fantastic matches.

Also, in the Autumn term the U14 an U16 squads were entered into the London County tournament, with both getting through to the final after a nerve-wracking semi-final decided on penalty flicks. The U14s took on Godolphin and Latymer and, despite having the majority of the possession, were unfortunate to lose 1-0, securing the silver medal but just missing out on qualifying for nationals. The U16s took on St Benedict under lights on a Friday in January and unfortunately the lack of preparation caught us out, losing 2-0 in a great game, again securing silver medals.

The season then began for the rest of the school, and we kicked off in style with all teams ready to take on Tormead in the first Saturday block. Unfortunately the frost got the better of some matches (a common theme as the season progressed) but the U14s and U15s did manage to get their games in, and both secured the first wins of the season.

There have been some excellent performances from all year groups, including the U12A’s thrilling 7-5 victory against Surbiton High, the first team beating Ibstock under lights, while the U15s played a great game at the Olympic hockey park and the U11 A and Bs qualifed for the county finals.

What has been extremely impressive is the number of pupils involved in hockey this year, with over 80 Year 7s playing one Saturday morning. The strength of the B, C and D teams has been impressive, and the future of hockey at Emanuel is looking bright. Well done to everyone involved!

Miss F Low (Director of Hockey)

1st XI Captain Report

This was my sixth year of playing hockey at Emanuel. Over that time the number of teams, fixtures and resources the school has committed to the sport have grown exponentially, as has my love of the game. Our senior squad consists of students from Years 11, 12 and 13, which has without question allowed the team to benefit greatly from different personalities, experiences, and knowledge of the game, all which have given our team its unique quality.

The season we missed because of Covid meant that our stick sills were slightly rusty to begin with, but after a few brushed-off cobwebs, evening trainings and tired morning games, we started to see an improvement.This was not based on skill alone; the sheer number of players meant that the camaraderie was exceptional, and we soon came together as a team.

Whilst the whole squad contributed to the team’s success, a few players deserve special mention. Rosie (U6SPP) has been my right-hand woman and really embodied the element of team spirit. Ella (L6SKH) and Georgia (L6CDK), who both came through to represent their year at every training session and fixture, were exemplary. I also feel obliged to give a fair warning to whoever is on the receiving end of Lucy (11DGA)’s “passes” next year; I really do wish you the very best of luck! Lastly, the 10 players on the field could always play with great confidence knowing that the last line of defence was in the exceptional hands, feet and stick of Lily (11CMB).

We had our fair share of losses to begin with, but having such a large and enthusiastic squad allowed for each low to be shared and ultimately made us stronger. This also meant that we had collective highs and it’s clear that, when we got a taste for victory, there was no stopping us, going from zero goals in earlier matches to winning our last three games consecutively. By the end of the season, it really was one celebration after another.

The Friday Night Lights Game against Ibstock had significant support, for which we were very grateful, and our win really cemented that match as a highlight for many of us. This annual game was very memorable for all the Year 13s who have played in it for the past three years, and I have complete confidence that we will be leaving next year’s squad in good hands.

I wish all the squad the very best and hope that hockey remains an enjoyable and fulfilling part of their lives in the future, both at Emanuel and beyond.

Scarlett (U6ARW)

Main photo: Charlotte (RCW)

Cricket

Girls’ Cricket

For the girls, the U15 and U13 age group sides also experienced great success in the Surrey County cup competitions. Highlights included the U15 hardball cup side reaching the semi-finals with the 15Bs reaching the quarter finals of their respective softball competition. U13s were competing across both the hard and softball competitions with the hardball side reaching the semi-finals and the softball side at the time of writing hoping to defeat Guildford High School in the final.

In addition to the cup successes of the U15 and U13 age groups, girls’ cricket continues to go from strength to strength with more wins achieved than previous seasons. Interest in the sport continues to thrive and this season saw an increase in the number of senior U17 fixtures enter the girls’ schedule. Highlights included exciting wins against Ibstock and Reeds School.

At U14 the girls enjoyed success against Dunottar, Ibstock and Kingston, with the B-team also competing in a number of fixtures.The U13 age group, like the boys, showed real enthusiasm and progress over the summer with a number of girls representing boys sides.

In the U12 age group, students took part in fixtures from A-D sides in a mix of hard and softball fixtures, with highlights including victories in whole age group blocks with Kingston Grammar and Alleyn’s.

All the students should be commended for their attitude and effort throughout the season at what is an extremely exciting time for Emanuel cricket.

Mr C Booth (Director of Cricket)

Main photo: Leela (8MM)

Girls’ U15 Report

The Girls’ U15s had the season that they greatly deserved after the disruption of the pandemic. After two seasons of cancelled fixtures, lockdowns, and team-building through a screen, the girls were ecstatic to be back in a live sporting environment. Overall, the team won six out of ten matches played, including a friendly against our very own boys’ U15B team. Some highlights included wins against sporting renowned schools, Epsom College and St John’s Leatherhead, as well as the team’s success in the Surrey Girls Hardball Cup, advancing through three rounds to reach the semi-final. Despite losing out in the semis, the team did incredibly well throughout the tournament, showing constant support and great competitiveness. Throughout the season, the girls not only showed their love for the sport, but also demonstrated their own abilities. Girl’s Cricket at the school is clearly on the rise, with many of our team playing at club level such as Spencer CC and a select few representing our boys’ teams and county level. The girls showed great enthusiasm. It was not uncommon to see many with their bodies on the line to protect that extra boundary or even a quick single.Whilst many to begin with were hesitant to move into hardball cricket, the girls were quick to embrace the game. With a successful season behind us, the team look forward to playing together next year as a 1st XI squad.

Meg (10RET)

Main photo: Martha (8MSH)

Boys’ 1st XI Season Review, 2021

We were expecting the season to be a tough one as we were beginning with just two senior players, Elliot and myself, thanks to Covid cancelling the season before. Having said that, we did show a promising performance in our first unofficial game against the leavers’ team.

The team showed great passion and grit, and that coupled with a hat-trick from Ben led to our first victory and an encouraging start to the season. This was followed by a very close game against Tiffin where Luke showed his talent with a half century. We couldn’t quite convert to a win, however, due to weak dismissals.

Another close game followed against Ibstock with another partnership from Luke and myself. This was more disappointing, however, as Ibstock is historically a winnable fixture. Even though there were notable wins in the season, like London Oratory and Kingston, the theme of the season was very much growth of the team and developing a good squad for future seasons as opposed to winning every game (as much as that would have been nice).

Showing this growth, we put out some great performances against tough opponents with a close game against Dulwich and a great attempt to beat Hampton in the cup, with Ethan taking 3 for 7 in 4 overs. To our disappointment, this game was abandoned due to rain, but it was still a great effort from the whole team.

The MCC game as always was a lesson learnt and a game played in great spirits. We were delighted to get the young talent Lars involved who won the Spirit of Cricket Award as well. The season ended with a memorable game against Alleyn’s. It was a close game with some great fighting spirit and batting talent from Mathew but he sadly ran out of partners and we could not get across the line. We learned a lot from this season and definitely grew closer as a team. Despite the disappointing results in many cases there were many performances I was proud of. I know they will go onto build on the things we could have done better and become a great team in the coming seasons.

Billy (U6SKR), Captain (OE 2021)

Main photo: Moses (8SMR)

Boys’ Cricket

This was another highly successful cricket season with students representing the school in over 150 fixtures across 32 sides ranging from U11 through to the senior first and second XIs.All students should be congratulated on the progress shown over the term.

In the U15, U14, U13 and U12 age groups, Emanuel A-team sides successfully progressed through to the latter stages of their respective London Schools T20 competitions.The U14s were semi-finalists, and the U15s and U12s finished as runners-up in close finals against Colfe’s and Dulwich College, respectively.The standout performance came from the U13s, who went one step further to claim a brilliant final victory against a strong UCS side.

In addition to the Under 15A cup run, the 15s had good wins against Oratory and UCS with the B-team also successful against London Oratory. Great work came from Captain Lars (10CMB), who made his first XI performance later in the season against the MCC.

In the Under 14-year group had good wins against Ernest Bevin, Kingston and Ibstock. Captain Felix (9PAK) led throughout and was supported by Pranay (9PAK), who scored his maiden 50. Archie (9VCO) and Sid (9FRL) also impressed with the ball. In addition, the 14Bs experienced great wins against Worth, Westminster and Alleyn’s.

The U13 year group were arguably the most successful of the school programme with the 13A winning 9 out of their 10 games. They were led by Kit (8AFH), who captained and batted brilliantly throughout the season, supported by strong squad contributions from the likes of Daisy (8EB) and Fred (8AEM) with the ball. We also enjoyed 6 wins from 10 for the B-team, and some spirited performances from C and D sides.

At U12s the enthusiasm for the game continues to grow with A-E sides representing the school in competitive fixtures.Winning 4 and an exciting tie in the first game of the season showed the potential in the A-team. The 12B fixture against Kingston was arguably one of the most exciting in the calendar, Emanuel coming out eventual winners by just one run! The C and D teams also claimed two victories each within their respective schedules.

The U11s began their cricketing journey at Emanuel with several mixed fixtures against local schools, with key performances against Broomwood Hall, Eaton House and Ibstock. There are definitely players to watch here.

U13 London Schools Cup Winners

Mr C Booth (Director of Cricket)

Main photo: Joshua (8MSH)

Rugby

Main photo: Pieter (7CJR)

Netball

With a total of 28 teams, 222 matches played, 166 wins, 8 draws, and 48 losses, the 2021 Autumn term saw a competitive and successful Emanuel netball season.

Highlights include the U13As achieving gold medals in Thomas’s Clapham, Harrodian, and Ibstock tournaments, as well as making it to the January quarter finals for the ISNC Cup, and Final round of the Sisters in Sport National Cup. The U14As won Silver at the Ibstock tournament as well as finishing 6th at Surrey Finals. Both U16A and U15A qualified for the Surrey finals and finished in 4th and 6th place. The Senior 1st reached the semi-final of the Sisters in Sport Plate, playing Redmaid’s School, unfortunately narrowly missing making it through to the final stages.

The term allowed for some excellent achievements amongst our Emanuel netballers. Honourable mentions must be made to the following players:

Bo (7EB) was selected for U13 Surrey Development Academy, and Willow (7EB) was selected for U13 Surrey Performance Squad. Zara (8MM) and Tilly (8HV) were selected for U13 Surrey Satellite Academy. Daisy (9HEC) was selected for U15 Surrey Academy, while Freya (10FRL) was selected for U17 Surrey Storm hub. Isabella (11DGA) was selected for London Pulse South West Hub, and Libby (U6RJB) continues to play for London Pulse and Crystal Palace. Full colours were awarded to Bella (U6RJB) for contributing two full seasons within the senior 1st team. This season’s Senior captain, Rosie (U6SPP) received the Sutcliffe Cup award for most outstanding contribution to netball. Displaying excellent leadership within her team, vocal and supportive, Rosie holds herself as a true sportswoman and role model to those following up through the school.

Miss E Bird (Director of Netball)

Photo left: Valentina (9SFM)

Main photo: Harper (U6HHM)

Girls’ Captain Report

This year has been a very successful year of rowing so far, with some great results. We started off the year with Scullers Head. We then went on to race Fours Head, where we had two fours and a quad entered. The first four came 4th out of 16, the fastest school crew in the category, and the J16 four also came 10th in the same category (beating many J18 crews!). We then jumped from fours to eights, kicking off with Wallingford Head. The first eight came 6th, despite another crew crashing into us, causing us to stop for a whole 38 seconds!

Going into 2022, 5km erg season came and nearly everyone in the squad achieved personal-best times on the rowing machine. This helped prepare us for more long, cold head races such as Quintin Head and Hampton Head. At Quintin, the first eight came 5th and the J16 eight came 7th. At Hampton Head, we had an impressive three eights racing, with the first eight coming 2nd out of 13 — beating some big names like LEH and Tideway Scullers — while the second eight came 3rd out of five. We then finished off the head season with Schools’ Head: the biggest race of the head season. The first eight came 5th, the J16 eight came 3rd, and the second eight came 5th.

The spring term culminated with some 2km ergo tests, with around 80% of the squad all achieving new personal-best times, filling us all with lots of excitement for the summer term of racing. The girls’ squad are all excited for Strathclyde rowing camp to improve our technical skills in preparation for regattas season, which will hopefully be full of great results!

Maddy (U6ARW)

Photo below: Katarina (L6HC) and Matilda (L6AZ)

Boys’ Captain Report

The season got off to a strong start with several good results at Scullers Head of the River. We then continued our training in small boats, working up to Pairs Head, which was sadly cancelled due to poor weather. At this part of the season, we hung up our sculling blades and moved firmly to sweeping. We then raced at Fours Head, where we had a strong showing, finishing 7th overall, a mere four seconds back from 5th place. It was at this point in the season that we moved into bigger boats, whilst regatta season had a pause, and we could complete winter training.

We came back strong from Christmas break and training ramped up as we ultimately started preparing for Schools Head of the River. What followed was an increase in training volume and intensity as we prepared to race the Championship course against the best crew schools in the UK. We had a very impressive showing at Hampton Head in coxless fours where we finished third overall. Quintin and Hammersmith Head were a good stepping platform where we could mix up the order of the crew to ensure we were as ready as we could be for the big race. Race day came by and we put in a colossal effort, finishing 10th in our category and 25th overall, vitally putting us in contention for Henley qualifying. It was great to be up near the top of the league with all the other great rowing schools where we belong, and hopefully we can push on and get a good result at National schools later this year and qualify for Henley Royal Regatta.

Jackson (U6CCG)

Main photo: James (U6HHM) and Edward (U6AEM)

Athletics

During a much-truncated athletics season some events were still able to go ahead, albeit virtually. We hosted the Virtual Foundation Sports Day, with our athletes competing at school, in clubs and in parks against our fellow schools ofthe United Westminster Foundation. Overall, our boys squad from Years 7 to 10 came second to Sutton Valence School and our girls squad came third overall.The outstanding performance of the competition came from Fleur (10DGA), who broke Georgie (L6HVW)’s intermediate girls’ 1500m record by 17 seconds with a time of four minutes 36 seconds. This was just the tip of the iceberg for Fleur, whose athletics season went from strength to strength as she ended the season coming second in the 3000m at the U20 England Championships.

Cross-Country – 2021/2022

Emanuel took 49 runners to compete in the Wandsworth Borough Cross-Country Championships. Our athletes performed exceptionally, with nearly a third (14) recording top ten finishes. The top performers were Fleur (11DGA) and Isaac (L6LAB), who won their races, while Harry (7EB) gained a silver medal, and Nahom (7JRS) won a bronze.

On Wednesday 3rd February 2022, Emanuel’s cross-country squad was in action again at the London Schools Championships. The usually inhospitable Wormwood Scrubs Park was strangely welcoming with mild weather and good conditions underfoot.

In all we took 34 athletes, each competing in races of approximately 100 runners, and we returned home with 15 medals. Individually, Fleur (11DGA) won the inter girls’ race and Daniel (U6HHM) came third in the senior boys’ race, both qualifying to represent London atthe English Schools cross-country championships. In the inter boys’ agecategory Harry (11DGA) and Hugo (10HJC) were both also selected forthe London Squad. There was also a third place for Harry (7EB) in the junior boys’ B-event. Our teams fared well too, with the inter boys’ and junior girls’ B-team both gaining silver medals and the senior boys squad won bronze.

This year saw our largest team of Year 7 and 8 pupils — 11 in all — representing Wandsworth at the Year 7 and 8 Inter-Borough London Championships. Harry (7EB) and Nahom (7JRS) did exceptionally well, coming 3rd and 7th, respectively, in the Year 7 boys’ race.

The end of the season is always rounded off by the most prestigious event,the English Schools Championships — this year held near Tonbridge.This year we had Fleur (11DGA) and Daniel (U6HHM) representing London. Unfortunately, illness prevented Fleur from running, but Daniel finished as the second runner from London in a highly creditable 111th place, out of 300 runners; he was a mere two-minutes-and-30-seconds behind the winner and just one minute away from the top 50 in the country.

Mr P King (Head of Athletics & Cross-Country)

Football

After a few disrupted years, it was great to see the football season up and running. As a relatively new sport to Emanuel, I would call this the first genuine football season. For many pupils, this was their first season of playing football for the school, and excitement was building nicely as they prepared for their opening set of fixtures.

With a total of 100 games played, 30 wins, 13 draws, and 57 losses, 2022 has been a great learning curve for all pupils. Whilst the programme is still in its infancy, we had over 300 pupils represent the school across all age groups.

Highlights include the U12Bs beating St Paul’s in a 1-0 thriller. The U13As & U13Bs beat Cedars convincingly 6-2 and 10-0. Another highlight was the U11As finishing their incredible season undefeated. They played fixtures against The Roche, West Hill, Dulwich Prep, and The Dolphin School.The U14As and U14Bs had a fantastic season with hard-fought wins against a strong Cardinal Vaughan opposition. Finally, the U15As and U15Bs had a brilliant season with fantastic wins again Fulham Senior School and Cedars.

I would like to thank every staff member who has helped with football this year, with special thanks to Mr Osiguwa for his incredible efforts when coaching during his time at Emanuel; he pushed every pupil to achieve their best. We wish Mr Osiguwa all the best for his future career.

It was a great pleasure to start the girls’ after-school football club. During the 2020/21 season, pupils from Year 6 to Year 8 participated in training and fixtures. The training was well attended with pupils enjoying the new experience of football during the summer term. A highlight of the season was the U12A beating St Dunstan’s 5-0 in their opening game.

Mr C Leigh (Head of Football)

Evie (7CJR)

Swimming

With increased training hours and a three-term competitive programme, the swimming club has exploded this year. In total, 27 school records have been broken. The U12 and U13 squads have competed in the London Independent schools league, finishing 12th out of 18 schools. Additionally, they have set 15 new school records. The U12 girls’ relay team of Vasilisa, Emilia, Mia and Sophie set an impressive 1.07.44 for the 4x25m freestyle relay. Julian’s 0.43.85 in the 50m Breast-stroke and Derin’s 1.23.63 in the 100m individual medley were the pick of the boys’ events.

Our intermediate squad (U14 and U15) competed in the SouthWest London Schools’ Quadrangular. This event is run over four galas, with results from each combining to produce an overall total. The event presents a great opportunity for pupils who are new to competitive swimming. Of our four relay teams, three set new school records and are listed below:

Our senior team has had its first season in competition and has largely focused on relay events. Most notably, the school entered the 2022 Bath Cup hosted at the London Aquatics Centre. Nine pupils represented Emanuel across four events and the results are listed below:

The

The

Mr B Rogers (Head of Aquatics)

Lucy (10HJC), Teddy (U6AEM), Sophia (9SFM), Keza (9RCW), Fred (11SJB), Edgar (11RET), Charlie (11CMB), Will (10VCO) and Victor (10PAK)

Water Polo

In its inaugural season at Emanuel,Water Polo has gone from strength to strength. We are very fortunate to be geographically well placed for fixtures, at least ten local schools also play which has allowed for tremendous growth. The sport itself dovetails superbly well with a range of other sports, building understanding of tactical and strategic decision making for invasion games as well as demanding high intensity cardio-vascular output under relatively limited impact. The result is the skills of many different types of sports coming together to create some brilliant team performances. This was well highlighted by our U13 mixed squad’s success in their first-round regional tournament with pupils from netball, hockey, football and rugby teams all coming together and bringing a slightly different perspective on how to unlock an opposition defence. The U12 and U14 squads, whilst not having national tournaments for their age groups, have had some good fixtures. Both teams were competitive against strong opposition and displayed grit and determination to remain in the fight.

The U18 squad, made up of U14 and U16 pupils, competed in the English Schools Swimming Association (ESSA) national U18 tournament.They came third in their qualifying round and progressed to the plate semi-finals. Playing predominantly against pupils older than them, results were always going to be hard to come by but the pupils applied themselves admirably throughout and held their own against some very competitive opposition. The foundations are in place for an exciting future.

Mr B Rogers (Head of Aquatics)

Back row: Dennis (8AFK), Max (8HV), Tom (8MM), Goncalo (8HV), Ben (8HV), Max (8AFK), Sam (8MSH)

Front row: Joséphine (8AFK), Ella (8AFK), Robyn (8AFK), Flo (8MSH), Tilly (8HV), Zara (8MM), Lexie (8HV)

Clubs & Societies

Undeterred by Covid-related restrictions, students are as full as ever of enthusiasm and curiosity for how they might expand their horizons. Although most of the clubs are supervised by teaching staff, it has been wonderful to see an increasing number formed by the children themselves, three such examples being the Coding, Warhammer, and Engineering Clubs founded by Hector (11RET), Asher (10RET) and Ollie (U6CEG), respectively. I am delighted to say that the Junior Equality Society, the brainchild of some Year 6 and 7 girls two years ago, is still running strong and setting the world to rights.

We typically run about sixty clubs and societies in each of the three terms (excluding sport and music); however, over the past two years, for obvious reasons, we have been forced to think creatively and devise new ways of maintaining the quality and variety of the clubs that we offer. My colleagues and the students themselves have been incredibly enthusiastic and industrious; indeed, in the Spring Term of 2021, despite restrictions, we had thirty-five active clubs, including the online Chess, Drama, Hans Woyda, Medics, Grayson Perry Art, Lit. Quiz, Bake-off and now immortal Dr. Who clubs. Despite the social distancing regulations imposed during the Autumn term of 2020, Mr Keddie started, with terrific enthusiasm, a Year 6 and then a Year 7 Debating Society, both of which have been hugely successful in terms of participation and, of course, the quality of the debating.This is just one example of the many ways in which we have steadily been able to create more opportunities for students to engage with each other, take themselves out of their comfort zones, gain experience, and — crucially — to learn.

In September of 2021 we were able to have our Freshers’ Fair once again and, since then, the clubs and societies have grown exponentially. As of Summer 2022, we currently have over sixty active clubs, including Gardening Club, Animation Club, Classic Cinema Club, Law Society, Computer Club and the newly-formed Harry Potter Club (which has proven very popular).

I would like to express my sincere thanks to all of the students who have made the effort to get involved in this rewarding and vital aspect of their education. And, of course, I am eternally grateful to the many colleagues who so willingly give up their time to make it all happen.

Mr Leadbetter (Activities & Societies Co-ordinator)

THE 2021-2022 LIST

OUTDOOR PURSUITS

Lockdowns and travel restrictions have made us hungrier than ever for outdoor space. Thankfully, the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme has allowed students to remain connected to the natural world — and they’ve challenged themselves and supported local communities in the process, writes Mr Chuter...

The Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme has four parts: Physical, Skill, Volunteering and Expedition. The first three provide fantastic opportunities for students to be recognised for some of their existing co-curricular activities and also to try new things and contribute to their local or global community.They commit an hour of their time once a week for three to six months to achieve a goal, help a person or a community, or show personal development. The Expedition allows students to develop the ability to work as a team; they must plan an overnight excursion, carrying food and camping equipment and execute that plan without outside assistance, dealing with problems or obstacles as and when they arise. Preparing for the Expedition and successfully completing it gives students real confidence in their ability to be independent, and most students have a great time too!

Approximately 95% of the pupils in Year 9 sign up to take the Bronze Award, with the great majority completing within 12 months. Pupils can start the Silver Award, which demands a slightly greater level of commitment, in Year 10, and more than half of the year group get involved with this section. Being in London, pupils can complete their final expeditions by walking, as they do for the Bronze, or by opting to canoe down the Thames.

When the pandemic struck, we were adamant that pupils would not miss out on the sense of adventure, reflection, and community outreach enabled by the DofE.Two years later, we are proud to say that Emanuel pupils were undeterred. The resilience, patience, and fierce determination demonstrated by our pupils is exactly what the scheme is all about.

This year’s expedition saw 125 Year 9s walking with heavy packs for six hours per day for two days; while the majority of the Year 10s for even longer each day and for three days. They triumphed over bad weather, blisters and porridge burned to the bottom of the pan! Their excitement at finally being allowed to camp out after two years of restrictions was palpable! In addition, 14 intrepid Year 10s floated down the Thames (with a fierce headwind!). All students successfully completed their expeditions, and no doubt learnt a lot about themselves in the process.

At the awards evening in January 2022 we celebrated the many students who completed their DofE Awards during the challenging times of the pandemic.With students having to constantly change their plans and re-evaluate their goals in the face of various restrictions, this was a real achievement and we are hugely proud of them all.

Notes from the Library

These last three years have included some of the strangest times in my nearly three decades as a school librarian. 2019-20 featured a wonderful first two terms of high borrowing rates, an exciting buzz for reading and book talks; with the library being overflowing with varying activities.

But from Easter 2020 onwards everything morphed into a very different beast, with lockdowns, long closures, and the Library being used as the hub for Year 12 pupils when we were operating in bubbles. For much of the time we were able to operate a ‘Click and Collect’ service, and some of our traditional activities, including book talks and clubs, moved online or into the classrooms.

2021-22 has been a much more traditional school year, with normal access returning and pupils enjoying our fantastic selection of books and magazines. Over this period we also moved to a fantastic new library catalogue system called ‘Accessit’, which pupils have enjoyed exploring. We also now lend e-books. Chess has also made a major comeback and there are always many matches being played in the library.

Over the next few pages, we look back at some of the highlights and the pupils who have contributed to our various activities and successes run via the library.

The CWIZZ (2019)

Back in May 2019 we entered ‘The CWIZZ’ for the sixth successive year and came a commendable fourth at a tight competition hosted by Latymer Upper School and organised by a collective of South London authors. Over twenty Emanuel pupils attended practices, vying for the eight spots on the two teams; they were: Oscar (8LCC), Atitiya (8HEB), Emma (8LCC), Hope (8HEB), Isabelle (7RDC), Imogen (7RDC), Freya (7SFP) and Capucine (6ERM)

The CWIZZ (2022)

After cancellations in 2020 and 2021, we were delighted to welcome ‘The CWIZZ’ back to Emanuel for the first time in six years. As hosts, we were able to enter four teams and our 16 players had a fabulous time, with our three teams finishing first, fifth and ninth out of over thirty teams. Our players were Macsen (8MM), Oliver (8RDC), Kitty (7AFH), Ellie (7CJR), Rory (8AFK), Dougie (8MSH), Noah (8HAB), Effie (7JRS), Emilie (7JRS), Anna (7HAB) and Selina (7CJR). The book knowledge of our quizzers was fantastic and we were thrilled to win this competition for the first time since 2017.

Kids’ Lit Quiz (2019)

In our tenth successive year competing in the super-tough Kids’ Lit Quiz we finished a battling tenth, the same position as 2018, out of almost fifty teams. This long-running international book quiz competition is incredibly good fun but can be fiendishly tricky with the quiz-master firing questions at lightning-fast speed. Fifteen children competed for the eightplaces on the teams: Isabelle (7RDC), Katie (7KSA), Alex (7MSH), Edie (7KSA), Isabella (7KSA), Annabel (7RDC), Lakshmi (7SKA) and Imogen (7RDC).The 2020 and 2021 editions of the event were cancelled and it now sadly looks like this international competition will no longer have a UK section.

Lower School Form Lit Quiz (2020)

The Lower School Literary Quiz returned in January 2020 for the fifth successive year with another supertight contest which combines speed on the buzzer and book knowledge. 6ERM won the Year 6 section; 7HEB were victorious in the Year 7 group; and the Year 8 kings were 8RDC. The all-conquering 8RDC then won the prestigious Neale Shield and were crowned Lower School Champions. Their team consisted of: Sophie, Dorothy, Annabel, Isabelle, Imogen and Phoebe They later defeated two Year 9 teams organised by Atitiya (9NS). This competition was not possible in 2021, but returned with a huge bang in spring 2022.

Lower School Form Lit Quiz (2022)

The 2022 version of this popular event was a riproaring success with the usual battle between Year 6, 7 and 8 Forms an exciting affair. 6USC were triumphant in the Year 6 section; 7AFH won for Year 7; and 8RDC won in the elder age group. The four-way final between 7AFH, 7CB, 6USC and 8RDC was an exciting contest which also brought in a huge crowd of spectators. 7AFH were very worthy winners — amongst the best quiz teams of recent years — and it was fantastic to see a Year 7 team win the title again. It was lovely to hold this competition after a two-year absence and present the winners with the Neale Shield, named after former teachers John and Sue.

The Psychotronic Book Club (2019-22)

Covid-19 was not going to get the better of The Psychotronic Book Club! This is one of Emanuel’s longest running clubs and attracts a great band of teenagers who love weird and cult fiction, with the last couple of years having a major focus on horror. Over the last three years, our most committed members have been: Freya (L6SMJ), Pablo (U6RJB), Jeanne (11BJR), Emily (L6JTB), Maddie (L6HC), Lucy (L6JTB), Esme (L6LAB) and Emma (11RET). We have discussed some great books from famous authors such as Margaret Atwood and Susan Hill to the obscurer areas of cult side of literature including Toby Luff, Alden Bell and Andrew Michael Hurley.

In 2020/21, as there was no mixing of year group bubbles, the club temporarily morphed into a Year 11 club with students sampling the delights of Paul Tremblay and Agustina Bazterrica, amongst other dark fiction. In 2021/22 we returned to being a club for Year 10+ and enjoyed novels by Adam Nevill, Gus Moreno, Joshua Gaylord, Stephen King and Gabriel Bergmoser. It is always so refreshing to bounce around ideas and thoughts about books everybody loves!

Lower School Lit Quiz winners 2020, with Mr Jones

Lower School Lit Quiz winners 2022, with Miss McCloud

The Psychotronic Book Club (2019-22)

Lit Quiz Club (2020-22)

Due to the bubble system, the Lower School Lit Quiz Club adapted and temporarily became a Year 7 club in 2020, with our top players being Macsen (7MM), Rory (7AFK), Summer (7AFK), Douglas (7SMH), Elsa (7AFK), Devin (7MM), Jack-Francis (7SMR), Humphrey (7MM), Carlos (7SMR), Sam (7MSH) and Maxi (7HAB). As these pupils had no access to the library it was very nice to visit the Year 7 classrooms and have the opportunity to both quiz and chat about books

In September 2021 the Lit Quiz Club returned as an activity for pupils in Years 6, 7 and 8 and was used as a springboard to select pupils for the National Reading Championship Online Quiz and The CWIZZ. Many pupils attended these sessions and our top players included: Rory (7AFK), Douglas (7SMH), Effie (7JRS), Macsen (7MM), Kitty (7AFH), Noah (8HV), Selina (7CJR), Ellie (7CJR) and Emilie (7AFH)

National Reading Championship Online Quiz (2021)

Eight pupils who regularly attended the Lower School Lit Quiz Club participated in the inaugural online National Reading Championship, a new event aimed at replacing other competitions cancelled due to Covid. There were over thirty heats across the UK, with us entering the highly competitive South London section, which featured the likes of Dulwich Prep, Latymer Upper, Eltham College, and City of London Boys. Our eight Year 7 players had a great time and were amused by eccentric presenter ‘Mr Dilly’ who even had staff members doing dances via the Microsoft Teams live feed!

Our excellent ‘A’ Team players were Elsa (7AFK),Macsen (7MM), Jack-Francis (7SMR) and Sam (7MSH), ably supported by our talented ‘B’ Team: Carlos (7SMR),Rory(7AFK), Douglas (7SMH) and Humphrey (7MM).There were almost fifty teams in the hunt and we were delighted to be placed fourth (‘A’ Team) and thirteenth (‘B’ Team). It was a very enjoyable morning and everybody had a lot of fun.

In 2022, we were delighted to hear that the National Reading Championship was returning for a second year, even though faceto-face book activities had already resumed. We entered this with high expectations as many of the pupils had been involved in lots of internal quizzes and knew their facts when it came to book knowledge. In the end we came an amazing second (‘B’ team) and fourth (‘A’ team), with everybody having a fun time, defeating many top schools. The pupils involved were Macsen (8MM), Kitty (7AFH), Emilie (7AFH), Effie (7JRS), Rory (8AFK), Ellie (7CJR), Joseph (7JRS) and Anna (7HAB)

The Trinity School Book Award: Six Book Challenge (2019/20)

The Trinity School Book Award each year has its own ‘Six Book Challenge’ which many pupils in Years 7-8 read over the autumn term. In 2019/20, the theme connecting the books was ‘Stand Up, Shout Out!’

An impressive number of pupils entered both sections of the competition: the 500 Word Review and the Creative Response. Our winners in the review category were Esme (7LAS) and Alice (7HEB) and for the Creative Response, Esme (7LAS) again and Jonathan (8RJA). The responses were incredibly difficult to judge, but we loved Esme’s amazing folk song ‘When Will You See the Light?’, inspired by the novel Ghost Boys, and Jonathan’s wonderful recreation of a section of Hadrian’s Wall. Many other pupils produced outstanding work and runner up prizes were awarded to Freya (8RJA), Alex (8LVD), Sergio (7SVW) and Elena (7CY)

The TSBA event concluded when we took a group of pupils to the prize winning event hosted by City of London Boys’ School.We had the opportunityof listening to the authors Tanya Landman, Andrew Norriss and Nicky Singer discuss their books and have a book signing. We were absolutely thrilled to scoop two of the big prizes (considering around thirty schools were involved) for both Esme (7LAS), who won first prize for her song, and Alice (7HEB), who was second with her review.

(2020/21)

The TSBA returned in autumn of 2020 with some tricky challenges as the year groups were in bubbles and could not mix, making running the event more complex than normal. However, with a theme of ‘Being Human’ many pupils attempted the ‘Six Book Challenge’ and participated in the Zoom activities about the books.

This year Esme (8AEM) and Oliver (7RDC) won the review category and Nahom (6HCW) triumphed in the creative section, along with Oliver (7RDC) who completed a fantastic double victory. There were other strong entries and we gave runner up prizes to Diana (6CAL), Grace (6CAL), Kitty (6CB), Charlotte (8WGD), Charlotte (8AFH), Jessie (6CAL) and Nahom (6HCW). For the first time we also held an online quiz event which was won by Liam (7HAB), with Oliver (7RDC) coming second and Charlotte (8AFH) third. Due to Covid the multi-school award ceremony became an online event which many pupils streamed, with a delighted Oliver (7RDC) picking up first prize in the Creative Response category for his fantastic film which linked all the books together.

(2021/22)

For 2021/22 it was ‘business as usual’ as the bubbles were gone and pupils got back into the swing of the latest Six Book Challenge which had the theme of ‘Second Chances’. Our two winners of the Creative Response section were Oliver (8RDC) and Nico (7HAB), whilst the winners in the Review section were Grace (7PM) and Jun (8MSH). We were also delighted to award six runner up prizes to Anya (6CAL), Poppy (7PM), Violet (6USC), Ruby (7HAB), Isadora (6USC) and Hannah (7EB). Due to the complications with Covid the award ceremony was once again online, but we were over the moon to win two prizes for Oliver (8RDC) and Nico (7HAB) in the multischool Creative Response section for very imaginative films inspired by two of the books.

Chess

As most chess takes place in the first two school terms, only the tail-end of the 2019/20 season was impacted by Covid-19. Sadly, traditional ‘face-to-face’ chess then disappeared until September 2022, when the school chess league resumed.

2019/2020

In 2019/20 we continued to compete in the Briant Poulter Surrey Chess League, playing Whitgift, Langley Park (twice), Sutton Grammar (twice) and Wilson’s Grammar. Over this season Mackenzie (U6SPP) and Charles (9CMB) were our top players and featured in all matches, with both boys having excellent win/loss records. Our middle board players, Joe (U6PMM) and Zeeshan (10CDK), were also great assets to the team, both with very good records. On the lower boards, Sophie (L6JTB) continued to battle hard and should be applauded for being the only girl competing in the entire league. We were delighted to add two new Year 7 players to our squad, Gabriel (7HEB) and Karan (7CY), who both showed great promise for the future. Our final league player was Alex (U6PMM), who was also new to competitive chess.

There were also two House competitions, with Rodney and Howe tying first place in the senior event and Wellington winning the junior. Over the last two years Mackenzie (U6SPP) made a terrific contribution to Emanuel chess, and Joe (U6PMM) over the last season, which we are very grateful for; both Dr Dancy and I hope they continue to play chess whilst at university or online.

2020/2021

Covid-19 meant the 2020/21 season took a completely different complexion. All external school fixtures were cancelled and the bubble system meant we were not allowed to mix year groups, which made running our traditional chess clubs impossible. However, Dr Dancy moved chess online and pupils used the Lichess.org system for casual matches. Our most regular players were Karan (8PM), Gabriel (8LAB), Herbert (9REM), Charlie (10CMB) and Mr Lai of the Maths Department.

Between mass isolations and further lockdowns we also managed to get a face-to-face Year 7 Chess Club off the ground, which was met with great success and many committed players who never missed a session. Our regulars were Thomas (7HAB), Joshua (7MSH), Devin (7MM), Macsen (7MM), Rory (7AFK), Dougie (7MSH), Elsa (7AFK), Summer (7AFK), Corin (7AFK), Elgan (7MSH), and Jun (7MSH). Covid also made running House events complex as often large numbers of pupils were self-isolating, but we still managed to complete Year 7 and 8 events before Easter.

2021/2022

This was another season without competitive league chess, but this was replaced by a very wide range of House competitions, a Lower School Chess Club which met in the library, and a new Senior Chess Club. Overall there was a huge increase in the number of ‘casual’ players, particularly in Year 10 and 11 and we hope this will transfer to more serious players when we rejoin the league in September. Our top prospects amongst the junior players are Anand (8HV), Frederick (8SMR), Thomas (7AFH), Dougie (8MSH), Mia (7CJR), Titus (6USC), Thomas (6USC), Finlay (7AFH), Karan (9RCW), William (7AFH), Rory (8AFK) and Leonardo (7PM).The senior club kicked off later in the school year and we hope the likes of Miles (11JEH), Herbert (10REM), Verity (10HJC), Harry (11DGA), Konstantin (11RET), and Daniel (10SDG) make the jump to competitive chess next September.

Mr T Jones (Senior Librarian and Archivist)

Charities

The Emanuel student body is regularly involved in charity fundraising, with an active committee of students from all age groups meeting weekly to plan events to raise money. Our pupils come from a wide range of backgrounds, and we believe that it is right for them to understand and have compassion for those less fortunate than themselves. Making a contribution to help the lives of others, no matter how small, is an important part of our philosophy. In the past few years, this charity committee has grown exponentially from a small handful of Sixth Formers to over thirty students across all years. This is testament to the generosity and selflessness of Emanuel students. At the beginning of each year, the committee shortlists a handful of local charities which we support in addition to our partnership schools in Tamil Nadu, India, and Giant Strides.

In a typical year, our students plan, organise, and coordinate a handful of events and are always looking for creative new ways to fundraise. Current initiatives include:

• Home clothes days, some of which (such as Christmas and Pride Week) are themed.

• Lower School discos, with nearly 100% of the year attending.

• Christmas raffles with prizes donated by staff, students, and parents. Mr Shetzer (in his best or worst Santa outfit) delivers gifts to bewildered winners during the school day.

• Treat sales are common during the year, serving up delicious triple chocolate muffins, Krispy Kreme doughnuts, and Pride-themed cupcakes.

• Raising money for the Royal British Legion via Poppy Appeal. Even at the height of the pandemic in 2021, the Clapham branch of RBL said we have done better than any other organisation they work with.

Mr M Shetzer (Charities Coordinator)

Charity disco

Charity disco

Treat sale

Charlotte (8AEM) & Flo (8AEM)

House Reports

Clyde

Clyde participation has hugely improved over the past year and we now gunning for a strong finish. I want to say a huge thank you and well done to all Clyde pupils who have participated in and supported House events and assemblies, and to our House Managers for encouraging participation and for delivering motivating assemblies.

Highlights have included Mia (7AFH) and Mina (7EB) winning the girls’ Year 7 cycling competition, while the Year 9s smashed their way to first place in both girls’ and boys’ badminton thanks to Malory (9RCW), Daisy (9HEC), Otto (9DLB) and Max (9HLM). Elsewhere, Spencer (6USC) and Dasha (6USC) succeeded admirably in a noisy marshmallow challenge, while Effie (7JRS), Flora (7PM) and Thomas (7JRS) delivered a convincing presentation on the success of failure, and Ruby (8HV) and Douglas (8MSH) showed a moving video on perseverance. I would like to thank our Vice Captains, Miles (9HLM) and Otto (9DLB), for their hard work and, particularly, for sharing their personal stories of why it is important to step out of your comfort zone. Special thanks must of course go to our House Captain Romily (9SB), who has been exemplary, recruiting successfully for House events and providing interesting sports quizzes and witty riddles in our assemblies.

Mr D Buxton

Drake

Our namesake, Sir Franis Drake, said that ‘great things have small beginnings’. Over the past year in Drake our ‘small beginning’ is well underway. Students have been brilliant at valuing the role that House activities have within the school community, relishing opportunities to participate in healthy competition, step outside their comfort zones and represent something more than

themselves. Drake has been superbly led by our three Captains: Ed (9HEC), Sam (9SB) and Marina (9HEC).Their attendance at events and enthusiasm for supporting others has been excellent. Our Year 9s have led by example, winning tug-of-war, 5-a-side football, basketball, cross country and girls’ swimming. Of particular note was Maisie (9DLB)’s performance in classical music, scoring 34/35.The Year 8s have won rugby, 5-a-side football and boys’ table tennis, and well done to Tilly (8HV) for coming third in cross country. Nahom (7JRS) and Isabel (7JRS) both came second in Year 7 cross country while both our boys and girls teams won badminton. It has also been fantastic to see our Year 6s thoroughly enjoying all the activities on offer and prospering in tug-of-war.

Howe

It has been an excellent year for Howe; we remain undefeated in the senior houses since 2019! We have been led to victory by our House Captain, Harry (U6WGD), and VCs, Alistair (U6CCG) and Emily (U6SPP). A special mention must go to Fleur (11DGA), who won both the Year 11 cross country and House Music. George (11DGA), Pippa (11AJL), Alistair (U6CCG), and Fleur (11DGA) all received half-colours, and I thank them for their consistent dedication to Howe, no matter the event.Winning the Year 11 basketball and Upper-Sixth 5-a-side was a real highlight, with the energy in the room positively electric, as was the encouraging teamwork at Ergo and Cycling events, especially from Aron (L6LAB), Isaac (L6LAB) and Scarlett (11RET). The Lower- and Upper-Sixth winning House Chess in a nail-biting final was incredible to watch. Lastly, thank you to the Year 13s for all their efforts, especially in inspiring and encouraging the younger pupils in Howe/Clyde.

(Head of Clyde)

Mr B Rogers (Head of Drake)

Miss N Sidhu (Head of Howe)

Lyons

Looking back on the last thirty months, there have been numerous highlights. Ice (11AJL) has enjoyed spectacular success in the world of music, and Miles (11JEH) and Finn (11CMB) have dominated the film competitions. Cal (9SFM), Isaac (10HJC), Amelia (6USC) and Poppy (10VCO) have all been outstanding swimmers, while Farhan (8RDC), Matthew (10HJC) and Atitiya (11NS) have excelled at mathematics. Lyons continues to dominate the ergo, tug-of-war, fives and swimming competitions across the age groups and I am pleased to report that chess has improved dramatically. Isabelle (10HJC) and Cal (9SFM) deserve a special mention for the contributions that they have made in a wide range of competitions.

Since September 2021, we have been able to run events free from restrictions with the aid of excellent captains: Oscar (L6SMJ), Poppy (11JEH), Emma (10PAK), Achille (10VCO), Kitty (7AFH), Felix (8HAB), Pearl (8RDC), Ella (L6SKH), Poppy (10VCO), Amelia (6USC), Lauren (7PM), Anatole (7AFH), Gracie (8HV), Farhan (8RDC), Manasseh (9HEC), Vittorio (9SB) and Sefiya (9DLB) have all contributed so much to the success of Lyons and hopefully enjoyed themselves! It was fitting that Miles (11JEH) and Emma (11RET), both loyal stalwarts and superb captains, were able to lift the trophy on behalf of our great House in July 2020. It is no surprise that we are set to win 2022’s Junior cup, too!

Marlborough

I have been delighted with the successes of Marlborough since I began running the house in January 2022. We have seen numerous first place finishes, including in senior maths, Lower-Sixth Girls’ Rowing and Cycling and both Year 11 rowing events to name but a few.

Much of this success is down to the work of Mr Hale, who ran the house for several years and instilled a clear sense of pride and house spirit. The thoughts of everyone in Marlborough are with you, Mr Hale — we wish you well. We also owe a great deal of thanks to our House Captain, Scarlett (U6ARW), who has assisted excellently with recruitment for events and assemblies, as well as competing in six events herself since I have been running the house.

Nelson was back in full force this year, with the new Year 10 pupils, marshalled by Vice Captain Herbert (10REM), setting high standards of competitive spirit. Their collective efforts resulted in first place in several events such as tug-of-war, boys’ cross country, football, and girls’ badminton. Event participation was impressive throughout. Meanwhile, Year 11 pupils dominated boys’ cross country and came joint-first in cycling. Many thanks to vice captains Lily (11DGA) and Leela (11DGA) for their consistent volunteering.

Sixth Form captains James (U6HHM), Joe (U6WGD) and Indigo (U6SEM) were invaluable, keeping attendance high at senior school events. Highlights include first place in ergos, senior rugby, girls’ cross country, and senior netball. Best of luck to all Nelson leavers in their future endeavours. I’m so grateful for all your welcome contributions.

Rodney

Rodney have had a fantastic full year in school without lockdowns, tallying various wins and successes. House Captain Rosie (U6SPP) and VCs Zach (U6ARW) and Noah (U6CCG) were excellent in their recruitment and motivational efforts, and their committed attitude trickled into the rest of the house. In November, Margot (L6PSA) performed exceptionally on the cello in the classical music senior competition and was awarded first place. The LowerSixth boys were led to an epic victory in the 5-a-side football competition by Riccardo (L6SJC) and Jack (L6CDK); the final went down to nail-biting penalties, but the boys held their nerve. In younger years, the Year 10s were inspired by James (10REM) and Jose (10VCO), both of whom have shown consistent effort in multiple house events. Here’s to more fun and success next year.

Wellington

Wellington are currently placed second in the junior competition, which is a consequence of the gargantuan effort by innumerable students in events throughout the year. There have been notable successes for Wellington in both the boys’ and girls’ cross-country, boys’ basketball and Year 6 and 7 chess. However, what has impressed me the most is how many students have taken part.

I would like to thank my remarkable House Captains and squadron leaders for their efforts this year. Without their organisation and enthusiasm, Wellington would be nowhere near the well-oiled machine it is today. A huge thanks to Millie (6CAL) and Violet (6USC) in Year 6; Kit (7CJR), Teddy (7HAB) and Bianca (7HAB) in Year 7; Oliver (8RDC), Sofia (8HV) and Flo (8MSH) in Year 8; and Valentina (9SFM), Karan (9RCW) and Finn (9SED) in Year 9.

Mr A Leadbetter (Head of Lyons)

Mr D Martin (Head of Marlborough)

Nelson

Mr M Shetzer (Head of Nelson)

Mr D Ashton (Head of Rodney)

Mr C Reed (Head of Wellington)

Lower School

Life in the Lower School has been characteristically busy over the past two years and it is hard to know where to begin when summarising some of the main highlights for our youngest students.

The past two academic years have seen a huge amount of change; during the lockdowns, the vast majority of school life took place online which wasn’t without its challenges, but there has been lots to celebrate. Pupils across the year groups took to remote education quickly, demonstrating resilience and flexibility in the face of incredible uncertainty. Both academically and emotionally, pupils grew and developed vital skills in the brave new world we found ourselves in. Miss McCloud’s ‘Wellbeing Afternoon’ was a huge success and it was heart-warming to see pupils engage in a range of different activities from their homes; from sport to creative writing, from dog training to drawing, everyone got involved and helped to combat the Covid blues and work collaboratively with one another.

Life after lockdown in the Lower School has been nothing short of brilliant. Thank you so much to all the teachers who have made it possible for students to attend a range of trips this academic year. Year 6 and 7 pupils took part in the annual team building days in September, and Year 8 pupils visited Anne Boleyn’s family home, Hever Castle, and Bletchley Park. Year 6 pupilshave also taken part in our enrichment days which are delivered in partnership with a local primary school. This year’s Field Week was a huge success; Year 6 pupils took part in various activity days in school and visited London Zoo,Year 7 pupils went to the Horniman Museum, visited Roman ruins in St Albans and stayed overnight at the Adur Centre, and our Year 8s went on a Bushcraft residential trip, as well as visiting the Design Museum and Fishbourne Palace. It was an exciting and fun-filled week for all and we are already very much looking forward to this year’s Field Week.

With the end of many restrictions, multiple events have been able to take place on site again. New Lower School parents have been invited on site to meet one another at this year’s mixer event, as well as Dacre Day. The Year 6, 7 and 8 drama productions were back and Year 8 had a movie afternoon. Pupils have also impressed with their pursuits outside school. A special mention must go to Kit (7CJR) and Gabriel (7PM) for their contributions to drama outside of school. Dasha (8RDC) continues to excel at ice skating and Livi (8RDC) has been accepted into the Royal Ballet School’s spring and summer school at Covent Garden and White Lodge respectively.

In order to inspire more pupils to travel to school in a sustainable, safe, responsible and active way, Mrs Chetwood has run the ‘STARS’ accreditation, which has been a huge success, and a select group were invited to present at TFL’s seminar in June. Students were overjoyed to hear that year group discos were making a comeback and these were very well attended, with all money going to charity. Similarly, the Christmas box charity project took place again in December across the school with all form groups contributing gifts to families in the local area.

As another year ends, I very much look forward to seeing what pupils in the Lower School go on to achieve next year.

H

Ms

Windsor (Head of Lower School)

“Life after lockdown in the Lower School has been nothing short of brilliant. ”

Middle School

The Middle School pupils have been remarkable in their resilience, humour and enthusiasm in what has been a very unexpected couple of years at school. When challenged by the demands of remote learning, the pupils were committed to ensuring their academic progress continued at pace and congratulations should be offered to two year groups of Year 11 pupils who gained strong GCSE results and took the challenges of TAGs and CAGs in their stride. What was wonderful to see was the way pupils embraced the opportunities available in these times, from weekly Bake-Offs to Strava athletic-art competitions, organised by their form tutors and heads of year. This group of remarkably committed and caring staff ensured that every pupil remained fully part of school and a strange time was made less strange by tutors, teachers and friends alike.

The sight of teenagers genuinely delighted to be back at school, and almost galloping over the bridge upon our return, indicates how pleased they were to be back to the ‘new normal.’ The buzz of the classrooms reflects the academic aspirations of the Middle School pupils; they are focused on achieving great results and last year’s cohort of Year 11s — the first to take ‘proper’ exams in three years — deserve real credit for the self-disciplined and focused approach they took. There has been much delight for the return of school trips, with Classics trips to Bath bringing learning alive whilst the end of year Field Week saw great times enjoyed on Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and at the lakes of the Andrew Simpson aquatic centre, learning new skills whilst getting soaked to the skin!

There have been considerable sporting successes during this period, with Middle School being particularly successful in both national competitions and against local rivals. The Middle School rowers enjoyed the most recent National Schools Regatta as a

chance to race against some of the best teams in the country, with many of their boats making commendable efforts and showing real determination. The Year 9 girls enjoyed a netball tour to Cardiff over February where they were undefeated and received coaching from Welsh international players. Special congratulations for sport among the Middle School pupils must go to Fleur (11DGA), who is currently the second fastest ranked 3000 metres runner globally in her age group! She deserves enormous kudos for achieving this whilst balancing preparation for her GCSE examinations.

The pupils’ voice within the Middle School over the last few years has grown and become a hugely important part of its identity. ‘The Bridge’, the group that discusses gender equality both in school and in the wider community, is well attended and has discussed topics as diverse as challenging inappropriate language to addressing gendered play spaces. Middle School pupils can also be seen contributing their thoughts and leading change in the Archer group, Athena Society and the School Council.

It is an enormous privilege to lead the Middle School’s pupils, heads of year and tutors; their enthusiasm for all aspects of school life is contagious and I am excited to see what lies ahead for the next school year.

Mrs J McIsaac (Head of Middle School)

“The buzz of the classrooms reflects the academic aspirations of the Middle School pupils.”

Sixth Form

The students’ enthusiasm to return to school in September 2020 was palpable. And while it became evident that the last academic year would not be fully ‘back to normal’, pupils adapted to the Covid guidelines admirably.

Highlights of the year included significant Sixth Form involvement in the Addams Family musical; enthusiastic engagement in House sports competitions in the absence of inter-school matches in the Autumn Term; and the ingenious ways Sixth Form pupils were creative during lockdown, notably the brilliant virtual performance of ‘One Day More’ from Les Miserables put together by Sam (L6SKR) and friends. Sixth Form students continued to look for ways to not only make positive contributions to the school community through participation in the various pupil voice groups, but also to the local community through their active involvement with the hugely successful Primary Ambitions programme, volunteering their time to the Ascent programme and taking part in various charitable activities that included supporting the Christmas hampers initiative for the Ace of Clubs charity and a varied number of fundraising challenges. One particularly inspiring effort came from Head Girl, Lauren (U6JTB), who raised funds for ’43 for BRT’, the campaign for supporting school bursaries.

It was great to see that, despite the challenges of the year, the pupils made really encouraging progress academically and the Upper Sixth were able to perform to a very pleasing level in their summer assessments, with 90% securing places at their first choice university.

As we moved into September 2021, we enjoyed having the opportunity to celebrate the outgoing Upper-Sixth’s impressive school careers at the delayed Leavers’ Ball and also welcome back our 2020 and 2021 leavers and their parents for a drinks reception to celebrate their impressive school careers. At the start of the Autumn Term we welcomed a good number of new joiners and

Year 11 progressing through to the Sixth Form. Fortunately, all of the Sixth Form were able access the Sixth Form Centre this year and this provided opportunities for pupils across year groups to integrate, something which is central to a cohesive Sixth Form community. The new academic year also saw the return to regular sports fixtures, in-person music and dramatic performances, and us being able to welcome back the local primary school children participating in the Primary Ambitions programme at Emanuel. As ever, there were many highlights within our thriving performing arts, which included Livi (U6JED) and other Sixth Formers’ impressive performances in the School of Rock musical; the ‘Night at the Movies’ music performance, ably performed by Upper Sixth pupils Annabelle (U6SPP) and Tom (U6CCG); and the hilarious and adroit production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

As in a ‘normal year’, the summer term saw the crescendo towards the Upper-Sixth sitting their A Level examinations. At the time of writing, we are awaiting their results, but it was pleasing to see the way in which they all worked to put themselves in the best position to perform well. This year drew to a close with a wonderful celebration at the Leavers’ Ball on the penultimate day of term.We wish the outgoing Sixth Form the best of luck for the future and look forward to the exciting contributions that will be made by the new Sixth Form pupils in September.

Mr W Quayle (Head of Sixth Form)

“It was great to see that, despite the challenges of the year, the pupils made really encouraging progress.”

HIGHER education

It’s early July in the Sixth Form; hopefully both friendships and bonds with A Level learning have been forged, and the Higher Education journey of both Year 13 and Year 12 takes a brief hiatus at the end of the academic year. And yet really this Higher Education journey is in full swing, for both year groups.

The Upper Sixth are on the cusp of adulthood; A Levels have been sat and negotiated (no mean feat, considering this cohort didn’t sit GSCEs), university offers are safely in the bag, and just the cloud of an August 18 Results Day looms on the horizon,but not before some basking in the sun of Zakynthos. Conversely, the Lower Sixth are on the verge of a raft of decisions concerning their futures. This year, they have heard from several HE-related voices, had presentations and workshops informing them of the different opportunities ahead, and started making academic statements about their personalities in the form of the muchvaunted personal statement.

The wider picture sees the near future for both year groups remain slightly uncertain, as some Russell Group universities look to recalibrate, after three years of pandemic over-recruitment. The pandemic also accelerated demand, with a higher percentage of students across the country wanting to progress to university. Higher application rates from mature applicants, continued growth in demand from international students (especially those from outside the EU), and a demographic surge in the number of 18-year-olds over the next decade, have all contributed to the face of competition for places looking particularly fierce for our outgoing and current Sixth Form. Clearing may well be a little busier than usual come August 18. However, our Upper Sixth pupils remain confident of getting a place at university, despite universities responding to the increase in applications by exercising more restraint in their offer-making.

Nevertheless, it’s clear our pupils are responding with great empathy to the world around them. The repercussions of the pandemic — on mental health; the response to Brexit; the climate crisis; conflict in Eastern Europe and issues of equality in race and gender — are all reflected in our three most popular undergraduate course applications in the leavers of 2022: psychology, politics, and history.

Notwithstanding the world’s uncertainties, I continue to be excited by the opportunities and bright futures ahead for our senior pupils.

I recently attended a conference at the University of East Anglia, three miles outside Norwich. Its award-winning architecture is brutalist and beautiful, but UEA has traditionally flown under the radar of our pupils because it’s not a Russell Group destination. However, its facilities, including the Norman Foster designed Sainsbury’s Centre for the Visual Arts, and an Olympic sized swimming pool in its awesome Sportspark, mark it out as a calm, peaceful and green campus and, for the right individual, an inspiring place to learn.

I also visited Leeds University, one of the most popular destinations applied to by our pupils this year, and was similarly impressed by this very different, yet similarly stimulating seat of learning. A mere 15 minutes’ walk from the station, and only a two-and-a-quarterhour train journey from King’s Cross, the ‘Republic of Leeds’ is easily accessible to those wishing for an authentic cultural immersion in the Great North. It’s a campus university in the heart of a city, with cutting edge amenities and green space on its Hyde Park doorstep and, as an institution, seems to have a drive and energy about it that was being reflected at the time of my visit by the batting heroics of England’s David Bairstow, just a good arm’s throw away in Headingly.

In this year’s Field Week at Emanuel, the current Lower Sixth have enjoyed the second of their UCAS and Higher Education preparation days, the highlight of which for me was the visit of nine recent Emanuel leavers who returned to speak about their university experiences. Their honesty about the challenges of locked-down learning, catastrophes in the kitchen as they learned to cook for themselves, and the enthusiasm they shared with our current pupils about breaking out of the Emanuel bubble to live and learn in new places with new people, was infectious, and reminded me of why young people like to go to university, whether it be in the UK, the USA or Europe, where this year’s leavers will end up. Universities have the capacity to fundamentally transform an individual’s life; they transform cities and regions, and they provide skills and knowledge at the cutting edge of research — as the recent vaccine success at Oxford surely proves. Learning journeys at a higher level can be an incredibly enriching experience; most graduates have enhanced career prospects, and, of course, students gain independence,invaluable life skills and — most importantly — great friendships along the way.

Mr D Hand (Director of Higher Education)

Careers

Careers education at Emanuel is built into Life Education sessions from Year 7, introducing pupils to concepts such as diversity and inclusion in the workplace, building transferable skills and exploring different routes into employment such as degree apprenticeships. An essential part of what makes the careers education provision at Emanuel so valuable is the incredibly supportive network of Old Emanuels, parents, and friends of the school. From talks to workshops to work experience, without the support of the Emanuel community, pupils could not be exposed to a wide variety of activities and opportunities.

During the summer term of 2022 the Lower Sixth took part in a day of activities to build their entrepreneurial skills, while parents volunteered to be part of a panel of environmental experts who took questions from the audience. The pupils were then guided through a series of workshops to develop their own sustainable business ideas which they later pitched to ‘investors’ in a fast-paced trading game.

With the appointment of the Head of Careers and Employability in June 2022, each Sixth Form pupil has at least one personal guidance interview during their time in the Sixth Form, with further one-toone discussion if desired.

The January 2022 careers convention built on previous events to include higher education exhibitors. This allowed pupils to browse the different stalls and pose questions to representatives from universities up and down the country.The convention also involved a series of talks including advice for those applying to universities abroad, tips for applying to competitive universities, and information for those considering an application to medicine.The 2023 Careers and Higher Education convention (due to be held on Saturday 28th January) will follow this new format and will again include pupils from our community partner schools.

In 2023 a new Emanuel careers networking platform will be launched, developing from the ECON platform. This system will allow pupils to tap directly into the Emanuel community, who kindly offer work experience placements, internships, and volunteering opportunities.The launch of this ambitious project will be the next step in continuing to build a hugely exciting and unique careers programme for Emanuel School.

Ms E Maclean (Head of Careers and Employability)

EPQ

The Extended Project Qualification, worth half an A Level, is a unique opportunity for students in the Lower Sixth to complete a research-based project. Highly valued by top universities, with some students receiving reduced or preferential offers with a strong grade in EPQ, the qualification not only involves embarking on a project that spans an academic year, but also represents a process through which students reflect on themselves as learners and their ability to recognise and overcome problems. Whether they choose to produce a dissertation, an investigation, a performance, or an artefact, the EPQ represents the freedom to pursue a question or to create something in which students have a keen personal interest.

The diversity of projects completed this year reflects the academic ambition of students at Emanuel. From creating an animation based on the surrealist works of Salvador Dali and Walt Disney, to writing a punk song in the style of the Sex Pistols, or exploring the extent

to which social media has destabilised democracy, the standard and breadth of projects this year have been outstanding. Results have been similarly impressive: 72% of the current Upper Sixth cohort were awarded A*-A, with 24 of these being A*s. Students and their supervisors should be commended for these results; they are testament to their perseverance, problem solving, and resilience in managing a large-scale project.

The qualification requires, rewards, and instils organisational and research skills necessary to thrive at university and beyond. I hope that the EPQ process equips Emanuel Sixth Formers with the confidence to think critically and objectively about the questions they want to interrogate, and to recognise that no challenge is insurmountable.

Mr S Clarke (Head of EPQ)

What have our students been researching for the EPQ?

“My project investigates the causes of underdevelopment in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has led me to research the effects of natural resources, slavery, corruption, and colonialism on the DRC. I have always been interested in human geography and the reasons that some countries are far less successful than others. I have enjoyed the EPQ as it has allowed me to thoroughly research an area of study I am very interested in, as well as providing me with many new skills which I’m sure will be useful at university.”

“For my project I decided to investigate cattle and their impact on the environment. After delving deeper into my topic, I discovered new drawbacks and benefits of cattle that I didn’t know beforehand. I have always been interested in how effective veganism actually is as a solution to climate change and I hope to pursue something related to the environment at university. I have really enjoyed researching my topic.”

“My EPQ investigates China’s controversial family-planning policies. I explore the impact of China’s laws through the lens of international human rights, considering their effects on women, religious groups, and the healthcare system. I have thoroughly enjoyed expanding my knowledge and developing my research skills throughout the process. I am thinking of studying Law at university, and I know that my project would prepare me well for this.”

“My project investigates the extent to which a plant-based diet enhances athletic performance amongst elite athletes. Exploring the biological and nutritional impacts of certain foods against the demands of rigorous sports has been fascinating. I have really enjoyed the EPQ, especially the opportunity it grants to develop my knowledge of the subjects I study and have a passion for. The skills that I have gained and honed will hold me in good stead for my current plan to study Sports Science at a Russell-Group university.“

Ben (L6AZ)

“I examine the effectiveness of gene therapy as a treatment for cystic fibrosis, blending both ethical conflicts of invasive therapies and medical intricacies, in a constantly developing area of the biological sciences. I highly recommend the EPQ experience as a great opportunity to analyse a topic in-depth, conduct your own research with relative freedom and formulate your own position. I enjoyed logging the process and being reflective of my own hurdles and the complexities of my project.”

“My EPQ interrogates the extent to which Homer’s portrayal of Helen of Troy is misogynistic. I consider how Helen is repeatedly objectified for her beauty, whether she can be said to have true autonomy, and how she is often blamed for catalysing the Trojan War. Homer’s portrayal has influenced countless interpretations of the character, and I wanted to explore how problematic his Helen really is. I have enjoyed analysing The Iliad and The Odyssey, which is excellent preparation for studying Ancient History at university.”

Toby (L6SJC)

Sophie (L6JTB)

Anjou (L6SPA)

Sam (L6SJC)

Madeleine (L6AZ)

Goddard Lectures

The Goddard lectures offer pupils an opportunity to hear from renowned individuals who are experts in their field, aiming to promote a high level of academic and professional engagement from pupils, promoting bright minds, innovative thinking, and gritty determination.

They are named after one of our most distinguished alumni, Professor Peter Goddard, CBE FRS, who remains a good friend to Emanuel School. He is a mathematical physicist who works in string theory and conformal field theory. After Emanuel, he was educated at the University of Cambridge, where he was a professor

Jimmy Wales

We were delighted to welcome Jimmy Wales to deliver our first Goddard Lecture in December 2019. ‘Web celeb’ Jimmy is best known as the co-founder of Wikipedia and was recently named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

The origins of Wikipedia began in March 2000, when Jimmy started Nupedia (“the free encyclopedia”), which was characterised by an extensive peer-review process designed to make its articles of a quality comparable to that of professional encyclopedias. The project was dubbed “Wikipedia”, and Jimmy laid down the founding principles and content that year, quickly establishing a community of Internet-based contributors.

Mr Wales has spent his working years developing a number of web-based businesses with some important ethical objectives. He is a Fellow of the Berkman Centre for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School and also serves on the Board of Directors of Social Text, a provider of wiki technology to businesses. He has received an honorary doctorate from Knox College of Illinois and was presented with a Pioneer Award from the Electronic Frontier Foundation in 2006.

Years 6, 9 and 10 were fortunate enough to hear his lecture and many were surprised that a man who has achieved so much began his talk by detailing his failures, but he explained how each of them had helped him to grow as a person and contributed to his later success. Pupils were warned not to tie their ego to a business. He also discredited the myth that an entrepreneur has a single successful idea from which all their success follows, claiming rather that each successful idea was the result of gradual improvements made to a series of unsuccessful ideas.

He then warned students that they must be careful when reading and digesting information online, and discussed what made some superior sources of news and information reliable and trustworthy,

in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, founding deputy director of the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences and, until 2004, Master of St John’s College. After serving as Director of the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University from 2004 to 2012, he is now a professor in the Institute’s School of Natural Sciences, where he has kindly and enthusiastically hosted us on recent visits to Lawrenceville School and Princeton.

Mr W Davis (Head of Politics)

before highlighting the pernicious influence of advertising and click bait on the information we are all bombarded with. As the internet becomes even more central to all of our lives, this will no doubt serve all who attended as a useful reminder about the benefits as well as the potential drawbacks of the information and telecommunications revolution. It was a privilege to benefit from Jimmy’s wisdom, clarity, and experience, and we are hugely grateful for his time in visiting and inaugurating the Goddard lecture series.

It was a pleasure to welcome Dhiraj Mukherjee to Emanuel in Autumn 2021 to deliver the third Goddard Lecture. Dhiraj is best know for being a co-founder of the mobile app, ‘Shazam’.

Pupils in the Middle School were hugely grateful to hear from Dhiraj about the decade-long process by which Shazam became an overnight sensation, including the many lessons he learnt along the way. He offered helpful advice for budding entrepreneurs, notably the importance of persistence and determination when faced with challenges (and there will always be challenges!).

He then spoke about how we each have a responsibility to invest sustainably in the future. Students were able to ask questions, ranging from what he learnt from his failures to how technology might make the world a better place in the future. We are hugely grateful to Dhiraj for being so generous with his time.

Yonca Dervisoglu

In January 2020, Years 11 to 13 had the honour of listening to Yonca Dervisoglu, Chief Marketing Officer of Europe, Middle East and Africa for Google.

Yonca has worked at Google for 13 years and oversees teams in over 30 countries. She co-founded Google Arts and Culture and has helped Google open offices in Poland, Turkey, Russia and Greece, co founding the Google Cultural Institute. Her role now has involvement with teams in 35 countries and she oversees everything from hardware to consumer apps to ads platforms.

Yonca has worked on promoting digital skills, patricularly among women and refugees, and is behind the initiative for training three million individuals and businesses in digital skills across Europe and Africa — for which Google received an award from the European Commission. Prior to Google, she spent fours year at Yahoo! and nearly a decade at Unilever. She also is a Non-Executive Director of the Heineken Supervisory Board, a member of the Global Leadership Council for The Brookings Institution, a member of the Digital Advisory Board to the Natural History Museum, a member of the Accelerate Her Advisory Board of Founders Forum, and a fellow of the Marketing Society.

Mark Miodownik

In Autumn 2021, we were delighted to hear from Old Emanuel, Mark Miodownik, a materials scientist known for his broadcasting and outreach work. Professor Miodownik spoke with great enthusiasm about the way in which the human relationship has changed with materials over time.

Mark received his PhD in turbine jet engine alloys from Oxford University, and, for over a decade, has championed materials research that links the arts and humanities to medicine, engineering and materials science. This culminated in the establishment of the UCL Institute of Making, where he is Director and runs the research programme.

Mark regularly gives talks on engineering and science to TV, radio, festivals, and school audiences. He delivered the 2010 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures, writes a column for The Observer, and presents science programmes on TV. He won the Royal Academy of Engineering Rooke Medal, and was awarded the Royal

Yonca spoke about how she has achieved success. She drew particular attention to the idea that if you are working in an area you are passionate about, hard work will always feel easier. She also answered some challenging questions with good humour on topics as varied as the necessity for positive discrimination to allow women to achieve greater parity in professional environments, the concern over large technology companies and their access to our data, and the challenges of running a multi-national company. This was not a talk to miss!

Dhiraj Mukherjee

Society Winton Prize. In 2015 he won a US National Academies Keck Futures Prize, and in 2016 he was awarded the AAAS Prize for Public Engagement with Science. We were extremely lucky to hear him speak.

Leavers’ Day 2022

In May 2022, the Upper Sixth leavers marked their final day of school by engaging in wild fancy dress and all manner of inflatable activities. Following a breakfast in the refectory, pupils were whisked off to Blagdons to participate in jousting, bungee runs, sumo wrestling, obstacle courses, bouncy castles, and friendly games of rounders (with some students slightly more competitive than others!).The day ended with a delicious barbecue, courtesy of Emanuel’s brilliant catering team, and pupils feeling energised for their impending exams!

Sophia (U6AEM), Harry (U6WGD), Arthur (U6HHM)

Festa (U6SPP), Dalia (U6AEM), Tara (U6SEM), Willa (U6ARW)

Petra (U6ARW) and Ksenia (U6SEM)

Joe (U6WGD), Chris (U6AEM), Louis (U6SEM)

India (U6HHM) and Maisie (U6HHM)

Izzie (U6HHM), Stephen (U6WGD), Catalina (U6SEM), Ulysse (U6ARW), Carolina (U6ARW), Rosie (U6SPP)

Teddy (U6AEM), Maya (U6JED) and Rosalind (U6HHM)

Lola (U6WGD) and Martina (U6CCG)

Josh (U6CCG) and Rafe (U6AEM)

Samira (U6ARW) and Leili (U6WGD)

Joe (U6WGD)

Matthew (U6SEM) and Phoebe P (U6SEM)

Mariela (U6RJB), Pablo (U6RJB), Phoebe P (U6SEM) and Phoebe T-C (U6SEM)

OVER AND OUT AN INTERVIEW WITH SCHOOL CAPTAINS THE

As their tenure as School Captains comes to an end, we asked Maddy , Tom , Phoebe , and Emma to reflect on their time at Emanuel...

What is your earliest memory of Emanuel?

Maddy: My earliest memory was going to the open day when my older brother was applying to come here. I remember being so impressed by all the fun Science experiments and Maths games at the time. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly.

Tom: For me it has to be the Year 7 ‘bonding weekend’ away. This was a great chance for me to get to know both teachers and fellow pupils within my year group. I believe this weekend was key for me to start building strong friendships which I have carried through my time at Emanuel.

Phoebe: I remember getting ready for the first day of school and having my older sister plait my hair for me. When I got to school Mrs Lewis (my Year 6 Form Tutor) made us organise ourselves into alphabetical order outside the classroom as a way to introduce ourselves to everybody.

Emma: I remember being toured around the school during the Induction Day before starting Year 9 and walking next to Arthur — who has since become one of my closest friends — and out of nowhere commenting on how tall the English stairs were! I was slightly too excited about them, I think.

Can you remember who interviewed you before you joined the school and what they asked you?

Maddy: I was interviewed by the Head of Lower School at the time. I don’t remember much of what I was asked other than what I thought about school uniforms! I was also given a form to fill out before about my hobbies and interests, which helped to guide the conversation.

Tom: Mr Lai interviewed me. He was keen to learn about my interests and hobbies. He asked about what I would bring to Emanuel and why it was my school of choice.

Phoebe: I think I was either interviewed by Miss Forest or Miss Windsor. I was asked things like what my dream school would be like, what sort of co-curricular activities I enjoyed, and if there was anything specific that I wanted to be able to do at secondary school.

Emma: I remember that Mr Dunley interviewed me, and a lot of the conversation revolved around what my favourite subjects were and why. He also asked me about my hobbies and if I had a favourite movie or book that I would like to share.

Which co-curricular activities have you most enjoyed?

Maddy: My favourite activity has got to be rowing. I am Captain of Boats at Emanuel and the boathouse has felt like a little family since Year 9. The boathouse welcomes everyone, from those who just want to row for a games session to rowers who train religiously! I am always in a better mood after leaving any training session because of the supportive coaches and fun training.

Tom: I have really enjoyed the co-curricular side to Emanuel. I have played for both senior cricket and rugby teams which has helped me to work in a team.Through playing my trumpet in various music ensembles (including Big Band, Orchestra, and Concert band) and singing in the choir, I have really developed a sense of participating in a group activity to achieve a bigger goal.

Phoebe: I’ve loved being able to row at school, because it’s a sport that I otherwise don’t think I’d have been involved in. As well as really enjoying the sport and the training, I have made lots of friends in different years through rowing.

Emma: The many Drama productions I’ve been involved in. This year I’ve been working on costumes for the musical and junior plays most days, and have enjoyed every second of it.

Which lessons have you enjoyed the most?

Maddy: My favourite lesson is Further Maths. It is a small class and the teachers are all so supportive. It is very rewarding as I tend to struggle at first but can normally get there in the end. I also enjoyed Art, Drama, and Music when I was in Years 7-9. They were lots of fun as it was different to anything I had really done before and pushed me out of my comfort zone.

Tom: I have always enjoyed the interactive lessons which enable students to voice their own opinions. In particular, I have enjoyed debates in both History and Geography.

Phoebe: I really enjoyed DT GCSE, since it was nice to do something so different from my other lessons and I liked working independently on a big project. I also really like Chemistry, particularly organic chemistry and the practicals that we do as part of those lessons.

Emma: My favourite lessons have definitely been my Classical Civilisation lessons. Although the department is growing very quickly, my class consists of only six people, including my closest friends. Everyone has the same (incredibly strange!) sense of humour, and so the lessons are just incredibly fun.

What will you miss most about the school?

Maddy: I will definitely miss the supportive atmosphere. I feel able to go up and talk to any of my teachers about an issue I have such as when I’m struggling with a Maths topic. I will also definitely miss the senior girls rowing squad too!

Tom: I’ll miss the support and friendly nature that Emanuel brings me on a daily basis. I really enjoy being able to learn in the company of friends and from experts in the subject. This has allowed me to develop my knowledge of engaging subjects that will help me to achieve my future ambitions.

Phoebe: I’m really going to miss the sport at school and being able to have a gossip with everyone on a Saturday morning at the boathouse! Being able to train with such a great group of people makes it much more enjoyable and fun to be a part of.

Emma: I will miss the people, from my friends to my teachers to everyone I’ve met along the way through co-curriculars.

I can confidently say that I have found people who I feel at home with, and they’ve just made my experience at the school incredible. I’ll also miss the huge amount of freedom which I’m given here, especially as a creative student, in whatever projects I decide to work on.The school truly — as clichéd as it sounds — makes it feel as if the possibilities are endless.

What has been your most memorable moment at the school?

Maddy: Probably medalling at NATS Regatta last year in a pair. Another memorable moment was when we went on a school trip to The Gambia. It was an amazing experience as I was able to experience a whole new place.

Tom: I really enjoyed the choir tour to Prague in Year 8. It gave me my first sense of independence abroad and was a really fun way to spend time with my friends whilst performing in world-leading venues such as St Vitus Cathedral.

Phoebe: Having my first side-by-side race on the Henley course at Henley Women’s Regatta last year after barely being able to compete for the two years prior because of the pandemic.

Emma: It would definitely have to be a tech crew moment from our School of Rock show. I loved sitting inside the tech box with my friends, Ben and Xav, during rehearsals where we weren’t technically needed, resulting in us just singing the songs at the top of our lungs in complete darkness, plus having a whole bunch of pizza whilst working on setting up tech for our show.

Can you summarise Emanuel in four words?

Maddy: Supportive, fun, creative, welcoming.

Tom: Innovative, inclusive, communal, ambitious.

Phoebe: Friendly atmosphere, fun, involved.

Emma: Passionate, warm, busy, open.

We are grateful to Maddy,Tom, Phoebe, and Emma for their time in conducting this interview, and we wish them the very best for the future endeavours beyond Emanuel.

Valete

Mr Andrew Keddie

Andrew has been a well-loved and highly committed member of the History and Politics departments since joining the school in 1991. Blessed with extraordinarily broad subject knowledge, his passionate advocacy for the subjects he teaches means that generations of Emanuel pupils have been inspired into a lifelong love of learning under his tutelage.

His involvement in the co-curricular side of the school has been broad, including the sports field, the boat club, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and managing debates. In fact, as one of the longest serving members of staff, the challenge is finding an area of school life that Andrew hasn’t been involved with at some point over the past 30 years. As a long-running chairman of the Common Room, he has always been an admired and respected colleague and the common room and the departments in which he works will feel poorer places without him.

It is impossible to fully describe the incredible impact Andrew has had.We wish him the very best for the future in his welldeserved retirement.

An extended tribute can be found in the 2022 edition of The Rose & Portcullis

Ms Sarah Birtles

Sarah joined us last year after leading a team at Portland Place. She has shown herself to be an incredibly popular and talented teacher in both D&T and Art and a supportive form tutor. Sarah is leaving to start her own business in nails and lashes - Murphy’s. Her pupils and colleagues wish her all the best.

Mrs Jane Morrison-Bartlett

Jane leaves the Physics department after 18 years of service. She joined the school in 2004 as Head of Science and Head of Physics, and her son, James, enrolled as a pupil at the same time. She had been assured when hired that she would not have to teach him, so naturally, there he was in her class on the first day. For the next 13 years she successfully piloted the faculty and department through a period of great change. She is an excellent teacher; innumerable pupils have been made to feel secure and confident in her perceptive and methodical Physics lessons. We wish her all the very best in her retirement and will miss her greatly.

Miss Jennifer Spruce

Jennifer has taught with us for two years in the Biology department. An exceptionally talented biologist, she has impressed and inspired pupils throughout the school. From designing fun activities that are popular in her younger classes, to ensuring her A Level pupils are suitably motivated and challenged, she has made a very positive contribution to all her pupils’ education. As well as this, she has been an excellent support to her Year 7 tutor group, who will be sad to see her go.

Mr Will Davis

Will is moving with his family to Cranleigh School where he will be Head of Politics. Will joined Emanuel in 2015 as teacher of History and Politics, and in his time at the school he has been a head of house, form tutor in both the lower school and Sixth Form, and since 2020, Head of Politics. Described by pupils as a ‘marking machine’, his wit, organisation and unflappable bonhomie will be much missed. Will has greatly enriched pupils’ lives beyond the classroom with his organisation of the Goddard Lecture series, and through his commitment to cricket and U12B rugby. He is a highly valued member of the common room committee, staff quiz team (which may never recover from the loss of Will and Andrew Keddie in one year) and the staff football team. September promises to be a very exciting time for him as not only does he move house and start a new job, but also has a baby on the way. We wish him the very best with all his endeavours and thank him for his superb contributions to Emanuel.

Ms Caroline Lepretre

The MFL department bids a fond farewell to Ms Caroline Lepretre who is moving back to France with her family after over 10 years at Emanuel. Her kind, supportive approach and her high level of care will certainly be missed by her pupils and by her colleagues. A talented teacher, her pupils value her calm manner, her superb subject knowledge and engaging lessons. Her contribution to the growth of French at Emanuel has been significant as she has invested much time and energy into developing our curriculum and cocurricular programme. We all wish her well as she embarks on her new adventure with her family.

Mr Simon Gaynor

Simon joined the Sports department as Director of Rugby at Emanuel five years ago from Steyning Grammar School. He leaves us at the end of this term to perform the post of Assistant Director of Sport at RGS Guildford. Simon has implemented a positive rugby culture at the school which has inspired pupils.The 1st XV has benefited from his wealth of rugby knowledge. His enthusiasm for physical education and breadth of knowledge across several sports has made him a valued and dependable member of the department. We thank him for his contribution to Emanuel sport, as well as for his role as a form tutor and we wish him every success.

Mr Mike Ross

Mike joined us in 2019 and, since then, his subject knowledge and expertise have been invaluable in supporting our DT pupils. He has also been a member of the DofE team. He is leaving us to lead the DT team at JAGS.

Chris leaves us at the end of this term to take up the position of Head of Year and teacher of Physical Education at the West London Free School. He joined the school as Director of Cricket and worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to provide innovative activities which the pupils could enjoy at home. The 1st XI has benefited from knowledge of the game and as their coach they have enjoyed success in the school’s traditional block fixture opponents. We thank him for his positive contribution to both the sports and the physical education programme, where he has established some vital foundations.

Miss Sarah Bunting

Sarah joined Emanuel in 2019 and has transformed the Biology department during her tenure as Head of Biology. A superbly organised leader and an inspirational teacher, she is renowned for her excellent resources and expert use of retrieval practice in the classroom. The popularity of Biology A Level has risen greatly since she joined, and the many pupils who have moved on to biology-related degrees is testament to her impact. She is certain to enthuse another team and set of pupils as she moves to Newcastle for her next head of department post.

Mr Chris Booth

Miss Kate Preston

Kate arrived in January 2021 and was soon catapulted into teaching exam classes during remote learning. She was instrumental in devising a new way of delivering A Level coursework during lockdown, and she struck up an immediate rapport with all her classes. In September, Kate joined the Learning Support department alongside her work in Geography, expanding her contribution to the school. The work and support she has provided this year to so many pupils has been exceptional. They, along with the Geography department, owe her a great deal, and she will be very much missed.

Ms Vanessa Dittmer

Vanessa has made a significant contribution to the teaching of German at Emanuel and we wish her well as she leaves us to spend more time with her young family. A talented teacher who is popular with her pupils, Vanessa engaged them with her warmth, excellent subject knowledge and her sense of humour. Pupils often talk about the rhymes and songs she taught them, demonstrating just how much they value her and appreciate her teaching. She also led exchange trips to Hamburg where she delighted in introducing many of our pupils to German culture. We wish her the very best.

Dr Sadaf Khan

Sadaf has had a hugely positive impact in her short time here as Deputy Head of Chemistry, teaching throughout the age range and running super curricular activities including the Cambridge Chemistry Challenge and Royal Society of Chemistry Top of the Bench competition. Her contribution has not been confined to Chemistry, and she will certainly be missed by her football team and her Sixth Form tutor group as she moves on to a new school, closer to home.

Mr Mark Hipperson

Mark joined the Economics and Business department in September 2016 from Portland Place School, having previously taught at Epsom College. Relatively late to the profession, he had started his postuniversity life working in the City for an investment bank and it was there that he developed his passion for business and economics. In the six years that he has worked at Emanuel he has contributed immensely to both the curricular and extra-curricular side of school life. Coupled with a good sense of humour, he has made an extremely positive impact on his colleagues and on the many pupils that have come under his care in his role as head of year. Mark and his family are moving to Portsmouth.

Miss Amelia Williams

Miss Elizabeth McCloud

Elizabeth joined Emanuel four years ago in September 2018 as an English teacher. Her excellent pastoral care meant that she was soon promoted first to Head of Hill Form, and then Head of Year 7. She has had a positive impact on a huge number of our youngest pupils, offering a supportive ear and gentle, reassuring guidance in their early years at the school. Her contributions to both the English department and the wider school have been outstanding: from World Book Day to theatre trips, to the highly successful Well-Being Afternoon which lifted our spirits in lockdown last year. A talented sportswoman, she has coached the U13 A and B netball teams and impressed pupils with her national level accomplishments in korfball.

Amelia has been at Emanuel for two successful years and has inspired many hundreds of children to continue with Classics. She has been involved in many extra-curricular activities coaching netball, running the Classics Activity Day for Year 7 last year and helping on trips to Bath, the British Museum, Verulamium and Fishbourne Roman Palace. She has been an asset to the Classics department, and we wish her well.

MsTasha Jovanovic-Callaghan

Tasha joined us at short notice in January and immediately threw herself into her teaching, producing excellent Firefly resources, sharing her experience with the rest of the department, and regularly meeting with small groups of pupils outside the classroom to help them with their Chemistry. We are very grateful for her help this year and wish her all the best at her new school.

Mr Sam Morley

Sam leaves us at the end of this year to take up a post at Thomas’s Battersea Senior School. Over the past year, he has taught pupils from Hill Form up to Year 10, supported the Poetry by Heart competition, inspiring pupils to write their own poetry, and lead a superb talk for Senior Literary Society on the life and works of Yukio Mishima. He has also been an enthusiastic supporter of our outreach programmes, leading many lessons for our Year 5 partner booster programme, Ascent, and supporting with the Ukrainian coffee and conversation hubs.

Miss Harriet Chambers

Harriet leaves us at the end of this year to become Head of Music in Kings’ School

Al Barsha Dubai. She has been a firstrate teaching practitioner and pupils have clearly benefited from her expertise and deep knowledge of the examination requirements. Harriet has been fully involved in the life of the school and has led the Intermediate String Ensemble with much aplomb as well as coaching hockey with verve. The department wishes her well in her new school and the exciting challenges that it will bring.

Ms Rosie Mott

Andrew Fernando Financial Controller

Andree Fitzgerald

Sixth Form Administrator

William Ford Classics Teacher

Nor Gany Exam Invigilator

Simon Gaynor Director of Rugby

Luke Gilbert Facilities Manager

Edward Gorst Biology Teacher

Lisa Graham English Teacher

Simon Gregory Music Teacher

Nick Grenfell-Marten

Temporary Bursar

Phoebe Gurden

Marketing & Communications Coordinator

Sean Healy English Teacher

Mark Hipperson

Business and Economics Teacher

Carla Johl Sports Coach

Natasha Jovanovic-Callaghan

Chemistry Teacher

Sadaf Khan Deputy Head Chemistry

Jeremy Light School Keeper

Tseden-Ish Lkhagva IT Technician

Shreya Marian Sports Graduate

Elizabeth McCloud English Teacher

Samuel Morley English Teacher

Emily Moseley Biology Teacher

Rosalyn Mott DT Teacher

Holly Neale Sports Coach

Hugo Nilsson History and Politics Teacher

Angel Nunez Physics Teacher

Mr Oliver Cope

Oliver joined Emanuel from More House School in September 2021. During this time, he has taken on a wide range of activities both in the classroom and in the co-curricular life of the school. Oliver has produced terrific work with the school’s instrumental ensembles and the quality of playing which he draws from the pupils is impressive. Most notable was the ‘Night at the Movies’ he helped organise in the Spring Term. Oliver leaves us to take up a conducting scholarship with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

Rosie joined us in 2016 as part time DT teacher and became a full-time member of staff soon after. She is naturally enthusiastic about practical design and has been a great support in numerous dramatic productions, with make-up, costume, props and puppets. Her contributions to the department have been invaluable and the pupils in her classes and her form have flourished in her care. She has been a member of the teaching and learning committee and has revolutionised how pupils can use Firefly in DT. We wish her well with her new project of setting up a GCSE curriculum at Thomas’s.

Leavers 2020-2022

Sarah Birtles Art and DT Teacher

Sarah Bunting Head of Biology

Elizabeth Burbidge Science Teacher

Mark Calvin Head Rowing Coach

Harriet Chambers Music Teacher

Oliver Cope Music Teacher

Imran Daula Infrastructure Administrator

William Davis Head of Politics

Doralice De Brito Coelho

Swimming Lifeguard

Lieke Dittmer German Teacher

Evelina Doria Playground Supervisor

Alison Elliott Rowing Coach

Kathleen O’Neil Modern Languages

Maksymilian Orzel Boathouse Manager

Douglas Parnham Rowing Coach

Sarah Potts Music Teacher

Katherine Preston

Geography and Learning Support Teacher

Vanessa Rodnight

Head of IT and Compliance

Michael Ross DT Teacher

Timothy Sandford Music Administrator

Laura Smith Biology Teacher

Rafal Smyk School Keeper

Lucia Spinelli-Williams Art Technician

Jennifer Spruce Biology Teacher

Lara Stoby Drama Teacher

Lucinda Stuart-Grant

Music Administrator

Orla Thorne Drama Technician

Corin Vafidis Drama Teacher

Simon Wakefield Director of Studies

Forbes Walker

Chaplain, RS and Chemistry Teacher

William Whiting Music Teacher

Amelia Williams Classics Teacher

Carly Yeomans PE Teacher

Salvete

2019

Daniel Ashton Maths Teacher

Eloise Bayman Resources Officer

Eleanor Bird Head of Hockey

Christopher Booth Head of Cricket

Naomi Boyd Psychology Teacher

Sarah Bunting Head of Biology

David Buxton Chemistry Teacher

Samuel Clarke English Teacher

Elaine Dickson Security Officer

Nealon Francois Groundsman

Phoebe Gurden Resources Officer

Charles Janz Director of Music

Ravi Kothakota

Deputy Head Pastoral / Drama Teacher

Alejandro Lopez Spanish Language Assistant

2020

Laura Aitken-Burt

History, Politics and Classics Teacher

Catherine Arton Playground Supervisor

Hayley Burdett RS Teacher

Harriet Chambers Music Teacher

Heather Courtney

Business & Economics Teacher

Sital Gandesha Hard Services Manager

Carla Graves Drama Teacher

Patricia Gruel French Assistant

James Harris Geography Teacher

Emily Joice Graduate Sports Assistant

Jeffrey Lea Maintenance Operative

Timothy Liversage Director of Rowing

2021

Ramona Accarpio Music Administrator

Jean-Claude Barnett Facilities Operative

Sarah Birtles Art and DT teacher

Lech Borkowski Physics Technician

Eleanor Brinkhoff Rowing Coach

Sindhu Budarayavalasa Data Manager

Hazel Childerstone Biology Teacher

Alice Cleary Art Teacher

Oliver Cope Music Teacher

Sophie Dee Music Teacher

Katharina Donn Deputy Head of English

Abigail Ferstman Classics Teacher

Calum Flintoff Chemistry Teacher

Rudi Forde IT Helpdesk Manager

Mary Galbraith Politics and History

Teacher

Kate Goodwin Biology Teacher

Lisa Graham English Teacher

Yuan Gu Drama Technician

Dominic Jackson Rowing Coach

Hannah Mackenzie History Teacher

Megan Matthews Self employed

Joanna McIsaac History Teacher

Jaroslaw Miroslaw DT Technician

Michael Morrison Classics Teacher

Elizabeth Morrissey Counsellor

Abbey O’Donnell Psychology Teacher

Sophie Routledge Head of English

Carole Sheppard Finance Officer

Eniola Sokalu Chemistry Technician

Sophie Wells Biology Teacher

Frances Low Deputy Director of Sport

Peter MacDonagh Head of Computing

Anthony Maskell English Teacher

Laura Murphy Sports Coach

William Quayle

Maths Teacher/Head of 6th Form

Benjamin Rogers Head of Aquatics

Michael Ross DT Teacher

Jennifer Spruce Biology Teacher

Muhammad Uddin IT Technician

Evelyn Valenzuela Science Technician

Julie Vivian VMT

Amelia Williams Classics Teacher

Kimberley Jerwood Sports Graduate

Ansu Kamara Security Officer

Sadaf Khan Deputy Head of Chemistry

Jessica Kyndt Resources Officer

Frederick Lancaster Drama Teacher

Carleen Macdermid Admin Assistant

Daniel Martin Physics Teacher

Lauren McAuliffe Sports Coach

Sarah McGee Development Director

Sarah McIlwaine Maths Teacher

Doran Morgan

Facilities and Security Officer

Samuel Morley English Teacher

Benedict Newman Sports Fellow

Christel Nickie Head of Finance

Oliver Norton-Smith

Director in Residence

Katherine Preston

Geography and Learning Support

Michael Russell Bursar

Harvey Scott Sports Graduate

Umarr Sesay Facilities Operative

Conor Stevens Composer in Residence

Isabelle Taylor Maths Teacher

Alexandra Turnbull PA to the Bursar

Stuart Turner

Deputy Head Co-Curricular, Partnerships & Admissions/Geography Teacher

Andrew Turnill Boathouse Manager

Hannah Vincent German Teacher

Lucy Walker Head of Admissions and Communications