The Bulletin 230

THE

Bulletin

ISSUE 230

FROM THE HEADMASTER

Advent is a season of looking forward, of hope and anticipation. This period is traditionally all the more important set against the context of darkening winter days, temperatures dropping, and, in the current climate, continuing storm clouds in the media at a time of global tension and conflict. Our innate need for positivity and brightness is, therefore, one reason why this season is filled with traditions which by their very nature are reassuring in their familiarity, which feel timeless and ageless, and which all – physically or figuratively – bring much-needed light and music into our lives. Against a backdrop of darkness and difficulty, Christmas lights on the High Street, the illumination of trees, and the inescapable sparkle of festive decorations wherever you go all provide joy, hope and celebration, as do (for some!) the first playing of Shakin’ Stevens or Mariah Carey on the radio, or that first door – and first chocolate – of an advent calendar!

Our Advent Service in Holy Trinity Church epitomised this.

In an atmospheric, candle-lit setting, the music and readings unashamedly focused on brightness and light, joy and celebration, reassurance and comfort, peace and goodwill, unity and cohesion. And for me this sense of togetherness is one of the most important messages of this time of year.

The last few weeks of the Michaelmas Term provide many opportunities as a school community for us to come together, as well as providing much-needed moments for reflection and celebration, a chance to pause, a moment of quiet and peace in our busy lives. We must continue to cherish these rare opportunities of tranquility; these are the occasions which serve to remind us of the strength and cohesion of the RGS community.

In the same vein, the quality and sophistication of musicianship at the RGS are equally uplifting and inspiring, never more so than in this period of the school year. The students’ individual and collective standard continues to astound me and to be a source of great pride for us as a school.

“

…brightness and light, joy and celebration, reassurance and comfort, peace and goodwill, unity and cohesion.

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Our incredible Music Department – and talented team of peripatetic staff – provide genuine stretch and challenge for our musicians, allowing them to realise their potential and providing the stage for them to perform: from those at the early phases of their development representing their Houses in the String, Piano, Woodwind or Singing Competitions and masterclasses, to the glorious Ensembles Concert, or our rock bands performing at The Boileroom. I would particularly like to draw attention to this week’s Orchestral Concert in Holy Trinity Church, and congratulate all those concerned; it was a truly special and memorable evening of exquisite performances from our students.

So, as we embark upon a busy build-up to the end of term, I hope we can all as a community embrace the events of the coming days. I look forward to the sparkle and the shine of the next two weeks, the melodies and the refrains, and even the odd Christmas song blasting out at the RGS Christmas Fair on Saturday!

INCLUSIVITY SCHOLARSHIP INTEGRITY

RESPECT COURAGE COLLABORATION

OUR VALUES

SCHOOL PRIORITIES 2022-2025 Our current RGS school development priorities are Diversity and Inclusion, Collaboration, and Student Experience and Equality. These priorities run on a three-year cycle.

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION We are focusing on four areas: staff collaboration to develop and improve teaching and learning; sharing best practice between RGS and RGS Prep; co-educational opportunities and links for our students socially and academically; and linking with our international schools to provide students with cultural and academic exchange opportunities.

COLLABORATION This is an area of continual development; however, our current focuses are on student appearance; the reporting process; academic tracking and reporting; co-curricular participation; literacy; pastoral support; reviewing the Sixth Form curriculum provision; and effective use of student devices and the possibilities that AI offers.

STUDENT EXPERIENCE We have focused on student and staff voice, as well as experienced external providers, to inform our strategy which is currently centred around staff diversity; developing a more inclusive curriculum; and providing additional training and support for staff and students with the aim of making our whole community more tolerant and inclusive.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS Saturday 2 December: With a heavy frost and freezing conditions forecast, there may, regrettably, be disruption to the weekend rugby matches. Please check our social media platforms before leaving home and do not drop-off your son until you have had confirmation that the fixture is on. Thank you.

Saturday 2 December: RGS Christmas Fair. 1.00 – 4.00pm. Great Hall. Over 40 stalls. All friends and family are very welcome. The countdown to Christmas starts here!

Wednesday 6 December: Our A Celebration of Christmas service takes place at 2.30pm in the Cathedral followed by A Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at 7.30pm in the same location. All parents and families are warmly invited to attend our evening service.

Friday 8 December: Christmas jumper non-uniform day takes place in support of our school-nominated charities.

Tuesday 12 December: The Michaelmas Term comes to a close with Final Assembly which will end at approximately 3.30pm, after which the holidays officially begin!

JOIN US TOMORROW!

JOIN US TOMORROW!

THE GALLERY

LATEST NEWS EVENTS The last fortnight has seen a rich range of activities, all focused on enriching and stretching our students beyond the classroom.

These have included: the Junior Scholarship Conference, the Sixth Form A Level German Study Day, a range of workshops and lectures across the year groups to mark the 400th Anniversary of William Shakespeare’s First Folio; the Woodwind and String Masterclasses and the CWIZZ.

MUSIC Despite only being in its second year, the Advent Carol Service has quickly established itself as one of the highlights of the Michaelmas Term. Taking place by candlelight in the atmospheric setting of Holy Trinity Church, this year’s service felt truly special. Interspersed with readings and reflections on the meaning of Advent, the musical aspects of the service were led by the RGS Schola Cantorum. Structured around the Seven Great Advent Antiphons, the service was dominated by plainchant. The Tenors and Basses of Schola Cantorum mastered the nuances of the style, performing it with sensitivity and authority, the soloists – including Oscar Ford – were notable for their accomplished performances and profoundly moving musical delivery.

SHAKESPEARE’S FIRST FOLIO To commemorate the 400th anniversary of the publication of William Shakespeare’s First Folio this month, we were delighted to welcome back to the RGS Dr Robert Stagg, an Associate Senior Member of the Faculty of English at the University of Oxford, and a Leverhulme Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham’s Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon, who hosted a range of workshops and lectures across the year groups.

LATEST NEWS CWIZZ The CWIZZ, an annual literary quiz run by authors for students in Years 5 to 8, traditionally held in London, expanded to Surrey following a suggestion sparked by the RGS team's victory at Emanuel School.

With the support of West Surrey Partnership, 92 children from 12 other schools joined eight RGS boys in the Undercroft for a fantastic afternoon of quizzing, author talks and book signing. An entertaining afternoon of challenges included rounds of questions entitled Red, How does your garden grow?, Sidekicks and Side Characters, Cats and Dogs, and the fiendish Under Cover round, interspersed with talks, spot prizes and a well-needed refreshment break.

NATIONAL YOUTH CHOIR Vikram Kurup has been offered a place with the National Youth Choir 9 – 15 year group, after a successful audition in which he received glowing feedback: “You sang with a lovely legato tone and sang through the long phrases. A very sensible key for you, well done. We heard some good resonance in the lower range which is exciting for the future!”

JUNIOR SCHOLARSHIP CONFERENCE The RGS Junior Scholarship Conference, welcomed over 40 students from the First, Second, and Third Forms. Organised by the Senior Scholars’ Council, led by president Alexander Davies, the conference aimed to foster scholarship among younger students and provide a platform for seniors to share academic interests. Five Upper Sixth Form students presented on diverse topics, adapting their presentations for a younger audience. The engaging presentations were followed by a spirited Q&A session, showcasing the presenters' adept handling of inquisitive questions.

SPORTS NEWS

CHESS A depleted 1st VI travelled to Whitgift School to face their 1st VI. After a tight affair, the RGS narrowly lost out 3 – 2. Magnus Borissow won his game, Ronit Sachdeva and James Guo picked up up draws and James Fenwick made his 1st VI debut. In the 2nd VI match against Kingston Grammar School’s 1st VI Sebastian Allam, Shourya Patre and Can Görgüner won all their games.

On an individual level, Aditya Sengupta participated at the Gordon’s School individual junior chess tournament. He won the tournament against 32 other competitors, having defeated all five of his opponents.

CROSS-COUNTRY In the Waverley and District Cross-Country competition at Charterhouse School, the RGS team came second overall out of the 28 schools competing; on an individual level, Sam Foster came first in his race.

FOOTBALL Our 1st XI progressed to the third round of the County Cup after a convincing 7 – 1 victory against George Abbot School including a stunning hat-trick from Hayden Christian and a brace from Fi Adeoshun.

RUGBY We welcomed Skinners’ School back onto the fixture list, after a five-year break since our last block.

Particular highlights included a clean-sweep of victories for the Under 15 and 16 teams, and a nail-biting 7 – 5 win for our 3rd XV after Tom Sonnenberg's well-taken pick-and-go try and Tom Donnelly’s conversion. Then, for the second week in a row, cold overnight temperatures led to another frosty Saturday morning but fortunately, this soon disappeared thanks to the beautiful sunny weather meaning all games in the Abingdon block were able to go ahead as planned. The 1st XV produced their most complete team performance of the season away at Abingdon; the work rate, energy and intent were abundantly evident in their 44 – 10 victory. Other highlights included a commanding 40 – 22 win for the Under 15A team.

SHOOTING In their last head-to-head of the term six members of the shooting team went to Gordon’s School for a very different kind of match. Gordon’s shoot without jackets, without slings, without gloves and without any kind of rest. This kind of shooting requires an entirely different skill and a lot of strength to support the rifle during a 10-Bull shoot. James Nicholas achieved the highest score from both schools and in the 10-Bull pairing of James and Benedict Cunningham the RGS secured a victory, 188 to 185. In addition, Benedict earned himself a Top Score medal.

SKIING Our ski race team was in Edinburgh in the British Schools Race Championships, having qualified to be one of the Team England Schools at the English Open Competition. The competition was fierce, with the Scottish teams having the home advantage on the steep and bumpy hill-end slope, featuring a sector called The Wall, which is the steepest black run on any dry slope in the world. On the day, some excellent performances by Max Locke, Charlie Locke, Charlie Connolly and Jack Weeks saw the RGS team placed eighth in the British Open competition: an excellent achievement.

SQUASH In the annual Surrey Independent Squash Open Tournament at Epsom College, our two teams impressed with notable performances from Arthur Gaseltine, Ali Noble and Scott Swanepoel. Our 1st team progressed to the 3rd/4th play-off against Epsom College where they won comfortably to take third place in their division.

MEET OUR… SAFEGUARDING TEAM = Designated Safeguarding Lead = Deputy DSLs

Mr NW Gough Assistant Head Pastoral (DSL)

Mr JDN Lythgoe Head of Upper Sixth Form

Mr M Baggs

Mr M Bailey

Mr A Dodd

Mrs S Kidgell

Head of Lower School

Head of Third Form

Head of Fifth Form

PA to Senior Deputy Head & Heads of Year

Miss JL McAllister

Mr JW Pressley

Mr M Royds

Miss G Spencer

PA to the Headmaster

Senior Master

Head of Upper School

Mr K Tayar

Mrs J Thorpe

Mr I Wilkes

Mr J Witts

Teacher of Religion & Philosophy, Senior Housemaster

Deputy Head

Head of First Form

Head of Middle School

FOLLOW US ON…

Head of Second Form

Mr A Woodman Senior Deputy Head