Belmont

The school which takes pupils from the ages of 7 to 13 continues to be as popular as ever. We saw over 400 pupils for our 11+ admissions tests earlier this year, our highest ever number sitting. Nevertheless, it was a tough academic year with the continued impact of Covid-19. With Lockdown 3, Belmont was even better prepared to respond to the challenge of online learning, and the pupils took part in full days of live lessons. Despite our strong virtual offering it was wonderful to welcome the children back into school in the Spring Term. As I write, we have just had our first cricket fixture since the pandemic began. We might have lost at Orley Farm but we played some cricket against another school in the sunshine – that’s a victory for me.

There is a huge amount to look forward to. To illustrate how we provide a broad, outward looking and inspiring education, here are some of the year’s highlights:

Lectures

Andrew Pollard Professor of Paediatric infection and Immunity, University of Oxford, as well as being an Oxford Don is a consultant paediatrician and the Chief Principal Investigator on the Global vaccine trials. As Head of the Oxford Vaccine group, Professor Pollard has been instrumental in leading the fight against Covid-19. He talked through the journey of the development of the vaccine, the setbacks they faced and the challenges that still lie ahead – the main one being getting enough vaccines to everyone around the world. There were some key messages for the pupils, including reassurances about children’s safety from Covid-19, the importance of teamwork (whether developing a vaccine or climbing Everest), resilience, and critical thinking (Professor Pollard talked about the challenges of fake news). The pupils asked some great questions and I was impressed with how they, unprompted, thanked the Professor for developing the vaccine and giving us hope.

Wellbeing

This year more than ever, supporting pupil and staff wellbeing has remained a high priority. Striking a balance between the need to educate pupils on good mental health and allowing children to grow with their feelings can be challenging. Lockdown and countless Google Meets took its toll on even the most resilient. Yet as a community, we have emerged stronger and more content. Through the darkest weeks of lockdown, we worked with the pupils to encourage them to look after their wellbeing: creativity; acts of giving; connecting with each other; staying active; mindfulness, meditation are all essential aspects of their education and build strong minds. Blessed with our beautiful grounds, we seize every opportunity to take the pupils outside. A classroom between rhododendrons, fields and forest is surely an optimum space for good mental health.

Our Wellbeing Week is approaching, and we will celebrate with a plethora of activities, many of them outside. From Tai Chi on the Master’s Lawn to creating the sounds of nature outside the chapel, the week will once again embrace the essential belief that pupils learn best when they are happy.

Competitions

We entered the Townsend Warner History competition. This is a national event which challenges a pupil’s historical knowledge, and this year’s paper was incredibly difficult with questions ranging from ‘Who was the first (and last) English Pope?’ to ‘In what city did the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923’ take place?’. We were delighted to receive the news after Easter that three Belmont pupils had made it through to Round Two. Pupil Archie 8OM put in a terrific performance finishing 43rd – our highest ranking pupil since we joined the competition. We are also thrilled that two Year 7 pupils, Alice and Zayan also made it through, a terrific achievement as the majority of the entrants are from the year above.

Remembering 2020-21 for future Belmontians

On returning to school, we felt it was important that we marked the past year and the way that our lives changed by creating a Belmont time capsule. All our classes reflected upon their own Covid-19 year and shared the highs and lows, as well as remembering the things that brought us together. This included the Thursday evening Clap for Carers to celebrate our wonderful NHS staff, and the new languages and phrases that entered our vocabulary such as ‘social distancing’, ‘lockdown’ and the dreaded ‘You’re on Mute!’ The pupils produced a wonderful collection of memories including letters for future Belmontians, poems and pictures that reflect the events of the past year. These records will be stored in a time capsule that will go on display in our Chapel entrance.