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www.sherborne.com
Feb 16
Personal Development
We believe in the value of learning outside the classroom and the development of the whole student. Different students are motivated by different experiences and as our girls progress through the school, they are encouraged to take advantage of the many opportunities on offer.
making our mark
As excitement mounts for our much anticipated London Art & Design Exhibition ‘making our mark’, we were delighted to welcome some very important guests to school on Thursday, 21 January to select the final line-up of work. Our thanks to Jacqui Baker, Fernando Velasquez, Gill Oliver, Mark Chapman and Alastair MacAndrew, our VIP panellists!
The exhibition at the Menier Gallery will feature a selection of the best painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, textiles and product design produced by our students over the past five years. The display, which will fill both floors of this wonderful gallery space, will include works which reflect a wide range of processes, styles and ideas. Visit www.sherborne.com/events for more information.
FROM THE HEADMISTRESS BOARDING
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Our extensive exchange programme is designed to enhance global awareness as well as develop life skills and form lifelong friendships. We have been delighted this term to welcome students from Australia, Tasmania, South Africa, Shanghai and Qatar. A group of our L5 students also departed for a 4-week exchange to Canada.
Overseas trips with a community outreach are also increasingly popular. Girls travel to Nepal, Rwanda and European countries to volunteer in local schools and orphanages whilst absorbing the culture of the overseas community they are working with. Meanwhile, the Warriors Accelerated Scholarship Programme is a firm favourite for L6. This is an eight day programme in South Africa where three girls each year are selected to undertake adventure and ecotourism projects. “Warriors was a life changing experience for our daughter. She has gained hugely in confidence and become so much stronger mentally, the benefits will be with her for the rest of her life.” Parent, 2015
In addition to exchanges and overseas trips, closer to home we also work across departments and through the co-curricular TRAVEL & COMMUNITY ARTS ROUND-UP
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programme to develop the skills we believe the girls will need to thrive, as well as providing opportunities that show there is no ceiling to what they can achieve.
We look at developing skills such as being able to communicate and work as part of a team, being principled and caring, and having the confidence to take risks and lead others. We also want the girls to be balanced and reflective, recognising their own strengths and limitations in order to support their ongoing personal development throughout their time at Sherborne Girls and beyond.
We are just the start of the girls’ journey of self-development but we hope that we can equip them with the skills they need to continue on this journey to achieve their full potential and lead a happy, successful and fulfilled life. NEWS ROUND-UP SPORTS NEWS
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From the Headmistress I attended a talk earlier this term by Rhys Jones (Explorer and Mountaineer), a welcome guest on our Inspirational Speaker Series. A key theme of Rhys’ presentation was a reminder to ‘enjoy the journey’ rather than just focusing on the end result. I am sure many of us will agree that this is something we could all take on board. How easy it is to dwell on something that did not go well or worry about something in the future, rather than appreciating the here and now.
As a school, I feel we have a responsibility to equip our girls with the skills and attitudes to be able to enjoy the present and get the most out of it, whilst managing life’s inevitable pressures. In today’s frenetic, competitive world, the worry of making the right subject or pathway choice, achieving the best possible exam results or even decisions over further education, have never been greater. It is important that our girls are able to manage these pressures and keep them in perspective, whilst enjoying the rich experiences and opportunities available to them.
You will have read on the front page about our commitment to personal development through a wide range of opportunities beyond the classroom including foreign exchanges, international trips, Duke of Edinburgh a n d a d ve n t u r e p ro g r a m m e s. We regularly review our co-curricular programme to ensure that not only is there the right breadth of activities on offer but that they address the skills we want our girls to develop over their time at Sherborne Girls. We consider the structure of the day, placing emphasis on the girls having enough ‘down time’ to be reflective, enjoy family lunches back at house or simply catch up with friends or their tutor.
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This term, we are taking the opportunity to review our well-being strategy to ensure that our girls have the psychological, social and physical resources to flourish and meet life’s challenges. We want the girls to be able to connect with those around them, to be active, healthy, mindful and reflective. We hope they will develop a love of learning and be open-minded to trying new things or push themselves out of their comfort zones.
It is our aim that the girls not only leave with the best set of exam results possible but that they enjoy their journey with us and develop as adaptable, intellectually enquiring, courageous and compassionate young women, with the confidence to be effective leaders and the skills to thrive in today’s world.
Jenny Dwyer, Headmistress
inspirational speakers Our Inspirational Speaker Series continues to grow. Presentations this term have motivated the girls to aim higher, push themselves beyond their comfort zones, enjoy the present, keep perspective and value teamwork.
At the start of term, Lara Morgan gave a motivating presentation about her meteoric career as a businesswoman. The girls were inspired and empowered by her story and central message that there is no glass ceiling for women in business.
Rhys Jones spoke of his experiences as an explorer and mountaineer. His account of dealing with frostbite and failure, whilst learning the importance of teamwork and leadership inspired both staff and students. Rhys’ theme of enjoying the experience not just focusing on the end result was further echoed by Air Chief Marshal, Sir Richard Johns (Former Chief of the Air Staff and Governor of Windsor Castle) whose presentation was entitled ‘remembering to live and daring to be happy’.
Our thanks to all our inspiring speakers. We look forward to welcoming our next guest, Marian Partington from The Forgiveness Project, who will visit us at the end of February.
Boarding
Home from Home
We pride ourselves on our strong pastoral system and individualised approach to the girls’ learning. Whatever their talents, interests or needs, our tutor system ensures that they have a personalised learning programme and tailor-made plan for the week. We believe this gives them the right balance, allowing them to excel academically whilst also filling their days with activities and experiences that will give them life-long skills.
Our traditional boarding house system is a fundamental part of our offering. It not only supports our ethos of pastoral care with a house team comprising a day matron, resident tutor and two non-resident tutors but it also provides a caring and relaxing home from home for the girls.
“I love my job as Housemistress. No two days are the same (or two hours for that matter). Watching and steering the girls’ journey through their school life is a true honour and privilege. Helping them with important preps, watching them play in concerts and matches, listening as they pour out their hearts over the latest boy-band drama; it is all in a day’s work. Kenelm is a wonderful house; the girls are simply amazing.” Mrs Fran Barnes, Housemistress
A popular feature of house life is the ‘family lunch’, when girls sit on mixed age tables and with members of staff. House meals are important, not only for encouraging relationships across year groups and instilling
family values and good manners, but also ensuring that girls are given sufficient time to eat and unwind at mealtimes before the next lesson or activity gets underway.
Our girls love the strong family bond within the houses and enjoy the closeness of being in smaller friendship groups in the evenings and at mealtimes. Across all seven houses, the house spirit is strong, with all girls firmly believing that their house is the best! House sports and drama competitions, quiz nights and other inter-house events are fiercely fought and give the girls a strong sense of belonging.
“Life in West is always warm and welcoming. It feels like home as soon as you step inside. The dorms are lovely and spacious with really comfy beds. The food is great and it’s so fantastic to have a house dog! The atmosphere is like one big family, because everyone cares and looks out for each other.”
“Dun Holme is a family. It means no one gets left behind or forgotten about.”
But more than anything, the houses are a home from home for the girls. The house environment is happy, friendly and hugely supportive. Lifelong friendships are formed and life skills developed as the girls learn to live with each other, accept different views, support friends in times of need and celebrate success as a team.
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Travel & Community
carols at waterloo On 9 December our Senior Choir joined up with The Gryphon School to put on a Special Carol Concert at London Waterloo station. The singers were accompanied by a full-sized traditional organ and performed to passengers, staff and station visitors during the busy evening rush-hour. The wonderful, festive event culminated in a ‘Caroloke’ with the lyrics displayed on the station billboard as spectators joined in! Our thanks to everyone who went along to support the choirs and helped raise a fantastic £3,513
DofE
Round Up
The year began early for our Gold walkers who hit Dartmoor to get their training underway ahead of expeditions later in the year on South Dartmoor, the Yorkshire Dales and in the Picos de Europa. Despite high levels of groundwater following the recent storms, teams were able to hone their navigation skills on the old Princetown railway on night one, explore the woodland and Tors of Burrator on Day 2 and finish by completing an unaided walk to Princetown on Day 3.
The trip aims to advance the use of map and compass, familiarise the teams with the type of terrain that Gold will throw at them and get them thinking about looking after themselves and each other in difficult conditions. This trip was spent in the Dewerstone Bunkhouse, with evenings set aside for contemplating and planning routes for the practice expeditions just before Easter.
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for foodbanks in London Waterloo and Sherborne. Director of Music John Jenkins said, “The country’s largest railway station is certainly one of our more challenging performance venues, but the joy of collaborating with pupils from The Gryphon School to create a festive atmosphere for commuters and to raise money for charity makes it all worthwhile.”
Open Gate Club
At the end of January, a group of our young instrumentalists visited Sherborne’s Open Gate Club to deliver a chamber workshop and concert. In support of services to people with learning disabilities, the aim of the visit was to introduce the Open Gate Club members to a range of creative genres and encourage a passion for music. We were delighted that the occasion provided such stimulus for social interaction within the community, and we are excited to be building this inspiring, imaginative and enriching connection.
Candy Canes
Last term, Dun Holme sold candy canes to raise funds and awareness for the Derby-based charity Safe and Sound, which protects young people from sexual exploitation as well as working with the victims to help them rebuild their lives. The girls sold an impressive 1,000 candy canes (beating last year’s record of 934!), even going the extra mile to hand write a label and attach a ribbon to each one. Well done to everyone who contributed to this worthy initiative which raised over £300 for the charity.
Arts Round-up
With a busy line-up of drama and musical productions including Romeo & Juliet, Medea and Sweeney Todd, last term was reinforcement of how drama and the Arts continue to go from strength to strength at Sherborne Girls.
First up, the M5 girls took part in the Shakespeare Schools Festival performing an abridged version of Romeo and Juliet. They had the opportunity to take part in a workshop at The Brewhouse Theatre, Taunton to get some ideas flowing before performing there on the professional stage. The standard of acting was excellent and the girls created the tragic tale of star-crossed lovers with energy and creativity. “As part of the Romeo and Juliet cast I took part in the UK’s largest youth drama festival. We rehearsed from the start of the Michaelmas term knowing that we had very little time to put together an amazing show but confident that we could do it. The piece was set in the 1950s which meant that the Capulets were ‘Rockers’ and the Montagues were the ‘Mods’. Even though the script was in old English, we all mastered the old language quickly and understood the worlds completely. We loved performing the play to a public audience in the Brewhouse Theatre in Taunton and also to the school. I know we all thank Miss Moore for being our director and would do it all over again if we could!” Lottie Holford (M5)
In the penultimate week of term there were two collaborations between Sherborne Girls and Sherborne School: the Greek tragedy Medea, performed at Sherborne Girls and the musical S w e e n ey To d d , p e r f o r m e d at Sherborne School. Medea, a modern reworking of the Greek Tragedy by Euripides, was still very relevant to the audience with themes of relationships, power struggles and inequality. Cast members did not disappoint, gripping the audience as the powerful tragedy unfolded. Meanwhile, Sweeney Todd, one of Sondheim’s darkest musicals, gave the students the opportunity to demonstrate some incredibly rich but challenging music. The cast gave a focused and compelling performance. Well done to all our girls who took part in drama last term, whether in a large school production, as part of a cocurricular activity or in the fiercely fought inter-house drama competition!
A Busy Line-up
Handel’s Messiah
Sherborne Schools’ Choral Society performed Handel’s Messiah in Wells Cathedral on Friday, 5 February. With a choir of over 200 singers drawn from Sherborne Girls, Sherborne School and adult members from the town and a wonderful line-up of soloists and top orchestral players, the choral society has outgrown their traditional venue of Sherborne Abbey! The Sherborne School Music Society was founded in 1871, and in the 1970s expanded to include the choir of Sherborne Girls and adult singers from the wider community, later becoming the Sherborne Schools’ Choral Society.
Soloists this year were Rebecca Outram, soprano; Louise Innes, mezzo-soprano; Russell Painter, tenor and Daniel Roddick, bass. The professional orchestra included many of the teaching staff from the two schools and the conductor, John Jenkins, Director of Music. It was a memorable musical occasion in a beautiful venue, thoroughly enjoyed by both the audience and performers.
Arts Dates
7 - 12 March making our mark Art Exhibition, Menier Gallery, Southwark, London
9 - 12 March ‘What are they like?’ National Theatre Connections, School Hall
13 March Sinfonia Concert, Leweston School
17 - 19 March ‘Arabian Nights’ Aldhelmsted West production, School Hall
20 March SSSO Concert, Big School Room at Sherborne School
For more information please visit www.sherborne.com
making our mark
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News Round-up
Inter-house Literary Quiz
Confirmation
Over 50 girls were confirmed at a special service in Sherborne Abbey on 30 January. A few days before the service, the girls enjoyed a retreat to Hilfield Friary where they appreciated the time and space for quiet reflection, as well as a bonfire with marshmallows! On the morning of their confirmation, the girls had an opportunity to meet The Bishop of Salisbury, The Rt Revd Nicholas Holtam for breakfast in Aldhelmsted West before family and friends joined them for coffee and refreshments in Kenelm and Reader Harris. Despite a drizzly start to the day, the sun came
out as the girls headed down to Sherborne Abbey, a fitting venue for the beautiful service. We were delighted that so many family and friends were able to join the girls for this special occasion. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the collection which raised over £3,000 for Sudan.
Adventure in Dartmoor
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L4 had a fantastic Geography adventure in Dartmoor at the beginning of February. Following the coach journey down to Devon, travelling through blue sky, torrential rain and beautiful rainbows, the girls arrived to settle into their dorms before making their own lunch – very exciting! The first adventure was to Brimpts Farm, a traditional Dartmoor Farm where the farmers have had to diversify to make a living. The girls saw a holiday retreat, tin mining museum, forestry, cattle, tea room and the most wonderful heavy horses. They were intrigued to learn that the farm makes its own electricity using a woodchip burner. The afternoon saw an intensive map skills session to prepare for the day ahead.
After a hearty supper of spaghetti bolognaise and apple crumble, it was time for the night walk. Armed only with head torches the girls marched through field and forest, gazing in awe at the brilliant, clear night sky.
Day 2 started with blue skies and a big breakfast before the girls competed in Dartmoor’s equivalent of the Highland Games. Mini orienteering, fastest group through a hoop, bridge crossing and skipping were the order of the day which culminated in a power hour on Tar Tor, fine-tuning the map skills previously acquired and seeking out hidden markers on the wild slopes of Dartmoor!
Librarian, Miss Knight can always be relied upon to organise a good literary quiz. Last term’s quiz was no exception; each house had to provide two L5 girls and one M5 to make up a team. All the girls demonstrated good knowledge across a range of literary topics. In particular, Isabella Taylor’s (M5) understanding of the Classics was very impressive and the Dun Holme team, made up of Manon Ludwick (L5), Lotte Micklethwaite (L5) and Constance Cottrell (M5) secured the title thanks to their broad knowledge across multiple genres. Well done to everyone who took part.
Thank you
In recognition of the tireless work the cleaning and catering staff undertake every day to look after both staff and students, a group of L6 girls raised money to fund a special Christmas thank you event last term. The staff and their families were invited to Wingfield Digby for carol singing in the drawing room before being served afternoon tea by the girls. The funds were raised at a Mufti day from which the proceeds were split between the party and the Motor Neurone Disease Association. Our thanks to all those unsung heroes in the community who play their part in ensuring the smooth running of our school!
L6 Alice Slade reprised her extremely erudite and detailed presentation on snake venom and its potential medical applications to a mixed audience of about 80 girls and boys at the Turing Society in the Beddington Lecture Theatre. We are looking forward to more talks by girls on subjects including Gender Politics, Mathematics, Biology and Classics.
Over 40 girls from the M5 to L6 will be visiting St Catherine’s College, Oxford University this month to hear about life at Oxford and have a chance to ask current undergraduates and the Admissions team questions. Fourteen of our most able Sixth Form mathematicians attended the Maths Conference, ‘It All Adds Up’, in January at the Mathematical Institute, Andrew Wiles Building, Oxford University.
Penelope Utting Head of Higher Education and Careers
What did you do before joining Sherborne Girls?
Before Sherborne I spent ten years as the Careers and Higher Education (HE) Advisor at an independent day school in Hampshire. Prior to that I had done a variety of things including: logistics and media relations in the Royal Navy: marketing, tourism, PR for a Cathedral and working on the International Festival of the Sea as the Admin Director.
Why did you decide to move to Sherborne Girls?
After ten years at a wonderful school, I decided the time had come for a new challenge.
What are your first impressions of the school?
A very friendly and welcoming place and the girls I have met have been very sparky and interesting. U5 girls have been invited in house groups to have morning tea in the Sixth Form Centre. This is a chance for the Sixth Form team to welcome next year’s new cohort and to talk further about their aspirations for the next stage of their education in a relaxed setting.
Academically aspirational members of the L6 have been meeting with students from The Gryphon School on Tuesday afternoons. They have listened to an engaging presentation by a recent Oxford Maths graduate about applying to Oxbridge, and have then been taking it in turns to make presentations of their own on a subject of their choice, including Stalin, Ebola and Apollo disasters. After half term we will be using the Oxford TSA tests to challenge the students and generate further discussion.
The U6 had a really helpful session on Time Management from James at Elevate Education. He taught them how to make the most of their valuable time in the run-up to exams, maximising their academic knowledge to gain the best grades possible, all without sacrificing activities, sports and a social life.
U6 Girls who have written IB Extended Essays and Extended Project Qualifications made their final presentations to a large audience of teachers and girls. Their research topics ranged widely and the girls’ depth of knowledge in their chosen subjects after months of development was thoroughly demonstrated in their responses to detailed questions.
Congratulations to Celeste Bowden K’15, who has been offered a place at Wadham College, Oxford University, to read Persian.
How has the role of a Careers and Higher Ed department changed over the years?
Long gone are the days when a careers advisor told someone what they should do. I see my role as encouraging students to step outside their comfort zone and really research what opportunities are out there. The internet makes that research so easy nowadays. Looking at HE choices and careers and finding out more about them doesn’t commit you to going down a particular route but without exploring further, you may not find the path that is perfect for you until it is too late. Research tells us that this generation will probably have three careers or more before retirement and will be doing jobs in the future that don’t even exist yet so it is important we try and equip them with an understanding of the skills they need to be successful in their futures; academic skills, professional skills and those all important soft skills.
What is your vision for the Careers & Higher Ed department over the next few years?
My predecessor had put in place some excellent initiatives and I plan to build on these. I would like to use the Old Girls and the wider Sherborne Girls' community to inspire and help current pupils plan and think about their future.
meet the staff
Sixth Form Highlights
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Sports News Building Blocks for Performance Running
As current holders of the Senior and Intermediate Girls Dorset Independent Schools Cross Country Cups, the team have much to live up to but early results are looking encouraging. Mary Butler, Araminta Stubbs and Romilly Carrick were all selected to run for Dorset at the SW Regional Championships in Cheltenham. In addition, Georgie Lane (XC Captain) and Alice Wharton have also been invited to run for Dorset U20 at the Inter-Counties in March. With five county runners in the squad and eight juniors joining from the Fourth Form, it is an exciting time for running at Sherborne Girls. @SG_CrossCountry
National Indoor Hockey Finals
In the Regional Indoor Hockey Tournament our U18 team enjoyed excellent wins over Dean Close, Cheltenham Ladies College and Prior Park, qualifying for the National Indoor Finals. The finals were held in Bromsgrove in January, where the top ten schools in the country battled it out for the title of National Champions. A close first match loss to Trent College was followed by a comfortable 7-1 win over Richmond (Yorkshire). The crucial match was against Ipswich, the reigning champions, in which despite our girls increasing the pressure, Ipswich edged into the lead at the final whistle. The girls played with exceptional spirit and made enormous progress over the course of the Regional and National Tournaments. Well done to all the players (Lexie Humphrey, Imo Andrews, Maddie Jannoe, Lisa Kirsten, Hannah Lee, Poppy Bolton-Carter, Frances Budd, Clemmie Kerr, Amelia Fortescue, Georgie Luders) who were never outclassed, looked very much at home at the national level and will be keen to repeat the success and go even further in the future.
Regional Netball Tournament
An exciting trip to Cornwall saw our U16 netball team play in the South West regional tournament on Saturday, 30 January. Despite the very fast paced matches our girls played some outstanding netball, showing superb talent and skills and exceptional team work. The girls gained enormously from competing at such a high level and are determined to build upon this experience.
Inspirational Swimmers
Congratulations to Jess Caroll and Kayleigh Parker who both qualified to swim at the ASA Championships in December. Both girls performed well at the end of a long Michaelmas term. This was Jess’s first competition returning after illness and she did very well to finish 7th in the 50m Breaststroke and 6th in the 100m Breaststroke for her age group. Kayleigh set personal bests in the 50m Butterfly, where she was placed 5th; 50m Backstroke, placed 7th and swam well in her other events to finish 3rd in the 100m Butterfly, 3rd in the 400m Individual Medley, 4th in the 200m Individual Medley, 11th in the 100m Backstroke and finally 17th in the 100m Freestyle. All of our swimmers put in a great performance at the Somerset County Finals in January and qualified for the Regional Championships in June. Well done to Elizabeth Allen, Rebecca Flack, Kayleigh and Jess. Thanks to their tireless commitment to swimming and working closely with their tutors, our performance swimmers are a great inspiration, demonstrating that high level sporting success can be balanced with high level academic achievements.
Sherborne Girls, Bradford Road, Sherborne, Dorset T. 01935 818224 E. OFFICE@sherborne.com
Shelleys The Printers 01935 815364
More girls than ever have taken up running as their preferred sport and with three sports scholars joining the school, we have seen a real boost to the cross-country squad. This term, Jayne Dart, with the support of new coach Ian Kennedy, has introduced a Tuesday lunchtime endurance session. This has proved incredibly popular; not least because of the nutritious ‘recovery lunch’ the girls enjoy after their hard training session!