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V O L U M E 5 I S S U E 2 S u m m e r Te r m 2 0 1 5

Dates for the Diary Monday 7th September New Girls’ Day Boarders

Here Comes the Sun! (Hopefully)

return from 12 noon Tuesday 8th September School begins 25th- 27th September Exeat Weekend Friday 23rd October Monday 2nd November Half Term 20th- 22nd November Exeat Weekend Tuesday 8th December Carol Service Thursday 10th December End of Term

Inside this Issue Renaming the Boarding Houses Moors Valley Cycling Chaplaincy Update Adios to our Mexican Friends and Others too

All good things come to an end – and this year we are all very sorry to see the end of Junior House as we know it! Goodbyes are said to many of our girls, who are either moving on to Middle House or have completed their time here and are returning to their own schools in their own countries. We also very sadly say farewell to our wonderful Assistant Housemistress Miss Hulls who is continuing her education and moving to Bristol to start her Masters in Nutrition, Physical Activity and Public Health. Miss Hulls has been highly popular and enthusiastic and we will all miss her in so many ways, we wish her well as she returns to her studies. We hope she takes many fond memories with her and finds the time to pop back and see us next year. Summer term is always full to the brim of events, visits, trips and many different experiences. The girls have embarked on many adventures including how to be code breakers, cave explorers, Saxon warriors, kite flyers, mountain bike cyclists, sand castle builders, farmers and campers and of course well - practised shoppers! At this time of year we take the opportunity to reflect a little, thinking of the people who make our time here run smoothly and happily, Junior House boarders are always keen to acknowledge and thank the Support Staff who look after them when they are ill, clean our house, cook our food, wash our laundry and mend, repair and maintain all that we need to live here. We are thankful to them for being so kind and helpful to us. For those girls returning or joining us in September, Junior House will be as welcoming as ever – only we will have morphed into ‘Rose House ‘– our new name and a change for the better. I wish you all a wonderful summer holiday with your family and friends, I hope the sun shines for you and you take many good memories away from another happy year at Leweston. Mrs Lorraine Roberts Housemistress, Junior House

A Note From Miss Fielding

The weather has been kind to us this term with many sunny days and the chance for the girls to enjoy the nearby countryside. Having all this space around the school enables the evenings in summer term to be used to the full: tennis, running, rounders, cycling and not forgetting dog walking! It seems unfair then, that in our education system we ask the older girls to sit exams at this time of the year - how unreasonable to see the sun shining and be stuck indoors revising and preparing for exams! Year 13 have certainly got their heads down on the revision front and have been very dedicated, I am sure all their hard work will pay off when they get their results at the end of summer. I wish them all the best in the future and the place will not be the same without them. We also say farewell to two of our Graduate Assistants: Miss Hulls and Miss Russell. Miss Russell has played an important part in Senior House this year and I know all the girls are going to miss her calmness and ‘get it done’ attitude. Miss Hulls will certainly be missed by the girls in Junior House and I suspect a few tears will follow in the coming weeks. It is always at this time of year that I look back and think about the highlights of the year and this year there is a stand out winner: the Harry Potter Studios. The whole trip from start to finish could only be described as ‘magical’ and we all had so much fun we plan to run it again next academic year! On that note I will wish you all a happy and fun filled summer – let’s hope the sunshine stays around. Miss Lyndsay Fielding Director of Boarding and Housemistress, Senior House

New Houses

From September, no one will ever board in Junior, Middle and Senior House at Leweston School. Don’t panic! It is only because the Houses are being renamed. After much consideration and consultation with students and staff, the Houses have been renamed in order to link to the history of the estate. 

Junior House will become Rose House.

This is in honour of Mr Eric Rose, of the Rose’s Lime Cordial family, who restored Trinity Chapel and owned the estate at one point. 

Middle House will become Glyn House

Renamed in recognition of Sir Richard Glyn who was Master of the Blackmore Vale Hunt and added the wing where the current Middle House is situated. 

Senior House will become Hamilton House

Mr George Hamilton Fletcher designed the Belvedere, an area predominately used by Sixth Form as one of their privileges for being head of the school. This is why his name was chosen to represent Senior House.

….and Miss Phipps

I cannot believe another year has passed so quickly, it does not seem two minutes since we were welcoming new girls in September and now we are ready to say goodbye to our Mexican and Spanish girls who joined us for the year and also to the girls visiting this term. I hope they keep in touch with the friends they have made; I am sure there will be lots of tears as they leave! As always the term has been packed with exciting trips: the beach for ice creams and kite flying, visiting Cheddar Gorge, some of the girls even learnt to ride a bike in order to join one of our favourite trips, Moors Valley, cycling around the forest all day and having a picnic! Year 11 rose to the challenge and settled down to do the long awaited GCSEs, the exam

period seemed to stretch a long way ahead at the start and it was a relief to finally reach the end!

At this time of year we usually say goodbye to our Graduate Assistant, however, this year Miss Leigh will be staying at Leweston but, sadly for us, moving to the Sixth Form. Wishing you all a lovely summer! Miss Gina Phipps, Housemistress, Middle House

Moors Valley Cycling

We visited Moors Valley on a cycling trip. It started out with an uneventful bus ride, save for the occasional song being sung and the constant chatter. Moors Valley was a country park and it was very big in my opinion, just like any good country park should be. As we cycled down the trail, we passed many tall trees with deep green leaves that cast long shadows over our path. The water in the lake that we rode quickly by was crystal clear. At one point we stopped at a children’s playground to rest our aching legs and bums, sore from sitting on the mountain bikes too long. Nothing

Chaplaincy Update

noteworthy happened, how could it? We practically chased everyone else out! After the break, we kept cycling for a while longer before stopping to try a rope swing across a shallow stream. It ended up with a lot of people soaking wet! After that, the rest of the cycle ride went pretty smoothly, very unlike the path that we were cycling on, with countless dips and a great deal of small stones that would make you bounce in your seat when you rolled over them. I’m sure I would do it again in the future, even though I did come back quite tired! Isabella Ahrendt, Year 9

This was the Viking I met whe Castle. H n we visit et ed anyone fr hought he was sca ry, he had Corfe om Junior n House be fore thou ’t met g h ! Monica La rrinaga, Ye ar 6

The summer term heralded exams for many of our girls and many candles were lit in the chapel and prayer intentions included in our boarding Mass. A candlelit service was held in Trinity Chapel for Senior House to pray for their revision and exams. Trinity Chapel will also be used to hold the final PJ prayers of the term for Junior House. Night prayers for the younger years have been an enjoyable mix of activities and prayers, including: Marian devotions such as the Rosary, singing the ‘Our Father’ in Swahili accompanied by bongo drums, crafts and time for personal prayer. May I take this opportunity to say thank you and farewell to all the girls at Leweston for their participation, enthusiasm and prayerfulness, as I finish my own time here. I wish you a restful summer. Dr Genevieve Cox

A Celtic Blessing: ‘May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.’

Bye Bye Bye ak …. e r b a g Makin

I really loved my year here at Leweston. My advice to anyone else would be to enjoy every minute and not to worry that time passes so quickly. Leticia Pietrini, Year 9 The best year of my life! Tamara Mansur Year 9

I’ve had such a great time here at Leweston! I feel really lucky to have had the opportunity to get to know you all and thank you for the laughs and giggles we have shared! A big thank you goes to Junior House and Mrs Roberts for helping me settle into Leweston life and making the job so enjoyable – you’ve all been great. I wish you all a great summer holiday and hope you have a well-deserved break! Miss Hulls xxx

I’ve had a great year here at Leweston. Thank you to Miss Fielding for making me feel welcome in Senior House as well as Senior House itself for keeping me on my toes. I hope you all have a sunny summer with lots of relaxing. Good luck to everyone for next year: whether it’s at Leweston or off at University. Miss Russell xx

I came here to school but it has become my family. Andrea Tello Reyna Year 9

I came here to learn English but I have learnt so much else too! Thank you to everyone who looked after me, all the friends I made in Middle House and Miss Phipps, Miss Leigh and Miss McGuigan too. Sofia Garcia-Sainz Year 9

Summer Term at Leweston

Gaudere et bene facere