The Oakhamian Magazine 2019-2020

Academic Successes

Arts Excellence

House Spirit

Trips

Activities

Oakham Sport

The magazine of Oakham School

We’ll meet again A Leavers’ Day like no other – for the Class of 2020.

Leading the way

Henry Price reviews an incredible first year at the helm – and finds so much to be excited about for the future.

2019/20 Academic year

The first girls walked the grounds of Oakham School in September 1971, so we are busy planning our celebrations to begin in September 2021.

Spread the word!

If you know any OOs who experienced first-hand what it was like to be at Oakham in the 70s when the School transitioned to co-education, we would love to hear from them. We are sure there are lots of memories and photographs they could share, stories they could tell us, and insights that they can offer.

Please do get in touch with the OO Club, as your input will be invaluable in all that we have planned to commemorate this occasion – including special events for you all to enjoy.

Get in touch

Email: ooclub@oakham.rutland.sch.uk Telephone number: 01572 758599

Address: OO Club, Oakham School, Chapel Close, Market Place, Oakham, LE15 6DT

EDITORIAL TEAM The Oakhamian Magazine Editor Rachel Fairweather rf2@oakham.rutland.sch.uk

Thank you to everyone who contributed articles and photographs, plus their time and expertise, to create this edition, including: School Photographer Henry Deane Press Officer Louise Hitchen Art Director Sam Bowles

Designer Charlotte Ashley

Printed by David Hall Harvest Communications Front cover Form 7 sporting their Round House pyjamas.

Photo by pupil Laura Crowley.

Welcome!

Welcome to the 206th edition of the Oakham School and 116th edition of the Old Oakhamian Club magazines.

Just as this academic year has proved to be no ordinary school year, so we have decided to do something different with the publication of our two magazines. For the first time in their recent history, we have decided to publish a single edition of the Oakhamian to review the academic year and give double billing to a single edition of the Old Oakhamian magazine.

In an age of daily, weekly and termly online information, it is sometimes easy to miss all the events that took place and the successes our current and former pupils enjoyed.

What’s more, in a year where so many of the traditional summer events, fixtures and trips were either postponed or reimagined for the social distancing era, it feels even more important than ever to record in beautiful print the many happy memories, sporting triumphs and joyful achievements of our Oakhamian and Old Oakhamian communities. We hope you all can take a moment out of your busy lives to sit and reflect on the many positives our pupils and community have taken from this year.

Our feature ‘A year in Pictures’ on pages 14–19 attempts to distil in pictorial form the contrasting halves of the academic year 2019–2020. We reflect the first six months of ‘business as usual’ with School life running at its usual frenetic and vibrant pace, to life during lockdown when teaching and learning continued remotely and House life took on a virtual existence. Read more about how our School responded to the Coronavirus challenge on pages 20–23.

The usual sections highlighting our academic successes (pages 24–43), musical and dramatic performances (pages 44–53), and the many trips that pupils could enjoy before travel became more limited (pages 54–63) are all recorded in this publication.

Oakham School, Chapel Close, Oakham LE15 6DT 01572 758500 www.oakham.rutland.sch.uk Oakham School Registered Charity Number: 1131425

The newly entitled Community section (pages 64–81) gives a flavour of ‘real’ and virtual life within our 16 Houses and our cover story on pages 80–81 describes how the School adapted its traditional leaving celebrations to provide a lovely, albeit different, end to our leavers’ schooldays.

The Activities section (pages 82–89) recalls the many different expeditions and activities that our D of E, CCF and Voluntary Action pupils enjoyed. The Sport section (pages 90–113) summarises the winter and spring seasons and many sporting achievements of our pupils and whilst cricket is absent, for obvious reasons, from the Oakhamian magazine, I am delighted that the Old Oakhamian magazine should feature as its cover star former pupil and professional cricketer Stuart Broad (04) who made sporting history this summer. Turn over the magazine to read about this and other news from our Old Oakhamian community.

Finally the Beyond Oakham pages (114–115) record the many careers events that the School has hosted over the course of this academic year and the support that our current pupils have received.

With new designers taking the magazines forward in fresh creative directions, we would love to hear your feedback. If you have comments or suggestions for future articles, please get in touch at: rf2@oakham.rutland.sch.uk.

We look forward to hearing from you.

The Editor

Contents

06

The Headmaster Writes

08

Read All About It!

Rave reviews for Oakham in the national press

10 New Faces

Welcome to new members of the staff who have joined this year

14 A Year In Pictures

Images from an extraordinary year

20 A Coronavirus Challenge

How Oakham has coped with the challenges of distance learning

24 Academic

50

Oakham’s Production of The Dumb Waiter

Exam success, Art, DT, Creative Writing and other academic highlights

44 Performing Arts

Drama and Music news

54 Trips & Tours

From Kenya to Krakow; a review of the many pre-lockdown trips our pupils enjoyed

36

A showcase of work from our Art Department

56 Form 6 Trip to Kenya

Edition no.206

64 Community

News from Oakham’s 16 Houses and cover story – 2020 leavers

82 Activities

D of E, CCF, VA

90 Sport

Winter 2019–Spring 2020 sports team reports and highlights

114 Beyond Oakham

Careers advice for current pupils from our Oakham Community

86 64

CCF Service Weekend

House News

100

Girls Hockey Reports

CONTENTS

p05

p06

THE HEADMASTER WRITES

The Headmaster Writes

Edition no.206

It

is said that a bit of a crisis is no bad thing early on in your time as Headmaster. It allows you to get stuck in, to pull your team around you and to see the strength of the community in action. In truth, I might have preferred a slightly smaller crisis! I am hugely proud of how Oakham School has responded to the pandemic, and as we move forwards, I am sure that we will relish restarting some of what we have missed, but also learning from this experience and embedding where we have made changes for the better.

Had I written a year ago that we were going to close School on a Friday afternoon and all be teaching and learning remotely on Monday morning, I wonder what we would have thought?

Like many schools, Microsoft Teams has underpinned our way of teaching and our way of operating, but it is teams of people in every area of school life that must truly take the credit for our response to Covid. When we moved into distance learning, for me, the key aim was to provide rhythm, routine and reassurance and to stay connected. Our success was due to the adaptability and hard work of pupils and staff, coupled with the fantastic support of parents, but this would not have happened without the deep-seated and long-nurtured DNA within the School of creativity and innovation. Because the foundations of Oakham were strong, we were able to construct a new way of working swiftly and purposefully.

As you will see from the wonderful range of articles and features in the magazine, the torch of Oakham School has shone brightly throughout the year, and even the complexities of Covid have not diminished this. We have much to celebrate; glittering examples of pupil performances on stage and in concerts, on the sports fields and in the classrooms. There are so many achievements and endeavours showcasing not only team and individual talent but also hard work and a sense of service. I hope that you will take the time to read our feature on pages 20–23 and feel as proud and inspired as I did at the way pupils rose to the challenge, got involved and supported the wider community when friendship and help were needed.

I commend all the pupils for their efforts and thank everyone who has guided and supported them along the way.

For pupils who are living and learning through this period, there is a part of me that feels sympathy and a touch of sorrow for what they are missing out on. For our 2020 Leavers, the anti-climax of cancelled examinations and the loss of milestone celebrations is a great shame, and I am conscious that university life for many has also been restricted. For the Class of 2020, there will forever be the unique bond of sharing such an unprecedented time at School. However, our pupils’ ingenuity and perseverance ensured that they still enjoyed some of the natural rites of passage; their Leavers’ Concert, albeit virtual, showcased incredible musical performances, all recorded and shared from home. I believe this group and the current generation of pupils will benefit from having experienced such change and will understand the versatility that may be required in the future. The adaption to remote or blended learning is something that will serve them well.

A generation missing out to an extent, but better equipped to learn independently and flexibly, and not take things for granted. Above all, we have all had the importance of human relationships brought back into focus; living and learning together has been restated.

THE HEADMASTER WRITES

p07

Children across the UK returned more eagerly to School in September, appreciative of the little things and each other more than ever. Parents and families have cherished being together this year, perhaps enjoyed a slower pace of life at times, and we have been reminded of a desire for normality and our great fondness for it. (I am sure a few parents will also have been eager to see their children back at school; one can have too much of a good thing!)

Looking ahead, the School continues to evolve, gradually further adopting the Middle Years Programme in Forms 1-3 and considering the balance of our curriculum in the Middle and Upper School. Much work has also been done to realign the spirit of the Oakham School Foundation, with an emphasis on raising funds to provide life-changing bursaries, as much as buildings and facilities. You will hear more from us over the coming year about how you can become involved and help us achieve our ambition. As we emerge from Covid, the independent sector will once again come under scrutiny, and I hope that we can continue to be a beacon of good practice in education, supportive partners in the community and a provider of life-changing opportunities.

In September 2021, we celebrate 50 Years of co-education. Our truly co-educational approach says much about the balanced outlook to so much that is good at Oakham as we seek to stay true to the timeless value of a holistic education. It is a point in time that reminds how important balance is, something which is also reflected in the blend of boarding and day, local, national and international pupils within our School. Above all, we are a community that cares, that is connected, and that relishes challenge.

In the Spring Term, Mary and I enjoyed having over 200 pupils into Deanscroft for breakfast, break or an evening pizza. As someone who relishes being out and about, meeting parents and pupils alike, the last few months have been frustrating. I have missed being able to walk the touchline, enjoy a Chapel filled with girls and boys singing, assemblies, plays and concerts and fulfilling the role as Head of the Community, not only Head of the School. It was my strong desire at the start of the academic year to meet and learn the names of all of my pupils; I was making good progress, but this has been made somewhat more challenging while adhering to a two-metre distance and faced with a sea of matching face-masks!

This year has been successful because we have pulled together in the same direction. To everyone who quietly gets on with it and provides a support network; you are the glue that holds the community together, and I thank each and every one of you for your incredible fortitude and care.

It has been a year like no other. I am incredibly proud and grateful to have been handed the torch of Oakham School.

That torch has shone brightly when the clouds of Covid have been over us, and it will continue to do so when these recede, and the sun shines again.

I look towards the 2020–2021 academic year with great optimism and enthusiasm. The resilience and teamwork demonstrated this year have shown that we can adapt at pace and collectively move forward with confidence and ambition.

Quasi Cursores.

Above all, we are a community that cares, that is connected, and that relishes challenge.

p08

READ ALL ABOUT IT!

Edition no.206

Read All About It! Over the years Oakham has accrued many accolades in some of the UK’s leading publications. Without wanting to ‘blow our own trumpet’, it is wonderful to read so many rave reviews, independently written, about Oakham.

Tatler Schools Guide Only ‘the top prep and public schools in the UK’ are chosen to feature in the Tatler Schools Guide and Oakham is delighted to have been included each year. This year’s review was glowing, saying that “Oakham has been ahead of the curve for years.” It also mentioned that “there are heaps of extracurriculars to choose from, boarding can be full or flexi and a rejigged house system means that nobody’s lonely over the weekend.” Also, that, “Pastoral care is ‘exceptional’ and despite being a large school, nobody seems to get lost in the system.”

In fact we were delighted and honoured to be shortlisted for the ‘Public School of the Year’ Tatler School Award in September, alongside five of the UK’s top independent schools.

The Week Each autumn The Week magazine publishes its ‘best of the best’ senior schools in its Independent Schools Guide. In this year’s guide, Oakham won the title ‘Great for all-rounders’. In announcing the accolade, the magazine described how “there are opportunities galore in sport, music, drama and art as well as academic subjects” and “pastoral care is second to none, with an emphasis on mutual respect and kindness.”

Absolutely Education Absolutely Education, a highly regarded national magazine, featured Oakham in its Autumn/Winter 2020 edition. The Editor wrote a glowing review of the School following her visit.

Her assertion was that “there is no doubt that Oakham pupils are in a safe, forward-thinking and fortunate place.” The review outlines how Oakham “has a longstanding reputation for going above and beyond on pastoral care. Parents talk about it being a kind place – they also mention the all-round nature of the education here. It has never hung its hat on catering only to top-flight academics or super-sporty types. In fact, it does cater for both exceedingly well – as well as offering superb opportunities for creatives – but letting children explore all the options and become independent learners is its raison d'être.”

Given that Oakham is fast approaching the 50th anniversary of Co-education, we are particularly pleased the magazine also outlined that: “the even split between girls and boys has had several decades to settle in, which probably does much to explain the culture here. It certainly isn't his and hers – and not even the merest whiff of boys first.”

What reviewers are raving about: The ca depart reers is parti ment impres cularly sive.

Tatler 2 020

Pupils develop excellent

study skills from the earliest age which supports rapid progress.

ISI

Best of a ll

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Ab solutely E

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, 2020

Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) While the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) do not ‘review’ schools, they inspect them – their findings are also worth mentioning here. Their two headline judgements for Oakham were the highest grading possible, stating that both ‘the quality of pupils’ academic achievements’ and ‘the quality of pupils’ personal development’ were ‘excellent’. They described Oakhamians as “keen to learn and ambitious to succeed”, as well being “selfaware, confident young people, fully prepared to be involved and supportive of one another.” We are delighted they recognised that, at Oakham, “pupils fulfil their potential”.

e Ther are s opportunitieort, galore in sp a music, dram and art.

The Week

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Good Schools Guide These reviews nicely add to those the School has garnered over the years, including from the highly respected Good Schools Guide – who described Oakham as “a clear-eyed, energetic, forward-thinking school”.

They also outlined how, “words such as ‘holistic’ and ‘enrichment’ aren’t just eduspeak here; lessons we observed were hands-on, pupils were working at their own pace and one felt that teachers saw them as individuals rather than a class.”

Th e

Sm Library is allbone v (2,400sq ast m surely in ) and the runnin for most impressiv g school lib e rary in Britain .

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NEW FACES

Edition no.206

New Faces at Oakham Welcome to the following new members of staff, who have joined Oakham School this academic year.

Director of People

Deputy Head (Academic)

Chief Operating Officer

I joined the School in January 2020, having headed up HR functions in three Higher Education establishments over the previous 15 years.

As Director of People, my aim is to use a proactive, influential and communicative approach to provide Oakham School’s staff with strategic HR support, to ensure the School makes the most of their talent. I live in South Nottingham with my partner and we have one daughter.

I joined the School in January 2020, having previously been the Head of Science at Uppingham School. I started my career as a Chemistry teacher at Abingdon School, learning much about the dynamics of busy day schools, followed by a move to Rutland as Head of Chemistry at Uppingham School.

Teaching and tutoring in a co-educational boarding school taught me how academic challenge and pastoral care must co-exist, and the centrality of trusting working relationships between pupils and staff. I am committed to fostering a joyful attitude towards learning, helping pupils to be openminded and optimistic in their academic journey. I am married with three daughters and enjoy living in Oakham.

I joined Oakham School in October 2020 from St Christopher School in Letchworth where I worked as the Bursar and Clerk to the governors for 15 years. I studied History at Trinity College Cambridge, and then spent one year as the CD Broad Exchange Fellow at Rice University in Houston, Texas. My various roles before becoming a Bursar include a Charity Administrator and Manager, working at the London Business School and as the Chief Executive of a London Almshouse Charity. I am an ISI compliance inspector, a governor of Christ Church Cathedral School, in Oxford and was previously a governor at St John’s College School in Cambridge. My wife, Christine, and I have recently moved to the area, with numerous dogs, cats, horses and other animals. Our two children will join us in the School and University holidays.

Sarah Bailey

Leo Dudin

William Hawkes

Edition no.206

Head of Business

Head of English

Joining Oakham in 2020 as Head of Business, this is my fourteenth year teaching Business and I have led departments for the past 10 years. My particular passions lie in Marketing, Advertising and Global Business where I enjoy bringing a real-world energy and understanding into the classroom. In my spare time, I like to garden with my children, read fiction and non-fiction, as well as writing fiction of my own.

I am proud to join Oakham School as Head of English, having previously worked as a Head of Middle School in Leicestershire, teaching English for a very rewarding decade.

My true passion lies in bringing the works of Shakespeare to life in the classroom, and I am currently engaged in exciting research on the subject with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Shakespeare Institute.

I lead a particularly distinguished English Department at Oakham; a gathering of gifted teachers and academics whose collective knowledge and expertise is remarkable.

I am married to Daniel, a local GP, and together we have two young daughters, and a rather mischievous kitten.

Sarah Donlevy

Helen Jones

NEW FACES

p11

Head of Learning Support

Dr Emma Stanley Isaac I am delighted to join Oakham School as the Head of Learning Support. I am passionate about supporting pupils to help them achieve their academic potential. I am a specialist teacher and an Associate Member of the British Dyslexia Association, offering support with literacy, numeracy, subject-specific support and study skills. I hold an Assessor Practising Certificate, which allows me to carry out Access Arrangement Assessments and full diagnostic assessments for Dyslexia.

A former Research Scientist, Science Teacher and STEM Ambassador, I am keen to enthuse and engage the pupils in STEM subjects and encourage them to consider careers in this area. I am a Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Assessor (Bronze, Silver and Gold) and am very much looking forward to participating in the expeditions. I am proud to be a tutor in Haywoods House.

p12

NEW FACES

Edition no.206

Also joining the School this year...

Kaitlyn Bray Theatre Fellow

Elena Bulmaga Trainee Teacher of Biology/Chemistry

Christine Burnett Lower School Receptionist

Maeve Callaghan Design Fellow

James Cooper Theatre Technician

Sophie Durman Sports Fellow

Will Evered Marketing Assistant

Alba Jimenez Garcia Spanish Assistant

Tim Kenyon Sports Fellow

Leonardo Mattoccia Sports Fellow

Nicola McCracken Estates Administrator

Mattis Michel French Assistant

Ruben Payan Sanchez Spanish Assistant

Laura Taylor Teacher of Art

Marielle Treacy French Assistant

Olivia Ward Trainee Teacher of Drama

Zoe Wardell Teacher of Music

Edition no.206

NEW ROLES

p13

New Roles

Day Housemistress of Round House

Housemaster of Clipsham

Housemaster of Wharflands

I joined Oakham in 2016 having taught in Nottinghamshire where I had also previously studied at the University of Nottingham gaining my PGCE and prior to that my Geography degree. Since being at Oakham I have fully embraced all things Oakhamian from the extra-curricular – leading Silver D of E, The Geography Society and helping to lead the Kenya and Ski trips to developing my pastoral interests as a Resident Tutor in Rushebrookes. This latter role inspired my Masters in Education dissertation on effective transition within girls boarding. More recently my experience as a day tutor in Gunthorpe and Round House confirmed my aspiration as a Housemistress and I look forward to the challenges that being a Day Housemistress brings. Outside of School, I am an avid adventurer, travelling far and wide, which has supported my training to become a mountain leader. As a Geographer at heart I will aim to inspire the girls to explore the world around them as they prepare for their lives beyond Oakham School.

I joined the thriving Drama Department at Oakham in 2014, having previously taught at Stowe School in my home town of Buckingham.

I worked as a Resident Tutor in School House before being appointed as Senior Tutor next door in Barrow in 2017. As Housemaster of Clipsham, I encourage the boys to do their utmost to seize the opportunities on offer at Oakham, whatever their interests. I like to see the boys being brave and attempting new challenges, working outside of their comfort zone rather than playing it safe – that way they can truly understand their potential.

Outside of work I enjoy most sports, travelling and attending the theatre. I am ably supported by my fiancée, Alexis Hayes, who teaches in the Geography Department and previously ran her own Form 7 Day House.

I joined Oakham in 2007 as a Business Studies and Economics teacher after having previously worked in Asset Management within the Financial Services industry. I was a Resident Tutor for three years in Wharflands, before joining Clipsham in 2011 as the Senior Tutor and subsequently Housemaster in 2016. I am keen on all forms of sport and have coached the senior rugby and hockey teams.

My other interests include snowboarding, cricket, and downhill mountain biking. I am married to Sarah, an English teacher at Oakham and one of the School's Deputy Safeguarding Leads and we have two young daughters, Scarlett and Tilly.

Hannah Stephen Campion Dachtler

Tim DixonDale

Staff Departures We bade a very fond farewell to a number of members of the teaching and support staff in 2020. To read the tributes to those who left the School this year,

please visit the Archives page of the website.

p14

A YEAR IN PICTURES

Edition no.206

A Year in Pictures New Headmaster Henry Price and his wife Mary join Oakham School

Form 1 Learning Camp

September Sleepover at the Natural History Museum and other trips

Oakham School shortlisted for a TES award

November Service of Remembrance in the Chapel Ancaster and Lincoln Cake Sale for Children in Need

Autumn Concert

Edition no.206

Harvest Festival in the Chapel

Sporting fixtures aplenty, including the local rugby derby Oakham v Uppingham

Interhouse competitions begin with the annual Steeplechase

Service Weekend sees hundreds of pupils out and about in the community

October All That Jazz - Chicago

Our all-singing all-dancing spectacular entertained audiences pre-lockdown.

Movember

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A YEAR IN PICTURES

Edition no.206

Oakham’s Mock Election Candidates

Carols by Candlelight in the Chapel

December Form 6 Visit to Kenya

Business pupils visit Mini Factory

Washing cars for Service Weekend

Tree Planting for the Woodland Trust’s Big Climate Fightback

February U15 Rugby NatWest Cup Success

25 Years of the Smallbone Library The ISI rated Oakham as ‘excellent’

January

Middle and Upper School Ski Trip to La Plagne

Netball U14s and U19s reach the National Finals

The Scholars Production of The Cripple of Inishmaan

Hockey 1st XI Boys in the Quarter-Final of the Tier 1 National Competition

March

Lambs visit the Lower School

p18

A YEAR IN PICTURES

Clear spring night sky over Oakham

Edition no.206

Lockdown learning begins

Spring blossom outside Stevens

School during Lockdown!

Positive messages along Kilburn Road

VE Day Service

Edition no.206

Virtual Speech Day

Fab 4 Challenge

Zola the Dog on an empty Doncaster Close

p19

Tim Weston, Head of Design Technology, with some of the new face visors

Grass snake basking under the bridge near Buchanans House

Swan’s nest on the canal in Oakham

School Life in Lockdown

The Fab 4 Charity C hallenge

Completing the Creative Challenge

The C Chal reative lenge

Learn i to the ng isn’t lim classr i oom.. ted .

Bring a pet to y! a Roll Call Frid

s ion t p i r resc p g erin erly v i l De e eld h Paint to t for lo ing cards cal ca re ho mes

Edition no.206

THE CORONAVIRUS CHALLENGE

p21

The Coronavirus Challenge In the blink of an eye, earlier this year, Coronavirus created a new era in education. One that had immediate ramifications, as well as a long tail of implications and consequences – not only for pupils at Oakham School, but those across the UK and the world. Here we look at how Oakham has responded, and continues to respond, to these challenges.

Locking Down

B

ness d n i K The lenge l Cha

ack in March, as the world began to respond to the challenges it faced from Coronavirus, Oakham was already busy establishing its provision for distance learning. Before the Spring Term ended, staff and pupils had been trained on Microsoft Teams in readiness for not returning, physically, to School in the Summer Term. As Headmaster, Henry Price, said: "At times of crisis, such as these, there is clarity of what's important. For us, it is that human relationships are at the heart of education; that face-to-face interactions and relationships matter and bring learning to life."

A new Distance Learning timetable was established, enabling all lessons to be delivered online, with pupils benefiting from a full daily timetable of two-way virtual teaching. Microsoft Teams enabled effective video discussions between a whole class of pupils, for teachers to be able to share their screens as they live-streamed lessons and to incorporate their pre-recorded content. Oakham has always used the phrase 'learning isn't limited to the classroom'. Never has it been truer though, with our distance learning approach enabling pupils to continue to enjoy everything from their specialist music lessons to science lessons where they conducted investigations and experiments in their 'home laboratories'!

The continuation of Oakham’s strong sense of community, which is intrinsic to our pro-active pastoral care, was at the forefront of the School’s activities and priorities during lockdown. Despite being physically apart, pupils met (virtually) every day with their House. Tutor time was also embedded into the Distance Learning timetable, as it would be during a ‘normal’ school week, with pupils able to discuss what support they needed both in and outside of the classroom. Chapel also remained at the heart of Oakham's daily life, albeit virtually, with pupils enjoying everything from 'thought for the day' messages to singing together whilst in lockdown.

Community spirit thrived through House activities, challenges and competitions. These were all designed to keep pupils connected and happy during this difficult time. There were charity challenges which saw pupils in the four Lower School Houses raise nearly £9k, and the #62 Haywoods challenge (named after the number of boys in the House). There were fun

Director of Sport, Iain Simpson, conducted a unique series of interviews with Oakham’s sporting alumni and a former member of staff.

Eleven of Oakham’s illustrious and upcoming sports men and women, representing a range of different sports from across the UK and the world, answered the same three questions: • What they are most proud in their sporting career?

• What has been their toughest moment?

• What advice they would give their 16-year-old self?

The resulting interviews were a fascinating insight into different perspectives across a range of sports.

To watch all the interviews, go to the sports pages of our website.

activities such as the wonderful Chapmans ‘Wonderwall’ video collaboration and ‘Bring a Pet to Roll Call Friday’ in Ancaster – where trying to roll call over 50 girls accompanied by a collection of cats, dogs, rabbits and the occasional horse was something that will never be forgotten! The girls in Gunthorpe sent uplifting messages, cards, drawings and paintings to local care homes in the Rutland area to raise the morale of residents and staff whilst they were unable to accept visitors due to the pandemic. “I am always proud of Oakham’s House spirit, but during this ‘remote’ Summer Term it has been magnificent,” commented Carly Latham, Senior Housemistress “The pupils’ sense of fun, humour, creativity, kindness, respect, support and sense of community really came to the fore.”

Different departments also channelled connections and community – from Sport sharing an amazing series of ‘lockdown interviews’ with sporting alumni, to Art encouraging and showcasing creativity on their Instagram account.

The same spirit of educational innovation, which has seen the School offer the IB Diploma, BTECs, IB MYP and champion inquiry learning through FOSIL, saw the launch of a new Academic Cornerstone Course during lockdown for those pupils whose examinations had been cancelled. This series of courses covered academic skills, life skills, and employability skills. Each strand was designed by a team of teachers selected from across several departments, to ensure the course was original and impactful, as well as drawing on the School's wide range of teaching expertise, experience and enthusiasm. “At its heart, the course taught a variety of skills that are important to pupils’ futures,” says Deputy Head Academic Leo Dudin.

“Showcasing, even during unprecedented times, how an Oakham education focuses on preparing pupils for life after school, equipping them to be intellectually ambitious thinkers, with the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to thrive and to make a difference in the world.”

p22

THE CORONAVIRUS CHALLENGE

Simon Rounce from Rutland Plastics making the visors

Tim W Tech eston, Hea no d new v logy with of Design isors some of the

r, owe r, r T ge ick Patr es Mana ‘For t ic Esta ing fabr ubs’ r h was ve of Sc o the L

Trust ors e g d o is The L heir v t g n i receiv

Supporting Our Community During Coronavirus

O

akham’s Design and Technology Department made and delivered an astonishing 30,000 visors for Key Workers during lockdown. We were one of the first schools in the country to begin to make visors, using our own 3D printers and Laser Cutters. Members of the Design and Technology Department, as well as a pupil who helped remotely, managed to hone their approach and production line, resulting in an impressive 600+ masks being made each day. After a week working at this rate, they became aware that their efforts weren’t matching the high level of demand, and so Tim Weston, Head of Oakham’s Design Technology Department, worked closely with Rutland Plastics to increase production further. “Rutland Plastics were able to create custom moulds for the headbands, which was the part taking the longest for us to make,” says Tim. “They could produce them at a rate of two headbands every 20 seconds; meaning we could take a massive jump in production. We worked collaboratively to get the final design right, so that the visors could be easily and quickly constructed by our team of 30 volunteers so that we could get the visors to those who need them faster.”

The visors were delivered to hospitals, care homes and doctors’ surgeries both locally and nationally – from across Rutland, down to London and north to Doncaster. “It was only through the combined effort of many that we were so successful in making so many visors.” continues Tim. “It was through the kind generosity of Rutland Plastics, the

donations of key supplies from supportive companies such as Fellowes, and the wonderfully generous donations from across our School, alumni and local communities, that we were able to expand and upscale our production at this time of great need.”

Oakham also proudly supported the local ‘For the love of Scrubs’ team to help make essential PPE for the NHS. As well as raiding the School’s own supply of fabric, Oakham’s industrial washing machines were put to work with the important task of cleaning all the donated fabric prior to it being made up into scrubs.

“It was wonderful to be able to offer our practical support,” says Estates Manager, Patrick Trower who co-ordinated the School’s efforts. “By laundering the fabric, we were able to speed up the process considerably, enabling a quicker turn-around and allowing those who could sew to spend more time making the scrubs rather than washing and ironing.

We were just one small part of the ‘For the Love of Scrubs’ team, but we were proud to be able to do our bit to help our local NHS workers to stay safe.”

We were proud to be able to do our bit to help our NHS workers to stay safe.

Edition no.206

Re-Opening Safely

A

fter 25 weeks of Oakham’s campus feeling empty without pupils and staff being on-site, the rejuvenation of School life began in September when the community returned.

The School spent a great deal of time and care putting rigorous measures in place to help keep all members of our community safe; our boarding and day pupils, our staff and all those who live and work in and around the town of Oakham. “The safety measures that we have established were even more wide-ranging than the Boarding Schools' Association (BSA) COVID-Safe Charter that we, like other boarding schools across the country, have signed,” says Sarah Gomm, Deputy Head Pastoral.

Right from the beginning of term, and indeed before term began, there was a strict enforcement of all quarantine measures for boarders returning to the UK – with some boarders isolating on site before joining their peers. There were also 'safe to return' procedures for pupils and staff that saw daily temperature testing at the start of each day. As well as, of course, the establishing of pupil ‘bubbles’ – which sees year groups staying together to reduce pupil contact and enable track and trace, should it be needed.

Practically speaking, the School now looks a little different with a variety of well-signed one-way systems in place, along with 170 sanitising stations located around the campus. All pupils and staff were also issued with a pack of face coverings – in two different colours (black and red) to enable regular washing. These are now worn when everyone is moving around the corridors and campus during the school day.

There a statio re 170 han ns ar ound d sanitisin the ca g mpus

ms syste y a e-w w on School e n e f th the One o e around ac in pl

Pup il cove s and st a ring s wh ff wear the c fa e orri dors n movin ce and g cam around pus

As well as the variety of practical measures to keep the Oakham community safe, the School has carefully organised a ‘new normal’ curriculum. “We have a variety of timetables to ensure the stability of our educational provision and to help pupils to feel confident and ready to engage in their academic studies,” adds Mrs Gomm. “We want the School to feel as normal as possible, but recognise that there will be a variety of different scenarios that we could face. We therefore have three different timetables to ensure we can move and adapt should we need.

There is our ‘normal’ timetable which sees all pupils moving freely about School, an enhanced social distancing timetable that reduces movement across campus and also enables any self-isolating pupils to continue their learning without interruption, and a distance learning timetable in the event of a local lockdown and schools being instructed to close.”

There are some aspects of School life that have been adapted to enable them to continue safely. Chapel services and assemblies are still a key part of the rhythm of the School week, albeit virtually. Dining has been altered to ensure pupil ‘bubbles’ don’t mix. Individual music lessons now take place face-to-face with transparent screens between teachers and pupils, whilst concerts are a combination of virtual and, where possible to enable an audience to be present, socially distanced. Drama sees pupils back with aplomb on the QET stage, with plays chosen and cleverly directed to reduce physical contact where possible. Sport has and continues to adapt according to government guidelines – meaning that Doncaster Close and all of Oakham’s pitches are alive with the sound of sport once more. Pupils perhaps need a little extra equipment in some subjects – with their own lab coats and art materials – but otherwise lessons are absolutely back to what is now called, the ‘new’ normal.

Pupils have adapted incredibly well to all the new rules and rhythms of School life – they have shown kindness and courtesy to each other and the Oakham community has remained together, even when at times, it needs to be safely socially distant.

Form 6 Politics students in the Faculty of Social Sciences

Academic

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ACADEMIC

Edition no.206

Celebrating Success: Examination Results 2020 Although the process of awarding grades was very different this year, we are delighted to celebrate Oakham’s overall statistics, as well as some of the many outstanding success stories from our pupils.

BTEC

A-level

Sports Science BTEC Results 2A’s

2A’s

2A’s

A*A

A*A

BTECs continue to be a popular choice and this year, again, has seen some great pupil successes in the two subjects offered at Oakham.

In Sports Science, all six of the Form 7 pupils achieved the equivalent of two A’s at A level, with two pupils achieving the top marks of two Distinction* grades (equivalent to A*A*). Business BTEC also enjoyed some great results overall, including two pupils also gaining the top Distinction* grade.

University Entry

Whilst it has been a tumultuous year for university admissions, the majority of our pupils have been successful in securing places onto the courses of their choice, as they have in previous years at Oakham. Oxbridge offers were secured for Greg who will study Land Economy at Cambridge, Charlotte who will read French at Oxford and Gabe who will study Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at Oxford.

Pupils also successfully secured places to study Medicine at a range of universities including Leeds, Manchester and Hull York. Overall, pupils have been accepted onto a diverse range of courses at leading institutions including Electronic and Electrical Engineering and Physics at Imperial; Politics and Philosophy at LSE; and Neuroscience at St Andrews. Our longstanding tradition of pupils securing places to study across the world continues. Three pupils will be studying in North America; at the University of Virginia, the University of Denver, and Vancouver Film School. Other destinations across the globe include the University of Sydney, Erasmus Rotterdam, Glion Switzerland, and the University of Amsterdam.

At A-level over half of all grades awarded were A* or A grades (55%) and over three quarters were awarded A*-B grades (78%).

Consistent with previous years, a good number of our students achieved top marks – with 36 pupils gaining a combination of straight A* and A grades.

40 or more points (equivalent to 4A*s at A-level) 45 points (Full Marks!)

IB Diploma

In the IB Diploma more than a quarter of pupils at Oakham (27%) achieved an impressive 40 or more points (out of the maximum of 45) – which is equivalent to 4 A*s at A-level. Yet again, one of our pupils achieved full marks (45 points), which places Charlie in the top 0.42% of pupils in the world. As well as pupils enjoying success at the highest level, the School is delighted to have again achieved a 100% pass rate and to have also maintained its consistently high average point score, this year at 36.7, which is considerably higher than the worldwide average (of 29.7 points). Overall 93% of students achieved the equivalent of A*-B in their IB Diploma.

GCSE

At GCSE 20% of Oakham’s grades were awarded grade 9; almost 40% were awarded grade 9-8 (A*); over 60% awarded grade 9-7 (A*-A) and 99.5% awarded grade 9-4 (A*-C). Two Oakhamians received an impressive straight set of 9 grades.

Edition no.206

ACADEMIC

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Individual Success Stories Stepping away from the statistics, success stories abound at Oakham in an undeniably different and difficult year for all pupils.

Art

It has been an exceptional year for Oakham’s artists who have gained the highest marks and secured places at some of the UK’s leading arts institutions to study courses including Art, Anthropology, Architecture, Fashion, Games Design, Illustration and History of Art. Two of Oakham’s art students achieved the feat of the highest D1 grade in Cambridge Pre-U Art, which is higher than an A* at A-level.

Eight pupils also achieved a D2 (equivalent to an A* at A-level) – further highlighting the excellence of Oakham’s Art Department. Among them were:

Josh whose talents enabled a direct entry to study Bespoke Tailoring at the London College of Fashion, at the University of the Arts London (UAL). Even more impressively, the London College of Fashion commented that his was the strongest portfolio they had seen

Freddie gained a direct entry place to Chelsea College of Art UAL to study Textile Design

Drama

Every year actors from Oakham go on to study at some of the best Drama Schools.

This year Sam and Kitty secured their places to pursue their acting careers after they were both awarded an A* in A-level Drama. Sam is joining the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire for a foundation acting course, and Kitty is joining Mountview Drama School. Both developed and displayed their phenomenal acting talents at Oakham, and their last performance together at Oakham – in the Scholars’ Production of The Cripple of Inishmaan – saw standing ovations. Kitty, who is also a member of the National Youth Theatre, also wowed audiences as Roxie Hart in Oakham’s recent production of Chicago – showcasing the diverse range of plays we offer to enable our young actors to hone their talents.

Kitty as Roxie Hart in Oakham’s recent production of Chicago

Sam as ‘The Cripple’ in Oakham’s production of The Cripple of Inishmaan

Music

Emilia’s musical career at Oakham ended on a high note when she scored a D3 in Music (a high A grade in the Cambridge Pre-U examination). Her excellent grades secure her a scholarship to study the oboe at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Emilia’s musical talents have developed over many years as a Music Scholar at Oakham during which time she has accepted a place into the prestigious Britten Sinfonia Academy and performed solos at many of our concerts - including performing the Bellini Oboe Concerto in the Autumn Concert back in November 2019.

Emilia’s performance at our Autumn Concert in November 2019

Sport

As well as being highly regarded as a leading training ground for national squads, Oakham also offers exceptional opportunities to study Sports Science – as one of the only schools where pupils can study the subject as an A-level, at BTEC level, or as part of the IB Diploma.

Kit successfully achieved top marks in BTEC Sports Science whilst also playing for the Leicester Tigers in their Under-18 Academy whilst at Oakham. Following his studies, he now joins Leicester full time alongside his former Oakham teammate, Jack van Poortvliet (19).

Kit achieved top marks in BTEC Sports Science whilst also playing for Leicester Tigers Under-18 Academy

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ACADEMIC: CREATIVE WRITING

Creative Writing Competitions During lockdown pupils from Form 1 to Form 6 exercised their creative writing skills by submitting poems and short stories they had written to enter Oakham School’s second annual creative writing competition.

ShortStory.docx

by Toby Morrison (Form 6)

Mrs Marsden sat behind her desk on a lukewarm

afternoon, just as the final school period drained away.

For the past hour, with free time, she had been judging the entrants of the spring term creative writing competition, an enjoyable one-off task that encouraged imagination, and enjoyment of writing within a variety of students. Fred Brandon’s piece, for example, was wonderful. Fred, a year

All pupils were invited to write either a poem of no more than two sides of A4 or short story between 500 and 1,000 words on the theme of ‘Truth’ or a subject of their choice. The entries were judged in two categories: 14 Years and Under and 16 Years and Over.

The winners were announced by celebrated poet and Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Birmingham University, Luke Kennard, at a virtual ceremony at few weeks later. Luke recorded a special video message in which he celebrated the wealth of creative writing talent of all the entrants and read extracts of the winning pieces, as well as treating the audience to a reading of one of his latest poems.

Joe won the Under 14 category for his story Chapter Infinity. Describing it as “a dazzling science fiction epic condensed into three pages”, Luke commented: “Something that leaps out as so effective for me in this story is the attention to ordinary detail in an extraordinary setting.”

The winner of the Over 16 category and Overall Winner of the competition was Toby for his story ShortStory.docx, which Luke praised for the “pitch-perfect character sketches amidst its clever self-enfolding structure”.

Luke concluded the virtual prize-giving ceremony by treating us to a reading of one of his new poems, ‘Response to Sonnet 6’, which forms part of a wider work of responses to all Shakespeare’s sonnets.

9 student, who connected with science more naturally than English, had delved into the realm of science-fiction. His protagonist, Passenger X, had retrieved a valuable space gem through a duel with an alien creature, before escaping in suspenseful style from a bagel-shaped aircraft. The narrative was unevenly paced, speeding through detail without steady sequencing or verbal contemplation, but it was exciting, and showed a writer enjoying his craft. And with a word limit of one thousand, building a fully formed space epic was a difficult task. Fred’s attempt, nonetheless, tapped into something immensely authentic about why people frequently produce stories for one another: unabashed, entertaining fun!

At present, year 10’s Jessica Hallowell’s fragment of

a father-daughter relationship, exemplifying its underlying abuse and tension, was her winner. Jess wielded free indirect speech so adeptly and so upsettingly. The violence of the scene, as the father physically attacks his pubescent daughter, simply for arriving home late in the evening was harrowing and subtle. His emotions and hers settle on the reader implicitly and contextualize the moment – as hand strikes a “soft, young cheek” – so the reader realizes it to be only one moment in a grim ongoing dynamic.

Unfortunately, she realized it couldn’t actually receive the award. The school did not want to appear to breed such darkness in its students’ minds. It would shock a parental audience with the piece, or, at least, the school feared it would. She needed something more suitable for the website – not blunt, direct brutality.

She picked up the next sheet from the shrinking

stack to her right: Jamie Stevenson. He was an excellent student of English. He sat at the back of her year 11, top set class, and frequently offered astute points, connecting

Sophie C

Cartwright page 36.jpg

Edition no.206

ACADEMIC: CREATIVE WRITING

what they read with his own wider reading. Jamie

with his attempts and

was a classic adolescent concoction of confidence

ideas. This creative

and insecurity. His words, while speaking, fell

stagnancy brought forth

assuredly, but often in a monotonous, embarrassed

an internal agitation.

tone, betraying a defensiveness about the response

He sung the virtues of

of his peers – protection from a potential wry remark

expression, in its many

or simply a feeling of being judged. In fact, in direct

forms, and wanted

debate, his engagement was much more enigmatic,

himself to be a writer.

and self-consciousness, rather than unnerving him,

But how could he be?

propelled him forwards. And Jamie was clearly self-

He couldn’t even write a single sentence that left him

conscious. Then again, most students, even most

happy…”

people, are. But Jamie’s self-consciousness was

conjoined with a need to be top, to be doing generally

students, released into the corridor after lessons,

excellently in some ever-evasive sense. So, one could

emerged. She pushed her teeth against each other

witness Jamie picking himself apart as he proceeded

with a little pressure – her irritation. Jamie’s piece was

from moment to moment. Talking to girls in class, she

skillful, but… so self-indulgent. He stood on opposite

noticed, he’d be amusing and clever, but clearly cagey.

ends to Fred Brandon. Fred had entered into the spirit

Providing answers to questions, or merely talking to

of the event. He had enjoyed himself, stretched his

her personally, he would double back and re-examine

imagination, left the “self” behind. Jamie had brought

his meaning from sentence to sentence. And in essays,

his usual cleverness to the task, but had made no

which were thoughtful and precociously genuine,

attempt at a narrative. His stream-of-consciousness

he would occasionally become over-concerned with

story ended with his character, an indistinguishable

one little element, which would become an analytical

alter-ego with “greasy spectacles” and “fluffy face”,

fixation, thereby leaving other more relevant aspects in

going to make toast. The story was not driven by fun, or

its paragraph-long shadow. Despite and in some part

hope, but by an overbearing stench of the analytical.

due to this self-consciousness, Jamie was a talented,

serious student. He frequently achieved top grades,

of a sixth former.

and, when he came below other top achievers in a given

“Hi, miss,” he said.

piece of work, he became somewhat uncomfortable;

“Hello, Toby,” she replied.

stating self-deprecatingly, in reply to the question “how

did you do?”, “Well… we really don’t need to talk about

setting to an adult brown, on top of a tall, bespectacled

that, mate”. Maybe, he’d be a good candidate for the

face. He wore black rimmed glasses, and a long, second-

winner.

hand cashmere overcoat on top of a mildly scruffy

composure – including dusty, black shoes, and a food

Mrs Marsden, placed his work squarely in the

Mrs Marsden read to the end, as the noise of

A knock on her door was followed by the entrance

Toby, Toby Morrison, had a mop of blond hair,

middle of her desk, and began reading.

stain on his tie. He entered further.

“The dusk was settling in at an achingly slow pace,

“If we keep writing and keep writing, do we find the

its nascent grayness collecting awkwardly on Sam’s

Truth, with a capital T?” He asked. “Or might we realize

bedroom window. He was bent over his desk,

we are incapable of escaping our subjective truth, with

whereupon a sheet was placed centre stage, lit up by his

a lowercase “t”, however we distort it, and drown in

lamp. It was a lined sheet of paper, filled halfway with a

confusion, meta-confusion, and meta-meta-confusion…

sequence of crossed out sentences, some finished, some

without something to grasp – anything to grasp – a

not. Nothing was sticking. He wanted to win the school

literary rock?”

short story competition, but was hitherto unsatisfied

Toby stopped typing.

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ACADEMIC: CREATIVE WRITING

Edition no.206

Chapter Infinity

by Joe Marriner (Form 1) “Beep, Jeff Cinnamon is calling you.”

foods is a take-

“Beep, call declined.”

away company

that specialise in

I am at volcano valley, the most popular

tourist attraction on the planet. This planet

3D-printed food.

is mars. The year is 2090 and everyone wears

“Headset, call Lava

headsets that produce what you see. They can

foods.”

make calls, send and receive texts, show public

“Calling Lava

walk ways, tell you when it is safe to cross the

foods.”

road and show you your shopping lists to name a

“Hello, lava foods take-away service.”

few.

“Hi, can I order a cheese deluxe burger and a

“Beep, here are the top five things to do in your

kiwi milkshake please.”

area.”

“Of course, your take-away will arrive in 30

“Headset, call Mars-O-Taxies.”

minutes.”

“Calling Mars-O-Taxies.”

“Beep, call ended.”

In the distance, I hear the familiar sound of a

volcano blowing off.

human made food and making food is a very

“Hello, Mars-O-Taxies costumer service how

treasured art. In fact, only 2,000 people on the

may I help?”

planet of earth know how to make food.

“Hi, can I get a taxi to collect me from Volcano

Valley?”

horrendously loud boom shatters the tranquil

“Sure, it will be here in 1 O minutes.”

peace and nanoseconds later, I hear the screams

“Beep, call ended.”

of despaired tourists charging to the nearest

taxy landing bay. A volcano explosion had

I start to walk to the nearest taxi landing

3D printed food is now more popular than

“BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!” Suddenly, a

bay when yet another explosion takes place.

shattered the protective glass that surrounded

People think this place is dangerous but every

it. At that moment, my taxi lands. I hurl myself

volcano is surrounded by reinforced glass. I am

in screaming at the A.I. o take me to Redville,

starving hungry so I decide to get a take-away.

my hometown. My taxi hovers a meter above

the ground. As we start to fly a mob of people

There is no McDonalds on Mars and

I really miss their chicken mayo sandwich.

catapult up and cling for dear life to the under

Instead, though, there is Lava foods. Lava

carriage ...

Radio 2’s 50 Words Shor 0 Competitio t Story n

Lower 1 pup il made it thro , Leonie, u the second gh to round of Radio 2’s 50 Words Shor 0 tS Competitio tory n with the following e ntry.

Who’s the Mummy?

by Leonie Russell (Form Lower 1) Yesterday, I went to the Natural History Museum on a

in London, England. And I’m not your slave; I’m

school trip. I stood in the colossal doorway, gazing at

Daisy and I’m on a school trip to see the body of the

the towering ceilings, never-ending pillars and grand

infamous Tutankhamun, Pharoah of Egypt – and here

staircases. The main attraction was actually to see the

you are!”

real mummy of Tutankhamun. What really happened,

The figure suddenly sat down on the platform he had

I would never have believed in a million years.

lain in for so long.

We entered a small room, surrounded by glass cabinets

“Well I’m afraid you’re going to be rather disappointed.

with artefacts and a glass case at the centre which

You see, I’m not the real Pharoah. I was a slave.

contained a Mummy. I listened to the hushed “Wows!”

My name is Rhaoul. I thought if I pretended to be

of my classmates as they took in the incredible array of

Tutankhamun they would send me into the afterlife

ornaments and jewellery – golds and silvers and blues

and I could live like a real Pharoah and be respected

and reds shimmered under the spotlights. We were

like no other.”

awestruck.

I took a moment to digest this revelation. What would

Suddenly there was an ear-splitting crack and the glass

the Historians make of it?

surrounding the Pharoah shattered, spraying a million

“So do you mean your body got switched with the

needle-sharp shards around the room. People ran.

real Tutankhamun in the tomb?” I finally blurted out,

People screamed. People tripped.

hardly believing that this could be true.

Compelled to stay but terrified of my fate, I hid behind

My companion hung his head and simply nodded.

a tall stone pillar, paralyzed. Peeping out from my

After a long pause, I said:

hiding spot, to my astonishment the figure began to

“I don’t blame you. I would have done the same in

move, slowly raising its torso.

your position. The life of a slave must have been

“What year is it…?” began a strange, fatigued voice.

incredibly awful!”

“Who-who are you?” I questioned.

“Oh my child, you have no idea…” he murmured.

“Tell me young soul, what year is it?” he responded,

I had a feeling that behind the death mask he still

sitting up. “Um... it’s 1980 AD” I muttered.

wore, there were tears wetting his bandaged cheeks. I

“1980 AD? So I’ve been in this tomb for nearly five-

resisted the sudden urge to reach out and hug him, for

thousand years? Is this the afterlife? Are you here to

fear of unravelling him in more ways than one.

serve me?”

“I tell you what Rhaoul” I said brightly. “Let’s go to the

“I’m sorry sir, I think you’ve made a mistake – this

museum café and you can tell me all about it over a

isn’t the afterlife, this is the Natural History Museum

nice cup of tea…”

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ACADEMIC: DT

Edition no.206

Form 1 Keyboard Games

5

1

Pupils designed and created an electronic keyboard using dye-sublimation techniques.

They assembled a circuit board requiring them to learn soldering and circuit board construction.

3

2 6

7 4 8 1 Watermelon

3 Reaction Game

5 Empire

7 Iron Man

2 Hair Blue

4 Brain

6 Mole

8 Whack

- Jack Britten-Knaggs - Ayanfe Akingba

- Zach Derry

- Sammy Kaczmar

- Hugo Howlett - Cameron Kane

- Andy Ma

- Sebastian Jacklin

Edition no.206

Form 2 Desk Tidies & USB Holders Pupils created desk tidies, promoting wildlife and sustainability. They generated concepts and developed them into physical products using workshop machinery. They also developed their CAD/CAM skills by using CREO to design their USB stick holders for these to be 3D printed.

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ACADEMIC: DT

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11

9 10

12 13

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9 Lion-based desk tidy - Alfie Clarkson

10 Bear-based desk tidy - Eleanor Hart

11 Jaguar-based desk tidy - Elis Rubins-Thomas

12 Elephant-based desk tidy - Nathaniel Orchard

13 Whale-based desk tidy - Evie Holder

14 Guitar USB Holder - Francesca Shapero

15 Airplane USB Holder - Oliver Marr

GCSE Electronics

Wireless alarm clock with silent vibration strap - Owen Amende

Workshop locking and climate control system - Joshua Everett

Bicycle rear sonar car distance detector and alarm - Ivan Nagornyi

Dog catch water gun and laser entertainment system - Alex Brown

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ACADEMIC: DT

GCSE Product Design Waste bin - Tom Czarnota

Dog kennel with planter and sliding top – Ben Slade

Portable tray for the elderly - Alex McNulty

Champagne holder – Harry Watts

Electronic sieve - Amy Riddlesdell

Assistive aid for stairs - Sophie Jacques

Illuminated stepping stone for a garden path - Tom O’Donovan

Upcycled table - Paul Augustine-Ohwo

Can opener and holder - Wilby Toothill

Plant shelves for kids with blackboard - Holly Styles

Night light - Spike Marlow

Mug holder - Thomas Walters

MP3 Speaker and bedside light - Jess Sheldon

Edition no.206

ACADEMIC: DT

A-level and Form 6 Product Design

Mini lighting project - Eliza Skinner

Mini lighting project - Ella Warwick

Rotating USB charging dock - Robin Ruan

IB Diploma Product Design

Plant and essential oil, mood lighting - Sofie Mallare

Portable backstroke starting block for beginners - Joshua Gibbons

Easy access and pull-up aid desk - Annabel Bailey

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ACADEMIC: ART

Edition no.206

Lower School Art Working on newly devised MYP projects, the Lower School artists encountered a broad range of medium and techniques.Â

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5

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1 Mathew Smith 2 Phoebe Hopper 3 Riya Hirani

4 Arseniy Liminov 5 Evie Holder 6 Lysander Starkey

7 Sophie Cartwright

Form 3 Art The Form 3 Art projects are planned around the three main disciplines that pupils can study at GCSE level, with an exciting range of approaches to give them the chance to make ambitious work.Â

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1 Felicia Fan 2 Matilda D’Arcy 3 Imogen Barton 4 Stella Nicholas 5 Martha Hoyles 6 Scarlett Walters

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ACADEMIC: ART

Edition no.206

GCSE Art The GCSE students developed diverse, personal work playing with materials and ideas demonstrating talent and commitment. After the completion of their GCSEs, large numbers of students have continued the study of Art or Critical and Contextual Studies (CCS) at A-level and Pre-U.Â

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1 Olivia Brown 2 Tiffany Lewis 3 Daisy Healey 4 Floriane Kloyer 5 Charlie Borrill 6 Finn Cummins 7 Sophie Sutton

8 Chloe Howard 9 Emily Oakley 10 Maisy Shand 11 Alfie Borrill 12 Sophia Hallam 13 Arabella Wood-Collins 14 Ralph Cordi-Piec

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ACADEMIC: ART

Edition no.206

Pre-U Art This was an exceptionally talented year group who created ambitious work across the three disciplines of Painting, Sculpture and Textiles. A large number of students have gone to taken on an Art-related course at university, pursuing their passion for the subject.

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ACADEMIC: ART

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1 Alice Jaques 2 Varvara Tebieva 3 Marcie Armstrong 4 Angelina Zhu 5 Gabe Tufail-Smith 6 Hattie Joseland 7 Beth Leadley

8 William Jacklin 9 Caro Denman 10 Amelie Hill 11 Freddie Marlow 12 Josh Tarimo 13 Giovanna Camm

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ACADEMIC: ART

Critical and Contextual Studies The A-level Critical and Contextual Studies course allows students to explore art through research, curation, analysis and experimentation. It is a lovely balance between practical skills responding to artworks and devising exhibitions, and analytical skills to study the History of Art. A key strand of the course is to build a confidence in looking at artworks and analysing their formal qualities and potential meanings, as well as researching the context in which they sit. However, the course also helps the students to consider how work is shown, how the Art market works and reflect on why certain artworks are given prominence. Through devising exhibitions the students develop themes, decide on what artworks to show and how to display them. They devise the surrounding written material, plan publicity, a public programme and develop ideas for educational resources.

The departing Form 7 students who studied CCS have produced some outstanding work this year. Their understanding about how art is seen and understood is particularly important and they have had the chance to explore an area of the Arts in which they are particularly interested. In Form 7 they have devised exhibitions looking at Bauhaus performance, Neo Expressionist painters, the use of text in art, protest art of the 60s, forgotten female Surrealist painters, the influence of Edward Hopper on film makers, and the stories of individuals during WW11. The majority of the students are going off to study an art-related course at University and they have been supported to do this through the opportunity CCS presents.

Among other things, students plan to study History of Art, Anthropology, Film, Animation, Drama and Fine Art at University. Written by Elinor Brass

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3 Alice Jacques 4 Kitty McNeill

5 Ruben Scott 6 Millie Greenless

7 Millie Greenless

Academic Highlights 2019 - 2020

Filmmaker and award-winning author Matt Dickinson spoke to Lower School pupils about climbing Everest, film-making and glaciers

As part of events to mark the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, pupils created their own Berlin Wall to graffiti

56 pupils won certificates in the UKMT 2020 Intermediate Maths Challenge

Celebrated children’s author Frank Cottrell-Boyce visited the School to help celebrate 25 Years of the Smallbone Library

Form 7 student Joshua and Form 5 pupils Archie and Alex won first, second and third place respectively in the Otterbox Design competition

Professor David Webb from Staffordshire University addressed Upper School Philosophy students on the subject of climate change

Oakham was shortlisted for the ‘Strategic education initiative of the year’ in the Tes Independent School Awards

Giles Brook, CEO of Vita Coco, gave a fascinating talk to Business students on how to build a challenger brand

Oakham’s innovative Academic Cornerstone Course (ACC) was launched and delivered for pupils in Forms 5 and 7

Oakham’s dazzling Main School Production of Chicago

Performing Arts

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PERFORMING ARTS: MUSIC

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Music Oakham has enjoyed another memorable year of music-making, but who could have guessed back in September 2019 that the vitality of live performance would give way to a new performance genre - the virtual concert – by the end of the year? The commitment and adaptability of pupils and staff in recent months has been quite remarkable.

Winter Term The Winter Term always contrasts smaller scale performances and professional concerts before half-term with a raft of major Chapel concerts as we head into November and December.

Tim Garland’s remarkable Weather Walker Trio visited to give the first professional concert of the year, with the group also leading an energetic workshop on improvisational skills that afternoon. Three inspiring music staff – Anne Bolt (Head of Piano), Martin Cropper (Head of Strings) & Richard Jenkinson (Teacher of Cello) – also returned to give another of their wonderful piano trio recitals, performing music by Haydn, Shostakovich, and Brahms, for which they were joined by OO and viola teacher James Douglas (11). In between these events, an Informal Chamber Music Recital in Old Hall offered a platform for collaborative music-making by our pupils.

The Autumn Concert (Friday 8 November) always sees the Chapel pews packed for the first major performance of the year. It is apt that the whole of Form 1 made their debut vocal performance on this occasion, ably led by our energetic new Assistant Director of Music, Mr David Williams. The Concert Band set the scene with Ravel’s Boléro before performing an enjoyable medley of music from The Greatest Showman. The

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Chamber Choir was in fine voice as they contrasted English music by Purcell and Britten (the challenging Hymn to St Cecilia) before their entertaining performance of ‘Sit down, you’re rocking the boat’ from Guys & Dolls featuring the solo singing of Will Jacklin. The Symphony Orchestra took over the concert platform in the second half, offering talented Form 7 Music Scholar Emilia Hubbard a solo platform in Bellini’s Oboe Concerto, as well as entertaining the audience with vivacious music by Rossini and Malcolm Arnold. Emilia is to be congratulated on winning a scholarship to study at RWCMD from September 2020.

Later that month, audiences enjoyed a wide range of music at Ensembles in Concert (Friday 15 November) and Lower School Live in Concert (Friday 29 November). In the former, we enjoyed film music from the Wind Band and modern pop hits sung by Polyphonix, as well as stylish concerto performances by the Chamber Orchestra, featuring Findlay Marsh in a movement of J C Bach’s Cello Concerto in C minor and J S Bach’s complete Concerto for two violins, featuring pupil violinists Lucy Collison, Natasha Erdmann, Maya Mbogo and Emily Yoo. Our popular Big Band offered an entertaining sequence of music to complete the programme. The Lower School musicians excelled in their first concert of the academic year, with seven different ensembles/choirs and 10 promising piano, string and woodwind soloists demonstrating the high standard of ambitious music-making achieved by our youngest musicians. Just before our carol service season commenced in the final days of term, two senior Music Scholars – Freddie Buchanan trumpet and Bethany Davis soprano – gave excellent solo Vivaldi performances of the Double Trumpet Concerto and Nulla in mundo pax sincera in the Oakham Choral Society Concert (Saturday 7 December).

Our lunchtime recital series is a constant through the year, with our annual series in All Saints’ Church inaugurated by the Director of Music every September. We enjoyed a host of exceptional solo and ensemble performances, with leading brass, drum, organ, piano, string, vocal and woodwind soloists. Smaller ensembles featured at regular intervals too, including the Dring Trio (flute, oboe and piano), the Form 3 Music Award Holders’ Ensemble, the première of a piano trio by OO composer Danny Saleeb (04), and the Guitar Ensemble, and the Chamber Choir gave a moving performance of Lenten music in March.

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PERFORMING ARTS: MUSIC

Autumn Concert 2019

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Spring and Summer Terms The Spring Term is regularly one of the busiest in the music calendar. As always, two major competitions for our singers and pianists took place. On Sunday 2 February, the annual Singing Competition trialled a new theme (songs from theatrical productions), with distinguished visiting adjudicators Rosie Ashe and Martin Ball enjoying wide-ranging music from opera to musical theatre. Particular congratulations to our three major prize winners: Overall Winner – Grace Muris Overall Runner-Up – Zsolti Johnson Most Promising Young Singer – Evie Holder We were also privileged to welcome renowned pianist, Charles Owen, to Oakham on Thursday 27 February to give both a solo piano masterclass and adjudicate at our annual Piano Duet Competition. This was once again a wonderful celebration of musical partnership, and congratulations go to all the participants and the class winners: Lower Grades – Charlotte Byron & Emily Hall Intermediate Grades – Findlay Marsh & Will McEuen Higher Grades – Bethany Davis & Samantha Hughes

Some of the many pupils from across the School who performed in the Autumn Concert.

The Chamber Choir made their annual musical pilgrimage to London to perform by invitation at the Brandenburg Choral Festival in January. In front of a packed audience in St Stephen Walbrook, Bank, they performed an ambitious programme of music by Purcell and Britten, alongside Kodály’s wonderful Missa Brevis.

Back in Oakham, another three major Chapel concerts offered a concert platform to many of our major ensembles. ‘Orchestral ABC’ (Friday 7 February) featured Albinoni’s Adagio (organ soloist, Ben Kelly), Britten’s Simple Symphony (performed by the Chamber Orchestra), and two wonderful works by Copland from the Symphony Orchestra: the popular ‘Hoe-Down’ from Rodeo, and the wonderful ballet score Appalachian Spring. The Chamber Orchestra also squeezed in some bonus Vivaldi, with their second double violin concerto of the year featuring soloists Natasha Erdmann, Daisy Griffiths, Evie Holder and Carson Wong.

Our Lower School musicians raised the roof of the Chapel just before the start of half-term on Friday 14 February with a concert packed full of variety – ranging from all Form 2 pupils performing in percussion ensembles (West African drumming and Samba), six soloists (guitar, piano, trumpet, violin and voice), and eight different ensembles, including the debut of our new Cambiata Voices group for boys with changing voices.

Further musical variety came in ‘Friday Night is Music Night’ (Friday 6 March), when the programme opened with a new selection of film and TV music from the Wind Band, and pop covers from Polyphonix. Our singing and piano duet competition winners had a further opportunity to perform, before the Concert Band offered us a celebration of music from Bernstein’s West Side Story as well as van der Roost’s showpiece, Flashing Winds.

The Big Band was on fine form in the second half, with tight ensemble playing and a number of featured soloists – singers Greg Brunt, Fabia McAlindon, Grace Muris and Issy Wass, and saxophonist Grace Britten-Knaggs.

The final musical chapter of the Spring Term was sadly not to be due to growing social restrictions and the onset of lockdown.

The Oakham Choral Society’s Beethoven celebration concert, a professional concert by vocal group SANSARA, and most notably, the Gala Concert in Oxford’s Sheldonian Theatre were all unable to go ahead. Our thanks must go to the hard-working Chapel Choir and soloists William Collison and Grace Muris

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who were due to perform Mozart’s Requiem in Oxford, and to concerto soloists Jessica Carr and Rupert Fell who missed out on performing major concertos with the orchestra. Many singers in the Chapel Choir contributed to a virtual recording of You raise me up for the final online Chapel Service of term, which was a sign of things to come…

Informal concert experiences are some of the most valuable that we can offer our developing pupil musicians, and 12 of these occurred at regular intervals throughout the past year. They took on a new guise in the Summer Term, switching online to Teams, when it was a particular treat to share in performances from the pupils’ own homes at a time when live music-making in front of any sort of audience was quite uncommon.

And so to a Summer Term of virtual music-making, distance learning, online concerts – and lots of video editing! Our weekly virtual Chapel Services kept music at their heart, featuring choral recordings from the past months and the opportunity to sing along with hymns at home. Our lunchtime recital series moved online, and particular thanks go to the 16 performers who filmed new performances to go online (including some original compositions), all of which can still be viewed at: https://bit.ly/oakhammusic Despite the restrictions, we did manage to maintain two significant musical showcases in June. On Friday 5 June, we premiered a Virtual Leavers’ Concert, with hundreds of viewers enjoying excellent and moving performances from Form 7 pupils Freddie Buchanan, William Collison, Laura Crowley, Holly Frostwick, Becky Han, Emilia Hubbard, Will Jacklin, Clare Maitland, Grace Muris, Phoebe Ryder and Gabe Tufail Smith, all recorded in their own homes.

For our End of Year Virtual Concert on Friday 19 June, we celebrated recorded highlights from live performances from the first two terms, featuring the Big Band, Chamber Choir, Concert Band and Symphony Orchestra. Pupils in the Lower School Choir and Chapel Choir recorded themselves in their own homes, allowing us to put together new virtual recordings of pieces for this concert which also featured in the Lower School Prize Giving and the Virtual Leavers’ Service. Most uniquely, four pupil compositions received world premières in brand new virtual recordings: Matthew Everall’s self-performed song; Emilia Hubbard’s woodwind quartet recorded by her fellow orchestral principals; Becky Han’s piano variations on the Wusuli Boat Song; and Freddie Buchanan’s pictorial brass composition depicting the voyage of the Mayflower. A remarkable way to end a remarkable term.

Congratulations to all our musicians and staff for an unforgettable year of Oakham music!

Written by Peter Davis (Director of Music)

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PERFORMING ARTS: DRAMA

Drama Head to Head

The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter Imagine that you are entering the hallowed hall that hosted the School’s first lessons and plays. You then move further in through a narrow and possibly forbidding opening between two walls and find yourself in a chamber – a bedroom - well call it that because it houses two beds, in parallel with a space between and it is decorated in spartan fashion. On the far wall a Dumb Waiter and speaking tube. Audiences are seated on single rows facing each other more or less in the midst of the action and the actors are already in place.

So the evening’s performance began – a cool chill to the almost gloomy lighting and Tom's Gus began the proceedings with antics that surely echoed the boot-play of Beckett’s Estragon in that other Absurdist landmark, Waiting for Godot .

We are next introduced to Ben and such is his preoccupation with a newspaper that we, along with Gus, feel uncomfortable about disturbing him. Indeed Zsolti’s portrayal of the “senior partner” in this unholy alliance of work colleagues who are linked by their mysterious and nefarious purpose – an assassination – but of whom and for why which is accepted by them (and presumably must be by us) as being irrelevant – is truly disturbing. Gus seems almost “normal” in comparison until, that is, we stop to consider why he keeps a box of matches and a packet of cigarettes in his shoes – both empty of course – otherwise they would not have fitted… and so it goes…

We sit back – more or less comfortably – not knowing whether to laugh out loud at the naturalistic-sounding knockabout dialogue which is almost – but not quite – what one might expect to hear in “real life” but which incongruities somehow manage to unnerve and amuse us – but best not to look closely into why.

We are never sitting comfortably as an audience especially when our two “heroes” are joined by the third character in the title role – the dumb waiter itself – which assumes the role of a diabolus ex Machina. The sound effects are becoming unnerving – we have already had to cope with toilets not flushing and then flushing by themselves and by the time Ben gives Gus his final instructions we are literally unprepared for anything.

Great performances from actors mature beyond their years – and of Pinter’s mysterious and satisfying little gem of a play; long may it find an audience. Written by Roland de Vil

Star Turns

Oakham’s Drama Scholars shine in The Cripple of Inishmaan Once again, the Drama Scholars were challenged to perform another exciting piece of contemporary Irish Theatre that recalls the triumph of By the Bog of Cats. Author Martin McDonagh has forged his own take on the placing of a small community under the microscope and whilst few, if any, characters escape unscathed, we are treated to that absurd humour that the Irish specialise in, to name Flan O’Brian and even Samuel Beckett as practitioners.

The players more than met the challenge to play older characters with their alien natures and with a consistent accent. Everyone performed with integrity and created their various characters with a mature degree of dramatic truth.

Highlights included the Johnnypateenmike of Kitty – who pulled off this eccentric oldish biddy who, despite an array of physical ticks and rambling ramblings, gave some kind of sense to her inexplicable utterances – what a shift from her Queen of last year and I doubt a seasoned professional could have done better in either role. The “Cripple” of Sam was pathetic in the very best of ways, and Mammy (an even older biddy) was wonderfully created by Charlotte and again in such contrast to her previous role of Maggie Thatcher. Alas, these starring performances sound the swan-song for these three practitioners who have graced this stage for their entire School career and shall be sorely missed.

Yet, hot on their heels come our new season of Thespians and sharing alternate roles Lizzy and Clarissa bore the burden with skill and aplomb of the main protagonists Kate/Helen. Sofia was quietly effective as Eileen, Callum portrayed the dark and smouldering and eventually explosive Babbybobby, and Caleb effectively reinvented both Bartley and the Doctor each with distinct idiosyncrasies and voice. Director Gilly Norell is a dab hand at conjuring remarkable performances from our “best of the best” and as last year in Handbagged, we were witness to performances that youngsters had no right to be able to perform.

This run was disappointingly foreshortened, as the last night had to be cancelled due to lockdown, but I am sure that the delighted audience look forward to the time when the QET wakes from the dark to once again produce the wonderful theatre – and laughter and tears – that we have become used to – it can’t come soon enough. Written by Roland de Vil

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Elementary, my dear Watson!

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tantalising masterpiece, adapted

by Steven Canny and John Nicholson for Peepolykus, was retold with more than a little comic spin by this small cast of Middle School actors.

Whether it was Zsolti’s outstanding portrayal of the clumsiness and staggering stupidity that is John Watson or the mastermind himself, Sherlock Holmes – expertly performed with more than a modicum of drôle humour by Monty – we were bound to go on a crazy adventure, but also to have a good laugh.

The story took us to Holmes and Watson’s humble abode where Mortimer (the Baskervilles’ country Doctor) – skilfully presented by Annalise (who also later appeared as a Yokel) – recounted the ghastly legend of the Hound of the Baskervilles. Upon hearing that Sir Charles Baskerville – masterfully played by Sidonie – was wanting to return to his family home, Watson and Holmes sprang into action to aid him. Along the way, we met spectacularly comical characters like a Cabbie, a Yokel,

Barrymore and Mrs Barrymore (Baskervilles’ retainers) – all flawlessly, and humorously, depicted by Hannah.

Deserted by Holmes, Watson tries painstakingly to wrap his head around the mystery, whilst Sir Charles finds himself falling deeply in love with Cecile – played effectively by Rosie (who also plays Cecile’s ‘brother’ Stapleton). The narrative starts to unfold and increasing suspicion is (correctly) placed on Stapleton. And just when it seems the plot is about to be resolved, the whole first act is performed again, in a whirlwind of lost props and wrong cues. Act Two reaches its inevitable climax – the Hound gets Sir Charles, Sir Charles gets Cecile, and Stapleton gets his comeup-pance – and Holmes and Watson get each other.

This play was simply entertainment at its highest and teaches everyone a valuable lesson: never go wandering about on the moor (or into Old School) alone at night… unless armed with a sense of humour.

Written by Simon H. Jones

We were bound to go on a crazy adventure, but also to have a good laugh.

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Chicago the Musical based on the play by Maurine Dallas Watkins It’s a proper, full-blown media circus. Set in jazz-era Chicago, chorus girl Roxie Hart (the entertaining Kitty) murders her pointless lover Fred Casely (Will) and in the ensuing court case, she is defended by slick lawyer Billy Flynn (the excellent Theo) who juggles her case with the defence of nightclub personality Velma Kelly (the incredible Lizzie). It becomes a cat fight for crime-celebrity status revolving around – as the silky-voiced MC (Caleb) put it – “adultery, treachery and violence”.

From his very first lines, I knew I was going to like it, even though I knew I didn’t like musicals. Beginning with ‘All That Jazz’ through to a finale sung to the mass release of glittery paper falling from the ceiling, this production of the classic musical of musicals was wall-to-wall fun.

The interjections in German by Hunyak (Lisa) were a clever touch, as was the delightful cameo performance of Mary Sunshine by Lara, and Sam’s portrayal of the abused husband Amos was both highly charged and genuinely tear-jerking. It was also wall-to-wall quality. An entire thesaurus of theatre critic-cliché superlatives would be needed to describe Lizzie’s performance as Velma Kelly: ‘a five star performance’, ‘a must see theatre event’, ‘masterful and unflinching’. Lizzie never faltered in her impossibly demanding role despite occasionally panting for air in the minuscule gaps between songs, the roaring twenties costumes entirely encompassed by her persona. In fact, all the sparkling costumes were magnificent, as were the non-sparkling gentlemen’s outfits of the actors which looked like they had been purloined from the wardrobes of longstanding male teaching staff. The exquisitely executed choreography (by Kim Robinson) of both the boy chorus and female ensemble matched the perfect timing of the band under the watchful eye of the MD David Williams, whose joyful miming and understated baton waving were projected from the pit onto the back wall of the QET for the actors to see and the audience to admire.

It really was an incredible show, and I was converted on the spot. Apart from the spectacle, the indulgence, and the fascination of this Oakham School production of Chicago, there was the emotion, and the pride evoked from watching and listening to these pupils-by-day and actors-by-night – just how do these young people do it?

And last, but by no mean least, I must acknowledge the role of the Director, the animateur par excellence - thank you to Director Gilly Norell who put this magnificent production together, and for a wonderful evening’s entertainment.

Written by the Hon. Rupert ‘Squiffy’ (and Roland de Vil)

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An entire thesaurus of theatre critic-cliché superlatives would be needed to describe Lizzie’s performance as Velma Kelly: ‘a five star performance’, ‘a must see theatre event’, ‘masterful and unflinching’.

To see more photographs of our productions, please visit our drama gallery on our website

Trips & Tours

Form 6 Geographers conducting field work on the North Yorkshire Coast

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Kenyan Adventure In February half-term a group of Form 6 pupils travelled to Africa to support primary schools in rural Kenya. They helped improve classroom conditions and also tried their hand at a bit of teaching...

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We spent the last year raising money through bake sales, auctions and also personal fundraising, all for the much anticipated 2020 trip to Kenya. In the upcoming weeks, we planned lessons, packed t-shirts and gathered our resources for the big day.

The trip commenced with an early departure at 3am, heading off to Heathrow Airport. We arrived in Nairobi after a long day flight and eventually reached the Wildebeest Eco Camp. Early the next day we then set off to Lake Naivasha, stopping at a little local market and seeing some amazing landscape views on our journey. There was huge excitement in the anticipation of meeting the students at Sher Moi and Longonot DEB primary schools, where we would spend the next few days working to refurbish and rebuild parts of the decaying schools. We were greeted by hundreds of smiling, cheering children giving us high fives and fist bumps as we walked past and introduced ourselves. Spirits were high and the happiness on the children’s faces was inspiring. The children performed traditional dances and songs, full of enthusiasm, and some of us even got invited up to dance! Soon after we went on a boat safari where we saw giraffes, monkeys and even hippos – it was incredible!

The next day we were up early to start work. We spent the next four days sanding and varnishing desks, cleaning, painting and repairing parts of the crumbling classrooms. The work was tough at times, especially working in the beaming sun and tiring heat, but we all kept going, encouraging one another

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throughout the busy days. On the last day at the school, we worked in small groups to teach a day of lessons to classes of up to 60 enthusiastic and extremely excited children! This was such a thrilling experience and also made us realise how hard teaching can be…! Following the morning of lessons, we were rewarded with a traditional Kenyan meal cooked by some of the schoolteachers. A special rendition of “Shine Jesus Shine” was performed by both groups before we said our final, tearful goodbyes to the wonderful, smiley children. Meeting these children, whose lives could not be more different than ours, was an eye-opening, emotional experience - one which will never be forgotten by us all.

Our last two days of the trip were spent back in the Wildebeest Camp in Nairobi. We went on a game drive safari, to an elephant orphanage and some of us even kissed a giraffe at the giraffe sanctuary! On top of this, we spent an afternoon at a local market where we attempted to haggle and negotiate prices with the vendors, buying jewellery, paintings and other hand-crafted souvenirs.

The trip was the experience of a lifetime! The lifestyle, culture and cuisine were so different from ours – it was incredible to be immersed into this unique way of living. This was a week that will never be forgotten by any of us and is highly recommended for those who wish to experience a fascinating, awe-inspiring trip!

Written by Gina Tyler and Callum Wass (Form 6)

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A visit to the Paul Smith Head Office Upon our arrival at the Paul Smith Head Office just outside of Covent Garden we were kindly greeted by the staff, then Sir Paul Smith surprised us by just appearing. He accompanied us up the four sets of stairs adorned with original artworks and cards to his “penthouse”, the working hub of the building.

The building consists of four floors with around 180 staff members, divided into departments ranging from accessory design, footwear, print, knitwear, social media, menswear, womenswear and even an in-house team of architects. Sir Paul Smith emphasised that one of the things that makes Paul Smith such an enticing brand is the way that they differ their shopping experiences to draw people into the store.

This has been made possible by his in-house architect team.

His “penthouse” or “toy room” (as he called it) is filled from floor to ceiling with every inch of wall plastered with quirky objects, from dinosaurs to spinning tops; close to everything in the room has been sent in by his own fans which he sees as an extremely “humbling” experience. At this point we were able to have an insight into Sir Paul Smith and it was clear that although his success in the fashion industry is huge and he is considered an icon by many, including myself, he is a mind bogglingly humble and genuine person.

Sir Paul Smith explained that the design process for every collection starts an entire year or two years in advance, around the table in the “toy room” from an idea whether it be from a book or object around them or, as was the case with the most recent line, Sir Paul Smith’s most recent travels to Chile in March. His father brought him into the world of photography when he bought him a camera at the age of 11 that had a view finder. He feels that this is what taught him to always look and consider the composition or image as if looking through a viewfinder. He explained that “The hardest thing is turning ideas into reality.”

Sir Paul credits his success in the fashion industry to his wife, Pauline, and her own love for fine couture. This has led him to have a drive to fulfil the best quality but “what does good quality mean?” He feels that it could be explained as 22 stitches to the inch or pearl buttons instead of plastic, this is why he focuses on “beautiful quality” especially with his Paul Smith label.

Sir Paul Smith’s world is, to say the least, hectic as he travels nearly every week, recently travelling to Tokyo, LA and Rome in 6 days with a 36 hour Wednesday. The career of a designer or someone that has studied fashion design is an extremely tough one but there is a plethora of other related jobs such as social media, marketing, buyers, visual merchandising, window dresser, etc.

Sir Paul spoke a lot about the beginning of his career, which is close to his heart as he is about to showcase the 50th anniversary of his first show. We were surprised to see that his first shop manager (Homer his Afghan hound) will be a focus for this show, as well as his iconic stripes and retro prints.

“Every day is a new beginning” was one of his original quotes and it is still at the forefront of his outlook today. This was something we could all take from him.

We would like to thank Sir Paul and his staff for their hospitality. This was a truly inspirational visit. Everybody we spoke to made a real effort to answer all our questions, nothing was too much trouble. On behalf of my Pre-U Textiles group I would like to say a huge thank you to all involved and a special thank you to Sir Paul Smith who has made me (and many of the group) realise that this is the career direction I wish to follow.

Written by Josh Tarimo (Form 7)

Although his success in the fashion industry is huge - he is mind bogglingly humble

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Students shine at MUN Conference Oakham pupils attended a very successful MUN debating conference at Cheadle Hulme School in October 2019, where they defended the interests of Chile and Equatorial Guinea.

They skilfully debated contemporary global issues, from conflicts in Yemen and Kashmir to nuclear waste, climate crisis and the eradication of Polio. The students catapulted themselves early on into contention for wider recognition and were highly visible at holding the superpowers of the world to their commitments by in-depth scrutiny.

The conference was attended by 350 students from other leading day and boarding schools across the UK.

Upper School Spanish Immersion Trip to Mallorca This year’s Form 7 Spanish Immersion trip returned to Mallorca during October half-term. Pupils studying for their A-level, IB Higher, Standard and Ab Initio courses spent a fabulous week on the beautiful island of Mallorca immersing themselves in the language and culture of the largest of Las Islas Baleares. Staying with host families meant that our Oakhamians had the opportunity to experience local life and have the chance to build new friendships crossing language barriers. A variety of fun, challenging activities awaited our linguists, from exploring the stunning island, to playing the local game of padel, travelling on the oldest train in Mallorca, visiting a biscuit factory, glass blowing, visiting the cathedral in Palma amongst just a few. All in all, the pupils had an amazing time and returned confident and enthusiastic about their Spanish and all wanting to return to Mallorca as soon as possible!

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Cities of Culture During February half-term, a group of pupils from Forms 4 and 5 travelled to Berlin and Krakow, to explore the fascinating historical and cultural sights those cities have to offer.

Zoë Chidlow (Form 5) reports on this moving and inspiring trip.

Our first stop was Potsdam, Brandenburg, where we toured the town and enjoyed the stunning interior of the New Palace, which was built by Frederick II to celebrate Prussia’s success in 1769.

We then went to Wannsee Haus, which was the building where the Nazis met and planned the extermination of 11 million Jews in ‘The Final Solution’ (concentration camps) during the Second World War. Once we had eaten our lunch in the picturesque gardens of Wannsee Haus, we visited the Olympiapark that was originally built for the Summer 1936 Olympics. Since then it has hosted many matches for big tournaments such as the 1974 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup. After a short break, we took the U-Bahn to the monumental Reichstag Dome where it was fascinating to see Berlin from the inside!

To kick off our second full day, we visited the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, which was one of the first camps in the Second World War. Those held in Sachsenhausen were persecuted either because of their religious or political views, not forgetting the millions of disabled people who were also killed there.

Walking where many of those people were forced to go; to be fed sparingly, treated harshly and ultimately be killed was haunting.

We then had some free time in Alexander Platz discovering some of the city of Berlin.

We moved on to the Jewish museum, which represents the uncertainty that Jews felt in that time of the Second World War. The building’s architecture was designed by Daniel Libeskind, who did a fantastic job in my opinion. There were many thought-provoking exhibitions and installations, which put you into their shoes.

Then it was time to travel through the night to Krakow. After a nine-hour coach journey full of singing and very little sleep, we arrived at our hotel, checked in and tried to get some sleep for the next day ahead. But there was no wasting time, so after breakfast we went to the Schindler factory.

Schindler (a high-up businessman) used his connections to keep the Jewish people living relatively safe by convincing the German authorities that they were crucial for his work as they were highly skilled. Yes, they may have been highly

skilled, but they were mainly there to keep them safe. This was a fascinating tour of a building, which commemorates the actions of a great person in a time of such misery.

Over lunch we spent some free time in one of Krakow’s many beautiful squares, which meant that we could experience the town of Krakow and eat some delicious food.

The group then had the privilege of meeting a holocaust survivor. Listening to her speak in her native language and to see the emotion on her face whilst recounting the stories during that time was an experience to remember.

That evening, we ate a delicious meal served by the hotel and went bowling, which was a fun, light-hearted activity before the intense trip planned for the next day. At 6:30am the next morning, a group of sleepy teenagers all met to visit the memorial of Auschwitz first-hand. It was an amazing yet powerful experience to see a place that we all learn about in the classroom, films and books. The scale of the camp was unbelievable. To think how many people entered those gates and didn’t make it out again proved to us all how real those facts really are. The first-hand experience of walking around the camp will stay with all of us forever.

After the quiet bus journey back into the centre of Krakow, we had some free time in the old square. There were traditional markets and an array of shops for us to buy some final souvenirs before our journey home. To finish the trip with a bang, on the final evening, we ate at a classic Polish restaurant that had professional Polish Dancers. Everyone loved participating or watching the dancing and it left us all in good spirits ready for our journey home.

Overall, the trip was amazing; both the historical monuments that we had the privilege to visit and the culture that we experienced. I would highly recommend the trip and would like to thank all the staff who made it possible.

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The entrance gates to Auschwitz Concentration Camp

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’Fallen Leaves’ in the Memory Void, in the Jewish Museum

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Deep Dive A group of students and staff – both learner divers and ‘old hands’ – travelled to Mexico last October half-term to enjoy an unforgettable underwater experience. They spent a week diving in the area around Cancun and, despite a tropical storm halfway through the experience, the group managed to fit in a mix of dives, including deep dives, open water dives and drift dives. The crystal clear water and fantastic lighting ensured the divers were able to explore a wealth of attractive reefs and interesting marine life, including sharks.

Highlights were the dive at Cozumel, during which the group got great views of turtles, sharks, giant crabs and lobsters, and the trips to different cenotes. On one of these trips the group got to explore a ship wreck, which was lying on the sea bed at 30 metres. Trip organiser, Steve Gorman said of the experience: “The wreck was completely covered in hard and soft corals as well as shoals of fish. As we passed the stern, we saw the largest eel I think I have ever seen, stretched out! A table top sized turtle gave an appearance, swimming through the group and passing over the wreck at a good speed before disappearing into the blue.”

On another occasion, the divers explored some incredible underwater caverns at the Taj Mahal Cenotes. As Steve observed: “The newly qualified divers enjoyed the atmospheric feeling of entering the caverns. They certainly coped well and came up smiling looking forward to the next. These cave systems are huge and offer some great experiences. The second dive at the Taj was one of the most interesting cenotes I have dived. The lighting, stalagmites and stalactites were incredible.”

Everyone made great progress with their diving skills over the course of the week and improved their underwater skills or gained new qualifications ranging from open water diver, enriched air diver or advanced diver.

Trips & Tours Highlights 2019 - 2020 Form 3 Battlefields Trip

Form 6 Visit to Mini Form 6 Geography Field Trip to North Yorkshire Form 1 Trip to Lincoln Lower 1 Sleepover at the Natural History Museum

Form 5 Citizenship Trip to Houses of Parliament

Form 2 visit the German Christmas Markets

Middle and Upper School Ski Trip to La Plagne

Form 5 Religion Trip to Ely and Cambridge

DT and Geography Trip to Bologna

Form 1 Learning Camp

Peterborough House celebrating a win in the interhouse rugby

Community

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Ancaster Lower School Girls House

This has been a very exciting and eventful year for Ancaster, with new Lower Ones, Form 1s and two new lovely members of Form 2. September feels like it was years ago, as everyone in House slipped into Ancaster life so quickly and easily and theold Form 1 girls rose to become the leaders of House and set a good example for the younger pupils.

The year started with interhouse cross country, and although we did not take the trophy home this time, every Ancaster girl put her best foot forward and tried their hardest and we still had fun and got to know all the new pupils in Lower School.

For the second ever interhouse singing competition the Ancaster girls worked very hard to take home the trophy after our win last year, this time singing ‘Yesterday’ by The Beatles. We won the girls trophy with special thanks to the talented solo singers that we have in House. This reflected the enthusiasm in House for all things musical and creative. Lunchtime is filled with the piano being played and girls practising for Choir and Cantamus and a few latest hits! The girls love to show off their talent in end of term concerts with their amazing music and singing.

In the Winter Term interhouse hockey consisted of very close matches and for the U13 teams it had to go down to sudden death. Lincoln won in the last minute but we had tried our hardest on the cold winter afternoon as did the U12s. Next came interhouse netball and unfortunately we were missing a few of our best members of the A team and we were put at a disadvantage. Even though we lost, it was an enjoyable event and a lovely way to end the Spring Term.

Form 1 Lincoln and Ancaster girls enjoyed a fun movie night watching Aladdin, eating lots of Domino’s pizza and singing along to the brilliant new movie! We also had our house social in the Winter Term, getting crafty by making dreamcatchers, decorating mugs, creating wraps and making delicious ice cream sundaes with the help from our amazing tutors and gap students.

The girls of Ancaster never stop striving to be the best, so congratulations to every girl who got a Scholarship or Exhibition, took part in the Piano Duet Competition and the Singing Competition, especially to Eloise Snape who came a close runner up and Issy Youlle who was highly commended.

In Ancaster we try our best to give back to the community as often as possible.

In lockdown we raised nearly £9,000 by doing the Fab 4 Challenge and being sponsored by our families and friends. The money raised went to the charities Rainbows Hospice and LIV Village. Earlier in the year we had our Ancaster annual Children in Need Bake Sale which always puts a smile on everyone’s face and is always very popular amongst the other Houses! Ancaster and Lincoln also hosted a Macmillan Coffee Morning for the parents which was lovely as usual and included lots of leftover cake for the girls!

At Christmas time every year we try to donate as many shoe boxes filled with presents as possible to poorer countries to try and make a child’s Christmas better. In our buddy groups we managed to exceed the number of boxes we sent last year!

The Coronavirus has been a big obstacle, but nothing will stop the Ancaster girls! With the amazing resources that we have here at Oakham School we have been able to have lessons and communicate with House easily. Everybody in House has remained in happy spirits during lockdown by keeping in touch, supporting each other, having fun activities and our favourite - pets in Roll Call! Written

by Halldis Stone, Laura Roberts & Scarlett Blackman (Form 2)

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Lincoln

Lower School Girls House Highlights of the Winter Term included wins in the Interhouse Cross Country and Interhouse Hockey Competitions in both the U12 and U13 competitions.

Lincoln really got into the spirit of fundraising for charities such as Children in Need and Rutland Food Bank. The charity bake sale jointly held with Ancaster raised £500 and was a great success. Thank you to the parents and girls who gave up their time and effort to raise money for a great cause.

Activities included making happy jars for each other (for times when we all need cheering up!), Roll Call wake-up dances, decorating the Christmas tree with a personalised bauble from each girl and Secret Santas handed out by old Lincolnettes. In the Harvest Festival Display Competition, we created a potato head family of our Lincolnettes, and were awarded with first place for our efforts.

In the Spring Term we raised funds for the environment during our countywide Wear Green Non-uniform Day, in support of the National Forest: three Lincolnettes in particular (Leonie Russell, Hannah Cox and Sasha German) travelled to Derbyshire to help with the tree planting schemes.

It was also great to see so many girls representing the School at the U12 County Hockey Championships, as well as at Cross Country events throughout the term. We also enjoyed a win over Ancaster at the end of term Interhouse Netball Competition in both U12 and U13 age groups.

Lots of Commendations were given to girls in House and Mrs Northcott and the tutor team kindly bought us doughnuts and chocolate as a little treat!

We have seen many Lincoln girls share their musical talents in the regular concerts that have taken place, and also in the annual Piano Duet Competition. Still on the music theme with a difference, we had a brilliant 70s disco as our Lincoln House social evening – run

by Mr (DJ) Holder. The House was lit up by colourful lights and we all wore 70s-style, neon clothing!

A final surprise that we were treated to at the end of term (by Mrs Cox and Mrs Gilman) was a visit from a number of Easter adorable lambs! They certainly melted our hearts and was an amazing gift to us before lockdown.

The Summer Term flew by and even though we were learning online, we kept our connections with friends and Lincoln going in various ways, such as completing weekly challenges set by the Head of House and Mrs Northcott’s half-term challenge to make a happy jar for a member of our family.

Later on in the term we had the Interhouse Strava Competition. At the end of a full hard week of exercise, Lottie Lissaman did the longest amount of exercise with just over 20 hours that week! Lincoln also finished in 3rd place out of the 16 Houses at Oakham; we were the top Girls House with the distance covered and time spent exercising.

The Fab 4 Challenge over half-term was inspiring and we were justifiably immensely proud of the final sum raised of nearly £9,000 to go to LIV Children's Village and Rainbows Hospice.

Our Roll Calls were certainly a highlight over the term; they were fun, energising and certainly got all our Lincolnettes on track to tackle the day ahead. Mrs Northcott even used one of her Roll Call pens as a multi coloured microphone and sang to the House, as well as play the recorder! We had birthday beach themed roll calls, balloons, lots of bunting, and the girls played, sang or performed to the rest of the House.

It was a weird experience leaving Lincoln House in our own homes, but Mrs Northcott still managed to find a perfect way to say goodbye with an online slideshow of our memories as a Lincolnette. Lincoln truly is the best house ever! The tutors have been amazing, they are always there to talk to if you’re feeling down or unsure. Mrs Newman, our Day Matron, has got us through thick and thin with smiles, medicine, fruit and biscuits, and we’ve had such a laugh with our great gap year student, Miss Campbell.

Mrs Northcott has been incredible – she has dealt with some challenging and surprising circumstances, but has always kept a bright, infectious smile upon her face. Written by Liv Sutton, Evie Holder & Bea Selkirk (Form 2)

Our Roll Calls were certainly a highlight and got all our Lincolnettes on track to tackle the day ahead.

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Peterborough Lower School Boys House

This year In PH has been great fun. We are a good team and despite all of the hard work undertaken, we have had lots of fun and laughter along the way! Some of the most memorable moments have been the House competitions and House outings.

One of the first outings was going to Gravity in Corby. Most people attended and had lots of fun; it was a great way for everyone in the House to get to know each other better. Interhouse rugby was played in the Winter Term and despite our determination to do well, both the U13s and U11s lost to Sargants. However, the U12s won their match. The cross country competition was a great day.

Everyone ran to the best of their ability and in the end the combined Lincoln and Peterborough House (Lincolnborough) won overall on points.

Mr Fairweather arranged the annual Pheb Pheast in the Spring Term, which is a House and tutor outing. We went to The Admiral Hornblower and had a meal there. Another House competition was House singing. We had won the boys competition last year, so there was a lot of pressure on us to win again, however, that didn’t matter. The song ‘Let it be’ by The Beatles was chosen by the whole House. The whole House practised (sometimes very loudly) and after all the hard work and effort we came out as overall winners in the Lower School! The last House competition we had was House hockey. Again this was a great day and despite all the Form 2 teams winning in the first half, Sargants came back and won overall. International feast day was a great success. Peterborough House along with Sargants had food from many different countries. Also the teachers arranged a pub style quiz for us. This was very competitive and one of the PH teams won!

Although we were in lockdown in the Summer Term, PH took part in many challenges, including the Easter challenges, the Fab 4 Charity Challenge and the off-screen days. In all of these challenges we were set activities to complete both inside and outside, for example building an obstacle course or making a sculpture.

As we Second Formers move to Middle School, I would like to end by saying that over the last few years in PH we have played Ping Pong, Pool, Chess and eaten many doughnuts as rewards!

Our time in PH has been a great experience and a great starting block for my time at Oakham.

Written by Harry Gilman (Form 2)

Our time in PH has been a great experience and a great starting block for my time at Oakham.

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Sargants Lower School Boys House

The Winter Term started off with a great big bang: a new pupil BBQ, Form 1 Camp, House breakfast with Mr Wills as our guest speaker, and an all-round first class House outing to Rumble Live Action Gaming; all wonderful events the boys will remember fondly.

To end off the half-term we had the Interhouse Cross Country Competition, where all the boys put in their best efforts, showing great determination and perseverance in their races.

Top individual performances were from: • Form 1 - 1st Huw Gamble, 2nd Roman Persona, 3rd Oscar Lewis • Form 2 – 2nd Ernie Jackson, 3rd Eddie Ricketts Sargants won the Form 1 and Form 2 competitions, retaining the overall boys trophy. After a tiring afternoon of running, the two boys Houses joined together and enjoyed a fun international feast filled with awesome activities and delicious food from around the globe.

We were superbly represented in House musically: from fine individual musicians such as Jack Britten-Knaggs, George Marshall, and Sebastian Maxted, but also in the ensembles. A particular highlight was the Lower School Live Concert in November. I must not fail to mention our House Rock Band; they have now performed twice, bringing the house down at our Lower School Christmas party.

In the interhouse rugby, the boys showed tremendous spirit. We played 3 matches and won 2. Players of the Matches were: U12B Alfie Cripps, U12A Toby Roberts, U13 XV Edward Davey.

In the Spring Term, my personal highlight was the Interhouse Singing Competition where the boys gave a brilliant heart-warming rendition of the Beatles classic ‘Ticket to Ride’ – my tutors and I were very proud of the boys.

The boys might not have won, but our House motto very much came into play here: “We never lose, we either win or we learn”... I feel the boys learned so much from this experience.

The boys also enjoyed a last-minute Interhouse Hockey Tournament, where the U13A boys did learn, making a great comeback – 2-1 down at half-time, but after a Churchillian half-time team talk, they came back to win 5-2! Sargants won the overall trophy 3-1 in games played.

I mustn’t fail to mention our House Swimming Team, where almost every boy represented in the pool, be it with some gentle persuasion… great performances from Toby Roberts, Zach Derry, Owen Nutter, Oliver Williamson, Archie Jelly, Fin Griffin, Max Clarke, Matty Laubscher, Elliot Murray, Oliver Wilson, Abisola Erewa and Adam Desira.

Despite being in lockdown, the Summer Term saw continued House spirit with superb charity efforts from the boys as they raised money for LIV Village and Rainbow’s Hospice through their efforts in the Fab 4 Charity Challenge.

The weekly House fitness Challenges and House Strava Club recorded some great sporting achievements The boys also performed a magnificent LaughOutLockdown video to ‘Sweet Caroline’ that featured some surprise guest appearances.

Written by Ashley Denman

My personal highlight was the Interhouse Singing Competition.

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Barrow

Middle School Boys House Despite 2020 being a difficult year for everyone, Barrow still managed to make the most of the packed terms beforehand.

Barrow had some fantastic House outings; the whole House trip to Rumble Live Action Gaming in the Winter Term was definitely a highlight and it was a great opportunity for everyone in the House to come together and compete against each other and was a great House bonding activity.

The annual Form 6 Valentine’s Day Poker Night with Hambleton proved to be popular once again; everyone enjoyed learning how to play poker almost as much as eating the pizza!

As a post-mock celebration, Form 5 visited the Escape Rooms in Peterborough.

Form 4 had an outing to Wagamama and the new Third Formers accompanied their tutors to watch the school play.

Barrow also had a strong year academically: Henry Tandy, Joe Cooper, Nathan Booth and Caleb Ighofose won the Middle and Senior Interhouse Debating Competition, with a very tense final between Barrow and Round House. The junior team of Ethan Taylor, Aashish Reddy, Ansh Verma and Johnny Hall came a close second, just losing to Haywoods in the final. Furthermore, Eddie Marshall, Ansh Verma, Zsolti Johnson and Ethan Taylor made up the entire School’s team in the National Chemistry Challenge and did extremely well whilst there, missing out on the top spot by only a few points.

As always, Barrow has also had a really strong year in the theatre. Max Wilson and Caleb Ighofose both starred in the production of Chicago, a classic American musical about corruption in the administration of criminal justice. It had excellent reviews from all and was a tremendous success. Somehow Zsolti Johnson managed to squeeze himself into no less than three plays this year as well. When it came to the theatre Barrow did not just limit itself to the stage; Freddie Collins was involved in the lighting for both productions.

Barrow has always prided itself on its sporting ability, exemplified by the number of people in first teams this year. In Form 6 Jed Gelderbloom played in the 1st team for rugby, Rory Gilchrist for football, Andrew Jones for hockey, Archie Baker for sailing, Adam Chidlow for shooting and Will Chandler for golf. In Form 4, Max Wilson represented the 1st team for squash.

Barrow also performed very well in the pool. We won the Interhouse Swimming Competition and a special mention has to be made to William Hunt, Adam Drew, Ben Nutter and Ansh Verma, as well as all those that volunteered to take part. Adam Drew also competed in the county championships, coming 1st in the 50m Butterfly.

Barrow also had four boys participate in the Kenya Trip, during February half-term: Nathan Booth, Caleb Ighofose, Archie Baker and Vlad Rangelov, went to Kenya, having done several fundraising events throughout the year to help out a primary school with new classrooms and equipment.

Even lockdown did not stopped Barrovians from doing House events. The newly introduced Lockdown Cup encouraged boys to get outside and record their exercise, competing against squads; it was a fun way to encourage people to stay fit during lockdown whilst also adding in a bit of competition which had been dearly missed in the absence of House sport.

Barrow’s Virtual Speech Day at the end of term highlighted all of Barrow’s achievements throughout the year and was a great opportunity to reflect upon the unusual circumstances by celebrating the varied talents, efforts and soft skills that make up such a varied yet happy group of young men.

Mr Favill would like to thank the Barrow Form 6 who move on to Form 7 for their support throughout the challenging year. Some of them ensured they were available on Teams every single break time during the Summer Term, which showed a level of commitment to the House that was replicated by the patience and hard work of all boys in the challenging period of lockdown. Well done to all Barrovians; you all deserve praise!

Written by Archie Baker (Form 6)

Edition no.206

Buchanans Middle School Girls House The Winter and Spring Terms did not disappoint this year, remaining as eventful as ever for the girls of Buchanans. Our family welcomed new girls into every year group; so to welcome them, we organised a whole House social consisting of a BBQ and some games organised by the Prefects on the Saturday and team building on the Sunday of the first weekend; a great chance for everyone to get to know each other. This was the start of many socials to come over just the first term. The girls do love engaging in socials, getting the chance to have heads away from books and time spent with new and old friends from Buchanans House and across the boarding community. These socials ranged from Form 6 Cheese and Wine, cinema trips, roller-skating for Forms 3 and 4, bowling, bonfire night and ending the term with Christmas shopping and ice skating in Cambridge.

A Winter Term wouldn’t be complete without Service Weekend! I was so proud with the way the girls threw themselves into it, as let’s be honest, it can, at times be the last thing you want to do, but inevitably ends up being something you are so glad you did do! Across the weekend, girls from Buchanans engaging in activities ranging from CCF training in the Lake District, DofE training expeditions from Bronze all the way to Gold; walking to Sailing and Voluntary Action and helping in the local community in Oakham.

As mentioned earlier, the Winter Term was capped off with the annual Christmas Dinner, shared with Haywoods. As always it was a lovely evening, highlighted with some hysterical skits from each year. The girls also took part in filling Christmas hampers for the Rutland Foodbank, and also collected presents within House families, donating them to Rutland Present Appeal.

The Spring Term began in the same way as usual, with Form 5 taking their GCSE mock examinations and the rest of us going straight back into the thick of lessons! Although the term was shorter, it remained packed with a huge range of experiences for the girls to get stuck into. Forms 3 and 4 took part in a number of safari suppers with Haywoods and Chapmans. Forms 4 and 6 also took part in an escape room afternoon; Mrs Latham joined in for this one! Form 6 were invited to a Burns Night celebration; the night involved some traditional activities such as addressing the Haggis, and reeling, which allowed the more co-ordinated of the year group to show off! The evening was thoroughly enjoyable.

Forms 5 and 6 were fortunate enough to listen to former Northamptonshire bowler, Patrick

Foster’s eye-opening experiences with gambling addiction.

A brilliant guest night speaker.

Interhouse competitions were set with many girls signed up for the opportunity to represent the House.

Unfortunately, only the netball went ahead, however, the girls still performed admirably.

Over the last two terms there have been many individual successes: Milly Bairstow in the U16 Netball team placing 3rd at Regionals and also playing in the Loughborough Lightning U15 Academy, Emily Yoo performed in a wonderful lunchtime concert, Rosabel Figgis, Rose Cassidy, Maya Lam and Cynthia Lu all performed superbly in many concerts throughout the year with the Concert Band and I am sure there are many more that I have missed but are worthy of a huge well done and thank you!

The ending to the Spring Term was not how anyone could have imagined but we look back on what we did together with fondness and smiles and certainly look forward to returning for what undoubtedly will be another great year in Buchanans.

Written by Flo Wilkinson (Form 6)

Although the term was shorter, it remained packed with a huge range of experiences

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Chapmans Middle School Boys House

This year in School may have been cut short, but that doesn’t mean Chapmans didn’t pack as much action as usual. At the start of September, along with our new Third and Sixth Formers, we welcomed Mr Sandys and Mr Messenger, our two new Resident Tutors. They have managed to face every challenge that we have thrown at them, and they have become amazing additions to Chapmans.

September also brought the first meeting of the Chapmans book club set up by Toby Morrison, in which they were reading The Fall by Albert Camus. The group has proved to be a great success, allowing pupils from all year groups to discuss a wide variety of authors and genres, and will no doubt be a lasting part of Chapmans.

The Winter Term was busy for all students in Chapmans: Henry Joule, Danny O’Reagan and Jacob Cusick were part of the Rugby 1st XV and represented the School spectacularly; and in the Upper School Debating Competition, Mark Lever, Alex Millgate, Toby Morrison and I managed to climb all the way up to the finals before losing a close debate against Barrow.

Luckily in House it was not all work and no play: our weekends were filled with cinema trips, paintballing and socials. But of course, the highlight of the Winter Term has to be the Christmas Dinner with skits made by Form 6, songs sung by Form 4 and a nativity play put on by Form 3. Truly a night to remember.

In January, feeling refreshed after the holiday break, the House was launched right back into work and activities. Form 6 were treated to the excitement of Burns Night with a dinner and traditional dances in the Barraclough with the other Houses.

The Spring Term was also full of competition between the Houses. Forms 5 and 6 gave their all in senior water polo, and Form 3 came second in interhouse swimming. Of course, our biggest victory was the Interhouse Singing Competition, in which Chapmans won the best boys House with ‘Shotgun’ by George Ezra, featuring an exceptional solo by Dan Kelly.

March featured a daunting event for everyone in Chapmans: Screen free day. The event is a wonderful day for students and tutors in House alike. Without the distractions of their screens, chess, pool and table tennis became even more popular than usual, setting a precedent for the rest of the term. Overall, we managed to raise £613 for KICOSHEP, an organization that provides essential equipment and facilities for schools in the Slums of Kibera, Nairobi.

I think I speak for everyone in House when I say that we were sad to see the year at School end so quickly. It left us in the Summer Term without all the events that keep Chapmans full of energy and a sense of community. While we didn’t get Sports Day or our annual Speech Day picnic in the Chapmans garden, it was amazing to see how we all kept in touch during our online learning. Discussion groups and photography competitions were set up in the Chapmans Teams group and for the School’s Laugh-out-Lockdown programme, the entire House put together a Lip-sync video to ‘Wonderwall’

by Oasis.

Even though I will be in School House next year, I can’t wait to see what September holds for Chapmans. Written by Matthew Nagel (Form 6)

The highlight of the Winter Term has to be the Christmas Dinner with skits made by Form 6

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Clipsham Middle School Boys House

Despite the unprecedented challenges created by Covid-19 this academic year, Clipsham House has still been incredibly busy. With the arrival of many new members in Forms 3, 4 and 6, the House has been strengthened both in talent and integrity. Consequently, Clipshamites have managed to collect achievements both individually and collectively that somehow seem to surpass those of previous years.

As ever, Clipsham has been an imposing force in Oakham sport. Early on in the year, a brilliant turnout in the often feared Interhouse Cross Country portrayed the willingness from the boys to represent the House no matter the circumstances. Moreover, some superb performances there promised a year of triumphs ahead.

Clipshamites were ample in the School’s top rugby teams with four boys making appearances in the prestigious 1st team. This talent was translated to an overall victory in the Interhouse Rugby Competition.

Arguably, the heroes in this win were Form 4 whose A team (including George Bland, Julius Timmermans and Elliot Powell) got to the semi-finals of the national NatWest Cup. As well as on the field, Clipsham were unstoppable in the pool. Despite the boarding house crowds, the senior water polo team crushed the opposition on their way to the title. Extraordinarily, many members were part of the team that won the junior competition two years ago, meaning they will finish with an astounding record of 10 games and 10 wins. Clipsham also won Junior Interhouse Swimming thanks to a superb performance from Harry Riley.

However, the same could not be said about the senior team because many members were unavailable due to clashing football matches. Indeed, the absence of Clipshamites in football fixtures would have been devastating for Oakham – the skill in the House saw surely a record-breaking six boys making regular 1st team appearances.

The world of performing arts at Oakham was also rife with blue ties.

Musically, many boys have played in bands and concerts such as the splendid Autumn Term Concert and public lunchtime concerts. Special mention has to go out to Archie Foster, Josh Davis and Finn Simpson who appeared in countless musical events. Clipsham is also producing some accomplished young actors: Maxim El-Sheikh and Freddie Gwinnett were due to perform in A Comedy of Errors and Prefect Callum Wass thrilled in The Cripple of Inishmaan. This particular Scholars’ Production actually provided the entertainment for a social where Callum shone with the additional support.

There were, once again, a multitude of socials and House events this year to bring enjoyable breaks from the hustle of school life. The list of highlights seems endless including a delicious outing for Forms 3 and 5 to Nando’s, a formal evening for Form 6 with Gunthorpe at the local pub, a gratifying afternoon of footgolf for Form 4 and a tremendous trip to Bounce for the whole House. Of course, these could not have been possible without the efforts of Mr Dixon-Dale, Mr Latham and the Prefects, who’ve been ever present in helping the House. They played an integral part in hosting a memorable Christmas Dinner with Wilfie Price presenting a humorous speech and on top of that, they’ve been exceptional role models epitomised by Noah Mason running a marathon to support the YoungMinds Charity.

Overall, Clipsham’s successes go far beyond T-Ticks and Optima: the boys have prevailed in national design competitions and regional sports, persevered in D of E and CCF and even endured the age of social distancing. Unfortunately though, we now wave goodbye to Mr Dixon-Dale as Housemaster and whilst it may not be the perfect ending due to Covid-19, it’s fair to say that his support over the past four years has enabled Clipsham to prosper, and for that, everyone in Clipsham is profoundly grateful. Written by Ryan Smalley (Form 6)

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Gunthorpe Middle School Girls House

This year in Gunthorpe started with a warm welcome to our newest members who had moved from the Lower School into Form 3 and from various other schools into Form 6. They have been a great addition to the House and settled in very quickly. I have thoroughly enjoyed being Head of Gunthorpe House. Thanks to the brilliant team of Prefects, we have been able to help the wonderful Mrs Dunbavand and Mrs Gibbons run the House. Our help was especially needed to decorate the Barraclough for the Christmas Dinner which was ‘masquerade ball’ themed. We all had so much fun doing this, and I think everyone really enjoyed their evening.

Everyone’s House spirit has really been a credit to Gunthorpe, whether it is taking part in House events with face paint on, or supporting from the sidelines, also with face paint on. We did extremely well in the senior hockey and netball competition, winning both.

I would also like to mention interhouse debating where we also did very well, especially with the juniors who got through to the semifinals, so thank you to everyone who took part and supported.

There are so many amazing things to look back on as a House. We have done ice skating in Cambridge, taken part in the School fun run, had breakfast in House cooked by Mrs Dunbavand, and had a pink party to raise money for Breast Cancer Care. On the theme of raising money, we had a Bake Sale to raise money for the Anna’s Hope charity, which was very successful and raised around £700, so well done to everyone who baked and brought something in. There were also five girls in Form 6 who went on the Kenya trip along with other members of the School and Mrs Dunbavand as well, to help renovate a school there. They had raised money prior to their trip, for example by having a doughnut sale and individually raising a certain amount of money. They represented Oakham very well on the trip and did something amazing to help the lives of others.

At the end of the Spring Term we were going to do a House concert, however sadly, the School had to close. I know that everyone was really excited about the Summer Term at Oakham as there is so much to look forward to, such as Speech Day, tennis or athletics and Sports Day. Having online lessons made us all appreciate being at Oakham in person with our friends. It was such a challenging time, but we all got through it and will definitely not take our time at Oakham for granted. Form 6 are certainly going to miss coming into Gunthorpe six days of the week.

We have always felt so comfortable and at home here but now we are ready for a change, to move into Round House.

Thank you for everything, Gunthorpe. Written by Olivia Gregory (Form 6)

Everyone’s

House spirit has really been a credit to Gunthorpe

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Hambleton Middle School Girls House

As with any school year, this one in terms of a busy schedule was no exception. The girls in Hambleton have worked hard all year round to achieve the goals they have in mind, and along the way have taken part in many House activities and events with an exuberance that is matched by little else (except for interhouse competitions).

The first event of the year was the House Concert in which many of our musicians performed exceptionally well for an audience of parents and other House members in order to raise money for a selected charity. This has quickly become an annual event and I foresee it becoming a tradition, as everyone who came had a great time in a friendly atmosphere listening to the talented players who stepped forward for the occasion.

Many of you will be unsurprised to hear that Hambleton’s next charity event was a Children in Need Bake Sale – either because you yourself bought one of our lovely cakes, you helped provide cakes for the event or because you were asked for money by someone else so that they could enjoy a cake or two. We raised over an astonishing £1,000 in our Children in Need Bake Sale, so thank you to all for your contribution and efforts.

Travelling further into the winter months, celebrations were almost upon us, however a shopping trip was in order to prepare for the festivities (buying presents for our Secret Santa, of course). The Cambridge outing was cold but full of cheer and after roaming the streets we went to the outdoor ice rink to enjoy some skating. All of us left with rosy cheeks and smiles on our faces.

The last event of the Winter Term is always the Christmas dinner – and the cooks did not disappoint. Every year skits are written by year groups and performed for the entire House – this was definitely a time of merriment and everyone finished the year on a high.

The beginning of 2020 carried on from this, as we began the Spring Term with the Charity film night. Much like the House bake sale, the girls are always down for more fundraising for our favourite charities. The girls enjoyed a fun night together, as we gathered in the common room to watch The Hustle. This was a good opportunity to connect with the other girls in different year groups, who we might not interact with all the time.

The next major event to take place in House was the Form 3 sleepover, where the Prefects organised a haunted tour around the House. The night was a lot of fun, including lots of games and movie watching. It was enjoyable to set up the event, and the lower years are looking forward to the time when they can organise it when they reach Form 6.

A Poker Night was also arranged for Form 6 pupils in Barrow and Hambleton which was very entertaining as it was a learning experience for most, who had never played it before.

The last event we partook in as a House was a cosy breakfast in the main common which helped take the girls’ minds off any academic stress, as we started the day off together sharing a variety of filling food and coffee provided by the generous Barraclough.

Although we have not been physically present all together in School during the Summer Term, the Hambleton family has more than maintained its camaraderie virtually. Mrs Healey has rallied us round, onwards and upwards each morning through the medium of Teams, with notices delivered and encouragement given. Dare it be said… engagement in Chapel and Congo has been virtually at an all-time high! We finished on a high, proud of our House, our perseverance through difficult times and our resilience.

We cannot wait to be back together in September. Written

by Helena Blewett and Grace Britten-Knaggs (Form 6)

We raised over an astonishing £1,000 in our Children in Need Bake Sale

Edition no.206

Haywoods Middle School Boys House Form 3 can look back on an amazing year. We have had socials with other Houses, such as Chapmans and Rushebrookes, along with events with the whole year group doing many different and interesting things. We also went out for a tutor meal with our tutor groups before watching Chicago, which was an amazing performance. We have also gone out on trips over the weekend to different places. One weekend we went paintballing which was a lot of fun, another weekend we went for a walk around Rutland Water and we have also gone and cooked by the waterside which was a nice way to spend the day. Haywoods have also participated in many interhouse sport competitions such as basketball and water polo which are great to watch because there is an incredible atmosphere as the games are being played. Written by Haywoods Form 3 This year has been immense. Even though the year ended prematurely, we still managed to do many exciting things as a House, and year group. These included safari suppers and lovely tutor meals with our tutor groups and watching many amazing plays as a year. Near the start of the year, Forms 3 and 4 participated in the Interhouse Debating Competition, where our team was a very strong one consisting of Obi Osuji, Felix Pinder, Matthew Chan and Lucas Lueng. The team put many hours into this competition and it paid off, with Haywoods winning the final against Barrow. We always tried to play with spirit no matter what position we are in, dead last or first place. I always admire how Haywoods always play with such grace in defeat and how we always give it our all no matter the circumstances. Written by Haywoods Form 4 My Form 5 year in Haywoods has been great. Early in the year, we had our year group skit which we performed to the rest of the House and had a good time doing it as we celebrated after Christmas dinner. Also, throughout the course of the year we went for a few meals including year group socials and tutor outings which was nice because we had time to relax, socialise and take our minds off the Mock exams for a bit as they were very hectic. This year, as usual, we joined forces with Form 6 for interhouse sports and had great success. We won rugby and performed well in the other competitions, but this would have not been possible without the camaraderie and the House spirit shown by the rest of the Haywoods boys to spur on the boys performing – not only when it is time to perform but all across the curriculum at School, making it an honour to play for the Green Tie. Written by Haywoods Form 5

The year saw much success for Haywoods, not only in House events but on a pastoral level as well. For my fourth year in Haywoods, all 62 of the boys were, once again, polite, presentable and approachable, which is typical of the boys who wear green.

My personal highlights were the successes seen in the Senior Interhouse Rugby Competition, where the Haywoods boys saw off every other House, winning the competition comfortably. Haywoods were not only dominant on the pitch but off the pitch with huge support coming from the rest of the House as they cheered from the sidelines.

The year kicked off with a bang with trips such as paintballing and a BBQ at Rutland Water which, in my opinion, really bonded the boys together, encouraging strong camaraderie between all year groups.

In typical Haywoods fashion Form 3 had a seamless integration into the House and events such as the water polo (with Haywoods having the largest turnout) showing them what the House has to offer. It was no surprise that when House singing rocked around, the boys put in a good effort and did the House proud. Despite the current circumstances, the boys remain close with year group discussions every morning clearly reflecting how close the boys are.

As I leave Haywoods, I am in full confidence that the up and coming Fifth Formers will carry on the strong example set by Form 6, showing continuation of what I saw when I first joined the House: a passion to drive Haywoods forward. Written by Edward Sutcliffe (Form 6)

Edition no.206

Rushebrookes Middle School Girls House

It feels funny looking back on the last two terms in Rushebrookes knowing that we will not be getting back together at the start of the Summer Term. Way back in September the new Third Formers settled into House life very quickly and Form 4 battled it out in a highly competitive House ‘Come Dine with Me’.

In the Winter Term Rushebrookes took part in many interhouse events including house hockey, basketball and debating. The team for the senior debating consisted of four girls: Sara, Melanie, Lally and Libby, who did brilliantly having to debate issues that varied from organ donation to the sugar tax. Nearly all the girls got involved in interhouse hockey including some who had never played before! The junior team won, which was an amazing result.

The Prefects planned many House Family events for House time. An example of this was at Christmas, wrapping a member of your house family up as a present! It was certainly memorable to watch the ‘presents’ trying to twirl around without ripping the wrapping paper.

We finished the Winter Term by celebrating with the Christmas dinner.

This year the Prefects decided on the theme of gold and decorated the Small Barraclough with gold streamers and gold foiled chocolates on the table.

Afterwards we all went back for the muchanticipated year group skits. It was particularly funny to watch Form 3 doing a rewritten rendition of the song ‘Last Christmas’.

Then came the Spring Term with the Interhouse Singing Competition.

We were allocated ‘Valerie’ as our song. The arrangement of this and our rehearsals were fantastically organised by the music reps, Lisa and Camilla.

There was a great solo from Lizzie and some smaller groups from the choir did some brilliant harmonies. The judge commented that we had the “best collective House sound” which for us was as good as winning! This year everyone has been amazing at taking part in all the interhouse competitions working together as a House – always with smiles on our faces. The successes along the way have just been a bonus.

The final event of the Spring Term was the Easter Egg Hunt. This was a nice thing to do together as a House before having to end the term early. All the eggs were found in the end with Bella finding the string for the largest egg and everyone else getting at least one creme egg. We are also very proud that two girls in Rushebrookes, Becca and Tilly, were selected for the England hockey squads for their respective age groups.

In a very new and strange House Roll Call, Rushebrookes began the Summer Term with each girl joining in either from home or, for some, a hotel in quarantine. We have missed our friends but have done our best to help each other through with the many individual chats, the telling of tales of disastrous baking or heroic cycling. There have been House quizzes, tutor group meetings and year group Tuesdays to help give us a bit of a sense of being together. We are proud that Issy, Becca and Sacha are on the Decem and we are all looking forward to being together again. Form 6 will wave goodbye to Rushebrookes but we will be back to visit Mrs Robinson and new baby Clara at the end of the summer. Written by Issy Wass (Form 6)

Everyone

has been amazing at taking part in all the interhouse competitions working together as a House

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COMMUNITY: MIDDLE SCHOOL HOUSES

Edition no.206

Stevens

Middle School Girls House This year, as we all know, has been a very different year to normal.

However, despite the Coronavirus madness, we have survived the crazy times in true Stevens House spirit!

The year kicked off with the annual BBQ, a chance to meet the new girls, chatting, giggling and excitement for the year ahead.

The first few weeks are, as always, hectic, with socials, events and preparations for the future. This was followed by interhouse hockey. Both teams played exceptionally well, coming out with deserved results. The term raced by, with hard work and determination underpinning all that was done and achieved by the girls.

The Christmas Dinner is always the highlight of the Winter Term, buzzing with excitement as the decorations are made, the food prepared, the colourful and beautiful dresses bought. The yearly awards were presented, skits were performed, and Christmas songs were sung. This marked the end of the first, busy term in Stevens.

The return in early January commenced with preparations for House Singing.

With mock exams, tests and work, the term was off to a speedy start after the lazy, chilly Christmas festivities. Despite the Stevens team for House Singing being rather low on numbers, we sang with confidence and determination, showing the School what we’re made of!

After half-term, a competitive game of interhouse netball took place. Undeterred by the cold and windy weather, both teams played with energy and intensity. Planning and preparations for Stevens’ own House concert began, with singing duets, poems, year group performances and dances in progress.

Everything was ready, and then … Coronavirus! The concert was cancelled days before the big show. The talent will have to wait until next year! Just before the end of term, a competitive and eager Easter Egg Hunt took place; the garden was covered with hidden chocolates to be hunted down and fighting to be done for the few giant chocolate prizes to be won!

Then came lockdown. A term of online lessons, socials, tutorials and assemblies began. Despite being at home, far away from School, we all still felt like we were part of the Stevens community.

Enthusiasm and determination flourish throughout Stevens.

Each and every girl played her part to help and to look out for one another, to make the most of the unfamiliar and unprecedented days, weeks, months that lay ahead.

New traditions created, competitive games played, hobbies and skills unveiled … lockdown wasn’t all that bad. In particular, the choosing of an uplifting song daily became a new and popular addition to Stevens life. The friendly and familiar atmosphere thrived throughout the Summer Term.

The term ended on a great high, with a Virtual House Assembly, where prizes were awarded, achievements were announced, and individuals were commended. What a year it’s been … one that will most certainly never be forgotten! Well done to all the girls for their hard work, enthusiasm, determination and not least, smiles, for what has been another wonderful yet weird and different year in Stevens. Written

by Georgina Tyler (Form 6)

Edition no.206

Wharflands Middle School Boys House

As always, the start of the Winter Term was one full of anticipation as the new Third and Sixth Formers got used to sporting the infamous purple tie and the old boys continued to wear it proudly. This year was a big one for the House as we introduced not one, but two new Resident Tutors: Mr Clamp and Mr Bett. These were both great additions to the House, offering different characters to our already outstanding group of staff in and around the House. The lads really set the tone and within the first few days the new boys had adapted and integrated into life in Wharflands perfectly.

Sport is a key aspect of Wharflands; it’s an area we certainly pride ourselves on and this year was no exception. In rugby Oliver Walls stood alone as the only Wharflander in the 1st XV, a great achievement in his first year at the School. However, the Wharflands boys occupied a majority of the 2nd and 3rd teams with many knocking on the 1st team door in Form 7. Also, Form 4 deserve a lot of credit as they made it to the semi-final of the NatWest Cup with nine Wharflands boys in the squad. The boys also found great success in the interhouse rugby competition, finishing 2nd; only narrowly missing out to a frankly brilliant Haywoods team.

Some of the most notable moments of the term were House Singing and the annual Christmas dinner. Beginning with the singing (if you want to call it that), we performed ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ by Toploader.

It consisted of two brilliant solos by Rupert Fell and Matt Everall, but they were sadly let down by the singing ability of the rest of us. However, it was a brilliant and entertaining evening as always. Christmas Dinner was a highlight of the year as the Prefects put on a great night full of wonderful food, good company and a well-produced House video to conclude the night.

We returned in January rejuvenated and ready for the term ahead. This saw the beginning of the hockey season in which five Wharflands boys played in the 1st XI, who impressively reached the quarter-final of the National Tier 1 cup. This led to a win in the interhouse hockey competition for the seniors. Overall, this was an extremely successful term for all the boys in House which was tragically cut short by Covid-19.

I want to wish Mr and Mrs Cure a farewell from the House as their wonderful reign over Wharflands has come to the end; they really have made the House into what it is today and hopefully what it will continue to be in the future.

Also, we wish all the best to Mr Dixon-Dale in his new position as Housemaster.

I’ll finish with some inspiring words from Trefon Vandoros (Form 7 Wharflands tutor) and his view of Wharflands as a House: “Wharflands is more than the Heart of the School.

You can feel the beat, it’s hard and it’s fast. It is passionate in all that it pursues, but above all, it is family.

Wharflands is home from home… for it is where the heart is.” Written by Nathan Shaw (Form 6)

Some of

the most notable moments of the term were House Singing and the annual Christmas dinner.

COMMUNITY: MIDDLE SCHOOL HOUSES

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“We didn’t realise we were making memories; we just knew we were having fun.”

Farewell Class of 2020 The Leavers’ Concert and Speech Day at the end of May and Leavers’ Service on the final day of the Summer Term are traditionally occasions when we say an official farewell to our Form 7 leavers and pay tribute to their achievements throughout their time at School. This year these rites of passage were celebrated via virtual ceremonies, with many familiar elements and a few surprises along the way as well.

In his first Speech Day address, the Headmaster, Henry Price, focused on the journey on which pupils have been, both throughout their time at Oakham and over the last few months during the Coronavirus lockdown. He urged pupils to “fly, to soar, and be free” both during and after their school days. Given his love for the classics, the Headmaster turned to Homer’s Odyssey to describe the journey the School has been on in recent months. “Like Odysseus, we have been buffeted, but the thought, resilience and care of the Oakham community have been magnificent. I am grateful to everyone who has rowed hard and adjusted course amidst the choppy waters and I am certain that whatever gusts may blow in the future, the good ship Oakham will continue to steer a steady course.”

In an Oakham ‘first’, Director of Sport, Iain Simpson, introduced a highly entertaining Sports Colours Presentation video, where pupils received their red and black caps from members of their family – both human and animal in a few cases!

The outgoing Heads of School, Catherine Johnson and Alex Anthony, also recorded their speeches as part of this year’s event. The Head Boy and Head Girl summed up their time at Oakham and gave their words of wisdom as they would do so normally; the reflections of their time at Oakham – perhaps made all the more poignant for the abrupt end to their Oakham years – are absolutely worth a watch.

Despite the “curious and confusing time” and “collective sense of loss” that Catherine described, and Alex’s summation that “this hasn’t been the final term we all expected”, both looked to the positives. As Catherine outlined: “So who knows what is round the next corner? What I do know is that we are all the more capable of dealing with whatever the future holds thanks to what we have learned and the qualities we have developed whilst at this wonderful school. This may not be the way we wanted our time at Oakham to end, but viewed a whole, I wouldn’t have changed it for the world.”

Alex summed up his speech wonderfully: “With the goodbyes must also go thanks, to everyone who has helped us on our journey through the School and made it so special: to our friends, our parents, our teachers, our Housemasters and Housemistresses. Thank you for all your efforts – we are all eternally grateful. You have helped us create so many positive memories to look back on, on which note I think it only right to end with a quote from my favourite book – an unlikely choice, perhaps – Winnie the Pooh: ‘We didn’t realise we were making memories; we just knew we were having fun.’”

The Virtual Leavers’ Service was held in Chapel, as it always is in ‘normal’ circumstances. Oakham School Chaplain, Father Tim, officiated at the event, leading the prayers and introducing two favourite hymns – “Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer” and “Jerusalem” – that we are sure viewers sang along to with gusto from wherever they were viewing.

As is traditional, the Heads of School, Alex and Catherine, gave readings as part of the service.

In his address, the Headmaster, Henry Price, stressed to pupils that although examinations have been cancelled, “be sure that your education remains in place. Your knowledge and skills, your experiences and friendships will keep on serving you as you tackle the fresh and more important examinations of life beyond Oakham.”

He encouraged pupils not only to think ‘what do you want from life’, but ‘what do you want to give to life?’ He also thanked the leavers for all they have contributed to the School, and he wished them all well as they pass on the torch of life to the next generation of runners at Oakham.

Silver Walkers embarking on their October Service Weekend expedition

Activities

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ACTIVITIES: D OF E

Edition no.206

The Great Outdoors: D of E While many pupils faced a delay in completing their awards this year, they still managed to put in the many hours of practice needed to train for their qualifications, whether it was walking, cycling, canoeing or sailing.

October 2019

Bronze cyclists... covering over 100km on their Practice Expedition in the local Rutland countryside.

October 2019

Service Weekends March 2020

Bronze and Silver canoeists... paddling down parts of the River Soar and River Ouse respectively.

Bronze and Silver walking groups... braving the elements in a variety of locations from Rutland to the North York Moors.

March 2020

March 2020

Gold sailors... in the Solent successfully completing their RYA Competent Crew in strong wind-over-tide ‘lumpy’ waters. They also enjoyed a magical night sail near Portsmouth, spotting shipping and navigation lights in the darkness.

Gold cyclists... navigating their way around the Peak District.

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Summer 2020 Qualifying Expeditions Easy Strokes for Silver Canoeists A little later than originally planned, a slightly depleted team of five Silver Canoeists spent three days travelling 60 kilometres along the River Trent and connecting canals, starting at Horninglow Basin in Burton upon Trent, south-west of Derby, and finishing at Stoke Bardolph, east of Nottingham to complete their Qualifying Expedition. The canoeists had spent the previous 12 months during Monday activities and on Service Weekend expeditions teaching the Bronze Canoeists paddle strokes, learning new strokes for larger rivers and practising ‘porting’ canoes over extended distances.

In addition to water-focused training, the canoeists also developed their ‘bushcraft’ skills: how to cook well outdoors; how to put up and sleep under a tarp and of course how to plan a journey in order to travel safely by canoe.

During their expeditions they camped in torrential rain and experienced fast flowing rivers in their October training of 2019, and paddled through high winds in their practice of March this year, so with this preparation and the good conditions in September, their Assessor’s report was quick and easy work.

Congratulations to all the participants, including those who were unable to join in the Qualifier; they demonstrated exceptional levels of perseverance, teamwork and determination throughout the year to overcome the challenges presented to gain their Silver Award. Written by master i/c Henry Deane

ACTIVITIES: D OF E

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Navigating the Norfolk Broads Congratulations to the 12 pupils for passing their Gold D of E Sailing Assessed Expedition at the beginning of September.

They set sail on the Norfolk Broads in heritage boats - no engines, no electricity; just wood, rope and canvas. The Gold sailors spent 4 days braving the elements, testing out their culinary skills and honing the yachting techniques they had developed in their D of E training.

There were challenges aplenty, and even those with many years of dinghy experience found it intensely challenging to navigate a heavy wooden gaff-rigged boat upwind in those narrow channels. The trees and windmills on the riverbanks cause unexpected wind shadows making life even trickier just when you need to tack.

Nevertheless, teamwork and good humour prevailed and the sailors successfully completed the expedition, having also relished the freedom to choose where to sail, what to cook and when to get up.

Head of Sailing, Mr Nick Neve said, “Each pupil involved demonstrated a fantastic determination and work ethic, working exceptionally well both individually and as a team throughout their time on the water.” Written by Head of Sailing, Nick Neve

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ACTIVITIES: CCF

Edition no.206

Camouflage, Canoeing and Fieldcraft: CCF In this most unusual of years, I have been impressed with how the Contingent have managed to overcome the challenges that they have faced, demonstrating great resilience and team spirit. Despite the fact that the planned summer activities could not take place, I am delighted to say that both Service Weekends saw some notable action from our cadets.

In October the CCF recruits travelled to Cumbria to complete their adventure training and build on their military training.

During the March Service Weekend CCF Recruits ventured to the Stanford training area in Norfolk to practise fieldcraft led by Forms 6 and 7. Form 5 spent time on the ranges at Thetford completing their cadet qualification shoot, which involved shooting at distances of 100m and 200m.

As is customary, my final note has to be one of thanks to all my staff who work with great commitment and enthusiasm to deliver an exciting and rewarding syllabus for cadets from Form 4 to Form 7. That our numbers grow year on year (we currently sit established at c.185 cadets) is testament to the sense of achievement that flows from top to bottom. I look forward to our 111th year.

Written by Lt Col D.M.Taylor (Contingent Commander)

BTEC Diploma Awards In September 19 CCF cadets in Form 7 achieved a BTEC Diploma Level 2 in Teamwork and Personal Development in the Community. The Headmaster presented them with their certificates during their CCF parade.

In order to gain the qualification the cadets had to excel at teamwork and communication. Evidence for this is gathered during training on Monday afternoons and Service Weekends.

They also complete a CVQO (Cadet Vocational Qualification Organisation) workbook and choose from options such as health and fitness, navigation, volunteering and personal development through adventurous activities.

We are very proud of the cadets. They worked hard and showed commitment to the course. Also a huge thank you to Mrs Michelle McGuire from CVQO for her fantastic support throughout the programme. Written by Plt Officer Ball

Edition no.206

October Service Weekend Diary of a Cadet Day 1 As soon as we arrived at Warcop, Cumbria, we unpacked and had dinner. Then we were given a briefing and time to shower and relax before sleeping after the long car ride.

Day 2 We woke up at 6:00am and refreshed ourselves before heading off to breakfast (a delicious full English breakfast).

We then had our first drill within our sections and were taught the basic steps on how to march in an organised fashion. We then had several activities that lasted the rest of the day, including camouflage (where we were taught about how our silhouettes, shape, and sizes affect how camouflaged we are) and even got to shoot an air rifle for the first time. After dinner, we had a quiz night, which surprisingly helped jog my memory – not only on the news but on religion and several other subjects taught back at Oakham.

Day 3 Yet again we started the day with a drill after breakfast – we felt extremely pleased once our platoon were synchronized with our march. After the drill we were taught how to build shelters, which essentially prepares us for our next Service Weekend. Our rooms were then inspected so we all collaborated and helped each other make sure the rooms and bathroom looked absolutely clean. After inspections and another parading drill, we split up into groups and played a few games including several interesting riddles. Eventually after showering we got into bed, exhausted but happy.

Day 4 We woke up earlier than usual to make sure we were packed and ready to leave. After breakfast we had the drill competition to see which section was the best at marching.

After that we practised the parade and then we were ready for the real parade. Surprisingly our platoon made it to the top three sections, and my name was read out as a first-class shooter. After the parade, we then got ready to leave. I can still remember how upset everyone was to leave - the Service Weekend proved to be more than just fun and a learning experience; it was a memory that none of Form 4 will ever forget, and I am extremely grateful for Oakham School for organising the weekend, and the Seventh Formers for aiding us in several processes. Written by Raya Farage (Form 4)

ACTIVITIES: CCF

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ACTIVITIES: VOLUNTARY ACTION

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Service With a Smile: Voluntary Action From entertaining members of the elderly community at the annual Harvest Party, to helping at the Rutland Foodbank, to hosting local visiting children with additional needs in an afternoon of sporting fun, pupils involved in Voluntary Action have helped people in many different areas within our local community this year.

Baking cakes for elderly residents at the Rutland Care Village

Entertaining residents at The Lodge Trust in Market Overton

Litter picking to keep our community clean and tidy Volunteering at the Rutland Foodbank

Playing basketball, boccia and indoor football with children with additional needs

Washing cars for charity

Assisting with the Riding for the Disabled

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ACTIVITIES: VOLUNTARY ACTION

“Singing, bingo and mischief” at the Annual Harvest Party Scrumptious tea and cakes, along with sparkling entertainment, was the order of the day at Oakham School’s annual Harvest Party. The 200 elderly guests, who travelled from all over Rutland to attend, enjoyed being served a delicious afternoon tea made by the pupils’ themselves, together with singing, games and good conversation.

With this popular event catering for around 200 guests each year, there have been over 6,000 attendees spanning over three decades. Many of the visitors had attended numerous times before and not only described how they look forward to the event each year, but they also told Oakham’s new Headmaster exactly what to expect. In his introduction, Henry Price described how he had been told to anticipate “singing, bingo and mischief” from the crowd who were all eagerly waiting for their entertainment to begin!

Luckily the mischief manifested only in the sharing of some quiz answers – instead the guests enjoyed taking part in bingo, as well as listening to the talents of Oakham’s musicians. A particular highlight was their own sing-along, with the crowd enjoying some old favourites including ‘New York, New York’.

“It was my honour to welcome so many members of the Rutland community to come and enjoy being a part of the Oakham family,” says Henry Price, Headmaster. “We place great importance on community here at Oakham, and there could be no better demonstration of this than at today’s Harvest Party. We encourage girls and boys, through all of the service activities threaded through school life, to be thoughtful and considerate members of the wider community. I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing this for myself today – being able to see just how much both the pupils and the guests take away from being a part of this lovely party.”

There were around 30 Voluntary Action students who had organised the event – from making refreshments and flower displays, to waiting on and looking after the guests. They even planted up bulbs for each and every guest to take home to enjoy over the coming months – as a lovely reminder of the day. A well-stocked raffle was also enjoyed by all, and raised an impressive £476 for Rainbows Hospice.

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Sport Honours Hockey

U18 Boys Quarter-Finalists U13 Boys National Finalists

Rugby

U15 NatWest Cup Semi-Finalists

Netball U14 National Finalists U19 National Finalists

Football

U18A Winners of the ISFL League U18B Winners of the ISFL League

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SPORT: RUGBY

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Rugby 1st XV Rugby After a good pre-season down at Bath University, the squad were full of confidence and excitement for the first game of the season. A trip to The Close at Rugby School, the birthplace of the game, couldn’t get much better than that. With a good mix of Sixth and Seventh Formers in the starting XV, we were well beaten by a strong and welldrilled Rugby squad. The score didn’t represent the effort put in by the team, however, we knew there were plenty of positives to take from the game and there was lots of room for improvement going into the next game against Stamford.

Stamford is always a physical battle; with it being a big local derby. They were surely looking for revenge from last year’s 1-point defeat. Injuries to the captain Kit Smith and vicecaptain Harry Glynn meant that Callum Mathews would step up as captain for the game. In the first half Stamford pulled away with some early tries, but a huge defensive effort from all meant we slowly started to get a foothold into the game.

After scoring some good tries, we knew we were in for a tense finish. More great defence helped us hold out for a huge 21-19 win, which would fill the squad with confidence for the rest of the season.

The next three games would all go against us; losses to Maritzburg College (South Africa), our oldest rivals Uppingham, and Warwick. These were all put behind us for our first cup game of the season against Clifton College.

Clifton were a strong team who had beaten the likes of Millfield, but everyone in the squad was full of belief and knew that we were capable of coming away with a win. Good preparation saw us take a big lead heading into half-time, scoring 4 tries to Clifton’s 1. The second half was a nerveracking affair with Clifton coming all the way back to within 1 try. The last 10 minutes saw the visitors throw everything at us, but our defence held strong and we managed to come away with a 25-19 win to progress to the next round. Great effort after being written off by everyone but ourselves; a win that will surely stand out amongst other big results in the School’s recent history.

One final game before half-term against Gresham’s saw us come away with a 48-7 win. The squad had a well-

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Points For

Points Against

Points Difference

12

7

0

5

344

187

157

deserved break before going into possibly the biggest game of the season in the next round of the cup against Rugby. A repeat of the first game of the season, away again. Everyone was full of excitement and ready to hit the ground running. This time around it was a much closer contest. We drew first blood through a good team try finished in the corner by winger George Mallot. The first half saw us on top and playing some good rugby considering the wet conditions. Rugby received a red card in the first half through foul play, meaning we went into half-time with a healthy lead and a one-man advantage.

The second half would be a different story, with Rugby having all the momentum and pushing 13-8 ahead. With one final throw of the dice we worked our way up the field to the try line, where we were controversially disallowed a try in the final minutes.

The final part of the season would see us go on a 5-game winning streak, putting up some high scores against top quality opposition. Highlights were a 52-0 win against Bedford and a good 43-7 win against St Peter’s, York in the final game of the season. The latter saw us play a good expansive game trying to keep the ball alive with lots of offloading. A good send off for all the Form 7 players in the squad.

A big thanks should go out to the coaches, Mr Rice and Mr Smith, who have helped the team out all season. It has been a great experience to captain the 1st XV this season, hopefully the Sixth Formers can push on next season and build on the success we have enjoyed this year.

Written by Kit Smith (captain)

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SPORT: RUGBY

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2nd XV Rugby We lost the season opener against Rugby but then followed this with two big wins against local rivals Stamford (29-14 with Will Bland scoring a hat trick) and Uppingham (0-12).

After a disappointing loss by 3 points against Warwick, we returned after halfterm for a home match against Gresham’s. This team has not been on our circuit for a long time, so we went into the game unsure of what expect, but a good performance gave us a big scoring win of 45-7 – a huge team effort. Filled with confidence from this big win, we faced Oundle at home, our “oldest fixture in the books”, ready to put in a lot of heart and doing well to beat them 24-0. It was good to see Alex Anthony, Head Boy, solidifying his position among the ranks.

We then travelled to a very confident Bedford side. After going down early on, we did well to come back and win the game 21-12 with a late try from Alex Telfer.

Going into the last couple of games, there was a huge amount of passion shown by the Form 7 boys who were approaching the end their Oakham rugby careers, which was reflected in the victories against Solihull (24-0) with Will Green coming away with a hat trick and a massive 47-0 win against Stowe.

We would to thank all the players in the team, the parents who have travelled to support us, and finally to our two coaches, Mr Gelderbloom, backs coach, and Mr Dixon-Dale, forwards coach, who have led to us to a great and memorable season. Written by Josh Tarimo and Philip Wright

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Points For

Points Against

Points Difference

9

8

0

1

264

119

145

4th XV Rugby The opening game of the season saw champagne rugby played against a Rugby side that could not cope with the flair and quick pace of a game played with the joy and verve of the last days of summer. Harry Britton and Tom Luttman-Johnson ran aggressively in the forwards as Dominic Alston pulled the strings at fly-half.

This was followed by a scrappy game against Uppingham, however, Freddie Skelton and Oliver Hubbard masterminded a tactical masterpiece in the second half using the wind to great effect and pinning Uppingham in their half with intelligent kicking. A number of good tries were scored with the blistering pace of Aaron Mistry, Cong Fan, and Max Foster putting on the after burners to pressurise Uppingham into mistakes and converting them into tries.

One of the best games of the season was against Warwick with excellent structure and ball retention, especially in the first half. Although Warwick were resurgent in the second half, sterling defence kept the score just in our favour at 17-12. William Hannan made his debut with a star performance, putting his mark on the occasion with hard running, dominant rucking, and consistent tackling. The play of the season was like something from the Premiership with a cross-field kick from Joshua Nunn to Henry Hopkinson, who then passed inside to William Pound to finish.

We took the lessons we learned in our games against Oundle and Bedford into our match against Stamford. Our aggressive defence, led by Miroslav Ganev, forced the opposition into an arm wrestle that the squad did not want to lose.

Harry Britton put in another ‘Man of the Match’ performance with a last gasp try-saving tackle to win 12-10. Written by James Aiken (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Points For

Points Against

Points Difference

9

7

0

2

235

73

162

3rd XV Rugby The Oakham School 3rd XV had an excellent season, only losing 1 game.

Notable victories were the nail-biting win over Stamford at home (17-12), a well-deserved 1-point victory 22-21 against Warwick, and a convincing win against Oundle, 38-14. In this last game, our line out was particularly good, which helped us starve Oundle of possession. Special mention must also be made of the performance of newly promoted winger, Freddie Skelton, who scored scores of well-finished tries.

Our hardest fought game of the season was against a very strong Bedford side away. We conceded a very early try due a defensive mix-up from a kick over the top. We then lost our star full back, David Wood, with a leg injury. Up against it, the team could have let their heads drop but we fought extremely hard and scored just before half-time. Will Foster-Collier converted and we went into the half-time break 7-5 up. Bedford replied well and put us under pressure but our defence held strong. Towards the end of the half we kept our heads and scored a penalty to make the score 10-5. This 5-point cushion proved too much for Bedford who failed to score any more points.

Our final game of the season was a thumping 54-7 win against Stowe – a fine way for our Form 7 players to finish their Oakham careers.

Our successful season can be attributed to the positive atmosphere in training and how we gave our best in every game. Mr Edwards always reminded us to look after the ball and, more importantly, to look after each other. We did just that. Written by Will Foster-Collier (captain)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Points For

Points Against

Points Difference

8

5

0

3

230

169

61

p94

SPORT: RUGBY

Edition no.206

U16 Rugby The adage that we should worry less about the dog in the fight and more about the fight in the dog is one that may well have had the U16A team in mind when it was first uttered. As the season revealed itself, the win loss ratio became less important than the personal challenges and stories that unfolded. These include those of Ivan Nagornyi, the wrestler turned tight-head, Morgan Kilburn, the best jackler on the circuit, Somfe Onuigbo the hot stepper and Ralph Cordi-Piec soaring high enough to interfere with traffic control – to name but a few. But these are all over-shadowed by the defensive wall that is Paul Augustine-Ohwo.

Video analysis shows 52 occasions when Paul was at full back in a one-on-one with an attacker, racing towards the try line with only PAO to beat. As the season concluded with another battle accepted and fought at Stowe, the final score read – all comers 0, Paul 52. Extraordinary. Written by Iain Simpson (coach) This season has been a tough one in regards to results for the U16B team.

Nevertheless we have always been sure to put in the hard work required in training and matches and we have not been shy to put up a good fight on numerous occasions.

Highlights of the season were the match against Warwick, where we put in a commendable physical performance with excellent tackling from the likes of Kaloyan Stanchev and Ollie Oakden, and our performance in a triangular tournament, playing Oundle and Gresham’s. Following a narrow defeat to Oundle we were determined to get a win against Gresham’s. After a tough physical match, we came out on top with a brilliant all-round team performance and two stand-out tries from Charlie Borrill. Written by Danny Rumble (captain)

U15 Rugby The NatWest Cup proved to be the catalyst to kickstart the season for the U15A team. A magnificent 51-0 home win over Loughborough GS showed off the team’s full attacking arsenal and set up a tough away tie at Trent College.

A narrow victory thanks to a last gap try by centre Toby Cousins led to a tantalising away trip to Warwick. Oakham flew out of the blocks and established an early 13-0 lead. Looking fully in control, there only looked to be one winner.

Warwick – with a ferocious driving maul, managed to turn the game around with 2 quick tries just before half-time. The second half was a tense affair lacking all of the quality of the first 20 minutes with Oakham repelling at least five attempts from Warwick to drive over from a series of 5-metre lineouts. Their tremendous defensive shift during that second period earned Oakham one final chance for victory, with Julius Timmermans burrowing over in front of the posts in the final couple of minutes and a 20-14 win to book a place in the last 16.

In their regular fixtures the U15As enjoyed similar success, culminating in two quite brilliant performances in the final two fixtures against Solihull and Stowe.

Solihull had themselves enjoyed an impressive season but were blown away 28-5 on Doncaster Close in a performance that bristled with defensive intensity and some fine attacking play. Stowe had been undefeated throughout the entire season with only one team coming within 20 points of them. They had a fearsome reputation. On a crisp afternoon at Wilson Fields, they ran into an Oakham side playing their finest rugby of the season – in fact playing the finest rugby an U15 Oakham side has played for many a year. Oakham took Stowe’s unbeaten record with a thumping 39-17 victory.

After Christmas a win over Bromsgrove in the last 16 saw Oakham through to the Quarter-Finals against Sedbergh, where they emerged victorious after an outstanding performance against tough opponents. Sadly the cup run came to an end in the Semi-Final when Stowe avenged their December defeat, but the boys should be incredibly proud of their achievements. This is the furthest an U15 side has ever progressed in a competition at this level. Particular mention must go to Seb Fernandes Smith, who captained the side magnificently.

Written by Michael Passey/Stephen Dachtler (coaches) The U15Bs enjoyed an outstanding season, ending the term unbeaten with an excellent 45-12 victory against a decent Stowe side, in a performance that reflected the season well. Possibly the best performance of the season was

1

2

a 0-31 win away at Oundle in atrocious conditions. Afterwards one of the Oundle coaching staff described the Oakham team as the most competitive he had seen at this level in every facet of the game.

Warwick away proved the toughest test of all, but good sides work out how to win when up against it, and after this 14-10 win, they never looked liked losing again, notching up further good wins against Bedford and Uppingham away from home. The only disappointment of the season was the cancelled match against Solihull School.

The results reflect not just the strength of 15 players, but more accurately the strength of the 30 boys who represented the side over the course of the season, under 7 different captains. Throughout the season, and no matter the personnel, the side played with ambition, skill and enjoyment, allied to a hard-nosed competitive edge. Written by James Cure (coach) After a difficult opening fixture against Rugby School, the U15C team managed to build momentum into their next two fixtures: Stamford and Uppingham, winning both by over 30 points. Their fourth game of the season was the toughest challenge yet; Warwick away. In a physical and fast performance, Oakham lost narrowly by 9 points – a valiant effort. Having learned some lessons from this fixture, they dominated Oundle winning by an impressive 30 points. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to continue this form into their penultimate fixture away against Bedford, losing heavily 35-7.

Nevertheless, it was lovely to see the boys lift their heads high going into the final fixture against Stowe, coming out on top with a 20-12 win. Written by Jack Messenger (coach) I have been delighted to be able to field a U15D team this year, with many boys either new to School or new to rugby completely. The highlight of the season was undoubtedly the 33-33 draw against Uppingham – an absolute nail biter which could have gone either way. From here, there have been a variety of tough fixtures including Warwick, Bedford and Rugby School, but the perseverance the boys have shown has been commendable. Written by Marcus Reneau (coach)

U14 Rugby It was a challenging season for the U14A team, however, they worked well as a team and produced some noteworthy performances. The players should take confidence from their attitude, which has been one of “turning up each week and having a go”. We, as their coaches, have been left pleased and satisfied towards the end of the season, as the team began to gel and display a lot of potential when moving the ball. In addition to this, there was some fantastic desire on show, each week, particularly against Warwick

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1 U16A Rugby 2 U15A Rugby

School and Bedford School. A standout for Mr Clamp was Robbie White, on his own 5-metre line, advancing and making the tackle of the season on a significantly larger player. For Mr Jarvis, the standout moment of the season was an attacking sequence, starting from our own half, resulting in a try against Stowe. Written by Jamy Clamp and Andrew Jarvis (coaches) The season generally went well for the U14B team; winning 2 games, drawing 2 and losing 5. The highlights were smashing our rivals Uppingham and our games against Stamford and Stowe. Stamford was special because it was a tough game with neither side giving up. We managed in the end to pull through with a 12-10 victory.

Our game against Stowe was the hardest fought game of the season. We were determined to fight right to the finish and even though they scored right at the end, we definitely gave them a run for their money. Written by Oli Barbosa (captain) Regardless of the results, the U14C team should be very proud of their efforts, determination and perseverance this season. After 2 close losses against Rugby School and Stamford, we then had a great game against our rivals Uppingham, beating them 56-7. The team’s highlight of the season was our hard fought draw against Warwick. For spectators and players alike it was an enthralling game that unfortunately finished with Warwick snatching the draw in the last play of the game. We then backed up this performance with a great team effort to gain a hard fought victory over Oundle. There have been some great individual performances – top try scorers were Tony Cang and Freddie Tuck scoring 10 tries between them – but the whole team should be commended for their efforts. Thank you to Mr Messenger for being such a great coach. Written by Freddie Tuck (captain)

U13 Rugby The U13 team have trained with purpose and endeavour this season, all looking to better their skills, knowledge and understanding. The A team were lucky enough to avoid one-sided matches and found themselves in wonderfully close matches week after week, which tested their competitiveness and resolve. The local derby against Stamford saw a last second try in the corner break Lincolnshire hearts, whilst battles against Solihull and Trent made the boys dig deep and fight right to the very end to gain a win. The last match of the season gave rise to some of the best attacking play saved till last against Witham Hall in an epic 25-25 draw, which saw great full back play from Nathan Olotu. Harry Gilman has led the team with poise throughout and Ernie Jackson, Alfie Clarkson and Adam Johnston have all been prolific on the score sheet. Ed Davy and Mattys Laubscher have

3 U14A Rugby 4 U13A Rugby

5 U12A Rugby 6 U11 Rugby

dominated in the forwards and Ollie Marr and Johnny Shaw have harried and hassled at every opportunity. This group have much to look forward to as they move on to U14 rugby next year. Written by Iain Simpson (coach)

U12 Rugby We were excited to start a fresh new year of playing rugby, but it took a while for us to gel as a team, as we had all just met and were trying to get to know each other. It became obvious what we had to do to improve our team after a heavy defeat against Bedford Prep School. Although we lost our next two games, we managed to get a solid victory against Maidwell Hall as we had focused on our previous errors in defence. Despite a loss against a welldrilled Witham Hall side, it gave us something to aspire to and our following game against Trent was one of our best games of the season. Through determination, teamwork and skills, we managed to dominate our opposition and achieve the victory we deserved. We would like to thank our coaches Mr Sandys and Mr Rice for helping us to improve our understanding of the game and keeping a smile on our faces. Written by Ben Cowan (Form 1)

U11 Rugby Our first match was against Ranby House and while we all really wanted to play contact, not all of our team had played rugby before so it was a good introduction to those who hadn’t played and gave us an opportunity to play together as a team.

In training we worked hard on rucking over and shipping the ball out. This gave us more confidence and at Stamford we only lost to a well-drilled Bedford team. This was the only match we lost this season!

The match against Brooke Priory was hard and competitive as some of us were playing against our friends; thankfully this ended in a well-deserved draw!

A draw with Witham Hall, a dominant win against Copthill and a very tough learning match against Spratton showed us that we could become a really good squad but we need to concentrate on communicating better and not going for glory runs!

Next season we need to listen and concentrate more in training to make sure we are all in the A Team next year! Written by Toby Roberts (Lower 1)

p96

SPORT: BOYS HOCKEY

Edition no.206

Boys Hockey 1st XI Boys Hockey This season has seen more success for the 1st XI Boys as they secured both the Independent Schools League Title together with the England Hockey National North League title. As with last season, the 1st XI Boys compete over two terms in the England Hockey National League and so started their first fixture in September, beating Repton 3-1. The boys followed this up with a strong performance away against Norwich in a repeat of last season’s QuarterFinal, only this year our boys comfortably won 5-0. After a break for the indoor season, in which the boys finished an impressive 5th in the Country, the 1st XI began a busy January period beating Rugby 6-2, Trent 5-0 and Warwick 5-2 across both the ISHL and National League. February began with a tough away fixture against Repton, in which the boys were trailing 1-0 until the final 5 minutes when they scored 2 goals to win the tie 2-1. A comfortable 10-1 victory against Oundle in the ISHL followed. The boys ended the halfterm on a high by securing the National League North Title by beating QEGs Wakefield 4-3 in a tight game.

A National Quarter-Final against Reed’s started the second half of term, with a full house of spectators under lights. In one of the highest standards of schoolboy hockey Oakham has hosted, the boys were devastated to lose 3-2 in the final minute of the game having battled back from 2-0 down to bow out of the National Competition. With the National Competition concluding, the boys returned to ISHL action to beat Bromsgrove 5-4. Unfortunately, that would be the last fixture for the term with the Coronavirus pandemic ending all school sport. However, it did mean that the 1st XI Boys had completed double league title success, once again showing the strength of hockey at Oakham on the national stage. Written by James Bateman (Director of Hockey)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

10

9

0

1

47

17

30

Edition no.206

SPORT: BOYS HOCKEY

p97

2nd XI Boys Hockey

U16 Boys Hockey

At the start of the season there was a feeling that this team could do well with the correct focus. With many players switching between the 2nd and 1st XI, it took some time for the team to find its identity. The postponement of the 1st XI fixture versus Rugby led to a difficult defeat early on. However the boys, led by Angus Watkin and Will Davidson, started to find their feet with some good performances against Trent and Oundle. Having lost many senior players from last year, the new Sixth Formers really stepped up and played their part to support the Seventh Formers. Unfortunately our season was cut short and the boys were denied their last game. It has been a season of ups and downs but the boys largely did themselves proud. Well done! Written by Caitlin Jeffries (coach)

The U16A boys season was a terrific experience on a number of fronts. The boys learnt a lot about commitment, hard work, how to rise to a challenge, how to be intelligent in battle and how to be courageous.

After working hard at our pre-season training at Nottingham University, our first match was a tough away encounter against Rugby School; a 1-1 draw was disappointing, but we squandered far too many chances, and needed to learn from this.

We continued to work on our goal scoring, and Freddie Fairey came to the party against Bedford away, winning us the game 3-2 with a super hat-trick.

We had no expectation to win our third game, Repton away, but we worked hard in training, focusing on how to reduce Repton’s space and time on the ball, and drew the game 1-1. We came very close to winning, scoring early on through Fairey, and held our nerve until late into the second half. Our defensive effort was quite superb: McNulty, Augustine-Ohwo, Rumble, Davidson and Mansfield in goal were first class.

After a disappointing 2-2 draw against Oundle, we secured an away win in the cup against Trent College and a 3-0 home derby win against Uppingham, setting us up nicely to play Repton in the Regional Finals. Sadly we were drawn away again, and Repton at full strength gave us a lesson in how to play first class hockey – we played well and held out for long periods of time, but the final score line showed the class of the opposition, with a 7-1 loss.

It was a shame to finish the season with a loss against Bromsgrove but overall it was a very enjoyable, hardworking and nurturing season for the boys, with plenty of future 1st XI players in the making.

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

7

2

2

3

10

14

-4

3rd XI Boys Hockey This year’s group of players were keen to get stuck in from the start of the season. With a mixture of Sixth and Seventh Formers, the combination worked really well. During the regular season, we had some outstanding performances with a 6-0 win away at Rugby, followed up with wins against Oundle (4-0) and a really close game which we edged out away against Uppingham (2-1). The only loss in the season was against a very good Repton team (3-0). It was a shame to cut the season short and not see where the team would have ended up. The boys should be proud of themselves and I hope that next year a few might try to get into the 2nd XI. Written by Henry Sandys (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

5

3

0

2

13

8

5

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

8

3

3

2

19

22

-3

The U16B team had a tough start to the season but after training hard, they managed to finish 4th in the league. They took a while to gel as a team, which resulted in a few tough losses. After taking those losses on board, they put in the hard work and this allowed them to become a team and create a competitive opposition. They were a different team when facing Repton School and gained a well-deserved 2-1 win. This was followed with another 2-1 win to Oundle School and a 3-1 win against Uppingham School. Unfortunately they were not able to play Bromsgrove School or Stamford due to cancellations. Written by Ashley Denman (coach)

p98

SPORT: BOYS HOCKEY

Edition no.206

U15 Boys Hockey

U14 Boys Hockey

The U15A team have had a very competitive season led by captain Joe Johnson. They have finished a well-deserved 4th place in the ISHL Midlands League Table out of the 8 teams. The boys have really improved their game awareness and positional tactics on the field. The results show some tough and competitive games that the team put in 100% effort for every minute on the pitch. Rugby School was the first game the U15A team played with a great start to the season. This was followed by a really close game against Trent College resulting in an unlucky 3-4 loss. The team faced a difficult Repton side who had some great individual players that unfortunately left us in a big loss. Despite the score, the team did not give up and made it challenging for them. We faced Oundle next which was an end-to-end game and resulted in a 3-3 draw. The week after we played a great game over close rivals Uppingham School to get a 3-1 win.

Unfortunately, Bromsgrove became our last fixture of the term. With only 11 players and no substitutions, the 11 battled hard and we were unlucky to come away with a 0-1 loss.

The U14A team progressed very well over the season and they should be pleased with their development. All the players’ basic skills came along phenomenally. Unfortunately, the results didn’t go our way in the regional and national competitions but the team played very well on the weekly games. Written by Tom Rhodes (coach)

The U15B team have had a fantastic season with only 1 tough 3-1 loss in week 2 to Trent College, who went on to win the league. The team displayed great performances in all fixtures, winning 2-0 to Rugby, 2-0 to Repton, 3-1 to Oundle, 4-1 to Uppingham and 3-0 to Bromsgrove. They gelled as a team from the first training session and continued to improve over the season.

The boys’ best performance has to be their final game. They only had a squad of 11 with no substitutes against Bromsgrove. The boys worked hard for every minute of play, which allowed them to dominate the game. Well done to the team and all the best for them next year. Written by Taegan O’Hara (coach) The U15Cs, in the words of Mr Jono Wills, ‘had the perfect season’, losing their first match, then steadily growing as a team, winning all of their games (bar 1 draw) and truly enjoying their progress and the game. All without the pressures of ‘being undefeated so far this season’. Felix Starkey debuted this term as keeper, growing in confidence and commanding the defence. James Grace captained the defence, voted Most Valuable Player (MVP) vs Uppingham. Fellow defender George Nicholson, voted MVP vs Bromsgrove as well as the 15C squad’s Most Improved Player. In the midfield, special mention must go to captain, Freddie Sumner (MVP vs Repton), Findlay Marsh, Ivor Amende (promoted to the U15Bs) and Aashish Reddy whose fitness, tenacity and grit dominated the centre of the pitch throughout the season. Up front Thomas Humphrey (top goal score), Lawrence Pugh and new to the sport, Severin Weingarten converted the high work rate of the midfield into points. One loss, one draw, two cancellations, three wins and a team into its stride. Written by Father Tim Tregunno (coach)

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The U14B boys hockey side made real strides forwards with their hockey throughout the term. They showed fantastic team spirit and had a real determination to improve. A number of boys were rewarded for their sustained efforts with movement up to the A squad, a testament to their desire to be the best they can be. A highlight of the season was their performance against Bromsgrove, where the team showed a good level of skill and hard work in order to dominate the game and play some fast flowing hockey. Written by Katie Long (coach)

The showed fantastic team spirit and a real determination to improve.

After a tough start to the season against a strong Bedford B team, the U14C boys bounced back excellently after a solid couple of weeks’ training to overcome Repton School 5-1 thanks to goals from Arthur (3), George and Charlie and a Man of the Match performance from the captain; Harry, pulling the strings from the midfield.

After two tough losses against Oundle and Uppingham, the boys travelled the long distance to Bromsgrove and put in an incredible effort. They never stopped working throughout the match, leading to 2 fantastic team goals finished off excellently by Man of the Match Charlie. With only 2 substitutes the boys started to tire and conceded a goal, but they managed to hold on to the final whistle and secure the victory 2-1. This well-deserved victory placed them 3rd in the league behind Bedford and Oundle. Written

by Jack Messenger (coach) This year’s U14Ds took on the challenge of going a full season without losing a single match. After draws in the first two games, in their next match the boys put on a clinical display, beating Rugby 4-0. Marcus Peck scored 2 and Charlie Roberts put on a commanding display at the back to secure the clean sheet. Away at Oundle the boys, high on confidence, scored three quick first half goals, Jake Lockett and Thomas StuddertKennedy running an impressive midfield, feeding balls to our forwards Fin Cowan, Freddie Fairman, Freddie Evans and Marcus Peck. After a decisive win against Uppingham, Oakham put on their best performance of the season to beat Bromsgrove 2-0. Played 6, won 4, drawn 2, lost 0; challenge achieved. Written by Joe Arkwright

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1 U15A Hockey 2 U14A Hockey 3 U13 Hockey seven-a-side County Champions

U13 Boys Hockey

U12 Boys Hockey

The U13A boys should be immensely proud of what they have achieved this year. Having shown huge potential as a 7-a-side U12 group, this year the squad built on previous success as they navigated their way through 11-a-side hockey.

The boys must be commended on their ability to play free flowing hockey and their real sense of unity as a squad. There were many notable performances, with a particularly impressive game against Oundle where the boys epitomized in their display what is meant by ‘team play’.

Arguably the highlight of the season were the 7-a-side performances where the boys really showed their class. On an exceptionally cold and wet Friday afternoon, the boys were crowned County Champions on home turf, winning each of their games without conceding a goal in the tournament. At the Regional Finals the boys got off to a flying start but were brought back to reality with a closely fought encounter with Bromsgrove, in which the boys narrowly edged the win. The boys went on to top their group and win their cross over where they again faced Bromsgrove in a 3-way final. The teams could not be separated this time ending in a draw and it came down to the final game between Oakham and Winchester House who had already beaten Bromsgrove.

The boys knew it was going to be a tough ask but their determination, commitment and desire to work for one another was there for all to see.

The boys competed exceptionally well with weary legs against a physically developed Winchester House. Oakham sealed their place at the National Finals by a single goal on goal difference, nothing less than they deserved.

In heartbreaking circumstances for the boys, their opportunity to represent Oakham at a National Final was cruelly taken away from them with the outbreak of Covid-19. I hope the boys have the chance to realise their huge potential as a team, as they are a committed and talented group of players.

Written by Katie Long (coach)

It has been a season of learning for the U12A team; as a squad we have been very unfortunate to have lost players to injury, resulting in changing dynamics in the team and some boys playing out of their preferred position. Despite this, the boys have been resilient, working incredibly hard to develop their understanding of what is required in a different position and doing what was best for the team at the time; for this they have to be congratulated!

Over the weeks, there have been improvements both as individuals and as a team: if they continue in the same enthusiastic manner next year, supporting each other and showing more composure on the ball, this will bode well for when the flood gates open on goal. Written by Matthew Sutterby (coach)

The U13B team had a hard season. They only managed 3 fixtures of which all were tough games. Despite the results the U13Bs never gave up and always put up a good game and continually improved throughout the season. Written by Patrick Latham (coach) The U13Cs played 3 and lost 3. However, their development over the 3 months showed real promise. Their first game at Foremarke Hall left them a little shell shocked, but eagerness and determination in practice meant games against Oundle and Witham were competitive. Saul and Archie led from the front, distributing good balls from the middle and encouraging the team to keep their shape. Ben, Will and Eddie in defence kept many balls out the goal, and Abs used his strength to hit the ball up field. Harry perhaps was our most skilful with the stick, often weaving his way through the opposition distributing to Askar, Seb and George who would take it up field. Written by Tref Vandoros (coach)

The U12B team have made fantastic developments in terms of their hockey knowledge and playing ability, particularly as a team. After two competitive matches but tough losses to St Hugh’s and Foremarke Hall, the boys played a fantastic fixture against Trent College. We converted goals and played with high intensity, which led to a 3-2 victory. This was followed by a close end-to-end game with Worksop College, resulting in a deserved 2-2 draw. The boys finished the season with a 4-0 win against Bilton Grange – a great end to the term of hockey.

It has been a pleasure taking the U12C team alongside Mr Johnson this term.

The boys have all been eager to learn and improve, and improved almost instantly. Highlights of the season include: our first home win; some of Magnus’s outrageous saves (bearing in mind he had never played in goal before); Charles finally scoring that screamer he’d be training for all term; and winning in the final play of the game against Maidwell. Written by Maddie Pearce (coach) The U12D boys gave each match their all and certainly saw improvements over the term. The team played Spratton Hall for the last fixture which was a very close game! This game saw the team really gel and demonstrate their ability to play some really nice passing hockey. Written by Taegan O’Hara (coach)

U11 Boys Hockey The U11’s season results have been a mixed bag and a massive learning curve for many. Out of the 11 boys, there were a handful who had never played hockey before but gave it their all every time they came to games lessons. Match results have been up and down, with wins against Stamford (5-0) and Foremarke Hall (2-1) and some good performances where the boys showed passion, teamwork and sportsmanship despite the results. This did not deter the boys’ enthusiasm for training and matches and they would always return with a smile and wiliness to learn. Written by Henry Sandys (coach)

p100

SPORT: GIRLS HOCKEY

Edition no.206

Girls Hockey 1st XI Girls Hockey

2nd XI Girls Hockey

The girls started the year with a successful pre-season, putting their marker down with 2 great performances before the term had even begun. The most exciting game of the season was possibly the first league game at home to Rugby, where despite being 2 goals down with minutes to go, the girls showed such determination, resilience and quality that they ended up 4-3 winners. The girls have tried a new way of playing this year which has taken some getting used to and at times it has really challenged the group. It has required each player to develop their understanding of the game, something Oakham hockey really looks to encourage. The girls can be extremely proud of the way they have played this term and have much to build on. Written by Katie Long (coach)

With a large squad and many Form 7 girls keen to build on last year’s great season, combined with a new wave of talent in Form 6, it was set to be a fantastic season. After some promising initial training sessions, we took a narrow 2-1 defeat to Rugby. However, after dusting themselves down, the girls came back to with an impressive run of wins against Stamford, Stowe and Uppingham. Highlights of the season were our tight battles against Ratcliffe U18As; the first fixture at Oakham finished in a 2-2 draw with both teams having chances to win the game. In the second fixture later on in the season at Ratcliffe, both teams had grown stronger, but it was Oakham that held on to a 1-0 victory with some very impressive displays from all and in particular Seventh Formers Alex Taylor (captain) and Charlotte Sethna. It has indeed been a pleasure to coach this team; a very enjoyable season on game day and during training days.

Well done, girls! Written by Caitlin Jeffries (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

13

8

0

5

48

35

13

10

6

1

3

26

13

13

Edition no.206

SPORT: GIRLS HOCKEY

p101

3rd XI Girls Hockey

U16 Girls Hockey

This season has been a challenging and joyful one for the 3rd XI, with some great successes. Our team consisted of Form 6 and 7 girls who are cheerful at every training session. Despite the cold, we have trained hard this term and played well in matches too. We have had a mixture of results from our matches but we constantly stayed positive and carried on with great teamwork. Our midfield consisted of Alice Gibbs, Gina Tyler, Amelie Hill, Annie Rhodes, Georgie McHoul and Eliza Skinner, whilst up front were Caroline Denman, Helen Braybrook, Phoebe Tucker and Clairssa Woodisse. We had a structured and strong defence, which consisted of Bethany Davis, Harriet Gill, Millie Greenlees, Lara Philipson, Flo Wilkinson, Izzy Richardson and Issy Wass as our fantastic goalie. We may not have had an unbeaten season, but our team spirit – aided by our coach, Mr Johnson – kept us working hard together to enjoy training and matches. Throughout the season, we have improved moving the ball around the pitch and spreading out to get the ball into the attacking area. We have all become more confident with tackling and our enthusiasm has continually improved. During training sessions, we have worked on hitting skills, ball skills and moving into spaces, which has helped in matches. All the girls had an infectious happiness which helped us to play well throughout the season. Written by Amelie Hill (captain)

After a successful four-day pre-season training camp at Bath University, the U16A girls’ hard work paid off as they won convincingly 5-0 against Rugby School. Three further wins against Leicester G.S, Stamford and Rugby School again in the cup set us up for a duel with Oundle. Disappointingly we lost 2-3 but the girls bounced back brilliantly with emphatic wins against Stowe and Uppingham 5-2.

The girls did extra training over the return half-term weekend, showing great commitment to the cause and our 6-1 win against The Leys in the cup showed off the girls’ high level of play. The loss away at Repton was expected, but the girls learnt so much from this experience and never gave up and showed some excellent team spirit. For me our away win at Bromsgrove was our best effort of the season; the girls dug deep and pulled off a terrific 2-1 win.

Our penultimate game, which became our last of the season, was away against the Perse in the Regional Final to qualify for the National Quarter-Finals. What a game! On a horrible December evening in the pouring rain, the girls fought extremely hard, playing some of their best hockey of the season – everything to play for at half time with the scores level at 2-2 ... losing 4-3 was gutting but it was not to be this year. Nevertheless it was an incredibly proud and committed performance by all and overall, it was a super season. Written by Ashley Denman (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

10

4

0

6

25

23

2

4th XI Girls Hockey The 4th XI girls played some competitive fixtures over the season. A specific mention to the Rugby School fixtures as the team played them twice and both games were end-to-end resulting in a 3-3 and 1-1 draw. The girls worked hard continuously and didn’t give up the battle. Two very worthy draws. The team finished with a great performance against Welbeck College with a 6-0 win showing some great goals. Written by Peta Girdwood (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

9

1

4

4

14

18

-4

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

12

8

1

3

39

20

19

The U16B hockey team have had a very successful term finishing the season unbeaten in the league. We had a great start to the term winning our first 2 matches against Rugby and Stamford comfortably, scoring a total of 8 goals, with a special mention to Natasha Erdmann who provided most of these goals. This was followed by two very close matches against Oundle and Stowe, both of which we drew 1-1. This included some great defensive work by all the defenders, with a special mention to Charlotte Sharman who really stepped up in these two fixtures. After half-term we had a tough fixture against Uppingham with some great play by all the girls and some lovely goals and we were unlucky not to get the win, with a final score of 3-3. Next up were Repton with Jemima Hart having a great game, scoring all 4 goals to give us the win. The final fixture that we played was against Bromsgrove, where we had possession for the majority of the match and this was shown with a 1-0 win. A final special mention goes to the captain Holly Styles; thank you for all your hard work this term. Written by Jenna Mohan (coach) The U16C team have had a strong term winning 4 and drawing 1 of our matches.

A strong team made up of Lally our goalie, Libby, Sophie, Annie, Flo and Emily as the defensive line and Megan, Millie, Flora, Issy, Porsche, Rose, Phoebe, Mia, Nanami, Erin and Caitlin as our attackers. The term saw great development across the board as we focused on working the ball out wide and dedicated time in training for short corner practice. We saw a strong improvement on working as a team to dribble the ball down the side to the attacking half and making sure we looked up before passing to ensure it reached our players. This was evident in our matches against Oundle, where we won 3-0 and then 4-0.

Training on Thursdays often included friendly matches against the 3rd XI and 4th XI to improve our match play in a game situation as opposed to solid drill work. Overall, the team had a great term of working together to help each other show off their strengths and carry us through the term successfully. Written by Emily Oakley (captain)

p102

SPORT: GIRLS HOCKEY

Edition no.206

U15 Girls Hockey The U15A team made their presence known from the outset starting with a blinding 5-0 win against Rugby in the first week back to School. Continuing on a winning streak, the girls demonstrated superb attacking skills with a run of wins leading up to half-term, scoring 16 goals and conceding 1.

The penultimate game before half-term saw the team’s closest battle with Uppingham, finishing 1-1. Returning for the second half of the season, we faced Uppingham once again, playing at home. Both teams were hungry to win, and yet another extremely close encounter saw another draw 1-1 yet again! Our toughest game and only loss of the season came against the infamous Repton side where we kept a clean score sheet for the first 22 minutes. We were 1-1 going into the second half, but with several players down, Repton took the upper hand to beat us. Not dampening our spirit, we finished the season with two pleasing wins, against Bromsgrove and Trent. In total the U15As scored 28 goals, conceding 8 and losing only 1 game. They are a force to be reckoned with and we look forward to seeing how they fare in the U16 Cup Competition next season. Written by Heidi Cannie (coach) What a great season the U15B team had! Whilst the results on the pitch were a bit of a mixed bag, the enthusiasm and energy with which the girls all threw themselves into training and matches was fantastic to see. With good wins against Bromsgrove, Stamford and Trent College, the girls did fantastically well and scored some great goals. Izzy Drakard in goal was reliable and single-handedly showed us an effective if slightly unconventional way of dominating her area. Els, Ella, Katie O’D, Helena, Evelyn and Katie Mc were reliable in defence with Immy, Hester, Lotte & Izzy playing well together through the midfield. Amongst the forwards, Hannah, Isabelle, Lucy, Ariyana and Matilda were ferocious in front of goal. Written by Patrick Latham (coach) The U15C girls got off to a solid start in training, concentrating on improving their attacking skills and using different dodges to avoid an opponent.

After a tough loss against Rugby, our next match against Stamford saw Immy and Evelyn in attack constantly pushing forwards to set up several goals for team mates and some very sound defending at the back by Megs Vardy and Abigail Cook, which helped to secure a 4-0 victory for Oakham.

Our next two games were to be good wins for Oakham, particularly the game against Stowe. Helena Stitt and Izzy Sandham played solidly in attack, with several of their passes leading to goals. Poppy Price was also able to set up good passes into the circle, a few being saved by their very competent Goalkeeper who prevented several goals from being scored. Written by Kim Wills (coach)

1

2

What a great season overall for the U14C girls! Having played 6 league matches, the girls won 4 and lost only 2, securing 2nd place in the ISHL. From the second match onwards, the girls went from strength to strength, beating Stowe 5-1, Uppingham 4-3 and Bromsgrove 5-0. Each game, the girls played with intensity and determination to win, the defenders closed down the opposition and linked with the forwards to create some great attacking play. Overall, the girls should be proud of the way they have performed this season. Well done! Written by Isobel Beighton (coach) The U14D team have been an absolute pleasure to coach all term; they have all showed a determination to win, as well as a drive to improve their skills as much as possible. They started the season as they meant to carry on, winning against Rugby School 2-0. After 2 draws against Stamford and Oundle, the girls then returned to winning ways beating Stowe and Uppingham. Their final 2 games of term were also against Uppingham and both tightly contested matches, Uppingham just got the upper hand on these occasions. However, the valiant efforts and wins from the team all season still ensured that they won the Independent School Hockey League. Written by Peta Girdwood (coach)

U14 Girls Hockey

U13 Girls Hockey

The U14A team have had an excellent season, finishing top of the Independent Schools Hockey League with a record of 8 victories and 0 losses, showing their dominance within their age group. This came after disappointingly being knocked out of the national competition in the first round, after narrowly losing to strong Loughborough and Uppingham sides.

Highlights of the season were our high-scoring victories against Bromsgrove 9-0 and a 7-0 victory against Trent College to finish the season on a high.

Throughout the season the team has developed into a strong and dominant 11-a-side team; playing with a dominant and very attacking style of play, the girls were able to dictate the flow and tempo of games, allowing us full control of the ball and the score line. Written by Tom Rhodes (coach)

The U13A girls have made huge improvements over the course of the term. There have been wins, draws and losses throughout the season and although a long journey, the girls showed in their final game of the season how much determination they had to improve. Having found themselves 4-1 down at half-time, the girls went on to win the second half 2-0 and could have scored even more. This was a fitting end to the season where although not a victory, the real victory was in the way the girls played and conducted themselves in such a positive manner.

Written by Katie Long (coach)

What a fantastic season the U14B team has had, led by captain Milena Bell.

The girls won 8 out of 9 games, finishing top of the ISHL league! The girls have gone from strength to strength and really gelled as a team. The girls scored a total of 24 goals and only conceded 2 goals over the season. The highlights of the season were our fantastic 5-0 win against Repton, 3-0 win against Bromsgrove, and the last game of the season against Trent College that saw us jump to the top of the league with a 3-0 win! Written

by Taegan O’Hara (coach)

What a great season for the U13Bs; 7 wins from 11 games, a single loss, and much enjoyment had by all. With Tilly in goal behind the strong pairing of Roisin and Gracie at the back with support from Charlotte and Olivia, it took something special to breach the circle. Through the midfield, Riya, Katie, Sofia, Mia and Amelia developed great partnerships and a solid understanding of how each other played the game, whilst up front, Tabitha and Evie provided excellent targets for the midfield in the opposition circle. The cherry on the cake was the fantastic 3-2 win over Witham Hall, a typically well-drilled and strong side. Written by James Bateman

3

4

The U13C team have had a brilliant term with all the team improving a great deal. They started off the term strongly with 2 wins in a row against Spratton Hall and Oundle. The team then faced a tough match against Stamford losing 1-6, however they had the opportunity to work on their weaknesses and the following week reduced that result to just a 2-3 loss. A superb turnaround! The team then had a winning streak of 3 matches against Leicester Grammar School, Wellingborough and Oundle. The team worked hard extremely hard all term and were focused towards their last fixture against St Hugh’s. Although very strong opponents, the girls played some of their best hockey yet. I am extremely proud of all the team have achieved this term. Written by Peta Girdwood (coach)

U12 Girls Hockey A great term for the U12A team this season, led by captain Grace Hornsby.

The girls have scored a fantastic 40 goals and only conceded 13 goals against them. They have been a solid team from the off and have continually improved their hockey ability. An exciting start to the season saw the girls secure a 3-2 victory to Spratton Hall. This was followed by a very end-toend non-scoring draw with Trent College. The team bounced back with an exciting 3-1 win to Oundle and after a tough game against Bilton Grange the week after, the team finished the season on a winning streak with some high-scoring games against Leicester Grammar School, Maidwell Hall, Wellingborough School and Oundle School and a very close 3-2 win to Loughborough High School. In the last game of the season the girls played a fantastically evenly matched fixture against Witham Hall. Both teams played some fantastic hockey and created several chances but Witham managed to get that extra goal and resulted in a 2-1 loss. A great game to finish the term on and an exciting hockey future ahead of them all! Written by Taegan O’Hara (coach) The U12Bs have had a brilliant season. The girls really started to gel as a team and picked their first win against Trent away. Facing tough opposition against Stoneygate and Bilton Grange, the girls continued to make improvements to their skills and understanding of the game. A fantastic 4-0 win against Wellingborough really proved how far they’d come, with some quality hockey played. To round off the season the girls finished strongly, winning 11-1 against Oundle and produced a great team performance to win against Witham. I feel very proud of each and every girl in this team, all making significant improvements and always playing with a smile on their faces. Each girl has led the team as captain, all doing an exceptional job.

Written by Caitlin Jeffries (coach)

5

1 U15A Hockey 2 U14A Hockey

3 U13A Hockey 4 U12A Hockey

5 U11 Hockey

What a fantastic term it has been for the U12Cs this season.

They have trained particularly hard and with great enthusiasm throughout, making exceptional progress. Their attacking skills proved to be particularly useful in their match against Trent, in which they managed to outwit many opponents in and around the circle, resulting in many goals. Our defence Lara Foster and Lulu Tyers also had a good game, clearing the ball safely away from the opposition, and setting it up nicely for another attack. Issy Harris and Evie Deane also played well in attack, scoring several goals between them.

Despite some very wet and windy training sessions, the girls maintained their enthusiasm and their effective play led to another 2 victories. Phoebe Hopper and Liberty Dickinson are to be congratulated for their strong play in attack, particularly at penalty corners, and Lulu Tyers for her consistently good play in defence.

Also a thank you to Isabelle Pepper for volunteering to have a go in goal, and making such a good job of it. Written by Kim Wills (coach)

They have trained particularly hard and with great enthusiasm throughout, making exceptional progress.

The U12D Dynamos had a great season with lots of fantastic hockey played by all in their 11 games, with 4 wins, 4 draws, 3 losses and 30 goals scored! A special mention to the Wellingborough School fixture, which saw the girls battle hard to get a win. They demonstrated some excellent team and individual skills. Written by Taegan O’Hara (coach)

U11 Girls Hockey The U11 girls have been working hard at developing their hockey skills this term. They have won 4 out of their 9 fixtures and have grown as a team, applying the skills they have learnt in training to a competitive situation. Firstly they faced Stoneygate where they won 6-0, creating some excellent goal scoring opportunities. The following highlights of the term for U11 include: Stamford Junior School, 8-0, Leicester Grammar School, 4-1 and Fairfield Prep, 2-1.

The addition of the ‘crab’ mascot revolutionised their game vs Fairfield and helped the girls to take the win! In training, as the term has progressed, each member of the team has grown in confidence, especially with their stick and ball skills and as individuals they were starting to think more tactically about each game. Written by Isobel Beighton (coach)

p104

SPORT: NETBALL

Netball 1st VII Netball This season has seen more success for the 1st VII girls as they successfully secured a National Schools Finals place after becoming both County and Regional Champions. As with last season, the 1st VII have competed over two terms in the Independent Schools Netball Cup, so began their campaign with an opening match in September, beating Stamford 45-24.

The girls faced a tough 4th round fixture in the ISNC losing 29-62 against The King’s School, Worcester. Following that was the County Finals competition. The girls displayed some excellent netball throughout each round, where they won all their matches to become County Champions! Following this was the Regional Finals Competition; a convincing 14-7 SemiFinal victory over Oundle School, as well as a 20-10 win in the Final against Repton School, secured them a place at National Finals.

February began with plenty of Nationals preparation for the girls, the commitment to the programme was crucial to be able to compete with the top schools in the country. It was a fantastic opportunity for the girls to display their hard work and dedication to Oakham Netball and every player should be proud of the way they conducted themselves on the day of the National Finals, in particular their resilience and determination to continue.

They placed 7th in their group, meaning they currently stand as the 13th best Netball school team in the country.

Our girls should be extremely proud of their achievements this season.

Written by Isobel Beighton (coach)

2nd VII Netball The 2nd VII had a steady start to the season, losing their first few games to Rugby, Repton and Oundle. However, as the team began to bond and create relationships on and off the court, there was no stopping this team. Victories began flooding in with a real highlight being our victory over Trent 42-8.

A personal highlight was the match against Bromsgrove, which saw the 2nd team take the win 17-16 in the dying minutes of the match. Every player that took to the court during this game gave it their all, fighting for every ball and standing up strong to some tough opposition. Our defensive dream team, Molly Johnson, Annabelle Northcott and Harriet Gill, made some crucial turnovers, while our cool and collected shooters, Olivia Brown, Ella Turner and Alicia Gaisford-St Lawrence continued to score goals, to secure the win. Particular credit must be given to Margot Buchanan for being a fantastic captain and natural leader on and off the court.

I would also like to congratulate the awesome Form 7 pupils who are leaving Oakham Netball behind; I wish you all the best for the future and hope to see you continue to play netball! Your efforts and work ethic over the years have made Oakham Netball what it is today; Alicia Gaisford-St Lawrence, Izzy Fear, Isobel Wells, Harriet Gill. Written by Elise Whearity (coach)

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

40

27

0

13

840

624

216

6

3

0

3

168

139

29

Edition no.206

SPORT: NETBALL

p105

3rd VII Netball

U16A Netball

Unfortunately the 3rd team ended up with a slightly reduced fixture list due to many of their planned opponents struggling to field their teams. Of the 6 matches they did play each offered close competitive competition.

They started with a loss against Rugby School, 15-23, however after a week of reflection and directed training they beat Repton School 9-3. This was followed by a win against Oundle, 34-17, and a draw against Uppingham, 24-24. A strong Bromsgrove side ended their winning streak, however, the team has come a long way since their first match in January; well done to all that have played for the 3rds.

The U16A team had a super season, particularly in their journey of the National Schools Competition which started back in November 2019. With the team being combined of both Form 4 and Form 5 pupils, preparations started early in the Winter Term. At the Leicestershire County Tournament the team faced 7 other schools, including Loughborough High School, Uppingham School and Leicester Grammar School. The team started strong accumulating 7 wins from 7 matches, scoring 75 goals across the tournament. At the finals night they once again faced Leicester Grammar School, winning 16-13 to be crowned County Champions. The team then looked ahead to the Regional Finals at Repton School. The conditions were difficult for all the participating schools however the team remained focused and strong and won 3 from 5 of their matches against Repton School, Lady Manners School and St George’s Academy. They progressed through to the Semi-Finals on goal difference, however, missed out on a place in the Finals by just 2 goals against Nottingham High School.

Although the players were disappointed not to reach the National Finals, they should be extremely proud of all that they have achieved and now start building again for future national competitions.

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

6

2

1

3

100

117

-17

4th VII Netball Although we faced more losses than victories, the 4th VII girls pulled together and grew in strength as a team. They kickstarted their season with a fantastic victory over Rugby School with Yasmin O’Donnell scoring highly for Oakham and fantastic defence shown by Eloise Murray. Following some training sessions, the team visited Repton School to play a ‘round robin’ tournament against their victorious U16As and Oakham’s 3rds and 2nds. Although defeated, the girls showed great integrity and support. The following week, the girls played a tough home match against Oundle School.

Gina Tyler was recognised for her strength and commitment as the 4ths Centre during this match and worked well with her attack sidekick Georgia Conley. Week 5 saw an evenly played match from both sides as the girls played Uppingham at home; although the wind was not in our favour that day for two quarters of the match! This was a turning point for the 4ths, who had slightly lost their confidence by this point. With a new lease of energy upon them, the girls faced Bromsgrove School. As our final match of the season, we certainly went out on a high. Play for the entirety was courageous and strong from both sides and Lia Murray Smith stunned with her shooting, accompanied by Inez Jackson who really came into her own in the second half. Central defence remained strong with Sacha Burlison and Eloise Murray sharing the roles of GD and GK and the wings well defended and attacked by Rose Cassidy and Georgia Conley. Written by Anna Williams (coach) Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

4

0

0

4

49

131

-82

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Goals For

Goals Against

Goal Difference

17

13

0

4

319

188

131

The U16B team have had a superb season playing 7 matches, winning 5 and losing 2. Highlights include our opening game of the season away at Rugby in hail and rain, though we were not deterred and walked off with a 27-10 win.

After a run of wins in the first half of term, we finished our last game against Oundle beating them convincingly 47-16. Returning to School for the final half of term we played Uppingham in a tough fixture playing some excellent netball against their U15A team. We unfortunately lost out by 4 goals, finishing 14-18. Our final game of the season saw us play King’s School, Peterborough, who were well drilled and quick. We started well but their tall and dynamic defence let little past them and we struggled to narrow the lead towards the end. An excellent game nonetheless which we learnt lots from. All involved have contributed wholeheartedly to both training and fixtures. It has been a pleasure coaching you all. Written by Heidi Cannie (coach)

All involved have contributed wholeheartedly to both training and fixtures. It has been a pleasure coaching you all.

The U16C team had a super season playing 5 fixtures, with 4 wins and 1 loss.

They continually brought a super attitude to training and appeared highly motivated for their fixtures. They had wins against Rugby School, both their U18F and U18G teams, Oundle School, Bromsgrove and Nottingham Trent, which were testament to their hard work. Well done to the whole squad for a super season and some great results.

p106

SPORT: NETBALL

Edition no.206

U15 Netball The first three fixtures of the term were wins for the U15A team against Rugby School, Nottingham Girls’ High School, as well as Uppingham.

These matches allowed the team to find their feet and start developing areas of play. After a tough fixture against Oundle, the team played the Uppingham U16A team, which really pushed them and allowed various playing combinations to be successfully tested and also resulted in a 29-23 win. This lifted everyone’s confidence and although the final two fixtures of the season were disappointing losses, the team should be extremely proud of all they had learned and how much they had improved. This squad has a huge amount of potential and I hope they continue to enjoy their netball: Zara Brown (captain) Rosie Sly, Alice Whyman (vice-captain) Bonnie Harris, Millie Bairstow, Gabi Gelderbloom, Kiki Mathew-Shaw, Rosie Manning, Sid Sykes, and Imogen Koczulab.

The U15B team worked hard in both training and matches, making outstanding progress over the course of the season. Wins against Rugby School, Uppingham and Repton saw great defending and accurate shooting. Close games against Oundle and Bromsgrove really tested the players’ skills. Against Oundle Ella Baldock and Ella Chandler both played extremely well in the circle, dodging and holding space, and keeping the circle balanced. Georgina Eatch and Poppy Price managed to cut out several high balls intended for their shooters, with well-timed interceptions and effective rebounds. Against Bromsgrove Georgina Sheppard and Isabelle Wilson played exceptionally well, as did the shooters. Written

by Kim Wills (coach) The U15C season results are a clear refection of the hard work that the team put in this year. Out of the 7 fixtures played, the team won 5. In particular, strong wins were had over Uppingham and Bromsgrove. The team fought off close competition against Rugby and Trent College, although they were playing their B teams. Although Oundle were just too strong, the team did not let it affect their spirit. We look forward to see how the players progress next year as U16s; well done all. Written by Peta Girdwood The U15Ds have been an exceptional team of girls to work with this season, with every member of the team contributing to their success and development. Our first match was a convincing win over Rugby School and the determined approach in this match set the tone for the whole season.

The team worked hard in training sessions to improve their game play, their skills and fitness. We lost three matches during the season but never once did they play as a losing team. What has marked this team out is their tenacity and sheer enjoyment of the game. Written by Phillipa Sykes (coach)

U14 Netball The U14A journey started back in October 2019 when Oakham were crowned County Champions after winning 7 out of 7 matches at the Leicestershire County U14 finals. They followed this with electric performances at the Regional tournament to become Regional Champions. The team were also unbeaten in their school matches, with fine wins over Rugby, Nottingham High School, Repton, and Uppingham. Their best match of the season was a nail-biting fixture against Bromsgrove. The parents were on their feet as Oakham fought hard for 48 minutes and were blessed with a fine win 24-20. This result certainly boosted the girls’ confidence ahead of the National Finals, where captain Chalmers led her team brilliantly. In the early stages Oakham had a number of tough matches but they did not let their heads go down and stepped up into top gear with wins against King’s Worcester (10-7) and Red House School (9-7) to finish in the top 10 in the country. I would like to thank the team for making training, matches and tournaments fun; to see a team with so much drive and energy, wanting to better themselves session after session is really a coach’s dream. Thank you girls! Written by Michelle Northcott (coach)

1

2 The U14B team finished the season unbeaten, scoring a total of 125 goals across 6 matches. A tense opening match against Rugby School saw some first match nerves but the team worked well together and won the game by 5 goals. One of the highlights of the season was beating Repton 32-7; the team pushed till the end in the last quarter to get over 30 goals. They also had three good but hard fought wins against local rivals Uppingham and Oundle, as well as Bromsgrove.

A special mention goes to the captain Martha Hoyles, who by playing centre, has controlled the game throughout the court this term and has kept the girls motivated whilst showing excellent knowledge and understanding of the game.

Written by Jenna Mohan (coach) The U14C girls have really grown as a team this season, applying the skills they have learnt in training to a competitive situation with the result that they won 5 out of 6 competitive fixtures. Highlights included wins against Rugby School, 20-9, Trent College U14Bs, 21-0, and Uppingham, 20-8. A versatile squad meant that everyone took to the court to represent Oakham.

In the final fixture of the term against Bromsgrove away, although we faced a few illnesses within the squad, the girls still managed to win 18-13. An extremely well fought game to end what has been a fantastic term of netball.

Written by Isobel Beighton (coach) Over the term the U14Ds played 6 fixtures, winning 2 and losing 4. The players have really developed their skills over the term becoming more confident with their movement and passing. Their games against Repton and Oundle resulted in two wins, 3-0 and 12-11 respectively. Although they put up a great fight, Rugby, Trent, Uppingham and Bromsgrove were just too strong for them.

The U14Es had a fantastic season. The development of skills amongst the group has been phenomenal, resulting in some fantastic match play against a variety of schools. A real highlight was their 14-6 win against Oundle. This team have been committed and enthusiastic during games sessions that has resulted in improved overall confidence of netball skills and matches! Written by Elise Whearity (coach) Over the course of the term the U14F team had 3 fixtures, resulting in 1 win (against Rugby 10-2), 1 draw and 1 loss. The team remained incredibly focused throughout the term and enjoyed their fixtures when they had them. Very well done to all the players.

3 1 U15A Netball 2 U15B Netball.

3 U14A Netball 4 U14B Netball U12 Netball

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U13 Netball

This season the U12As have come together as a team and shown each other what we can achieve collectively. This has shown in our matches because we have won every match we have played. We have been pushed to be our best ability in training and this has affected our game play and strategies and the way we think towards it. This teamwork has shown that we can be the best if we have each other. We learn new things everyday with Miss Whearity; she has shown us our full potential, and that we can be an amazing team if we all try hard. All of this has made the team improve and end the season on a high.

Written by Sammy Kaczmar and Issy Oliver

Over the term the U13As played 8 fixtures, with 3 wins, 1 draw and 4 losses.

They started they term off with wins against Wellingborough, Foremarke and Oundle. The middle block of matches saw some close results against Witham Hall and Spratton Hall. The later third of our matches were the toughest of the term facing St Faith’s, DRET and Stamford. Well done to the team. I am looking forward to seeing how they all develop as netballers: Eloise Snape (captain), Izzy Clarke, Katie King, Olivia Sutton, Scarlett Blackman, Riya Hirani, Alice Smith, Roisin Mee, Tabby Abbott.

The U12B team had an outstanding season; their work rate was second to none and each week they continuously worked hard as a team focusing on the most positive end result possible. At the beginning of the season they faced Wellingborough and Fairfield Hall; both fixtures were highly competitive to the end whistle, with the team coming out on top with 2 wins. Their winning spree continued over the following weeks against Trent School, Stamford and Witham Hall, with just the one narrow loss against Spratton Hall. A super season by the whole team. Written by Peta Girdwood

The U13B girls had an excellent term overall. They won every fixture very convincingly, displaying superb netball skills, versatility and cohesion throughout. Convincing wins at the start of the season against Wellingborough (21-12), Foremarke Hall (24-12) and Oundle (25-7) set them up well for their later matches against some tough competition; a 23-14 win against Witham and then a great win against Spratton Hall (16-11) showed that the girls were performing with confidence! The remaining two fixtures were Trent College and Stamford, where they secured their last two wins to finish the season on a high! Written

by Isobel Beighton (coach)

The U12Cs started off extremely well with a 19-1 win against Wellingborough.

This winning streak continued in matches against Foremarke Hall and also Witham Hall. They had a closely contested fixture against Oundle, with a tight score line of 6-10. After a restful half-term the team returned to their winning ways against Spratton Hall, Stamford and also Trent College. From the 8 matches played, the U12Cs won an incredible 6! Congratulations to the whole team, particularly for the shooters scoring over 100 goals over the term! Written

by Renae Johnston (coach)

The U13C team played 8 matches, winning 6 and losing 2. The girls made great progress over the term, with particular highlights being the victories against Trent College and St Faith’s, which allowed them to play with some organised sequences of passing and set moves. Daisy Griffiths played exceptionally well in both matches, marking her opponents exceptionally well and creating many turnovers with her interceptions. Written by Kim Wills (coach) The U13D team has had a mixed set of results this term, with 4 wins and 3 losses. Every player should be proud of the progress they have made throughout the term, in all aspects of the game. One of the best team performances was against Trent College U13C team, where the star player was Hannah, as she helped to transition the ball from our defending end to our attacking end throughout the match. This, along with some lovely work by our shooters in the circle, including some off the post play, contributed to a 16-5 win. A special mention goes to the captain Tomi, who has not only helped to inspire the team in difficult moments but her movement on the court and consistent shooting has been vital. Written by Jenna Mohan (coach)

The U12Ds have had some excellent results, winning most of their games this season with notable wins against Wellingborough, Foremarke Hall, St Faith’s, and Stamford. Written by Elise Whearity (coach) The U12E team have shown excellent resilience and determination in their matches and during games. They have truly worked extremely hard and despite not always achieving success, have never let their heads drop and continue to progress and enjoy their netball!

U11 Netball One of the main highlights of this season has been that every player has played fixtures week in and week out, achieving valuable court time for the future. Every single player has been dedicated and has worked hard for their teammates. Foremarke Hall and St Faith’s were our strongest competition, whilst we drew 6-6 in an exciting finish at St Hugh’s. We lost out narrowly to the Elms, but finished on a high at the end of the season securing wins against Stamford, Brooke Priory and Witham Hall. Written by Ruth Powell (coach)

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SPORT: BOYS FOOTBALL

Edition no.206

Boys Football The Spring Term of 2020 will go down as a memorable season for boys football at Oakham. It began with an enforced change of leadership with the simultaneous departures of Jon Andrews and Tom Stokes, two members of staff who had done so much to build the sport’s culture at the School over the last five years. It ended prematurely with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, but between times there were many more highs than highs to celebrate as boy’s football at Oakham went from strength to strength.

A sign of the growth of the sport was the traditional season’s curtain raiser of three senior fixtures against the Old Oakhamians, when 40 old boys returned to Wilson Fields to compete for the Ed Farmer trophy. On a sunny and crisp January afternoon there was a great sporting atmosphere with the OOs taking the honours with a clean sweep in three tightly contested games. Ivan Vlasenko’s cheeky (and crucial) backheel in the blue riband game will live long in the memory.

The first half of the season saw block fixtures against Bedford, Wellingborough, Rugby and Uppingham, and in spite of the very wet winter weather, credit to the ground staff, as the well-drained home pitches allowed some great football to be played. The 1st XI, benefiting from the physiological, psychological and tactical coaching of UEFA pro-licensed Matt Wilsher, who brought with him experience from the professional game in Europe and South America, made a clean sweep of all 5 games with the Oakham team often outclassing and dispiriting sides from similar schools. Evidence some of the margins of victory, which were unusually comprehensive at this level (7-1 vs Bedford, 5-1 vs Rugby and 12-2 vs Uppingham).

Perhaps the most impressive win, however, was the 2-0 victory over Wellingborough, which avenged the Cup Final defeat of last season.

After half-term the rains continued to fall and momentum was lost. Unfortunately two under-par halves of football ‘on the road’ resulted in shock defeats at St Albans in the Cup and at Ely in the League. However, a win against Oundle and a cancelled fixture vs Loughborough Grammar meant that when the season was terminated a week early, Oakham topped the Mercian ISFL League table with 15 points from a possible 18.

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Edition no.206

RANK

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Oakham topped the Mercian ISFL League table with 15 points from a possible18!

The 2nd XI and 3rd XIs, under the auspices of Steve Bent, James Dalby and Mike Passey went one better, going through the whole campaign with 100% records, and becoming, in the process, our very own “invincibles”. This underlined the strength in depth in Senior Football this year. It would be unfair to pick out any particular individuals in these sides, with the success being a true team effort and all players deserving great credit for pulling together for the collective cause.

Conversely, the Middle School sides struggled throughout their campaigns. Despite valiant efforts from the coaches, Andrew Jarvis, Jamy Clamp and Jack Messenger, and from some of the Form 4 players in particular, these sides suffered from a lack of depth of quality and consistency and will need to work hard next season to improve and reach the standard required.

As the cliché goes, football is a game of two halves, and so it proved for the Oakham’s boys football season, in more ways than one. There is much to look forward to next year thanks to the exceptional strength in depth in Form 6 in particular.

Special mention should be given to Clipsham House in this regard, with five representatives in the 1st XI (Russell, Mason, Smalley and new boys Evans and Lamb) and many other players in the 2nds and 3rds (the likes of Robinson, Fry, Bland,

Worthington, Robson, Foster and England) – all that ‘volta’ practice in the Hambleton tennis court really paid off!

At the season’s end, Football Colours were awarded to the following departing Form 7s: Captain and centre half Harry Tyler, goalkeeper Joe Kelly, goalscorer Callum Matthews, star player Ole Neuss and utility forwards Will Green, Aaron Mistry and Will Jacklin.

We thank them for their service and trust that they look back at their football careers at Oakham with great memories. We hope to see you return as OOs soon. Finally, one first to look forward to next season is our debut in the U18 National ISFA Cup – at the time of writing we await our draw with eager anticipation – as I said, football at Oakham continues to go from strength to strength.

Written by David Russell (Director of Football)

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SPORT: GIRLS FOOTBALL

Edition no.206

Girls Football I will remember this group of girls for their hard work and dedication to women’s football and their passion and drive to never give up.

After some excellent conditioning sessions and two wellfought friendly fixtures, the girls faced Rugby School in the Midlands League and ran away 6-0 winners. This was one of 4 wins that the team achieved over the season.

A particular highlight of the season was the away match at Welbeck. It was a nail-biting fixture with some great work in midfield and defence from Jenna Lloyd. It was 0-0 at half-time and all to play for. The Oakham girls came out flying in the second half and Marietta Gernandt scored a great goal within 30 seconds of the whistle! We held on to the victory with sheer hard work and determination.

Welbeck put us under immense pressure in defence, but we held on to the victory and were happy to hear the final whistle blow. Audrey Kung earned the title Player of the Match and was outstanding in the right back position. A great team effort.

Another great result was our final ISFA match against Uppingham at home. The girls were hungry for a win after two tough matches and the goals came in a flurry. After 9 minutes, Marietta Gernandt scored and then two minutes later Clara Loran-Bosser scored. Uppingham replied and took advantage of some miscommunication in defence to score to make it 2-1. In the 18th minute an own goal (given to Jenna Lloyd) was scored, and 4 minutes later Stephanie Foort scored a cracking goal. We went into half-

time with a comfortable 4-1 lead. Two more goals came in the second half from Ruby Styles for a 6-1 victory. This was a great result to finish our ISFA tournament, but finishing 3rd in the table meant that we could not progress any further in the competition.

Possibly the best fixture of the season was our rematch against Oundle, after our Midlands League fixture against Uppingham was postponed due to the weather. The wind blew again and the rain came down! Playing on a bigger pitch, we fought hard but found ourselves 2-0 down at half-time. This was disappointing as we had our chances, but lacked the power and accuracy to finish them. We finally scored in the second half and then Ellie Sentance scored a calmly taken penalty to make it 2-2. Chances for the win came from both sides and it was a tense finish, but the girls held on to a 2-2 draw. There was still no way to break the two sides and over all of the matches played, this was the best fixture of the season.

Our season did not end as it should have, with the Loughborough High School Midlands League match unfortunately having to be cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic, but we will all have many fond memories of this season. Thank you to our 1st XI captain, Ellie Sentance, and our vicecaptains, Eleanor Foort and Emma Wardrop, for a great season. I would also like to thank Mr Reid for his dedication to the girls and his specific focus on the goalkeepers, Mr Hall for refereeing the ISFA fixtures and finally to all of the parents that come and support from the sidelines – whatever the weather! Good luck to the Form 7 girls and other players who are moving on to new ventures – it has been a privilege and a pleasure! Written by Ruth Powell (Coach)

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SPORT: LACROSSE & ATHLETICS

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Lacrosse Yet another very happy lacrosse season here at Oakham. Our Winter Term squad, ably led by Toby Tsang, trained and played with enthusiasm. There were matches and notable wins; the highlight being winning the Triangular Tournament against Uppingham and Denstone College in November. Ines Gillard stepped into goal and proved to be a reliable and brave goal-keeper for the full season. We had many close games against Uppingham, Stowe, Tudor Hall, Denstone and Haileybury.

The Spring Term saw returned gusto to the squad and our matches. The girls’ eagerness to enjoy themselves whilst trying to improve their skills was fantastic and I feel lucky to have coached them. Covid-19 sadly ended the season before we could play our final matches, including house matches. To you Round House girls who missed out on your victory this year, I hope you continue to play in the future and always remember the friends you made on the lacrosse pitch here at Oakham.

Written by Caroline Simpson (coach)

Above: Fabian at the National Indoor Athletics Championships. Far Left: Sofia with her Corby Athletics awards.

Athletics

Two outstanding Oakham athletes competed in numerous events around the Midlands over the summer break.

Sofia (Form 2) broke the Oakham Girls U13 300m record twice (42.73s) (E Smith 2019), ranked 4th in the UK. She also broke the Oakham U13 Girls 200m, 27.6s (20 year old record held by E Stott 2000).

Fabian (Form 3) achieved two number 1 UK rankings in two different disciplines.

He broke Evan Blackman’s Oakham U14 Boys 300m record, 36.06s and ran a time of 11.16s in Doncaster to secure a top UK rank in the 100m.

These achievements followed successes that the two athletes enjoyed earlier in

the year. Fabian won his first National title at the National Indoor Athletics Championships in February. He ran the 300m race in 36.65 seconds, which makes him the 3rd fastest U15 indoor 300m runner of all time. His win also means he is now number 1 in the UK rankings.

Meanwhile Sofia came away with four awards at the Corby Athletics awards in November 2019. She won a Gold award for her performance in the Club Championships, as well as awards for ‘Athlete of the Match’ and Best Performance in both the 800m and 200m in the Heart of England League.

Sofia also won the Outstanding Achievement award for her first national prep school title.

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SPORT: CROSS COUNTRY

Edition no.206

Cross Country The cross country team has had an amazing season, competing in a huge range of events from nationals to the EMISCC. The camaraderie of the team has been outstanding and the support is exceptional.

Our efforts have been rewarded with some great results, with some of the younger members of the squad, who are racing with people who are sometimes five years older than them, doing exceptionally well. A few people were selected for the Leicestershire and Rutland Squad in the Schools Nationals at Liverpool. Members of the team also competed at Midlands, Nationals and Inter-counties, all of which have exceptional fields of competition. Having so many Oakhamians at these big events is an outstanding achievement and they should all be proud of what they achieved in such prestigious events.

Written by Rori Rodell (Boys cross country captain)

Never before have we had such a competitive and determined group of runners.

This is definitely a season that Oakham made its mark in the cross country world. Never before have we had such a competitive and determined group of runners. Both the boys’ and the girls’ teams have been exceptional in effort and in results.

Oakham are incredibly proud of them as conditions have been extraordinary too. Learning to run on water has been a skill refined on the fields of Oakham and excelled across the East Midlands.

Highlights included the Junior Boys, Inter Boys, U12 Girls and U12 Boys teams all winning first place at the Leicester County Championships held at Ratcliffe.

The collective efforts of all of the individual runners combined to scoop this impressive number of top spots for these team prizes.

Runners also enjoyed great success in the East Midlands Cross Country League with high numbers of pupils finishing in the top 10.

In the Uppingham League Race three runners placed in the top 10 Open Girls (Flo, 2nd, Betsy, 6th and Lottie, 10th), three Inter Boys (Peter, 3rd, Harry, 5th and Sam, 10th), and Rori finished 5th in the Senior Boys race.

In the Welbeck College League Race four girls finished in the top 10 in the Open Girls (Flo, 3rd, Sofia, 4th, Lottie, 5th and Issy, 10th), two in the Inter Boys (Peter 1st and Sam 7th), with Rori placing 4th in the Senior Boys race.

In the Rugby League Race three girls finished in the top 10 in the Open Girls (Flo, 2nd, Sofia, 4th, Lottie, 9th), two in the Inter Boys (Peter, 3rd and Harry 5th), with Rori finishing in 3rd place in the Senior Boys.

In the Oakham League Race (at Rutland Water), Lottie placed 6th in the Open Girls, and Gabe 10th in the Senior Boys.

Lottie, in Lower One, enjoyed great success over the season – as well as all of her other placements, she also came an impressive 2nd out of 120 runners at the Leicester Prep & Primary County Championships in Prestwold in the U11 Girls race. Written by Trefon Vandoros, Assistant Director of Sport (Boys)

Sports Highlights 2019 - 2020

1st VI Boys Hockey team were crowned Midlands Champions

U19 Netballers were Regional Champions

1st XI Football team were crowned League winners

Will secured the U16 title and Harry was 2nd in the U14s at the Rutland Sailing Club and Youth Championships

Tilly and Becca were selected for the England NAGS Hockey U16 and U18 squads

Will won the Leicestershire County Cricket Club Batsman of the Year

U15 Rugby team reached the Semi-Final of the NatWest Cup

U13 Girls Hockey team were Runners Up in the County Championship

U14 Netballers were Regional Champions

1st XI Boys Hockey team reached the Quarter-Finals of the Tier 1 National Competition Third Former Teddy was selected for the England Golf U18 Regional Squad U13 Boys Hockey team reached the National Finals

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BEYOND OAKHAM

Edition no.206

Beyond Oakham This year, more than ever, the focus for the Careers Department has been on enabling pupils to develop key careers skills, as well as getting them to think about their future choices. We are grateful to everyone who took the time to talk to our pupils and offer careers advice over the year, including during lockdown via online lecture and interviews. avid Gilman (89), Senior Director at Sky News spoke to pupils studying D iMedia about his journey from Oakham, to the studios of Sky News.

March Careers Week During Careers Week Oakhamians enjoyed an array of eye-opening talks, insightful sessions and engaging activities.

Pupils in Forms 6 and 7 attended workshops on improving communication skills such as networking, multi-tasking, interviewing and writing a professional email – all critical employability skills that we encourage pupils to learn and practise as early as possible.

In addition, pupils were able to learn about a variety of different career choices from insightful speakers, including some Old Oakhamians who returned to pass on their knowledge and advice:

Alan Desira and Jason Bates, both leading entrepreneurs in their field of Fintech, gave a great talk about how traditional banks are set up, the rise of digital technologies in banking and the skills needed to work in the sector.

Dan Moore (98), who is a lead modeller for Framestore, had pupils enthralled when he showcased some of characters he had been responsible for recently such as Baby Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy, the animals from Mowgli, Paddington Bear and the animal daemons and polar bears from BBC’s His Dark Materials, to name a few. rofessor Philip Baker, the Dean of Medicine P at Leicester University, opened the Medical and Clinical Careers Conference where aspiring medical students (from Oakham and seven other local schools) had an entire morning of talks on general practice, hospital medicine, veterinary medicine and careers in healthcare.

Fay Zmija Nicolson, an artist living in London, gave an honest insight into the life of an artist, including how she is able to make money, what exactly an artist is and what should an artist do. ucia Gore who runs Kozi, a course to L encourage young creatives to learn the basic skills required for coding and UX design, talked about her experience as a woman working in the creative tech industry. ucas Clay (10), Branding Designer at Brand L 42, spoke about his placement in China at an electrical company as well as his work creating his own brand and brands for others.

BEYOND OAKHAM

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Lockdown Alumni Careers Support Our alumni community continued to support the School during lockdown, inspiring our pupils via online lectures and interviews. Normally Oakham invites Old Oakhamians into School to offer this advice and careers guidance. These events continued during the Summer Term – just from the comfort of everyone’s homes!

Leading the way in coordinating these opportunities for our pupils and those from neighbouring schools was teacher of Biology, Dr Andrew Nicoll, who organised a series of DocSoc and Biology Society meetings featuring Old Oakhamian scientists.

OO Dr Navin Leanage (07), a trainee emergency medicine doctor, took part in two separate events. The first was a DocSoc meeting in May, where Navin spoke about his first-hand experience treating patients suffering from Coronavirus. A few weeks later he participated, together with members of the Science Department, in a series of practice interviews to help current and former pupils prepare for their medical school applications. OO Tuesday Healey (17) said of the experience: “Talking to Dr Leanage really helped me to decide on whether to apply for an undergraduate or graduate course. The interview was my first ever practice, and the feedback really helped me in my actual (and successful!) interview at medical school.”

Old Oakhamian Abi Mustard (15), whose work as the Information Officer for the Rutland Osprey Project was highlighted in May, visited the virtual Lower 1 classroom to talk to pupils about her work with ospreys. In June she joined three other accomplished Old Oakhamian scientists to discuss their experiences working in science and their post-Oakham journey, in a virtual Biology Society ‘café scientifique’.

Dr Lotty Brand (09), a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Exeter, described the nature of speciesism in primatology, and her current interest in human societies. Florence Schanschieff (14), a scientific and health policy recruiter, answered questions on the use of psychometric testing in ‘head hunting’, as well as her earlier research on plant circadian rhythms.

Finally Dr Jamie Blaza (06), a lecturer in Cryo-Electron Microscopy at the University of York, engaged in a spirited discussion with Drs Nicoll and Ingles on open access publishing in science and the role of universities in training the next generation of scientists.

Dr Navin Leanage (07) and colleagues treating Coronavirus patients.

For more news about our Old Oakhamians, read the latest issue of the OO Club Magazine.

October Careers Fair At the annual Careers Fair, the School hosted representatives from 30 different professions ranging from the law, property, the Diplomatic Service and healthcare, including medicine, physiotherapy, radiography and midwifery.

Located between the School Chapel and Round House, College House is home to the Old Oakhamian (OO) Club, the Oakham School Foundation, our Marketing Department, and the Archives.

This beautiful former vicarage has variously been the San (Medical Centre) and a House for Sixth Form Scholars. This historic building continues to serve Oakhamians and Old Oakhamians by keeping them connected with their School’s rich history, its vibrant present and our plans for an exciting future.

Keep up to date with everything that is happening in School: Follow us on Instagram @oldoakhamianclub Search ‘Old Oakhamian Club’ The Oakham Hub: thehuboakham.com

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